to A2 or not to A2????

[marxs]

ok..im stuck in a rut... because of my now unending flashaholicism... ive been looking for a light that has good low light for going around the house at night and walking the dogs, and a hi beam for looking at a distance... the A2 keeps popping up in my head... if im sold on the flashlight (99.99% says I already have been!) i need to rest a couple of questions

1. is the incan really yellow? out of all the beamshots ive seen the incan looks yellow, other reviews claim otherwise. (it also seems yellow on ledmuseum's review but whitish on flashlightreviews)

2. how bright (or dim) is the low mode using the 3 leds? i plan on using the leds more often for going around the house and walking the dogs, but im hoping its not too dim (i currently carry around a cheap 9 led flashlight running on 3 AAA batts, this seems pretty good for flood and its quite bright to my liking)

3. how floody is the flood mode? is it adequate at lighting up a room? (compared to an L4 would be a good example)

im really pondering on picking one up tomorrow if i can rest easy on these 3 questions...

dam flashaholicism

 

[nc987]

I wouldnt even bother with an A2 when the Kroma is just around the corner. Gives you much more flexibility.

 

[Illum]

Theres a few cpfers on the forum that will do whatever it takes to convince you to buy the A2 [Carrot, for example..]

According to Size15s [Admin] A2 is the only regulated incandescent light manufactured in the world....not to mention the LEDs having 40+ hours of runtime...:naughty:

aw shucks, Now I want one :laughing:

 

[Roccomo]

I'd say A2 all the way. The white LED is very useful around the house. I can stand on my upstairs landing and illuminate my whole living room with it from above. Very impressive. The incan is the same as my e2e.

 

[leukos]

If you have the spare cash, buy one (not at retail price) and try it out for a while, especially outdoors. If you don't like it, sell it here on B/S/T. Why agonize?

 

[skalomax]

Actually the A2 LED's are sufficient enough to read in Darkness, i dont think the Led's will really be good for walking the dog. My ARC aaa-P produces more light than the LED's in the surefire. Its a good light with the low beam really low but in Pitch darkness it is Great.

 

[JimmyB]

I'm not sure which beam shots you've seen that make the incandescent beam appear yellow but it's one of the whitest beams around, esp. compared to the E2E or 6P. Maybe the beam shots were compared next to the white LED shots which for comparison purposes would make the incandescent look very yellow. The LEDs are plenty bright for walking around inside or out and are somewhat floody. You can't compare the LED brightness of the A2 to an L4 though if that's what you're asking. The L4 is waaaay brighter (LED wise).

JimmyB

 

[socom1970]

Get an HDS 60GT. That will solve all your problems for about the same price.

 

[Bullzeyebill]

Quickbeams flashlightreviews.com shows the A2 leds to have 6+ lux, and about 7 lumens (using his 1.4X re-rating for lumens). Six lux with wide beam is good enough to walk around the house.

Bill

 

[batman]

you COULD walk your dogs with the LED mode if your eyes have had some time to adapt to the darkness (30 mins?). True, the Arc - AAA premiuum is brighter than the A2 in LED mode.

The incan is aobut as white as any incan you'll find. Tested and true technology. beamshots online usually have inaccurate color rendition.

The LEDs are really good for indoors, they light up my rooms just fine. Out doors I'll use the LED's similar to how a submarine uses passive sonar..just to watch my step in front of me and then flash the highbeam once in a while like an active sonar "ping." Trust me nobody will be sneeking up on you with that incan...

 

[270winchester]

go for it. the LEDs on the A2 are enough for me to walk by in the mountains at night. The high beam is really very white. Of course compare any incan to a blue-ish LED and it will look yellow.

 

[clipse]

I'm going through the same thing right now. I have another two weeks before I can finalize my decision but I have a strong feeling that I will be getting the A2.

 

[JNewell]

1. is the incan really yellow? out of all the beamshots ive seen the incan looks yellow, other reviews claim otherwise. (it also seems yellow on ledmuseum's review but whitish on flashlightreviews)

No, it is very white. It looks yellow in some of the posted pics due to what the camera is doing to the white balance and because many of the comparative "white" LED shots are actually well over on the blue side of the spectrum.

