Budeget Nichia?

So far i love my flashlight hobby. I love my high quality budget lights that amaze everyone who has no idea about pro flashlights.

Just yesterday i was browsing through the forums when it striked me. I DONT HAVE ANY NICHIA!
Theres hardly any thread not containing the word nichia.

I have learnt cinematography at school and remember measuring color temperatures and similar problems so i do understand it quite well... yet i still dont have any "perfect white" high CRI flashlight.

Funny thing is, some sources say middle of white is 4500K and some 5500K (we learnt at school that eyes can adapt and that white is defined from 4100 to 5000K, at least thats what i think, it might have been one thousand more, internet got me all confused afterwards)

For comparison so far the best light i have is the BLF A6 3D 5000K tint - after i bought a second one i noticed it was just SLIGHTY whiter and the color rendering was a little better, it might have been a LED variation OR the glass variation, since both of them reflected my kitchen bulb in a slightly different color of pink.
(also one had a spring bypass and the whiter one didnt)



Im asking you to help me get a budget nichia.

I am totally willing to solder, its fun. (as long as its cheap)
I Was thinking about modding a Lumintop Tool and getting a nice color + more power if possible (guide me?)

Or maybe a budget nichia flashlight thats already made?

Id prefer smaller flashlights but up to 18650 is still fine. NO TWISTIES, i cant stand those. I am from europe, consider that when suggesting deals from USA with huge shipping prices. under 20$ would be nice, but quality is important

Thank you guys

Why no Twisty love? Just curious.
Other first thought, is that BLF A6 you have should have a wonderful tint. I have several Nichia 219A & B lights that the BLF (TO ME) has a better tint. I think you may be hard pressed to beat what you have in the A6 in the $20 zone, just saying.

But....... if you must have a NICHIA::::::
My first thought for a recommendation is a twisty! lol Just take a look, ok? Astrolux A01 Nichia 219B. It is a $10 twisty full of warm fun. Throw it on the keychain, tuck it in your coin pocket, carry as a back up, impress the ladies or shame the lightless men with it. You will be the envy of the town with your Astrolux.
Other ideas:
BLF Stainless Steel AAA clicky. Killer light and value @ under $10!, if you can find one. 348 Nichia NVSW219BT - V1
Lumitop IYP365
JAXMAN E2 18650 EDC light. Great budget rig for $16 or so bucks. I have gifted a few. Only irritating part (to me) is 5 modes. Otherwise, great light.
How about a, Budget Blower that I think is a insane value: Manker E14. Why not get 4 Nichia leds for $50? It is a Hand Warming Wall of Warm Light!


BTW: There are several different types of "Nichia" leds. So pay close attention and read up. As you may have learned, there are different tint bins too, CRI 70, 80, 85, 90+. Also, watch out for the Nichia UV! A buddy of mine, who is new to lights, ordered his first Nichia light. Much to his surprise it is like a black light! lol
I don't know where you should buy, I am spoiled in the US. hehe

At the end of the day, led TINT seems to be a very personal thing. To each is own. I suggest trying them all to find what works for you, or your tasks at hand. Have fun.

Little more than $20 but the astolux s41 with 4x nichia 219B may be worth a look. 18350 form and options of an 18650 tube for more runtime(and output).

Str8stroke said:

Why no Twisty love? Just curious.
Other first thought, is that BLF A6 you have should have a wonderful tint. I have several Nichia 219A & B lights that the BLF (TO ME) has a better tint. I think you may be hard pressed to beat what you have in the A6 in the $20 zone, just saying.

