New X40 3280 Lumen 3 x U3 LED light coming out in December similar to the TN30.

[Globi23]

If the quality of the next batch is equal, I would rather get a NiteCore TM15, even if it cost 60$ more or so...but the quality might be worth it... :thinking: lumen seems to be more or less the same

 

[Dubois]

im not sold yet either. i have contacted neonlaserchina twice now, and the same guy has responded both times, but from two different emails (one from neonlaser and one from hotmail)

he said they are sold out, will have more on the 25th of jan, and could have one on my doorstep by "febunary" ...right? also, said the out the door cost, paypal fees and all, was $190 american. i think i will lurk first. someone buy this light already.

Steven is probably the guy you communicated with. The two email thing is likely because he will respond all hours of the day. I got a K40 through him, and he was very professional; they ship DHL, so his (typo) February is reasonable.

In my experience it is a decent company, that makes excellent quality products.

 

[helixpteron]

In my experience it is a decent company, that makes excellent quality products.

That is good to hear ! I will order one and will also post my experience here.

I just found this post - I think from Supbeam itself: Supbeam X40: la linterna más segura de la carga directa

This claims that the light has a proper parallel charging circuit. I also emailed already and the company told me the light can stay connected safely in a vehicle keeping the battery topped up.
I am aware that it would be better to store the battery half empty, but I want to treat it as an "operational readiness" charge and replace the batteries when necessary.

Can anyone give me advice if that will work out ?

Thanks a lot.

​

 

[langham]

It is according to the cells that you choose, some are better than others at holding a full charge. I think you should be fine with some high quality cells with low internal resistance.

 

[helixpteron]

It is according to the cells that you choose, some are better than others at holding a full charge. I think you should be fine with some high quality cells with low internal resistance.

... I ordered 6x NCR18650B protected from fasttech.
Panasonic NCR18650B Protected Rechargeable 3400mAh 3.7V 18650 Lithium Batteries
Hopefully that is high quality cells.

Also I have inquired at the manufacturer: The charge port will not carry any voltage when the light is switched off. I am not sure about the switched on state (the answer wasn't too clear), but will let you know when it arrives.

​

 

[langham]

Those are my current favorite cells, as they are high capacity and low internal resistance without the high cost.

 

[helixpteron]

Supbeam X40 lumen / output testing equipment

Hello,

just had a look at the Supbeam homepage and found they published how they tested the output.

http://www.supbeam.com/en/supbeam-led-flashlight-x40
http://www.hopoo.lightstrade.com/view/105744/Hopoo-LED-spectroradiometer…
http://www.hopoo.lightstrade.com/view/62421/Integrating-sphere.html

These product would be the used light meter and sphere. Can anyone of you determine how accurate they are ?

Thanks – Rob.

​

 

[helixpteron]

Those are my current favorite cells, as they are high capacity and low internal resistance without the high cost.

Good the hear I made the right choice just by abstract research without even yet owning a flashlight .

​

 

[CouldUseALight]

1) The main on-off switch at the tailcap still seems a bit awkward to me for a large light like this one.
2) Then, having to use the other hand to switch modes with the rotating mode ring up front is awkward again.

This UI seems clunky on paper, but I find it very nice in-use on the TN31.

The compelling thing about the X40 is the charging ability.

You can charge from the car, the wall, anywhere, without buying a separate charger, AND you benefit from cheaply replaceable batteries of constantly increasing capacity.

I thought I'd hate the charge port on the TM15 but in practice I LOVE it, and virtually never take the batteries out of the NiteCore.

Once you get used to it, charging individual cells seems niggling ("this light should just WORK, as a unit"), and battery packs feel ridiculous for the capacity they offer!
It's the best of both worlds!

 

[langham]

The UI is not the same as the TN31; the TN31 has 6 levels while this has infinite levels between 1 lumen and max output. That has some people worried about how it will work, and a lot of worry has gone out to if the charging port can be shorted by lets say a key, or if the light were sat in a small puddle of liquid. It seems as if they do not short and that the UI is undetermined, but I have heard elsewhere that the max output does not stack up against the Thrunite brother especially not now that they have released the XM-L2 version. I haven't seen anyone that owns one yet, are they available?

 

[helixpteron]

I haven't seen anyone that owns one yet, are they available?

I have ordered one last week and will post here what I think about the UI.

​

 

[helixpteron]

I have received my X40 today, serial Nr 34 and I had a little play with it tonight. The UI is brilliant - really infinite steps. The control ring has just the right friction, so that I can move it with one hand.

The beam pattern is a good compromise between spill and throw for my taste and the multi emitters give it a nice flower shape, what is important too .

