ARC AA

Will it be brighter than the AAA? What's the difference between the two?

It's supposed to be the same as the AAA in terms of brightness, the main difference is the run time, which will be around 10 hours and a new tailcap which will be enable the light to be stood on it's tail

Same circuit and same LED, though the "2" tint instead of the PE and recent CPF "1" tints. That doesn't mean that it will be the same brightness as the AAA. I think AA batteries experience less voltage drop under load than AAA; maybe not significant since the circuit doesn't particularly tax the battery. AA can be had in lithium. I have experienced significantly improved performance using lithium in my Infinity Ultra. Noticeably & measureably brighter, and much longer running.

I'm looking forward to comparing my Arc AA to my Ultra. Recent beamshot and light meter run tests between the Arc AAA and Infinity Sonic came out heavily in favor of the Arc. Both started out about as bright. The Sonic faded badly way before the Arc did. The Arc's total lumen x hour output was much greater than the Sonic's. A much more efficient light. I've enjoyed my Ultra, so if the Arc AA beats it by a similar margin then it will move to the top of my ENC rotation.

I'm likely to run the AA on lithium and use it for long carry & medium use tasks. I'll stick with NiMH AA in my Infinities for constant-on nightlight use though. No sense in throwing money away.

I think that the major difference with the ARC AA will be size. Judging by the pictures, it will be significantly smaller than the infinity. With these lights, a little size reduction will go a long way towards the EDCarribility.

[ QUOTE ]
MY said:
I think that the major difference with the ARC AA will be size. Judging by the pictures, it will be significantly smaller than the infinity. With these lights, a little size reduction will go a long way towards the EDCarribility.

[/ QUOTE ]

Agreed. The Sonic-G is just a tad bit chubby for neck carry. It is a bulge even in a watch pocket. The AA looks about right for those two EDC methods. Can't wait and it shouldn't be long now!

The bigger "bezel" of the AA can improve the output performance over the AAA ?
I hope so !

I received my Arc AA today. A quick trip to the store room at work allowed me to compare it to my Arc AAA standard in the dark. (Fortunately no one came in so I didn't have to explain what I was doing.) The hotspot in the center of the beam is about the same on both lights. But the area outside the hotspot appears slightly brighter on the AA's beam. I don't know if this is due to the bezel size or is just the normal variation between LEDs. Anyway, not a major difference.

I got my AA second this afternoon. My first impression was that it was HUGE! It is quite a bit larger than the AAA, but a tad bit smaller than the Ultra. The AA isn't that big, it just seemed big because I was used to the AAA. The beam was less blue than the Ultra, but the brightness was about the same. The finish was perfect, no defects as far as I could see. I think the Arc AA is a winner. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

Anyone care to pass along meter readings for their newly arrived AA with NiMH, alkaline, and lithium cells? How about in comparison to an Ultra?

[ QUOTE ]
chumley said:
I got my AA second this afternoon. My first impression was that it was HUGE! It is quite a bit larger than the AAA, but a tad bit smaller than the Ultra. The AA isn't that big, it just seemed big because I was used to the AAA. The beam was less blue than the Ultra, but the brightness was about the same. The finish was perfect, no defects as far as I could see. I think the Arc AA is a winner. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

[/ QUOTE ] The blemish is there, its just that it is barely noticeable.

I think that alot of folks have either forgotten or weren't clued into CPFer's first and unrelenting requests (read as "constant badgering") for Peter to make an AA light that equaled or surpassed the AAA's performance. We were interested Initially, in a small AA LED, with the looong runtime and quality of the AAA but utilizing the more common AA batteries for continuity with much of our gear (like GPS, two way radios and LS mods or Arc LS's with AA-TSP's, headlamps, radios etc., etc.) People really seemed to want an Arc produced light that would compete with the Infinity AA for outdoor activities like camping, backpacking, travel and military deployment, all situations where it is beneficial to stick to one battery size for ease of supply (probably the most common size worldwide too) and various configurations (AA rechargeables and lithiums as well as alkalines) I know this is what I wanted. Just remember that it wasn't planned to be smaller or brighter, just to fill a request for an AA powered lightsource. Never known to "leave, well enough, alone" though, Peter gave us more than we bargained for! Thanks Peter!

