What's the difference between Baselit, neopixel/xenopixel, and Proffie/GHv3 lightsabers?
Understanding Lightsaber Types
It can be confusing if you're just starting out; we know. We've been there, too.
All of these different types of lightsabers are usually considered dueling-worthy, or Combat Ready, but have huge ranges in how much they cost. While some of that depends on scarcity in the market, most of them range based on their main type, or "tier".
We like to (over)simplify this to three main tiers:
- Economy
- Neopixel
- Unlocked
Economy (Baselit)
The first tier is what we like to call Economy. This is the most affordable type of Combat Ready lightsaber, most often ranging between $100 - $250 depending on the hilt design (they can go higher or lower than this range, but this covers many of the more common designs).
These are all RGB baselit sabers, meaning that they have a single powerful LED at the top end of the hilt where the base of the blade gets installed (the blade emitter).
They have a number of sound fonts (anywhere from 4-12) that change the kind of humming, ignition, and reactive sound effects you'll hear.
They also range between offering a single blade color or offer a few color options, usually 12, though RGB-X cores offer an infinite range of blade colors to choose from.
The blades are usually very lightweight and inexpensive, with a film on the inside that helps refract the light from the LED at the base to mimic a lightsaber blade, but it lights up all at once and is usually dimmer than Pixel-level sabers (described in the next section).
If you're on the hunt for a budget lightsaber, or want to do heavy dueling with your saber without being too concerned about the potential cost of replacing the blades, this is usually where folks start getting into lightsabers.
Neopixel (Xenopixel, SN-Pixel)
The midrange tier is what we refer to as the Neopixel tier. These sabers are commonly referred to as neopixel, but that just describes the style. The most common style are xenopixel lightsabers, though a newer style is entering into the marketplace recently called SN-Pixel, and both versions have huge advantages over the Economy level when it comes to light and color options.
These sabers use much more expensive "pixel blades" that are embedded with pixel strips on the inside, so these hilts don't come with an LED at the base.
These can have different blade ignition effects, whether igniting smoothly from base to tip or igniting in different visual patterns. The strips inside the blade provides more consistent brightness from base to tip, and they are MUCH brighter, enough to be seen easily in daylight. This also allows for different locations of the blade to flicker or have patterns to them that you simply can't get from a single LED bulb, like a fire-flicker effect, or flash-on-clash that is only in a certain place on the blade.
Not only that, but these improved cards provide access to the full spectrum of color options, not just 12 major colors. With this upgrade (and the right software and know-how), you can program custom fonts into your lightsaber, from movie quotes to new or bizarre custom sounds - even music!
That said, these are midrange for a reason. These easily range anywhere from $250 - $400, and can continue to range even higher depending on the hilt design and availability. For example, here are a couple of example xenopixels in our store:
The Twinsabers and The Shadow Hunter are paired sets, so they're above $400 as a set but below $400 per hilt, and The Darksaber uses a unique blade shape that brings the price just over the $400 level. Some sabers can go well above $1000, depending on their rarity and construction costs.
Unlocked (Proffie / GHv3)
So what's the top tier? These are for true connoisseurs of top shelf lightsabers. These are electronics upgrades made usually to Neopixel-tier lightsabers to provide you with full customization of your lightsabers.
With this upgrade (and the right software and know-how), you can program custom fonts into your lightsaber, program a "sunset" blade, create stripes or spots of light - literally anything you want to do! Paired with the Neopixel-level customization options, you could even create light shows from a lightsaber, during the day, like a Badass. #wut
The catch? These usually cost $50 - $100 more than their Neopixel-tier equivalents. There are sabers on the market going as high as $1000+ - but they'll do just about anything you'd want them to be able to do (except cut someone in half).
We have a few Proffie sabers available in our store as well, which you can view here. And our first crossover saber, The Hellfire Scorpion - depicting our vision of what kind of lightsaber Scorpion from Mortal Kombat might wield - led the charge as we started bringing GHv3 designs into the mix as well.
Got questions? Comments? We know we oversimplified this to make it easier for newcomers, so we expect we've blurred a few lines here. If you think there are any specific and glaring errors or mistakes, feel free to point them out and we can correct this article in future edits.
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And remember: The Force Will Be With You, Always.
Brady
@Robert, all of our sabers are dueling-grade, made with polycarbonate plastic in the blades and aluminum alloy in the hilts, making for nearly-indestructible products that can be used for years :)
Robert
Do you have dueling lightsabers that are tough for dueling for the fun of it.