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Boost Par30 or Rapid Par38?


timothymarsh

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timothymarsh

I am upgrading my lights soon on my 15 gallon tank (see thread below) and I want to get some advice as to which bulbs I should go with. If I get the Boosts I will need two and the total should be somewhere at $215, if I get the Rapids I might be able to get away with one and that comes out to around $120 with a clamp. Any advice that you can provide would be great, and please post pictures of tanks with Par 30/38 lamps so I can compare. Thanks.

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timothymarsh

I thought about it seriously but the $260+ investment on a college budget is not fun. The two Par 30's come in just over 200. Plus I can get a somewhat dawn to dusk effect with two lights rather than one blasting led lamp. The Kessil is super nice though. :/

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i just bought an OCreef par38 full spectrum, i will have pics for it soon, waiting on clamp from boostled, the ocreef par38 is also has wireless remote control so you can change the color on it, its pretty crazy..

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timothymarsh

@ JDK- the LEDTRIC bulb sounds interesting with the full spectrum I'm just worried that the product might be too new, and the Epistar led's can't really compare to CREE's.

 

@ Kidluvsole- The OC Reef unit is interesting and I like the dimming option, do you think one bulb would be enough for a 15 gallon?

 

@ iball- From what I've seen the Rapid's might give me a bit too much light, am I wrong there?

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Jacob042426

Epistar is not uncomparable. Epistat is close to equal, and more reliable. Also, nothing compares to ledtrics customer service.

Dont get intimidated by the big names.

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I will be posting a review shortly on the Ledtric Full Spec (aka "zooman72") PAR38 - I have 2 over my 29g and they are definately not "too blue". It is a shame I have no photography "skills" at the moment to illustrate the color, although another member here on NR has already posted some photos that were pretty darn good and show a close approximation of color.

 

As for the OP original question - I really think you would need 2 PAR30's or PAR38's with 60 degree optics to properly light a standard 15g (24"x12"x12") unless you were keeping your corals only within the center of the tank (12"-16"). A single PAR38 with 80 degree optics might work then if that is what you were planning.

 

Also, the BoostLED PAR30's use Edixeon LED's - funny how no one questions that, but questions the Epistars in the Ledtric PAR38's? By the way, I have 2 tanks lit by Boost lamps and like them alot, and I currently have only the one tank lit by the Ledtric lamps and like them just a little more!

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timothymarsh
I will be posting a review shortly on the Ledtric Full Spec (aka "zooman72") PAR38 - I have 2 over my 29g and they are definately not "too blue". It is a shame I have no photography "skills" at the moment to illustrate the color, although another member here on NR has already posted some photos that were pretty darn good and show a close approximation of color.

 

As for the OP original question - I really think you would need 2 PAR30's or PAR38's with 60 degree optics to properly light a standard 15g (24"x12"x12") unless you were keeping your corals only within the center of the tank (12"-16"). A single PAR38 with 80 degree optics might work then if that is what you were planning.

 

Also, the BoostLED PAR30's use Edixeon LED's - funny how no one questions that, but questions the Epistars in the Ledtric PAR38's? By the way, I have 2 tanks lit by Boost lamps and like them alot, and I currently have only the one tank lit by the Ledtric lamps and like them just a little more!

 

So it sounds like one bulb @ 80 degree optics is out of the question. (I have corals all over the tank) The next option is two par 38 bulbs either full spectrum, tri-color or possibly a true pop mix.

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I have had all three over my 29g, and my favorite is of course the Full Spec, but some might call me a little biased...

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