LED Headlamps: Which Are The Best?

[All_talk]

I’m loving the depth of this discussion, given the level we’ve gotten into with wattage and output I figured it’s fair to add another layer… light color.

This goes back to my previous comment about light you can see vs. light you can see with. Many new headlights, both HID and LED have shifted to whiter/bluer colors (or temperatures) with the claim that this is closer to the natural sunlight our eyes are use too. The logic sounds good and I would agree that the light appears brighter (to both the driver and the oncoming traffic). But seeing the light is not the same as seeing objects with the light.

A little poking around the inter webs will lead you credible studies on the subject (i.e. they are not trying to sell you something) and the science suggest that for the same lumen output yellower colors around the temperature of halogen bulbs provides the best illumination. It has something to do with the short wavelength bluer light not projecting onto the retinal surface of the human eye, blah, blah, blah…. Anyway, my point being that just because a light looks brighter doesn’t mean that you can see better. I will add that the color temperature of the yellower lights (be they halogen, HID or LED) closely replicates the color of natural light at sunset and sunrise, and I will logically propose our eyes may have evolved to process this color better in low light conditions.

I feel that LED sellers push customers toward the bluer colors because they present brighter and that supports their clams of more light, but for me, I’m looking to see more and further down the road.

YMMV
Gary

[spritz]

I order these fog lights because one original burnt out. I am happy with them 4000 lumens ea.
I have a 4 sq seal beam headlight system on my 82 PA and am going to order the HID light's
Tim

[F4Jock]

The color temperature of my lights is 6000 to 6500 and they put out approximately 5800 lumens at high beam setting. So far, I am very happy with them. As I said before they are stupid bright, shine down the road well, and were not too bad to install.

I bought them on Amazon and one of the things I do is check out what I sincerely hope are real life consumer ratings before I purchase anything there. These were four and a half Stars based on 16 reviews, which was kind of light in that department but I went with them anyway and am, as I said, very happy with the results.

[Barrett-FL]

Do you have a link or name brand and part number? Pics?

[Barrett-FL]

Relative to my initial inquiry regarding the best LED headlamps, my intent was to learn if there were any rectangular (4x6) LED headlamps for replacing the original halogens. I need two hi-beam and 2 low beams and hoping to get sealed units to replace what I have vs. putting in housings and bulbs.

https://postimg.cc/image/4ynmea08v/

If there are no proven sealed LED units, then I will consider housings and bulbs and if LED or HID...

I will rely on the experience of others herein who have 'been there and done that'!

Thanks!

[F4Jock]

Originally Posted by Barrett-FL

Relative to my initial inquiry regarding the best LED headlamps, my intent was to learn if there were any rectangular (4x6) LED headlamps for replacing the original halogens. I need two hi-beam and 2 low beams and hoping to get sealed units to replace what I have vs. putting in housings and bulbs.

https://postimg.cc/image/4ynmea08v/

If there are no proven sealed LED units, then I will consider housings and bulbs and if LED or HID...

I will rely on the experience of others herein who have 'been there and done that'!

Thanks!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[F4Jock]

Originally Posted by Barrett-FL

Do you have a link or name brand and part number? Pics?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[geoff1200]

If you believe your lights are bright ..... try reading a newspaper, very enlightening

[spritz]

Sale
Add to Cart
Low Beam: H4656 Sealed Beam LED Headlight Conversion Kit
Regular Price: $399.99
Sale Price $199.99



Sale
Add to Cart
High Beam: H4651 Sealed Beam LED Headlight Conversion Kit
Regular Price: $399.99
Sale Price $199.99

Sorry thought I posted this maybe I'm invisible
I can't get picture to response.
@ headlightexperts.com

Tim

[F4Jock]

Originally Posted by geoff1200

If you believe your lights are bright ..... try reading a newspaper, very enlightening

I can read the fine print on a NEST thermostat box at 10 feet on low beams!

[F4Jock]

Originally Posted by spritz

Sale
Add to Cart
Low Beam: H4656 Sealed Beam LED Headlight Conversion Kit
Regular Price: $399.99
Sale Price $199.99



Sale
Add to Cart
High Beam: H4651 Sealed Beam LED Headlight Conversion Kit
Regular Price: $399.99
Sale Price $199.99

Sorry thought I posted this maybe I'm invisible
I can't get picture to response.
@ headlightexperts.com

Tim

Seem a bit pricey. Paid about $60 less for mine (4 X 6 inch sealed beam projector LEDs) at regular price.

[F4Jock]

Originally Posted by geoff1200

If you believe your lights are bright ..... try reading a newspaper, very enlightening

I can easily read the fine print on a NEST thermostat box at 15 feet on low beams!

In the end I have to believe that after assuring oneself of some basics that we've gone over herein, choosing headlights is a personal preference. There are lots of good products out there and you have to decide what and which you want. Personally, after reading a multitude of Amazon user reviews, I went with sealed beam LED projectors of the highest lumen output possible, with DRLs, with a daylight-white-cast light (6000 to 6500) for what I considered a decent price, around $130 for four. Some prefer yellowish. Some want to use individual bulbs, which I considered a hassle to replace sealed beams with. I'm happy. They were pretty easy to install, work well and light up the road just fine --- for me. They also look pretty good (My beautiful blonde bride even commented that they looked "Mean!") but can't send an installed pic ATM as MH is away getting the SumoSprings and Konis installed.

[FrankGRUN]

I just can't resist! This discussion of the effectiveness of forward lighting systems rightly acknowledges the personal preferences of the individual eye-holder in judging the illumination effectiveness of a given nighttime scene. However science does have a few interesting facts to offer.

To quickly summarize, higher Kelvin temperatures necessarily include a higher spectral content of lower wavelength photons. It has been well demonstrated that shorter wavelength enhances the sensitivity of the rods in the retina and degrades the response of the cones. The net result is significantly enhanced peripheral vision in forward illuminated dark night conditions. Most automotive lighting systems give adequate illumination of direct frontal objects at a level to support the normal human response time. The white/Blue light spectrum of the 6000K to 6500K units give a very serious enhancement of a human subjects response time to peripheral danger.

For more detail for the interested reader, the following article discusses spectral output and the summing together of several LED emitters to get desired light response:

http://www.cree.com/led-components/m...lor_mixing.pdf

The following report summarizes the impact of spectral distribution on forward scene illumination:

http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/programs/tran...LA-2005-02.pdf

Enjoy!

[Barrett-FL]

F4Jock, Thank you!

Have you used these lights yourself? Know anyone who has?

The price looks great and they are DOT approved. I just want to know people are happy with them.

Thanks again!

Barrett