Trek 1900 Vs. LIGHTWAVE 4000
- Thread starter Doug
- Start date
Help Support Candle Power Flashlight Forum
Unabomber
Newly Enlightened
I have a 4000 and someone else on the ship has the 1900. I have seen both in a side by side comparison with new alkaline batteries. The 4000 has a slightly blueish tint compared to the 1900 and that makes for a hard comparison. In my opinion, the 4000 is brighter to the eye, though a light meter may say different. The biggest factors are the cost and the battery life, which the Lightwave wins easily. The Lightwave also puts out more of a spotlight appearance than the 1900. They are really close when it comes to light output, so your real questions are of overall size, the 4k is a bruiser, cost, and duration you are looking for. I think the Lightwave beats all just on cost and construction alone. My opinion though.
The_LED_Museum
*Retired*
If you would have asked me a week ago, I could have compared them under various conditions and photographed the beams.
But my LW4000 was a loaner, and is now back in the hands of its original owner.
Brock, do you have one to compare to your 1900?
But my LW4000 was a loaner, and is now back in the hands of its original owner.
Brock, do you have one to compare to your 1900?
Brock
Flashaholic
I don't have the 4000 anymore, but by my readings and my visual inspections the 1900 is a winner hands down. The 1400 is actually even a bit brighter then the 4000. The 4000 is quite a bit more blue then the expedition line. It is hard to say as to which to get due to the hi price of the expedition line.
WarrenI
Newly Enlightened
I would think that the more LEDs would give the light a larger area to throw it's beam. Therefore, I would think that the Trek 1900 & 1400 should product a larger area of light then the LW4000. If you take the product of this large area into account, it should be a lot of light. At 19 & 14 LEDs, it should give the 3Cs a challenge with burning at full brightness for more than several hours.
I own a LW4000 and just love it. I needed something really bright and rugged, which could burn at full brightness for days at a time without battery changes. I found that Jake picked one up while I was still deciding on one and loved it brightness. I liked the price (got mines for $50) and I especially like the idea that it does not have an aluminum body. I like the rubber coated plastic body as it is not conductive to electricity. Don't get me wrong, this thing is rugged as it has fallen onto solid concrete patio floors from the top of 6 feet ladders. Sometimes the light was on while it dropped (very dazzling display as it dropped).
The biggest comments I hear about any LED lights, is that some people are not impressed about their throw of the light. LEDs do not have the light throw of incandescent counterparts, but it does give a great area of light. If you love to have the throw of light reach out far, then you may want to avoid LEDs and stick to some good (SureFire) or decent (MagLight) incandescent lights. My LW4000 will light a distance of about 40 feet with almost everything in front of it being lit up like daylight. Most incandescent lights will give you a bright beam of about 3 feet in diameter at 40 feet. If you zoom outwards, you will get quite a bit of "rings". Not very even lighting!
If you are new to LED lights, I posted something in the "New Stuff" forum that you may want to review. As this was just my opinions and observations, I was trying to find the reason why LED lights should exist. They should offer something more and different than the older incandescent lights. As in the saying "Eye of the Tiger", I am trying to keep focused of what makes me love LED lights and why I think it makes sense for everyone to own one.
I own a LW4000 and just love it. I needed something really bright and rugged, which could burn at full brightness for days at a time without battery changes. I found that Jake picked one up while I was still deciding on one and loved it brightness. I liked the price (got mines for $50) and I especially like the idea that it does not have an aluminum body. I like the rubber coated plastic body as it is not conductive to electricity. Don't get me wrong, this thing is rugged as it has fallen onto solid concrete patio floors from the top of 6 feet ladders. Sometimes the light was on while it dropped (very dazzling display as it dropped).
The biggest comments I hear about any LED lights, is that some people are not impressed about their throw of the light. LEDs do not have the light throw of incandescent counterparts, but it does give a great area of light. If you love to have the throw of light reach out far, then you may want to avoid LEDs and stick to some good (SureFire) or decent (MagLight) incandescent lights. My LW4000 will light a distance of about 40 feet with almost everything in front of it being lit up like daylight. Most incandescent lights will give you a bright beam of about 3 feet in diameter at 40 feet. If you zoom outwards, you will get quite a bit of "rings". Not very even lighting!
