M18 vs Joker 1600w Zoom Beamer?

[Mark K.]

Hi guys,

I'm looking into adding a slightly larger (house powerable) HMI to my kit, and find myself a little torn between the Arri M18 and the K5600 Joker 1600 Zoom Beamer. Both are open-faced lights with faceted reflectors, both cost basically the same. So for me it really comes down to output, beam quality and transportability.

Obviously the M18 win for output slightly, but it's also a fair bit heavier and takes up a bit more space for transport. I've worked with the M18 before and know the quality of its beam (which is really very for an open-faced light), I haven't used the 1600 Joker though, and don't know if it's as nice.

So I'm wondering if anyone's used both of these lights and can offer their thoughts on how they compare?

Cheers,

Mark

 

[Ulf Krentz]

Mark,

I´d go with the M18. It is very well made and like you already experienced yourself it has a good quality of light. There is a conversion kit to Arrisun 18 which means a true PAR unit, and comes pretty cheap. You can also run the set with a 1200W HMI bulb (auto-detect), so more variation again. 1200 and 1800W HMI bulbs are G38 sockets whereas the 1600W is a G22 socket, makes me feel more comfortable as well. The ballast is state of the art, power factor corrected, allows you to choose different modes of output frequencies and has a low noise option (in case you´re recording sound) You may also look into the high speed ballast option which comes very handy at higher frame rates (Again, there is a knob to fine adjust the high speed frequency to minimum acoustic interference, which will vary from bulb to bulb). Last not least you can use the ballast with any Arri wired lamp head which is industry standard. All those options would make me choose the Arri over the joker anytime.

Cheers,

Ulf

 

[Martin Stevens]

I prefer the Arri M18 with its PFC ballast etc., but both lights are great.

 

[Mark K.]

Thanks Ulf, Martin. I do love the M18, it's mainly just the physical size for transport that has me particularly interested in the Joker. Problem is, I can't find anywhere in my state that has them, which makes a comparison hard to make.

I prefer the Arri M18 with its PFC ballast etc., but both lights are great.

The Joker Bug ballasts are now FPC and come with 300hz and 1000hz modes for HFR by default. (also considerable more compact than the Arri)

 

[Paul Dean]

The Joker Bug ballasts are now FPC...

Maybe they are where you come from, but here in the US all of the Joker Bug ballasts, with the exception of the 1600, are non-power factor corrected. For example, according to the Joker website (http://www.k5600.com/products/jb800_zoom/index.html) the Joker 800 draws 10.5A at 120V, making it’s power factor .63 (800W/120V = 6.66A/10.5A = .63) With a pf of .63, the ballast wastes a lot of energy in the generation of harmonic currents. The Arri 800, by comparison, is power factor corrected with a near unity power factor and generates no harmonics. It has been well documented that the harmonics generated by the Joker ballasts can cause adverse effects in small generators (search “Joker HMI + power harmonics” on the web for details.)

Paul Dean

 

[Olivier Madar]

i use the joker 1600 with beamer but also with chimera and softube. and i love it very much. the ballast of the 1600 is pfc and not bigger than the ballast of the joker 800 wich is also very small.
cant go out without it.

 

[David Baumber]

I've just taken stock of two Joker 1600's and I have to say they are beautifully made. The ballast is compact and the output is so bright. Great light quality.

 

[Ulf Krentz]

You can probably work great with both units and if form factor / packaging size is important to you you might be better served with the joker. K5600 have some great accessories for their lamp heads. Depending on what you shoot may be the new, just released broncolor 1600W FT might also be worth a look. These are all great units to work with and of course it matters what you do with them, but considering all circumstances I still feel the Arri marks the most important check boxes.

Cheers,

Ulf