Help me match my lights

I liked my stock lights which haven't failed me yet. But after getting this LED drl installed, I want to get lights that are white in color in order to better match the drl. (You see, one mod always leads to another).

What is the best way to match the lights (I am interested in doing low beam, high beam, and the fog lights). Match doesn't have to be perfect. Here's my thought so far.

1. I am hesitant to do HID. As I understand, it's illegal in all 50 states unless it was installed from the factory.

2. I am also hesitant to go with LED. I saw the rather large cooling mechanism, all protruding into the engine bay, which I don't see how it could be good. Legality here also seems to be an issue.

3. So I am left with whiter halogen. It seems that Philips has the best bulbs for the buck. I like X-treme Vision, but I am afraid that might still look too yellow next to the LED. Would something like Crystal Vision work better? Diamond Vision?

Is there any other option to match the light. Is there anything wrong with my thinking in 1, 2,and 3 above?

I am a total novice when it comes to lighting. Any input will be appreciated.

 

I like those DRL's a lot. Thought about doing it myself.
I have the Philips Xtreme Vision for my headlamps,I don't think they'd be as white as your LED strip.
The other issue is that I don't think you can get the Xtreme for your fog lamps so it all wouldn't match anyways.

 

Any halogen is going to be yellow compared to those LEDs. Stay away from the so called "White as HID" halogens. They use a blue lens coating to whiten up the light, but that also diminishes their light output.

I am partial to the Philips Crystal Vision. Somewhat whiter than stock, but still have decent output.

 

Agreed with the "stay away from white as HID" halogens ^^

 

Thanks for the input.

Is Diamond Vision considered 'HID halogen"?

I do like Xtreme Vision and Crystal Vision. From what I understand Xtreme has more light output and Crystal is whiter.

How frequently would I have to change these bulbs? I would think Crystal Vision is somewhat better match for LED, is that correct?

 

I ordered some Philips Crystal Vision bulbs from Amazon. I will update the thread once I get things installed.

Here is the color spectrum of Philips' offering. At least on the picture, Crystal Vision seems to come closest to white. With blue light, I think I am sacrificing light output.


Here is a comparison picture with stock bulb.

From a distance,


I went back and forth between Xtreme Vision (which has an awesome light output) and Crystal Vision. I chose to go with Crystal Vision because it seems that the compromise in light output is minimal and it will come closer to matching the LED. I didn't want to go wth higher temp because then the light output becomes significantly reduced. Here is night time shot side by side. (To be fair, this was predecessor to Xtreme Vision, which also had awesome light output)

 

Crystal Vision, I installed low beam and high beam. They are definitely whiter than stock, but not quite as white as LED. These light will do for now. I left the LED on for comparison.

Low beam:


High beam:


Comparison to the stock: Fog light was just about same yellow as stock headlight.

 

Those crystal visions look pretty good. Alot better than before. Guess I now know what I'd go with if I decide to not go the LED route.

 

Here are some night shots with Crystal Vision.

Just the DRLs (for comparison): These LEDs are bright, but they don't project the light very far.


Low beam:


High beam and low beam:

 

I actually like Sylvania silverstar. Not sure how they match up to crystal vision but they were noticeably brighter and whiter than stock halogen. Had to change both headlights when one went out.

 

I almost went with Sylvania Silverstar Ultra mainly because our local Wal-Mart carries them. I had to order Philips bulbs online. I am guessing that Sylvania Silverstar Ultra has about the same whiteness as Extreme Vision. I like these white lights and they are certainly a better match with the LED, but they are still bit yellow in comparison.

My LEDs are blindingly bright from the front. But as you could see in my picture, they don't light up much beyond the immediate vicinity. I am sure LEDs work better for head lights, but various reviews seem to indicate that they don't work as well as halogen bulbs. Recent offering from Philips seems promising, but now I have a little time to wait (I bought some extra bulbs) for them to develop a good alternative.

 

In comparison to LED's, I'd definitely agree, they are yellow. I had never heard of crystal vision until now. Maybe when my silver stars blow out, I'll have to check these out (and incidentally, replace ALL the bulbs again) LOL