Finally Testing The Black Box Led

[TORX]

Quite a fair comparison of results although the terminology could have been better selected when describing the black box led at some points. I can see why so many people have mixed success with these lights. You should learn a lot from the PAR readings and why yoj might want to supplement with t5 for even better color and growth.

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[chrisstevens]

Interesting, thanks for sharing.

 

[derrick orosz]

yes.... "intersting". I ran then for 3 years and got the same growth and color as ppl I know that run radions...

 

[TORX]

yes.... "intersting". I ran then for 3 years and got the same growth and color as ppl I know that run radions...

That is exactly it, although they have a bad rap, they have decent PAR values and are comparable to 'higher' end fixtures. The only difference being the PAR dispersion and spectrum pattern. But even they are not bad. Basically against the glass the PAR drops off completely when in the comparison the other test model, it had a more broad spectrum of PAR all the way to the bottom. This just proved that they are a good light and that they will work but with some different limitations. All the talk about fires and build quality was just another typical slander attempt against them to promote lights that cost 5 times as much for little additional improvement. Personally I still plan on upgrading to some used Radion G3 as soon as I get some saved up. I do like the additional and steady PAR reading that they give off, but no way I am spending $1000 on one light.

The RapidLED Onyx fixtures that I am running are extremely similar to black box lights, only with a better quality parts and a stronger/buffer build. Everyone who has purchased Chinese brands know the difference when I say stronger/buffer build. I did notice a huge improvement in my tank when I added T5 accent lighting using blue plus and actinic bulbs. Also visually you can see the difference in lighting that was missing along the edge of my tank and corals on the sand bed have improved significantly.

Long story short, YES, black boxes are good lights that will grow any coral out there as many of us have proven time and time again. Only downfall I personally see is the specific placement of corals. It may be harder to find the sweet spot for a particular coral, but for no means should these be scratched off your equipment list.

 

[TORX]

You also need to keep in mind that this is just PAR and light spectrum values. By no means does this mean that good lights means good growth. A system with great lights and piece of crap lights can grow corals the same if nutrient levels are crap in the 'high end' light tank and good in the crap light tank. There are so many variables in this hobby. With black box lights and proper water quality, there is 0 reason that you should have any issues.

 

[derrick orosz]

I agree there's a reason radion is a grand... great lights for sure!! I was just saying I have 3 black boxes... which are Wi-Fi controllable with a app on my phone which worked perfectly so I could ramp them up and down. I paid $500 Canadian for all three light where that would have been 3k for radions. for me the $500 made sense

 

[TORX]

I agree there's a reason radion is a grand... great lights for sure!! I was just saying I have 3 black boxes... which are Wi-Fi controllable with a app on my phone which worked perfectly so I could ramp them up and down. I paid $500 Canadian for all three light where that would have been 3k for radions. for me the $500 made sense

Completely agree with you. That is why I don't run them either lol

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[Nonuser]

I'm not comfortable with the stat that 1 in 5 catch fire. I personally would not chance it, if it's not CSA approved.

 

[TORX]

I'm not comfortable with the stat that 1 in 5 catch fire. I personally would not chance it, if it's not CSA approved.

That is not an actual stat, that is a number they through out there to curve interest in a product that is in competition with their larger American made more expensive products. There are just as many issues with Radion. There were even comments below the video on FB how a guy had 4 radions and 2 caught fire when they were plugged in and then the replacements only lasted a few months before they stopped working. He said customer service was great though, which is why he never posted it anywhere else.

To note, most electronics in your house are not CSA and the UL listing is typically more stringent testing which these boxes are UL listed. Heck, my Samsung TV from now Best Buy, Cogeco HD PVR and Acer monitor are not CSA and those are just what is in front of me. But that is a different topic.

 

[Njord]

Torx I am impressed with your level of research, and very happy BRS did something on these.
I noticed that BRS was very worried about UL listing. Funny thing working in manufacturing that you learn about China and counterfits. The actual quality difference between "USA" brands and "China" brands is a joke. I have had to explain this to many people. China can make garbage, China can make gold ( quality wise)... Sometimes you get fools gold with name brand things, sometimes the cheap version of something may have a few better components then name brands. In the end quality is questionable with everything.

 

[TORX]

I spend a lot of time on these lol. I do not like unfair unfounded reviews.

