SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P 450W RGBW LED Light Review

The SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P 450W RGBW LED Light is a high-power 2×1 RGBW panel fixture with a CCT range of 2700K to 10000K. It is being billed as a lower-cost alternative to lights such as the ARRI SkyPanel S-60C, Creamsource Vortex8, Litepanels Gemine 2×1, and the Rotolight Titan X2.

The fixture features calibrated red, green, blue, and white LEDs (RGBW) which allows it to produce white light in any CCT from 2700K to 10000K. It is claimed to be able to produce vivid, saturated colors.

The Caster C02P is part of SUNNYXIAO’s ”Caster” series which comprises of LED panel lights that go from 220W all the way up to 1500W.

I will mention this multiple times in the review, but the SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P was primarily designed to be an ARRI SkyPanel S60-C alternative. If you owned a SkyPanel and wanted a spare or additional unit and couldn’t afford another one, then you could get one of these. If you were a rental house with a large fleet of SkyPanels and you wanted some additional lower-cost units that could be used along with SkyPanels, then these would also work. However, in saying that, a rental house could have a hard time convincing someone to rent a brand they have never heard of before, regardless of how well it matches a SkyPanel.

The price of the SkyPanel has gone up over the last 8 years and they are substantially more than they were when they were first announced. The other issue is that some very good 2×1 lights have also come to market in recent years that actually have more features, better output, and better color rending scores than a SkyPanel. SkyPanels tend to look good with ARRI cameras, but they don’t look as good when using some other camera brands.

2×1 panel lights have arguably lost some of their popularity over the last few years among owner/operators, as they have tended to shift to more versatile COB-style fixtures. At least in my opinion, there is still very much a place for 1×1 and 2×1 panel lights because they can be used used as a hard light to bounce or push through diffusion, or as a soft light with a light modifier. 2×1 panels are still immensely popular on TV shows and movies and also in studios.

So let’s get on with the review. Every review I do on Newsshooter is independently done and every product gets the exact same treatment regardless of who makes it or where it comes from. I hadn’t heard of SUNNYXIAO before, but I am not going into the review with any preconceptions of what to expect.

You should never judge a book by its cover and just because a light may be manufactured by a company I have never heard of before, it will still go through the same testing and evaluation that I put every light through.

High Output?

According to SUNNYXIAO when used at 5600K the Caster C02P puts out 13,104 lux at a distance of 1m (3ft). At 3 meters (9.8ft) you get an output of 1,456 lux.

These are decent enough numbers for a 2×1, however, I will test the output claims later in the review.

Size & Weight

There is no way of sugar-coating the fact that like most 2×1 fixtures, this is a heavy light. The fixture itself weighs in at 12.5 kg / 27.55 lb.

The power supply is incorporated into the light so there is no additional power supply that you need to attach. While I like panel lights with built-in power supplies, it does make the actual light a lot heavier and you, therefore, need to make sure that you use heavy-duty light stands.

The light has two built-in handles which make it easy to carry and pick up.

How does this weight compare to some other similar style 2×1 RGBW lights?

	WEIGHT*
SUNNYXIAO C02P	12.5 kg / 27.55 lb.
Creamsource Vortex8	15.6 kg (34.39 lb)*
ARRI S60-C Skypanel	17 kg (37.47 lb)
Rotolight Titan X2	14.3 kg (31.52 lb)**
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	10.1 kg (22.26 lb)
Luxli Taiko	8.96 kg (19.75 lb)
Velvet EVO 2	7.57 kg (16.7 lb)**
Nanlux Dyno 650C	15.8 kg (34.8 lb)

*Weight includes power supply and yolk frame.

** With standard yoke

As you can see, the SUNNYXIAO C02P is lighter than a Creamsource Vortex8, ARRI S60-C Skypanel, Rotolight Titan X2, and Nanlux Dyno 650C, but it is heavier than a Litepanels Gemini 2×1, Luxli Taiko, and Velvet EVO 2.

Build Quality

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The SUNNYXIAO C02P is very well-made and put together. While the build quality maybe isn’t quite as good as an ARRI SkyPanel, Rotolight Titan X2, or Creamsource Vortex8, I think most users will be more than happy with it.

The light certainly looks the part and I think it would stand up to repeated field use. The exterior coating on the surface is very well protected and the light isn’t going to get scratched up and look horrible after a few years of use.

A lot of the external shell of the fixture is made out of some sort of Aluminium or similar material. It also does feature an IP23 weather protection rating so it can be used in light drizzle.

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On the ends of the fixture, there are hard plastic components. This also allows you to place the fixture down on the ground without having it fall over. This is a small feature, but a welcome one.

The connectors, dials, and switches are ok, but they aren’t quite as tactile as some of the other high-end 2×1 lights I have reviewed.

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The last 2×1 light that I reviewed was the Creamsource Vortex8 and the attention to detail was very evident. That fixture was built like a tank. The Rotolight Titan X2 and ARRI S60-C SkyPanel are also beautifully made. This is what you need to strive for if you want to go head-to-head with high-end fixtures.

