Review: SmallRig RC 60B COB LED video light

Friday 20 September 2024, 18:18 by Nando Harmsen | 3,536 views | 0 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

SmallRig asked me to review the RC 60B COB LED video light. This light is small and compact, and produces a good amount of light. I have used it for video recordings, including for Photofacts Academy.

Filming for the time-lapse photography course, lit with the SmallRig RC 60B
Thanks to Chip On Board (COB) LEDs, it is possible to make small video lights that still have a high light output. Combine this with a battery, and you have the perfect light for use on location.

There are several manufacturers offering this type of light. Think of the Nanlite FS-60B, the Amaran COB 60x S and the Zhiyun Molus X100. These are all bi-colour lights, which allow you to adjust the colour temperature.

The Amaran, Zhiyun and SmallRig together. Unfortunately, I did not have a Nanlite available, but its size is somewhat comparable to these models.

What do you get?

The SmallRig RC 60B comes in a neat case, containing the light itself, of course. You get two USB-C cables, a reflector, a swivel and a handle. You get a clamp for mounting a power bank. There is also space reserved for a USB-C charger, but this is not included.

The contents of the packaging
The light itself is no more than 115 x 85 x 85 mm in size. It weighs about 650 grams, without anything mounted on it. It has a built-in battery that cannot, in principle, be replaced. The USB-C port is used for charging, and a 3-metre USB-C cable is included for this.

The SmallRig RC60B in detail
Next to the USB-C port, on the rear, are the main power switch and an ECO mode button. The latter makes the RC 60B operate at a maximum of 80% of its power, saving battery power.

Everything related to power is on the rear: on/off switch, USB-C connection and the ECO mode button.
There is a small LED screen on the side, with the mode button underneath it. This lets you switch between normal use and creative use. The two dials are used to adjust the light.

Switching on the RC 60B requires turning a dial. The mode button switches between normal and creative mode.

Normal and creative use

Normal use is simple. You set the light intensity with one dial, while the other controls the colour temperature. This can be set between 2700K and 6500K.

The light intensity is shown as a percentage, from 0%, when the light is off, to 100%, which is the maximum power. Pressing the dials lets you quickly choose between preset values.

A comparison of the light intensities. Each doubling is one extra stop of light.

Press the mode button and the RC 60B switches to creative mode. The light then produces a light pattern to use as a special effect. There is a choice of nine different creative settings, such as lightning, a flashing light and fireworks.

One of the creative settings. You can also adjust the frequency of the effect
The dials have a different function in creative mode. You can now choose the creative setting and its frequency. You switch between the functions by pressing the dials. You set them by turning the dial.

Temperature control and fan

A COB LED light gets hot, especially when the light intensity is high. The RC 60B has built-in temperature control that dims the light when the temperature gets too high. At 65 degrees Celsius, the light switches off automatically.

A large fan on the top provides the necessary cooling. You can hear it, but it is not really bothersome. At a noise level of around 30-35 dBA, it is unlikely to be annoying (measured with a basic sound meter at a distance of 1 metre). The fan runs at a fixed speed, so the noise remains constant.

The RC 60B was used for this video recording. Although the fan was running, the microphone did not pick it up.
Bear in mind that the fan also runs while charging the RC 60B. If you do this at night, you will hear it when you are in the same room.

Battery and battery life

The RC 60B has a built-in 3400 mAh battery. This is enough to run the light at full power for 75 minutes in ECO mode. In normal mode, it runs for about 40 minutes. It is useful that SmallRig shows the available battery capacity in hours of use, rather than as a percentage.

A good choice: how much longer can you keep going with the battery? That is valuable information, much better than a row of LEDs or a percentage
When the battery starts to run low, you can connect the light to a USB-C charger and continue using it.

SmallRig recommends a USB-C charger of at least 100 W. If the RC 60B battery is completely empty, it takes about 3 hours to charge fully (with a 120W GaN USB-C charger).

