Diode Dynamics SS3 LED Pods - Experience? (1 Viewer)

[MaverickFiveO]

Does anyone on here have experience with the new Diode Dynamics SS3 cubes? I've read good things (on here and elsewhere) about their low and high beam replacements, but a quick search yielded zilch about the pods.

I'm looking to replace my fog lamps with a pair of cubes on each side and trying to decide between brands. If Diode Dynamics can back up their performance claims, they look like the highest lumen output right now for cubes.

****UPDATE and TL;DR: This does work (just barely) and the performance is great.****

 

[Jstawgn]

I have Baja Designs Squadron Sport wide cornering and I wish I have SS3 Pro SAE Amber fog. They have better cutoff and much brighter. Contact @ambiguous if you need a deal on SS3.

Baja Designs S1 utilize same TIR optic technologies as Diode Dynamics SS3. S1 are much smaller and i think better for ditch light.

For white light I still prefer Baja Designs 5000k. Diode Dynamic 6000K are way too blue for me.

 

[ebbs15]

I have Baja Designs Squadron Sport wide cornering and I wish I have SS3 Pro SAE Amber fog. They have better cutoff and much brighter. Contact @ambiguous if you need a deal on SS3.

Baja Designs S1 utilize same TIR optic technologies as Diode Dynamics SS3. S1 are much smaller and i think better for ditch light.

For white light I still prefer Baja Designs 5000k. Diode Dynamic 6000K are way too blue for me.

Actually looking to make the move from the Baja Designs Pro's wide cornering to SS3 Pro's. I want 2 pair though, a pair of SAE Amber Fog, and Amber Driving. I'll be putting both in the spot for the factory fogs, and my Baja Designs up on Ditch brackets.

The Baja Designs pros are bright as hell, but there is no cut off... and I got flashed a lot in my F150 with them as the fog lights... I'd not installed them in the GX because I wanted a better solution, SS3 pro SAE fits that bill

 

[MaverickFiveO]

I have Baja Designs Squadron Sport wide cornering and I wish I have SS3 Pro SAE Amber fog. They have better cutoff and much brighter. Contact @ambiguous if you need a deal on SS3.

Baja Designs S1 utilize same TIR optic technologies as Diode Dynamics SS3. S1 are much smaller and i think better for ditch light.

For white light I still prefer Baja Designs 5000k. Diode Dynamic 6000K are way too blue for me.

Thanks! That's great info. I was planning to get DD SS3 Pro Amber fogs as fog light replacements (and wired to OEM switch) and then add Driving lights to the outboard positions (on a dedicated switch) next to the Ambers as a supplement to my high beams. I drive canyon roads a lot, so I am hoping the ambers help in snowstorms and the driving lights help broaden my illumination to watch for animals on the side of the road the rest of the time.

I'll reach out to @ambiguous

 

[yeos]

I thought about the DD SS3s, but couldn't find a definite measurement on overall height including the mounting bracket. I already had the Rigid SAE Selective Yellow lights on order so I went ahead and installed those. The room inside the OEM fog location is tight.

 

[se7enine]

I thought about the DD SS3s, but couldn't find a definite measurement on overall height including the mounting bracket. I already had the Rigid SAE Selective Yellow lights on order so I went ahead and installed those. The room inside the OEM fog location is tight.

View attachment 2195528View attachment 2195530

How is the adjust-ability? Any issues getting both lights level horizontally and vertically?

 

[MaverickFiveO]

I thought about the DD SS3s, but couldn't find a definite measurement on overall height including the mounting bracket. I already had the Rigid SAE Selective Yellow lights on order so I went ahead and installed those. The room inside the OEM fog location is tight.

I suppose I'll be guinea pigging this, then. The Baja Designs are 3.3" tall with bracket, the Rigids appear to be about 3.5" with the bracket, and I think the DD SS3 cubes are about 3.6 or 3.7" (based on the CAD of the bracket on the DD website). I might need to get a little creative if space gets tight.

 

[Jstawgn]

My squadron bracket are below the opening. I think it would be really hard to fit with the bracket in down position. You could easily make extension to hold the bracket behind the fog light surround.