The SUNNYXIAO C02P’s yoke frame is nice and robust and it features a single locking mechanism on the right-hand side. This locks down securely and the light will not move once it is tightened.

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Now, here is where I encountered a slight issue that I am sure would frustrate a lot of potential buyers. When the light turned up, the junior pin wasn’t attached to the yoke frame, so you need to install it. The problem is to do so you need a rather large Allen key that most people won’t have. SUNNYXIAO doesn’t include one with the light, so if you don’t happen to have one then you need to go purchase or order one. SUNNYXIAO also doesn’t tell you what size Allen key it is. First impressions matter, especially to people who may have no experience with your brand.

Companies like Litepanels and Creasource give you the specific tool you need with the light for this very reason.

The standard yoke allows for mounting to a combo stand with a standard junior pin receiver.

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The problem with the SUNNYXIAO is when it comes to the operating range once you have a softbox or other similar lighting modifier installed. The range of motion, especially when tilting the light down becomes very small because the softbox ends up hitting the yoke frame. Lights such as the ARRI SkyPanel S60-C and Rotolight Titan X2 have the option to attach a Center Mount Yoke which gives you a lot greater versatility in position and angeling your fixture.

My other small complaint is that the included power cable is too short. SUNNYXIAO should have included a cable that was at least 5m long.

SUNNYXIAO does provide a 3-year warranty and after-sale service for their lights. I am not sure if they have a presence outside of China so if you did run into any issues, depending on where you are located, you would probably have to send the light back to China for repair.

Design

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The SUNNYXIAO C02P certainly looks reasonably similar to the Litepanels Gemini 2×1, however, there are quite a few differences. There are only so many ways you can make a 2×1 panel, and that is why so many of them share similar design traits.

Cooling & Power

High power draw, high output RGBW lights create an awful lot of heat and that heat needs to be dispersed. The SUNNYXIAO draws 450W.

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There are two fans inside the unit and you can set the fans to the following settings:

• OFF
• LOW
• AUTO
• HIGH
• FULL

The fans do make noise when they are running. In the OFF mode, the light will run at 100% output, however, once it reached 65°C the fans kicked in and they are quite loud for around 20 seconds until the temperature goes back to below 65°, and then once it reaches 65° again, the fans come back on. I would have preferred to have seen a system where the output was limited in certain fan modes so this doesn’t happen.

Above you can hear what this sounds like.

Above you can listen to just the audio

In the LOW fan mode it is reasonably quiet, and to be honest, It didn’t sound any louder than when the fan was turned off. Again, I left the light on for a considerable amount of time to see what would happen. Just like in the OFF mode, once it reached 65°C the fans kicked in and they are quite loud for around 20 seconds until the temperature goes back to below 65°, and then once it reaches 65° again, the fans come back on.

In HIGH fan mode, it is reasonably loud and it would not be suitable for audio capture nearby.

In the AUTO mode, the fan is almost always on. I let the light on in a normal room at 100% output for a few hours because I wanted to see how loud the fans got or if there was any noticeable change during that time. There is nothing worse than setting a light in Auto mode only to find that halfway through an interview it suddenly starts making a lot of noise. The fans do get quite loud when the light is used for long periods of time at 100% output. Even before the light reaches 65°C the fans kick in and generate too much noise for my liking. The fan level is the equivalent of setting the light’s fan mode to HIGH. I personally felt that I would want to have the light at least 3-4 meters away from where the audio was being recorded.

In the FULL mode, it is slightly louder than the HIGH fan mode.

The fan noise and lack of output limitations when using them mean that the fan noise isn’t consistent. This is certainly an issue and one I would like to see addressed. Nobody wants to use a noisy light, especially in environments where critical audio is being recorded.

To be fair to SUNNYXIAO, a lot of the 2×1 high-powered panels that I have tested in the past have also been noisy.

As far as power is concerned, the light can handle any 95-260V AC / 22~36V DC input and it can run at 100% brightness from that DC input.

As I mentioned earlier the light draws 450W, which makes it fairly similar to what most other 2×1 RGBW fixtures draw. Below you can see a comparison between the SUNNYXIAO and other competing fixtures:

	POWER DRAW
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	450W
Creamsource Vortex8	650W
ARRI S60-C Skypanel	450W
Rotolight Titan X2	420W
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	325W
Luxli Taiko	250W
Velvet EVO 2	200W
Nanlux Dyno 650C	650W

Can you run it via a battery?

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The SUNNYXIAO can be run directly from a 48V regulated DC battery source without the need for additional hardware. The fixture is
also able to hot-swap between AC and DC power sources and is capable of running at 100% brightness while being powered by a battery. The battery must have sufficient capacity to continuously power the fixture with a current draw of 13.5A.

The biggest issue here is that the fixture is using a weird DC power connector that I have never come across before and therefore none of the options I own would work to power this via a battery.

Solutions such as the Gen Energy 48v Monster kit and BlockBattery D800 could work with the right cable.

