zerocool22 Posted October 28, 2022 Share Posted October 28, 2022 So when do you think we will see cheaper 600W/1200W led lights? I mean like a amaran version of the aputure 600w/1200W. Some of you might say the 600W version is already cheap, but for my wallet it's still a lot. Allthough its much cheaper then lights were before, I guess at some point amaran or godox or whatever will bring a cheaper version around. Do you think it's still years away? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfoundmass Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 What's cheap in your opinion? We're seeing some in the $1000 range, from companies like GVM, which is pretty wild. I don't know that we'll ever see them get much lower in price. The influx of lower priced LED lights has been because of YouTubers, I think. More powerful lights though, ones in the 600w and up range, don't really have that big of a market and people wanting them typically have bigger budgets to work with and will pay more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronFilm Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 Aputure is a "budget brand", but they have been gradually pushing themselves more and more into the professional market. Which has meant a price increase too. That's why there is their new Amaran range as well, so they can still cater to their older original customers (and new ones too who need an even more affordable price point). Like @newfoundmasssaid, there are other brands than Aputure you can look at which are even cheaper such as GVM: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1719353-REG/gvm_gvm_sd600s_sd600s_daylight_led_video.html Still has app control over it, and DMX as well. (and maybe I doubt that an Amaran version would have DMX, although there is a mat and tube light with the Amaran branding which has DMX) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kye Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 The other factor in this would be the quality of the LEDs.. things like flicker, WB, and CRI are all considerations that cost money but you really don't want to skimp on to lower the purchase price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kisaha Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 I was searching for something REALLY CHEAP and REALLY SMALL and I ordered this: https://www.colborlight.com/products/co-cl60 165€. 50 less than the Amaran 60, but price wasn't the deciding factor. What do you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomTheDP Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 I am waiting on Adorama's brand CLAR to put something out in the 1000w range. I have found their lights to be excellent in durability and light quality wise. kye, IronFilm and j_one 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfoundmass Posted October 29, 2022 Share Posted October 29, 2022 I picked up 3 of these when they were on sale for $175 last month and called it a day. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1681499-REG/smallrig_3470_rc120d_cob_light_us.html I'm very happy with them. They came with the V-mount adapters free, too, though I've yet to use them. kye and IronFilm 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotchtape Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 I'm trying some really cheap Chinese lights. I actually found one really good 300W but unfortunately it only works with 220V - so if you're in 220V land look up ZSYB LED on ali express ~ $180USD!!! Comes with remote and the metrics with my C800 read very good, nanlite and aputure level. Fan is also quiet - amazing! I bought a 110V>220V transformer and it works. Only works on half power here with 110V 😞 Ordered a different one to test that is even cheaper but works with universal AC 😄 still in the mail. I have a 4x nanlite FS300 array which was amazing at the time for price/performance with the fan mod, but on a recent shoot wanted even more lights, found even cheaper lights now 😄 Am looking forward to a cheaper 600W fixture, but the current crop of 600/1200Ws are that they are overbuilt for mass market and quite heavy, 4x 300W are lighter and cheaper and take up less space so it's hard to justify getting a 600W/1200W unit, way more $$$, heavier, and takes up more space... I'm thinking at least 3 more years before we see any of the cheaper bigger boys that are lighter. IronFilm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomTheDP Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 I haven't found the 600 to be too heavy but the 1200 is a tank. If you don't need the light you don't need it but try setting up 4x 300w lights right next to each other to try to imitate a single light source. 