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May 3rd, 2003, 11:37 PM

Earlier today I had put the piaa extreem brights in (55/65). So I wait for night. I try them. Yes, they are bright (very bright), but I don't know if I am in love with them. They do flood the road, that is for sure, but compared to the light that I tried last night, they seem very different. And according to a discussion I held with my friend tonight, he says I should see no visual difference with respect to color temp. I will explain further.

Light one: Korean Made (Don't remember the mfr)
Low Beam: 80w (true 80)
High Beam: 120w (true 120)
Color Temp: 4000k
Cost: $22.00 / pair

Light feature: Xenon technology (mfr claims equivilency to HID 130w)

Light two: PIAA Extreem Bright
Low Beam: 55w (effective 110w)
High Beam: 65w (effective 120w)
Color Temp: 4000k
Cost: $89.00 / pair

Light feature: Bulb/filament construction superior, that is what
Makes PIAA work like it does.

Difference between the two:

The Korean bulb's light seemed to be more present than the PIAA. The light, as it hit the ground, from the korean bulb, seemed to be the color of a xenon strobe (very white with a steel blue tinge). The PIAA's light seemed to be a very very bright white, but as it hit the ground it did not have the same impact of color presence. It was just plain bright white.

So, I am faced with a dilemma:

The dilemma being that the xenon-like bulb, cheap-o ($22.00), is of higher wattage (80/120) and more dangerous to put in the car, but I like the output color (a steel-white xenon strobe) (although technically they should be the same - 4000k) vs the very very white expensive ($89.00) that is (55w/65w - effective 110w/120w) which is safer to be in the car.

Now I did buy the $22.00 bulbs at a NAPA. Maybe that does not mean much since even a good place can sell not so good parts etc. Maybe not.

So, two questions ultimately come to mind.

1. Could it be that the cheap-o bulb really is not cheap but it just happens to be the price of a xenon bulb? (or the bulb is cheap, which means they could slap any selling point on a package to get you to buy it. i.e. xenon (hid-like 130w) etc.) and the bulb is unstable (or garbage) and would cause great harm to the wiring/housing.

2. If the above question reveals that this so-called xenon is the real thing, then how do I prepare the wiring/housing to accept the difference in wattage?

OK, in closing, so maybe I am nuts, and 'think' that this so called xenon is better than the PIAA. according to the 'laws' of color temp, I should not see the difference, but I really think I do.

Please help

Blinded by the light.

May 3rd, 2003, 11:37 PM	#7 (permalink)
FreeHam Posts: n/a	Earlier today I had put the piaa extreem brights in (55/65). So I wait for night. I try them. Yes, they are bright (very bright), but I don't know if I am in love with them. They do flood the road, that is for sure, but compared to the light that I tried last night, they seem very different. And according to a discussion I held with my friend tonight, he says I should see no visual difference with respect to color temp. I will explain further. Light one: Korean Made (Don't remember the mfr) Low Beam: 80w (true 80) High Beam: 120w (true 120) Color Temp: 4000k Cost: $22.00 / pair Light feature: Xenon technology (mfr claims equivilency to HID 130w) Light two: PIAA Extreem Bright Low Beam: 55w (effective 110w) High Beam: 65w (effective 120w) Color Temp: 4000k Cost: $89.00 / pair Light feature: Bulb/filament construction superior, that is what Makes PIAA work like it does. Difference between the two: The Korean bulb's light seemed to be more present than the PIAA. The light, as it hit the ground, from the korean bulb, seemed to be the color of a xenon strobe (very white with a steel blue tinge). The PIAA's light seemed to be a very very bright white, but as it hit the ground it did not have the same impact of color presence. It was just plain bright white. So, I am faced with a dilemma: The dilemma being that the xenon-like bulb, cheap-o ($22.00), is of higher wattage (80/120) and more dangerous to put in the car, but I like the output color (a steel-white xenon strobe) (although technically they should be the same - 4000k) vs the very very white expensive ($89.00) that is (55w/65w - effective 110w/120w) which is safer to be in the car. Now I did buy the $22.00 bulbs at a NAPA. Maybe that does not mean much since even a good place can sell not so good parts etc. Maybe not. So, two questions ultimately come to mind. 1. Could it be that the cheap-o bulb really is not cheap but it just happens to be the price of a xenon bulb? (or the bulb is cheap, which means they could slap any selling point on a package to get you to buy it. i.e. xenon (hid-like 130w) etc.) and the bulb is unstable (or garbage) and would cause great harm to the wiring/housing. 2. If the above question reveals that this so-called xenon is the real thing, then how do I prepare the wiring/housing to accept the difference in wattage? OK, in closing, so maybe I am nuts, and 'think' that this so called xenon is better than the PIAA. according to the 'laws' of color temp, I should not see the difference, but I really think I do. Please help Blinded by the light.