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[Kocho]

The above referenced bulb certainly appears to have a filament that is clearly seen in the photos in this thread and in the photos at Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/SYLVANIA-SilverStar-Performance-Headlight-Contains/dp/B005KDO9C2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1488404491&sr=8-2&keywords=sylvania+9003+h4+silverstar+ultra+halogen+headlight+bulb

To create plasma (as in HID or other technologies that make the gas shine), one needs high voltage. These bulbs operate at 12V without any unconverter electronics.

Unless there is another bulb in question...

[Doug S]

As I said in my first post, it's a plain ole halogen bulb, no more, no less. They color the glass a light blue and put "HID" on the box (while not actually claiming that it IS a HID) in order to confuse people, and as you can see, it works.

A true HID is an arc lamp (it stands for High Intensity Discharge), and as Kocho and someone else observed (and I thought I explained as well), it needs a high-voltage generator to strike the arc. You're not going to buy one for less than $300 or so, and if you do buy one, you'll have a separate "ballast" or "inverter" module to mount in addition to the bulb itself.

Also, the "laser light" you've described is nothing more than a white-light LED that's un-packaged. All LED chips emit coherent light; a "laser diode" is simply one with optics designed to maintain coherence of the light. A white-light LED is nothing more than a blue LED with phosphors integrated into its plastic optics, which down-convert some of the blue light into longer-wavelength reds and yellows. The BMW light you describe is simply a deconstructed version of the same thing. If it's any brighter, it's just because they've designed it to be brighter...it's not a revolutionary new technology.

[Low On Cash]

As I said in my first post, it's a plain ole halogen bulb, no more, no less. They color the glass a light blue and put "HID" on the box (while not actually claiming that it IS a HID) in order to confuse people, and as you can see, it works.

A true HID is an arc lamp (it stands for High Intensity Discharge), and as Kocho and someone else observed (and I thought I explained as well), it needs a high-voltage generator to strike the arc. You're not going to buy one for less than $300 or so, and if you do buy one, you'll have a separate "ballast" or "inverter" module to mount in addition to the bulb itself.

Also, the "laser light" you've described is nothing more than a white-light LED that's un-packaged. All LED chips emit coherent light; a "laser diode" is simply one with optics designed to maintain coherence of the light. A white-light LED is nothing more than a blue LED with phosphors integrated into its plastic optics, which down-convert some of the blue light into longer-wavelength reds and yellows. The BMW light you describe is simply a deconstructed version of the same thing. If it's any brighter, it's just because they've designed it to be brighter...it's not a revolutionary new technology.

Doug thanks for your reply - but you’re incorrect in your assessment of the Sylvania lamps. The ZXE bulbs are totally different technology than a basic halogen lamp you mention. Its not just the tungsten on the element producing the light, its the Xenon gas in the bulb glowing because its charged and energized between two electrodes which causes the gas to create light which accounts for the extra 50-100% increase in brightness plus the whiter temperature.

The "HID Attitude" is only reference as to the brightness of the lamp. The ZXE is not a HID lamp because they require a ballast and much higher voltage of up to 20,000 volts to ignite then 80-100 volts to continue. The ZXE uses 12-14 volts.

Also the blue tint on the bulb has nothing to do with the color temperature of the light, you can’t just color a bulb blue and make yellow light turn white, it just won’t happen.  Sylvania clearly states the blue tint color is added only for cosmetic reasons since car owners like the appearance of a blue bulbs in the headlamp fixture.

Many Thanks 

[Chocula]

Doug thanks for your reply - but you’re incorrect in your assessment of the Sylvania lamps. The ZXE bulbs are totally different technology than a basic halogen lamp you mention. Its not just the tungsten on the element producing the light, its the Xenon gas in the bulb glowing because its charged and energized between two electrodes which causes the gas to create light which accounts for the extra 50-100% increase in brightness plus the whiter temperature.

The "HID Attitude" is only reference as to the brightness of the lamp. The ZXE is not a HID lamp because they require a ballast and much higher voltage of up to 20,000 volts to ignite then 80-100 volts to continue. The ZXE uses 12-14 volts.

Also the blue tint on the bulb has nothing to do with the color temperature of the light, you can’t just color a bulb blue and make yellow light turn white, it just won’t happen.  Sylvania clearly states the blue tint color is added only for cosmetic reasons since car owners like the appearance of a blue bulbs in the headlamp fixture.

