In January they are introducing the Pixa 3 at c. ?70 retail. Water & shock proof but I'm not sure how well it will attach to helmets:

http://www.petzl.com/en/page/pixa-headlamp-designed-specifically-professional#troismodes

Has anyone seen one yet?

If you've got plenty of money there's also the Ultra at ?315: http://www.petzl.com/en/pro/headlamps/ultra-powerful-headlamps/ultra

Mike

I see that the brightest model of the three is only rated at 50 lumens, which is pretty poor by modern standards.

What else runs at 50 Lumens off two batteries and is IP rated?

Indeed. ?70 should be buying you a helluva lot more poke than 50 lumens. For starts, bisun are retailing 850+ lumen lighting (not helmet-mountable, though) for ?80, but it's not in a sexy casing.

mikem said:

In January they are introducing the Pixa 3 at c. ?70 retail. Water & shock proof but I'm not sure how well it will attach to helmets:

Click to expand...

Looks nice. Seems to come with a specific bracket for the latest Vertex which is good as this mean you've got a fixed lamp for caving which can then be removed and used on the hill etc (assuming you buy a new lid available March 2011).

The bracket thing is quite interesting, has anyone else had the bracket on their standard tikka break off where it has a hole for the pivoting section of the lamp body?

I dropped mine (well, it jumped out of the car) in this cold weather and it snapped off. A bodge then occured using 2 key rings and a 2mm drill.

Looks useful as a backup light, if nothing else.

Had a play with one of the Pixa 3's in Hitch and Hike today. Very nice looking lamp. A lot larger than the Tikka models, closer to the Duo. Very robust feeling.
I'll be borrowing one for a test trip at some point.
I think Shaun said he was selling them for ?65.

Just had a look at one of these today at Caving supplies. Seemed quite good. Compared to my Bisun it seemed comparable for brightness (couldn't evaluate light spread cos we were in the shop and it was daylight)
He doing the Pixa 3 for 60quid.
I'd be interested to see if anyone had used it underground yet. Anyone give us some feedback?
Cheers

Which model Bisun would that be?

I had a look at a Pixa 3 last weekend, and though I liked the feel of it, it does have the attributes (and black/yellow colour) of a quality worklight rather than a caving light (and maybe even an outdoor light).

For a worklight, I guess it's understandable that there isn't great power variation, since there's only so much light you need for working with your hands, and typically not much need for dim lighting either.

I'd reckon it was a bit big for a 'backup' light, and a bit inflexible/dim for a main light at 30-50 lumens.

adz said:

Compared to my Bisun it seemed comparable for brightness

Click to expand...

Just to qualify this comparison, Dave has built Bisuns over a number of years and they have evolved as the technology has advanced. There is also a range of models. The current brightest variant, the P51 puts out 265 lumens, whereas the best of the 3 pixa models is 50 lumens.

cheers

Mines an M3.
But to qualify I wasn't really comparing the brightness of one against the other as the battery in my light had about 7 hours usage on it at the time and was running dim anyway and in a daylit shop you can't really compare anyway.
What I meant was I was on my way back from a caving trip and knew that the light output from my light was fine for caving with at the time and comparing the light out put between the two I could tell that the light output of the pixa would be fine for caving with.
Not looking to replace the bisun, cos I like the fact that its built in an Oldham Headset so is fairly bombproof and the lamp itself is great  - never even flickered in the 18 months I've battered it. I am  looking for a decent light for my son to cave with as my, frankly woeful, diy lights I've rigged for him are, well frankly crap.

What attracts me is that its all built in with batteries and everything so would be an easy fit running on just 2 AA's with a decent runtime and brightness.

I was wondering about its durability in a caving environment, specifically the plastic clip attachment and general resistance to battering.

So anyone actually used one underground? If so feedback please....

Can you get 'em cheaper from China?  :-\

adz said:

I was wondering about its durability in a caving environment, specifically the plastic clip attachment and general resistance to battering.

So anyone actually used one underground? If so feedback please....

Click to expand...

Had the pleasure of a loaner from Hitch N Hike today for a trip down Peak Cavern. I'll try to write a bit of better report to send to Shaun for the website but here is my 2 pence worth.

Petzl Pixa 3, 6 hours underground, standard batteries.

Low power should give 12 hours of light and was bright enough for caving in small passages or more than adequate for stops/eating etc.. It was a diffused beam with no focal point.

Medium Power reportedly gives 6 hours of light. This is the general caving setting with the flood LED on full and the spot LED on low. The combined beam gives you a good periferal light to see your feet etc and the spot extends your vision nicely. There is not a great contrast between the two LEDS and the beam is smooth.

High power should only give 3 hours. This is the spot LED on full. Only really usefull for looking up avens as there is little light spill to let you see where your feet are.

There was no appreciable drop in output over the trip. The 6 hours was divided roughly into 20% Low, 70% Med, 10% High.

The case is robust and the rubber strap option which I had today really does hold it onto the helmet nicely although may be a bit thick for normal headtorch clips on some helmets. It survived a swim through Lake sump with no water ingress (as expected). Even with mud caked hands the switch is easy to operate.

