Buy the Amaran Ray 360c ($608.99 CAD) if you light one or two faces in rooms you control: interviews, YouTube sets, podcast studios. Buy the Ray 660c ($988.99 CAD) when one light has to carry a bigger room, a multi-person setup, or heavy diffusion. Color is not the tiebreaker: both run the same OmniColor engine, and Curtis Judd measured the 660c at SSI 86 in tungsten and 82 in daylight. The extra $380 buys two things: output headroom, and a build-class jump most comparison pages never mention.
Both are in stock at Filmgear Canada, and you can handle them side by side in our Vancouver showroom.
The whole decision in one table
| Ray 360c | Ray 660c | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $608.99 | $988.99 |
| Color engine | OmniColor full color, 2300K to 10,000K (amaran spec). | Same engine. Curtis Judd measured SSI 86 tungsten, 82 daylight. |
| Output | 360W-class COB; claims over 80 percent more output than amaran's old 300c. | 660W-class COB; the brightest amaran COB yet, per Newsshooter. |
| Yoke and handle | Plastic locking handle, no ratchet action (Caleb Pike). | Full-metal yoke, angle markings, aluminum ratcheting handle, junior combo pin (Caleb Pike). |
| Power | Wall power only; one AC cable, no battery. | Wall power only; one AC cable, no battery. |
| Weather | IP54 splash resistance. | IP54 splash resistance. |
| Best for | Solo interviews, podcasts, content sets in controlled rooms. | Multi-person setups, small stages, heavy diffusion, one-light rooms. |
Color is identical, so stop weighing it
Every Ray runs amaran's OmniColor engine, a multi-emitter design with an indigo channel. Curtis Judd put a Sekonic C-800 on the line: the 660c measured SSI 86 in tungsten and 82 in daylight, and the smaller Rays he tested landed within a couple of points of that. The color even holds at SSI 82 dimmed to 1 percent.
That 82 sits a clear step above the bi-color Halo family, around 74 in the same testing, and just behind Aputure's Storm line at roughly 85. Weighing a cheaper Halo? Our Amaran Halo vs Ray guide covers that call. Between these two Rays, the gap buys zero color improvement.
What the extra $380 actually buys
1. Output headroom
The 660c is the brightest COB amaran has made, per Newsshooter's launch coverage. Watt class is a blunt measure, but the gap is real, and it pays off in three places: heavy diffusion, which eats light before it reaches your subject; big rooms; and bounce, where the ceiling gets paid first.
The 360c holds its own. One owner at B&H calls it a great key that fills a 5-foot octa nicely, and for a seated subject that is the whole job. Our counter rule: if your light lives pinned at 100 percent, you have no headroom. A bigger light loafing at 60 percent is calmer than a small one at its ceiling.
2. The build difference nobody mentions
Most comparison pages stop at watts and price. The split that changes how these lights feel day to day is the hardware, and Caleb Pike of DSLR Video Shooter documented it in his hands-on with the full Ray line. The 360c gets a plastic locking handle with no ratchet action, a part he said feels slightly cheap. The 660c gets a full-metal yoke with angle markings, a mechanical aluminum ratcheting handle, and a junior combo pin that works in both baby and junior receivers.
On one stand in one room, none of that is worth $380. Rigged and re-rigged every week, it is the difference between consumer and production hardware. Curtis Judd rates the 660c's yoke in the same class as the Aputure STORM 400x, a fixture that sells for $1,499.99 CAD. The housing is still high-density plastic per the same review; the metal went where the stress lives. It is not a Storm. It is the first Ray that mounts like one.
What both lights share
The rest is shared. Both have the power supply built in, so one AC cable runs from wall to light with no brick, a detail Curtis Judd praised. Both are IP54 rated against drizzle. Both use amaran's FlowTurn motorized dial, which Judd and Pike both liked. Both offer an HFR mode that locks output at 50 percent or higher for 1/1000 shutter speeds and 240 fps, which Judd said he had not seen on other LEDs. And the fans rarely spin below 60 percent output in his testing, so interview audio stays clean.
