AmScope LED-144W-ZK White Adjustable 144 LED Ring Light Illuminator for Stereo Microscope & Camera

A very effective, well made, reasonably priced accessory for stereo-optic microscopes.Stereo scopes are commonly used for viewing opaque objects: rocks; coins; macroscopic dissections; watch innards, etc. Consequently the stage is usually lit from above. I have an AmScope stereo 'scope that is has lights both above and below the stage -- unfortunately, with certain objectives the upper light is actually partially blocked by the objective. The fix for that is either an expensive external light mounted off the one side, or a ringlight.This ringlight uses LEDs, which is a nice complement to the halogen lights that came with my 'scope. It mounts easily above the objectives, and distributes light evenly over the stage. The intensity is adjustable from nearly full-off to full-on, via a small rotary control. If I were going to change one thing about this light, it would be to have it plug into the microscope base itself for power, rather than running a separate cable to yet another wall wart. Can't have everything, I guess. Otherwise, no issues.Once I installed this light, I find I use it almost all the time. Very useful, and recommended.

I like this light ring for my amscope Sm-4b. It works very well. The brightest is well bright enough! The variable brightness knob is very useful,and helps to get the best view on your project,depending on how much light you need.One thing people don’t really seem to mention,is that at a longer working distance(like with the 0.5x Barlow lens),the quality of optics is greatly deteriorated. The lights from the ring are angled and designed perfectly for the 4 inch working distance the Sm scopes provide. But when you go to 8 inches,the angled lights shine DIRECTLY onto what you’re looking at,from all directions,and this causes gray distorted colors. When you hold the light ring in your hand,you could see this. Have it aligned with the head of the scope,and move it closer to your object(for me it’s a circuit board I solder on) ,and you see it gets colorful and clear,since the lights shine around what you’re looking at. But when you move it farther away,the angled lights have more time and distance to cross over and shine across each other and directly onto what you’re viewing. This causes the gray and reflective distortion. A gooseneck may be best in this case,or somehow attach the light ring to “hang down” from the scope so that it is 4 inches from the object of view.I only mention the above to help anyone that gets the ring and is confused about optics being grayed. I saw a review on here about that. They probably used a Barlow lens. Perhaps the 0.7x wouldn’t be as bad since it’s a 6.4 inch working distance.Otherwise,this light ring is very useful. For the price,I can’t argue!

Works great! I am using a DSLR camera attached to the third ocular of my scope to create phone repair micro soldering videos. For this process you need exceptional lighting that is evenly distributed. A ring of LEDs is a great solution and the dimmer adjustment on this one makes it easy to get the right amount of light. Just remember to unplug it before you move your scope. Inexpensive and easy to install.

I just received this item today. I have only spent 15 minutes, or so, using it so far, so this review should be considered an initial impression and not necessarily indicative of the long-term success you may experience. Overall, I am very pleased. The LEDs are very bright (as bright as you are likely to ever require, in my opinion) and give off a very even, wide angled and clean light with no flicker. The brightness control works well and the light level can be adjusted anywhere between off and blinding. As much as anything, I am really happy that the light appears to be about as close as you can hope to natural daylight (I haven't noticed any yellow and very little to no blue in the light it produces). My only concern is that the plastic through which the thumbscrews pass is relatively soft and seems like it could be stripped out if you aren't careful when tightening the screws. For the price, though, this thing seems great. I recommend it.

I originally got one of these for my nice AM scope to help with my watch repair hobby and I ordered a video scope and ordered another one for it. They wotgreat and a worth every penny.

The scope I bought didn’t include a light, decided to go with this one after getting frustrated trying to figure out which one fit and what the differences were. It’s good enough. I don’t find it to be poor quality and I don’t see how you’ll strip the screws on it as others have complained about, maybe they’ve updated the design. Anyway it’s plenty good enough for my needs. Only complaint I’ve got is it should have been included with the $600 scope to begin with, they can’t have more $10 in this thing. I get they are in business to make money and are trying to hide the true bottom line price of the scopes, but it just leaves a less than perfect impression of the company. At least I knew up front I’d need this so both arrived at the same time, if I didn’t and had to go and immediately order something for my new scope to actually use it I’d be a little mad about it.

Great product!

Currently using this to fix a watch balance and hairspring. The brightness control is excellent and lets me get exactly the right level of contrast I need. I am using a plexiglass balance holder with a black cloth underneath and the combination of this with stereo microscope has solved all of my problems.