Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight Review

Godox recently introduced its new KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight. This is a high-output 1600W fixture with a CCT range of 1800-10,000K.

• 

• 

• 

Overview

The MG1200R expands the KNOWLED MG line and it offers G-mount compatibility, smart optics recognition, advanced connectivity options, and an IP54 weather-resistant housing. The proprietary G-mount supports a wide range of optional modifiers such as the 15, 30, and 60° reflectors, and it is also compatible with the same accessories that work with the MG1200Bi and MG2400Bi bi-color fixtures

Just like the ARRI Orbiter, the MG1200 utilizes Godox’s smart optics recognition which enables communication between the light and select modifiers.

With the included 45° reflector, the MG1200R in normal mode, produces a claimed output of 21,300 lux @ 3m / 9.8′ when used at 5600K. With the separately available GF14 Fresnel lens the output is stated to be 56,500 lux at the same distance.

The fixture features CCT, HSI, RGBW, GEL, XY, and FX modes and it has claimed color accuracy ratings of CRI 96 and TLCI 95. The MG1200R also offers 0 to 100% dimming in 0.1% increments along four dimming curves: linear, S-curve, exponential, and logarithmic. Users can also make adjustments with green/magenta correction. As you would expect, there is the usual array of effects to choose from such as flash, lightning, cloudy, broken bulb, TV, candle, fire, fireworks, explosion, welding, cop car, SOS, RGB cycle, and party effects.

To effectively manage temperature while maintaining the quality of light, the MG1200R incorporates an upgraded optical technology that is claimed to extend its lifespan. The light also has an IP54 rating for weather resistance, and it can withstand dust, water splashes, rain, fog, etc.

Size & Weight

• 

• 

The MG1200R Light Body (excluding U-type bracket and reflector) weighs 9.8kg / 21.6 lb and the controller is 6.7kg / 14.77 lb.

• 

• 

Individually the components aren’t that heavy and I like how the fixture has a nice carry handle. The power supply/controller also has a carrying strap.

Once you have everything attached to a lightstand it is pretty heavy and you certainly need to be aware of this if you need to move it around. It is certainly not a one-person job if you need to pick up a fully rigged light and move it somewhere else. It requires at least two people to move it, or you need to place it on a rolling stand.

So how does that weight compare to some of the competition?

	TOTAL WEIGHT
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	16.5kg / 36.37 lbs (excluding yoke)
Aputure Electro Storm CS15 RGB LED Monolight	37kg / 81.57 lb (excluding yoke)
Aputure STORM 1200x	15.42kg / 33.99 lbs (including yoke)
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	14.87kg / 32.78 lbs (including yoke)
NANLUX Evoke 900C	12.20kg / 26.90 lbs
NANLUX EVOKE 1200B	20.09kg / 44.29 lbs

Essentially if you look at the weight comparison above, the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R is just a little bit heavier than the Aputure STORM 1200x and around 4.5kg heavier than the NANLUX EVOKE 900C. It is, however, substantially lighter than the Aputure Electro Storm CS15.

Just to be crystal clear, some of these lights listed above only have daylight or Bi-color capabilities. I am simply giving you a reference as to how it compares weight-wise to other similar-styled fixtures.

So, how does the weight of the MG1200R compare to some 1200W HMI fixtures? Let’s take a look.

	TOTAL WEIGHT LIGHT HEAD & POWER SUPPLY
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	16.5kg / 36.37 lbs (excluding yoke)
Mole-Richardson Molepar 1200W HMI1-light Kit (90-260 VAC)	30.4kg
Mole-Richardson 1200 Watt HMI Fresnel Solarspot	9.2kg
CAME-TV 1,200W HMI Fresnel Light Kit with Electronic Ballast	20kg
ARRI True Blue D12 HMI 1200W Fresnel kit with Ballast	18kg

With these weight comparisons, it is important to remember that the MG1200R isn’t an HMI Fresnel.

As another comparison, the Mole-Richardson 1600W Tener LED (Daylight) tips the scales at 31.80 kg. Yes, this is a higher power draw (1600W) LED light, but it does provide a good comparison against the MG1200R.

How does the weight of the MG1200R compare to a light such as the ARRI M18? Below you can see:

	TOTAL WEIGHT LIGHT HEAD & POWER SUPPLY
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	16.5kg / 36.37 lbs (excluding yoke)
ARRI M18 & EB MAX High Speed Electronic Ballast	18.5kg (including yoke)

There is only a small difference in weight if you compare the MG1200R to an M18. However, you also need to remember that the M18 is an HMI Fresnel, and the Godox is not.

Build Quality

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The build quality of the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R is very good and I would say that it is in line with the higher-end fixtures from NANLUX and Aputure. It isn’t going to have the build quality of an ARRI, Creamsource, or Kelvin fixture, but I think it’s going to be good enough for most people’s needs and I think it would be robust enough to have in a rental fleet.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The housing of both the fixture and the power supply/controller is solidly constructed and that shows in the weight.

The light features a single locking mechanism on the quick-release yoke frame that is well made and it solidly locks the light down. I will talk more about the quick-release yoke frame further down in the review.

Godox gives you a nice long, thick, and robust power connection cable that allows you to place the light up very high. It is always nice to see long cables included with a light as standard.

• 

• 

The included rolling case is decently made, but I personally think that Godox should have included more carrying handles. I found it very hard to carry as there are no carry straps on the top or sides of the case.

• 

• 

The wheels on the case are ok, but they are completely smooth, and I found that they worked better on smooth surfaces than rough ones. With the Aputure STORM 1200x case, the wheels work better on slightly rougher surfaces.

IP54 Weather Protection

The fixture features IP54 dust and weather protection, which means that an electrical enclosure is protected from limited dust ingress and water spray from any direction. It doesn’t feature an IP65 like the competing Aputure STORM 1200x.

Design

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R consists of a light head and a large separate power supply/controller. The light head isn’t ridiculously heavy and it is a reasonable size given the light’s capabilities.

Having a separate light head allows you to use slightly smaller-sized light stands., however, when I say smaller, you still need to utilize a decent light stand that can accept a junior pin.

