I got my PIAA H4 Extreme White Plus in tonight. I took some comparison pics to help me see if the difference would be measurable. Honestly, while the PIAA lights are a tad whiter and maybe slightly brighter or possibly just seeming to have a marginally better spread – to me they aren’t a huge difference. I wouldn’t say that I’m terribly disappointed, but the stock lights are probably good enough in my opinion. It might have been $60 better spent on another mod.

I shot these with a Canon G6 with the white balanced locked on the incandescent setting, .5 second shutter speed, and f 2.0 aperture for all pictures.

Feel free to do your own comparison.

Stock dim close objects


PIAA dim close objects


Stock bright close objects


PIAA bright close objects


Stock dim distant objects


PIAA dim distant objects


Stock bright distant objects


PIAA bright distance objects

 

Based on your photos it looks to me like the stock bulb puts more light on and down the road.

 

I agree. I bought the PIAA myself and also think that it was a waste of money. It does have a better spread but you give away some lighting to increase the spread. Honestly, I'm saving for a HID kit.

 

Stock looks brighter.

 

For the money, a Sylvania/Osram UltraSilverStar is hard to beat. Less than 20 bucks.

 

FYI, if you click on the image that comes up after you click the thumbnail – a full screen image will appear. At least in Firefox that will be a resized image that will fill the screen and you can toggle between tabs to make an easier comparison. Sorry dial-up guys….these are full rez.

A couple of positive notes. The superior spread is more than just a footnote. I have personally been frustrated with the stock brights seeming to leave a void of light on objects closer up in the road. The PIAA’s do seem to shed more light closer up on bright. It’s almost like the lights need to be aimed down a little, but that might bring the dim lights down too much. To me, at least, it seems like the brights are trying to shoot too far down the road in sacrifice of the road immediately ahead.

I wouldn’t say that the PIAA’s are bad by any stretch – it’s just that the stock lights are really pretty good IMHO.

 

Wow, I just tried to look at these photos on my work computer and you can’t see ANYTHING! They looked really good on my laptop at home. I mean you could clearly discern the differences. This monitor at work must really suck! LOL I’ve never noticed that before.

 

I agree with archergodwin... I have tried quite a few lights and for the money its hard to beat the sylvania silverstar, but make sure you get the ULTRA if you wanna see an improvement! Always nice to see some real photos and an unbiased opinion fastfwd. Thanks

 

AGREE,I bought the piaa for $40,it lasted 3 months,bought the sylvania and it's still good 1yr. later.Note:don't buy the sylvania meant for automotive use,the correct mc bulb is the H4ST,55/60 watt,I bought mine on amazon,2 for $36 plus shipping.I also agree the stock bulb is good but the H4ST is just enough brighter to be worth it. For additional light I would rather install a small set of 35 watt driving or fog lights.Or the kit that harley sells for dynas if you like the look(I do).

 

Thanks for the photogs. I run a PIAA Extreme White. I think they put our way more light than the stock. Mine also has a bluish tint. The PIAA's offer a much thicker element to withstand a bikes vibrations.

One item to note is that with the clear smooth lens the pattern will be different than with the fluted lens.

I have just seen a HID system for the Dyna 5 3/4" bucket. It's in the April "AIM". The March issue and the April issue have a section "100 years if lighting" which offers a great insight into the development of lights and what is currently being offered.