Aqua Connect 14000k Mh Bulb ..?

[Ceak]

The AquaConnect 14K DE is very very similar to the Phoenix14K DE

The AquaConnect SE however is different... It has more PAR and has a much higher spike in the 420nm range (blue) than the DE.
If ran on a HQI ballast the bulb will be bright white with a blue tint (similar to Radium) and if ran on electronic ballast it will be bluer (similar to XM 20K but brighter).

What makes this AC14K SE bulb stand out is the fact that it has high PAR even though it has a very blue spectrum. It also supposedly lasts much longer than any other SE bulb when fired on HQI ballasts...

[corndogg]

Originally posted by Ceak

corndogg

You either got a bad bulb or you had the nipple pointing in the wrong direction because the AC14K look snothing like XM 10K!

The AC14K is alot bluer than both XM10K and Hammilton14K and 95% of people who have tried it say that it's the best blue bulb out there due to it's long life and high PAR (on HQI or electronic ballasts).

That's why I went through the trouble of driving all the way across Florida on my last day of being there when I was visiting my family (grew up there but live in N. CA now). I had my mind made up that those were the bulbs I trying regardless of price or difficulty to aquire. I decided this only because of the raving about them on this board.

So here is a thread detailing my "quest" to find these highly desired bulbs http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=699475

You'll find that history is constantly repeating itself on this board and that the questions and discoveries happen in cycles. I'm sure someone before me did the same thing looking into the Aqua Connects.

Anyway back to the bulb...I tried every nipple position and actually bought two so I doubt it was a bad bulb.

I then bought XM 10k's because I figured if I wasn't gonna get the blue look I might as well be maximizing PAR. But, I couldn't deal with the yellow so a month later I bought the Hamilton 14k's. Just out of curiousity I put one of each at the same time and the the only difference was the the AC looked a little purple when firing up. But not even close to the blue of the Hammy 14k.

Now I'm not saying this will happen to everyone, I'm just detailing my findings for others knowledge and benefit. Plus we know that there are a few variables in this equation such as ballast brand and type.

[twon8]

ive been running 2 250w aquaconnect 14k on my 90 since january; best bulb i have run both in color and growth. i don't run actinics, my supplemental is one 11k t5. im running electronic ballasts.

i have also run coralvue 15k(too blue), xm 10k(too yellow after 3 months), reeflux 12k(liked it but a not bright enough imo), hamilton 14k( a bit washed out imo)., xm 20k, ab 20k de, reeflux 10k ( a bit pink for my tastes, but i plan to run on an electronic to see how it looks)

[hahnmeister]

Originally posted by corndogg
hey thing2do,

I have a se aqua connect 14k that was used for about 4 days. I didn't like it so I ended up getting hammy 14k's.

To me, the AC looks almost exactly like the xm 10k. Just a little more "crisp" But color is almost the same.

In my opinion, its more of a marketing thing with a lot of bulb manufacturers. Because we know that "the bluer the bulb the lower the par" So by calling it a higher K bulb more people buy it but they can claim higher output associated with 10k.

It's a way they can have their cake and eat it too.


Anyway, I still have the bulb it's been sitting in my closet for over a year. I forgot about it until I read this thread. PM me and maybe we can work some kind of trial to own deal out.

How long did you use the bulb? I know there are many bulbs out there that take a good week or two of use before they 'break-in' and put out the colors they were intended to. My Ushio 14,000K was like that... looked like a sodium vapor lamp for a good week or two before it mellowed out. My EVC 20,000K on HQI did that too... it looked 'day-pink' for a good week or two, so I ended up running it on the Icecap to bring back the blue (looks like an Aqualine 20,000K, which I believe is made for them by BLV anyways, when on the IC ballast), but after a couple weeks, I could tell that the output wasnt enough, so I put the bulb back on the PFO HQI ballast. But this time around, the bulb didnt look 'day-pink', it looked like a true 20,000K bulb.

Just something to note... formulating opinions about the bulbs before they are 'broken in' is not a good idea.

[thing2do]

where did you get the bulbs.?

This is what im trying to avoid $500 of waste, just looking for a good light thats satisfying.

