Does anyone have the MTE Z Power?

[machoamigo]

Just wanted to know if anyone had the MTE Z Power flashlight with them and how does it complare with the other Cree flashlights like the P1D CE or the Huntlight or the D Mini. Can anyone help me out? because I bought one of them and am very curious about its performance.

 

[2xTrinity]

I don't have either of those others to do a direct comparison, however, I just got my Z-Power light in today and am quite impressed with it. Regulation on it does seem to be pretty good -- I ran a couple of cells in there that were somewhat worn down to begin with, and the light produced absolutely consistent output for quite a while, then quickly dropped output -- this gives feedback as to when it is necessary to change the batteries.

The light I believe is voltage-regulated, (as opposed to current regulated like the Fenix lights) and the multi-levels are accomplished with a two-level switch in the tailcap, one with a 7-Ohm resistor. I would say that at close range, high (a bit over 4W total, including driver and resistor losses) and low (about 2W) look only slightly different, however, for long range the high mode is noticeably brighter -- I would say run it on low (half the total power consumption) most of the time, and only switch to high as needed.

One drawback that I did not like is the interface on the tailcap -- the stock one is off -> low -> off -> high -> off. This means you have to turn the light on then off again to switch brightness, and the next time it comes back, it is the level that you didn't find useful before. My "fix" was pretty simple in that I had a Vinet onhand that I bought from Dealextreme earlier -- I simply swapped the tailcaps. The Vinet tailcap is off -> high -> low -> off, also with a 7 ohm resistor. (I'm considering swapping in a higher resistance so that the "dim" mode is somewhat dimmer -- the low on this is actually still very bright.)

Build quality seems to be quite nice, the light feels fairly durable. Also, heatsinking is quite effective, when running the light on high, the entire body heats up consistently.

 

[machoamigo]

Hi, trinity
can you post some beamshots if possible?

 

[FlashKat]

Have you tried it with fully charged 3.6v RCR123 batteries? I noticed on mine the light on high is bright warm white for about a minute then the tint shifts to a dimmer blueish tint. I then installed 2 3.0v RCR123 batteries and on high the bright stays warm white without any problems. This light is nice, but it is not as bright as I thought it would be for a SSC P4 light. I am comparing to some Cree modded lights that I have.

I don't have either of those others to do a direct comparison, however, I just got my Z-Power light in today and am quite impressed with it. Regulation on it does seem to be pretty good -- I ran a couple of cells in there that were somewhat worn down to begin with, and the light produced absolutely consistent output for quite a while, then quickly dropped output -- this gives feedback as to when it is necessary to change the batteries.

The light I believe is voltage-regulated, (as opposed to current regulated like the Fenix lights) and the multi-levels are accomplished with a two-level switch in the tailcap, one with a 7-Ohm resistor. I would say that at close range, high (a bit over 4W total, including driver and resistor losses) and low (about 2W) look only slightly different, however, for long range the high mode is noticeably brighter -- I would say run it on low (half the total power consumption) most of the time, and only switch to high as needed.

One drawback that I did not like is the interface on the tailcap -- the stock one is off -> low -> off -> high -> off. This means you have to turn the light on then off again to switch brightness, and the next time it comes back, it is the level that you didn't find useful before. My "fix" was pretty simple in that I had a Vinet onhand that I bought from Dealextreme earlier -- I simply swapped the tailcaps. The Vinet tailcap is off -> high -> low -> off, also with a 7 ohm resistor. (I'm considering swapping in a higher resistance so that the "dim" mode is somewhat dimmer -- the low on this is actually still very bright.)

Build quality seems to be quite nice, the light feels fairly durable. Also, heatsinking is quite effective, when running the light on high, the entire body heats up consistently.

 

[FlashCrazy]

Have you tried it with fully charged 3.6v RCR123 batteries? I noticed on mine the light on high is bright warm white for about a minute then the tint shifts to a dimmer blueish tint. I then installed 2 3.0v RCR123 batteries and on high the bright stays warm white without any problems. This light is nice, but it is not as bright as I thought it would be for a SSC P4 light. I am comparing to some Cree modded lights that I have.