You can place the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R flat on the ground because the power input is located on the back of the fixture. There are also four small raised feet so that it doesn’t sit flush on the ground.

A lot of today’s modern lights are now a seamless blend of hardware and software. With software playing such a big role, lighting companies could continue to improve and update fixtures over time via firmware updates, however, you don’t actually see too many firmware updates getting released for lights. It will be interesting to see if Godox adds features or extra functionality via firmware in the future.

COB

Quite a few LED lights on the market, including the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R, are using COB technology. COB stands for “Chip On Board” where multiple LED chips are packaged together as one lighting module. The advantage of COB LEDs being multi-chip packaged is that the light-emitting area of a COB LED can contain many times more light sources in the same area that standard LEDs could occupy. This results in a greatly increased lumen output per square inch.

The first caveat with COB LEDs is that they produce a ton of heat and that heat needs to be effectively dispersed. The second caveat is that you will usually need to diffuse them as they are very bright to look at and can be unsuitable for directly lighting talent. The trouble is if you use them with diffusion, such as a softbox, you are going to lose a ton of output because that output is coming from a small-sized source. With a lot larger source, say a 2×1 panel, you don’t lose as much output.

Yoke Frame & Quick Release Mechanism

• 

• 

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R comes with a robustly made angled yoke frame.

• 

• 

• 

• 

The yoke frame has two quick-release mounting plates on it.

• 

• 

On the fixture, there are two quick-release inserts where these mounting plates slide in.

They feature a nice little locking mechanism that is very easy to use.

• 

• 

Unlike some other fixtures with a quick-release mechanism, this is easy to use and just one person can do it without any issues. It lines up easily and inserts smoothly.

The yoke frame allows you to have a greater tilt range when light modifiers such as softboxes are attached.

• 

• 

The single clutch lock works really well and once you tighten it down the light will not move no matter how much force you put on it.

The yoke frame utilizes a junior pin mount so you can only use it with compatible light stands.

The yoke frame is easily strong enough to hold the fixture and a Fresnel, or a large lighting modifier.

• 

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R comes with a mounting bracket in the kit that you can use to attach the power supply/controller to a light stand, etc. The power supply has a wedge plate on one of its sides that allows you to do this.

G-Mount

The MG1200R features a proprietary G-mount. While this is arguably more robust than a common Bowens-S mount, it does mean that you are stuck using a proprietary mount where there are only a select amount of lighting modifiers available. I would have preferred to have seen a locking Bowens mount like you find on the Aputure STORM 1200x.

Once you lock in an accessory it doesn’t move or wobble around like it would if you were using a standard Bowens mount.

Smart Optics Recognition

As I mentioned earlier, just like the ARRI Orbiter and a few other fixtures, the MG1200 utilizes Godox’s smart optics recognition which enables communication between the light and select modifiers.

• 

• 

The included Godox reflector, as well as optional 15, 30, and 60° reflectors and several other lighting modifiers have encoded chips on them that allow them to talk to the fixture so that it knows what is attached.

Power Draw

• 

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R draws 1600W. 1600W is a lot and you need to think how you can use it in certain countries. I am located in Japan where it can be difficult to plug high-power draw lighting fixtures into most household wall sockets and run it at 100% without tripping the circuit.

Below you can see how that compares against some other high power draw fixtures. Please remember that some of these lights are just daylight or Bi-color fixtures.

	POWER DRAW
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	1600W
Aputure Electro Storm CS15	2200W
Aputure STORM 1200x	1440W
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	1440W
NANLUX Evoke 1200	1200W
NANLUX Evoke 1200B	1200W
Nanlux Evoke 900C	940W

As you can see, the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R draws 160W more than the Aputure STORM 1200x, and 500W more than the Nanlux Evoke 900C.

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R can be powered via 100 to 240V AC power. There is no 48V DC input, so you can’t power it via an external battery power station or block battery.

If you need to remotely power the MG1200R then a gas generator/inverter will work and there are certainly lots of them on the market that would work with the fixture.

If you need to run the fixture for long periods of time, then something like the Westinghouse iGen2200 gas generator/inverter would work well. It’s rated at 1800 Watts and 2200 Peak Watts. The iGen2200 is rated at 52 dBA.

You could also use something like the EcoFlow DELTA 2 Max Portable Power Station if you need silent operation.

How does it stay cool?

Large, high-powered COB lights get very hot, and keeping them cool is not an easy task. Using fans is the best solution, but the caveat with fans is that they can create noise.

• 

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R utilizes fans in both the light head and the power supply/controller. There is one large fan and two smaller fans in the power supply/controller.

There are also large heatsinks on the top of the fixture.

Godox has included 4 Fan Modes:

• Off
• Auto
• Medium
• High

If you choose Auto mode the fan speed changes depending on the temperature of the unit.

In High mode, the fans run at their maximum speed. Godox recommends that you turn this mode on if the ambient temperature exceeds 40° C.

If you choose Medium mode, the fans run at relatively low speeds, and the output is limited to 70%.

In Off mode, the fans run at their lowest levels and the total output is reduced to just 10%.

I was interested to see how loud the fan noise was.

Now, I personally found the fan noise to be ok considering the size and output of the fixture. If you are outdoors I don’t think you will hear it, but if you are in a super quiet room then you may hear it depending on where it is placed and at what output you have it set.

In the High Mode, the fan noise is quite a bit louder than in the other modes, but it is unlikely at high output settings that you are going to have it placed anywhere near where critical audio needs to be recorded.

I did my own independent tests to see what the figures were at a distance of 3m / 9.9′ away from the fixture.

High Mode

• 

• 

In High Mode, the average noise level I recorded was 47.3 dBa. As a comparison, the Aputure STORM 1200R recorded a reading of 40.8 dBa.

Medium Mode

• 

• 

In Medium Mode, the average noise level I recorded was 41.0 dBa. As a comparison, the Aputure STORM 1200R recorded a reading of 33.7 dBa.

Off Mode

• 

• 

In Silent Mode, the average noise level I recorded was 35.2 dBa. As a comparison, the Aputure STORM 1200R recorded a reading of 29.6 dBa.