Controls

The SUNNYXIAO C02P features fairly intuitive and easy-to-use controls. There is a nice little color LED display that lets you see what you are navigating or making changes to. The issue I have is that it’s extremely reflective and I found if I was using the light in bright conditions or near a window I had trouble seeing the screen.

There are also 6 direct-press buttons. Four of them are for accessing CCT, HSI, GEL, and EFFECT modes. The other two are for MENU and LOCK.

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The only problem with having the controls and display screen on the bottom side of the light is that they are almost impossible to see and access unless you have the light at a height of around 6′ and above. This is the same complaint I had when I reviewed the Litepanels Gemini 2×1. I personally would have preferred to have seen the controls on the back of the light, however, with a lot of 2×1 lights that featured integrated power/supply controllers I can see why that isn’t easy to do because of the position of the fans and cooling systems.

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The screen display is fairly straight forward and it only shows you what you need to see. You navigate the menus and make changes by using a combination of buttons and dials. Above you can see some of the menu items that are available.

I like how you can scroll through the various operating modes and they are represented by easy-to-understand graphic illustrations.

The main menu isn’t overly complicated and it allows you to change various operational aspects of the fixture quickly and easily. Like most lighting interfaces it does take a little bit of time to get familiar with it.

While I don’t mind the user interface, it isn’t nearly as intuitive and easy to use as the Rotolight Titan X2 which I still think has the gold standard, at least for 2×1 fixtures.

The light also gives you options for changing the dimming curve.

RGBW

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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, and RGBACL. The SUNNYXIAO is only RGBW. This is the same as the ARRI SkyPanel. The Litepanels Gemini and the Rotolight Titan X2 use RGBWW.

Operating Modes

The SUNNYXIAO CO2P has the following operating modes:

• CCT
• HSI
• RGBW
• XY
• Gel
• Effect

Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) Mode

This is the mode most people are going to use the light in.

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In the CCT Mode, you have full access to making CCT adjustments between 2700K-10,000K. These adjustments can be made in increments of 50K. I would have liked to have seen more finite control when making CCT color temperature adjustments.

The fixture also has continuously 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. CCT adjustment also helps when you are trying to match lights from different manufacturers.

The CCT range is fairly good, but there are other competing options that offer a larger range.

HSI Mode

The HSI mode lets you create just about any color you can think of. It gives you full hue and saturation control as well as intensity. By manipulating, the hue and saturation you can create some really interesting colors that depending on the project you are working on can really add some creative flair. I quite like using this mode to create a lot of color separation between the foreground and background, or for recreating a really cold or warm-looking image.

There isn’t any color display underneath the Hue setting to help you with selecting the color you want. Colors are represented as degrees from 0-360 and you can mix from red (0 degrees) to green (120 degrees) through to blue (at 240) degrees and back to red (at 360 degrees).

RGBW Mode

In his mode, you have full control over how much Red, Green, Blue, and White are being used. This way you can mix various color combinations to achieve a certain color you are after.

XY Mode

In this mode, you can create colors by changing the X and Y coordinate axis. This gives you more finite control for creating colors than using the HSI Mode.

The only trouble with the way this is being displayed on the SUNNYXIAO is that there is no visual color reference when you are adjusting the X and Y axis separately with dials.

Gel Mode

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Inside the fixture, there is a large array of standard gels from Lee and Rosco. Unfortunately, as you scroll through them you won’t get any real-time preview. You have to select one first to see what it looks like.

Having built-in Digital Gels not only means that you don’t have to physically carry gels around, but you can also quickly and easily replicate popular gels. Using the gel mode can help you match other lighting sources, especially if you are working with other lights with physical gels.

Unlike some other 2×1 RGBW lights from Litepanels and Rotolight, the SUNNYXIAO doesn’t feature source modes such as tungsten, candlelight, HMI, sodium vapor, fluorescent, etc. In some regards, I personally find these more useful than the gels.

Effect Mode

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The FX mode does not appear along with the other modes, however, you can access it directly by pressing the button next to the FX marking on the LCD display. Why it isn’t just accessible along with the other modes is a little strange.

Above are the options you have.

Presets

The light doesn’t seem to have any way of saving presets to it. This is a bit of an oversight as most other competing lights on the market have the ability to do this.

What does the SUNNYXIAO offer that its competition doesn’t?

Most of today’s RGBW lights all seem to have the same or very similar feature sets. In fairness there is probably only so much you can do with current technology. We have arguably almost reached a point where LED lights have started to plateau out. Even the really cheap LED lights now produce pretty accurate colors. What ultimately separates LED lights is build quality, usability, and versatility.

If you are going to compete in what is arguably a 2×1 ARRI-dominated market, you need to come up with something that people have been requesting or make your product a lot more affordable. In all honesty, the SUNNYXIAO CO2P doesn’t offer anything unique that no one else is doing. Sure, they have made the CASTER series to try and replicate a SkyPanel in terms of color response, but I don’t personally think that replicating an 8-year-old light is creating any type of innovation.

