[IWANNAGOFAST]

It's not the highest quality but it's only 99 dollars.

Comes with 24 bridgelux LEDs (these are actually pretty good), optics, all the wires and fans, 2 dimmable drivers (questionable quality) and even a heatsink!

http://www.aquastyleonline.com/products/Aq...mmable-Kit.html

Several people over on nano-reef.com forums have used it, said it's pretty good! Might be a good way for those interested in getting into LEDs to try it out. A similar set up w/ cree's would run well into 300 bucks.

 

[2in10]

A definite possibility I would think. I would treat this as a high light fixture underneath the fixture from my understanding on 3W LED diodes. You would most likely want to hang this at least a foot if not higher above the water.

 

[Noahma]

A definite possibility I would think. I would treat this as a high light fixture underneath the fixture from my understanding on 3W LED diodes. You would most likely want to hang this at least a foot if not higher above the water.

No need to hang it that high, the kit is dimmable. So you can hang it where you want to, and dim it to the light level you want.

I would need two of these kits for my 36 gal. still not that bad of a price. Wish they sold 6500k LED's too, instead of just the blue and 10,000k. I personally like the 6500/10,000 k combo.

 

[reybie]

Nice, I hope to see longer version for 36" and 48" tanks.

 

[Hoppy]

That is a good deal. Even if you buy a different size/shape heatsink along with that kit, it is still a good deal. For most tanks 24 3 watt LEDs will be enough, but spreading them out more on a larger heatsink would be best.

 

[IWANNAGOFAST]

i agree. This is a great price for ok LEDs and drivers. You could easily swap out a larger heatsink and sell off the kit's heatsink.

I'm using 24 LEDs over a 48 gallon btw.

 

[jcgd]

I would be worried that the thermal glue and drivers are garbage. Good price overall though. I may order one to try it out.

Anyone ever heard of Maxwellen? Maybe a comment on their quality?

*Taken from the site above*
Maxwellen LED Dimmable Driver (7-12)x3watt LEDs

Input voltage: AC 100-240V 50-60Hz
Output voltage: 24-51V
Output current(constant): 680mA +/-5%
Power range: Minimum 7 LEDs, Maximum 12 LEDs
Dimmable control: Potentiometer
Water proof: IP66
Dimension: 11cm x 3cm x 2.2cm(H)
Net weight: 0.16kg

 

[bjbass]

I would be worried that the thermal glue and drivers are garbage. Good price overall though. I may order one to try it out.

Anyone ever heard of Maxwellen? Maybe a comment on their quality?

*Taken from the site above*
Maxwellen LED Dimmable Driver (7-12)x3watt LEDs

Input voltage: AC 100-240V 50-60Hz
Output voltage: 24-51V
Output current(constant): 680mA +/-5%
Power range: Minimum 7 LEDs, Maximum 12 LEDs
Dimmable control: Potentiometer
Water proof: IP66
Dimension: 11cm x 3cm x 2.2cm(H)
Net weight: 0.16kg

I ordered of the 14 LED kits. I will let you know how the drivers work. They may not last long. I see that have Meanwell drivers too. I maybe should have went with them.

 

[Hoppy]

I don't think anyone can say how long Meanwell drivers last either. They haven't been in wide use long enough to know that. For all we now know they may be good for only a couple of years on average. And, the same is true for the current crop of LEDs.

 

[WingoAgency]

How are the shipping and what about warranty. It seems the company is in Asia.

 

[[email protected]]

How are the shipping and what about warranty. It seems the company is in Asia.

We live in a world economy now.

I've had faster delivery and better follow up from some Chinese suppliers than I have from some fairly well known "American" companies. Particularly American companies importing the same product from China and only marking it up as their "value add". That's a hard statement for me to make as another Chinese company shut down my business by taking my product and selling it shelf ready for less than just my labor cost.

As to a warranty on LED emitters, my suggestion is to purchase some extras for spares. In my opinion - one is more likely to burn them up than get a bad one.

As for the drivers, unless you build your own (using parts from where?) guess where the purchased ones came from.

As Hoppy mentioned, we don't know the actual life of any of these bits, yet. I know I used to replace light bulbs in my receiver and my aunt's pinball machine every couple of years. Single LEDs and a resister ended that task.
I've got functional LEDs that are more than twenty years old.

 

[redfishsc]

I assume "heatsink plaster" is just thermal epoxy.

However, they are giving you 10,000K white LEDs.

Please don't use only 10,000K white LEDs over your tank! It will likely look sickly, ghostly, and washed out.


A combo of 6500K and 10,000K would look great, probably, but they don't seem to have it as a possibility.

I don't think anyone can say how long Meanwell drivers last either. They haven't been in wide use long enough to know that. For all we now know they may be good for only a couple of years on average. And, the same is true for the current crop of LEDs.

I can't speak for the Meanwells (other than my first one has lasted 2 years just fine, the other 3 are just starting year #2).

But the Inventronics/Thomas Research Drivers are said (by the mfr) to last around 450,000 hours (literally 10X the life of the average LED.... so, basically, a century based on our usage!).


If you want to know more on that, Nanotuners.com could explain it better, I'm just repeating what they told me since they carry the TR/Inventronics brand.

 

[Hoppy]

I assume "heatsink plaster" is just thermal epoxy.

However, they are giving you 10,000K white LEDs.

Please don't use only 10,000K white LEDs over your tank! It will likely look sickly, ghostly, and washed out.


A combo of 6500K and 10,000K would look great, probably, but they don't seem to have it as a possibility.





I can't speak for the Meanwells (other than my first one has lasted 2 years just fine, the other 3 are just starting year #2).

