Zebralight H600/H604/H600F MKIV headlamp

[Stefano]

Today I received an H604c.
I wanted to buy it in 2018 but I read on this forum some problems at the PID and I decided to wait for it to become stable.

For the moment only a small test at home, in the garden and in the parking lot but they are really very impressed.
The tint is beatiful and this is definitely the most beautiful Headlamp I've ever bought.

I tried to make a comparison of the colors with my old H602w and there is a great difference.
I like the new interface and this light is really powerful, I'm really happy with the money I spent.

I took a very hasty photo at home, it is taken at the L1 level because with more light I can not take pictures so close.
It shows the difference between H602w and H604c.

Live and with more light the difference is more evident than in the picture.

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Next pics: (slow animated GIF) H602w vs H604c (with H2 set to 620 and 579 lumens)

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Today I'm too tired but in the coming days I'll try to take some pictures or comparative videos (H602w vs H603w vs H604c)

 

[NPL]

Looking forward to this. There has been little info on this model to date.

 

[tech25]

Haven't seen many recent posts from you Stefano. It's good to see you back! I have seen all your reviews on the previous Zebralights, they were very helpful in choosing which ones to get- thank you!

 

[Stefano]

Haven't seen many recent posts from you Stefano. It's good to see you back! I have seen all your reviews on the previous Zebralights, they were very helpful in choosing which ones to get- thank you!

Yes, I have long been away from every forum.
Thank you for your appreciation.
Thanks also to the user Curious and his tests, thanks to it I decided that I could finally buy a new light series MKIV

 

[Stefano]

Sorry for the moment I can not take pictures in a better place.
This is my old (but still valid) H602w vs new H604c - it has a nice tint but compared to the new model it looks cool.

The new model H604c has about 600 lumens more and the difference is noticeably visible.
In comparison I did not use my H603w because it is carefully packed in an earthquake kit but maybe in the next photos I will use it too.

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[Stefano]

Very short video
Old Zebralight H602w (led XM-L2 - 4400 K - 1010 lm) vs new Zebralight H604c (led XHP50.2 - 4000 K - Hi CRI - 1616 lm)

The first headlamp shown in the video is the H602w - last is H604c (from 0,20 seconds you can see H604c)

 

[SKV89]

Took readings for a few Armytek Wizards and compared it with the Zebralight H600fc MKIV. Output taken at 2s after turn-on with the Texas Ace Lumen Tube calibrated with Maukka lights. Spectrometer used is a Sekonic C-800-U.

Armytek Wizard Pro XHP50 WW (2020)	H2	1,521 lumens	3988K	-0.0018 DUV	82.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	20.1 R9	65.4 R12	80 Rf	100 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro XHP50 WW (2020)	H1	788 lumens	3898K	-0.0008 DUV	83.8 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	23.0 R9	64.9 R12	82 Rf	100 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro XHP50 WW (2020)	M2	147 lumens	3785K	0.0008 DUV	84.7 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	25.1 R9	63.4 R12	83 Rf	99 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro XHP50 WW (2020)	M1	34 lumens	3739K	0.0010 DUV	84.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.97	25.5 R9	63.1 R12	84 Rf	99 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro XHP50 WW (2020)	L3	4 lumens	3734K	0.0012 DUV	85.2 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.97	26.2 R9	63.0 R12	84 Rf	99 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI	H2	1,388 lumens	4583K	-0.0016 DUV	92.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	65.2 R9	73.9 R12	88 Rf	97 Rg	included battery or VTC6A
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI	H1	684 lumens	4458K	0.0002 DUV	93.4 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	68.1 R9	72.8 R12	89 Rf	97 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI	M2	128 lumens	4337K	0.0009 DUV	94.0 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	72.9 R9	71.4 R12	88 Rf	97 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI	M1	29 lumens	4292K	0.0009 DUV	94.2 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	74.5 R9	71.3 R12	88 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI	L3	3 lumens	4295K	0.0002 DUV	94.4 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	76.7 R9	71.4 R12	88 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI 2nd Unit	H2	1,339 lumens	4583K	-0.0012 DUV	92.5 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	63.5 R9	73.0 R12	88 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	Turbo	954 lumens	3986K	0.0010 DUV	73.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-12.5 R9	46.4 R12	71 Rf	98 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	H3	342 lumens	3868K	0.0041 DUV	74.5 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.98	-12.5 R9	44.2 R12	73 Rf	97 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	H2	149 lumens	3824K	0.0052 DUV	74.8 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.95	-13.0 R9	43.6 R12	74 Rf	97 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	H1	50 lumens	3816K	0.0062 DUV	75.1 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.92	-12.9 R9	42.9 R12	75 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	L3	5 lumens	3807K	0.0073 DUV	75.1 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.87	-14.3 R9	42.1 R12	76 Rf	95 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	L2	1 lumens	3783K	0.0073 DUV	75.1 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.86	-14.2 R9	41.9 R12	76 Rf	95 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW	L1	0 lumens	3887K	0.0066 DUV	75.5 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.95	-12.6 R9	42.6 R12	76 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Turbo	1,010 lumens	4100K	-0.0026 DUV	72.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-17.0 R9	44.4 R12	69 Rf	98 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Mode 5	348 lumens	4013K	0.0001 DUV	72.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-19.4 R9	42.2 R12	70 Rf	97 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Mode 4	155 lumens	3973K	0.0014 DUV	73.0 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-20.3 R9	41.2 R12	71 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Mode 3	32 lumens	3934K	0.0028 DUV	72.9 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-21.9 R9	39.7 R12	72 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Mode 2	2 lumens	3962K	0.0022 DUV	73.3 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-20.9 R9	40.1 R12	72 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Armytek Wizard Magnet USB XP-L WW	Mode 1	0 lumens	3935K	0.0025 DUV	73.3 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	-20.8 R9	39.8 R12	72 Rf	96 Rg	included battery
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	H1	1,398 lumens	4038K	-0.0003 DUV	91.3 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 1.00	60.0 R9	72.2 R12	89 Rf	100 Rg	NCR18650GA or VTC6A
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	H2	502 lumens	3952K	0.0011 DUV	92.2 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.99	64.1 R9	70.5 R12	89 Rf	99 Rg	NCR18650GA
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	M1	112 lumens	3851K	0.0017 DUV	93.0 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.96	66.6 R9	69.8 R12	89 Rf	98 Rg	NCR18650GA
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	M2	22 lumens	3802K	0.0024 DUV	93.2 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.92	66.9 R9	69.8 R12	89 Rf	98 Rg	NCR18650GA
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	L1	3 lumens	3770K	0.0026 DUV	93.1 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.91	66.4 R9	69.7 R12	89 Rf	97 Rg	NCR18650GA
Zebralight H600fc MKIV	L2	0 lumens	3773K	0.0023 DUV	93.2 CRI	Blue light relative amplitude 0.91	66.4 R9	69.7 R12	89 Rf	97 Rg	NCR18650GA