Look, there is nothing wrong with coming out with a light that has a similar feature set to a lot of other lights on the market, but the 2×1 panel market has evolved in recent years and lights like the Rotolight Titan X2 and Creamsource Vortex8 are offering features that no one else does.

It is best to think of the SUNNYXIAO CO2P as a low-cost alternative to something like an ARRI SkyPanel S-60C or Litepanels Gemini 2×1.

Connectivity

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The SUNNYXIAO CO2P features Wi-Fi, Art-Net, Wired DMX, and Wireless DMX.

ColorExpress App

SUNNYXIAO does make a ColorExpress app that you can use to wirelessly control any of the CASTOR series fixtures. The biggest issue I had is that I couldn’t find the app anywhere to download.

Accessory Slot

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On the front of the light, there is a locking slot that you can use to remove the diffusion panel or to add accessories such as barn doors.

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I found this very difficult to originally open and I had to use a lot of force to do so. At least in my opinion, this should be easier to do, because I was worried I might end up breaking something if I pulled too hard. On the positive side, because it locks down so securely there is no chance of the diffusion panel coming out.

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Once it was opened you can take out the diffusion panel or insert accessories.

This rail system works well and it makes mounting accessories easy.

Beam Angle

Unlike the Rotolight Titan X2 which uses SmartSoft technology so the beam angle can be changed from 68 degrees to 150 degrees, and the Vortex8 where you can use the included Creamsource Diffusion panel, or optional Dome to change the beam angle from 20 to 60 degrees, the SUNNYXIAO CO2P has a beam angle of 110° with the diffusion panel, and 100° when it is removed.

Below you can see what the standard beam angle is of other competing lights:

	Beam Angle
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	110 degrees
Creamsource Vortex8	20 degrees
Rotolight Titan X2	68 degrees to 150 degrees
ARRI SkyPanel S60-C	115 degrees
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	93 degrees
Razyr MC MAX 400	120 degrees
Lupo Superpanel 60 Full Color	115 degrees
Luxli Taiko 2×1 RGBAW	76 degrees
Velvet EVO 2	115 degrees
Nanlux Dyno 650C	160 degrees

As you can see, the SUNNYXIAO CO2P has a beam angle of 110 degrees. This type of beam angle is reasonably common for 2×1 style RGBW lights that are on the market, but just like a lot of fixtures, you can change that with various lighting modifiers.

Who is it aimed at?

The SUNNYXIAO CO2P is primarily being targeted at anyone in the film or TV industry that is looking for a 2×1 panel, especially someone looking for a lower-cost option that replicates the spectral response of an ARRI SkyPanel.

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 should never judge a light based on one particular set of tests. You need to look at all of the data to get a comprehensive idea of how a light performs.

Different lights can also look different depending on what camera you happen to be using. You should never judge a light based on one particular test. You need to look at all of the data to come up with an accurate conclusion.

Output & Color Temperature Accuracy

I tested the SUNNYXIAO CO2P 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 1m (3.28ft) in a controlled environment.

5600K

5600K (Diffusion Panel)

Above you can see the SUNNYXIAO recorded an output of 13,600 lx (1260 fc) when set at 5600K and run off mains power. This was higher than the 13,104 lx that is quoted by the manufacturer.

This is a good output from a 2×1 RGBW fixture, especially one with a 110 degree beam angle.

The light recorded a CCT reading of 5704K which was around 100K off being correct.

Ok, let’s now see how much extra output there is if you remove the diffusion panel.

5600K (No Diffusion)

Above you can see the SUNNYXIAO recorded an output of 14,300 lx (1330 fc) when set at 5600K and used without its included diffusion panel. This was only 5.14% more output than when it was used with the diffusion panel.

This shows me that the diffusion panel being used in the light isn’t very strong, because the output difference and beam spread are almost exactly the same whether it is used or not.

The light recorded a CCT reading of 5634K which was an excellent result. This is also showing me that the included diffusion panel is slightly altering the CCT, but not by any big noticeable difference.

I found that if I set the light to 5300K I got a reading of 5648K. This is the benefit of owning something like the Sekonic C-800. You can get measurements and then make adjustments to your light.

How does this compare to some other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed? Now, I am comparing all of these lights with diffusion panels being used. This is the only way to get some type of accurate comparison based on beam angles.

	Output at 5600K
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	13600 lx
Creamsource Vortex8	10200 lx*
Rotolight Titan X2	10500 lx (50% SmartSoft diffusion)
ARRI S60-C SkyPanel	10900 lx
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	9970 lx
Luxli Taiko	7880 lx (medium diffusion)
Rayzr MC MAX 400	10400 lx

* Using the included 60-degree Diffusion panel.

As you can see, the SUNNYXIAO actually had the most output, but you need to factor in that the diffusion panel is not actually doing that much compared to diffusion panels used on other competing fixtures.

With the Rotolight Titan X2, I worked out that if you use 50% SmartSoft Diffusion the beam angle is around 110 degrees.

Just as another reference both the Kino Flo FreeStyle 21 and Kino Flo Diva-lite 20 both put out 2409 lx at 5600K.

