Dive Rite LX25

[syntaxerrorsix]

@syntaxerrorsix will have to disagree with you on the lights not being one of many products they carry for LM, but it is their primary focus.

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When you buy Light Monkey, you are buying the service, the brand, and what is known to be a high quality and reliable product.
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That's what I was getting at.

It's absolutely expected to keep improving, but with the rapid pace of light technology when you leave last year's customers in the dust with maybe the possibility of support for discontinued lights well........


I can't see dropping a couple of grand a pop just to find out it's no longer a supported product at that pace, although I'm sure some can.

 

[tbone1004]

@syntaxerrorsix and there are pros and cons. The main con to light monkey not changing is that with decade old technology you are forced to spend more money on bigger batteries to have the same burn time. The pro is it's a decade old emitter that hasn't changed.
With Dive Rite, they have certainly stayed up mostly with the times on their emitters and because of that you can't get an RX1 replaced with an RX1, but they can upgrade it to the newest emitters. Pros and cons. Con is you can't get a direct replacement, but then again, why would you want to? I can't bring myself to buy a LM or Dive Rite light because they don't have the ability and knowledge to produce a top performing light. They take off the shelf parts and assemble them, and do it very well, but they don't have the technical knowledge to actually design a light. Neither does Dive Rite, Halcyon, or any of the other manufacturers that don't specialize in it. They rely on what they can source and a basic knowledge of how to put them together. If you want a light that was designed to be a dive light, you have to go to UWLD or Light and Motion.

Proof of that is that it takes Light Monkey 32w of power to get 2500 lumen out of their lights. UWLD can either do it in 20w, or for 30w *almost 10% less power*, they can give you 3500 lumen *almost 50% more light*. That translates to $$ for us as consumers because you only have to buy 60% of the battery to get the same light output to burn for the same amount of time from UWLD. Can also translate to weight, where the biggest light with biggest battery from LM *26ah battery with 32w head* weighs 6.4lbs, burns at 2500 lumen for 480 minutes. UWLD does 2600 lumen, for 450 mins, but weighs 4.6lbs, is $200 cheaper, and does not require a loophole to fly.

This is not a bash on LM at all, it's to educate a potential buyer and make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.

 

[syntaxerrorsix]

@syntaxerrorsix and there are pros and cons. The main con to light monkey not changing is that with decade old technology you are forced to spend more money on bigger batteries to have the same burn time. The pro is it's a decade old emitter that hasn't changed.
With Dive Rite, they have certainly stayed up mostly with the times on their emitters and because of that you can't get an RX1 replaced with an RX1, but they can upgrade it to the newest emitters. Pros and cons. Con is you can't get a direct replacement, but then again, why would you want to? I can't bring myself to buy a LM or Dive Rite light because they don't have the ability and knowledge to produce a top performing light. They take off the shelf parts and assemble them, and do it very well, but they don't have the technical knowledge to actually design a light. Neither does Dive Rite, Halcyon, or any of the other manufacturers that don't specialize in it. They rely on what they can source and a basic knowledge of how to put them together. If you want a light that was designed to be a dive light, you have to go to UWLD or Light and Motion.

Proof of that is that it takes Light Monkey 32w of power to get 2500 lumen out of their lights. UWLD can either do it in 20w, or for 30w *almost 10% less power*, they can give you 3500 lumen *almost 50% more light*. That translates to $$ for us as consumers because you only have to buy 60% of the battery to get the same light output to burn for the same amount of time from UWLD. Can also translate to weight, where the biggest light with biggest battery from LM *26ah battery with 32w head* weighs 6.4lbs, burns at 2500 lumen for 480 minutes. UWLD does 2600 lumen, for 450 mins, but weighs 4.6lbs, is $200 cheaper, and does not require a loophole to fly.

This is not a bash on LM at all, it's to educate a potential buyer and make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.

N/M You answered it.

I suppose I prefer tried and true. The cost savings is significant however. Good to know.

