Paglight C6: Initial Impressions at DVinfo.net

Dave Largent · November 24th, 2003, 03:05 PM

Hi y'all
Many of you have helped me with advice, and when I try out
some piece of equipment that might have been purchased with
your guidance, I like to get back with a commentary (positive or negative) in hopes that I can maybe help someone else out by relaying my hands-on experience.
I got the Pag because my needs required better than the Sony 10/20W light. Problems with the Sony are: too narrow a beam for a wide angle, too harsh (leads to shiny, unflattering complexions), not controllable-enough brightness. C6 build quality seems okay, I suppose. The bulb doesn't sit exactly centered in the reflective dome but i guess that's not a big deal. The light *is* thrown off center a bit because of this but this, I suppose, is nitpicking. The combo barndoors/diffuser/dichroic adjuster seems of okay quality, I guess. The battery, which slings over the shoulder like a purse, was lighter in weight than expected and could probably be worn for quite some time comfortably. Weighs about 3 pounds. The light housing itself is quite lite in weight. Fastens to shoe. Tilts up and down. Charging and connections are all straight forward. Takes 4 hours to recharge. The included 20W light is surprisingly bright. At an evening event it would blind any that looked into it. The included diffuser cuts down on light transmission a bit--but the light is still objectionably glarring to anyone looking into it in a dark room. I've placed an order for a lamp shade-type accessory diffuser. This diffuser is the main reason I bought the light. B&H has it but it's not on their site yet; you have to call it in. Part # PASLDFS. Unique diffuser. The focusing of the Pag is not exactly "focusing". At "wide" or "spot" it illuminates the same area. (It will fill the area seen by a wide angle lens.) It more just evens the light out so that there are no hot spots. Aim it at a wall to adjust. It comes with 2 barndoors, a dichroic, and a diffuser all on it. The dichroic and the diffuser, when they're off to the side at about 90 degrees to the light, do catch the light and create an objectionable "flying saucer" projetion onto your subject. Either open them up quite wide or remove. Pretty loose fit; they flop around. Fell off a couple times. I'm replacing them with 2 more barn doors so I'll have 4.
You kinda do start to feel like you're being nickel and dimed with the C6. Light: $350. Proper diffuser: $60. Barndoors to get rid of flying saucer: $40. Couple extra bulbs (50W & 100W): $20. Dimmer switch:
$140.
I hope it's all worth it in the end.

Donald Bruce · December 6th, 2003, 07:04 PM

I purchased the Paglight C6 at B&H PHOTO specifically for a Christmas ball I was hired to tape using my canon gl2. A good deal of my videotaping involved shots of the moderately lit cocktail hour as well as people dancing to a band on the dance floor. The paglight c6 was fully charged for the event. It helped somewhat at the cocktail hour, but was really useless during the dancing unless I was literally on - top of someone. I thought the light was supposed to be good for over two hours? At about 45 minutes the light was visably weaker than when I first turned it on. It was like taping in pea soup. The light didn't make any kind of noticeable difference, even during the cocktail hour. Am I doing something wrong? Do I need to order more powerful bulbs other than the 6v 20 watt included one? Your post mentioned 50watt and 100 watt bulbs but the paglight c6 instructions seem to indicate that the light is designed to be used with lamps up to 6v 30 watt only? Any help you could offer woulld be very much appreciated.

Dave Largent · December 7th, 2003, 12:04 PM

Hi, Donald.
Was feeling like I was the only one with the C6.
I haven't tested it for run time, yet. Your report about 45 minutes is not encouraging at all.
Soon (hopefully this evening) I will do a test where
I charge up the battery and let the light run. I'll let you know what I find.
I'm using the bulb that came with it -- the 20 watt.
Must say I've had some bad luck in ordering
accessories. I'll go into more detail later. For know
I'll say, yes, the 50W and 100W are *not* for the
C6. Don't fit it. Found this out the hard way.

Harry Settle · December 7th, 2003, 03:53 PM

I use the Bescor 645, combination 20w, 40w, also 6v. The battery doesn't last more than 30 minutes or so at 20w. I have purchased a couple of extra batteries at Home Depot. They are designed for emergency exit lighting and are found in that department. I rewire them with rca jack and it's off to the races. They only run about $17.

Dave Largent · December 9th, 2003, 04:14 AM

Hi, Donald.
I did some testing this evening. I fully charged the battery.
I put the cam/light on a bed and aimed the light
at a darkly colored pillow. I wish I had a light meter but I don't. So what I did is aim a PV-DV53 camcorder at the pillow. I kept the shutter at 1/60th, set the aperture fo automatic, and then I checked regularly
to see what the DV53's aperture was at. Here are the results.

C6 off beginning of test: aperture wide open, 15dB gain.
Light on: +3dB gain.
20 minutes: +3dB
50 minutes: +6dB
1 hr, 10 min: +6dB
1hr, 30 min: +6dB
1hr, 50min: +6dB
2hr, 20min: +9dB
2hr, 30 min: dead

Next I did a test for quick charge. After it died during
the above test, I charged it for 1 hour. Here are those results.

