opinions/experience with this LED company

[Tom@HaslettMI]

I stumbled on a site that sells LED kits and supplies (link below). Has anyone dealt with them or know about the drivers and LEDs they carry? The prices are great but I don't want to sacrifice quality.

AquaStyle Online (http://www.aquastyleonline.com/)

Thanks,
Tom

[MizTanks]

I'm riding along with you Tom :)

[2FarNorth]

I've dealt with them for a few of my LED setups, I purchased the chips, drivers, & lenses from him. (made my own heatsinks) decent quality oem style drivers, and bridgelux chips.
I have 4 setups running on my display for MACNA, so if your going, stop through and check them out..
Otherwise I've been running a 9 chip setup on a prop tank for a couple months and they work flawless!
Price is so low because your getting them straight from over seas. Shipping is quick (just as quick as US based companies)

[Tom@HaslettMI]

I've dealt with them for a few of my LED setups, I purchased the chips, drivers, & lenses from him. (made my own heatsinks) decent quality oem style drivers, and bridgelux chips.
I have 4 setups running on my display for MACNA, so if your going, stop through and check them out..
Otherwise I've been running a 9 chip setup on a prop tank for a couple months and they work flawless!
Price is so low because your getting them straight from over seas. Shipping is quick (just as quick as US based companies)

Good to know. Have you taken any PAR measurements? Could you provide more detail on the number of LEDs you're running on each tank and include gallons and dimensions of each tank?

I'm not sure how I feel about a non US company... I would prefer a domestic source.

Thanks,
Tom

[2FarNorth]

I'm not sure how I feel about a non US company... I would prefer a domestic source.


Gotter......

[Tom@HaslettMI]

Don't get me wrong... I am not saying a won't buy foreign (I do drive a Subaru after all). I just want to be sure that the quality of the product(s) is adequate and the customer service is there if I need it.

Tom

[Sir Patrick]

I am going to take a closer look at these.......very soon.

[Corvette Reefer]

They look a lil strange to me, id be sticking with what i trust in already not that sketchy stuff, leds are a brand i never heard of and drivers seem to cheap for being dimmable. Stuff would probally fail in a year or so, whilemost other brand stuff will last a good 7 years to 10 years.

[mikezalewski]

I am going to have to look into this as well because cost is ALWAYS a factor when it comes to this hobby.


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[Paulo]

They look a lil strange to me, id be sticking with what i trust in already not that sketchy stuff, leds are a brand i never heard of and drivers seem to cheap for being dimmable. Stuff would probally fail in a year or so, whilemost other brand stuff will last a good 7 years to 10 years.
Call me etch a sketch lol! I think I will try a kit. As for not being an american company, I think that many LED manufaturers are not in the USA. Also, it they have good color and only last a year, they would probably more than pay for themselves. 2far, how does the LED's colors compare to others? I see the kits have a 60 degree optic. Dont most people make thier setups with 40 degree? Give us the good, bad and ugly if you could. Thanks,
Paulo

[jstan]

Gonna be ordering a kit from them today/tommorow. Will keep everyone informed of experience. And while the company is in hong kong, the led chips are from bridgelux. An American company based in California. Plus there's been some great reviews from other reefing forums who've tried em already.
The only issue everyone seems to have with them is the shipping cost and the 6-14 day delivery period. 30 to ship the kit I want. Just my two cents.


Not ordering from them after all. When I went to order, they were sold out of the driver's for there dimming kit. Went with rapid led and nanocustoms instead..

[jimsflies]

I realize that most LEDs aren't manufactured in the US...the concern is purchasing from a non-US store can make it difficult to for returns or refunds.

[jimsflies]

I would be curious to hear more about the Bridgelux brand as well. It is nice to hear 2FarNorth, that you have tried them out.

It is my understanding that Crees are very efficient LEDs...so much so that their older less efficient models are still more efficient than non-Cree LEDs. Maximizing efficiency (high light output, low energy consumption, and low heat produced) is what LEDs are all about so it is important to research the cost relative to the performance.

[XSiVE]

The one thing Im skeptical about with this is that they don't list technical specs for any of their products.. Sure Brigelux LEDs are a known product, but which exact LED are they selling you? How efficient are they are lumens / watt output, what color Bin are they, what's their temp max?

These are probably still more efficient than T5's & MH, but without exact specs its most likely you can do a lot better than what these can do, maybe not for the price though.

Edit: Cost over time is probably going to higher than the more pricey LEDs, as you're going to be needing more power, or more LED density to get the effectiveness of something more efficient / higher output.

[dlhirst]

If you have ever been to Hong Kong, you will know that the name brand is meaningless. Every night the tables unfold on the street corners - selling Calvin Klein, Nike, Louis Vuitton and more. Most of them were legitimately made in the same factories. Sometimes, an illicit third shift occurs under less watchful eyes. Sometimes they are simply pulled from the scrap bins of these factories. And SOMETIMES they are given the blessings of the brand namesake to produce these extras for an underground domestic market. The question always is - Which are YOU buying?

If a chip-maker is producing for Bridgelux, and they have a batch of rejected chips, do you think those diodes will be thrown away? Can you properly test the diodes to make sure they are really the spectrum you expect? When specifications are not offered, it is often because the tolerances are not there to make a legitimate claim.

Caveat emptor.

[Tom@HaslettMI]

Ryan and Don,

These are my main concerns. I have already decided that I will be sticking with CREE LEDs. In addition to my concerns about quality, I am planning to use NW rather than CW. And they don't have them.

That said I would still like to hear others opinions and experiences with these products.

Thanks,
Tom