Quark 123x2 or AAx2 warm?

[GrimCreaper]

Trying to figure out what to buy because im kind of at a loss... I know there already a loss of OTF lumens by roughly 28% due to the warm tint but is the gain from the AAx2 to the 123x2 really noticable? the approx. lumens from the 123x2 will be around 165 and the AAx2 should be right around 148. my main concern with this is that i intend to get the prism kit with this order as well, and if i can save money with a negligible loss in brightness ill gladly take the AA.

I know that alkaline batteries arent the greatest and i intend to get a charger (mostly due to my use of the Maratac AA and AAA i love and use). a Targus 2 hour charger that comes with 4 AA nimh batteries which claim 2700 mAh capacity. (only reason im going for that is due to it being on clearence in my store for 15$ down from 34.99).

Another quick question, a friend of mine said that rechargeables slightly increase the lumens on most flashlights compared to alkalines, is this true?

edit: sorry for the run on, it wont let me break that whole thing into sections for some reason
re-edit: there we go.. dont know what i did to fix the no paragraphs issue.
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[GrimCreaper]

I see, after going over the 4sevens site that the R2 edition comes with the prism kit already... from what i saw in a video on youtube, the R2 looks like its a decently warm white tint already. Too bad they are out of the AA2 R2

 

[8Fishes]

If you don't plan on using both an AAx2 and 123x2 at the same time you can always opt to buy the 123x2 R2 and just a plain AAx2 body and swap around when needed.

 

[GrimCreaper]

That is a good suggestion and the price would be a bit cheaper than the other route. I am very tempted to do that now.

edit: was thinking of cheaper for the AA2 R2. so this would be very slightly more expensive but would end up with a tad more versatility for battery configurations.

With your suggestion ive decided on getting the 1x123 tac model with the 2xAA body which saved me a few more bucks all around. Thank you VERY much for mentioning that as i failed to see it myself. i forgot about the bodies being lego builds with the quarks


new edit: for anyone who might know, the 2x123 head says 3.0-9.0 volts. does that mean 2 AA batteries wouldnt power it?

 

[ti-force]

new edit: for anyone who might know, the 2x123 head says 3.0-9.0 volts. does that mean 2 AA batteries wouldnt power it?

The AA-2 heads have a voltage range of .9v-4.2v, and considering an Alkaline AA has a voltage of 1.5v without a load on it, I don't think it would work very well. Of course, I could be wrong; I've never actually tried to run my 123-2 head with 2 AA batteries.

 

[GrimCreaper]

Thanks for the heads up on that

Ill just stick with the 1x123 and the 2xAA body. I had completely forgotton that my nitecore ex10 is an R2 and i really like the tint it has.

I do have one big question. Is it safe to run the Quark on max for extended periods? I intend to use the light as a headlamp with the prism kit for night bike riding.

My EX10 gets VERY hot and i get afraid of causing problems with the battery since its temp shoots way up as well. its the only gripe i have with the light. i cant run it on max for more than 5 to 10 minutes or so without it getting unpleasant to the touch and the battery hitting around the same temp so ive never tried an extended run. Im trying to avoid a lithium battery

 

[stienke]

http://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=297_310&products_id=2287

I think this is the way to go , use eneloops and you have a nice combo!
No lithiums on the head.

 

[GrimCreaper]

i was very tempted to go with that one. Im kind of sad i didnt get a warm white, but the R2 edition with the free prism and the AAx2 body still came out cheaper overall + it nets me slightly higher lumen counts in a tint that i like almost as much as the awesome looking warm from the pre-orders.

the main reason for going with the R2, besides knocking almost 10$ more off, was that having both bodies allows me to customize it based on what i have on hand. I am still slightly worried about the heat though. i know i wont be running it on max all the time as the 70 lumen high should be enough for most of my riding when coupled with my solarforce thats being used as the front light.

i guess ill need to find a side job to get me one of the warm models before they are gone though. Man.. Starcraft 2 coming out soon, several other games i need to at least rent. flashlights i NEED! flashlights i want... So expensive! Time for a better paying job i guess :shakehead

BTW, thank you guys for the info and suggestions, i really appreciate it

 

[ti-force]

i was very tempted to go with that one. Im kind of sad i didnt get a warm white, but the R2 edition with the free prism and the AAx2 body still came out cheaper overall + it nets me slightly higher lumen counts in a tint that i like almost as much as the awesome looking warm from the pre-orders.

