by SKYravefever » Sun Jan 11, 2004 4:48 am
Ok, we'll meet halfway with this discussion. 
IMHO, both of our thoughts are correct. By that I mean, without a doubt, optics of the headlamp determine the beam range & pattern. However, the relatively poor illumination of halogens compared to HIDs hinder the halogens to fully light up the intended areas. This is where HIDs come into play. Because of the abundance of light that HIDs produce, it allows the full usage of the headlamp, which, in turn, can lead to a farther reach.
Think of it this way: You have a flashlight with a 2W bulb in it, and another identical one except it has a 10W bulb in it. You hold both flashlights vertically, pointing to the floor and progressively raise the flashlights. Initially, i.e. (within the first 2 feet or so) the floor will still be illuminated by both flashlights. However, as you pull it higher and away from the floor, the beam from the 2W flashlight becomes fainter and fainter until it's totally unnoticable by the naked eye. At that point, the light from the 10W flashpoint can probably still be seen. Same optics, but different lighting source.
IMHO, both of our thoughts are correct. By that I mean, without a doubt, optics of the headlamp determine the beam range & pattern. However, the relatively poor illumination of halogens compared to HIDs hinder the halogens to fully light up the intended areas. This is where HIDs come into play. Because of the abundance of light that HIDs produce, it allows the full usage of the headlamp, which, in turn, can lead to a farther reach.
Think of it this way: You have a flashlight with a 2W bulb in it, and another identical one except it has a 10W bulb in it. You hold both flashlights vertically, pointing to the floor and progressively raise the flashlights. Initially, i.e. (within the first 2 feet or so) the floor will still be illuminated by both flashlights. However, as you pull it higher and away from the floor, the beam from the 2W flashlight becomes fainter and fainter until it's totally unnoticable by the naked eye. At that point, the light from the 10W flashpoint can probably still be seen. Same optics, but different lighting source.
- SKYravefever
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