Every time there's a new COB light on the market
that has similar specs to an Aputure light--
but for less money-- you'll undoubtedly see them tagged
as Aputure 120d killers-- but they never are.
They always have significant drawbacks,
like terrible build quality, or a 50mm jet engine
for cooling, ruining the audio of your videos.
That list includes the previous efforts
from Godox, like their SL series.
But these new lights from Godox, the VL series,
are not only $350 cheaper than their matching Aputure lights,
but they're also as good or better
in pretty much every category.
Let's get undone.
[offbeat music]
♪ Gerald Undone ♪
♪ He's crazy ♪
What's happening, everybody? I'm Gerald Undone
and I'm not nearsighted, I just have shallow depth of field.
So, today, we're gonna talk about four products.
I've got the Godox VL150,
which is similar to the Aputure 120d II;
the Godox VL300, which is similar to the Aputure 300d II;
and the Godox FV150, which is like an Aputure 120d
meets a Godox TT350 Flash unit.
It does both continuous light and flash.
And then since we're saving money on lights,
I figured I'd save you some money on modifiers as well,
because here I have a parabolic softbox,
which is pretty much a clone
of the Light Dome II, but for half the price.
So, there's some conveniences and quality aspects of lights
the Mark II Aputures have nailed
that many other lights fail to live up to.
and I'm gonna go over those now, but on these Godox lights,
since we finally have a suitable replacement.
Now, it's worth noting, however, that if it wasn't for Aputure,
I don't think Godox would have a model to base
their light on and achieve such excellent results.
So, even though we should naturally expect technology
to advance upon what's already out there,
we have to give credit to Aputure here as well.
So, these new lights from Godox are dimmable
from 100% down to 0% in 1% increments,
so none of that "10% minimum" nonsense.
And more importantly, the brightness response
is linear, so 100% is twice as bright as 50%,
and 20% is twice as bright as 10%, and so on.
Some lights, including the 120d II from Aputure,
have a strong curve to their output,
and they ramp up quickly near the last 20%.
The 300d II was the first light from Aputure
to include a linear response option,
and we're seeing that same improvement here
on the VL and FV series from Godox.
And speaking of these two series, by the way,
there's two other lights in this family.
There's a middle light between these two, the VL200,
and a more powerful version of this one, the FV200.
And speaking of curves, the VL lights have a very
similar fan curve to the Aputure lights as well.
Previous efforts in this class have commonly
had the shortcoming of being much noisier,
but that's not the case anymore for the VL series.
In my tests, the volume of the fan when active
matched that of the Aputure lights.
[extremely soft fan humming]
[slightly softer humming]
And even better, it takes longer
before it kicks in, and has a higher threshold
for brightness level before triggering the fan.
In my studio, with a room temperature
of about 22°C, or 72°F,
I could run the VL150 at up to 50% power
without the fan turning on, and the VL300
up to 35% power before activating the fan.
Which is actually quite awesome for me,
because I run this 300d II right here for this shot
at around 35% power, and the fan usually comes on
in the middle of my video, where it doesn't with the Godox.
And that 35% power is actually a little bit brighter
on the Godox over the Aputure as well.
I was getting about 10,500 lux at one meter with my 300d II,
and about 11,300 with the Godox VL300.
Both reading around 5,400 Kelvin
and both giving similar colour accuracy scores
on my Sekonic C-700.
Now, the 300d II did have a slightly higher CRI of 97.7,
versus the 96.9 on the VL300.
But CRI isn't everything, so near the end of this video,
I'll give you some practical side-by-sides
of how the light affects my skin tone and this scene.
Now, the VL150 tells a similar story
when compared to the Aputure 120d II.
It's a bit brighter, at 6,850 lux at one meter,
versus Aputure’s 6,700 lux.
Only this time, the Godox was more colour-accurate
and produced temperature more closely aligned
to the advertised 5,600K.
The Godox measured 5,645K,
but the Aputure was cooler at 5,836.
Now, the FV150 is a different animal,
and we'll get more into it in a minute.
But in terms of the continuous light aspect of it,
it performed terrifically. It was brighter
than the 120d II and the VL150,
coming in at around 7,200 lux at one meter,
and was just as colour-accurate
and just as consistent with its temperature.
These differences are pretty minimal, though,
between these lights and the Aputure lights,
so it's pretty safe to consider them one-to-one
substitutes for Aputure lights when using them
bare-bulb or through the majority of modifiers.
