amaran F22c vs F22x vs F21c vs F21x: Which Flexible LED Mat?

Last updated 19 September 2026 by the team at Filmgear Canada, an authorized amaran dealer in Vancouver.

The short answer

amaran makes four flexible LED mats and the names give you everything if you know how to read them. F21 is 2 by 1 feet and 100 W. F22 is 2 by 2 feet and 200 W. An x is bi-colour white. A c adds full colour.

• F21x. Small, white only, and the quietest of the four because its control box has no fan.
• F21c. The same small mat with full colour. Also fanless.
• F22x. Twice the size and roughly twice the light. White only. The brightest of the four.
• F22c. The big mat with full colour. The most flexible of the lot, and the one with the loudest reputation.

Two questions pick your mat. Do you need colour, or just good white? And will you be recording dialogue within a few feet of the control box?

The four side by side

Output figures are from amaran's own product pages, measured bare at 1 metre and 5600K. Cooling and battery details come from Aputure's help centre. All read on 19 September 2026.

Two rows in that table explain most of what owners complain about.

The fan is in the box, not the mat

The mats themselves don't have fans. Aputure lists natural heat dissipation for all four fixtures. The difference is the control box. On the F21 pair the control box is passive too. On the F22 pair, Aputure lists it as active cooling. That means a fan.

That fan is the single most common complaint about the F22c. Four of the 24 owner reviews on B&H call out the fan or the loud ballast, and one reviewer, writing in 2023, said they returned four units because the fan kept running flat out even with the light at 10%. Firmware may have changed since then. We haven't measured it ourselves, so we won't claim it's fixed.

What we can tell you is how people work around it. Every one of these mats comes with a 3-metre head cable extension. Use it. Put the control box on the floor, behind something soft, as far from the mic as the cable allows. If the mat is only ever a top light or a background wash, the fan rarely matters. If it's a key light for a quiet interview, and you don't need colour, the F21x's fanless box starts to look very attractive.

Your V-mount battery might only give you half

This one surprises people. Aputure's help centre says the F22x and F22c run at half output on a 16.8V V-mount battery, and need a 26V or 28.8V battery for full output. The F21 pair runs at full output on any of those.

Most standard V-mount batteries are 14.4V or 14.8V packs that charge to 16.8V. So if you bought an F22c to run off the same batteries as your camera, you're getting a 100 W light on location. That's still useful. It's just not the light you saw in the spec sheet.

If full output on battery matters, you'll want high-voltage V-mounts rated at 26V or 28.8V. Check your battery's label before a shoot, not during one.

On runtime, one B&H reviewer said they'd had at least 3 to 4 hours from a V-mount at 10 to 20% output. That's one owner's experience, not a spec, but it fits how most people use these mats: low and soft, for a long time.

x or c?

The x versions are white only, tunable from 2,500K to 7,500K. amaran rates them at CRI 95+, TLCI 98+, CQS 96+, and SSI 81+ against tungsten and 72+ against daylight. They're also slightly brighter than their c siblings: 6,960 lux against 6,420 at 1 metre for the 2 by 2, which is about 8% more.

The c versions add full HSI colour and green and magenta adjustment. If you light backgrounds, do music or event work, or ever reach for a gel, get the c. If you only ever light faces, the x is cheaper, brighter and does the job.

2 by 1 or 2 by 2?

The 2 by 2 puts out close to twice the light and makes a bigger, softer source. As a key on a single person at interview distance, that size is noticeable. One owner who upgraded from an old fluorescent kit said they were glad they went full 2 by 2 instead of the 2 by 1, and that the light weight let them boom it more than 5 feet out on a C-stand arm.

The 2 by 1 is easier to hide, easier to pack, runs full output on standard V-mount batteries and has no fan. As a hair light, an edge light or a travel key, it's often the better tool.

What's in the box, and what isn't

amaran packs a lot in. Every F21 and F22 mat comes with its control box, a 3-metre head cable extension, a support bracket, a tilting stand mount, a softbox frame, two diffusion cloths (a half grid cloth and a 2.5-stop cloth), a light control grid, the AC power supply and cable, and a carrying case.

What isn't in the box is a clamp for the control box. Several reviewers mention hanging the box by its cable or buying a separate clamp to put it on the stand. And there's no light stand, which B&H confirmed to a buyer who asked.

The warts

The F22 control box fan is the big one, covered above.

Setup takes longer than a panel. Frame, corners, diffusion, grid, cables. Owners describe it as slow the first few times. Take a photo of how it packs before you break it down, which is advice one reviewer gave and we'd repeat.