Armytek very sneakily upgraded the Wizard Pro WW to a 4000k 80CRI emitter, which of course is to my delightful surprise. In the past it is said to use a 3500K 70CRI emitter. Nowhere on Armytek's website did they mention anything about an 80CRI emitter. Now I'm wondering if it is still an XHP50 or is it now an XHP50.2. The Wizard Pro WW also happens to be my favorite headlamp from the above because the CCT and tint looks the best and I find that more important than a 10 CRI difference. This unit was bought from Armytekstore.com and shipped from Canada.

I also like the ZL H600fc very much mainly for its super small size and supposedly better thermal regulation than most flashlights. The tint is actually not overly green unlike past Zebralights that I had to return. The tint could have been rosier but with Zebralight, and even Armytek to a certain extent, its a tint lottery and I'm glad at least this unit is on the BBL and not above when on max output. It lacks usb recharge and doesn't have a tail magnet like the Wizard Pros but the small size makes it so easy to pocket. The Wizards do look a lot better aesthetically though IMO.

The Wizard Pro Nichia 144A is nice too but after side by side comparison with the Pro WW 80CRI, I find that I like the 4000k more. Both Nichia units I bought have similar tint but one is 50 lumens brighter than the other. I haven't tested whether these units have LVP or retain driver problems reported in reviews of the prototype. The units were bought from Armytek.com, which originally indicated shipping from China but they later changed it to shipping from Canada I guess because of either CNY or the novelcorona virus.

Here is a comparison of the measured output vs rated max output:
Armytek Wizard Pro WW - 1521 lm vs 1675 lm (91% of rating)
Armytek Wizard Pro Nichia 144A 90CRI - 1388 lm vs 1400 lm (99% of rating)
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW (white button) - 954 lm vs 930 lm (103% of rating)
Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW (yellow button) magnet usb - 1010 lm vs 930 lm (109% of rating)
Zebralight H600fc MKIV - 1398 lm vs 1568 lm (89% of rating)

I'm surprised Armytek's ratings are so honest with the Wizards. I think some of their other models didn't measure that close to rating but I'll check later. I'm also surprised the H600fc did not measure as far below spec as I expected because I remember past Zebralights I measured were more like 20% below spec. However keep in mind my lumens were measured 2s from turn-on instead of ANSI standard 30s.

 

[SKV89]

I found some interesting info to add. The claims of Zebralights being super efficient are unsubstantiated. From Maukka's testing, Zebralight's efficiency is average at best.

