Current USA satellite Pro

[Jeff1192]

I am looking at putting this fixture on my 90 gallon cichlid tank. I am thinking of going with the. 48-60" version as I don't want dead spots on the ends. I am also looking at this one because of the built in timer. Wondering if anyone in the group has one of these lights and what they think of it.

Thanks

Jeff

[daworldisblack]

Not too sure about par values on a taller tank like the 90Gal but i had it on a 20Tall and it was great! On a cichlid tank, perhaps you're not looking for par since you wont have much plants but its great for adjusting the RGB colours as well so you can tune it to show your cichlid's colour.

[Al]

Jeff,
Current has some great stuff, I like their LED's - I use their Freshwater LED Plus and have 3 tanks using Ecoxotic - which is a sister company.
I'm just a fish guy so PAR values, etc aren't important to me.
To answer your question, it all depends what you like for lighting - our fish don't really need any lights as you probably know.
I am a subduded lighting type - south American cichlids with floating artificial plants and lower lighting for their comfort and a sense of safety.
On a 125 I use a 36" Freshwater Plus and it is plenty. Is it a little darker in the corners, yes but I like that - looks more natural and some fish can take a break there if they need to. If I want to crank up the output on the light, it is plenty bright - as is, I dim them down.
I just set up a 72 x 30 wide tank (20" height) and I use 4 x 6watt stunners from Ecoxotic and it is beautiful and soothing, a soft look - again, in my eyes and for my taste but I can also get if fairly bright. I have similar setups on 2 other large tanks.
Regarding the Freshwater Pro versus the Freshwater LED Plus - they both have white and rgb leds - however, the Pro has higher output LED's - the 48" LED Plus is 30 watts total, the Pro is 60W total.
At Pets and Ponds the Pro 48" is 299 - the LED Plus is 190. You said you wanted a timer - well I use the Current USA Single Ramp timer - times on/off and ramps up/down (sunrise/sunset) 1 LED - it costs $37 - total with the LED plus 227 - still about 25% less than the Pro - but it depends what you want.
As far as changing colors and using the wireless remote, you'll find that you don't use it much - many folks on sites say the same - you set it and forget it.
If you're ever interested in looking at some of my lighting before taking the plunge, you're welcome anytime.
Good luck.
Al

[Jeff1192]

As this is for my Cichlid tank I'm definitely not too worried about PAR values. My attraction to this fixture is the customizing options for lighting levels/spectrums and the ramp timer that it built into the fixture.

Thanks for the info guys.

[Al]

You'll get almost the same customization with the Freshwater Plus as the Pro - colors, dimming, lightning, cloud cover, etc. Again, you can get the ramp timer and hook your freshwater plus up to it, same result.

Here is a comparison for you - as a reminder, when it says the fixture doesn't have ramp up/down capabilities, as I said you can get this from the Current USA Single   Ramp up timer, sold separately, which is similar to the Pro timer module that you see. And you'll save about $75 or 25%.
The pro also has  24 hour timing capabilities if this is important to you - like lights on/off at several intervals during the day - 2-3 hours in the morning, then off for a few hours, then on again in late afternoon, etc.

http://current-usa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Satellite-Comparison-V3.pdf

Good luck.
Al

[Jeff1192]

So I ended up going with the Satellite Pro and I've had it on the tank for about 2 weeks now. I love this light. It is almost invisible on top of the tank making things look a lot tidier.

As for the actual light that it puts out, it's phenomenal. The different spectrums are all customizable and the sun rise sunset function is pretty nice too.

When I finally get some free time I'll try to post a few photos of it in action. But if anyone is considering this fixture I definitely give it a thumbs up.

My only beef with it is that the light timer has no battery backup, so when the power goes out I have to reprogram it. Not a huge thing but would have been nice to have it backup at least for a couple hours for those power flickering days.

Jeff

[Mike L]

It certainly is nice to be able to customize the colours to enhance your particular fish. I'm fairly certain marineland freshwater leds  are being pushed out of the market with these around. And price point is better too.