pineappleunderthesea Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 Check the alignment first. My headlight was pointed down WAY too low from the factory. That made a world of difference, then I upgraded to an OSRAM Night Racer 110 bulb, and it was $20 well spent. The headlight now kicks butt! Mine was too low as well but when I adjusted it up to where it needed to be it made my high beam way too high. I'm sure being a brighter bulb helps a tad. Did the box it came in say what the light range was or anything other than what it did in the link? 110% More Light 20% Whiter Light 35m More Distance 50% Longer Life It's states this but compared to what? Have any pics of it in action at night? I saw how one person said there was no difference in the angle between the low & high beam on the Cyclops but it isn't that way with mine. there is a small difference and it's almost perfect IMO. My highs point straight out so they light everything up far asway but still not in peoples eyes and the low beam trikes the road but yet still lights it up further out than the stock bulb would. If I recall, the fine print on the bulbs compare the brightness and distance vs. a bulb that is nearly worn, not with a brand new OEM halogen bulb. That's why you need a side by side comparison with a fresh OEM bulb. I found a few on car forums, I personally like the whiter light better, but I'm not convinced of claims that you can see further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member rowdy Posted December 5, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 5, 2015 I replaced my stock bulb with the Night Racer after about 2000 miles, and I noticed a significant difference. Your results may vary, and I'm sure there are better alternatives, but I'm more than satisfied with my lighting now. Why can't left turners see us? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 5, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 5, 2015 Yeah,I put in a regular Silverstar, and it has done wonders over the stock bulb. I didn't have an issue with the stock bulb though.I thought it looked fine, so maybe those who have issues with their beam pattern should look at the headlight alignment. I'm definitely going the HID Retrofit route though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemer Posted December 5, 2015 Share Posted December 5, 2015 I'm all for any bulb that's better than that yellowish stock bulb. I didn't convey my thoughts like I meant to when I said, My highs point straight out so they light everything up far away but still not in peoples eyes and the low beam strikes the road but yet still lights it up further out than the stock bulb would. To be more exact in what I meant was when the bulb is on high and pointing straight out and I switch to low beam the low beam isn't pointing down as much (it points more level with the road) using the Cyclops compared to the stock bulb on low beam with the same straight ahead set up on the high beam. I hope that makes sense. Beemer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member rowdy Posted December 6, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 6, 2015 I'm all for any bulb that's better than that yellowish stock bulb. I didn't convey my thoughts like I meant to when I said, My highs point straight out so they light everything up far away but still not in peoples eyes and the low beam strikes the road but yet still lights it up further out than the stock bulb would. To be more exact in what I meant was when the bulb is on high and pointing straight out and I switch to low beam the low beam isn't pointing down as much (it points more level with the road) using the Cyclops compared to the stock bulb on low beam with the same straight ahead set up on the high beam. I hope that makes sense. Gotcha. I really didn't take any measurements and I readjusted the beam just days before I got the new bulb, so I'm not sure how much different it is. I know, since I readjusted and changed the bulb, my lows throw very far and reflective signs glow in the distance, but I've never had anyone flash their brights at me. The highs are just plain ridiculous, and I only use them for entertainment when no one else is on the road. Why can't left turners see us? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 6, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 6, 2015 Yes. It's the normal H4 behavior, but whiter and much brighter. The issue with these bulbs is that they burn out within a few hundred hours. I wish they had a custom fit LED solution with a proper hear sink (similar to the aftermarket round headlights, the entire enclosure is a giant heat sink). You know, a lot of the Triumph guys are using that round Harley Day Maker looking LED and it doesn't look half bad... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 Generally for the best and most consistent spread its: Projectors = HID / Halogen Stock (non projector) housing = LED. The LED tends to break up through the projector lens and the spread of it suffers. Although HIDs work in our stock housing as well. We have to keep in mind that the LED gets hot (even with its built-in fan) and output light suffers as a result when its in a tight containment of the projector housing. LEDs should not be used in a projector setup. The LED technology is not quite there to get the same even light spread as a HID bulb. Maybe I'm reading your post wrong, but The LED light output shouldn't break up through the projector lens because it shouldn't be in the projector to begin with. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 Hey @panzer716 , did you ever get someone to try just the hid kit from retrofit source? Seemed like another good option, also kinda mad i missed their BF sale -_-Sadly, I don't think anyone tried out that kit. There didn't seem to be any interest and no one seemed to be in the market for a gateway HID upgrade. If you use the code TRSHJ at checkout, you will get 10% off your order though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 6, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 6, 2015 Generally for the best and most consistent spread its: Projectors = HID / Halogen Stock (non projector) housing = LED. The LED tends to break up through the projector lens and the spread of it suffers. Although HIDs work in our stock housing as well. We have to keep in mind that the LED gets hot (even with its built-in fan) and output light suffers as a result when its in a tight containment of the projector housing. LEDs should not be used in a projector setup. The LED technology is not quite there to get the same even light spread as a HID bulb. Maybe I'm reading your post wrong, but The LED light output shouldn't break up through the projector lens because it shouldn't be in the projector to begin with. Lol Some manufacturers do this right though, like Acura. Some do it and look nice, but has not much function like the Toyota Corolla. I've envisioned a LED projector retrofit, but like said, technology for this might not be here yet, but big names like Acura is definitely knocking on that door, but of course, they have more than one LED projector in the housings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 6, 2015 Author Share Posted December 6, 2015 LEDs should not be used in a projector setup. The LED technology is not quite there to get the same even light spread as a HID bulb. Maybe I'm reading your post wrong, but The LED light output shouldn't break up through the projector lens because it shouldn't be in the projector to begin with. Lol Some manufacturers do this right though, like Acura. Some do it and look nice, but has not much function like the Toyota Corolla. I've envisioned a LED projector retrofit, but like said, technology for this might not be here yet, but big names like Acura is definitely knocking on that door, but of course, they have more than one LED projector in the housings. My wifes Mazda 2016 CX-5 has LED projector lamps. They are pretty comparable to the HID's she had on her Mazda 3, maybe a touch better. I wonder if those could be retrofitted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 6, 2015 Share Posted December 6, 2015 LEDs should not be used in a projector setup. The LED technology is not quite there to get the same even light spread as a HID bulb. Maybe I'm reading your post wrong, but The LED light output shouldn't break up through the projector lens because it shouldn't be in the projector to begin with. Lol Some manufacturers do this right though, like Acura. Some do it and look nice, but has not much function like the Toyota Corolla. I've envisioned a LED projector retrofit, but like said, technology for this might not be here yet, but big names like Acura is definitely knocking on that door, but of course, they have more than one LED projector in the housings. Let me clarify what I meant, if you take a D2S projector and put an LED bulb in it, that does not work. An LED bulb should never go in a projector like that. When the projectors themselves are dedicated LED projectors, like the Acura MDX, Toyota Corolla, GMC Murano and the Prius' Koito Bi-LEDs, they are good. Even in the Koito Bi-LEDs case, almost comparable to HIDs when you do a clear lens swap. LED specific projectors are good. I was referring to just putting a bulb like the Cyclops into a projector made for an HID bulb. Like I said, I probably just read the original quote wrong. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 7, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 7, 2015 Some manufacturers do this right though, like Acura. Some do it and look nice, but has not much function like the Toyota Corolla. I've envisioned a LED projector retrofit, but like said, technology for this might not be here yet, but big names like Acura is definitely knocking on that door, but of course, they have more than one LED projector in the housings.Let me clarify what I meant, if you take a D2S projector and put an LED bulb in it, that does not work. An LED bulb should never go in a projector like that. When the projectors themselves are dedicated LED projectors, like the Acura MDX, Toyota Corolla, GMC Murano and the Prius' Kioto Bi-LEDs, they are good. Even in the Kioto Bi-LEDs case, almost comparable to HIDs when you do a clear lens swap. LED specific projectors are good. I was referring to just putting a bulb like the Cyclops into a projector made for an HID bulb. Like I said, I probably just read the original quote wrong. LolI wonder, has anyone tried to retrofit those more expensive OEM LEDs yet? Hmmm.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 7, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 7, 2015 Some manufacturers do this right though, like Acura. Some do it and look nice, but has not much function like the Toyota Corolla. I've envisioned a LED projector retrofit, but like said, technology for this might not be here yet, but big names like Acura is definitely knocking on that door, but of course, they have more than one LED projector in the housings.My wifes Mazda 2016 CX-5 has LED projector lamps. They are pretty comparable to the HID's she had on her Mazda 3, maybe a touch better. I wonder if those could be retrofitted? Maybe we should take an OEM set of those headlights apart. Is the Low and Highs separate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 Let me clarify what I meant, if you take a D2S projector and put an LED bulb in it, that does not work. An LED bulb should never go in a projector like that. When the projectors themselves are dedicated LED projectors, like the Acura MDX, Toyota Corolla, GMC Murano and the Prius' Kioto Bi-LEDs, they are good. Even in the Kioto Bi-LEDs case, almost comparable to HIDs when you do a clear lens swap. LED specific projectors are good. I was referring to just putting a bulb like the Cyclops into a projector made for an HID bulb. Like I said, I probably just read the original quote wrong. LolI