On the L6 you loose 20% of the lux between SMO and OP. I have no plans on ever going back to the OP reflector on my light.
The 70.2 does have a somewhat ugly corona, but it doesn’t bother me much anymore. Being able to see much further than I ever could with the old xhp70 is worth the tradeoff.
It seems you would be more happy with a current S70s or L6. Just swap the driver for more output and you are set.
I’d choose extra throw and a yellow corona over less throw and a donut hole/or heavy OP reflector. Hint: the 80CRI versions of the XHP70.2 are not binned very much lower and produce a way more bearable corona, soft yellow instead of lime.
About developing a 9V driver (and about prematurely deciding for Sofirn what they are and are not capable of), as was communicated to me, Sofirn has recently attracted a few new engineers who worked for major flashlight companies before (I did not get more details than that) so tbey may be more capable than we assume.
It would have the potential. During the design phase, they just need to make the driver cavity big enough to later fit a 6v to 12v boost driver. The coils can be a bit tall on those.
Speaking of the driver, nothing has been confirmed. I like the goal of 5000+ lumen, but Sofirn hasn’t said much. Is 5000lm capable with a buck driver? I’m not sure. I know a FET driver can do it and more.
I suppose a 30mm driver would also be a good idea. You could make it smaller, but you limit yourself as far as future buck or boost designs.
A buck driver will be limited to about the same as a resistor modded L6 and at that point it is not in regulation anyways, so it is functioning like a high resistance FET driver with a high drop out voltage.
I don’t think that is enough to reach 5k lumens.
It would be a bit more efficient in the low modes at the cost of peak power though.
Here is another question I was trying to figure out. We know a single 70.2 can pull upwards of 18 amps from a pair of 26650, but what kind of limits would we see trying to power 3 of those emitters?
I looked at the tried and true cyan Liitokala 5000mah (2016), but I don’t think they sell those anymore. The black version is still sold and looks like a good performer. 20A continous and 30A pulse.
The Shockli 5500mah black is a newer battery (2017) and it looks like it is a step up. It’s still 20A continous and 30A pulse. Compared to the Liitokala black it has about 0.10 volt less sag at 20A and about 0.15 volt less sag at 30A.
I’m just learning there is a new Shockli 4300mah (2018) light green that looks aimed at even higher drain use. It is 30A continous and 40A pulse. Compared to the Liitokala black it has about 0.13 volt less sag at 20A and about 0.2 to 0.25 volt less sag at 30A. That’s a huge improvement. This looks to be the cell to use for highest performance.
If anyone has heard of any other new 26650 high drains, let me know.
Edit: It looks like the Ijoy INR26650 4200mAh (Black-Yellow) is a match for it.
The highest drain 26650 might be the Golisi IMR26650 4300mAh (Gold) at 35A continous. Wow.
The Golisi blows away the Shockli 5500mah and Liitokala 5000mah black.
I think gor 2x 26650 one XHP70.2 is enough. Three will be too much drain. Or the triple version need to be almost the same output as single led but floodier and more efficient because every led driven lighter and not lost output so fast because of heat.
Or we need to consider that the triple led version need more battery. Maybe 2x3 18650 in carriers like the GT just 6 battery in total to make grip diameter smaller.
I’m curious if 3 x 70.2 can maybe pull 30A+ from 2 x 26650.
A pair of 26650 is quite a bit less powerful than 4 x 18650. (I think)
The cubic centimeters of volume are pretty much the same (4 x 18650 and 2 x 26650), but no high end battery company makes the 26650 which puts it at a disadvantage.
DB Custom has a triple 70.2 using 21700 cells. A pair of Samsung 30T 21700 did 48A at turn on and 42A at 30 secs!
We might be able to get 12000 to 13000 lumen from 3 emitters and 2 x 26650 batteries. About double the output compared to a single emitter.
Oh no wonder the recent Sofirn offerings have been such high quality and lumen numbers are not exaggerated like the majority of the bargain Chinese brands on Aliexpress. I wonder if these engineers come from Olight or Acebeam, then maybe we can have even more ambitious projects coming in the future like say, active cooling, similar to the Acebeam X70 but at 1/2 the cost!
If the single 70.2 version can reach 1000m, that is double the throw distance. Even my current L6 which has only about 75% more throw and 90% more lumens than stock is a night and day difference. Absolutely no comparison.
The parts alone to build my L6 was about $50 on top of the $65 light. That’s $115, plus you then have to physically do all the swapping over of components.
The SP70 should be like a factory version of this, but sold at well below $115. Plus not everyone can do all those mods, so a factory light with all these upgrades is much more appealing. It would be a HUGE upgrade over the L6 and S70s.
Seems we are clear about the UI, brightness levels(It’s confirmed that 5000LM can be made with high current.).
The name would be better be Sofirn SP70 and we can mark “helped by BLFers” on the package box and manual?
Do you guys have any ideas about the looking? the fins, the knurling, the cap etc. Example as reference will be much appreciated. Our designer’s brain is going to explode since several
new lights need to be designed this month. :person_facepalming: