# Kessil Alternative



## swarley (Apr 12, 2018)

AI Prime Fresh


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## Jeff5614 (Dec 29, 2005)

A160we


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## Kensho (Oct 24, 2012)

Jeff5614 said:


> A160we


Do you think it has enough power and spread for a 24x24 tank?


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## swarley (Apr 12, 2018)

Id go with the ai prime fresh. Slightly cheaper. Should grow 24x24 well. A160WE would work too but it's more expensive but I'd prefer having the option of controlling via the phone app and setting timer/schedule through that.


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## aubie98 (Apr 22, 2017)

Don't have experience with the a160we, but I have two AI Primes on a 54 gallon corner and love them.


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## UbbeDall (Jun 24, 2016)

If you have a shallow tank the 160we should be more than plenty power. I used one over a 40cm tall aquarium with no issue growing carpets.


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## Jeff5614 (Dec 29, 2005)

Kensho said:


> Do you think it has enough power and spread for a 24x24 tank?


24x24 and it's 60 liters? It must be very shallow so I would think you would be fine. The stated coverage is 24 inches from a height of 24 inches.


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## DimitriSF (Oct 28, 2017)

What kind of plants are you going to grow or display? CO2 injection or not?

I've owned, and still own, Kessils, and while they can grow red plants, they don't "pop" as much, v.s. some other lights in that price point.

If you want shimmer, then Kessils are unrivaled. But if you want the best lights, in that price range, for showcasing red plants, I would go with the Twinstar 600SS, 600ES, or 600EA.


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## swarley (Apr 12, 2018)

Wouldn't AI Prime Fresh shimmer just as well? My plain LED bulb with the diffuser removed shimmers quite a lot too. I think you just need a point source LED light to achieve the shimmer. 

Btw @DimitriSF , I will be in SF/San Jose to visit family for the winter holidays. I am planning to visit AFA and Aqua Lab Aquaria. Any other shops or places you think I should visit while I'm there?


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## gus6464 (Dec 19, 2011)

1x AI Prime is not enough for a 24x24 no matter what AI tells you.

On a 24x24 2x Twinstar 600S or SP and call it a day.


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## UbbeDall (Jun 24, 2016)

I'll just second what @DimitriSF said, I've recently tried out the Twinstar 600s (previously Kessil 160we), and I can already see my Rotala getting much more red which I love, but on the other hand I really miss the shimmer of the Kessil, it made the aquarium look much more alive/natural. I'm quite torn to be honest, but I guess it's all about what you're looking for.


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

UbbeDall said:


> I'll just second what @*DimitriSF* said, I've recently tried out the Twinstar 600s (previously Kessil 160we), and I can already see my Rotala getting much more red which I love, but on the other hand I really miss the shimmer of the Kessil, it made the aquarium look much more alive/natural. I'm quite torn to be honest, but I guess it's all about what you're looking for.



Just increase surface agitation slightly..


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## UbbeDall (Jun 24, 2016)

jeffkrol said:


> Just increase surface agitation slightly..


I tried, doesn't really do much - too much of an even spread of light I guess.

This is what I was getting with the kessil, with the twinstar everything is just evenly lighted, seems better for the plants, but not quite as interesting to look at. If anybody can reproduce that with the twinstar (or similar light) by simply "increasing surface agitation slightly", I'd be more than happy to see!


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## DimitriSF (Oct 28, 2017)

swarley said:


> I will be in SF/San Jose to visit family for the winter holidays. I am planning to visit AFA and Aqua Lab Aquaria. Any other shops or places you think I should visit while I'm there?



My favorite LFS is Ocean Aquarium in San Francisco. It's in an alley, and you'll have to walk past homeless folks to get into it, but it's worth it. Cory, from Aquarium Co-op, says it's his favorite LFS in the WORLD. No water changes, heavily planted tanks, great healthy fish. Worth a visit.


