[Oracle]

G'day All,

I'm in the market for a helmet mounted light as my old bar mounted haolgens died a couple of months ago. I won't run a second light on the bars and am not really interested in doing so at this stage. I've read most of the reviews in this forum and am settled on either Exposure Diablo due to simplicity/functionality (can easily store in camelback, be used as a torch, charged via USB cable etc) or the Lupine Wilma 5 due to excellent light output, user service/upgradeable etc.

The lights will mostly be used for urban commuting (mixture of city roads and dark bike paths) so the Diablo looks good on paper. But is the Diablo bright enough as a sole light for trail use (I've a yeti 575) if run on high with a piggy; or should I really look more towards the Wilma 5. Basically the Wilma is almost double the cost of the Diablo (at least to buy/import in Australia) so is it twice the light?

Hopefully someone has used/seen both lights in action and can comment.

 

[BBW]

Can't comment on the El Diablo but the Wilma has a brutal amount of light. To tell you the truth, I use it on 60% and it gives 5h+ and pretty much looks like the same output. That's one thing I don't like much about the Exposure (burning time). Also you can always upgrade and buy another battery or a bigger one for the Wilma.
Both have excellent reputability and both are great choices

 

[LandSpeed]

Can't comment on the El Diablo but the Wilma has a brutal amount of light. To tell you the truth, I use it on 60% and it gives 5h+ and pretty much looks like the same output. That's one thing I don't like much about the Exposure (burning time). Also you can always upgrade and buy another battery or a bigger one for the Wilma.
Both have excellent reputability and both are great choices

is it just coincidence that your name is BBW? Or are you really a BBW?

 

[Joe Bob]

On a 24h race I had the chance to compare the old Diablo (P7) with the Lupine Wilma.

My impression on the diablo was that it is really light, good engineering quality and enough light output for trails if you put it on the helmet. A constructional disadvantage is the short burn time without the piggy back. So the nice feature of having a light light on your helmet without any wires is something you can enjoy for an hour only. It works great as a flashlight too.

About the Wilma. The Beam has less side spill and much more brightness at center. The center spot is also fairly large. If you aim it down the trail you get a really even illumination. Lupine announced in their forums, that there is going to be a LED Upgrade this year, as well as a new wide lens option for the Wilma, which I personally would wait for. You can probably expect about as many Lumens as the current Betty and a beam as wide as the diablo (including the punch at the center). I think Exposure lights will quickly implement the new Leds as well (it's cree XM-l) as they have done in the past.

My suggestion is to wait until late summer, then buy. If you don't want to wait then I'd recommend the Diablo. It gives plenty of light to go for trails at speeds below 20 miles/h. The bright center of the Wilma is most useful when going at really high speeds. For everthing else the Diablo should do just fine. Also the diablo without the piggy back should be more convenient for commuting.

Hope that helped.

 

[BBW]

is it just coincidence that your name is BBW? Or are you really a BBW?

Those are my initials

 

[LandSpeed]

Those are my initials

you had me, there. I was all, BBW and this guys avatar don't mix. Unless he's into that sort of thing. If you are, it's cool.

 

[Oracle]

...My suggestion is to wait until late summer, then buy. If you don't want to wait then I'd recommend the Diablo. It gives plenty of light to go for trails at speeds below 20 miles/h. The bright center of the Wilma is most useful when going at really high speeds. For everthing else the Diablo should do just fine. Also the diablo without the piggy back should be more convenient for commuting.

Hope that helped.

Thanks for you review/comments Joe Bob. No doubt Lupine will offer a user serviceble upgrade option for the new LED and wide lens which is a hard to resist. The hour long burn time doesn't worry me too much as I was thinking I'd just buy a single and tripple piggy battery if I were to order the Diablo. Both options give me a bit more to think about.

 

[Oracle]

you had me, there. I was all, BBW and this guys avatar don't mix. Unless he's into that sort of thing. If you are, it's cool.

I'm asking about lights. I'd appreciate if you could continue your conversation via pm or in another thread.

 

[BBW]

I'm asking about lights. I'd appreciate if you could continue your conversation via pm or in another thread.

Hey be nice! you got a good answer already and you got more LEDs
Not into that at all LS

 

[scoutcat]

the diablo is a great light but on the highest setting it doesnt last too long. you dont need something super bright for commuting so using it on med would be fine. for night trail riding i think the diablo needs another 45-60 min on brightest setting to be truly helpful.

 

[Oracle]

the diablo is a great light but on the highest setting it doesnt last too long. you dont need something super bright for commuting so using it on med would be fine. for night trail riding i think the diablo needs another 45-60 min on brightest setting to be truly helpful.

So runtime aside (i'd buy piggy(s) anyhow), is the Diablo bright enough with good beam pattern for trail riding? Or does it really need a complimentry bar mounted light?

 

[Oracle]

Hey be nice! you got a good answer already and you got more LEDs
Not into that at all LS

I did ask nicely, just didn't want the thread running too far off topic!

Anyhow, did you find the beam pattern of the Wima too narrow for the trail as it often seems that way in a number of the online/magazine photos that I've reviewed?

 

[LandSpeed]

I did ask nicely, just didn't want the thread running too far off topic!

