Morph 1000 can light questions--recharge time, etc.

[Matt S.]

I'm really interested in the Morph 1000 can light but I have some questions... Thanks to anyone who can answer!

Run time -- I have seen people say it's 5-66 hours at full 1000 lumen output. True? (Seems almost too good to be true, but then again it's been a couple of years since I bought an LED dive light and it was a crappy Deal Extreme special.)

How long does it take to fully recharge the battery?

What % of full power are the reduced power modes?

Oh, one other thing... I assume that the cells in the can are protected, so that you don't damage them if you run the light to shutdown. It would be nice to have that confirmed.

 

[Chilly_Dipper]

Matt,

I just did a dive weekend in Telegraph cove during which I conducted 5 ~1 Hour dives, so I can confirm the battery lasted ~5 hours on a single charge without the low batter indicator coming on. I usually plug it in and forget about it so I have no idea of exact charge times but personal experience with 18650 cells (which the light has 4 of) tells me depending on the level of discharge anywhere between 1 - 5 hours to recharge the light. The three levels I have no idea since I only use full burn (don't see the point to the others due to the 5 hour burn time).

As for the charging circuit that would require a schematic for me to determine. I do know that Chris is exceptionally good about warranties and have no concern about being taken care of IF something weird were to happen.

 

[chrpai]

I ended up not going with the Morpheus but I do have a home built can light that is similar in specs. XM-L T6 1000 lumen emitter with 4x 18650 cells.

There are going to be variables to consider but in general I'd expect for you to get 3 hours of diving at 100% power and 3 additional hours at 90% power. The 90% being pretty darn bright and only noticeable if you are really testing it to compare the difference.

In other words, I'd expect that this light would be all a typical recreational diver would ever need. It is branded "Edge" after all.

A tech/cave diver might be more demanding in terms of brightness and runtime but for the common folk like us, it looks like a really good light. I like my home built and we'll see if I don't want to upgrade to the M1000 in 6-12 months.

I wouldn't worry about protected / unprotected. It's hard to imagine that a manufacturer would design and build a light without cell protection. They have various certifications, regulations and safety orgs to answer to. I'm sure they checked all the right boxes.

 

[Matt S.]

Thanks, guys. The run time is quite attractive. When we do a tropical trip I want to dive all day without fussing with batteries. Right now I have to swap cells every 2 dives, and manage charging a few sets of cells when we retire for the evening.

> It's hard to imagine that a manufacturer would design and build a light without cell protection.

It is, but stranger things have happened. Before I invest in a sealed lithium ion system I'd like some reassurance that the system will handle charging and discharging gracefully. Lithium ion cells can be fragile if the product allows you to mishandle them.

For example, if you fully charge a lithium ion cell to its maximum of 4.2V and leave it there for days on end, that's bad for it. So if I fully charge the Morph 1000 and my dive is scrubbed, do I need to partially discharge the light to protect the batteries? Or does the light only charge the batteries to the voltage at which long term storage is safe? That's how a laptop battery typically works, which is why you just never hear anyone say, "on no, I left my fully charged laptop at home unused for week."

Even if this light does not offer that protection, it could be great. But it's an answer that is important to have if you want to get the most out of it.

Actually, if any owner has a multimeter handy... what does a fresh fully charged can read when you measure the voltage at the output?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I don't have all the answers you are looking for but in general - burn time at full power is 6 hours, at 50% somewhere around 10 - 12, at 20% one was turned off after nearly 18 hours just because it was too boring to leave it on. This is with a single head. The can will run two with the spare umbilical.

As for the charging and discharging I had a Morph Backup that was my demo light. So it would get fully charged and sit for days or even a couple weeks with no problems. Someone would want to to look at it I'd turn it on, let them play and recharge. Never ran it down to nothing.

 

[Matt S.]

Thanks Jim, that's helpful.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I also sent a link to this thread to Jack and Chris for the more technical details as I don't have any lights on hand to crack open the manuals. They sold out and just came back in stock.

 

[Matt S.]

Nice, thanks. I was just emailing Edge, I will let them know they can respond here instead.

 

[lindenbruce]

I am very interested in this light system as well. I know you can get either an 8 degree or a 72 degree light heads. What that translates to in beam diameter at a given distance I have no clue but it would be nice to know. I find the narrow beam lights to be just to darned narrow for reef work. I know the light heads have three settings 1000 750 and 500 lumens. And hence the good run times as noted by Jim.

 

[Matt S.]

As for the charging and discharging I had a Morph Backup that was my demo light. So it would get fully charged and sit for days or even a couple weeks with no problems. Someone would want to to look at it I'd turn it on, let them play and recharge. Never ran it down to nothing.

Meant to reply to this. Thanks for the info. That is encouraging but not definitive. Storing a fully charged lipo battery will eventually reduce its capacity, or possibly even kill the battery. That backup light may have a big percentage cut off its max runtime now, but you wouldn't know from casual use. Or, it may be designed to only be charged to a level where storage isn't a concern, and it's perfectly healthy still.

Without the manufacturer telling us which way it's made, we can't know the best way to treat the light for its long-term health.

So... BUMP! I would love to get answers on the full recharge time and battery health issues. I'm interested in the light but cannot seriously consider a purchase until I get that information, it's absolutely critical for my intended use.

I've emailed the guys at HOG directly too, and referred them to this thread if they wanted to answer that way.