It appears that other than the zebralight companies have been slow in releasing new cutting edge drivers for AA flashlights. Any reason why this is happening?
i think they believe the future is lithium
I’m still an AA lover at heart, although thanks to many generous BLF members I do own some dazzling Li-Ion lights as well. I think that Nitecore and Sunwayman definitely make a cutting edge driver for their respective EA4 and D40A lights, which handily trounce a lot of Li-Ion lights using just 4 regular AAs. But I would love to see some more innovation for the 1xAA format as well.
A long time ago we did a custom Mr.Lite BLF edition light. Unfortunately it was ridden with switch problems, but when you could get it to turn on it was fearsomely bright on a regular 1.5V alky. It had a strange “ramp up” effect when it turned on, as though a capacitor or something slowly (with 1 second) charged up until reaching maximum capacity. Think of “turbo lag” in a flashlight, if you will. It was definitely impressive at the time, and I wonder how bright it would look today compared to some of the more modern options. Methinks it would still compare very favorably.
I would enjoy a constant current then medium at 25% capacity then low at 10% driver, preferably in the 300-500mA on high arena and runs on one eneloop
A 4xAA light doesn’t need anything special as a driver. The voltage already exceeds that of 1x18650. And many Li-Ion drivers can take input voltages higher than 4.2V. Because of this, it’s VERY likely that 4xAA lights like the EA4 and D40A actually use off the shelf drivers also intended for use with Li-Ion batteries. Similarly, 3xAA is fairly equal to 1x18650 in terms of voltage, and can use a 1x18650 driver just fine. A good example of such a light is a Dereelight Javelin with a 3xAA extender. With 3xNiMH, this light will run a P60 intended for use with 1x18650 just fine (provided it fits). I think Eagletac also makes a 3xAA light.
It’s when you get down to 2xAA (and 1xAA) where you run into driver issues. Voltage is now substantially less than 1x18650. So a boost driver is needed. NiMH batteries can certainly supply enough juice (eapecially C’s and D’s). But I’m guessing that the cost of producing a high current boost driver is possibly higher than maufacturers want to deal with. Size and possibly heatsinking could also be issues. With these issues in mind, most manufacturers probably figure that anyone interested in a brighter light will either go with Li-Ion or a light that uses at least 3xNiMH.
On the other hand, the new Smart series by Armytek looks like it has some pretty impressive 1xAA and 2xAA lights. Their 1xAA produces up to 340 lumens, and their 2xAA produces up to 620 lumens. They are not yet available. But if they live up to the manufacturer’s promises, they could be gamechangers when it comes to AA lights using fewer than three cells.
I have been looking for the “perfect” Single AA light for a long time, and will eventually build it.
a 4AA light would need a buck driver, 3AA puts out 1-3 amps (highly dependent on the batteries) so output is nowhere near regulated on a linear driver
1-3 amps from a AA? Maybe if we’re talking about L91 Energizers (max 3A continuous). But any halfway competent NiMH AA can do 6-7A without an excessive voltage drop. Some (like Eneloops) can do more yet. If we’re talking NiMH, 3xAA can EASILY crank out 3+A.
There are many threads on it, only 1 person has been able to show 3 eneloop xx can even hit the 2.8 amp to fully power the 105C driver. My regular eneloop only got 2.1 amps, and there are graphs as well showing that 3AA can’t keep constant brightness above 2A
Its because of voltage sag, a 3A xm-l would need about 3.5V at 3A, and 3 eneloop in series can’t do it
My SRT3 is a newer flashlight with lots of new features, and it comes with an included AA extender. The MT1A is a nice light, and I’m also still infatuated with my L10. Then there’s some nice 4xAA lights like the EA4 and the D40A. And Sunwayman just came out with the D20A. Also, Zebralight isn’t the only company with electronic switch user interfaces for AA lights. And their main design is a few years old.
Doesn’t seem like there’s really a lack of innovation in the AA space, though I wouldn’t call ZL the main driver of innovation.
Are there AA battery flashlights anymore? 
Kicking out 3+A and being able to supply an emitter with 3A with a linear driver is not exactly one and the same. Admittedly, if you use this setup and want to drive the LED at 3.0A, a linear driver is probably not the best way to go. A verybefficient buck driver that goes to direct drive (which isn’t entirely bad with NiMH) would certainly be a better bet. Then again, even if you only drive an XM-L2 at 2-2.5A, you still have a pretty bright AA light.
i would not personally want to drive an xm-l at 3A from 3 x AA batteries because battery life would be pathetic
I would like a single AA driver that puts 500mA to the LED on high, 2AA at 1A and 3 AA at 2A all constant current
Not to mention that running an XM-L at 3A is pretty useless with ANY kind or number of batteries in a smaller light. Your typical 4xAA light (like the EA4) or 1x18650 light (like the SC600) can’t do it for more than a few minutes due to the fact that a small light just can’t dissipate the heat. Around 2A not only guves you more battery life. But the light can run continuously without getting overly hot. And for most purposes, 500-600 lumens is PLENTY.
i find its a balance between output and battery life, there are many times i would want a short burst of much brighter then normal, but that needs to be balanced with what most people would use the light at.
I would enjoy designing my own driver with modes that would work the best for any circumstance you may encounter, and mode groups to make the light insanely versatile, but very well hidden (unlike the 105c from fasttech that drives me crazy)
Dorcy makes a bunch of AA and AAA flashlights, and I think their quality is good. The problem is they do not use proper drivers: only a single resistor. So they get dim long before the battery is used up. Use rechargeables and replace as needed.
I prefer AA for my car flashlights, where they may spend extended time baking in the hot summer sun. One of my Dorcy lights has turned a nice bronze color from the heat.
The yellow plastic 41-4750 is actually ripe for modifications. There is a ton of room in front of the switch for even several circuit boards. I have used a 2*AMC7135 driver and replaced the XR-E with an XP-G2. Pretty good thrower. Just limit the current to 700mA since there isn't a good heatsink.
I think one of the biggest limiting factors in my single AA lights are the switches. The SK68 for example drops roughly 500 to 600 mV at 1500 mA. A better switch would significantly increase the output and/or run time.
Thats a lot of loss, is the switch heating up?
I tested each of the three switches for only one or two minutes to get the measurements. The spring warms up slightly, but that was all I noticed. I’ll do some more testing and pay closer attention to that.
That would be good, but even better if you can find/test improvements. I.E., does soldered braid help much?