scapsinger
Well-known member
Just happened to get one of the MicroBeam 128 lights in, thought I'd do a quick comparison in my kitchen (sunlight filtering in) and my laundry room (no exterior lights, pitch black). Own an NRG Varalux Pro that connects to my big ol' huge battery belt, and while the belt is cumbersome, the light has been awesome for me. Dimmable, bright, tiltable on the fly, I've shot many events with it and had nothing but stellar results. This light advertises to be lighter and just as bright, but with no ugly, heavy battery belt. What's not to love about that?
Not the most scientific review, but I know a few of you - like myself - have been curious about the MicroBeam 128 light from Prompter People. So since I had a chance to compare this so-called 100w equivalent LED light to an actual 100w light, I thought I'd tell you about my observations. If I have a chance in the next day or two, I'll try to get some screen grabs of some tests (the light is passing through my hands to another user, I'm not keeping the MicroBeam).
First things first, I'll just come right out and tell you that while there may be some standard of measurement by which the MicroBeam could be called a 100w equivalent source, I have not found that to be the case. My wife, who does not know the first thing about video production or lighting, immediately identified the MicroBeam as being weaker at any distance. Even a straight "here, stare directly into the light at full power" test confirmed that while you could, in fact, stare directly at the MicroBeam from about 7 feet away, you would almost immediately go blind with the Varalux if you tried the same. That's your first clue.
I will add this...there is an additional mounting hole on top of the MicroBeam, so you could actually mount two of them right on top of each other and get more light (just angle them both toward your subject). There are also dual-shoe mounts on the market that will let you do this as well, but it's nice to not have to make another purchase of $30-$50 for a mount. For just under $700, you could get two of these and have a very scalable light source.
Second test....color. Everyone will tell you that LED lights cast a greenish color light, and this one is no exception. Why else would the Prompter People be so kind as to include two filters for just such a corrective purpose...specifically, the 1/4 and 1/2 green filters. The LED lights are 5600K and the Varalux has a 3200K bulb in it right now, so I put the filters on the MicroBeam and yet still could see that the MicroBeam was more green than the Varalux (this being a relative test, not absolute). By adding the 5600K screen onto the Varalux and using the bare MicroBeam, the MicroBeam still comes out noticably more green.
Third test...weight. Okay, not entirely a fair fight since the battery belt itself weighs about 13 pounds. But ask me whether I'd have more weight on my hips or more weight on my arms while holding my camera out from my body...well, it's a no brainer. With a 6000 mAh Sony battery attached to this MicroBeam, it's just slightly heavier than the weight of the Varalux on the camera. So there's not really a weight advantage there, unless you decide to use smaller batteries. The 6000 mAh is about as big a battery as any prosumer-style camera takes, but it's also the one that Prompter People (FloLight) recommends to get the longest run time.
Fourth test...well, not really a test, more of an observation....quality of materials. The Varalux is solid stuff, made very well. As compared against most LED lights, the MicroBeam fares quite well. Aluminum chassis, front filter holder, decent swivel shoe mount. Really the best overall build quality of any LED light I've yet used (Litepanels, Varizoom, Bescor). The potentiometer could use some markings, but it is nice that there is an on/off switch so I can leave the light at a specific intensity rather than dialing from "Off > 100% > Off."
Overall, for $329, it's really not a bad deal. If you don't already have an on-camera light, and you don't want to deal with a battery belt and you don't want to spend a ton of money, this is by far the best deal out there. If you are like me, and you find yourself doing events where you need a lot of light, or you have to light your subjects from more than 6 feet away, this might not be a good fit. The Varalux puts out vastly more light over a broader area and with more throw, and with none of the hassle of filtering out green light (and thereby further reducing total illumination).
If you are doing event work on a Steadicam or similar device, a battery belt is pretty much out of the question, and the MicroBeam wins that argument.
For ENG, interviews, and similar work, just put the filters on and take the hit on overall brightness. This light should be fine for that kind of work.
Hope this was useful info. I ran into a roadblock with Prompter People when they told me there'd be a 15% restocking fee if I returned the light (sight unseen, didn't feel good about purchasing the light). Also, no one in the area, nor anywhere else as far as I can tell, is selling this light. Being as new of a product as it is, there aren't that many users either. I picked it up used for a friend who wanted it, so it worked out well for me to test it.
