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LED Headlight Upgrade

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
To build a proper LED headlighting source, it really needs to be non-replaceable. These things are often a combination of LEDs and fiber optics and to assure everything lines, then you need to have these assembled as a unit.

Anything other than that and you're back at my first post - nothing available that meets the regulations - and often for very good reason.
 

golfdave

Autocross Champion
Location
Scotland (U.K.)
Car(s)
Mk7 Golf GT Estate
Right, but since "white light" isn't an absolute value, you can't have % more.

As a more serious aside - whiter light isn't always better.

Having done lighting design as part of my course work at Collage & Uni.....

The colour (color) of light is measure in two ways, "K" (Kelvin) & "CRI" (Colour Rendering Index)

Kelvin is directly linked to the colour of a rod/bar of iron held in a furnace.....it glows "x" colour when the temp is "x" Kelvin......warm the bar up just a bit the colour is red...then as you increase the heat the bar changes colour to orange, then yellow, then yellow/white, then white, then to blue white, then more blue...

Halogens are usually a crisp white with a slight yellow so circa 2700 to 3000K
Standard factory Xenon's are about 4000 to 4500K
Stupid blue Xenon's are about 6000 to 6500K

On top of this you have the CRI, which in simple terms means "does a white sheet of paper still look white under this light source"?..if not how bad is the colour shift?.......you can have the same type/power/lumen of lamp & have better or worse CRI...

When the marketing people use statements of "100% brighter"......what they should state is:-"we have increased the colour temp (K) so that the light emitted has more blue wavelength light contained in it. This tricks your eye into thinking its daylight & thus perceives it as "brighter" than the previous light bulb. Unfortunately it is still producing the same amount of lumen output as before. Because your eye thinks its daylight it uses more of the daylight receptors. Unfortunately the side effect is that you will using the eyes dim light (night) receptors less & you will be unable to see past the bright pool of light & into the shadows compared to your old bulbs...."

The higher the colour temp the more blue wavelength light it contains, no matter the light source. The human eye has a third mechanism in it which solely for detecting blue wavelength light & it controls our circadian rhythm etc. Basically when it sees blue wavelengths it shouts to the brain "its daylight get up".....

As far as white LEDs go most are cheap & they are made by using a blue LED & coating with yellow phosphor, which is why you see a yellow square. Even a low K LED made this way contains a huge amount of blue wavelength light compared to an old incandescent bulb with a similar Kelvin & Lumen output. This why there is huge concern over LEDs etc.....& some are using laser & multi coloured LEDs to get around this problem

My local Council retro fitted 4000K LED (blue/with yellow phosphor) to all the streetlights a few years ago. Makes the area look like a zombie film set! People complained, Council's attitude was "we know best"....well in the past year most have failed (well before time) & gone out..many people haven't bothered to report them as the place is better looking...

Sorry for the rant, but many organisations/companies are seriously affecting & abusing the human eyes mechanism, just for so called safety....



Back OT...those Osram housings in that link include fitting & should include alignment etc. Not a bad price for an all in job by your local VW dealer. Its 100% MOT/road legal etc in UK. Downside is if the LEDs go its a case of contact Osram & they might be able to refit a new section or a new unit.

If you want easy to replace individual bulbs its a case of stick with halogens. BUT get some decent Osram or Phillips bulbs..& yes they will have higher K, but most are not stupid high & are very good in beam throw & not blinding people!
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
Having done lighting design as part of my course work at Collage & Uni.....

The colour (color) of light is measure in two ways, "K" (Kelvin) & "CRI" (Colour Rendering Index)

Kelvin is directly linked to the colour of a rod/bar of iron held in a furnace.....it glows "x" colour when the temp is "x" Kelvin......warm the bar up just a bit the colour is red...then as you increase the heat the bar changes colour to orange, then yellow, then yellow/white, then white, then to blue white, then more blue...

Halogens are usually a crisp white with a slight yellow so circa 2700 to 3000K
Standard factory Xenon's are about 4000 to 4500K
Stupid blue Xenon's are about 6000 to 6500K

On top of this you have the CRI, which in simple terms means "does a white sheet of paper still look white under this light source"?..if not how bad is the colour shift?.......you can have the same type/power/lumen of lamp & have better or worse CRI...

When the marketing people use statements of "100% brighter"......what they should state is:-"we have increased the colour temp (K) so that the light emitted has more blue wavelength light contained in it. This tricks your eye into thinking its daylight & thus perceives it as "brighter" than the previous light bulb. Unfortunately it is still producing the same amount of lumen output as before. Because your eye thinks its daylight it uses more of the daylight receptors. Unfortunately the side effect is that you will using the eyes dim light (night) receptors less & you will be unable to see past the bright pool of light & into the shadows compared to your old bulbs...."

The higher the colour temp the more blue wavelength light it contains, no matter the light source. The human eye has a third mechanism in it which solely for detecting blue wavelength light & it controls our circadian rhythm etc. Basically when it sees blue wavelengths it shouts to the brain "its daylight get up".....

