Aqua Illumination Hydra Edge LED Aquarium Light

There was a time when the aquatic press was first to break the news about new equipment, but alas, I found out about Aqua Illumination’s latest offering when everyone else did. A month after the influencers in America. And as I write this there isn’t a Hydra Edge in the UK for me to touch, feel, use and appraise. AI distributor D-D The Aquarium Solution don’t even have one, so we Brits are stuck with our initial thoughts and reactions to YouTube videos instead. 

Here goes…

The Hydra Edge is Aqua Illumination’s latest LED aquarium light fixture, replacing the Hydra 32HD and 64HD which launched back in 2019. The new look matches that of the Blade, slim, black with rounded edges, only these two new lights are actively cooled with a top-mounted fan, versus the passive cooling and better waterproofing of the Blade. 

There are three Hydra Edge models – the 44HD, the 68HD, and the 44HD Freshwater, the numbers relating to the number of diodes each model is populated with. This sticks with traditional Prime and Hydra nomenclature, and just as with the Hydra 26, 32, 52 and 64, the number of diodes has increased in the latest models, but at virtually no extra power draw. The 44HD runs at 95 watts, and the 68HD, at 135 watts, versus 90 and 135 watts for the Hydra 32 and 64HD, previously.

Channels

The new models have six channels, versus seven in the previous Hydras, but Hyper Drive remains, whereby available power can be sent to boost selected colour output in not all channels are selected. Overdriving the UV channel was blamed for lens burnout in the old Hydra and Prime HD, but with a radically different array, spaces out PCB and totally different optics, we hope this won’t be the case when hyper-driving the Hydra Edge. The outer array and Edgefield optics look similar to that of the Blade, but those used in combination with the brand new Solar ring in the middle seek to provide spread and shimmer, spectrum and punch at the same time. From what we’ve seen on video AI has achieved that, with very good colour mixing, very even light spread, yet user-adjustable amounts of shimmer at the same time. 

AI are also introducing the Solar Blue Spectrum for the first time, created by user, professionals and their own feedback on the perfect colour for coral growth while appealing to the eye at the same time. 

Other features

The new lights are controllable either on myAI, Mobius or Neptune Fusion, and another new but welcome feature is the tilt bracket. Wide light spread always comes at the cost of side glare, so users can tilt the unit back, or side to side if connected to a rail. Prices in the UK will be £409.99 for the Edge 44, £699.99 for the Edge 68, and £309.99 for the 44HD freshwater. 

What we think

We thought the ultimate AI spread and punch package had already been provided by the existing Hydra HD and AI Blade in combination, but AI has taken it one step further and combined the two in the new Hydra Edge. The slick look of the new model versus the stark, metal cooling fins of the predecessors do date the now six-year-old Hydras, and the completely rebuilt, rethought array should prevent the lens burnout that has plagued the Prime and Hydra HD. 

This also leaves the Prime 16HD ripe for an update, as it will now be the only model using the old array and lenses. Will we see a Prime 22HD at around the 50-watt mark? Or is the intention that users will choose the 12” Blade for nano tanks from now on? I suspect the former.       

I also assumed that EcoTech’s seventh generation Radion would be next, as the last lighting launch from Aperture Pet & Life was also under the Aqua Illumination banner. But now this new fixture is out I can appreciate the new tech and innovation that has gone into it. 

It looks good. It looks original, and based on stats and video alone, I like it.   

Preorder now from Advanced Aquarium Consultancy