Does any 1xAA actually beat the ZL SC51/SC51w in output/runtime?

I've been looking for another AA light to run on eneloops next to the Fenix E11 (home), MC11 (car) and EagleTac D25C clicky (camerabag), and while looking through all the reviews, I got to the following question...

Disregarding UI, build, throw (to a certain degree) and color tone, does any current 1xAA light beat the ZebraLight SC51(w) in pure output vs runtime? I'm especially interested in mostly using the medium but with the option of using the highest output for short periods of time.
This little light (while having some minor downsides) seems to have it all, and I wonder if I'm missing any newer models in the comparisons of some older reviews. I'm planning to get the neutral version, so any alternatives should probably also have neutral version available.

I doubt it, to be honest. Zebralight has really set the bar for 1xAA offerings, especially with their latest H502.

JMHO but I have H51w and I think ZL fibs a bit on the 172 output.

I have a Quark AAX in neutral white (max should be ~ 115 lumens) and I honestly can't tell the difference in max brightness between the two using the ceiling bounce test on 1x Eneloop. In terms of runtime at max, people have reported 60-80 mins with the Quark/Eneloop. Runtime on moonlight is anyone's guess (they are both crazy long), but ZL does claim significantly longer than 4Sevens..but it's important to note that ZL's moonlight on the 51s is PWM controlled, and at a reasonably low and visible frequency.

While I do love my ZL, I EDC the Quark AAX running on a 14500. A 280 lumen max is nice to have, and people have tested the high (IMHO ~ ZL) between 2-3 hrs with that battery.

You can't go wrong with either light.

I never bought a Zebralight, but I ran into a guy at work who said pretty much the same thing as reppans just did.

"Their numbers don't add up."

And for me, the numbers, are the only thing that set zebralights apart.

reppans said:

While I do love my ZL, I EDC the Quark AAX running on a 14500. A 280 lumen max is nice to have, and people have tested the high (IMHO ~ ZL) between 2-3 hrs with that battery.

Click to expand...

+ 1

since Quark uses buck boost driver the Quark AA2X numbers are the same as Quark AAX with 1x14500 (cpf members confirmed this!). so according to selfbuilt (flashlightreviews.ca) we have:
Quark AAX @ Max = 400 lumens (=140%)
Quark AAX @ Hi = 200 lumens (=70%)
ZL SC51 @ Hi1 = 91 lumens (=90%)

Duh, maybe it's easiest to compare in a RL situation whether the Quark AAX is brighter (1x Eneloop) or the SC51 (1x Eneloop). Or maybe you can ask selfbuilt to show you how to compare the Quark AA2 X review with the SC51 review. His reviews contain tables with lumens data and a series of brightness graphs. Good luck!

shelm. out.

spark SL5

Super : 220 lm ~ 0.9 Hours
Max : 120 lm ~ 1.8 Hours
Med 2 : 40 lm ~ 8 Hours
Med 1 : 10 lm ~ 30 Hours
Low : 2 lm ~ 86 Hours

Can use 14500(official) for higher lumen and the temperature is acceptable for real life.

ZL SC51
High: H1 200 Lm (0.9 hrs) or H2 100 Lm (2.4 hrs) / 140 Lm (1.7 hrs) / 4Hz Strobe
Medium: M1 30 Lm (10.5 hrs) or M2 8 Lm (26 hrs)
Low: L1 2.5 Lm (3 days) or L2 0.2 Lm (16 days)

I have both and I prefer to Spark.

Quark pwm is easily detectable with the iPhone camera. I have a QuarkX on an AA body and it's a great light with the deep pocket carry clip. I agree with the above, that you can't go wrong with either light. If the moonlight modes aren't all that important, the D25a clicks would be the AA light I'd buy.

Here's some AA model comparison data I've got,
but I can't answer your question just looking at numbers.


Zebralight SC51
XPG-R5
80mm
0.7v - 2.5v
210 Lumens, 1550 Lux, 1.5v Eneloop NiHM
No 4.2v 14500 Li-Ion support


Quark AA
XPG-R5
97mm
0.9v - 4.2v
110 Lumens, ? Lux, 1.5v Eneloop NiHM
? Lumens, ? Lux, 4.2v 14500 Li-Ion


Quark AA2​ "X" (Lego'd with single cell AA tube)
XML-T6
97mm
0.9v - 4.2v
? Lumens, ? Lux, 1.5v Eneloop NiHM
400 Lumens, 2850 Lux, 4.2v 14500 Li-Ion


Thrunite Neutron 1A
XML-T6
104mm
0.9v - 4.2v
240 Lumens, 1350 Lux, 1.5v Eneloop NiHM
450 Lumens, 2900 Lux, 4.2v 14500 Li-Ion

CarpentryHero said:

Quark pwm is easily detectable with the iPhone camera.

Click to expand...

Do you mean Zebralight? Or Quark Mini?

I thought regular Quarks are all current regulated (except strobes).

reppans said:

JMHO but I have H51w and I think ZL fibs a bit on the 172 output.