As far as white LEDs go most are cheap & they are made by using a blue LED & coating with yellow phosphor, which is why you see a yellow square. Even a low K LED made this way contains a huge amount of blue wavelength light compared to an old incandescent bulb with a similar Kelvin & Lumen output. This why there is huge concern over LEDs etc.....& some are using laser & multi coloured LEDs to get around this problem

My local Council retro fitted 4000K LED (blue/with yellow phosphor) to all the streetlights a few years ago. Makes the area look like a zombie film set! People complained, Council's attitude was "we know best"....well in the past year most have failed (well before time) & gone out..many people haven't bothered to report them as the place is better looking...

Sorry for the rant, but many organisations/companies are seriously affecting & abusing the human eyes mechanism, just for so called safety....



Back OT...those Osram housings in that link include fitting & should include alignment etc. Not a bad price for an all in job by your local VW dealer. Its 100% MOT/road legal etc in UK. Downside is if the LEDs go its a case of contact Osram & they might be able to refit a new section or a new unit.

If you want easy to replace individual bulbs its a case of stick with halogens. BUT get some decent Osram or Phillips bulbs..& yes they will have higher K, but most are not stupid high & are very good in beam throw & not blinding people!
What K are the OEM LED 's that come with an 18 SE? They appear to be around 5500K.
 

golfdave

Autocross Champion
Location
Scotland (U.K.)
Car(s)
Mk7 Golf GT Estate
What K are the OEM LED 's that come with an 18 SE? They appear to be around 5500K.

Don't know as LED can be made in any colour temp...& don't have the specs on those lights.....I do know that the VW factory Xenon's are 4000K to 4500K.......
 

Incoanon

New member
Location
UK
Car(s)
GOLF 7.5
Having done lighting design as part of my course work at Collage & Uni.....

The colour (color) of light is measure in two ways, "K" (Kelvin) & "CRI" (Colour Rendering Index)

Kelvin is directly linked to the colour of a rod/bar of iron held in a furnace.....it glows "x" colour when the temp is "x" Kelvin......warm the bar up just a bit the colour is red...then as you increase the heat the bar changes colour to orange, then yellow, then yellow/white, then white, then to blue white, then more blue...

Halogens are usually a crisp white with a slight yellow so circa 2700 to 3000K
Standard factory Xenon's are about 4000 to 4500K
Stupid blue Xenon's are about 6000 to 6500K

On top of this you have the CRI, which in simple terms means "does a white sheet of paper still look white under this light source"?..if not how bad is the colour shift?.......you can have the same type/power/lumen of lamp & have better or worse CRI...

When the marketing people use statements of "100% brighter"......what they should state is:-"we have increased the colour temp (K) so that the light emitted has more blue wavelength light contained in it. This tricks your eye into thinking its daylight & thus perceives it as "brighter" than the previous light bulb. Unfortunately it is still producing the same amount of lumen output as before. Because your eye thinks its daylight it uses more of the daylight receptors. Unfortunately the side effect is that you will using the eyes dim light (night) receptors less & you will be unable to see past the bright pool of light & into the shadows compared to your old bulbs...."

The higher the colour temp the more blue wavelength light it contains, no matter the light source. The human eye has a third mechanism in it which solely for detecting blue wavelength light & it controls our circadian rhythm etc. Basically when it sees blue wavelengths it shouts to the brain "its daylight get up".....

As far as white LEDs go most are cheap & they are made by using a blue LED & coating with yellow phosphor, which is why you see a yellow square. Even a low K LED made this way contains a huge amount of blue wavelength light compared to an old incandescent bulb with a similar Kelvin & Lumen output. This why there is huge concern over LEDs etc.....& some are using laser & multi coloured LEDs to get around this problem

My local Council retro fitted 4000K LED (blue/with yellow phosphor) to all the streetlights a few years ago. Makes the area look like a zombie film set! People complained, Council's attitude was "we know best"....well in the past year most have failed (well before time) & gone out..many people haven't bothered to report them as the place is better looking...

Sorry for the rant, but many organisations/companies are seriously affecting & abusing the human eyes mechanism, just for so called safety....



Back OT...those Osram housings in that link include fitting & should include alignment etc. Not a bad price for an all in job by your local VW dealer. Its 100% MOT/road legal etc in UK. Downside is if the LEDs go its a case of contact Osram & they might be able to refit a new section or a new unit.

If you want easy to replace individual bulbs its a case of stick with halogens. BUT get some decent Osram or Phillips bulbs..& yes they will have higher K, but most are not stupid high & are very good in beam throw & not blinding people!
What are good H7 Bulbs from Phillip or Orsam?
 

golfdave

Autocross Champion
Location
Scotland (U.K.)
Car(s)
Mk7 Golf GT Estate

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
Having done lighting design as part of my course work at Collage & Uni.....

