Current USA-Nova Extreme Pro T5HO

looks nice, Ive heard good reviews on them, but your looking at $325-400 bucks new/shipped..

 

yeah, they're crap compared to geismann, IMO... but I get what you mean.

Dr. Bergeron, Since you asked, this is what I'm using in my setup and really like it-

Front to Back:

Pure Actinic (UVL)
Actinic + (Geismann)
Aquablue + (Geismann)
Aquasun (UVL)
Actinic 460nM (Current)
Aquablue + (Geismann)

I really like this combo a LOT. I plan on swapping out the Current 460 bulb with an ATI Blue +, as I understand the PAR on these is MUCH more than the Geismann Actinic + (otherwise similar spectrum bulb). Also considering swapping the Pure Actinic with an ATI Blue + as well for it's PAR rating, but not sure because I like the color of the pure actinic, so we'll see. I may plan on switching all my blue spectrum bulbs in the future to ATI Blue+ as the par on these is excellent, but my local supplier does not have them in yet (coming soon) and I don't want the hassle of shipping (and breaking) bulbs.

ATI are more expensive where I am, and since the Geismann aquablue + and ATI aquablue special bulbs are so similar in PAR and spectrum, I go with the Geismanns. Still, ATI's Blue+ bulb is one of the highest rated 'blue bulbs' AFAIK, so it's worth the extra price to get 30+ more par from each bulb.

Oh, and the Aquasun is a pink-ish bulb with a high PAR (similar to the KZ 'figi purple') that makes reds and yellows really stand out nicely without 'yellowing' the water or the rest of the tank.

My tank still has a whitish-blue look overall, which I prefer to the 'windex blue' look that some folks like. And it definitely looks better than the 'Current USA' bulbs as they made it look dingy yellow and did not fluoresce the corals much at all.

 

If you want a clip on MH, I would get the Coralife or Hamilton before the JBJ. JBJ maes great chillers, but I'm just not a fan of their lights. I had one of their ballasts catch on fire on my nanocube. I have 2 Hamilton MH fixtures and they are nice. I have the clip on light shown below.
Coralife fixture:
Coralife Aqualight Advanced Lighting Fixtures
Hamilton, Bimini fixture:
Specials Aquarium supplies & Aquarium lighting by Hamilton Technology

 

great thanks for the tips yall

 

Thank you so much for this post, all the detail as to color and Par value of the bulbs is just what I wanted to know and I too like the White-blue look and not the Windex blue. So is good to know the overall color of your thank with those bulbs.