 

[tbone1004]

@syntaxerrorsix there is also a custom made battery pack with PCB vs. off the shelf that was designed from the bottom up, the CAD models *which don't exist for LM*, factor in everything including O-ring compression at depth *lights have been proven down to 230m and designed to 200m*, the emitters are the current industry standard XML's, but are from a custom bin due to contacts at Cree to ensure the best quality and consistency vs the SST's that are off the shelf from LM *meaning you will see almost 0 variation between UWLD lights, but will see variation in the LM's*, efficiency has been discussed, but also the ability to have multiple output options is huge for me. People will try to talk about the simplicity of on/off but all LED's have to use some sort of driver board, and there is no risk of complexity by putting a couple lines of code in to allow for multiple light outputs which can extend burn time, or allow you to turn the light down in adverse conditions to minimize backscatter. UWLD has also gone to a latchless design which means less risk of leaks due to debris on the o-ring or the latch breaking. Huge improvement imho.

The biggest thing for everyone to take away from this is to make sure you are comparing apples to apples. Unlike HID, you don't want to look at wattage except to analyze efficiency. Talk about nominal 30w, and Light Monkey can only get 2500 lumen out of it, UWLD can get 3500 lumen out of it. Wattage with LED's only shows the efficiency from one to the other.
LUX doesn't matter because it only measures the hotspot intensity. It indirectly correlates to beam angle and brightness, but a laser has a stupid high lux rating, but doesn't produce any meaningful light. The sun however has a stupid low lux rating, but is obviously incredibly bright....

 

[Knotted Lion]

I'm looking for a primary canister and I don't have much experience with them. I'd like to stick with LED technology however. What is the general consensus on the LX25? What other options should I consider? Thanks

The best light for you really depends on the conditions you plan on diving.
The LX25 is a good light overall and works for a variety of conditions.
Halcyon focus would be better for ocean diving or poor vis.
UWLD is fine in clear water, but not so great in poor vis, too much backscatter. Tbone is obviously a true believer and has a strong bias.

Try a few if you can, I've learned that perception of light beams are subjective.

 

[tbone1004]

@Knotted Lion the bias is pretty simple, I want the best engineered product on the market. Your comment is unfair though because the LX25 and Focus can't be compared to the UWLD 26/35 with the wide beam angle and backscatter. Two reasons, one is the backscatter is made worse by the wide angle, but the LD15 uses the same beam angle as the LX25 at 6*, and that negates that argument on beam angle.
The other is the fact that more light makes the backscatter worse and even with the big lights, having the multiple output settings means you can knock them down to minimize the backscatter. I don't mind the wide angle as much because even in relatively low vis caves, signalling is a nonissue *the lights are so powerful the cave starts flashing which is all you really need*, but 8* isn't that bad. We have used them with no issue in P3, Ruth, HiTW, etc etc. Most of my direct user experience is with the LD15, however my buddies all use LD35's, and I've borrowed them more than a few times and it's never been an issue.

 

[PfcAJ]

@Knotted Lion I don't mind the wide angle as much because even in relatively low vis caves, signalling is a nonissue *the lights are so powerful the cave starts flashing which is all you really need*,

If you don't use your light for anything more complicated than "flash your buddy" then I guess anything will work.

 

[tbone1004]

If you don't use your light for anything more complicated than "flash your buddy" then I guess anything will work.

we use the standard 3, and it's no issue. OK, attention, emergency. Anything more complicated than that is done with hand signals. We prefer to keep light signals simple and not worry about drawing on the wall with a laser pointer for the tradeoff of being able to see more of the cave. Different strokes for different folks

 

[PfcAJ]

Right so your communication options are limited and there's more backscatter. Sounds great! Sign me up!

 

[Knotted Lion]

@Knotted Lion the bias is pretty simple, I want the best engineered product on the market. Your comment is unfair though because the LX25 and Focus can't be compared to the UWLD 26/35 with the wide beam angle and backscatter. Two reasons, one is the backscatter is made worse by the wide angle, but the LD15 uses the same beam angle as the LX25 at 6*, and that negates that argument on beam angle.

Unfair that I pointed out that the UWLD is a poor choice for conditions with particulate in the water? This is exactly my point. Everyone has different requirements for what they want in a light, diving conditions play an important role, as well as the ability to communicate, beam appearance, etc. I don't care what the specs say, the LX25 has a tighter beam and is brighter than the LD15.

Please don't think I'm knocking the UWLD lights, I'm just pointing out that there's a compromise with all lights.

The OP is gathering facts to make a decision on an expensive piece of gear, let's help him make a decision based on his needs.