# Led Lenser M14, 4xAA with focus adjustment



## HKJ (Oct 29, 2010)

[size=+3]Led Lenser M14[/size]














Len Lenser is from the German company Zweibrüder and is sold by Coast in the USA. They have a huge range of flashlights and most of them has adjustable focus and uses ordinary batteries (No LiIon or CR123). Here I take a look on M14, this light has a microprocessor and lots of settings and tricks. The light is in aluminium with a black surface of unspecific type.









The light comes in a small cardboard box.






The box contains the light, alkaline batteries, instruction sheet in multiple languages, a belt clips (This clip is not always supplied according to the documentation), a lanyard, a user interface guide, a disposal instruction and a Led Lenser catalog.












Looking from the front it is easy to see who manufactures the light. The light has no reflector, instead it uses a lens that can be moved to focus the light. The led is specified as a Cree led and looks like a XR-E type.






On the head the light has the usual Led Lenser marking, a circle of small holes. On this lights the holes are not drilled into the light, they are about 2.5 mm deep.












The focus mechanism is easy, just slide the head forward or backward, and turn the head to lock focus. This turning is only a few degrees.
































Here is a sample on how the focus looks, each line is the same focus setting, just with different exposure. The topmost line is widest focus, next is somewhere in the middle and bottom is tighest focus. The beam has many rings, but it is much better than a Maglite because it does not have a big hole in the center. These rings can also be seen in the beamshot.






The body has a very fine smooth knurling.






A look into the body of the flashlight shows the connector to the battery. This is not just some metal plate, but a real connector.









The light uses a two level switch, i.e. it can detect half and full presses. Full presses are used for on/off, half presses are used for mode selections, momentary light and stepless adjustment. The light has a solid eye for a lanyard.










The battery carrier is part of the tail part of the light.









The battery carrier uses springs for the minus pole and plates or the other end of the spring with mechanical polarity protection for the plus pole.









The battery carrier also has the other part of the power connector to the head.






The light has a large size threads and an o-ring.













The belt clip supplied with the light has a build in twist with 8 locked positions, i.e. the light can be aimed forward when mounted in the belt. This clip has a good grip on the light making it slow to remove the light from the clip to use it handheld.






This is the parts I could disassemble the light into without using tools.









The user interface is a bit special, especially with all the modes that can be selected. Change between settings is done with a momentary press, on/off is done with a full press on the tail switch.
The light has 3 different brightness/modes sequences that can be selected, they are called: "Professional", "Easy" and "Tactical Defense". Two of these modes support a stepless brightness adjustment.
To change between these user interfaces use 4 momentary presses from off and then turn the light on.
The light also has two different modes for how it stabilizes brightness:
EMM (*E*nergy *m*anagement *m*ode) that fades the light down to 15% over 35 minutes
CCM (*C*onstant *c*urrent *m*ode) that only fades the light down to 60% over 9 minutes and then keeps it at that brightness.
To change between these brightness settings use 8 momentary presses from off and then turn the light on.


This light is very different from most other light, it has a focus feature that makesit possible to change between a wide and a tightly focused beam and anything in between. This is a very nice feature, but for me it was mostly spoiled by all the rings in the beam. It also has a two level switch on the back, this is a very nice way to handle both brightness change and on/off. Another special feature is the automatic dimming of the light, it saves one the batteries, but I prefer a stable output. The light does not have a large adjustment range, this reduces the usefulness of the stepless adjustment. The mechanical construction of the light feels solid. 
When all is added up, I do not believe all the good things are enough to compensate for the bad things, but this is only my opinion others might fell different.



[size=+2]Technical specification and measurements[/size]






This light is designed for 1.5 volt AA batteries (Alkaline, NiMH, Lithium).

Measured size and weight:
Length: 162 mm to 175 mm depending on focus.
Diameter: 39.2 mm to 47 mm
Weight: 370 gram with eneloop

The light uses a Cree XR-E led.






In the above table I have used 2000mAh eneloop batteries for estimating the runtime. It is not really possible to measure the runtime for a specific mode, because the light does not have a stable output (See runtime curves below). The estimated lumen are based on the specified 225 lumen and then scaled according to measured brightness. The pwm percents are only valid at 4.8 volt, they will change, depending on voltage. The specified runtime is *very* optimistic, maybe running the light at low and counting time until it is impossible to see any glow in the led, can get this kind of runtime?