As far as an accurate rendition of creating a 5600K source here is how some of the other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed fare:

	CCT (when set at 5600K)
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	5704 0.0
Creamsource Vortex8*	5983K 0.0
Rotolight Titan X2	5689K 0.1M
ARRI S60-C SkyPanel	5708K 0.0
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	5460K 0.0
Luxli Taiko	5510K 0.0
Rayzr MC MAX 400	5621K 0.4M

*Using the included diffusion panel

The SUNNYXIAO was certainly able to hold its own against some of the bigger players in the industry when it came to CCT accuracy when used at 5600K. Again, look at how similar the SUNNYXIAO is to the SkyPanel. Please remember that one set of results doesn’t tell you the whole story about any light.

5600K (with optional softbox)

Above you can see the SUNNYXIAO recorded an output of 7,320 lx (680 fc) when set at 5600K and used with its included diffusion panel and optional softbox.

This is still a good amount of output when you need a very soft, diffused source.

The light recorded a CCT reading of 5692K which was a decent result. This is also showing me that the optional soft box is only slightly altering the CCT, but not by any big noticeable difference.

3200K

3200K (Diffusion Panel)

Above you can see the light’s output when it was set at 3200K using the diffusion panel was 14,700 lx (1360 fc), which was 8.08% more than the 13,600 lx it produced at 5600K.

As far as CCT accuracy goes, it recorded a pretty decent reading of 3304K.

3200K (No Diffusion)

Above you can see the SUNNYXIAO recorded an output of 15,300 lx (1420 fc) when set at 3200K without its diffusion panel being used. This was just 4.08% more output than when it is used with the diffusion panel.

The light recorded a Kelvin color temperature reading of 3331K which was ok, and fairly similar to when it was used with the diffusion panel.

Again, let’s compare it to some other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed:

	Output at 3200K
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	14700 lx
Creamsource Vortex8	8830 lx*
Rotolight Titan X2	13500 lx (no diffusion)
ARRI S60-C SkyPanel	10400 lx
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	8970 lx
Luxli Taiko	7820 lx (medium diffusion)
Rayzr MC MAX 400	8540 lx

*With 60-degree Diffusion panel being used

Just as another reference both the Kino Flo FreeStyle 21 and Kino Flo Diva-lite 20 both put out 2409 lx at 3200K.

Again, it is a little hard to read too much into this, because the diffusion panel being used on the SUNNYXIAO is not very strong.

As far as an accurate rendition of creating a 3200K source here is how some of the other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed fare:

	Kelvin Color Temperature (when set at 3200K)
SUNNYXIAO CO2	3304K 0.3M
Creamsource Vortex8	3242K 0.0
Rotolight Titan X2	3246K 0.0
ARRI S60-C SkyPanel	3225K 0.1M
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	3249K 0.4M
Luxli Taiko	3171K 0.0
Rayzr MC MAX 400	3300K 0.5M

When the CCT is set at 3200K all of these lights are pretty accurate, although the SUNNYXIAO recorded the worst reading. In saying that, 3304K is hardly a terrible score.

How does it perform at various CCT Settings?

Summary of results 

	OUTPUT	CCT READING
2700K	14,300 lx	2768K
3200K	14,700 lx	3304K
4500K	14,100 lx	4677K
5600K	13,600 lx	5704K
6500K	13,400 lx	6724K
8000K	13,200 lx	8172K
10000K	12,600 lx	10249K

These results show me that the light’s output is pretty consistent at most CCT settings, but it has the most output when used at 3200K. The light’s output varies by 16.6% across the 2700K to 10000K range.

The results also show me that the light is reasonably accurate at most CCT settings, although it does start to struggle a little bit once you get to 6500K and above.

In saying that, it is fairly easy to fine-tune the SUNNYXIAO if you really do want to get more spot-on CCT readings.

RGBW Output

With most RGB lights if you use them to generate or create colors the output gets massively reduced. So how does the SUNNYXIAO fare?

I decided to do a test to see how much output the light had when I created a super-saturated 360-degree Red.

Above you can see that when it was in the HSI mode, choosing a 360-degree saturated red, and set to 100% output, the light recorded 5540 lx. This is something you need to be clearly aware of when using RGBW and HSI modes. The output is going to be significantly lower than when using the light in CCT mode. In saying that, the SUNNYXIAO still managed to generate quite a lot of output in its HSI mode.

CCT consistency when dimming the light

Now, what you should always do when testing lights is to see if the CCT readings remain 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 decided to do a series of tests at 100%/75%/50%/25%/10% to see if the CCT being recorded changed. This was done at a distance of 1m using a Sekonic C-800.

INTENSITY	CCT READING
100%	5704K
75%	5808K
50%	5796K
25%	5731K
10%	5682K

The SUNNYXIAO is able to maintain reasonably good CCT consistency as you start dimming the fixture. My testing showed that the CCT only varied by 104K. These are good results and it shows me that you can dim this fixture down without having to worry about any big noticeable changes in CCT shift.

