Amber vs Clear Truck LED Auxiliary Lights

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Got a new truck recently and now that I can't scroll Autotrader as a hobby I'm onto researching accessories. Planning on putting some auxiliary lights on it and, based on previous frustrations with visibility, I'm planning on an LED bar, fog lights, ditch lights and reverse lights. Still researching brands, but in a buy-once-cry-once world I'm thinking Baja Designs.

Looking for input on whether my thinking is correct for each light purpose based on Amber being easier on the eyes, "better" in low vis scenarios and clear being better for distance. Also including thoughts on spot/flood/combo.

Front Bumper LED Bar - clear, spot
Fog Lights - amber, spot and flood (spot inside, flood outside)
Ditch Lights - amber, combo (actually aimed as ditch lights)
Reverse - clear, flood (not sure how amber would react with the reverse camera)

So many opinions out there are based on desert baja stuff, I'm really looking for hunting use case specific input. I hunt/scout year round in the west at this point. Planning on wiring all this through an auxbeam with the swarfworks sunglass holder mount for reference.

 

[northernalpine]

Links below are worth the read if considering lighting options, stumbled across this site almost two decades ago while restoring an ‘84 FJ60, been using his products or similar ever since on all my rides…no affiliation.

Fog Lighting
Lighting Color Effectiveness

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Links below are worth the read if considering lighting options, stumbled across this site almost two decades ago while restoring an ‘84 FJ60, been using his products or similar ever since on all my rides…no affiliation.

Fog Lighting
Lighting Color Effectiveness

Interesting info about the fog lights, I might forego spending any money on them. Or they'll be the last thing I do. Planning on a steel bumper/winch setup so if I have to replace them anyway I may do it. I was mainly thinking of their performance in snow, which he touches on a little bit.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I put BD Squadron Pros driving combo in amber in place of my factory fog lamps on my 5th gen 4Runner. I love them and they use the factory switch. They perform like ditch lights, as well. They have worked very well in snow and fog.

I have a BD 20” light bar clear in spot in my front bumper. They ain’t lying when they say spot. I’m about to order new lens to make it a driving combo pattern.

 

[WTFJohn]

I have a background in desert racing/fabrication, and currently live in nowhere, Colorado. All of our vehicles have amber Baja Designs SAE fogs at a minimum. One has BD S2 SAE in clear for DRLs/aux fogs, which in conjunction with the factory headlights is sufficient. We may add LP4s in a combo lens to this one down the line. My truck has the amber SAE fogs + clear LP4 driving combo run through a SwitchPros panel.

I also have a bunch of Squadron Pros on misc off-road vehicles, an ONX8 bar, and some Squadrons & S1s on equipment as work lights. It's worth every penny if you are using/abusing them to go with BD.

For lenses in your lights, I would stick with the driving combo, wide cornering, and SAE. Spot is meant to put a hot spot in your light pattern at distance to help with spotting upcoming stuff and to give the driver a sense of "straight ahead" in the dark. It's of limited/no use for most road-going vehicles.

Lens color is personal preference + a bit of science. You technically lose brightness with amber, but because the contrast between the bright spots and shadows is lower and there is less reflected light back to your eyes it can offer better visibilty. A mix of white and amber is what most folks find best. Go watch BD videos on the subject, they go in-depth on it. Or find someone with the lights you're interested in, and go out with them at night to see. One great thing about BD is if you don't like the lenses, just order new ones. I have a pair of work lenses that showed up yesterday for some Sqaudrons that currently have a driving combo in them.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

For lenses in your lights, I would stick with the driving combo, wide cornering, and SAE. Spot is meant to put a hot spot in your light pattern at distance to help with spotting upcoming stuff and to give the driver a sense of "straight ahead" in the dark. It's of limited/no use for most road-going vehicles.

Thanks, that's super helpful. Glad I included that now.

