REALLY like my Jet I Pro V3, BUT...

...it easily has the absolutely UGLIEST beam of any XR-E based light I've ever had! I expected Cree rings before I got it, but WOW! The first one I received had to go back to Going Gear because the light was stuck in "programming mode" and wouldn't come out no matter what I did. When I sent it back for replacement I was actually sorta relieved, because it had a really bad beam also (as far as Cree rings were concernd). I was sorta hoping that the really pronounced Cree rings were somewhat of a "fluke", and that the replacement would be a little more "palletable". Not to be; the replacement is just as bad, and then some.

I usually buy lights for function, but I hafta admit that I bought the Jet I Pro purely based on aesthetics; I think it's a VERY sharp, unique looking light. Based on that, I AM going to keep it, but that beam...UGH :sick2:

I wonder why JETBeam doesn't go to using XP-E emitters for their lights that are "throw oriented". The amount of throw lost versus an XR-E based light would be minimal since XP-E's throw very well also, and the beam quality would improve by LEAPS AND BOUNDS! With the first Jet I Pro, like I said, I thought the HIDEOUS beam was a fluke. But since I've had two of them and one's just as bad as the other, I guess it's typical for this particular JETBeam model. Like I said, I fully expected Cree rings...but DAMN!

Anybody else feel the same way?

PJD

Doesn't the Jet I Pro V3 use an R2 emitter? The only R2 light I have is my Nitecore D10 and thats OK Cree ring wise, at least to my eyes anyway. Maybe it's the reflector they used? I suppose it wasn't meant so much for close-up use as it was for throwing, so the beam profile doesn't matter as much? I dunno :shrug:

I agree the rings with the smo reflector are bad on a whitewall....the spectacular long throw for this little puppy outdoors makes up for that issue...The IBS takes a little practice, then it's cake....I disagree on the looks tho, I liked it at first, now it looks more like nuts and bolts put together...

back to the rings, they are way worse than the dealers mention...you can always use a diffuser or try out the op reflector, but you kill the throw that way

The bad thing is that my Jet I Pro has an OP reflector, and while most lights with an OP reflector will do a good job of smoothing out Cree rings, this one doesn't; the rings are EVERY bit as pronounced as any XR-E/smooth reflector light I've ever seen or used. Granted, the throw is awesome for a light of this size, but even in "real world" use and at a distance, the "target" look is VERY apparent. Oh well, like I said, I'm definitely gonna keep it, but I'm gonna find a way to diffuse the beam.

PJD

I love how all the Jet Beams look its too bad we cant buy bored Jet Beam bodies for host's...

im particular picky about smooth beams and rings, and warm/neutral tints. Ive been wanting a jet 1 pro v3 for awhile now, but know i would not be satisfied with those rings. hell, i got rid of my RRT-0 R2 just because there was 1 giant ring, and it irritated me, even during outdoor use.

but my jet III M Q3 has a near perfect beam with OP reflector. you really have to look hard on a white wall to notice.

I do like the looks of jetbeams, Jet III M, and RRT-0 are just beautifully designed.:thumbsup:

Jetbeam could so easily smooth out the rings in their lights, with more trial and error in their reflector designs, and emitter placement. I just dont think they really care. which is why ive been reluctant of buying more jetbeams.

I put a diffuser lens from flashlightlens in mine. Turned it into more of a flood light. But I don't care that much about throw so it works for me.

Good idea, I'll put an XP-E into mine and let you know how it goes.

I didn't want to lose the throw in mine, so didn't do an XP-G swap, I'll try XP-E and see how it goes.

Will report back next week...

ah, and I was hoping the OP reflector helped, guess not....taking another look at how the bezel protrudes well beyond the lens, the reflection off that bezel may cause an effect on the beam that intensifies those natural cree rings and which no reflector or emitter placement could fix.. the bezel on the Jet 1 Pro is livin pretty large and shiny.

..the effect from the smooth flat bezel on my L2P is there, tho nowhere near as bad

..this one wasn't made for wall hunters I guess

PJD said:

The bad thing is that my Jet I Pro has an OP reflector, and while most lights with an OP reflector will do a good job of smoothing out Cree rings, this one doesn't; the rings are EVERY bit as pronounced as any XR-E/smooth reflector light I've ever seen or used. Granted, the throw is awesome for a light of this size, but even in "real world" use and at a distance, the "target" look is VERY apparent. Oh well, like I said, I'm definitely gonna keep it, but I'm gonna find a way to diffuse the beam.

PJD

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gunga said:

Good idea, I'll put an XP-E into mine and let you know how it goes.

I didn't want to lose the throw in mine, so didn't do an XP-G swap, I'll try XP-E and see how it goes.

Will report back next week...

Click to expand...

