I might have found the perfect LED bulb

[signal15]

Feit Performance LED. I bought a few at Lowes this weekend, and they are the first ones that I'm not going to return.

As a comparison for PAR20 bulbs:
Philips PAR20 LED - 140 lumens
GE PAR20 LED - 200 lumens
Feit PAR20 LED - 340 lumens
Ushio PAR20 halogen - 600 lumens

Here's the thing though, the Feit LED bulb is just as bright as the Ushio. Not *almost* as bright, it is as bright. It's 3145K, no idea on the CRI.

I also bought one of the PAR38's to replace a PAR30 Ushio halogen. It's rated at 710 lumens, and it's brighter than my Ushio PAR30 rated at 1100 lumens. I'm starting to think the Ushio lumen ratings are not accurate.

The only things I think could make this a better bulb are:
- Sensor and red LEDs like in the Cree LR6 to keep the color consistent. But give the user control over the color with a pot or DIP switch so they can put it anywhere between 2700K and 3500K
- The optics pop out of it. They should make replacement optics so I can change the spread on the light for different height ceilings or different applications
- It's not dimmable. I have not tried it on a dimmer yet, but it says right on the box that it's not for dimmers.

I have a picture showing the difference between the Ushio PAR20 and the Feit bulb. I'll put it up later tonight when I get home. I also posed a few questions to Feit and I'll post their answers when/if I get them.

After buying most of the LED bulbs on the market, I can say that I'm really really happy with these. They are the first ones that I've purchased that didn't suck. If they add the features I listed above, these things will be simply amazing.

 

[nexus99]

Feit Performance LED. I bought a few at Lowes this weekend, and they are the first ones that I'm not going to return.

As a comparison for PAR20 bulbs:
Philips PAR20 LED - 140 lumens
GE PAR20 LED - 200 lumens
Feit PAR20 LED - 340 lumens
Ushio PAR20 halogen - 600 lumens

Here's the thing though, the Feit LED bulb is just as bright as the Ushio. Not *almost* as bright, it is as bright. It's 3145K, no idea on the CRI.

I also bought one of the PAR38's to replace a PAR30 Ushio halogen. It's rated at 710 lumens, and it's brighter than my Ushio PAR30 rated at 1100 lumens. I'm starting to think the Ushio lumen ratings are not accurate.

The only things I think could make this a better bulb are:
- Sensor and red LEDs like in the Cree LR6 to keep the color consistent. But give the user control over the color with a pot or DIP switch so they can put it anywhere between 2700K and 3500K
- The optics pop out of it. They should make replacement optics so I can change the spread on the light for different height ceilings or different applications
- It's not dimmable. I have not tried it on a dimmer yet, but it says right on the box that it's not for dimmers.

I have a picture showing the difference between the Ushio PAR20 and the Feit bulb. I'll put it up later tonight when I get home. I also posed a few questions to Feit and I'll post their answers when/if I get them.

After buying most of the LED bulbs on the market, I can say that I'm really really happy with these. They are the first ones that I've purchased that didn't suck. If they add the features I listed above, these things will be simply amazing.

Looking forward to the pictures!

 

[Slates]

Are we talking this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-PAR20-...9524&sr=1-1

Or this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-BPPAR2...9524&sr=1-2

?

Or am I 0/2?

I look forward to the photos as well!

 

[personalt]

That first one is $49.99.. At that price could you get your money back in electrical savings?

The second one is way cheaper, $15 but I couldnt seem how many lumens it puts out. It looks like it only consumes 1 watt so the ROI on that one might not be to bad if it puts out enough lumens.

Are we talking this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-PAR20-...9524&sr=1-1

Or this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-BPPAR2...9524&sr=1-2

?

Or am I 0/2?

I look forward to the photos as well!

 

[az1324]

This one is 340 lumens. http://www.attictrunk.com/jdrtypape3me.html

 

[signal15]

Are we talking this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-PAR20-...9524&sr=1-1

Or this:
http://www.amazon.com/Feit-Electric-BPPAR2...9524&sr=1-2

?

