amm203 Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 So I posted this on the 4th Gen Legacy forum but figured it'd work here as well. If this is an issue can a Mod please let me know? I purchased these last week and they arrived on Thursday. Was out of town so I haven't had a chance to install them. It's a slow day at work so I figured I'll post my first impressions and pictures of these bulbs for now. They were purchased from Amazon for 99$ and will replace the low-beam H7 halogens in the projector housing. *edit* Here are some details for the bulb: Brand & Product Code: OPT7 FluxBeam 3500 - H7-HDOPT7-6 Rated Output: 3500 lumens per bulb using Cree MK-R LED with "Arc-Glass" technology - 60 Watts Color: 6000K Warranty: 2 year warranty with lifetime support. They claim a 50,000 hour life. CanBUS Ready These truly were Plug-N-Play [ame=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VNBEUMO?keywords=opt7%20H7&qid=1433782130&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1]http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VNBEUMO?keywords=opt7%20H7&qid=1433782130&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1[/ame] I know someone attempted this a few years ago for a group buy but even in the past couple years LEDs have come a long way. Attached are the photos. Build quality is pretty damn good. The aluminum looks great and they feel really solid. I'm hopeful that the small size of the controller (little red rectangle) will allow me to put everything inside the gray dust cap without any issues. I'll be installing them tonight and posting some comparisons between them and the halogens. These have great reviews and supposedly work wonderfully with projector lenses. Any questions feel free to ask! http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07390_zpsokxscf3l.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07393_zps0v97rtjl.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07395_zpsksyhufgr.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07400_zps6mkbmkvt.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07396_zpspzoasisc.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07398_zpsaoyvxuep.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07397_zpsozjn8lmx.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 9, 2015 Author Share Posted June 9, 2015 Got around to installing both the LED H7s and also replaced the fog-lights with the PIAA Ion Yellows right before it started pouring. Some install notes and first impressions: So I'm not going to do a step by step installation - it's pretty straight forward for our 4th gens. The connections are polarized so it's always good to test light the bulb before installing. http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07404_zpss8uxivd4.jpg Nice bright white light being emitted! http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07403_zpsmuxqcevj.jpg Getting the retaining wire around the red heat-sink is a bit of a pain in the ass but it's possible. Believe it or not - the entire LED bulb and controller are inside the dust cap. It sealed up perfectly. However, it seemed like a tight fit so I checked the status of the bulb and wire the next day... http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07412_zpsqw0a794j.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07414_zpshn2r17qa.jpg Wish the wire came out the side. It looks like the dust cap is pretty damn close to the back-end of the bulb. The small 1/8th grommet around the wire looks like it adds the tiniest gap between the rear and dust cap. Also, the side of the aluminum heat-sink is open to the air so hopefully that gives it enough air-flow. Time will tell as to how long these bulbs last. But for now the look is awesome. Some examples: http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07410_zpso2fk3iwr.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/IMG_4700_zpshpdxqiuk.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/IMG_4702_zpsqpnzphjy.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/IMG_4703_zpsi1bvkgb5.jpg Slight blue tinge straight on but the throw is practically all pure white. http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/IMG_4704_zpszaw9ipm3.jpg I stayed in the city last night but I took a couple photos against my garage with the halogens up north - tonight I'll post comparison shots between them. I'll also post a couple more photos of the throw down a back-road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick4dr Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 I reached out to Lux lighting the comonay that made the leds for another members car. no answer for over a week now, these look like a great alternative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 9, 2015 Author Share Posted June 9, 2015 Yeah so far I'm pleased especially considering I didn't need to mess with the dust cap. I know the stock projector lens isn't the best but I'm not about to do a projector retro-fit so these seem like the next best things available with the best lumen output. Driving around Pittsburgh it's tough to know how well they do - all of the street lights here are 6000K LED clusters so they basically make the headlight beam disappear. Once I get north to the boonies tonight I'll really be able to document the output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick4dr Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 looking forward to some dark roadway shots, particulary if possible... headlights on with the picture being taken from standing behind the trunk facing foward with the camera at about the 6ft height mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goatcrapp Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 looking forward to some dark roadway shots, particulary if possible... headlights on with the picture being taken from standing behind the trunk facing foward with the camera at about the 6ft height mark And make sure you do it ONLY during the 3rd full moon of summer, while wearing a sash made of oleander, sage and thistle. If you don't do this, we all face our doom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohdamngetit Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 In the description of the kit, it noted that it has a cooling fan in the fins. I'm wondering if cooling will be an issue since it is capped off in the headlight housing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 Did some driving and got some pretty good shots! Signs illuminate brighter and at further distances. The beams have a uniform cut-off with the exception of the dim "eyebrows" above. I don't think those cause any blinding effect. No high-beam flashes yet driving about 40 miles in these. The beam-spread to the right is WIDE which I like. This doesn't appear to be an issue to the left as much. These lights are outstanding. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. First a couple of the halogens against the garage. http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07382_zps1qlm9jzq.