Please do, Gunga! I'm really interested to see if an XP-E will work OK with the existing/stock reflector. If it works out well for you, I'd be willing to pay a premium to you (if you'd be willing...) or another skilled modder to do the same swap on mine! Like I said, I love the look and feel of this light, but the beam is really a "buzz kill"!

Incidentally, I put some textured WriteRight on mine a little while ago, and it worked wonders; but I'd like to have the light perform this way WITHOUT having to resort to some sort of diffusion.

PJD

Hey PJ,

Sorry to hear you're still having issues with your Jet-I... I sent my ST Pro back to Bugout Gear but still haven't received it or a replacement back from them yet.

I understand about the rings... my RRT-0 Q3 had a similar issue. I ordered an OP reflector for it which reduced the ringy-ness quite a bit, but did not completely eliminate it. The reduction was enough to make it acceptable for me though.

However, it is an older model and has an XRE instead of an XPE and it's definitely not as bright as my ST Pro I've got in for warranty right now which uses the XPE.

If you really dislike the rings that much even with the OP reflector, in all seriousness, send it back to GG and ask for something else. It's not a crime to be dissatisfied with a produce, and it may just be the case you got another buggy one. I'm sure if you explain to GG what's going on, they'll make it right for you.

@gunga; if you can mod an RRT-0, like PJ, I would be very interested in having my RRT-0 updated with an XPE, perhaps even a Q4-5B if possible (I think it currently has a Q3-5C as it's noticeably cooler than the 5A in my Pro ST).

So please feel free to PM me if this is something you can do and what your rates are, etc. Thanks in advance.

Just to let you guys know, I took an RRT-0 with textured reflector (XR-E) and put a neutral XP-G (R4 5B) in it. Less throw, but big smooth beam with decent throw. I didn't want to do so to the V3, because I wanted to keep the throw. My friend has my RRT-O now, but I will try and get a comparable light, do the switch and see. My V3 has textured reflector and ringy beam.

Should be able to report back sometime next week.

BTW, 5C is warmer (greener/yellower) than 5A (more pinkish). 5B is in between. They are all quite close.

I need more R4s... I have a few coming, but they are slated for mods...


EDIT: Yes, putting a diffusion film on a thrower makes no sense...

Oh and yes, I'd be willing to do some mods. I only have a few XP-Es in neutral tho (Q3 5A and 5C). I do have 1 or 2 R2s in cool white and Q5 as well.

gunga said:

Just to let you guys know, I took an RRT-0 with textured reflector (XR-E) and put a neutral XP-G (R4 5B) in it. Less throw, but big smooth beam with decent throw. I didn't want to do so to the V3, because I wanted to keep the throw. My friend has my RRT-O now, but I will try and get a comparable light, do the switch and see. My V3 has textured reflector and ringy beam.

Should be able to report back sometime next week.

BTW, 5C is warmer (greener/yellower) than 5A (more pinkish). 5B is in between. They are all quite close.

I need more R4s... I have a few coming, but they are slated for mods...


EDIT: Yes, putting a diffusion film on a thrower makes no sense...

Click to expand...

Hey gunga, thanks for the quick response!

One thing I like about my RRT-0 and the reason I haven't sold it is it still has great throw despite it's slightly lower output compared to my ST Pro.

I guess I've gotten the tint bins backward; my RRT-0 is VERY white, with hardly any yellow in it at all that I can detect, so from what you're saying here, it's probably a 5A, correct?

On the other hand, my EZAAw was advertised as having a 5A tint bin but it's by far the warmest of my RRT-0, ST Pro, and new SC50w+, that means it's a 5C? Finally, from everything I've read the emitter in the SC50w+ is a 5B tint bin and it looks identical in tint to my ST Pro, so it's probably 5B as well?

In terms of pure aesthetics, I like the tint of the RRT-0 the best, and I like its throw as I use it as my primary bicycle helmet light so I can get good light on stuff that's further downrange when I'm riding. The simple question then is whether an update from an XRE to and XPE (assuming the same tint) is going to be enough to bother?

If not, I don't really think it'll be worth it, as I've already been considering making the ST my full time helmet light, and selling the RRT-0 on the Marketplace. I would consider having you put a 5A or B XPG in it (please god, not a 4D, the Quark I have with one is green and even when not white wall hunting I can see the tint and it really puts me off), if the overall loss in throw isn't too much.

Anyway, thanks again for the info and prompt reply; I'm definitely excited about the possibility of a mod/upgrade to my RRT-0. Despite my disappointment over its max output, the beam tint, the great heat sinking, and the nice control ring UI make it a great helmet light for biking. (I also love the flexibility the AA extender gives me for compatibility.) I could change to my ST for that, but I'd prefer to keep that as a multipurpose light for day to day use.

Mine is not very ringy.

