VisionX Reflex LED Lightbar Review
We’re seeing more and more variety in the design of LED lightbars, with some really innovative models appearing. One that caught our attention was the Reflex series by VisionX. VisionX are an Australian lighting specialist who source and supply a wide range of high performance systems, and the Reflex is their latest offering in the lightbar department.
The VisionX Reflex series follow the recent trend for single row LED bars, in this case using some pretty massive 10W LEDs. The bars are available in 6, 9, 12, 20, 34, 40 and 52 inch lengths, with anywhere from two to 28 LEDs depending on model. With each LED putting out 900 lumens – that’s a much as a lot of car headlights - that makes for some powerful packages. We thought we’d have a look at what you get.
The first thing we noticed was the lightness of the casing. That’s an important point; mount a big, heavy bar up high and it can have a noticeable effect on your vehicle’s centre of gravity. It’s not going to tip you on its own but if you already have a lot of weight on top – like a roof rack – every pound you can save is a bonus. VisionX say the Reflex has the lightest casings available and we’re not going to argue. They feel very well made though, and the big LED lamp units give the bars a businesslike appearance. Once nice touch is a choice of colour. Most lightbars are only available in black, but the Reflex can be ordered in white as well. Either colour comes as a good tough powder coat.
Electrically the Reflex is an interesting unit. It runs on a good range of input voltages – anywhere from 9 to 50V – and it can also be wired into a master driver unit to give highly controllable output. Vision have a series of units that can control their lights, and the options you get include dimming and strobe modes. The electronics are highly efficient, too.
When it comes to performance the Reflex bars are second to none. 900 lumens per LED means even the six inch bar with two LEDs is pretty bright, and the 28-LED 52 inch model puts out an amazing 25,200 lumens. They’re also available in a good choice of beam types. There are two spot modes – 10° and 15° - as well as a 35° wide flood. The 12 inch and larger bars can also be ordered with an elliptical beam; this gives a 45° horizontal spread, but only 15° vertically so you’re not wasting as much light on the sky. One thing we would like to have seen is a combo mode, with a bank of spot lamps flanked by floods; maybe VisionX will add that in the future. Whatever mode you get, the light is an extremely clear white with a daylight-equivalent colour temperature of 7000K.
If you’re looking for a lightweight but high performance lightbar the Reflex is definitely one you should consider. It doesn’t have quite as many options as something like the Baja OnX, but we’re pretty sure you’ll find a Reflex model that suits.
