Flo Light at DVinfo.net

Robert Bec · May 23rd, 2010, 05:46 PM

Has anyone used this light http://www.flolight.com/microbeam-128.html

regards

Rob

Dean Sensui · May 24th, 2010, 04:04 AM

Hi Robert...

I just got one of those and used it this past week on an overnight shoreline fishing trip.

It's about one stop brighter than the VidLED I had, and provides a lot better coverage. With the 1/4 minus green filter the overall color seems to be OK. I hadn't checked it with my spectrophotometer but the first impressions were good.

I run it off a small nano-phosphate battery pack that's mounted on the back of my shoulder mount. It was a little clumsy to operate since I had it covered with a plastic bag to protect it from salt spray. But otherwise the quality and variable quantity of light was just fine for what I did.

Overall, I like the light. No complaints.

Jason Steele · May 24th, 2010, 08:28 AM

I just bought one and it should arrive any day. i will be using it in a wedding this weekend....
any other reviews?
-JS

Robert Bec · May 24th, 2010, 08:46 PM

How durable is it?

Dean Sensui · May 24th, 2010, 09:50 PM

So far I've used in only once. But the construction seems solid enough. The body is extruded aluminum with plastic end caps. There's a battery mount on the back which I will likely never use.

I kept it covered with a sandwich-sized Ziploc bag.

You can see the circuit board through the vents so I'd say the unit's not weatherproof at all. Of course it could probably be treated with something like Corrosion-X to prevent the elements from shorting out the board, but I won't want to do that until I know the unit's working reliably.

Jeff Anselmo · May 25th, 2010, 11:42 AM

Just checked out FloLight's website. I like the Microbeam 256. But I wonder how it compares to Cool Lights LED256?

Comparing the two from their websites, it seems that the LED256 has a higher lux rating than the Microbeam 256. (I know "lux" doesn't mean much until you see the two lights side by side :) The LED256 comes with barn doors (which I like). Also, the LED256 is alot cheaper; but the Microbeam256 is readily mountable. (But I've never tried mounting the LED256 before; I suppose it could be done...)

Best,

Dean Sensui · May 25th, 2010, 11:48 AM

The LED 256 is bigger than the Microbeam 128, too. I don't know if it was designed as an on-camera light.

Richard Andrewski · May 25th, 2010, 04:27 PM

We didn't design our Cool Lights LED 256 as an on camera light but just meant to be a very powerful adjunct to the LED 600 for accent, hair and rim lighting as well as a fill. That being said, its the same weight as their LED 256 when our barndoors are in. Take those off, which you can and its lighter than their LED 256 by quite a bit. Some have adapted our's as an on-camera light (saw a posting and picture on that late last year on some board like this one but can't find it) for larger pro cameras like the 2700. All you need is a noga arm or something similar and it would work as some have done it. I just didn't think people would like lights the size of their or our 256 for camera lighting so we never recommended it for that.

Jason Steele · May 25th, 2010, 06:46 PM

that sucker is pretty bright.
any more bright and i don't think i could use it as an on camera light. no one would look at the camera lol. little thing is bright. excited to use it.
will be using it this weekend for a wedding.
-JS

Etienne Didelot-Pothier · May 26th, 2010, 06:32 PM

I ordered one too, well built and not too expensive. Pretty bright for it's size.

I don't know if anyone tested it's power consumption, but last time I used it with a huge 5200mAh OEM Canon battery, it stopped after a few minutes, overheating maybe? The unit was indeed pretty hot.

The only that that sucked with that light.. it's that they ship with UPS, and I had to pay 100$ over the 320$ only to get it to Canada.. yuk..

Dean Sensui · May 26th, 2010, 07:15 PM

My initial test with an A-123 nano-phosphate battery pack ran it for a couple of hours. I'll have to do a more definitive test soon.

The battery specs: 13.2 VDC 2.3 Ah (30.36 Watt-Hours).

Robert Bec · May 27th, 2010, 04:18 PM

Would i be able to gaffer the holes around the side of the unit or will it give me heat issues

Etienne Didelot-Pothier · May 28th, 2010, 10:53 AM

I wouldn't do that.. it gets pretty hot quickly, even with the holes opened so..

Dean Sensui · May 31st, 2010, 03:12 AM

At full power the light can get hot if there isn't enough ventilation. I did my timing test with a fan blowing on the light to prevent it from overheating.

I tested it again and it looks like it will run for about 2 to 2.5 hours on my nano-phosphate battery pack.

