Convoy s2+ with biscotti driver

From my calculations (likely off, as I’ve used a linear proportion between current and lumens, but it serves as a baseline), 0,1% moonlight on 4x7135 should be about 0,5lm. Good enough for me myself.

I use an old S2 w/2.1A driver as my EDC and frequently tailstand it on my dresser in the morning while getting dressed so as not to disturb my wife. I had the original “2-group” driver with the annoying low mode blink & memory. I used to have an old XM-L T6 4C in it, but changed it over to an XM-L2 T5 5B1. The 5B1 is without doubt my favorite tint and the one that most realistically represents colors to me.

I finally got my self setup and educated to flash my own firmware and flashed STAR (regular on-time memory). I set it up with no memory and modes of: 3.5% - 34–100. I found low was still too bright and “on-time memory” (even on a driver with “no memory” since it affects mode changing while the light is on) was really driving me crazy! So I added the off-time capacitor and reflashed STAR Off-time with low adjusted down to 1.4% (I aimed for 1% and actually got 1.4). The off-time memory work fantastic (exactly as expected) and now I know what all the rave was about! Low could still be adjusted a little lower though. I am one that does not light “moonlight” (i.e. a barely glowing emitter that doesn’t hurt your eyes to stare into) as I see no real purpose for it (not for me anyway). My guess would be that something around 0.5 output in my case would be ideal. It’s really nice being able to tweak firmware and reflash drivers to give you exactly what you want!

About your decision on which driver (2.8A vs 2.1A, etc. . . ). I agree with others that you can always choose a lower mode and only use max as needed. With custom firmware you could create a “Turbo” with or without a timer (I’m out of the loop on temperature sensor firmware) and have high up around 75% or so where turbo is barely a step up for “max” while “high” is your normal able to run unlimited time high mode. My S2 at 2.1A will get hot on high after a minute or two, but it’s not scalding. I’ve never tried to keep it on high for long periods of time though. (I have discovered it in my pocked switched on by accident and feeling hot.) I know user Comfychair has posted up that he would let similar lights (like S6, S3) run on high (2.8A? not sure) sit and run for long periods to prove that no damage was done and that the bodies could handle the heat. I feel the 2.1A version is a good level for the S2 and good balance of runtime with output (2.1A draw on a Panasonic NCR18650B 3400mAh cell tested at 3,128mAh @ 2A draw would yield approximately 1.49hr runtime (3128/2100=1.49) and I calculated 470 lumens out-the-front in my D.I.Y. sphere on my previous XM-L T6 4C emitter). I will be retesting my S2 again in the near future. I also need to get back to my sphere work and analyze how my sphere calibration is working out.

Also - I posted this “”color rendering comparison”:User Review: Nitefighter BT40S ( CAt Review ) | Page 9 | Mountain Bike Reviews Forum over at MTBR awhile back which might be helpful. (I spend most of my time over there nowadays.)

-Garry

To complement what garrybunk said: a 2.1A torch would be a 6*7135.

I don’t have any 7135*6 driven lights, so I can’t answer that with certainty. The best I can do is point you to my discussion of S2+ thermals on CPF. My estimate was 3 minutes 45 seconds, but you have to understand and agree with my method before you can adopt that figure.

Neither of your links match with those that elwood posted. Both point to some “Jio TV App” stuff.

That’s really odd. If i check the link in that original post, it links to the correct place. But if i check the link in a post where i was quoted, it links to the jirotv crap. Not sure what’s going on but this is the original link: http://s20.postimg.org/fuqwlhopp/Convoy_Side_By_Side_Tints.jpg

Go back up and look at post #26… ‘dingdong’ changed the links when he quoted you ‘elwood’.

I guess he had nothing better to do on his first (and hopefully last) post here on BLF………… :person_facepalming:
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EDIT: You will notice your links still work fine when quoted in posts #4 & #6

Ahhh, Good catch! Gotta hand it to em, that’s some pretty slick spamming. :money_mouth_face:

Yeah, it was a valiant effort on his part I guess……. :wink:

Not to derail the thread too much of for too long, but how yellow is the 7A compared to, say, an incan lamp?