Or am I 0/2?

I look forward to the photos as well!

It's the first one. It's $10 less at Lowes ($39). My Ushio bulbs are cost me $10 each, and I go through ~2 per year, per can. It's because I buy the 120v version instead of the 130v. The 130v puts out too much amber light for my taste, and my voltage is around 125v. So I'm sure this has something to do why they burn out so often.

They will pay for themselves in under 3 years.

I'll post a pic when I get home. I tried taking pics of the lights themselves, but that didn't work out. So I took a pic of colored items on the countertop under each light with everything else turned off. It gives a good comparison.

 

[Slates]

How do they look installed? I would be interested to see how it looks in the can (maybe a pic with the light off?). My fear is always that the fit will be terrible and it will be quite an eyesore. The lack of dimming makes these a no-go for me in most situations, but I could still see using them for my outdoor cans, which are on the most anyways, at full brightness.

 

[Neurorad]

I had some concerns about the look of my Cree LR6 lamps, from an esthetic point - they look different from the trim on my other can lights in the same room. But, I always turn them on when I enter the room, so I never see the trim, because of the bright light coming from the bulbs.

 

[gatchel]

Feit Performance LED. I bought a few at Lowes this weekend, and they are the first ones that I'm not going to return.

As a comparison for PAR20 bulbs:
Philips PAR20 LED - 140 lumens
GE PAR20 LED - 200 lumens
Feit PAR20 LED - 340 lumens
Ushio PAR20 halogen - 600 lumens

Here's the thing though, the Feit LED bulb is just as bright as the Ushio. Not *almost* as bright, it is as bright. It's 3145K, no idea on the CRI.

I also bought one of the PAR38's to replace a PAR30 Ushio halogen. It's rated at 710 lumens, and it's brighter than my Ushio PAR30 rated at 1100 lumens. I'm starting to think the Ushio lumen ratings are not accurate.

The only things I think could make this a better bulb are:
- Sensor and red LEDs like in the Cree LR6 to keep the color consistent. But give the user control over the color with a pot or DIP switch so they can put it anywhere between 2700K and 3500K
- The optics pop out of it. They should make replacement optics so I can change the spread on the light for different height ceilings or different applications
- It's not dimmable. I have not tried it on a dimmer yet, but it says right on the box that it's not for dimmers.

I have a picture showing the difference between the Ushio PAR20 and the Feit bulb. I'll put it up later tonight when I get home. I also posed a few questions to Feit and I'll post their answers when/if I get them.

After buying most of the LED bulbs on the market, I can say that I'm really really happy with these. They are the first ones that I've purchased that didn't suck. If they add the features I listed above, these things will be simply amazing.

Looking forward to the pictures!

Mee too. I was wondering who was going to guinea pig the feit bulbs. Hope they work out.

 

[apostolakisl]

I saw those at Lowe's last weekend. I have a cree lr 6 which I think is great except for one thing, the dimming is pretty pathetic (but they do dim somewhat). The feit advertise on the box no dimming at all. The feit are cheaper but are only listed at 30,000 hrs instead of 50,000 for the cree. Of course it will take years to get to either of those numbers and they may both be lying and we won't know for a while (unless they are lying a lot).

In short, I am going to keep waiting until a good looking led that dims properly comes out to replace all of my cans.

 

[Automation]

Feit Performance LED. I bought a few at Lowes this weekend, and they are the first ones that I'm not going to return.

As a comparison for PAR20 bulbs:
Philips PAR20 LED - 140 lumens
GE PAR20 LED - 200 lumens
Feit PAR20 LED - 340 lumens
Ushio PAR20 halogen - 600 lumens

Here's the thing though, the Feit LED bulb is just as bright as the Ushio. Not *almost* as bright, it is as bright. It's 3145K, no idea on the CRI.