FlashKat, check out my post (#23) on this thread. Mine had the same problem, but I fixed it.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=151955

 

[2xTrinity]

Have you tried it with fully charged 3.6v RCR123 batteries? I noticed on mine the light on high is bright warm white for about a minute then the tint shifts to a dimmer blueish tint. I then installed 2 3.0v RCR123 batteries and on high the bright stays warm white without any problems. This light is nice, but it is not as bright as I thought it would be for a SSC P4 light. I am comparing to some Cree modded lights that I have.

I actually recharged the same batteries, dropped them in, and it was immediately working the same as before -- no noticeable problems.

 

[FlashKat]

FlashCrazy & 2xTrinity

It looks like you guys are both running CR123 3.0v RCR123 3.0v batteries. I tried 3.6v RCR123 batteries which top off at 4.2v each. I found that it will turn blue if over driven. I am not having any problems running with 2 RCR123 3.0v batteries.

FlashKat, check out my post (#23) on this thread. Mine had the same problem, but I fixed it.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=151955

 

[2xTrinity]

It looks like you guys are both running CR123 3.0v RCR123 3.0v batteries. I tried 3.6v RCR123 batteries which top off at 4.2v each. I found that it will turn blue if over driven. I am not having any problems running with 2 RCR123 3.0v batteries.

Nope -- I'm running the 3.7V CR123s from Dealextreme, topped off at 4.15V each. Never has the led looked blue. One question -- is the body of your flashlight getting warm to the touch after a minute or so? Mine warms the entire body evenly which seems to dissipate the heat fairly well. Running in the "dim" mode causes the tailcap to feel slightly warm (where the resistor is) as opposed to the whole body though.

 

[FlashKat]

The body is getting warm evenly. I guess I will check all connections and heatsinking. If that does not work then I will stick with RCR123 3.0v batteries. Thanks for your help.

Nope -- I'm running the 3.7V CR123s from Dealextreme, topped off at 4.15V each. Never has the led looked blue. One question -- is the body of your flashlight getting warm to the touch after a minute or so? Mine warms the entire body evenly which seems to dissipate the heat fairly well. Running in the "dim" mode causes the tailcap to feel slightly warm (where the resistor is) as opposed to the whole body though.

 

[FlashCrazy]

I'm using 3.7V rechargeables from Battery Station. They're protected cells, 900 mAH according to Battery Station. They top out at 4.15V on my charger.

I was ready to send the light back...it got pretty nasty green/blue after a few minutes. Now it's perfect...the tint is whiter right from the start, and doesn't change. Before, it started white for a few seconds, then got progressively green/blue.

 

[2xTrinity]

Here are a few indoor beamshot pics -- can't get any outdoor ones until tomorrow night at the earliest. I decided to compare the ZPower on high to the MagLED 2D running "cool" before its output starts to get lowered (as that is a light I am sure most people on here are somewhat familiar with)

Here's one with the lights on. The desk lamp is a 9W 3500K CFL. The flood light is a 13W 3000K CFL. The bright white blob in the center of the ceiling is two 13W 3500K CFLs. In case you haven't guessed I like it bright (though most of the time I don't have the two in the ceiling on). The tiny cool white dot is the MagLED, the larger bluish looking spot is the ZPower hotspot:



This is with the lights out -- you can now see the spillbeam on each:


One taken from the floor looking up:


Another from the floor looking up, with the shortest possible exposure time:


I just shot these before my camera battery died -- later on I'll do a whole bunch of shots to show the difference in throw, and color rendering -- and I'll compare more than just these two lights.

 

[Zefiryn]

Got two of them , one has nice white beam but second is noticable purple

compared to L2D CE and VB16 CPF and Ultrafire WF501B, and have to say I'm really imressed. Britest light I've ever owned.

Some pics here:







Beamshots:



CPF high ver MTE on low



CPF high ver MTE high



MTE 55m



MTE ver, CPF 55m



L2D Turbo ver MTE Low



L2D Turbo ver MTE high



L2d turbo ver MTE high, 55m

power cosumption: 2x17335 3.7V 0.35A low, 0.70A High

Enjoy

 

[machoamigo]

Thanks Zef now I know what to expect from the MTE.
Good pics for refrence

 

[machoamigo]

Thanks for the pics Trinity

 

[rufusdufus]

Mine got very warm and smelled of fumes when I first lit it up.

