2 questions on lighting

I haven't used their new fixtures but their products have improved considerably in the last few years. I wouldn't have any problem using one today. They use a quality ballast now and are a great deal especially considering the lack of good quality 24" fixtures available. The bulbs aren't the best so you may want to swap them out in the next 6 months or so for better bulbs.

I know that I wouldn't use an Odyssea over my own personal tank if it was given to me with free bulb replacements for life!

Their customer service is a joke and their fixtures are about the same.

I am not saying you need to go out and get an ATI or Tek for your tank. I would go with a Current USA or Aquatic Life fixture LONG before I used an Odyssea.

Just go surf Reef Central for 2 seconds and see the junk that Odyssea produces. I used a Jebo (old name for Odyssea) about 3 years ago maybe a little longer. I wasn't impressed one bit with the light fixture itself. Cheap ballast, cheap legs, cheap reflectors and no cooling.

That $65 sounds great up front but add in $100 in new bulbs and you are at $160 for the fixture. Then if you don't cool the bulbs you are looking at replacing bulbs every 6-7 months. That cheap fixture just got expensive.

I would look into some PAR LED bulbs first.

But as Adam always tells me "I am FULL of crazy talk!"

I havent had any issues with odyssea stuff. Ive owned 3 of their fixtures. Yes they are cheap and kind of cheasy, but for the price its hard to go wrong. One issue I have with the new "extendable series" design is the way they sandwich the Led's right inbetween 2 of the T5 bulbs. Im sure the heat will kill the Led's lifespan, but I dont think longevity is aquatraders big selling point anyway. I had a 2 bulb odyssea fixture sitting right next to a 2 bulb aquaticlife fixture and to be quite honest, I couldnt tell any difference in light output. I say try it out, and if you dont like it, sell it on Ksl.

I wouldn't worry too much about the passive cooling of the fixture unless you have them buttoned up in a hood that has little or no circulation. I've been running a 24" Glo fixture for 3 years without any active cooling and they do just fine changing the lamps annualy. If you're concerned about it just set up a schedule and replace one lamp every 3 months. That way you'll always have 3 lamps under 9 months old and it's a lot easier to buy one lamp every 3 months than 4 lamps all at one time.

I agree that the Odyessa fixtures aren't the greatest out there but they are fine for people who are on a budget. I too have heard about their recent improvements in quality and while I personally own a Current fixture, I have known a few people with the Aquatraders fixture over their tanks and they do just fine.

That being said, the biggest problem with PC lighting is the tendency for their light to fizzle the on the deeper tanks - the wavelengths from PC lighting for some reason doesn't do well with depth from what I've read and since you have a pretty shallow tank you should be doing pretty well with the PC. What's your reason for wanting to go t5? I like t5 better, just curious what's making you want to change specifically. I'm a huge t5 fan especially over MH, which produce too much heat and consume too much energy when compared to t5s.

Also I'd like to mention that during my research when I was trying to make up my own mind about lighting I learned that T5 bulbs actually have no need of cooling unless in an enclosed canopy - they have a self cooling mechanism in the labeled end of the bulb(don't ask me how it works). This is why the Current (have no clue about other brands) fixtures only put fans on one end of the fixture. So there is actually no concern when it comes to the Odyessa fixtures if they're not cooled. If you'd like my source on this I may be able to dig it up, but it's from the guy on RC who is generally considered their t5 expert.

I personally recommend getting the Odyessa fixture and just replace the bulbs when you get the extra cash - then you can customize the look that you want with your new bulbs, plus the new bulbs you get will have a much better PAR rating than the ones that come with the fixture.

I agree with what everyone else is saying. they are not the best made fixtures but they are hard to beat as far as price goes. I am glad I didn't spend the extra $300 for the other one i was looking at.  I own the 2MH and 4 t5 model and it goes over my 90. I have had no problems with it at all.

I would plan on changing the bulbs though, their t5/pc bulbs are pretty bad and they should be replaced in my opinion. Other than that though i say go for it.

oh and I would go with the t5 set up instead of pc.

Sure thanks for the correction Ryan, I was reading back and my misinformation about the cooling came from posts he's made about not adding another fan to the opposite side of a  fixture like the current fixtures(that have a fan on only one side). 

My main reasons for wanting to change lighting are to get some flexability. My options are limited with my PC. With a 4 bulb fixture I can mix and match. Plus it gives me more options for coral. I also feel a 4 bulb fixture will spread the light out over my tank a little better.