Got me a LUMEN edgumacashun tonight

[Wattnot]

I couldn't decide where to post this . . . . LED or INCAN or REVIEW, so I guess it must belong here!

I got my first "real" LED light today: A Fenix P2D Premium. VERY impressive. The UI will take a little getting used to, if ever, but I like the light a lot and the performance is VERY impressive (did I mention that I was impressed . . . very-ly?).

My first test was off the deck in the back yard. I had it and my other recent purchase, an A2. It easily tied and perhaps beat the A2 at about 30-50 feet on high (pointed at the ground and a swing set). Turbo mode just about blew away the A2. Then I turned around and hit the house, about 15 to 20 feet away and again, the A2 was no match. I even preferred the white LED to the yellow incan at this point, which I did not expect.

Thoughts of selling the A2 jumped in my head again (2nd time in only a week). Then I went across the road to my neighbor's house and of course I had to show him. So we're outside and it's nice and dark in my semi-rural neighborhood (everyone has 2 acres). I hit a tree about 50 feet away and suddenly, the A2 wasn't giving up the fight. The only difference now was the color. The tree lit up nicely with both lights.

Then at the end of my visit, I went for broke. Standing in front of my neighbor's house, I put it in turbo mode and hit my house, about 250 to 300 feet away. I was impressed at how the P2D lit up nearly 1/2 the house with a noticeable beam. Incredible for this tiny thing. Then the A2. Wow. The A2, with it's so called 50 lumens was the clear winner! The half a house was brighter and more natural looking! It's almost as if the white vs yellow was now hurting the P2D because there was no way I would chosen it over the A2 for throw.

So here we have the good old A2, with a lumen rating of 50 (yes, I read where it's underrated and really more like 80 out the front) up against this high tech 180 lumen light (yes, I know it's rated at the emitter and there are losses) and the A2 was the clear winner in that final, long range test.

I was told not to focus too much on lumens but this little demo shows me why. I'm still going to buy a mid sized LED (like the CLH1 or Tiablo A8 and probably a DBS as well) but I won't ever disrespect the A2 again (or other powerful incans). They both seem to have their purposes, strengths and weaknesses. In tonight's test, the powerful Cree LED was the winner close up, but the good old A2 didn't seem to have a distance limit where the P2D did.

I can't wait to try out the BIG BOYS: The Mag85 I'm building and one of the LED powerhouses I mentioned above!

Thanks CPF! I love my new toys and the knowledge I'm picking up here!

:wave:

 

[KeyGrip]

That'll happen in an area with a lot of ambient light. You say semi-rural; how well were the streets lit up? Also, the A2 is doing about 70-80 lumens.

 

[JB]

Why do incans have better throw (generally speaking)? Is it because the focal point of the filament is narrower than a LED die size?

 

[MikeSalt]

Why do incans have better throw (generally speaking)? Is it because the focal point of the filament is narrower than a LED die size?

Yes, that is pretty much it. In fact, in terms of pure spectral dispersion, the LED should throw further. A cohesive light source has the smallest divergence, hence the fact lasers are the best throwers.

 

[Crenshaw]

we really need a white laser with a decent hotspot, and leds around the edges for some semblence of spill.

Crenshaw

 

[iSleep]

HAHA, i don't think that will be checked for EDC ... and lasers have too tiny a hotspot ...

 

[2xTrinity]

Why do incans have better throw (generally speaking)? Is it because the focal point of the filament is narrower than a LED die size?

Not I think LED dice are pretty close to filaments for surface-brightness.

The difference is that filaments emit light in 360 degrees, and LEDs only in about 150 degrees. That means the same parabolic reflector might capture about 75% of the incan lumens, and only 30% of the LED lumens. Narrow and VERY deep reflectors are needed to make an LED throw, which few seem to have. This also happens to be the main reason why Incandescent lights perform better in fog, color is secondary.

 

[KeyGrip]

Also, and I have no reasoning for this other than "it makes sense", the wider spectrum put out by an incan lamp allows more visible light to return to the eye and not be washed out by ambient light.

 

[mspeterson]

It just seems wrong to me that a Fenix is considered "high-tech" when compared to the A2....:shakehead

Nice to see that folks still appreciate the most advanced Incandescent light ever!

 

[greenLED]

To put things further in perspective, if you had a 3C or D Mag, it wouldn't've been as bright as either the A2 or the P2D. Sometimes we forget just how powerful these new flashlights are compared to "standard" offerings (and I don't think Mags are considered "standard" by people outside CPF).

 

[Wattnot]

For Keygrip: There is a streetlight but it's on the main road, several hundred feet in a different direction. I wouldn't say my area is the best for true star-gazing but it is fairly dark.

For mspeterson: I was thinking about that line you picked on because I realized the A2 is also high tech, being one of the few (or only?) regulated incads . . . but what I meant by "high tech" was all of the different modes the P2D has: Automatic SOS, 4 different levels of light, a nasty, full power disorienting strobe, 180 lumens, all shoved in a tiny space along with it's own regulation. To me, that's pretty high tech! I did mention I was impressed, right?

 

[mspeterson]

I got your point, and I agree with you that those are two cool lights. Like I said, its good to see people still appreciate the A2, count us both impressed.