AAA-P question

So it came to pass that I finally got my hands on this legend the other day. I've amassed a few different lights in my short time as member here and have to say this ones rather purple. More so than the other similar "expensive" ones. Infact its comparable to a $10 Nuwai 0.5 watt that I have. I'd like to know how the AAA-P version is different from standard?

The Arc-AAA Premium is brighter and has less blue than the standard. If the Premium is too blue for you, then the standard is not going to be any better. Sorry.

Btw, I am fairly certain you didn't get a fluke. We check each of these lights several times. It could be that the 5mm Nichia is just not going to do the trick for you. We can refund it for you if you want.

Peter

For me, the price was justified just based on the quality. I know there are cheaper lights out there can have the same output, but the size and quality are unsurpassed in the single AAA cell range.

White wall beam wise, the Nichia aint very pretty, the Arc AAA-P I have is slightly blue (very slightly), with a browinish/greenish/not white or blue colored flood right outside the hotspot. It might suck in white wall comparisons, but in real life, you really do not notice it. I compare it to the L0P, and outside, the tint aint an issue. White wall, the L0P blows it away. But who uses their lights consistently on a white wall?

To me, this is THE keychain light. I am relatively new to this flashlight business but I haven't seen ANY light that compares in the single cell AAA range. Give it a try, and you'll understand. :rock:

rosso, it's the design criteria that makes the ArcAAA such a magnificent EDC light:
5 hours runtime
AAA batt
always on your keychain
etc.

I don't think flawless white tint is required to accomplish all the above, and it's only the Nichia CS that can accomplish what the light is designed to do.

hey Rosso. I may want to take it off your hands. PM me.

I got in on the first run of the Arc AAA-Ps when they were offered last year, and though my Arc is blue in hue, I've come to realize that it's one of my most truly useful lights in terms of size, reliability, durability and convenience. At first I was a little upset because the blue would hurt my eyes while reading. So I moved the Arc to my wallet, where it makes a nice little trio with a fisher space pen and an alox Victorinox. I use another light to read by now.

The Arc's saved my bacon on more than one occasion simply because it's been so convenient to use in real-world situations, where the tint of the beam didn't matter as much as the brightness and the flood.

Hi,
finally I got one of the famous ARC-AAA P lights and of course I have some questions.

Is it normal that the beam is blue in the center then there is yellowish spillbeam ? Quite awful IMO...

Well, I just got two Arc-AAA-Premium today, and both have the same blue/yellow beam. It is however rather unobstrusive to me...
But in general I have to say, I'm not impresserd with the Arc! It's not as miraculously bright as some postings here had made me believe (in fact, I got a cheaper V9-Micro by some german manufacurer which is much smaller but equally bright, even though for a much shorter runtime of course, and e.g. the SureFire E1L which uses a comparable energy source is much, much brighter).
Also somehow I don't trust the screw cap, I would have prefered one screw cap you can really tighten up so it won't open accidentally and a separate on/off switch.
Well, at least the light seems very well manufactured and sturdy indeed!

It's amazing how people have such different opinions of things...I just got my ARC-P yesterday. I spent about 10 minutes just appreciating the design, fit and finish.

This morning as I left my (quite dark) house, I tried it out...I couldn't believe this much bright light was from this tiny little thing on my keychain!!! Didn't look "Too blue" to me.

I bought this for EDC and as a back-up light to my Princeton Tec EOS when I go camping. I thought $40 was a little steep for a tiny flashlight like this before I got my hands on it...but 5 minutes with it and to me it was worth every penny.

Patrick

Pwilli5764 said:

It's amazing how people have such different opinions of things...I just got my ARC-P yesterday. I spent about 10 minutes just appreciating the design, fit and finish.

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I agree. The Nichia CS LED has a blueish tint to it. Its actually a better tint than my Photon Freedom which has the same LED.

To the others: There has yet to be introduced such a light in AAA size that has this feature set. You will not find another AAA light that runs at such a constant level of brightness for 5 hours, period.

If you don't like it, sell it. I'm sure there are many people here who won't have a problem taking it off your hands.

Word to the wise, if you don't like bluish tints, stay away from Nichia LED lights.

Peter has specifically stated what he sees as the role for this light, and I agree with him. It is the light you will have on you in an emergency, and it will last through it.

All I can say is that I've experienced a couple of power outtages, and I've been very greatful for my long lasting LED lights, the Arc being one of them.

The beam is definitely not great, with blue going to yellow, and sort of a dingy brown color where they change (one reason I'm thinking of getting a Luxeon light to be an around-the-house light, just so it will be easier on the eyes). It's not an 'angry' kind of blue, but not a warm hue, either. For the long run time with useable light, I'm happy.

It's also performing well enough with NIMH that I think I'll swap to Eneloops when they come out (no imperical data, but I've been leaving it on nearby at night just to see how long it can last and how well it compares to the alkalines, and so far it's besting it--Sanyo 900mAh--but I'm sure it will offer less warning as it dies).

Pwilli5764 said:

It's amazing how people have such different opinions of things...I just got my ARC-P yesterday. I spent about 10 minutes just appreciating the design, fit and finish.

This morning as I left my (quite dark) house, I tried it out...I couldn't believe this much bright light was from this tiny little thing on my keychain!!! Didn't look "Too blue" to me.

I bought this for EDC and as a back-up light to my Princeton Tec EOS when I go camping. I thought $40 was a little steep for a tiny flashlight like this before I got my hands on it...but 5 minutes with it and to me it was worth every penny.

Patrick

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I too am amazed by just how differently people react to the same product.