How linear is the output?

With lights, it is important to check how linear the dimming curve is. So let’s check out how the SUNNYXIAO performs when it is used in its Linear Dimming Curve mode.

INTENSITY	OUTPUT
100%	13,600 lx
75%	10,300 lx
50%	7000 lx
25%	3690 lx
10%	1650 lx

At 50%, the fixture produces 48.52% less output than when it was used at 100%. At 25% it has 72.86% less output than when it was used at 100%. This tells me that the light’s dimming curve is pretty linear.

Color Rendering

5600K (Diffusion Panel)

So now that we have seen how much output the SUNNYXIAO produces, how does it perform when it comes to replicating accurate colors? Above you can see that when the light was set at 5600K it recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 95.4 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 92.83. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded for R9 92.1 (red), 95.2 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 97.3 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones). These are reasonably good results, however, R4, R9, R11, and R12 were all below 90.

The light, when set at 5600K, recorded a TLCI score of 91. This is one of the lowest TLCI scores I have seen from any light I have tested in the last few years.

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Above you can see a color checker chart (yes, it has seen some better days!) that has been shot with the light set 5600K. The first is with a preset 5600K WB being used, and the second is with a WB done. As you can see, in the real world, the SUNNYXIAO produces a pretty accurate light source when used at 5600K. If anything, it is slightly cooler.

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Above you can see the difference between the two shots on scopes. They are very, very close. This shows me that in the real world when you use the light at 5600K it can produce very good results, regardless of what the photometric data says.

How do the color rendering scores compare to some other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed when used at 5600K? Below you can see:

	Average CRI	Extended CRI
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	95.4	92.83
Creamsource Vortex8	96.2	94.24
Rotolight Titan X2	96.8	95.21
ARRI SkyPanel S60-C	95.7	92.92
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	95.2	93.24
Luxli Taiko	97.6	95.8
Rayzr MC MAX 400	95.3	92.96

All of these lights perform well at 5600K, but the SUNNYXIAO had the lowest extended CRI score. In saying that, it isn’t that far behind and users would prob struggle to see any noticeable difference. Again, the score is very close to the ARRI Skypanel.

3200K (Diffusion panel)

Above you can see the scores for when the light was used at 3200K. It recorded an average CRI (R1-R8) of 95.3 and an extended CRI (R1-R15) of 93.78. For replicating accurate skin tones it recorded 88.3 for R9 (red), 96.4 for R13 (closest to caucasian skin tones), and 98.8 for R15 (closest to Asian skin tones).

These results were better than when the light is used at 5600K, however, R4, R9, R11, and R12 were all below 90.

The light, when set at 3200K, recorded a TLCI score of 85. Again this was not a good score and it was the lowest TLCI result I have seen in the last few years.

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Above you can see a color checker chart that has been shot with the light set 3200K. The first is with a preset 3200K WB being used, and the second is with a WB done. As you can see, in the real world, the SUNNYXIAO does lean a little green when used at 5600K.

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Above you can see the difference between the two shots on scopes. You can certainly see how much more accurate the image was after doing a WB. This shows me that in the real world when you use the light at 3200K it certainly needs correction.

How do the color rending scores compare to some other 2×1 RGBW lights that we have previously reviewed when used at 3200K? Below you can see:

	Average CRI	Extended CRI
SUNNYXIAO CO2P	95.3	93.78
Cteamsource Vortex8	97.1	95.82
Rotolight Titan X2	95.9	94.27
ARRI SkyPanel S60-C	96.1	94.06
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	97.2	95.3
Luxli Taiko	97.7	96.8
Rayzr MC MAX 400	90.6	88.64

The Creamsource, Rotolight, Litepanels, and ARRI fixtures are all very close when it comes to color rendering scores. The Luxli Taiko has the highest extended CRI score at 3200K that I have recorded from a 2×1 RGBW light. The results for the SUNNYXIAO were decent and they were pretty close to most of the other fixtures I have tested.

Thoughts

I was a little surprised that the SUNNYXIAO didn’t score better in these color rendering tests as it is a brand-new light, and it should be utilizing the latest technology. If you look at the SkyPanel S60-C which was announced almost 8 years ago and the Litepanels Gemini 2×1 which was announced back in September 2017 they have color rendering scores that are fairly similar.

On the positive side, if you want a light that comes pretty close to replicating the color rendering of an ARRI SkyPanel, then this light is certainly a good option. For instance, if you had a SkyPanel and you wanted a backup light or an additional light and couldn’t afford another SkyPanel, this would work.

It is also important to note that the ARRI SkyPanels don’t score particularly well in photometric tests. So why do so many productions still use them? Well, one of the main reasons is that they are mapped to work well with ARRI cameras. I think what SUNNYXIAO is trying to do here is to replicate the spectral response and color rendering of a SkyPanel.

What you clearly need to understand, and I want to continue to stress this point, is that all lights react differently to different camera and sensor combinations. One particular light may look better with an ARRI camera, and another light may look better with a Canon camera, etc.

