Wookii
Member
You can also order direct from Chihiros, which is what I did - as that's also the only way to get any warranty.
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Twinstar S v. Kessil
- Thread starter Siege
- Start date
You can also order direct from Chihiros, which is what I did - as that's also the only way to get any warranty.
Jayefc1
Member
Wookii
Member
I got mine back in mid-July they only took two weeks.
I got stung when I bought my WRGB II through AliExpress and the controller failed out of the box - that's when I found out there was no warranty. Luckily I was able to order three new controllers (a replacement and two spares) for about £20 direct from Chihiros..
Jayefc1
Member
Wookii
Member
No they are for a future 1500mm tank that I'll be setting up later this year or early next (though 'she-who-shall-be-obeyed' has now decided she wants to move house!).
I did test them out for half an hour or so on my 60 litre tank, and they are very good. Incredibly bright. I thought the WRGB II was bright, but the Vivid's are verging on nuclear - it almost blinded me when I first switched it on, light side up on the floor 😂
Jayefc1
Member
Mine are for my 1200 that I got and scaped on Wednesday can't wait for them to arrive
Wookii
Member
Great stuff - it's a lot of light for sure, but at least you can turn them down as required.
Thanks for the tip. How do you order directly from Chihiros? I went to their website and only found a list of distributors (none in the u.s.); I also found them available on aliexpress, however, they were all sold through 3rd parties on that platform—not from Chihiros directly.
Wookii
Member
Their contact information is at the bottom of the homepage:
chihiros@chihiros.cn
You can also order directly through the MyChihiros app I believe.
Krzysztof 82 (Kris)
Member
Hi Wookii,
As You have been testing Chihiros ViVid 2, are You looking maybe to sell it? I have one already and thinking to get another one. Great light unit but unfortunately bit noisy, so looking to set it up over my not specified future scape in living room instead bedroom. And price wise it's fraction of Kessil and ADA solar RGB.
Regards.
Wookii
Member
Sorry to bring up this aged thread but based on some of the negative reviews of the Kessil A360X Tuna Sun, I'm considering alternative lighting.
I have a 68" long and 24" wide tank, how many of the AI Primes would get me good coverage? Are these the ones you're referring to? The information on the page isn't great regarding the coverage and penetration, my tank is 30" deep so would need for light to penetrate such depths. The app, myAI, also seems to have a 2.4* rating on the Play Store with many users complaining about the connectivity being intermittent. How has this affected your usage of the AI Primes?
I was previously thinking about buying three Kessil A360X Tuna Sun, now I'm not so sure. Happy to have suggestions.
I have a 68" long and 24" wide tank, how many of the AI Primes would get me good coverage? Are these the ones you're referring to? The information on the page isn't great regarding the coverage and penetration, my tank is 30" deep so would need for light to penetrate such depths. The app, myAI, also seems to have a 2.4* rating on the Play Store with many users complaining about the connectivity being intermittent. How has this affected your usage of the AI Primes?
I was previously thinking about buying three Kessil A360X Tuna Sun, now I'm not so sure. Happy to have suggestions.
Sammy Islam
Member
Weirdly enough I do this all the time, it looks so cool and natural. But there's no way i would want a point source light as it would get annoying and would probably make me feel uneasy as sometimes i get vertigo when looking at my tank from above or weird angles 🤣
Wookii
Member
Honestly when I compare the Kessil side by side with the AI Prime, I struggle to find a single point where the Primes don't outcompete the Kessil's. The Primes are significantly cheaper (Kessil A360X +Wifi dongle = £605 / AI Prime = £225), smaller form factor, significantly quieter fan, better colour rendition, higher output, better control app . . . did I mention the price difference!!
In terms of PAR, they have some details together with a visual comparison PAR map with other lights here: PAR - AquaIllumination
Not exactly the same as the A360X, but comparing between the Prime and the A360W:
That said, at 30" your tank is incredibly deep - how do you reach the substrate? The Primes are incredibly bright though, particularly within their immediate beam radius. Chihiros Vivid II's would be another option for such a deep tank.
In terms of the AI app, I've not had too many issues. It does take several seconds sometimes to connect - a little more time than you normally expect a device to connect - but it gets there in the end, and it's not really a device you need to be accessing more than occasionally once its set up.
At the moment, I don't reach the substrate, the tank is currently empty! I always had the threat of moving house since I bought the tank so was afraid of setting it up. Now we've moved (as of August 2019) I'm ready to set this tank up. I'm hoping I'll rarely need to reach that low once the tank is setup and planted in.
Cheers @Wookii that's pretty much swayed me towards the AI Prime. I may consider the Chihiros VIVID II's but would probably need more info in comparison to AI Prime before I make my mind up, but I really do appreciate the above post. I think in the specific things you've mentioned, there is only one clear winner.
How is the ramp up/down on the AI Prime? If it's pretty smooth, that's good to know. Are the programs on the APP and customisation options for the programs pretty flexible? I'd lean towards two photo periods during the day with a siesta in between, with moonlight overnight. I'd just like to know if it is easily done in the app. I don't mind if it takes a few seconds to connect to the lighting, the price difference alone makes the wait worthwhile and as you said it's not something that needs to be regularly accessed for constant changes if your lighting is set up right in the first place.
Thanks once again for the comprehensive and informative response, @Wookii.
Cheers @Wookii that's pretty much swayed me towards the AI Prime. I may consider the Chihiros VIVID II's but would probably need more info in comparison to AI Prime before I make my mind up, but I really do appreciate the above post. I think in the specific things you've mentioned, there is only one clear winner.
How is the ramp up/down on the AI Prime? If it's pretty smooth, that's good to know. Are the programs on the APP and customisation options for the programs pretty flexible? I'd lean towards two photo periods during the day with a siesta in between, with moonlight overnight. I'd just like to know if it is easily done in the app. I don't mind if it takes a few seconds to connect to the lighting, the price difference alone makes the wait worthwhile and as you said it's not something that needs to be regularly accessed for constant changes if your lighting is set up right in the first place.
Thanks once again for the comprehensive and informative response, @Wookii.
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Wookii
Member
No problem mate.
On the Vivid II's they have a PAR graph on their website - bear in mind there are numerous different ways to measure, calculate and graph PAR values, so they are not always directly comparable - but often sufficient to give a loose idea. RGB VIVID 2 - RGB VIVID LED light system - Shanghai Ogino Biotechnology Co.,Ltd
On the Primes ramping, I'm working from memory here, so don't quote me, but I think its fairly smooth. None of the LED lights I've tried are really as smooth and seamless as I would like, and have some visible 'steps' occurring, though I typically ramp for no more than 1/2 an hour.
Yes, the app and programming is pretty flexible. I've not tried to program a siesta period as it's not something I would use, but I'm sure it should be possible.
As a reference for AI Primes
Wood stump and Pterophyllum altum at Aquaflora's canteen with 150x60x90h cm (800L)
(there are several videos over a few years, including fluorescent lighting initially (IIRC)
Thanks for that, @alto. It's nice to have a frame of reference, and this has informed me that the growth from these lights is amazing. These (or at least the HD variants) will definitely be replacing the 3* Kessil A360X I was going to be ordering.
I couldn't tell, was that diffused CO2 on the left?
I couldn't tell, was that diffused CO2 on the left?
Wookii
Member
Beautiful tank - I love how the lights create that shadowy effect - but I wouldn't like to have to maintain something 900mm deep
I wonder what the stainless steel thing is to the left hand side? Is that a filter or does the owner just drink a lot of tea!