The voltage scan is done in boost mode, where the light is lacking any stabilization. The sligt rise in brightness with falling voltage can also be seen in the runtime curve for medium levels, at low levels the light is better at stabilization.






The above chart shows the two different stabilization modes. The first minute I am holding the power button down to use boost mode.






The runtime with CCM (Constant current mode) selected shows that the light can run about 1.8 hour with alkaline and 2.4 hour with NiMH until half brightness. The runtime is not exactly flat, first there is the drop to 60% (More like 75%), then it will slowly rise again (with alkaline batteries), before it slowly fades out.






The runtime with EMM (Energy management mode) selected gives considerable longer runtime (About 9 hours), but most of the time the brightness is low. This is not something that the user selects, the light will automatic step down to lower brightness.






The light uses pwm at about 7.7 kHz, the actual frequency will change with battery voltage. In this graph I have 3 curves, the topmost (blue) is the brightness, next (red) comes the voltage between the battery carrier and the light and at the bottom (green) the current between the carrier and the light. 
This shows that the mode electronic is placed in the tail of the light.






This is a single pwm pulse, captured at two different battery voltages but with the same selected brightness. With a higher voltage the pulse is shorter but higher, i.e. the light adjusts pwm to compensate for changes in battery voltage. It can also be seen that the two pwm pulses are at different frequencies, the high battery voltage has higher pwm frequency.










The first graph is the slow strobe as recorded by the light sensor, on the second curve I have applied a filter to remove the pwm. This is 3 Hz with 50% duty cycle.






Again I have used a filter. The SOS uses 0.3 and 1.1 second pulses for a total of 10.7 second to transmit a SOS, then a 1.7 second pause, before the next.






This is the fastest strobe I have seen to date, it is 20 Hz with a 40% duty cycle (I did also filter this).



[size=+2]Comparison to other Flashlights[/size]

Led Lenser M14 wide, Led Lenser M14 focus, Fenix LD40











Fenix LD25, Fenix E21, JetBeam RRT-1 Q5 











For the full comparison to other lights with graphs and beamshots see here.

The included lights are:


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## Mr. Tone (Oct 29, 2010)

From your beamshots it looks like the Led Lenser tightly focused throws a brighter and larger hotspot than the RRT-1. Ist that the way it appears in person? If that is true then this is a pretty good thrower.


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## HKJ (Oct 29, 2010)

Mr. Tone said:


> From your beamshots it looks like the Led Lenser tightly focused throws a brighter and larger hotspot than the RRT-1. Ist that the way it appears in person? If that is true then this is a pretty good thrower.



It is larger, but not as bright. The LL is a very good thrower when focused but it has way to many rings in my opinion.
Thats part of the reason for my :hairpull: icon, if LL found a way to get rid of the rings and changed the UI to let the user decide the brightness it would be close to the perfect light.


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## boboweb (Oct 29, 2010)

*HKJ* Great review , thank you for your nice work :thumbsup:


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## Swedpat (Oct 30, 2010)

Thanks HKJ for a great review!

I have P14 and I think the new M14 is an improvement. I consider the idéa as very good, but a better optics would improve the beam quality. 
The reason to the rings is noticable when looking at the lens, the third from left of your front pictures shows rings in the lens, who I understand cause the rings in the beam profile. According to your beam shots the tint is pretty cool, which is the same as with my P14. 

A high grade optics and warmer tint would make the Ledlenser much better in my opinion. Until then I don't find it worth to spend the money on the new M14 to replace the P14.

Regards, Patric


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## Hallgeir (Oct 30, 2010)

It sounds like this is the equlant to the H14 headlamp i got to day. The H14 has a variable dim option. In 100% halfpress and hold, the light starts to fade in and out, depress at wanted brightness. 

edit: You found that allready  Thought that what you ment with "and changed the UI to let the user decide the brightness" 
I see now  If it's not a heat problem it would be nice to run it at 100% until empty or any brightness to empty


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## SureAddicted (Oct 31, 2010)

Swedpat said:


> A high grade optics and warmer tint would make the Ledlenser much better in my opinion.



