The chronic and ubiquitous headlamp discussion...

I am looking for a general purpose LED headlamp with uses ranging from using it when working on my computer to hiking to reading.

I have seen some good reviews of the Tikka and some bad.

Have heard some good things about the Aurora, but not sure how many of those were from the stats rather than from use.

Also heard mixed reviews of the Moonlight.

Not sure if I need to go up to the Matrix or a larger light. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance for all your comments!

Clay

i would think for anything more than reading fairly close you would want more than a 3 led light. at least 5 and more is better.

the fusion maybe? from what i've read the construction leaves alot to be desired, but at least it has 3 power settings and, with 6 leds, can probably be bright when you need it.

personally, i got tired of searching for the right headlamp so i'm modifying my own to suit my needs.

I agree with Papasan. The Photon Fusion is probably the way to go for an LED anyway, because of the multiple LED power settings.
I have seen those for around $50.

I don't like the size of the fusion and the construction is weak. IF you are using LED's in a headlamp, you are not looking to use for much other that basic stuff and reading anyway. I would look at any of the smaller lamps, I would further break it down to Moonlight or Aurora really

I have been using the Aurora w/NiMH for night time hiking. Most of the time, I find that the low setting is fine with adjusted eyes. The unit is VERY light and will swivel to where I want the light. The Tikita's output angle is fixed too low. Once your eyes are adjusted, you don't need that much light. On dry nights, a LW2000 taggs along. When the ground is wet, it's the LW4000.

R. Brock

I have the Aurora and still am happy I settled on it.. It has three brightness levels and you can adjust where you want the light to shine.

The only negative remark I have on it is that the translucent blue case "glows" during operation and might be distracting. This is not an issue when wearing it with a hat. If it really bothered me, I'd simply paint the inside of the case where it glows.

I'd say, go for the Aurora as it's an exceptional value for $30

I don't have much experience with headlamps, but I just got a SL Septor from BrightGuy & think I'm going to like it. It has 7 very bright LED's & you can have 1,3 or 7. It has the standard SL lifetime warrenty + a 30 day satisfaction return policy. The power button is a little to recessed & a little difficult to push, but a 7 LED light for $30 is pretty good. TX

I just bought an Aurora headlamp. TTS ( http://www.texastacticalsupply.com ) sells them for $23. It's remarkably lightweight, and is reasonably bright for a 3-LED light. The light has five modes, high, medium, low, slow blink, and fast blink. I don't know how long the useful battery life will be, and this is an unregulated light (unlike the larger princetontec light -- the matrix?). The mode settings are convenient--you only need to push the button once to turn the light off; you can only switch between the light settings if you push the button multiple times within ~2 seconds. The low setting produces about the same amount of light as my Arc-LE.

The hinge design is quite useful. The light conveniently turns itself into a bike helmet light, just by threading the elastic through helmet vents and wrapping around itself.

Negatives: The band isn't removable (for washing!), unless you were to cut and reattach the threads that sew the band together. Also, the mechanism that opens up the battery compartment isn't all that great; it's a bit loose. I'm also not a big fan of the button; it takes a great deal of force to push it, and it's mushy. Despite all this, I still would recommend the Aurora.

P.S. TTS provided terrific service, sending out my order as quickly as possible and responding to my emails almost immediately. I also ordered a bunch of Arc AAAs and TTS threw in a princetontec pulsar II--my first green LED flashlight--very bright, although the output is uneven and ring-y.

The band on the Septor can't be taken off for washing either. The mfgt's realy should do something about that. But I will say, on the Septor, it is much brighter on 1 LED than the ARC AAA. Of course, this is 1 AAA vs 3AAA. How'ld have thunk it... BTW, if you get a Septor, 1st thing you need to do is take out the reflector & throw it away. It only contributes strange output rings...no pluses I can see. TX

my lightwave illuminator (4 LEDs, 3 AAs) seems to be minimal amount of lighting for me for anything further than a 5 feet away or so (basically standing looking at the ground ahead). i've pretty much abanded it because after a few hours when the batteries run down a bit it becomes much less useful. i would, in fact, sell it if you wanted to check it out.

Clay:
I have both the Aurora and the Tikka.
The Tikka is on loan, the Aurora is in my sachel, less than a meter from me.

The price is no longer an issue: the Aurora used to be more expensive, but now they are about even. Some places sell the Aurora for less! It has three brightness levels, which is great. I have found no use for the blink mode except really annoying people. It can be angled to face out or down, whereas the Tikka is fixed at about 45-degrees. The Aurora also appears much more drizzle resistant, and the headband is of higher quality.

Go Aurora.

I recommend the Moonlight over the Aurora for it's solid feel and construction, and it's better brightness (you can experiment with a pot and tune the brightness by changing out the resistor). It also folds flatter in your pocket than the Aurora (although it takes up more area).

Papasan is right in pointing out the weaknesses of not having enough LEDs. You still need a long throw torch to throw a spot on something you hear out in the woods. For me the solution is to have 2 lights.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by txwest:
The band on the Septor can't be taken off for washing either. The mfgt's realy should do something about that. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hi Txwest, the band on my Septor could be removed easily for washing. Why couldn't you

Alan

I'll just chime in that I've had a Tikka for a while now. I'd shopped earlier this year, the Aurora, Moonlight, Fusion. The Tikka seemed to fit the bill the best for me, my uses, and how I particularly use a headlamp.

It's been a simple, robust, and handy-as-hell light. I don't need a light that swivels unless it's a spot, and the Tikka isn't. I also didn't need to scroll through power settings to find the one I want. It's light, comfortable, and has given me all the light I needed when I needed it.

Very interesting discussion. Thanks to all who contributed.

If anyone who is dissatisfied with their Tikka wants to sell it, let me know. Would be willing to give it a shot at used prices.

I think they had a Moonlight at my local Galyans. Will go and check that out and see if they have any Auroras...

My Aurora and Tikka are in day two of the rigorous "Cranky Old Man" test, where my father borrows then and returns them to me either broken or with dead batteries, and always with a complaint.

He adjusts plane...arium star globes. Needs bright, hands-free light because it must be dark to test the globe, and needs the lowest-intensity light neccisary to preserve dark-adaption, yet the light must be white to read colored text.
Sounds like a perfect test to me.
So far, he prefers the Aurora, because it is aimed "forward" not fixed down, and can be flipped to angle up.

As far as I can tell, there are three areas of interest in headlamps: caving, night hiking, and task lighting. What works well for hiking-- long-range light, down-angle-- doesn't work well for tasklighting, which, honestly is my main use for them.

When the test is done, I may have a Tikka for sale, lightly used. But you might want to shop around because I've seen them for $25, I think at REI.

plane...arium


SouthPark fan, eh?

Maybe.

"Hey you guys. Check out this flashlight I got off the internet. It says 'Surefire'".
Click. Whump. Hmmmmmmmmm....
Screen goes white. Kenny screams.
"PK! You *******!"

Back on topic:
The COM has returned both headlamps. Did that bad old man hurt you? He preferred the Aurora. The highest brightness is greater than the Tikka, and it can angle the head. Found a late father's day present.