4Sevens Quark RGB Review: RUNTIMES, BEAMSHOTS and more!

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
Reviewer's Note: The Quark RGB was provided for review by 4Sevens.com. Please see their website for more info.

Warning: pic heavy, as usual. :whistle:

Manufacturer's specifications, condensed from 4Sevens' website:
  • Features a CREE MCE-RGB emitter. The MCE-RGB is a quad-die emitter that features a different color for each corner of the die: white, red, green, and blue
  • Available in cool white or neutral-white for the white tint
  • UI: When the head is tightened, it is always White, when the head is loosened, it is one of the RGB colors. Cycling between loose and tight will toggle through the three colors.
  • Change modes by taping the tail button, just like Quark series (eight modes: moonlight -> low -> medium -> high -> max -> S.O.S -> strobe -> beacon).
  • Remember which mode you used in both the tightened and loosened state as well as which color was used in the loosened mode.
  • Length: 4.8 in, Diameter: 0.86 in, Weight: 1.8 oz (without batteries)
  • Finish: Type-III hard-anodized aircraft-grade aluminum
  • Battery Type: 2 CR123A
  • OTF Lumens:
  • Moonlight: 0.4 lm, 650 hours, 1 ma
  • Low: 2.8 lm, 130 hours, 10 ma
  • Med: 15.0 lm, 25 hours, 50 ma
  • High: 58.4 lm, 7.5 hours, 250 ma
  • Turbo: 150 lm, 2 hours, 700 ma
  • SOS: 22.5 hours
  • Strobe: 4 hours
  • Beacon: 20 hours
  • MSRP ~$91 with CPF discount, also available as just the head (cool white version only) for ~$64 with discount.
The Quark RGB is a special-purpose light. Built on the standard Quark Q123-2 frame, it features a new head with the Cree RGB MC-E emitter (i.e. four separate colour dies: white, red, green, blue). This has required some modification to the UI, but otherwise will be familiar to Quark users. Please see my earlier Quark series review to find out how the basic 4Sevens Quarks compare.

RGB-2.jpg


The Quark RGB comes in a similar package to the other Quark series lights. Included with the light is a removable/reversible clip (attached), good quality wrist lanyard, extra o-rings, good quality belt holster, rubber hand-grip, 2 primary CR123A battery (4Sevens brand) and manual.

RGB-7.jpg
RGB-6.jpg

RGB-1.jpg

RGB-9.jpg

From left to right: Surefire CR123A, AW Protected 18650, Quark RGB, Quark 123-2.

Quark RGB: Weight 50.5g, Length 123.5mm x Width 22.0mm (bezel)
Quark 123-2: Weight: 47.0g, Length 113.4mm x Width: 22.0mm (bezel)

Overall dimensions are similar (and in fact the battery/body tube and tailcap are identical) - the only difference is the RGB's head is about a centimeter taller. For all intents and purposes, the hand feel is very much the same. :)

RGB-5.jpg

RGB-4.jpg


Again, since the only difference is in the head, I refer you to my 4Sevens Quark series review for a discussion of the general build features of this light.

One feature that has changed from my original review is the tailcap now comes with anodized screw threads, allowing for tailcap lockout. :thumbsup: This is standard on all Quark series lights now.

RGB-3.jpg

RGB-8.jpg


As you can see, the Cree RGB MC-E emitter is very distinctive! I apologize for the reflections in the picture obscuring the red die (top left corner) - in reality it looks the same as the other three. In case you were curious, the upper right die is the green one, and the lower right die is the blue (as expected, the lower left die is the white one).

Something else to note here is the extremely shallow reflector. Coupled with the fact that each individual die is not centered within the reflector, I would expect to see a very distorted "floody" beam pattern for each color.

And now for the requisite white wall hunting ;) … each light is on Turbo on AW 17460, about 0.5 meters from a white wall.