Although most of the older ones are not UL rated, they still used UL rated parts. Plus most things in China are all made at the same factory with the same parts, only one has a fancier name on it so it costs more. I am happy that BRS did this video as well. It was very informative and answered many questions that people had. Most people who purchase these lights do not have the funds to complete a PAR test. The only thing I was disappointed in was the negative innuendoes and shadow games on them. I have since read through most of the R2R forum post on this video and Ryan from BRS stated that he did not "think it would be fair or respectful to these manufacturers to potentially publicly share negative information about their products and businesses" when in the video itself he stated unfounded high failure rates, fires and build quality with strong innuendoes in a way that would be completely opposite of what he wrote there. Conversation that followed the OP there directly reflected that. People immediately started saying that the UL rating has been the deciding factor and they will never buy them. Most of the black box units have UL rated power sources and/or use UL listed parts. This is comparing Lamborghini to Chevy Aveo, they both drive, they both have similar parts, only one is better made then the other. You can expect better parts in the more expensive vehicle. There are daily recalls on vehicles resulted from dozens of deaths and people are not all running amuck. Plus IF the stats he provided were even remotely correct, then they would not be able to be shipped to North America.

 

[Shooter000]

I run the name brand MarsAqua "black box", it's been running for 1.5 years I also upgraded to the 300w fixture with no problems, the heat sink in them is not a "liscence plate", it has fins and seems a little higher build quality than what version of "blackbox" he was showing, he is right about the paR dropping way off on the outsides of the tank if the fixture is to low or that the lenses aren't very good, this was why I upgraded to the 3' version, and put my light at 12" off the water, blues 100%, and full spectrum/whites 45%, everything seems to grow fine for me, but would like to supplement some T5's

 

[JoeT]

I purchased two CLITE modules to test them from ALIBABA. One did not function out of the box. The company had no resources to offer repairs. The rep was quite nice but the company did not have an issue asking me to open the box to send them photos , to which they sent a self fix solution. The solution however did not work. I emailed them back and forth for a month and then gave up. In the future, I personally will not risk having a non CSA approved fixture after speaking to an ESA inspector. I realize that they are an economical choice for many (the Clite's performance was excellent) and some perform extremely well, but not all brands will be produced equally. I would caution that everyone do their research prior to purchasing to make sure they are getting a safe fixture.
This is just me 2 cents.
Regards,
Joe

 

[TORX]

I purchased two CLITE modules to test them from ALIBABA. One did not function out of the box. The company had no resources to offer repairs. The rep was quite nice but the company did not have an issue asking me to open the box to send them photos , to which they sent a self fix solution. The solution however did not work. I emailed them back and forth for a month and then gave up. In the future, I personally will not risk having a non CSA approved fixture after speaking to an ESA inspector. I realize that they are an economical choice for many (the Clite's performance was excellent) and some perform extremely well, but not all brands will be produced equally. I would caution that everyone do their research prior to purchasing to make sure they are getting a safe fixture.
This is just me 2 cents.
Regards,
Joe

To clarify, you are okay with things not being CSA but need to be UL. 90% of the electronics in our households are not CSA BUT are UL.

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[JoeT]

I do not have an issue with UL. The ESA guy suggested that home insurance coverage may be voided (which seems extreme) if products are not properly certified. What prompted this conversation is a 450 lb Miele stove that he wanted to move and thoroughly inspect in my house to complete the final ESA inspection.
When you import products from China there are companies that you may hire to test and certify that the products meet certain standards. If they fail, the testing company holds the liability. I have been involved with offshore products with my business for 18 years and these tests are a must for the importer. I have imported flooring nails which would seem like a reasonably easy product to manufacturer. The barbs on the cleat are at a slightly different angle then two North American brands. I was assured that they would be exact copies but they were not. The glue holding the strips together was not always uniform and caused the nail guns to jamb more frequently. These nails passed the standard for testing however. We also continue to use wire type brad nails from Chinese manufacturers which perform respectfully. One could argue that the products may vary significantly from manufacturer to manufacturer.
On a successful note, my colleagues have had great success with Chinese manufactured hardware, ball bearings, and wood products. Not one of them has ever imported Chinese light fixtures for their own use on their buildings. All have purchased their fixtures (probably most are made in Chinese factories) from importers specializing in lights.

I am not an expert on light fixtures, importing or insurance. The above statement is only my opinion based on my personal experiences.
Regards,
Joe