Hyper Hype vs. Luxeon Lust -- Intensive comparison inside...

[Novastar]

Ok, I don't know if this warrants a new thread, but... well--what's the harm in doing a more extensive comparison?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=k5Ws91SGpDA

Before any folks make any judgements--keep in mind that the Hyperblades were sent to me as a donation, and I know very little about them thus far. I'm certain that the blue one is a v1, and fairly confident that the green is a v2... but--I may be wrong. I was trying to be as impartial as possible while still having a little fun. So sue me...

Indeed, feel free to post footage links here, or educated comments about all of this kind of thing... I've been waiting a LONG time to get some more "apples to apples" comparisons of the sabers, and also not simply use the "highest" setting or an "over-driven" setting to base comparisons off of. Anyhow. Watch the video, and you'll see what I mean.

Anyhow, I think the video gives at least a very nice perspective on things overall, and people can make their own decisions on what they like, dislike or if they like it all!

Hope everyone had a great New Year's celebration... I had a blast...

[Darth Lars]

Nice comparison!

Funny that one segment on the Hyperblade was shut off in the beginning, but lit up after you had banged it. I suspect that there was a connector inside the hilt that was not properly attached. Did you not check it before doing the test?

The reason why the Luke "Graflex" saber went to pieces, is that a real Graflex flash gun is not a single tube, but two, held together with a clamp made from sheet-metal. The two tube pieces don't even touch eachother - they touch only the clamp.
This breakage could happen to all Graflex sabers. Graflex flashes were originally designed to be used by photographers who handled their equipment with care.

[valeon]

When that thing fell in half I almost lost it. Nova you are one funny guy to listen to!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I LMAO when that Hyper-blade Graflex fell apart, that's classic! (Your reaction, I mean, that was too funny!)

Nice comparisons, as well. It looks like from what you had there, a properly driven K2 or maybe a Lux V with a good diffuser blade would be comparable to the Hyper blade. I must admit, I like the extend/retract on the Hyper, much better than an MR.

[Eandori]

Thanks a bunch for doing this Novastar. This is nearly exactly what I expected the comparison would be when done properly. I discussed this issue at length with others like Jedibum on this thread: http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com...ead.php?t=3239

I tried to point out many times that the Luxeon saber used in Jedibum's comparisons didn't have good diffusion. You can SO EASILY see that from the pictures. Even in Novastars video above, you can easily see his first sabers did not have good diffusion. But then as soon as he drops his Flange III sabers into the picture... world of diffrence. You can see how much more evenly lit his Flange III sabers are compared to his other luxeon. Overall, it makes those sabers appear far brighter too, since no light is lost.

Novastar uses a Green K2 (rated at 130 lumens at 1.5 amps). His K2 Flange III saber compared very nicely to a Hyperdyne blade. His was brighter at setting HB-setting 5, and it was comparable but less at HB-setting 10. Now... a luxeon V (not 5 watt, V) is rated at 160 lumens at 700mA. Push that up to 1 amp, and you probably get a ballpark of 180 Lumens. That's nearly 40% brighter then the K2, which IS SIGNIFICANT. I've witnessed it in person too, I have both LED's and a Green Lux V at 1 amp IS BRIGHTER then the K2.

So....

It seems clear to me that a Green Lux V, at 1 amp, in a very even blade (like mine or Novastars blades in Flange III sabers) should be ballpark comparable to a Hyperdyne, even at setting 10.

Beyond that, the luxeon is more durable, cheaper, easier to change color (buy a new $8 to $22 LED, compared to a new $180 LED strip), lighter, and the battery lasts 6 to 18 times longer with brightness at full power. So for colors Green/Red, luxeon is the clear winner in my eyes.

For Blue though... luxeon technology crawls in with a weak 30-46 lumens. Nowhere near the green/red luxeons. If I was really going to get the brightest blue lightsaber, Hyperdyne for now has that under lock. Luxeon technology is always getting better though... but I suppose Jim could change hyperdyne technology too. For now, blue lightsabers seem to go the way of the Hyperblade. As long as you can put up with the run time, thick saber tube, and the cost.

Seems interesting though... this.... seems to be.... exactly what I was talking about in that other thread.....


Oh well.

[Novastar]

Nice comparison!

Funny that one segment on the Hyperblade was shut off in the beginning, but lit up after you had banged it. I suspect that there was a connector inside the hilt that was not properly attached. Did you not check it before doing the test?

The reason why the Luke "Graflex" saber went to pieces, is that a real Graflex flash gun is not a single tube, but two, held together with a clamp made from sheet-metal. The two tube pieces don't even touch eachother - they touch only the clamp.
This breakage could happen to all Graflex sabers. Graflex flashes were originally designed to be used by photographers who handled their equipment with care.

The blades were provided as is, and had usage. The high up segment that was out in the video... was "glitchy". Believe me, I've seen this with actual MR strips too. When the PCB wafer strip begins to crack (or solder joints begin to give), you get the "glitchy" effect on connections. Eventually, it just gives way. Pressure and time.

I know what a Graflex hilt is, but thanks for the history. And yes, it is pretty clear how many pieces a Graflex is comprised of... just like (for example), my Flange III sabers are not all one tube. Are ANY sabers all one tube? Never seen it. "Always two there are, sometimes more, never less..."

