Not impressed with my Olight M30 (Now Happy)

CM2010 · Apr 30, 2010

Bought this light about 6 weeks ago and thought it would be alot better than it actually is,or maybe there is something wrong with it and its not putting out what it should?

I`ll put up 2 pics for comparison,the M30 first and a M20 R5 second and you can see how dull it looks on the highest setting:

Updated shot:

M30 2 X 18650`s

ti-force · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Uh, yeah I'd say something is wrong there. I don't know much about that light, but it almost looks as if it's stuck in low mode or something:thinking:.

mrcandyman · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Ya, that doesn't look right. I tried one out in a store a few days ago and it was BRIGHT. I have no comparison with an M20 but I would think the M30 would have put out much more light than your pic if it was running properly

HIDblue · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

There's definitely something wrong with your M30. I have a buddy who has one and his M30 blows my M20 out of the water. Like the previous post, looks like you're stuck in low mode. Check out the review section and do a search of M30's and you'll find directions on how to operate the UI. Hopefully, that's all it is. Otherwise, reach out to the vendor you bought it from for instructions.

carrot · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

1st, the silly questions:
Does it have fresh batteries? Did you use the "S" button to switch output levels?

2nd, what distance is that?

Reason I ask is, the M30 is not known to be a particularly good thrower (whereas the M20 is designed to be), it just has a lot of output and is great midrange.

ti-force · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

I still think something is wrong, whether it's a UI misunderstanding or low batteries. If you look at the M20 you can see the hot spot very easily, but you can also see how bright the spill is from a light that's more of a thrower. I think at the very least, the spill in the picture of the M30 should be brighter than the spill in the picture of the M20. You can also see that the spill from the M20 lights up one and a half sections of fence, and the M30 lights up two and 1/4 sections of fence, but it's very dim.

dfdapd · Apr 30, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

I just bought my M30 a month ago and I love it. Seems there is something wrong with yours. I cannot believe the throw and spill it has. Take that for what it is worth being I usually carry a Ultrastinger on duty belt.

CM2010 · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

It was on its highest setting and did have a fresh set of batteries in,will contact the dealer who i purchased it from.

tab665 · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

i own an m30 and a m20. something is very wrong there. can you post a pic of your m30's other output levels? im thinking it might be stuck in medium. check to see if you notice any pwm. if you can then its stuck on medium or low. see if you can post more pictures where the beamshots are at the same exposure level, in the m30 beamshot you can tell all the porch and street lights are considerably dimmer than in the m20 beamshot. or maybe you can do a side by side outdoor beamshot.

CM2010 · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Tried my M30 with the extension tube fitted with 2 freshly charged 18650`s and it seems to be a hell of alot brighter,will try some new cr123`s when i get some next week.

Ive added a pic to my opening post.

ti-force · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

That's more like it:thumbsup:

HIDblue · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

CM2010 said:
Tried my M30 with the extension tube fitted with 2 freshly charged 18650`s and it seems to be a hell of alot brighter,will try some new cr123`s when i get some next week.

Ive added a pic to my opening post.

Now, that's better. :thumbsup:

KarstGhost · May 1, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Will 18650's always make it brighter than 4 fresh CR123 primaries?

WadeF · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Glad you got it working properly. Look at all that bright spill!

Noctis · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

I could be very wrong here, but the M30 uses an MC-E LED right? And that thing more or less doesn't even turn on with low voltage. Were you using a single 18650 with the first try?

sjmack · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Much better. That beamshot is pretty darn impressive.

Jack Reacher · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Yep, that M30 spill beam (with 2x18650s) is beautiful, and more importantly, very usable at that range. Is it a smooth or OP reflector?

—Jack.

Ace12 · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

Are the runtimes listed on Olights website for the M30 using 3x123A or 4x123A?

MetalZone · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

What batteries were you running it with at first?

tab665 · May 2, 2010

Re: Not impressed with my Olight M30

if you were using the 3xcr123 set up then that could explain. the M30 has TERRIBLE regulation in that battery configuration. selfbuilt did a review a while back and the output basicially does a rather steep drop after its turned on until the batteries die. i recall many people stating that they were going to get some 18500 cells to obtain better regulation while not having to use the extension tube.

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