Wolf Eyes Cree 4-mode digital drop-in D26 3.7-6v **with video**

The title pretty much says it all. I got mine today and have enjoyed messing around with it in my SF G2. Here's the link to the exact drop-in I'm talking about:

http://www.pts-flashlights.com/products/product.aspx?pid=1-25-114-116-6356

And here's a video I took earlier of me cycling through the 4 modes twice in order: 100% (170 lumens), strobe, 20%, and 2%. I was aiming at a white wall from 7.5 feet away with the digital video camera on auto white balance. The G2 had fresh CR123A's in it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQEzVaLSYGM

I haven't seen beamshots of the multi-mode Wolf Eyes drop-ins, so this should get us started. Keep in mind that I'm a newbie in terms of taking pics and videos of flashlight beams. If you have suggestions or requests, feel free to post them, and I'll do my best to respond.

A few quick impressions...

The 100% mode at 170 lumens in this drop-in is not noticeably brighter (to my eye) than the 100% mode at 130 lumens in the D26 3.7-13v drop-in that Wolf Eyes makes (which I also have).

The strobe is extremely annoying, much faster than the strobe on a Fenix P2D.

Even the 2% mode is brighter than my Mag 2AA with a Nite-Ize 1 watt LED upgrade.

The tint is very white and nice.

The beam is perfect in my opinion, with no rings. I prefer it to the beam of the 3.7-13v 130-lumen drop-in.

That's it for now!

Howdy, thanks for the video and the quick impressions. Just a couple of questions if you don't mind. Does this drop-in allow you to still use the momentary function of the G2, or is that disabled because you are now using the switch to cycle thru the modes?

Also, once you cycle thru the modes, pick the one you want, and then click the light on...... is there a way to change levels without turning the light off?

Sure, I'd wondered the same things before the drop-in arrived.

You can use the momentary to cycle through the modes. One press gets you 100%. If you release the switch and press again within 2 seconds, you'll be in strobe mode, and so forth. So what's lost in terms of the momentary function with this drop-in is the ability to strobe manually or do SOS-style flashing within the same mode that you have in a stock G2. Multiple presses = multiple modes.

You can also twist the tailcap to constant on, off, and then constant on again to cycle through the modes. I find this to be the easiest way to switch modes with one hand.

Once you've selected a mode and the flashlight is on constantly in this mode, I don't see a way to switch modes without turning the light off and on. In constant on mode, pressing the momentary button has no effect.

Hope that helps...

Oh, and one other thing. Mike at PTS said in another thread that the reason this drop-in is selling for $10 less than the 2-mode drop-ins is that Wolf Eyes was supposed to send him drop-ins with the strobe at the end of the mode cycle rather than as the second mode. I personally don't mind the strobe being second at all. It's easy enough to cycle past it. But it will take some getting used to for my wife, who swears that the strobe mode is going to give her a seizure!

:huh:

Okie dokie, thanks for the info. Sounds pretty much like I expected, kind of a trade off of the momentary function for the ability to change levels. Personally, I think that is a worth while trade, as I feel having the option of either a lower light level when appropriate, or longer run time when needed, greatly expands the usefulness of any light.

Any thoughts on how how the G2 is handling the heat when used on high for an extended period?

Yes, having low modes makes this a much more useful light. The only thing I wish were different about the drop-in is that it can't handle two of AW's high-voltage RCR123A's as far as I know due to the drop-in's 6v limit.

About heat, I've noticed that the WE drop-ins get pretty warm when left on continuously (on high) for more than a minute or two. The longest I've tried is 10 minutes, and that was with the 130 lumens version (no modes). Right afterward I unscrewed the bezel and found the drop-in almost too hot to hold in my hand. However, the batteries weren't even warm. For extended use on high, I'd put one of these in a metal light like a WE Sniper or a SF 6P to avoid damaging the LED. That is, if I had one of those lights!

Maybe someone else has run a WE drop-in in a plastic-bodied light for longer than 10 minutes? Any noticeable dimming of the LED from overheating after some period of time?

Well..... more good information on the heat level. Thanks. I had been debating on whether to get a G2 and the 4 mode WE or just get the Sniper, or maybe even the D36 turbohead version with a WE Explorer.

As far as the 6 volt limit.... I understood that to be another trade off, allowing them to make a driver that would give excellent regulation for a 3.7 volt 18650 rechargeable cell AND for the 2xCR123 cells as well.... so.... another good trade as far as I'm concerned since I have been planning on using this with the 18650 cell, but wanted the flexibility of being able to use 2 primaries if needed.

So, sounds like a great drop-in.... thanks again for answering all of my questions so thoroughly.

No problem!

Good point on the regulation. There's another reason to get a flashlight that can take an 18650. That type of battery is too fat for a G2 from what I've heard.

About the heat, until I get a metal host for the drop-in I'll probably just stick to 20% or 2% when using the G2 as a candle. That should cut down on the heat.

One more thing: I just ran the light at 20% for a little more than 10 minutes continuously (left on desk) and then checked the heat level inside. The drop-in wasn't even warm, and the batteries certainly weren't either.

That seals it IMO: for extended usage in a plastic-bodied light like the G2, 20% is preferable to 100% if you're worried about heat shortening the life of your LED drop-in.

I know I'm going to get laughed at by some for suggesting this. . .

