AC Christmas LED strings power consumption vs. brightness

[Hockeyhunter1956]

Going to add a couple more wire frames to my show next year. The current 50 count C6 AC led strings (purchased in 2013) that I run on my wireframes operate at 6.8 watts per string. I?m very happy with the brightness/intensity of the strings. Unfortunately those strings are no longer available. So now I?m looking at a couple of other vendors (CDI and Holiday Express Lights) to make my future purchase for my new props. In looking at the specifications of those same style of led strings (50 count ? C6), one is listed at 2.4 watts and the other at 3.4 watts. This is less than half of my original strings.

So, I guess my questions are as follows:

1. Am I correct in thinking that these new strings will be half as bright as my original strings based on the power consumption?

2. Would I likely notice a difference in brightness between a 2.4 watt string and a 3.4 watt string?

3. Or is it likely the strings are just more efficient in their electrical components than say my older strings (power draw/usage) and that it would not be noticeable and that any difference between 2.4 watts and 3.4 watts would not be likely noticeable?

I am going to purchase a string from each vendor to see what they look like. I?m just trying to understand the difference of power consumption/brightness and how it might relate to my purchase.

 

[error650]

I have a nice spreadsheet showing the power vs bulb count for 110 of my LED channels. Some are 3 strands long; some are cut to 1/2 strand long. Power is adjusted for strand modifications. Ages vary from 2016-2022 purchases. I think my setup is a similar scenario to what you're asking about. Wattages are from the mfgr packaging...I didn't clamp each stand to get the real current measurements.

Comparing the power consumption to my perceived brightness, I don't see any direct correlation between the different wattages over the ages of the bulbs to the brightness. Sometimes a newer strand with less wattage looks brighter, sometimes it's noticeably dimmer. Sometimes a newer strand that listed more wattage was actually dimmer than the strands it replaced, but that might chalk up to bulb type: 5mm vs mini or C6.

That being said, I resorted to the same method: test out different strands and just play it by eye. It gave better end results, and it was much less headache-inducing.

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