the main reason for going with the R2, besides knocking almost 10$ more off, was that having both bodies allows me to customize it based on what i have on hand. I am still slightly worried about the heat though. i know i wont be running it on max all the time as the 70 lumen high should be enough for most of my riding when coupled with my solarforce thats being used as the front light.

i guess ill need to find a side job to get me one of the warm models before they are gone though. Man.. Starcraft 2 coming out soon, several other games i need to at least rent. flashlights i NEED! flashlights i want... So expensive! Time for a better paying job i guess :shakehead

BTW, thank you guys for the info and suggestions, i really appreciate it

If you won't be running the light on turbo with 1- Li-ion, I don't think you will have any problems with heat. It would probably get a little hot on 1- Li-ion, running on turbo, but if you're moving, the air should help it stay a little cooler, but it would probably get hotter than you want it to. Anyway, I think you made a smart move by getting the Quark XP-E. Considering the Prism kit, and the $10 off, you came out about $30 ahead :thumbsup:.

As far as tint goes, it's still a lottery. I bought two 123-2 XP-E R2's and one of them was about the best tint I've seen (I'd guess it's in the 5000k range :twothumbs), but the other one I didn't like as much. It has just a little bit of purple to it, not much, but just enough to notice it in the spill against a white wall. I don't really notice it in actual outdoor use though, so I wouldn't worry about it.

Also, I just put my 123-2 head on my AA-2 body to see if it would work. I was using 2-Energizer Lithium primaries. I guess it just bypassed the driver and went into direct drive; the light comes on, but the driver doesn't function. No mode selection, just one mode, so it's confirmed that it doesn't work correctly.

Don't worry about missing out on the warm Quarks; you will probably have a chance to buy one. I doubt they will sell all of them immediately. I could be wrong, but I don't think so.

One more thing for you to keep in mind. Just like two 1.5v AA batteries won't work with a 3v-9v head, two Li-ion batteries (4.2v x 2 = 8.4v) won't work with any .9v-4.2v head. That's probably the most important one to keep in mind; two Li-ion batteries would likely damage the emitter or the driver in a .9v-4.2v head. Now, if you're familiar with Li-ion batteries, you can use two 14500 Li-ions in a AA-2 body with the 3v-9v head, and it should work just as good as two RCR123's in a 123-2 body.

 

[8Fishes]

With the mention Li-ion's, I also remember a quick thing about them and quarks.

Single cell don't work so 'great' on the 3v-9v head. That is to say, 1x 14500, or 1x 18650 body with the head.
I think I recall David saying that it will 'work', but the regulation is poor or something along those lines.

 

[ti-force]

With the mention Li-ion's, I also remember a quick thing about them and quarks.

Single cell don't work so 'great' on the 3v-9v head. That is to say, 1x 14500, or 1x 18650 body with the head.
I think I recall David saying that it will 'work', but the regulation is poor or something along those lines.

I can't speak for everyone else, and maybe it's possible that some of the early Quarks had the problem you speak about, but my EDC is a 123-2 (3v-9v head) and I run an AW 17670 in it. No problems here.

 

[timbo114]

3v-9v head will run fine on li-ion - it'll run a long time too - it just suffers from a lowered beam output from 60% (3.7v-4.2v) of the voltage capacity.
I have run mine on 14500 and 17670 w/o problems. It's just a wee bit dimmer

If you buy the 123x2 light, and AAx2 body, you could run 2x14500 as a long runtime and very bright alternative:devil:

 

[ti-force]

3v-9v head will run fine on li-ion - it'll run a long time too - it just suffers from a lowered beam output from 60% (3.7v-4.2v) of the voltage capacity.
I have run mine on 14500 and 17670 w/o problems. It's just a wee bit dimmer:

That's strange; I've tested my 123-2 R2 with 2xRCR123's and 1x17670 and the lumens are so close that it wouldn't be noticeable with the naked eye. Has anyone else had this problem?

 

[8Fishes]

3v-9v head will run fine on li-ion - it'll run a long time too - it just suffers from a lowered beam output from 60% (3.7v-4.2v) of the voltage capacity.

This is probability what I am thinking of then.

 

[ti-force]

Below are OTF readings for my 123-2 XP-E R2 and 123-2 XP-G R5 Turbo. As you can see, there isn't enough difference in output from 2x Li-ion's to 1x Li-ion with each light to make any noticeable difference in brightness.


