The Orphek Atlantic V4’s
Well, I have had these up and running for several weeks now. I have made a custom lighting schedule with sunrise / sunset and created some pretty crazy looks with the Kessils added in.
My impressions so far are that it is a pretty impressive light. It makes the aquarium extremely bright at even 50% intensity. It covers very evenly and gets rid of most shadows. It does have a significant “disco” effect that is kind of annoying if you are staring at the sand. However, if you are looking at the corals or fish, they look crisp and bright with no visible disco on the corals themselves. If you aren’t staring at the sand, it’s not too noticeable on the overall look.
I don’t think I would be happy with this light as the only light source. However, with the kessils in the back, it eliminates a lot of the disco effect, increases the overall shimmer and at sunrise and sunset creates an insanely awesome ethereal vibe. I freaking love it!
Love having full control over all the lights from the couch. Orphek control app is pretty good. Not super intuative, but not difficult either. I bought the kessil spectral controller and have the wides and Narrows controlled separately.
The corals have responded VERY well to the new lights. I think the color has actually improved in most of the corals. I’m guessing this is due to the fairly large amount of UV light it has, and several different spectrums. I can’t get a good shot with my phone of the bonsai, but it’s pretty amazing under these lights. The other coral with a major change is the space invader pectina. It suddenly has these insanely bright green “lightning” like lines through it. I’m interested in how it will look after a few months under these. Here are some pics.