Owners of Coollight HMI"s... your thoughts please.

H

hotchkiss

Well-known member
I'm considering adding an HMI to my lighting package. The price of most manufacturer's units is steep, thus my consideration of Coollights units. I'd like to hear the feedback of anyone who owns them- either the 575W or 1.2W unit.

How are they holding up?

Anyway noteworthy design or manufacturing defects/ deficiencies ?

What kind of use do you put them through?

Would you buy them again?

I own a number of Coollights units, just not the HMI's. THey would be used as an owner/operator, rather than a rental situation. (Corporate production, commercials, occasional film) The price is obviously attractive, but I'm also of the opinion that there is a point of diminishing returns if the units are not reliable or have glaring issues.At that point I'd rather pony up for something more expensive and proven or rent.

Feel free to PM me as well. THanks!
 
I own both the 575 and 1.2k Coollights HMI's. I have been very pleased with both of them thus far. However, having never owned another brand of HMI I'm left without a direct comparison. I do own Arri Fresnels including a 1K and I can say that the build quality is very close. Not quite Arri, but close. Nevertheless, I bought sturdy cases to house them. Like you, I am an owner/operator so all my gear is very well cared for. I would buy them again but I don't think I'll have to :)

Also, if you get the 1.2k I would suggest you also purchase the lenses to help you control the light.
 
I've had them for about a year. I can't say I've used them heavily but everytime I have used them I've been pleased. Also, I'm glad I didn't spend twice the dough on Arri HMI's.
 
Recently in market for HMIs, here is what i found out that you can expect to pay for well cared used gear (in my case LTMs):
200 Fresnel + mag ballast (with case etc) - $750 to $1500
200 par + electronic ballast - $1000-1800
575 par + mag ballast (with case, lenses, header etc) - $1500-$2200
575 par + electronic ballast (with case, lenses, header etc) - $1800-2500
1.2 par + electronic ballast (with case, lenses, header etc) - $3500-4500

Because those are LTMs they have a significant resale value and have much better form factor (smaller) than Arris.

Before you jump into this expensive endeavor consider all the options. Understand that electronic ballast are much lighter than mag ballasts but are also much more prone to "quirks." Electronic ballst doesn't always mean better. All that electronic inside needs fans and fans can be loud. What kind of bulb the light takes is important - Par 64 HMi bulbs are super expensive and it takes about $500 to remodel the light head to single ended bulb. Is the light coming in its transport box? If not budget about $300-500 for the ATA box. All those variables can make one option way more desirable than another.
 
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