Robert Bec · May 31st, 2010, 04:35 AM

is anyone using the Sony plate with the light

Rob

May 23rd, 2010, 05:46 PM	#1
Robert Bec Major Player Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 358	Flo Light Has anyone used this light http://www.flolight.com/microbeam-128.html regards Rob

May 24th, 2010, 04:04 AM	#2
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	Hi Robert... I just got one of those and used it this past week on an overnight shoreline fishing trip. It's about one stop brighter than the VidLED I had, and provides a lot better coverage. With the 1/4 minus green filter the overall color seems to be OK. I hadn't checked it with my spectrophotometer but the first impressions were good. I run it off a small nano-phosphate battery pack that's mounted on the back of my shoulder mount. It was a little clumsy to operate since I had it covered with a plastic bag to protect it from salt spray. But otherwise the quality and variable quantity of light was just fine for what I did. Overall, I like the light. No complaints. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 24th, 2010, 08:28 AM	#3
Jason Steele Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Central, TX Posts: 44	GOOD top hear Dean I just bought one and it should arrive any day. i will be using it in a wedding this weekend.... any other reviews? -JS

May 24th, 2010, 09:50 PM	#5
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	So far I've used in only once. But the construction seems solid enough. The body is extruded aluminum with plastic end caps. There's a battery mount on the back which I will likely never use. I kept it covered with a sandwich-sized Ziploc bag. You can see the circuit board through the vents so I'd say the unit's not weatherproof at all. Of course it could probably be treated with something like Corrosion-X to prevent the elements from shorting out the board, but I won't want to do that until I know the unit's working reliably. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 25th, 2010, 11:42 AM	#6
Jeff Anselmo Major Player Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: New Mexico Posts: 566	Just checked out FloLight's website. I like the Microbeam 256. But I wonder how it compares to Cool Lights LED256? Comparing the two from their websites, it seems that the LED256 has a higher lux rating than the Microbeam 256. (I know "lux" doesn't mean much until you see the two lights side by side :) The LED256 comes with barn doors (which I like). Also, the LED256 is alot cheaper; but the Microbeam256 is readily mountable. (But I've never tried mounting the LED256 before; I suppose it could be done...) Best, __________________ --JA

May 24th, 2010, 08:46 PM	#4
Robert Bec Major Player Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 358	How durable is it?

May 25th, 2010, 11:48 AM	#7
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	The LED 256 is bigger than the Microbeam 128, too. I don't know if it was designed as an on-camera light. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 25th, 2010, 04:27 PM	#8
Richard Andrewski Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Shenzhen, China Posts: 781	We didn't design our Cool Lights LED 256 as an on camera light but just meant to be a very powerful adjunct to the LED 600 for accent, hair and rim lighting as well as a fill. That being said, its the same weight as their LED 256 when our barndoors are in. Take those off, which you can and its lighter than their LED 256 by quite a bit. Some have adapted our's as an on-camera light (saw a posting and picture on that late last year on some board like this one but can't find it) for larger pro cameras like the 2700. All you need is a noga arm or something similar and it would work as some have done it. I just didn't think people would like lights the size of their or our 256 for camera lighting so we never recommended it for that. __________________ Richard Andrewski - Cool Lights USA - RED #114 http://www.coollights.biz

May 25th, 2010, 06:46 PM	#9
Jason Steele Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Central, TX Posts: 44	mine microbeam 128 just arrived that sucker is pretty bright. any more bright and i don't think i could use it as an on camera light. no one would look at the camera lol. little thing is bright. excited to use it. will be using it this weekend for a wedding. -JS

May 26th, 2010, 06:32 PM	#10
Etienne Didelot-Pothier Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Montreal, Quebec Posts: 59	I ordered one too, well built and not too expensive. Pretty bright for it's size. I don't know if anyone tested it's power consumption, but last time I used it with a huge 5200mAh OEM Canon battery, it stopped after a few minutes, overheating maybe? The unit was indeed pretty hot. The only that that sucked with that light.. it's that they ship with UPS, and I had to pay 100$ over the 320$ only to get it to Canada.. yuk.. __________________ http://www.EDPimagerie.com Canon XH A1 - Rode NTG-2 - Canon 7D - 8" HD - 50mm f1.4 - 11-16mm f2.8 - 70-200 f4L

May 26th, 2010, 07:15 PM	#11
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	My initial test with an A-123 nano-phosphate battery pack ran it for a couple of hours. I'll have to do a more definitive test soon. The battery specs: 13.2 VDC 2.3 Ah (30.36 Watt-Hours). __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 27th, 2010, 04:18 PM	#12
Robert Bec Major Player Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 358	Would i be able to gaffer the holes around the side of the unit or will it give me heat issues

May 28th, 2010, 10:53 AM	#13
Etienne Didelot-Pothier Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Montreal, Quebec Posts: 59	I wouldn't do that.. it gets pretty hot quickly, even with the holes opened so.. __________________ http://www.EDPimagerie.com Canon XH A1 - Rode NTG-2 - Canon 7D - 8" HD - 50mm f1.4 - 11-16mm f2.8 - 70-200 f4L

May 31st, 2010, 03:12 AM	#14
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	At full power the light can get hot if there isn't enough ventilation. I did my timing test with a fan blowing on the light to prevent it from overheating. I tested it again and it looks like it will run for about 2 to 2.5 hours on my nano-phosphate battery pack. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

May 31st, 2010, 04:35 AM	#15
Robert Bec Major Player Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 358	is anyone using the Sony plate with the light Rob