So, after moving my computer on to the floor I now seem to have a very empty flat surface.
By some happy coincidence this has coincided with my birthday so I think it's time to treat myself to a 30(ish) litre tank so I can try a bit of proper scaping and then keep a Betta and/or some CPDs and/or shrimp.
I've narrowed it down to the a couple of choices, but would appreciate some more experienced people throwing in their opinions and picking apart my reasoning!
There's
THIS complete setup from Dannerle that looks lovely and has some very nice extras (although I would probably need add more substrate).
Or a late discovery was the Fluval Edge 34L which is cheap enough
HERE to be a definite contender.
The third option is to just pick up a tank and then add everything I need afterwards. I estimate that if I don't go overbord then it would probably work out about £20 less than either of the above in the end.
So, the Dennerle setup:
PROS
1. Great quality, professional, grown-up stuff.
2. Just absolutely lovely.
CONS
1. I'll be spending a fair bit of time sitting at the desk so the external LED migth be right in my line of vision while using the computer.
2. The filter looks a bit.....limited. It's just sponge and a pump. You can get an add-on that provides room for some additional media, but with a 30L tank, space is at a premium.
3. Nowhere to keep the filter and heater so layout would have to take that into account.
The Fluval Flex:
PROS
1. Proper covered light so no chance of being dazzled while gaming (yes, I'm a geek!).
2. Good filter out of the box (apart from the shrimp-eating intake) with scope for lots of improvement through adding proper media and extra mechanical filtration, probably leading to a more stable tank.
3. Equipment all hidden away behind a panel
4. Completely unnecessary gimmicky lights (with a remote). I
am a bloke after all!!
CONS
1.
Final cost probably higher than the Dennerle set. Forget that, the new price I found roughly evens the cost.
2. Not as nice as the other one.
Buying the bits separately:
PROS
1. Bit cheaper
2. I get to spend ages building and pricing dream setups and looking at tanks and stuff in shops and on-line.
3. I potentially finish up with
exactly what I want.
CONS
1. I have to spend ages building and pricing dream setups and looking at tanks and stuff in shops and on-line.

2. I potentially finish up with a mismatched load of stuff that doesn't do what I want it to.
What would you guys do?