I'm using 3.6 Volt battery's.

It's now perfect.

THE HEAD IS FOCUSABLE AS WELL.

However don't screw in too far as mine then goes out.

One screw was also only just started in the heatsink.

 

[Norm]

One screw was also only just started in the heatsink.

Mine was the same the negative terminal screw so it may have lead to problems in the future, the light doesn't depend on the screws to hold the star, the aluminium screw in ring does that.
Norm

 

[2xTrinity]

However don't screw in too far as mine then goes out.

One screw was also only just started in the heatsink.

I think these two may be related. I noticed the exact same problem right after taking the photos. I went to test the light and it would not come on but started to warm up, so I figured I accidentally shorted something. As I was unscrewing the tailcap, so it was not putting pressure on the batteries, the light came back -- so it had to do with pressure. With my DMM, when the batteries were "pressed in" the light went out and current went up to 1.2A (not a total short -- that could pull several amps from lithium batteris) I opened the whole light up, found that one screw in the heatsink only part way screwed down, finished screwing it in and the problem went away. What a weird problem to have.

That's an excellent point about the focusing though. There's quite a bit of room to rotate the head before it unseals from the o-rings, enough to comfortably change from throw to flood. I put some WD40 on my threads and the focusing seems to work fine.

 

[FlashKat]

Hey FlashCrazy,

I was CRAZY enough to take your advice about the thermal compound and it works perfectly!!!!!!! It was a slight challenge since I did it when I was tired. Thanks For the advice.

I'm using 3.7V rechargeables from Battery Station. They're protected cells, 900 mAH according to Battery Station. They top out at 4.15V on my charger.

I was ready to send the light back...it got pretty nasty green/blue after a few minutes. Now it's perfect...the tint is whiter right from the start, and doesn't change. Before, it started white for a few seconds, then got progressively green/blue.

 

[FlashCrazy]

Hey FlashCrazy,

I was CRAZY enough to take your advice about the thermal compound and it works perfectly!!!!!!! It was a slight challenge since I did it when I was tired. Thanks For the advice.

Excellent!! I'm glad I could help. I really like this light. I also have the Glimt 10W Luxeon K2 from DealExtreme. I really like that light too, but it pulls 1500 mA on high. The MTZ is just as bright, if not brighter, on high...and it does this pulling half the current, only 750 mA. Much easier on the batteries...I like that. The switch on the MTZ feels perfect too...not as stiff as the Glimt switch, and is flawless in operation.

 

[2xTrinity]

Excellent!! I'm glad I could help. I really like this light. I also have the Glimt 10W Luxeon K2 from DealExtreme. I really like that light too, but it pulls 1500 mA on high. The MTZ is just as bright, if not brighter, on high...and it does this pulling half the current, only 750 mA. Much easier on the batteries...I like that. The switch on the MTZ feels perfect too...not as stiff as the Glimt switch, and is flawless in operation.

Ouch, in just about every case I can think of, claiming that an LED is 10W is (fortunately) an outright lie done as a marketing gimmick... in the case of the Glimt it sounds like it's actually true :lol: That light must get quite hot seeing as it's producing more than double the heat of the MTE and it's about the same size.

I also had a Vinet from Dealextreme that wasn't getting a whole lot of use until now (except for raiding the tailcap switch to use on the MTE) Unfortunately my MTE tailcap switch is now back on my MTE light -- although the tailcap from the Vinet works on the MTE, the MTE tailcap does not work on the Vinet. I just now ugpraded my Vinet to use a Cree -- popped out the original reflector with a small screwdriver, soldered in a new star from DX. Unfortunately, that reflector didn't work at all -- it was completely out of focus. I ended up dropping in a reflector from one of my Elly lights (which is using an optic at the moment), which works beautifully. The Vinet is direct drive, single CR123A. Due to Lithium's fairly level discharge curve I get 800mA on high, 350mA on low for the majority of the battery runtime.