AA headlamp?

Is there a 2AA or 3AA or even 4AA headlamp with Luxeon LED?

I have the StreamLight 3AAA based headlamp, and it's light but a little dim and uses non-standard (for me) batteries.

If I were a person buying this headlamp, would I want the side-emitter? On the pkg, it states "side emitting". Would I later want to mod this item with a better LED ??

Over in the Headlamps forum, there's a lot of agreement that the PrincetonTech EOS and Petzl Myo XP are both really good headlamps. I'm pretty sure both run from 3 AAs. I know the XP is regulated, and am pretty sure the EOS is as well.

I have several friends using the Myo XP, and they're all really happy with it. I don't know anyone using the EOS personally, but it looks like a good unit as well. Hard to go wrong with either of them.

There are a bunch of threads about these both in Headlamps, as well as potential mods to them.

k1

abvidledUK said:

http://search.ebay.co.uk/aa-luxeon-headlamp_W0QQfromZR40

Click to expand...

Does anyone know if this headlamp is any good? Featured on Dae's website as well.

http://www.qualitychinagoods.com/3w-3-led-headlamp-p-313.html

And side-emitting means the LED emits light out to the side, rather than completely forward; so light gets collected by the reflector and reflected forward; what I prefer personally.

I've been using a Pelican 2630 for over a year, for cooking outside in the dark, walking the dog, etc. It comes with a side-emitter, I didn't like the beam, so I put a regular LuxI lambertian star in it, but it's really not necessary. It has good balance with batteries in the back, 3 stages (Hi, med, low). Seems to be regulated, with NiMH cells (3AA) it stays bright for a good time then drops off real fast. You can run it on low after this for another hour or two. And of course, Pelican will fix it forever if you don't modify it.
Here's a picture: http://www.tomokadesigns.com/2630.jpg

Rob

Princeton Tec makes a few good AA headlamps. The Eos is 3x AAA though. Try the Yukon series.

Pelican 2630 seems real nice, especially with its multiple straps (vertical and horizontal) as well as multiple power modes, with lowest lasting 24 hours, according to the web site.

Ebay doesn't have any, and I cannot find a match on brightguy.com, they have Xenons, but no 2630. Where can I get it?

etc said:

Is there a 2AA or 3AA or even 4AA headlamp with Luxeon LED?

I have the StreamLight 3AAA based headlamp, and it's light but a little dim and uses non-standard (for me) batteries.

Click to expand...

Two popular, and generally well-regarded, mass-produced models that fit your bill, are:

Petzl Myo XP (3xAA)

and

Princeton Tec Apex (4xAA)

As others have suggested, CPF has a "Headlamp" forum, which might also be worth a look.

k1_ said:

Over in the Headlamps forum, there's a lot of agreement that the PrincetonTech EOS and Petzl Myo XP are both really good headlamps. I'm pretty sure both run from 3 AAs. I know the XP is regulated, and am pretty sure the EOS is as well.

I have several friends using the Myo XP, and they're all really happy with it. I don't know anyone using the EOS personally, but it looks like a good unit as well. Hard to go wrong with either of them.

There are a bunch of threads about these both in Headlamps, as well as potential mods to them.

k1

Click to expand...

not famiar with myo or eos, but as a general rule. lights that use a 3x AA or AAA config are direct drive lights or with a resister in between LED.

3x alk or nmh cells are ideal to DD most leds depending upon VF. whereas two cell alk or nmh LED lights require a boost circuit to raise voltage high enough to light LED.

current the best bang for the $$ is river rock headlamp for $3.74 if you can find them at target. RR uses 2x AAA alk and is regulated.

"PRINCETON TEC YUKON HL HYBRID L.E.D HEADLAMP" is described as:

Xenon incandescent bulb casts a bright light suitable for following a trail on a dark night

But the description on brightguy.com says it is a 1W LED surrounded by 3 5mm led for low-power, not xenon bulb, so which one is it?

Secondly, Petzl Myo XP is a 3W LED, which maybe nice, but I would rather use 1W LED for longer run time.

etc said:

Petzl Myo XP is a 3W LED, which maybe nice, but I would rather use 1W LED for longer run time.