Lens color is personal preference + a bit of science. You technically lose brightness with amber, but because the contrast between the bright spots and shadows is lower and there is less reflected light back to your eyes it can offer better visibilty. A mix of white and amber is what most folks find best. Go watch BD videos on the subject, they go in-depth on it. Or find someone with the lights you're interested in, and go out with them at night to see. One great thing about BD is if you don't like the lenses, just order new ones. I have a pair of work lenses that showed up yesterday for some Sqaudrons that currently have a driving combo in them.

Yeah I would not have really considered amber until watching their videos on it. Something like 15% loss in light project, but that's mostly offset by your eye's perception. Since I have factory "clear" headlights, would you go amber all around to start? Planning on quite a bit of use in snow and that is sounding like a better idea.

 

[WTFJohn]

I like amber for fog, and it's a toss up for clear or amber for a ditch light (I'm guessing you're putting this at the bottom of the A-pillar/windshield frame?). I prefer to selectably push lots of white light in front of me and then use amber for fog/ditch/forward peripheral, I have found that combo gives me the least amount of eye strain under prolonged night driving (especially in dust or snowy condtions). I would be hesitant to suggest a full light bar at all as well, if you do get one I'd go with an ONX6 Arc dual control bar. I have found more use out of being able to scale my lighting up or down and fill in dim spots with individual lights. If you haven't been around BD stuff before, just getting 2 sets of their lights will solve most folks desires for forward facing light.

Here's a pile of BD lights, the Squadron Pros & S1s have work lenses and went on a skid steer today. The SAE Squadrons and the LP4 (driving combo) are for an OBS Bronco that now needs a new motor more than it needs these lights mounted.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

I like amber for fog, and it's a toss up for clear or amber for a ditch light (I'm guessing you're putting this at the bottom of the A-pillar/windshield frame?). I prefer to selectably push lots of white light in front of me and then use amber for fog/ditch/forward peripheral, I have found that combo gives me the least amount of eye strain under prolonged night driving (especially in dust or snowy condtions). I would be hesitant to suggest a full light bar at all as well, if you do get one I'd go with an ONX6 Arc dual control bar. I have found more use out of being able to scale my lighting up or down and fill in dim spots with individual lights. If you haven't been around BD stuff before, just getting 2 sets of their lights will solve most folks desires for forward facing light.

Here's a pile of BD lights, the Squadron Pros & S1s have work lenses and went on a skid steer today. The SAE Squadrons and the LP4 (driving combo) are for an OBS Bronco that now needs a new motor more than it needs these lights mounted.

Yep, the A-Pillar/hood bracket mount for the ditch lights. I'll probably start with those since there's no good light bar bumper mounts for the 21+ F150 that I've found yet. I'll look into the ONX6, thanks. Will probably have to be paired with a new front bumper, which I want anyways for a winch.

 

[Cannonball]

My can am x3 has a 50” Baja bar on the roof and a 10” Baja bar on the shock towers (hood) with an amber lens cover. I never use the 50 in dusty conditions but the lower amber light does much better.

 

[WTFJohn]

Yep, the A-Pillar/hood bracket mount for the ditch lights. I'll probably start with those since there's no good light bar bumper mounts for the 21+ F150 that I've found yet. I'll look into the ONX6, thanks. Will probably have to be paired with a new front bumper, which I want anyways for a winch.

Winches and bumpers are always a good thing to have. You could also look at a setup like the Linkable XL Squadrons Kit (vehicle specific) or Standalone Kit. The biggest benefit of these over a bar is the ability to aim the light pods individually (can arc them for horiz adj, 45* vert adj) to fill any 'dim' spots in your lighting pattern. Also consider that lights like the LP4/6/9 have side illumination, and can add to the thrown light on the sides of the road where your ditch lights would normally be aimed.

There's a lot of ways to accomplish what you're after, and with your switching setup you can scale it over time. If you're doing it all at once, shoot for the moon. If you want to slow roll it, I'd start with amber fog lights and some ditch lights (aka the ones you will use the most often) then add more as you see fit.