I have said it a few times but I will say it again... the Graflex falling apart had NOTHING to do with ANYTHING... OTHER than the fact that it was loosened, and fell apart. There is no hidden message here about anyone: the Graflex fell apart right before your eyes on the video. I was surprised. I found the captured video humorous, and decided to share with y'all.

A little more history... it is clear that the Graflex is either a replica of or a "true" ESB style one, due to the TWO knurled knobs... and the 7 small hex screws at the bottom on the T-grips. I removed the D-ring & plate to see if the pommel came off, but it only revealed that ghastly hole in the original "3-cell" circular plate at the bottom. Someone cut a big hole in it. I don't know WHY, but they did. The end.

[Jedibum]

And the controversy continues. I suppose these things will never stop. I want to chime in with a few useless comments.

First I want to say ... I do find one particular thing funny ... when I did my comparison ... members like Eandori just gave me hell over all kinds of specifics. I mean everything had to be known and documented. All things ... blade types, diffusions, tips, batteries, charging, what kind of camera ... you get the point. I had to know ever detail or some members were ready to call it a faulty test.

But now we have a fun, casual test ... where the person doing it even says they aren't even sure about the details of one of the Hyperblades ... it appears to be a V2 driver ... but are these V2 blades … or V1 blades??? Are they 1-piece or 3-piece??? These things aren't stated anywhere ... and these can have major changes to the outcome. And yet ... even without these MAJOR details ... the same members that demanded all things be known by me for my test because it would surely be unfair to luxeons to not make sure you are using the right blades and batteries .. etc. These same members are ready to start actually drawing conclusions based on this test ... without knowledge of some very major factors of the Hyperblade. But I forgot, these tests seem to have the outcome “unbiased” members like Eandori are hoping for so there is no need to get fussy with the details.

Instead of doing a test in the dark, I would like to see a test done during the day. A test done with Level 10 Hyeperblade Green (V2 Blade and 1-piece), static blade … whatever Green Luxeon you want (K2 or 5Watt) … middle of the day, say around 1:00pm … room with lots of windows. I think that test would say something. Oh wait, I did it already using a blade made by Erv… well since mine was somehow wrong … lets see it again … I mean after all we want to find out what is truly brighter don’t we?

[Eandori]

Hi Jedibum

Actually, you are exactly correct. I didn't bring up every detail that Novastar should consider. There are 2 very solid reasons for this.

1. I am experienced wiith Luxeon, not Hyperblades. I'm not qualified to give him tips and "make sure to verify this..." comments. I can talk about electronics, and technology, but I don't have experience with actualy Hyperdyne stuff.

2. I actually DID give Novastar a huge page of comments. But it was offline. He discussed the comparison with me and a few others before he finished it and posted it. On those responses I gave him, I talked all up and down about which LED's to compare, how batteries work, etc. If Novastar wants, he could post my exact comments so you can see that it's not like I was "attacking" you and leaving him be.

Since YOU are the experienced saber smith with Hyperdyne systems, YOU should be the guy to chime in with comments about what he should pay attention to, what to make sure he does, what needs to happen etc. with a Hyperdyne system. I fully expect that. Just like Novastar said, what we want is a real and fair comparison. Right? That's exactly what all my comments in the other thread were alluding to as well.

I stand by everything I said. Every single word. In both threads. It's all about getting a fair comparison.

You should be paying attention though... I told you that your blade was not as even as it can be for luxeon. Even Novastars cheaper sabers were not as even. His Flange III sabers had the even blades and that was TOTALLY evident in his video. I tried to point that out, but you didn't seem to want to hear it. Your pictures and the video made it obvious. Luxeon does not work as well when the light is lost by hilt flaring.

So where do we go from here? We politely, and with respect for each other point out anything "wrong" with Novastars comparison. Something that needs to happen

I'm wondering though, why do you want to compare the sabers in the daylight? Even your comparisons were in a dark room. Or room with inside lighting.

[Eandori]

Another quick note....

The Luxeon V is not a "5 watt luxeon"
The Luxeon III series is not a "3 watt luxeon" series

Although the wattage used at it's rated current is often close, it's NOT always true.

-A red luxeon III is rated to run up to 1.5 amps, at 2.91 volts forward. That is 4.365 watts.
-A green luxeon III is rated to run up to 1 amp, at 3.9 volts forward. That is 3.9 watts.
-A green luxeon V is rated at 700mA, at 6.85 volts forward. While that does work out to 4.795 watts, it's typical to overdrive that LED to 1 amp which is actually 6.85 watts.

Calling a Luxeon V running at 1 amp a "5 watt LED" is incorrect. It's a Luxeon V at 1 amp.

on a similar note... a hyperdyne setup with an 11.1 volt battery, running on setting 10 is probably drawing a ballpark of 4 amps. That's a setup using 44.4 watts. You can tell it's drawing around 4 amps because the 750mAh battery pack dumps out in 10 min at setting 10. 10 min is 1/6 of an hour so... 750/(1/6)) = 4500mA or 4.5 amps for 10 min.

Cheers,

[Soulkeeper7700]

lol... i have to say, you are very talented when it comes to the technical details of the sabers. but i must admit,(and its because i am not trained at all with how to get the info you get).. but i have to admit that i think i would understand R2D2 giving a speech at Comicon better than i understood that post.lol.... but one thing is certain, i know who to go to when the math gets tough lol. good work