Newbie Dive Light Questions: Characteristics of Lights, Etc.

[dflaher]

Hi,

I'm looking to purchase my first dive light and have a few questions, but first let me first tell about myself and my requirements.

Tropical, warm water, generally high-viz diver. Non-technical for the most part, but will do a wreck or cavern here and there. I'm looking for a light that will, during the daytime, allow me to look under shelves and into crevices to illuminate critters, either for pointing them out to my wife, or to increase colors for an action video camera. I'm also looking to get into night diving - maybe 1 or 2 dives per trip. Confused as to the requirements for a "primary" vs a "secondary" light dive light...is it just the brightness (lumens) or are there other concerns? Could my daytime light also be a primary, if I purchased the right one? What about beam width - is narrow better for day and wide for night, or can I get away with one size fits all?

I think I would be better off with a rechargeable light, simply cuz I wouldn't have to worry about buying batteries when I land...but are the chargers heavy/difficult to transport?

Lastly, I'm not looking to spend a ton of money but do appreciate some basic quality, mainly because I want to be sure I don't spend unnecessarily for something I don't need.

TIA for your thoughts and insight.

 

[Scubatude]

All good questions. During the day, in good conditions, with clear water you do not "need" a light. So just one light is fine. When your dive requires a light for any reason, then you need a back up light so you are never without the needed light. I used to carry a $1200 primary light, and a $300 backup simply because I could not afford 2 $1200 lights. With LED technology now lights are much better, smaller, and less expensive. I personally carry 2 of theses: Kraken NR-1000. Some people prefer a back up that can use drug store batteries that can be bought anywhere, for that just-in-case time. For that I recommend: Kraken NR-650. It can use either the 18650 rechargeable, or 3 AAA batteries. Both are GREAT lights.

Disclaimer: both links provided are for my company website

 

[stuartv]

If you only have 1 light, I would suggest a spot beam. A beam angle of 6 - 10 degrees is generally what you want. The alternative is a video light, which will usually have a beam angle of anywhere from 70 - 110 degrees. The spot beam means the light's output is more concentrated so it will penetrate further. Also, spot beams are used for signaling. It's really hard to make out what someone is trying to signal if they are using a wide angle beam. The potential for an emergency, where you need to use your light for signaling is the main reason that, if you carry only one light, it would generally be best to carry one with a spot beam.

In old school parlance, a "primary" light meant a corded light. I.e. a battery canister mounted somewhere with a power cord going to a light head carried on the back of your hand. Nowadays, cordless lights are so good that the distinction is somewhat irrelevant. For what you want, a cordless light will work perfectly well as YOUR primary light.

Most of the good cordless lights now all use the same basic LED emitter - a Cree XM-L2. They can put out around 1000 lumens (roughly). But, you'll see them advertised as putting out anywhere from 600 to 2000, depending on how honest the manufacturer is.

For daytime use, shining in holes, etc., you want the brightest beam you can get. For night use, you will often want something not as bright. So, a light that has multiple intensity settings is nice.

Personally, I have settled on the Xtar D26 as my favorite (cordless, aka handheld) light. It uses a 26650 battery, which means it offers a longer burntime than its many competitors that use an 18650 battery. And it has 4 intensity levels, so it will get very bright. But, it will also get very soft for illuminating critters at night without blinding them (as much) and scaring them away. It also has a nice spot beam that works well for signalling, but also has a nice "spill" (i.e. the less intense light around the bright spot in the middle).

 

[dflaher]

Thanks stuartv! So it sounds like the characteristics of a daytime light and a backup light are similar: bright and a somewhat focused (spot) beam. Since my original post I went ahead and ordered the DGX600 because I wanted to have something for my trip to Cozumel next week.

Since any night diving would require two lights, I guess my next one should be one meeting the requirements of a primary light: not too bright (don't want to scare fish/blind other divers), maybe a bit wider beam than the DGX600, and ideally multiple settings to vary the intensity. Maybe the Xtar D26 for this purpose?

 

[lucca brassi]

you can make holder for backups at night like

ISE-Alien-Light - Google Search


one spot, one or two wide

 

[stuartv]

Thanks stuartv! So it sounds like the characteristics of a daytime light and a backup light are similar: bright and a somewhat focused (spot) beam. Since my original post I went ahead and ordered the DGX600 because I wanted to have something for my trip to Cozumel next week.

Since any night diving would require two lights, I guess my next one should be one meeting the requirements of a primary light: not too bright (don't want to scare fish/blind other divers), maybe a bit wider beam than the DGX600, and ideally multiple settings to vary the intensity. Maybe the Xtar D26 for this purpose?

If you get a D26, you will probably find that you like it best as your main light and the DGX600 becomes your backup. At least, that's how it went for me. I had 2 x DGX600 to start and then after I got a D26, I liked it so much I got a 2nd one and I have not used my DGX lights since.

It is nice only having to keep track of one kind of battery. Though the D26 does come with a plastic sleeve that lets you use an 18650 battery in the D26. So, you could have a D26 and a DGX600 and use 18650s in both, for convenience.