Surefire Kroma 1st Impressions

I wanted to post a few of my thoughts on the Kroma.

I just received the non Mil-Spec version from Seery:goodjob: this morning and I have found the following:

1. The optic is greatly improved in my opinion over the KL1 optic as it causes the beam to have a hotspot and a useful corona. I like the KL1 but my initial uses of the Kroma cause me to prefer it to the KL1.
2. The output on high is similar to the output of my McLux III PD. The beam is not as pretty (duh) but it is by no means ugly and it is certainly very useful.
3. The output on low is rated at 15 lumens and there is no way that mine is putting out near that amount. I am not sure that this is a problem for me though. The output on low is similar also to the output on my McLux III PD and I find this to be an extremely useful setting. As the output is far less than what is rated, I would be expecting a far greater runtime than what is rated.
4. The red and the blue LED's output is smooth and very different than the output of the Mil-Spec Kroma that I have seen. The 2 levels are about perfect with the low being really low.
5. The selector ring has detents that allow the user to know when a change to the setting has been made without the light being on. This is a helpful and welcome feature in my opinion and one that I wish the U2 had (if it could be done effectively on the U2).
6. The light runs on 17670 batteries (it will fit if you remove the outer jacket and replace it with packing tape). There appears to be no decrease in output but I have not had it long enough to verify this.

Overall, I am very pleased with this light. Again, I would like to give a special thanks to Seery for helping me obtain one!

-Goatee

:)> said:

The optic is greatly improved in my opinion over the KL1 optic as it causes the beam to have a hotspot and a useful corona. I like the KL1 but my initial uses of the Kroma cause me to prefer it to the KL1.

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Would you describe the effective throw (outside) of the Kroma to be as worse,effective or better than the KL1?

Let me explain. Regardless of lux numbers, I find the KL1 to be just as effective a thrower as the Gladius, yet the Gladius has twice the intensity per a meter. However my U2 is right there with them Why? I find that contrast is the major reason due to the normalizing abilities of our eyes. The KL1 puts out little light yet my eyes adjust to the smaller hotspot, no spill to deal with, in the distance and 'balance' the sitution The Gladius has enough spill to affect my vision and the effective view of the target is about the same. Now my U2 puts out so much light that the target is lit up just as well as is the surrounding area, much like a 500w shop light can makeup for no focus due to greater total light output.

I haven't had a chance to compare the KL1 to the Kroma yet but I will in the near future. I don't want to compare them until I see them side by side.

I have compared the Kroma to my U2 and the U2 does mash it in overall output and also throws harder.

I will be able to compare these lights tomorrow night. I understand and agree with your assessment of effective throw. I owned all three lights until I recently traded away my Gladius.

-Goatee

Can you compare the Kroma to an L5 too? I find the L5 an effective mix of throw and flood. It can't throw as well as my Gladius but illuminates mid-distance areas very well. I can tell the L5 puts out considerably more light/lumens and the beam pattern is nearly perfect for most situations I face. However I am so, so tempted by the utility of a Kroma. It may be the light that forces me to sell my Gladius or L5.

Tonight is the night. I am back home and will bring it out against the L5 and the KL1 to name a few. It's not dark yet...

But it will be soon

-Goatee

I took the following lights out last night:

1. Surefire U2 Powered by 1 x 17670
2. Surefire L5 Powered by 2 x RCR123
3. Surefire A2 Powered by 2 x Surefire CR123
4. Surefire E1E w/KL1 Head Powered by 1 x RCR123
5. McLux III PD w/TYOJ Powered by 1 x RCR123

I compared the Kroma to these lights outside and here is what I observed when I compared the Kroma to the:

1. Surefire U2: As expected, the U2 has a ton more output and equal if not better throw on the high level. The important thing to note here is that the Kroma cast it's beam as far as the U2 on high and when compared to the U2 on lower levels, the Kroma would throw further.
2. Surefire L5: Same as the U2 w/the exception of the levels.
3. Surefire A2: The A2 seemed to throw further than the Kroma by a small margin and of course, the color rendition of the A2's incandescant beam was the star of the night. I was trying to determine if the extra perceived throw of the A2 was due to the better color rendition; it seemed that I could see the same things with the Kroma and the A2 but the A2 seemed to show them better. This was done outside, and I am not sure that the results would be the same inside where I have found the LED's tint to impress more.
4. Surefire E1E w/KL1 Head: I spent the most time comparing these lights to see if I could identify any difference in the effective throw of these lights. I could not determine any real difference in the throw between the Kroma and the KL1. Both lights cast their beam equally as far and the Kroma's lensed beam illuminated the same size area at the same intensity as the KL1 but it lit up even more of the surrounding area.
5. McLux III PD w/TYOJ: Very similar in output and throw to the Kroma. I would give a very slight edge in throw to the Kroma but it is slight. The McLux had a broader flood beam than the Kroma as the Kroma cast more of it's light forward.

Some interesting observations on the Kroma are that the optic seems to focus the beam to a pinpoint spot at about 3" to 4" past the front of the lens and then it begins to diverge from there. This seemed to me to be the reason that the optic can generate such a useful "spill" beam. I placed the "spill" in parenthesis as it is not spill in the normal usage but rather the way that the optic is focused.

The beam on the Kroma is without a doubt in my mind the best I have seen from any optics based LED's and outside, its beam was wonderful. In my opinion, the optic in the Kroma is what people will be talking about as they purchase this light. Inside, on a white wall at close distances, the beam does not give any indication of it's potential when used for real. Up close, the beam projects a square but in actual use at normal distances, the beam is round. There is a useless ring at the outermost portion of the beam that does not serve any purpose.

As a direct competitor to the A2, I would have to say that the Kroma is a step up as it has more color options and variable output options for each color. The output of these 2 lights seemed very similar to me and of course, in the main beam people will have to make their choices between runtime, bulb life, the abililty to use rechargeable batteries and color rendition. My pick would be the Kroma but again, the A2 is not very far behind to me. The Kroma just has too many different options.

-Goatee

Great initial review, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.

I couldn't agree more. The low and high beams on the Kroma compliment each
other in ways that have to be experienced. And yes, beyond a close interior
wall, my Kromas beam is beautifully round and sweet to the eyes!

[img said:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/images/smilies/smile.gif[/img]>]The beam on the Kroma is without a doubt in my mind the best I have seen from any optics based LED's and outside, its beam was wonderful. In my opinion, the optic in the Kroma is what people will be talking about as they purchase this light. Inside, on a white wall at close distances, the beam does not give any indication of it's potential when used for real...

As a direct competitor to the A2, I would have to say that the Kroma is a step up...
-Goatee

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:)> said:

The beam on the Kroma is without a doubt in my mind the best I have seen from any optics based LED's and outside, its beam was wonderful. In my opinion, the optic in the Kroma is what people will be talking about as they purchase this light. Inside, on a white wall at close distances, the beam does not give any indication of it's potential when used for real. Up close, the beam projects a square but in actual use at normal distances, the beam is round. There is a useless ring at the outermost portion of the beam that does not serve any purpose.

-Goatee

Click to expand...

I agree! When you see the beam, it's hard to believe that it came out of a TIR Optic. It's also round and it has a nice spill.