KinoFlo Diva LED vs Lishuai 1380SLV

[@extrashot]

Just noticed that a lot of retailers in the UK have recently changed the Lishuai name to LS. Not sure why, but the light tested is now the "LS Edge 1380ASVL Bi-Colour Soft LED Light"

[@smeghead61]

LS make Edgelights that use edge mounted LED's that light from the edge of the panel and fill the special diffusion material, internally bouncing it before projecting it forward., The LS1380 is not an Edgelight technology, it has forward facing LED being diffused and hence is much brighter output than the edge light series. The Edgelights give a totally unique soft (internally bounced) output and offer ultra thin portability as opposed to this 1380 being more, a soft studio panel like the Celeb.

[@extrashot]

Thank you, that's very Interesting as these are still being marketed in the UK as "LS Edge 1380ASVL Bi-Colour Soft LED Light".... with the same EDGE technology (whatever that means?) We couldn't see any forward facing LED's when tested so the soft diffusion panel is working very well. However, It's certainly misleading to call it EDGE if it's not?

[@smeghead61]

The Lishuau 1380 also has a Honeycomb grid option. 90 degree and 60 degree at I imagine a fraction of the price of the Kino optional Honeycomb grid.

[@extrashot]

True... although the 90 degree grid came as standard on the Kino Flo Diva kit we tested and was only an option on the Lishuai. The grid on the Kino Flo was impressive as the soft panel is slightly recessed... meaning nothing leaks around the edges. Having said all of that, it would be a big price difference if the grid was the only deciding factor!

[@smeghead61]

Firstly, Great video, Kitting is a choice made by the reseller/importer :-). LS have released a new series called Victorsoft with double the output of the 1380. Will be available within weeks for approx 20% higher cost. Honestly glad that you guys have made this video showing what spending 6 times as much actually buys you. Soon some major Chinese "High Quality" LED manufacturers like LEDGO will be releasing full RGB panels. Maybe also lets ask for real information from major manufacturers of where they source their LED's chips from, I think you will find China Panel makers are not the only companies sourcing from China. Thumbs up from me. very fair comparison.

[@meerkatvideos]

Interesting. Even though the values are similar, the real world test is the side by side shot at the end. Assuming camera white balance and everything else is the same, the Kino just looks more natural. The skin tones are nicer. The LS just has more of an LED look to it.

[@extrashot]

I think I agree with you... but it's such a small subtle difference it's difficult to put into words! 👍

[@curlsoncamera]

That's a great in depth test guys! The quality seems fairly close. I hire in that kino for some jobs but that costs me £75/day - if I could get the Lishuai at £30 or £25/day I'd take a gamble - just wouldn't let the director know it's not as well known a brand! :p

[@extrashot]

Thank you for the comment. The quality is certainly very close... I'm not sure most of the directors I work with would be able to spot the difference in the soft lights, especially if you don't need the RGB colour. The big question remains how long the cheaper LED's continue to be colour accurate as they get older? I know quite a few crews who've bought the Lishaui's... so they are getting better known quite quickly!

[@curlsoncamera]

I own an older model - Lishuai LED500, it's sort of a 1 x 1/2 panel which I've had for about 2 years now and it's still going strong. I've not got the tools to test it but never really noticed any colour shift with it in camera, even when pairing it with other lights of better quality. I'd put this 1380 as the next step up in the line for me when lighting is back on my shopping list. I'm seeing Skypanel's more often in the commercial world - I wonder what the comparison between the two heavy weights would be?

[@extrashot]

That's good to hear about your Lishaui. We were looking at the Arri Skypanels's (and they are lovely) but the cost seems way above most owner operators. Maybe we're wrong, but we see these as more of a high quality studio fixture? Can get them to test though....

[@curlsoncamera]

The S90's are definitely a studio fixture but I know some gaffer's who own the S60/30 as their only piece of kit beyond a utility belt and the occasional DP with an S60 but mainly see them owned by a few of the top hire companies who have the clients willing to pay for it. I quite like the new firmware upgrade on the skypanel's to give a range of effects, so many practical uses of that. The test should be Which light gives the best disco?!

[@alisterchapman1556]

Lithium batteries are 16.5V when fully charged and cutting off at around 11.6V. So 15V is actually nothing more than the nominal voltage of the "12V" batteries that we use on our cameras.

[@extrashot]

True... normal camera batteries (mine are nominally 14.8V) work fine on the Lishuai although you do need 28.8V for the KinoFlo, effectively 2x camera batteries with an adaptor. I think the point about the 15V label was that most LED panels had nominally gone up a little in marked voltage recently. I wonder if the extra bright panels need a little more to drive them? It's amazing how quickly this LED lighting tech has advanced recently. Thanks for your comment Alister... hope you're well. Paul

[@alisterchapman1556]

@@extrashot I expect the 15V rating is just them being correct. We often think of our cameras as 12V but very often we are running them at 16V. I have a couple of the Lishuai's and am very happy with them, had them for about 9 months and nothings broken on them yet. They work all the way down to 11.6v. You might struggle a bit with a NiCad/NiMH V-Mount though as those can be anything from 12V to 14.4v dropping to 10v at cut-off, so the panel will likely shut down before the battery is fully discharged which means reduced run time but it's also not good for Nicads and NiMH to not fully discharge them before you recharge. All good here. Hope you are good too.

[@danepstein5909]

Such a great video, thanks guys! I have a question regarding comparing the softness of the lights. Would adding diffusion cloth mitigate the relative harshness of the LS versus the Kino?