Many Thanks

From Syvanias automotive website http://www.osram-americas.com/en-us/products/automotive/Pages/silverstar-zxe.aspx with BOLD used to highlight parts of the text.

SilverStar® zXe
Looking to add the style and attitude of an HID headlight to your vehicle? Pick up a pair of SilverStar® zXe halogen headlights from SYLVANIA. SilverStar zXe is made to turn heads, with a crisp white light that transforms and completes the look of your vehicle. On the road or at the show, zXe is the first thing they’ll notice.

HID Attitude.  Xenon Fueled – 100% Street Legal.
SYLVANIA SilverStar zXe lights are made to compete with HID headlights in style and appearance. Our special mirror tip and cobalt blue coating gives these headlights a remarkable jewel-like shimmer for head-turning style. But it’s more than just attitude with these bulbs. You also get crisp illumination from a headlight that’s noticeably whiter than BASIC bulbs. (Check out our photo gallery.) On the road you’ll notice an immediate difference. SilverStar zXe headlights use a proprietary cobalt blue coating combined with xenon halogen gas technology to generate a color temperature that rivals HID. 100% street legal, they meet all DOT requirements.

Notice that Sylvania identifies this as a halogen bulb, and does not claim it to be brighter an a basic halogen bulb, only whiter and they do claim this is in part due to the blue coating.  Also, if it actually illuminated the gas the whole bulb would become the light source and it would not focus properly as the reflector housing designed for a halogen bulb with both high and low beam focus the beam based on the physical location of the filament (light source for a halogen bulb) which is why many LED lights don't focus when used as drop in replacements.  Everything I can find supports exactly what Doug S stated.

If you like the whiter light and the appearance of this bulb, then this is probably an excellent choice.  Since it is still a halogen bulb, it should work great in the existing housing and you won't have any of the focus issues associated with HID or LED lights when used with reflectors designed for halogen.

Chocula

[Doug S]

Everything I can find supports exactly what Doug S stated.

Thanks for the support, Count. I really do try to be a source of accurate information....I notice that the end of the political spectrum that frequently offers loads of misinformation is very quick to accuse the other end of being "low information". The reality is very much the opposite.

You may notice that I've never said the Sylvania bulb is a bad bulb. In my opinion, t's a GREAT choice. Osram has similar bulbs, other manufacturers do too. They're "hot-tuned" halogen bulbs which offer fantastic amounts of light at reasonable prices. It's a really good solution for people who don't want to spend a ton of money, but want very white, very bright lights. Just be aware that the downside is reduced lifetime, compared to a standard halogen bulb or an LED bulb.

My simplified analysis is that:

1) Standard halogen bulbs offer good lifetime, low price and much improved light output over old-school incandescent ("sealed-beam") headlights.
2) "Hot-tuned" halogen bulbs are more of the same...even better light output, nice white light. Downside is reduced lifetime. Pretty good compromise in my mind.
3) True HID is much brighter, very bluish but very bright light, very expensive but also very long life. Excellent high-end choice except for the price and very bluish light.
4) LEDs, which are a mixed bag at this point. The potential is for a good price point, very good light output, very low power consumption, and extremely long life, but some bulbs currently on the market fall short of the potential. The high light output required of headlights is difficult for LED technology to achieve today -- it's a fantastic technology for turn signals, brake lights etc. but it may not quite be there for headlights.

I left the stock bulb on my 2014 S in place until it burned out, then I replaced it with an LED bulb. The light output is about the same as the stock bulb (maybe a bit better), it makes a nice even pattern in front of the bike, the lifetime will almost certainly be better (unless the built-in fan stops functioning, a real short-coming of modern LED bulbs), and it draws less power so it runs cooler.

Again, just know what you're buying, and pick your point on the price/performance curve. Don't be fooled by "low-information" people, even if they insist on calling YOU "low information". These days it isn't hard to find out the truth; Google is truly your friend. And Count Chocula, that's the thing I appreciate most about your post. You went and figured out the truth, right from the sources. We need FAR more of that these days.

[Low On Cash]

Doug without being redundant - I suggest you study Halogen ZXE technology - There is no comparison to the Zero's stock halogen to the ZXE bulb they are worlds apart and use totally different technology. I''m not making anything up here - Please Google Xenon headlight and you'll see I was 100% accurate in my post.

Secondly, the "expensive" LED lamp in your Zero will not even begin to provide the distance of the Xenon Halogen simply from the stand point of its design. Please re-read my original post were I explain. 