I have to admit I am an ARC fan. I have ordered three times from the newly revived ARC. I actually prefer my first (Rev. 4) lights which have a brighter, but slighlty bluer LED... but I love them all. As has been said, the ARC-P meets it's design objectives perfectly. And they are the perfect "pets for hands". My machinist friends admire the build quality. The stories of the abuse they can take are all over CPF. The run time is great (try to get 5 hours from a whiter Lux 1 AAA)! It is a product I feel I can rely on in any situation.

Worth any penny?.... ABSOLUTELY!

Peter must be tired of "defending" his product though.

Well, I'm a little disappointed too. Perhaps I should not start with small Fenix flashlights ...

It IS bright, though Fenix LOP is brighter.
It is well built thought CMG Infinity Ultra is more solid.
The beam is awful. Even my cheap $.99 keychain light from Lighound.com has better one. I would gladly switch LEDs between them.
Regulation ? What regulation ? From flashlightreviews.com runtime plot it looks like a boost circuit only:

The 'reflector thing' around the LED is a mistake IMO.
And I'd prefer it to be slightly dimmer but with more runtime - about 8 to 10 hours. THAT would be great light.

Actually, my experience was completely different from yours. I got my Arc AAA-P before the Fenix came out. I thought the Fenix would make the Arc AAA obsolete. Then I got a Fenix and found out... Its brighter, but no where near warrants the loss in runtime. Yes, the Fenix is "white" but frankly, unless you go wall hunting, there isn't that much of a difference. I actually much prefer the yellowish flood that the Arc AAA puts out rather than the pure white L0P and the blue hotspot of the Arc (it renders colors much more accurately like you're in a lighted room).

You can't really "pick and choose" each aspect of a light and say "well, thats better, but yeah." The L0P is brighter. The CMG is built better. The Arc has great runtime. But overall, the Arc puts together a PACKAGE that is so far unrivaled in the AAA keychain flashlight arena.

L0P was a viable threat until the runtime plots came up. Then it became more of a "show off" light than a true keeper. Peak's Pacific was thought to be another threat, that disappeared once the size was revealed. Overall, the Arc is still the best line in the brightness, runtime, build quality COMBINATION. After owning both the L0P and the Arc, I can honestly say that I'll take my Arc over an L0P anyday (put up a chart of the L0P runtime and you'll see why. Compared to that chart, the Arc is regulated ). Now Miller-Mod's 3-Stage L0P might be a different story... But then again, he's making a 2 stage Arc AAA.

Oh yeah, I'll gladly buy your unwanted Arc AAa-P's if you feel like selling them (at a slightly reduced price of course. )

DrizzitT said:

[...]
Oh yeah, I'll gladly buy your unwanted Arc AAa-P's if you feel like selling them (at a slightly reduced price of course. )

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Ok.

I must get used to ARC. I have it for a day only.

Unforunately there is another problem: the thread on the head of flashlight is ... flat... Please see the picture:


I'm affraid it will not last very long...

wojtek_pl, Both the regulation profile and threads are by design.

From an email I sent recently:

ACME Threads
We turn down the tops of the threads on purpose. This produces a thread similar to an, "ACME Thread". However, our thread has a flat apex with v-profile valleys. You may double check this for yourself with your machinist reference book. Also see:

http://www.diracdelta.co.uk/science/source/a/c/acme thread/source.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acme_Thread_Form

The advantage to this thread is that it is generally more resistant to fouling. Wear resistant is also increased since there is not a fine point to break off. These features are important to us because this type of flashlight can be used in dirty environments.

Partial Regulation
I posted to the CPF several years ago about the benefits of partial regulation in the Arc-AAA. I can't find the post now. Basically, to regulate, there must be unsused power available ("headroom"). The XR model of the Arc-AAA kept a substantial amount of power in reserve and produced a very flat regulation. Unfortunately, it kept a substantial amount of power in reserve.

For a given performance envelope, the trick is to optomize the utility. It is all about utility. The first contraint was the cell, then the overall size and finally the output. To minimize the size of the electronics, the performance envelope was constrained. To maximum the utility of that envelope, the headroom of the converter was divided between flat regulation and no regulation in order to produce the highest utility for a given housing volume and battery. That is it folks.

Peter

I have to agree with DrizzitT. I too own both and found the L0P to be a letdown. It has not displaced my ARC-P. The Fenix sits in a drawer while the ARC sits in my pocket.

Thanks for clearance. It's good to know that this is not a fault.

But there is less working surface on the thread and, IMHO, it can wear off faster...

Ah.. well... It is on warranty so I guess it's not my problem.

DrizzitT said:

The CMG is built better.

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Its funny this was mentioned. I have the CMG Infinity Ultras and I think the Arc Ps quality is at least as good, if not better as far as finish goes.

To each his own of course. Plus Peter will refund your money if you don't like it.

Certainly my Arc P is brighter than my Photon Freedom Micro and the tint is better.

If you want a Luxeon, you're going to need to forget about AAA batteries unless you don't care about 30 - 45 minute runtimes. To me, the 1-AA Fenix L1P is the minimum and best way to drive a Luxeon.

You have to be realistic between what you want and what is available given the current technology.

Like I said, the Arc-P does exactly what it should do. If it didn't, people wouldn't buy it.

I have a bazillion lights, and the Arc-P may be my favorite. Its size, feel, construction and flat (on a lithium), bright, multi-hour output do the trick for me. It was one of the first lights I bought when The Fever struck a couple of years ago, and one has been on my keychain ever since. I'm still collecting them, and just this week picked up a redgreenblue and an orange-LEDed Arc. No light will satisfy everyone, but this one satisfies most IMO.

peace