Lt. Dino
Member
This is my first review, so please bear with me.
I'm a fan of Nova power supplies, but I got a new truck, so I was looking for a waterproof power supply to make installation easier, and didn't want to spend the $$ for a waterproof Nova or Whelen. I know Feniex is new, but I figured why not give 'em a shot. I contacted TraFx here on ELB and he offered to sell me the Angel 90 watt/4 head supply at a good price. It was delayed a couple days because TraFx said when he got it in from Feniex, one of the bulbs was broken and he had to wait to replace it. That should have been a clue.
Here we go:
When the box came in, I was excited and was packaged fairly well. The instructions were on top.
The kit came with the power supply, 4 strobe heads (flange style), 4 wires to connect the bulbs, fused power wire with ground, preconnected to a switch panel, and a wire coming off to connect to the power supply, and of course the necessary screws and gaskets for the bulbs.
The back of the supply is metal, and comes off with the help of a screwdriver, and the guts of the power supply are fairly well potted and sealed.
The power supply is small in size, and about 3/4 inch thinner than the others.
The power wire is a fairly sizeable length... almost 17 feet.
My biggest complaint is that Feniex uses a proprietary connector instead of the usual AMP connections. They're nice because they're smaller and have a locking tab so they don't pull apart, but it renders them useless with other brands supplies without redoing the pins.
Review:
I put the strobes in the brake lights of my 2011 Silverado. Nothing out of the ordinary in regards to the mounting of the bulbs. I didn't have time to finish the install, so I quickly connected the supply to the battery and connected the bulbs to see how they looked. In my opinion, the Feniex strobes are very poor performers compared to others. It's listed as a 90 watt supply, but there is no way they are putting out 90 watts. My tail lights were brighter than the strobe bulbs.
Flash patterns weren't bad, but they were slower patterns. One pattern I liked flashed 2x2 then all 4. Patterns were easily changed with the prewired momentary switch on the panel.
Compared to 'usual' strobe cable, Feniex took 3 wires and run them through a vinyl sleeve (almost like heat shrink), but not shrunk all the way. It seems like an afterthought. I didn't put heat to it to see if it would shrink at all.
For what it is and the price, it isn't too bad of a deal if you want secondary warning, or just want lights. But I need good warning on my truck, and the Feniex Angel strobes fall very short. I disconnected the bulbs and wrapped the ends in plastic, and left them in for now. They're not going to be used in my final setup because they are so weak. I was maybe 5 feet from the overhead door inside the fire station, and there was barely a noticeable flashback on the walls and door.
Overall:
Build quality. The supply feels solid, and looks like it would be fine if it got wet. I still don't like the wires and the proprietary connectors.
Bulbs: The bulbs feel fairly cheap, and I was so afraid I'd break one while installing. I never worried that much with Whelen or Axixtech bulbs. I didn't really care for the flange mount, but I didn't mind. The bulbs are also oddly shaped. Most bulbs have a tight spiral and bulb to bulb is very standard. With this kit, the spiral is slightly spread out, but some bulbs angle out a bit, and another only one end of the glass tube is bent out (problem with the glass forming).
Personally, I'd stick with the big names. I've got some SoundOff Universal Undercover LAWs on the way that I ordered for another part of my truck. I'm going to pop one in to see how it looks, but the Feniex isn't going to stay.
One positive, I dealt with TraFx and trafxledlights.com, and I thought they were great to deal with and would definitely do business with them again.
*I will attempt to add a video, but my computer isn't recognizing the file from my camera. I'll keep working on it.
I'm a fan of Nova power supplies, but I got a new truck, so I was looking for a waterproof power supply to make installation easier, and didn't want to spend the $$ for a waterproof Nova or Whelen. I know Feniex is new, but I figured why not give 'em a shot. I contacted TraFx here on ELB and he offered to sell me the Angel 90 watt/4 head supply at a good price. It was delayed a couple days because TraFx said when he got it in from Feniex, one of the bulbs was broken and he had to wait to replace it. That should have been a clue.
Here we go:
When the box came in, I was excited and was packaged fairly well. The instructions were on top.
The kit came with the power supply, 4 strobe heads (flange style), 4 wires to connect the bulbs, fused power wire with ground, preconnected to a switch panel, and a wire coming off to connect to the power supply, and of course the necessary screws and gaskets for the bulbs.
The back of the supply is metal, and comes off with the help of a screwdriver, and the guts of the power supply are fairly well potted and sealed.
The power supply is small in size, and about 3/4 inch thinner than the others.
The power wire is a fairly sizeable length... almost 17 feet.
My biggest complaint is that Feniex uses a proprietary connector instead of the usual AMP connections. They're nice because they're smaller and have a locking tab so they don't pull apart, but it renders them useless with other brands supplies without redoing the pins.
Review:
I put the strobes in the brake lights of my 2011 Silverado. Nothing out of the ordinary in regards to the mounting of the bulbs. I didn't have time to finish the install, so I quickly connected the supply to the battery and connected the bulbs to see how they looked. In my opinion, the Feniex strobes are very poor performers compared to others. It's listed as a 90 watt supply, but there is no way they are putting out 90 watts. My tail lights were brighter than the strobe bulbs.
Flash patterns weren't bad, but they were slower patterns. One pattern I liked flashed 2x2 then all 4. Patterns were easily changed with the prewired momentary switch on the panel.
Compared to 'usual' strobe cable, Feniex took 3 wires and run them through a vinyl sleeve (almost like heat shrink), but not shrunk all the way. It seems like an afterthought. I didn't put heat to it to see if it would shrink at all.
For what it is and the price, it isn't too bad of a deal if you want secondary warning, or just want lights. But I need good warning on my truck, and the Feniex Angel strobes fall very short. I disconnected the bulbs and wrapped the ends in plastic, and left them in for now. They're not going to be used in my final setup because they are so weak. I was maybe 5 feet from the overhead door inside the fire station, and there was barely a noticeable flashback on the walls and door.
Overall:
Build quality. The supply feels solid, and looks like it would be fine if it got wet. I still don't like the wires and the proprietary connectors.
Bulbs: The bulbs feel fairly cheap, and I was so afraid I'd break one while installing. I never worried that much with Whelen or Axixtech bulbs. I didn't really care for the flange mount, but I didn't mind. The bulbs are also oddly shaped. Most bulbs have a tight spiral and bulb to bulb is very standard. With this kit, the spiral is slightly spread out, but some bulbs angle out a bit, and another only one end of the glass tube is bent out (problem with the glass forming).
Personally, I'd stick with the big names. I've got some SoundOff Universal Undercover LAWs on the way that I ordered for another part of my truck. I'm going to pop one in to see how it looks, but the Feniex isn't going to stay.
One positive, I dealt with TraFx and trafxledlights.com, and I thought they were great to deal with and would definitely do business with them again.
*I will attempt to add a video, but my computer isn't recognizing the file from my camera. I'll keep working on it.