I'm looking at getting PIAA super plasma bulbs for my headlights and fog lights and wanted to get some opinions on them. I have Silverstars now.

 

Have you checked out these: https://www.yotatech.com/forums/show...threadid=15497

I'm trying to decide too!

Chris

 

I have them. I really like them mainly because they provide a very good amount of light and they have a blue tint to them. However one of them went out just this past week and i have to get another set. It lasted about a year and a half which i dont if it is good or bad.

 

They are crap. Even if you get them on sale, they are crap. Sure, the blue tint is a nice look, but if you actually need them to light up the road, they are crap. I paid $90 total for super plasma bulbs a few years back... I put them in my headlights and corner lamps. I took them out 6 months later because I hated them. My $20 replacement bulbs from wal-mart are much brighter.

If you want the blue tint and don't care about useable light output, get them. If you need them to light up the road, look elsewhere.

I remember a while back there was an article floating around about the different bulb colors and light reflection. It basically said the more blue the bulb is, the less usable light you get. Anyone know the article I'm talking about? Anyone have a link so this guy can check it out?

 

are silverstars good? I have the old style headlights, the ones with the foggy lens. Would it still look good if I put good bulbs in? and is that all I would have to do is just change the bulbs out?

 

So does anyone know more about these MotionR 6K bulbs?

So, stay away from blue lights if I want usable light on the road, right?

Chris

 

If you want a good education on lights, look on our YotaTech on the web link and scroll to the bottom and look for Daniel Stern's link.

He is the guru of automotive lighting.
He hates Piaa.

I have the Piaa Super White Plasmas, have had them in the rig since early '99 or so, and they refuse to blow.
I hate them, as Jackson mentioned they don't light up the road very well, and in the rain the light is very bad.
I am just to lazy to swap them out, but will get around to it some year.

Dan's already recommended a good replacement set for me, can't remember the model, but it's archived in my email folder somewhere.

 

Thanks Corey,

I've heard that these whiter or blueish bulbs may look brighter when looking at them directly, but the usable light on the road, which is what I'm wanting is actually less than the standard halogens in the rear. Has this also been your experience?

Chris

 

Yep, I ran standard 55/60 w H4 halogen bulbs in my Hella housings in my old '90 truck I had, and the light output was way better than these Piaa's.
I then switched to 55/100, and the road just sparkled with them at night on high.

I run the same Hella housings now for the Piaa bulbs, so all I ahve to do is take out the H4 bulb and exhange the them, and use the same housings.

If you look on my website in my sig file, look for the Piaa page.
The lights do appear brighter, but it's a trick on Piaa's and other bulb makers part.
Whiter light output does not equal better seeing in the rain or dark.

 

Mark just sent us this on another thread, and after looking at it, I'm thinking it's best to go with a 4000 color temperature for the maximum in usable light, right?

Chris

http://www.venturelighting.com/TechC...r_of_light.htm

 

I am currently running the super plasma gtx bulbs and my advice would be to stick with the silverstars. On those other threads you find talking about piaa vs other bulbs there are those that like the piaas and there are those that absolutely hate them. I actually think the super plasmas are decent and light up pretty well, just my opinion, but not enough so that its worth the money compared to say the silverstars. The super plasmas do appear close in color to hids but only about half as bright so if you want expensive bulbs just for the look then the super plasmas would work. From what I have learned from this forum though, osram silverstars or phillips vision plus bulbs are the best bet for standard bulbs without going to hids for good lighting. After my piaas blow I will be switching my set out for a pair of phillips.

 

Phil hit it on the head. If you spend that much money on bulbs, save up twice as much and go full HID. There is an article, as Jackson said, that gives you the low down on this. Basically the bulbs marketed as HID have nothing more than a coating on the bulb that filters the light spectrum, producing the light output... the blue light that you get is TERRIBLE for useable light. The bluish tint you see in true HID is a result of the gas and the arc inside the bulb... HID stands for High Intensity Discharge... the real draw, other than light output, is the fact that the system uses only 35 watts to output 60-70-80 plus watts of light.

As for the PIAA's, they have a great name for themselves... they really screwed it up w/ those stupid super plasma bulbs, etc.. they do give the HID Look, as it clearly states on the package, but my Silverstars have much more useable light output, but sadly enough, even my OEM Halogen put out more useable light then the Silverstars, just I don't like the totally yellow light... the whiter light is easier on your eyes.

J

 

Silverstars are much better...they are bright and good looking, when I have them on high beam I can see EVERYTHING...low beam isn't all THAT great but its better than the factory bulbs for sure. Not to mention they look AWESOME!

I have heard PIAA's are crap...many of my buddies have them and they don't like them at all.

Let us know what you finally decide on...

Fink

 

I've heard that there are good places to get the silverstars and bad places for some reason one is better than the other. HAve you guys heard this too, and if so, where should I look into them?

I want the most usable light possible, so will these silverstars be the ones?

Chris

 

Anything with a higher Kelvin rating of 4300-4500 is a waste of time and money and will actually be dimmer. The OEM HIDs are 4100-4300 Kelvin.

 

If you have a local AutoZone around they should have them. I have the 9004ST bulb...it should say on there near the top (near where it is hanging from) 9004 ST...they should be around 19-20 bucks a pop.

Fink

PS: If you don't have an autozone locally, PM me and I can get you a link of a good online source for them (where I eventually got them from, after realizing that my local AutoZone DID have them!)