I've tried both....cool tube can get a bit closer to your plants and has good lighting to the side of the plant depending on the reflector you use with it. . It DOES increase the heat of your growroom if you use mylar. I ended up having to paint my mylar white when I switched to a cool tube. A regular a/c hood directs the light downward as gainesville but I've also found that to help control the heat in the growroom as well. Kind of a weird paradox there.