The early X-frame bracket had a reputation for letting the mat slip. Reviews from late 2023 onward describe a redesigned bracket that holds much more securely, so this is mostly history, but you'll still read about it online.

And one reviewer worried about how robust the cable is where it leaves the mat. Be gentle there. It's the one part of the fixture that bends every single time you set up.

What about Nanlite PavoSlim or Aputure INFINIMAT?

They're different tools. A Nanlite PavoSlim is a thin, rigid panel. There's no frame to build, but it doesn't fold into a bag the way a fabric mat does. Aputure's INFINIMAT is the professional mat line, with a built-in inflatable softbox and much bigger sizes available. If you're building a rental package or lighting a set every day, it's worth a look. For most owner-operators, the amaran mats hit the right price for the job.

So which one

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between the amaran F22c and F22x?

Both are 2 by 2 foot, 200 W flexible mats. The F22c adds full HSI colour and green and magenta adjustment. The F22x is white only, 2,500K to 7,500K, and slightly brighter, rated at 6,960+ lux at 1 metre against 6,420+ for the F22c.

What's the difference between the amaran F21 and F22?

Size and power. The F21 mats are 2 by 1 feet and 100 W with around 3,400 to 3,600 lux at 1 metre. The F22 mats are 2 by 2 feet and 200 W with around 6,400 to 7,000 lux at 1 metre. The F21 control boxes are passively cooled, while the F22 control boxes use a fan.

Is the amaran F22c loud?

The mat is silent, but the F22 control box is actively cooled with a fan, and fan noise is the most common complaint in owner reviews. Use the included 3-metre head extension to move the control box away from the microphone. The F21 control boxes have no fan.

Can the amaran F22c run on a V-mount battery?

Yes, but Aputure's help centre says the F22c and F22x run at half output on a 16.8V V-mount battery. For full output they need a 26V or 28.8V V-mount battery. The F21x and F21c run at full output on 16.8V, 26V or 28.8V batteries.

Does the amaran F22c charge V-mount batteries?

No. B&H confirmed to a buyer that the F22c control box doesn't charge batteries when it's on AC power.

What comes in the box with an amaran F22c?

The mat, control box, a 3-metre head cable extension, support bracket, tilting stand mount, softbox frame, a half grid diffusion cloth, a 2.5-stop diffusion cloth, a light control grid, AC power supply and cable, and a carrying case.

Does the amaran F22c come with a light stand or a clamp for the control box?

No. It includes a tilting stand mount for the mat, but not a light stand or a clamp for the control box.

Can I control amaran F-series mats from an app?

Yes. Aputure lists manual control, the Sidus Link app and DMX for all four F-series mats, with Bluetooth range up to 80 m.

Is the F22x or F22c better for interviews?

For white-only interview lighting the F22x is slightly brighter and costs less. Either way, keep the control box away from the microphone. If you need colour for a background at the same time, the F22c does both jobs.

Which is brighter, the amaran F21x or F21c?

The F21x, slightly. amaran rates it at 3,632+ lux at 1 metre and 5600K against 3,360+ for the F21c.

Can I join several F22 mats into a bigger light?

B&H told a buyer the F22c has grommets around the edge that can be connected to make a larger surface. It isn't a feature amaran advertises, so if you need a large seamless source, Aputure's INFINIMAT is designed for that.

Buying amaran mats in Canada

We're an authorized amaran dealer with a showroom at 945 East Cordova in Vancouver, and we ship Canada-wide. In-stock orders placed before 2 PM Vancouver time go out the same day. Everything carries the manufacturer's warranty, and we coordinate warranty service with Aputure for you.

• amaran F22c 2 x 2 RGBWW flexible LED mat and amaran F22x 2 x 2 bi-colour
• amaran F21c 2 x 1 RGBWW and amaran F21x 2 x 1 bi-colour
• Lantern for the F22 series and Lantern for the F21 series

Pairing a mat with a hard source? Our STORM 400x vs 700x vs 1200x guide covers Aputure's point-source lights, and Nanlite vs amaran covers the wider choice between the two brands.

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Sources. Output, power draw, colour range, colour metrics and box contents from amaran's official F21x, F21c, F22x and F22c product pages on amarancreators.com, read 19 September 2026. Control box cooling, battery voltage behaviour and control methods from Aputure's help centre technical specifications for the amaran F21x, F22x, F21c and F22c, read 19 September 2026. Owner reviews and buyer questions from B&H Photo's amaran F22c (V-Mount) page, read 19 September 2026.