Also I really wish they would put a 4 led volt meter on top of this, sorry but playing morse code with blinking lights is just unacceptable imo.
Temperature damage is unlikely. The LH351D are tested to 1000hrs at 3A at 85C. At 7*7135, each LH351D is getting less than 800mA at most.
The top might be so hot that it hurts to touch it, but it shouldn’t decrease the lifespan by much.
Even if something does break, the parts are pretty cheap to replace if you can do some soldering.
Hi
Does the Fenix CL30R have a built in volt meter ?
It has 4 led lights that gauge the SoC, not an actual volt meter with numbers. But so easy to use for the average joe.
Thanks
Does anyone know what the waterproof rating is on this? Can it handle rain?
It handles rain no problem. I have used them in the rain many times.
Great to hear, thanks!
I have a question. The LT1 doesn’t seem to be very efficient in its power usage; is that mainly because of extra circuitry to handle the tint mixing, or what?
Say the LT1 on high produces in the neighborhood of 600 lumens, for a bit less than 6 hours. The Q8 with the same 4 18650s can produce 750 lumens for something like 17 hours. The LT1 sucks juice a lot faster.
That’s not to take away from the advantages of a purpose-built lantern for specific uses, especially one that can vary its color temp output. I’m just thinking that when a person is camping, thrifty energy use from whatever cells one has packed can become a factor, too.
Where are those numbers; lumens and hours coming from? Are they reliable, realistic?
The LT1 is far from an efficiency champion, but the Q8 performance you suggest is not accurate. It would be nearly 250 lumens per Watt. No flashlight on the market comes close to that.
Since I’ve actually been curious about a comparison with the CL30R for a while, I went ahead and used this discussion as an excuse to make one, and I added the Q8 as well, since you brought it up.
In general, the LT1 compromises on efficiency for the sake of having high CRI (especially so at the warm end of the tint ramp). Based on Lumeniac’s photos, I suspect the CL30R is also high CRI. The LT1 and CL30R both compromise on efficiency for the sake of having well-diffused output. I assume the CL30R achieves its better overall efficiency by utilizing a buck driver (if a Lume1 or similar topology driver was ever offered as a mod for the LT1, I would be all over it!).
All of them are similar in size and weight, but of course, different shapes, and the CL30R holds one less battery. The Lumeniac review linked below has really good photo comparisons of the LT1 to the CL30R, showing by size and relative output under controlled conditions. A few users elsewhere have provided comparisons between the Q8 and LT1
I personally went with the less expensive LT1 with it’s tint ramping and Anduril, and am very happy with it. The Fenix looks like a really good lantern, too, and adds powerbank functionality and Fenix’s product support.
Comparison table (smartphones may need to be landscape orientation for best viewing):
| BLF Q8 | BLF LT1 CW | BLF LT1 WW | Fenix CL30R | |
| Max Output (lm) | 5,000 | 463 | 355 | 650 |
| Efficacy (lm/W) | 80 | 71 | 55 | 100 |
| Regulated time on Max | N/A | 7 hours | 7 hours | 2 hours, 40 min |
| Color Temp | 5000K? | 5000K | 2700K | 4000K? |
| CRI | 70? | 90 | 90 | 80+? |
| Batteries | 4 x 18650 | 4 x 18650 | 4 x 18650 | 3 x 18650 |
| Weight @ 48g/cell | 592g | 597g | 597g | 556g |
Sources:
Q8 Output: Advertised
Q8 Runtime Test: Zeroair review using 3000mAh cells
Q8 Efficacy: Calculated stepwise from Zeroair’s graph in combination with advertised output.
LT1 Output: Maukka Test
LT1 Efficacy: Calculated from Maukka’s based on 5 x 0.35A driver and 3.7V average battery voltage
LT1 and CL30R Runtimes: Lumeniac’s Review using 2600mAh cells
CL30R Output: Manufacturer specified (Not tested. See Lumeniac’s photos for comparison)
CL30R Efficacy: Calculated stepwise from Lumeniac’s graph and advertised output.
