Petzl Aria

[Logismos]

Hi all,
SUSS are looking to buy some new club headtorches, and are considering the Petzl Aria.
We ideally want headtorches we can buy off-the shelf batteries for, and in the past have used Petzl Pixa 3's. We're reluctant to buy more of them though, as despite their "indestructible" reputation, the tabs which hold the battery housing together always seem to get ripped off by well-meaning freshers. Plus, they're pretty dim and surprisingly expensive.
The Aria (either 1 or 2) looks cheaper, also runs on standard batteries, and is still rated for submersion and impact. However, I can't find much opinion out there on their use for caving (no mentions at all on UKC!).
Does anyone have any impressions, ideally based on actual usage rather than hearsay?

 

[rm128]

always seem to get ripped off by well-meaning freshers. Plus, they're pretty dim and surprisingly expensive.

That's no way to talk about newer members

 

[Pitlamp]

Mine bust off too and it's a long while since I was a fresher!
(I'm glad to learn it's not just me who has had this problem.)

 

[Mark Wright]

The Aria 2 is 4.5 x brighter and about 70% of the price of a Pixa 3.

It looks and sounds good on the Video.

ARIA® 2 - Headlamps | Petzl Other

Petzl Other. Compact, durable, and waterproof headlamp, designed for proximity lighting and movement. 450 lumens

www.petzl.com

 

[ChrisB]

There's something odd about the data for the Aria 2 and the Pixa 3.

They both run off alkaline batteries, 3 x AAA for the Aria and 2 x AA for the Pixa. Typically, 2 x AA will have about 50% more capacity than 3 x AAA, assuming the same battery technology, so you'd expect the Pixa to have a better life at the same output.

They both have 100 lumen modes, and the Aria claims 10 hours compared to the Pixa 3.5hrs - the Aria is apparently capably of about 3 times the performance on 2/3 of the battery capacity, suggesting it's four times as efficient.

Digging a bit deeper, however, the burn time quoted by Petzl for the Aria is the time it take for the output to drop to 10% of the initial output, and the shape of the curve suggests exponential decay (which is pretty dodgy way to claim burn time!). Whereas the Pixa is designed to produce a constant light over the whole burn time.

 

[JoshW]

I never trust the ratings for burn time. Using AAAs doesn’t fill me with confidence.

The aria is basically an upgraded replacement for a tikka (what most would consider a back up light- rather than a main).

I’d sooner find a load of old duo’s (probably next to nothing - I might even have a few for cheap) and invest in upgraded boards/bulbs

 

[wellyjen]

I’d sooner find a load of old duo’s (probably next to nothing - I might even have a few for cheap) and invest in upgraded boards/bulbs

The yellow plastic cases of old Duo lamps are obviously advanced alien technology, millennia ahead of anything humans can produce. Almost indestructable. Upgrade LEDs and batteries to get a pretty good lamp.

 

[Loki]

Back in from the days when they made stuff that didn’t fall apart or wear out so fast…..

 

[JoshW]

Back in from the days when they made stuff that didn’t fall apart or wear out so fast…..

In fairness there are definitely weak points on duos, they were just easy to bodge your own repairs on so they seemed like they lasted forever.

Anyway OP, give me a couple of days and I might be able to find half a dozen duos if you do decide that’s the route you want to go down

 

[wellyjen]

Back in from the days when they made stuff that didn’t fall apart or wear out so fast…..

There is a strong survivor bias in any such observation. The only old stuff you see now is the percentage that survived. You don't see the stuff that broke and wore out, so the belief that old stuff was better flourishes.

 

[mikem]

Also good stuff gets more use, so poorer quality can end up surviving longer

 

[Logismos]

In fairness there are definitely weak points on duos, they were just easy to bodge your own repairs on so they seemed like they lasted forever.

Anyway OP, give me a couple of days and I might be able to find half a dozen duos if you do decide that’s the route you want to go down

That could be a good option! I do have access to a workshop, and I suppose I am technically doing an EEE postgrad.... so I could probably work out how to upgrade them

 

[wellyjen]

That could be a good option! I do have access to a workshop, and I suppose I am technically doing an EEE postgrad.... so I could probably work out how to upgrade them

Some ideas and inspiration
Here and here.

 

[Cantclimbtom]

That could be a good option! I do have access to a workshop, and I suppose I am technically doing an EEE postgrad.... so I could probably work out how to upgrade them

If you have funds, using old duos and this... https://customduo.co.uk/Simple-r02/ make a brilliant head torch much better than many torches on the market. It is as simple as push-fit to replace the existing gubbins.

(If you really wanted to go to town on it, you could entirely optionally gut the battery pack and shrink wrap on a slight curve 3x 18500 batteries to replace the 4xAA then you have a very capable light)

 

[Logismos]

A key thing that the committee seems to want is the ability to use standard off-the-shelf batteries, so the AA's for the Duo are ideal.
We don't need crazy battery life: just enough to get through fresher trips. If we invest too much on fresher lighting, they won't buy their own lights!

 

[ChrisB]

AAs are a bit more idiot proof too. Standard Eneloops are about £14 for 4, so about the price of two decent 18650s. They don't have the potential for catching fire that Li-ion batteries do, so you can probably recharge them in a hut without upsetting people, and you don't risk freshers buying cheap risky ones as spares.

 

[JoshW]

AAs are a bit more idiot proof too. Standard Eneloops are about £14 for 4, so about the price of two decent 18650s. They don't have the potential for catching fire that Li-ion batteries do, so you can probably recharge them in a hut without upsetting people, and you don't risk freshers buying cheap risky ones as spares.

Just ask people using helmets to bring a pack of AAs with them each weekend is what a chunk of clubs do, and seems to work well

 

[ChrisB]

Just ask people using helmets to bring a pack of AAs with them each weekend is what a chunk of clubs do, and seems to work well

That does work, but my experience is that the burn time of alkaline AAs in the CustomDuo is not as good as NiMh. I bought a big pack of top line Duracell Ultimate in Costco but didn't get the burn time expected. Eneloops were much better.

I understand it's because of the shape of the voltage - time curve. The Eneloop voltage stays high for a long time, and only drops away towards the end. Duracells have more mWhr, but the voltage drops uniformly, so get to the point where they won't drive the circuit in the Duo sooner.

 

[MendipScoutCaver]

I've got an Aria 2 with RGB and Pixa 3 - I think the Pixa has a more robust design and easier to turn on / off and select which light setting you want, the Aria back is a little fiddly and difficult to close correctly - there are some small plastic bits that I could see breaking if not careful. Also you have to cycle through the lights with short or long presses and I often get it wrong.

I use Pixa's with scouts and never had any issues.

I was chatting to an Outdoor Centre a while back and they use Fenix HM23 which take a single AA Battery, so may be worth checking out.

 

[MendipScoutCaver]

A couple of pictures for comparison. I also had to replace the headband on the Aria as a plastic locking bit fell out which meant it would keep getting loose.