TSG /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Got my ARC AA second this morning! It's currently on the meter getting a runtime plot which shuld be finished tomorrow. Eyeball guestiment is a runtime to 50% brightness of 10+ hours.

Got mine today--- Thanks Peter and Merri!--- at least three days before I was expecting it. Sure doesn't look like a "second" to me, but then, none of my several LS seconds do either. That speaks to the high commitment to excellence by Arc.

The AA beam is a bit wider, brighter and bluer than the one from my "original edition" CPF AAA Special. I'm not going to haul out the light meter, but the AA beam looks to be more widely "useful" with a little more "throw" than from the AAA.

Got mine this afternoon, an ARC AA Factory Second. The quality is top notch, better than most manufacturer's Factory First.

Bright! It's about 50% brighter than any of my 6 ARC AAA's, with a broader beam. I'm pleasantly surprized, expected it to be about the same brightness. It's definitely more professional looking than the CMG AA, with closer tolerances.

The ARC AA might make a better nightstand light because the AAA model is too small, hard to find and easy to lose. For EDC, the AAA gets the nod for it's compactness.

Downside: The hollow bottom is not aesthetically pleasing. And the light head is slippery when wet: the knurling needs to be more agressive.

Overall a great addition to the ARC line.

I recieved my AA second this afternoon (16 hours transit - to Michigan! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif).

As far as beam observations, I think the proportionally deeper and larger diameter reflector creates a definite improvement in beam quality, compared to two older AAA's in my posession.

The perfectly centered beam is overall about 20-30% brighter, with a smoother, brighter, wider spill. And the hotspot is larger, more defined, and brighter. Throw is improved correspondingly.

Tint is only a hair more violet than my 2 yr. old LE. Very nice.

The beautiful machining, raised knurling, deep anodizing, and other details make this sweet little light a work of art, IMHO.

I like the new tail design, too - unique and functional!

I sincerely hope Peter can find the means to successfully/profitably add this design to his product line - I think it's the SCHNITZ!

Great job, Mr. Gransee /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowdown.gif !!!

Thanks for an outstanding little light! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Bob

Roy, any chance of seeing a combined plots with the Arc AA and Ultra? I suppose to be fair they would have to be run right after each other and with the same type/age/brand of battery. TIA if it's possible!

BTW, got any theories on how badly the Arc AAA beat the Sonic? Maybe the Arc has a much more efficient circuit. Maybe the Sonic loses a lot of light to not having a reflector and masking the LED, and tries to make up for that by overdriving its LED even harder than the Arc does. Maybe the Arc LEDs have better flux. All just speculation on my part; you'd be in a better position to say.

I took off the split ring and slid a AA Maglite clip onto my new ARC AA. I'm a contented man.

ARC AA More than Twice as Bright!

I played with my new ARC AA Second vs my ARC AAA's in my darkened bedroom. I held two ARC AAA's in one hand, and the ARC AA in the other - the ARC AA was BRIGHTER on a white wall than the combined beam of two ARC AAA's!

I don't know if my ARC AA is average or I just happened to luck out with an exceptionally bright sample. Am I happy! This is a great light.

Re: ARC AA More than Twice as Bright!

I recieved my AA second yesterday. I like the new tail design, when its in a watch pocket its easy to pull out with one finger on the bottom rim.

Re: ARC AA More than Twice as Bright!

The runtime plot for the Arc-AA (second) is up on the Reviews Forum.

Here's a side by side by side compairison for the Ultra-G, Arc-AA(second) and the Arc-AAA.

ADDED:
Here are some measurments I made with my light meter in the brightest part of the light beam:

Arc-AA 27.4 Fc @ 1 foot factory second
Arc-AAA 17.7 Fc @ 1 foot
Ultra-G 16.2 Fc @ 1 foot