vinhnguyen54 Olight SR90 & SR91 De-Dome

[vinhnguyen54]

The lux are relative reading that came straight from the light meter. No math or any conversion has been done yet. The meter was located 22.5 feet from the hotspot on the door.

SR91 De-dome 279Lux
SR90 Original Dome 270Lux
SR90 De-dome 487 Lux

80% Lux improvements!!!!!!!!!!!!!

According to Selfbuilt measurement of 112,500Lux @ 1 meter. The de-dome version is 203,000LUX @ 1 meter



SR91 DeDome



SR90 With Dome



SR90 DeDome



Moral of the story: If you want SR90 throw in a SR91 body, dedome it. If you want an INSANE LED thrower then Dedome your SR90!

[TEEJ]

LOL - I think we just did!

[jwyj]

Wow, my SR-90 has been on the shelf for a year doing nothing.
Let me dust of the body and dedomed the emitter to give it a new lease of life. By the way, do you use a knife or a plier to pries off the dome?

[TEEJ]

Wow, my SR-90 has been on the shelf for a year doing nothing.
Let me dust of the body and dedomed the emitter to give it a new lease of life. By the way, do you use a knife or a plier to pries off the dome?

A write up on the process is being worked on.

[vinhnguyen54]

Wow, my SR-90 has been on the shelf for a year doing nothing.
Let me dust of the body and dedomed the emitter to give it a new lease of life. By the way, do you use a knife or a plier to pries off the dome?

I carefully scraped around the led dome removing as much as possible. Then I try to lift it up from around evenly. Eventually it will come off. Be careful not to rip any wires or poke at the yellow die.

The cool tint will shift to a more neutral tint. The spill will be dimmer but the hotspot will be much brighter!

Running the LED for a few minutes to warm thing up a little make it a little easier for the dome to come off.

[The_Driver]

How about some beamshots?

[TEEJ]

I probably won't get to shoot some beam shots until next week if the weather cooperates. I don't think Vinh had a chance to go outside at night after doing the de-doming before giving it back to me...but you never know.



I have some beam shots down a power line right-of-way (See pics posted in sig line link) before the de-doming...I'll do the new ones at the same place to make comparison easier.

[TEEJ]

How about some beamshots?

I grabbed some beam shots the other night, thought they might be useful to compare some lights out there with each other.

For myself, when people post beam shots, it helps me to calibrate what to expect...especially if they also include a light I HAVE in the mix.

The shots include an assortment of Olight SR90 (De-Domed) and the Magic Scorpion HID, and the DEFT edc LR - on some long range (500 - 800 meter) targets...they reached both.


The Deft did not visually reach the 800 meter target, but did visually reach the 500 m target....albeit the pics didn't show it well.

I also did some mid-range throw shots at ~ 233 meters.


I didn't do any shorter range shots than the 233 meter range....my camera battery decided it had been enough pics for the night....so throwers only.








A few (Proof I need a better low light with zoom camera...) beam shots for calibration purposes:


Magic Gashfire illuminating a Power Line Tower at 800 meter range (In real life, you could see it better, but the pics suck - apply accordingly to pics to follow, etc...)




De-Domed Olight SR90 illuminating same tower at 800 meters (In real life, it was easier to see than with the Magic, but you could see the tower was actually lit up by both of them)
The DD SR90 threw further than the HID did..it put a nice fat beam of light that lit up a steel tower 800 meter away, and the tree line beyond that, but there wasn't a decent target to hit beyond 800 meters, the next tower over was behind part of an island.

In real life, I could light the power line cables, but the pics don't have the resolution to show it.




Magic on Tower at 500 Meters




DD SR90 on same tower at 500 M, not zoomed (Forgot to shoot Magic unzoomed ) - It does show how much light, proportionally, is slamming into the tower 500 meters away though.





DD SR 90 on 500 M tower



At 500 meters - the SR 90 absolutely flooded the tower with light, the limiting observational factor was eye sight not lux. Even at 800 meters, by eye, the steel braces, etc, were visible...and if I were standing at that tower 800 meters away, I'm sure I would see as if I had a light on, maybe not a really bright light, but I could probably read by the beam from across the lake.




--------

Pond, 233 meters to treeline on other side of pond - A building, visible as a light colored wall in some shots, was on the other side of that tree line, about another 40 meters further away.



Control





Magic






Magic






Magic





Magic
(I wish I knew what I did differently on this one, its the only in focus pic from the entire night )





DD SR90






DD SR90


At 233 meters, the SR90 beam is lighting up a lot of area, the footprint of a house say. The HID is putting a dimmer spot of light over a larger area, say a house and YARD sized area. Both have plenty of bounce off the concrete wall of the building behind the tree line as well. For this range, the HID works well, as the light level is quite usable.