[@extrashot]

Yes it would, obviously at the expense of overall brightness, but to be honest I don't think you could call the LS light harsh. It sounds like we're over stating the difference here... both lights are very soft indeed and our point was they are really very close in output quality. It's almost a subjective judgement. In real world use... the Kino is more flexible with RGB colours, and it's certainly ahead in build quality / ease of use, but then there's a price v quality ratio to consider. As always, it's a case of diminishing returns !!!

[@ProAVTV]

Great video, well done guys! For those interested, heres the link to the Lishuai 1380 they were using in this video: www.proav.co.uk/lishuai-p-1380asvl-bi-colour-soft-led-light

[@espenglomsvoll]

Love your channel! keep up the good work!

[@BigWill64501]

Is this the same light as the Came TV 1380 Light? They look identical in build

[@extrashot]

I didn't realise but....they do look exactly the same, same price in the UK, same specs (on most sites) and same number. I'm guessing they are probably the same light. Strangely, my favourite supplier of LS lights lists the BiColour as >95 CRI but the CameTV as >93 ? Still sure they are the same, Well spotted.

[@BigWill64501]

Im sure it has something to do with branding, since we have no Lishuai dealers in the US

[@extrashot]

Probably... they've also dropped the Lishuai name in the UK - now called simply LS so now it's the LS 1380SLV

[@sammorganmoore]

One little thing.. brightness.. why do people plonk a meter a meter from the lamp.. a spotty light is going to hit millions of lux while a light with a wide spread will not, but could actually be throwing out more lumens per m2 (consider a led torch hotspot vs a soft-light of some nature) Clearly the led torch might have more lumens at the spot but bounce the torch into a poly and you see that it is actually of virtually no power! For future lights testing consider the SMM Patent TM brightness test, illuminate an 8 foot poly board and take a meter reading at all edges, this mean you have to change the light distance to 'equalise' spready and spotty lights. I have a couple of LED panels and an old 6 tube photonBeard flouro .. it is well bright.. but seems that panels are more focussed so the well brightness does not become apparent until you start bouncing/diffusing the different fixtures. -- RGB yep it is a different tool, been doing preprod on a job where the client wants very specific brand colour backgrounds. Renting skypanels RGB is cheaper than getting in all the paper rolls we would need. --

[@sammorganmoore]

Further thought on cost China vs Kino. A lot of this chinese stuff.. how long does it last? can you get spares or local service, how much egg is on your face if it lets you down on a job. Just yesterday someone in my office wasted some time trying to work out how to send back an asian item (not Lishuai) back for service to the far east. The local established 'dealer' could not help. In that case it was a lens and we commented on how his £15g eng zoom is supported with spares, service and probably a loaner while off for repair.. no such luck with the cheap item. Of course maybe just buy a spare and still have money in the bank.. ?

[@extrashot]

Good point... although both these lights are sold on their 'soft' properties! We'll take a look at the SMM Patent TM brightness test. Must be honest and say I'd never heard of it !!!

[@extrashot]

I have heard from a few people who've been successfully using Lisuai for quite some time now, and of course, you can buy expensive gear that lets you down. If it was a cost issue alone... I'd probably keep a spare! However, I should say I did buy the Kino simply because I found it more usable!

[@sammorganmoore]

Exactly. They are soft lights which is why metering their power at one central point is not ideal. The SMM Patent TM . Brightness test is exactly that to see how much fill a soft source can produce.. lighting an 8.4 poly is a test that can be done in any studio that has an 8.4 poly.. or even any room with space to mark 8 feet by 4 feet on the back wall :)

[@extrashot]

Need to look it up - makes sense

[@Masterstreami]

thanks Guys! Very professional test. I think "You get what You pay for" and if the a Pro need perfect results and reliability, a Pro would always take the Brands like kineflo, Arri etc. The low-cost Lights are better as for some years, thats good for small budget Productions and corporate etc. the lights a build for this market. Interesting was the information about CRI standard, that not work for LED. Too much people don't know this. Funny dancing at the end ! Have fun and thx!

[@extrashot]

Thanks for the comment... I suppose anyone who manages to earn a living with this kit is a Pro?

[@Masterstreami]

A professional has more responsibility towards his customers. With big budget productions he is on the safe side with the brands. Each failure costs more than you have saved. That is, I think, the approach of thinking of a professional. Have fun ;)

[@Rrroarr]

A W E S O M E :)

[@hufo2001]

This test flawed, it fails to point out that the kino-flo diva can also create a large variety of theatrical colors (which means it has RGB leds) as well as daylight and tungsten, and can go from 2700 to 6500 in white. It also fails to mention the kino comes with wireless DMX built in. When these facts are left off it seems the goal of the review is to sell Lishuai lights rather than actually compare products.

[@extrashot]

Good point... we did make the decision not to feature the RGB functions simply because they still feel like a bit of a gimmick. Most owner operators are interested in colour accuracy when using soft panels in 'real-world' situations... the clever RGB stuff and DMX functions are a bit 'studio' for us. Having said that, we did mention that none of us know any cameramen who use DMX on the road. We also referenced that the Kino-Flo gave us additional colours at the end. I have actually bought the Kino-Flo... mainly because it felt better built, resulted in almost no light spill and was much easier to use with the ball-joint mount. The light looks amazing on camera, but I've yet to use the RGB colours! Paul

[@FKfilmphotography]

Gimmick, give over. Shooting commercials and music videos where creative coloured lighting is needed, then the Diva is the choice.