300x lights seem to work for interview stuff even if its strongly backlit. Trying to light larger areas is a different story or trying to push light in from outside on a sunny day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_one Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 On 10/29/2022 at 12:01 PM, TomTheDP said: I am waiting on Adorama's brand CLAR to put something out in the 1000w range. I have found their lights to be excellent in durability and light quality wise. You know, I was wondering what happened to their 350w model. It improved on the ballast design among other things, but it's just plain out of stock on Adorama. Speaking of Adorama, the Godox VL300 has been $350 on their site for about a month now. 2 hours ago, scotchtape said: I'm trying some really cheap Chinese lights. I actually found one really good 300W but unfortunately it only works with 220V - so if you're in 220V land look up ZSYB LED on ali express ~ $180USD!!! Comes with remote and the metrics with my C800 read very good, nanlite and aputure level. Fan is also quiet - amazing! I bought a 110V>220V transformer and it works. Only works on half power here with 110V 😞 Ordered a different one to test that is even cheaper but works with universal AC 😄 still in the mail. I have a 4x nanlite FS300 array which was amazing at the time for price/performance with the fan mod, but on a recent shoot wanted even more lights, found even cheaper lights now 😄 Am looking forward to a cheaper 600W fixture, but the current crop of 600/1200Ws are that they are overbuilt for mass market and quite heavy, 4x 300W are lighter and cheaper and take up less space so it's hard to justify getting a 600W/1200W unit, way more $$$, heavier, and takes up more space... I'm thinking at least 3 more years before we see any of the cheaper bigger boys that are lighter. I'm VERY interested in your findings. Can you tell more about the ZSYB 300w? What are the cons of using the transformer on a 110v outlet? Are you getting full output with it? I was going to order more VL300s but you just piqued my interest friend! And what's the other light you mentioned that's in the mail? After I picked up some Ambitful and Sutefoto lights that performed better than even the US-available Godox offerings I figure I'd take more risks on these Chinese lights. I'm hungry for output but don't want to pay an arm and a leg just yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kye Posted October 30, 2022 Share Posted October 30, 2022 4 hours ago, scotchtape said: I'm trying some really cheap Chinese lights. I actually found one really good 300W but unfortunately it only works with 220V - so if you're in 220V land look up ZSYB LED on ali express ~ $180USD!!! Comes with remote and the metrics with my C800 read very good, nanlite and aputure level. Fan is also quiet - amazing! I bought a 110V>220V transformer and it works. Only works on half power here with 110V 😞 Ordered a different one to test that is even cheaper but works with universal AC 😄 still in the mail. I have a 4x nanlite FS300 array which was amazing at the time for price/performance with the fan mod, but on a recent shoot wanted even more lights, found even cheaper lights now 😄 Am looking forward to a cheaper 600W fixture, but the current crop of 600/1200Ws are that they are overbuilt for mass market and quite heavy, 4x 300W are lighter and cheaper and take up less space so it's hard to justify getting a 600W/1200W unit, way more $$$, heavier, and takes up more space... I'm thinking at least 3 more years before we see any of the cheaper bigger boys that are lighter. I'd be doing some serious A/B tests between the cheap ones and your reference lights, especially if running them at 110V... but maybe they're fine - I'm not sure how LEDs work under-voltage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotchtape Posted October 31, 2022 Share Posted October 31, 2022 For the ZSYB light I only tested at undervolt settings and the readings are good, haven't bothered to do a full test at 300W. I bought the Yinleader 1000W transformer, it's like $60USD on Amazon. I just plugged it into a wattmeter initially because the output was halved compared to the FS300, I checked with the transformer and it's drawing 300W so all good there. @j_one I'll update when the other light comes in the mail, might be complete trash. It's this one (can't even search by name, there is no name in the listings and I couldn't find any others lol): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003436322681.