But....... if you must have a NICHIA::::::
My first thought for a recommendation is a twisty! lol Just take a look, ok? Astrolux A01 Nichia 219B. It is a $10 twisty full of warm fun. Throw it on the keychain, tuck it in your coin pocket, carry as a back up, impress the ladies or shame the lightless men with it. You will be the envy of the town with your Astrolux.
Other ideas:
BLF Stainless Steel AAA clicky. Killer light and value @ under $10!, if you can find one. 348 Nichia NVSW219BT - V1
Lumitop IYP365
JAXMAN E2 18650 EDC light. Great budget rig for $16 or so bucks. I have gifted a few. Only irritating part (to me) is 5 modes. Otherwise, great light.
How about a, Budget Blower that I think is a insane value: Manker E14. Why not get 4 Nichia leds for $50? It is a Hand Warming Wall of Warm Light!


BTW: There are several different types of "Nichia" leds. So pay close attention and read up. As you may have learned, there are different tint bins too, CRI 70, 80, 85, 90+. Also, watch out for the Nichia UV! A buddy of mine, who is new to lights, ordered his first Nichia light. Much to his surprise it is like a black light! lol
I don't know where you should buy, I am spoiled in the US. hehe

At the end of the day, led TINT seems to be a very personal thing. To each is own. I suggest trying them all to find what works for you, or your tasks at hand. Have fun.

Click to expand...

I like the BLF A6 tints very much but everyone praises nichias so much... Of course id love to get the best of the nichias with the highest CRI I guess i still need more information.

To answer the other question, ive never had a reliable twisty light. have an expensive eagletac - it has trouble, have a thrunite Ti3, it has trouble too. Mostly dirt or the fact that using it slowly unscrews the insides little by little until its not working properly anymore. no matter how much i tighten it. It justs needs too much care for me to give it to someone who has no idea about electronics or for me to deal with. Especially for an EDC.

Thats a lot of flashlight suggestions, i have to check on them and the LEDS and find out which one is the closest to perfect white.
I should mention i like using flashlights for Macro photography.

Oh yeah i have the nichia UV (i didnt count that ) i actually love it, best UV light i have seen.

i think the Nichia NVSW219BT - V1 is the light mentioned in another forum that got me in here, sadly its out of stock (and i guess thats very often the case?) i would buy that without a doubt if shipping was free as well.

Jaxman i dont like, seems underpowered and it starts on High. Its like a different convoy. Would rather have the fun changing LEDs in something else

Just wanted to mention one more thing about twisties - modes, you not only need to twist it but you need to twist it several times to get a usable mode (looking at you Ti3) not sure how the astrolux compares but they seem very similar

L3 Illumination from SBflashlights is pretty budget. 3 Modes, single AA. Twisty tough

You can really go in a million directions with this one. Starting off a 5700k nichia 219b would very closely mimic daylight balanced light sources as that is the approximate color temp of noon day sun, find out take depending where you are the world. In the world of photography, this color temp the same as flash gun or strobe. In the videography world this it the same an HMO lamp.

You can buy a jaxman e2 with this and just swap the driver which is easy. Or you can build a light with a convoy s2+ body and even go as far as a triple nichia 5700k but that would exceed $20.

Back to the world of color temps. Halogen and incan bulbs are about 3200k and there is a nichia at 3500k but this is rare to find.

Most nichia is common in 4000k,4500k and 5000k. And since you are familiar with color temps you can imagine how they compare. These three color temps are what you will find the vast majority of premade lights to be. You can recognize color temp buy nichia's convention of sw40, sw45, and sw50. 5700k is sw57.

static, great idea, but I don't think he is into electronics. He said he doesn't like cleaning a twisty. So doubtful he would want to tackle a driver swap. Hence why I mentioned the Five mode driver. I don't usually recommend them to new folks cause of the cheap drivers.

tigfur, just curious: what Eagletac have you had problems with? D25 series? They are prone to dirty threads, but easy to care for and a fun Clicky/twisty! One of my favorite lights. I was able to grab a few of the Nichia V-1's. They are handy lights with a wonderful tint. Not sure if or when they will have more, shoot GB a message and ask. But, they are hard to find.
Or you could be like me and be on the hunt for the elusive HDS 4K. That is amazing light! Tad over your budget, but still.