I got the Q8 numbers from a post by CivilGearReviews, which cited alleged mfr test runtime results. Note the “Group 8” data line in the chart.
CivilGearReviews thread
Not saying that I’ve done anything to confirm accuracy of those numbers, though.
I’m not comparing max output to max output, but rather m/l equivalent lumens of output.
Runtime of the LT1 at high setting has been mentioned by several people, and GreenCampfire did a runtime test and posted a graph showing almost 6 hours before output fell off sharply.
Maybe I missed it, but does anyone know what the button LED turning on halfway through the ramp signifies? Usually it’s the FET channel turning on in other lights, but the LT1 doesn’t have a FET.
It’s just an arbitrary value (65/150). It also doesn’t turn on, it switches to high (and is very dim before that).
I’d love to see an LT1 pro with a boost driver (buck has flickering issue) and a better thermal path which directs more heat to the body.
Not sure what you mean. A buck regulator does not flicker.
Lately, I have been discussing some ideas with Barry (Sofirn) and DBSAR, among them a (limited) run of a special LT1R with Samsung LH351D 4000K 90CRI and Luminus SST20-DR 660nm.
Basically, we would sacrifice standard tint ramping between 5000K and 2700K (LT1) and exchange that by tint ramping between a warm neutralwhite 4000K HighCRI and a true deep red tint with 660nm wavelength. Additionally, this LT1R could be anodized in red color (not discussed with Sofirn yet) to emphasize the unique proposition of this model. This plan would mean very little efforts in (re-)development if any and keep markup costs to a minimum.
Certainly, most of us would prefer to have a three-channel LT1 with both 5000K, 2700K and deep red light. But that would imply:
- significant changes on the LT1 source code (incorporate third channel tint ramp, underneath the "bottom" of warmwhite floor level)
- that ToyKeeper (or someone else's expertise) was required to revise that source code accordingly
- that Sofirn had to revise their current LT1 driver design and add a third channel, place additional 7135s on the driver board
- that we talk about a whole different timeline, probably not feasible within the next 6 months
- that hardware costs could be added at unforeseeable level due to the global semiconductor shortages right now
Maybe I am going to run a poll anytime soon. But before that I am curious about some general opinions, especially upon tint ramping between white and (deep) red light.
**significant changes on the LT1 source code (incorporate third channel tint ramp, underneath the “bottom” of warmwhite floor level)
that ToyKeeper (or someone else’s expertise) was required to revise that source code accordingly
I’m not sure exactly how significant this is but it seems like it should be possible to someone knowledgeable without being too. You could probably create a tint ramp2 (or reuse the current tint ramp) which gets accessed with a different click sequence when already at the bottom of the tint ramp. I’m not super knowledgeable about the code but I think it could be done, even without TK’s help
that Sofirn had to revise their current LT1 driver design and add a third channel, place additional 7135s on the driver board
This has already been done. Sofirn has a revised board with a third channel of 7135s labelled red
that we talk about a whole different timeline, probably not feasible within the next 6 months
Not an issue to me. These are more longer term plans
that hardware costs could be added at unforeseeable level due to the global semiconductor shortages right now
What are they having trouble getting? The components of the red LT1 board seem identical to the current board with the addition of a few 7135s
For me, a red channel is a bit of a gimmick and I really wouldn’t like to see it come at the cost of regular tint ramping. That seems like an avoidable and undesirable compromise.
In an effort to not deviate from the current conversation, here’s a link to a new thread I’ve opened regarding the idea of swapping a board of Sunlike ~98cri emitters into the LT1 for better colour rendering and less heat at the head.
The cost if we get 100 people interested would be about $12 a board + $4 shipping which you’d swap it into the lantern yourself.
May be someone have correct sizes of this pcb? +/- .5mm