Originally posted by twon8

ive been running 2 250w aquaconnect 14k on my 90 since january; best bulb i have run both in color and growth. i don't run actinics, my supplemental is one 11k t5. im running electronic ballasts.

i have also run coralvue 15k(too blue), xm 10k(too yellow after 3 months), reeflux 12k(liked it but a not bright enough imo), hamilton 14k( a bit washed out imo)., xm 20k, ab 20k de, reeflux 10k ( a bit pink for my tastes, but i plan to run on an electronic to see how it looks)

[thing2do]

corndogg, so did you end up getting them @ ichthythings .? how much did you pay for them.?

Also i would like to atleast try your AC bulb if thats ok with you. As soon as I recieve my setup in the mail, ill let you know and ill pay for shipping.

[phishlet]

The AC 14k SE lamps are incredible. They are easily my favorite SE lamp when run on PFO HQI ballasts. The perfect balance of white and blue in my opinion. I ran a pair for about 12 months. To bad they are so expensive and so hard to find.

If you have PFO HQI ballasts you might want to check out Radium lamps. They burn real nice on HQI ballasts into a nice white with obvious blue tone. They start off a bit blue but burn into a real nice balance after a couple months. I'm real please with this combination as a "cheaper and readily available" alternative to the AC lamps.

[thing2do]

Where can i get a PFO HQI ballast and what brand, and is this for a DE or SE lamp?

Cant seem to find these radium lamps either.

I was basing my choice of bulb for the IceCap ballast. Should i cancel this order and switch to the PFO HQI ballast.?

[Ti]

hello lights

[thing2do]

Will this ballast run the SE lamps.?
http://hellolights.com/pfo25mhba.html

Will the ReefOptix 1 reflector work with this ballast.?

[Emster]

This is a recent pic of my tank with two 250 AC se bulbs with two 55watt pc 03 actinic and one 110watt VHO super actinic. The ballasts are electronic. To me the bulb is very nice but could be a little more blue. I think I'm going to try the 12K reeflux next. When I first put them on I was expecting them to be a little more blue. IMO the AC SE version need actinic suppliments.

[phishlet]

Originally posted by thing2do


I was basing my choice of bulb for the IceCap ballast. Should i cancel this order and switch to the PFO HQI ballast.?

That's a question that is hard to answer. Much of the decision is preference. Some of the decision is economics. The majority of it depends on what lamps you wish to run.

PFO HQI ballasts tend to "overdrive" SE (single end) lamps by 10% - 30%. This makes the lamps burn hotter but also brighter. For some lamps they tend to make the lamps burn "whiter". This is the case of Radium lamps which require an HQI ballast or electronic ballast to fire. The radiums don't always fire on standard magnetic ballasts. While PFO HQI ballasts help the lamp burn brighter it also causes the lamps to not burn true to their original color. Some say this is for the better.

From an economics perspective, PFO HQI ballasts use more electricity than electronic ballasts to run. But it takes time for the difference to pay off.

For me, I love Radium lamps on PFO HQI ballasts. I also like to overdrive 10k German lamps like Ushio and AB to get more PAR out of them.

But other lamps look better on electronic ballasts (in my opinion) like the Coralvue Reeflux lamps which are really made for electronic ballasts.

The bottom line is this. You won't go wrong with Icecap electronic ballasts. Those are great ballasts and lamps will look great on them. If you're not sure what you want see if you can see other fellow reefers' tanks and look at there lamp/ballast combinations till you find what you really like.

[thing2do]

Thanks for the help phishlet I wish I could check out other tanks but i dont know anybody in this hobby, besides myslef. My family and friends think im crazy as it is with this hobby, serious. They look at everything and question me , i see it in there eyes

I would really like to keep it economical, that alone puts my interest in the icecap ballast.

Do you have any links to threads with pictures of newer bulbs that are not in joe's thread. like the Coralvue Reeflux & Giesemann's megachrome.?

[hahnmeister]

PFO HQI ballasts will also cause a SE/low-pressure bulb to burn out faster because of the overdriving.

Of course, underdriving can be just as harmful to a HQI bulb. If there isnt enough power to excite the entire contents of the bulb, the remainder will deposit itself on the inner glass of the bulb and burn... lowering the bulbs overall output from the removed gas, and blocking the output of the other gasses that are excited.

