I agree. A hi CRI thrower is almost a misnomer. You really want neutral white or slightly cooler from that, as the more eye friendly thrower.
That makes sense, what’s the most “neutral” white light that fits my criteria then?
You can get a KR1 with a SST20 4000K if you really do want the high CRI. If you are fine with just neutral temperature then you can go for one of the XP-L HI or the SST40 in 5000K.
Ehh nah, I want the tube form factor. Similar to the PD32/PD35 from Fenix, I really like that form factor.
Building a KD S3 21700 tube light with a SST20 4000k and 5A or 6A Convoy driver would be your best hiCRI tube thrower. 20-22kcd is my estimate.
Decent CRI from a XPL or XHP35 HI in a 80 or 85 cri bin (good luck finding one these days) will be the middle ground. (maybe XPG2 could be found too). Maybe high 20’s kcd.
A very very good tinted 70CRI XPL HI like a 5D from Hank can satisfy the non-snob. 30kcd should be possible with enough current.
Max throw out of a tube light would be around 60-65kcd with a 1mm² Osram
Thanks, are there any guides you could recommend for doing this? I’m reasonably competent with electronics principles but have never built a flashlight.
I’m sure there are somewhere here, and plenty of people will happily guide you through any issues too, but it’s really super easy. If you can use hand file, tweezers, and solder two wire joints, you’re set! The host accepts 20mm drivers and 20mm led boards.
The biggest question mark is what driver and UI you want. Convoy’s 12 mode groups are nice for their flexibility.
The light comes pre assembled under the Ekoras brand - model R7. You could start there and swap the emitter later if you like. Everydaysurvivalgear
has a review and teardown of the light. Ekoras R7 Purple Swaggg
Btw, the reason to choose this light over others is that you gain a precious 1-2mm of reflector diameter and also a bit more depth that other tube lights. 21700 is also nice for this style imo since the proportions are better balanced. I’d go to an FW1A (my edc) if you want 18650, but Anduril isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.
Thanks, I’ll have a think about it. I might wait for the S2+ with 219B to arrive first, maybe I don’t need one light that does everything. I could use the Fenix as a thrower and the S2+ for close-up.
The FW1A looks quite short, would it not be better to get something longer in order to have more throw?
Convoy S2+ with SST20 seems like a good option, not sure how far that would throw
Found a good descriptive list of the S2+ emitters here: Flashlight Review: Convoy S2+ - Light Painting Blog
Seems like it’s a choice between SST20 (high CRI) or Cree XP-L HI at 4000k, but given what was mentioned at the start of this thread I’m leaning towards Cree XP-L HI in 4000k for more throw/lumens but with (hopefully?) neutral colouring.
Am I on the right track? I guess what I’m really looking for is something similar to my PD32 but that doesn’t turn everything white.
Would love to see max throw distance charted for all of those emitters somewhere.
Looks like a neutral equivalent of the PD32/35 isn’t possible because those emitters only come in 6500k colour, so I’m guessing Cree XP-L HI at 4000k is about as good as it’ll get.
I suppose SST40 might be a good choice too for more power, 5000k is still a bit more neutral than 6500k.
For a thrower you want a very small led to maximize focus by the reflector or optic, and Osram seems to be the champion of that.
I’d go for a Noctigon KR1 with an Osram W2 led mainly because it’s Anduril and everyone seems to like Hank lights around here:
I’m sure there are alternatives though. Anyway, look at the candela ratings of the different leds on that page (scroll down) to get an idea of the throw. The Osram would seem to give quite a pencil beam. Next thing after that would be a LEP (white laser).
6000k is too white of a tint, I’m looking for something more neutral.
After more research I’m leaning towards Convoy S2+ with XPL HI in 5000k tint, I think that should be a good balance between throw and neutrality.
Was about to order it but I noticed several reviews where people chose:
XPL HI U6-3A 5000-5200K
with:
7135*6 output current 2100mA
from here: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001981991584.html
rather than 7135*8 which would be the highest output driver. Why would you not want the strongest driver? Surely output can be regulated through the software if you want to run it on a lower brightness… so I think I’m missing something.
Oh I guess there’s no 80% mode in the software, so maybe some people didn’t want quite so much brightness?