Go with the NiceFoto HC-6000B Pro or HC-6000A Pro. No ballast, quiet, cool. They are a bit bulkier and heavier, but the trade off for quiet and cool over a long duration of operation is unmatched.
Great run through of these lights. And THANK YOU for the fan noise example (I remember from previous videos you've had a "damned if you do/damned if you don't" situation with this. Personally, I appreciated it here and would do in other reviews). I think your summation is spot on. For those of us who are non-professional but want a high output light for a range of uses, this is a bargain.
I've been loving the B300 & B200, been using them a lot on a recent shoot in Mexico. Nice to be able to fit so much power in a carry on bag. I wish I had been sent the B500 though as that extra power without any more size would have been awesome. My biggest frustration is the position of that screen, quite hard to see if you have the light above head height.
Competition is really ramping up in this line of products. I got a new 600 watt LED light for $359 and free shipping. I suspect the line will be discontinued since the brand came out with their "PRO" version of their lights, and might want to get rid of these so that they don't compete with their new line. But seeing more brands entering the fray is encouraging, and we will only benefit from the competition. Just like you said about the cost of an Aputure 120D MK II a few years ago.......now you can get a 300X for $1,000. Remember how much wide screen TVs cost when they came out. Now they are cheap.
LED lights are now getting cheaper. Nanlite also released their FC 500B, which is only at 560 USD, and is even brighter at 21k Lux at 1m (5600k). Im excited to see what will be Aperture's answer on their Amaran series. Their Amaran series is so good that it has an SSI rating of 80-90.
Thank you for the video with the outdoor comparisons! Not many folks do that. Seeing a comparison with these B300/B500 lights and the Molus G300 light would be interesting! Like brightness & noise comparison of the G300 vs B300 and the G300 in MAX 500w boost mode vs the B500. I have the G200 and recently was struggling indoors with it against a window (even in Max mode)
I take your point about the power cords being pulled out but better to pull out the cord rather than pull the whole light over, just my thoughts on it.
When a light is rigged up overhead, a plug being pulled out at the light head is the most frustrating thing ever. So, for me I'm more concerned with that than I am with a light falling over since it should be secured well anyway :D
Thanks for all the content you make, I recently came across your channel. The video on the Slider theme has left me a little calm, at least for the moment, I've just started, but in the future I would still like to have one for certain product shots. I don't understand the topic of professional lights very well, for example I didn't know about DMX about the use of Batteries, I don't know if you are referring to the V-Mount that I have seen in videos or photos. If you can make a video explaining about that that would be great. Greetings!.
After their last year of tiny powerful lights, I was expecting Zhiyun to move on to more professional high output lights. These aren't it, they're fine but I''d rather buy something with the build quality and features to last at least 5 years.
Thanks for making this video! Recently I ditched parabolic soft boxes and have switched to a 6ft umbrella with the light bouncing into the white interior and then going out extra diffusion layer. Beautiful soft lighting! You mentioned this light gets hot, would it be a bad idea to use an umbrella with the b500 since the diffusion material needs to wrap around the light to stay put? In most of my setups I’m sure I’d be running low power percentage but when I need to light for a window in the background is my concern. Thanks!!
What are the lux values without the reflector? I find that more useful since I’m probably not using the reflector in a soft box setup! Thanks for the great videos!
Go with the NiceFoto HC-6000B Pro or HC-6000A Pro. No ballast, quiet, cool. They are a bit bulkier and heavier, but the trade off for quiet and cool over a long duration of operation is unmatched.
Great run through of these lights. And THANK YOU for the fan noise example (I remember from previous videos you've had a "damned if you do/damned if you don't" situation with this. Personally, I appreciated it here and would do in other reviews).
I think your summation is spot on. For those of us who are non-professional but want a high output light for a range of uses, this is a bargain.
I've been loving the B300 & B200, been using them a lot on a recent shoot in Mexico. Nice to be able to fit so much power in a carry on bag. I wish I had been sent the B500 though as that extra power without any more size would have been awesome.
