[Smokey196240]

I want to install a light bar would like some ideas and opinions on how yours work for you pros and cons

 

[machinecrook]

I've got two 40watt LED 3" by 3" flood lights in the front of my TRX300FW. Can't say I have any cons besides they were a little too big to fit in the old place of the original lights. However they light up very well. For me personally I don't need spot lights, I rather see wide angle for oncoming deer after a night of brewskies.

 

[SamUK]

I opted for conventional LED spotlights as they offer a wider light beam, They worked out cheaper than a light bar too.

 

[Goober]

I bought a kit with a harness. The high amp relay-energized battery powered circuit is controlled by a low amp accessory circuit powered through the ignition switch. Brilliant

 

[fishfiles]

my theory on lights , " don't put all your eggs in on basket " = keep your stock light working and independent of a secondary light system --- following tail lights ain't so bad , but having nothing is rough

 

[fishfiles]

when I say stock , if you got a secondary supply and it ain't stock and better , then that's ok too

 

[Smokey196240]

my theory on lights , " don't put all your eggs in on basket " = keep your stock light working and independent of a secondary light system --- following tail lights ain't so bad , but having nothing is rough

Yes I plan to stay stock the other will have its own switch or run off high beams only had this on my truck before but relay off its own switch and high power come straight from Batt.

 

[_Wilson_]

Good advise from @fish, I've tryed led bulbs and pods, the brightness and spread beam pattern is great low amp draw, but the interference on fm radio band takes the cake, (when powered nothing but white noise noise/static) i reckon maybe I'm too wired lol 6 two ways and two main tranmiters ......, too much over kill on white noise.....still looking fr a cure.

Has anyone else had this problem ?

 

[fishfiles]

Jay , I run an MP3 player with no interference , well last weekend LSU was playing baseball and the MP3 player has a FM radio built in , I had the game on and it was clear as a bell , when I flipped the bike over and one side the sound tube was under water it was still playing , do you really think them bulbs are doing all that noise

 

[_Wilson_]

Yeah, fish it was both the led bulbs i tried and led pods, engine off, switch on, lights on nothing but static.....and the same with the engine running, and my friend Kyle has a set of led bulbs in his 300 and they blank out his shop radio 87.5-108 flip the lights on, static, flip um off music ......, (smiles) i reckon I'll just stick with the old school halogen bulbs .....

Never used an mp3 , no clue on those.

 

[retro]

You can isolate a noisy RFI producing LED lights circuit with an isolation transformer (or similar in function solid state device) circuit, but you're probably on your own to implement that... Many of them are not even shielded.... made and mounted in plastic.

Some of them (those designed in the USA, Canada, Europe etc) have RFI protection built-in due to the regulations those companies are required to meet. But most electrical products designed in the far east countries... well you guessed it... RFI regulations are commonly ignored. Only way to know for sure is put it on and test it before you buy...

 

[retro]

I forgot to say where the RFI noise comes from on china made LED lights... its not coming from the LEDs. It comes from the power supply for the LEDs. They commonly use a DC buck converter with current regulation/limiting to drop the supply voltage for the LEDs from 14.5 VDC down to 3 VDC or less, depending on the LED type and circuit layout.

It is those cheap DC buck converters that have no RFI protection designed into them by the far easterners. Sometimes you can shield them (put them in a metal box or wrap them with foil and ground the shield to the frame) and stop the interference. Other times ya gotta get a better made light bar. I'd research them thoroughly before buying...

 

[_Wilson_]

Could be china junk front led bulbs , but tail light and rear second honda brake light both have leds from lsuperbrightleds (im not knocking superbrights) and still the same, just not as bad, but the pods i tried , look just like the ones goober has on the >chill pepper< complete white noise when on, not only on the FM band but also on low band, VHF and UHF , those bands i have to be able to receive and transmit on.

 

[fishfiles]

Jay, do you have the lights wired into the stock wiring harness , if so , then maybe run separate wiring to the battery , it that don't help then maybe put a resistor or what ever it would take to choke out the noise

 

[SamUK]

Jay, do you have the lights wired into the stock wiring harness , if so , then maybe run separate wiring to the battery , it that don't help then maybe put a resistor or what ever it would take to choke out the noise

A resistor may just do the trick Fish, some of the cheapo bulbs for cars show up a warning light on the dashboard, if you wire in a resistor it does solve the warning light issue. It may work for frequency as well, certainly worth a shot.

 

[retro]

Re: resistor in LED power supply lines

Is a Filter Capacitor what you meant...?

 

[_Wilson_]

Thanks guys! I'll look into a trying a resister.
@fish, the pods tried both ways , still got blanked out , the bulbs just in the oem sockets

 

[retro]

@jay10 and others interested in a good lighting system... Lookie over HERE.

 

[SamUK]

Re: resistor in LED power supply lines

Is a Filter Capacitor what you meant...?

No I asked in my local electronics store and a resistor is what he said would work and work it did. If LED bulbs aren't Canbus error free the resistor is the solution apparently. I guess the filter cap would clear any RF interference for radios and such though.
I don't have a radio or any sort of comms on my ATV so I've not come across any issues, interesting to read though.

 

[_Wilson_]

@jay10 and others interested in a good lighting system... Lookie over HERE.

retro thanks !