Actually, the optic is of a high grade.

Great review HKJ.


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## Swedpat (Oct 31, 2010)

SureAddicted said:


> Actually, the optic is of a high grade.
> 
> Great review HKJ.



I can't object that if you mean the material quality. I would have expressed it more correct that the precision of the optics could be better, avoiding the rings in the beam.


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## yliu (Apr 24, 2011)

I have the M7, and it throws farther than the TK12 R5. I've also noticed that the Turbo mode doesn't work with alkalines, but work perfectly with lithium and NiMH batteries.


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## anylau (May 23, 2011)

does it really do have the turbo mode? my m7 is coming in 2 days time... i hope there is a turbo mode like my old p7... 130% 290lms...


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## yliu (May 25, 2011)

There is turbo mode when I use lithium or NiMH in my M7. With alkalines there is no turbo mode.


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## quad088 (Jun 27, 2011)

I still have M14 with me as it a good thrower which I like but on spills/flood is terrible ( as compared with other flashlights ) with too much rings when head is pushed back full . So I decided to shelf it till their new models which will be released soon as according to our local dealer. 

Now I carries M21 or G5


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## samgab (Jun 28, 2011)

Another excellent, scientific review. Thanks HKJ. I see that their electronic control of the brightness leaves a lot to be desired, with the changing outputs in the mode where they are clearly attempting to stabilize the brightness at a set level. Also, I don't like the idea of the light automatically stepping down in brightness like that after a given time. Give those choices to the user! If I choose max brightness, I want max brightness, if I want long battery life, let me choose a lower brightness setting, and then hold it steady at that chosen brightness. I like the way Fenix does it with, say, 4 different brightness settings, low/med/high/turbo, and then holds the chosen brightness almost perfectly till the batteries are spent. I also don't like the stepless adjustment. I have no use for infinitely variable levels of brightness, 4 choices is sufficient to meet my needs. More than that just seems unnecessarily fiddly. Ah well, it's not for me, but I'm sure there are proponents out there.


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## cccpull (Jun 28, 2011)

quad088 said:


> I still have M14 with me as it a good thrower which I like but on spills/flood is terrible ( as compared with other flashlights ) with too much rings when head is pushed back full . So I decided to shelf it till their new models which will be released soon as according to our local dealer.
> 
> Now I carries M21 or G5



The rings might be caused by the XR-E led, so hopefully an XP-G version would address it. The light looks pretty chunky; how does it feel in the hand?


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## HKJ (Jun 28, 2011)

cccpull said:


> The rings might be caused by the XR-E led, so hopefully an XP-G version would address it. The light looks pretty chunky; how does it feel in the hand?


 
I would suspect that the lens is the reason for many of the rings.


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## samgab (Jun 28, 2011)

HKJ said:


> I would suspect that the lens is the reason for many of the rings.


 
Yes, you're right it is. It's a thing all led lensers have, it's just a function of how the lens works.


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## DirtyHarry (Jul 5, 2011)

Thanks for the great review. 
I blame Led Lensers for my growing collection of torches (mostly Led Lensers at the moment, but branching out to 4sevens and Olights...). The first time I ever saw the difference between a standard incan and an LED was with a Led Lenser "Hocus Focus" (if memory serves me correctly). I still remember the shock I felt when I saw how bright it was - in broad daylight too. I think it's now one of the weakest of my lights... (and started a rather expensive habit)

I was on the verge of adding an M7 or M14 to the collection when I stumbled across candlepowerforums. Four weeks later, my EDC is a 4sevens Preon ReVO (there's not much cause when you're an IT suit to be carrying anything larger...), a bunch of Eneloops in AA and AAA (mostly to keep the Led Lensers happy), a Maha charger, and an Olight set on the way (particularly looking forward to the M20S).

Having said that, my Led Lenser P7 low and high power spot and flood abilities make it my ideal bedside light, and it's nice to see the better microprocessor features being included in this model. 

Point taken in the review regarding pros and cons - I think I'll expand my collection before buying any more of them in the time being, but the ability to shift between spot and flood so easily and quickly doesn't appear to be something that others are doing - possibly due to the issues with rings you mentioned.