However, they are not the same when using a reflector
If you're somebody who only ever uses a softbox,
or Fresnel, or really any other modifier,
you can probably ignore this part.
But if you use the included reflector dishes
a lot when you shoot, you will get
significantly higher output from the Godox VL series
then you will over the Aputure lights.
I tried three different reflectors, and in each case,
the Godox would give up to twice the output
to the comparable Aputure light.
For example, in one test, the 120d II
jumped up to 27,000 lux at one meter
with the reflector on, where the VL150
jumped to 60,000 lux with the same reflector.
And the Aputure 300d II went up to 44,000 lux
with the reflector on, but the VL300 went up to 79,000.
I was discussing this phenomenon
-with Tommy Callaway to-- -Hey, I’m Tommy.
--try and figure out why there's such a disparity,
because they're so similar otherwise.
The beam angles are pretty much the same.
The Godox was a few degrees tighter, but almost equal.
The evenness of the spread was pretty equal, too.
I measured the light at 45 degrees,
and again at 70 degrees off-axis,
and both the Godox and the Aputure
have a similar fall-off out to the sides.
But the chip on the Godox is larger,
and it seems to sit more ideally-placed
within the shape of the reflector
that I think it's more ideally hitting the dish
for maximum reflectance, where the Aputure chip
sits a bit farther forward,
and is smaller and more obstructed.
In either case, like I said, if you're using a reflector,
the Godox should be your pick, and the reflector quality
is great on the VL150 and 300 as well.
It's solid, well-designed, which is something
that was weaker in the previous Godox COBs.
The FV150’s reflector, on the other hand, is a lot more
basic and nothing to really get excited about.
It's a little bit flimsier, but the FV150 is $50 cheaper
than the VL150, and it shows in a few ways.
For example, the FV150 doesn't come with any kind
of carrying case, but the VL series
has taken notes from Aputure here as well
and are using very similar protective,
rectangular bags with generous padded inserts.
And the VL series is able to be powered with V-Mount batteries,
where the FV series is mains power-only,
but we'll talk more about power in a second.
They all come with remote control, and it's the same one
and it's interchangeable between them,
and now Godox has added phone app support as well
to keep up with Aputure’s new app.
When it comes to build quality, though,
both of these new lines are fantastic.
They now have a solid metal construction
with a very sturdy yoke and a big knob that locks down
with a twice-gasketed rosette that can easily take
a full-sized Light Dome without any drooping.
The Bowens Mounts are also very secure,
and they're easy to operate with a sliding release lever,
and actually instill more confidence than even
the Aputures, even when using Aputure modifiers
like Barn Doors or the Fresnel.
You get a more secure fit on the Godox lights.
The mount and the tilt brake are two areas
where most discount lights have been lacking in the past,
but these new Godox lights perform excellently.
The Godox also feature two things the Aputures don't:
two-way spigot ports, so that you can mount it
on your C-stand like this or like this.
The spigot can actually go through,
which is actually convenient based on the way
that I'm hanging my Light Dome II right now.
I wish that I could do this on my 300d.
And they also come with umbrella holders,
just down here, which-- they slide in through here,
and then there's a spring in the back that holds them in place.
And this is pretty great if you want a really cheap
modifying diffusion option, because not only will it place
the umbrella in a really great spot
based on the centre of the bulb,
but it actually holds it really well and gives you
a great option for less money than a larger modifier.
The cabling and interface on the VL series is reminiscent
of the Mark I Aputure lights,
where you have a control box and then a power supply
with three cable sections in between.
But where Aputure significantly improved with their Mark IIs,
Godox has made more of an Aputure Mark 1.5.
You still require the three cable sections,
and the interface is a little bit less premium,
but the boxes don't make any noise
and the cable lengths are perfect.
You have enough slack in the top section that you can
get the light, like, ten feet in the air or higher
while maintaining a decent height for the control box,
which can hang on a stand using this retractable nylon loop.
And then the mid cable is long enough to never have
your power brick dangling dirty halfway up the pole,
but the main power cable is also long enough
that for shorter runs, you can attach the power brick
using this Velcro V-mount adapter
that secures this to the back of your control box,
and then even with this tidier setup,
you still have enough length in the third cable--
probably about 12 feet, maybe four meters,
just over four meters, close to the 15 feet--
that can run all the way to the outlet.
So even with the tidier setup, you're still gonna have
plenty of reach. So while not as good
as the Aputure 300d II’s excellent design in this regard,
it's an improvement on the Mark 1s and is appreciated.
But, of course, this is where the FV150 differs the most.
