Any experience with DX HID kits?

[saeckereier]

Hello everyone,

I jsut noticed the following item while browsing DX: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4021
"EckoMax Vehicle Xenon HID Headlamp Complete Set (H7 6000K)

Apparently you get two bulbs and ballasts and they're available in a variety of sockets. I tried to find some info on these units here, but I have only found one very short thread without further information.

Does anyone of you have any experiences with this kit? Anyone care to give an educated guess on whether these things are worth the not so great cost? I see there are also 7000K or so available, but from what I read I guess 6000 is preferable? FYI I am thinking of perhaps building a nice little HID with those, but still need some convincing. If 35W is an accurate value, thats supposed to be a nice amount of light, right? Having previously only owned some fine single LED lights, that would be kind of a significant step up brightnesswise, right?

TIA for any answers!

 

[scott.cr]

This is probably the same ballast as used in the Power On Board/Sam's Club/Costco/Horrible Freight lights. They are crudely constructed, but I have not had one fail. The output of the HID capsules is very high in color temp; some people here don't seem to like it, but it doesn't bother me personally. $119 is not that great of a price...

 

[saeckereier]

Tnak you very much for the information,

What would be a normal price for a unit of this kind? What would be a great price? I forgot to mention that I am from Germany, so for anything that might be cheap to get in the States I would have to pay a premium in shipping costs whereas the DX one includes free shipping (and quite some time spent waiting for it to arrive ).
That, the current exchange rate and former experiences with DX are the main attractors for me. Would it be possible to get a better deal (meaning better price and equal quality OR similar price and better quality) bearing the aforementioned factors in mind?
Frankly I have no experience at all on how to distinguish good and bad HIDs from each other apart from what I've read here during the past half year or so..

(eBay while probably a source for cheaper bulb/ballast set is not really considered by me as secure enough)

 

[RDZombie]

There is a seller on FleaBay selling supposed hella ballasted HID kits for $104 with free s/h. i picked up a kit for my girls car. They seem to work pretty well. Label on the ballast says HELLA but the case looks exactly like the ones DX is selling... even the mounting brackets and lamps look the same. knockoffs, mine included?

 

[bfg9000]

I have seen that specific H7 kit and it seems decently well made. A 6000k D2S typically produces about 3000L, but output and durability of these generic Made in China bulbs is obviously not known. Like with most such kits, the ballasts appear to be clones of the ubiquitous Philips LVQ212. The LVQ212 is interesting because it can be overdriven to 53w and ~4400L (how long low-quality bulbs will last under these conditions is questionable) by just adding three 0.1 ohm resistors in parallel with the sense resistor bank circled in yellow here (not sure where these pics are from, but am grateful to the original modder)

like so:

Active cooling for the ballast is suggested, if it is to be run continuously at 53w.

 

[saeckereier]

I have seen that specific H7 kit and it seems decently well made. A 6000k D2S typically produces about 3000L, but output and durability of these generic Made in China bulbs is obviously not known.

Well, if thats the case, that's definitely an argument for those kits.. Do you or anyone else have a clue where one could source a possible host in Europe, as most of the mentioned Spotlights in this section won't either be shipped here or at the expense of incredible shipping costs (yes I know, the old problem, one would think it should be possible to get such items adequately priced here...)

Like with most such kits, the ballasts appear to be clones of the ubiquitous Philips LVQ212. The LVQ212 is interesting because it can be overdriven to 53w and ~4400L (how long low-quality bulbs will last under these conditions is questionable) by just adding three 0.1 ohm resistors in parallel with the sense resistor bank circled in yellow here (not sure where these pics are from, but am grateful to the original modder)

Yes me too, they are very detailed and nice. What is that dirt like looking substance in there for? To prevent rattling? Insulation?

Active cooling for the ballast is suggested, if it is to be run continuously at 53w.

I suppose I might not want to take the risk of destroying those bulbs considering they would be my first I'd rather tend to baby them a little.

 

[TorchBoy]

i picked up a kit for my girls car.

Hard to find a girl who goes off roading. She does only use them off road, right?

What was the other thread, saeckereier?

 

[saeckereier]

This would be the other one I found:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=167584

 

[TorchBoy]

This would be the other one I found:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=167584

I figured the same as 2xTrinity about the difference in price between the colour temperatures not being worthwhile. I've only been looking at the 6000K versions.

 

[bfg9000]

I have seen a *lot* of made-in-China HID bulbs and the color temperature they end up at after 10+ hours of use (they may take that long to color shift to their final tint) appears to be almost completely random no matter what is said on the box (4300k-8000k). The only exceptions are the 2800k bulbs are always a really nasty yellow, and the 10-12000k bulbs sometimes turn from purple to a violently disagreeable bright pink. I've seen 8000k bulbs that end up pleasantly white and 5000k bulbs that are extremely blue. Considering the low price I could probably consider them for fixed lighting if they truly lasted the rated 1500 hours, but if they can't even get the rated color right... In their defense, they can't exactly bin by final tint without running them for hours, so be aware the Luxeon Lottery is in full effect.

The one DX 6000k kit I saw did appear to be around 6000k (but I didn't see it after it was run-in for awhile). It did not seem too unpleasant for spotlight use at all, and would certainly at least make a fun Thor mod. Nearly every spotlight takes one of the auto bulbs with a metal flange, which may be tweaked or shimmed for best focus. Consider a cigarette lighter plug model to make a homemade version of a Havis-Shields (wire runs to separate battery pack with lighter plug). If you want to put the ballast in the battery bag, note the high voltage wire is generally fixed at only 18" long and extending it is not recommended (zap! ow!).

