White + Filters Vs. others

[jpereira92]

I am planning to buy a double bladed lightsaber and i've been thinking about getting on with a P4 white and using lee filters on it. However i've never seen a p4 white with filters in person so i don't know what to expect.
SO i have a request. If anyone is fortunate enough to have a p4 white with and any other colored LEDs of that same filtered color, Please post pictures of them in a side by side comparison. or better yet if you have found a link post that that.
I've been searching for months on the forums and have been unable to find any side by side comparisons.
I know i'm can't be the only one looking for this.
Much thanks guys

[FenderBender]

I don't happen to have any pics, but........

The P4 is a GREAT LED for white and MAYBE yellow. The plain fact is that filters reduce saturation of the color by FAR and reduce brightness by a lot. Single color LEDs will always be brighter and look better than a white +filter set-up. Simply becuase filtering is a SUBTRACTIVE process.

The best thing to do is to pick a color and start with a single color LED. Then as you get more comfortable with the wiring and electronics, you can challenge yourself with RGB LEDs.

[Kant Lavar]

The other thing you can do with colored LEDs to change colors quickly is simply to put a quick connect on it - for example, with the JST connectors Tim has in the store. I put those on my sabers simply out of habit. Yes, the colored discs are cheaper and easier, but Fender's right about their disadvantages, as well.

[DJMoonbass]

here are some LEE pics i have:

Bright Blue Lee Filter. Pg 228. its really close to a cyan.
http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/DJMoonbass/Lee%20Filters/P1050964.jpg

Jas Green Lee Filter. Pg 189. this is a wonderfull green.
http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/DJMoonbass/Lee%20Filters/P1050966.jpg

Oklahoma Yellow Lee Filter. Pg 132. this is a very nice sentinal yellow
http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/DJMoonbass/Lee%20Filters/P1050967.jpg

Follies Pink Lee Filter. Pg 74. this is a very brilliant purple. i am very happy with it.
http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/DJMoonbass/Lee%20Filters/P1050969.jpg


I honestly believe people dont give the Lee filters enough credit. they really are awesome. like the blue and green i can almost not tell any difference between regular blue and green. and they yellow is the absolute best IMO.

now the purples are where it gets tricky. this one worked very well. but on fenders view yes the purple isnt as good as an RBG.

[jpereira92]

I'm very impressed by those pictures. I didnt think they would actually be that bright

[FenderBender]

PIctures are deceiving. Put those filtered colors next to the single colored LEDs of the same color and the filtered ones will look....I dunno how to describe it..."sickly". They are like a sepia version of the real thing.

[DJMoonbass]

actually those picture are VERY close to the actuall thing. i am VERY impressed with their quality.

the blue is pretty close to my other seoul blues. but indeed they ARE better.

the green is amazing. i still have yet to compare that one.

everyone has there own opinion. mine is i LOVE these filters. :mrgreen:

[jpereira92]

well does anyone have a blue saber that they can show next to a blue filtered p4. Just so i can get an idea of how they compare.
I understand it will probably be at least slightly dimmer than a lux three but i just want an idea of how much it is.

[DJMoonbass]

http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp286/DJMoonbass/Lee%20Filters/P1060133.jpg

here ya go. this is Bright Blue Lee VS Seoul P4 Blue.

the Lee Filter makes a much lighter shade of blue but there both equally vibrant. its not pale at all. the picture really makes them both the same color. but in person the P4 is darker.

:cool::cool::p;)

[Eco]

Having seen DJ's Filters and comparing them with my own results using LEE filters, I can attest to a few different points:

1: Filters are definitely second to a well tune RGB. No doubt.
2: Filters don't compare to LED's of the same color. DJ's Green was nice, but put it next to a Lux V Green, and the Lux V was obviously richer in color.
3: Choosing the right filter is important. A color too dark is just ridiculous, too light is almost negligible.
4: A properly driven White P4 is very important! Weak batteries are very detrimental to the effects of a filter.
5: This is a big one. Choosing the right blade. DJ uses Ultrasaber blades which are nothing but cellophane in a polycarbonate tube. I use TCSS blades with cellophane, and DJ's Purple looks better with the Ultra blade than it does with my TCSS blade.

