Trustfire X9 or Dereelight DBS V3 Aspheric? Help me decide on a light! (:

Hello there, everyone. I've been a frequent visitor of this forum for quite a few months, and I have decided that now is as good a time as any to join! Now, I'm fairly new in the world of LED flashlights. At the moment, I only have a couple, none of which are particularly impressive. Since it is almost Christmas time, I am thinking of purchasing a new, hopefully better flashlight for myself. I'm not interested in getting a floody light; rather, I would like a thrower which takes just one 18650 battery, as I do own a couple of these batteries and am comfortable using them in a single-cell format.

So far, I have had a brief look at the Trustfire X9 and Dereelight DBS V3 Aspheric. Obviously, these lights are very different; however, I am still having trouble deciding between them. I am attracted to the Dereelight DBS V3 Aspheric because I have heard reports of lux figures in the 90k @ 1m range. Obviously though, this flashlight's usefulness is limited...

I am attracted to the Trustfire X9 because it is considerably cheaper. The thing that concerns me is that I have read several threadsreporting different amp draws, ranging from 1.5 to 3.0 A at the tailcap.

If I purchase the X9, I will be getting it from Manafont. If I purchase it from them, am I guaranteed to receive a flashlight driven at or around 3 Amps? I ask this because most of the flashlights with reports of low amp draws that I have read with regards to the Trustfire X9 have been purchased on Ebay.

So, what do you guys think? If you have any suggestions for other single 18650 (or multi-cell NiMH) throwers, then please feel free to mention them here!

Thanks in advance!

Welcome fellow Ontarian

I like the DBS V3 as long as it’s the R2 version. I tried Googling Dereelight and got nothing…man that’s a hard light to find.



That’s an expensive way to get a light though…buy the V3 and replace the head with an $89 aspheric. How much is the V3 itself?

Haha, thanks, CopperTop. It's nice to know that there are other Ontarians who are interested in flashlights. (:

Yes, if I purchase the Dereelight, I will be getting the XPE-R2 version. When I Google 'Dereelight', the first result is their 'official' website...well, at least I hope it's their official website:

http://www.dereelight.com/

From what I understand, the DBS V3 with aspheric lens is 80 dollars shipped. I could be wrong on this, but on their website, it says "Aspherical lens flashlight series-$79.8". As far as I know, this price includes the flashlight as well as the aspheric lens.

https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/5019

Re the able question about how hard the X9 will be driven: from what I have gathered from this forum it depends on what batteries you have as to how much current the driver will pull. Although regardless of battery type you will not get the full 3A the XML is rated for: more like 1.5-2.2A This is easily fixed by installing a custom driver behind the LED (driver found here: http://www.kaidomain.com/product/details.S009742 ) and modding the tail-cap / switch (this thread has some information about it: https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/3527?page=2)

I have an X9 on the way and I think I might stick one of these on it to see if I can make it into a wee bit of a super thrower: http://www.ebay.com/itm/2pcs-54mm-High-Quality-Glass-LENS-Collimator-LED-Light-Projector-Camera-/110781992773?_trksid=p4340.m185&_trkparms=algo%3DSIC.NPJS%26its%3DI%26itu%3DUA%26otn%3D5%26pmod%3D110778598278%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D4434119911784032402

Thanks for linking that thread, jamesearljones. Lots of useful information in there. According to 2100, the $79.8 price does, in fact, include the aspheric lens, which is nice.

ManualMan, I will be using the generic Trustfire Flames 2400 mAh batteries to power the light. I'm not too interested in modifying the flashlight in any way...unless of course that driver mod is a simple one. I'm not exactly sure about the process of installing a new driver into a flashlight...is there any soldering involved? (I'm so unknowledgeable in this field...sorry!)

Also, do you think there would be a visible difference between an XM-L driven at 2 amps and an XM-L driven at 3 amps? I have heard the our eyes perceive brightness in a way so that four times the lumens are required for a light to appear twice as bright. Does this apply to lux, too (i.e. 400 lux looks twice as bright as 100 lux?).

Thanks for all of your help so far, guys. This forum is so friendly and inviting.

The way I read it (someone who knows please jump in) is that it’s $79.80 for the head with the pill and $36 for the aspheric head without pill and the V3 with pill is $72 so $108 for the whole thing.

The DBS V3 with aspheric is $79.8 shipped with registered tracking. It's a fun light that is very high in quality in budget-speak....

I just received the new EZ900 pill, tonight will do some testing/shots.

Thanks! That wasn’t clear to me.

