I run a few vho's and they wor good. Each t5 vho bulb puts out 7500lumens. (even more if run off an icecap ballast) t5 are the best even tho they are skinnier than the t8 or t12. They are 95 watts apiece but the icecap ballasts overdrive them. I'm getting equal growth compared to a 1000w metal halide. Probably due to how much closer I can place the bulbs, however I am going to bud with hps, because there is no equal as far a I'm concerned. @ 150,000 lumens, I'd need 12 t5 vho's @1200-1400watts. But then again those vho's would only be 2-6", away from the plants while the hps will be 18-24". But when the plants get 24"-48" tall, the bottoms won't get much anyway. I've heard of people budding with regular ho's and they claim to get results. I'd ge the best lighting you can afford right bow, and hope it's good enough to produce u enough to make some cash in order to buy the equipment you want. Mh&hps are going to be the way to go for a long time.
