GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light 2-Light Kit Review: Great for Accent Lighting, Light Painting, and Adding Fun to Your Next Party!

GVM (Great Video Maker) offers a line of assorted products for videographers and photographers that are often aggressively priced compared to the competition while providing similar features and overall quality. These include monolights, tube, panel, flexible, and pocket lights. They also produce camera sliders, wireless microphones, teleprompters, and other accessories. In this review, we are testing the 24″ GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light 2-Light Kit. As per its name, this kit includes two light wands as well as several accessories that are optional when buying the Single Kit.

As per its name, the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light 2-Light Kit includes two light wands and several accessories that are optional when buying the Single Kit. This specific two-light kit is not listed on the GVM website but is available on the GVM Amazon Store.

The BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Light Wand is a new addition to the GVM line-up of tube lights and is the least powerful at 25W. Other models include the BD45R (45W) and the BD100D (30W).

The BD25R targets a cross-section of the video-making market. It is intended to be suitable for broadcast and studio photography to add fill light and color accents. Due to its smaller size, it is also very suited to video creation for YouTube in light painting, for example.

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What’s in the Box:

• GVM (24′) BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Light Wand (2x)
• GVM NP-F750 4400mAh Battery (4x)
• Battery Charger (4x)
• Power Adapter (2x)
• Hard Shell Rolling Carrying Case
• Softgrid GVM-BD25R-Softbox
• Variable Angle Connector GVM-Pro-BDA1
• Angle Connector GVM-Pro-BDA2
• Eye Screw Suspension Nut (2x)
• Hexagonal Wrench (2x)
• Limited 1-Year Manufacturer Warranty

As previously mentioned, the two-light kit ships with many optional accessories, some of which are specific to this kit.

The first item that you see upon opening the box is a large weather-resistant rolling case, similar to those made by Pelican. Inside the compartmentalized foam interior, you find the two light sticks, two softboxes, and, amongst some mounting hardware, four NP-F750 batteries and four chargers.

It is an impressive amount of gear for the price.

Removing one of the light sticks, you notice the sturdy feel of the body, which is quite elegant, in red anodized aluminum and black plastic. The lights are just over 47″ inches long and weigh just over 3.5 pounds.

The entire front of the light is a white plastic shell. On either end of the light stick is a rubberized pad with a photography industry standard ¼” 20-threaded holes, which can be converted to 3/8″ using the chute adapter.

The GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Lights can be mounted to tripods, feet, light stands, and each other using an available array of mounting hardware.

The two-light kit ships with three pieces of hardware, the Variable Angle Connector GVM-Pro-BDA1, the Angle Connector GVM-Pro-BDA2, and two Eye Screw Suspension Nuts. These will be very handy if you plan to connect or hang the lights.

What does not come in the kit are feet or connectors that facilitate mounting the lights to light stands.

Photos on the GVM website show very handsome-looking feet mounted to the light sticks, but I could not find them for sale on the site or the GVM Amazon store. I could also not find the light stand adapters for sale on either site. However, this is not much of an issue as these are standardized elements that can be easily purchased elsewhere.

Product photos in this review include small black metal tripods sold by a different manufacturer for under $20 each. I was also able to purchase light stand adapters for less than $10 each. Even so, it seems a missed opportunity for GVM not to offer these accessories on its own website.

Continuing from right to left on the back of the light stick is a DC jack adjacent to the DMX input jack. DMX (Digital Multiplex) is a lighting industry protocol that controls groups of lighting devices.

DMX signals are unidirectional and daisy chain from the first fixture to the last. Using DMX, it is possible to link multiple lights together and control the network for different production environments.

Adjacent to the DMX input is the control panel, which features a power button that doubles as the play/pause key, an OLED display screen with a large viewing angle and low power consumption, and four buttons: the mode key, the toggle key, and the plus and minus keys.

Using these four keys, users can navigate and select from the various menus that provide access and control of the light’s many functions.

A mounting support with 3/8″ and ¼” interfaces is in the middle of the light sticks.

On the opposite end of the light are two battery compartments, each with its own locking button. At the very end of the light is a DMX output jack.

The BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Light Wand can be powered by two GVM NP-F750 4400mAh Batteries or the included DC power adapters.

Full-Color Handheld Light Sticks

The newly upgraded GVM BD25R handheld stick light is a full RGB+WY five-color light source. The more colors reproduced in a light’s color gamut, the wider the range of colors that the light source can accurately produce. The BD25R achieves a high color rendering index of CRI 97+ & TLCI 97+.

This means the light can provide a wide range of lighting effects, from natural to vivid. The design of the RGBWY LED array enables even mixing within the beam to ensure solid coverage without separation.

GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light Brightness

The RGB LED light board uses 300 LED beads with illuminance as high as 465 lux at 1m and 1630 lux at 0.5m. This, combined with the color accuracy that the light provides, makes it very useful for accent and fill lighting for various use cases. GVM states that the lights are useful for live broadcasts, outdoor use, studio photography, and creating YouTube videos.

While this is all true, one downside of this smaller, less powerful light is that the drop-off is significant.

I recently tried to use the light sticks as accent lights in a daylight gallery space and found that they were not nearly bright enough to wash the walls with colored light. Using the lights in spaces where natural light is more controlled, the effects are much more significant and useful.