Mil-spec electronics often must be potted in plastic, rubber or tar for vibration resistance, and I expect this was done to these ballasts designed for automotive applications for the same reason. Hope there's a decent thermal path to the aluminum case for any component that gets hot.

 

[RDZombie]

Hard to find a girl who goes off roading. She does only use them off road, right??

yeah, offroading, right

 

[saeckereier]

The one DX 6000k kit I saw did appear to be around 6000k (but I didn't see it after it was run-in for awhile). It did not seem too unpleasant for spotlight use at all, and would certainly at least make a fun Thor mod. Nearly every spotlight takes one of the auto bulbs with a metal flange, which may be tweaked or shimmed for best focus. Consider a cigarette lighter plug model to make a homemade version of a Havis-Shields (wire runs to separate battery pack with lighter plug). If you want to put the ballast in the battery bag, note the high voltage wire is generally fixed at only 18" long and extending it is not recommended (zap! ow!).

Mil-spec electronics often must be potted in plastic, rubber or tar for vibration resistance, and I expect this was done to these ballasts designed for automotive applications for the same reason. Hope there's a decent thermal path to the aluminum case for any component that gets hot.

Thank you for the valuable informations, I'm getting more attracted to build me one by the second

Can anyone comment on these two FleaBay Articlenumbers:
130177516520, 300173923499 (text in german, but I guess the majority of the information can be understood plus I am rather interested in knowing if these are by chance well known spotlights) As I understand it, it would be quite easy to mod them, but it would be necessary to replace the original battery, as they seem to be 6V. Probably not the right place to ask this, but what kind of batteries would you recommend? (Your opinion is asked for, I do not have a "real" use for the resulting lamp, so questions like weight, runtime are not easy to answer. I'd guess a sealed lead battery would be the easiest in terms of charging and replacing?

 

[TorchBoy]

Accumulator is (in English) an obsolete word for capacitor, although it's sometimes also used to describe an individual rechargeable cell. I think you mean battery, a collection of cells. (Three lead acid cells at 2V each give a 6V battery.) Use whatever 12V battery will fit in there. A sealed lead acid will easily be able to give the required current and is convenient, but is quite heavy. It sounds like you know that already.

 

[saeckereier]

Accumulator is (in English) an obsolete word for capacitor, although it's sometimes also used to describe an individual rechargeable cell. I think you mean battery, a collection of cells. (Three lead acid cells at 2V each give a 6V battery.) Use whatever 12V battery will fit in there. A sealed lead acid will easily be able to give the required current and is convenient, but is quite heavy. It sounds like you know that already.

Okay, I changed that, I suppose you're right. At times it's not that easy for a nonnative speaker to choose the right expression, especially with the more specific words.

Yes, you guessed right, I already knew that the Sealed Lead-Acid would be darn heavy. (Had to carry my UPS from the car to my room upstairs, was not very pleasant) I guess it would be the easiest swap, but I was thinking whether LiIon or LiFePo4 or even NiMH might probably be up to the task as well with a similar performance and less weight.

Another question, which is more important for me than the previous, do you or anyone else who is reading this know this Spotlight: Varo PRM 20710? It can be bought for about 20 Euros. I think it looks quite nice and solidly, but I would love first hand experience..

 

[TorchBoy]

Well, like you said it looks alright, but I don't know if €20 is a good price. I suppose the male symbol in the logo is a bonus.

It has the standard 6V 4Ah SLA. Is there a 12V SLA (roughly 2Ah) the same physical size?

 

[saeckereier]

It's hard to say, I looked at my favourite electronics store for a 6V 4Ah SLA, and I found a 3,5Ah and a 4,5Ah one, one might be replaceable, the other won't. Thats why I hoped someone here might have had that spotlight, it looks nice. (Yes the logo of course is a bonus ) Well, probably I'll open another thread to ask that question.. Spotlights seem to be a little less frequented subject compared to the others. Sometimes I think for every given LED light you'll find someone here who has or had it Probably not the same with the spotlights..

 

[TorchBoy]

OK, I've just taken my the battery out of my 100W 6V spotlight. Maybe "standard" isn't something that's standard. It has its terminal on opposite corners of the top face, pointing upward so they'll slot into the spotlight's battery contacts. (They also stick up a little so if I dropped something conductive across them... All other batteries I've seen have them on the same edge, pointing across the top, and normally with insulation.)

Anyway, the battery size is about 103mm tall x 69mm wide x 46.5mm deep, which makes it a bit smaller than stan... um... other 6V SLAs I've seen.

A local electronics store has a 12V 1.3Ah SLA which is a bit smaller, so it'll fit no trouble. I'll even have to pack it out so it won't rattle. Maximum current is 40A, so it'll be able to start an HID OK. Runtime... probably under 10 mins. :sigh:

 

[saeckereier]

Is your battery like that?
[URL=http://img144.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sla6v45ahta7.jpg][/URL]

 

[TorchBoy]

Not quite. I said the terminals are on the top, but they are actually positioned down the sides in alcoves, and point straight up so they will slot straight into the spotlight. Only 1.5mm sticks above the top of the battery. The alcoves are open to the sides. Does that make sense?

 

[saeckereier]

Yes, now it does. So in your case one would have to modify the battery connectors to fit in another battery?
Well, I guess I will just buy a spotlight and I'll have to find out.. But thanks for checking it out.

Perhaps an external battery pack would make sense, 10 minutes as you pointed it out is not that much of a runtime for a light that can't be operated in small bursts..