Maukka tested the H600fc MKIV with an efficiency of 89lm/w whereas the 90CRI Wuben TO56R has an efficiency of 125lm/w. The Olight H2R 4000K 70CRI is 135lm/w and the new Olight Perun is even more efficient.

In terms of driver efficiency Zebralight is a far ways from the level of Olight and Fenix. Though with the latter two, you are stuck with ugly (IMO) CW :sick2: emitter options and no HI CRI. To me what makes Zebralight special is the extremely compact unibody design and HI CRI options.

 

[Stefano]

Thanks for your comments and for the details provided.
Unfortunately I can't say anything because I don't have suitable instrumentation.
In the tab I see you say Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW Turbo = 954 lm
Did you mean to write Armytek Wizard "Regular" XP-L (not Pro)?


Regarding Wizard Pro XHP50 WW I bought a specimen in may 2017 or 2018 (I can't remember exactly the year) it was disappointing and I sent it back immediately (very little power, much lower than declared)
I continued to successfully use the "Regular" XP-L Wizard (great Headlamp!)
I purchased the Wizard Pro version again at the end of 2019 and this time it is perfect, I was impressed with the performance and I am currently using it in my walks in the woods.
I did not understand if the old specimen was problematic or if Armytek has made improvements over time.


I bought the H600Fc MKIV in 2019 but due to health problems it has remained practically unused.
At the end of the year I made a very short comparison between Wizard and H600 Fc and the Wizard was the brightest but this is understandable because the Zebralight H600 Fc is Hi Cri.
Unfortunately I could not make other comparisons, I realized that my H600Fc had an abnormal parasitic discharge and I sent it back to Zebralight.
It is in China but cannot be delivered due to the coronavirus (factory closed), I am afraid that it can be sent back.
Sometimes difficult to make comparisons because there may be differences in spillage between some specimens.
The correct comparison would be between Wizard Pro Nichia and H600Fc.

Other: sorry for the missing images on this page, TinyPic has closed and I cannot find the backups of the images.

 

[NPL]

I found some interesting info to add. The claims of Zebralights being super efficient are unsubstantiated. From Maukka's testing, Zebralight's efficiency is average at best.

Maukka tested the H600fc MKIV with an efficiency of 89lm/w whereas the 90CRI Wuben TO56R has an efficiency of 125lm/w. The Olight H2R 4000K 70CRI is 135lm/w and the new Olight Perun is even more efficient.

In terms of driver efficiency Zebralight is a far ways from the level of Olight and Fenix. Though with the latter two, you are stuck with ugly (IMO) CW :sick2: emitter options and no HI CRI. To me what makes Zebralight special is the extremely compact unibody design and HI CRI options.

You can't really compare driver efficiency if the LED configuration and output levels are not the same. The Wuben TO50r uses four LEDs, so each one isn't driven as hard, and the lh351d is known to be very bright for a high CRI LED. Then the lumen/w comparison isn't fair with too many changing variables, one being lower CRI, and different output compared to the Zebralight, so a comparison cannot be drawn there. With 90 CRI LEDs usually being about 30% less efficient than the 70 CRI counterpart, the Zebralight h600fc seems to have a similar efficiency as the as the Olight or Armytek.

Sent from my Pixel using Candlepowerforums mobile app

 

[SKV89]

When I bough it, seller labeled it as Pro but nowhere on the light says pro so I don't know for sure. It has the white button. I just added testing for a non pro XP-L with yellow button and magnet usb. It has better tint and brighter.

I saw your video comparison between the H600fc MK4 vs the Wizard Pro XHP50 WW and the H600fc had noticeably rosier tint than the Wizard. I wish my H600fc had that kind of tint. You won the tint lottery on that one. Hope ZL sends back the same unit repaired instead of sending you a new unit that might have worse tint.

Thanks for your comments and for the details provided.
Unfortunately I can't say anything because I don't have suitable instrumentation.
In the tab I see you say Armytek Wizard Pro v3 XP-L WW Turbo = 954 lm
Did you mean to write Armytek Wizard "Regular" XP-L (not Pro)?


Regarding Wizard Pro XHP50 WW I bought a specimen in may 2017 or 2018 (I can't remember exactly the year) it was disappointing and I sent it back immediately (very little power, much lower than declared)
I continued to successfully use the "Regular" XP-L Wizard (great Headlamp!)
I purchased the Wizard Pro version again at the end of 2019 and this time it is perfect, I was impressed with the performance and I am currently using it in my walks in the woods.
I did not understand if the old specimen was problematic or if Armytek has made improvements over time.