• 

As a comparison, I also tested a Panasonic hairdryer in its Cold setting at the same distance. The average noise level I recorded was 53.1 dBa.

Beam Angle

The KNOWLED MG1200R native beam angle is unknown as Godox doesn’t list it. I reached out to Godox about this and they told me that they haven’t measured it. Below you can see the beam angles when the light is used with the various reflectors:

• ?? Unmodified (Godox doesn’t list what the beam angle is)
• 45° (with included Reflector)
• 60° (with optional Reflector)
• 15° (with optional Reflector)

Godox does sell an optional Godox Reflector Kit for KNOWLED MG1200Bi (15, 30 & 60°) which retails for $499 USD.

Is there a hot spot with the included 45° Wide Beam Reflector?

Sometimes reflectors produce hot spots so the claimed output figures appear to be higher than they should be.

I set up a test with the MG1200R with its 45° Wide Reflector placed 3m / 9.9′ from a wall. I then took measurements at the center, 15cm, 30cm, and 60cm to see if there were any hotspots. I had the light set at about 50% output. Below you can see my results:

KNOWLED MG1200R with its 45° Wide Reflector

• Center: 10,600 lx
• 15cm from center: 10,500 lx
• 30cm from center: 10,100 lx
• 60cm from center: 8380 lx

I am happy to report that the 45° Reflector doesn’t have any big hotspot, and the illumination drop-off was quite gradual.

Controls & Menu System

• 

• 

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R has a reasonably large LCD screen on the power supply controller that clearly shows you information about the light. While it is not a touchscreen, it is still pretty quick to access all the available lighting modes and make changes. It is an easy interface to use even though it is a little basic.

The screen is flat and located on the top of the power supply/controller which can make it hard to see if it’s mounted quite high on a light stand. It does, however, make it easier to see if you have it laced on the ground.

Arguably you could make a case that the light was primarily designed to be controlled through DMX, etc. than directly from the power supply/controller and that is why the screen is where it is.

I would have preferred to have seen an upgraded and better operating system on such an expensive fixture. Having an operating system that is pretty much exactly the same as you will find on the affordable Godox Litemons systems, at least in my opinion, seems a little odd. Although in saying that, Godox presumably wanted to have a unified operating system for all of its fixtures.

Redesigning and improving on previous products is what lighting companies should be doing.

There are four buttons, a Select dial, and a power on/off switch on the power supply/controller.

With a good light, you shouldn’t have to read a manual to work out how to operate it. You should be able to turn it on and use it straight away. You won’t find any deep sub-menus or complicated way of making changes on the MG1200R. It was designed to be simplistic and easy to operate.

Menu Settings

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

There are quite a few different things you can change and adjust in the main menu.

Dimming Curves

In Dimming Curves you can choose from:

• Linear
• S-Curve
• Exponential
• Log

The light will dim right down to 0.1% which is certainly handy, but realistically I don’t know how many people will actually run a fixture with this power draw and output at 0.1%, but it’s good to have that ability.

Control Mode

• 

• 

In Control Mode you can choose between:

• Normal
• Low End
• Highspeed

Smoothing

In Smoothing you can choose between Default, Smooth, and Off.

Color Space

In Color Space, you can set the light to the following:

• Original Gamut
• Correction Gamut
• Rec.709
• DCI-P3

Fan Mode

• 

As I mentioned earlier in the review, there are 4 different fan settings you can choose from.

• Off
• Auto
• Medium
• High

Optics Recognition

In the menu, you also have the ability to turn the Optics Recognition On or Off.

If you don’t have an optic attached and the Optics Recognition is turned on the light won’t power up. You need to turn it off for the light to work.

Operating Modes

The light has 6 key lighting modes:

• CCT
• HSI
• RGBW
• GEL
• xy
• FX

Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)

• 

• 

This is the mode most people are going to use the light in. In the CCT Mode, you have full access to making CCT adjustments between 1800-10,000K. This is a large range and it will suit most people’s needs,

The fixture also has continuous variable (full minus green to full plus green) correction.

Being able to dial in more or reduce the amount of green coming from your lighting source can make a huge difference. Different camera companies use different sensors in their cameras and they all react differently to light. Some camera sensors may lean towards magenta, and some, more towards green. By making CCT adjustments you can dial in the light so that it looks better for whatever camera system you are using. G/M adjustment also helps when you are trying to match lights from different manufacturers.

HSI

In HSI mode you can individually control the Hue, Saturation, and Intensity.

RGBW

In RGBW mode you can adjust the individual channels for Red, Green, Blue, and White.

GEL

• 

• 

• 

• 

In GEL mode you can select from a wide array of Lee and Rosco digital filters.

xy

• 

• 

• 

• 

In xy mode, you can dial in exact xy coordinates. You have the ability to change the Gamut to DCI-P3, Black body and Rec. 2020.

Dialing in xy coordinates is a fairly easy way to get a light to match other lighting sources, or at least get it in the ballpark.

FX

• 

• 

Like on most lights these days, you can choose from quite a few FX.

All the effects modes can be individually adjusted and tailored to your lighting needs.

Bluetooth App

• 

The light can be controlled via Bluetooth using the Godox Light App.

• 

• 

• 

• 

You need to have Bluetooth turned on when using your smartphone or tablet. If you are using the light for the first time, you need to create a new Project.

It will then ask you how you would like to look for the new fixture you want to add. In this example, I will click on Add Fixtures.

It will then find any fixtures that are tuned on with their Bluetooth activated.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Once you select the fixture and hit confirm, it will set it up for use with the app.

Once you tap on the fixture you will be taken to the home screen of the app, where the light will be in the default CCT operating mode.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Here you can change the CCT and intensity, as well as the +/- G/M bias.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

There is a range of parameters that you can adjust using the app.

• 

• 

You can also create a Scene where you can make a lighting diagram which is handy if you have the time.

• 

• 

In the app, you also have the ability to change the fan speed. The issue I have is that the fan settings are not the same as what can be found on the fixture. This can lead to confusion.

