Continuous lighting has dropped in price dramatically, with companies like SmallRig making great products — along with accessories — accessible in a fresh new way. how good SmallRig RC120Ba two-color watch that has decent power and costs only $259?
If you’re considering your first continuous light for home use or are simply looking for something affordable and don’t need too much power, the RC120B is a solid choice. This review is geared towards those who are venturing into light for the first time and are researching options for YouTube videos and a bit of product photography/videography.
About SmallRig
Founded in 2009, SmallRig began manufacturing cages and rigs for cinematography, harnessing advances in machine tool technology to produce a wide range of highly applicable products. In recent years, these cavities have only deepened thanks to DreamRig program, allowing SmallRig’s customer community to contribute ideas to then bring to market. Need a cage for your Sony FX30 XLR controller? SmallRig has you covered.
SmallRig .’s First COB Light
Despite the variety of their products, it was a surprise last year to see SmallRig produce its first COB (chip on board) lamp. COB lights have enabled improved LED performance, increased brightness while reducing costs, and giving videographers more options than ever before. SmallRig RC120 — a 120-watt device — comes in two varieties: one daylight balance version with a fixed color temperature (“D”) and two-color version allows you to vary the temperature from 2700k to 6500k — that is, between warm and cold. The daytime version is slightly cheaper at $219.
The RC120 lamp was later incorporated by RC220and SmallRig just launched RC350 And RC450all come in daylight and two-color versions, and all have more power.
With the lowest capacity and lowest price, the RC120 Bs and Ds have become a popular choice with anyone producing content at home. I had my eye on a few options when SmallRig contacted me to ask if they could send me the RC120B for review, but just a few weeks after receiving it, I landed a new job that made me feel better. I am no longer busy with my work. video, and thanks to being a little weird while traveling and catching covid, it wasn’t until now that we started writing a proper review. (I thank SmallRig for being patient!)
I’ve been using it for occasional videos and casual product photography a bit and so far it’s worked well and the Bowens mount is a versatile option, both for now and for the future.
The specs and what’s in the box
120 watts isn’t a useful metric, but 4,450 lux at 1 meter can at least start to give you an indication of brightness. By comparison, with almost double the power, the RC220B delivers 8,670 lux at 5600k. Super reflector (included) focuses this light, which increases brightness.
At short distances, this is the right level of brightness for a home studio, but all of this changes when you start adding dimmers to diffuse the light. Adding a softbox reduces output significantly — more on this below.
The Bowens stand is an affordable option. It gives you many options as there are countless softboxes, lanterns, reflectors, etc.
Stepless dimming means you can adjust brightness smoothly and without noticeable increments.
If you don’t know what the CRI rating is, it won’t matter much, but a CRI of 95 or higher means that colors are displayed correctly. For such an affordable unit, this is impressive — another sign of how COB has developed lighting technology.
The carrying case is a nice touch and for some it will be the difference between the RC120 and the competition offered by Amaran (a subsidiary of Aputure), such as the carrying case. Amaranth 100x. The smart bag, which seems sturdy, offers good protection without being too heavy and everything fits perfectly.
Physical details
Sure, there are areas where SmallRig has cut costs. This doesn’t sound like a high-end device, and with any low-end product offered at an attractive price point, you’ll wonder how long it will last and how well the parts will last. . The tilt adjustment – which offers 270 degrees – while sturdy and has metal parts where they count, can give up.
Those who expect consistent performance over the years will know that it’s probably best to invest in something more premium, but for the occasional home studio use, it’s probably more than enough. SmallRig is at least well known for making rugged devices. So far I have hit it once without any consequences.
control
On the back of the device, there is an on/off switch and a pair of dials. The first dial controls the intensity on a scale of 0 to 100. When clicked, it controls the temperature. The second dial cycles through several creative modes like paparazzi and lightning. Both are easy to use and tweaking the settings is simple.
Given that I can’t see myself ever using these creative options, one dial for intensity and one for temperature would be a bit more user-friendly.
There’s an app that pairs quite easily via Bluetooth, and the Apple Store notes that other than connecting to the lights, the app doesn’t send any data. When I first used it, I gave up pretty quickly because the app was both laggy and buggy. When I reviewed it for the purposes of this review, it worked fine.
Add a modifier
SmallRig has a bunch of small modifiers for these RC lights—two parabolic softbox and a lantern. I picked something cheap and cheerful from Neewer to do the job, but when trying to plan home studio lighting, keep in mind that all of these devices have footprints. If space is at a premium, an LED panel might be a slightly better option, and the reduced brightness will be offset by how close you’ll likely position yourself. However, keep in mind that the LED panel will not provide the same level of flexibility.
Fan
Like any light, it generates heat and the fan works to reduce the temperature. The humming is small and not loud enough to be heard while filming at my desk. Remember that the fan is fully automatic and it will turn on and off as required; it would be much easier to remove the humming if it was continuous rather than intermittent.
What I like
- Simple controls
- Universal Bowens mount
- good inclination
- silent
- useful bag
What I don’t like
- The app has some bugs
- I like one dial for intensity and one for temperature
Conclusion
The SmallRig RC120B is a solid choice for anyone on a tight budget and looking for two-color COB lights. It is not as affordable as some of the LED panels available but the Bowens stand makes it much more versatile. At the time of writing, B&H Photo lists it at a discounted price, making it $181.30 instead of its regular price of $259. Affordable, this is a great deal.
