NEWB type of question - I know: Luxeon v. Xenon

OK - I am looking at the new line of PentagonLights as a possible "big" light to keep in the backpack and am realizing that I do NOT know the difference between the Xenon and Luxeon references.

I currently carry a Nuwai Qiii and LOVE it and am looking at it's big brother (or mother as some people have said) to add to the bag as the "big light." I am wanting a good quality and somewhat small light that is reasonably priced. (less that $80ish)

SO, I am looking at these two lines and really have discovered that I am ignorant when it coems to the "details" of a torch.

Your help is appreciated!

David

Night and day difference when it comes to technicalaties... The Luxeon is an LED source light while the Xenon is a type of incandescent bulb. Other than the fact that they both produce light, they have nothing in common!

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The Luxeons tend to produce a better beam quality IN GENERAL and that beam tends to be a better color again IN GENERAL. The Luxeon isn't prone to blowing if the light is dropped while turned on.

On the other hand, many Xenons are relatively white and with a good relfector, can give great beam quality. Factory lights with LEDs - even Luxeons - just cannot keep up with the better Xenon bulbs in terms of throw and output unless you start resorting to multiple Luxeon Vs in a single light.

Having said that, for a light to be left in a backpack that very well might receive more than it's share of bumps and knocks, a Luxeon III or Luxeon V light would be my general suggestion.

So, when looking at some of the newer lights that have either Xenon or Luxeon (Pentagonlights and Streamlight) are their advantages to one over the other?

"The Luxeons tend to produce a better beam quality IN GENERAL and that beam tends to be a better color again IN GENERAL."

I don't buy that at all. Luxeon and other led lights tend to be bluish. Incandescent light produced by a hot filament has less blue and alllows you to more accurately see all colors.

Luxeon Leds are semiconductor chips which emit light.

Xenon, Krypton are chemical elements, gases which they use to fill a glass incandescent bulb/lamp allowing it to run hotter and therefore brighter before eventually burning out.

The actuality is that some people prefer the color of LEDs while others prefer the color of well manufactured and driven incandescent bulbs.

Beam quality is more an issue of the reflector or optic used, and when optimized for the light source, both LEDs and incandescents produced very good beams.

I would defy anyone to say that the beam of the Surefire A2 is inferior to the beam of any LED. There may be differences on color of the beam, but not quality of the beam.

The major problem with LEDs has been that the Luxeon lottery has not allowed adequate selection of desired color.

Thus, the choice has been between an LED of unknown color, and an incandescent bulb which has a relatively well-known slightly yellow to whitish color.

If I had to choose between two identical lights, and knew that I would not have a second chance, I would probably choose the incandescent, knowing that I had a better chance of the color I could live with.

That said, Luxeon III's seem to have much better color consistency than previous iterations.

There are obvious advantages to LEDs so far as fragility is concerned, while the electronics used to run LEDs are generally not user repairable outside of CPF.

Is easy to change a light bulb, not near as easy to replace the driver and LED.

On CPF, the simple answer as always, is, "Buy Both"!!

Bill

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Sproles said:
So, when looking at some of the newer lights that have either Xenon or Luxeon (Pentagonlights and Streamlight) are their advantages to one over the other?

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Which is better, LEDs or Xenon? The answer is: it depends.

The big advantages of LEDs are:
- runtime
- regulation
- resistance to breakage

LEDs tend to run longer than incands. Most incand. lights aren't regulated, which means they dim continuously as you use them. The other issue with incand. lights, especially lithium cell powered lights, is that when they finally stop producing lights, it happens in a real hurry. (It's really disconcerting to be hiking and have this happen to your incand. light.) Regulated LEDs, on the other hand, produce constant light for a longer period of time, typically, and when they drop out of regulation, they tend to produce a fair amount of light for quite some time.

Xenon's tend to throw better than LEDs, especially in fog and smoke, and then tend to be more visible under bright ambient light, for example, looking in the shadows of a typical urban alleyway. (There are some regulated incandescent lights, by the way, but they aren't common.)

I use my lights mainly when I hike at night. The runtime and resilience to damage are enormous benefits for me in LED lights. I tend to use my lights continuously for one to three hours at a stretch. If my light fails, depending on where I am, I may be in real trouble. (In fact I carry a couple of lights if I'm out.)