Even at 2.2a the x9 is a great light. or get both!

welcome to BLF Flashlight.

i got my dbs with aspheric after 3 lights. got a keychain light (itp eos a3), edc flooder ( xeno e3) and a mc-e light(tk40) before i got my dbs aspheric. i finally got my basics covered then i got my "specialized" light.

really happy with it.:)

Thanks, amraspalantir! I currently own a Techlite Lumen Master that I got from Costco. It’s pretty awful, and I rarely use it. I’ve also got an Ultrafire KH-T60 XM-L which is pretty nice. The build quality is surprisingly good; however, it’s not as bright as I would like it to be. Or maybe it just doesn’t seem like it is. Unlike you, I don’t really seem to ‘have my basics covered’. (: I don’t know…the DBS isn’t a practical choice – it’s just a fun one.
What do you guys think about the Fenix TK41 vs the Trustfire X9. Of course, if I were going to get the Fenix, I could get, as edx suggested, both of the other mentioned lights. More is always better! :stuck_out_tongue:

Guys, I've pretty much decided! I'll be getting the Dereelight DBS V3 Aspheric...it's 86 dollars with the new EZ900 1.2 A emitter though. Oh well.

I just have one question -- how long do you think it will take for the light to get to me in Canada? I had to wait approximately 45 days to receive

my flashlight when I ordered it from DealExtreme...I'm hoping to get this one by Christmas. Is that likely?

Thanks.

Alan of Dereelight ships pretty much immediately, like the same day, or the next day (depending on what time is it over at HK)

That's fantastic! I guess I won't have to opt for the 'fast shipping', which is an extra twenty dollars.

I see that you own this light (I've checked out your other thread! That one image comparing the Dereelight to the Crelant really influenced my decision, haha).

How does the build quality compare to Fenix and Jetbeam? Is it similar, or is it just a little better than xxxxFire lights?

It's probably similar to Fenix, 1/2 step below my Jetbeam RRT-2. Well it's not fair, coz the RRT-2 is over-engineered to be solid.

BTW, do get the 3SM or 1SM pill, ie multi-voltage. Use 2 cells. It holds the output constant over entire discharge curve. 1 cell like 1 x 18650 would do max output for say 5-10 mins only. Actually in my testing with the meter, as low as 3-4 mins only.

I'll drop Alan an email, to ask him to take good care of you guys.

It's good to know that the build quality is up to par with some of the more well-known manufacturers.

I specifically wanted to get a 1 x 18650 light because I've heard that using multiple li-ion cells can be dangerous. ): Is this true?

If I were going to purchase a 2 x 18650 light, there would be way more to choose from, like the Sky Ray STL-V2 or one of the 3 x XM-L lights.

Would you say that getting the 3SD pill would be an absolute waste of money? Would I be better off with the X9 then?

Sorry about all the questions.

3SD would be somewhat a waste of money. Can't sustain max output, now it's not going to be very visible, but heck you paid good money for this ultra-specialised-light. I have that pill as well...3SD EZ1000. Now my EZ900 is 3SM.

Even the Solarforce MPP-1 is brighter with 2 cells. It's measurable on the meter even with cells at 4.2V, quite a fair bit.

Don't get the X9, a bit of lottery. I prefer the Fandyfire STL-V6 much better.

If you have a DMM and always take measurements for charging and hence slot in cells which are balanced in voltage, there is no danger at all. Also you can use protected cells or IMR 18350s. The IMR 18350 can be gotten from bestinone.net. Over 900mAh per cell. TF Flames 16340 (protected) will get you about 700mAh.

Check out what Tat is saying about the 3SM.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?325827-Dedicated-throwers

I don't currently have a DMM...I should probably get one though. Are there any particular models you would recommend?

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/3/HouseHome/2/Electrical/ElectricalTesters/PRD~0520064P/Mastercraft+3+Piece+Multimeter+Kit.jsp?locale=en

I've found this one which is on sale for just ten dollars and I can pick it up locally. However, the reviews seem to suggest that it isn't very good... ):

I really don't know what to get now. Considering this light would mostly be for fun, do you think that the Stanley HID0109 (which apparently puts out 3000 lumens) would be a good choice? It would save me the trouble of buying a battery or DMM or anything else.

http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-HID0109-HID-Spotlight/dp/B001U04MEY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1322238386&sr=8-1

Just wanted to say thanks again for being so helpful. (:

EDIT: According to Dereelight's website, the 3SD pill drives at 1.2 A, 0.3 A less than the 3SM pill. Does this mean that the single-cell format will be able to sustain max power for a longer time, just at a lower maximum brightness?