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07389_zpsotav1tb8.jpg Now the LED's http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07420_zpswka6kpot.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07423_zpsyv9a9nhb.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07433_zpselxll1ot.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07457_zps1u7vayau.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07466_zpsvq4f4ms2.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07469_zps8ahqlfva.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07473_zpsyy3pjp1b.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07478_zpsaamcex4d.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07486_zpsijvygpus.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07482_zpsxfex1wkn.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07505_zpsglt8ynfm.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07508_zpseo1rpkmt.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07509_zpshhqp732c.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 In the description of the kit, it noted that it has a cooling fan in the fins. I'm wondering if cooling will be an issue since it is capped off in the headlight housing? I had the same thought. I emailed OPT7's support and told them the issue with the sealed dust cap being close to the rear of the bulb and asked what they thought. I'll let you know what they reply with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garino55 Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 Can you get some better pics? Like 25 feet from a wall inside a parking garage? and like side by side comparison pics vs halogens? Everything i read and look up on LED's from all these companies is that they are shittier than halogens and HID's because they don't project like as far or spread it as evenly. Those ones do look better but still not convinced i should drop 100 bucks on them and tear apart my 2011 legacy to put them in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 10, 2015 Author Share Posted June 10, 2015 Sure - I'll try to get some in a garage this weekend. Are the projectors identical to the BL/BP Legacies? Regardless, I'll swap out one of the LEDs tonight real quick and throw in a halogen to do a true side by side comparison. If anyone has any other requests let me know. I know these are pricey and people's impressions are subjective in relation to HIDs or halogens so I'll be happy to help ya make a decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garino55 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Are the projectors identical to the BL/BP Legacies? What do you mean by that? I have a 2011 subaru legacy with stock projectors. I believe theyre the same as inside yours. Does anyone else know for sure? Thanks for getting more pics. Can you see as far as HID's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 I just thought they would have modified/improved the projector lenses between model refreshes but I could be wrong. I didn't have a chance last night to get the comparisons but I definitely will tonight. I'll also take a drive with a different bulb in each to get driving comparisons. They are definitely not as bright as HIDs but I think they're brighter than halogens by a little bit. They have the same color temp and have a pretty defined cut-off like HIDs but the brightness isn't quite as focused as it could be. In more modern projectors these lights are beasts as you can see on the Amazon customer photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 In the description of the kit, it noted that it has a cooling fan in the fins. I'm wondering if cooling will be an issue since it is capped off in the headlight housing? So OPT7 responded and said I should remove the dust cap. Not too happy about that. Debating what to do. I do not want any moisture getting into the enclosure. I might buy an extra pair of caps and drill a few small holes in them near the fan/heatsink location. If any moisture shows up inside I'll close them off with the hole-less caps and hope they last. Does anyone have experience running a setup without dust caps/perforated dust caps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fedaykin Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Bothered to replace one of them back to halogen for comparison shots? Looks like a good upgrade. Looks glare-y though, those cut offs aren't as clean as the halogen ones. Can rotate them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 Bothered to replace one of them back to halogen for comparison shots? Looks like a good upgrade. Looks glare-y though, those cut offs aren't as clean as the halogen ones. Can rotate them? I am going to do that tonight. Luckily with our BL/BPs that swap takes 3 minutes so it won't be hard to do. Ideally the orientation of the two LED clusters would be in East-West orientation but the H7 tab forces the clusters into more of a Northwest-Southeast orientation. It most likely would clean up the lines if I could manage to fix the orientation. If anyone knows of a way to rotate the orientation I'd appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drunkinmonk Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 So OPT7 responded and said I should remove the dust cap. Not too happy about that. Debating what to do. I do not want any moisture getting into the enclosure. I might buy an extra pair of caps and drill a few small holes in them near the fan/heatsink location. If any moisture shows up inside I'll close them off with the hole-less caps and hope they last. Does anyone have experience running a setup without dust caps/perforated dust caps? I'm running hid without dust caps on one side since the clip to hold the bulb in broke. I had to rig an elastic to keep the tension on the bulb. I very rarely do have issues with condensation I'm in Maine. Maybe once or twice and it was raining for a couple days straight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 Thank you for the feedback! I think I'll go the route of drilling a few 1/8th or 3/16th inch holes right where the rear of the bulb hits the dust cap. That'll at least get cool outside air running through the heat sink while minimizing moisture. New development when I went to check the bulb out this morning. I wanted to see if I could rotate the retaining ring - I guess in my haste of putting them on I missed the fact that the ring can rotate. The bulb seems to stay in place as-is now and the orientation is now a perfect East-West as I originally wanted. I'm gonna post a couple pictures tonight along with the halogen comparison to see if the beam pattern changes at all! http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/image1_zpsvdtthxmg.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/image2_zpsfto4kiik.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 11, 2015 Author Share Posted June 11, 2015 More free-time at work... Drilled the holes per OPT7's recommendation. They should really help get some fresh air into the enclosure to keep heat down. http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/image3_zpsz5wedjhv.