It is also important to keep in mind that just because a light doesn’t score well in photometric tests, doesn’t necessarily mean it looks bad in the real world.

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 SUNNYXIAO.

Kelvin Vs MK-1

	Kelvin	Difference in K	MK-1	Difference in MK-1
SET VALUE	2700K	0	370.37	0
ACTUAL READING	2768K	68	361.27	9.1 MK-1
SET VALUE	3200K	0	312.5	0
ACTUAL READING	3304K	104	302.66	9.84 MK-1
SET VALUE	4500K	0	222.22	0
ACTUAL READING	4677K	177	213.81	8.41 MK-1
SET VALUE	5600K	0	178.57	0
ACTUAL READING	5704K	104	175.31	3.26 MK-1
SET VALUE	6500K	0	153.84	0
ACTUAL READING	6724K	224	148.72	5.12 MK-1
SET VALUE	8000K	0	125	0
ACTUAL READING	8172K	172	122.36	2.64 MK-1
SET VALUE	10000K	0	100.00	0
ACTUAL READING	10249K	249	97.57	2.43 MK-1

These figures might look confusing, but what it tells me is that the light is not as Kelvin color accurate as it could be at most temperatures. Any MK-1 score that is under -9/9 means you wouldn’t have to use any color correction gels. The scores at 2700K and 3200K were not great.

The MK-1 scores for this light were pretty good at 5600K and above. Ideally, you want your MK-1 score to be +/- 6 and below. In saying that, these are just technical scores and technical data doesn’t always reflect real-world performance.

CC INDEX & ⊿uv

	CC INDEX	⊿uv
2700K	0	0.0008
3200K	0.2M	0.0014
4500K	0.2M	0.0022
5600K	0	0.0012
6500K	0	0.0027
8000K	0.3G	0.0028
10000K	0.6G	0.0029

The ⊿uv scores were decent for this light. It has slight color pushes at 3200, 4500K, 8000K, and 10,000K, but they are minor and nothing you need to 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. If it is above 100 that means it is oversaturating that particular CCT value.

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Above you can see the scores for the SUNNYXIAO at various CCT settings.

Here are the results:

	Rf	Rg
2700K	91	106
3200K	93	104
4500K	93	103
5600K	92	104
6500K	91	101
8000K	90	100
10000K	89	99

The Rf and Rg scores are reasonably consistent for the light.

If we look at how well the light replicates a fully saturated Red, you can see above that it is able to produce 100% saturation, however, the Hue was 3 degrees instead of 360 degrees.

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 upon 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.

3200K

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 SUNNYXIAO is. Any SSI score in the ’80s is very good for a 3200K LED light. The SUNNYXIAO recorded a pretty low score of 74. As you can see, LED lights have a hard time replicating colors below about 450nm.

As a comparison, above you can see the same scores for the Rotolight Titan X2.

5600K

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 SUNNYXIAO is. A score in the low 70’s is typical for a 5600K LED source. The light, just like at 3200K didn’t have very good SSI scores. Low 60’s is not a good result and it is the worst I have seen since I started recording SSI scores.

Again, as a comparison, above you can see the same scores for the Rotolight Titan X2.

The main reason we want to record SSI scores is so we can see how well they match with other lights. As a test, I was curious to see how well the SUNNYXIAO matched relatively new fixtures such as the ARRI Orbiter and the Nanlite 720B. Below you can see the results.

As you can see neither light is close to being a perfect match to the SUNNYXIAO and you would need to do a lot of fine-tuning to the lights to try and get them to match more closely. The SUNNYXIAO was a closer match to the Nanlite 720B than it was to the ARRI Orbiter.

Ok, so now let’s do that same comparison at 3200K.

As you can see the light is a slightly better match to the ARRI and Nanlite when used at 3200K.

SSI tests are a great way of telling you what lights you own or use will work well together. Having a device like the Sekonic C-800 lets you get the data you need to be able to fine-tune your lights to get them to more closely match.

Spectral Distribution

5600K

Above you can see the spectral distribution of the SUNNYXIAO when it is set at 5600K. The spectral distribution is not very full and there is a big green spike.

As a comparison, above you can see the spectral response of the ARRI S60-C SkyPanel. It is pretty clear to see that SUNNYXIAO is trying to mimic the spectral response of the SkyPanel as you can see that it is almost identical.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Titan X2 when it is set at 5600K. The spectral distribution is reasonably full and there aren’t any big spikes.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Vortex8 when it is set at 5600K. As you can clearly see the light has quite a full spectrum, however, there is a large green spike.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Litepanels Gemini 2×1 when it is set at 5600K. The spectral distribution is very similar to the Rotolight Titan X2.

3200K

Above you can see the spectral distribution of the SUNNYXIAO when it is set at 3200K. The spectral distribution is not very full and there is a big green spike.

