Cree Q5 or SSC P4 in MagLED bulbs (C/D) or MagLED lights (2xAA/3xAA)? Beamshots added

My acquisition of Olight and Fenix lights has recently compelled me to upgrade my older lights. I've got the following Mag lights I'd like to mod/upgrade. I'd like to keep my level of modding restricted to doing simple emitter swaps without having to do any extra fancy stuff with heatsinking. Here's what I have…

- 4D, 3D & 2D Mags with Mag-brand LED
- 4D Mag with a side-emitting EverLED
- 3D Mag with Terralux Diamond DB-3W
- 2D Mag with a dome/Lambertian EverLED
- 3xAA & 2xAA MagLED

So I've got a couple questions…:thinking:

1) How do SSC U-bin P4's compare to Cree Q5's? Both emitters are pretty cheap, but I'd like to know which one is brighter.

2) For the 4D/3D/2D Mags with Mag-brand LED's - should I just swap out the original Luxeons for SSC P4's or can I use Cree Q5's?
I appreciate that the P4's are similar in shape/design to the original Luxeons, and my understanding is that the Cree's will have an ugly beam and poor focusability/throw with the original reflector. Also, will a Q5 even be able to run comfortably (heat-wise) if transplanted on a Mag-brand LED driver?

3) Does anyone know if it's possible to upgrade just the emitters on the EverLED and Terralux Diamond DB-3W to either SSC P4's or Cree Q5's?
Update: I've been able to find posts where people have done SSC P4 swaps into both these units.

4) For the 3xAA/2xAA MagLED lights - I came across a couple of mods replacing the original emitter with a Cree (unknown bin). Again, can these lights take Q5's or the SSC P4's? What's suggested?

Thanks in advance for any help. I apologize beforehand if any of this information is easily found in other posts - I've done numerous permutations of search terms and have been reading threads for the past day and a half but still have been unable to find what I'm looking for.

Re: Cree Q5 or SSC P4 in MagLED bulbs (C/D) or MagLED lights (2xAA/3xAA)?

I received my bare Cree Q5 emitters and installed them into my MiniMag LED's. I followed the steps described in this useful post put up over 2 years ago. However, I did not use spacers for my mod.

Anyway, here are some beamshots. In all but the last 2 photos, the left light is an Olight T25 Tactical set on High running moderately used Eneloops and the right lights are the LED Mini Mag (all running fresh alkalines). Distance to the wall was 6 ft. Pictures were taken with an aging 4 MP Olympus C750UZ. All pictures were taken with 5 minutes of turning on the Mini Mags.

First off, the T25 (high) vs stock 3xAA LED Mini Mag @ 1/500 and 1/30 sec shutter speeds.


Next, the T25 (high) vs Cree Q5 3xAA LED Mini Mag @ 1/500 and 1/30 sec shutter speeds.


Now the T25 (high) vs stock 2xAA LED Mini Mag @ 1/500 and 1/30 sec shutter speeds.


Next, the T25 (high) vs Cree Q5 2xAA LED Mini Mag @ 1/500 and 1/30 sec shutter speeds.


Finally, the Cree Q5 2xAA Mini Mag (left) vs Cree Q5 3xAA Mini Mag (right) @ 1/500 and 1/30 sec shutter speeds.

I received my bare SSC P4 (U-Bin) emitters, and I've gone ahead and swapped out the stock emitters from the Mag 4-cell LED module, Mag 3-cell LED module, Mag 2-cell module, Terralux DB-3W module, EverLED dome (in a 4D), and an EverLED side-emitter (in a 2D).

Here are some before and after pictures. In all the pictures, the leftmost light is a Lowe's Cree Task Force (TF), the middle light is a Olight T25 Tactical on high, and the rightmost light is a Mag light with LED module. Lights were placed 6 feet from the wall.

First off, here's the TF vs Olight vs Mag 4-cell LED @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


These next pictures are the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Next, here's the TF vs Olight vs Mag 3-cell LED @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


Now the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Next, here's the TF vs Olight vs Mag 2-cell LED @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


Now the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Next, here's the TF vs Olight vs Terralux DB-3W 3-cell LED @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


Now the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Next, here's the TF vs Olight vs EverLED dome in a 4-D Mag @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


Now the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Finally, here's the TF vs Olight vs EverLED side-emitter in a 2-D Mag @ 1/500 sec shutter speed before (left) and after (right) the SSC P4 emitter swap.


And the same lights but taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.

I finally have beamshots that answer the question of my thread - is a Cree Q5 or SSC P4 better when used to mod a MiniMag LED or a 3D Mag LED module. Stock smooth reflectors were used for all beamshots. Lights were placed 6 feet from the wall.

In this first picture I'm using a 2xAA MiniMag LED with as tightly focused a beam as possible. The left picture is with the SSC P4 emitter, and the right picture is with the Cree Q5 emitter. Pictures taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


Here are the same pictures but taken @ 1/5 sec shutter speed. Again SSC P4 on the left, Cree Q5 on the right.


From these pictures, I'd say the better emitter to mod a LED MiniMag is the Cree Q5, with a brighter hotspot and more spill.

Next, I've got a 3D Mag with a Mag-brand 3D LED module. In this first set of of pictures I unfocused the light as much as possible to maximize spill. The left picture is with the SSC P4 emitter, and the right picture is with the Cree Q5 emitter. Pictures taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed. Please note that the hotspot inside the donut is actually glare I was not able to eliminate by repositioning the camera.


Here are the same pictures but taken @ 1/5 sec shutter speed. Again SSC P4 on the left, Cree Q5 on the right. The artifactual glare inside the donut is even more pronounced in this picture.


The remaining pictures are also of the modified 3D Mag with Mag-brand 3D LED module, but this time focused as tightly as possible. Again SSC P4 on the left, Cree Q5 on the right. Pictures taken @ 1/30 sec shutter speed.


The same pictures but at 1/5 sec shutter speed.


Personally, I think I prefer modding the 3D Mag LED module with a SSC P4. In focused mode, the P4 has a larger hotspot than the Q5 which is as bright if not brighter. In unfocused mode, the P4 has a darker donut and brightness drops off quickly as you move away from the center. The Q5, on the other hand, has less dark of a donut and the sidespill is more uniform in brightness. Also, although it can be difficult to appreciate in these pictures, the Cree has a pretty ugly beam with plenty of artifacts that make focusing the light seem weird.