This is what the MaxSpect Razor looks like in real life

By Jake Adams on Jun 06, 2012

If you thought the MaxSpect Razor LED looked good in the pre-InterZoo renderings, just wait till you get a good look at pictures of the real thing. The aptly-named Razor is incredibly thin, not thin like the AquaPad, but thin-with-heatfins enough to pack 150 watts of discrete LEDs in just an 24 inch span. The short length, thin profile and flat top make the Razor LED look altogether pretty small, bringing with it a minimalist look that looks like a million bucks on top of a reef tank. Although the Razor LED was not displayed over corals at the MaxSpect InterZoo 2012 booth, we know enough about its component LEDs to be quite sure corals will look great under it, especially with the help of a built-in dual-core Epiled indigo LED.

There are a lot of claims from certain manufacturers of how X-many watts of LEDs are as bright as a 150 watt metal halide lamp, usually of the dimmer, 20,000 Kelvin variety. Of course it’s not the watts of LEDs that count, but the lumens, spectrum and in some cases PAR of the entire light output which really matters. However, with 150 watts of LED-power onboard the MaxSpect Razor light, and with an expected retail pricing of $450 or less, this is the first time that we’ve seen an equivalent amount of power from an LED light at a price you would expect to pay for a nicer complete 150 watt metal halide setup.

If the MaxSpect Razor delivers in all the ways we expect it can, the combined power level and price point of the MaxSpect Razor could be a milestone in LED-lighting affordability where we no longer have to pay more for an LED aquarium light as we would for a comparable amount of power of metal halide lighting. Of course you could still pay more for bleeding edge, more efficient LEDs, more features, customization, modularity and/or more styling and high end components, but all we’re saying is that now we have a choice. For complete details re-visit our previous post on the full specs of the MaxSpect Razor LED and for now enjoy the drool-worthy eye candy of the Razor LED, can’t wait to get one of these over some live corals!

razor led reef

http://www.facebook.com/erikharrison210 Erik James Harrison

I’d like to see a pic of it over the tank from further away to get an idea of the big picture.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001443324671 Patrick Jewell

I dont know, seems like an awfully large fixture for a small area of LED’s. Wasted materials? Those wings? What are those wings for? Can I take them off?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Mathieu-Gagné/659241296 Mathieu Gagné

The Vertex illumina has a similar heatsink design, although it has some cooling fan from what I remember. I’m curious too how much it helps with heat dissipation.

The price is really competitive, considering you get about the same amount of light as 3 mazzara-P for about 1/3 of the price I guess. They should offer it in different sizes as 3 pads is too big for most nanos.
Math Brisk

I definitely like the design a lot and if I remember correctly the price wasn’t half bad either (400$ for 24”? getting there!).

Never was a big fan of Maxspect build quality but this looks somewhat different. That rack though is god awful blerk
CaliReefer

I have been a fan of the Maxspect LED lights but this one just doesn’t do it for me. The price is great for the fixture, no question there, but the lack of ability to easily swap out LEDs like their other lights is a huge turn off for me and I wouldn’t recommend this light over their others for that reason. I think that is a very important feature to have and I would pay $50-$100 more for this fixture if they kept that ability.
http://www.facebook.com/Maxspect Maxspect LED

We’ve been listening to our customers, while some of them liked the inter-exchangeable LED design, others preferred a simpler and sleek design, this is exactly why we are also going to release this and the Mazarra X-Series with individual exchangeable LED chips, for approximately $100 more.
http://www.facebook.com/Maxspect Maxspect LED

Each of those LED “pad” consumes 50-55w of power and that’s a lot of heat it has to dissipate off therefore the large body (serving as heat sink) is required.

