Gentlemen please. Its not the kind of light in this case it's the number of bulbs. I would be willimg to bet that the fixture you have is not an 8 bulb t-5. The 8 bulb t-5 costs closer to $350.00 including bulbs and should be mixed red and blue for the entire grow. Comparing it to an hps light is difficult. The t-5 will perform as well as a 600watthps, use less power, 440watts, save you 2' of vertical space and will not give you the heat issue's of the hid light.
It produces 38,000 to 40,000 lumens. The 600watt produces closer to 95,000 lumens. The difference is the distance from the plants. You can put that t-5 within a few inches of the tops of the plants, the light is spread over the plants evenly. It will not give you the canopy efffect the hps will, so you don't have to constantly move your plants.
As for cfl's, I have a book about growing with them. "Buds For Less" Grow 8oz of Bud For Less Than $100.00. Three plants, cfl's. Placed properly, within three inches of the plants, some used for side lighting, Great Results.
Three years ago you couldn't get anyone to buy them. Now they can't keep them in stock. CFL's and T-5's are just advancements in light. THe led's will be the next one.
I am getting satisfactory results with the t-5 8-bulb fixtures. I have three of them in use now. My results are better but I'm comparing them to the 400 watt hid's. That's what I started with, still have one in use over my first table in the flowering room. The t-5 only uses 40 watts more power than the 400watt.
By going to the T-5, I was able to raise my production by more than 66%. With the 400 watt I could only put 12 plants per table, now I have 20. Big difference, and I hope I have gotten a little better at growing over the last year. I know one thing, I won't have to buy BUD again.
Notice the difference in heights. The ones currently under the 400 watt hps are taller then the ones under the t-5's. Must be I am getting better. And I don't have a height issue. I can just let em grow. And harvest them when I get back from Vacation In January. Wanna sto by then?? VV