Clown79 Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 So the hubby and I were talking about possibly upgrading our lighting on the 25g lagoon. I currently run 1 Ai Prime on it. Debating on which option to go with for an upgrade. 1. Adding a Prime HD with my reg. Prime 2. AI Hydra 26 Which option would you go with? Quote Link to comment
MrObscura Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 A Hydra is pretty much 2 primes, since you have one you might as well just add a second. It'll be cheaper too. Unless you'll have a use for the extra prime. Quote Link to comment
Water Dog Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 Yeah, get a second prime, that way you can space the pucks out to get a more even spread of light across the 24” length of the tank. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 5, 2018 Author Share Posted November 5, 2018 I was thinking the 2 would be cool but I definitely could have a use for my original prime. If I got the hydra, the prime will go on my other tank. 1 Quote Link to comment
MrObscura Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 If you have a use for the extra prime and don't mind spending a little more I'd actually considering going with the Hydra in that situation. Quote Link to comment
luckie1966 Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 It doesn't matter which one you get eventually you will want two. I have both a hydra and a prime and I want two primes on my biocube just cause of shadows .I thought it be neat start one prime and then start the other prime ramping them up and down so light travels across the tank. If your tanks deep then hydra a better choice. The mounting for the hydra jumps up in price. Quote Link to comment
Water Dog Posted November 5, 2018 Share Posted November 5, 2018 I still think the coverage of 2 Primes appropriately spaced on a Nuvo 25 will hands down outperform a single Hydra 26 on the same tank. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 On 11/5/2018 at 6:07 PM, Water Dog said: I still think the coverage of 2 Primes appropriately spaced on a Nuvo 25 will hands down outperform a single Hydra 26 on the same tank. Would mixing an HD and regular prime be a problem? AI recommended the hydra but I like the price of only upgrading to a prime hd😁 Quote Link to comment
Water Dog Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 Oh, I kinda missed that you have an original Prime and not an HD. If that’s the case, I’d be a little worried about being able the color match the two on the same tank. 😞 Quote Link to comment
MrObscura Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 I don't think so, the regular prime might be a little less powerful and has a slightly different led setup and lacks the ability to overdrive channels. But I'm sure with some fine tuning you could get them matched pretty well. Or you could try to find a used regular prime and save a little more money. Quote Link to comment
MainelyReefer Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 I’d go with a second prime. In regards to the non HD to HD compatibility I think you won’t have issues. I borrowed my friends HD when they first came out and had it paired with the NonHD prime. At the time the app was wonky as my nonHD prime was the “master” so the HD couldn’t hit its peak but I’m sure that was either user error or early app hiccups. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 3 hours ago, Water Dog said: Oh, I kinda missed that you have an original Prime and not an HD. If that’s the case, I’d be a little worried about being able the color match the two on the same tank. 😞 That was my concern too. 🙁 2 hours ago, GraniteReefer said: I’d go with a second prime. In regards to the non HD to HD compatibility I think you won’t have issues. I borrowed my friends HD when they first came out and had it paired with the NonHD prime. At the time the app was wonky as my nonHD prime was the “master” so the HD couldn’t hit its peak but I’m sure that was either user error or early app hiccups. Thank you! Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 I'd get a second prime but have yet to see one for sale. Used equipment here is hard to get unless you are looking for equipment for 120g. Quote Link to comment
SelectedByNature Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 I have a single AI Prime (non-HD) and I have a similar issue. I was more considering adding a T5HO hybrid solution thought as I'm mainly concerned with shading. I understand it's more costly over time than LEDs, but the blanketing effect is nice. Quote Link to comment
Jeff Hood Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 On 11/5/2018 at 4:18 PM, luckie1966 said: It doesn't matter which one you get eventually you will want two. I have both a hydra and a prime and I want two primes on my biocube just cause of shadows .I thought it be neat start one prime and then start the other prime ramping them up and down so light travels across the tank. If your tanks deep then hydra a better choice. The mounting for the hydra jumps up in price. This is exactly what I’m eventually going to do on my little tank. Quote Link to comment
lpsouth1978 Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 I say go with another Prime. You will be glad you have the spread the separate lights provide. You said you could have a use for the non-HD prime if needed, so why not get a Prime HD and give it a shot. If color matching is an issue, you can always get another HD and use the non-HD elsewhere. I see used Prime HD's for sale all the time on here and other forums that wont be named. 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment
Daniel91 Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 2 hours ago, Clown79 said: I'd get a second prime but have yet to see one for sale. Used equipment here is hard to get unless you are looking for equipment for 120g. Wait for BF sales. I know it dropped $30 last year Quote Link to comment
JBM Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 hold off another week or two. Almost everything here in the states goes on sale because of black friday. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 1 hour ago, JBM said: hold off another week or two. Almost everything here in the states goes on sale because of black friday. I'm in Canada.😢 BF sales are pretty much a joke here, particularly reef sales. Our Halloween sale was 8%. Lmao. Quote Link to comment
JBM Posted November 7, 2018 Share Posted November 7, 2018 15 minutes ago, Clown79 said: I'm in Canada.😢 BF sales are pretty much a joke here, particularly reef sales. Our Halloween sale was 8%. Lmao. that's terrible. A lfs here is teasing a up to 60% off sale on everything. Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 7, 2018 Author Share Posted November 7, 2018 5 minutes ago, JBM said: that's terrible. A lfs here is teasing a up to 60% off sale on everything. Damn that's good. 3 issues living in cda - sales not so great, the cost of everything is already high plus the tax. 1 Quote Link to comment
SelectedByNature Posted November 8, 2018 Share Posted November 8, 2018 20 hours ago, Clown79 said: Damn that's good. 3 issues living in cda - sales not so great, the cost of everything is already high plus the tax. But the PM is so handsome 1 Quote Link to comment
Reefkid88 Posted November 15, 2018 Share Posted November 15, 2018 I say another Prime (I see a lot for sale on R2R) ORRR go 4 bulb t5 😎 !!! Quote Link to comment
Clown79 Posted November 15, 2018 Author Share Posted November 15, 2018 brs did a study on lighting and with the prime hd specs, only 1 prime HD is needed over 24x24 unless you want an sps dominant tank. My tank is lps dominant. I think I'm gonna let the HD and see the beverage with that alone and if need be I can add my regular prime. Quote Link to comment
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