# Cheap LED lighting from China for 60P, will it work?



## Deisler (31 Oct 2014)

Hi All,

My second post in this forum. 

I have been trying to find cheap lighting for my 60P. Never used LED lighting before...Came across this: http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.0.0.8ewbqq&id=25870156949&ns=1&abbucket=15#detail 

Seller is from China, who also gives some technical specs of this LED lighting.

I like to have model '新602+线控调光' (in English it means new model 60 cm II+dimming), cost around 70 pounds. It has 156 LED, 0.45w/each. 

I have no idea what LED lights they use, but the seller showed me the spectrum of the light :



 

So I guess, high blue is good. But it also has quite high green and yellow, which may create some algae problems? It has >70 w in total (I know wpg is not really relevant) but I guess it is far beyond enough. Another model is about half of this but I guess with dimming I'd better choose a higher output model?

I am not experienced in LED so any suggestion will be greatly appreciated. I need to make decision very soon as I got a friend who will travel back from China in a few weeks so that will save me a lot in delivery cost!

Regards
D


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## drodgers (31 Oct 2014)

wattage is good to know you want to make sure your getting something that can provide good par .. I can hook up a 12w transformer to my 88w reef led and make it very weak and dim.
So you have possible good wattage (strength)  its a mid day spectrum 6500k that should have a nice green and red color its dimming capable ,very nice.

My only problem is looking at the picture with the power adapter and dimmer etc that looks like a 10w-15w transformer and according the specs the smallest light is 31w ?? not with that style of power supply.
So either they are advertising wattage equivalent and these lights are low power 15w or that adapter is just used for the photo shoot and is for a nano light.

I dont think this is a wise investment based  on the images and bit of info there.

Ask to see the power supply for the light you want and post it.


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## Deisler (31 Oct 2014)

drodgers said:


> My only problem is looking at the picture with the power adapter and dimmer etc that looks like a 10w-15w transformer and according the specs the smallest light is 31w ?? not with that style of power supply.
> So either they are advertising wattage equivalent and these lights are low power 15w or that adapter is just used for the photo shoot and is for a nano light.



Thanks for your reply. Definitely a good point on transformer. Will talk to the seller to see what they have for the 70w model. 

The smallest light they sell is 18w for 30cm tank. I guess that is what they showed in the picture. 

This model is the most expensive LED lighting I can found on one of the biggest online retail websites like amazon in China. But it is still quite cheap compared to what I find here. As long as the specs look OK I think I will risk my money on it


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## drodgers (31 Oct 2014)

Deisler said:


> The smallest light they sell is 18w for 30cm tank. I guess that is what they showed in the picture.


I missed that but even the adapter is too small for that; you would be looking at a laptop style small box with cords at each end.


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## Deisler (1 Nov 2014)

drodgers said:


> I missed that but even the adapter is too small for that; you would be looking at a laptop style small box with cords at each end.



Had a chat with the seller, was told the model I want has 2 transformers (19V, 2.5A, 47.5W), which are much bigger that what was shown for smaller light, and also 2 dimmers.

I still don't know how those LED are, compared with Cree ones. They are quite small (0.5w each), but I guess if the total wattage is good and the spectrum is good then it should be fine?


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## Martin in Holland (1 Nov 2014)

I have the same LED lights (an older model, also bought on Taobao) and they work fine...I don't have a dimmer sadly enough
http://tw.taobao.com/item/369501137...b20fce5337c26f13a560&spm=a230r.1.17.32.R9UMHg


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## Deisler (1 Nov 2014)

Martin in China said:


> I have the same LED lights (an older model, also bought on Taobao) and they work fine...I don't have a dimmer sadly enough
> http://tw.taobao.com/item/369501137...b20fce5337c26f13a560&spm=a230r.1.17.32.R9UMHg



Hi Martin,

Do you have the 60cm model? I guess the one from the link has much lower wattage (60 cm it has 25w compared to 36w/72w).

Do you still find it too bright? Potential algae problem? I've heard if the light is too bright, I may have algae problem if I still use EI dosing (compared to ADA dosing where fert is much lower)


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## drodgers (1 Nov 2014)

Deisler said:


> Had a chat with the seller, was told the model I want has 2 transformers (19V, 2.5A, 47.5W), which are much bigger that what was shown for smaller light, and also 2 dimmers.
> 
> I still don't know how those LED are, compared with Cree ones. They are quite small (0.5w each), but I guess if the total wattage is good and the spectrum is good then it should be fine?



I say go for it based on the specs .
I have Cree lights and i cant really see the difference in quality my assumption is they can handle higher wattage longer .
Dont be worried about it you wont buy anything high end for this price  in fact i need a 24" light I may give these a try myself.


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## Martin in Holland (1 Nov 2014)

I have a 40cm unit above my 45cm tank and indeed it is a bit to bright...I just covered the light with some aluminium foil and have it 10cm higher above the tank. Simple but effective (see "Dong Hu Gorge")


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## pepedopolous (1 Nov 2014)

Time and time again, I'm amazed by the shameless copying by Chinese companies. They even make Twinstars now!


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## Deisler (1 Nov 2014)

drodgers said:


> I say go for it based on the specs .
> I have Cree lights and i cant really see the difference in quality my assumption is they can handle higher wattage longer .
> Dont be worried about it you wont buy anything high end for this price  in fact i need a 24" light I may give these a try myself.


ye I've placed the order and hopefully my friend can receive it in 2-3 days. Will test it in a few weeks and see how everything goes.