While the width of the unit is about 24″ wide, each unit will cover up to 40″ (1 meter) area, with enough PAR for even SPS dominated tanks.
ajs68713

I have been holding off buying a fixture because of all the new products coming out soon, and yours has by far impressed me ( mainly price ). I have a 46 gal. bow front that has a center brace, and it is 36″ long. My Issue I have is with you fixture I feel I would loose a lot of light from the center cluster. What can you suggest, or is there a different layout? Can you make one without center cluster a little cheaper, and or could I order one from you like that? I have a mix in my tank of softies, sps and lps.
Thank you,
Anthony
http://www.facebook.com/Maxspect Maxspect LED

Remarkably we are also releasing the 120w version with a lower price point than the 160w version, for tanks with LPS/softies exactly like yours. The release date is set to be 1 month after the 160w version hits the market.
reefergeeker

it looks like something off star trek, but sexier. their mounting systems always look sweet. very nice!
Acrocap

It looks like a cheap Illumina Copy, more like an upside down Illumina.
Have to agree on the PCB design and comp selection.
Another point, since there is no fan the slotted fins will actually reduce the capabilty of the fixture to dissapate heat!
Form is important and must say the fixture look OK but definately not engineered properly!
ajs68713

Thank you for the quick reply, Where and when will I be able to purchase one in the U.S.? Thanks, Anthony
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_3PQR2S2EAZUDJKVYUCKLCWJ37Q Micheal

Yeah but one of the rules in thermal design is that the heat fins need to be close to the heat source, unless of course there are heat pipes hidden away in there to bring the heat to the fins. Otherwise they’re fairly useless where they’re at so far from the LEDs
http://www.facebook.com/people/Frode-Numan/659084887 Frode Numan

50 watt at 13 LEDs, less then 4W a LED. That can’t be really too hard driving. But it seems as they are taking it to the edge, especially as the LEDs are passively cooled.
JR Renzo

Keith, Since you such an expert at laying out circuit boards and specifying the best components, maybe you should send Maxspect your resume?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Frode-Numan/659084887 Frode Numan

This looks likes the fixture I might be wanting to test over my 110x70x60 (wh) cm tank.
That is app 43″ x 28″ x 24″.
But how high above the tank should I have to place this light to get enough spread?
I don’t like the lights to be to high up.
For this kind of money I might even consider two of those above my tank, and drive them at 60%.

btw I liked the mounting in the first posts better.
JR Renzo

There should be a flag option for douche bag comments.
http://www.facebook.com/Derekskelsey Derek Skelsey

really like the look of these but will need 2 units,is there a way of joining the 2 units together? or is there a larger unit that would do a 6ftx2ftx2ft tank?
JakeAdams

it has been taken care of
paulvoresis

If I was investing in your product I wouldn’t won’t your name anywhere on it either, that would be horrible PR. Do you ever step back for a second and listen to yourself? I assumes you know a lot about LEDs and since I don’t, I can’t challenge any of your statements. I can however tell you that you are a huge jerk and incredibly self centered as you attempt to make all RB led posts as of resent about yourself and not about the true content of the post. This post is about the huge milestone max is making by offering an entry level led fixture at a previously unheard of low price. This post is NOT about how much knowledge you have for LEDs, how far superior your product is, and how you almost had an investor. Cbviously your product isn’t that great if a major distributor isn’t willing invest a whole lot into your product.
Guest

What you don’t know is that a great product is not important to distributors in this business. Great profits are. I’m not like that. I’m a champion for the customer and that doesn’t always sit well with distributors who want to “slide one by” for greater profitability. Someday you’ll figure it out.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Frode-Numan/659084887 Frode Numan

I was waiting for a LED-light like this to illuminate my 110 x 70 x 60 (wh) cm reef tank. But I wonder if I should place two of them and run them at 60% or so.
That way I could place the lower over the tank and get a more even spread of light. Am I right?
Clive Bentley

Please go back and read the detailed spec review we did a few weeks back to see what the drive currents are for each LED:

http://reefbuilders.com/2012/05/09/maxspect-razor-led-2/
Jon Rusek

I have heard of a possible freshwater version for Planted tanks and am very excited about the prospect. If you do end up making a FW version in the 6500k-9000k range, how much wattage would it be?

