Cheap G4 LED replacements...any good?

Well...they have arrived...and very funky rubbery things they are too. I did have LEDs on my old Sabre...including the tric and anchor light, and a BM1 monitor, so I'm well aware of the huge benefits of going to LEDs...the anchor light was the biggest culprit TBH...and of course very easy to forget about come morning!

I've already done the bicolour and stern light for pukka expensive items (don't want to run risks with cheapies there) and will report back on the saloon lighting when I've fitted them. That said I have oodles more juice available on the new boat, but when you are used to LEDs, halogens just seem horribly inefficient.

I'll probably do the tric at some point, and look at a battery powered hoisted anchor light as I always feel a masthead one is just too high. I'll leave the steaming light for obvious reasons!
 
These are the ones I have:

G4 COB LED.jpg

Lovely warm light and thanks to an on-board DC/DC converter (the small PCB that can be seen inside) they continue working across a very wide voltage, I tested mine down to 10V, and they claim to handle up to 30V. The low voltage ability may prove useful in an emergency.

mlines said:
I had to fit clip on Ferrite rings behind our LEDs and around some of the wiring as they were de-sensitising the VHF radio
Click to expand...

That's a good point; the switching DC/DC converter will generate some interference. I might get some ferrite rings to install behind the fixtures.
 
Lomax said:
That's a good point; the switching DC/DC converter will generate some interference. I might get some ferrite rings to install behind the fixtures.
Click to expand...

Get a RTL dongle , https://www.rtl-sdr.com/buy-rtl-sdr-dvb-t-dongles/
even cheaper on ebay. Then with a laptop you'll see whats going on over the airwaves. A decent LED with switching power should be near silent. Cheaper ones or a buck converter might need some assistance or real cheapos could be beyond help.
 
Iain C said:
Well...they have arrived...and very funky rubbery things they are too. I did have LEDs on my old Sabre...including the tric and anchor light, and a BM1 monitor, so I'm well aware of the huge benefits of going to LEDs...the anchor light was the biggest culprit TBH...and of course very easy to forget about come morning!

I've already done the bicolour and stern light for pukka expensive items (don't want to run risks with cheapies there) and will report back on the saloon lighting when I've fitted them. That said I have oodles more juice available on the new boat, but when you are used to LEDs, halogens just seem horribly inefficient.

I'll probably do the tric at some point, and look at a battery powered hoisted anchor light as I always feel a masthead one is just too high. I'll leave the steaming light for obvious reasons!
Click to expand...

What is the overlap like?

Led replacements for single filament incandescent must be worse as they are wider?
 
Graham_Wright said:
What is the overlap like?

Led replacements for single filament incandescent must be worse as they are wider?
Click to expand...

Graham, do you mean do they physically fit? If so, yes they do, they go straight in with no modifications required to bulb or light fitting. They might possibly be touching the inside of the glass of the lamp itself (and they also might not be!) but as the bulbs are a clear rubber, it doesn't matter even if they are.

Really pleased, and with all 6 on in the saloon, it is properly, properly bright in there.
 
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