Again, apologies for lack of images here, but I literally just had enough time right now to do my own rough comparison. I'll try to get some images soon from my camera or my friend. In the meantime, I guess I'd probably caution you against relying on the images and video provided by Prompter People, because they've either massively improved the light since they made the unit I have in my hands, or they tweaked their results...or they're using someone else's light to promote their own product. Or something. Those videos are very optimistic, in my opinion, when compared to my own results.
If you have any particular "test" you'd like me to try, let me know.
Not the most scientific review, but I know a few of you - like myself - have been curious about the MicroBeam 128 light from Prompter People. So since I had a chance to compare this so-called 100w equivalent LED light to an actual 100w light, I thought I'd tell you about my observations. If I have a chance in the next day or two, I'll try to get some screen grabs of some tests (the light is passing through my hands to another user, I'm not keeping the MicroBeam).
First things first, I'll just come right out and tell you that while there may be some standard of measurement by which the MicroBeam could be called a 100w equivalent source, I have not found that to be the case. My wife, who does not know the first thing about video production or lighting, immediately identified the MicroBeam as being weaker at any distance. Even a straight "here, stare directly into the light at full power" test confirmed that while you could, in fact, stare directly at the MicroBeam from about 7 feet away, you would almost immediately go blind with the Varalux if you tried the same. That's your first clue.
I will add this...there is an additional mounting hole on top of the MicroBeam, so you could actually mount two of them right on top of each other and get more light (just angle them both toward your subject). There are also dual-shoe mounts on the market that will let you do this as well, but it's nice to not have to make another purchase of $30-$50 for a mount. For just under $700, you could get two of these and have a very scalable light source.
Second test....color. Everyone will tell you that LED lights cast a greenish color light, and this one is no exception. Why else would the Prompter People be so kind as to include two filters for just such a corrective purpose...specifically, the 1/4 and 1/2 green filters. The LED lights are 5600K and the Varalux has a 3200K bulb in it right now, so I put the filters on the MicroBeam and yet still could see that the MicroBeam was more green than the Varalux (this being a relative test, not absolute). By adding the 5600K screen onto the Varalux and using the bare MicroBeam, the MicroBeam still comes out noticably more green.
Third test...weight. Okay, not entirely a fair fight since the battery belt itself weighs about 13 pounds. But ask me whether I'd have more weight on my hips or more weight on my arms while holding my camera out from my body...well, it's a no brainer. With a 6000 mAh Sony battery attached to this MicroBeam, it's just slightly heavier than the weight of the Varalux on the camera. So there's not really a weight advantage there, unless you decide to use smaller batteries. The 6000 mAh is about as big a battery as any prosumer-style camera takes, but it's also the one that Prompter People (FloLight) recommends to get the longest run time.
Fourth test...well, not really a test, more of an observation....quality of materials. The Varalux is solid stuff, made very well. As compared against most LED lights, the MicroBeam fares quite well. Aluminum chassis, front filter holder, decent swivel shoe mount. Really the best overall build quality of any LED light I've yet used (Litepanels, Varizoom, Bescor). The potentiometer could use some markings, but it is nice that there is an on/off switch so I can leave the light at a specific intensity rather than dialing from "Off > 100% > Off."
Overall, for $329, it's really not a bad deal. If you don't already have an on-camera light, and you don't want to deal with a battery belt and you don't want to spend a ton of money, this is by far the best deal out there. If you are like me, and you find yourself doing events where you need a lot of light, or you have to light your subjects from more than 6 feet away, this might not be a good fit. The Varalux puts out vastly more light over a broader area and with more throw, and with none of the hassle of filtering out green light (and thereby further reducing total illumination).
If you are doing event work on a Steadicam or similar device, a battery belt is pretty much out of the question, and the MicroBeam wins that argument.
For ENG, interviews, and similar work, just put the filters on and take the hit on overall brightness. This light should be fine for that kind of work.
Hope this was useful info. I ran into a roadblock with Prompter People when they told me there'd be a 15% restocking fee if I returned the light (sight unseen, didn't feel good about purchasing the light). Also, no one in the area, nor anywhere else as far as I can tell, is selling this light. Being as new of a product as it is, there aren't that many users either. I picked it up used for a friend who wanted it, so it worked out well for me to test it.
Again, apologies for lack of images here, but I literally just had enough time right now to do my own rough comparison. I'll try to get some images soon from my camera or my friend. In the meantime, I guess I'd probably caution you against relying on the images and video provided by Prompter People, because they've either massively improved the light since they made the unit I have in my hands, or they tweaked their results...or they're using someone else's light to promote their own product. Or something. Those videos are very optimistic, in my opinion, when compared to my own results.
If you have any particular "test" you'd like me to try, let me know.
