Nice! Just ordered 12 of these: https://www.arrow.com/en/products/xplbwt-00-0000-000bv50e5/cree
These are V5 bin, E5 tint (4000K), 70 CRI min.
Still free shipping w/Arrow, but my local NY sales tax is a pain.
O great, so after the WD and WJ (etc) bin codes we got the more comprehensible 1A and 3C (etc) codes and now they’re doing E5 and what nots?
And how do we read those?
Boy, calm down there. The "En" code system was always used. When we buy from distributors like Mouser, Digikey and Arrow, it's always been by the "En" grouping, never by a specific tint, like 3C, 1A, etc. You get them cheaper this way. I can only assume a middle man breaks the "En" groups down further into a specific tint by testing them. Check the CREE specs - it's there for all the main LED's we use. CREE calls it a kit #, so E5 includes 5A, 5B, 5C, and 5D - it's all in their specs.
Very nice, They must have taken my suggestion to allow the LED’s to be purchased individually! Just yesterday those were only for sale in 500 quantity minium orders. I know, I searched them for any XP-L2 options and they were all 500 min then contacted them via chat to ask if they could sell them individually.
They told me it was not possible but apparently it was!
I had my eye one these V3 4000k 80cri versions:
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/xplbwt-00-0000-000hv340g/cree
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/xplbwt-00-0000-000hv30e5/cree
Hmm, now to see if I can scrounge up the funds for some of those to play with. Man, being broke sucks sometimes lol.
Yep, that ^
As far as I know you can’t even buy a “3D” bin emitter, at least it doesn’t appear that way in the data sheets. You can simply buy tighter binned emitters that will be closer to each other.
I have never seen an official Cree part number with the “normal” tint rating system we are used to.
how much will they do in a M43? ;)
I just noticed that the cut strips are listed as “or order”, be sure to let us know if/when they ship.
Alright sir. 
Thanks for explaining. :+1:
Wish I knew more bout the process, but thought I read one of two things 3rd party middle guy do it with some pretty fancy equipment that can bin them properly, maybe Cutter can. Or, CREE does it on big orders, more or less a custom order.
It is possible, it is just not spelled out in the data sheet. Very possible it is just some guy saying that looks like a 2D and selling it as such as well.
Thanks for the testing TA!
Will people hate on this emitter like they did with the XPG3?
What your average output numbers for a triple S2+? This must be coming close to those numbers?
I have a feeling people will hate on the tint shift like the XP-G3 since the tint shift is basically the same for both of them.
Although the extreme output these have should off-set that in many peoples mind. I personally never really minded the tint shift in the real world myself, you don’t really notice it unless white wall hunting.
Far as output goes, it doesn’t quite match a triple setup but it is a lot more usable IMO since it is not pure flood and actually has a beam and hot spot. With my XP-G3 90+ cri mixed tint triple I am getting around 2500 lumens without a bypassed rear spring (been too busy). I assume it will be around 2800-3000 lumens with it bypassed. I will actually be selling that light before long.
The XP-L2 looks brighter though since the hot spot is more intense and that is what the eye notices.
Overall the XP-L2 is great for output, the tint shift is something it looks like we are just going to have to deal with as we move into the next generation of LED’s. Even the 219c’s I got recently have a slight tint shift on the edge of the beam (although much much less noticeable then cree).
I'm thinking the best use of these would be in OP reflectors or triple/quads, either TIR optics or SRK's, etc. I'm thinking roughly it could add 25%+ output to the BLF Q8, maybe 50%+ output to triples and quads like with the X6's many of us built, besides huge output gains in standard 20 mm triple lights.
Of course the output bump is mainly attributed to higher amps, which means higher heat.
What I'm not understanding is the higher output at fixed amps of 350 mA and 2.45A. If it's bin 5, wouldn't that match output at fixed amps of a XPL V5? But you are clearly seeing higher output lumens than any XPL V5 LED, so, why would the CREE specs indicate otherwise?
The best # I've measured on one 350 7135 is about 180 lumens, but that was in a triple or quad.
Tint shift is a killer for me. If they make an XP-L2 HI somehow I’ll probably jump on board, but I’ll give up quite a few lumens to not be disgusted by the beam when I turn it on.
Also, I think Cree themselves do label things with specific bins like “3D”, but it comes after awhile for a new emitter. It seems they try to get the first few batches out quickly, then do more specific binning later.
This is all based on my fairly vivd memory of seeing Cree labels with specific tint bins on them in the past.
I think the largest reason for the numbers was actually not that the numbers were wrong but the emitters were wrong. Up till recently I have been collecting parts but kept waiting for the TA drivers to be finished, then TK to update the firmware and finally for the funds to actually build them.
A lot of the lights I have built so far had LED’s from “sketchy” suppliers, My guess is that the bins were not correct in them (big part of why I didn’t want to test them and base results off those numbers).
I have been building a LOT of S2+’s this week with various setups, here is a random sampling of numbers from them to give an idea. These LED’s I am sure are genuine bins but they are committed to gift lights so I didn’t want to risk messing them up.
Oh, the numbers from my test actually line up perfectly with the Cree data sheet when I compared them via http://pct.cree.com/dt/index.html
219C 4000k 90+ CRI D240 from group buy
350ma = 140 lm
2.45 = 740 lm
XP-L HI V2 3D (the best throwing S2+ I have with a TIR)from IOS
350ma = 170 lm
2.45 = 1000 lm
XP-G3 5700K 90+ CRI from Arrow, not highest bin
350ma = 193 lm
2.45 = 930 lm
XP-L2 5000k V5 from mouser
350ma = 200 lm
2.45A = 1150 lm
So with known bin emitters the jump is not as much as I originally thought, It seems that fasttech and others can’t be trusted with their bins :person_facepalming:
I should have noted where the other LED’s came from.
The biggest change is what happens when you keep pressing the LED and the fact it can pull a lot more power from the cells, even cheap laptop cells can give nice output.
single cell buck drivers would also make a fair amount of sense with these LED’s.
I am debating slicing the dome on the one I have, the beam could be tighter for what I do with it and I am curious to see if it would improve the tint shift.
Although in the real world the tint shift is not all that bad, only in the house do I notice it.
I have some 4500k 90CRI G3’s that look terrible both indoors and out. The main beam is more like 5000k, and the spill closer to 3500k and a nasty green tint. The L2’s would have to be much much better for me to consider them in a reflector light.
I really hope this style of LED isn’t the new norm just for more output.
Sadly I think this is an effect of “flipping the die over”, aka not having bond wires. Since all the LED’s that have that also have tint shift, although nicha seems to have figured out how to minimize it.
I'd hope the nasty green tint is more a result of the true tint of the LED, hhmm, 4500K is maybe an E4 kit, so maybe it's a nasty 4C tint? We are rolling the dice with the tint on these E3, E4, E5 kit ratings.
I’d agree but the nasty green on my G3 was only the spill. Otherwise the center beam was mostly acceptable, though not actually 4500k. These are from Cutter, so no question of accurate bin reporting either.