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted June 12, 2015 Author Share Posted June 12, 2015 Wow what a difference 45 degrees makes. The best way to describe the bulbs before re-orienting them was that way too much of the light was being thrown about 15 feet in front and unfocused and the rest was being thrown 50 feet to the right. After orienting the LEDs properly the result is much much better. I took these photos late because of the NBA game so driving with one halogen and one LED will have to wait until tomorrow or sometime this weekend but I can say that the intensity is much more uniform and the cut-off is well-defined. These are not quite HID brightness but they easily trump the halogens in color and output. Heat-dissipation will be the only concern moving forward. Garino55 I haven't forgotten about your request. I'm going to try to get to a parking garage this weekend to get a good overall view of the beam and cut-off/brightness versus a halogen bulb. http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07527_zps9wvtjpj3.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07532_zpslkwngkhh.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07535_zpsrmtbwepd.jpg One halogen one LED http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07539_zpst1mcewii.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07540_zps0uifof7z.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07545_zpstgg3rvk3.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07548_zpsnfgxrsm9.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07549_zps7dd0ruh1.jpg http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn164/amm203/DSC07551_zpsvnkmzcvq.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fedaykin Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Wow those are actually amazing! The spread is better than the halogen. Only issue, as seen in the last wall shot, the high colour temperature loses some lumens. Oh well can't have everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garino55 Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 That last wall shot looks like a lot less brightness (lumens) at a farther distance just like I thought. Just like all of the LED bulbs, they dont seem to project the light far like good HID's and HID projectors. Sucks they are only in 6k temp too. Do they make any that are 4300k? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05LegacyDan Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Installed the Opt7 H7 LED bulbs about 2 months ago and am very happy with them for my usage! To be honest, I'm usually lit streets and highway so I don't need the HID output about 90% of the time. I definitely agree that the light output isn't that of HID bulbs, but is slightly better than Halogen bulbs as the OP suggested. And agree that if they had them in 4300k they would be much better in my opinion.. If you're on lit roads and want a bit more light, a reliable light, long lasting (hopefully) and want that slight appearance change with the 6000k color then for $99 these are perfect! If you're looking for more light output to drive on unlit highways, roads, or back roads, well I wouldn't go with these personally with HIDs as options.. That being said these are the things I love about them; - The 6000k color is enough for people to tell that you've done something but not over the top. I agree that a 5000k or even 4300k would be more my style though. - They are completely plug and play, I was looking into the HID installs and users were saying to unplug the DRL plug to get rid of flickering and extend life of their HIDs. I know it is easy to unplug, but with these I didn't have to. They work fine on all settings with DRL still plugged in, and time will tell how long they last like this. - The aren't as high of output as HIDs and I don't need it personally for where I drive. I'm not a big fan of HIDs as low beam when 90% of people don't aim them down slightly as least in reflector housings. Yes I'm talking to you Mr. 1992 Ford Explorer with unaimed, fogged, reflector housings and 12000k HIDs coming at me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amm203 Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 Installed the Opt7 H7 LED bulbs about 2 months ago and am very happy with them for my usage! To be honest, I'm usually lit streets and highway so I don't need the HID output about 90% of the time. I definitely agree that the light output isn't that of HID bulbs, but is slightly better than Halogen bulbs as the OP suggested. And agree that if they had them in 4300k they would be much better in my opinion.. If you're on lit roads and want a bit more light, a reliable light, long lasting (hopefully) and want that slight appearance change with the 6000k color then for $99 these are perfect! If you're looking for more light output to drive on unlit highways, roads, or back roads, well I wouldn't go with these personally with HIDs as options.. That being said these are the things I love about them; - The 6000k color is enough for people to tell that you've done something but not over the top. I agree that a 5000k or even 4300k would be more my style though. - They are completely plug and play, I was looking into the HID installs and users were saying to unplug the DRL plug to get rid of flickering and extend life of their HIDs. I know it is easy to unplug, but with these I didn't have to. They work fine on all settings with DRL still plugged in, and time will tell how long they last like this. - The aren't as high of output as HIDs and I don't need it personally for where I drive. I'm not a big fan of HIDs as low beam when 90% of people don't aim them down slightly as least in reflector housings. Yes I'm talking to you Mr. 1992 Ford Explorer with unaimed, fogged, reflector housings and 12000k HIDs coming at me! Dunno if it was the same for you - but it felt like I kind of had to MacGyver the ring to rotate the bulbs to the proper alignment. Once they were aligned properly the output was much better and cut off was very clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick4dr Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 I recently purchased 4 LED kits from Unionlux, direct from China. 4500lm at 4000k is incredible! i have the first set installed in my girls 2014 Jeep Compass and the output is fantastic, pics to follow shortly. I will be installing my, 4000k low beam 2700k highbeam and 4000k fog shortly into my legacy. pics to follow for that as well. I was given special pricing for the purchase however, after customs and shipping it would average about $100 set 2700k, 4000k 5000k and 6000k available based on bulb size, 4500lm and 3000lm kits available. once i post photos and have enough test time. Unionlux is interested in running a group buy program, if i could guarantee 10-15 units. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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