Hi Newbie! :wave:
Maybe I can address these... and if I do a bad job at it, PM me and I'll do my best to elaborate!
Lux readings at 1M... just took some quickly, so I would label these as preliminary specs, but they at least give a decent idea of things...
M180-KL2 roughly 3000 lux at 1M.
M180-Mag 2C roughly 5260 lux at 1M.
Both lights feature a 3-up arrangement of emitters, and both happen to have emitters of same bin from the same lot. Note that the Mag 2C version posts substantially higher readings due to its use of 3x 20mm smooth reflectors, as opposed to the 3x 16mm orange peel reflectors of the KL2 version. Size limitations in the head preclude anything larger in the latter.
I won't even pretend that these lights could best a good incandescent bulb/reflector combination for throw, but they (the M180, et. al.) will produce quite a bit of light to the sides in addition to that throw... and pretty much wipe out the incandescents in terms of runtime... but that's the whole point of this design. These lights have been engineered for overall output and long continuous runtime... mainly, to be extremely efficient!
Beamshots... sorry, I don't have any side-by-side comparison beamshots at the moment... not that I never plan on having them! Just haven't done it yet. Well, that plus I really stink at taking beamshots! You have no idea the difficulty I had in just capturing ONE beam with any degree of reality.
That said, Kiessling will be receiving an M180-KL2 and I have hopes that he will take a few comparative shots of that light vs. some of the others in his collection.
Lumens... these are based on Lumileds specs... in other words, they're EMITTER lumens (like bulb lumens for incans)... they are not derated for reflector loss. Neither are they derated for lumen loss due to heat, but these lights are extremely well heatsinked due to their design for long continuous runtime... if anything, the heatsinking represents serious overkill! and in extended field testing including continuous runs in the 30 minutes through 1 hour vicinity, there has been no noticeable loss of brightness. (Yes, I know the eye is far from the most sensitive instrument for such an observation, though in my defense I do get very picky about such things and have been known to do A-B tests over... and over... and over... to discern slight brightness differences. Plus for some reason my eyes seem to be unusually sensitive... maybe even TOO sensitive!) There has been no notable loss in brightness over extended runs, nor would I expect to see any given the thermal design of the hosts.
It's also worth mentioning that the emitters are driven at Lumileds spec... and in the case of the M512 are actually driven BELOW spec'd current. Output numbers in this case are derated based both on Lumileds' published lumens vs. current information, and DiFiorentino's Luxeon efficiency measurements at various currents.
Last but not least, I use the AVERAGE luminous output numbers in an effort not to overhype these lights.
As far as some additional data points, I have done extensive A-B dark room ceiling bounce testing of the M180 against various "known" (or at least reasonably trustworthy IMHO) benchmarks... this in lieu of formal integrating sphere testing, for which I have neither the funds nor the access unfortunately. Prior to A-B testing the lights are positioned to be at equal distances from the ceiling, and to center their hotspots at the same location on the ceiling. Alternating between A-B continues until the brighter light is discernable... or in some cases where my eyes cannot discern a brighter light with sufficient degree of confidence, the comparison is declared a dead heat. In some cases where one light appears brighter but only by a small amount, I reverse positions of the lights and repeat the test to check for bias due to slightly different positions and/or beam angles, and again, if the results do not remain consistent in the retest, the comparison is declared a dead heat.
The M180 pretty much wipes out the HDS U60; and pretty handily beats the SureFire U2, L5, and L2, all at highest outputs.
The M180 also beats a SureFire P90 lamp assembly using 3x123 fresh primaries (100% ZTS)... that light has a published spec of 105 lumens... and my understanding is those lumens DO take into account reflector loss, plus they're the lumens to be expected at midpoint of the light's runtime... in practice some folks far smarter than I have estimated that a P90 on fresh cells falls more in the 120-150 lumens range... if so, this is good evidence that the M180 is indeed at the very least in the ballpark of 180 lumens coming out the front of the light.
The M180 also beats the SureFire M3 using its LOLA on 3x123 fresh primary cells (100% ZTS)... the LOLA has a published spec of 125 lumens out the front (not bulb lumens), and I've been told, again by some people whose opinion I trust, that the actual luminous output with fresh cells is more like 150 lumens. Again good evidence that the M180 is generating output along the lines of its design spec.
Hope this helps! And sorry if some of my test methodology isn't exactly state of the art. I do the best with what I've got available.
NewBie said:
What are the lux numbers at 1 meter?
Do you have any comparision beamshots, side-by-side in the same photo?
Your lumens, are these derated for loss of the reflector, and lumen loss due to heat, or are they just the lumens spec of the LED?