Also, any idea as to its CRI?

I haven’t got any incans to compare with, so I can’t help you there.

When it comes to CRI, the XML2 datasheet says “Typical CRI for Warm White (2600 K – 3700 K CCT) is 80.” CRI-binned stuff is available at up to minimum 90 CRI in the T4-7A range, but I doubt Convoy will be spending the extra money for CRI-binning.

i perosnally want red and blue convoy s2+ only with single led.not triple anymore.so sense of it…too small body.sadly…is good idea to use bistro driver for this light?no turbo timer….i want it for how long i need…fet from a6 reduce it…
also-is better to change also the led?are the leds fake leds in this lights?its a long long time,when i bought cheap light…:slight_smile:

Convoy uses real Cree LEDs not the most wanted and highest flux bins to keep cost low

I’m going to go a little against the grain here. Personally, I think you should go with the 4x7135. In fact, in your case, you may even want to consider the 3x7135. Even a 3x7135 gets around 350-400 lumens. That’s plenty for dedicated indoor use and more importantly if your kids will have access to it. The last thing you want is a 8x7135 that your kids get a hold of and leave it turned on at full power and on top of the bed or something. Not to mention that they WILL inevitably shine it in each other’s eyes. Remember that most people here are lumen junkies and we tend to recommend high output lights. In the middle of the night at home, all you need is a few lumens pointed at the ceiling if you don’t want to screw up your night vision and circadian.

Check out this post here showing the visual difference between 3x7135 and 8x7135. I think that when you see this picture you will probably agree that 3x7135 is already plenty for indoor use:

It sounds like you will be happy with the 7A tint. A warmer color temp will also be less jarring on your eyes when used at night. IMO it also looks more natural when you’re running the light on low modes. FWIW, my sweet spot is in the 4000-4500K range for a general usage flashlight.

My oldschool Maglite incans appear VERY WARM compared to LED. In fact, I think that they are warmer than 2700K. The biggest difference in light spectrum sensitivity between incan and most LEDs are red tones. Incans pick up reds very well and blues poorly. This further contributes to the perception that incan is warmer because even if you had an LED and Incan that were the same color temp, the incan would still show much more red and the LED much more blue.

Check out the images in this post on Popular Mechanics here to get an idea.

If I were letting kids use a modern LED flashlight unsupervised, I’d be gluing a diffuser on the front first. Even 3×7135 will produce a high intensity beam at point blank, verging on retinal damage.

Yeah, that’s a good point. 20 years ago, parents didn’t let kids play with Maglites and people were warned about eye damage. Those were only 80 lumens max with a new battery.

Another thought is that even with 3x7135, with Biscotti he could program it to limit it to 50%. That would put max output at around 150-200 lumens. Still probably plenty of light indoors. Still also potentially damaging if kids abuse each other with it or accidentally shine it in their own eyes, but at least it’s less risk than other options without going the “cheap flashlight” route entirely.

Also, not sure if anyone already called this out but OP probably wants a version with the “Orange Peel” reflector since a wider beam is going to be more useful indoors.

i will use bistro drivers for my…but which is better?A6 or X6?..

These are a couple of photos with three Convoy S2+ with 1A, 4C, and 7A tints. Obviously, a camera image never quite matches the human eye, but they are close. Unfortunately, I don’t have an incan to compare. I would estimate that they are in the lower end of the 70-80 CRI range.


Taken with iPhone



Taken with SLR

This video really helped me see what these lights were capable of. - YouTube
Also i now use this driver with Guppydrv firmware in mine and it offers a very low low and other good modes. QLITE REV.A 7135*8 3.04A LED DRIVER - 17mm
I hope this helps. As a side note ive got a light with the XM-L2 U2 5C tint and it seems like a perfect combo of warm and white.