Malkoff M60 vs. Alpha G8 w/ pictures.

I have a Surefire 6P that I had the initially a Cree R2 290 lumen bulb, but it wasn't as bright as the Alpha G8 so I sold it. Here it goes.
The Alpha G8 claims it makes 390/400 lumens.
The Malkoff M60 claims 200 plus. I used cr123 rechargeables for the test and without prejudice.

The Malkoff is definitly brighter. Outdoors it went further. The hot spot is wider too. At first I was hesitant because of the $50 plus price of the M60 but after reading reviews I gave it a chance. The Alpha G8 is a great LED it is really bright, but definitely not anywhere near 400 or 300 lumens. I wish they were honest, but this is why we post and review. I hope this helps someone with a future purchase.

how are they even claiming 400 lumens out of a single die Cree? I mean seriously, I have seen some wild marketing claims but 400?

I posted a thread on this bulb a while back. I even had a discussion with the seller who refused to tell me what kind of emitter it used. He eventually admitted that "it was probably a CREE".

I don't see any reason to purchase those Apha modules on ebay when you can get the same thing on DX for half price and free shipping. I question the validity of their lumen claims, and the Cree BINs used.

But thanks for posting pics:thumbsup:

Thanks for the comparison. I almost bought the Alpha G8 from eBay last week but decided to wait and read some more. Now I am glad I did not made the purchase. I am am going for the Malkoff M60 instead.

sims2k said:

Thanks for the comparison. I almost bought the Alpha G8 from eBay last week but decided to wait and read some more. Now I am glad I did not made the purchase. I am am going for the Malkoff M60 instead.

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I think the Alpha G8 needs a reflector and then it would be a really great product. I am also getting another Cree Q5 that has been modified by a South California seller. From what I know he modifies by adding a reflector and such. He told me its good for 250 actual lumens and over 2.5 hours of run time. The Cree Q5 he sells is close to $50 bucks. I will review it against the Malkoff M60 since they are both similar.

bigchelis said:

I think the Alpha G8 needs a reflector and then it would be a really great product. I am also getting another Cree Q5 that has been modified by a South California seller. From what I know he modifies by adding a reflector and such. He told me its good for 250 actual lumens and over 2.5 hours of run time. The Cree Q5 he sells is close to $50 bucks. I will review it against the Malkoff M60 since they are both similar.

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What? The Alpha G8 has a reflector. Also what batteries would you be using with it? Anything that produces 250 lumens is not gonna last 2.5hrs at full output (at least, with two CR123s). I'm sure one day soon there will be emitters capable of it but not today.

Thanks for the review.

Hello, Malkoff has several varities fo the M60. Could you tell us which one you were using? Thank you.

Raymond3 said:

Hello, Malkoff has several varities fo the M60. Could you tell us which one you were using? Thank you.

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The pictures have been removed but I'm fairly certain the OP was comparing the "M60".
That is the model and one of Gene's original offerings before he added the additional optics and low(L) and lower(LL) models along with the warm(W) option.

That "Alpha G8" is just another generic drop-in, with your standard cree emitter -- but being sold at a premium price. It is garbage compared to the Malkoff. The seller was evasive in answering questions about it, trying to make it sound like a new/never before released emitter, even comparing themselves to Surefire by saying that Surefire doesn't release specs on their LEDS either.

Eventually he admitted it was just your run of the mill cree, but "high quality". :shakehead

Sorry about the pictures missing I didn't realize that by cleaning my photto bucket my pictures would also vanish.


What I found was that the Alpha G8 is bright and from having a P60/P61 I could have sworn it made 400 lumens.

Then I got the Malkoff M60 and man was I confused. How could a drop-in with half the power be brighter. It was at that point that I joined this forum and still try to learn as much as I can. The folks here are very smart and I find it thought and expensive to keep up. :wave:

Thank you all,
bigchelis