On the other hand, a police officer in an urban setting might well decide that the lights I really like (my favorite's are a Surefire L6 and L2), really don't work well in his environment. In that setting, an incandescent with rechargeable batteries is likely to be a lot more useful.

So what do you want to do with the light mostly?What's more important to you, lighting up an area, or illuminating something as far away as possible? (Both are valid choices!) Will you use the light intermittantly or continuously for long periods? Will you use it nightly, or just on occasion?

There is no single answer as to which is better - it depends on what you are doing.

Mrbenchmark,
Thank you.
If more people could memember that conditions determine 'what it best', there would be fewer petty arguments over the issue.
I'll be adding this thread to my favorites (just for your post) for use in the future when such bickering occurs & we all know it will.

Theepdinker

GREAT responses. Let me address a few of the questions (which will hopefully help me find the "best light" for me in this situation.)


I am planning on having this light in my daily carry bag as a "wow, a big bright light is needed" when my Nuwai Qiii is not enough or a second light is needed. I would think that this would be -at night with car troubles, looking for someone or something lost, blackout situations when alot of run time might be needed, possibly even self defense situations when I am in fear of attack, etc and the BRIGHTNESS would be a helpful factor.

SO, no one situation is applicable, just alot of "what-if" scenarios. I hope that this list of possible applications will help you guys in helping me fiind the best "back up light" for my backpack. (BTW- the bag is VERY lightly carried from house to car and ack again - unless one of the above issues would arrive...then it would be ready to be used.)

Thank you SO much for you input!
David

Re: NEWB type of question - I know: Luxeon v. Xeno

Hmmmm... you may want a dual-level light; low-level for extended runtime and high-level when you want brightness. For example, a Surefire L2 might work out well for you. The low being rated at 15 lumens and the high is rated at 100 lumens. The most common "complaint" I have heard about the L2 is that it is a bit too long to comfortably EDC but if you will be keeping it in your backpack then it should not be a problem. You may also want to look into the Surefire A2 (low-level is LED which IIRC is rated at 3 lumens, high-level is an incan bulb which IIRC is rated at 50 lumens, both levels are regulated) or a Surefire L4 with the addition of a McE2S two-stage tailcap switch to make it into a dual-level light.

Each light I mentioned above have their own advantages and disadvantages. Keep posting your feedback regarding what you want or need the light the do and we can probably come up with some more suggestions.

[ QUOTE ]
theepdinker said:
Mrbenchmark,
Thank you.
If more people could memember that conditions determine 'what it best', there would be fewer petty arguments over the issue.

Theepdinker

[/ QUOTE ]

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif You should see the arguments astronomy types get into over "which telescope is best!" Whoo - and there you can have stuff that ranges in price from a few hundered dollars to tens of thousands...

Re: NEWB type of question - I know: Luxeon v. Xeno

I'll second the nomination for an L2 - it's a flood type beam, dual level. Low level is usually bright enough and it lasts quite a long time. The high beam is very bright. It's a wall of light. The L4 with a McE2S is a popular alternative. It's also dual level with the added switch, (although the low level isn't regulated.) The L4 takes rechargeable batteries, and is slightly shorter and more pocketable. The L2 is somewhat brighter. I've often thought that the L2 would be a very useful light to have if I had car trouble. (Some of the more throw oriented LEDs I often carry would really *suck* if I had to change a flat tire.)

I guess you could go the modified incandescent mag route and get a stupefyingly bright light. Don't some of the hotwire guys have hotrod mags that'll fry chickens? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Re: NEWB type of question - I know: Luxeon v. Xeno

OK- good thoughts on the dual level lights. Now, one more thing to throw into the mix...what lights out there do that which are NOT Surefires. Nothing against Surefirs, I am just on a quest for the "hidden treasures" of lights. Everyone thinks of SF first - maybe for good reason, but I am a new convert to the "non-SF" alternatives that provide EXCELLENT options for much less $$. I LOVE options like that in all things - lights included. I am the "off the beaten path" type of guy and like things that are slightly different and off-center. Make sense?

I don't want to to do things JUST to be different, but if I can find things that work as well (if not better) that are atypical in that relative world - GREAT, I'll go for it.

Hope this additional challenge helps you!

david

Re: NEWB type of question - I know: Luxeon v. Xeno

Hmmm... maybe a Streamlight Tasklight 2L Luxeon III? There is a thread in the LED forum comparing this light against the Surefire L1/L2.

Streamlight 3W tasklight vs SF L1/L2