If you are new to LED lights, I posted something in the "New Stuff" forum that you may want to review. As this was just my opinions and observations, I was trying to find the reason why LED lights should exist. They should offer something more and different than the older incandescent lights. As in the saying "Eye of the Tiger", I am trying to keep focused of what makes me love LED lights and why I think it makes sense for everyone to own one.
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by WarrenI:
....with burning at full brightness for more than several hours.
I needed something really bright and rugged, which could burn at full brightness for days at a time without battery changes.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
These lights do by far not burn at full brightness for hours or days. (OK, it depends on how you define 'full brightness'). Actually they start to go down from the first moment. Because they overrate the leds in the first time (dropping efficiency) this may be not that visible without instruments.
I, for my own, do not look at unregulated LED lights as something serious. They have their place at the cost conscious market, OK, but not for people who need a 'real' lightsource.
....with burning at full brightness for more than several hours.
I needed something really bright and rugged, which could burn at full brightness for days at a time without battery changes.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
These lights do by far not burn at full brightness for hours or days. (OK, it depends on how you define 'full brightness'). Actually they start to go down from the first moment. Because they overrate the leds in the first time (dropping efficiency) this may be not that visible without instruments.
I, for my own, do not look at unregulated LED lights as something serious. They have their place at the cost conscious market, OK, but not for people who need a 'real' lightsource.
WarrenI
Newly Enlightened
I hear you and yes, you are very right! The problem I have found all LED flashlights is that they do not hold full (within several percentace points) brightness for more than a hour or two. I own an Arc-AAA which is regulated, but it still drops in brightness within the "sun" mode. But, the drop is not huge, but it seems to be more than 20%. Hours after, it will switch to "moon" mode which is my guess that it's somewhere about 25% (uneducated), but I goes down to zero from there.
As for the Trek 1400 & 1900 comparison to the LW4000, I think all that matters if you are willing to pay two to three times more for a light that is only clinically obseravable to be brighter. They are all unregulated (I think only resistors).
Please help me find an absolute "sun" & "moon" mode light that does not reduce any percentage of light within each mode. This is my quest. Thanks much for the feedback!
As for the Trek 1400 & 1900 comparison to the LW4000, I think all that matters if you are willing to pay two to three times more for a light that is only clinically obseravable to be brighter. They are all unregulated (I think only resistors).
Please help me find an absolute "sun" & "moon" mode light that does not reduce any percentage of light within each mode. This is my quest. Thanks much for the feedback!
Brock
Flashaholic
As far as I know the only commonly avaiable light that is fully regulated it the Light Canon HID. It is suppose to maintain voltage and amperage to the lamp under a wide battery range. Can anyone who has one confirm this in real use? It is one of the reasons I really want to get that light. Now that I think about it isn't the HDS Action light suppose to also use a true regulated supply, at least until the batteries fall below a certain level.
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Brock:
Now that I think about it isn't the HDS Action light suppose to also use a true regulated supply, at least until the batteries fall below a certain level.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I believe you're right, but have they caught up with their back-orders yet? Last I heard, there was a three-millennium waiting list. (Okay, there's some exaggeration for the sake of emphasis, but you get the point.)
Now that I think about it isn't the HDS Action light suppose to also use a true regulated supply, at least until the batteries fall below a certain level.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I believe you're right, but have they caught up with their back-orders yet? Last I heard, there was a three-millennium waiting list. (Okay, there's some exaggeration for the sake of emphasis, but you get the point.)
D
**DONOTDELETE**
Guest
Brock, are you sure that the UK LC's ballast is regulated? The only low-power HID ballasts that I know of, made by Welch Allyn, do not use regulation of any kind
WarrenI
Newly Enlightened
Thanks a million everyone for the feedbacks. I'm going to watch this thread as I think there is something out here for me. I only hope that it puts out a decent amount of light and that I can afford it. I feel like a lion that is keep watch of it's prey, and just ready to jump in for the kill.
This is one of the big reasons why I like the Arc-AAA, as it is regulated to a resonable degree, it uses cheap power source, and the light is affordable. I only wish there was something like this in a multi LED light.
