Submitted by
Kevin
a Weekend Warrior
from Western Australia
Date Reviewed: December 2, 2008
Strengths: Light small and compact easy to use and set up with out any special tools required all products for set up are included in the kit. Easy to charge and battery life is as promoted and run times are great for any of the weekend rides we do.
Weaknesses: Locating rubber strap needs to be removed after every ride
Submitted by
Jens_Fredrik
a Cross Country Rider
from Norway
Date Reviewed: December 1, 2008
Strengths: A light, tough and long-burning set. Ample light for fast trail-riding. Allthough one could always wish for more light, at this price the set is unbeatable.
And great customer service. The AC-converter for the charger stopped working, and they offered to send a new one the same day. No questions asked.
Similar Products Used: Only seen others in action.
Bike Setup: Turner RFX semi-heavy set up.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Boomdocker
a Weekend Warrior
from Ireland
Date Reviewed: November 13, 2008
Strengths: light, bright, great simple fitting system
Weaknesses: ?? none that i can think of
Bottom Line:
bought a narrow beam one for the helmet to use with the bar mounted lumicycle set up. they are freakin awesom! so bright and lovely white light compared to the lumi's. the light weight on the helmet is unnoticeable and well balanced. genius simple fitting system for battery and light. when i have the dosh i'll be getting the intermediate beam for the bars as well
Similar Products Used: lumicycle li-ion 2 lamp system
Bike Setup: stumpjumper fsr comp
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
tegski
a Cross Country Rider
from Canberra, Australia
Date Reviewed: October 15, 2008
Strengths: So light! Battery and light mounted on helmet so no cords trailing into backpack. All comes in nice carry pouches with batteries having neoprene pouches to protect them in use. Really light (again!) on my helmet - could hardly feel that they were on my head. Very bright too!
Weaknesses: Can't think of any
Bottom Line:
Used an HID set and really noticed how much faster I could go at night. Back out the next week with the old Vistalites and I was slower and all over the place. Decided to get some lighter version lights as was about to do the Scott 24hr. Bike shop had a couple of models with 3 LEDs and one 3 hr battery included. Ayup MTB set has 4 LED's and 2 x 3hr and a 6hr li-polymer battery included for the same price. Not much thought required for that decision! Raced the Scott and my lap times at night were only a couple of minutes slower (over a 45-50min lap) at night - Wow. Very happy with purchase and very impressed with the quality and feel of the gear - also to clean - chuck in the sink and scrub (not yet been brave enough, but they reckon the lights work underwater for fresh water!) Definitely a great light for the enduro racer and or commuter weight weenie
Similar Products Used: HID - older version quite heavy - sore neck after a 3 hr race.
Vistalites - look like a dim torch in comparison.
Bike Setup: Anthem 1 2008, EC90 flat bars, XT pedals, Spesh Alias saddle
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
harvster
a Cross Country Rider
from Melbourne
Date Reviewed: August 17, 2008
Strengths: light, relatively inexpensive, waaay bright, simple, good design
Weaknesses: would be nice if it also had a flashing mode for commuting
Bottom Line:
great product, waaay bright for commuting on trails, regularly dazzle cars and cyclist coming in opposite direction (ha ha ha). Soo much better value than overpriced American kit - which generally have shorter burn time & heavier batteries.
Customer service from these guys is great to. Received my road kit within a few days of ordering.
Great product.
Submitted by
JDJL
a Cross Country Rider
from Canberra Australia
Date Reviewed: July 17, 2008
Strengths: Excellent service from Ayup.
Excellent price. You get a set of lights for the helmet and another set for the handlebars for $440.
Batteries are long lasting a small.
A very neat package that includes a car cigarette lighter battery charger.
Lights look good and work well.
Get
Weaknesses: Nil
Bottom Line:
These are an excellent value for money light. They provide good light for the job and I like the way each light can be adjusted separately. You could spend a lot more and get better lights but for me there is a point of diminishing return.
The lights look good and are tough. For Australians, they are Australian made and should be supported because they are a good product.
Submitted by
Steve
a Cross Country Rider
from Emory
Date Reviewed: April 9, 2008
Strengths: Bright lights, great run time, light set up, cheaper than other two light systems, independently adjustable beams (x2 on helmet and bar)
Weaknesses: Helmet mount should be mounted permanently. Handle bar mount rotates around bar if set up perfectly strait.
Bottom Line:
These are awesome lights. That is all I can really say about these lights. Great value, great run time, great amount of light and light use. All around awesome lights. I am really looking forward to racing with these.
Similar Products Used: some cheap AA powered lights, Tri Newt, and Turbo Cats
Bike Setup: Rush 600 w/ Maxxis Ignitor tires, Truvativ crankset, XT casset, Formula Oro K18 breaks, and Ritchy WCS alloy flat bars.
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Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from Melbourne, Australia
Date Reviewed: March 30, 2008
Strengths: The ayups throw out an excellent amount of light. The genereous kit includes lots of mounts, cable ties, extension leads, spacers. The included batteries are light and small and deliver the stated burn times as a minimum. The lights and batteries stay cool during a ride. The charger can charge two batteries at once from either a 12v cig plug or from mains power.