RGB-Beam25.jpg

RGB-Beam100.jpg

RGB-Beam1600.jpg


:caution: Do NOT get bent out of shape about the distorted beam pattern above! I had to do these beam shots really close to the wall, in order to capture everything in the camera frame. In real life, I do not expect you'll be using full flood at 0.5 m very often! :rolleyes:

This will give you a much better idea of what to expect - taken at 1.5 m from the same wall.

RGB-Beam1.jpg


While the distortions around the center beam are still detectable, they are not really obtrusive at this distance. And of course, they become even less noticeable at greater distances.

To compare the color beam profiles, I have gone with an intermediate distance (a little under 1 m). Again, focus on the relative color and output, not the beam distortions.

RGB-Beam2.jpg

RGB-Beam3.jpg

RGB-Beam4.jpg

RGB-Beam5.jpg


The camera has captured what I *seem* to see by eye fairly well - but for a proper discussion of relative outputs, scroll down to the testing section of this review.

One thing general point is that this is MUCH better than what you would see with a collection of colored filters over a white LED light. White LEDs are particularly deficient in the red and green wavelengths of the color spectrum.

User Interface

The user interface of the Quark RGB had to be adapted somewhat from the standard Quark series.

The head tightened/head loosened switch has now been co-opted for the various color modes. With the head tight, you get white light. With the head loose, you get one of the color modes. Each of the three RGB color modes are accessed in sequence by doing a tighten/loosen switch of the head.

So, for an example, let's say right out of the box you want green. Starting from white (head tightend), you would do a loosen-tighten-loosen switch (i.e. go from white to red to white to green). The light will remember what color you are in when you turn it off and back on (i.e. with the head remaining loosened). But if you go back to white (head tightened) at any point when on, the next time you loosen the head you will advance to the next color (i.e. blue in this case).

In practice, this is not as confusing as it may sound - you quickly get used to it, but just realized you always will be cycling back and forth through white to change the color.

The various output modes are now all accessed in sequence from a tailcap press. The sequence is Moonlight > Lo > Med > Hi > Turbo> SOS> Strobe > Beacon. There is a memory mode, so if you turn off the light, it will always come back on in the mode you last left it.

There are in fact two memory modes - one for the head tightened (i.e. white) state and one for the head loosened (i.e. color). So, for example, you could memorize the light in Turbo for white, and Moonlight for color. Note that you cannot assign different memory states for each color - the memory mode applies equally to all three colors (i.e. head loosened).

RGB-Strobe.gif


Strobe is a fairly tactical (and certainly annoying) 12.6 Hz. :green:

Testing Method: All my output numbers are relative for my home-made light box setup, a la Quickbeam's flashlightreviews.com method. You can directly compare all my relative output values from different reviews - i.e. an output value of "10" in one graph is the same as "10" in another. All runtimes are done under a cooling fan, except for the extended run Lo/Min modes (i.e. >12 hours) which are done without cooling.

Throw values are the square-root of lux measurements taken at 1 meter from the lens, using a light meter.

Throw/Output Summary Chart:

RGB-Summary.gif


As expected, the throw on this light is greatly reduced.

But what should we make of the differing output levels of the colored emitters? :thinking: Note in the table above that both my home-made lightbox sensor and my stand-alone Lux meter (used for ceiling bounces) report that there is a slight reduction in green output compared to white, with a more noticeable reduction in red output, and a huge reduction in blue light output.

At first I thought this might be due to a varying sensitivity of my sensor setups for the various wavelengths. Well, if it is, then Cree has the same issue - here are the Luminous Flux estimate @350mA for the from the Cree spec sheet for the MC-E RGB emitter.

