I am trying to decide on a headlamp, and, I think, I have narrowed it down to the Olight H2R Nova (cw) and Zebralight H600fd (or fc) mkIV.
I don’t have the chance to see any of those up close and I have to order them from another country.
The pros and cons to my mind for each light are the following:
Olight
Pros
- More lumens (2300)
- Good access to turbo
Nice head mounting option
Cons
- Cool white tint (problem with fog, rain, etc)
- Older led xhp 50 (? is it older than xhp 50.2, or am I wrong)
“Low” CRI
Zebralight
Pros
- 90+ CRI
- Good access to turbo
- Parametric brightness of UI
Newer led xhp50.2
Cons
- Not that good of head mounting option (more difficult to remove)
- Less lumens (around 1600)
Problems with spring on cap (read some online, and on this very forum, about stepping down due to spring overheating)
I live in Greece, so price is the same for both. The one question that I have, is how does the zebralight have 90+ CRI with xhp50.2. I thought that this was a property of the led, and from my “research”, xhp 50.2 is around 70+.
Also I don’t like the fact that the spring is overheating if that is actually the case. I don’t know if it would be possible to bypass it, like I do on the lights that I assemble myself (convoy etc).
So, I would like some input and advice from you guys. Which one should I buy???
I’d suggest the Zebralight + an Armytek headband (very light, great UI), or alternatively an Armytek Wizard Nichia version (magnetic tail, better tint, heavier, magnetic charging).
You won’t be running any of these at full blast for long, and 1600 vs 2300lm is almost indistinguishable for the short time full output is even available.
There are different color temperatures and CRI rating for the same base LEDs. These are called “bins” normally. Like a car being offered in two versions with different engines, or one with a turbocharger and the other without.
There have been since the original XHP50, they’re just rarely used by any flashlight brands except Zebralight (Jaxman or another brand was offering them in some lights too IIRC?).
The relatively small and aggressively textured reflectors in the H600 ends up making a surprisingly consistent beam, the frosted lens versions are perfectly uniform.
Kinda the point. All my lights that have G3s also have a generous helping of diffusion film on the front glass.
Eg, the recent Tacklife steal. Nice thrower, but hideous beam. Slap on some diffusion film, and it’s an awesome in-house light.
Anyhoo, if you’d want a flooder as a headlamp, then great, some diffusion film would hide a multitude of sins, even from an XHP. But, dunno if the OP wants that.
???
XHP have been always there in 80 and 90 CRI, Zebralight are using them regularly
50.2 is more efficient on battery drain with boost driver
if you take not CRI XHP50.2 the lumens are quite on the same number, Zebralight might drive a little less current through the LED
XHP has nothing to do with less quality the dies of an XHP70.2 are identical to XP-G3 dies
Overheating springs can be always fixed with a carefully soldered high flexible lead to bridge it electrically
50.2 is always a good option to use frosted lens or a TIR
Only other input I would give is actually suggesting the H600c/d over the Fc/d, because its easy to make a light floodier with diffusion film or scotch tape, but there is no way to remove the frosted coating if you go with that model and want a more focused beam sometimes.
I was expecting a lot of tint shift from my H600c and was pleasantly surprised to see less than even some LH351D lights I own.
Thanks for the advice, I will consider it. Although I feel that scotch tape will burn and lose it’s shape on the light. I have never done it, so that is just a hunch.
Thanks for the advice, but to be honest, if I buy it new I don’t pay VAT and is tax deductible, so it is kind the same for me.
Finally, and since I think I am persuaded to go for the zebralight, would you recommend c or d? From what I gather, most people go for d, but since I haven’t seen any of them in person, I don’t really know if the c is to warm. I generally like warm lights, because they tend to work better in rainy or foggy conditions.
I’ve never had that happen when using it in a pinch, but you can also buy “DC Fix” or photography light diffusion film, both of which can absolutely stand up to the heat over long periods of time.
Even the 4500K SC600 HI and Armytek Nichia are a bit too cool for my tastes much of the time and I’m happy I went with the “c” variant. Tests by one member here put it at 3800-4000K depending on output level. It matches the 4000K 219Cs and LH351Ds I’ve had while being just slightly cooler (and better tinted) than 4000K SST-20s.