DEFT edc LR


The DEFT was able to reach, but the patch of light was more the size of a small truck than a house, etc....in real life, you could see what it illuminated quite clearly though, and with good brightness.


So, I think the de-doming of the SR90 really woke it up. There is still plenty of spill to see where you're going, but the hot spot /corona have merged into a really nice fat patch of light that can project usable light at least 800 meters.

Past ~ that is too hard to see by eye very well anyway, so for what I use the lights for, 600-700 meters is great....and it kicks ass at that range...instead of getting there on a sub-lumen level as a stock SR90 would.

[TEEJ]

In response to requests for before/after dedeoming shots on the SR90 - I found these:




SR90 BEFORE Dedoming



SR90 AFTER Dedoming

[djans1397]

Thanks Teej. The beam after does look more contrated, in realtime though, does it look significantly more contrated? The SR90 is def a throw monster, but once I dedome it, there's no going back. So I want to make sure it's even worht the trouble before I do it.

Thanks for the beam shots
Dan

[TEEJ]

Thanks Teej. The beam after does look more contrated, in realtime though, does it look significantly more contrated? The SR90 is def a throw monster, but once I dedome it, there's no going back. So I want to make sure it's even worht the trouble before I do it.

Thanks for the beam shots
Dan

YES.

Its DEFINITELY more concentrated. As you can see in the pics above, there's still a ton of spill, but the corona and hot spot are essentially merged into a larger hot spot/smaller or missing corona.

Those telephone poles are 87 meters apart IIRC, to give a sense of scale.

The light in the foreground is about the same...but the total pool of light off in the distance is smaller, but brighter, and projected further out...even at the sharp angle that visually merges the progressively further poles closer together in the shot...you can tell the beam is brightly lighting up areas hundreds of yards further away.

The camera is positioned and partially zoomed in both shots to roughly the same field of view, with the camera/light positioned a little to the left in the dedomed shot compared to the domed shot above it. The dedomed pic was with a better camera that is better in low light focusing, so the top/domed pic is more blurry...but that's a camera difference, not related to the lights.

If the camera was better, the top pic would have ~ 6 telephone poles in it you could see by eye. Even blurry, you can just make out the last couple.

In the bottom/Dedomed pic, at least 8 poles are visible, and more WOULD HAVE, if the angle was less acute...so they didn't blend together at the far end of the focus. If you look at the larger metal transmission towers to the right of the path, you can also see the dedomed beam is clearly shining down the entire path, past the telephone poles. The hot spot is illuminating a several hundred yard area of the path, not exactly a laser beam, and quite useful for my disaster response usage...as it IS a large pool of light projected say 800 yards or so off into the distance.



For further perspective, here's the Fenix TK70 the same night as the dedomed SR90 shot:



Notice we can only really see ~ 5 telephone poles down range - still GREAT throw, but, despite the wall of light, it just doesn't match even the DOMED SR90 in throw, and the DEdomed SR90 is throwing ~ DOUBLE the TK70's range.


Here's a Stanley HID (20 watt Compact) shot as well:



Note the strong beam, and that it also peters out around the 5th telephone pole, etc.




So - the Dedomed Olight SR90 kicks some major ass.

[vinhnguyen54]

Teej is serious about these beam shot explanations! Thanks!

[djans1397]

Thanks much Teej! This is exactly what I wanted to see! Dedoming it is! Ill make sure to take some before and after shots!

[TEEJ]

Thanks much Teej! This is exactly what I wanted to see! Dedoming it is! Ill make sure to take some before and after shots!

LOL

The hard part is finding an area wide enough to include decent representation of the spill, yet with targets far enough away to really show the differences...at least out here.


Ideally, you'd want some variety in long range targets....no closer than 300-400 yards on the near end, and out to ~ 800 yards at the far end.

As 800 yards is darn near a half mile, your eyes/unzoomed camera tend to become the limiting factor at that range, so the camera needs to zoom to reach the target to see what it looks like lit up more realistically.

I'm still trying to cajole an accomplice into holding a light meter while I shoot a beam on him, so I can have him walk away until I can't see him...while he radios back the lux readings.

[djans1397]

I PM'd Teej, but I'll ask here to. I've disassembled my olight but have left the heatsink and entire LED unit in the housing of the Head. It looks like it'll be pretty tricky to get under the edge of the dome at this angle. Do I need to remove the LED unit from the head in order to dedome it correctly/safely? I'm hoping to do this tonight so I can try her out ASAP!

