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Different flavors of self-ballasted mercury When it comes to the design of their lamps, manufacturers can have completely different strategies. The comparison above is a good example of such difference (shot with a fixed 4000 K white balance). Here we see two modern 160 W self-ballasted high-pressure mercury lamps during operation, one made by Mazda (Philips, left) and one from the General Electric Company of England. While Philips opted for a warm-white light color at around 3500 K, GEC went for a much colder light (ca. 4500 K). A possible reason for the latter may be that GEC aimed at keeping the same light color when the phosphor material used in those lamps was upgrade from magnesium fluorogermanate to yttrium vanadate in the late 1960s. Philips, on the other hand, upgraded the lamp's color and output in this process. Keywords: Miscellaneous

Different flavors of self-ballasted mercury


When it comes to the design of their lamps, manufacturers can have completely different strategies. The comparison above is a good example of such difference (shot with a fixed 4000 K white balance). Here we see two modern 160 W self-ballasted high-pressure mercury lamps during operation, one made by Mazda (Philips, left) and one from the General Electric Company of England. While Philips opted for a warm-white light color at around 3500 K, GEC went for a much colder light (ca. 4500 K). A possible reason for the latter may be that GEC aimed at keeping the same light color when the phosphor material used in those lamps was upgrade from magnesium fluorogermanate to yttrium vanadate in the late 1960s. Philips, on the other hand, upgraded the lamp's color and output in this process.
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Lamp/Fixture Information
Manufacturer:Mazda (Philips, left) left, GEC of England
Model Reference:MMF 160W (left), MBFT!V 160W (right)
Lamp
Lamp Type:Mercury high pressure self ballasted
Filament/Radiator Type:Incandescent tungsten filament, thermal arc in mercury vapor, and fluorescence
Base:E27
Shape/Finish:Elliptical fluorescent
Burning Position:Vertical
Electrical
Wattage:160 W
Voltage:230-240 V
Current:0.72 A
Optical
Lumen Output:3100 lm (left), 2900 lm (right), initial values
Lumen Efficacy:19.4 lm/W (left), 18.1 lm/W (right), initial values
Colour Temperature:~3500 K (left) ~4500 K (right)
Colour Rendering Index:~72 Ra8 (left) ~65 Ra8 (right)
Physical/Production
Factory Location:Turnhout, Belgium (left), Shaw, England (right)
Fabrication Date:1988 (left), 1986 (right)
Application/Use:General lighting
File information
Filename:Mazda_MMF_160W_vs_GEC_MBFT21V_160W.jpg
Album name:Max / Misc lamps and lighting
Keywords:Miscellaneous
Filesize:356 KiB
Date added:May 04, 2025
Dimensions:1200 x 900 pixels
Displayed:8 times
URL:https://trad-lighting.net/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=825
Favorites:Add to Favorites

Comment 1 to 2 of 2
Page: 1

Ria   [May 04, 2025 at 10:54 PM]
I've always preferred a lower colour temperature for indoor lighting. The only exception is the kitchen, where a higher temperature is better for cooking.
AgentHalogen_87   [May 05, 2025 at 08:55 AM]
You don't cook on lamps Ria! Laughing


Interesting to see different colour temperatures. I always thought the colour of HP / MP mercury vapour lamps were set by them being mercury lamps

Comment 1 to 2 of 2
Page: 1