Acebeam K30GTvn

[Patriot]

Yes, these are good questions. I'm guessing that picking the right cells for this light could be important if one plans on pushing it hard. I did place a K30GTvn order and since I only know how much specification current the LED can pull but not what the light demands, I just asked Vinh to pick the appropriate cells for me. I don't know if that's VTC5Ds or a LG MJ1s or Acebeam 20A cells. Acebeam, of course uses there 20A cells but I don't know if that's because it works best in most situations or if that's their go-to, high draw cell.

edit: wording

 

[Glenn7]

As everyone is chasing the highest lumens/output (and of course reliabililty) higher drain cells like the VTC5 will give higher output but at higher heat problems too, I'm hoping for more than 1 min to stepdown.

 

[Patriot]

If the thermal parameters are set properly with their "Intelligent temperature controller" and the heat sinking path is squared away, this light should be able to hold on for at least a minute. I was a bit annoyed to hear about how the K75's thermal path was designed but that's why we buy lights from Vinh because when possible, he finds solutions for poor engineering. The K30GT has a decent amount of aluminum mass, based on the weights I'm seeing and it weighs more than all of my medium sized multi-emmiters. So, if the thermal path is solid and temperature controller isn't stupid-conservative, I think it will hold high output for an "acceptable" time. Whatever that means...haha!

Gee, I wonder if the thermal regulation can be disabled? I know on some older lights, it just required the de-soldering of a wire. That's probably all changed now.

 

[scintillator]

Vinh that Acebeam K30GTvn Night Beam Shot video is awesome.
Lightsaber is the first thing that comes to mind love it.

 

[Skylumen]

Vinh that Acebeam K30GTvn Night Beam Shot video is awesome.
Lightsaber is the first thing that comes to mind love it.

Acebeam, Olight, Emisar/Noctigon is really killing it!
Klarus, Manker, Fenix, Thrunite... has some catching up to do.
Other budget brands such as Mateminco and fireflies are actually setting the standards for innovation and performance. Their quality is not quite there but you already got more than what you paid for.
Imalent is the odd one out...Interesting to see what they come up with next.
I never knew I would get into such an aggressive ever evolving world of lights.

 

[Patriot]

I never knew I would get into such an aggressive ever evolving world of lights.

What a great time to be be involved in the industry, doing what you're doing. It's pretty amazing, really!

 

[b8llzblue]

Acebeam, Olight, Emisar/Noctigon is really killing it!
Klarus, Manker, Fenix, Thrunite... has some catching up to do.
Other budget brands such as Mateminco and fireflies are actually setting the standards for innovation and performance. Their quality is not quite there but you already got more than what you paid for.
Imalent is the odd one out...Interesting to see what they come up with next.
I never knew I would get into such an aggressive ever evolving world of lights.

Nitecore release yet another great tactical light!
https://flashlight.nitecore.com/product/i4000r

 

[hahoo]

how long till step down, and how far does she step?

 

[Patriot]

I received my K30GTvn and it's AB's typical, high quality. It probably has a bit more text/print than I like but I'm very familiar with how AB does things and it's what I was expecting.

It's lighter than I thought it would be. In fact, when I took it out of the box, I thought... "oh man! I think Vinh forgot the 3 cells that I ordered." It turns out they were already in the light. 459grams or just a hair over a pound with 3 x VTC5D's.

People were asking about step down. I've run it 3 times on "turbo" this evening, for 60sec, 1:15, and 1:30. There was a very small step down around 1:24. At this mark the tripod plug and switch were very hot. I could touch the switch long enough to turn it off and that's about it. The head could probably be held for about 2-4 seconds before having to let go. I'll get some temperature specs for you guys tomorrow evening. I've been working all day and then again tomorrow.

I used the light a little bit at work tonight but most of the 50 acre property is relatively well lit. The performance seemed quite good at first but without a reference it's not always easy to tell. I went back to the office and I pulled out the D4Svn super, T27 and D18vn. After comparing it to these lights, all of a sudden the K30GTvn seemed really impressive. It's hard to categorize this light so far but if I was to try, I'd say it's kind of like a T27, with twice the output and a larger hot spot. Unlike the T27 there's a very mild doughnut effect to the hotspot as well. Of course it's a 57mm head instead of a 70mm head and the K30GT is about an inch shorter than the T27. Weight aside, I much prefer the form factor of the K30GT.

It's raining now but I'll get some pictures up tomorrow night, as well as some step down times in the light tube and light box.

 

[Patriot]

Instead of doing step down checks on my fresh cells tonight, I ended up taking the K30GTvn on a nice 5 mile walk. It was a mix of neighborhood and desert with plenty of close houses and plenty of open areas with powerline towers and distant buildings. In short, the light is really impressive and it puts a lot of its lumens into it's relatively large hotspot, which throws further and more impressively than my brain expects it to. Even on the lowest setting, the beam is visible when aimed skyward in a crisp, clean atmosphere. I mentioned in my other post that the hotspot is about twice the size of the T27's (which I think is still accurate) and with similar but slightly less intensity. This is a sensation that's a little different that any other LED's that I've used and in a way, reminds me a lot of HID. In fact, the K30GTvn closely resembles the throw and output figures of my 30-45W Polarion Abyss, with light OP reflector. Pretty crazy when you consider the size of this light.