2. how bright (or dim) is the low mode using the 3 leds? i plan on using the leds more often for going around the house and walking the dogs, but im hoping its not too dim (i currently carry around a cheap 9 led flashlight running on 3 AAA batts, this seems pretty good for flood and its quite bright to my liking)

There seem to be some legitimate personal differences of opinion, but I would say yes, very very usable around the house and also fine for navigating outdoors at night, both in terms of brightness and beamspread. I actually find the white LED version a little too bright to read with, which only shows that different people have different preferences...

3. how floody is the flood mode? is it adequate at lighting up a room? (compared to an L4 would be a good example)

See above; yeah, it floods nicely. I don't have an L4 to compare but the coverage is very adequate for indoor use.

 

[Delvance]

I say go for it. It runs extremely long on the LED mode and the incan being regulated is very nice indeed.

The beam isn't actually yellow, in fact...it's very white. The incan lamp is actually regulated at the point where the tungsten filament is almost about to melt. Ie, anymore whiter, and the bulb will flash. I believe the colour temp. of the light is around 3300 CCT...not far off melting point. Some other incans may look whiter when white wall hunting but that will be due to the intensity of the beam rather than the actual colour. The Incan beam on the A2 is quite smooth and a bit floody so it may not look very white during white wall hunting...but outside use, shining on trees and pavement etc, it is very white. It's generally better than using a LED light outdoors too, as most people perceive depth and colour much better with incan lights than pure LED lights.

The LEDs are great for night time walking. If you have night adapted eyes (1 min. is fine already) and the area is lightless, you will be able to see a fair bit ahead with the LEDs. Additionally, if you have the skill, you can swap out the LEDs for some brighter ones (eg. 40k mcd from KevinL).

I think what leukos said is spot on , why agonise...just buy one, and if you don't like it much, sell it here. There are plenty of people on CPF hunting for a deal on an A2!

 

[:)>]

I wouldnt even bother with an A2 when the Kroma is just around the corner. Gives you much more flexibility.

I would recommend the A2 even though the Kroma is right around the corner. The reason... Regulated incancescant lights rock! I have been increasingly impressed with my A2 since I purchased it.

The Kroma may, in fact, prove to be more versatile but it will not have a beautiful regulated incandescant beam... this is an A2 exclusive.

I can't figure out why Surefire won't produce more regulated incandescants.

-Goatee

 

[a99raptors]

Bear in mind that the Kroma is going to be bulkier than the A2.

I have an A2 and it is the most versatile light that I have. Others are either too big or can't cover enough tasks to consider them every day carry.

 

[marxs]

dangit...im going to go check it out later and see first hand how it handles...then well see if $$$ goes flying out my wallet

but before that, would anyone have some pics of the leds outdoors at night? just wanted to get a quick idea if i could

 

[Haz]

you COULD walk your dogs with the LED mode if your eyes have had some time to adapt to the darkness (30 mins?). True, the Arc - AAA premiuum is brighter than the A2 in LED mode.

Why is the A2 led dimmer than the Arc AAA-P, is it because of the led's used, or how hard the led is driven?,
By the way what type of led does it A2 uses?,

 

[Grox]

I definately think you should buy one. The LEDs are perfect for close up work, walking etc. I don't find that they are particularly dim or particularly bright. They don't go particularly far but they do have a lovely spillbeam. The incan beam definately has enough oomph to illuminate most things. As others have said it is one of the whitest incans around, making an e2e look yellowish. But in comparison to an LED it is definately yellow. That's not a bad thing at all, I find that the colour of the A2's incan is great (only matched by carfully selected LEDs in my opinion) and allows for accurate depth perception and object recognition.

My advice: Get one on the buy/sell/trade forums here - if you don't like it you can always resell for slightly less or the same price. If you are thinking of buying new, in case you haven't already heard about opticshq, I suggest you do a search for them here on cpf.

 

[Planterz]

If you're used to LEDs but not incandescents, the A2 will indeed look yellow. Going from the blue-ish LEDs on the A2 to the incdan will make the incan look yellow.

But remember that the big glowing ball in the sky (aka: the sun) is also "yellow". So are non-HID car headlights, typical indoor lightbulbs, etc. In this regard, the A2's bulb is very "white", and provides excellent color rendition, meaning that things lit up by the A2 look like they do during the day, or if your houselights were on. Not even the "warmest" LED has color rendition that good. And no matter how yellow the A2 might look in some circumstances, it makes a minimag look utterly brown and dim.

Get one. Easily the best personal-carry incandescent flashlight there is.