I’m building four Brinyte B158 aspheric throwers currently, and it has been a good way to compare the results from various different modifications.
One thing that really surprised me was the intensity of the dedomed XM-L2 U2. The dedomed XP-G2 S4 2B (the new, not-as-good one) gave 238kcd. The dedomed XM-L2 U2 did 220kcd, with a much larger die image! And the XM-L2 was actually on a very thin copper board, not the thick Noctigon the XPG2 S4 was using.
The bottom left is the dedomed XPG2 S4 2B (238kcd), bottom right is the dedomed XM-L2 U2 (220kcd). Top is an XP-L Hi V3 3C. All three have MTNDD drivers and everything else is the same between the three lights also.
Sorry for the bad pic, I took it really rushed because I was worried about the heat sinking on the XM-L2 (see my recent threads for stories of fried LEDs).
Now I need to build an integrating sphere so I can measure the output difference in flood mode. (in a more efficient manner than my current ceiling-bounce-integrating-bathroom setup)
Thanks for sharing. Did you do the dedoming yourself? If so, what method did you use? I’m contemplating the dedome of an XP-G2 myself, but worried about the resulting tint shift. Might try it anyway.
I did gas, it was my first dedome ever. I used a zip tie cut with a razor at a very sharp angle to give me a sharp but flexible point for scraping off remaining silicone. I’ve heard some people like to use toothpicks, but I found the toothpick to be very large and imprecise. I used a jewler’s loupe and my HC50 headlamp (modded with 3000K XM-L2 80CRI) for lighting. It worked really well and was surprisingly easy.
It definitely looks yellow in spot mode, but not that yellow when in flood mode. When in flood mode you would have a hard time “seeing” the yellow tint unless you had some other light as a reference.
I used U2 flux bin and “unknown” color bin, becasue that’s what I had in my “spares” pile taken out of some random light that never advertised what color bin it was.
Not trying to butt in here just some results that pertain to your question.
When we were developing the newest Maxtoch 2X it started with a XP-L HI emitter in it (cool white probably in the 6500 to 7000K range)and used a 6 amp buck driver. The tint was not what was desired for what was being made as a hunting light so we tried the XM-L2 U4 1A (dedomed) and got about the desired tint for hunting purposes. One thing that was found though was that at only 4.5 amps the U4 emitter was making almost identical K lux readings as the HI emitter was at 6 amps. That meant the U4 was much more efficient to run and gave longer run times.
There is a draw back if you are seeking high amperage no matter though , as the U4 will only handle 5 to 5.5 amps max without frying. Usually the 1A is the best tint for dedoming.
Gas does give a tint shift but if rinsed right away out of the gas with 91% rubbing alcohol the shift usually isn’t too bad. You will also get a tint shift with hot dedoming just not quiet as much as the gas does. Either way they always get warmer when dedomed. 95% of the time the complete dome will just float off in the gas method and any remaining little pieces rinse away with the alcohol for me.
I use a small squirt bottle and gently do the final rinse with the alcohol from that.
The “hot” dedome is the best way once you get the hang of it but to learn it takes some practice. I used a lot of pulled emitters from lights I had modded and finally , I think I have gotten the hang of it (maybe) at least the last 3 I did came out good with hot dedome.
Here are 2 identical Thorfire C8’s one with the “Dome On” and one that was dedomed in gas per the method described above , just for a comparison. These have the U4 1C though and the 1A is usually just slightly cooler.
Below is a side by side and then the longer shots. You can see the slight lemony tint in the dedomed one closer up , but it isn’t bad really to my eyes.
Shots were taken same night and same time. (one right after the other)
Dome on (right) Dedomed (left)
DOME ON 175yds
DEDOMED 175 yds
robo, your pics support (IMO) what I see and think regarding the tints - when white wall hunting the dedomed tint is a bit yellow, but when outdoors in actual use the tint is quite nice actually.
I agree , when you shine the dedomed one inside or close up you see the yellowish a lot more. When outdoors in normal use it is not very noticeable really and the natural colors seem to show good.
Your pictures also support something else I’ve noticed - cool tints make more of that “beam” of light - which is a cool effect by itself (lightsaber, anyone?) but functionally it is no good, it makes it harder to see the target through the blue scatter
It shows as a lighter color , but if the output is high and the beam is really tight , then it shows even with a warmer tint as seen with the Maxtoch 2X and a dedomed U4 1C that came out a little warmer than I wanted , but still not horrible.
I’ve noticed this effect as well, and found my Acebeam K70 significantly more useful after swapping to a 3C tint. Intensity was unaffected according to my phone’s light sensor, so I assume the E4 flux bin I bought is the same as the original.
I also put a chemically dedomed 219C D320 in an Olight M3XS-UT, resulting in a tint of about 4000K and a very tight hotspot. The ability of that light to cut through haze is impressive.