Even if a little bit ringy, I like XR-E R2 better than XP-G or XP-E. :wave:

Okay, lots of information I can share here.

First, throw. The beam angles of the XR-E, XP-E, and XP-G are quite different. I don't remember the exact numbers, so don't quote me.

I think XR-E is around 75-80 degrees, XP-E is around 90, and XP-G is around 110. Again, I could be off so don't take these as super accurate. The main effect is that XP-G works well with Seoul/Luxeon reflectors for best conbination of throw/flood. When you put it in an XR-E reflector, you can get a lot more light into the flood, but less throw. The effect should be similar, but much reduced using XP-E. So throw is likely to be reduced but the transition and the flood should be much improved. The dark rings of the XR-E are often eliminated too (due to the removal the aluminum ring around the cree dome). So whether or not it's worth it, I can't say, depends on what you value most, a balanced beam, smooth beam, or max throw.

Also note that when I put an XP-G in my RRT-0, I noticed a better separation between the lower levels. I suspect this is just because of more light in the flood, making the difference in levels more noticable. Again, less throw, but MUCH more flood. I prefer this beam for general use, but it's not as impressive in outside use.

Next point. Tint. Cool white (WC, WD, WB, and the greenish/warmish WG or WH) are brightest and starkest, and often appear whitest (tho sometimes blue/purple). Neutral white (5A, 5B, 5C, 4D etc) are much more pleasant (to me) and help when used outdoors in brown/green environments. 3A is a tint between tthe 2 and can be good for those on the fence. It is found in both Cool and Neutral white charts. Warm (7A, 7C etc) is Very warm/brown. It actually looks pretty good in use, but some may find it's too incan like or just plain brown (depends on what you like).

And finally, it's really hard to compare tints in different lights. LEDs change tint depending on current. So a lower current will make leds run more warm (yellow or worse green). PWM controlled lights use a consistent current but turn the beam on and off to lower the output (thus generating the flicker so many people dislike).

Things also get complicated because many lights use a combination of PWM and current control on the lowest level (like a Quark/Ra Clicky). I think those ones still appear to be current controlled mostly though.

ANyway, this is why some lights (Quark, Fenix, Ra) get very green at lower levels, they run (mostly) current controlled. At higher levels, they are much cooler/whiter. Put the same emitter in another PWM light (Jetbeam IBS, Maratac etc) and the emitter will look cooler in comparison.

So, tint can vary a lot depending on what light you use and what level you use in the light in question.

So, keep that in mind when considering mods and upgrades.

Anyways, I will try to get the XP-E into my V3 and report back in if I like the upgrade.

B0wz3r said:

However, it is an older model and has an XRE instead of an XPE and it's definitely not as bright as my ST Pro I've got in for warranty right now which uses the XPE.

Click to expand...

The JET-III Pro ST originally had the XR-E Q5 and then for the newer BVC version it has the XR-E R2.

Anyways I have a JET-III Pro (with XR-E Q5) from before the ST and Ultra models existed (along with SMO and forward clicky) and has the reverse-clicky. First one I ordered got lost in mail then got a replacement later on of same setup. I really wish I could have been able to get the Pro ST with SMO and forward clicky instead (not the BVC version).

My JET-III Pro (SMO with XR-E Q5) has the nice tight round defined spot then a dark sort of ring then the yellow ring after. It is not too bad actually. Not really a light I go to for less then medium range unless I use low mode.


If JETBeam came out with a JET-III Pro ST with the XP-E or XP-G R5's and just for 18650 (and not with the more useless BVC at least to me) I may snap one up right away.

Flashfirstask?later said:

The JET-III Pro ST originally had the XR-E Q5 and then for the newer BVC version it has the XR-E R2.

Click to expand...

Then there is something wrong with my RRT-0 if it has the same emitter; it should be exactly the same lumens (in fact the specs are the same) as my ST but the ST is MUCH brighter on max compared to the RRT-0. The beam patterns are identical, but the ST simply trounces the RRT-0, even when I put a 14500 in it.

I personally like the BVC design because I can use either 2x123 or 1x18650 in it, and I like that added versatility.

B0wz3r said:

I personally like the BVC design because I can use either 2x123 or 1x18650 in it, and I like that added versatility.

Click to expand...

The reason why I do not like the BVC is because the BVC only has flat regulation with 2xCR123 but has no real real flat regulation with 1x18650 as it has much more gradual drop.

Flashfirstask?later said:

The reason why I do not like the BVC is because the BVC only has flat regulation with 2xCR123 but has no real real flat regulation with 1x18650 as it has much more gradual drop.

Click to expand...

Can't speak about using 123's in it because I never have and would only do so in an emergency; I always run an AW 18650-26 in mine. I get a solid 2 hrs continuous burn on max before it starts to dim.