The best idea is to run the bulb on the ballast it was intended for. If its a SE bulb, then by all means, an icecap is the best idea (or an EVC, my favorite e-ballast because it beats out the IC for output), but for DE bulbs, HQI/M80 all the way.

[mattliu]

i was beginning to think ac changed their bulbs. i agree exactly with emster. i just got ac's and i think think actually need some more blue. they're very crisp white with maybe a hint of blue my icecaps, but i would definitely not call them a blue bulb unless you're comparing them to a yellow 10 k. nice tank emster.

[twon8]

i am running the aquaconnects on electronics, one coralvue ballast and one reefanatic, and the reefanatic is noticeably brighter. someone asked me why i was running 10k on the right side of the tank. I have a icecap i will switch out in place of the coralvue and see what that looks like.

I also have an hqi ballast i will be hooking up to a pheonix 250, so i should be able to get some comparison pics.

i bought the bulbs here on rc, someone had them backordered and since switched to 400's, so i got them for 220 shipped. been looking for them since.

[phishlet]

Originally posted by twon8
i am running the aquaconnects on electronics, one coralvue ballast and one reefanatic, and the reefanatic is noticeably brighter.

Try running them on PFO HQI's. INMO the best look of all the combinations and the most bright.

[phishlet]

Originally posted by hahnmeister


The best idea is to run the bulb on the ballast it was intended for.

The best idea for what purpose? Again, some lamps look best on electronic ballasts and some on magnetic. What's "best" for me is to get the best color and get the higher output. While I might burn through a touch faster on my HQI ballasts in the long run I'm very happy. And I do actually burn lamps for a full 12 months on HQI ballasts.

Personally, I think the best idea is to evaluate which lamp and ballast combination you like the look of best and will be the best mix of light for your particular set-up. In other words, if you're not trying to grow sps corals and don't really need the highest PAR value out of a lamp than probably running a higher kelvin lamp on electronic ballasts makes a lot of sense. For those of us that are into growing sps and are trying to maximize the amount of light in our reefs burning lamps on HQI ballasts starts looking more inviting. So what's best can be quite subjective.

Its nice to have so many option though, admittingly, it can get very confusing.

Hope this helps.

[twon8]

Originally posted by phishlet
Try running them on PFO HQI's. INMO the best look of all the combinations and the most bright.

honestly the reefanatic ballast is plenty bright, and i would rather the bulb last a bit longer.

[corndogg]

Originally posted by thing2do
corndogg, so did you end up getting them @ ichthythings .? how much did you pay for them.?

Also i would like to atleast try your AC bulb if thats ok with you. As soon as I recieve my setup in the mail, ill let you know and ill pay for shipping.

That's where I got them alright. They were $100 and some change each. That shouldn't be a problem.

Originally posted by hahnmeister
How long did you use the bulb? I know there are many bulbs out there that take a good week or two of use before they 'break-in' and put out the colors they were intended to. My Ushio 14,000K was like that... looked like a sodium vapor lamp for a good week or two before it mellowed out. My EVC 20,000K on HQI did that too... it looked 'day-pink' for a good week or two, so I ended up running it on the Icecap to bring back the blue (looks like an Aqualine 20,000K, which I believe is made for them by BLV anyways, when on the IC ballast), but after a couple weeks, I could tell that the output wasnt enough, so I put the bulb back on the PFO HQI ballast. But this time around, the bulb didnt look 'day-pink', it looked like a true 20,000K bulb.

Just something to note... formulating opinions about the bulbs before they are 'broken in' is not a good idea.

I know... your right about the burn in factor. But when I fired them up and they looked almost exactly as jay24k said I figured I could sell a brand new bulb easier.

[northbay-reefer]

Corndog ... Bud, are you working today ? and wil you be at the reef club meeting monday ?

[phishlet]

That's a nice clown in your avatar! Yours?

[fishsoldseprtly]

any suggestions on the best overall 250w 10k SE bulb on an HQI ballast? also seuugestions on the 14k and 20k SE bulbs for an HQI ballast.. thanks guys.

[Ti]

XM 10K

[fishsoldseprtly]

Originally posted by Ti
XM 10K

XMs dont fire too well on the HQIs. I have spoken to Walt Smiths biologist and he has told me that the ARO electronic ballast is the best combo from there tests for the XMs.