What looks like it has more lumen?

scviper576

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Acebeam ec35 1200lm vs Streamlight Protac hl 750lm. I say they are the same the seller said the acebeam is brighter.
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protac hl
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ec35.
 

CelticCross74

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The Acebeam indeed has a higher lumen output at max. The Protac just has a wider deeper reflector designed more for throw thus concentrates its output into the hot spot making it seem brighter at max than the Acebeam. That specific Acebeam is a short range high output light specifically which means a larger hot spot and brighter spill. In other words the Acebeam is designed to spread out its output more evenly from hot spot to spill the majority of it's output is NOT designed to put out the more traditional throw oriented beam like the Streamlight.

Compare the two lights again this time look at the pretty visible difference in how bright the spill is between the two...
 

emarkd

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Our eyes are really pretty terrible at judging this stuff, even in real life. Making any sort of useful determination from pictures on a forum are even less likely. Things like confusing lumens with candela are common mistakes people make. Also like the commenter above said its easy to focus on the "hotspot" brightness (ie: candela) and ignore now much light output is going into the spill, where things like emission angle come into play. So instead of arguing over which is objectively brighter, which is something you'd need testing gear to determine with any authority, just use the one that meets your needs and don't worry about the numbers printed on the box.
 

milehigher

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I own several streamlight pro tacs HL they have not disappointed me or left me in the dark yet!
 

scs

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Do a ceiling bounce test as a quick check. Position the lights as low as possible and keep the beams unobstructed. That acebeam light has been reviewed on here and its output measured by the way.
 

richbuff

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Do a ceiling bounce test as a quick check. Position the lights as low as possible and keep the beams unobstructed. That acebeam light has been reviewed on here and its output measured by the way.
That is how I measure perceived relative luminosity. Small white room, such as a bathroom, works well. Turn on the lower powered light first, then the next most powerful light.

Additionally, there is a restaurant in the historic district in my town, with a tin ceiling. This provides for interesting ceiling bounce when using high performance flashlights.
 

Fireclaw18

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I do ceiling bounce comparisons like this:

Hold one light in each hand. Raise them over your head and point them at the ceiling. For best results, try using a small room with a light-colored ceiling like a bathroom.

Tilt your head down and look at an object on the floor near your feet. The lights and their hotspots should not be in your field of view at all during this test. To measure lumens you're only looking at indirect light that is reflecting off objects from around the room.

Then turn on one light while looking at the object on the ground. Turn it off and immediately turn on the other light. Compare which makes the object at your feet look brighter.

If you're looking directly at the hotspots during your comparison, you're not measuring lumens, you're comparing lux (throw). Very floody lights with dim wide hotspots can have far more lumens, while very focused lights with narrow but very intense hotspots may have more lux.
 

jon_slider

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Fireclaw18

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The idea with a ceiling bounce is to turn your room into a rough integrating sphere that only looks at the indirectly reflected light... not the hotspot. That's why in a ceiling bounce test you do not look at the hotspot.
 
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