Click to expand...

Runtime comparison between Luxeon 1 and Lux 3 is more a combination of battery capacity, drive current, and drive losses, and less a matter of whether the LED is a 1W or 3W unit.

There have been some great discussions about R**H Lux 1s vs T**J Lux 3s in this forum. Upshot: not a lot of performance difference between the two. If you can't see the bin code for some reason, there's no way to tell the difference between them.

Headlamps are great fun. Enjoy your search.

k1

My first headlamp was a Streamlight Septor, with 7 5mm leds. A fair amount of light but little throw. Since I wanted to use a headlamp for mountain biking [riding home after being out too long, not full blown night riding] and night time XC Skiing, I needed somthing w more throw. A look on Flashlight Reviews [thanks again Quickbeam] led me to the Princeton Tec Yukon HL, which uses 3 AAs. I has a one watt Luxeon, and three 5mm for power save mode. The PT Yukon is the one w a Xenon instead of a Luxeon, and I have no experience with that.
More recently, I got a Favorlight 3W which runs on 2 CR123s, because it also has very good throw for a headlamp. I have now used both for skiing, riding, backpacking, camping and caving, and my favorite is the Yukon HL. I've used it with alkalines and w lithium AAs.
I feel that the Yukon HL is better built and more rugged, tho luckily I haven't had any issues w either of them. The Yukon HL running the Lux and the Favorlight on High [it has three levels] are similar. One advantage the Favorlight has is regulation, although I do not like the way it will just cut out completly when the batteries can no longer deliver the required current for a selected light level [no fun when going downhill or caving], although you can click the switch a few times to get to a lower light level.
The only nit-picks w the PT Yukon HL are: it is not well regulated and the switch is hard to operate w gloves on.

So, thoughts on Pelican 2630 vs. Princeton Tec Yukon HL LED?

Both use 1w Luxeon and lower power modes, and 3AA.

opsss forgot Stenlight is a bonified AA headlamp. 6x AA pack fits or 2x 18650 li-ion pack or 9V.

a pretty slick headlamp discovered at shotshow is 2x CR123 Streamlight ARGO HP. still doing field testing and it looks promising. two stage clicky apears to be identical to RR headlamp.

Would like to second the PT Apex suggestion. Uses 4 AA and has besides the Luxeon 4x5mm LED for flood. Somewhat pricey - but for me worth every cent.

I have a Pelican 2630, and it has served me well. I like the fact that it uses AA batteries which, sitting on the back of the head, balances the light. It is regulated and works well with NiMh and Lithium cells. I have seen the exact same light sold on Ebay under another brand name for very cheap, but even the Pelican branded version is a decent value.

The Petzl Myo XP, though it has some great design features, is not regulated. Using NiMh or lithium AA cells, I don't think you would notice it though.
The Princeton Tec Apex is probably the "best" headlight in this class, though. I do wish it had a retractable diffuser like the Petzl Myo XP, but the 5mm LEDs probably serve well for task lighting.

I feel like the PT Apex has made the Yukon HL obsolete. IMHO, the PT Apex, EOS, and Quad are the three overall best headlamps on the market today. Only the Apex takes AA's, though.

I also have a Pelican 2630... it's a decent light (it lives on my caving helmet) with great regulation and runtime, but I don't find it near as comfortable to wear as the PT headlamps.

Oh yeah, flashlightreviews.com has a whole section on headlamps.

Question about this ebay auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-PRINCETON-T...ryZ16037QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

In the header, it says
PRINCETON TEC YUKON HL HYBRID L.E.D HEADLAMP
which has 1W LED and 3 5mm leds

but in the body of the auction, it says that it has a Xenon bulb.

So which one is it?

etc said:

Question about this ebay auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-PRINCETON-T...ryZ16037QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

In the header, it says
PRINCETON TEC YUKON HL HYBRID L.E.D HEADLAMP
which has 1W LED and 3 5mm leds

but in the body of the auction, it says that it has a Xenon bulb.

So which one is it?

Click to expand...

Well, the seller has either the wrong product name or the wrong description, I can't tell which (what with the generic picture and all). An e-mail to the seller might help sort things out.