wonder, has anyone tried to retrofit those more expensive OEM LEDs yet? Hmmm....If you're talking in general, then ton and tons and TONS of people have already retrofitted many expensive LEDs into their vehicles already. Here is a Koito Bi-LED in a Fiat 500, here is a Honda Grom with a Koito Bi-LED, here is a Avalon Low beam in a Z1000, here is a another Z1000 but with Corolla LEDs, here is an MDX retro on a Acura TL, and here is a Corolla LED in an FZ-8. If you're talking about if anyone has done it specifically with this bike, then I think the answer is no. But there are plenty of inspirational projects to get ideas from. *Edit, right after I posted this I realized that Avalon projectors aren't LED, but Halogen. Lol Still really cool non-the-less and they could pass of as LED with the right Kelvin Bulb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 7, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 7, 2015 Man, that koito bi-led is bomb.com!!! I have not been on HID PLANET in a while, so thanks for sharing those links. Maybe bi-led is in my future... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 7, 2015 Author Share Posted December 7, 2015 My wifes Mazda 2016 CX-5 has LED projector lamps. They are pretty comparable to the HID's she had on her Mazda 3, maybe a touch better. I wonder if those could be retrofitted? Maybe we should take an OEM set of those headlights apart. Is the Low and Highs separate? My wife would kill me if I went close to her car and tried to dismantle anything. She's pretty good at putting up with most of my shenanigans, but there is a limit. :-) It doesn't have separate hi/lo, it's all off of one bulb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 7, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 7, 2015 Maybe we should take an OEM set of those headlights apart. Is the Low and Highs separate?My wife would kill me if I went close to her car and tried to dismantle anything. She's pretty good at putting up with most of my shenanigans, but there is a limit. :-) It doesn't have separate hi/lo, it's all off of one bulb. I meant a set separate from your wife's car LOL. Okay, then if it's one bulb, then it's a great candidate for a retrofit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 7, 2015 Author Share Posted December 7, 2015 There is a full 2016 CX-5 LED headlight on ebay. $475 is a bit steep for me to jump in and try to retrofit it though. http://www.ebay.com/itm/MAZDA-CX5-CX-5-LH-FULL-HID-LED-HEADLIGHT-OEM-NICE-16-2016-/291534471263?hash=item43e0cf005f:g:k3kAAOSw~gRVxXSG&vxp=mtr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Global Moderator jeffkisthename Posted December 7, 2015 Global Moderator Share Posted December 7, 2015 Yeah, forget that. That modified Koito Bi-LED projector is the best looking prospect so far. I wonder how much it is... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 Yeah, forget that. That modified Koito Bi-LED projector is the best looking prospect so far. I wonder how much it is...When TRS had them in stock, they were $395 for the pair. If you wanted to buy the clear lens upgrade it would have been an additional $30-$40 for the pair of lens' plus some time to modify them because they require some modification besides just swapping out the lens to make the clear lens swap. So figure you cut those prices in half you'd be looking at about $215 for the full setup seeing as they don't need ballasts or igniter or anything like that. The cost of the projectors is basically the whole cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 7, 2015 Author Share Posted December 7, 2015 TRS has some Murano LED's on closeout, $130 bux for a pair. https://www.theretrofitsource.com/closeouts/2015-murano-led-projector-system-50979.html The mounting setup doesn't look as obvious as what I saw on the Koito Grom mod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Posted December 7, 2015 Share Posted December 7, 2015 TRS has some Murano LED's on closeout, $130 bux for a pair. https://www.theretrofitsource.com/closeouts/2015-murano-led-projector-system-50979.html The mounting setup doesn't look as obvious as what I saw on the Koito Grom mod. Also the Murano's are only low beam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pineappleunderthesea Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 I wonder if you could retrofit a small circular aftermarket LED headlight into our lamp assembly. It might look silly, though. Companies like JW Speaker, Trucklite, GE Nighthawk all make circular headlamps with integrated heatsinks, and the optics and reflectors are all designed and optimized already. Works well for cruisers. You'd have to fit all that into our lamp, though, probably wouldn't look clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 8, 2015 Author Share Posted December 8, 2015 I wonder if you could retrofit a small circular aftermarket LED headlight into our lamp assembly. It might look silly, though. Companies like JW Speaker, Trucklite, GE Nighthawk all make circular headlamps with integrated heatsinks, and the optics and reflectors are all designed and optimized already. Works well for cruisers. You'd have to fit all that into our lamp, though, probably wouldn't look clean. I have these (the KC Hilites ones) on my jeep. Don't think it would work. If you were to go this route, it would probably be easier to get rid of the stock assembly and figure out how to mount a round assembly from another bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conejo Posted December 8, 2015 Author Share Posted December 8, 2015 TRS has some Murano LED's on closeout, $130 bux for a pair. https://www.theretrofitsource.com/closeouts/2015-murano-led-projector-system-50979.html The mounting setup doesn't look as obvious as what I saw on the Koito Grom mod. Also the Murano's are only low beam. Whoopsies, that's a good thing to know :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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