The second to last full paragraph said he was willing to solder which is why I recommended what i did

staticx57 said:

The second to last full paragraph said he was willing to solder which is why I recommended what i did

Click to expand...

ah ha! I missed that. lol Then you have the best idea. A quality driver would fix that light right up.

staticx57 said:

You can really go in a million directions with this one. Starting off a 5700k nichia 219b would very closely mimic daylight balanced light sources as that is the approximate color temp of noon day sun, find out take depending where you are the world. In the world of photography, this color temp the same as flash gun or strobe. In the videography world this it the same an HMO lamp.

You can buy a jaxman e2 with this and just swap the driver which is easy. Or you can build a light with a convoy s2+ body and even go as far as a triple nichia 5700k but that would exceed $20.

Back to the world of color temps. Halogen and incan bulbs are about 3200k and there is a nichia at 3500k but this is rare to find.

Most nichia is common in 4000k,4500k and 5000k. And since you are familiar with color temps you can imagine how they compare. These three color temps are what you will find the vast majority of premade lights to be. You can recognize color temp buy nichia's convention of sw40, sw45, and sw50. 5700k is sw57.

Click to expand...

VERY informative, thank you! so what im looking for is the sw57 nichia. Convoy hosts are relatively cheap, the question is what the LED and the drivers cost. That or the jaxman driver swap sounds like an interesting project. driver swap is just two cables, shouldnt be too difficult. What kind of driver would you recommend and what results could i expect? still would like to keep the prices low as possible.
Perhaps just changing the LED and maybe driver in the lumintop tool? I like that host. there really are a million options.

and for str8stroke - Having fun time soldering ONCE is good, having to clean the twisties every week is annoying, mainly because they always fail when you least need it.
The eagletac i have is a P20A2, tactical double AA light where the twist changes modes, not essential but annoying when not working. (it was my first pro flashlight) Its a good light and is still working well (i do take care of it) but i dont trust it too much anymore.

Oh and a five mode driver? HA! I EDC a BLF A6 with 7 modes and love it. i just dont like when flashlights start on MAX and blind me (which is another big reason i gave the P20A2 up, but thats a tac light and has its purpose)

Kaidomain triple Nichia DTP board and optics here for less than 8 bucks

http://www.kaidomain.com/p/S026302....ter-with-20mm-x-1mm-DTP-Copper-MCPCB-w-optics

then build it in a convoy S2+ sanding down the original pill

http://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_44144.html?wid=21

the triple optics are a bit thinner than the original reflector
so if you use unprotected cells you may need to stack some brass pills to the spring to get contact
When adding a brass pill to a spring you can do a spring bypass as well
http://www.kaidomain.com/p/S024531.5mm-D-x-2mm-H-Brass-Pill-5-pcs


http://www.kaidomain.com/p/S024531.5mm-D-x-2mm-H-Brass-Pill-5-pcs
I do those pills on my unprotected cells for compatibility


e voila you got a triple Nichia CRI93 Convoy S2+ for 20 bucks

Looks do-able, definately an option. Not as perfect as the V1 for under 10$ though, damn i wish it was availible! hey wait, thats a convoy for 12$ and thats not just a host but actual working flashlight? thats a good deal. So you mean to keep the convoys driver and use the triple nichia LEDS instead?

im a little confused about hte sanding of the pill, didnt you say its thinner? well i would figure that out

EDIT: perharps this is a good opportunity to ask this question, do the convoys have a discharge protection? I have the nichia UV light version and i gave it to a friend together with an unprotected cell and im not sure if it was a good idea. (i made a separate thread for it but its not nearly as popular as this one)

I like my Lumintop IYP365, but the Tool is also available in Nichia 219B as well. The BLF 348 with the Nichia emitter is only available at BangGood. Your choice whether or not to use them. Mountain Electronics is the place to go if you are looking to roll your own. The also sell a really nice P60 drop in that you can order with the Nichea emitter. I have mine in an incan G2 I got off of Ebay, but they also some some Convoy bodies to use as a host.

