Wednesday, September 9, 2015

OLIGHT SR52-UT XP-L Hi (3Px18650) REVIEW


Hello
OLIGHT is updating with new LEDs many of its high distance flashlights and some of the tactical lights,as well.
The new LEDs are de-domed XM-L2,XP-L and recently in the reviewed below SR52-UT,Cree XP-L Hi. The main goal of the upgrade is reaching higher peak beam intensity,which results in a longer distance of throw.
The SR52 definitely is one of the most refined flashlights I've tested,so far and the new SR52-UT with a high intensity emitter adds even more on the top.
Unlike the de-domed XM-L2 and XP-L leds,the new XP-L Hi comes from the Cree directly without any modifications.
It is designed with a thin silicone layer,which gives some impact protection and the tint of the light is unchanged clear white.

The Overall design from the SR52 is untouched. I will not comment that much the build quality,so please read also my SR52 Review,for my opinion.

The SR52 UT come in the well known Olight plastic cases.
Very convenient to carry the flashlight and all its accessories.
There are also places for batteries.
Inside- Car charger,Micro USB cable(not on the picture),great holster,Spare O-rings.
A little unexpected,there is no home,wall charger coming with the new model.
The charging current is 1A,so be careful,if you plan to use a computer USB port,or phone charger.
Be sure,they support high current charging.


Here is the flashlight inside the holster. Good protection.
No velcro tape for attaching.

These are the main specifications from the user manual.


Beautiful wide and deep aluminum reflector.

Ultra clear glass lens with anti-reflective coating. You can hardly say,there is a glass lens,on the pictures.

There are two holes on the tailcap,for strap attaching.


The Micro USB charging port. The white dot nearby,is the status indicator.
Red light when charging,green when charging is finished.
The indicator blinks red also,to alert for low battery voltage.
The port is covered with a plastic sliding "door".

The green light is very dim and hardly visible.
Voltage of the batteries after charge U=4,17V
The charging process stops completely when the light is green.
Any 5V USB port,or wall/car adapter supporting 1A current draw,can be used for charging the SR52UT.



All batteries are electrically connected in parallel. This means,the voltage is the same as the voltage of a single battery,the capacity is triple the single battery.
This is good for the run time,but limits the possibility of the driver to regulate the output at any voltage.

The light works even with a single battery.
I tested it.No problem to screw the tailcap.
Because of a physical reverse polarity protection,flat top batteries are not supported.
You really don't want to put a battery with two other batteries in reverse. So,the physical protection is really needed here.

Anodized,square cut threads.

Quick comparison with the previous model.
The SR52 UT is on the left.
Identical design. The charging port is on the opposite side on the new model.

The operation manual.




Lumen measurements(30sec after activation)
High mode 1130 Lm The highest output depends on the batteries,so different measurements are quite possible.
Mid mode 540 Lm
Low mode 102 Lm

I measure 900 Lm High mode,using only one battery.
Peak beam intensity 200kcd and even more,depending on the batteries.
Standby current draw,amazingly low! Just 4,7 µA.


Now,let's go to the most important part of a flashlight.The light it produces.

Another picture showing the deep reflector and the very clean glass lens.

The XP-L Hi LED is perfectly centered.

Close-ups of the Cree XP-L Hi LED.

The thin silicone layer is slightly matte. This is probably improving the beam tint.


Beamshots

The light from the XP-L Hi mounted in the SR52UT is cool white.No greenish,or bluish.
I would say it is identical to the light from the previous version with a XM-L2 LED.

1/500sec


Clean beam profile. Small and very bright hotspot.Good spill.
There are some artifacts around the hotspot,when pointed on a white wall.
The flashlight is a definite thrower designed for a long distance illumination and at that distance the beam is perfect.

1meter, 1/20sec
High-Mid-Low

5 meters,1/6sec

Peak beam intensity measured by me.
Measured at 3 meters distance.
Olight SR52UT 213.300cd
Olight M3XS UT 261.000cd
Olight M2X UT 180.000cd
ThruNite TN32 211.500cd
I can't guarantee the accuracy of my luxmeter.

5 meters,1/250sec

5 meters,1/1000sec

5 meters,1/1600sec

Below is a comparison at 5 meters distance,with the predecessor Olight SR52 with a XM-L2 LED.
1/50sec
1/200sec
1/500sec

Outdoor Beamshots

I did all possible to represent the real beam tint on the pictures I show in the review.
However it's hard to judge for the tint only by the pictures.There are too many factors that could affect the color reproduction-screen brightness,white balance setting,contrast,etc. The tint is also depending on the exposure of the picture.

I put even more effort this time. Hope you enjoy all the static and animated beamshots .

Olight SR52 UT in action.
(maybe a little warmer white balance here,than the real)

Olight M3XS UT(left side) Olight SR52 UT(right side) Distance ~75 meters

Olight M3XS UT(left side) Olight SR52 UT(right side) Distance ~75 meters

Distance ~75 meters

Distance ~75 meters

Here(below) the M2X and M3XS look more yellowish/greenish,because of the slightly different white balance.
I tried to correct it,but the SR52UT and the TN32 became bluish/purplish.

Distance ~160 meters

All pictures from above animated.Unfortunately no much detail in the GIF format.

Distance ~160 meters

Olight is one of the first manufacturers adding the new special high intensity emitter to their flashlights(actually the SR52UT is the first and only model,so far).
The upgrade is really worth it.We get one of the best throw capabilities,from a stock flashlight,without sacrificing the tint. The light from the Cree XP-L Hi led used here is cool white.No sign of the greenish tint from the de-domed leds. It's great to have the choice. The peak beam intensity is higher than the Olight M2X and without the tint. The M3XS UT has a higher intensity and higher lumen output,but it also has the greenish tint(hopefully they will upgrade it with the XP-L Hi soon).
According to my lux measurements,the SR52UT and Thrunite TN32 have the same peak beam intensity. The lumen output on the TN32 is higher though and still does impress when switching to it. Note that in the TN32 all batteries are in series and the output is constant,because of the higher voltage. The output of the SR52UT drops with the voltage drop,which means it will not start with the same output every time.The size of the SR52UT on other hand,is much more compact and easy to carry and operate.

Normally for Olight,build quality is on high level. The charging feature works as it should-safe terminating voltage,compatible with USB power source. The charging time takes more time than I usually like to wait. One amp current is divided among three batteries.Each of the batteries take ~333mA,which results in about 10 hours charging time,for fully discharged 3400mAh batteries.
I like that I can use the flashlight even with one,or two batteries,if needed.
I don't find any deffect,or something to bother me. The Olight SR52 UT is still a great choice for a thrower,as its predecessor.

Thanks for reading!

Thanks to Olight for providing the SR52 UT for test and review!