Joe,
IMO, if you are going with 10k, take the extra few minutes and spend the extra couple dollars to get Ushio's.
I don't remember the whole sordid history, but Ushio used to make bulbs for AB and Hamilton. My understanding is that this is no longer the case, and that AB and Hamilton are getting bulbs somewhere else.
I had two 400w Hamilton 10k burn out after about four months of use!! Very dissapointing.
I have also used bluelines, and although I found the color to be very pleasing, they are not as bright as the others, and some pink and purple corals didn't look as nice (I think since everything else was so blue from the bluelines, they just didn't jump out).
Also, food for thought. IME, and their are threads on this board that show pics backing this up.....
The new Iwaski 6500K Colorarc (must have the DL stamped on them), when run in the correct orientation (some are for horizontal use, some are for verticle use), are very crisp white, almost comparable to 10k, especially if supplemented with actinics.
I am running the Iwasakis now, and am thrilled. I am going to switch back to 10k only becase (believe it or not) the 400w Iwasakis are actually too bright for many of the corals I want to keep.
HTH
Adam
