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6000k vs 8000k HID Headlights

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29K views 16 replies 12 participants last post by  blackchrome  
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#1 ·
I'm really having trouble deciding what color to order for my new HIDS I'm getting from ddmtuning.com. Should I go with 35 watt 6000k for both high and low beams, or 35 watt 6000k for low and 55 watt 8000k for high? I sure as heck don't want to make my truck look ricey, I just love the look of a hint of blue in the headlamps on bigger trucks. My stock hi beams on my 2006 Silverado are awful, and I've had too many close calls with deer to use them any longer! I want a hint of blue like on my mom's 2008 Beemer, while not losing any output (or very little) and people to just see my headlights and think they are cool and not think I'm a prick. :D Pics are definitely welcome!

*Edit- Also, will it take my highs long to warm up as I switch them on and off on the backroads here in NC? I feel like if it did that would kind of defeat the purpose and make my lighting worse, not better. BTW, I won't be using projectors, just the stock reflector housing. Might add projectors later when I come across the money!

Appreciate it
 
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#2 ·
You'll be able to see better with 6k lights. My current setup is 8k headlights and 3k fog lights. Waiting on my headlights to go out so I can with the 6k's.
 
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#3 ·
5,000k is "diamond white". Almost pure white, with sometimes a hint of blue depending on the angle (and against the snow). 6.000k is a slight blue. Pretty typical of a BMW, etc. 8,000k is definitely blue, and borderline ricey.

Love my 5,000k!
 
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#4 ·
EKinMN said:
5,000k is "diamond white". Almost pure white, with sometimes a hint of blue depending on the angle (and against the snow). 6.000k is a slight blue. Pretty typical of a BMW, etc. 8,000k is definitely blue, and borderline ricey.

Love my 5,000k!
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How much better is the 5k than 6k? I have 6k lights in my old truck and I'm pretty pleased with them but I'm open to a new setup.
 
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#5 ·
THe 5K's are slightly brighter and if I ever buy HID's again, I will go with 5K. I had 6K's in my s10, for the headlights, and two sets of fogs. I liked them, but they had a bit too much blue for my tastes. I would never go any higher though, they start changing colors and the police will start noticing you more. Stay within 4300-6K for headlights. Also, I wouldn't get high beam HID's, they are a waste, you have to wait about 2-3 seconds for the lights to fully heat up and it's hard on the igniters to flash them. It will decrese their life greatly if you do so as well.
 
S
#6 ·
silverado9306 said:
How much better is the 5k than 6k? I have 6k lights in my old truck and I'm pretty pleased with them but I'm open to a new setup.
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Depending on the condition of your headlight "lenses" you might not notice a visibility difference between 5K and 6K headlamps. As was well stated by EKinMN the hotter the light temperature the bluer it looks. Somewhere around 5750K is cloudless noon daylight - what our brain is programmed to see as white. Around 6500K is cloudy or shady daylight, you can see the blue tint if you're looking for it during the day in the light you find under a tree, for example.

But that, at some point, is neither here nor there. The reason lower Kelvin bulbs help us see better (for any given quantity of light) is because blue light scatters so readily. The bluer your bulbs the higher percentage of the light that they put off which gets scattered by the air and (more dramatically) water in the air. This is why fog lights were traditionally yellow. The more faded, scratched, and hazed your headlight lenses the more light gets scattered as well. Not to mention the human eye's peak sensitivity is right around chartreuse yellow, which is pretty far from 8K blue.
 
M
#7 ·
I'd go with the 6k. had some blue bulbs once and while I liked the way it looked (even though I can't see them while driving...) the blue were terrible in the rain, could hardly see anything....
 
#8 ·
I agree with most. If deciding between the 2 i would pick 6000K. That is what i currently have in my truck. I love the looks of them but am growing tired of the blue the 6000K produce. Certain roadsigns and other objects really bother me when the light is reflected back at me. My next set will be 5000K or even 4300K.
 
#10 ·
My recommendation.... 5000K Lows and Fogs if you have them... and for your highs get some Silver Star Ultra's or any other top brand light that is nice and bright. So that way when you flip your highs on there will be no delay and as others have stated no added stress on the ballast to light up the HID.

A buddy of mine has 8000K lows and 6000K highs in is 2012 Sierra... I personally don't like the look of the 8K's in his lows for the night but they do look good during the day. As well I find his 6K's too blue for my taste in the night time. Although with his there seems to be no delay between switching back and forth with the highs.

Ohh and another thing to remember the more power the ballasts have the more "wash" the color has. So in a 55w 6000K setup it would basically have the same brightness as a 35w 5000K setup.
 
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#11 ·
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#12 ·
I went ahead and got 35 watt 6000ks for my lows. That's all I could afford right now. Thinking maybe 4300k or 5000k for my fogs later and Silver Stars for the high beams. May need some help with the installing when they arrive next week :)
 
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#13 ·
If you need help, just ask away....and be sure to search. Lots of info around the site.
 
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