Eagletac MX25L3 vs SX25L3 comparison

I had purchased an Eagletac SX25L3 with the MT-G2 several months ago and was very happy with it. It quickly became one of my favorite lights, and so when it disappeared in early December I missed it quite a bit. Consequently, when I saw Eagletac had released the MX25L3, essentially an SX25L3 with a larger reflector, I was very intrigued. I did a lot of reading, tried to find beamshots comparing the two, tried to find even a picture showing both lights together, but here wasn't much out there. After a while the SX had been missing for over a month and I was fairly sure it wasn't coming back, so when I saw GoingGear had their 15% off "snowed in" sale, I decided it was time to order and pulled the trigger. The kit was backordered, but I was willing to wait.

Naturally, three days after I ordered, what should turn up but my old SX, back from whatever vacation it had decided to go on. So I hopped online and cancelled the order. Just kidding!! Now I had an excuse to own both.

Well, my new Eagletac MX25L3 kit just arrived from GoingGear today, and I was able to run home and grab it at lunch time. I took some quick shots with my camera phone and uploaded them. I'm posting this to help others who may be weighing the same decision.

I am at work, so rather than resize/reupload I'll just link to the album I made on Imgur.


Eagletac MX25L3 vs SX25L3 comparison

Nice, thanks for the photos. I also purchase the MX25L3 with MT-G2 last week for the 15% off, except I got the base model. The tint is perfect for me.

Nice pics. I really appreciate the slightly enlarged button on the MX25L3 vs SX25L3.

Thanks for the photos. I also purchased the SX25L3 several months ago, and it is a favourite. I do like the additional throw of the MX25L3, and will probably add it to my collection. If you have a chance to do any outdoor shots, please post these as well.

Mr. Tone said:

Nice pics. I really appreciate the slightly enlarged button on the MX25L3 vs SX25L3.

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+1 I have weak wrists and fingers and, if wearing gloves, forget turning on the SX25L3 with its button more or less flush with the body. Since it is roughly just an oz lighter, inch shorter, with a few degrees more of a hot spot, the SX is not that much different from the MX. So I returned mine and find the MX version more to my liking. Plus, and Olight SR-51 diffuser will fit over it too.

Dave

^
nice

I also have the SX25L3 and the MX25L3, great lights. Did you guys know that EagleTac recently released a MX25L4 with a 4 18650 body and a choice of SST-90, SBT-90, or a SBT-70 LED. Don't know if any dealers have it yet, but the light's complete specs are up on the EagleTac site. Just when I thought I was going to cutback on my light purchases. LOL

Nice comparison showing the two light bodies and their beams side by side! Helpful, for sure, for those trying to decide which one to get. I was surprised at your comparison showing how much brighter the hotspot of the MX25L3 was, more of a difference than I thought there would have been. I have actually been thinking of also picking up an SX25L3 to have an even smaller MT-G2 light with a broader beam, but its minor "flaws" have continued to give me pause.

I saw an SX25L3 in person last year and while I absolutely loved the pleasing, neutral, smooth beam from that lovely LED, I felt that all those lumens were a bit "wasted" on such a wide a floody beam, at least for what I wanted in a light like that. In addition, like you, I also felt the SX25L3's side switch was too low a profile to find easily by touch. I also thought the straight cylindrical barrel, with no flaring at the head, made it too easy for the light to slip out of one's hand with only a slight loosening of one's grip. I decided to hold off, and then once the MX25L3 was announced, I was glad I did!

When I read about the new MX25L3, it seemed as though all the faults I had personally found with the SX25L3 had been addressed. A bigger reflector for more throw and thus less "wasted" lumens, one which also should make the light feel more secure in the hand, plus a more protruding side switch to find more easily by touch. I decided to order the kit version, which included the threaded bezel, a diffuser, colour filters and a tail-cap switch etc. The most expensive light I have bought to date, but I feel the price was well worth it. I am glad I ordered the kit since an added bonus (and a total surprise) was that the threaded bezel turned out to have standard 58mm photo filter threads, so off-the-shelf colour correction filters from Hoya, Tiffen, B+W etc. can easily be bought. The diffuser is a nice addition too, especially if using the MX25L3 as a photographic light source. While the MT-G2 being used is not really what one would consider a high CRI LED (I believe it may only be rated at 75?), it still has the best colour rendering of all of my lights and the 5000K colour temperature is nice, both visually and photographically. The tail-switch is quite useful too since even with the improved side switch, I still find it a bit difficult to locate by feel, whereas a tail-cap switch is always in a predictable location.

