Not Gonna Buy Cool White Again! [Join Club Here]

[gcbryan]

I guess I don't totally get it yet. I do understand that lights around the house are more comforting that the lights at work.

Dive lights used to be halogen. They were very warm (orange) but I couldn't see much detail. Things may have been more natural but looking at an octo at night under a log in natural light apparently means that you can't see very much.

Then I changed to HID and I saw much more detail even though it had a bluish cast to it. Later I moved to LED (MC-E) and the unit I had as compared to HID was a little more neutral and that still worked for me. So I'm starting to get it I guess.

I also have a Surefire 6P incan and although it makes the leaves look for natural at night it isn't very bright. I see a lot more with the cold white lights but I guess that's mainly just because they are so much brighter.

So, so far I guess I haven't had a neutral or warm light of equivalent output to compare directly with a cold white light. Maybe I'll be won over and join the club one day

At the moment with most headlamps I don't have that choice (I realize you do have that choice with Zebralight).

 

[mitro]

I'm absolutely on board. I have been for a long time. Vote with your wallet.

 

[Z-Tab]

Hi-CRI is the only way to go.

 

[bansuri]

Count me in!
Here's my current lineup:
L to R Zebralight H51w, MJP Extreme III with High CRI Cree XP-G, Liteflux LF2X 5C, HDS Twisty with XP-G 5B, HDS Basic 60 and new HDS 120 EDC with XM-L 4000k Neutral.

L to R: Cool Q5 PD1 as cool tint reference, and the MJP and EDC 120 from above.

Once you join it's impossible to quit.


edit: I will eventually learn to break out the "real" camera when taking these shots.

 

[Imon]

Hmmm...

As much as I like neutrals, warms, and high CRI lights I'm not ready to make that a deciding factor when I chose a light. The HDS Ra Clicky (non-High CRI) remains my EDC of choice and I still place quality and functionality high on the list of reasons to buy a light.
Honestly, and I don't mean to offend anyone, I think most flashlight manufacturers really don't care that there are people on CPF (maybe a majority) who prefer warm or neutral tint LEDs over cool. So you're really limiting your choices when you choose to not purchase lights that don't use warm LEDs.

I'll make a rather cynical prediction here and say that there will be apostates to this new movement who will quickly capitulate and return to buying cool white lights.

 

[Echo63]

Im not going to say i will never buy another Cool White LED again, but i will certainly try not to.
My 2nd Neutral light arrived today (its also my 1st TI light, and First Custom, if you dont count my Moddoo Triple/Oveready 9P)

I will continue to carry my Novatac EDC120P - it has been a faithful sidekick for close to 5 years now, and it has a cool white LED (towards the warmer end of cool white though)
my other 2 EDC lights are both Neutrals, my new TI Muyshondt Aeon, and my Moddoo Triple in a Oveready 9P
i do prefer the Neutral tint (dont own any warm whites) and it seems to work pretty well in photos too (had to photograph people looking in bins the other night, their windup torch was too dim so i handed over my 9P - 1000lumens works well as a close in photo light)

I am thinking of having my old Lux5 U2 and Lumensfactory P7 M head converted to Neutral/Warm LEDs too, the P7 looks horrible and blue after using a Neutral LED or Incan light, and the U2 has been an irritating slightly green tint from day one.

my New Neutral light

and the other one

 

[Justchill]

Most of what I own has a cool type color. I feel that the cooler colors provide a bit brighter light in a true moonless outdoor night. Is that my eyes playing tricks on me. I guess what I am asking is...Is there any real advantage to the warmer colors?

 

[woodentsick]

...I wonder how much our own personal backgrounds affect our preferences for light temperatures.

Hmm, this is very interesting. I grew up reading Enid Blyton books where all her characters used old-fashioned torches (obviously with incandescent bulbs) and also, my first lights as a kid were all incans. When I got my first 'real' light, I couldn't care less about the tint. However, now I find that even a neutral white light looks too much like a 'high-tech' LED. I'm not going to switch to incans, but I've already ordered a warm 3700K light, to get a simulated 'old-fashioned' torch which appeals to my childhood. I certainly agree that someone's personal background has an effect on their preference for various tints.