But the Inventronics/Thomas Research Drivers are said (by the mfr) to last around 450,000 hours (literally 10X the life of the average LED.... so, basically, a century based on our usage!).


If you want to know more on that, Nanotuners.com could explain it better, I'm just repeating what they told me since they carry the TR/Inventronics brand.

450,000 hours is 50 years, with no lights off time, so to have one of them to have been found to last 50 years it had to have been made at least 50 years ago, before LEDs were invented. Long life projections like that have to be either calculations based on very much shorter time intervals, or just optimistic guesses. I really doubt that any electronic device will work for 50 years, and for sure, I don't want to pay even one cent more for one because it might last that long. (I'm 75, so who wants to bet that I will last that long myself?)

 

[redfishsc]

450,000 hours is 50 years, with no lights off time, so to have one of them to have been found to last 50 years it had to have been made at least 50 years ago, before LEDs were invented. Long life projections like that have to be either calculations based on very much shorter time intervals, or just optimistic guesses. I really doubt that any electronic device will work for 50 years, and for sure, I don't want to pay even one cent more for one because it might last that long. (I'm 75, so who wants to bet that I will last that long myself?)

ROFL, point well taken.

I had assumed it was based, on some level, on the units being overbuilt, using resistors/caps that were rated for a higher wattage than they actually are being used at.

 

[[email protected]]

I had assumed it was based, on some level, on the units being overbuilt, using resistors/caps that were rated for a higher wattage than they actually are being used at.

I can guarantee that electronics, unless you are doing it your self, or paying way more than most of us care to, are not over rated by much. Conveniently LED drivers are fairly simple and power circuit design is a fairly well understood technology.

 

[Hoppy]

If you run the light 10 hours a day, that's 3650 hours a year, so 50,000 hours is almost 14 years. Even the LEDs that are said to last 50,000 hours do so only in the imagination of their marketing gurus. I would much prefer to see them touted as having an indefinitely long life, probably several years. All it takes to kill a typical LED would be a stray high energy cosmic ray particle striking it. The odds aren't high that it will happen, but with 20 in a light fixture, the odds get high enough that I can't see how the light fixture can be expected to last even 50,000 years.

 

[WingoAgency]

I have no problem where they are made, just wonder the cost of shipping could be expensive.

Anyway, these are just parts not fixture, so nothing much could go wrong and that a DIYer should know what they are doing, so I guess I over worry warranty issue is a little.

We live in a world economy now.

I've had faster delivery and better follow up from some Chinese suppliers than I have from some fairly well known "American" companies. Particularly American companies importing the same product from China and only marking it up as their "value add". That's a hard statement for me to make as another Chinese company shut down my business by taking my product and selling it shelf ready for less than just my labor cost.

As to a warranty on LED emitters, my suggestion is to purchase some extras for spares. In my opinion - one is more likely to burn them up than get a bad one.

As for the drivers, unless you build your own (using parts from where?) guess where the purchased ones came from.

As Hoppy mentioned, we don't know the actual life of any of these bits, yet. I know I used to replace light bulbs in my receiver and my aunt's pinball machine every couple of years. Single LEDs and a resister ended that task.
I've got functional LEDs that are more than twenty years old.

 

[WingoAgency]

I can guarantee that electronics, unless you are doing it your self, or paying way more than most of us care to, are not over rated by much. Conveniently LED drivers are fairly simple and power circuit design is a fairly well understood technology.

I partially agreed to what you said yet disagreed on some other area.

Most electronics as in technology is not over rated-there many simulations can be devised such as weathering and extreme environment tests. However, the LED drivers are NOT that simple a thing. In one of the light show, British commissioner of energy said, the success of LED relys on driving responsibly. Every time I go light shows, they have new awards for drivers-that means new ground breaking designs are continuously coming out, just like the fabrications of LED itself-every couple months there is a new record or material released.

In our hobby, the power issues is very real-especially when our fixtures start to run at 100W 200W and even 300W+. Most fixtures manufacturers run into power circuit failures once too often over time. From Solaris, AI, Acan to Pacific Sun all run into power issue over time. I fixed many Solaris for the saltwater friends before and people start to ask me to fix other brands as well(I stopped doing that now, they were just too many poeple request for help) It may be NOT due to the under knowledge of the technology but more about cheap parts being used.

 

[[email protected]]

I have no problem where they are made, just wonder the cost of shipping could be expensive.

In my experience Chinese suppliers only charge shipping.
Delivery has, in my experience, been two to three weeks. Not bad for the distance.

 

[tentacles]

http://www.aquastyleonline.com/products/Aq...mmable-Kit.html

Just wanted to reply; I ordered some of the 4500k LEDs, 420nm LEDs (beautiful BTW) and UV leds, along with some lenses. I have also dealt with Cutter.

First, I paid $16 shipping (from HK to Canada) - it was sent Fedex Express, overnight. I got it the same day the shipping confirmation email came. WOW.

Second, they sent (free) a tube of heatsink plaster (which I SUSPECT is just thermal grease), and also (free) a little 2 - AA LED tester (nice touch).

I *really* like their lenses - they fit nice and snug on the bridgelux LEDs, and also support being screwed onto the mounting surface from the back. This is important, because this style of LED just has thermal grease between the tiny emitter unit and the star itself. The lenses they sell actually will press the LED down tightly for better thermal transfer.

Okay, further info, the lenses will NOT fit on cree's without significant modifications, the bridgelux style leds sit much taller on the PCB than the Cree do.

The heatsink plaster seems to be standard zinc oxide thermal grease, it is not an adhesive.

On a side note, I think these 4500k LEDs look nice, I think what I will do is put some of them over the shrimp tank I'm setting up tomorrow. I will try and get some pics.