Overview of the types of dive lights.

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HungoverDiver

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Ok, so there a dozens of options for dive lights, but I am very overwhelmed with options. And don't really know what the options are and what's good for the type of diving I do. LED vs. HID? Halogen is different? Lux vs. lumens. What the hell is a beam angle? Is there a downloadable powerpoint that covers all this?

I have a UK SL4 torch that I use as my primary currently, but this designed as a back-up light as far as I know. I'd like to move to the canister light style, I believe.

My SL4 is good for right now, but I'd like to have something brighter, I think.

I've dive in SoCal, so it's cold, and sometimes very murky. Currently it's a lot of looking into holes for lobsters and nudis. I plan on moving more into tech diving with wrecks. So, then I'd need something with a good burn time?
 
Ok, so there a dozens of options for dive lights, but I am very overwhelmed with options. And don't really know what the options are and what's good for the type of diving I do. LED vs. HID? Halogen is different? Lux vs. lumens. What the hell is a beam angle? Is there a downloadable powerpoint that covers all this?

I have a UK SL4 torch that I use as my primary currently, but this designed as a back-up light as far as I know. I'd like to move to the canister light style, I believe.

My SL4 is good for right now, but I'd like to have something brighter, I think.

I've dive in SoCal, so it's cold, and sometimes very murky. Currently it's a lot of looking into holes for lobsters and nudis. I plan on moving more into tech diving with wrecks. So, then I'd need something with a good burn time?

LED is the new HID

HID is out of style although it's a good 2nd choice

Halogen sucks for diving lights because they drain the battery too fast

Lumens and LUX are similar concepts. LUX is the amount of light that falls on a given AREA. Lumen is just the total light generation. 1 LUX =1 Lumen/m2. IN both cases higher numbers means brighter lights

The beam angle is just how much the light "bundle" is focused. Think of it like an angle on a camera lens. Wide angle means the light gets spread over a wider area. A narrower angle means all the light is focused in a smaller area. As divers we like good light penetration through turbid water but we also like the light to illuminate as much as possible... so it's a bit of a trade off and subject to personal preference.

As for buying a new light. Most actually suck. In general (THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS) dive lights is one area where you need to pay a fair amount of money to get a really good one. Plastic housings suck when you go deeper because they flex and it can cause the battery to lose contact with the light head. I also have an SL-4 and deeper than about 40 meters it just turns off because of this. I've had several UK lights over the years and the SL-4 is the only one I haven't pawned off on someone. I don't know if UK make the worst lights available but if they're not the worst, they're near the top of the list of things NOT to buy. Anything else made of plastic completes the list of things to definitely NOT buy.

Suunto also has never managed to make a reliable dive light to the best of my knowledge but I"m not familiar with their latest products. Around here we all use MetalSub and Greenforce. Both are on the top of the list of really good lights. In the US I think there are several brands that people really like but I"m not familiar with them, so for those brands, I'll leave it other people to make suggestions.

As for buying, look for a VERY robust design, a good switch, about 2 hours of burn time, a metal housing and LED light source that generates about 400-700 lumens and you'll be in the right range for future wreck diving.

R..
 
Unless rotuner can post some beam/spot comparisons I haven't seen, LED is the cheaper, more reliable "almost as good as HID". A 21W HID with a really good reflector like a nice old Salvo is going to look like a light saber compared to an LED in the same ballpark; no LED of which I'm aware is going to compare to a 35W or 50W HID, let alone those monster 200W HID video rigs Halcyon sells.

That said, I'm considering selling my 21W HID and picking up a simple EOS Mini-syle LED just because it's one less thing to hang off my CCR, is almost as punchy, and it's not like I'm signaling teammates as a solo diver much anyway. If you want a can light, look very hard at Light Monkey or a used Salvo (LM's old company before a lawsuit screwed things up...Halcyon may have been involved IIRC). Not only are their lights better built than Halcyon, their customer service is right up there with Shearwater.
 
Don't know about all the manufacturers but I'm pretty familiar with Greenforce and their 21 watt LED head generates a little over 1900 lumen, which is a bit more than the 21 watt HID head they had.

My buddy uses a LED light and I have a HID light of the same power (both Greenforce) and realistically you'd be hard pressed in a real diving situation to say which is which.

That's not to say that other manufacturer's lights are comparable to that. There could be big differences in how the light bundle appears depending on the beam angle.

R..
 
I have never seen an LED light that was both as bright as my 21W HID, and had as tight of a beam angle. My Sola 1200 produces the same or more lumens than my 21W HID, but less lux.

I am however willing to entertain the idea that Greenforce has solved this problem but will remain skeptical until I see some video footage :)
 
I've never understood the focus (pun intended) on lumens for dive lights, given the reflective particle-filled medium through which they're transmitting light. Beam coherence is a lot more important for non-video applications, IMO, and that means looking at spot type/lux at given distances in identical conditions. A lot of that is the reflector, but a significant factor seems to be color temp, because HIDs just seem punchier when I see them side by side with LEDs of similar power.
 
I have never seen an LED light that was both as bright as my 21W HID, and had as tight of a beam angle.

Same here. I have a couple year old 21W HID (not as bright as it was) and a quite new hollis LED25. HID has tighter and thicker beam. It also penetrate further in NorCal water. Hot spot is hotter. For now, I am using HID at home water. it is just a better light for the environment. For travel and cleaner water, I will bring along LED25. Having that said. If I have to do it all over again and only allow to have one light, it will be a some sort of LED, may or may not be Hollis tho.
 
I've never understood the focus (pun intended) on lumens for dive lights, given the reflective particle-filled medium through which they're transmitting light. Beam coherence is a lot more important for non-video applications, IMO, and that means looking at spot type/lux at given distances in identical conditions. A lot of that is the reflector, but a significant factor seems to be color temp, because HIDs just seem punchier when I see them side by side with LEDs of similar power.

What colour temperature does your HID light generate?

R..
 
As for buying, look for a VERY robust design, a good switch, about 2 hours of burn time, a metal housing and LED light source that generates about 400-700 lumens and you'll be in the right range for future wreck diving.


Ok, so would something like this work? It's affordable, but then that makes me think I'm missing something about it being crap.

Dive Gear Express Canister Light System - Dive Gear Express


And it seems like DGX light is better than Light Monkey's that costs almost twice as much
LED Light Systems by Light Monkey - Dive Gear Express


So what am I missing here?

Haven't heard of Greenforce. Looking into them now.
 
I'm not familiar with either one of those particular lights but I think you're getting the picture.

R..
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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