Cheers man will try it out.

STEP 7
Summary and afterthoughts

So few days passed, did over 400kms in various conditions and day times, so I think its about time for some final words.

There is no doubt, light output now is better than on previous H7 versions. This is, however, mostly due to better light source used and not the actual difference between projectors. On close inspection, there is no noticeable differences between H7 and D2S variants of those projectors, except for the bulb base. Im not sure if bowl shape doesnt matter as much for optics when lens is involved or its because its aftermarket product and its simply "universally good but not excellent" but seem to me that light source in those can be anything and the output will still be the same. Maybe someone corrects me on that, but it looks like whatever you place inside of this generic bowl should work, as lens seem to take the whole work of "light shaping" on itself. Its just the intensity of provided light that may differs so whether its a candle, fireball Pokemon or Ironman's power source - light will be shaped the same, just with various brightness level. Thats probably why OEM D2S projectors are superior as are made specifically for one light source and optic is "cut to measure" allowing better light spread?

I have no regrets with going D2S though. Ability to use good quality bulbs over rebased nonames is a good improvement, and light output from Osram Xenarc NBU's is just amazing (supposedly brightest of all D2S). Plus black lamp mod and angel eyes done at one go - definetely worth it. There are some minor improvements aswell like better bulb seating, better light spread (again - probably due to better bulb) and a bit sharper cutoff pattern.
But I guess the bottom line is: if you plan to get aftermarket projectors - H7 and D2S versions will be equally good. Its just up to you what bulbs you wish to use and if you care about the backward compatibility with Halogen H7.

Some pics taken at various times to finish my thoughts:

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1510851505
Very wet night with bad quality ashphalt - driving on this road usually creates the feeling that your light is consumed by black hole. Noticeable improvement over H7 version as light intensity makes huge difference. Low beam and high beam shot.


https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1510851505
Low beam/high beam on dry road with a bit better reflective ashphalt.


https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1510851505
Beam pattern with visible right hand slope. Not noticeable during driving, but still present.


https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1510851505
Vanity shot just for the sake of it :)

Hope you liked the story, that also concludes my light modding until laser lights are available for retrofitting ;)

One problem I have noticed is that my left projector output doesn't seem as bright as my right projector output, around the \___ hotspot part.

I noticed this when I initially ran the new projectors with Halogen bulbs, but just assumed that one bulb was on it's way out.

But same issue is present with HIDs bulbs in, almost like the center of the hotspot is being blocked by the shield.

Worth noting that I haven't touched the shield screw on either projector but wondered if that actually affected the hotspot in your testing?

Otherwise, the headlamps are epic.. the 5000k bulbs are ever so slightly too blue for my liking, but they seem brighter than almost every car I've compared them with, and on par with any LED solution in terms of brightness at least.

No, shields wont affect hotspot in that way, what will though is the bulb misallignment.
On the H7 version I had an immediate issue with one bulb not providing a hotspot at all, it was a kind of uniformed light where hotspot should have been. On closer inspection it revealed that bulb was just a bit off the centre when seated in the projector and the centre of the hotspot was moved behind the shutter (so visible only when long beam applied). I bet its similar on yours.
There is an article on this issue on HIDPlanet its called bulb shimming. Thats one of the reasons I wanted to go D2S as there you have no such issues (usually a problem of badly made chinese bulbs). In my case I was able to bend the bulb legs a bit and didnt need any shimming pads, but you can approach it various ways.
Main thing is - you need to take lamp out, put in in front of wall or something and fiddle the bulb a bit left/right and observe how it affects the hotspot. You will notice it moves left-right-up-down and based on that you will know where the misallignment is.
What you want to achieve is something like this, with hotspot being in about 60% of visible space:
https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1538753926

Its really easy and once done - you are sorted.

IF im wrong, and its not the hotspot (can be easily checked also by swapping the bulbs) it may be issue with projector seating itself. I know you had same issue on Halogen bulb but that may have been reason of different type of burner. The definite way to confirm it is to try another (from other light) xenon burner and if both cant provide a hotspot in centre its a likely projector seating issue.
But then test if you have any hotspot visible or not, to eliminate the lens or reflector problem. Open the shutter by hand and observe if hotspot is visible at all. As an example, perfectly centered hotspot on wide open shutter:

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1538754501

If you cant achieve this, projector may be faulty and you need to contact RFL.
hope that helps?

LoB

despite me getting new lights, there,, still 90% cr*p, as found out on the unlighted motorway in the rain at night,

the E46 projectors, would i need anything other than Just the projector unit to get them working with H7 Halogen bulbs ? (hids + mot + my luck with in-sewer-rats + plod - nope not happening)

Ideal would be to add the halo rings as you have done, fiddle the wires so they are "side lights" ,, DRL=OFF so my switch is "Off - Side lights - dipped beams then i can use the halos as drl/side lights as needed/wanted, and not burn out the e46 reflectors all day/everyday
were the halo rings from RFL or some other supplier?
cheers

All you need are replacement e46 projectors and a decent set of H7 bulbs by a good brand.

This alone is much better than the tired out oem ones where the silvering has flaked away.

Are they better than brand new OEM ones? I'm not sure, but they're definitely much better than deteriorated ones.

thankies
we will find out soon if they are better than new oem ones, as the oem in mine are dire
m6/m5 at night in the rain,, not fun with 1/2p candle power stock lights,,, ordering the e46 ones now

With an HID kit + e46 projectors and clear lenses, you will be in top 5% brightest headlamps on the road.

Hid means faffing about for each mot, skbow filter and the risk of in-sewer-rats not paying if they find out, so there not for me, shame as the car has self levelling + washers + projectors and clear lenses, but the countless muppets who fitted them to unsuitable headlights have ruined that for all

I'll be really interested to hear how you get on. If you find it's relatively straightforward to replace the lenses or projectors as a whole using standard H7 bulbs I might do that myself if the results are good.