Being able to aim each side of each pair of lights allows the spread of the beam to be adjusted very well. I went with narrow and intermediate lenses and am happy with this choice.
Weaknesses: They've become more expensive, but are still are great value kit.
Submitted by
Gavin Dunlop
a Cross Country Rider
from Perth, Western Australia
Date Reviewed: February 17, 2008
Strengths: Low weight, flexible & secure mounting system (just use spare mountings supplied to move between bikes and helmets), Comes with multiple batteries with fast charge time, (charger does 2 batteries at once), Waterproof Great customer service. Great range of colours and good looking set up. Above all - fantastic levels of bright white light
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
I bought the 08 kith with the new Cree lights which are apparently 20% brighter than the older models tested in the MTBR shootout. I got the narrow for my helmet and intermediate for the bars. They were delivered overnight for a very reasonable p&p. I use them for on and offroad comutting all year round. I think the bike mounting is great, very solid and the kit comes with extra mountings so you can transfer lights very easily between any other bike or helmet with a mounting. (And a headband will be available soon increasing their flexibility and saving me money on a new headtorch). The light output is sensational, both quantity and quality. Bright white light makes colours stand out. No hot spots and a great distribution. I've not had a head / bar combo before and it is a real improvement. I'll never need more light on a bicycle. Not cheap but still great value considering performance, flexibility, kit contents and life expectancy. The customer service was great(I asked a couple of questions by email which were answered immediatly) and this and other feedback would indicate support will be good should I ever need it. (I've been known to stack) So far as bottom line goes, I've had some really good bike bits over the years but this is the first time I've been inspired to sing their praises to the world.
Submitted by
Jason Dreggs
a Cross Country Rider
from Sydney Australia
Date Reviewed: January 20, 2008
Strengths: Light, Bright, Great battery life, Easy setup, great range of colours, 3 types of beam patterns, Quick recharge time compared to other systems I've used. easily able to adjust the angle. 270 degrees to adjust.
Weaknesses: They need a switch but has just been released so I will be getting a couple of those soon. Noeprene packing case could be better.
Bottom Line:
I've used these lights in rail hail and shine, They are so bright that I get flashed by oncoming traffic sometimes. They are so light that I can keep them setup on my helmet and bike without a huge weight penalty. On or off, you decide, No messing around with different power outputs. If the light angle is pointing to low it is too easy to adjust. 270 degree angle And in the event of a crash they will move rather than break.
Similar Products Used: Vistalight 5w, Night-rider HIDs
Bike Setup: Ellsworth truth X9,XT, Endurance machine.
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Submitted by
Dan
a Cross Country Rider
from Massachusetts
Date Reviewed: January 14, 2008
Strengths: These lights are simple to setup, the battery packs are tiny and come in pouches that are easy to secure and they light up the trail easily as well as the high end HID and Halogen I've used. Battery life is excellent and the dual chargers that are available get you back on the trail fast. Great colors and they look intimidating in those 24hour races at about 1am in the morning - that's where i saw them first. VALUE. Very handy carry case.
Weaknesses: None Yet
Bottom Line:
I can't fault the Jet and Turbo Cat rig i've used up to now - they are quality. Listen though, if you have sat on the net stessing about spending the months salary to get a couple of hours of extra burn time for those night races, stop looking and get the Ay-up rig. Half the weight, triple the burn time, half the price, great personal service and they blaze the trail, the Ayup set is just hard to beat. Now I just need to wait and see how they last.
Similar Products Used: Jet Lights, Turbo Cat - both great lights but twice the price to get the same setup.
Bike Setup: Zinn Gigabike, XO and Juicy 7, RP23 and White Brothers
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Submitted by
Kurt Bryant
a Weekend Warrior
from Queensland
Date Reviewed: January 6, 2008
Strengths: Very compact, lightweight, great design, low profile on helmet, long runtimes (I get 6hrs), well-made, great customer support, Aussie made!
Weaknesses: some would want a switch, I just leave mine on
Bottom Line:
Great value product, I'm running a spot on the helmet and intermediate on the bars. I find this combination awesome on single track. I've had a massive endo (stack) over a 2 foot jump @ 30km/h (clipped in of course) and the helmet light was fine, so they're certainly tough. Yes you can get brighter lights - but you'd have to pay a lot more money, and carry a lot more weight.
Submitted by
Nicholas Mills
a Cross Country Rider
from Brisbane Australia
Date Reviewed: December 23, 2007
Strengths: Reliability, price, light weight, long burn time, product support, finish.
Weaknesses: Needs a switch. A faster charge time would be helpful.
Bottom Line:
I have now ridden several thousand kilomters using these lights. My rides are as varied as a trip to the supermarket to extended all night back country epics. The Ayups have not let me down once. Even on rides where everthing is covered in mud for several hours, being able to wash the light units in a stream and know that they are going to keep going is a real plus. The fastening system to the bike and helmet is simple and bulletproof. Recommended for all types of riding.
It's down to these two, but I'm torn! Both meet my main criteria;
Helmet & bar light under $400
Run time >3 hours
Light weight
Bright enough for singletrack
Pros & cons t Read More »
