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AE Side by Side Comparison... and finally found a good one!!

66K views 238 replies 50 participants last post by  gmcclintock 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello all,

With my small fleet... I can do a nice comparison between all the lights on the market, so this is the second part of the series. Please see the attached pictures, in the Z4 is the LUX AE LED light... which are the brightest on the market that I have been able to find. On the 3 series is the OEM AE LED lights.... and on the 7 series (the one on the right)... are the AlpineMSS HID light system.

I have to say I am extremely impressed with the AlpineMSS system (www.alpinemss.com). The kit is very high quality, they are just as bright and as white as the OEM AE LED lights on the 3, they blow away the LUX AE lights, are extremely easy to install. I am not that mechanically inclined and it took me about 20 min. Alex over at alpine was extremely responsive and is working on a bulb that is slightly lower wattage... however I am not sure if I will go with that. These simply look amazing. The inner halo is crisp and sharp... the photos do not do it justice. This system does not throw any codes and yes they do work on the 7.. just ask Alex.... They are so good I am ordering a set for my Z4 and my X....






 
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#174 ·
Here are a few pics of the completed project. No faults or error codes thus far. Everything looks and works great... Very visible during day or night. Cost me around $400 in parts and labor to make the HID angle eyes bullet proof but definitely worth it!
 

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#175 · (Edited)
Are those the Alpine HID's?

My biggest concern on these is that the AE rings inside the headlights (plastic?) will yellow over time due to excessive heat.
Looks like that would be a 6+ months timeframe for the yellowing to occur.

These headlights are just too pricey to replace.

EDIT. Just saw your previous post. Please disregard.

Looks great. Keep us posted; do you have a parts list or install guide. At least yours sounds like a proper and safe setup (minus the risk of yellowing over time)!
 
#177 ·
I'll have a schematic and parts list in a few days and post that. You pretty much gut everything except the lights and ballast's. To keep the kit cheap they have used lower grade parts that just won't work long term in our complex cars. Not sure if the yellowing is just hype... Really don't think the HID's get any hotter than regular bulbs which are scorchers too. Granted the emitted light is brighter. Guess time will tell.
 
#186 ·
I have had no issues with my AlpineMSS HID lights.... Mine are still nice and bright.... Perhaps you have a bad set of bulbs...
 
#188 ·
I found a Solution GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I found a set of LED lights for my F01 Angel Eyes. I didn't want to let you guys know until I was sure I didn't receive any error messages. I've had these installed in my car for about a month and I have had no problems and no error messages. I will take some pictures and post them later if anyone is interested. The kit comes with LED bulbs and two resistors for each side.

They can be purchased from Strahl Lighting in Brooklyn, NY. They can be reached at 888-567-1092 and you can ask for Shawn.
 
#189 · (Edited)
Wow. This topic keeps going and going.

I caution all that HID's do in fact create more heat, I tested the bulbs in the car and out taking laser therma measurents of HID bulbs and regular bulbs. When you consider the ballasts jumps to 10,000-20,000 volts to get the bult going and supply it with voltage, you are going to end up with more light, and more heat. Needless to say, I'm glad others are experimenting. Heat damage, and code trips, along with funky wiring (which I did years ago and documented in a full report--looks like the same crazy thing I did, really).

Something to think about, if you roll into the dealer with a warranty issue in the electrical system, what do you think they're going to say? I didn't want to find out. You can always pull the entire wiring project out and take the car in, though. Scary.

Another thing, the HID voltage could kill you---it's that dangerous. Don't do it.
 
#192 · (Edited)
Received my kit today and I have to say that I am extremely satisfied. Product was mailed out quickly and it took 5 mins to install. I've spent a lot of $$ on bulbs trying to get a more modern look. Problem was they all still looked somewhat yellow or gave off codes. Prior to the Strahl kit I was running another brand of LEDs that used resistors. That brand came with 2 resistors for each side and still gave off codes. The company I ordered from was kind enough to send me extra resistors which resolved the coding issue. Problem with their LEDs was the inner ring was way brighter than the outer ring. The color was good but the outer ring being dim left me a little irritated.

These Strahl lights solved all the issues I had with prior bulbs and LEDs. The outer ring is just as bright as the inner ring and the color is bright white. Thank you Strahl for the great customer service and prompt shipping. Your product has me very satisfied. :thumbup:

The first pic has the Strahl installed on the driver's side and the other brand LEDs on the passenger. As you can see, the outer ring on the passenger side is barely visible
My 2nd pic has the Strahl lights installed on both sides and you see the sun shining right on the passenger side light. The outer and inner rings are still visible
 

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#196 ·
The picture 745on22s posted looks like it's in the shade; definately not direct sunlight. The ones in Strahl's profile are in complete darkness and are pretty much worthless. We at least need pictures in direct sunlight, or even better next to OEM BMW LEDs like in the original post. I am not convinced. Having said that I have had my Alpine MSS lights for about six months and have not installed them :D.
 
#199 ·
umm... hate to say it but they are too dim..... I could not tell you even had AE's.... they look no different than other LED AE lights...
 
#202 ·
The Stahl LED replacements I'm using may not perfectly recreate the look of the current model year but in my opinion look 100 times better than the ugly yellow look the halogen bulbs gave. I've used a number of different halogen bulbs and none gave a good white output. Some even gave off codes. I also tried a different vendor's LED and saw that the center ring was way brighter than the outer. With these I get good output out of both AE rings.

Personally, I'm not willing to run wires and drill holes to accommodate HIDs.
 
#205 · (Edited)
E92 lighting, why do you always get so much bad press on this forum your posts are crazy you post you post you post you post and none of your **** works - then claim to have the best stuffs and it CODES!!!!SHOW US REAL F01 EXAMPLES of your product with testimony and review instead of bumping everyday and boasting.
 
#208 · (Edited)
Strahl

Took out my alpines and replaced with Strahls kit. Though not as blindingly bright as the alpines, the strahls still look good. I bought the strahl kit to see if the reason my outer rings dimmed was due to something in the alpine kit/parts. As you can see in my pic with the strahls, the outer rings are still bad. Thinking the alpine lights damaged the rings. Anyone?
 

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#209 ·
Took out my alpines and replaced with Strahls kit. Though not as blindingly bright as the alpines, the strahls still look good. I bought the strahl kit to see if the reason my outer rings dimmed was due to something in the alpine kit/parts. As you can see in my pic with the strahls, the outer rings are still bad. Thinking the alpine lights damaged the rings. Anyone?
Sorry to hear that happened with your outer rings. I run the Strahls and my outter rings light up fine. Glad I never went with using the HID
 
#210 ·
I hate to jump in here so late but I installed the following back in June :

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=628267&highlight=umnitza

Yes they were cheap and stupid easy to install. Yes I did have a code issue that was easily rectified with an extra resistor. No I do not have any dimming after 6 months. They are not the brightest bulbs in the pack but they sure look good:rofl:
 
#216 ·
so guys..... 2 years later with your HID angel eyes.... how's it going?

did you guys go back to stock or did you replace failed HID bulbs?

please share
cheers
so guys..... 2 years later with your HID angel eyes.... how's it going?

did you guys go back to stock or did you replace failed HID bulbs?

please share
cheers
watch out for failed fiber optics, HID angel eyes get extremely hot, headlights are already over $2000.

 
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