Red: 30.6 lm
Green: 67.2 lm
Blue: 8.2 lm
White: 95 lm (80 lm for the "Neutral White" version)

In terms of relative differences, that matches pretty closely with what my ceiling bounce measures are telling me on Turbo. I'm not sure why the luminous flux is so much lower on the blue die when driven at the same current - perhaps some of the experts on these matters could chime in here. ;)

Again, let me emphasize that visually, this is a LOT better than what you would see with colored filters over a white LED. I just tested the light with the Fenix red filter over the white LED, and got less than a third of the output of the dedicated red LED. :eek:oo:

Output/Runtime Comparison:

Note: Effective January 2010, all CR123A runtimes are now performed solely on Titanium Innovations batteries sponsored by BatteryJunction.com. You can compare the generally excellent performance of these CR123A cells relative to the Duracell/Surefire cells used in all my earlier reviews here. I have marked all the new runtimes of lights with Titanium Innovations CR123As on the graphs with an "*".

So how do the individual colors compare for runtime? Below is the AW 17670 run:

RGB-Colours.gif


Despite the varying output levels detected by the lightbox, you'll note the very similar overall runtime for each of the four individual emitters on Turbo (i.e. they do indeed seem to be driven to comparable levels).

Interestingly, the red LED runtime pattern on 3.7V Li-ion is a little different - very tight regulation followed by a quick drop off into a slow strobing mode (instead of into a low moon mode). :thinking: I note in the Cree spec sheet that the forward voltage is much lower for the red LED compared to the other three, but I don't know if this has anything to do with it. :shrug: I was able to manually switch the light into the Moonlight and Lo constant output modes in red at this point, so you are not stuck strobing when the battery is almost dead.

RGB-White.gif


Runtime patterns and output levels for the White LED look as I would have expected, on all battery types.

Here's how it compares to the single-die competition:

RGB-Hi18650.gif

RGB-Med18650.gif


RGB-HiRCR.gif

RGB-MedRCR.gif


RGB-HiCR123A.gif

RGB-MedCR123A.gif


Again, no surprises here – for all intents and purposes, the RGB's white emitter performs the same as the standard R2 emitter in the Quark Q123-2. :thumbsup:

Potential Issues

Due to the shallow reflector and inability to center the individual dies, the Quark RGB produces is a very floody beam with noticeable distortions up close. At reasonable distances however (>1 m), these are generally negligible, IMO.

Luminous flux (i.e. output) of the various colored dies is not equivalent. The blue LED in particular is relatively low output compared to the others. This is a feature of the Cree MC-E RGB emitter however, and is not the fault of the Quark. In any case, the individual outputs are all considerably greater than what you would get with colored filter on a white LED.

The UI is a little complex, and may not suit all users. However, I can see it was an attempt at a reasonable compromise given the rather unique nature of this emitter.

Preliminary Observations

The Cree MC-E RGB emitter - with its ability to access individual emitters independently - is a rather unique beast, and thus stands in a class all of its own. However, the quirky nature of this emitter platform means that it is virtually impossible to please everyone in a single offering.

Simply put, the colors add an extra dimension of complexity to what is a limited number of control options for a light (i.e. tailcap clicks or head twists to switch modes). Given the general layout of the Quark series, putting the colored modes on the head loosened position makes sense to me (although it is unfortunate that you have to keep switching back to white to change color modes). And the two memory states – one for white and one for all the colors - is also understandable (again, if not ideal for everyone).

But I personally don't like seeing strobe and SOS in the same sequence as the constant output modes now. Frankly, I don't see any easy way around this - unless you plan to dispense with strobe/SOS all together. :shrug:

I should point out that there is no way to run all the emitters concurrently - to keep heat down, you are limited to one die at a time (besides, it would probably look like a pig's breakfast if you tried! :green:). But you can drive each of those dies to the max of their ability. In other words, it's like having four separate Cree single-die lights in one body.

But since you cannot focus each die individually, you are left with a general flood light (i.e. too many distortions for anything more focused). I don't see any way around this, unless you designed some sort of complex movable head that allowed you to rotate the reflector over each die in sequence. That would require a major redesign in a much larger light (translation: much more expensive), and likely be prone to breakdown anyway.

