Bike Lights Shootout Light Meter Measurements

December 12th, 2008 by Francois

Mtbr Lights Shootout Main Page | Mtbr Lights Reviews | Mtbr Lights Forum

img_2724.jpg

The light output measurement is performed by placing a Lux light meter beside the light. Both are pointed at the ceiling (five feet above) of a dark room. This measurement uses the ambient light produced by the bike light. We found this to be the most effective and repeatable measure of each light.

Pointing the light directly at the meter produced varying readings depending on exactly where the light beam was centered. Also, it was highly dependent on how focused the beam pattern was. Thus we chose the ambient light measurement test as the most effective for evaluating these lights.

Here is the 2009 Update:

Light Price Claimed Lumens Ambient Lux
Ayup Wide $250 300 31
Ayup Narrow $230 300 33
Ayup Standard $230 300 33
Blackburn System X4 $259 170 4
Blackburn System X8 $259 170 10
BR Lights C2-K $399 1000 65
Cygolite Rover II $160 255 17
Dinotte 400L $269 400 25
Dinotte 800L $439 800 55
Exposure Maxx D $399 960 48
HID Technologies Lumen8r (triple) ~ $305 720 45
Light and Motion Seca 700 Race $549 700 52
Light On! 900 $475 900 57
Lupine Wilma 5 $590 920 56
Princeton Tec Switchback 2 $299 na 10
Princeton Tec Switchback 3 $389 na 19
Trail Tech MR16 30W $398 1850 121

2008 Data:

Chart 1: Here is a graph of our measured Ambient Lux compared the lumens claims of the manufacturer. The readings are normalized using the Niterider Trinewt as the baseline since they measure their lumens output. (click to enlarge)

mtbr_claimedandmeasured.gif

Chart2: Measured Lux per gram, Measured Lux per $

mtbr_luxpergand_.gif

Chart 3: Run time vs. Weight

mtbr_runtime_weight.gif

One of our concerns was that wider beam patterns would be inflated in our readings since they have more reflective surface (our ceiling) to bounce off from. But we found this to not be the case. Using two Dinotte 200Ls , we measured while they were pointed at the same spot, then measured with the them pointed apart for a wider beam pattern. Both cases measured in at 32 lux.

Another good indicator is the Lux measurements of two lights together was equal to the sum of each light measured separately. Example:

Dinotte 200L - 16 lux each

Dual Dinotte 200L - 32 Lux

Light

Price

Claimed
Lumens

Ambient Lux

Light and
Motion Vega

$175

75

5

Princeton Tec Switchback 2

$299

NA

10

Cateye Tripleshot

$330

130

11

Light and
Motion Stella 180L

$300

180

12

Niterider Minewt.X2

$190

150

12

NiteFLUX Photon 4 Commuter

$137

270

12

NiteFLUX Photon 4 Enduro

$204

270

12

Exposure
Joystick Maxx

$250

240

14

Levin Brightstar

$270

500

15

Ayup helmet

$190

280

16

Dinotte 200L

$249

200

16

Knog 605

$399

300

16

Ayup bar (regular kit)

$190

280

17

Princeton Tec Switchback 3

$389

NA

19

Exposure
Race Maxx

$350

480

24

BR Lights
C2.1H

$330

410

28

BR Lights
Jeni H

$299

410

28

Exposure Enduro Maxx

$450

720

30

Jet Lites
Shadow 2600 HID

$500

675

30

Dinotte 200L Dual

$349

400

32

Dinotte 600-LI-4C

$399

600

33

Light On
Expedition 1000

$800

500

41

Niterider Trinewt

$500

500

33

Jet Lites
Phantom Halogen

$295

675

44

NiteFLUX Photon Max

$375

800

50

Lupine
Betty 12

$1,185

1400

65

Trail Tech MR16 30W

$398

1850

121

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15 Responses

  1. 29er Says:

    LUX per dollar, please.

    We need this because Lumens per dollar depends on mfctr’s Lumen rating, which clearly varies and differs significantly from your Lux rating.

    You owe us this one further spreadsheet column, because you’ve introduced the idea that advertised Lumen ratings are bunkum.

  2. Jason Says:

    Wow 29′er, awful demanding. Is it really that hard for you to do the math?

  3. 29er Says:

    Jason,

    I think it’s a reasonable request given that Francois had already provided a Lumens-per-dollar column in one of his spreadsheets. That info is of dubious value precisely because of Francois findings that Lumen ratings are not fair or consistent.

    He’s also got the LUX ratings from his own test. I’m just requesting that he put them together.

    You are right, it’s not hard to do. I might get to it and will post it myself, if I do.

    Thanks.

  4. Lupine Betty 12 Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  5. Knog 605 Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  6. Ayup 'Regular' Kit Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  7. Dinotte 200L, 200L Dual & 600-LI-4C Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  8. Light On Expedition Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  9. BR Lights Jeni H & C2.1H Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  10. Exposure Enduro Maxx, Race Maxx & Joystick Maxx Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  11. Cateye Tripleshot Says:

    [...] Light Meter charts and comparison table available here. [...]

  12. SpencerF Says:

    Great review and write-up. I couldn’t help but enter your data into a spreadsheet to compare the efficiency of the lights. I used LUX*Hrs/BatteryWeight as the metric. This suggests something is wrong with some of the data. For example, the Ayup - it is way too efficient. It has the tinyest battery of all lights but a long runtime compared to a light of similar brightness, say the Dinotte 200. You might double check the LUX for consistency throughout the run.

  13. Derek Fray Says:

    EXCELLENT WORK!

    This was extremely helpful in making a choice on what lights to purchase.

    Thanks for all the effort!

  14. hardmtnbiker Says:

    Where are the NiteRiders? I don’t know where you would buy most of these lights but I bought mine at my LBS.

  15. Mark Says:

    The trail tech battery life is much shorter on my rides. My flood went dead in 65 minutes. I lost my spot at 58 minutes. A couple ofcompete drains might have shortened their life, but thatwas only because they never came close to the stated life even when new. I am going to switch the spot and flood and try a 1 hr ride to see if the difference is battery capacity or light draw between the 2. I might just buyanother pair of batteries, and keep a better eye on them. An hour of life just isn’t enough.

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