Thanks,
Dan

[djans1397]

Teej, you reported that your SR90 dedomed out threw your Lambda VPT2, I saw the pics my self and it did clearly appear to be as such. However after dedoming my SR90 and comparing it to my VPT2 dedomed, they appear to throw equally, in fact, the VPT2 may out throw a tad further. The VPT2 is the latest release from Kevin and I believe it's a 5700k version. The tint on the SR90 is more neutral now, almost warm when I put it up against the VPT2 which I knew there would be a color shift when I dedomed it. The battery pack on the SR90 may not have been fully charged is all I can think; I'll try it again tonight. Overall though, I wasn't really impressed with dedoming my SR90. I was hoping for more. I really love my Lambda VPT2, I just wish I could run Li-Ions in it for a much longer runtime. WHats your take on this? Do you have an different setup than do with these lights?

Thanks,
Dan

[TEEJ]

Teej, you reported that your SR90 dedomed out threw your Lambda VPT2, I saw the pics my self and it did clearly appear to be as such. However after dedoming my SR90 and comparing it to my VPT2 dedomed, they appear to throw equally, in fact, the VPT2 may out throw a tad further. The VPT2 is the latest release from Kevin and I believe it's a 5700k version. The tint on the SR90 is more neutral now, almost warm when I put it up against the VPT2 which I knew there would be a color shift when I dedomed it. The battery pack on the SR90 may not have been fully charged is all I can think; I'll try it again tonight. Overall though, I wasn't really impressed with dedoming my SR90. I was hoping for more. I really love my Lambda VPT2, I just wish I could run Li-Ions in it for a much longer runtime. WHats your take on this? Do you have an different setup than do with these lights?

Thanks,
Dan

Well, on my SR90...the difference was clear, and it did about what the pics showed it as doing...and the comparison to the VPT was also clear in the same way, on mine.

You need a LONG range shot to SEE the differences though...less than 400 meters or so is so close for these lights, that the differences are too hard to see.

You would BEST be served by targets of progressively further ranges...so that you have some sort of yard stick to gauge performance by.


Example:

If I shine the lights at the side of a barn 100 yards away...the Lambda light looks stronger...because the larger bright area is perceived as "more light".

I'd have to move further and further from the barn (Easier than moving the barn...) to eventually see the difference as the previously "brighter" light faded, dimming more and more with distance, and the initially smaller bright spot of the SR90 becoming dominant. The SR90's spot does grow with distance, and dims proportionally, but the VPT's spot grows more, and dims MORE as you keep adding meters.

Use google earth or a rolling measure, etc...and mark out targets from ~400 - 800 yards. You NEED this kind of distance to see what we're talking about.

[djans1397]

ok Thanks. My testing wasn't as precise as yours I guess. I simply shined them out onto an open rolling hills field that had several telephone poles. I shined them out as far as I could really see each one, an on each pole as far out as I could see, the appearance of each was about the same. The light pack on my SR90 isn't brand new, but it still charges up to 4 lights, quickly dropping to 3 lights as I begin to run the light. I wouldn't think that it not being fully topped off should make a difference. Do the tints of each light look differfent when compared side by side as mine does? What LED are you running in your VPT2?

[TEEJ]

ok Thanks. My testing wasn't as precise as yours I guess. I simply shined them out onto an open rolling hills field that had several telephone poles. I shined them out as far as I could really see each one, an on each pole as far out as I could see, the appearance of each was about the same.


The light pack on my SR90 isn't brand new, but it still charges up to 4 lights, quickly dropping to 3 lights as I begin to run the light.

I wouldn't think that it not being fully topped off should make a difference.


Do the tints of each light look differfent when compared side by side as mine does?


What LED are you running in your VPT2?

If the last poles were ~ 800 meters away, then that would imply that your VPT was equal to your SR90, if too much closer, it might not mean anything per se, as at long distances, its too hard to distinguish subtle brightness levels on a thin vertical line, etc.

I find at that kind of range, for telephone poles, the target is too small to be able to do that...unless you zoom the camera to view as if you are looking at it with binoculars (Or are, etc...) to see how much light is actually on the targets.

The SR90 is regulated IIRC so that it should be on full brightness until the internal resistance of the pack prevents sufficient flow. IF the pack is too old, and/or the cells IN the pack are getting out of balance, etc, then the pack MIGHT be hindering performance.

Off the top of my head, I don't remember the tints of the SR90 and VPT relative to each other, I remember both as "white", but, typically, its hard to compare tints w/o a side by side comparison...so maybe I should do that shot too to see.

My VPT uses the 6500 k tint, as when dedomed, the tint is typically shifted warmer. Kevin recommended using the 6500 k LED if dedoming, and not to use the 5700 k for dedoming btw, as the 5700 can shift to greenish when dedomed.

Ironically, green light is pretty good for SEEING things, as our eyes see in that wavelength well....so its not all bad.



So - on those fields with the poles, do you know the distances you were shooting at?



