Hi CRI neutral recommendations

llmercll

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Dec 27, 2009
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My new interest is high CRI neutral lights. So far I've tried the zebralight 5000k CRI headlamp and it's like nothing I've ever seen, I love it. I also have a few astrolux's in the mail from banggood utilizing nichia 209c.

Besides zebralight and astrolux, can you recommend me some other good neutral high cri lights?
 

MikeSalt

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They used to be the reserve of the high-end niche market, but now there's absolutely loads of them, making it difficult to throw out meaningful suggestions. Do you have any other features on your wish-list to help narrow it down? You've started out well with the Zebralight, they're lovely tools, and it's nice that they give you two choices of colour temperature too.
 

Keitho

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Emisar D4 is a fun flame throwing high CRI light. Not as efficient as ZL, but the stubby 18350 tube with a head that puts out thousands if high CRI lumens for a few seconds is fun for me.
 

parametrek

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Yeah it is hard to recommend just one thing. If you want something very different the Yuji high-5mm LEDs are fun to play with. The only commercial light I know that uses them is the Viltrox 162T panel :)

I can however recommend what you should be avoiding. Don't get anything with a high CRI XP-G3. Cree really botched it. Maukka has an excellent review of the terrible high CRI OLight S1-Mini that goes into excellent detail of the flaws: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?441594
 

mckeand13

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That's a pretty wide open request. What exactly is the task you might want to try a new light for? That should narrow it down.

Flood/throw
small/big
battery preference
etc.
 

llmercll

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ok I typically keep 2 lights,

An edc which is on the smaller/compact side with a floodier beam. It doesn't need to get SUPER bright because the size doesn't allow for good heat distribution, but somewhere around 900-1000 lumens max is nice. I keep these in drawers everywhere (house, car, work,etc)

The other are big outdoor lights for hikes and camps. These have the capacity to get much brighter and I prefer it this way, 2000-3000+ lumens. With these I like a mix of flood and throw, not too much of either. Big and multi batteries.

I've found that almost all manufacturers have neutral options nowadays, but high CRI is harder to find.
 

markr6

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Jul 16, 2012
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The other are big outdoor lights for hikes and camps. These have the capacity to get much brighter and I prefer it this way, 2000-3000+ lumens. With these I like a mix of flood and throw, not too much of either. Big and multi batteries.

In my opinion, this EXACTLY describes the Eagletac MX25L3C w/ Nichia 219B. Good mix of flood/throw. Goinggear had them for $79 but they appear to be gone now. Not many options now that it's an older light, but I love mine. Wishing I picked up another one at $79 when I had the chance. It sets the bar in terms of tint/CRI when I'm comparing others.

There's the newer MX30L3C, but the buttons are so damn flat and hard to push, I won't buy one. Shame...would have been perfect.
 
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flatline

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If you go to Illumn.com and type "219B" into their search, you'll turn up several flashlights and light engines with the 219B emitter (4000K color temp, 93 CRI).

In particular, you'll find the Malkoff MDC flashlights, a variety of 6v and 3v Malkoff dropins, and the Nitecore MT06MD pen light. There are others, but I don't know much about the others.

--flatline
 

lumen aeternum

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In my opinion, this EXACTLY describes the Eagletac MX25L3C w/ Nichia 219B. Good mix of flood/throw. Goinggear had them for $79 but they appear to be gone now. Not many options now that it's an older light, but I love mine. Wishing I picked up another one at $79 when I had the chance. It sets the bar in terms of tint/CRI when I'm comparing others.

There's the newer MX30L3C, but the buttons are so damn flat and hard to push, I won't buy one. Shame...would have been perfect.

How do you tell exactly which 219B is in the unit? B11 ??

EagleTac MX25L3C 3x 18650 / 6 x CR123A 6x Nichia 219 B11 2550 Lumen LED Flashlight
 

TheShadowGuy

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Jun 10, 2015
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Worth noting the 219B is discontinued apparently. Many people prefer the tint on that series vs the 219C, and even some models that originally shipped with 219Bs are now using Cs (Example: Astrolux S41).

If you want a powerful can style light, the Noctigon Meteor M43 can come with Nichia 219C LEDs.
 
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