Facts are Facts -  Take a second look at these images the ZXE is clearly showing the road 250+ yards - go out tonight with your stock headlight or replacement Led - you'll be lucky to see less than half that distance. 

I left these images large so they can be easily viewed - the first two photos are on the road - look at the unbelievable distance and the level of light even past the mailbox. If you look closely you'll even see a pole off the left shoulder. I have two bikes with Led's one stock from the factory and they have no where near this performance.






______________________


These two images show the performance without any reflected light since the blacktop is totally black - look at the field across the street!






Having driven home in the dark on numerous occasions, I can assure you the stock Zero lamp was absolutely terrible and unsafe. Unlike Led's, the Sylvania Xenon lamps provide a low cost simple installation that does not alter or change the stock wiring on the Zero and offers excelled performance unmatched by Led lamps costing up to $800.

Best Regards - Mike

[Chocula]

Doug without being redundant - I suggest you study Halogen ZXE technology - There is no comparison to the Zero's stock halogen to the ZXE bulb they are worlds apart and use totally different technology. I''m not making anything up here - Please Google Xenon headlight and you'll see I was 100% accurate in my post.

Secondly, the "expensive" LED lamp in your Zero will not even begin to provide the distance of the Xenon Halogen simply from the stand point of its design. Please re-read my original post were I explain. 

Facts are Facts -  Take a second look at these images the ZXE is clearly showing the road 250+ yards - go out tonight with your stock headlight or replacement Led - you'll be lucky to see less than half that distance. 

I left these images large so they can be easily viewed - the first two photos are on the road - look at the unbelievable distance and the level of light even past the mailbox. If you look closely you'll even see a pole off the left shoulder. I have two bikes with Led's one stock from the factory and they have no where near this performance.

...


These two images show the performance without any reflected light since the blacktop is totally black - look at the field across the street!

...


Having driven home in the dark on numerous occasions, I can assure you the stock Zero lamp was absolutely terrible and unsafe. Unlike Led's, the Sylvania Xenon lamps provide a low cost simple installation that does not alter or change the stock wiring on the Zero and offers excelled performance unmatched by Led lamps costing up to $800.

Best Regards - Mike

I think the area we disagree on is whether or not Sylvania ZXE bulbs are HID.  They are NOT, as Sylania clearly identities them as Halogen in their literature, therefore all of the information relating to Xenon HID lamps does not apply to the ZXE bulbs.

I appreciate the sample photos provided.  It is important to control as many variables as possible when doing comparisons.  The make, model, and settings of the camera should be posted with the images.  Allowing the camera to automatically select its shutter speed, aperture, ISO, or even white balance can inadvertently provide very misleading results.  Allowing a couple of extra stops of light into the camera can make a significantly dimmer bulb appear to perform much better, hence these variables need to be controlled when possible and always published.  I would love to see a controlled comparison between these and the various other bulbs available. 


Chocula

Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...

Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?

Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.

Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?

Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?

Marty DiBergi: I don't know.

Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?

Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.

Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.

Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?

Nigel Tufnel: [pause] These go to eleven.

[Low On Cash]

Chocula thanks for your reply - I did mention previously the ZXE was "Not" an HID lamp here's my paragraph from a past thread:

"The "HID Attitude" is only reference as to the brightness of the lamp. The ZXE is not a HID lamp because they require a ballast and much higher voltage of up to 20,000 volts to ignite then 80-100 volts to continue. The ZXE uses 12-14 volts."

The images are true to life results of what anyone can expect when you install the lamp in the Zero - changing the stop in the camera cannot create light in an image if there is none to be had. As my images show - the ZXE's real advantage other than more light and white light, is its ability to focus light at greater distances than even an LED headlamp. As the images show, at great distances in high beam it is illuminating the road so you could easily see prominent dangers, i.e. curves, people, deer, etc.

Thanks

 

[beastie]

I will confirm Low On Cash' post on BMW K1600 GT/GTL adaptive headlight. It uses an HID lamp and a swivelling mirror controlled by gyroscopes and electronics. It works very well. However, nothing like throwing more lumens downrange so I always have the LED foglights on.

[scorpion32]

Today i decided to change my main H4 bulb against a stronger H4 bulb from Osram.
The process of doing this looks really easy - just 4 screws - unplug connector, remove rubber, remove bulb, insert new build....