VPT V2 Dedemomed 6500 k LED - Round tree is at ~ 400 meters



Olight SR90, Dedomed - Same tree, same night/position

As this shows, the SR90 is definitely hitting the tree with more light, and, putting more light on the target at that range.

The VPT is definetely throwing more light though, and its showing all the terrain from the camera out to that tree fairly evenly, and a broader swath of lit area.

Both have generous spill that out performs some lights hot spot/corona all by itself...but the SR90's corona is more concentrated to the hot spot, which shows less light in the mid range than the VPT does.

The night the above shots were taken, had a ton of crap in the air (Can be seen in the beam shots), which probably diffused both beams somewhat, but, this is an apples and apples comparison at least.

[The_Driver]

To me the VPT doesn't seem to be focused properly, but I could be wrong. Mine looks a bit different. Also why is the sky in the sr-90 beamshot brighter tha in the VpT shot? Was the sun going down at that time or are the exposure times different?

[TEEJ]

To me the VPT doesn't seem to be focused properly, but I could be wrong. Mine looks a bit different. Also why is the sky in the sr-90 beamshot brighter tha in the VpT shot? Was the sun going down at that time or are the exposure times different?

The focus could be an issue, I don't remember checking that. I'll make a note to check it next time out.

It was getting later (The times are in the pics), but not by too much, and it could have also been the glow in the air from the light beams, due to all the crap...in person, that was very apparent as an effect. The way the tree looked is accurate though.

If focusing the VPT generates more lux on target at that range, I'll be a happy camper...so, so far, I'm rooting for that as a potential "Solution". Right now, as shot that night, the VPT is more analogous to the the Fenix TK70 in performance....which did seem odd given that Kevin dedomed it...but my other Lambda light had similar beam characteristics.

If I get a chance, I'll see what happens out there in beamshotland.

[The_Driver]

The focus could be an issue, I don't remember checking that. I'll make a note to check it next time out.

It was getting later (The times are in the pics), but not by too much, and it could have also been the glow in the air from the light beams, due to all the crap...in person, that was very apparent as an effect. The way the tree looked is accurate though.

If focusing the VPT generates more lux on target at that range, I'll be a happy camper...so, so far, I'm rooting for that as a potential "Solution". Right now, as shot that night, the VPT is more analogous to the the Fenix TK70 in performance....which did seem odd given that Kevin dedomed it...but my other Lambda light had similar beam characteristics.

If I get a chance, I'll see what happens out there in beamshotland.

What batteries did you use? Were they freshly charged?

[TEEJ]

What batteries did you use? Were they freshly charged?

Four Tenergy Premium C Cells (White)...reasonably fresh, maybe 1/2 hr at most on them.

[The_Driver]

Four Tenergy Premium C Cells (White)...reasonably fresh, maybe 1/2 hr at most on them.

Hmm ok, but a half hour at what level? on high it only lasts 20 minutes ....

I would maybe try 100% fresh batteries when doing beamshots, it might make that little difference

[TEEJ]

Maybe, but I doubt it would seriously change the beam shape...and visually, it was throwing a wall of light...the lumens were there.

I'll check the focus, as that's the most obvious smoking gun as far as beam shape.

[TEEJ]

The rain got lighter last night, so I did check, and yes, I WAS able to change the focus of the VPT's beam by turning the head...and it did make the pattern more SR90-ish and less TK70-ish. It STILL didn't look like it out threw the SR90 DD, but it was at least fairly close in performance.

I didn't set up the tripod, etc, as it was still too rainy for that...but I'll do some pics to compare maybe over the coming weekend.

[The_Driver]

The rain got lighter last night, so I did check, and yes, I WAS able to change the focus of the VPT's beam by turning the head...and it did make the pattern more SR90-ish and less TK70-ish. It STILL didn't look like it out threw the SR90 DD, but it was at least fairly close in performance.

I didn't set up the tripod, etc, as it was still too rainy for that...but I'll do some pics to compare maybe over the coming weekend.

Thats good to know, makes me feel better about my VPT
Please do beamshots if you can

Whats also really great about the de-domed vpt is how great the low modes are. You get a very wide even spill and the it has extreme throw even in these lower modes. If you're walking on a trail in the woods you can always see the entire trail ahead of you no matter what mode you're in.

[rufus001]

I just wanted to double check that the piece of plastic that I have circled is the dome. Also it seems like it would be rather difficult to remove with a knife without slipping and scratching the led. Can it be removed with tweezers. I REALLY want to give it a go but am hesitant.

OK maybe I'm being a tad harsh on myself.

[jmpaul320]

im with rufus - want to de-dome but a little weary of cracking it open

[climberkid]

We didn't give up, did we? I want to know if you guys were successful!