I bought the H600Fc MKIV in 2019 but due to health problems it has remained practically unused.
At the end of the year I made a very short comparison between Wizard and H600 Fc and the Wizard was the brightest but this is understandable because the Zebralight H600 Fc is Hi Cri.
Unfortunately I could not make other comparisons, I realized that my H600Fc had an abnormal parasitic discharge and I sent it back to Zebralight.
It is in China but cannot be delivered due to the coronavirus (factory closed), I am afraid that it can be sent back.
Sometimes difficult to make comparisons because there may be differences in spillage between some specimens.
The correct comparison would be between Wizard Pro Nichia and H600Fc.

Other: sorry for the missing images on this page, TinyPic has closed and I cannot find the backups of the images.

 

[SKV89]

Problem is the drivers between flashlights don't have equal output modes to compare so we can only only rely on whatever graphs and efficiency measurements reviewers provide. Also besides Maukka, I don't think anyone else does efficiency measurements. Therefore we can only get a rough comparison to get a general idea. I personally think the ZL h600fc mk4 driver may be even more efficient than the Wizard Pro XHP50 because Maukka tested the 70CRI version whereas ZL uses a 90CRI emitter. However, I doubt the H600fc driver is as efficient as the Olight driver even if Olight didn't have the 30% advantage. The H2R was sustaining 600 lumens whereas the H600fc was sustaining 400 lumens in that graph and the Olight efficiency was still 52% higher.

I don't know what is more efficient, 4x LH351D 90CRI or the XHP50.2 90CRI with quad dies. I just felt 400lumens and 300 lumens was in a similar enough range for a rough comparison.

Maukka just informed me that the ZL SC64c XP-L2 has an efficient driver. I'm wondering if ZL's 3V drivers are better than their boost drivers relative to the competition. Too bad the tint on the SC64c or any light with the XP-L2 90CRI emitter is so greenish so I'm only interested in their XHP lights.

You can't really compare driver efficiency if the LED configuration and output levels are not the same. The Wuben TO50r uses four LEDs, so each one isn't driven as hard, and the lh351d is known to be very bright for a high CRI LED. Then the lumen/w comparison isn't fair with too many changing variables, one being lower CRI, and different output compared to the Zebralight, so a comparison cannot be drawn there. With 90 CRI LEDs usually being about 30% less efficient than the 70 CRI counterpart, the Zebralight h600fc seems to have a similar efficiency as the as the Olight or Armytek.

Sent from my Pixel using Candlepowerforums mobile app

 

[Stefano]

I didn't know about lottery tint on XHP50.
I bought three Zebralights with this led and all of them have a wonderful tint.
The defective light was finally delivered today, I wrote a little while ago asking if it will be replaced or repaired.

I would also love to know if the Wizard Pro I own is XHP50 or XHP50.2, I should look carefully at the box or the light to see if there is any identification number to ask for customer service.

 

[Keitho]

Re: the efficiency discussion above, I tend to take efficiency calculations with a grain of salt. I tried to do my own a few times, and pretty quickly realized the fallacy that is imbedded into lumens/W, lumen-hr./W, lumen-hr/gram, etc. kinds of calculations: they all assume that every lumen is equally important. But, in my experience, not every lumen is created equal. I have a great amount of respect for the work that Maukka does, which gives us very important information about the driver performance. But, the driver is part of a lighting system.

So, I leave the very interesting component testing to amazing people like Maukka, and do my own use-case-specific system level testing of my own lights. It is pretty simple--set a test light at the brightness required for a particular task (my favorite is cycling at night; second favorite is hiking at night), and see how long it lasts. I've had "efficient" lights run out quickly, because the beam pattern wasn't suited to the task, and required a higher setting. My anecdotal conclusion is that a beam pattern suited to the task is much more important than driver efficiency. CRI and tint seem to also play a part in system efficiency--I don't feel like I need a warmer, higher-CRI light quite as bright in order to distinguish features on the street or trail. My basic conclusion--a low-CRI, bluish lumen that doesn't go where I need it is much less valuable than a higher-CRI, warm lumen that goes where I want it. That's why there's an army of HDS fans with 250-lumen lights that outperform many higher-lumen lights for some tasks--its that awesome HDS beam.

With all that said, for my specific use case, with my uncalibrated eye and preferences, and with the lights that I've tried, I haven't found anything more efficient than my current ZL's (H600c IV and SC700d)--they both have runtimes that shock me regularly. I run my H600c IV in the "579 lumen" mode most often while cycling, and get about 1:45 in 10-deg-F and right around 2 hours when its warmer, with my ageing workforce of 18650GA's. I'm probably getting 9 W-h or less out of those cells at that current, and probably average 450 OTF lumens, so that puts the efficiency at very roughly 100 high-CRI OTF lumens per W, which is what I'd expect from a high-end driver, and pleases me greatly mostly because of the beam, tint, and CRI.

 

[noboneshotdog]

I just pulled the trigger on an H604W. Are people having positive experiences with this light? Has the pid problem been resolved and is the tint ok?