Martin in China said:


> I have a 40cm unit above my 45cm tank and indeed it is a bit to bright...I just covered the light with some aluminium foil and have it 10cm higher above the tank. Simple but effective (see "Dong Hu Gorge")



I've seen a few reviews about this lighting. Similar reviews in fact, like light being too strong, algae boost etc. I guess I will start with lower output or maybe just half of light. You certainly didnt have a lot of algae problems so that might be good news to me


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## JayZH (1 Nov 2014)

pepedopolous said:


> Time and time again, I'm amazed by the shameless copying by Chinese companies. They even make Twinstars now!



hey, its a just a light. why shameless. your china basing isn't appreciated by me here. I do have one LED ordered from china, they work great for plants. . LED is old technology, I fail to see why certain well known companies just sticking a few LEDs costs less than $10 together and selling for more than $300. and people are crazy enough to shell out that much and call it "proper build"

Remember, if you have alage, its more to do with CO2 than your light..


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## pepedopolous (1 Nov 2014)

Hey JayZH,

I too can't stand companies (where ever they're from), over-charging consumers just for their logo on the product/box. I just don't have the money for that. Likewise, their are plenty of 'Western' companies who re-brand Chinese designs as their own, making all kinds of marketing claims about the research and development they did which is just completely untrue. They simply picked an already-existing product from a Chinese maker.

Regarding copying, you may take offence at my choice of words ('shameless') but I stand by it. The light in question completely steals ADA's original design and the same company has many other copycat products (stainless steel filters, Twinstar...), even keeping the same product numbers. That is the definition of shameless! 

If the company can make an LED lamp etc, they could at least bother to come up with their own look and materials. There are so many examples of this kind of copying on Chinese websites such as in the first post of this thread. This is one thing 'Western' companies can't do as patent laws are respected.

I'm not bashing China just for being China, I'm bashing the unethical behaviour of too many of her companies (in an environment supported by the Chinese government). 

In the aquarium industry there are Chinese/Taiwanese companies such as Maxspect and Azoo that create really amazing products that I would love to own and one day I might. No doubt their products are or will be shamelessly copied as well!

P


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## drodgers (1 Nov 2014)

pepedopolous said:


> The light in question completely steals ADA's original design and the same company has many other copycat products (stainless steel filters, Twinstar...), even keeping the same product numbers. That is the definition of shameless!


*15 Copycat Brands That Tried to Copy Original Brands But Failed Miserably *
http://diply.com/omg-facts/15-copycat-brands-that-tried-copy-original-brands-but/35565


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## pepedopolous (1 Nov 2014)

LOL! But the Chinese can laugh at our expense too...
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ellievhall/ridiculous-chinese-character-tattoos-translated


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## Deisler (2 Nov 2014)

pepedopolous said:


> I'm not bashing China just for being China, I'm bashing the unethical behaviour of too many of her companies (in an environment supported by the Chinese government).
> 
> P



I can smell some bias here . Anything that is bad about China can be linked to its government. ASAIK, it is not supported, it is simply because it is a country where laws systems are not as complete as western countries.

I was given an example by one of my friends, who is a urologist. He laughed at China about patients' data being not well protected and university can use all data for research without a serious ethical approval. And I was curious enough to ask him, when did we start to have that kind of ethical approval system? Answer is 40-50 years ago.

Well, 40-50 years ago, Chinese even can't feed themselves properly. Look at the world now.

Back to the post, I've ordered the light from taobao and fingers crossed. My friend travels to China frequently so if anything goes wrong at least I won't waste my money (although it is not too much). If it is good then I will probably buy a few more for myother tanks


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## JayZH (2 Nov 2014)

Hi Deisler. get what I have got from china. A TWIPS 60cm LED light. Its well balanced for plants, highly recommended. 

Back to the subject ordering aquatic supplies from China. One thing I agree with pepedopolus says, try source from reputable established aquatic brands from china or taiwan. Their aquatic hobbyist market has been long established and has some superior products. personally I wouldn't buy the ADA clone as well, as I suspect its done by some LED manufacture trying to make quick bucks from the aquatic hobbyist market. Also it's still steep for a 60cm lighting costing 70 GBP,  I think I only paid something like 40 GBP for my TWIPS.  

On the subject of Intellectual properties copying in the aquatic hobbyist market. As most of the products are low tech. and Japanese companies sell them for an astronomical amount of money for luring hobbyist into the "lifestyle" buy. I am glad to see many well established company starts to copy from the Japanese and offering similar products at reasonable prices. For example, JBL starts to do the Volcanic sand (Power sand) and Aquatic plant soil (Amazonia). Tried them out in my latest rescape. great products, but 30% cheaper than buying the ADA equivalent. I am all in for getting some competition in this hobbyist market.


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## Deisler (2 Nov 2014)

JayZH said:


> Hi Deisler. get what I have got from china. A TWIPS 60cm LED light. Its well balanced for plants, highly recommended.



Hi Jay,

I didn't get the TWIPS one, but I am sure it is nice too. 

I bought 60cm dual model from the link I posted, which is 'similar' to ADA aquasky 602. But it is dimmable so I guess I will control the light intensity to see how plants grow. I noticed some negative reviews about all these high end LED lights from China, and I can find very similar reviews about Aquasky 602. Most ppl are concerned about the PAR being too high, over 150-200 therefore the balance between fert/CO2 and par is difficult. 

I remember there was a post in this forum, where someone compared aquasky with lots of different lights. And there was nice discussion there about why ADA's fert has much lower dosing than EI therefore ppl suspected that was a problem. However a few ppl argued CO2 is the key player there.


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