160 watts of LED light over FW would likely be excessive (witheringly so), I don’t even think that there are any “demanding” plants that require that much.

I do hope that you’ll consider such a product though, the controllability and quality of LED’s are desireable even to us FW hobbyists.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1167657714 Matthias Lochmann

Hi together,

I have a reef cube with the dimensions of 90×90 and 60 cm high.
What you think, is one Razor enough or should i take two of this nice lamps?

Thank you for your help… matthias
http://www.facebook.com/people/Frode-Numan/659084887 Frode Numan

Excuse me, forgot. Indeed most of the LEDs are driven at 1300 mA, which seems a lot for passive cooling. Doesn’t it?
Math Brisk

I have a standard 90g, 48″ long – LPS dominated. Would it be completely crazy to think that a single Razor could be sufficient? I’m guessing the issue would not necessarly be PAR related but more around proper coverage, correct?

2x 120w miht be a better route although if they are a big smaller in size, not just less powerful.
Clive Bentley

…
Clive Bentley

Not really. The drive current of an LED has nothing to do with if a heatsink can be passive or not. It’s all about proper thermal distribution in the heatsink, and surface area. You can pack as much thermal load as you like on a heatsink, provided that the heatsink is designed correctly. Adding a fan for forced convection cooling allows the heatsink to be smaller than a passive one.
http://www.facebook.com/robin.lutchman Robin Lutchman

The design and look is nice,
The passive cooling may not be enough on this unit though but who knows. Maxspect or even a future Razor owner can add some fans on the unit if necessary, it seems to have room for them. It won’t be as sleek as before but it will still be sharp looking.

As for the mounting system seeing that they are using the same ball joints as the Mazzaras the mounting options are going to be great.
http://www.facebook.com/Maxspect Maxspect LED

The freshwater model will be announced shortly and will have a color temperature around 6500-8000K, at 120w, and have approximately the same coverage as the 160w.
http://www.facebook.com/Maxspect Maxspect LED

In fact we have measured the PAR for a single 160w unit be sufficient for up to 48″ long tanks, even for SPS, so for your LPS dominated tank there should be no problem at all.
CaliReefer

Very cool .. makes sense to make one fixture cheaper for those who have no desire to swap out LEDs. I know LEDs fail before their rated lifespan, more often than we like to admit, so being able to swap 1 bad LED out quickly and easily is a must for me, but for others that may not be a concern, so it is nice you are listening and making different fixtures that have either option.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Frode-Numan/659084887 Frode Numan

You are right, offcourse, it ‘s logics. And I suppose Maxpect has done their homework
http://www.facebook.com/robin.lutchman Robin Lutchman

If the price point is good, I don’t see why these wouldn’t be a hit in freshwater setups especially the planted/dutch setups.
Acrocap

You can burn the guy as much as you like, but he is right about the RTC!
As for the heatsink design, This wil have a negative effect!
To Keith;
Although you might be right with some of the tec comments that you have made I too believe you must reconsider your choice of words!
We are all Hobbyist and Kudos to MAXSPECT for making a new fixture never the less if you must critisize it can be done in a better tone!
Just my 2 cent but seems consistant with all your posts on RB
Tim Watson

Cheering on the Fanless design!
Assume two would cover my 70″x23″x28″ 189g tank, any plans for a longer model?
To mount two is it a choice between the pictured rear mounted bracket(s) or cables?
As someone in a studio with tank next to bed I’ve gone to great lengths to build a silent setup (Dynamat lined cabinet, siphon weir/durso backup, Deltec/Tunze).
Congratulations for initiating the fanless LED revolution 8)
ajs68713

Do you have an email I can contact you at. I want to get a fixture, but have specific question I would like to ask you. Thank you, Anthony [email protected]

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