What surprised me the most was how well the light does throw since the beam still "feels" quite floody at close range. The first time I took it out and compared it to my SupBeam X40, with 3x XM-L2 LEDS rated to put out 3480 lumens, I was rather surprised to find the 2750 lumen MX25L3 threw a beam just as far, and because its beam has less of a blue spill than the X40, the reduced atmospheric backscatter actually allows me to see further with the MX25L3. Visually, at closer distances, it appears as though the X40 has a brighter and tighter hotspot but in the end, it doesn't really throw any better it seems. The amount of total output from the MX25L3's single LED still blows my mind , especially when my eyes are fully dark adapted.

Overall, I think the MX25L3 is my favourite general purpose light now: still reasonably compact with outstanding throw (considering the large LED and relatively small reflector), pretty good run-time efficiency, an easy to grasp barrel that is not too thick (only 3x 18650 batteries with no carrier), four decently spaced modes accessed by tightening (brighter) or loosening (dimmer) the head, an instant turbo feature from any mode, the threaded head with filter options and, of course, that fabulous beam tint… or should I say, lack of tint. Yep… love that light!

To see some fairly high-resolution 400 meter nighttime beam-shots to compare how the MX25L3 throws against some other lights (Supbeam X40, Thrunite TN32, Nitecore SRT7, ArmyTek Predators and more), see my blog entry. I wish I also had an SX25L3 that night to compare to. Here is a small animated GIF of the comparison shots. In these shots the MX25L3 still seems to have quite a bit of blue backscatter but in practice when handheld, it is far less distracting than the backscatter from my other bright lights...




That TN32 is friggin' amazing too, but considering how much larger and heavier it is than the MX25L3, with a very tight and a less generally useful beam, the MX25L3 still wins the "overall most useful light in my collection" award! Lastly, here is a zoomed version of the beam-shots...




As far as the new MX25L4 lights… well…? I just think their bodies will be a bit too thick and heavy to feel like a compact light... although I reserve the right to change my mind if I ever actually hold one in person! I'm not convinced the SST LEDs are an upgrade either, although their throw capability is much greater than the larger MT-G2 allows for that reflector size. But then, I doubt their beam colour will be anywhere near as nice. No, I think the MX25L3 is just right for me… :thumbsup:

Wow mmander, those are beautiful photos and really help as comparisons! :twothumbs

mmander, I just saw those pics you posted. Nice!!! Thanks a lot for those. That really helps make it clear how useful and versatile the beam of the MX25L3 MT-G2 is. Again, you have some great talent with that camera, keep it up!

I agree with Mr Tone, and if you have any more great beamshots of your other lights, please post these as well.

mmander, could you possibly take a few pics comparing the size of the MX25L3 and TN32 right next to each other? Particularly the height and head diameters?

Glad you guys like the beam-shots.

AlPal said:

I agree with Mr Tone, and if you have any more great beamshots of your other lights, please post these as well.

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The blog posting where there are more higher resolution images to go along with the animated GIFs is here: Thrunite TN32 comparison...

Here are a few more back when I had fewer lights, with a Sunwayman D40A as well: Pitt Lake: Light-painting and beam-shots...
Finally, for those who didn't see this, here are some high dynamic range comparisons… albeit just boring shots against a ceiling :candle:: Flashlight Ceiling Beamshots (Take 1)

I'm sure I'll be doing some more outdoor beam-shots in the future since I am going on a nice long road-trip to the US desert southwest in April and will most certainly be taking most of my lights with me for light painting purposes. I'm sure there will be some seriously cool spots to do some nighttime beam-shots too! For example, imagine lighting up some awesome rock formations in Arches National Park at night…

Mr. Tone said:

mmander, could you possibly take a few pics comparing the size of the MX25L3 and TN32 right next to each other? Particularly the height and head diameters?

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Here are a couple of photos I took a while back, just after receiving the TN32. If you really want to just see the TN32 and MX25L3 together, I could photograph those again?

Note that since the lights are well in front of the cm ruled background, you cannot use that as a guide to their sizes of course. From left to right, on both photos: Nitecore SRT7, EagleTac MX25L3, SupBeam X40, Thrunite TN32...



BTW, the X40 battery tube with its built-in charger and battery carrier actually do thread onto the TN32 and operate the light. However the low-battery indication LED on the X40 tube comes on almost right away when running the TN32 on turbo, even with almost fully charged 3400 mAh batteries. I believe that on the X40, this is to indicate when one is roughly at a 50% charge level? Maybe the single heavily-driven XM-L2 LED in the TN32 actually draws more current and causes more battery sag than the three far more modestly driven ones in the X40? That does seem hard to believe though but I'm not sure why else it would come on…?