Regardless - great review, I've been enjoying reading them all (although my Amex balance doesn't agree).
Alex


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## lanman (Jul 6, 2011)

Swedpat said:


> Thanks HKJ for a great review!
> 
> I have P14 and I think the new M14 is an improvement. I consider the idéa as very good, but a better optics would improve the beam quality.
> The reason to the rings is noticable when looking at the lens, the third from left of your front pictures shows rings in the lens, who I understand cause the rings in the beam profile. According to your beam shots the tint is pretty cool, which is the same as with my P14.
> ...


 
Really! I got it. High grade optics and warmer are the reason that I consider. It's enough for use.


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## ebow86 (Jul 6, 2011)

Very through and professional review. Thank you!


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## turboslug (Jul 7, 2011)

I have the M14, and it is by far the best flashlight I have ever owned. Not only is it the perfect light for any task, but this light is also extremely durable. I can't count how many times I dropped it thinking it was done for, and was surprised to see that the light was unscathed. This is the only light I will ever need.


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## Rhapsun (Jul 20, 2011)

turboslug said:


> I have the M14, and it is by far the best flashlight I have ever owned. Not only is it the perfect light for any task, but this light is also extremely durable. I can't count how many times I dropped it thinking it was done for, and was surprised to see that the light was unscathed. This is the only light I will ever need.


 I'm looking for a EDC/ camping light. How water resistant is the M14?


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## samgab (Jul 20, 2011)

Rhapsun said:


> I'm looking for a EDC/ camping light. How water resistant is the M14?


 
Not very. It has air holes in the head to allow for the lens focussing, to let the air (or dust or water) in and out as you focus the beam.
I think it would be a mistake to decide on any Led Lenser without first giving serious consideration to some of the other excellent options available. Take a look at some of HKJ's other reviews first... It's not a BAD flashlight, but for the money, I'm sure you could find better alternatives. Just my opinion.


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## jamie1132 (Jan 24, 2013)

*LED Lenser M14*

Hi Folks,

I've been using my LED Lenser M14 for 3 weeks now and I'm very happy with it. Its done probably around 6 hours on maximum brightness and gone through 3 sets of batteries. I will get around to picking up some decent rechargeables but so far I have used the LED Lenser branded batteries that came with it, a set of Duracell Ultra Powers and a set of Energizer Ultimates.
Interestingly the only time that I have noticed a difference between the Boost and 100% brightness mode is with the Energizer batteries, these also seemed to be the brightest in 100% mode. The boost mode only seems to work for the first (approximatley) 20 mins of the battery usage. 
I have the flashlight set in the "constant" current drain mode. 
Other observations about the flashlight are that the annodising around the lanyard is wearing away (I dont particularly care about this, its a tool to do a job, not an ornament to look pretty!) and I noticed that the lense was loose in the head of the torch after a couple of hours. I've tightened it back up and not had that problem since.
So far it seems fairly robust, its been dropped on concrete floors out of the map pocket in my jacket, subjected to use in very heavy and stored in the car in temperatures down to -5°C.
I'll try to remember to review again in 12 months to see how its survived a whole year!


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## Tulip bush (Jan 24, 2013)

*Re: LED Lenser M14*

This was my first flashlight, the throw is surprising good to say it's not half as powerful as some lights out there, it's a very good dog walking light spot to flood in a nano second,,, small and good in the coat pocket. I dropped my first onto the kitchen tiles, from my hand button down......stopped working......sent it back for a replacement.

I never had no problems with light rings on mine....great light, but the bug bit and I sold it and bought a fenix tk41, which Is great but the m14 is a better coat pocket light for walking the dog and the batteries didn't rattle in it either, terrible in my tk41. Owned mine for a year plus.


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## Globi23 (Jan 24, 2013)

*Re: LED Lenser M14*

look out for the new m14rx  just ordered a m7rx!


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## Tulip bush (Jan 25, 2013)

cccpull said:


> The rings might be caused by the XR-E led, so hopefully an XP-G version would address it. The light looks pretty chunky; how does it feel in the hand?


 It's great in the hand......not as chunky as it looks, better than my fenix tk41 in the hand.


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