In summary once I'd got used to not having the 180 degree lighting from a Scurion the Pixa 3 gave more than enough light to cave on. Peak Cavern has some big passage as well. There was no real difference in light output when compared with an FX3. I'd like more run time on Med but it is easy to carry a spare set of AA's. Hitch N Hike have done runtime tests with different batteries and got improved longevity, check it out for yourselves on their website. I'd cave on one again and I'd certainly use it a backup light.

Pete Knight
www.truegritinstruction.com

That's a really helpful review.

Pete K said:

There was no real difference in light output when compared with an FX3. I'd like more run time on Med but it is easy to carry a spare set of AA's.

Click to expand...

That makes sense - regular halogen bulb in an FX3 is about 40 lumens, I think, so the 30-50 of the Pixa 3 is definitely in the same ballpark.

One thing I would be interested in is the waterproofing. If changing cells is a definite possibility, how easy would it be to keep mud/grit out of the seal when changing underground?

The seal question is a really good one. I can't answer that apart from saying it is an 'o' ring seal so a damp finger run around it should clean it if not too caked. Hitch N Hike were going to chuck me a Pixa 2 next time I'm underground (possibly Maskhil on Tuesday) so I'll make a point of trying a changeover.
I like the sound of the Pixa 2 as its full power mode should give you the same as the Medium on the 3 without the worry of having it on full and eating your batteries. Not an issue for people using it with knowledge but a consideration if you're thinking about having them as group/client lights.
Will report back if I manage to get my hands on one again.

Great review thanks Pete!

Got Pixa 3 to test from Inglesport today, on a trip down Long Churn with a couple of first-timers.  All went well apart from complaints that I kept stopping and telling them to switch their lamps on and off in sequence for comparison!

First impressions as others have said, it is a really robust unit.  Cased in solid pastic and tough rubber, with the option to swivel the unit 180* into it's bracket - which will protect the lense when shoved in a tackle sack...  Attachment to the helmet was bomber, good a Duo - with two cable ties through the bracket looped through a couple of drilled holes similar to those used for mounting the Duo, the test unit also had the rubber band (taped in place?) which seemed obsolete as there was no movement of the unit with the cable ties. 

Wearing the Ecrin helmet with one of these on feels much more comfortable than an Ecrin Duo - as it is a lot lighter.  It is nice not having a battery pack - which makes turning your head in tight passages easier!

I used the lamp mainly on Medium power - which gives a really good spill of light, with decent penetration.  It was a brighter, more useable light than that of the Duo 14 LED on high power - as Petzl appear to have used some pretty nice reflectors behind the chips.  Much more suitable light for moving quickly in open passage.

On low power the light was perfectly adequate for chilling - close ropework etc.

On high power it produces a good penetrating beam - thanks again to the neat reflector.  In comparison to the Duo's halogen, well I don't need to comment - we all know that's crap!  The beam was however, not a patch on the prototype Bisun Solo I have in my other Duo (well done!)  Although being a prototype that does flicker, which highlights the real beauty of this over engineered little Pixa - just solid - nice clean beam pattern, no flicker, no fuss, no worries about wrecking it!

Waterproof-ness - I gave it a good dunking to about a metre (to which it is rated) and it was fine - no condensation or anything - good beam penetration in the water.

Overall - It's a great little light.  Whether it's shorter battery life, or lack of top end power cuts it just short of being a primary light...?  It's certainly bright enough to cave on, with better distance penetration than what many people cave with.  Let's not compare it with a Scurion or Viper type - it only costs ?65!!  As for lumens etc I'm not too interested, it's the reflectors nowadays giving sweet penetrating beams (in my opinion).

It would make a good sturdy and effective primary light if the price is right for you!  But if you have a Duo - upgrade it with a Bisun Solo and get a Pixa 3 as a backup light, stuffed in the bottom of a tackle sack (not wrapped around your neck like a Tikka-Noose!)











 

simon.moorhouse said:

get a Pixa 3 as a backup light, stuffed in the bottom of a tackle sack (not wrapped around your neck like a Tikka-Noose!)

Click to expand...

No use in a bag but very useful around your neck (SRT specific).

cap 'n chris said:

simon.moorhouse said:

get a Pixa 3 as a backup light, stuffed in the bottom of a tackle sack (not wrapped around your neck like a Tikka-Noose!)

Click to expand...

No use in a bag but very useful around your neck (SRT specific).

Click to expand...

Not very useful if you hung yourself, and a tackle bag hung from the side of your harness is pretty accessible...  When is the last time your LED lamp stopped working suddenly half way up a pitch - I carry a spare more for battery problems, people with old halogen lamps, people not testing their lamps at the car...

My neck light is elasticated so there's no likelihood whatsoever of getting hanged! [Granted no sane caver doing vertical stuff should have anything around their neck which isn't elasticated].  Also, it's not so much about light failure but chin-strap failure or chin-strap-clip failure and the likelihood of your entire helmet and helmet-mounted lighting (including any back-up you may have on its brim) going down, down, down, into the unreachable depths while you're left hanging mid pitch in the dark, on your own, with an owl.

Admittedly if you're caving in a group then where you keep your spare isn't an issue. On rope, or solo, it becomes ever-so-important since you cannot rely on other people to assist you when blackout conditions prevail.