Well i succeeded to remove the 4 screws but i was unable to remove the damn connector from the H4 bulb. It comes out, that one of the 3 H4 bulb pins was glued to the connector.
How come? Well, in some youtube videos you get some short insights at the factory of zero and how the workers put things together. In these videos you can clearly see that almost everything gets some glue on it. It seems that they also glue the wires for the H4 connector. In my case i guess the glue was also in contact with one of the H4 bulb connectors, holding it in place.

In the end i managed to change the H4 bulb, but i literally had to tear off the connector with a wrench. During this process i used a lot of f... words, sorry for my neighbours. Hopefully no kids around ;-).

The new bulb is now much better. The name of the bulb is "Osram Night Racer". They claim that it has 110% more light. Not sure if its sold in the US.


Anybody else has same experiences with glued components that should not be glued?

[Kocho]

It is really confusing to research "xenon" bulbs. Most google results point to HID lights, which do seem to use xenon differently than halogen lights do. To be clear, in order for any gas to get activated to produce light it needs 2 electrodes and high voltage. There are *no* two electrodes in the zXe lights - just a regular filament. I do not think, from what I understand about that bulb, that the xenon gas in it is being excited to produce light - it is there as an inert gas to prolong the life of the hot filament, not as a light-producing substance as it is in a HID lamp.

As for the comparison photos, it seems to me they are clearly from differently aimed lights - one looks like low beam, the other as high beam. Is that the intention? If so, can't compare this way, the one clearly throws light higher and would be blinding oncoming traffic. If not, I would not want a light like that - it probably would not pass inspection...

[Low On Cash]

Today i decided to change my main H4 bulb against a stronger H4 bulb from Osram.
The process of doing this looks really easy - just 4 screws - unplug connector, remove rubber, remove bulb, insert new build....

Well i succeeded to remove the 4 screws but i was unable to remove the damn connector from the H4 bulb. It comes out, that one of the 3 H4 bulb pins was glued to the connector.
How come? Well, in some youtube videos you get some short insights at the factory of zero and how the workers put things together. In these videos you can clearly see that almost everything gets some glue on it. It seems that they also glue the wires for the H4 connector. In my case i guess the glue was also in contact with one of the H4 bulb connectors, holding it in place.

In the end i managed to change the H4 bulb, but i literally had to tear off the connector with a wrench. During this process i used a lot of f... words, sorry for my neighbours. Hopefully no kids around ;-).

The new bulb is now much better. The name of the bulb is "Osram Night Racer". They claim that it has 110% more light. Not sure if its sold in the US.


Anybody else has same experiences with glued components that should not be glued?

LOL Scorpion I thought I heard some cussing the other night - glad it worked out for you.

On my bike the red wire was pushed out of the connector when she was assembled making it intermittent - actually its a good thing because it got me off my duff and made me change it for the better.

Regards

Mike 

[Doug S]

It is really confusing to research "xenon" bulbs. Most google results point to HID lights, which do seem to use xenon differently than halogen lights do. To be clear, in order for any gas to get activated to produce light it needs 2 electrodes and high voltage. There are *no* two electrodes in the zXe lights - just a regular filament. I do not think, from what I understand about that bulb, that the xenon gas in it is being excited to produce light - it is there as an inert gas to prolong the life of the hot filament, not as a light-producing substance as it is in a HID lamp.

I have to admit I've been reading up on the subject and I'm finding the same thing...I'm 100% certain what I was saying was absolutely true five years ago, but is there some new technique? Technology does always move forward. Unfortunately, there is far more marketing hype online than real information, and even the "technical articles" seem to be not much more than copy-and-pastes of the manufacturers' marketing information. Not a lot of physicists reviewing products in the automotive emags.

So...I'm an EE, and my chemistry knowledge is pretty limited. I do have a B.A. Physics degree, but it's 32 years obsolete and forgotten by now. If anybody can help "shed any light" (sorry), please help me think this through.

The filament in an regular incandescent light bulb I understand...as I said earlier, heat it up and it glows by emitting "blackbody radiation", just like an iron fireplace grate except much brighter because it's much hotter. An inert gas will stop it from oxidizing, and a halogen gas will keep the liberated tungsten ions plating back on the filament rather than the inside of the bulb.