The colour (color) of light is measure in two ways, "K" (Kelvin) & "CRI" (Colour Rendering Index)

Kelvin is directly linked to the colour of a rod/bar of iron held in a furnace.....it glows "x" colour when the temp is "x" Kelvin......warm the bar up just a bit the colour is red...then as you increase the heat the bar changes colour to orange, then yellow, then yellow/white, then white, then to blue white, then more blue...

Halogens are usually a crisp white with a slight yellow so circa 2700 to 3000K
Standard factory Xenon's are about 4000 to 4500K
Stupid blue Xenon's are about 6000 to 6500K

On top of this you have the CRI, which in simple terms means "does a white sheet of paper still look white under this light source"?..if not how bad is the colour shift?.......you can have the same type/power/lumen of lamp & have better or worse CRI...

When the marketing people use statements of "100% brighter"......what they should state is:-"we have increased the colour temp (K) so that the light emitted has more blue wavelength light contained in it. This tricks your eye into thinking its daylight & thus perceives it as "brighter" than the previous light bulb. Unfortunately it is still producing the same amount of lumen output as before. Because your eye thinks its daylight it uses more of the daylight receptors. Unfortunately the side effect is that you will using the eyes dim light (night) receptors less & you will be unable to see past the bright pool of light & into the shadows compared to your old bulbs...."

The higher the colour temp the more blue wavelength light it contains, no matter the light source. The human eye has a third mechanism in it which solely for detecting blue wavelength light & it controls our circadian rhythm etc. Basically when it sees blue wavelengths it shouts to the brain "its daylight get up".....

As far as white LEDs go most are cheap & they are made by using a blue LED & coating with yellow phosphor, which is why you see a yellow square. Even a low K LED made this way contains a huge amount of blue wavelength light compared to an old incandescent bulb with a similar Kelvin & Lumen output. This why there is huge concern over LEDs etc.....& some are using laser & multi coloured LEDs to get around this problem

My local Council retro fitted 4000K LED (blue/with yellow phosphor) to all the streetlights a few years ago. Makes the area look like a zombie film set! People complained, Council's attitude was "we know best"....well in the past year most have failed (well before time) & gone out..many people haven't bothered to report them as the place is better looking...

Sorry for the rant, but many organisations/companies are seriously affecting & abusing the human eyes mechanism, just for so called safety....



Back OT...those Osram housings in that link include fitting & should include alignment etc. Not a bad price for an all in job by your local VW dealer. Its 100% MOT/road legal etc in UK. Downside is if the LEDs go its a case of contact Osram & they might be able to refit a new section or a new unit.

If you want easy to replace individual bulbs its a case of stick with halogens. BUT get some decent Osram or Phillips bulbs..& yes they will have higher K, but most are not stupid high & are very good in beam throw & not blinding people!
Golfy - outstanding post and finally somebody that understands it.

To answer Jim's question, halogens are in the 2700-3000k range (k being kelvin), HIDs are in the 4300k range and LEDs in the 5000-5500k range.

The Acura TSX is known to have some of the best headlights around - it has HID low beams and halogen high beams. Why? Because of how the brain processes light.
 

Faceman

Autocross Newbie
Location
Long Island
Car(s)
'17 GSW 4Mo
Golfy - outstanding post and finally somebody that understands it.

To answer Jim's question, halogens are in the 2700-3000k range (k being kelvin), HIDs are in the 4300k range and LEDs in the 5000-5500k range.

The Acura TSX is known to have some of the best headlights around - it has HID low beams and halogen high beams. Why? Because of how the brain processes light.
That explains why BEC(Ed's) uses the same configuration.
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
Golfy - outstanding post and finally somebody that understands it.

To answer Jim's question, halogens are in the 2700-3000k range (k being kelvin), HIDs are in the 4300k range and LEDs in the 5000-5500k range.

The Acura TSX is known to have some of the best headlights around - it has HID low beams and halogen high beams. Why? Because of how the brain processes light.
I figured the LED 's were about 5500K. All I have in my house are 6500K
 

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
I figured the LED 's were about 5500K. All I have in my house are 6500K
Swap out the ones in your bedroom with warm (2700) and you'll sleep far better. If you're looking at 6500k all night, then your brain never gets to the point where it says "OK, it is getting to be night, let's think about going to sleep."

Your computer even has a "blue reduction" filter that you can set for the evening, that turns your screen warmer.

You won't realize what you are doing to your body with those blue lights.
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
Swap out the ones in your bedroom with warm (2700) and you'll sleep far better. If you're looking at 6500k all night, then your brain never gets to the point where it says "OK, it is getting to be night, let's think about going to sleep."

Your computer even has a "blue reduction" filter that you can set for the evening, that turns your screen warmer.

You won't realize what you are doing to your body with those blue lights.
Since I turn off the lights in the bedroom I don't think it will affect my sleep. 😂

I understand what you're saying though but after a few beers I don't have any problem getting sleepy in the living room.
 
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