Now, the other issue with the fan speed settings is that they aren’t reflected in the app when it comes to displaying the output level correctly. In the Medium Speed mode, the light is limited to 70% output, and in the Mute Mode (which should be labeled as Off), it is limited to 10%. However, the app will allow the output to be displayed at 100%. I am not sure why so many lighting companies can’t seem to get this right.

For the most part, the app is reasonably straightforward and easy to use, but it could be better.

RGBW

We are seeing a lot of lighting companies now using RGBW technology. RGBW stands for Red, Green, Blue & Warm White. There are, however, other types of RGB such as RGBWW, RGBAW, RGBACL, etc.

Connectivity

• 

• 

The MG1200R has the following connectivity on the back of the fixture:

• 1x 5-Pin DMX In
• 1x 5-Pin DMX Out
• 1x LAN
• 1x USB-A

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

You can use CRMX, Art-Net & Sacn, as well as DMX and ethernet to control the fixture.

How does the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R compare to the Aputure STORM 1200x?

Comparing products based on specification sheets never tells you the full story. Below you can see how they compare on paper, but I will let you give you my honest opinion at the end of this review after we have looked at all of the data and the various feature sets, etc.

	Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	Aputure STORM 1200x
CCT Range	1800-10,000K	2300-10,000K
Light Engine	RGBW	BLAIR
+/- GM	Yes	Yes
HSI	Yes	Yes
Gels	Yes	Yes
xy	Yes	Yes
Effects	Yes	Yes
Mount	G-Mount	Bowens-S Mount with Prolock
Power Draw	1600W	1440W
App Control	Yes	Yes
Battery Plate	No	No
Weight	36.37 lb / 16.5 kg (excluding yoke)	33.99 lb / 15.42 kg

On paper, there is not a huge difference between the two fixtures when it comes to the power draw physical size, and weight. The Godox does have a host of other operating features that the Aputure doesn’t such as Gels, RGBW modes, etc. It also has a far greater CCT range.

Photometrics

So now let’s get to the photometric results. I always test lights in this way so that I get a reference to how they compare to other fixtures. Results only tell part of the story and should never be used alone to judge a light. I have found from extensive testing over the years that certain lights that have good photometric results don’t always look good, and lights that have worse photometric scores can sometimes look better than their results indicate.

You can’t judge a light from one set of photometric results. You have to look at all of the different results to be able to come to a conclusion. Judging a light on one set of results is like reading one chapter in a book and thinking you know the whole story.

Different lights can also look different depending on what camera you happen to be using.

Output & Color Temperature Accuracy

Godox claims that the MG1200R can output 21,300 Lux @3m / 9.9′ when set at 5600K and used with its 45° reflector.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Above you can see the claimed output at various CCT settings when the light is used open face and with the different reflectors, etc.

I tested the MG1200R at a variety of CCT settings with a Sekonic C-800 Spectrometer to find out how much output the light had and how accurate the CCT reproduction was. All readings are taken at a distance of 3m (9.9ft) in a controlled environment. The readings were all taken directly from the lighting source. In the case of using the light with a reflector, the readings were taken from the edge of those attachments. This is how I test all lights and this is why you will sometimes see a discrepancy between claimed figures and my measured figures.

So just how much output does it have and how CCT accurate is it? Well, let’s find out.

Open Face

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (open face)

Above you can see the STORM 1200x recorded an output of 6,780 lx (630 fc) when set at 5600K and used open face. That equates to 61,020 lx @1m / 3.3′. The reading of 6780 lx @ 3m / 9.9′ exceeded the claimed figures listed by Godox.

The light recorded a CCT reading of 5384K which was more than 200K from being correct.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 3200K (open face)

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 3200K in the open face configuration was 7470 lx (694fc), which was 10.17% more than it produced at 5600K. That output figure equates to 67,230 lx @1m / 3.3′.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded an almost perfect reading of 3211K.

Summary of results (Open Face)

SETTING	OUTPUT @3m	CCT READING
2500K	5800 lx	2484K
3200K	7470 lx	3211K
4500K	7040 lx	4388K
5600K	6780 lx	5384K
6500K	6460 lx	6212K
8000K	6150 lx	7552K
10000K	5810 lx	9551K

These results show me that the light’s output varies by 22.22% depending on what CCT temperature you are using.

The CCT accuracy across the range was a bit of a mixed bag. At 2500K and 3200K it was excellent, but then it started to fall off at 4500K and above. Just a quick spoiler alert, the light seems to have been optimized for CCT accuracy when used with the reflectors.

So, let’s have a look at how the output @3m / 9.9′ compares to the Aputure STORM 1200x, Aputure LS 1200d Pro, and NANLUX Evoke 1200.

Open Face

	Output at 5600K	CCT (K)
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	6780 lx	5384K
Aputure STORM 1200x	10,800 lx	5393K
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	4484 lx	5517K
NANLUX Evoke 1200	4489 lx	5377K

As you can see the Aputure STORM 1200x has a lot more output than any of these other lights, but it also has a very narrow 80° beam angle.

45° Reflector

So, now let’s see how much output the light has when used with its wide beam 45° reflector in its Max. Output mode.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector)

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K with the 45° reflector was 23,600 lx (2190 fc) @3m 9.9′. This was 248% more than the 6780 lx it produced at 5600K when used open face. It is important to note that this measurement was made from the end of the reflector.

If we use the inverse square law the light is able to produce 212,400 lx @1m / 3.3′.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a very accurate reading of 5572K. The CCT accuracy when using the wide reflector was a lot better than when the light was used open face.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 3200K (45° Reflector)

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 3200K with the 45° reflector was 25,800 lx (1810 fc) @3m 9.9′, which was just 9.32% more than what it output at 5600K.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a very good reading of 3151K.

Summary of results (45° Reflector)

SETTING	OUTPUT @3m	CCT READING
2500K	19,800 lx	2504K
3200K	25,800 lx	3251K
4500K	24,500 lx	4524K
5600K	23,600 lx	5572K
6500K	22,600 lx	6448K
8000K	21,500 lx	7901K
10000K	20,500 lx	9788K

These results show me that the light’s output varies by 23.25% depending on what CCT temperature you are using.

