Paul Tackett Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 Hello All, My 4k HMI went down and now I need to replace it with a different light. Which has more light output a 9 light maxi or a 2.5 hmi? Thank you, Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Phil Rhodes Posted October 27, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted October 27, 2014 On paper, the HMI will have more output than 9K of tungsten - by a hair. But don't necessarily listen to me, I've only ever used one about once. P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Brereton Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 The 9 light will give you tremendous punch, but also multiple shadows. You won't be able to run it from most portable generators, and you'll lose lots of output if you try to correct it to daylight. Par 64 lamps are expensive and have a relatively short life span. You'll also need 100 amp cable for it. The 2.5 HMI is a more versatile lamp all round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Mullen ASC Posted October 27, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted October 27, 2014 Depends on how the 9-light is globed, you can use pretty narrow spot bulbs in there to get a lot of punch. In theory though, I think the 2.5K HMI will give you a bit more output but it also depends on if you are having to gel the 9-light with Full CTB, because then you'd be losing a lot of output and the HMI would definitely give you more. On stage, I'd rather use a 9-light if through diffusion frames -- HMI's are more temperamental for one thing. I worked with a Gaffer who always put Dinos into condors rather than HMI's, and his reasoning was that a tungsten lamp always works, plus he didn't need to run a head feeder cable up the condor arm. Too often, when an HMI develops problems on a condor, it becomes a big deal to trace what has gone wrong and replace it (bad head, bad head feeder cable, bad ballast, etc.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted October 27, 2014 Premium Member Share Posted October 27, 2014 I would also go 9-lite primarily because I like the quality I get off of tungsten substantially more than that which I get off of HMI. That said; sometimes you have to use a HMI so it all depends on the specific application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Brereton Posted October 27, 2014 Share Posted October 27, 2014 9 lights are great lamps, but if it was either/or, I'd have to choose the 2.5 HMI just for versatility. Also, the OP is a student, so it seems unlikely that he would have access to the kind of power necessary for a 9 light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Tackett Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 Thank you all for the quick responses. I really appreciate such a supportive filmmaking community. I ended up getting a replacement ballast for the 4k so it's up and working. It was a great discussion though in figuring out this problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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