How to choose the right LED bar
In need of more light on your vehicle? Thomas Hagert, our product manager at Strands Lighting Division, explains the concepts and helps you choose the right one in the broad and sometimes confusing range of LED bars.
FLOOD, SPOT, OR COMBINATION LIGHT?
A combination of length and width is preferred – a combo beam pattern, which is standard for Strands Lighting Division´s LED bars. Some diodes are more intended for length, while others are better for width. These are combined with reflectors that either focuses the light or spread it. It´s the perfect mix that gives the ideal light. The width is essential to have time to brake for wild animals, for example, and the length is necessary to plan the drive.
WHAT IS A GOOD PERFORMANCE?
You can see the performance by looking at lux, lumens, and watts. But at the end of the day, the driver’s experience is the absolute most crucial thing – far more important than numbers and what we constantly try to do as well as we can.
WHAT ARE LUX, LUMENS, AND WATTS?
Lux only explains how much light there is at a specific point/location. Usually, lux is used to explain how far a light source lights up. A lux measurement explains nothing about the design of the beam pattern. Lumen describes how much light comes out of the whole light source. It doesn´t say how far it lights up or the beam pattern.
Many think that how many watts a lamp consumes explains how “good” the light is. This is incorrect and only describes the consumption. Theoretical consumption is often presented even though the actual consumption matters. A common mistake is that customers ask for a 120-watt LED bar, but they usually mean a 20-22″ LED bar, and the actual consumption of these can be as low as 40 watts.
WHICH IS BEST – A CURVED OR STRAIGHT DESIGN?
The curved one blends in well with the soft design of modern vehicles, and the light also gets a wider range. The classic straight gives a higher light concentration on the range.
WHY A LED BAR WITH A POSITION LIGHT?
The position light doesn´t enhance the driving experience but can boost the aesthetic experience. The detail that makes your vehicle personal and appealing. The LED bars of the Siberia family come with stylish position lights, for example.
SLIM OR STANDARD?
It depends on where you mount your LED bar and which expression you prefer. An advantage of the slim models is that they can easily be mounted more hidden inside the grill. The standard size, also called double row, is for you who aren´t afraid of your LED bar being visible and a part of your vehicle.
HOW DOES THE LENGTH INFLUENCE THE LED BAR?
The more extended models are usually preferable if you have plenty of space – more diodes fit, which means you get more light out. The advantage of the short ones is that they fit on limited surfaces, and you can mount two pieces on the same vehicle.
WHICH LED BAR IS YOUR FAVORITE?
Siberia DRC, the double-row curved version, is excellent.
WE OFFER CUSTOMIZED LED BAR KITS
We offer a wide range of customized LED bar kits that contain everything you need for a seamless installation on your vehicle.
Explore Strands Lighting Division´s range of LED bars.