But in any case, a floody multi-colored light makes the most sense to me (i.e. you will likely be using it up-close, not illuminating objects at a great distance). :)

Although on this point, I'm not really sure of the benefit of R/G/B per se. This is not a comment on 4Sevens' light, but rather Cree's decision to market this particular combination. There are certainly varying opinions about the value of the specific wavelength LEDs, but I would think UV would be more valuable for inspection purposes. How often do you need regular blue? :thinking: And I would take red over green any day, but I understand there may be applications better suited for green. Anyway, that's just my little off-topic raving … ;)

One thing we can all agree on is that dedicated color LEDs are a LOT better than using filters on an existing white LED light. Green and red in particular are quite deficient in the white LED spectrum (which is really just made by adding yellow phosphor over a blue LED, after all). If you want a high-power green and red flood light, this MC-E is not a bad way to get it.

At the end of the day, I think 4Sevens has come out with a reasonable attempt to incorporate the Cree MC-E RGB into their existing product line-up. I will leave it to your judgment as to whether this RGB application fits your needs.
 
Last edited:

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
P.S.: I'm going to be away traveling for the next week or so, and will only have limited internet connectivity. So I may be a bit slow in responding to comments/updating the thread.

:wave:
 

photonstorm

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Nov 25, 2009
Messages
118
Location
Mississauga
Great work. You've been pumping out the reviews lately. The RGB is a unique product with a lot of versatility and offers great value.

I'm looking forward to any of the Maelstrom reviews.
 

TONY M

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 31, 2008
Messages
1,548
Location
Belfast, NI
Great work as usual SB! :thumbsup:

Its certainly a very interesting light and I still can't make my mind up about what to think of it to be honest. The moonlight mode with the red die sounds nice and would be useful to some under some instances with dark adapted eyes. I would love to try one out but I can't see myself coughing up for one just yet...

Thanks
 

Gryffin

Enlightened
Joined
Feb 16, 2005
Messages
449
Location
Ohio
Although on this point, I'm not really sure of the benefit of R/G/B per se. This is not a comment on 4Sevens' light, but rather Cree's decision to market this particular combination. There are certainly varying opinions about the value of the specific wavelength LEDs, but I would think UV would be more valuable for inspection purposes. How often do you need regular blue? :thinking: And I would take red over green any day, but I understand there may be applications better suited for green. Anyway, that's just my little off-topic raving …

I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and guess that Cree didn't develop this particular LED for flashlight use, but that us flashaholics just couldn't stand the idea of a high-performance LED on the market that we couldn't play with! :nana:

So what's it for? My guess is, for video displays. Think the big-*** screens in the new Dallas Cowboys stadium. Video images are made up of pixels, and the color of each pixel is made up by mixing… wait for it … red, green, and blue. Coincidence?

(The white would allow brighter and cleaner colors than you could get by simply mixing the three primary colors.)

Anyhow, thanks again for yet another SLAMMIN' review!!! When the heck do you find time to sleep? Oh, lemme guess, during the day; it's too bright to do beamshots! :D
 

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
Great work. You've been pumping out the reviews lately. The RGB is a unique product with a lot of versatility and offers great value.
Anyhow, thanks again for yet another SLAMMIN' review!!! When the heck do you find time to sleep? Oh, lemme guess, during the day; it's too bright to do beamshots! :D
LOL, I have been a little stretched lately. :sleepy:

But I'm going to be on the road the next two weeks, so wanted to get all of these out before I left. Not to worry, still a bunch waiting for me to test when I return. ;)

I am curious as to what members think of the RGB combo. Nice output levels, but I don't know how much I would use anything other than white and red. :shrug:
 

gswitter

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 26, 2006
Messages
2,586
Location
California
I am curious as to what members think of the RGB combo. Nice output levels, but I don't know how much I would use anything other than white and red. :shrug:
There appears to be some UV in the blue. I was surprised at how much it fluoresces objects around the house. Maybe it would suffice for some UV applications?
 

Rexlion

Enlightened
Joined
May 23, 2009
Messages
680
Location
Tulsa
I'm glad I bought an RGB. It's just plain fun. It has become the light I carry around home every day after work (before you ask... I'm too busy at work for fun). :nana: Shining the different colors around the house is much more entertaining than that boring, plain-vanilla white.