One of the things I notice about these "hot" bulbs is that they seem to have a very small sub-chamber inside the normal bulb. Is that just a smaller container for the filament and xenon? That might help because there's even less likelihood of the tungsten ions depositing on the glass -- they just can't get very far from the filament. Also, since it's nearer the filament, it probably runs a lot hotter (so I'd imagine it would have to be made of quartz, not glass), which means it's even less likely to ATTRACT condensing tungsten ions like a cold drink can condensing humidity on a hot day. So you could just run the filament hotter without adversely impacting bulb life.

But IS there any possibility the xenon gas itself is radiating like it really does in a true HID lamp? I don't think it can emit much blackbody radiation; it's optically clear (at least at room temperature) which means its emissivity must be very low, so it's not going to make a very good blackbody radiator, unless its chemical properties change significantly when it heats up, which could very well be the case.

A related question would be "what does the arc discharge in a true HID lamp actually do to the gas?". If it's just a good way to heat up the gas to the temperature where it DOES become a good blackbody radiator, maybe heating the xenon with the tungsten filament could do the same thing. But if that's the case, I'd think the new style of bulb would have come out first, rather than the arc-discharge HID. I THINK what the arc does is electrically excite the xenon molecules up from their ground state, from which they quickly jump back down, emitting photons (light) as they do so...pretty much like a laser, but not coherent. If that's the case, having a tungsten filament there shorting out the arc wouldn't work, and in fact would prevent any of that from happening.

I'm absolutely not above admitting I could have been wrong. I also don't think I've really been convinced of anything yet, though. I STILL think the smaller sub-capsule just allows them to run the filament hotter, which will always cause it to emit more blackbody radiation, without decreasing the life of the bulb. I also haven't really changed my opinion of these bulbs...they're an excellent point on the price/performance curve. I went with LED because I wanted lower current draw (not that it's really draining the battery down much slower, but every little bit helps!) and longer life. But these are a great choice as well.

[Low On Cash]

The Sylvania Xenon Halogen bulb "Out-Performs" Most LED Lamps Available.

Hello Guys - Aside from the fact the Xenon gas burns at a much higher temperature for up to 50% more light combined with their 4000 Kelvin temperature to make them almost as white as an LED's, now most car manufacturers are installing them as standard equipment. Another advantage of the Xenon lamp is it is rated at 10,000 hours compared to the standard 2.000 hours of a standard halogen bulb.

I would like to follow up my article on the advantages of upgrading your stock headlamp with a replacement halogen type bulb rather than replace the entire lamp as some riders do on other bikes and the advantages of using the stock light fixture.

Stock Zero Fixturee - Actually the Sylvania Xenon Halogen $23.00 bulb in your Zero’s stock fixture will have more distance and more light than most other bikes who use a LED replacement fixtures to include the $800-$1000 J.W. Speaker lamps here's why:

LED Performance - With a LED lamp such as the J.W. Speaker lamp, the LED's are mounted facing forward so the only light projected in front of the bike is what is actually produced by the element itself.  I’m not saying the LED’s don’t provide a bright light, what I’m saying is; since they do not have reflectors with any depth, they have little ability to reflect and focus the light as efficient as the stock fixture.



In Contrast -  When you use the Sylvania Xenon bulb or even the stock halogen bulb in your stock Zero light fixture, you’ll now have the distinct advantage of the fixtures numerous reflectors which are built into the rear and sides of the stock housing. These reflectors are carefully designed to reflect and focus light at a greater distance than the LED's can achieve because the reflectors take the light from many angles of the bulb and combine it to focus at a more confined area at greater distance.

Fixture Depth - The Zero’s lamp fixture is well designed thanks to its depth allows larger mirrors. This is why there is such a concentration of light directly in front of the bike on high beam as shown in my images below. The depth with the stock fixture allows more reflection area and ability to focus the light.





Shoulder Light  - Another advantage of the stock Zero fixture with its H4 Bulb is some of the mirrors or reflectors are designed at angles to divert light to the right and left shoulders, this is another advantage of fixture depth. 

LED Replacements - Most Led’s bulb Replacements for the Zero will not work as well as the Sylvania Xenon Halogen since most LED’s only use two elements - so half of the reflectors in the lamp fixture are not used. Another drawback of these 2 sided replacement led’s is un-even lobs of light that spill in unintended reflectors of the fixture.




Regards - Mike

[Fred]

Aside from the fact the Xenon gas burns at over 4,000 degrees Kelvin,

Thankfully, that's​ not what colour temperature means and really isn't what happening inside the bulb.