Just got my Nitecore EC20...meh

Mukiwa19

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just picked a nitecore ec20 off Craigslist and it's not what I was expecting.. I haven't done any direct comparisons with my TK21 but playing around with it last night I wasnt blown away by what 900lm looks like. My tk21 is rated at 498lm and seems just as bright if not brighter.. If anyone has any explanation on this please enlighten me...
 

AnAppleSnail

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Your eyes auto-adjust pretty well. In general, "2x the lumens" will look a bit brighter. It takes 4x output to look very different. Go out in the woods with both. use the TK21 for a while, then use the EC20 to see. But 900 lumens isn't much more effective for seeing than 498 lumens. It will use the battery twice as fast, though...
 

LightWalker

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The EC20 has a smaller reflector than the TK21 so it will not have as tight a hotspot, it won't be as focused.
 

thedoc007

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The EC20 has a smaller reflector than the TK21 so it will not have as tight a hotspot, it won't be as focused.

Your eyes auto-adjust pretty well. In general, "2x the lumens" will look a bit brighter. It takes 4x output to look very different. Go out in the woods with both. use the TK21 for a while, then use the EC20 to see. But 900 lumens isn't much more effective for seeing than 498 lumens. It will use the battery twice as fast, though...

These are both good points. If two lights have different beam profiles, it is very difficult to compare raw output by eye...humans make TERRIBLE brightness meters. You don't see lumens...you see lux (light reflected back from an object. A tight beam, then, concentrates more light onto a smaller area. The has the effect of producing glare, especially up close, which your brain interprets as higher brightness.

If you take both lights outside, the extra lumens should be quite obvious. The EC20 should have a significantly wider spill, meaning that you can SEE more at one time without waving the lights around. This is much more effective than trying to gauge brightness by directly comparing the hotspots. If you can't see a very obvious difference in those conditions, perhaps you have a defective light.
 
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Fireclaw18

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There's a different between lux (throw) and overall light output (lumens).

Floody lights tend to have high lumens but weak throw. Tightly focused lights may have high throw but low lumens. The size and intensity of the hotspot varies depending on the driver current, type of emitter used, and width and type of reflector or optic.

Try the integrating room test to compare lumens: Go into a dark room, hold one light above your head and point it at the ceiling and turn it on. Immediately turn it off and repeat with the other light. As you do this look at something on the FLOOR around your feet. The hotspot shouldn't be in your field of view at all... instead you're looking at the diffuse reflected light on the floor. The higher lumen light should light up the room more.
 

Mukiwa19

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Try the integrating room test to compare lumens: Go into a dark room, hold one light above your head and point it at the ceiling and turn it on. Immediately turn it off and repeat with the other light. As you do this look at something on the FLOOR around your feet. The hotspot shouldn't be in your field of view at all... instead you're looking at the diffuse reflected light on the floor. The higher lumen light should light up the room more.

I just tried this method in the basement and definately noticed the increased lumens and also realized that I like the Nitecores tint much better than the Fenix light. I also noticed a difference when they were both pointed at the wall side by side.. I think I was just expecting more as 900lm vs 489lm seems like it should be a massive difference but it must be marketing hype..

Another question thou: why the hell couldn't Fenix have given the TK21 a 900lm burst mode back when it was new? Same battery and I'm assuming it's a similar emitter by looking at it.. Is it just marketing? Could you get the same light "reprogrammed" to put out more light?

Sorry if these are newb questions...but I hate to think that I just spent $55 on a light that puts out 900lm and next year they will have the exact same light with a few changes and it will put out 1200lm...

Also i am definitely not a fan of the single forward button layout of this light.
 

idleprocess

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Another question thou: why the hell couldn't Fenix have given the TK21 a 900lm burst mode back when it was new? Same battery and I'm assuming it's a similar emitter by looking at it.. Is it just marketing? Could you get the same light "reprogrammed" to put out more light?
I don't recall the exact specs for the TK21, but I suspect that was it closer to the XR-E era than today's XM-L era, so the issue would be the capabilities of the LED combined with limitations on the ability to deliver enough power and manage the resulting heat to hit ~1000 lumens.

Sorry if these are newb questions...but I hate to think that I just spent $55 on a light that puts out 900lm and next year they will have the exact same light with a few changes and it will put out 1200lm...
We seem to be past the inflection point on LED lumens-per-watt performance increases, so odds are that next year the new version of the light will be perhaps 950 or 1000 lumens in the same general envelope.
 

mikeruth

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I have one of these and it's growing on me. Give it some time and usage.
I must say that when I put this on a ceiling on high the room is really lit!

Out side I have rarely had the need to turn it on high. Medium seems to be really nice, and lastly for me the lowest setting seems really nice for reading a book.

Oh and the on/off/mode button...if you holster this make sure the button os facing the expandable material sides of the holster. less chance of a turn on unexpectedly.

Mike R
 
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