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Orphek OR4


Krux

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Just bit the bullet on some of the new OR4 bars as they were on sale today direct from Orphek.

 

I saw the OR3 in person this weekend, curious if anyone else has these and could post how they mounted them if so?  I cannot reproduce the articulated swinging light mounts that Steve uses realistically.

 

Thanks in advance!

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I was going to go for blades until I had a good close look at the Orpheks.  I agree after seeing them in person that they really replicate the old t5 fill look and function.  I am a bit old fashioned, and think back fondly on my tanks from 20 years ago when they were bleeding edge.  I spoke to Steve about an amazing shortcake colony he has, and he said those colors all developed once he put his bars over the tank.  That is enough of an endorsement for me.  I will see if he will let me come get some photos of the colony, it is unreal.

 

I took a photo or two while he had the lights moved off the tank, and even only half lit the color development is phenomenal.  Hopefully he doesn’t see this thread, as I totally didn’t ask permission to post these 😇

 

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I also have a habit of trying untested and poorly researched technology and techniques… it has been 10 whole months now since I had a reefing related catastrophe.  I have either turned a corner, or I can blame the next crash on not waiting for reviews!

 

Really it came down to my impatience for the next generation of lights to come out.  I was on the fence on the blades, but after seeing the colors in person that Orphek can pull, I hope these will tide me over until a new Radion or Atlantik iCon model comes out.  Also they were 20% off which doesn’t hurt.

 

I had never seen the Quanta bars in person, so those were not under consideration for me.

Edited by Krux
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I like my OR3s, great colors from the blue plus. Mine were mounted in a hood with the included brackets so probably no help. 
 

Im confused on the OR4s, are they wifi controllable now? What does that mean? Dimming or just on/off? It’s weird to me since they just recently came out with the OSIX module…?

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1 hour ago, Krux said:

I took a photo or two he had the lights moved off the tank, and even only half lit the development is phenomenal.  Hopefully he doesn’t see this thread, as I totally didn’t ask permission to post these 😇

IMG_9774.jpeg

IMG_9777.jpeg

Amazing corals and great photos!   Thanks for posting.

Congratulations on the new OR4's.   I'm contemplating upgrading my old Radion's, if Gen6's have an awesome sale over Tgiving.    I'm currently running Gen4's and a few Gen3's.

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59 minutes ago, Blue Z Reef said:

I like my OR3s, great colors from the blue plus. Mine were mounted in a hood with the included brackets so probably no help. 
 

Im confused on the OR4s, are they wifi controllable now? What does that mean? Dimming or just on/off? It’s weird to me since they just recently came out with the OSIX module…?

I feel like the main upgrades are that the power supply includes the control module, and that you now control them right from the app and don’t need a dongle.  I will know by the end of the week if I understand the marketing correctly.

 

I grabbed a blue plus for the color, and a uv unit to try to get a little glow without the windex look.

Edited by Krux
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7 minutes ago, obrien.david.j said:

Amazing corals and great photos!   Thanks for posting.

Congratulations on the new OR4's.   I'm contemplating upgrading my old Radion's, if Gen6's have an awesome sale over Tgiving.    I'm currently running Gen4's and a few Gen3's.

I am terrified of getting rid of my gen4 lights and am hoping these will offer me another year or two.  I really like the punch of the 4s but I have too much shading under my small colonies.  A few are starting to take off and the need for fill light is growing.

 

Maybe I can bring the bars over and we can play with them on your frag tank.  That would be a better scenario to test light spread visually than my reef?

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Ryan, what you saw on my system are the new OR4’s….not OR3’s. OR4’s are WiFi controllable through the Orphek app that controls the Icon (which I also run). No other dongle is needed. They are fully controllable and dimmable of each channel on the bar….just like the Icon. There is still a brick for each bar….that you saw mounted on the back wall. It’s a smaller brick than a Radion but still a brick. 

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4 minutes ago, steveweast said:

Ryan, what you saw on my system are the new OR4’s….not OR3’s. OR4’s are WiFi controllable through the Orphek app that controls the Icon (which I also run). No other dongle is needed. They are fully controllable and dimmable of each channel on the bar….just like the Icon. There is still a brick for each bar….that you saw mounted on the back wall. It’s a smaller brick than a Radion but still a brick.

 

Thank you for the clarification, now you just need to engineer me a swinging hood!

 

I went back to read the specs and noted the clarification on the “all in one” power supply” and was correcting myself at the same time 😅

Edited by Krux
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One more thing to consider. The cords are on the short side compared to other lights. It was perfect in my situation but may not be practical for others. 
 

The cord length from the fixture to the brick is about 4-5 ft. The cord from the brick to the end plug is about another 4 ft. The WiFi component is actually in the brick and not in the fixture unlike the Icon. 

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That will be visually challenging.  I will probably need to run the cords down one of the non-viewing sides, wall mount the bricks out of sight, and then run an extension cord behind the tank to my power area.  Pro tip.  I may need to print some wall mounts.  Do they get as hot as a Radion brick?  Those get hot enough to need ABS to not melt.

Edited by Krux
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My Hydra 26's have done well for my Red Sea Reefer 450. Any suggestions about what a new configuration would look like using the OR4's. My tank dimensions are 59x22x20 with mostly SPS and some LPS. 

Edited by shaywood
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  • 2 weeks later...
On 11/11/2024 at 10:03 PM, Krux said:

Maybe I can bring the bars over and we can play with them on your frag tank.  That would be a better scenario to test light spread visually than my reef?

Too Late, black Friday sales happened.  Look what arrived from DHL today... 

  • OR4 iCon UV/Violet - Reef Aquarium LED Bar × 2

I hand held the lights up in front of the tank this afternoon.  Yup, there's some nice Pop of Florescence here.

On 11/11/2024 at 10:20 PM, steveweast said:

One more thing to consider. The cords are on the short side compared to other lights. It was perfect in my situation but may not be practical for others. . 

You're not kidding, cords are short (for my taste).   I'm either taking apart and re-wiring or looking on amazon/ebay for extender cables.   It's a pretty standard little modular plug, and simple two wire cable.

image.jpeg

image.jpeg

 

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Mine just arrived today.  How are you going to mount them?  I found a cool 3d printed solution that mounts them to an RMS rail, it even has articulation!  Clev.ca is where I bought them.  I know, anything from Canada is instantly suspect, but these actually arrived!

 

image.png

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3 hours ago, Krux said:

Mine just arrived today.  How are you going to mount them?  I found a cool 3d printed solution that mounts them to an RMS rail, it even has articulation!  Clev.ca is where I bought them.  I know, anything from Canada is instantly suspect, but these actually arrived!

I'm lucky.   I've got a full hood.  Plan to mount them Parallel to the front of the tank.  (like old fashioned fluorescents)   I'll post pictures

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21 minutes ago, obrien.david.j said:

I'm lucky.   I've got a full hood.  Plan to mount them Parallel to the front of the tank.  (like old fashioned fluorescents)   I'll post pictures

Now how is Lynn supposed to throw pennies in your tank and make wishes when we visit if you keep that canopy on it?

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10 hours ago, Krux said:

Now how is Lynn supposed to throw pennies in your tank and make wishes when we visit if you keep that canopy on it?

I can let her do my daily copper dose, 12ml/day.   That's more volume that one penny...  it's like 34 penny's (volumetrically).   That should make her happy.

A typical penny has a volume of around 0.35 cubic centimeters (cm^3), which is equivalent to 0.35 milliliters.

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@Krux (or anyone else) - Do you need extension cables for your lights?   I'm finding the cord just too short for where I want to mount the lights verses where I want to put the ballasts.

I've contacted Orphek.  3meter extension cords are $15 / ea.  But shipping is $40.     

I need two cords.   Do you need any, want to do a group order to split shipping costs?

** Anyone Else thinking of ordering Orphek lights?   If so, can I get my cords added to your shipment?  Orphek will add them with zero shipping costs.

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