I also bought one of the PAR38's to replace a PAR30 Ushio halogen. It's rated at 710 lumens, and it's brighter than my Ushio PAR30 rated at 1100 lumens. I'm starting to think the Ushio lumen ratings are not accurate.

The only things I think could make this a better bulb are:
- Sensor and red LEDs like in the Cree LR6 to keep the color consistent. But give the user control over the color with a pot or DIP switch so they can put it anywhere between 2700K and 3500K
- The optics pop out of it. They should make replacement optics so I can change the spread on the light for different height ceilings or different applications
- It's not dimmable. I have not tried it on a dimmer yet, but it says right on the box that it's not for dimmers.

I have a picture showing the difference between the Ushio PAR20 and the Feit bulb. I'll put it up later tonight when I get home. I also posed a few questions to Feit and I'll post their answers when/if I get them.

After buying most of the LED bulbs on the market, I can say that I'm really really happy with these. They are the first ones that I've purchased that didn't suck. If they add the features I listed above, these things will be simply amazing.

As you have found, the perfect or imo even usable LED light doesn't exist yet. These have a long way to go to be cost effective while still providing enough usable light.

 

[gatchel]

As you have found, the perfect or imo even usable LED light doesn't exist yet. These have a long way to go to be cost effective while still providing enough usable light.

What's wrong with the LR6? I calculated for my kitchen remodel using 5 LR6 instead of regular bulbs that my $0 point would be about 7 years. If they last 20 years how is that not cost effective with 13 years of savings on electrical. Not to mention the fact that I didn't have to buy trim rings on top of that.

 

[AutomateIt]

As you have found, the perfect or imo even usable LED light doesn't exist yet. These have a long way to go to be cost effective while still providing enough usable light.

What's wrong with the LR6? I calculated for my kitchen remodel using 5 LR6 instead of regular bulbs that my $0 point would be about 7 years. If they last 20 years how is that not cost effective with 13 years of savings on electrical. Not to mention the fact that I didn't have to buy trim rings on top of that.

Let us know if when you get 5 years out of these let alone the 20 years your mention. I can't even get 6 months out of the CFL bulbs and considering how you are supposed to dispose of these forget it.

 

[signal15]

I'll have to get the pics up tonight when I get home. Too busy here at work, and I wanted to put some text on the pics to denote which was which.

Last night, I bought 5 more of the PAR38's and converted my whole living room and my master bedroom (2 cans in a 20x30 room, stupid builder). After converting the whole rooms, it's brighter, but I'm not happy with the color. It's too white, and it seems to have a sort of "florescent" look to it. But, as luck would have it, I have a solution which I'll post later. I'm waiting for specs on some photography filters/gels to change the color of the light. These things are cheap at $7 for a 20"x24" sheet locally. I will need 2-3 layers per light. I'm a little worried about it reducing the light output, but the manufacturer I'm talking to said that the filters I will need to change the color such a small amount will not make much difference.

I also tried hooking one up to a dimmer as a test. Even with the dimmer on full, the bulbs buzzed. I could dim them to about 50% brightness, but then they started blinking below that. I would not suggest putting these on a dimmer at all, even on full. Buzzing is no good.

I'm still not completely happy with the optics either. The spread is much farther then I would like. But overall, I'm happy with the lights. The color is WAY better than CFL's, and the light output is the same as my old halogens.

I'll get those pics up shortly.

 

[Mark S.]

Let us know if when you get 5 years out of these let alone the 20 years your mention. I can't even get 6 months out of the CFL bulbs and considering how you are supposed to dispose of these forget it.

I agree. I have tried several LED lamps, and most have failed, except for my Cree LR6's. I do believe the actual LED's may last 30-50,000 hours, but the ballasts and other electronics that they need tend to fail all too often. They fail very quickly if you try them in outdoor fixtures - all have failed after about 6 months. Let's face it, high-intensity LED lamps are still cutting-edge and are still in growing pains.

That said, my Cree LR6's are still going strong after about a year. Best looking I've tried so far.

Mark