Hank, will we see a buck + boost driver from you in the future?
Trading the turbo mode for all the benefits of a boost driver is understandable, but the lack of a proper moonlight mode is too great a sacrifice, at least for me.
A buck-boost driver won’t make the lowest output lower.
Indeed a new a series MCPCB for E17/E21A has to be made, and lowering the output, 2A per LED is IMO too much on Noctigon MCPCBs.
A d18 with something like Sunlike or Optisolis with two switched mode (buck or boost) channels would be very useful for video lighting purposes.
Got my D4K. Mine came with the following:
- White body. I believe this is MAO. It looks like the white from the TS10 MAO pictures … noticeably whiter and less silvery than the white body from my D4v1.
- Cyan switch light with raised switch ring.
- Variable color temp.
- Channel 1: 3500K 519a dedomed
- Channel 2: 5700K 519a dedomed
I originally thought about going with 2700K 519a dedomed in Channel 1, but decided that was probably just too warm. Especially since dedoming seems to reduce color temp by approximately 1000K.
As expected, build quality is excellent. However, the threads at the head were a bit squeaky out-of-the-box. Lubing them up with Nyogel solved the problem.
So far I’m quite pleased with it. It feels great in the hand and the beam pattern, CRI and tint are excellent. Knurling and clip are excellent. Head is the same size as the D4v2 head, but with slight differences in the threads. Finally a 21700 light that is small enough for pocket EDC (barely. If I’m in the mood for a slightly larger than I would normally carry light).
Or just get an LED panel light?
Is there one with an open source firmware on the market?
What inspired you to go with 519A over other options? If 519A wasn’t available, what would’ve been your next choice?
I have the same light. I have SW45K D180 lights. This trumps them. I will own another that is warmer on the lower end. I think dedome is the way to go, if offered. Since offered.
Some thoughts on my newly arrived D1 mini…
That’s looks pretty neat. Do you think SBT.90 is better than W1/W2, in the sense that you get more light and throws just as far?
Having a KR1 with the W2 and the D1 mini with the SBT90.2 my take is:
For throw, I think the W2 is still the sweet spot. the beam is big enough to be useful and it throws really well at all outputs (you wouldn’t believe how far it throws even in moonlight!!). It is also pretty bright at 1200 lumens OTF. But it does require 8 amps on Turbo. Sticking to High makes it very usable for longer periods.
But I find the beam is not very useful indoors. As a general purpose EDC light it has heavy compromises. But these lights are small enough to leave in a coat pocket all the time, even if you carry another light.
The W1 I don’t have in this size torch. I have one in a Convoy C8 and I find the beam is not very useful for anything. It does throw more than the W2 KR1. But the beam is a lot smaller and lights up too small an area for any practical use. The spill beam is also much duller. Meaning it also isn’t any good up close or indoors. The flip side is, the W1 only needs 5amps max to perform. Which means much less heat, sag and dimming. And better runtimes. I need to try a W1 in a smaller host (maybe a Convoy M1 or M2) to see how it is. The smaller reflector should make the beam more useful. But I kind of think the W2 would still be a better choice all round unless you are just wanting the headline Lux figure on a light meter.
The SBT90.2 on the other hand. It is much more usable. Just as good as an XP-L HI or XM-L2 indoors or for general use. But pump the lumens up and it can still reach far down range (much further than an XP-L HI). Just not quite as far as the W2 in my examples or testing. I think the difference is. Most of the beam distance comes from the very high lumen output rather than a small high intensity LED. This means it always lights up a much bigger area. I don’t think any other emitter for a given reflector size will put as much light down range at such distance.
Ultimately I think the SBT90.2 needs user reservation to not abuse the High or Turbo modes due to heat and the driver dimming the output. 50-80% output is however very good and probably offers more lumens & throw combo with a big hotpot than any other setup.
Sounds pretty legit! How is the tint lottery on Hank’s SBT90.2 bin? The SBT90.2 I have in my L7 is kinda green at lower levels and I probably wouldn’t want it in an edc.
Initially I was very disappointed with the tint. Compared to a 5000k SST-40 it certainly isn’t as pleasant.
However, in isolation it is actually ok. Just don’t go firing up a better tint light next to it.
Thanks for your review on the D1, CD. Interesting to see your thoughts. I’d been very tempted to go with the XHP70.3, as it has very generous candela while allowing for warm CCT. The SBT90.2 doubling the price was a deal breaker for me, because I expected the driver wouldn’t really push the LED to its capacity. Seems to be the case. Anyway, when I learned the XHP70.3 goes to about 250 meters on turbo, I decided to go with an LED having more throw. A toss-up between SFT-40 and W2. I selected the SFT-40, because it seems to drop a little shorter in distance from the W2 while providing a little more usable spill. I also selected cyan. Looks super, from your video.
So it’s interesting how the SBT90.2 puts out 100kcd in the D1, while the W2 does the same… and yet, you see greater throw with the W2 in the KR1. The reflector diameter and depth appears to be identical between the D1 and KR1. Incidentally… you mentioned having activation problems with the KR1. I know the KR1 doesn’t have manual lockout possible (due to the way the e-switch is powered). Have you looked into disassembling the switch and modifying it to make it stiffer? It’s something I did on my Lumintop FW3A. The switch uses a little nubbin that presses on an electronic pad. I replaced it with an o-ring of the right size and it did the trick, stiffening the switch action.
Incidentally, I think the “Noctigon” brand differs from the “Emisar” brand in having a more “tactical” approach. The only tail switch lights are offered under Noctigon (Emisar is all side switches). Also, any side switch lights under Noctigon are either multi-array or dedicated throwers with large reflectors. My suspicion is that “Emisar” derives from “emissary,” which is ambassador or secret agent. The idea being more luxury or daring designs, instead of tactical. Again, just my guesses!
Any further progress on the 14500 sized light Hank?
I find you need to have a large one to control the size of shadows, so I usually bounce a cob light off a white board. Spot size on board determines sharpness of shadows. I have managed to shoot a few things with a big tube dm1.12, has barely enough battery for the job.
That category has been shaken up by the ts10 and sp10 pro. I’d rather have a single emitter than multiple, as the throwy beam profile is more versatile.
Sp10 pro has an amazing driver for the price, but has a poor button (weird pre-travel and hard to find in the dark) and barely tailstands.
Ts10 has visible pwm, more of it on moonlight, and reportedly overdrives emitters. Mine also had a very stiff button, Fet means inefficiency above what the two linear chips can supply.
There’s also the Convoy t3, but that’s mechanical switch and is big for the category.
So Hank has his work cut out for him.
Don't forget the FWAA and FW1AA.
Interesting. I find for the most part that 14500/AA sized flashlights don’t really provide nearly as useful throw as what you get with 18650 or 18350 size. But if you need a close range hotspot for some reason, then I can see your point. IMHO, the FWAA and FW3A w/18350 provide fantastic flood with useful throw.
I’m curious about other people who have gotten D4K w/ boost driver and 519a emitter, if you’re using the lowest moonlight mode , do you get some flickering? I got my light today and readjusted the floor of the ramp to be the lowest. But it flickers at that low.
Wondering if it’s possible to get another one that won’t have the flicker, or if that’s just how the D4k’s are?
And when you first turn it on, is there a split second where it’s brighter than moonlight, before it goes to the low moonlight level?