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ATI Powermodule T5 + LED (NOW W/ REEFBRITE RETROFIT)


eksblenny

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In case anyone is interested, here are some pics I took of an ATI Powermodule T5 and LED fixture that I received today. It is a 24" model so there is only one cluster of LEDs. This was purchased from ReefGeek. I haven't had a chance to turn the lights on yet but thought someone might be interested in more photos of this pretty elusive unit.
I posted this in the other big reef forum, but since it's 24" long thought you guys might be interested as well.
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UPDATE ON MARCH 2014

Before (Mid October 2013):

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After (Mid March 2014):

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Before (Mid October 2013):

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After (Mid March 2014):

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Yeah... They are so freaking pretty. T5/led hybrid is exactly what I want, having an 18" tank makes this unattainable.

Easily fixed. Buy a 24" tank. Win win, right?

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Oh my I didn't think reef tank light porn existed, that thing is amazing. What're the specs on it? 20x 3W LEDs and 4x24W T5HO? How'd you get it?

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Paleoreef103

Oh my I didn't think reef tank light porn existed, that thing is amazing. What're the specs on it? 20x 3W LEDs and 4x24W T5HO? How'd you get it?

It's 4X24W T5 and 75W of LEDs (18 REBELs and 2 Crees)

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i want one so bad.

 

Dont lie lol

 

Yeah... They are so freaking pretty. T5/led hybrid is exactly what I want, having an 18" tank makes this unattainable.

 

20 inch. T5s are really 18 inches, 18.75 with small end caps...do what I did...nanobox.

 

 

This ati is pretty sweet, just feel like they should have spread the leds across the length of the unit

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That is a great looking light fixture.. But I think they should have spread the two clusters out a bit rather than just having a "hot spot" in the center of the tank.. of course I think what I want is an LED fixture supplemented by T5, not a T5 fixture supplemented by LED.. well.. I actually don't have any idea what I want to be honest...

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That is a great looking light fixture.. But I think they should have spread the two clusters out a bit rather than just having a "hot spot" in the center of the tank.. of course I think what I want is an LED fixture supplemented by T5, not a T5 fixture supplemented by LED.. well.. I actually don't have any idea what I want to be honest...

 

I'm planning to DIY something like this. Evil cluster supplemented by T5s. Still in the planning stages though, probably a couple months before it becomes reality.

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That is a great looking light fixture.. But I think they should have spread the two clusters out a bit rather than just having a "hot spot" in the center of the tank.. of course I think what I want is an LED fixture supplemented by T5, not a T5 fixture supplemented by LED.. well.. I actually don't have any idea what I want to be honest...

 

I know im thread jacking sorry. But a suggestion.... you want a fixture that can fully sustain life with either led or t5. As both options have dimming if you have the right hardware. That should be what you want :) then ypu can do it like me and have leds then t5s for high noon or visa versa

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I know im thread jacking sorry. But a suggestion.... you want a fixture that can fully sustain life with either led or t5. As both options have dimming if you have the right hardware. That should be what you want :) then ypu can do it like me and have leds then t5s for high noon or visa versa

As much light as will be coming out of that ATI, sustaining life is going to be easy.. getting good coloration, a little shimmer, good flouresence, full coverage, etc is what is important..

 

I ran T5 for a while with great results, now I run LED with also great (but different) results, they are both great in their own ways.. my only point was I'm not sure if I want LED supplemented with T5, or t5 supplemented with LED.. and I tend to flip-flop back and forth.. lol..

 

anyway, enough thread highjacking from me. this is a great looking fixture and I'm sure people will be very happy with it :)

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  • 2 months later...

So I guess I haven't updated this in a while. The T5+LED combo works well if you are willing to pay for the (ridiculously) exorbitant cost. The build quality is great but the hardware update doesn't look too complicated. It looks like most of the extra cost went into the ballast, which does admittedly house a nicely featured controller. Like other LED fixtures you can control the intensity of each color, but an added benefit is that you can also dim the T5s in pairs. Each pair of T5s and the LED module has its own timer. All of this is in a single ballast with a single plug.