The CCT accuracy across the range was very good from 2500K to 8000K. The CCT was no more than 99K off being correct from 2500-8000K.

So, let’s have a look at how the output compares to the Aputure STORM 1200x, Aputure LS 1200d Pro, and NANLUX Evoke 1200.

Reflector 45°

	Output at 5600K	CCT (K)
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	23,600 lx	5572K
Aputure STORM 1200x	20,300 lx	5571K
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	16,000 lx	5592K
NANLUX Evoke 1200	16,000 lx	5353K
NANLUX Evoke 1200B	18,570 lx*	NA
Nanlux Evoke 900C	12,940 lx*	NA

*Claimed output. Not independently tested.

These lights were tested under the exact same conditions so you get a real-world, honest assessment of how the lights compare when used open face and when used with reflectors that have a similar beam angle. Now, you need to factor in that the power draws are different, and some of these lights are daylight only. Please note that my measurements are always made from the end of the reflector and not from the COB and that is why my measured figures will sometimes be lower than those of quoted manufacturer figures. You can see that above where the claimed output of the Evoke 1200B is higher than the measured output I got when testing the daylight-only Evoke 1200.

So what about if we compare it to an HMI light like the ARRI M18?

As a comparison, an ARRI M18 and HMI 1200W SE, when used at 38 degrees, puts out around 18,056 lx at 3m / 9.9′.

Ok, what about using an 1800W lamp bulb in the ARRI M18? Well, as you can see, the output at 3m when used at 38 degrees is 24,056 lx.

What this tells me is that the MG1200R has a similar output to an ARRI M18 HMI 1800W SE when similar beam angles are used. Now, comparing HMI’s to LED lights is a bit of a slippery slope and not an apples-to-apples comparison, but it does give you an indication of how bright the MG1200R is.

What about if we change the Color Gamut?

The light has the ability to change the Color Gamut it operates in. I did a couple of quick tests to see if anything changed. For all of the previous tests, the light was set in its Standard Gamut.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector) Rec.709

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K with the 45° reflector and in the Rec.709 Gamut mode was 23,700 lx (2200 fc) @3m 9.9′, which was just 100 lx more than what it output in the Standard Gamut mode.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a very good reading of 5579K, which was only 7K different from what it recorded in the Standard Gamut mode.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector) DCI-P3

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K with the reflector and in the DCI-P3 Gamut mode was 23,700 lx (2200 fc) @3m 9.9′, which was identical to the output in the Rec.709 Gamut mode.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded an excellent reading of 5579K which was identical to what it recorded in the Rec.709 Gamut mode.

What these results tell me is that the light’s CCT accuracy and output don’t get affected when using the light in the different Gamut settings.

Various Fan Modes

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector) Fan Medium

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K in its Medium Speed Fan mode with the reflector was 16,400 lx (1530 fc) @3m 9.9′. This was 30.05% less than the 23,600 lx it produced at 5600K when used in its Auto or High Speed Fan modes. Godox states that the light can only operate at a max of 70% output when used in the Medium Speed fan mode and I found this to be accurate.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a very accurate reading of 5617K. The CCT accuracy when using the light in its Medium Fan speed setting was slightly better than when using it in its High Speed or Auto fan setting.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector) Fan Off

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K with the reflector and used in the Fan Off mode was 2410 lx (224 fc) @3m 9.9′. This was 89.78% less than when used in the High Speed or Auto fan settings. Godox states that the light only operates at 10% of its max output when the fan is set to Off, and I found that to be accurate.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a reading of 5522K.

High-Speed Mode

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R has a little trick if you want even more output. If you use the light in the High-Speed Mode you can squeeze out a few more lux.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector) High-Speed Mode

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 5600K with the wide reflector in the High-Speed Mode was 27,100 lx (2160 fc) @3m 9.9′, which was 14.83% more than what it output at 5600K with the High-Speed Mode turned off.

The caveat of using the High-Speed Mode is that you do take a hit on CCT accuracy. The light recorded a reading of 5421K which wasn’t as good as the 5572K it recorded when the High-Speed mode was turned off.

CCT consistency & linear output when dimming the light

Now, what you should always do when testing lights is to see if the CCT remains consistent when dimming the light. Just because you set a light at say 5600K, that doesn’t mean that the CCT will remain stable as you start dimming the fixture down. I also wanted to see how linear the dimming curve was.

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R has several dimming modes as I previously mentioned earlier in the review.

I decided to do a series of tests at 100%/75%/50%/25%10% to see if the CCT being recorded changed. This was performed at a distance of 3m / 9.9′ using a Sekonic C-800. These tests were done at 5600K with the 45° reflector and the light set in its Linear dimming mode.

CCT READING	OUTPUT	INTENSITY %
5572K	23,600 lx	100
5619K	17,700 lx	75
5656K	11,700 lx	50
5632K	5950 lx	25
5517K	2390 lx	10

The MG1200R had good CCT consistency as you start dimming the fixture. My testing showed that the CCT readings varied by just 84K from 100% to 25%. This shows me that the light retains reasonably good CCT consistency even when you dim it down, but once you get below 25% it does start to drift.

As far as how linear the output is when you start dimming the light, at 50% output it had 50.42% less output than when used at 100%. At 25% it had 74.78% less output than when used at 100%. At 10% output, it had 89.87% less output than when used at 100%. This shows me that the light’s dimming curve is very linear.

Color Rendering

So now that we have seen how much output the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R produces, how does it perform when it comes to replicating accurate colors?

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector)

Above you can see that when the light was set at 5600K using the Wide reflector it recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 94.9 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 92.92. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded 91.5 for R9 (Red), 93.0 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 95.9 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones). These are ok results. R11 (Green) and R12 (Blue) were both under 90.

