by AquaNerd | Sep 30, 2014 | Fish, Science
It’s the moment you have all been waiting for. The Maxspect Gyre, which debuted earlier this year with a ton of buzz around it, has been put to the ultimate test. In this comparison video, hobbyist and YouTuber Ben Wagoner did a side-by-side flow test with the current... by AquaNerd | Jun 2, 2014 | Science
We’ve already made mention of the interesting new Riptide Gyre Generator that is on the way from Maxspect, but given its unique design and flow patterns, we figured this video shot at Interzoo would help visualize just how different and potentially better the pump is from other water moving devices. As demoed, the gyre generator mounts to a wall of the aquarium and can be positioned a whole bunch of different ways depending on the aquarium’s needs (for the sake of simple conversation, we’ll discuss it as if it were in the horizontal orientation). It draws in water from below and expels it perpendicularly, effectively creating both horizontal and vertical water movement. As the water circulates, it creates a swirling gyre, which moves large volumes of water but in a very gentle way. The ping pong balls in the display aquarium can be seen in this rotational flow, and it appears that all of the water in the tank is moving, meaning there are few dead spots in the corners and other places where they typically occur. Various surface whirlpools are created on the opposite end of the aquarium as the water starts its downward movement, and there plenty of surface agitation to facilitate gas exchange. The Maxspect Riptide is set to officially launch to the public sometime in August, and all of the product literature indicates there will be at least four models by AquaNerd | May 28, 2014 | Science
Maxspect is set to have a really busy year in 2014. Besides the new Ethereal LED fixture, which boasts some mouthwatering wireless capabilities, Maxspect has also announced their new Glaive fixture. This LED striplight will be available in two varieties, one for freshwater setups and the other for marine aquariums, with both sporting a single row of 4-core 7watt MultiChip LEDs and four individual channels of control. Speaking on control, the Glaive will utilize a handheld infrared remote to adjust the color and intensity of the fixture, as well as lighting schedules for sunrise and sunset. The Glaive will be offered four different lengths, with models being 16″, 24″, 32″, and 40″ in length. The marine fixture, called the Glaive G4-M, uses a 3000K white channel, 460nm royal blue channel, 500nm cyan channel, and 420nm super actinic. As expected, the freshwater version (G4-F) utilizes more green and red LEDs instead of being so heavy on the blues by AquaNerd | Apr 28, 2014 | Equipment, Industry, Tanks, Technology
It’s been almost a year since it’s MACNA 2013 debut to the aquarium keeping world, but the Maxspect Celestial LED spotlight is finally close to a public release and its announcement is being accompanied by a whole bunch of new information. What we already known over the past several months was that the Celestial was a pendant-style LED light that incorporated the tiny Maxspect controller right into body of the light. What we weren’t expecting, however, was the fact that it would be available in three different models. The Celestial C35, so named for its 35watts of power consumption, will come in a full-spectrum RGB model that has a total of four channels of independent control, along with a dual-channel actinic version and a dual-channel algae friendly version for growing algae in a refugium. The flagship model, in all likelihood, will the be Celestial C35-F, the full spectrum version. The full-spectrum nature of the light will make it a great choice for illuminating just about every marine aquarium out there, and the robust control will let users fine tune the color to their liking. Across its four channels, this multi-chip LED light features: Channel A: Super Actinic (x2)410nm, (x2)420nm, (x2)430nm Channel B: Blue (x2)445nm, (x2)465nm, (x2)485nm Channel C: White (1)5000k Cool White, (1)3000k Warm White, (1)660nm Hyper Red Channel D: White (1)5000k Cool White, (1)3000k Warm White, (1)500nm Cyan The other sure-to-be popular model is the Super Blue Actinic C35-S. As its name suggests, it emits a whole bunch of blue light by AquaNerd | Nov 7, 2013 | Science, Tanks
Since our initial reveal of the new R420R Razor 300w LED fixture came to us via poor quality video from a random trade show in some other country, we felt that this official announcement from Maxspect was a far more proper introduction. This new Razor is the largest in the lineup, sporting six clusters of LEDs across its nearly four foot wingspan. Besides the length and number of LED clusters, little is different from the other Razor models. In fact, the 300w verion sports the same control panel, the same LED colors, and all of the other features that have made the Razor such a popular choice for aquarium keepers. Priced at $899, the Razor measures 43.5 inches long, making it a perfect match for four foot long aquariums. With the mounting legs, which are included, the fixture stretches it reach by another four feet, allowing hobbyists even with eight foot tanks to join in on the fun. Despite its size, the R420R 300w fixture weighs just 9 lbs, allowing the hanging options to be virtually limitless. The fixture isn’t quite available to purchase, but it is showing up on the websites of retailers as they start taking pre-orders. You might remember from our previously released writeup on this fixture that it is actually replacing a 200watt prototype that was shown off at MACNA, as Maxspect felt the 200watt version just wasn’t going to cut it on larger tanks
