Info DGX 700 vs DGX 1000-6 vs BigBlue VTL9000P Max

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Another option may be in your future :wink:
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The square is a dry land artifact from the shape of the LED, it goes away in water.
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First, let me state what is probably obvious: 2900 lumens in a 10 degree beam should probably not be expected to look as bright as 2000 lumens in a 6 degree beam. For reasons @inquis explained.

The BB light did not appear as bright in person or in the video, but the area of the wreck that it illuminated was bigger than the area illuminated by the 1000-6.

So, I would not draw any conclusions regarding the specific output. Maybe the 1000-6 really is 2000 lumens and maybe the BB really is 2900 lumens.

Moving on....

My in-person impressions matched what I see in the video.

Clearly, the 700 is way over-matched and I only included it as a baseline for comparison. I think the 700 is a really good light. Perfect as a backup. Twist on (no accidental turn-ons) and more compact than either of the other two. And it really is bright - just not as bright as the other two. The 700 will continue to be my backup at all times and still be my "primary" in some situations - i.e. recreational dives where I probably won't use a light at all other than if I want to look under a ledge or something.

The 1000-6 beam is SO tight! The BB beam was obviously wider and also appears to have noticeably wider spill (the lesser amount of light around the spot beam).

In turbid water - like I was recording in - I think the 1000-6 is far preferable. The really tight beam penetrates better and puts more light on whatever you shine it on. But, the spot is clearly smaller than the spot from the BB, so the DGX makes a smaller, easier to see subject and the BB makes a bigger, not-as-bright subject.

The wider spill of the BB really showed what a drawback it is in that turbid water. It was noticeably harder to see past the glare from backscatter from all the particulate, when using the BB. The spill of the 1000-6 was much tighter, created much less glare from backscatter, and thus made it easier to see the actual wreck I was shining the light on.

In super clear water, I think the BB might be preferable - at least to some folks. With no concern for glare from backscatter, the bigger illuminated area might be more desireable.

Another Pro for the BB light is the versatility. I took it with me to Truk a few weeks ago. I did several dives using it as my primary during wreck penetrations, while I was also swimming with my GoPro. Several times, I saw something I wanted shoot video of. Being able to switch the BB into the 9000 lumen flood beam mode allowed me to get some pretty decent video clips. Obviously, the DGX lights are no good for that kind of scenario - they will just give a video with a bunch of dark areas and one blown-out hot spot.

And then there is also price to consider:

DGX700 - $79
DGX1000-6 - $89
VTL9000P Max - $890 (!!! Yes! 800 and 90 dollars!!)

Regarding push buttons: I really don't like them. I get accidental turn-ons way too often. I was really hoping the 1000-6 would have some kind of design detail that makes it not be that way. But, I got back on the boat this weekend after one dive, with the 1000-6 clipped to my right shoulder strap and the head tucked into bungee, so it wasn't dangling, and somebody commented "hey, your dive light is on." Sure enough...

Conclusion: I really like the 1000-6. The tight, bright beam. The adjustable brightness. And, especially, the constant output, so it doesn't gradually taper off in brightness all through the dive. But, I think my enthusiasm for it may have a small component of "honeymoon period" because I just got it and it's "shiny". lol!

When I think to myself "what dives will I do where I choose the 1000-6 over either of the other two" I am a little stumped. If I wasn't concerned about having it turn on by accident due to the push button, answering that would be a lot easier. In that case, I would probably always take it over the 700. But, for a lot of dives, I want a backup light with the reliability and peace of mind that comes from knowing it won't turn on by accident and chew up a large portion of the battery without me even knowing it.

And then there are dives where I take my GoPro and will want the versatility of the BB and its flood beam option. Plus it's fair to note that the 1000-6 has 5000mAh of battery and the BB has 14000mAh.... I don't have a burn test, but my expectation is that the BB will burn a lot longer on "High" than the 1000-6 - though it will also be gradually dimming.

I guess my conclusion is that none of them are perfect and I will continue to use all of them. And dang, don't we have a lot of great options for lighting these days?!

I'll definitely give that DGX 1000-6 serious consideration the next time I need a light.
 
Another option may be in your future :wink:

The square is a dry land artifact from the shape of the LED, it goes away in water.

Maybe.... but probably not. lol! I already have a Kraken light that is just like that. I never use it. I don't think I've even taken it in the water (I won it in a photo contest).

My issues with that type of light are:

The light head is bulkier than I like.

It's bright enough in the tight beam. But, when you zoom it wide, the same number of lumens are very spread out and now it's not that bright.

If you make it where it is bright enough in the wide beam, then it doesn't have enough burn time unless you also put a much bigger battery pack in it.

It only zooms to something like 80 degrees at its widest, which is not really wide enough for video.

Someday, when they have AA-sized fusion reactors....
 
Maybe.... but probably not. lol! I already have a Kraken light that is just like that. I never use it. I don't think I've even taken it in the water (I won it in a photo contest).

My issues with that type of light are:

The light head is bulkier than I like.

It's bright enough in the tight beam. But, when you zoom it wide, the same number of lumens are very spread out and now it's not that bright.

If you make it where it is bright enough in the wide beam, then it doesn't have enough burn time unless you also put a much bigger battery pack in it.

It only zooms to something like 80 degrees at its widest, which is not really wide enough for video.

Someday, when they have AA-sized fusion reactors....
The light head is bigger than I like too for a light I’m just carrying “in case I may need it” but not crazy big
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But it can make sense in some cases, dive to dive I like the D710
 
Regarding push buttons: I really don't like them. I get accidental turn-ons way too often.
I just unscrew the head by half a turn to eliminate accidental turn-ons of my push button backups.
 
I just unscrew the head by half a turn to eliminate accidental turn-ons of my push button backups.

Interesting! I will have to try that on the DGX 1000-6 to see if that works on that light!

Thanks!
 
I just unscrew the head by half a turn to eliminate accidental turn-ons of my push button backups.

THANK YOU for that suggestion!

I will never use the push button to turn off my 1000-6 again! Way less than half a turn on the tail cap and it turns off and won't turn back on.

From now on, it's a twist and a button push to turn it on and just a twist to turn it off.

GREAT TIP!!
 
THANK YOU for that suggestion!

I will never use the push button to turn off my 1000-6 again! Way less than half a turn on the tail cap and it turns off and won't turn back on.

From now on, it's a twist and a button push to turn it on and just a twist to turn it off.

GREAT TIP!!
What about the DGX 1000-8? Anybody checked that out? And what about the Orange Peel v Smooth reflector finish, anything to that?
 
Pretty much any light I have will do it, the 1000-8 and my orca’s all will turn off with little more than it takes to loosen the cap.
 

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