Archon D11V video light review

[MalibuDave42]

Yeah, what are the odds? I agree. But, what are the odds 4 new batteries are bad. It's driving me crazy, granted short drive.

My lights did not come with batteries either. So I bought, 4 of http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AQPZM7U/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and 1 of Amazon.com: Nitecore IntelliCharger i4 Battery Charger - 2nd Generation: Sports & Outdoors

The charger is supposed to be a great, intelligent variety. I am charging them fully before use. Any thoughts on how to test the batteries independent of the lights? I don't have any other gear that uses 18650's.

 

[Got2Go]

Do you have a voltmeter ?

Measure the battery voltage.

After a full charge they should read about 4.2 volts. If they don't, then either the battery is bad, or the charger.
If they do, then the light might be faulty.

I bought 2 DV11s directly from Aliexpress.com. They showed up on schedule, I inserted the batteries, turn them on, seemed to work fine, though I did not let them run but a minute or so while I checked them out (my bad). After jumping in the water in the Philippines using my new GoPro rig with close up lenses, lights and all, turns out the DV11s won't stay at full power for more than ~2 minutes.

The symptom: Turn on full power, 1:50 flashes on/off, resumes full power, 2:03 flashes on/off, resume full power, 2:07 flashes on/off, stays on dim (seems like 200 lumens, not even the lower advertised 400 lumens). I email back and forth to the vendor's support, providing video proof, answering all questions, etc. -- no love, "works as designed." Say what? What manufacturer in thier right mind would build "auto" light-level, flashing video light?

On this and other forums, other divers are reporting good results with these lights. Has anyone else experienced this problem? The recourse with my vendor is exhausted, any insights to who might be able to fix them? Should I try again? (as they say, first time shame on them, second time shame on me )

Thoughts?
Thanks for any help.

 

[EL Pistoffo]

Yeah, what are the odds? I agree. But, what are the odds 4 new batteries are bad. It's driving me crazy, granted short drive.

My lights did not come with batteries either. So I bought, 4 of http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AQPZM7U/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and 1 of Amazon.com: Nitecore IntelliCharger i4 Battery Charger - 2nd Generation: Sports & Outdoors

The charger is supposed to be a great, intelligent variety. I am charging them fully before use. Any thoughts on how to test the batteries independent of the lights? I don't have any other gear that uses 18650's.

I'm very leary of those off-brand batteries. When I was researching batteries I saw all the complaints of misrepresented mah ratings so I went with a recommended choice. Your lights are only lasting a couple minutes, that's horrendous. Either those batteries are complete garbage or your lights are really bad. I'm not sure how a light could draw 60-75 minutes of current in just 2-3 minutes. That would have to be a pretty hard short and something would get awfully hot in the process.

The other possibility is a defective charger. It is not charging the batteries to capacity. It may be mis-reading the batteries and thinking they are charged prematurely. The easiest way to figure this out is to test those batteries on another device.

 

[MalibuDave42]

Thanks to all who replied. Yep, it was the batteries. I had no facilities to the test the old set, so I went ahead and bought some Tenergy batteries on a retail card; charged them up; and the lights work like a champ (though I have not tested under water yet). Both sest had button tops as required, but the knock offs were a good 3mm shorter. Whoo hoo, video without flicker.

 

[EL Pistoffo]

Thanks to all who replied. Yep, it was the batteries. I had no facilities to the test the old set, so I went ahead and bought some Tenergy batteries on a retail card; charged them up; and the lights work like a champ (though I have not tested under water yet). Both sest had button tops as required, but the knock offs were a good 3mm shorter. Whoo hoo, video without flicker.

Glad to hear you solved your problem. Make sure the o-rings are clean and lubed with silicone grease regularly. Poorly lubed or bad o-rings are the #1 cause for flooding.

I tested the run time on my D11V's with a freshly charge Tenergy battery and I got about 75min of runtime at 100% intensity.

 

[MalibuDave42]

75 min straight thru is plenty of time. Nice. Did you do you test out of the water? Some lights say not to run them out of the water due to heat build up. I noticed when I was doing my test they were getting pretty hot.

 

[EL Pistoffo]

75 min straight thru is plenty of time. Nice. Did you do you test out of the water? Some lights say not to run them out of the water due to heat build up. I noticed when I was doing my test they were getting pretty hot.

Yep I did it in my living room. These lights don't tend to get very hot. They aren't so powerful that they need the water to keep cool.

 

[alpinestars69]

had 2 good experiences here, communication was good they always answered back. i feel good about recommending them.

Shop for Best ARCHON DH30 3000LM Canister Diving U2 LED Headlamp with Water Resistant Deepness 100 m Underwater at US$227.36 Now

 

[Jessy0608]

I'm joining in this thread as I'll be purchasing 2 of the Archon D11V lights soon for use with my GoPro hero2. I'm interested if anyone has worked on them to soften the light beam at all. Or has more sample videos . By the way amazon sells these now for less than $56 each. That's where I'll be picking up mine.

I can't decide which mount to get. I've decided $50 for SRP to make me a mount is fine considering the DIY mounts run about $30 or more anyway by the time you're done. I'd rather someone just give me the parts. But which to buy... the one that is specifically for the lights, or the one with little rubber bands that can fit any light up to 1.5"? Do I get the one that's adjustable just in case I decide to use some other light some time?
24 mm Light Mounts
or
SRP Torch Mounts on Loc-line® Arms

 

[EL Pistoffo]

I'm joining in this thread as I'll be purchasing 2 of the Archon D11V lights soon for use with my GoPro hero2. I'm interested if anyone has worked on them to soften the light beam at all. Or has more sample videos . By the way amazon sells these now for less than $56 each. That's where I'll be picking up mine.

I can't decide which mount to get. I've decided $50 for SRP to make me a mount is fine considering the DIY mounts run about $30 or more anyway by the time you're done. I'd rather someone just give me the parts. But which to buy... the one that is specifically for the lights, or the one with little rubber bands that can fit any light up to 1.5"? Do I get the one that's adjustable just in case I decide to use some other light some time?
24 mm Light Mounts
or
SRP Torch Mounts on Loc-line® Arms

I have the mounts specifically designed for the light. They fit like a glove. The point you made about the other mounts being universal is valid. Considering these lights turn on and off by twisting the rear cap, you want to be sure that the lights themselves don't spin completely when turning on/off. This can happen even with the 24 mm Light Mounts if not tightened properly. I've wondered my self just how secure or tight the SRP Torch Mounts on Loc-line® Arms clamp to a light. The bands it uses look like large o-rings. If so you could change them out for different sized o-rings for better grip. Just not sure.