Regarding the low amp values people are seeing. For everyone who studied Dale`s numbers and are familiar with his measuring techniques, it should be no surprise that most will not come near his numbers. I raised my concerns about the driver once they were published. Not because I cared personally (Im most likely going to swap the driver anyway), but because I predicted that many people would not be able to replicate his numbers and people would be disappointed. It was clear this driver would not have the performance many desired. But that was discovered before people got to click the "buy" button.
As far as I can see, there is no more amp issue today then it was back then. The results people are reporting now were expected IMO. Most people just dont realize that Dale`s amp numbers are as high as they can possibly be. His output numbers on direct drive and similar lights have always been higher compared to most since resistance in his setup are minimized as far is it can be and input voltage is maximized beyond what most people chargers will do. On top of that, the best low resistance cells.
Is the picture in OP showing 3,47A @ 4,2V correct? Yes. Does that make it a 3,5A driver? IMO, no (but that can be discussed). People are not going to get 3,5A in any real flashlight with a 4,2V cell.
Were Dale`s amp numbers from the samples correct? Yes, they were correct. Does that make it a 3,3A driver? IMO, no, its not what people most people will see and its not representative for the performance. Saying its a 3,3A driver is IMO a bit misleading. But at the same time, its true.
Wasn`t it quite obvious? Samples were reported to not perform as well as expected. Send one to Dale, and it got fixed on the way by the postal service on the way to him?? No… I would have liked to see JM`s numbers of that same sample. If those were presented there would most likely have been less people complaining since more realistic numbers would have been presented. That way people would have lowered their expectations.
Can I replicate Dale`s amp numbers on my light? Yes. I should be able to see 3,3A on my stock light with NW emitter. Ive seen 3,2A without everything “optimized” as far as Dale`s goes. But the way this driver is designed that number is relevant for about 1 second for an optimized bench test. Meaning not relevant at all IMO for real flashlights use. It is no surprise to see many people around 2,5A and some lower. I could just do minor changes to DMM, leads and battery voltage to get “low and disappointing numbers” The flashlight would still be the same though, and the performance would still be the same.
On top of that, could emitter Vf issues make some peoples numbers worse? Yes, of course they can. In some cases they probably will. But no one are in perfect control over those. I started a thread on that issue the other day for anyone who is interested. (Warning, that thread is guided towards modders. More especially people who does a bit more “hardcore” mods, but the Vf issues are relevant for everyone)
I hope the above will help some to understand a bit better what is going on with the numbers. I would advise people to just enjoy their light and not get too caught up in the numbers. The output is good and the value is fantastic! Thank you Krono, Dale and everyone else working on this GB. You guys have really pushed the limits for how good a 20$ light can be. Looking forward to the next GB! :)