Sorry, but the heads are not all perfectly straight on here...

That light comparison photo is perfect, no need for another. I really appreciate you posting those, thanks again!

That's a great HDR photo :thumbsup:

Mr. Tone said:

That light comparison photo is perfect, no need for another. I really appreciate you posting those, thanks again!

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You're most welcome!

SCEMan said:

That's a great HDR photo :thumbsup:

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Thanks!

[WARNING! OFF-TOPIC and not flashlight related!]: If you mean the Utah rocks photo, while it does exhibit fairly high dynamic range, it is a simple adjustment from a single raw file, shot with a Nikon D800, and not a composite of multiple exposures. That is the beauty of the D800… the tremendous dynamic range its sensor exhibits without having to resort to "traditional" multi-shot HDR techniques, the results from which I frankly detest most of the time unless processed very carefully. The Fujifilm X-E2 kit I am shooting with a lot these days also exhibits nearly the same degree of dynamic range, although not quite up to what the D800 can manage.

If you're interested in some more examples of the D800's tremendous dynamic range, have a look here: http://mikemander.blogspot.ca/2012/10/the-big-switch-nikon-d800-image-quality.html

question to owners of the MX25L3 in the kit form and when using the cap with the on/off button in the base: Do you find that the button is difficult to push? I certainly do. I have to use one of my fingers to push the button, not my thumb. That means means a double hand shift to operate the light if not with two hands. A no-go for me. Fortunately the normal side button protrudes sufficiently well to ignore the base button or simply not use that base cap.

BTW, the MX kit body will also function with the SX head.

moldyoldy said:

question to owners of the MX25L3 in the kit form and when using the cap with the on/off button in the base: Do you find that the button is difficult to push? I certainly do. I have to use one of my fingers to push the button, not my thumb. That means means a double hand shift to operate the light if not with two hands. A no-go for me. Fortunately the normal side button protrudes sufficiently well to ignore the base button or simply not use that base cap.

BTW, the MX kit body will also function with the SX head.

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Yes, the tailcap button in hard to press. It is impossible for me to engage it with my thumb. However, I am able to do it without problems using my index finger when holding the light bezel down. It would have been nice if the tail switch was like the side switch, which I love. I really like this light but that would also be my biggest complaint. It is definitely nice to still have a tail switch and the ability to tail stand as well.

moldyoldy said:

question to owners of the MX25L3 in the kit form and when using the cap with the on/off button in the base: Do you find that the button is difficult to push?

Click to expand...

Yes, definitely quite difficult compared to most of my other lights. Generally, thicker lights seem to have far harder to activate tail-switches than thinner ones I find - something about how one grips the light, the angle of the thumb etc. I can most certainly activate the tail-cap switch on the MX25L3 but after a half dozen times or so, my thumb starts to get sore. I gave it to a friend of mine and he too found it impossible to activate, so I guess I have fairly strong hands? The side switch is far easier to operate but I do like having the tail-cap switch since sometimes when I am gripping the light, I still find the side-switch takes a moment to find by touch when it is dark (meaning the SX25L3 must be a real pain at times) and the tail-switch is always in a predictable location. However I almost always use my other hand to switch it, or as Mr. Tone mentioned, I use my index finger when the light is facing downward. Once switched on, I then quickly flip it to the normal carry position.

On mine, the side switch is just as pretty much just as stiff as the tail-cap switch, but since one has far better leverage on it normally, it ends up being easier to press. Maybe there is some manufacturing variability and yours is genuinely stiffer than the side switch?

moldyoldy said:

BTW, the MX kit body will also function with the SX head.

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That's interesting… I had no idea they were compatible but now that I look closer, it makes sense since the improved switch and such all resides on the head part.

After using the SX25L3 for past 7+ months, I can say I got used to the side switch. I admit I wasn't a fan of how hard the switch was to find in the beginning, but over time it becomes second nature. Generally I just do a quick spin in my hand until I feel it.

And I definitely prefer the floody nature of the SX to the throwy beam from the MX. There are far better LED emitters to choose from if you want or need throw. The MT-G2 makes for a wonderful flood light. I'm actually sad when I hear of a new light using an MT-G2 only to find out it's been crammed into some large reflector. Really looking forward to the Niwalker MiniMax though. Pure flood goodness.