 

[yeos]

How is the adjust-ability? Any issues getting both lights level horizontally and vertically?

It's a tight location to work with and there are ridges in the plastic that don't help with mounting. You just drill a hole in the plastic bumper wherever you want to mount the light, but make sure you have room to adjust before you drill.

The lights sit slightly unlevel so I "shimmed" one side of the mounting bracket with tape. With larger lights you can probably mount it closer to the outside edge of the bumper.

I suppose I'll be guinea pigging this, then. The Baja Designs are 3.3" tall with bracket, the Rigids appear to be about 3.5" with the bracket, and I think the DD SS3 cubes are about 3.6 or 3.7" (based on the CAD of the bracket on the DD website). I might need to get a little creative if space gets tight.

You may be able to mount the SS3 pods closer to the outside edge of the bumper for better clearance. I tucked my Rigids in because I like the way it looked better.

Before painting the inside area:

 

[ebbs15]

It's a tight location to work with and there are ridges in the plastic that don't help with mounting. You just drill a hole in the plastic bumper wherever you want to mount the light, but make sure you have room to adjust before you drill.

The lights sit slightly unlevel so I "shimmed" one side of the mounting bracket with tape. With larger lights you can probably mount it closer to the outside edge of the bumper.



You may be able to mount the SS3 pods closer to the outside edge of the bumper for better clearance. I tucked my Rigids in because I like the way it looked better.

Before painting the inside area:

View attachment 2195702

View attachment 2195704

Any issues with shaking of the lights since they're just mounted to the bumper? that's been my only worry as I've had it in the past with my lights moving over bumps and it drives me crazy while driving...

 

[yeos]

Any issues with shaking of the lights since they're just mounted to the bumper? that's been my only worry as I've had it in the past with my lights moving over bumps and it drives me crazy while driving...

The bumper is pretty solid in that location. I haven't noticed any shaking. You can always get creative with some aluminum and make some brackets to connect the top of the opening to the bottom to make it even more solid. You could even use a long unthreaded spacer to connect the bottom to the top.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Whatever happens, I’ll report back, here. I’ll post up all dimensions I can think off, any problems, solutions, and results end up with.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Reporting back:

With the brackets, the DD SS3 pods measure 3.75” tall and 3.3” wide. They do *just* fit after removing the fog housing. They will not fit in the housing, as some people have done.

Two will fit side-by-side with an overlap in the bezel.

I installed these last night (one on each side, so far) and will include a more complete install thread, but it’s pretty simple to remove the assembly housing and drop these in. The SS3 use a Deutsch connector. You can get an H11 (the GX plug) to Deutsch adapter for $10-15. If you plan to make this reversible or don’t like wiring work, that’d be a great option. I cut the H11 plug off the GX wires, took the included DD pigtails, and crimped on butt connectors.

As shown in the photo, go green to red, black-and-white to black. I then heat-shrinked (shrunk?) the connection to protect it.

These are wicked bright. I’ve also fuse-tapped the fogs, so I can turn these on without my low beams, and I could comfortably drive 30 mph in a snow storm last night with only these.

 

[yeos]

Reporting back:

With the brackets, the DD SS3 pods measure 3.75” tall and 3.3” wide. They do *just* fit after removing the fog housing. They will not fit in the housing, as some people have done.
View attachment 2205107
View attachment 2205108
Two will fit side-by-side with an overlap in the bezel.
View attachment 2205109
I installed these last night (one on each side, so far) and will include a more complete install thread, but it’s pretty simple to remove the assembly housing and drop these in. The SS3 use a Deutsch connector. You can get an H11 (the GX plug) to Deutsch adapter for $10-15. If you plan to make this reversible or don’t like wiring work, that’d be a great option. I cut the H11 plug off the GX wires, took the included DD pigtails, and crimped on butt connectors.
View attachment 2205115
As shown in the photo, go green to red, black-and-white to black. I then heat-shrinked (shrunk?) the connection to protect it.

These are wicked bright. I’ve also fuse-tapped the fogs, so I can turn these on without my low beams, and I could comfortably drive 30 mph in a snow storm last night with only these.