Considering that the high is somewhat impractical in a G2, and that I have no interest in the strobe function, this would be an amazing drop-in running with just the 20 per cent and two per cent modes. Simple, solid and reliable – with enough light for general use, but with the backup of long runtime.

Hmm, I don't know if I'd be willing to give up the high mode entirely! It sounds like you'll want one of those new lithium Glo-Toobs once they finally come out.

Pax et Lux said:

Considering that the high is somewhat impractical in a G2, and that I have no interest in the strobe function, this would be an amazing drop-in running with just the 20 per cent and two per cent modes.

Click to expand...

WE does make a 130-lumen version of the 4-mode drop-in, which may work OK on high mode in a G2, although a metal-bodied SF would be preferable. So it's conceivable that you could have your cake and eat it, too. I wouldn't be surprised if the difference between 130 and 170 lumens is not readily apparent to the eye.

From comments Mike@PTS has made in the past, the various flavors of their "high output" 170-lumen drop-ins are primarily meant to be used only in WE bodies due to the heat dissipation issues when designing a drop-in to fit multiple manufacturers' bodies. The 130-lumen models are the ones meant to use in other brands, like SF. I've never read that PTS has any plans to carry the 130-lumen, 4-mode drop-in, though.

Ordered one of the four-mode D26's for use in my old, trusty SF 6Z. It was shipped and delivered promptly by USPS Priority. So far I'm quite happy with this drop-in and have been playing around with it quite a bit. This 6Z has been my bedside light since the early 90s, and this is a very significant upgrade for it...

However, I did notice something about the 4-mode D26 that's seemingly not been mentioned in others' comments... That it does in fact appear to use high-rate PWM for the medium and low modes, contrary to what was stated in this announcement thread. The cycling rate is high enough that it's not generally noticible, but I can see it as my eyes scan across specular reflections at distances above 20-30 feet in fairly dark environments.

Given nobody else has mentioned it, it must be a fairly subtle thing. But those PWM car tail-lights drive me absolutely nuts while other people barely notice them. I wonder if my eyes have a lower persistence of vision than most people??

And just to be clear, I'm not complaining, as it's a very minor effect. And, IMHO, it's a reasonable trade-off to have variable output in such a small, bright lamp module.

Wow, I'll have to look for that PWM effect. Hadn't noticed it.

OceanView, even the 130-lumen WE drop-in gets very hot after 10 minutes in a G2. I tried it with the one-mode version. But you're right about there not being a readily apparent difference between 130 and 170 lumens in these drop-ins.

jbviau said:

OceanView, even the 130-lumen WE drop-in gets very hot after 10 minutes in a G2. I tried it with the one-mode version.

Click to expand...

Ah, good to know. If the 130-lumen single-level was hot, I'm thinking that the 4-mode is even hotter. I say that because my Sniper runs signficantly cooler with my single-level 170-lumen drop-in and noticeably warmer with the 170-lumen 4-mode drop-in.

jbviau said:

Wow, I'll have to look for that PWM effect. Hadn't noticed it.

Click to expand...

I set the light up about 20-30 feet away in a relatively dark room, pointed it towards me with the emitter directly visible but the hotspot pointed at my feet. With my camera set at 1/20, F27 I swept the viewfinder diagonally across the flashlight as I pressed the shutter button.

Both medium and low modes consistently showed 23 pulses during several 1/20 second exposures, meaning the frequency is around 460Hz. The pulse width at the medium setting appeared to be longer. It also appears the emitter may be brighter in medium mode, meaning that a combination of current and PWM might be used to achieve the low mode.

Click on the thumbnails below for the cropped, but otherwise unretouched images.

Low:



Medium:

dfred said:

I set the light up about 20-30 feet away in a relatively dark room, pointed it towards me with the emitter directly visible but the hotspot pointed at my feet. With my camera set at 1/20, F27 I swept the viewfinder diagonally across the flashlight as I pressed the shutter button.

Click to expand...

Damned Clever!
Thanks for posting that Dfred. I was just trying to figure out a way to use my cheap video cam to get that information...

No kidding! dfred, how does this frequency compare to the more noticeable, annoying PWM frequency that people are always complaining about? It must be higher, but how much higher?

Thanks...

I'm actually not sure of the of the rates on those car tail-lights. And in fact I wasn't sure of the strobe rates for other PWM flashlights either, so I just tried this with my Petzl Tikka+ and found it actually had a strobe rate of 700HZ on its lowest setting (35 pulses in 1/20 sec.).

Interestingly, I find the PWM on the Tikka+ more noticable. Perhaps the D26 is less noticable because the flashes are much brighter and therefore cause a longer afterimage, tending to blend the perception?

dfred said:

...it does in fact appear to use high-rate PWM for the medium and low modes, contrary to what was stated in this announcement thread.

Click to expand...

Am I the only one who is unclear about what manufacturers mean by referring to "MCU"? I saw it in that WE thread, and I recollect seeing it elsewhere, too, but it's never really explained that I can recall.

I tried Googling MCU but that wasn't terribly fruitful, however, I found one page that referred to some industrial LED application, and there, an MCU (microcontroller unit?) is used to control PWM to provide dimming capabilities. Hmmm, so I have no idea what this "It's MCU, not PWM" idea is supposed to mean. :thinking: And as you've discovered and confirmed with photos, there is certainly PWM involved.

You're definitely not the only one who's unclear about that. The manufacturer should clear it up. But then again this is *not* something I notice about the light in everyday use. People have to go looking for it, it seems.