When many aquarists think of Japanese reef lighting, the Supercool Metal Halide Spotlight comes to mind. While these are widely used, MzOne‘s MT250 is the king of metal halides and reef lighting in Japan. These lights are designed for double ended 250w Metal Halide lamps and come equipped with electronic ballasts. The stainless steel body is [...]
When many aquarists think of Japanese reef lighting, the Supercool Metal Halide Spotlight comes to mind. While these are widely used, MzOne‘s MT250 is the king of metal halides and reef lighting in Japan. These lights are designed for double ended 250w Metal Halide lamps and come equipped with electronic ballasts. The stainless steel body is rust proof, measures in at 13″ x 11″ x 14″ and comes equipped with barndoors to prevent light spill in the room. Like the Supercool spotlights, the MT250 can be angled thanks to an adjustable bracket, allowing unique and dramatic lighting to the aquarium.
The reflector is a hammer tone parabolic design for an intense output with limited spill. Despite the effectiveness and popularity of the dome shaped, multi faceted reflectors (e.g. Lumenarc & LumenBright) in the States, I am shocked that not one of these ‘dome reflector’ companies has made a seamless, true parabolic design. The MT 250 design has been scaled down for 150w DE halides in the MT 150 fixture, shown at right by U.S. reefer DM. The MT 150 typically only comes in silver, whereas the MT250 comes in Black, but can also be found in white and silver– I am a sucker for the black industrial look.
The seamless reflector and powder coated stainless steel construction comes at a price though–The list price for an MT250 is ¥135,000 or $1,400USD. You would think that alone would be enough to deter customers, but the styling, quality and performance of the MT series of lights have made them a staple in the Japanese reef world. Many aquarists use multiples, for example Mr. Watanabe’s beautiful SPS reef below utilizes 12 MT250s plus additional spotlights.
These lights are also used on other Japanese reefs we have featured, such as our friend Hideki Mukai’s SPS reef as well as Anagonbe’s Table Acropora dominated reef and Hiroyuki’s infamous Rainbow Lagoon. Expect more on these lights in the near future…
