Video lights - cheap(ish)?

My Sola 3000 Flood appears to have died so looking at replacement options.

FWIW i shoot mainly wide angle, DSLR video in the tropics.

The limitations i found with the 3000 were (i) it wasnt wide enough so i really needed 2 and (ii) its not bright enough shallower than 20m.

So with that in mind, what are the potential options out there these days? Ive seen mention of cheap chinese ones that actually seem to work OK and others say not.

Anything in particular to look at? Cheapish would be nice but obviously prepared to pay whats needed.

I shoot in similar conditions to you. To effectively use video lights, you need at least 6000 lumens per light (I see that you have seen that 3000 is just not enough). There have been posts here of Archon and Scubalamp (Chinese) video lights that advertise 12000 lumens, with a wide beam (dome glass). One of these could work for you, and they go for about $600-700. Two of these would be all the light you would need.

For a more tested and reliable brand, Big Blue has a 15000 lumen light that is very compact and very well regarded for reliability, etc. It might be a little more expensive that the cheaper Chinese ones.

Thanks for that, ive decided to try Scubalamp V6K as its easy to source in the region i am now and seems to get decent writeups.

Hi String. I'm in the market for similar video lights and would be interested to know how you're getting on with the Scuba lamps? Thanks in advance.

Ive got 1 x V6K (non pro) and have done a few trips with it. My previous light was a sola 3000 fwiw.

From my initial observations, the light appears solid and well made, battery life is roughly as advertised as is burn time.

The beam seems even with no obvious hot and cold spots.

From flat the recharge time seems to be 2 hours or so.

I did look at the Pro version but for me the weight was substantially more and i dont need that extra burn time as i can charge inbetween dives and arent using it for long extended periods. The smaller size and significantly less weight won it for me.

I got mine from Prestiege Scuba (Nauticam Malaysia) in Kuala Lumpur. Thai import tax and duty for anything electronic is ludicrous so its often cheaper to fly to KL or singapore and buy there.

Hi String. I'm sooo glad to hear that as I've just bit the bullet and bought 2 (non pro) yesterday. Dreifish kindly had a couple for sale and has even got a friend (even kinder) who is bringing them into Thailand for me. Can't wait to get my hands on them. I'll let you know how it goes. Many thanks for the reply.

Video, wide angle, but ISO=3200, F=11. 1/30, 8mm, EM5ii coron

check archon ligh no so expensive and good quality

Slight not so good update?

The V6K has died after a few months.

It went off mid dive (on the lowest variable power).

Battery is fine, charger is fine. Turning it on the button LED comes on but the light doesn't. Pressing to select the power gives the usual green light around the button but no light emerges from the head.

So sadly I've had to take it back to KL who then send it away to the manufacturer to see if it's a warranty item out not. Which means no video for the remainder of the dive season here.

I know random failures can happen to any device but it's disappointing none-the-less. I'm hoping they honour the warranty at it's only about 4 months old (and not flooded etc).

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