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.0.0.18031802IdPYPY The photo says QinYue AR-LX0101, tried to search for reviews etc but found nothing except listings in Thailand. It's $120USD on AE. The handle mount looks like crap and the remote has no display, but if the light is good it should work in an array for sun fighting power, plus it looks very compact. Sound might be an issue though since the front looks like the old design where there is airflow through the front (yuck). At $120USD it's 1/3 the price of Nanlite FS300 which already was the cheapest "good" 300W LED at launch of $350, now $380USD. The ZYSB at half price would have been amazing if not for the power issue, I don't know enough about PCB circuits to determine what to replace on the board, if anything. If anyone is interested in helping that would be appreciated because it would be a killer deal on a light for the price... Quiet, powerful, lightweight, remote, cheap (and cheap build quality) but good quality metrics. I did test the voltage of the DC leads to the COB and they measured at mains voltage, so I'm not sure what the coil transformer on the PCB does. But that probably saves weight since there's no need for a transformer to change the mains voltage for the LED. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kye Posted October 31, 2022 Share Posted October 31, 2022 8 hours ago, scotchtape said: For the ZSYB light I only tested at undervolt settings and the readings are good, haven't bothered to do a full test at 300W. I bought the Yinleader 1000W transformer, it's like $60USD on Amazon. I just plugged it into a wattmeter initially because the output was halved compared to the FS300, I checked with the transformer and it's drawing 300W so all good there. @j_one I'll update when the other light comes in the mail, might be complete trash. It's this one (can't even search by name, there is no name in the listings and I couldn't find any others lol): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003436322681.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.0.0.18031802IdPYPY The photo says QinYue AR-LX0101, tried to search for reviews etc but found nothing except listings in Thailand. It's $120USD on AE. The handle mount looks like crap and the remote has no display, but if the light is good it should work in an array for sun fighting power, plus it looks very compact. Sound might be an issue though since the front looks like the old design where there is airflow through the front (yuck). At $120USD it's 1/3 the price of Nanlite FS300 which already was the cheapest "good" 300W LED at launch of $350, now $380USD. The ZYSB at half price would have been amazing if not for the power issue, I don't know enough about PCB circuits to determine what to replace on the board, if anything. If anyone is interested in helping that would be appreciated because it would be a killer deal on a light for the price... Quiet, powerful, lightweight, remote, cheap (and cheap build quality) but good quality metrics. I did test the voltage of the DC leads to the COB and they measured at mains voltage, so I'm not sure what the coil transformer on the PCB does. But that probably saves weight since there's no need for a transformer to change the mains voltage for the LED. I know a small amount about linear power supply design, so if you can get a good image of the circuit board I'd be happy to have a look over it and see what I can see. If it's using a normal AC transformer / rectifier setup then your options will be limited based on the secondary windings that the transformer has. Often transformers will have dual secondaries to enable them to be put in parallel or series depending on if there's 220V or 110V being input. Lots of older products would include some sort of switch that would connect the pins in the right way so you could have either 110 or 220, but I don't see those much anymore. Still, the circuit might be modifiable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhood Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 On 10/31/2022 at 4:37 AM, scotchtape said: For the ZSYB light I only tested at undervolt settings and the readings are good, haven't bothered to do a full test at 300W. I bought the Yinleader 1000W transformer, it's like $60USD on Amazon. I just plugged it into a wattmeter initially because the output was halved compared to the FS300, I checked with the transformer and it's drawing 300W so all good there. @j_one I'll update when the other light comes in the mail, might be complete trash. It's this one (can't even search by name, there is no name in the listings and I couldn't find any others lol): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003436322681.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.0.0.18031802IdPYPY The photo says QinYue AR-LX0101, tried to search for reviews etc but found nothing except listings in Thailand. It's $120USD on AE. The handle mount looks like crap and the remote has no display, but if the light is good it should work in an array for sun fighting power, plus it looks very compact. Sound might be an issue though since the front looks like the old design where there is airflow through the front (yuck). At $120USD it's 1/3 the price of Nanlite FS300 which already was the cheapest "good" 300W LED at launch of $350, now $380USD. The ZYSB at half price would have been amazing if not for the power issue, I don't know enough about PCB circuits to determine what to replace on the board, if anything. If anyone is interested