Light turned on: +3dB gain.
30 min: +6dB
60 min: dead

Here are the results after a two hour charge.

Begin: +3
15 min: +3
30 min: +3
45 min: +6
1 hr: +6
1 hr, 30 min: dead

What I gather from this is that for however long
you chage it, you get half that in run time. I believe
full charge is suppose to 4 hours, so you get 2 hours
run time.

The lighting in the fully charged test seemed okay for my needs for about the first 2 hours, 15 minutes.

Yes, there are the 10W and 30W lights. I plan on getting these, too. They're not listed on B&H' site that I could see so I wrote to Pag company. They said that those lights may be ordered direct. Here are the part numbers.

10W: #1010 for $9.50
30W: #1012 for $15.00

The bulbs on B&H' site are too big for the C6.

Just did another test. Ran the battery down.
Charged it for 1/2 hour. Results:

Begin test: Open + 0
10 min: +3
15 min: +15
20 min: dead

Yep, whatever you charge it for, you get half.

Carlos E. Martinez · December 10th, 2003, 11:32 AM

It might be useful for all people that wants something more than family filming to learn some electricity and electronics basics.

Learning the ABC of several things will help a lot more that people can imagine. Learning how to use a multimeter is not for the experts, but for the interested amateurs too. You end up paying a tall price if you don't.

Let's see a bit of the portable lights vs lamp duration. If a lamp says it's 20w and the battery is 6v, then 20:6=3.33A. That is a 6v / 4 Amp should last a bit more than 1 hour.

The higher the wattage, the higher the current consumption. A 50W lamp will need 8.33A to light for one hour; a 100W lamp will take a 16.66A battery. That's why for higher wattages batteries are usually 12v or 24v, which are easier to carry. In any case they are heavy.

So the first thing you have to pay attention to is how many volts a lamp is; the second one if that voltage is the same as the battery's. Then have a look at the lamp wattage, then divide by the lamp voltage. You will have the amperes per hour that lamp will need. Check how many amps your battery is and you will know for how many hours you will have a full battery.

Beware of using a 14v lamp (like a car's) with a 12v battery, because your light will be redder. With some 12v lamps you can use a 14v battery (pro type) and get a whiter light, even if for a shorter time. Or use a proper pro light which last longer but are more expensive.

Carlos

December 6th, 2003, 07:04 PM	#2
Donald Bruce New Boot Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Suffern New York Posts: 6	Not Pleased with Paglight C6 I purchased the Paglight C6 at B&H PHOTO specifically for a Christmas ball I was hired to tape using my canon gl2. A good deal of my videotaping involved shots of the moderately lit cocktail hour as well as people dancing to a band on the dance floor. The paglight c6 was fully charged for the event. It helped somewhat at the cocktail hour, but was really useless during the dancing unless I was literally on - top of someone. I thought the light was supposed to be good for over two hours? At about 45 minutes the light was visably weaker than when I first turned it on. It was like taping in pea soup. The light didn't make any kind of noticeable difference, even during the cocktail hour. Am I doing something wrong? Do I need to order more powerful bulbs other than the 6v 20 watt included one? Your post mentioned 50watt and 100 watt bulbs but the paglight c6 instructions seem to indicate that the light is designed to be used with lamps up to 6v 30 watt only? Any help you could offer woulld be very much appreciated.

December 7th, 2003, 03:53 PM	#4
Harry Settle Major Player Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Bemidji, MN Posts: 276	I use the Bescor 645, combination 20w, 40w, also 6v. The battery doesn't last more than 30 minutes or so at 20w. I have purchased a couple of extra batteries at Home Depot. They are designed for emergency exit lighting and are found in that department. I rewire them with rca jack and it's off to the races. They only run about $17. __________________ "DOH"!!!

December 10th, 2003, 11:32 AM	#6
Carlos E. Martinez Trustee Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brasil Posts: 1,138	Battery duration It might be useful for all people that wants something more than family filming to learn some electricity and electronics basics. Learning the ABC of several things will help a lot more that people can imagine. Learning how to use a multimeter is not for the experts, but for the interested amateurs too. You end up paying a tall price if you don't. Let's see a bit of the portable lights vs lamp duration. If a lamp says it's 20w and the battery is 6v, then 20:6=3.33A. That is a 6v / 4 Amp should last a bit more than 1 hour. The higher the wattage, the higher the current consumption. A 50W lamp will need 8.33A to light for one hour; a 100W lamp will take a 16.66A battery. That's why for higher wattages batteries are usually 12v or 24v, which are easier to carry. In any case they are heavy. So the first thing you have to pay attention to is how many volts a lamp is; the second one if that voltage is the same as the battery's. Then have a look at the lamp wattage, then divide by the lamp voltage. You will have the amperes per hour that lamp will need. Check how many amps your battery is and you will know for how many hours you will have a full battery. Beware of using a 14v lamp (like a car's) with a 12v battery, because your light will be redder. With some 12v lamps you can use a 14v battery (pro type) and get a whiter light, even if for a shorter time. Or use a proper pro light which last longer but are more expensive. Carlos