As a comparison, above is the spectral distribution of the ARRI S60-C SkyPanel when it is set at 3200K. Again, It is pretty clear to see that SUNNYXIAO is trying to mimic the spectral response of the SkyPanel.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Vortex8 when it is set at 3200K. Again, there is a noticeable green spike.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Titan X2 when it is set at 3200K. The spectral distribution has a slight push towards green and it’s also missing some color information in parts of the spectrum. Although, with +/- Green adjustment you could easily correct this.

As another comparison, above you can see the spectral distribution of the Litepanels Gemini 2×1 when it is set at 3200K. As you can see, the Litepanels has a much fuller spectrum when used at 3200K.

Real-World Performance & Quality of Light

As I always say, photometric scores only tell you part of the story. So do the scores from the SUNNYXIAO translate into real-world performance? The photometric data can only give me scientific data and it is much more important for me to see how the light looks and performs.

The included diffusion panel does a reasonably good job of softening the light, even though it is not very strong diffusion. The Diffusion Panel does do enough that you won’t get multiple-point source shadows.

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Above you can see the difference between the shadows the light creates when used with and without its diffusion panel.

The included diffusion panel is super easy to use and by incorporating two drop-in filter slots, SUNNYXIAO allows you to modify the light source in various ways. As far as I am aware, they also sell optional intensifier panels

You can use the softbox with the diffusion filter to create a nice soft, even source. If you add the optional grid you can also restrict the spill coming from the light.

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Above you can see a quick example of what the light looks like when I placed it outside a window and blasted it through a sheer curtain. Unlike most COB-style fixtures it isn’t going to be able to provide a ton of the light for applications like this, but it will still get the job done in some situations if you just need to bring up the levels slightly.

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Above you can see an example of how much output the light has if I just punch it directly into a room. For this type of application, it works well and it is more than capable of creating a broad spread of light with a decent amount of softness.

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The SUNNYXIAO also works well if you indirectly bounce it into a ceiling or bounce board, etc.

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Above you can see what it looks like if I punch it directly into a wall.

Pricing & Availability

The SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P retails for $3,339 USD. This certainly isn’t cheap, but is more affordable than options from ARRI, Creamsource, Rotolight, and Litepanels.

Below you can see how the price compares to the competition.

	Price
SUNNYXIAO CASTER CO2P	$3,339 USD
Creamsource Vortex8	$5,499 USD
Rotolight Titan X2	$3,499 USD*
ARRI SkyPanel S60-C	$6,820 USD
Litepanels Gemini 2×1	$4,465 USD
Lupo Superpanel Soft Full Color 60	$2,698 USD
Rayzr MC MAX 400	$1,649 USD*
Luxli Taiko 2×1 RGBAW	$1,549 USD
Kino Flo FreeStyle 21	$1,870 USD
Kino Flo Diva-lite 20 DMX	$2,188.75 USD
Velvet EVO 2	$3,877.40 USD
Nanlux Dyno 650C	$4,070 USD

*Currently on special at the time of this review.

At $3,339 USD it is cheaper than an ARRI S60-C Skypanel, Rotolight Titan X2, Litepanels Gemini, Creamsource Vortex8, etc., but it is considerably more expensive than lights such as the Lupo Superpanel Soft Full Color 60 and Luxli Taiko 2×1 RGBAW.

Here is my issue, while the SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P may be a lot more affordable when compared to an ARRI S60-C SkyPanel, you can currently get a Rotolight Titan X2 for just $100 USD more, and that is a better light with more accurate color rendering and a host of features that the SUNNYXIAO doesn’t have. This makes it a hard sell for a company that isn’t well-known outside of China. If you are relatively unknown in certain markets then to attract customers you need to be offering something that offers better features than the competition or undercuts them significantly when it comes to price. The cold hard truth is that the SUNNYXIAO doesn’t do either. Sure it closely mimics a SkyPanel, but that’s an 8-year-old fixture that isn’t using modern-day tech.

Accessories

SUNNYXIAO sells quite a large array of accessories for the CO2P. These range from lighting modifiers to barndoors. Above you can see what is available.

Specifications

Conclusion

The SUNNYXIAO CASTER C02P is a solidly made 2×1 RGBW panel with a good amount of output and a relatively easy-to-use interface. Its color rendering scores are generally ok, but its SSI scores were some of the lowest I have seen. In saying that, the light actually performed well at 5600K when used in the real world, despite the bad SSI scores.

The way the fan noise changes in different modes is certainly its Achilles heel. Again, as I said earlier in the review, there is nothing that this light offers that nobody else is doing. While there is certainly nothing wrong with that, I still feel like the light needs to be priced lower for potential buyers to choose it over more established brands.

Look, I don’t want to sound overly negative because, in the real world, the light does perform well. It has a good amount of output and it can create a nice soft source when used in combination with lighting modifiers.

On the positive side, if you want a light that comes very close to replicating the color rendering of an ARRI SkyPanel, then this light is certainly a good option. I do, however, feel that SUNNYXIAO has put all of its eggs in one basket because you are essentially making a light that was designed to mimic a SkyPanel, but there are so many other better 2×1 panel lights that have come along in the last 8 years.