It does not support battery power,
and instead just comes with one long power cable
that plugs directly into the back of the light,
where you'll also find the interface.
Now, housing the power supply internally
means that the light is bigger, heavier,
and the fans are running at all times without a curve
to reduce noise at lower output levels.
So, although it does have a slightly better output
than the VL150 and is $50 cheaper,
I don't like it as much for video shoots
because of the potential sound issues.
However, it does do something pretty great, which is that
it includes the ability to switch to the Flash Sync Mode,
which then allows you to connect to Godox’s
existing Wireless X system,
and while doing this, you can simultaneously use
the continuous light aspect of it as a modelling light
that performs identically to the light in Video Mode.
Same power, same accuracy.
When in Video Mode, the right knob is your brightness,
and your left knob is what allows you to choose
up to 10 different strobe-y flash effects,
like "Lightning" or "Faulty bulb."
But when you switch to the Flash Mode,
the right knob controls your flash power
from 1/1 down to 1/16th,
and the left knob is now your modelling light control,
from 0 to 100% in 1% increments.
The only thing I don't like about this is that
after you fire off a flash, there is a slight delay
before the modelling light comes back on,
leaving you in the dark for just under a second,
which is a bit jarring. It does accept high-speed sync
up to 1/8000th of a second shutter speed, though,
but it does not accept TTL.
Now, the flash power is greater than the continuous output.
For example, if I achieve proper exposure
at f/11 with the continuous light,
I can get it down to f/20 with the flash at 1/1 power,
but that output isn't that impressive
when compared to the dedicated flash units.
For example, the AD200, which is a fantastic flash
from Godox, accomplishes at 1/16th
what the FV150 does at full power.
Hell, even this little TT350,
which we use as an on-camera transmitter
more than we do a flash, is two stops brighter
than the FV150 at full power.
So it's one of those cases where you can combine
two functions into one light: neither function excels,
but you have the convenience of having a single package.
And in this case, at a very tempting price,
it's only $350 for the FV150.
Now, you would definitely be better off
with an AD200 for your flash,
and the VL150 for your continuous light.
But the AD200 is $300, and the VL150 is $400,
so it'll cost you double the price
of the FV150 to separate your functions,
but it's the only way to go if you need battery power,
or if you want to have a better fan curve for audio.
But if you're just looking for a video light, the VL150,
for only $50 more, is the better buy.
And at nearly half the price of the Aputure 120d II,
or $350 less, the Godox VL150 is the clear winner
between those two options as well.
And the same can be said between the VL300
and the Aputure 300d II,
which also has a $350 price difference,
with the Godox costing $750 and the Aputure $1,100.
Now, although the Godox is the better buy
if you were purchasing one right now,
it doesn't do anything to render the Aputure obsolete.
And if you already own Aputure lights,
there's no real reason to switch to Godox.
But you can definitely supplement your kit
with these Godox lights, save some money,
and have very consistent results.
To demonstrate this, as promised, here's some
comparisons of the different lights hitting me.
[mellow music]
♪
Now, in those comparisons, I also showed
the Aputure Light Dome against this LAOFAS Parabolic Softbox,
which has the same instant-assembly design
as the Aputure, but at only half the price, or $110.
It comes with a grid and is nearly the same diameter.
I would argue, though, that the Aputure has a slightly
better build quality with a more rugged Bowens Mount,
but that also makes the Aputure a little bit heavier.
But for those more budget-conscious, this is
a fantastic alternative with almost no drawbacks,
and so much better than the other cheap alternatives
that have you inserting the rods one at a time.
It comes with an inner baffle, which eliminates any hot spots,
and has a push button release mechanism
for the rods to quickly collapse the dome.
The Light Dome II does come with a thicker
front diffusion material, though.
This one is a little bit thin, but it's adequate.
And the Velcro on the Light Dome II
is a bit more aggressive. All right, let's wrap this up.
Basically, when it comes to Aputure light clones,
you usually have to make some considerable concessions
to achieve that lower price tag.
But with this new Godox VL series, you just don't.
It's that simple. You might not be saving
as much money as the previous SL series from Godox,
or some of the other budget options out there,
but you're not giving up as much, either,
which makes these new VL lights
the best value COB lights available.
But that's gonna be it for me. I hope you found this video
helpful, or at least entertaining, and if you did,
make sure you leave it the old thumbs-up
and consider subscribing if you haven't already.
But if you did not find this video helpful
or entertaining, try setting the playback speed to 75%.
Alright... I'm done.