November 24th, 2003, 03:05 PM	#1
Dave Largent Trustee Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 1,483	Paglight C6: Initial Impressions Hi y'all Many of you have helped me with advice, and when I try out some piece of equipment that might have been purchased with your guidance, I like to get back with a commentary (positive or negative) in hopes that I can maybe help someone else out by relaying my hands-on experience. I got the Pag because my needs required better than the Sony 10/20W light. Problems with the Sony are: too narrow a beam for a wide angle, too harsh (leads to shiny, unflattering complexions), not controllable-enough brightness. C6 build quality seems okay, I suppose. The bulb doesn't sit exactly centered in the reflective dome but i guess that's not a big deal. The light is thrown off center a bit because of this but this, I suppose, is nitpicking. The combo barndoors/diffuser/dichroic adjuster seems of okay quality, I guess. The battery, which slings over the shoulder like a purse, was lighter in weight than expected and could probably be worn for quite some time comfortably. Weighs about 3 pounds. The light housing itself is quite lite in weight. Fastens to shoe. Tilts up and down. Charging and connections are all straight forward. Takes 4 hours to recharge. The included 20W light is surprisingly bright. At an evening event it would blind any that looked into it. The included diffuser cuts down on light transmission a bit--but the light is still objectionably glarring to anyone looking into it in a dark room. I've placed an order for a lamp shade-type accessory diffuser. This diffuser is the main reason I bought the light. B&H has it but it's not on their site yet; you have to call it in. Part # PASLDFS. Unique diffuser. The focusing of the Pag is not exactly "focusing". At "wide" or "spot" it illuminates the same area. (It will fill the area seen by a wide angle lens.) It more just evens the light out so that there are no hot spots. Aim it at a wall to adjust. It comes with 2 barndoors, a dichroic, and a diffuser all on it. The dichroic and the diffuser, when they're off to the side at about 90 degrees to the light, do catch the light and create an objectionable "flying saucer" projetion onto your subject. Either open them up quite wide or remove. Pretty loose fit; they flop around. Fell off a couple times. I'm replacing them with 2 more barn doors so I'll have 4. You kinda do start to feel like you're being nickel and dimed with the C6. Light: $350. Proper diffuser: $60. Barndoors to get rid of flying saucer: $40. Couple extra bulbs (50W & 100W): $20. Dimmer switch: $140. I hope it's all worth it in the end.

December 7th, 2003, 12:04 PM	#3
Dave Largent Trustee Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 1,483	Hi, Donald. Was feeling like I was the only one with the C6. I haven't tested it for run time, yet. Your report about 45 minutes is not encouraging at all. Soon (hopefully this evening) I will do a test where I charge up the battery and let the light run. I'll let you know what I find. I'm using the bulb that came with it -- the 20 watt. Must say I've had some bad luck in ordering accessories. I'll go into more detail later. For know I'll say, yes, the 50W and 100W are not for the C6. Don't fit it. Found this out the hard way.

December 9th, 2003, 04:14 AM	#5
Dave Largent Trustee Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 1,483	Hi, Donald. I did some testing this evening. I fully charged the battery. I put the cam/light on a bed and aimed the light at a darkly colored pillow. I wish I had a light meter but I don't. So what I did is aim a PV-DV53 camcorder at the pillow. I kept the shutter at 1/60th, set the aperture fo automatic, and then I checked regularly to see what the DV53's aperture was at. Here are the results. C6 off beginning of test: aperture wide open, 15dB gain. Light on: +3dB gain. 20 minutes: +3dB 50 minutes: +6dB 1 hr, 10 min: +6dB 1hr, 30 min: +6dB 1hr, 50min: +6dB 2hr, 20min: +9dB 2hr, 30 min: dead Next I did a test for quick charge. After it died during the above test, I charged it for 1 hour. Here are those results. Light turned on: +3dB gain. 30 min: +6dB 60 min: dead Here are the results after a two hour charge. Begin: +3 15 min: +3 30 min: +3 45 min: +6 1 hr: +6 1 hr, 30 min: dead What I gather from this is that for however long you chage it, you get half that in run time. I believe full charge is suppose to 4 hours, so you get 2 hours run time. The lighting in the fully charged test seemed okay for my needs for about the first 2 hours, 15 minutes. Yes, there are the 10W and 30W lights. I plan on getting these, too. They're not listed on B&H' site that I could see so I wrote to Pag company. They said that those lights may be ordered direct. Here are the part numbers. 10W: #1010 for $9.50 30W: #1012 for $15.00 The bulbs on B&H' site are too big for the C6. Just did another test. Ran the battery down. Charged it for 1/2 hour. Results: Begin test: Open + 0 10 min: +3 15 min: +15 20 min: dead Yep, whatever you charge it for, you get half.