Xeno Cube XM-L Neutral or Zebralight SC51w?

Whiskeyfox

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You guys helped me upgrade my headlamp from a Petzel Tikka 2 Plus to a Zebralight h501w.
Now, I've just sold my 4Sevens Quark AA2 Tactical, and I'm looking for a replacement. I was originally gonna go with a Fenix LD20 until I discovered neutral tints, now I'm hooked. I also figure I don't really need a 2 AA light, when 1 AA seems sufficient.

So, as the title states, I'm down to my final two choices:
What would you folks recommend?
Either the Xeno Cube XM-L in Neutral or get another Zebralight the SC51w?

I'm leaning more towards the Xeno since I already have a zebralight...

What are your thoughts? any input would be greatly appreciated.

Also, apparently I can still get the XP-G in neutral... so to add to this inquiry, XP-G version or XM-L version on the cube?
My headlamp is very floody, so perhaps to compliment it for camping I should get the better thrower? which my understanding is the XP-G...?

Sincerely,
Whiskeyfox
 
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B0wz3r

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Because the Xeno has an XML in it, it's going to be floodier. It will also be brighter if it can use 14500's. On the other hand, the XPG will produce more throw.

There will also be a difference in the tint. The XPG R4 neutral emitters are more of a 'true' neutral in that they're slight cooler than the XML T5 neutrals, which are pretty warm. I'd say the ZL is going to be around 4,500K and the Xeno will be in the 4,000K neighborhood. I personally am fond of the warmer tints, but YMMV of course.
 

Whiskeyfox

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Well, I'm pretty happy with the tint on my H501w (although I could stand for warmer and not mind), which uses the XR-E Q3 5A.... would you say the XML t5 is more like that one vs the XPG r4?
 

srtbrazil

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Go with the Xeno, I have both but prefer the Xeno because it´s more floodier. Outstanding light for the price.
 

B0wz3r

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Well, I'm pretty happy with the tint on my H501w (although I could stand for warmer and not mind), which uses the XR-E Q3 5A.... would you say the XML t5 is more like that one vs the XPG r4?

No, I don't think it is. The Q3/4-5A/B tint bins from the XRE's and XPE's are some of my favorite tints in fact. The 5A's are a little bit cooler than the 5B's, so you'll see slightly more yellow in the 5B's as a result, and the 5A's look a little whiter. The XML T5 that's in my E03 looks more like an XRE/XPE 5B than a 5A to me. I have an SC50w+ that has a Q4/5B in it, and I'd say the T5 XML in my E03 is just a little warmer.

I could be wrong though; I'm just going by how things look to me, and knowing what the tint bins of the emitters in other lights I have are.

I have an H51w which has the XPG R4 in it, which is definitely whiter than either my SC50w+ or my T5 E03. I'd guesstimate the color temp of my H51w to be about 4,500 - 4,600K, the color temp of my SC50w+ to be about 4,200K, and of my E03 to be about 4,000K. These are small differences, and you probably won't really notice them unless you compare them side by side. Overall, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If it turns out you get a light and you're really put off by the tint, you can always flip it on the marketplace and make back most of what you paid for it. From there, just buy another one and try it out, and see if you like it better.
 

tx101

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I use a Cube as my nightstand light. Something to consider about the Cube, they are stainless steel
therefore heavy. Might want to think about that if you are planning to EDC it.
 

B0wz3r

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I.find the neutral in the zebra to be much better than the neutral in my eo3. The neutral in the xeno is quite cool.

Odd. I have one of the neutral E03's with the T5 emitter and it's actually warmer than the XPG R4 that's in my SC51w or my SC60w. If yours is cooler than the R4, that's some pretty significant tint lottery going on.
 

B0wz3r

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If I can figure out how to post a beamshot I will. But yeah, its way cooler than my h51w. Must be quite the lottery!

From what I've seen, and this is just my experience, is that it seems to take Cree a while to get their tinting ironed out every time the come out with a new emitter. As I mentioned, there was a bad spell of green in the XPG's, both cool and neutral. Lately though, I haven't seen many reports complaining about it. Perhaps they're going through the same thing with the neutral XML's.
 

skyfire

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i find all the current ZL neutrals on the cooler side. i prefer warmer... but thats just me.

i love my H501w, and find the neutral tints of XR-E and XP-E nicer than the commonly used neutral XP-G R4. or XM-L T5 and T4.

if you could stand warmer, i say go for the warm tint. u might not like it at first glance, but it really warms up to you, its my prefered tint now. and now my neutrals look cool to me.
i have a couple Xeno E03 warm tints, and the tint is very warm.

theres also the ZL SC51c. which uses a nichia LED i think and is higher CRI of 85, but not as many lumens compared to the XP-G.
 

B0wz3r

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i find all the current ZL neutrals on the cooler side. i prefer warmer... but thats just me.

i love my H501w, and find the neutral tints of XR-E and XP-E nicer than the commonly used neutral XP-G R4. or XM-L T5 and T4.

if you could stand warmer, i say go for the warm tint. u might not like it at first glance, but it really warms up to you, its my prefered tint now. and now my neutrals look cool to me.
i have a couple Xeno E03 warm tints, and the tint is very warm.

theres also the ZL SC51c. which uses a nichia LED i think and is higher CRI of 85, but not as many lumens compared to the XP-G.

I've found I prefer a warmer tint in a neutral too, as long as it's not that sort of incan, dehydrated **** orangish color... That's almost as bad as green IMO.
 
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