Red Sea Prism Deluxe or CPR Cyclone Bak Pak II?

Pasfur

I have years of experience in the saltwater hobby, but I've never used the skimmers listed. I am setting up a 42 gallon bowfront for fish only, no inverts, no live rock. I am on a $150 budget for the skimmer, and both the Red Sea Prism Deluxe and CPR Cyclone Bak Pak II are within this budget.

Does anyone have experience with these units? My primary question concerns noise level. The aquarium will be in my TV room, so I want to keep the noise level down as much as possible. I know the CPR unit will handle the tank size, but I am concerned about noise. Comments?

Additionally, if anyone has used the Prism Deluxe system, how effective is the surface skimmer?

Thanks ahead -

Mark

ledrel

i have heard the prism is good, i use a bak-pak 2r, it is the same as the bak pak 2 but without the bio bale, if you are going to have coral, you won't need the bio bale. the bak pak needs an add on surface skimming attachment though. i love my skimmer, some people have had issues or so i've told. it take my 3 skimmers to find the bak pak

Pasfur

Do you use the surfact skimmer attachment? Looking at a picture on the CPR web site, the attachment looks rather bulky. Is it visible in the water column?

ledrel

i use the bak pak 2 r with surface skimmer attachment. i love it, the only thing to check is the air line that goes from the pump because it can get clogged,