I ran the K30GTvn several times in 60 and 90 second stints, on turbo, without any obvious thermal step down. On a 90 second turbo run, I recon there's some significant voltage sag even using VTC5Ds but again, no obvious, thermally regulated step down. I consider this great news! It's about 35F here at present and the light still got hot but was easily manageable without gloves. I'd guess that if it were about 80F, I'd definitely want to use the top carry handle, and use turbo for less than 60 seconds. The light would take much longer to cool down than it did tonight. Last night I got the head of the light to 160F in about 90sec at about 65F ambient, while tail standing on my desk. If the light is stepping down, it's doing it so smoothly and in such small increments that it's invisible to the eye. I'll try to do some measurements in the lightbox in the next few nights.

 

[Skylumen]

My mods made the step down much less noticeable. Its an excellent light isn't it?

 

[Patriot]

My mods made the step down much less noticeable. Its an excellent light isn't it?

Yes, it sure is! AB usually builds a solid product and you've taken it to the next level. I'm not sure what the thermal situation was stock but it's perfect now.

Thanks Vinh!

 

[Glenn7]

PATRIOT!!! you need to stop commenting on this light! you are performing a verbal arm twisting on me making me want one, shame one you

Vinh, do you add extra copper/heat pads (liquid nitrogen capsule) or anything that makes it handle the heat better than the standard one?

 

[Skylumen]

PATRIOT!!! you need to stop commenting on this light! you are performing a verbal arm twisting on me making me want one, shame one you

Vinh, do you add extra copper/heat pads (liquid nitrogen capsule) or anything that makes it handle the heat better than the standard one?

I did not. There are plenty of space for thermal cubes but then it would be pricey as hell to stuff the space with it. I was going to thermal epoxy copper over key components but it seems this light doesn't need it with my testings.

 

[Glenn7]

I did not. There are plenty of space for thermal cubes but then it would be pricey as hell to stuff the space with it. I was going to thermal epoxy copper over key components but it seems this light doesn't need it with my testings.

Thanks Vinh, st.......ill try...ing to re...sist..

 

[SKV89]

Vinh, what is a thermal cube?

 

[Skylumen]

Vinh, what is a thermal cube?

I was using these for a while. Now I see many large manufactures are using them too. They are great but likely not as good as thermal epoxy copper over.

 

[SKV89]

Nice thanks for the info. Should work well with the MT07 Mini Copper plate mod that is in production.

 

[OnlyownEnergizer250lumen]

Nice thanks for the info. Should work well with the MT07 Mini Copper plate mod that is in production.

I'm down for 2 of those! I hope installation is easy and possible with vinh's mods being taken into consideration.

 

[Patriot]

PATRIOT!!! you need to stop commenting on this light! you are performing a verbal arm twisting on me making me want one, shame one you

Hey Glenn7, I actually typed up a nice couple of paragraphs about this light a few nights ago and lost everything. I'll try to capture my thoughts again with a shorter post.


I've spent a good amount of time now with the K30GTvn on several walks and hikes and even got in a 'real' hike on a mountain trail. My comparisons have focused mainly on the D18vn and T27. The K30GTvn has very similar but slightly worse throw than the T27 but more than double the lumen output. The D18vn is obviously a completely different kind of light but it's really impressive for its size and the pop can that I reach for the most when I want a good combination of lumens and throw. Also, I just know the T27 & D18vn really well from using them on 40 acre property at work.

Going back to the T27, the K30GTvn has about a 200% larger hotspot by surface area, although this isn't twice the hotspot diameter. The larger hotspot makes quite the difference when steering the beam around in the dark, looking for things. Its impressive when shining at really dark mountain sides or canyons at distances from 100-300 yards. Whereas the T27 has a perfect hotspot, there is a very slight doughnut effect from the hotspot of the K30GTvn on walls. I don't think most people would notice this and it's definitely not visible on terrains and textures. The beam color is great compared to the T27. A soft creamy white of about 5000K on the lowest levels stepping up to a happy 5500K on the higher levels.

From the standpoint of hand carrying and weight aside, the K30GT is better balanced than the T27, which always seems head heavy. I tend to hold the T27 way forward around the switch and heat fins. With the K30GTvn, I have three fingers around the body still and my index finger and thumb on opposite sides of the switch. Of course, I still have the option of the K30GT's carry handle which I suspect I'll use when the weather warms up. Compared to the T27, the K30GT has a 57mm head instead of 70mm and is 20mm shorter. Regarding belt carry, the differences are less clear. The smaller head of the K30GT seems to help a lot because the light overall is more cylindrical. The shorter length also leaves less length protruding to snag on something. When weight is considered, the T27 has a big advantage at 293 grams vs. 462 grams. There's a hike that I do from time to time called Skull Mesa and sometimes I'll turn it into an overnight trip. The terrain is open and the distances huge, a perfect example of when I'd enjoy a small searchlight. Both the CatV6vn and T27 have been with me up there but I'll likely be leaving the K30GT at home due to the weight.

After all the comparisons to other lights and trying to fit the K30GTvn into some kind of classification, I think I've got it nailed down. If someone asked me to describe this light today, I'd basically just tell them it's a T27 on steroids! The long version would be; a T27 on steroids, with 275% more lumen output, 200% larger hotspot, better color temperature, better switch and better balance for hand carry, plus a carry handle option.

I hope this helps those who are considering this light.