One Fresnel fits both, and that changes the kit math
The amaran Fresnel for Ray 360c & 660c ($179.99 CAD) mounts on either light. Buy it with a 360c today and it carries over if you step up to a 660c later. That is not true lower in the family: the Mini Fresnel for the Ray 60c and 120c is a different part, so shooters upgrading from a Ray 120c rebuy their beam control, as we cover in the Ray 120c vs 360c guide. One 360c owner on B&H even mounts it high with the Fresnel to fake sunlight through a window.
Where the 360c wins
Same color for $380 less. Every measured color advantage in this family is shared. If color is why you are buying a Ray, the 360c delivers all of it.
Enough light for its lane, in a smaller body. A key through a 5-foot octa for one or two people is comfortably inside its range, and it is the lighter unit to travel with. A 660c doing that job is idle capacity.
The gap funds the kit. The $380 saved covers the shared Fresnel with about $200 left toward a stand or softbox. A 360c with beam control beats a bare 660c on small sets.
The tradeoff is the hardware: the plastic non-ratcheting handle is the one part of the 360c that reminds you what it costs.
Neither runs on batteries, so plan power honestly
Both are wall-power only. No DC input, no battery plate, no workaround worth recommending. One owner in a large Aputure user group received two 360c units and was disappointed to find no 48V DC option. Know this before checkout, not after.
Do not force one into run-and-gun documentary or on-the-move wedding work. In this family only the small Ray 60c and Ray 120c take batteries. At this output class the battery answer is a different light: the Aputure STORM 400x runs on V-Mount packs, and our STORM 400x guide covers when it earns its price.
Who should buy which
Buy the 360c if you shoot interviews, podcasts, product work, or YouTube content in rooms you control, one or two subjects at a time, near an outlet.
Buy the 660c for multi-person panels, corporate shoots in halls, small stages, or any one-light-covers-the-room job. It is also the church platform pick; our church livestream lighting guide maps the full stage design. If your fixture rides grip gear weekly, the yoke, handle, and pin pay off on every setup.
Already own the 360c and hitting its ceiling? Step up. The Fresnel carries over, the color matches by design, and the 360c becomes your second light.
How we compare
We do not lab-test these lights. We compare measured color data from named reviewers, here Curtis Judd's Sekonic C-800 readings, Caleb Pike's hands-on build reporting, amaran's official specs, owner feedback from real communities, and what sells and comes back at our Vancouver counter. We compare specs and our listed prices only.
Amaran Ray 360c vs 660c FAQ
Is the Amaran Ray 360c enough for a small studio?
Yes, for one or two people in a controlled room. It is a 360W-class full-color COB, and owner feedback backs that up: one B&H reviewer calls it a great key that fills a 5-foot octa nicely. You do need a wall outlet, since there is no battery option. If you regularly light bigger rooms or several subjects at once, that is 660c territory.
Should I buy the Amaran Ray 660c or the Halo 600x?
They answer different questions. The Halo 600x ($658.99 CAD) is bi-color only and wins when you only shoot white light and want to spend less. The Ray 660c ($988.99) adds full color, stronger measured color accuracy, and the metal yoke and ratcheting handle. Curtis Judd's daylight SSI readings put the Ray line around 82 versus 74 for the Halo.
Do the Amaran Ray 360c and 660c run on batteries?
No. Both are wall-power only, with the power supply built into the fixture and a single AC cable. There is no DC input or battery plate. Within the Ray family, only the small 60c and 120c run on batteries. If you need this output class away from outlets, look at the Aputure STORM 400x, which runs on V-Mount packs.
What stand or grip gear does the Ray 660c need?
The 660c has a junior combo pin that works in both baby and junior receivers, so it mounts on heavier grip stands the way production fixtures do, and its full-metal yoke carries angle markings for repeatable setups. It is the bigger, heavier light of the pair. Give it a sturdy stand and sandbag the legs.
Both the Ray 360c and the Ray 660c are in stock in Vancouver, along with the shared Fresnel and the rest of the amaran lineup. Not sure which power level your rooms need? Tell us your camera and venue and we will build the kit with you. Visit our Vancouver showroom or send us a message.
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