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## jeffkrol (Jun 5, 2013)

How "deep" is this?
Standard cube is 16x16x16 approx.
w/ 24x24 you are looking at 8" deep..

not hard to light .. 
This may be a RARE instance when I suggest a Kessil (too cool for my taste) based on price and function alone..
https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/a80-tuna-sun-nano-led-light-kessil.html
16gal shallow tank.. 1WPG LED is plenty..

Better but no out of the box dimming:
https://www.amazon.com/AZOO-Black-Lighting-Planted-Aquarium/dp/B00M4Z7DWM

borderline, though should work well w/ a shallow tank.
also not dimmable.. easily..(internal power supply)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LIL7YPE/ref=psdc_2975458011_t1_B00M4Z7DWM

I know rimless "clip" not pendants. AI Prime is still "the best"..YMMV

Prob. a bunch of Chinese stuff on "the bay"..

Problem is most Nano's seemed to be reef centric.. but are usable:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F5B5GR...&pd_rd_r=6215ee63-c683-11e8-9c40-258f68d376cf

Use mostly ch2 and 4
Same w/ some cheap black box LED's but most are 2 ch and you would use mostly 1.


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## ThisDarkDivide (Jun 24, 2014)

gus6464 said:


> 1x AI Prime is not enough for a 24x24 no matter what AI tells you.
> 
> On a 24x24 2x Twinstar 600S or SP and call it a day.



I have 1 AI Prime HD Freshwater on my Mr Aqua 60G 24x24x24 Cube. My plants (with CO2 injection) need to be trimmed about every 1 1/2 months due to the growth. I have red plants that also grow crazy fast and need to be trimmed back. 1 AI Prime is enough.


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## aubie98 (Apr 22, 2017)

ThisDarkDivide said:


> I have 1 AI Prime HD Freshwater on my Mr Aqua 60G 24x24x24 Cube. My plants (with CO2 injection) need to be trimmed about every 1 1/2 months due to the growth. I have red plants that also grow crazy fast and need to be trimmed back. 1 AI Prime is enough.


What settings did you use? I've got 2 primes over a 54 gallon corner tank and I'm slowly coming to the revelation that the light is way too yellow for my taste. Even the cool white leds when turned up to max look yellow to me.

I like the feature of the lights where you pick the color temp you like and it will automatically scale the led intensities, but when I hone in on what I like, the total out put of the light is ~25%, which seems too low to be effective even when considering I have two of them over the tank.


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## Kfactor (Aug 15, 2018)

I really wanted to go with the twinstar but for
The price u pay and what u get is over priced . It doesn’t even come with a power switch u would have to buy a separate adapter. The ai prime I like just with all the settings u can do and what not is amazing. I’m a newbie at this stuff just like how u get more bang for your buck with the ai


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## NateFank (Jan 2, 2009)

I just recieved some LED pendent lights from a company in Australia called make my led. I just came into this sub to write a review. I ordered one of their dual 40w led pendants. So far they are pretty nice, fully dimmable and can adjust the blues/reds and whites to get the color you want. I paid $260 shipped from Australia, I paid extra for the power upgrade in case I need to add another light. If you have any questions let me know. I'll do a full review with pics when I get home from work today


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## gus6464 (Dec 19, 2011)

Kfactor said:


> I really wanted to go with the twinstar but for
> The price u pay and what u get is over priced . It doesn’t even come with a power switch u would have to buy a separate adapter. The ai prime I like just with all the settings u can do and what not is amazing. I’m a newbie at this stuff just like how u get more bang for your buck with the ai


Cept the AI can't color plants like the Twinstar.


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## zerodameaon (Dec 2, 2014)

swarley said:


> Btw @DimitriSF , I will be in SF/San Jose to visit family for the winter holidays. I am planning to visit AFA and Aqua Lab Aquaria. Any other shops or places you think I should visit while I'm there?


Just a heads up ALA might be a little torn up still depending on when you show up but their new store is going to be awesome. I was in there a few weeks back stepping over tools and such and the outside of the store is unassuming but once its finished they will have a great store.


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## swarley (Apr 12, 2018)

@zerodameaon I'll be there around Christmas time. Looking forward to visiting ALA and AFA.


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