Tiablo, Lumapower or Olight?

[incywincyspider]

Hi all,

I've been reading quite abit on LED lights with regards to throw and lumen output. From what I gather, these are a good compromise between max lumens, power source, price, throw, size and functions.

The specific models I'm looking at is the Tiablo MA6, the Lumapower MRV, and the Olight T20.

Any recommendations as to which I should choose? Currently, my personal choice would be MA6 for throw, Olight for different modes, MRV for throw as well... just couldn't decide what I want. Haha! Help!

 

[AlexGT]

Don't forget the Derelight DBS for throw and different output settings

AlexGT

 

[tsask]

Would you consider the Fenix TK10?

 

[jirik_cz]

If you want a thrower go for Tiablo or Lumapower, Olight is nice, but it is not a thrower.

 

[incywincyspider]

TK10 only has 2 power settings right? And the Dereelight DBS, how much does that cost, roughly? Tiablo is cheaper than the Lumapower right?

 

[adamlau]

And the Dereelight DBS, how much does that cost, roughly?

Between $110.00 and $145.00, shipped.

 

[litework]

...Any recommendations as to which I should choose? Currently, my personal choice would be MA6 for throw, Olight for different modes, MRV for throw as well... just couldn't decide what I want. Haha! Help!

In addition to throw, the Tiablo MA6 has different modes. It has three brightness levels, an SOS and strobe.

 

[adamlau]

I would opt for a RaidFire Spear myself. It just looks tougher than the rest :devil: and is no slouch in the throw department either...

 

[tobbi KLEIN]

Why not a Regalight WT1?

91USD + shipping @lighthound.com

 

[LED_Thrift]

Welcome to CPF incywincyspider.
Which light to get always depends greatly on what you are going to use the light for. Many people first think of throw as the most important characteristic of a light, but often will be better served by a more general purpose beam. The Tiablo, and MRV lights are specialised throwers - which are great if you need to light something up really far away or for signalling - but more often than not lights are not used for those purposes that much.

How will you be using the light?

 

[incywincyspider]

Hi guys! Thanks for the inputs! Both Raidfire and Regalight look good... I think... Dereelight's slightly too ex for me. =P But I have to agree, Raidfire looks better than the rest. But at USD$129, it's also too high for me.

To LED_Thrift, correct me if I'm wrong but, if a light is a good thrower, like, it's bright at long range, wouldn't the same light be even brighter at short range? That's why, even if it's a thrower, the Tiablo MA6 has different power settings for short range work. That's why I'm kinda leaning towards that. Haha! To answer your question, I honestly do not know what I'll be using the light for. Showing off? Hahaha! But I picture myself taking a night hike in the reservoirs, and I wanna be able to shine to the treetops or shine across the waters to see something I heard... I dunno. Haha! Hmm... *shrugs*

Ok, so maybe the Olight is out... huh? =)

 

[LEDdicted]

incywincyspider, it sounds like your reason for getting this type of light is just like mine :laughing:. I just received my MA6 from batteryjunction yesterday and I am very pleased with it. Extremely well built, choice of 2 reflectors and 2 switches, choice of batteries to run it.
The one thing about throwers you may not understand is that they throw because the reflector pushes out a very narrow beam. This makes it difficult to light up a large area up close. That being said, with the OP reflector in the MA6 I find there is plenty of spill light for that, but the hotspot is quite blindingly bright! On medium and low settings, I find the light quite useful.

 

[LED_Thrift]

Like LEDdicted said, the reason lights throw so well is that their beams are narrow. When using it at close range what you get is a bright reflection off of one object, which makes it hard to see other objects to the side, compounded by the fact that the other objects aren't getting much light because of the narrow beam. This is helped when the thrower has lower power levels to use however. Think of a room lit only by recessed spotlights that are too spread out, you get a sence of how there are dark areas among the light areas. Depending on what you are interested in seeing this can be a good or bad thing. The same room with flood lights will be lit more evenly and generally easier on the eyes.

What I would recommend is that if this is your first good light, and especially if this will be your only good light, get one with a more general purpose beam. It will be more useful in many more situations. You can add a thrower if you have a need for it. If you are only going to use it for long-range spotting and showing off, then a thrower would be the choice.

As far as being even brighter at short range, as any light would be, it is the total output of light that is important. The old FlashlightReviews site had great Output and Throw ratings of many lights, so it was easy to compare lights. Unfortunately, the newer lights are not reviewed. Total output is what fills a space with light.

 

[incywincyspider]

Haha! Wow! LED_Thrift, your spotlights in a room totally enlightened me! I see how it works now, yes, yes... hmm... *intrigued* And some ways light manufacturers try to have more spill beam is by using an OP reflector? Or a shallower one? So to LEDdicted, or to anyone who's owned a Tiablo MA6, how does the OP throw compared to the SMO? I was thinking since OP diffuses the light abit and the MA6 has low settings, if the throw isn't very affected by the OP, that could be a good all-rounder.

Hmm... I have ONE good light... good as defined before I started reading about other superlights. It's the Underwater Kinetics Mini Q40, an incandescent, 50 lumen divelight. Good throw, penetrates well, but gets really hot, and only has 5h+ of burn time... which I can't make out if it's the filament burn time or the battery burn time... *shrugs*

 

[Stereodude]

What are you going to do with the light? A thrower isn't much use at close range.

 

[LEDdicted]

The SMO definitely out-throws the OP but the OP is still quite impressive. I haven't tried it outdoors yet but I will up at the cottage this weekend.
Take a look at the numbers here for an indication of the differences.
The fenix TK10 has a floodier beam but still throws well, you will be able to find ample info on that light in the reviews section. There are also come good beamshots of the MA6 in the reviews section too.

 

[incywincyspider]

Shine around in the wild... in the dead of the night, I guess... Might use the torch for macrophotography at night in future... so I guess a big spill isn't really required.

Actually, from the replies I got here, I'm really quite biased towards the Tiablo MA6. Hahaha!

 

[Stereodude]

Shine around in the wild... in the dead of the night, I guess... Might use the torch for macrophotography at night in future... so I guess a big spill isn't really required.

Actually, from the replies I got here, I'm really quite biased towards the Tiablo MA6. Hahaha!

If you're not planning to use it outside shining it at distant objects, or you work in a warehouse where you need to pinpoint of light on something a few hundred feet away I'd contend you're looking at the wrong types of lights. I have a Tiablo A8, and a Regalight WT1 v2, and they have pretty limited use indoors, even with the OP reflector. A P60 style light light like the Deree CL1H is about as "throwy" as I'd suggest for most indoor use, and even it might be too focused.

 

[AlexGT]

How about a custom aspheric mag? You get the longest Throw and half decent flood in the same package, I have one that runs with a Flupic and have custom 1C li-ion body and a 3 nimh-alk. extension. It absolutely rocks!, but the price is a bit high and the trustworthy custom makers scarce.

AlexGT

 

[Gunner12]

Maybe the T20 is still a contender.

When you are out in the wilderness, you don't need too much light to see far. A T20 can have 100 meter range(maybe even more) if you have well adapted night vision. It is also smaller then the MA6 and other lights.

Usually smaller reflector = floodier beam. I think the diameter determines the angle of the hotspot and the depth determines the amount of light in the hotspot. I'm not an optical engineer or anyone with good info on optical stuff, that's just speculation form what I've seen.

:welcome: