Cree Q5 VS R2

[claustro]

DealExtreme XR-E Q5 Emitter on Premium Star 4 leds 36 $ shipped
Cutter.com.au XR-E R2 Bare Emitter 4 leds 54 $ shipped

Is worth to take the R2 over the Q5 for a such big price difference?
If not do you think it will be possible to remove the q5 from the Premium star or otherwise fi the premium star on Perfect XR19 Cree Heatsink

Thank you
Andrea

 

[Gunner12]

IMO, not worth the price, wait till the R4s come out.

It would be hard to remove the bare emitters from the stars according to what I've heard. Maybe a different heatsink?

 

[Nake]

I've removed a few emitters off of stars with no damage to them. I put the star gently in a vise and applied heat with a propane torch to the bottom of it. At the same time I applied pressure with an X-acto knife to the edge of the emitter, when the solder softened it lifted up.

 

[Greg G]

I would buy the R2's from Cutter.

 

[Stereodude]

DealExtreme XR-E Q5 Emitter on Premium Star 4 leds 36 $ shipped
Cutter.com.au XR-E R2 Bare Emitter 4 leds 54 $ shipped

Is worth to take the R2 over the Q5 for a such big price difference?
If not do you think it will be possible to remove the q5 from the Premium star or otherwise fi the premium star on Perfect XR19 Cree Heatsink

Thank you
Andrea

I sure wouldn't pay that premium for the R2 LEDs. In a few months R2's will be yesterday's news with a newer bin commanding all the coin.

 

[SaVaGe]

wait for the R4....you will see a significant difference between Q5 and R4. Not so much for the R2.

 

[KrisP]

Here is a cheaper price for R2's, if you're not in a rush: http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=173312

Both Cutter and DX will take several weeks anyway.

 

[jasonsmaglites]

basicly, wait for the r4 to come out, then buy the r3, lol.
or for now, settle for the q5, it's plenty of light!

 

[yaesumofo]

Why?
I would guess that if you had 2 identical flashlights with the exact same drivers and optics with the only difference being that one had a r2 and one had a q5 that you would NOT be able to tell the difference without test equipment.
Yaesumofo

I would buy the R2's from Cutter.

 

[Yapo]

wow i never realised there was an australian site selling the lastest cree stuff!!! they even have a tri led PCB and tri led optic!!!

 

[KrisP]

Yapo... Unfortunately, from my experience, most of the time they take nearly as long as DX(2-3 weeks) get their items to you

 

[henry33]

Don't really have an opinion one way or the other, but if you get the Q5 from Dealextreme, there's the bulk rate for 3+. It's $7.85 each for 3+ plus an extra $1.70 for shipping. Total of $33.10 instead of $36. Go for 5 and it's $7.75 each plus the 1.70 or $40.45.

 

[paulr]

I thought someone did some tests and the DX leds weren't as bright as Cutter leds with the supposedly same bin code .

 

[KDOG3]

So when are the R4s' coming out? I thought about getting one to put in an L1