Anyone got a Lowell Pro Power LED?

BrianMurphy

BrianMurphy

Veteran
Just saw the page and only yesterday I was debating about selling my lowel pro tungsten lamps. These have to have been the most used and practical lights in my travel kit for years. I have always wanted an LED the same size and power that was bi-color. But these are not so I read. Would love to hear more. For a light in the same price range as the Fiilex I would like to see how they compare.
 
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I actually saw them in person a few days ago at a show that Barbizon hosted. The quality of light seemed fine, as it does from most reputable, name-brand manufacturers, now. They are largely plastic housings, as heat is not really an issue. They use a push/pull system to focus(the entire front housing moves forwards/backwards), but there didn't seem to be much 'cut' with the barn doors. I also couldn't really evaluate how much punch they really had, being in a room with lots of other fixtures fired up and light spilling everywhere. And you're right, they're either daylight or tungsten, not bi/variable color. But what I saw at the show is that a lot of manufacturers are going that route, now(Arri, Desisti, ETC., etc.). They're calling them 'tune-able' fixtures. You get them in daylight or tungsten and then they are adjustable to a certain degree up and down from the 3200 or 5600 point to allow you to warm it up or cool it down if you need to/want to.

One thing I will say about the current generation of LED fixtures that I saw the other day, is that the 'tungsten' versions LOOKED like tungsten light. I had to ask one of the manufacturer reps at a display, because I thought it was a tungsten fixture, not LED. I've gotten so used to seeing 'orange' from LED panels(including the new LP Astra) when they're set to 'tungsten' or gelled to 'tungsten', that the fresnel type fixtures really fooled me. And that's a good thing.
 
The Kelvin is rated at 5000k for the Lowel PRO Power Daylight LED. Seems that wouldn't match up well with other 5600K lights on set and is kind of a deal breaker to me unless I'm missing something.

The Lowel is 17 fc (182 lux) at 10' (3.0 m) with a 43 degree beam angle.

The Fiilex P360ex is 19 fc (206 lux) at 10' (3.0) with a 65 degree beam angle.

So even at a wider beam angle (which means a softer light, also good in many cases) the Fiilex is brighter, has variable color temperature, is lighter, smaller, and you'll probably get a better barn door cut with the Fiilex. The only advantage the Lowel has is that it is cheaper ($579.45 on B&H) and you can change the beam angle constantly from 10 to 43 degrees without any add-ons, while the Fiilex is set at 65 degrees and can be changed to 30 degrees with the Optional 2" Fresnel Lens, 14 degrees with the optional 5" lens, and an unspecified wider beam angle with the dome diffusion attachment.

The Lowel also has a 22 watt power draw at full power compared to the 90 watt of the Fiilex, so if you're running off of batteries the Lowel will last longer at full power. Of course the Fiilex is brighter so will take more power, but it is not four times as bright as the power draw suggests, so I suspect some of that power to brightness ratio is getting lost on the lens design (which likely offers more control and evenness at the cost of light loss) and the variable color temperature.
 
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Thanks for posting, good to hear what they are like. I am seriously looking at Fiilex but will hold off and see what else is coming. I really want an either or colour temp instrument.
 
Big fan of the Fiilex lights, but they are so expensive for the wattage. If you could get three for the price of one I would buy 6 or 9 of them and would all set.
 
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