Once you go Nichea, you'll never go back! [To paraphrase a well know saying I wouldn't dare repeat here!]

That link is the whole light with driver

the Convoy Pill is for 16mm boards and you need 20mm for the triple.

The Pill has over 20mm diameter, but there is a ring around fitting the 16mm board about 1.5mm high
you need to sand that ring down to the surface where the 16mm board sits on

If you have an BLF A6, you can get that same driver at Banggood for under $10

The blf-348 has a nice tint, not too warm, but is one mode. What user interface would you prefer? How are you going to use it? The Nitecore TIP CRI has a very natural daylight tint, and a handy UI. It can be procured from China if that offers cheaper shipping.

http://m.sekonic.com/united-states/products/colormeters/c-700-u.aspx

The link is not meant as a comercial endorsement for the light meter featured, but to provide a path to the video it includes.
See LED technology is still struggling with correct color rendition. Now it's certainly a lot better than it used to be. The video points out where the cinematography industry is leading the way at modernizing the CRI scale to provide the everyday user the extra details not included in the 'old CRI' methods that were based around light bulbs.

It's all about the fleshtones. And there are lights that provide pretty good fleshtones. But many that tout high CRI values are using the old way show those values when they are actually well short of achieving some of the values that are now added to the scale.
Some of the cool tints that lean towards neutral actually do as well or better than some of those touted as high CRI.

Meanwhile some are tweaking Nichias better than others. So just because it has a 219B does not guarentee an accurate CRI.

Now as a photographer one of the things learned early on is noon day sun is not always your friend at playing nice with digital sensors. Actually mid morning and afternoon sunlight are much more friendly to the sensor. And that is the direction the CRI numbers for LED is heading.

Just sayin'.

KITROBASKIN said:

The blf-348 has a nice tint, not too warm, but is one mode. What user interface would you prefer? How are you going to use it? The Nitecore TIP CRI has a very natural daylight tint, and a handy UI. It can be procured from China if that offers cheaper shipping.

Click to expand...

There are many ifs
i would like a small edc light (overpowered lumintop tool sized clicky with a high CRI)

If not i would at least like to see what the nichia is like and have it for photography or checking colors of wood and laminates at work. Im using the BLF A6 for that now and for my edc but ill replace it with something smaller as soon as the temperatures outside make me change my pants.
for that i dont mind any modes as long as it never blinds me (not starting at max, preferably starting at moon) or never get in the way (accidentally turning max on or strobe) best UI i have tried was the TN36 that has direct access to everything at all times (moon max, middle and strobe)
i also prefer a single button operation.

If not i would go for a fool-proof clicky and would give that to my mother as a present - the requirements are pretty much the opposite. No modes or very simple ones, starting on high (if its not a mode that will heat up too much) or double button mode changing but i doubt she would deal with that.

So basically im fine with a lot of modes, ill find a use for them.
no twisting

Nitecore TIP is over my budget

I like the Jaxman E2. 16 dollars 18650 tube flashlight, with a reverse clicky that starts on low. I remember Jaxman saying at checkout you can request the driver variant without the blinky modes. A reverse clickly that goes from low-mid-high then cycles back down again is pretty ideal.

The Jaxman E2 comes in two CCT, 5700k, and 4000k. Maukka measured the hotspot of the 5700, variety to be around 5400k. I think of all the high CRI lights I have, this one does the best job at rendering skin tones.

It is 2nd from left in this picture, while there's a 4500k Nichia 219B 2nd from right, and an easywhite XML2 at far right. (Sunlight white balance)





As far as what subjectively looks like a white, I say anything from 4000k to 6000k can appear white to the eye, as long as the eye is adapted to it. Anything under 4000k always looks too yellow to me, and anything above 6000k always looks too blue to me.