I'd also suggest making sure your factory headlights are aimed correctly (even if it's a new truck), and make sure any new lights you add are aimed correctly. If you want to run them on the road, I'd suggest SAE lenses (for fog & ditch) so you don't have everyone flashing their lights at you/risking a ticket from the wrong DOT cop that's having a bad day. I have my LP4s wired so I can have them auto-switch on&off with the high beams, or I can control them via the SwitchPros panel.

 

[Marshfly]

Baja Designs offers amber lens covers for all of their lights. I use the clear lenses with amber cover. Best of both worlds.

I currently have the XL80s mounted on the A pillars of my Power Wagon. Insane amount of light. In the past I have had a 20" ONX6 with Squadron Pros as ditch lights. That setup was literally light turning on the daytime.

If you run lights in the A pillar location you will want another set on the bumper to fill in the middle.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

I'd also suggest making sure your factory headlights are aimed correctly (even if it's a new truck), and make sure any new lights you add are aimed correctly. If you want to run them on the road, I'd suggest SAE lenses (for fog & ditch) so you don't have everyone flashing their lights at you/risking a ticket from the wrong DOT cop that's having a bad day. I have my LP4s wired so I can have them auto-switch on&off with the high beams, or I can control them via the SwitchPros panel.

Would you suggest a SwitchPro panel over something like the Auxbeam? Or the BD controllers? I'm planning on going with a sunglass holder replacement mount for the controller. The BD is double the price of the Auxbeam, not sure if there's a good reason for that or not.

Baja Designs offers amber lens covers for all of their lights. I use the clear lenses with amber cover. Best of both worlds.

I currently have the XL80s mounted on the A pillars of my Power Wagon. Insane amount of light. In the past I have had a 20" ONX6 with Squadron Pros as ditch lights. That setup was literally light turning on the daytime.

If you run lights in the A pillar location you will want another set on the bumper to fill in the middle.

I've read that the amber lens cover over a clear lens doesn't perform the same as a single amber lens. And they have a tendency of falling off (should be able to mitigate that pretty easily though).

 

[WTFJohn]

Would you suggest a SwitchPro panel over something like the Auxbeam? Or the BD controllers? I'm planning on going with a sunglass holder replacement mount for the controller. The BD is double the price of the Auxbeam, not sure if there's a good reason for that or not.


I've read that the amber lens cover over a clear lens doesn't perform the same as a single amber lens. And they have a tendency of falling off (should be able to mitigate that pretty easily though).

Top of the line is SwitchPros, with sPod and maybe one other brand I'm blanking on right now being the closest competitors. At this point in my life, I am a one-and-done kind of guy so I go to brands that reduce the chance of me having to come back and re-do the work. SwitchPros has proven to be the most durable and longest lasting switching setup among the folks I used to build stuff for & race with, from UTVs to trophy trucks. A SwitchPro panel also has some neat built-in functions + an app that allow for a LOT of customization & switching options, I would suggest reading their manual a few times & watching some videos to get an idea of what all it is capable of doing.

SDHQ has a lot of vehicle specific parts for your era truck to mount a SwitchPro setup easily and cleanly, if you choose to go that way.

When you go to order the lights, I would not buy the kits with wiring harnesses since you're using a controller. You can save some money and buy the lights individually, then build out your own harness as needed if you are into that type of thing (SDHQ or Kartek are great resources for this, they can make sure you get the right stuff ordered all in one go). Alternatively, you can get the kits with the harness then chop it up to connect to your controller. (you would just need the power and ground to the lights, the controller PMM takes the place of all your relays and fuses).

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Top of the line is SwitchPros, with sPod and maybe one other brand I'm blanking on right now being the closest competitors. At this point in my life, I am a one-and-done kind of guy so I go to brands that reduce the chance of me having to come back and re-do the work. SwitchPros has proven to be the most durable and longest lasting switching setup among the folks I used to build stuff for & race with, from UTVs to trophy trucks. A SwitchPro panel also has some neat built-in functions + an app that allow for a LOT of customization & switching options, I would suggest reading their manual a few times & watching some videos to get an idea of what all it is capable of doing.