in helping that would be appreciated because it would be a killer deal on a light for the price... Quiet, powerful, lightweight, remote, cheap (and cheap build quality) but good quality metrics. I did test the voltage of the DC leads to the COB and they measured at mains voltage, so I'm not sure what the coil transformer on the PCB does. But that probably saves weight since there's no need for a transformer to change the mains voltage for the LED. Out of curiosity have you tested that cheap 300W light? That ZYSB seems like a great find, I'm based in EU. Might try it out. Did you check the kelvin and the green/magenta shift as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhood Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 And did you check if they are flicker free on higher frame rates? I searched a bit on Aliexpress. I might have found something crazy cheap that you want to try out. Around 100 euro for 300W https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005003912590090.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.3.19247ecb89I2Jn&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40050.281175.0&scm_id=1007.40050.281175.0&scm-url=1007.40050.281175.0&pvid=9da7394c-e478-4d61-b54d-5f1fac4e4127&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40050.281175.0,pvid:9da7394c-e478-4d61-b54d-5f1fac4e4127,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238111%231996&pdp_ext_f={"sku_id"%3A"12000027451792889"%2C"sceneId"%3A"30050"}&pdp_npi=2%40dis!EUR!125.47!84.06!!!!!%402101f6b116679930580155327ebaba!12000027451792889!rec Also those Colbor CL60 and 100's seem cool. They can be hooked up to each other in a matrix/array. Does anybody know if these pass power to each other? Or does each single fixture need to be plugged in? That's a lot of cables... Link to the Colbor CL60R RGB version https://www.colborlight.com/products/co-cl60r Other interesting stuff I found on or through Aliexpress 150W, 300W and 500W Airtube / Airpanel led style fixtures 😮 https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005004709709163.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.19.272f9f81aSgx25&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40050.281175.0&scm_id=1007.40050.281175.0&scm-url=1007.40050.281175.0&pvid=b325774c-1ee4-4384-967a-20485e9e701b&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40050.281175.0,pvid:b325774c-1ee4-4384-967a-20485e9e701b,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238111%231996&pdp_ext_f={"sku_id"%3A"12000030185487161"%2C"sceneId"%3A"30050"}&pdp_npi=2%40dis!EUR!641.51!564.53!!!!!%402101f6b716679933376201169ea7a8!12000030185487161!rec Also seem to make a 650W / 700W COB at around 750 They don't seem like a small brand http://www.syingfilm.com Also found a Lightstar Luxed 4 copy https://namgrip.tv/store/GT-SL04-p357565557 Interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kisaha Posted November 9, 2022 Share Posted November 9, 2022 3 hours ago, Rhood said: And did you check if they are flicker free on higher frame rates? I searched a bit on Aliexpress. I might have found something crazy cheap that you want to try out. Around 100 euro for 300W https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005003912590090.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.3.19247ecb89I2Jn&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40050.281175.0&scm_id=1007.40050.281175.0&scm-url=1007.40050.281175.0&pvid=9da7394c-e478-4d61-b54d-5f1fac4e4127&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40050.281175.0,pvid:9da7394c-e478-4d61-b54d-5f1fac4e4127,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238111%231996&pdp_ext_f={"sku_id"%3A"12000027451792889"%2C"sceneId"%3A"30050"}&pdp_npi=2%40dis!EUR!125.47!84.06!!!!!%402101f6b116679930580155327ebaba!12000027451792889!rec Also those Colbor CL60 and 100's seem cool. They can be hooked up to each other in a matrix/array. Does anybody know if these pass power to each other? Or does each single fixture need to be plugged in? That's a lot of cables... Link to the Colbor CL60R RGB version https://www.colborlight.com/products/co-cl60r Other interesting stuff I found on or through Aliexpress 150W, 300W and 500W Airtube / Airpanel led style fixtures 😮 https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005004709709163.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.19.272f9f81aSgx25&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40050.281175.0&scm_id=1007.40050.281175.0&scm-url=1007.40050.281175.0&pvid=b325774c-1ee4-4384-967a-20485e9e701b&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40050.281175.0,pvid:b325774c-1ee4-4384-967a-20485e9e701b,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238111%231996&pdp_ext_f={"sku_id"%3A"12000030185487161"%2C"sceneId"%3A"30050"}&pdp_npi=2%40dis!EUR!641.51!564.53!!!!!