	EXTENDED CRI	R9	R13	R15
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	92.92	91.5	93.0	95.9
Aputure STORM 1200x	97.34	95.5	97.9	98.4
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	94.50	91.8	98.2	98.8
NANLUX Evoke 1200	95.13	95.2	98.3	99.4
Prolycht Orion 675 FS	96.73	98.2	98.9	98.4

As a comparison, above you can see how the results for the MG1200R compare to some other similar lights we have reviewed. I have also included the very good Prolycht Orion 675 FS as another reference. What surprised me was how much better the new Aputure STORM 1200x was in this comparison than the MG1200R when used at 5600K.

The MG1200R, when set at 5600K, recorded a TLCI score of 93.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 3200K (45° Reflector)

Above you can see the scores for when the light was used at 3200K. It recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 96.1 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 95.03. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded 93.7 for R9 (Red), 95.9 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 98.9 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones). Just like at 5600K, both R11 (green) and R12 (Blue) were below 90.

These results were better than when the light was used at 5600K.

The MG1200R, when set at 3200K, recorded a TLCI score of 92. This is not a great score.

	EXTENDED CRI	R9	R13	R15
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	95.03	93.7	95.9	98.9
Aputure STORM 1200x	93.52	94.4	93.3	97.2
Prolycht Orion 675 FS	94.19	79.0	96.5	93.2

As a comparison, above you can see how the results for the MG1200R compare to some other similar lights we have reviewed. I have also included the very good Prolycht Orion 675 FS as another reference.

The MG1200R was very good at 3200K and it outperformed the Aputure STORM 1200X.

Open Face

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (Open face)

Above you can see that when the light was set at 5600K used open face it recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 94.8 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 92.84. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded for R9 92.1 (Red), 92.8 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 95.8 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones). Again, these were decent results, but both R11 (Green) and R12 (Blue) were below 90.

	EXTENDED CRI	R9	R13	R15
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	92.84	92.1	92.8	95.8
Aputure STORM 1200x	97.36	95.9	97.9	98.6
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	94.36	91.8	98.1	99.0
NANLUX Evoke 1200	95.18	97.2	98.5	99.3

As a comparison, above you can see how the results for the MG1200R compare to some other similar lights we have reviewed.

The MG1200R, when set at 5600K, recorded a TLCI score of 93.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 3200K (Open face)

Above you can see the scores for when the light was used at 3200K. It recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 96.0 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 95.04. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded 94.6 for R9 (Red), 95.8 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 99.0 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones). These were good results, and better than when the light it set at 5600K. R11 and R12 were both below 90.

The MG1200R, when set at 3200K, recorded a TLCI score of 91.

The light definitely performs better at 3200K than it does at 5600K, and this is the case with most LED fixtures.

	EXTENDED CRI	R9	R13	R15
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R	95.04	94.6	95.8	99.0
Aputure STORM 1200x	93.52	95.1	93.1	97.2

As a comparison, above you can see how the results for the MG1200R compare to the Aputure STORM 1200x.

The MG1200R was very good at 3200K and it slightly outperformed the Aputure STORM 1200X.

How does it perform when creating saturated colors?

I also wanted to test the MG1200R to see how it performed when creating super-saturated colors.

0° – RED

Above you can see that the light recorded an output of 4040 lx / 376 fc @3m / 9.9′.

As far as creating an accurate 0° RED, the MG1200R was 1 degree off with a reading of 1°.

120° – GREEN

Above you can see that the light recorded an output of 6440 lx (598 fc) @3m / 9.9′.

As far as creating an accurate 120° GREEN, the MG1200R was spot on with a 120° reading and 100% saturation.

240° – BLUE

Above you can see that the light when trying to create a 240° BLUE recorded an output of 1840 lx (171 fc) @3m / 9.9′.

As far as creating an accurate 240° BLUE, the MG1200R was 1 degree off with a reading of 241°, with 100% saturation.

60° – YELLOW

Above you can see that the light recorded an output of 8300 lx (771 fc).

As far as creating an accurate 60° Yellow, the MG1200R was 5° off with a reading of 55°.

Because the light is RGBWW and not RGBACL it is going to struggle to recreate some fully saturated colors such as yellow accurately.

CC Index & ⊿uv

The CC Index displays the CC correction value and whether any magenta or green need to be added or subtracted. 1 CC corresponds to 035 Kodak CC values or 1/8 Rosco filter values. Any reading less than +1.00 or -1.00 and you’re probably not going to need to make any kind of adjustment. The ⊿uv is the value to show how much this light is away from being an ideal light source (black body radiation = incandescent lamp). As with the CC Index you want this number to theoretically be zero. Kelvin is not a linear value, so we need to convert from Kelvin to MK-1 to compare the values of color temperature. To calculate from Kelvin to Mired is MK-1= 1*1000000/Kelvin. While this may sound confusing, it is the only way of measuring if the Kelvin shift is significant enough to warrant having to use a filter for correction. Below are the results for the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R:

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R Kelvin Vs MK-1

	Kelvin	Difference in K	MK-1	Difference in MK-1
SET VALUE	2500K	0	400	0
ACTUAL READING	2504K	4	399.36	0.64 MK-1
SET VALUE	3200K	0	312.5	0
ACTUAL READING	3252K	51	307.50	5.00 MK-1
SET VALUE	4500K	0	222.22	0
ACTUAL READING	4524K	24	221.04	1.18 MK-1
SET VALUE	5600K	0	178.57	0
ACTUAL READING	5572K	28	179.46	-0.89 MK-1
SET VALUE	6500K	0	153.84	0
ACTUAL READING	6448K	52	155.08	-1.24 MK-1
SET VALUE	8000K	0	125	0
ACTUAL READING	7901K	99	126.56	-1.56 MK-1
SET VALUE	10000K	0	100	0
ACTUAL READING	9798K	202	102.06	-2.06 MK-1

These figures might look confusing, but what they tell me is that the light is extremely CCT color-accurate at all temperatures. Any MK-1 score that is under -9/9 means you wouldn’t have to use any color correction gels. The MK-1 scores for this light were excellent. Any MK-1 score that is under -6/6 is a very good result.