Quark 123-2 Tactical XP-E R2

2x AW RCR123's: 1 sec= 236, 30 sec= 226
1x AW 17670: 1 sec= 242, 30 sec= 228



Quark 123-2 Turbo XP-G R5

2x AW RCR123's: 1 sec= 301, 30 sec= 275
1x AW 17670: 1 sec= 298, 30 sec= 278

 

[GrimCreaper]

If you won't be running the light on turbo with 1- Li-ion, I don't think you will have any problems with heat. It would probably get a little hot on 1- Li-ion, running on turbo, but if you're moving, the air should help it stay a little cooler, but it would probably get hotter than you want it to. Anyway, I think you made a smart move by getting the Quark XP-E. Considering the Prism kit, and the $10 off, you came out about $30 ahead :thumbsup:.

As far as tint goes, it's still a lottery. I bought two 123-2 XP-E R2's and one of them was about the best tint I've seen (I'd guess it's in the 5000k range :twothumbs), but the other one I didn't like as much. It has just a little bit of purple to it, not much, but just enough to notice it in the spill against a white wall. I don't really notice it in actual outdoor use though, so I wouldn't worry about it.

Also, I just put my 123-2 head on my AA-2 body to see if it would work. I was using 2-Energizer Lithium primaries. I guess it just bypassed the driver and went into direct drive; the light comes on, but the driver doesn't function. No mode selection, just one mode, so it's confirmed that it doesn't work correctly.

Don't worry about missing out on the warm Quarks; you will probably have a chance to buy one. I doubt they will sell all of them immediately. I could be wrong, but I don't think so.

One more thing for you to keep in mind. Just like two 1.5v AA batteries won't work with a 3v-9v head, two Li-ion batteries (4.2v x 2 = 8.4v) won't work with any .9v-4.2v head. That's probably the most important one to keep in mind; two Li-ion batteries would likely damage the emitter or the driver in a .9v-4.2v head. Now, if you're familiar with Li-ion batteries, you can use two 14500 Li-ions in a AA-2 body with the 3v-9v head, and it should work just as good as two RCR123's in a 123-2 body.

Thanks for the heads up i dont plan on using alot of li-ion due to the risks of the batteries and a friend of mine having a set explode in a flashlight recently. The only Li-ion rechargeables i use are a couple protected trustfire ones for my solarforce.

the quark lights are neat and im glad i got one. the fact that i could later get myself a turbo head with the R5 makes me happy even if its pretty costly to go that route for just a head. Flashlight legos!

edit: ti-force ty for the list
other edit: the 17670 is the battery thats 2xrcr123 in terms of size right?

 

[ti-force]

Thanks for the heads up i dont plan on using alot of li-ion due to the risks of the batteries and a friend of mine having a set explode in a flashlight recently. The only Li-ion rechargeables i use are a couple protected trustfire ones for my solarforce.

Yeah they can be dangerous if they are abused or neglected. I use AW batteries whenever I can:thumbsup:.

other edit: the 17670 is the battery thats 2xrcr123 in terms of size right?

Yes, that's correct, it's twice the length of 1- RCR123. Those numbers are actually the size of the battery in millimeters. 17670 = 17mm in diameter, 67mm in length and the 0 = cylindrical. The RCR123's can be confusing; it's actually a 16340 (16mm diameter, 34mm length and cylindrical), but they're also called RCR's or RCR123's. They're the same size as CR123's, but CR123's are lithium primaries, while the others are rechargeable Li-ion or IMR.

 

[jcw122]

I think it's less important to think about the brightness difference than the chemistry difference.

-Are you comfortable with the Li-Ion chemistry (if you are doing rechargeables)?
-Do you need rechargeable AAs for other applications?
-Will your future lights be 123 or AA? If one or the other, it may be expensive to switch b/c of having to get a new charger.

 

[ti-force]

I think it's less important to think about the brightness difference than the chemistry difference.

-Are you comfortable with the Li-Ion chemistry (if you are doing rechargeables)?
-Do you need rechargeable AAs for other applications?
-Will your future lights be 123 or AA? If one or the other, it may be expensive to switch b/c of having to get a new charger.

GrimCreaper stated that he probably wouldn't use Li-ions in these lights anyway, and the main reason I posted what I did about the output difference is because I didn't want anyone to think that running 1x Li-ion in a Quark 123-2 would make their light less bright or dimmer vs running 2x Li-ion's. Timbo114 and 8Fishes posts.