If there is no wall socket available, the RC 60B can also be powered with a power bank. The clamp is provided for this, allowing you to attach a power bank. The short 20cm USB-C cable is perfect for this. You can also use the light with the power bank connected.

The clamp with a 100W power bank. When the light is off, the internal battery is charged.

Using it

The included swivel lets you mount the RC 60B on a light stand. There is room for an umbrella. The swivel is made of plastic, so you need to be careful when tightening the screw.

The swivel lets you mount the RC 60B on a light stand.

You can also use the RC 60B handheld. A handgrip is included for this. It does not have a swivel, but it does have a 1/4 inch screw hole on the underside. The RC 60B is perfectly usable handheld, even with a power bank connected.

The handgrip for using the light handheld.

Light modifiers are attached via a Mini Bowens mount, which makes the light slightly more universal than the often unique mounts used by other manufacturers, such as Zhiyun's. SmallRig offers a small range of light modifiers, as well as an adapter to a full-size Bowens mount. This means you can use any full-size light modifier.

The RC 60B comes with a reflector and Mini Bowens mount.
Bear in mind that this small 60W light may not produce enough light to be practical with those large light modifiers.

The light

The light produced by the RC 60B has an RCI rating of 97+, which means that the output is very consistent. This is important for video, where fluctuations are immediately visible. The set colour temperature can differ from the displayed value. This rises to 200K when you go above the 4500K setting.

The colour temperature is not very accurate, but it does not fluctuate.
The amount of light produced by the light is about 2650 lux at 4200K. With the reflector, you get 11,200 lux. The amount depends on the colour temperature. At 6500K, the RC 60B produces about 20% more light than at 2700K.

In use

The RC 60B is pleasant to use and comes with a complete set of useful accessories. Its size makes it easy to set up the light in situations with little space. The amount of light, although not generous, is sufficient for many types of use.

You get no feedback when turning the dial, which is awkward
The dials turn freely, but provide no feedback at all. This means you do not know how far you have turned them without looking at the screen. This is especially awkward when the light is mounted high up or in difficult positions.

In use. You have to go to the light to change the intensity. There is no Bluetooth connectivity, unfortunately.
Normally, you would control the light with a remote control or Bluetooth in that situation. However, this is missing from the RC 60B, which is a major omission. You have to operate the light on the unit itself. There is no other way.

The clamp for a power bank is a welcome accessory. However, it is best suited to power banks that are about 3 to 4 centimetres thick. Thicker power banks, or V-mount batteries such as the SmallRig VB99, are not held completely securely.

Although perfectly usable, a SmallRig VB99 mini V-mount battery is not held securely enough. A V-mount connection would be even better.

My conclusion

The SmallRig RC 60B COB LED video light is a fantastically small video light that is very flexible to use. The light quality is good, the unit is well built and the controls are simple. The built-in battery provides enough power for 75 minutes in ECO mode. The dials could provide a little more feedback, but everything else works well.

You can also put the handgrip on a tripod, if you like. For example, a small table tripod. The unit itself has a standard 1/4 inch screw hole.
There is one major disadvantage to this light. There is no remote control or Bluetooth connectivity. This makes using the RC 60B on location more difficult, and getting the light set up properly takes quite a lot of work.

Apart from the lack of Bluetooth, the RC 60B is personally the most pleasant of all the lights I have used so far. It will be the first one I reach for when I need light.

Pros

• Build quality, size and weight
  
• Battery life, especially in ECO mode
  
• Power via USB-C
  
• Can be used while charging
  
• Battery indicator shows remaining time
  
• Clamp for power bank
  
• Two very practical-length USB-C cables
  
• Fan is reasonably quiet and runs at a constant speed
  
• Mini Bowens mount
  
• Good light quality
  
• Useful carrying case
  
• Favourable price of 250 euros
  

Cons

• Non-replaceable built-in battery
  
• No remote control or Bluetooth
  
• Colour accuracy is not optimal
  
• Clamp is not very suitable for thick power banks
  
• Better feedback from the dials
  

Thanks to SmallRig for providing the RC 60B COB LED video light.

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