I have a Quark AAX in neutral white (max should be ~ 115 lumens) and I honestly can't tell the difference in max brightness between the two using the ceiling bounce test on 1x Eneloop. In terms of runtime at max, people have reported 60-80 mins with the Quark/Eneloop. Runtime on moonlight is anyone's guess (they are both crazy long), but ZL does claim significantly longer than 4Sevens..but it's important to note that ZL's moonlight on the 51s is PWM controlled, and at a reasonably low and visible frequency.

While I do love my ZL, I EDC the Quark AAX running on a 14500. A 280 lumen max is nice to have, and people have tested the high (IMHO ~ ZL) between 2-3 hrs with that battery.

You can't go wrong with either light.

Click to expand...

14500 figures may differ, I only looked at the eneloop numbers (or alkaline in emergencies).
My point was that at medium levels (where I'd have my flashlights 90% of the time), the ZL seem to offer more than the competitions in terms of performance.
I was also under the impression that selfbuilt's review pretty much came to that same conclusion by measurement, not by looking at ZL's numbers?

Eitherway, an extremely long runtime on moonlight is not too interesting for me, but a great runtime on a usable low would be (let's say 3 to 10 lumen).

specimen said:

spark SL5

Super : 220 lm ~ 0.9 Hours
Max : 120 lm ~ 1.8 Hours
Med 2 : 40 lm ~ 8 Hours
Med 1 : 10 lm ~ 30 Hours
Low : 2 lm ~ 86 Hours

Can use 14500(official) for higher lumen and the temperature is acceptable for real life.

ZL SC51
High: H1 200 Lm (0.9 hrs) or H2 100 Lm (2.4 hrs) / 140 Lm (1.7 hrs) / 4Hz Strobe
Medium: M1 30 Lm (10.5 hrs) or M2 8 Lm (26 hrs)
Low: L1 2.5 Lm (3 days) or L2 0.2 Lm (16 days)

I have both and I prefer to Spark.

Click to expand...

That looks like a very reasonable alternative. A slightly higher or lower medium. Both values seem very good. Thanks for that alternative

Being able to use 14500 isn't immediately relevant but could be handy for the future if I ever get a proper charger that would be able to charge rcr123, 18650 and 14500's.

Currently I have around 8 sets of eneloops, 5 sets of powerex 2700's and a bunch of loose NiMH's and alkalines. I do a lot of flash photography, so pretty much covered in AA rechargables

TweakMDS said:

My point was that at medium levels (where I'd have my flashlights 90% of the time), the ZL seem to offer more than the competitions in terms of performance.
I was also under the impression that selfbuilt's review pretty much came to that same conclusion by measurement, not by looking at ZL's numbers?

Click to expand...

As a camper, I'm big AA runtime fan and prefer low and moonlight levels and these two brands own the market in terms of efficiency as far as I can tell and I've looked into them. Unfortunately Selfbuilt has not reviewed the QAA for 3 yrs, since it was using an XPE R2, and he probably won't review QAAX (XML), which many of us are using with a 14500, because it's a lego'd model and not commercially sold in 1xAA config. So it's going to be difficult to find a nice chart like above that compares them side by side on the same batt.

But let's take your medium mode, which is 26 lumens on the ZL and 24 lumens on the QAA-XML or 22 lumens on the QAA-XPG. On SB's chart above, ZL shows ~ 8 hrs on an Eneloop and the Quarks on the link below ~ 11 hrs (12hrs from SB 3yr old review, but who knows what lumen level it was back then) but unfortunately only tested on 14500s. Now 14500s clearly have the advantage on max and maybe high modes, but at medium, low and moonlight, they should be about equal to NiMh (total energy about the same - 2.8 vs 2.4 watt/hrs). In fact, alkalines run the longest on moonlight... almost double an Eneloop! See this link:

http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/sh...ght-Run-Time-Testimonials-real-world-testing!

As far as price is concerned, at the moment, they're about the same too. On current rebranding sales (I've still seen some inventory left) you can get the QAA2X for $45 and a 1xAA tube for $19, with gives the Q more battery config options incl Li-ions

Don't get me wrong, I love my Zebralight, and have always highly recommended it... I think I does have a better build quality than 4Sevens, but I always end up buying and using the Quarks more.

Guess its just that if my ZL stops working, it'll be a paperweight (out of warranty already). If Quark stops working, I can Lego parts to get it working, and the warranty goes well beyond what I expect to use it for. And if I ever do need to send one back (haven't yet) I comfortable that CS will resolve my issues without having to wait for the shipping to China time lags.

PS... take a look at Cottonpickers smallest Li-ion chargers..., not much bigger than a battery, incl volt meter and selectable charge levels allow you to charge any sized Li-ion.

Very insightful reply reppans, thanks for that.
I'll dig into the quarks a little deeper and see which could be an option. I'm a fan of legoing parts, so that'd be a huge bonus.