Please post beamshots and runtimes of the ARC4

Now that people have had a chance to play around with their new ARC4 toy/tool, I would appreciate it if someone could post:

1. good beamshots at level 1 compared to other similar lights
2. beamshots at various light levels
3. corresponding runtimes at the various light levels.

I know that some of this info is already on various threads but it would be great if it was all in one place.

Thanks.

For my understanding we can't do accurate runtime tests
on the arc4.
The LED isn't current regulated so each arc4 has its own
typical runtime depending on the bin# of the Luxeon.
This means a premium would run longer for the extra price.

There are some beamshots here.

It would be nice to have some runtime results anyway. Seeing the variables from light to light would be interesting. What setting is close to the SL 4aa?

I took beamshots at various light levels at 1 foot, but unfortunately, I feel this doesn't represent the performance of this light correctly. Between the highest and lowest setting, the brightness of Arc4 is quite different and my camera doesn't have enough dynamic range to cover these. To my eyes, the lower settings are brighter and the higher settings are dimmer than the shots. (In other words, in my beamshots, the lower settings seem dimmer than the actual and the higher settings seem brighter than the actual.)

I did the runtime testing with the setting 1 (brightest). Peter posted the runtime data with the setting 2.

Disclaimer: The runtime varies from unit to unit and the runtime graph above doesn't ensure your unit performs same. The variation of the runtime can be larger than other current regulated lights. See Peter's post for more information.

kj, your runtime graph is pretty nice. I can say from experience that it takes a bit of work to put one of those together.

I feel safe in saying that most people will get at least 20 minutes of Level 01 brightness from a 4+ unit and a good cell.

If you have the time, it would be nice to see a graph at level 4. For maximum use of each battery, I recommend that Arc4 owners set their Primary to a level between 3 to 7. Not all situations require full power and this will prolong your battery life.

Peter

kj, your posts are very useful and well made!
Thanks

kj,

I agree with Peter: I'd love to see you do runtime graphs of Level 3 and Level 4.

carmel

Ok, can someone be kind enough to describe "current regulated" and "power regulated" and what it means/does for those of us who are "engineering challenged"
Thnaks,
Ardy /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Ardy,

Go to http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB31&Number=439086&Forum=UBB31&Words=binned%20by%20efficiency&Match=Entire%20Phrase&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=2weeks&Main=437243&Search=true#Post439086

for the master's explanation.

carmel

Runtime of Level3 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Thank you kj, thats a great runtime graph. Very helpful to me.

[ QUOTE ]
kj said:
I took beamshots at various light levels at 1 foot ...


[/ QUOTE ]

kj, those beamshots are very interesting, nice work !
It seems that on the lower levels, there is almost no side spill.
Is this true or is it, as I assume, just the camera that is not able to show the side spill ? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thinking.gif

absolLite,

On my Arc4+, even level 16 has good spill (but obviously not very bright--we're certainly talking less than a lumen of output here). I'm sure the camera just can't pick it up.

carmel

belyo,
Great work. Your graph looks really good.

Very impressive that the Arc4 can last almost two hours at level 3, which is even brighter than an LSH. Can I assume there readings were at 1 meter?

SRue,
I don't remember correct length, but it's around 1.2 meters. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Peter,

Thank you for your comment. I agree the level 3 or 4 is fine for many applciations and I will do the runtime test with level 4 later since belyo has already done at level 3. I'm running out of Yuntong and Duracell batteries so I'll use SureFire or Sanyo. This may cause some inconsistencies in result, but I'm hoping this doesn't matter in general.

absoLite

carmel is correct. I could see the side spill always and my camera could not take it correctly. This is the main reason because I feel the lower settings in my beamshot are dimmer than the actual.

For your reference, here is a picture which I adjusted the gamma curve and made it gray 16 scales using Photoshop. You can confirm there is the side spill even in the level 16.

BTW, some might notice differences in the lux reading between my runtime chart and this chart I posted before. Possible reasons are:<ul type="square">[*]I removed the lens protector film when I did the runtime test.
[*]The lux meter (LM631) may pick up lights reflected from the floor, because I put the lux meter upside down in the runtime test so that the sensor is close to the floor.[/list]In any way, you should not rely on the lux reading so much since it can vary easily /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

KJ, what was the distance used for your level 1 test?