Yes, I'm bias to multi LEDs as opposed to a single bright LED. It's claimed that LEDs are supposed to last 11 years, but I've seen more than a few to start flickering or grow very dim. I hate to be in the middle of my task and have my single LED start to play a number on me. My Arc-AAA is my general purpose light (because it fit anywhere), but if I need to do some serious area lighting, out comes my LW4000. If one of it's LEDs were to go on me, I still have 9 more to go. I just have to tolerate the slight dimming effect, but it's not too bad for several days of running at least 4 hours per night (no battery changes). I have about 60 hours of intermittent run time on first set of Copper Tops, and my LW4000 is still bright. To not disappoint myself, I have not changed the batteries to see how much light I have lost. I would think it has lost between 20-30% of it's brightness. But, it works for me and I'll cross that bridge when I lose my lighting upwards to 50 feet. For $50, this does the job.
I do admit, having a fully regulated light does stir my interest and I'll keep reading to see what you folk can come up with.
As an observation, can the DC step-up inverter keep up with the stated 11 year life of the LED? A case in point, my four month old CMG Infinity is in the shop with an inverter problem. CMG said that the LED was OK, but the inverter went bad. No need to answer, but something to think about...
This is one of the big reasons why I like the Arc-AAA, as it is regulated to a resonable degree, it uses cheap power source, and the light is affordable. I only wish there was something like this in a multi LED light.
Yes, I'm bias to multi LEDs as opposed to a single bright LED. It's claimed that LEDs are supposed to last 11 years, but I've seen more than a few to start flickering or grow very dim. I hate to be in the middle of my task and have my single LED start to play a number on me. My Arc-AAA is my general purpose light (because it fit anywhere), but if I need to do some serious area lighting, out comes my LW4000. If one of it's LEDs were to go on me, I still have 9 more to go. I just have to tolerate the slight dimming effect, but it's not too bad for several days of running at least 4 hours per night (no battery changes). I have about 60 hours of intermittent run time on first set of Copper Tops, and my LW4000 is still bright. To not disappoint myself, I have not changed the batteries to see how much light I have lost. I would think it has lost between 20-30% of it's brightness. But, it works for me and I'll cross that bridge when I lose my lighting upwards to 50 feet. For $50, this does the job.
I do admit, having a fully regulated light does stir my interest and I'll keep reading to see what you folk can come up with.
As an observation, can the DC step-up inverter keep up with the stated 11 year life of the LED? A case in point, my four month old CMG Infinity is in the shop with an inverter problem. CMG said that the LED was OK, but the inverter went bad. No need to answer, but something to think about...
well I've had my infinity for 3 or 4 months and no problems. i've dropped it on concrete, tossed it down the stairs and the person that was suspose to catch it missed...still works just fine. im not to worried if one of my flashlights go out at home, i only have 8 more. i try to keep my lights to run off aa or aaa batteries. they would be much easier to get in an emergency and if you were really paranoid you could get a solar charger and some nimh cells. as many of the other people here im for brightness now and long run time comes in as a second. i would think the inverter could last as long or longer than the led. doesn't the eternalight have a regulated output? on lithiums its suspose to last like 700 hours on low power i think. it looks like a good light but the plastic body of the light and all the fancy electronics look like it could break easy if you dropped it. the arc aaa will be my keychain light once i get it back and I will probly use that for most tasks. as for a bright light xenon bulbs seem to do quite a bit better than led's.
Brock
Flashaholic
mad_scientist I read somewhere that they were regulated, and that they just shutdown when the battery power gets to low. Shelby, or anyone with a LC does it dim as it is used? Maybe it is a similar setup to the welch allen or the more common Arc AAA setup. Just makes sure the supply is "hi enough". I really wish we knew for sure. Again I would buy one but I just bought a new digital SLR camera so....
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by WarrenI:
The biggest comments I hear about any LED lights, is that some people are not impressed about their throw of the light. LEDs do not have the light throw of incandescent counterparts, but it does give a great area of light.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'm not 100% shure what you mean with 'throw', but I can tell you that many people where impressed that my LED lights can light up objects much farther away than people expected from it's brightness.
