Quote:
If this auction doesn't interest you, Lotsoffish has other auctions and often does a mixture of compatible critters. I'm an Aquabid junky and have bought from Lotsoffish (Pete Mang) a couple of times. He will send healthy stuff and usually sends enough food to last months (or at least that's been my experience). If anything goes wrong, Pete will make it right. His auctions are fun, too.
Personally, I like planted tank. I have 7 tanks that are planted and don't have any other type of filtration (the plants clean the water) and 6 tanks with various types of filtration (1/2 of which don't have live plants). Because I have had such a wonderful experience (and mostly easy) with plants, I'd recommend going with plants.
As far as fish go, use your water chemistry to guide you into what fish to get. Most fish will adapt to your water without you needing to fart around with pH. (Example: I have had angels for years and my pH is 8.4) You do need to be more diligent about tank maintenance if the fish you get aren't in well matched water because the fish will be more prone to illness.
Looking around on Aquabid will give you some wonderful ideas of what's out there for ideas. If you're not sure if a species is well suited to your water or what you're planning on doing, just do a browser search. Another bit of advise if you buy off of Aquabid (personally, I think the fish are more likely to be disease free than buying from a local fish store simply because most of these people are breeders), take a look at the sellers' feedback comments to get an idea of their reputation.
Have fun filling those tanks. Be sure to post pics when you're done. I know I'd love to see what you get!