%402101f6b716679933376201169ea7a8!12000030185487161!rec Also seem to make a 650W / 700W COB at around 750 They don't seem like a small brand http://www.syingfilm.com Also found a Lightstar Luxed 4 copy https://namgrip.tv/store/GT-SL04-p357565557 Interesting I just received today the CL60R. So far I was impressed by the build quality, the output, the very friendly buttons placement (and existance!), the app, the size, the weight, the price, the original design and also the silly box/case that came with. Seems like a company that's serious about their stuff. I also read that they have an EU office and check "locally" warranty claims.. Unfortunately it didn't work with a power bank I have. It turns on, but switches after half a second with a 65w. Maybe it needs an 80w.. First impressions positive. Still have to pass the test of time. I got it as a hair light and for the effects, in case I need them, so I wanted it extra portable. Rhood 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotchtape Posted November 10, 2022 Share Posted November 10, 2022 The cheapest models lack usability features for work and have questionable light quality - for example on your first link - no display on the unit, no control on the unit itself. Remote also has no display. Not to mention no color metrics for product. Also very old design with open front for noisy airflow if the fan is not quiet. The other Colbor stuff looks ok if you need RGB, but are low output. We are talking about getting high quality powerful lights for cheap in this thread 😄 The ZYSB is magenta initially (good because they green up over time). I think the meter said around +1 green, so not great, but for me it's not the end of the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhood Posted November 11, 2022 Share Posted November 11, 2022 On 11/10/2022 at 3:52 AM, scotchtape said: The cheapest models lack usability features for work and have questionable light quality - for example on your first link - no display on the unit, no control on the unit itself. Remote also has no display. Not to mention no color metrics for product. Also very old design with open front for noisy airflow if the fan is not quiet. The other Colbor stuff looks ok if you need RGB, but are low output. We are talking about getting high quality powerful lights for cheap in this thread 😄 The ZYSB is magenta initially (good because they green up over time). I think the meter said around +1 green, so not great, but for me it's not the end of the world. Oops! You clearly have more Aliexpress experience than me 😂 The Colbor also has bi-color and single color fixtures. The connecting matrix design is what makes it interesting. You can create a led brute or dino light with these. I did see a picture with each fixture having a separate cable, that's a lot of cabling. They should make a single (bigger) power supply where you can hookup your matrix to, still need cables for each fixture, but only one power cable. Also a shame that you can't use the reflector in matrix. That would increase output significantly. On 11/9/2022 at 5:19 PM, Kisaha said: I just received today the CL60R. So far I was impressed by the build quality, the output, the very friendly buttons placement (and existance!), the app, the size, the weight, the price, the original design and also the silly box/case that came with. Seems like a company that's serious about their stuff. I also read that they have an EU office and check "locally" warranty claims.. Unfortunately it didn't work with a power bank I have. It turns on, but switches after half a second with a 65w. Maybe it needs an 80w.. First impressions positive. Still have to pass the test of time. I got it as a hair light and for the effects, in case I need them, so I wanted it extra portable. Thanks for chiming in Kisaha! Do you know if they use the RGB to combine and form whitepoint? How is the output of the colors? Is each color bright and saturated? Are these flicker free at high speed recording? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barefoot_dp Posted November 11, 2022 Share Posted November 11, 2022 I thought this was an area we might have seen a bit more jockeying in by now - especially as the flagship model battle has entered 1200W territory, I thought 600W might become the new budget battleground. I couldn't wait much longer so folded and bought a Forza 720. I'm hoping we see the Nanlite FS line get extended into the 600W or even 900W range. They've really hit a great price/performance/feature point with those ones. I think the FS300 is one of the best value lights on the market, and if they can hit that same balance with higher output, it'll be a big winner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotchtape Posted November 12, 2022 Share Posted November 12, 2022 Wow, the AR LX light they sent was a piece of junk, not sure if they sent a knock off of a knock off, it draws 100W. Dispute here we come! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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