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BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum (F30 / F32) | F30POST > Technical Forums > Cosmetic and Lighting Modifications (exterior & interior) > Osram Cool Blue Boost Xenon bulbs review
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      11-19-2018, 11:01 AM   #23
Solidjake
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Logicoeur View Post
A clear lens swap would definitely make the cutoff and color band look extra crispy. TheRetroFitsource is usually a great place to start looking
I did the lens swap on my E46 that had the hazy AL projectors to the clear ZKW ones. Light output was A LOT better and the cutoff was much better/bluer.

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      11-19-2018, 11:52 AM   #24
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Solidjake View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Logicoeur View Post
A clear lens swap would definitely make the cutoff and color band look extra crispy. TheRetroFitsource is usually a great place to start looking
I did the lens swap on my E46 that had the hazy AL projectors to the clear ZKW ones. Light output was A LOT better and the cutoff was much better/bluer.

Beautiful. I would presume it would be the same kind of lighting upgrade for the F30. Many manufacturers use fresnel lenses stock it seems.

I did several swaps with prior cars using clear lenses and all improved the output greatly. TheRetroFitsource was where I sourced most of my parts as well. The Mini H1 projector was quite a powerful little package.
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      11-21-2018, 12:23 PM   #25
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Just installed mine, looks pretty much the same as yours. But i was wondering, is that darkish spot between the two beams normal?




Last edited by dvaz; 11-21-2018 at 12:31 PM..
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      11-22-2018, 03:51 AM   #26
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Just installed mine, looks pretty much the same as yours. But i was wondering, is that darkish spot between the two beams normal?
It's fine. It's the RIGHT side projector keeping that line below that dark spot bright. If you were to cover each light you would see they are exactly the same. Google pics of xenon cut off and you'll see. This might be a good one to show it up close

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      04-22-2019, 05:12 PM   #27
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So are the CBB's probably the best replacement for the OEM Xenon bulbs? I just want something brighter and whiter. The OEM ones seem pretty weak at night on my 2014 335i.
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      04-22-2019, 11:21 PM   #28
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So are the CBB's probably the best replacement for the OEM Xenon bulbs? I just want something brighter and whiter. The OEM ones seem pretty weak at night on my 2014 335i.
There are quite a few HID bulb options to improve output, but kind of depends on what you want really.

Cool Blue Boosts are a solid choice if you want increased brightness and a noticeably whiter color.

Cool Blue Intense are great if you want increased brightness. It's very slightly whiter than OEM as well.

Then there's Osram Nightbreaker Laser and Philips Xtreme Vision Gen2, both of which offer increased brightness, though at the OEM color (which is roughly rated at 4100 ~ 4300K).

They're all good choices really and the best one for you probably depends on what you prefer in terms of color as well as the type of driving and weather conditions where you are. For example, if it rains a lot, snows, or is otherwise foggy often, then the cool blue bulbs might not be as suitable vs. a warmer bulb such as the Nightbreaker Laser or Xtreme Visions. The warmer colors will cut through inclement weather more effectively.

Personally I have tried both the CBIs and CBBs. I have the CBBs on now and love them. That said, weather where I am is generally quite nice year round.

In case it helps, here's my post that compares the CBIs and CBBs:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1601069
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      04-23-2019, 04:16 PM   #29
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chuckles01 View Post
There are quite a few HID bulb options to improve output, but kind of depends on what you want really.

Cool Blue Boosts are a solid choice if you want increased brightness and a noticeably whiter color.

Cool Blue Intense are great if you want increased brightness. It's very slightly whiter than OEM as well.

Then there's Osram Nightbreaker Laser and Philips Xtreme Vision Gen2, both of which offer increased brightness, though at the OEM color (which is roughly rated at 4100 ~ 4300K).

They're all good choices really and the best one for you probably depends on what you prefer in terms of color as well as the type of driving and weather conditions where you are. For example, if it rains a lot, snows, or is otherwise foggy often, then the cool blue bulbs might not be as suitable vs. a warmer bulb such as the Nightbreaker Laser or Xtreme Visions. The warmer colors will cut through inclement weather more effectively.

Personally I have tried both the CBIs and CBBs. I have the CBBs on now and love them. That said, weather where I am is generally quite nice year round.

In case it helps, here's my post that compares the CBIs and CBBs:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1601069
Thanks for the write-ups! Very helpful. The CBB's sound ideal, especially since I'm in SoCal where weather is less of a concern. It sounds like the brightness increase is mostly the same, but there's one YouTube video showing that the CBB's actually are brighter than the rest of the Osram lineup which is pretty cool.
Did you opt to remove your front wheels to install, or just turn the wheel all the way inside?
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      04-23-2019, 05:48 PM   #30
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mlev View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by chuckles01 View Post
There are quite a few HID bulb options to improve output, but kind of depends on what you want really.

Cool Blue Boosts are a solid choice if you want increased brightness and a noticeably whiter color.

Cool Blue Intense are great if you want increased brightness. It's very slightly whiter than OEM as well.

Then there's Osram Nightbreaker Laser and Philips Xtreme Vision Gen2, both of which offer increased brightness, though at the OEM color (which is roughly rated at 4100 ~ 4300K).

They're all good choices really and the best one for you probably depends on what you prefer in terms of color as well as the type of driving and weather conditions where you are. For example, if it rains a lot, snows, or is otherwise foggy often, then the cool blue bulbs might not be as suitable vs. a warmer bulb such as the Nightbreaker Laser or Xtreme Visions. The warmer colors will cut through inclement weather more effectively.

Personally I have tried both the CBIs and CBBs. I have the CBBs on now and love them. That said, weather where I am is generally quite nice year round.

In case it helps, here's my post that compares the CBIs and CBBs:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1601069
Thanks for the write-ups! Very helpful. The CBB's sound ideal, especially since I'm in SoCal where weather is less of a concern. It sounds like the brightness increase is mostly the same, but there's one YouTube video showing that the CBB's actually are brighter than the rest of the Osram lineup which is pretty cool.
Did you opt to remove your front wheels to install, or just turn the wheel all the way inside?
I didn't remove the wheels, just turned it all the way in and did it by feel. Once you know where the bracket clips in, it's fairly simple. The trick that worked for me was to find the top of the bracket and push forward (toward the front of the car) and slightly to the side to release it. The first time I did it I tried to push down, and had a really hard time.
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