As for practical uses: I read that hydrogen peroxide plus blue light in the mouth is good for fighting bacteria, so in the interest of science and gum health I've been treating myself to a dose of Quark Blue nightly. So far so good, and next time I'm at the dentist I'll see if they have any comments about my gum condition. I'd love to hear the hygienist say, "Hmm, this is better than before; what are you doing differently?" And I'd whip out my Quark... :grin2:
 

kaichu dento

Flashaholic
Joined
Apr 5, 2008
Messages
6,554
Location
現在の世界
I'm glad I bought an RGB. It's just plain fun. It has become the light I carry around home every day after work (before you ask... I'm too busy at work for fun). :nana: Shining the different colors around the house is much more entertaining than that boring, plain-vanilla white.

As for practical uses: I read that hydrogen peroxide plus blue light in the mouth is good for fighting bacteria, so in the interest of science and gum health I've been treating myself to a dose of Quark Blue nightly. So far so good, and next time I'm at the dentist I'll see if they have any comments about my gum condition. I'd love to hear the hygienist say, "Hmm, this is better than before; what are you doing differently?" And I'd whip out my Quark... :grin2:
The bigger surprise would be if your dentist had you hold you head back while he blasted you with his own RGB! :D
 

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
There appears to be some UV in the blue. I was surprised at how much it fluoresces objects around the house. Maybe it would suffice for some UV applications?
Interesting. Unfortunately, I don't have it with me to test on the road, but I'll experiment when I get back.

According to the Cree spec chart linked to in the review, the blue LED emission spectra is virtually identical to the blue range of the white LED (i.e. doesn't look like there's much in the UV range). But real world experience may suggest otherwise ... :whistle:
 

gswitter

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 26, 2006
Messages
2,586
Location
California
I don't have the equipment to do any real testing, but I just tried a few things...

The blue does not light up the security strips on a US $20 bill or my drivers license (as an XR-E UV does). But this RGB blue really makes some objects "pop" - yellow Streamlight ProPoly bodies, the yellow-green strips on USPO delivery confirmation receipts. fluorescent PostIt notes (yellow, orange or pink), etc.

In general the blue tends to really mute yellows (as I'd expect), but objects that are even somewhat fluorescent in natural light are really accentuated. I have XP-E's in warm, neutral, and cool white and none of them produce this effect.
 
Last edited:

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
I'm surprised that there isn't more discussion of this light, given its fairly unique design. :thinking:

What do people who own one think of the interface?
 

Link Archer VI

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 26, 2009
Messages
70
I just got one (although it's not working on low/moonlight, so I'm waiting for a replacement from 47s) just because it's fairly unique, but I can't think of any situation where I really need the colors. I would guess most people don't really have a use for it either. I absolutely love the totally floody beam though! I'd probably use my RGB a lot just because of the beam pattern.

The current interface could use a few improvements. I wish the flashing modes were hidden like they are in the Preons and Minis. I also would have preferred that it only advanced colors when you did tighten-loosen under 3 seconds or so. Currently it always advances to the next color on loosening the bezel, no matter how long it was left on in any position. It even advances if the light was turned off. For example. if you had it on red, turn the light off, tighten the bezel, then turn it on, it will come on in white. But if you loosen (without turning off), it goes to green instead of red like I was expecting.

Many people (mysef included) would like to have an RGB light where you could mix the colors together, but I think this is going to need a more sophisticated interface like a selector ring or multiple pushbuttons.
 

gswitter

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 26, 2006
Messages
2,586
Location
California
I think it's an interesting light, but more of a novelty than a serious user.

I'm ambivalent about the UI, but I think I'd rather the red/green/blue beams shared a single level setting with the white beam.
 

kaichu dento

Flashaholic
Joined
Apr 5, 2008
Messages
6,554
Location
現在の世界
I think it's an interesting light, but more of a novelty than a serious user.
I'd say that if for no other reason than the beautiful flood and multiple output options on white, that it can be a very useful light.