[jpereira92]

Wow dj.
finally after all that searching on the forums you finally posted the only side by side comparison i have ever seen.
and @Eco
you make some very good points.
currently i have a lux III red and green and a pp4 blue
and i actually only have ultrablades so it works out
Thanks again guys hopefully this thread will help someone else out

[Eco]

I just have to say, that while the pictures of the filter next to the P4 look the same, they actually are noticeably different in person.

[DJMoonbass]

oh no doubt eco. but we are talking a P4 compared to a Lux 5. lol.

yes the right Lee is important. i went through all of them. omg what a long time. and i found the best four IMO.

as for the purple. yeah you could go RGB. but IMO the follies pink is the easiest way to get to a mace windu color. as his is a washed out pink. one friend of mine has allready attested that this lee is indeed a mace windu color.

if you want a rich purple or violet you can go RBG but that doesnt give you a mace color, you get a purple.

this is just my .02$

[FenderBender]

Most of the shots with Mace's saber are a vivid purple. The AOTC Geonosis scene was a "little" pink. But NOT washed out.

[DJMoonbass]

huh ill have to look at more carefully. ;) isnt it like a fuscia?

also let me clear up on the blues.

the Lee filter is alot lighter than the blue P4. i like them both i think they are both awesome. but the blue P4 is, shall i say, more intense than the Lee.

so any base color, red, blue green, amber, cyan, you are better off going with the color LED. but purple and yellow go with Lee. if you want a BETTER purple go with RBG. but i dont think you can get a better sentinal yellow using anything but lee.

[Eco]

but i dont think you can get a better sentinal yellow using anything but lee.

I'll second that with an under-informed opinion. :D
I know that yellow in terms of RGB is a combination of red and green, but that seems like it would be pretty hard to dial in something that's not greenish nor orangey on an RGB LED.
Filters all the way there.

[FenderBender]

No, its not that tricky. Im not a fan of yellow, so I don't have any pics to show, but it is still a richer brighter color with an RGB. You can get a good yellow thats not greenish or orangey.

[Onli-Won Kanomi]

Lee Follies Pink is kinda ok for a AOTC Geonosis Windu 'purple' but not really adequately saturated for a ROTS Windu purple imo...on it's own merits rather than in a Mace conversion it's a nice enough filtered colour within the usual caveats filtered colours have...but no comparison to a P5 RGB purple thats for sure. And I'll take Fender and Allaerra's judgement on purple; they are the Master's of "Oppression Stopping Purpliscious Purple" TM afterall.

With the power of a P4 or brighter behind it I do think Lee Oklahoma Yellow is fully satisfactory as a Sentinel Yellow and its an easy solution...it even looks 'ok' on a Lux III white lol...BEST colour obtainable with filters imo...and unlike ambers not orangey at all.

I'm 'still looking' for a filter to give a PROPER Viridian since it's impossible to do PRECISELY with RGB without 3 channel 0-255 RGB control...which no saber driver/soundboard does. The pale 'teal' TCSS disc is actually surprisingly nice imo...and like other PALE green-blue filters with a sufficiently bright white LED behind it can be SUGGESTIVE of the INCORRECT DESCRIPTION in KOTOR of a SILVERY green 'Viridian' but it is NOT close to a proper TRUE Viridian colour at all.

And I'm not impressed by ANY of the blue filters...for blue true coloured LEDs wins hands down in saturation...compare a LUXEON blue to any blue filter and the Luxeon, even Lux III, whups the filters posterior on either saturation or brightness and usually both EVERY time...the only way to get a good deep blue with filters is to go DIM...fuggedaboudit.

