- I'm Thomas,
and these are the top five most frequently asked questions
about Kessil's A500X led light, starting with;
what is the best mounting height for the A500X?
There are actually three separate optimal mounting heights,
but let me explain;
one of the coolest additions to the Kessil lineup,
is the ability to modify the spread of the light,
by adding a magnetic reflector,
A500X actually includes the 55-degree reflector
right in the box, but there's also a 35-degree reflector
available as well.
Now, without any reflector,
the optimal mounting height for the A500X
for the best spread performance,
is nine inches off the surface of the water.
If you add on the 55-degree reflector,
it then changes to an optimal mounting height of 12 inches.
And if you swap that out with the 35-degree reflector,
that optimal mounting height goes all the way
up to 22 inches off the surface of the water,
which is pretty impressive, and is a great solution
for those who want extra clearance above the tank.
Obviously, those reflectors can also help quite a bit
if you're trying to get the light
to penetrate a lot deeper
into a much taller than average aquarium.
So, you've got options,
you can either raise that mounting height up
quite a bit higher on a standard tank,
or if you're going with something that's super deep,
like maybe three feet deep,
you can throw on a reflector to help get all that
punched down to the bottom of the tank.
What type of corals is the A500X best for?
Kessil did design the A500X
with a focus on SPS and achieving those higher par numbers
throughout more of the tank with just a single fixture,
and the A500X certainly does hit those numbers
in almost 70% of our 24-inch cube test tank,
which means you could certainly use it
for an SPS dominated tank, bearing in mind
you'll experience some shadowing as corals grow in,
but, where it really shines, pun intended,
is for an SPS heavy mixed reef,
where you'll also wanna have some lower par areas,
even shadowed areas where you can tuck in
an assortment of LPS and soft corals.
What is the difference between the A360X and the A500X?
The biggest differences between the A360X and the A500X,
are the wattage, the number of LEDs, and the physical size.
While the 360 is a 90-watt fixture, the 500 draws 185 watts,
which is basically double the power draw,
because it has double the diodes, and double the output,
while using the exact same size optic as the 360.
The A500X is also a little bit larger,
but Kessil kept the placement of the USBC ports,
the control knobs, and the mounting bolt pattern the same,
so that it is compatible
with all of the existing mounting hardware from Kessil,
which is fantastic, as well as the wi-fi dongle,
which leads us right into, how do you control the A500X?
You've got options,
for those who wanna run the light on a simple timer,
you can control both the intensity
and spectrum using the knobs on the top of the fixture.
Like all of their controllable lights,
the A500X uses Kessil logic,
to make sure that no matter where you set the color knob,
whether it's deep into the blue or maxed out on the whites,
the spectrum being provided is going to grow healthy corals.
You can also pick up that wi-fi dongle
for controlling the light through the Kessil app,
which gives you the ability to control
not just the white and blue channels,
but also the red, green, and violet.
You can create a custom schedule in the app,
with changes to intensity and spectrum throughout the day.
For those who want a similar experience,
but without a wi-fi connection or downloading an app
to your phone, the A500X is also compatible
with the Spectral Controller X, which is a better life.
The AP9X or the A500X?
Okay, so this is a bit of a trick question,
and I totally get where it comes from,
since both of these lights are 185 watts,
they both have the same spectrum and total output,
but they are designed for completely different aquariums,
and here's what I mean; the AP9X uses 2 dense matrix arrays,
with oblong optics designed to cast light side to side,
more than front to back,
for optimally lighting standard rectangular aquariums
between 36 and 48 inches wide,
and around 18 to 20 inches front to back,
using a single light fixture.
The A500X on the other hand,
uses a single dense matrix array
with a spherical 130 degree optic, for evenly lighting
up to a 36 inch by 36 inch area,
with enough par output for a light demanding SPS.
So, while they both seem similar in terms of total output,
how they deliver that light to the tank,
is actually quite different.
So, if you have a standard rectangular tank,
like a 40-breeder, or a 75-gallon,
the AP9X is likely the better choice,
whereas if you have a 24-inch cube,
or a larger deeper tank, and wanna hit SPS numbers,
and as much of the tank as possible,
or want to mount the light
up to 22 inches off the surface of the water,
then the A500X is the better light.
The big question isn't if the A500X is the best light,
it's whether or not it's that metal high level replacement
that so many of us have been holding out for,
and based on these reviews
that you can check out right here, it just might be.