 

In terms of lighting, it is what you would expect. You get much more even lighting and better color range from the T5s and a more focused halide effect with some shimmer from the LED spot. With four bulbs and an LED spot, the shimmer is pretty good. It is comparable to the shimmer you would get from a 150W halide with 4 T5 bulbs. You would need surface agitation of course.

 

For color, I personally pump alot of pink and red in my T5 tubes since that is what is missing I think in most LED bulbs (including the ones with red LEDs from my experiences with the Radion). I run two Blue Plus and two Fiji Purple and I pump alot of blue from the LED spot. Because of this my tank leans more towards the pink/purple color spectrum rather than the blue/white you see in most tanks. I'm sure most of you won't like this but I prefer the warmer colors (which is why I am always unhappy with my previous LED-only setups).

 

Here's a few pics that I color corrected to match the lighting:

 

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Wow the colors of all your corals are amazing, thanks for the white balance corrected photo, that will help me with deciding what T5s to supplement my LED/T5 build. How're the corals reacting to the new light fixture, any color or growth changes?

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Some of the LPS lightened up when I first switched but most have colored back up. I'm running the lighting very conservatively at the moment. At its brightest (for 4hrs/day) the T5s are running at 80% and the LEDs are running at about 30%. In terms of colors, I was running T5s previously and I have seen no color change when switching to this lighting. No growth changes either.

 

I should note it's nice running LEDs only in the evening. When the T5s go out, I still run the LEDs for about 4 hours longer before they turn into moonlight.

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  • 2 months later...

Any reason to buy this over a Prestige-LED Fixture? I think that one might actually be more powerful with their more spread out and numerous LEDs.

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Any reason to buy this over a Prestige-LED Fixture? I think that one might actually be more powerful with their more spread out and numerous LEDs.

Yeah. Quality for one. ATI is synonymous with quality. ATI's reflectors are also known to be the best in the business. I would say that the ATI probably puts out more light than the Prestige fixture despite having fewer LEDs due to the quality of the reflectors. I would also say that the Prestige is a LED+T5 light while the ATI is a T5 + LED light. The LEDs on the ATI unit should have much better color blending as well.

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ATI reflectors are very easy to retrofit into almost any fixture. They're also only about $16-20 each.

 

I own an ATI 8 bulb Sunpower... it doesn't seem super quality to me especially considering the aftermarket-ish radioshack universal power adapter. If you want to check out quality, check out a Radion, very nicely made and packaged along with slick power supplies.

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  • 1 month later...

ATI reflectors are very easy to retrofit into almost any fixture. They're also only about $16-20 each.

 

I own an ATI 8 bulb Sunpower... it doesn't seem super quality to me especially considering the aftermarket-ish radioshack universal power adapter. If you want to check out quality, check out a Radion, very nicely made and packaged along with slick power supplies.

 

I wouldn't call the gigantic size of the radion power supply (with a replacement price of $309) slick at all.

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Just an update. The light obviously has no problems with growth. I've had to remove several of my larger pieces because they were growing way too fast or shading other corals.

 

I am a light junkie so I also own a Sunpower and a Radion (and I've owned the AI Nano, Hydra, and Kessil A350) and I don't think the Sunpower is indicative of ATI quality. You are essentially getting ATI reflectors in a "budget" enclosure. Unlike this Powermodule, the Sunpower has several fit and finish issues and the gauge of stainless steel is thin. If you are talking aesthetics only and not light output, the Radion is cleaner than the Sunpower but it's also simpler and made out of plastic. The Radion is not any more elegantly built than the cheaper AI fixtures, which I think look just as nice.

 

This fixture like the earlier generation Powermodule is made out of aluminum. It is a very hefty and solid fixture and in my opinion a nice metal fixture will always be superior in quality to a plastic one. As for flypenfly's comment, I'm not saying that the build quality is worth the price (it isn't), but this fixture cannot be compared to the Sunpower.

 

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