Ok, now let’s look at the CC INDEX & ⊿uv.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R CC INDEX & ⊿uv

	CC INDEX	⊿uv
2500K	0.4G	-0.0018
3200K	0.0	-0.0012
4500K	0.0	-0.0010
5600K	0.2G	-0.0011
6500K	0.2G	0.0009
8000K	0.2G	0.0031
10000K	0.5G	0.0035

These were good results across the board. There was nothing here that anyone should be concerned about.

TM-30

TM-30 is a relatively new color rendering standard that was developed to deal with the limitations of CRI. TM-30 looks at 99 individual colors. These 99 colors are categorized into seven groups: nature, skin color, textiles, paints, plastics, printed material, and color systems.

TM-30 scores go from 0 – 100. The higher the score, the more accurate a light is at producing colors. Any TM-30 Rf score in the ’90s is considered to be good. What is interesting and something that you need to be very aware of is that two separate light sources with the exact same CRI scores can render colors very differently. A light with a high CRI rating could have a low TM-30 score. Conversely, a light with a good TM-30 score could have a bad CRI score.

Now, there are two measurements associated with TM-30, Rf and Rg.

Rf (Color Fidelity)
Rg (Color Gamut)

With Rf value, ideally, you want a score in the 90’s.

With Rg value, a score below 100 indicates that the light source renders colors with less saturation than the reference source. So ideally you want this score to be 100 or slightly above.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Above you can see the scores for the MG1200R at various CCT settings. Below I have listed the figures as well.

Here are the results:

	Rf	Rg
2500K	83	108
3200K	94	102
4500K	93	101
5600K	92	101
6500K	91	101
8000K	90	99
10000K	89	98

The TM-30 scores are all good from 3200K to 6500K. It shows me that the light is pretty consistent at replicating accurate colors with full saturation. At 2500K it wasn’t so good and it was overly saturating colors.

SSI

SSI (Spectral Similarity Index) was developed by the Sci-Tech Council of the Academy. SSI gives me the ability to set any light as a standard, or use predefined standards (such as CIE D55), and then give other lights an SSI score based on how well they will match standards such as CIE D55. This way I can measure spectral response and compare it directly against an ideal light source. This is actually a much better test than recording CRI scores, but it won’t tell you everything you need to know.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 3200K (45° Reflector)

In this graph, the red bars indicate a perfect Planck 3200K source. The gold bars indicate a perfect 3200K Tungsten source. This lets us compare how close to a perfect 3200K lighting source the MG1200R is. Any SSI score in the high 70’s, low ’80s is very good for a 3200K LED light. The results for the MG1200R were good when used at 3200K.

Above you can see a comparison using the Aputure STORM 1200x. In this graph, the red bars indicate a perfect Planck 3200K source. The gold bars indicate a perfect 3200K Tungsten source. This lets us compare how close to a perfect 3200K lighting source the Aputure STORM 1200x is. Any SSI score in the high 70’s, low ’80s is very good for a 3200K LED light. The results for the Aputure STORM 1200x were excellent when used at 3200K.

Godox KNOWLED MG1200R 5600K (45° Reflector)

In the graph above the gold bars indicate a perfect CIE D55 source. The red bars indicate a perfect CIE D 5600K source. This lets us compare how close to a perfect 5600K lighting source the MG1200R is. A score in the low 70’s is typical for a 5600K LED source, the MG1200R recorded a score of 67 which wasn’t very good.

Aputure STORM 1200x 5600K Max. Output Mode (Wide reflector 45°)

Above you can see a comparison using the Aputure STORM 1200x. In the graph above the gold bars indicate a perfect CIE D55 source. The red bars indicate a perfect CIE D 5600K source. This lets us compare how close to a perfect 5600K lighting source the Aputure STORM 1200x is. A score in the low 70’s is typical for a 5600K LED source, the STORM 1200x recorded a score of 88 which was exceptionally good. The reason for this great score has to do with the Indigo emitter in the BLAIR light engine. You can clearly see that the STORM 1200x is able to produce colors below 450nm whereas most lights can’t.

It wasn’t the highest SSI score at 5600K I have ever recorded, but it was pretty close.

SSI Comparisons

The main reason we want to record SSI scores is so we can see how well they match with other lights. As an example, I wanted to see how well the MG1200R matched the ARRI Orbiter and the Aputure STORM 1200X. Below you can see the results.

As you can see neither light is anywhere even vaguely close to matching the MG1200R. Any score in the high ’80s and low 90s would be considered reasonably good, but a score in the 70s would make matching these lights a little more tricky.

As another test, I thought I would compare those same lights against the MG1200R at 3200K. Below you can see the results.

As you can see, the ARRI and the Aputure were a reasonably close match to the MG1200R. Very few lights from different manufacturers are ever going to be an exact match.

Let’s now do a test where we compare the light against the Godox Litemons LA200R and LA300R. As these are both RGBW lights made by the same company, they should, in theory, be a pretty close match.

As you can see, the light wasn’t a perfect match to the LA200R and LA300R when used at 3200K, however, a score in the 90s is still pretty good.

As you can see, at 5600K, the light was a slightly better match to the LA300R and LA200R.

SSI tests are a great way of telling you what lights you own or use will work well together.

Spectral Distribution

5600K

Above you can see the spectral distribution of the MG1200R when it is set at 5600K. The spectral distribution isn’t very full, especially for a full color fixture. The light also has quite a noticeable green spike,

As a comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Aputure STORM 1200x when it is set at 5600K. The spectral distribution is reasonably full, and you can clearly see the extra blue spike which is the result of the Indigo emitter in the BLAIR light engine. You can see the extra information that is between 380-420nm which you don’t see on other fixtures.

If you want to see what a really good full spectral response looks like for a spotlight at 5600K, above is the result for the Maxima 3.

3200K

As a comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the MG1200R when it is set at 3200K. The spectral distribution isn’t very full and it has a noticeable push towards green.

As a comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Aputure STORM 1200x when it is set at 3200K. The spectral distribution only has a very marginal push towards green, but overall it is reasonably good.

As a comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the 600c Pro when it is set at 3200K. The spectral distribution only has a very marginal push towards green, but overall it is very good.

Real-World Performance & Quality of Light

As I always say, photometric scores only tell you part of the story. So let’s find out if the scores from the MB1200R translate into good real-world performance.

