Trying to deside between LED angel eyes and CCFL's

[Jake]

Not excactly sure if this is on here yet but i need help deciding which angel eyes to buy. im stuck between the CCFL's and the LED's. LED's cost 50$ more from where im looking (ebay) and i just want to know if that moneys worth it. i've heard CCFL's have problems in the cold, sometimes don't last as long, and are also not as bright as the LED's. I'm hoping for some input and opinions on these lights. should i go with the cheaper CCFL's and save some money? or spend the other 50$ on LED's?

[hotmilk400]

it depends on the amount of LEDs used. mine only use 2 LEDs per light, and it looks like ****. most of them use like between 20 - 100 per llight, those are the ones that look very nice.

if it were me, i would spend the extra on LED models.

the others use Florence lights, so when it is cold, they will not be as bright. also, Florence lights blow out (and since they will always be on, this might be a problem) you will also have a transformer to hide, and they consume alittle more power.

LED's on the other are brighter in the Cold weather, and never blow out. they are normally rated for 100,000 hours before they get to half dimness (to the best of my knowledge, leds never blow out as long as you never overpower them, they just get dimmer) they can also run on almost no power, and if the system uses more then like 10 leds per light, it will be very bright.

basically, if you get the Florence lights, and one tube happens to blow out early, or brakes (since it is only thin glass), where does that leave you. Leds are plastic, and basically will never break.

either work well tho, do not let me scare you. just some basic observations. many people use both without problems, i am talking long term.

what lights are you looking at online? they shouldnt be to expensive, LED lights are actually cheaper to make, so maybe you can get lucky and find a LED system with a few LEDS per light pretty cheap.

[Jake]

right now im looking at depo headlights. here are the LED's im looking at
---> http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/DEPO-...item483c515abb

and even though the item's bidding has ended, this gives you an idea of the CCFL's im looking at

---> http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/92-99...Q5fAccessories

i think the LED's said it was 60 per light which should be pretty bright, right?

you have me leaning a little bit more towards the LED's, the only thing i'll have to pay more is the 50$ shipping. But anyways, thanks a lot for quick response, and help, greatly appreciated.

[hotmilk400]

hey, i found these for you, but i am not sure if they will work for your car. just do a quick look and make sure they will fit. they should be okay.


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-96...item2eafdf4d7c

good luck.

[roadrash]

Or, you could make your own LED rings. I've seen a "how to" video somewhere.

[Jake]

ill definately buy them and not make them. the main reason im buying those was because the rings were pre-installed. the ones hotmilk sent me were pre-installed too. i think im going to end up getting those, cheaper and LED!. thanks for all the help

[Mr. Crow]

Jake, Hotmilk has some excellent advice. Just a word of caution on some of those ebay vendors no matter what thier feedback is. Ive heard some are legit and some have treated pepole shady. But thats IMO, im anti ebay. I would rather buy product direct. Where you want to spend your money is your AE's and your ballast's. If I were you I would piece everything together. with Depo genIV housings. The quality will be superior to a pre-assembled unit. And people always lie about what they install in them. And you get what you pay for. If your spending 300 already plus shipping....At least know what your getting. Since I was spending more that a few bucks already, I decided to go with the Orion V2s....something like 80-100 led's. (i cant recall) 6500k. Brighter and last way longer, And went with prolumen ballast w/ Depo Gen4 housings. Bulbs are a dime a dozen....pick your color. Bavtoys. has a pretty good deal on quality ballast. Shop around bro, ddm, umnitza, before you pruchase. The make an informed decision based on quality and how much you feel like spending.

[hotmilk400]

yeah, ebay is a tricky place, some people are just trying to make a buck any way possible, some people will go way out of their way to help you.

it really varies on stores. since i use ebay alot, i have favorite sellers that i know i can trust, and i always look on their stuff first. unfortunately, non of them had LED lights, so i couldn't help you their.

Most sellers are pretty honest. sometimes you get shady sellers, but the best thing to do is email someone else that bought the product and see how everything went. sometimes problems do not arise till after you install stuff and had it for awhile. or just look to see what any negative comments say. it will tell you alot about the company and products, even if only 2 are negative out of 500.

[Jake]

ok thanks. i think ill start sending emails and looking at some feedback behind those that hotmilk showed me above. dont have a whole lot a money right now so ill try to find the best looking and lasting headlights for the best price

[Mr. Crow]

Originally Posted by Jake

ok thanks. i think ill start sending emails and looking at some feedback behind those that hotmilk showed me above. dont have a whole lot a money right now so ill try to find the best looking and lasting headlights for the best price

i think a few guys here have bought from redcometm3. Do a search and check it out.

And rest assured, someone in the .org will always help you out! Or at least steer you in the right path!

Good luck my friend.

[bimmerfun]

I'm sorry, Angel Eyes sounds like a nickname for a pretty girl!
I just boughtg a 1998 328ti Sport. I like the angel eyes, but, most importantly...I miss not having daytime driving lights!
Which of the available headlight assemblies are ade in Germany?
Nothing against Japan, but I don't want to Japanese headlight assemblies on a BMW!

[dave45056]

BMW invented the angel eyes. You may see them on Japanese cars too, but ususally it will say "just like a BMW" or something like that. The same applies to M3 mirrors. It seems like every Japanese car can now get M3 mirrors but that does not make a BMW car with M3 mirrors Japanese style. Anyway, I think Angel eyes practically are DRL's with a switch you can turn off.
The other alternative is City Lights. The headlights from DDM have the City Light option. If you order Angel Eyes, they wire them up so the city light plug.

[bimmerfun]

Thank you! Might I ask...which do you prefer?

[dave45056]

I prefer ccfl.
It's a simple 1 lamp system, bright enough to be seen in daylight, seems just bright enough. Reliable, too. Cold weather can make them dimmer at startup, but who cares?

LED's seem too difficult to get right. Too few of them and it looks like a christmas tree. Too many and they are just too bright. Lastly, what would you do if 1 of them blew out or got an open circuit?

Now if they made a 2 LED version which was bright enough, I would go for that. But for now I like CCFL's

[bimmerfun]

Thank you, Dave. That makes a lot of sense to me.