Recommendation? Light bulbs

[bdmicarta]

I must not be very sensitive to differences in light color. I rWeeplaced all of the light bulbs in the house about 4 years ago with LED bulbs and I’ve been blown away by their performance.

We're kind of the same way. I bought the CF bulbs when they became available but there were lots of problems with them- color, lifetime, they dim over time, etc. I was happy to start buying LED and have no complaints about them. They seem to only come in 2 main colors- warm and "not warm". You need to buy a lot of them at one time, the same brand and color, or they won't match. Maybe even buy extras. We had our kitchen remodeled about 3 years ago and I put new LED in the ceiling cans. They were too bright for my wife so I took those out and put lower wattage in there. Just recently they started burning out so I again replaced all 4 of them. The selling point that "they last 10 years" is apparently BS. I like LED because they use less current so you don't have to worry about overloading a fixture.

I don't fully understand LED color issues. I understand how LED flashlights had color problems for a long time but that seems to have been mostly overcome. House bulbs don't seem to have those problems. Flicker was also mentioned- that doesn't bother my eyes but I've seen where it can affect indoor photography. I see that photographers now use LED light panels for photography so at least those LED assemblies must be better at providing the full light spectrum. I don't know how they do it.

 

[annr]

We're kind of the same way. I bought the CF bulbs when they became available but there were lots of problems with them- color, lifetime, they dim over time, etc. I was happy to start buying LED and have no complaints about them. They seem to only come in 2 main colors- warm and "not warm". You need to buy a lot of them at one time, the same brand and color, or they won't match. Maybe even buy extras. We had our kitchen remodeled about 3 years ago and I put new LED in the ceiling cans. They were too bright for my wife so I took those out and put lower wattage in there. Just recently they started burning out so I again replaced all 4 of them. The selling point that "they last 10 years" is apparently BS. I like LED because they use less current so you don't have to worry about overloading a fixture.

I don't fully understand LED color issues. I understand how LED flashlights had color problems for a long time but that seems to have been mostly overcome. House bulbs don't seem to have those problems. Flicker was also mentioned- that doesn't bother my eyes but I've seen where it can affect indoor photography. I see that photographers now use LED light panels for photography so at least those LED assemblies must be better at providing the full light spectrum. I don't know how they do it.

Good point on the photography. Those guys know far more about light than I ever will, and now they use photoshop and more to do all kinds of things. I remember listening to a WH photographer who spoke about the convenience of digital photography, not its quality--which he missed. Digital was easier and more practical, not better.

This whole light bulb thing reminds me of the digital/analog debates in sound recording and photography.
I can say that I prefer analog and do hear the difference in recording/listening to music done in an analog fashion. I've also been told that I have very sensitive vision even though I have imperfect eyes....so maybe that's why I sense the difference with the bulbs.

I think a lot (or most) of this is about about economics and not about quality. They can sell downloads and stream music if it is done digitally. They will do things digitally with the sound to replicate live music and people more or less get used to it. Plus we play back most music on comparatively low-quality equipment so that degraded sound quality is not so apparent.

I think they are counting on the same thing with light bulbs by saying that the bulbs will last longer, they are equivalent, etc. But at the end of the day logic says they are all unnatural, and the one closest to natural lighting is in fact going to be closer to natural lighting whether we can sense it or not.

 

[Boattale]

LED Bulbs are available in several different spectrums. I prefer the warm white. Don't like that washed out super white blue light either.

 

[Tafkaag]

I've tried LED bulbs and think they suck. I hate the flickering, which happens even with new bulbs. Of course, being habituated to incandescents, I'm used to flickering immediately preceding failure.

annr , have you tried blue light filtering glasses? Ostensibly the blue emitted by LEDs is what screws circadian rhythm. FWIW, I tried them and they didn't do anything but sell aspirin to deal with the physical headaches they caused me, but YMMV.

 

[annr]

I've tried LED bulbs and think they suck. I hate the flickering, which happens even with new bulbs. Of course, being habituated to incandescents, I'm used to flickering immediately preceding failure.

annr , have you tried blue light filtering glasses? Ostensibly the blue emitted by LEDs is what screws circadian rhythm. FWIW, I tried them and they didn't do anything but sell aspirin to deal with the physical headaches they caused me, but YMMV.

Nothing like taking a pill for the side-effect of another pill compensating for in this case a man-made problem. Bad Medicine!

I appreciate the input and realize this is a global problem requiring a global solution that involves avoiding the "toxin." (I believe the glasses I own came with blue light filtering--the dispenser of the glasses said that all lenses come with that now (is that why I get these weird aches and pains?). I don't think we should try to outsmart Mother Nature. No wonder we're screwed up.)