SDHQ has a lot of vehicle specific parts for your era truck to mount a SwitchPro setup easily and cleanly, if you choose to go that way.

When you go to order the lights, I would not buy the kits with wiring harnesses since you're using a controller. You can save some money and buy the lights individually, then build out your own harness as needed if you are into that type of thing (SDHQ or Kartek are great resources for this, they can make sure you get the right stuff ordered all in one go). Alternatively, you can get the kits with the harness then chop it up to connect to your controller. (you would just need the power and ground to the lights, the controller PMM takes the place of all your relays and fuses).

Will definitely look into it then. I'm a buy-once-cry-once guy as well. Just hope it will mount up where I want it.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I knew I was only doing a light bar and a winch, so I didn’t go the control route. I also used factory looking switches in my panel. Made for a nice clean look.

 

[Marshfly]

I've read that the amber lens cover over a clear lens doesn't perform the same as a single amber lens. And they have a tendency of falling off (should be able to mitigate that pretty easily though).

It might not but I only want amber during inclement weather and then having the absolute longest throw distance is unnecessary. All other times I want clear. Deer and other bad stuff stand out significantly better with clear. Dust isn't an issue for me as I'm not following others on FS roads. I will stop and wait for dust to settle so I can actually see the road well.

Mine are pretty hard to install and remove. There is no possible way they'd fall off. My assumption is that people aren't installing them correctly. They have an extremely positive click when installed correctly. I leave the covers on while going through the carwash and when I pressure wash the truck with zero issues.

Something else to know. Combo lens on the lower powered options (Squadron Sport, etc.) sucks. You want separate wide cornering and spot lights if you go with that wattage. The combo lens works well on the Squadron Pros.

I ran the dual Squadron setup in the fog pockets of an older Ram years ago and that setup was great. Amber wide cornering Sports and clear spot Pros. Awesome combination for not a crazy amount of money. If the wide cornering lights are aimed correctly you will not have issues blinding oncoming traffic. At least I didn't and my truck was tall on 37s.

All that said, if you go BD, lenses are fairly cheap. You can try both.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Yeah I'm looking at the Pro's at minimum. The photos they posted in this forum thread below were good info.

Baja Designs - Squadron series Pro vs Sport

www.yxztalk.com

 

[logem]

Send an email to Daniel Stern who was mentioned in the first reply that you received. He'll get you set perfectly. I'm sure that he'll steer you away from amber "fog" lights. I highly recommend that you reach out to him.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Send an email to Daniel Stern who was mentioned in the first reply that you received. He'll get you set perfectly. I'm sure that he'll steer you away from amber "fog" lights. I highly recommend that you reach out to him.

Yeah, the articles posted were great info. Only reason I would change those at this point is if my future steel bumper doesn't work with the factory fogs. I'll send him a message with my updated plan.

 

[WTFJohn]

Send an email to Daniel Stern who was mentioned in the first reply that you received. He'll get you set perfectly. I'm sure that he'll steer you away from amber "fog" lights. I highly recommend that you reach out to him.

I read his articles, and while they have some valid info for older style lights, he frankly doesn't know what cutting edge lighting is or what modern LEDs are capable of in reference to aftermarket lighting like we are referring to.

Edit - I went and looked at his product page. You can judge for yourself if you think that is the same type of stuff we are talking about here. I'm not trying to be a dick, but I don't see a single $1,000,000+ trophy truck (or any other class) running anything Daniel Stern sells. I do see them with the exact same lights you can buy from Baja Designs though.

Here are some similar/relevant articles from Baja Designs:
Amber vs Clear
Lighting Zones Explained
Effective Light Score

He is selling H1 and H4 lights on his website as great high/low beam lights, which in the US are relegated to 1410 lumens and 1650 lumens, respectively per bulb. The Baja Designs Squadron SAE which we are talking about as road-legal fog lights check in at 2420 lumens per light, and the lumens go up from there as you ditch SAE approval (and on-road legality).

@SteveAndTheCrigBoys there is also an SAE approved LP6 on the way, last update I heard was August or so.