The BD25R features an active cooling system that facilitates efficient heat dissipation, helping maintain stable performance and prolong the life of the light stick.

Stepless Dimming

Another advantage of the GVM-BD25R is the ability to adjust its output brightness from 1% to 100% in 1% increments, which means that you can adjust the light to exactly the amount of light you need with great color accuracy. This also allows users to match the exact lighting setup from previous shoots more easily.

Color Modes

The GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light’s CCT (Correlated Color Temperature) mode allows for accurate adjustment of the color temperature of white light from a warm 2700K to a cool 10000K to match any lighting condition.

Green and magenta correction in CCT mode allows fine-tuning the matching with other light source types such as HMI, LED, or fluorescents. It also enables precise color balancing for different camera sensors.

HSI (Hue, Saturation, Intensity) Mode enables fine-tuning specific colors by controlling their vibrancy and intensity. This method offers 36 million adjustable colors.

RGB (Red, Green, Blue) Mode allows for adjusting the output of red, green, and blue light separately, enabling exact color matching across the entire spectrum.

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Scene Lighting Effects

As with other products in the brand’s line, the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Lights offer 12 scene modes (Disco, Party, Lightning, Candle, Bad Bulb, Explosion, Cop Car, Hue Loop, Paparazzi, CCT Loop, Pulsing and TV) that can be used for stage productions, party lighting or in this case light painting.

In these effects, the entire light stick simulates different lighting situations.

As the BD25R light sticks fall somewhere between professional lighting and a playful tool, it is unsurprising that some features, such as the scene lighting effects, may seem unnecessary for professional use. However, they do provide additional uses that lights designed solely for studio use do not.

Pixel Lighting Effects

The GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light has six-pixel lighting effects (wave, rolling, rainbow, meteor, block game, and ping pong), enabling various types of color flow across the light stick. Each effect’s parameters, such as background color, color block moving speed, and movement direction, are controllable via the menu or the companion app.

Optional Softboxes

As mentioned earlier, the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light Two-Light Stick Kit ships with some optional accessories, including softboxes. The Softgrid GVM-BD25R-Softboxes are made of ripstop nylon and attached to the light sticks using hook and loop straps.

When combined with the softboxes, the output of the BD25Rs is more easily directed and managed, making it more useful in many professional situations.

I found these to be an excellent addition to the package and would recommend their purchase if you intend on using these lights for portraiture or studio shooting.

The GVM LED App

The controls on the body of the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light provide access to the various functions of the light. Users can toggle through the categories, select attributes or effects, and make whatever changes are desired.

The graphic interface of the free GVM LED App makes controlling the lights much easier and more intuitive. It is possible to control and coordinate many lights simultaneously using the app.

The app is available for iOS and Android and can be found by searching either app store. It is also downloadable via the QR code found in the User Guide.

Pairing the light is simple. First, navigate the menu to the Wireless settings and set the Bluetooth reset to “Yes,” then open the app and click “Add Device.” I found that the light was added quickly and then appeared in the list of “My Devices.”

From this point, the app is similar to the menus on the light’s body. When selecting the GVM-BD25R from the list, the app provides seven options: CCT, RGB, HSI, Effects, Pixel FX, Rhythm Effect, and Custom Effects.

The CCT option allows for adjusting the color temperature and brightness, either manually or using the presets, as well as changing the Dimming Curve.

The RGB and HSI screens provide two ways of selecting a color: from the palette or a list of common colors. Users can also define and save a collection of their own color selections.

The Effects menu offers access to 12 presets, as listed earlier. Once an effect is selected, options are presented to fine-tune each. Similarly, the Pixel menu provides access to the six motion effects, each with adjustable parameters.

The Rhythm effect turns the light sticks into the life of any party.

Using this effect, users can define a lighting effect that responds to sounds in the room. The tube lights can change color and intensity in response to the sounds in the room, or users can download and play songs directly from the app.

Specifications (Each Light Stick)

Using the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light as a Light Wand

With the proper mounting hardware, you can easily set up the tube lights to match any lighting needs. The app makes it quick and easy to make changes and dial in the exact amount and tone of light you need for any scene.

Changing the location, direction, and amount of light is just as easy to control, especially when using the softboxes.

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The GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Lights are not just intended for photography. They are equally useful for light painting, where their effects and pixel effects can create dramatic multicolor trails. Setting them up in a room where music is played will add a dancefloor feel to your next party.

Should You Buy the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light?

Do I recommend the GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light? My recommendation depends on your intended uses. The tube lights are excellent as accent lighting for portrait or product photography. They can add a dynamic touch to your next party and are bright and lightweight enough for light painting. However, they are not powerful enough to wash a wall in colored light during the day.

The GVM-BD25R Bi-Color RGB LED Tube Light (without softboxes) sells for $219.00; it is available directly from the manufacturer and other retailers, including Amazon. The GVM-BD25R Tube Light with Softbox 2-Pack sells for $439.99 and is available on Amazon.

Source: Manufacturer-supplied review samples

What I Like: High quality of light; Build quality; Fit and finish; Easy to use app; Many fun effects and features

What Needs Improvement: 25 watts is not strong enough for brightly lit rooms