The photometric results can only give me scientific data and it is much more important for me to see how the light looks and performs. Contrary to popular belief, if you are in the business of making lights you don’t want to try and achieve perfect scores because perfect scientific scores don’t necessarily equate to a light looking good. A good light should look good to a camera because, after all, that is what is capturing the image. Cameras and our eyes see differently and ideally, you want to use a light that looks good to your camera. There’s a bit of alchemy in knowing what to prioritize in order to render colors that appear accurate, natural, and pleasing. It’s not just about hitting certain numbers.

It is important to note that almost all of the LED lights that have come to market in the last couple of years are very good and they can all produce good results. Just because something is new doesn’t necessarily mean it is better, nor does it mean that you have to throw your older lights out.

Lighting really comes down to how you use the light and having a great light isn’t suddenly going to produce better results unless you know what you are doing.

One of my primary aims when testing the light was to see how the RGBW light engine performed, especially when used as a daylight source. Most modern-day LED lights perform well at 3200K, but not as well at 5600K.

• 

• 

Above you can see a test where the light was set at 5600K and I have set the camera at a preset 5600K WB and also done a manual WB so you can see the differences. With the camera set at a preset 5600K WB the light certainly leans magenta. With a camera WB it leaned very slightly green.

• 

• 

Above you can see another test where I did the same exact thing, but this time at 3200K. The light certainly performs better when it is set at 3200K.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Above you can see some photos I had the light at the top of some stairs around a corner and I took images at the bottom of the stairs. I have kept the camera settings the same for all of the shots. This is to give you an indication of output.

I found that by using a softbox you could create a very soft lighting source without needing to punch it through a diffusion screen. This makes it a very quick and easy light to use for interview situations or for any scenario where you need soft light.

You will very rarely need to run a light with a 1600W power draw at anywhere near 100% in interview situations in controlled environments, but it is nice to have that extra punch for other shooting scenarios. If you are looking primarily for an interview light then this is overkill and much lower power draw lights would be arguably a lot better to use.

• 

• 

• 

• 

I also tried placing the light outside and punching it through a curtain sheer and then through another diffusion screen and it worked well. I am not using any other lights for these examples. Using a high output fixture and punching it through quite a bit of diffusion enables you to create a nice soft light source.

The light has a ton of output so it is also a good choice if you want to replicate sunlight coming into a room.

I also wanted to test the dimming to see how well it worked. I set up a small test where I ran the light at 0.1%.

Even at this very low level, the CCT reading was still a decent 5248K when the light was set at 5600K and placed 3m / 9.9′ away. If you wanted to achieve a CCT that was closer to 5600K you could simply dial in something closer to 6000K to obtain that.

Fresnel

If you want a Fresnel to use with the MG1200R, Godox has the GF14 Fresnel Lens which costs $899 USD.

Godox BeamLight Max60 Reflector for MG2400Bi, MG1200Bi & MG1200R (G-Mount)

Godox also has the BeamLight Max60 Reflector which is a more compact, lightweight, and affordable version of the BeamLight reflector.

The BeamLight Max60 Reflector is a light shaper that comes with a G-mount for full compatibility with the MG2400Bi, MG1200Bi, and MG1200R LED fixtures. Similar to the separately available Max90, the Max60 is capable of providing an ultra-narrow beam angle of 5° to turn your Godox LEDs into parallel light sources.

Who is the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R aimed at?

This is a high output and high power draw fixture that could be used for lots of different applications, by lots of different people. However, it is pretty clear that it is being targeted at professionals in the TV and film industry.

It is on the expensive side, and its price arguably makes it more appealing to gaffers who own their own equipment and some mid to high-end owner-operators who are looking for a full-color fixture with a lot of output. The ability to use the light as a soft source, hard source, or anything in between makes it an appealing option. As I said before, this is not going to be a light for everyone as not everyone needs a high output, high power draw fixture.

Price & Availability

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R retails for $4,990 USD.

• 

• 

• 

• 

You can also buy it in the following configurations:

• Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight (Carry Bag Kit) $5,190 USD
• Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight (Hard Case Kit) $5,390 USD
• Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight (Flight Case Kit) $5,290 USD
• Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight (2-Light Kit) $9,975.75 USD

Competition

• 

Competition arguably comes in the form of the Nanlux Evoke 900C RGB LED Spot Light, Aputure STORM 1200x, and Nanlux Evoke 1200B LED Bi-Color Spot Light. It’s important to remember that the STORM 1200x and Evoke 1200B don’t have a lot of the same operating modes as you will find in full color spotlights like the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R or Nanlux Evoke 900C.

Below you can see how the price compares to some of the competition. I have included some other similar power draw spotlights as there isn’t a lot of competition in this space.

	Price
Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight	$4,990 USD
Aputure STORM 1200x	$2,999 USD
Nanlux Evoke 1200B LED Bi-Color Spot Light	$3,895 USD
Aputure LS 1200d Pro	$3,389.95 USD
Nanlux Evoke 900C RGB LED Spot Light	$4,660 USD

The price of the Aputure STORM 1200x makes it a lot more affordable than other competing fixtures on the market, but as it isn’t actually considered a full color fixture it is hard to say its direct competition is the Godox KNOWLED MG1200R RGB LED Monolight. Arguably the closest competition is probably the Nanlux Evoke 900C RGB.

Conclusion

The Godox KNOWLED MG1200R is a solid offering and it is currently the only full color fixture on the market at this power draw, and that does make it stand out.

The build quality is good and the weight is reasonably manageable for a light with this power draw. The fixture has a ton of output and the CCT accuracy is very good when using the light with its included reflector. The Kelvin Vs MK-1, CC INDEX & ⊿uv scores were very good, as was the CCT accuracy when dimming the fixture.

The output is pretty consistent across the key CCT settings, however, the TLCI, and SSI scores were not great, and I expected more for a $5,000 USD fixture.

The operating system and app are reasonably basic, but they get the job done.

Godox has done a good job with the MG12200R and if you need a ton of output from a full color fixture then it is worth looking at.