Will the 2016 led headlight fit the older models?

[jangermann]

I am aware of led addon option to the stock lamp, but what I like about the new one, is the "Audi" parkinglight, and that it is all led, and the generally look.
Btw. 6500K is a very blue (cold) light, I don't like that.

 

[ld_rider]

The headlight itself is really just a vessel that holds the light source. The light source can be incandescent or LED..... no need to replace the big thing that holds the light source.

Strat

Glad to hear your lamps are working for you...but ;-)

I'm far from an expert on this but I think the reflector (the big thing that holds the light source) is of primary importance. I would go so far to say it is the most important component in headlamp design. I also believe reflectors are designed by engineers to work in concert with a specific bulb and not a generic replacement.

The bulb filament is a known distance from the base mount. I'm not sure what the tolerance is, but I've heard the number .010 of an inch thrown around for the H4 bulb, and that is in each of three (X, Y, Z) axises. Might be more, might be less. These close tolerances allow engineers to design a reflector with a geometry that focuses the light exactly where they want it.

The result is a parabaloic-shaped reflector that will take the light from the bulb and reflect it back to the highway giving us a nice high-beam cutoff point, a reasonably wide beam, and any other design considerations.

When the bulb is changed with a like bulb, the geometry stays the same. But, if you change to a bulb with different geometry then the original focus point of the light changes when it hits the reflector. The result can be a really bright light but a with a beam pattern that has zero high beam cutoff, too wide/narrow of a beam or any number of other issues.

Most people when comparing two speaker systems will choose the louder set, not because it is sonically superior, but because well, it is louder. Same with headlamps. Most people will select a really bright lamp without regard to how effective the actual beam is. Not saying that is the case with the lamps you linked, but it is possible and probably likely with many aftermarket LED replacement bulbs.

Here is a picture of a stock NC700x headlamp. You can see that the bulb is covered on the end since that part of the bulb is optically weird. Much of the light is actually reflected back into the parabolic headlight vessel and away from the highway ;-) The light then bounces off the reflector at very precise locations and if all goes well, the photons will ricochet out onto the highway in a nice pattern. The reflector is doing a lot of the heavy lifting in these systems, thanks in large part to the precise geometry between the bulb filament and the reflector.

Here is a (very bad) picture of an aftermarket LED driving light with 3 LEDs..Notice that each LED has their own reflector, designed by an engineer to maximize the beam pattern as was done in the halogen lamp system of the NC700:

Those are an expensive set of lamps and I'm not suggesting expensive is the only way to go or that the lamps you referenced are inferior for your application. I'm suggesting only that the vessel holding the bulbs is important..maybe even more important than the bulbs!

Personally, I find that getting a nice, clean cutoff using LED bulbs in a reflector designed for halogens is almost impossible. Same with the spread...seems very scattered to me, as many of the aftermarket LED bulbs I see will scatter the beam 50 feet high into the trees. The exception are LEDs that are in their own housings together with reflectors designed specifically for that application.

There is a chance I completely missed the boat while writing this book so take it all with a grain of salt ;-)

 

[spets]

The reflector design is definitely important, and a headlight that is designed for LED from the onset will perform better than an LED bulb in a halogen assembly.

However, if you're willing to pay some cash, you can get an LED bulb in a normal housing that has a decent cutoff pattern. Here is my Nc700x. A little too close to the door, but it does nicely out on the street.

 

[happy]

bl**dy elly where have you been hiding? been hibernating?

Yes John. Something like that.
Was out of work for 18 months, hence the bike and photos.
Been at new job for 14 months in a project.
Bike has been hibernating for same period.
Will post more when spring and summer arrives.



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[Juggler]

Exactly which led bulbs give such a goot cutoff in stock reflector?
Also could you please make a High Beam photos too?

The reflector design is definitely important, and a headlight that is designed for LED from the onset will perform better than an LED bulb in a halogen assembly.

However, if you're willing to pay some cash, you can get an LED bulb in a normal housing that has a decent cutoff pattern. Here is my Nc700x. A little too close to the door, but it does nicely out on the street.

 

[spets]

Advmonster R3 H4 LED headlight:

H4 R3 LED Headlight - ADVmonster

low beam:

high beam:

high beam actually works really well, puts it right on top of the lowbeam and does not shoot light off into the sky. ignore my yellow aux lights

 

[cattmando]

just ordered the ADV Monster R3 H4. Looks a treat in these photos. With the Angel Eye aux lights, should finally be able to see at night.

 

[1wiseguy2]

After looking at how easy that was to install I might have to order it.

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[GregC]

Do led’s work with headlight modulators?


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[Brillot2000]

Do led’s work with headlight modulators?


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Yes, and they should. The blinking pattern will not be the same because of LEDs are instant on and off.

 

[670cc]

Do led’s work with headlight modulators?

Yes, and they should. The blinking pattern will not be the same because of LEDs are instant on and off.

Many of the modulator models' spec sheets say they are not compatible with LED headlamps. The user should check before proceeding.

I believe you need a modulator specifically made for LED lights. The motorcycle headlight modulator US federal law is very specific about the modulation frequency, and the illumination levels. The modulator is not allowed to go to full off in the dim part of the cycle, rather it needs to go to a certain lower percentage of brightness (30%), and not flash full on and off. LEDs used with a modulator designed for incandescent bulbs will not likely go to the lower brightness, but rather just shut off. Some modulator spec sheets say they are not compatible with LED or HID.

I once saw a Harley with LED headlight in oncoming traffic that apparently had the wrong type modulator installed. The headlight was simply flashing full on and full off. This violates the definitions in the headlight modulator law. We have enough trouble with judges and LEOs not understanding the law, but if we operate outside of it, the chances of defending a ticket are pretty low.

Modulator (in)compatibility is the reason I'm staying with an incandescent headlight for now.

 

[Brillot2000]

I once saw a Harley with LED headlight in oncoming traffic that apparently had the wrong type modulator installed. The headlight was simply flashing full on and full off. This violates the definitions in the headlight modulator law. We have enough trouble with judges and LEOs not understanding the law, but if we operate outside of it, your chances of defending a ticket are pretty low.

That makes sense to me. LEDs are typically designed with driver circuits that operate within a specific voltage range. These modulators probably lower the voltage to get the lower intensities, which might be within the operating range of the driver circuit and it will turned on the headlight at full intensity.

So I retract my previous statement.