Zebralight SC64c LE with LH351D NOT high CRI

Was going to say, don’t post this thread over at reddit, or the hiveminds will lose their minds.

@ peter_b

Have you considered the Opple Light-master-III. It is much cheaper (around 40 €) compared to something like the X-Rite. It is of course most likely not as good as a professional solution, but it seems decent enough for hobby usage. There is a wohle thread about the Opple over at TLF > Link.

thanks for making me aware of that option
Im interested in buying one in USA
anybody have a link?

I found a link in Europe, but shipping is $50

I finally received my replacement SC64c LE and H503c from Zebralight.

They didn’t include a note or anything, just two brand new lights in their original packaging.

I’ve verified that both lights have the correct high CRI LH351D. The SC64c LE has the new style battery cathode contact.

I also noticed there’s some schmoo on one side of the H503’s emitter. It’s probably some excess thermal paste or potting compound. It’s probably not an issue since this is a AA light and the emitter won’t run high enough power to burn the dome. It’s a mule so it won’t affect the beam either.



Sounds like their QC is slacking.

Thanks for your suggestion and the link. The little Opple Light Master G3 unfortunately doesn’t measure R9…

I found an upgraded version called ‘Opple Light Master Pro’ (hardware, not the app!). This gadget received the IF Design Award 2020 for good design, see https://ifworlddesignguide.com/entry/282367-lightmaster-pro

I can’t find any retailer selling this improved version yet. Here is a picture from the IF World Design Guidewebsite showing the measured data (incl. R9!):

I finally got access to a C-7000 SpectroMaster. I measured the SC64c LE that I received from NKON few days ago, and my H503c from April this year (also NKON).

SC64c LE looks good (CCT=4057K, Duv=0.0034, Ra=93.5, R9=76.0), my H503c definitely has a low CRI Samsung LED (CCT=4227K, Duv=-0.0067, Ra=74.2, R9=-28.2)

This is very strange because If it isn’t able to measure R9 then it shouldn’t be able to measure CRI at all.

Try contacting Zebralight for an RMA. It took about eight weeks but they replaced mine without any fuss.

CRI (Ra) is actually just the mean of R1-R8.

You are located in the U.S., did you send your lights to Zebralight USA or to China? I will first try to solve things through NKON as their European dealers, otherwise I might have to pay again customs and import fees for the replacement…

I sent my lights to Zebralight in the USA. If NKON can take care of you without extra fees, that’s probably the best option.

It’s not that it can’t measure R9, the app is just extremely limited in what data it displays because the manufacturer intended to sell a more fully featured version for a higher price. You get lux, CCT, CRI Ra, CIE coordinates and uv, as well as a postage stamp CIE 1931 chart. It doesn’t show R9 or Duv (which you can obviously calculate). Also based on results posted on TLF the lux and CCT measurement is fairly inaccurate for warmer CCTs. There isn’t a comparison of measured Duv with a known good device. I would say it’s ok for telling whether you have a CRI 70, 80, or 90 light as well as approximating the CCT above 3500-4000K. If it can give a reasonable approximation of Duv too it’s probably a useful device for the money, though not that great.

It was good ol’ product segmentation of course.

Strange that the 'Pro' Version isn't available anywhere yet, the IF page says 'date of launch 2019'.

A more capable version than the 'G3' would indeed be welcome.

I called them this afternoon, and they told me the Light Master III , is the PRO version...

I had the same issue when I ordered and received a H600fc it obviously was not 4000k nor high CRI. (I have a bunch of 219Bs and SST20 4000ks so I know it didn’t look right).

I contacted them, turns out they sent a wrong version, probably H600f, instead of H600fc.

They quickly sent me a correct one after receiving my return, and included an extra head strap as an apology.

I guess it’s quite common to pack and send the wrong one when the specific model name is not printed on the light itself. I had similar experiences with other brands as well.

Thank you for finding that out. That clears things up.

> Light Master III

I emailed the company asking about purchasing in USA

they replied, “we are the European distributor… contact the main office in China”

so I wrote to Opple China… will share if they tell me how a USA customer can buy Light Master III

Just to keep you updated: I was in contact with NKON about this issue. They say they weren’t aware of this problem. I returned my 2nd H503c (purchase date April 2021) to NKON and they refunded instantly.

Both H503c were from the same batch that NKON received in March this year. They couldn’t tell me when to expect a new shipment of H503c headlamps with the correct Samsung LH351D high CRI emitter.

received Opple… it correctly identifies Low CRI
this is a NW XM-L2:


duv –0.0019

.

the device is new to me, I may be making mistakes using it
so far it seems to be reasonably good at CCT and CRI Ra
not sure I believe the Tint calculation yet… it shows the XM-L2 as having tint below BBL… that suprises me, but, maybe it is true

it also shows a rather low frequency, and this is a light that creates banding in photos, the way PWM does… so maybe it is also doing OK at calculating flicker… not sure I understand it yet

bottom line, if someone had this device and wanted to know if their Zebra is High or Low CRI I do believe the Opple can be trusted to answer that question.

I bought it here
(not affiliated)

===
Novatac w Cool White SSC-P4 LED

correctly measured at 6500+K and 65 CRI Ra:


duv 0.0048

at this 7 lumen output, there seems to be no slow flicker:
.