Lighting your led aquarium lights

LED aquarium light is one of the most important aspects of successful reef aquaria and one of the most confusing for many hobbyists.   
Magazine ads often boast that a particular lighting system is "best", leading to further confusion.  The truth is that there is no universal "best" lamp.   One
should make decisions based on what they wish to achieve.  This short article will examine various options available to the beginning hobbyist and aid in choosing an appropriate set-up for his or her needs.   

While I don’t think there are any true experts in the LED aquarium light field, I’ll convey my personal observations made while examining different lights.   This research has been conducted over the last 6 years, during which I have made over 60,000 light measurements under lamps ranging from 9 watt Power Compacts to 1,000-watt Sulfur lamps.   I also managed a commercial coral farm for two years and made observations and measurements of literally hundreds of marine invertebrate species.   With this introduction out of the way, let’s get started.   
We’ll begin with the most important part of any LED aquarium light - you.