Woodentsick

P.S. You can definitely count me in!

 

[pjandyho]

I love high CRI, neutral and warm but that is not going to stop me from buying cool white. If I know there is a warmer tint available later I will wait. But some manufacturers just doesn't seem to have warmer tints in mind, i.e. Surefire. I love some products but they just so refused to go the warmer route. At times I wonder why Surefire wouldn't use neutral white for their Outdoorsman series of lights but they are really great lights and I am happy that I bought them. Wanted to buy Elzetta but again they are not available in warmer tints. Would be a waste to buy a complete light only to remove the M60 in there to replace it with an M60W or M61W. Don't they sell just the host?

 

[Colorblinded]

I'm not buying anything else unless it's neutral white (warm is nice but I find neutral is the best) and high CRI would be ideal. While some manufacturers are adopting more neutral white, I don't see that much widespread adoption of warm and especially not high CRI. I can keep hoping though.

 

[pjandyho]

(warm is nice but I find neutral is the best) and high CRI would be ideal.

Sounds like you prefer something in the 4000K to 4500K range? Not sure if you realize that the Cree high CRI is pretty warm in the 3000K range?

 

[don.gwapo]

Plus, as somebody else noted, I've been clearing house of CW flashlights, so that has to count for something!

You can send your cool white lights to me coz I'm a cool white guy. Would not venture to neutral or warm coz brighter/cooler is better to me. :devil:.

Not sure it's accurate to say cool white is the best. Some (myself included) would say more lumens are the best.

I don't work for CSI so as long as I can see red is red, I want more output.

Yep, I'm with you bro. I always want more output too. .

 

[warmurf]

Blasphemy! Traitors!!!

But at least we now know who you all arrrrre!! :devil:

 

[Skylumen]

You can send your cool white lights to me coz I'm a cool white guy. Would not venture to neutral or warm coz brighter/cooler is better to me. :devil:.


Yep, I'm with you bro. I always want more output too. .

I love Cool White too! The brighter the better. I recognize color with cool tint even better than warm tint. I never quite understand why a yellow tint render color better....

Also you cant direct drive Neutral White LED. I am not sure why but they will color shift and die easily.

 

[DaveyJones]

i dont even own any warm lights (yet) but im gonna have to jump on the bandwagon here.

technically ud expect white to be the color that reflects the highest range of colors,
but the cool led's arnt really white, they fail at a big chunk of the spectrum.
hard to appreciate until u see them side to side.
videos like this have convinced me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P23_gU0zy70

i dont know if im ready to say ill never buy another cool white, but imo the warms are far superior
in their capability to reflect a larger spread of the color spectrum.

 

[ZMZ67]

I won't rule out CW completely if I find an inexpensive light that fills a niche in my collection but I am after NW lights as well.I still lack a true warm or high CRI LED light but I am thrilled with neutrals I have that are around 4000K.If I am going to spend any significant money it will be for NW or high CRI.The "brighter is better" crowd has lost me completely,I am more interested in tint and beam quality at this point.

 

[mvyrmnd]

High CRI all the way!

I've given up in production lights, they take too long to ship with good tints.

I'm waiting on Mac's 3300L triple triple, using high CRI emitters. Nine high CRI XP-G's, 2500 warm toasty lumens

 

[azzid]

Warm, neutral and high cri only for me. Got a load of cool white lights which i don't use anymore, used by family members when a blackout/power outage occurs. The only non neutral light that i still use is a hds/ra 170t which imo has a almost neutral tint.

 

[faco]

Warm - Neutral - High CRI :thumbsup:

 

[akajimmy]

I am in. I really dislike the cool bluish tint. I tried the Quark tactical Warm and was in after that. I am celebrating joing this new club buy buying the new SC51c Zebralight.