Looks good! I suppose if you needed more clearance to aim them higher you could oversize or elongate the adjustment holes on the mounting bracket just enough to allow the pod to sit lower.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Looks good! I suppose if you needed more clearance to aim them higher you could oversize or elongate the adjustment holes on the mounting bracket just enough to allow the pod to sit lower.

I actually thought about that, but they fit level and aim well. Also, the website has old pictures, I guess, because the brackets now come powdercoated black in the same texture as the pods. Pretty nice, actually, and I didn’t want to grind them if I didn’t have to.

 

[ebbs15]

Reporting back:

With the brackets, the DD SS3 pods measure 3.75” tall and 3.3” wide. They do *just* fit after removing the fog housing. They will not fit in the housing, as some people have done.
View attachment 2205107
View attachment 2205108
Two will fit side-by-side with an overlap in the bezel.
View attachment 2205109
I installed these last night (one on each side, so far) and will include a more complete install thread, but it’s pretty simple to remove the assembly housing and drop these in. The SS3 use a Deutsch connector. You can get an H11 (the GX plug) to Deutsch adapter for $10-15. If you plan to make this reversible or don’t like wiring work, that’d be a great option. I cut the H11 plug off the GX wires, took the included DD pigtails, and crimped on butt connectors.
View attachment 2205115
As shown in the photo, go green to red, black-and-white to black. I then heat-shrinked (shrunk?) the connection to protect it.

These are wicked bright. I’ve also fuse-tapped the fogs, so I can turn these on without my low beams, and I could comfortably drive 30 mph in a snow storm last night with only these.

Nice, make sure you waterproof those connections.

gonna have to order a (few) pairs now lol

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Nice, make sure you waterproof those connections.

gonna have to order a (few) pairs now lol

I added heat shrink after that picture was taken (and then glommed on some electrical tape since I’m hamfisted and don’t trust my own work), so I think they are waterproof. I’m going to be ordering another pair soon too. I’m sold on DD.

 

[se7enine]

Reporting back:

With the brackets, the DD SS3 pods measure 3.75” tall and 3.3” wide. They do *just* fit after removing the fog housing. They will not fit in the housing, as some people have done.
View attachment 2205107
View attachment 2205108
Two will fit side-by-side with an overlap in the bezel.
View attachment 2205109
I installed these last night (one on each side, so far) and will include a more complete install thread, but it’s pretty simple to remove the assembly housing and drop these in. The SS3 use a Deutsch connector. You can get an H11 (the GX plug) to Deutsch adapter for $10-15. If you plan to make this reversible or don’t like wiring work, that’d be a great option. I cut the H11 plug off the GX wires, took the included DD pigtails, and crimped on butt connectors.
View attachment 2205115
As shown in the photo, go green to red, black-and-white to black. I then heat-shrinked (shrunk?) the connection to protect it.

These are wicked bright. I’ve also fuse-tapped the fogs, so I can turn these on without my low beams, and I could comfortably drive 30 mph in a snow storm last night with only these.

Did you also need to shim the base? I did mine last night but I still need to shim the base on the inner side to level out the beams. Eventually I'm going to make my own mount that levels the pod inside the opening.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Did you also need to shim the base? I did mine last night but I still need to shim the base on the inner side to level out the beams. Eventually I'm going to make my own mount that levels the pod inside the opening.

Not yet, but honestly, I might need to but simply can’t tell yet.

this is my “driveway” right now:

and this is the “wall” I used to level the cutoff:

So I have a hard time telling whether the lights are exactly level when nothing else is. I did notice yesterday maybe a 5 deg tilt, so I may end up shimming it with some tape or something, but it’s definitely close enough at the moment.

 

[MaverickFiveO]

Further reporting: Here you can see road illumination using only the fogs on my drive home last night. They basically have the range of low beams, but are much wider (and these are yellow, obviously). It's a pretty solid option for bad weather driving.

(Note: I've since aimed the driver's side down a bit more. No one flashed their brights at me, I just feel like they throw a lot of light and want to be courteous.)