The charging port cut out reliably on fully charged batteries and the manufacturer assured me via email that there is no way to short it out. I did top my cells up in a charger just to make sure they are even, but parallel charging is another feature to be mentioned. I will get a multimeter out and examine the battery holder to see how far that is true. It has one connector for the head on on side and 3 springs on the other for the parallel charging.

The temperature regulation is visible so after a few minutes on maximum with no cooling and 30C˚ it steps the brightness up and down a tad until it decides to run on a lower setting, but it's just noticable, not annoying.

I could have done without the strobe mode, but that's just personal preference, as I don't the need for a random strobe at all, if at all I would like an SOS one. It comes after Max, but there is a solid click between 3LM / Min and Max / Strobe at each end of the range, so you can know where you are at any time before switching it on. Very well done.

I have nothing else that big to compare it too, but I can say this is an excellent product and the company was superb to deal with.

​

​

 

[CouldUseALight]

The UI is not the same as the TN31; the TN31 has 6 levels while this has infinite levels...

Different circuitry, but they feel very similar.

Biggest difference, I wish the X40 had a "standby" position on the ring, for no light. You can darken the ThruNites from the ring control; X40 requires you reach the clickie to kill the light completely.

One of the big attractions of this light for me, was the interchangeable heads with the ThruNite TN31/TN30. The X40 handle + battery carrier + wall/car/USB charger can be used with my OSTS TN31 thrower head. :devil: I can lego together the appropriate combo, and won't need a charger!

I don't have a TN30 for comparison, but the brightness and beam profile initially appear quite similar to my TM15. :naughty:

 

[dlmorgan999]

One of the big attractions of this light for me, was the interchangeable heads with the ThruNite TN31/TN30. The X40 handle + battery carrier + wall/car/USB charger can be used with my OSTS TN31 thrower head. :devil: I can lego together the appropriate combo, and won't need a charger!

Wow! How did you determine that this was possible? I already have a TN30 and a TN31, and I just bought an X40 from the Marketplace BST forum (should have it early next week). I would like to play Lego, but I never would have thought to try this.

 

[xed888]

Wow! How did you determine that this was possible? I already have a TN30 and a TN31, and I just bought an X40 from the Marketplace BST forum (should have it early next week). I would like to play Lego, but I never would have thought to try this.

I can confirm they are lego-able

 

[CouldUseALight]

Wow! How did you determine that this was possible? I already have a TN30 and a TN31, and I just bought an X40 from the Marketplace BST forum (should have it early next week). I would like to play Lego, but I never would have thought to try this.

You would have once they were in-hand!

The X40 output and beam profile are very similar to the TM15. The TM15 has more spill and the X40 incrementally more throw.

The hotspot is not coherent, as far out as the TK75's; altho I no longer have a TK75 for direct comparison, would expect the TK75 to out-throw the X40.

 

[dlmorgan999]

You would have once they were in-hand!

I suspect I know what you are getting at, but I guess I'll find out when it arrives.

 

[magpye]

Don't worry about shorting the magnetic charging socket.
When switched off or in use I only measured 12mV on my DVM. An inline fet switch isolates this socket when not in charging mode.

I understand the socket is monitored for charging voltage and if present uses fets to switch the cells from series to parallel. (I've read where fets can have much lower on-resistance that mechanical switches).

With what looks like 5 fets on board, I suspect the "infinite" brightness control is digital and I've tried to count the number of brightness "digital jumps". Depending on the day I count anywhere from 16 to 22. I suspect its 16 jumps and uses 4 fets. Maybe someone else can confirm this.

Finally, for those that are still cautious of buying directly from Supbeam, then I have some good news. My X40 developed a fault where the charging led failed. I emailed Chris from Supbeam and explained the problem. I was reluctant to ship the X40 back to China from Australia to claim the warranty ...the shipping costs add up. Chris said "no worries" and shipped me a new X40 base with charging led. No charge.

 

[Oztorchfreak]

Hi all.


Isn't this the light that has no off or standby position on the magnetic control ring.

I have several TN31 lights and the "standby" position is a must in my opinion after using the same type of control rings for quite some time now.


CHEERS

 

[helixpteron]

I on the contrary can say that when my light didn't work (on day one = 1st of Feb.) They promised to ship the parts, but I still don't have them. They gave me a tracking number now, five month later.

In my case the resin in the battery holder didn't cure, ran into the clicky switch and I couldn't turn it off anymore.

I would have liked to ship it back and maybe get a replacement with the new generation LEDs as compensation for not having a light for half a year since I bought it, but they declined that request at some point in April and continued promising me a part I don't yet have.

I am not overly happy with Supbeam, although at least they do react and ship something at some point.