Fenix TK75 vs Olight M3X lux comparison question

Hello all,

This is my first post regarding my recent purchase of the Fenix TK75.
I have a stack of lights which I'll talk about in future posts but initially I'd like to get some feedback on my findings while comparing the hotspot brightness of my new Fenix TK75 (XML2) vs my Olight M3X (XML2).
When shining both lights on a wall side by side the hotspot of the Olight is quite noticeably brighter than the Fenix. While I understand that they are different classes of flashlight I would have expected the reported 119500cd of the Fenix to have the brighter hotspot than the reported 84100cd of the Olight?
While the Fenix clearly puts out a lot more lumens there's no doubt that the hotspot of the Olight is more intense and can clearly be seen if shone over the centre of the Fenix's beam.
In use it's hard to tell which has the most central brightness if shone on distant trees etc, the Fenix obviously lighting up a larger area considered, but there's a reasonably clear winner hotspot brightness wise in the wall test.
Is there something amiss with my TK75, lower than reported cd rating perhaps, or is it that there is more to it than my current understanding of cd ratings and hotspot brightness.
Your feedback is much appreciated.

Kind regards,

F89

Maybe the wall was too close; there was not enough distance to allow the TK75's beam to converge yet? I honestly have no idea, that's pretty odd.

Ryp said:

Maybe the wall was too close; there was not enough distance to allow the TK75's beam to converge yet? I honestly have no idea, that's pretty odd.

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It does seem odd? I've tried the wall test from 1m to about 6m all resulting in the Olight winning.

Were your batteries at a full charge when you did your testing?

Selfbuilt reviewed both lights (the TK in XML1) and found Olight to be more conservative in its lux ratings but both to be nearly identical in terms of lux/throw so the TK XML2 should have the edge, but probably not by much.

I personally think our eyes can be quite easily fooled - perhaps the higher contrast of the hotspot vs spill on the Olight is doing it. You can more objective see the difference if you take a side-by-side photo of the two hotspots and underexpose it significantly (with a manual camera or an exposure compensation setting) so one hotspot almost disappears. You can also use an auto smartphone if you bump up the ambient light enough (eg, with daylight/sunlight) - the important thing is that you must be able see some detail in at least one hotspot - if both are pure white, then they're both overexposed and you can cannot discern any difference in brightness.

reppans said:

Selfbuilt reviewed both lights (the TK in XML1) and found Olight to be more conservative in its lux ratings but both to be nearly identical in terms of lux/throw so the TK XML2 should have the edge, but probably not by much.

I personally think our eyes can be quite easily fooled - perhaps the higher contrast of the hotspot vs spill on the Olight is doing it. You can more objective see the difference if you take a side-by-side photo of the two hotspots and underexpose it significantly (with a manual camera or an exposure compensation setting) so one hotspot almost disappears. You can also use an auto smartphone if you bump up the ambient light enough (eg, with daylight/sunlight) - the important thing is that you must be able see some detail in at least one hotspot - if both are pure white, then they're both overexposed and you can cannot discern any difference in brightness.

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Just tried the DSLR test underexposing at various levels until both hotspots were barely visible. It appeared that they were pretty even side by side so I tried overlapping the hotspots centrally then in a figure 8 pattern and found that the hotspot of the Olight could clearly be seen in the centre or overlapped in a figure 8 over the Fenix's beam with the camera as could be seen by eye.
Does this mean my M3X has a higher lux than my TK75? It does appear that way currently.

Ryp said:

Were your batteries at a full charge when you did your testing?

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Batteries used in both torches are Keeppower 3400mah at full charge.

Perhaps your TK75 is a lemon.

Ryp said:

Perhaps your TK75 is a lemon.

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It's possible?
Have you or anyone else directly compared their XML2 TK75 with the XML2 Olight M3X or something similar?

I have both torches,,,,,,,,I will do a wall shot,be back in 5 minutes!

Capolini said:

I have both torches,,,,,,,,I will do a wall shot,be back in 5 minutes!

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Thank you, very helpful.

I would not say that the M3X is more intense. You have 3 beams converging for the hot spot so the TK75 beam profile overlaps and is more distorted. The M3X is a single emitter,,,maybe that is why it looks more intense to you.

I don't know,just some thoughts,,as long as the TK75 works well i would not worry about it. One thing I know from testing these lights on a Golf course[600 yard test]....the M3X has less lumens and with one emitter it is much easier to see the beam travel. I was able to see it go 600 yards and light up[a bit] Two 80' Norway Spruce. On the other hand, I know the TK75 got there but with its 3 emitters and substantial flood, it was impossible for me to see because of the wall of diffused light! Much easier to see beam intensity and Throw from one emitter than 3!

Thanks for checking it out Capolini.
I was a bit disappointed at first but, as you recommend, I'm not overly concerned and am very pleased by its massive flood and throw combination in real life use.
However, there is no doubt from what I've seen by eye and with a camera that the hotspot of the Olight is brighter from wall tests up to 6m.