My $0.02

[Obi-Dar Ke-Gnomie]

With the power of a P4 or brighter behind it I do think Lee Oklahoma Yellow is fully satisfactory as a Sentinel Yellow and its an easy solution...it even looks 'ok' on a Lux III white lol...BEST colour obtainable with filters imo...and unlike ambers not orangey at all.

Quoted for truth. I use an Oklahoma Yellow in my brass saber, and I really like the color. Good saturation, but still nice and bright. Only with the yellows, in my opinion, can you say this.


And I'm not impressed by ANY of the blue filters...for blue true coloured LEDs wins hands down in saturation...compare a LUXEON blue to any blue filter and the Luxeon, even Lux III, whups the filters posterior on either saturation or brightness and usually both EVERY time...the only way to get a good deep blue with filters is to go DIM...fuggedaboudit.

My $0.02

Agreed again. I took some pictures to demonstrate this. Both blades are the same, and both sabers are running at the same amperage.


Blue P4 on top. White P4 with blue filter on bottom. When I found a filter that gave me the right saturation of blue, it seriously diminished the brightness. I didn't take pictures of it, but if I used a blue that made the blade as bright as the blue P4, it was a pale, washed out color.
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff102/dar4jc/4367.jpg


Here are the same two sabers as above. Blue P4 on the left, white with blue filter on the right. You can see that right at the base, they're pretty close to the same color, but the one with the filter get dim in a hurry.
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff102/dar4jc/4369.jpg

[Triskale Dagin]

Man, I was all geared up to P4, but you guys are making me second guess here. I would certainly enjoy the flexibility of filter swapping, but I don't want to lose a whole lot of quality. Hmmm.

[Mobius]

And not to threadjack but Obi-Dar, how did you do that with the tip of your blade? I really want even lighting like that in mine...

Im really liking my Seoul P4... I went with the red and am nothing but pleased. I know its not filtered but I see a lot of "the only good seould is a white seoul" statements and if the Lux is that much brighter than wow its bright.

pics for reference.

Stock MR blade sander with stock diffuser
http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x121/krhurrl/IMG_0942.jpg

Stock MR blade sanded with about 10ft of dollar store poly giftwrap and a mirrored disk on the cap cut just a touch smaller than the ID to allow for light to pass around and illuminate the cap a bit.
http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x121/krhurrl/IMG_0958.jpg
this pic was taken earlier in the day and there was more natural ambient light so it may appear a bit dimmer

[Triskale Dagin]

Certainly not an expert, but the 10ft. of poly may be a bit of overkill. From what I've read you may be losing some brightness/evenness due to that. Maybe try cutting it back to about 6 ft. and see if you get better results. Just a thought.

[Eco]

4 ft will not provide a really noticeable difference in brightness, in terms of dimming the blade.

[FenderBender]

Ummm....sure it will. It increases the opacity of the blade. In most of my blades I now use around 4ft total or less depending on color.

[Mobius]

Ehh, I scaled it back to 7.5 ft because I had 4 30 inch sheets I just removed one.

It seems brighter and I am happy with it. Ill leave it as is.

with flash
http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x121/krhurrl/IMG_1015.jpg
Without
http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x121/krhurrl/IMG_1017.jpg

Now I really feel like Im threadjacking (Apologies OP)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Ummm....sure it will. It increases the opacity of the blade. In most of my blades I now use around 4ft total or less depending on color.

I'll second this...4 feet is usually all it takes. Especially if you're using another diffusion method like the stock diffuser in an MR blade, or Tim's diffuser or blade film.

For a clear blade, with just polypropylene in it, I'll usually use about 6 feet.

[jedimastergarcia87]

The standard TCSS filters, are they good? I was going to also get a white p4 and use the purple filter from here and I was also wondering if that was any good. Thanks for the info. Pics would be nice too.

[Jedi-Loreen]

Some of the Store filters are better than others.

I hate to say that you will not get a very good purple with them.

Take everyone's advice and get a Lee Filters Swatch book. You won't be sorry.