The biggest comments I hear about any LED lights, is that some people are not impressed about their throw of the light. LEDs do not have the light throw of incandescent counterparts, but it does give a great area of light.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'm not 100% shure what you mean with 'throw', but I can tell you that many people where impressed that my LED lights can light up objects much farther away than people expected from it's brightness.
What the heck is "LuxBrites"? Where can I see one? Thanks.
Doug
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PeLu:
As mentioned somewhere else, I also think that the Light Cannon uses the 'usual' WA 10W HID unit. And this one is not regulated (but I will get mine soon).
And The ActionLight is completely regulated. The first versions had an unregulated 'low' mode, the newer ones have all 5 levels completely regulated. If battery voltage is above a certain level (2.5V), all modes work. The lower modes work down to the shutdown voltage (may be as low as 0.6V).
I just got another 10 LuxBrites: These ones are also completely regulated, although they may go down slightly from two completely new Li AA cells to almost empty alkalines.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Doug
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PeLu:
As mentioned somewhere else, I also think that the Light Cannon uses the 'usual' WA 10W HID unit. And this one is not regulated (but I will get mine soon).
And The ActionLight is completely regulated. The first versions had an unregulated 'low' mode, the newer ones have all 5 levels completely regulated. If battery voltage is above a certain level (2.5V), all modes work. The lower modes work down to the shutdown voltage (may be as low as 0.6V).
I just got another 10 LuxBrites: These ones are also completely regulated, although they may go down slightly from two completely new Li AA cells to almost empty alkalines.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Brock:
As far as I know the only commonly avaiable light that is fully regulated it the Light Canon HID.
...
Now that I think about it isn't the HDS Action light suppose to also use a true regulated supply, at least until the batteries fall below a certain level.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
As mentioned somewhere else, I also think that the Light Cannon uses the 'usual' WA 10W HID unit. And this one is not regulated (but I will get mine soon).
And The ActionLight is completely regulated. The first versions had an unregulated 'low' mode, the newer ones have all 5 levels completely regulated. If battery voltage is above a certain level (2.5V), all modes work. The lower modes work down to the shutdown voltage (may be as low as 0.6V).
I just got another 10 LuxBrites: These ones are also completely regulated, although they may go down slightly from two completely new Li AA cells to almost empty alkalines.
As far as I know the only commonly avaiable light that is fully regulated it the Light Canon HID.
...
Now that I think about it isn't the HDS Action light suppose to also use a true regulated supply, at least until the batteries fall below a certain level.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
As mentioned somewhere else, I also think that the Light Cannon uses the 'usual' WA 10W HID unit. And this one is not regulated (but I will get mine soon).
And The ActionLight is completely regulated. The first versions had an unregulated 'low' mode, the newer ones have all 5 levels completely regulated. If battery voltage is above a certain level (2.5V), all modes work. The lower modes work down to the shutdown voltage (may be as low as 0.6V).
I just got another 10 LuxBrites: These ones are also completely regulated, although they may go down slightly from two completely new Li AA cells to almost empty alkalines.
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by mrchri5:
well I've had my infinity for 3 or 4 months and no problems. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have my second Infinity now for a while. The first one just quit working after a few hours. No misuse, just kept in in my pocket.
well I've had my infinity for 3 or 4 months and no problems. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have my second Infinity now for a while. The first one just quit working after a few hours. No misuse, just kept in in my pocket.
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Doug:
What the heck is "LuxBrites"? Where can I see one? Thanks.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
http://www.luxbrite.co.uk/
What the heck is "LuxBrites"? Where can I see one? Thanks.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
http://www.luxbrite.co.uk/
PeLu
Flashlight Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Doug:
Ok... cool, but, who sells them, and how much do they sell for? Thanks.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
As mentioned on the Website, go to
http://www.berniescafe.co.uk
and call or write them. Don't wonder, they don't have it on their online cataloque.
Prize should be around $70 (including sales tax, maybe you get it without). Shipping is pretty inexpensive.
Ok... cool, but, who sells them, and how much do they sell for? Thanks.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
As mentioned on the Website, go to
http://www.berniescafe.co.uk
and call or write them. Don't wonder, they don't have it on their online cataloque.
Prize should be around $70 (including sales tax, maybe you get it without). Shipping is pretty inexpensive.