Anyhow, did you find the beam pattern of the Wima too narrow for the trail as it often seems that way in a number of the online/magazine photos that I've reviewed?

they've got some great beam photo spreads in the lights shootout
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/2011-bike-lights-shootout-beam-pattern-photos/

I was worried about the beam of the Exposure Six Pack that I just bought being too narrow, but for the riding I do, which is a lot of high speed streets and fire roads, I wouldn't want anything else. So, like me, you've got to consider the type of riding that you do.

You've also only got 28 posts since 2006? You don't come here to BS much.

 

[Oracle]

they've got some great beam photo spreads in the lights shootout
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/2011-bike-lights-shootout-beam-pattern-photos/

I was worried about the beam of the Exposure Six Pack that I just bought being too narrow, but for the riding I do, which is a lot of high speed streets and fire roads, I wouldn't want anything else. So, like me, you've got to consider the type of riding that you do.

You've also only got 28 posts since 2006? You don't come here to BS much.

Yeah, I've been silently following Francois' beam pattern photos. It's a good reference and one I keep coming back to. The Diablo beam appears slightly narrower than the Six pack but at much less lumens. Just wish I could trial both lights (Wilma and Diablo) in the dark for an hour or so before laying down the cash. :yesnod:

As for the low post count, I'm too busy working and studying with a touch of riding.... :thumbsup:

 

[woodyak]

So runtime aside (i'd buy piggy(s) anyhow), is the Diablo bright enough with good beam pattern for trail riding? Or does it really need a complimentry bar mounted light?

It's plenty of light for trail riding. All of my buds ride with only helmet lights and the Diablo is the brightest one out there. The spread is excellent too w/o any artifacts and a nice soft white light. The medium setting is actually pretty usable itself for slow/medium speed riding but at high speeds it's not enough.

I ride with the single piggy mounted to my helmet and we're usually out there for about 3+ hours. I ride it on high and then switch it to low when we're stopped. If the ride seems like it's on the longer side I'll switch it to medium light. I haven't had it bomb out on me yet. I did a test ride where I kept it on high the entire time and I got 2:47 out of it w/single piggy. I'm planning on getting the 3 piggy for my 24 hour races this year.

My buddy picked up the 6 pack because he has bad eyes and he didn't like it mounted on the bars as the spread was too narrow. He ended up rigging it up on his helmet and it's like the sun when he's behind you.

 

[woody.1]

Can't comment on the El Diablo but the Wilma has a brutal amount of light. To tell you the truth, I use it on 60% and it gives 5h+ and pretty much looks like the same output. That's one thing I don't like much about the Exposure (burning time). Also you can always upgrade and buy another battery or a bigger one for the Wilma.
Both have excellent reputability and both are great choices

I'm in the same boat as BBW. Can't comment on the El Diablo, but the Lupine Wilma is AWESOME. The beam will be wide enough for trial riding without a doubt.

Since your an Aussie, what about the ayup lights? On another forum I belong to a guy was saying the lights are great.

http://www.ayup-lights.com/

Woody

 

[poorbadger]

I'm making a similar decision (I'm considering the Lupine Piko and the Exposure Diablo).

Taking a look at the beamshots the Diablo looks warmer than the Piko, the Wilma and - in fact - the Exposure Toro. Is that the case?

Both the backyard & trail shots give me that impression - that the Diablo tends a little more towards the red/yellow end and the others mentioned more towards the blue end. I think I may prefer the warmer tint - it seems to render colors more accurately. Could anyone comment?

I would assume all the Exposure lights would use the same bin XP-Gs - that the Toro and Diablo appear to be slightly different colors has me scratching my head.

Beamshots...
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/exposure-diablo-bike-light-review/
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/exposure-toro-bike-light-review/
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/lupine-piko-bike-light-review/

Don't mean to hijack your thread Oracle - I thought you might be interested in the color quality of the Diablo vs the other lights as well.

 

[BBW]

I did ask nicely, just didn't want the thread running too far off topic!

Anyhow, did you find the beam pattern of the Wima too narrow for the trail as it often seems that way in a number of the online/magazine photos that I've reviewed?

The amount of light that the Wilma puts out is brutal; plenty to ride anywhere IMO. Very wide and SO much light that will change your concept of "night riding":thumbsup:

 

[woody.1]

I'm making a similar decision (I'm considering the Lupine Piko and the Exposure Diablo).

Taking a look at the beamshots the Diablo looks warmer than the Piko, the Wilma and - in fact - the Exposure Toro. Is that the case?

Both the backyard & trail shots give me that impression - that the Diablo tends a little more towards the red/yellow end and the others mentioned more towards the blue end. I think I may prefer the warmer tint - it seems to render colors more accurately. Could anyone comment?

I would assume all the Exposure lights would use the same bin XP-Gs - that the Toro and Diablo appear to be slightly different colors has me scratching my head.

Beamshots...
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/exposure-diablo-bike-light-review/
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/exposure-toro-bike-light-review/
http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/lupine-piko-bike-light-review/

Don't mean to hijack your thread Oracle - I thought you might be interested in the color quality of the Diablo vs the other lights as well.

I have the Piko on my helmet and I did a little test this morning. I went out and turned my Wilma (mounted on the bars) off and just ran with my Piko for a few miles on a paved wide bike trail and it is more than adequate for a commuter light. If you are going to be doing twisty singletrack I think you need two lights, one on the bars and one on the helmet. I'm getting about 2 1/2 - 2 3/4 hours on high on the Piko and from what I have read you won't get that out of the Diablo.

Woody