mountainwalker
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2007
- Messages
- 51
I'm a 4-season outdoors person (backpacking, trail running, bicycling, kayaking, snowshoeing/skiing) looking to replace my old headlamp which after many good years of use got badly damaged. Which isn't all bad given that LED tech has far advanced to the point where a new headlamp will provide much more light and better battery life.
I'd sincerely appreciate your advice given my use:
-I prefer a neutral or warm white to cold blue white
-I prefer a beam with a mix of spot and flood - so not all flood and not all spot
-I most value battery life the following settings: 1-2 lumens for around camp near-vision tasks; 60ish lumens for night walking/hiking on familiar smooth trails; 120+ish lumens for hiking and running on unfamiliar/rougher trails (roots and rocks) and occasionally a high lumen burst to quickly discern detail or find a trail.
-Prefer a headlamp + battery combo that will offer roughly 60 and 120 lumen levels for +8 hours
-Nice to have strobe to help a friend find me at night, but not absolutely essential
-Up to now I've used Eneloop rechargeable batteries and Lithium Energizer batteries (the latter especially in cold weather)
The headlamps I'm currently looking at:
-Zebralight H53w, warm white, the successor to the Zebralight H52w, which uses AA or 14500 batteries
-Armytek Tiara A1 v2 XP-L, warm white, recommended by a friend who described it as a higher quality Zebralight, also uses AA or 14500 batteries
-Other Zebralight (like H600 series) or Armytek models (like Wizard) that use 18650 batteries
-Black Diamond Spot headlamp, uses 3 AAA batteries, no idea what the color temperature of the beam is like
Questions:
1) How do Zebralight and Armytek compare for quality, reliability and customer service?
2) Which of the above lights do you recommend based on reliability, beam pattern, color temperature, good battery life at 60 lumens and 120 lumens and ease of use? Which other Zebralight or Armytek or other company's headlamp models would you recommend?
3) I've heard of reviews that say the Armytek headlamps are complicated to use, with frustration about resetting them when switching battery types. Is this true? Is resetting in the field very difficult or time-consuming?
4) Which battery type do you recommend, 18650 or 14500/AA, and why?
5) What's the color temperature of the Black Diamond Spot headlamp - cold-bluish white or warm white range?
Thank you!
[Just edited the above to note higher lumens for running at night or hiking on unfamiliar rougher trails and a preference for headlamp and battery combos that offer +8 hours at 60 and +120 lumens]
I'd sincerely appreciate your advice given my use:
-I prefer a neutral or warm white to cold blue white
-I prefer a beam with a mix of spot and flood - so not all flood and not all spot
-I most value battery life the following settings: 1-2 lumens for around camp near-vision tasks; 60ish lumens for night walking/hiking on familiar smooth trails; 120+ish lumens for hiking and running on unfamiliar/rougher trails (roots and rocks) and occasionally a high lumen burst to quickly discern detail or find a trail.
-Prefer a headlamp + battery combo that will offer roughly 60 and 120 lumen levels for +8 hours
-Nice to have strobe to help a friend find me at night, but not absolutely essential
-Up to now I've used Eneloop rechargeable batteries and Lithium Energizer batteries (the latter especially in cold weather)
The headlamps I'm currently looking at:
-Zebralight H53w, warm white, the successor to the Zebralight H52w, which uses AA or 14500 batteries
-Armytek Tiara A1 v2 XP-L, warm white, recommended by a friend who described it as a higher quality Zebralight, also uses AA or 14500 batteries
-Other Zebralight (like H600 series) or Armytek models (like Wizard) that use 18650 batteries
-Black Diamond Spot headlamp, uses 3 AAA batteries, no idea what the color temperature of the beam is like
Questions:
1) How do Zebralight and Armytek compare for quality, reliability and customer service?
2) Which of the above lights do you recommend based on reliability, beam pattern, color temperature, good battery life at 60 lumens and 120 lumens and ease of use? Which other Zebralight or Armytek or other company's headlamp models would you recommend?
3) I've heard of reviews that say the Armytek headlamps are complicated to use, with frustration about resetting them when switching battery types. Is this true? Is resetting in the field very difficult or time-consuming?
4) Which battery type do you recommend, 18650 or 14500/AA, and why?
5) What's the color temperature of the Black Diamond Spot headlamp - cold-bluish white or warm white range?
Thank you!
[Just edited the above to note higher lumens for running at night or hiking on unfamiliar rougher trails and a preference for headlamp and battery combos that offer +8 hours at 60 and +120 lumens]
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