My biggest frustration is the position of that screen, quite hard to see if you have the light above head height.
I would give the cord some slack up top and then use a tie or a velcro strap to prevent anyone form pulling out the cord.
I suppose that's an option, but I still prefer a locking situation
Competition is really ramping up in this line of products. I got a new 600 watt LED light for $359 and free shipping. I suspect the line will be discontinued since the brand came out with their "PRO" version of their lights, and might want to get rid of these so that they don't compete with their new line. But seeing more brands entering the fray is encouraging, and we will only benefit from the competition. Just like you said about the cost of an Aputure 120D MK II a few years ago.......now you can get a 300X for $1,000. Remember how much wide screen TVs cost when they came out. Now they are cheap.
yeah as time goes on things get cheaper for sure
What is the 600 Watt LEd for 359$ from? Name? Brand?
LED lights are now getting cheaper. Nanlite also released their FC 500B, which is only at 560 USD, and is even brighter at 21k Lux at 1m (5600k). Im excited to see what will be Aperture's answer on their Amaran series. Their Amaran series is so good that it has an SSI rating of 80-90.
Thank you for the video with the outdoor comparisons! Not many folks do that. Seeing a comparison with these B300/B500 lights and the Molus G300 light would be interesting! Like brightness & noise comparison of the G300 vs B300 and the G300 in MAX 500w boost mode vs the B500. I have the G200 and recently was struggling indoors with it against a window (even in Max mode)
Yeah, I was considering doing that video, I'll see if I can :D
Yeah I'd love to see a comparison between the b300 and the g300
I take your point about the power cords being pulled out but better to pull out the cord rather than pull the whole light over, just my thoughts on it.
When a light is rigged up overhead, a plug being pulled out at the light head is the most frustrating thing ever. So, for me I'm more concerned with that than I am with a light falling over since it should be secured well anyway :D
Thanks for all the content you make, I recently came across your channel. The video on the Slider theme has left me a little calm, at least for the moment, I've just started, but in the future I would still like to have one for certain product shots.
I don't understand the topic of professional lights very well, for example I didn't know about DMX about the use of Batteries, I don't know if you are referring to the V-Mount that I have seen in videos or photos.
If you can make a video explaining about that that would be great. Greetings!.
Have you made a video talking about your favorite video lights?
Great review! I just reviewed the 500 and 200. The fan on the 500 is a bit too much of a con for me
Thanks for that! Very helpful.
My 500 arrives tomorrow.
After their last year of tiny powerful lights, I was expecting Zhiyun to move on to more professional high output lights. These aren't it, they're fine but I''d rather buy something with the build quality and features to last at least 5 years.
Yeah I think they might slowly work in that direction. Perhaps this is their first step towards more pro end lights.
How are they competing with Nanlite FS-300Bi? It is the same size, no power brick, has an app and is quite good for the money...
I'm not sure, I don't have the Nanlite around to test it against.
Thanks for making this video! Recently I ditched parabolic soft boxes and have switched to a 6ft umbrella with the light bouncing into the white interior and then going out extra diffusion layer. Beautiful soft lighting! You mentioned this light gets hot, would it be a bad idea to use an umbrella with the b500 since the diffusion material needs to wrap around the light to stay put? In most of my setups I’m sure I’d be running low power percentage but when I need to light for a window in the background is my concern. Thanks!!
Great video, I think its a very interesting move by Zhiyun.
thanks for watching :D
Great video. What size power station did you use with them?
The one I used has a 3,600Wh capacity :D. So pretty hefty!
What are the lux values without the reflector? I find that more useful since I’m probably not using the reflector in a soft box setup! Thanks for the great videos!
You can find that on the Zhiyun Website.
1783 fc/19,200 lux at 1m without reflector.
There’s not much to complain about considering the price range they are in. A decent budget light for sure.
For sure
better go to g300 same boost output 500w same with B500
Might be a lot noiser