On another level however, I've been thinking a bit on the possibility of modifying an adjustable mike stand boom to use it for supplementary stage lighting!
If I could figure out an easy to use foot switch to juggle between colors and also a power supply then I could have the worlds tiniest stage lighting system, which I could carry in my guitar case! No good for a full band, but very useful to a solo or duo! :D
 

selfbuilt

Flashaholic
Joined
May 27, 2006
Messages
7,005
Location
Canada
... but I can't think of any situation where I really need the colors. I would guess most people don't really have a use for it either. I absolutely love the totally floody beam though! I'd probably use my RGB a lot just because of the beam pattern.
I'd say that if for no other reason than the beautiful flood and multiple output options on white, that it can be a very useful light.
Yes, I think you've both raised a good point - it is relatively rare to find a dedicated flood light (without requiring a diffuser), and the Quark RGB does fit this bill quite well.

Many people (mysef included) would like to have an RGB light where you could mix the colors together, but I think this is going to need a more sophisticated interface like a selector ring or multiple pushbuttons.
I'm curious - why would want to mix the colors together? :thinking: I've heard others mention this as well, but I'm not sure to what end.

While light will not be produced by combining the separate RGB elements. The Cree spec chart shows that the relative spectral ranges of the 3 emitters is quite narrow, with a significant gap between green and red (i.e. virtually no overlap, so no orange-yellow). As such, you would not be able to combine them into full-spectrum white. Also, as my results show, relative lumen output is quite variable for the three specific colors, so you would be hard pressed to match outputs for combined white light. Finally, the offset between the physical die locations would likely produce quite a kaleidoscope effect if run concurrently (especially around the periphery). :sick2:

The current interface could use a few improvements. I wish the flashing modes were hidden like they are in the Preons and Minis. I also would have preferred that it only advanced colors when you did tighten-loosen under 3 seconds or so. Currently it always advances to the next color on loosening the bezel, no matter how long it was left on in any position. It even advances if the light was turned off. For example. if you had it on red, turn the light off, tighten the bezel, then turn it on, it will come on in white. But if you loosen (without turning off), it goes to green instead of red like I was expecting.
No argument here. ;) And yes, I've noticed the same thing - the switch to white light (when on) will always trigger an advance of the color mode on the next loosening.

On another level however, I've been thinking a bit on the possibility of modifying an adjustable mike stand boom to use it for supplementary stage lighting!
If I could figure out an easy to use foot switch to juggle between colors and also a power supply then I could have the worlds tiniest stage lighting system, which I could carry in my guitar case! No good for a full band, but very useful to a solo or duo! :D
Good luck with that - let me know if you figure it out. :laughing: Would probably have been easier for you with a clicky switch control mechanism for the RGB (i.e. could have used a pressure-mount, if that were the case).
 

Link Archer VI

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 26, 2009
Messages
70
Well, some have said they would like to use R-G-B together to fine-tune the color temperature (although I'm not sure how well that will work given what you just said). Personally I would just want to have two different colors on at a time to also have cyan, magenta, and yellow. I don't know how well these combinations well work but I'm really curious to see. Just seems to me that if the emitters in the RGB MC-E can be driven individually, then it's somewhat underutilized to have only one emitter on at a time.

The RGB MC-E is kinda like the tablet computer. A really neat idea, but no one knows what it's good for. We gotta keep working at it and experimenting with it, and who knows? Maybe we will find something useful after all.
 

kaichu dento

Flashaholic
Joined
Apr 5, 2008
Messages
6,554
Location
現在の世界
Good luck with that - let me know if you figure it out. :laughing: Would probably have been easier for you with a clicky switch control mechanism for the RGB (i.e. could have used a pressure-mount, if that were the case).
I'm hoping that someone here will figure it out and do a mod for me! :thumbsup:
 

shramj

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 20, 2008
Messages
58
I think one thing that is really neat about this light is that you can get it in Cool White or Neutral White, that is a big plus to me, nice having that option.
 
Top