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This lamp replaced an incandescent "candelabra" fixture, that had 5 40W bulbs. Installed, I find that it provides about the same amount of light, but with more-even lighting because it doesn't have the self-shadowing effect that the old fixture had (from any point in the room, only three or four bulbs were visible). The net effect is to illuminate the room noticeably better than the old fixture did.
As my first attempt, I tried reusing the plain rheostat dimmer that was already installed with the old fixture. However, with that dimmer, this lamp would only dim partially (a third, or maybe half at best). After some research, I decided on a "Diva" Lutron C.L dimming switch, advertised as being specifically designed to work with dimmable fluorescent and LED lamps. With that dimmer switch, this lamp is dimmable to practically the same low level as was possible with the incandescent fixture, but without the annoying unpredictability of the old rheostat dimmer switch.
Two main negatives:
-it has a noticeable susceptibility to variations in line voltage. Switching loads (vacuum, washing machine, toaster oven, etc.) cause the light to flicker, as does whatever kind of switching that the new dimmer switch imposes (i.e. there's a perceptible flicker when the light is set at lower settings).
The flicker isn't a deal-breaker, and I'm somewhat sensitive to stuff like that. But it does exist. It would be nice if the drivers for the bulbs included circuitry to smooth out the voltage changes. I realize that since it's dimmable, it has to respond to voltage changes, but it could include a bit of lag to avoid this flickering effect.
-Installation was a bit trickier than I think it needed to be, due to the fancy solid-capped nuts that screw onto the double-ended bolts that ultimately attach the fixture to its mounting plate. The end result is a slightly nicer-looking installation, but a) the nuts aren't visible once you put the diffuser glass on anyway, and b) it's very tricky to get the double-ended bolts screwed into the mounting plate to just the right depth (they use set bolts to hold them in place).
Granted, this whole affair was made even more difficult by the low-quality installation of the original fixture's junction box, which wiggles around quite a bit. But I think that's not uncommon in a lot of spec houses.
I would have preferred a more fool-proof mounting design, at the expense of appearance. As I mentioned, it's not like you see the mounting bolts and nuts after the glass is installed anyway.This light simply didn't provide enough light for our kitchen. This light is better suited to a closet. I also worry that the bulbs cannot be replaced.
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