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full screenprintcontentsfull screenprint10 VIDEOMAKER >>> APRIL 2019
by Chris MonluxA simple and
solid LED Fresnel
Lupo Dayled
650 Daylight
LED Fresnel
Lupo
http://www.lupo.it/en/STRENGTHS- Carbon fiber reinforced
technopolymer shell - TLCI rating of 94
WEAKNESSES- Location of dimmer control
- Design of dimmer control
SUMMARY
The Lupo Dayled 650 Daylight LED
Fresnel with DMX is a robustly built
Fresnel at a good price. It holds its
own but doesn’t come without flaws.RECOMMENDED USERS- Narrative Filmmaking
- Documentary Filmmaking and
Journalism - Corporate and Event Videography
- Marketing Video Production
T
he Lupo Dayled 650 Daylight LED
Fresnel with DMX is an affordable
LED Fresnel with an output equivalent
to a 650 Watt tungsten fixture. It has
a carbon fiber reinforced technop-
olymer shell housing that feels very
sturdy, ready for years of use. This
light also comes with barn doors and
is 100 percent dimmable.
This Fresnel uses a 4.7-inch lens
with manual beam focus from 15
degrees out to 55 degrees. With DMX
control, you can control the Dayled
650 and your other lights with a light
mixer. This light doesn’t make noise,
either, making it a great video light.
It won’t disrupt clean audio capture.
You can also use it on the go with an
optional V-mount battery plate for an
additional $105. For this review, we
tested the daylight version, but tung-
sten balanced version is also available.
The Lupo DayLED 650 does have
one weak spot, however — but more
on that later.A little history lesson
Lupo is far from a household name,
but they have actually been in busi-
ness since 1932. Originally, they
specialized in lighting for photogra-
phy. The company is still owned andoperated by the same family, now
in the second generation. They have
been offering lights for video since the
1990s. Their lights are made in Italy.What about
color rendition?
The Dayled 650 has a CRI of 92 and
TLCI of 94. A CRI of 92 isn’t stellar, but
it is high enough that you likely won’t
need to do much if any correction
because of it. The TLCI rating of 94 isa great score and shows the difference
between the two rating systems. The
CRI rating is a more flawed rating than
that of the TLCI, and that bodes well
for this light.Head to head
We needed to get some context to size
up the merits of this light. Luckily, we
just happen to have a light that is very
close in specs to the Lupo: the Litepan-$1,
REVIEW
LUPO IS FAR FROM A
HOUSEHOLD NAME,
BUT THEY’VE BEEN IN
BUSINESS SINCE 1932.383 R03 Lupo Dayled 650.indd 10 2/19/19 2:39 PMVIDEOMAKER >>> APRIL 2019 11
operated by the same family, now
in the second generation. They have
been offering lights for video since the
1990s. Their lights are made in Italy.What about
color rendition?
The Dayled 650 has a CRI of 92 and
TLCI of 94. A CRI of 92 isn’t stellar, but
it is high enough that you likely won’t
need to do much if any correction
because of it. The TLCI rating of 94 isa great score and shows the difference
between the two rating systems. The
CRI rating is a more flawed rating than
that of the TLCI, and that bodes well
for this light.Head to head
We needed to get some context to size
up the merits of this light. Luckily, we
just happen to have a light that is very
close in specs to the Lupo: the Litepan-Light Source: 60 W COB LED
Color Range: Daylight Balance:
5600K
Color Accuracy: CRI/TLCI: 92/
Lens: 4.7′′ / 120 mm
Beam Angle: 15 – 55°
DMX: Yes, DMX In/Out: 5-pole XLR
Operating Voltage: Mains Opera-
tion: 90-240 VAC, 50/60 Hz
Battery
Operation: 14.8 V
Run Time: With Dedicated Battery:
2.2 hours
Connector: 4-Pole XLR
Power Consumption: 60 W
Dimming: 0-100%
Mount: Yoke with 5/8′′ / 16 mm
receiver
Dimensions: 7.5 x 6.0 x 7.0′′ / 190 x
160 x 180 mm
Weight: 5.5 lb / 2.5 kgYou can comment on this article by going on-
line: http://www.videomaker.com/?p=beam angle by 10 degrees on the
wide side, a CRI of 95 or better, barn
doors and onboard DMX512. Dracast
also claims the light runs silently, just
like the Lupo. Next is the Litepanels
Sola 4+ LED Fresnel, the light from
our comparison. It’s priced at $1054,
which includes barn doors. Last up is
the Mole-Richardson 200W Varimole
LED for $1483. It’s not available in a
single color, instead offering a vari-
able color temperature from 2700 to
5600K. It’s made of aluminum alloy
and steel and is fully dimmable.The long and short of it
The Lupo Dayled 650 Daylight LED
Fresnel with DMX is a solid light. It of-
fers usable features and is ready to use
right out of the box. Plus, it has a decent
CRI and a good TLCI rating.
When we put it up against a simi-
lar light, it held its own in quality and
output. We found it more robustly built
but with a weak design for its dimming
control. The price is great, and you can’t
top the usefulness of a LED Fresnel
fixture. Overall, we liked the light.
If you need a small yet robust Fres-
nel LED, you ought to consider the
Lupo Dayled 650.els Sola 4+ LED Fresnel. The two lights
are just about the same price, the Lite-
panels being $55 more than the Lupo.
We set up a few shots where we
used one of the lights by itself to light
the scene. Then, we swapped in the
other light to see the difference. The
Sola 4+ has a larger beam angle than
the Lupo at 71 degrees. This means
the Litepanels beam is broader when
fully defocused, but that’s about the
only difference we identified when it
comes to the light produced. Other-
wise, their intensity, range of dimming
and barn door control were all indis-
tinguishable between the two.
With a TLCI rating of 95, the Lite-
panels isn’t rated much better than the
Lupo either. The most significant differ-
ence was the sturdiness of the housing.
Because both lights should have a long
lifespan based on the hours of use eachTECH SPECSLupo Dayled 650 Daylight LED Fresnel
REVIEWlight is rated for,
the build quality
is likely to be the
determining factor
in how long each
light actually lasts.
The Lupo’s hard
exterior is far more
robust than the
Litepanels. Also
worth noting: the
Lupo lens offers
manual focus
control whereas
the Litepanels uses
motorized control.
The Lupo gives you the same control
with less chance of breaking over time.What about
that weakness?
We alluded to a weak spot on the Lupo
earlier, and it’s something that gives it
great contrast against the Litepanels:
The Lupo 650’s controls hide behind
the yoke when the light is mounted
on a stand. This placement is not an
issue when mounted from above,
however. Additionally, the buttons
used to control the Lupo feel cheap,
especially compared to the quality of
the housing. We would have liked the
dimming control to be a knob or just
be more substantial overall. This is not
an issue if you are using a DMX, as
control will come from it, negating the
use of control on the light itself.
On the positive, the display is easy
to read, even in the dark.A look at similar options
Though we were generally impressed
with this light, we wanted to see what
else is available for the money. The
specs from each lighting manufacturer
are not always consistent, so compar-
ing solely on specs can be problematic.
With that said, here are a few LED
Fresnels with similar power output and
a price near the Lupo’s $999.
First up is the Dracast Fresnel 700
Daylight LED for $1255. It has a widerSolid build quality with DMX controlChris Monlux is Videomaker ’s Multimedia Editor.383 R03 Lupo Dayled 650.indd 11 2/19/19 2:39 PM