Supernova E3 Pro, questions

[dhoff]

I am on my second. The first, when new, the stand light function did not work. The retailer, PW, replaced it with a new one. The replacement, the stand light worked, but now, 6 months later, the stand light function does not work.

Has anyone else had these problems?


-d

[blasdelf]

Yep, they aren't a particularly good product. The color temperature is also weird, the lights are quite heavy, and the beam pattern is pretty awful on both the round and stvzo models (the triple ain't so bad). They also inefficiently draw extra watts over spec — if you're gonna feel vibrations from the hub it'll be with their lights.

The only reason they've kept showing up on rando-themed NAHBS showpieces is because they were the only line of bright dyno lights QBP stock. Their competitors are much better.


The Busch & Müller IQ Cyo is by leaps and bounds the best all-around dynamo light you can buy. It's also the cheapest of the good ones (as low as $75 shipped from Europe) and the bright + long + switchable standlight is the best you can buy period. Be sure to get specifically model #175QNDI, avoiding the "near field" feature (fucks night vision and puts out 40 lux instead of 60lux) and the "daytime running lights" models (which fucks up the standlight). The only real flaw of the light is the plastic housing, which can crack off the mount if you lay the bike down wrong (mine epoxied back together just fine though).

The Schmidt eDelux is the Cyo in a bulletproof aluminum housing, and slightly brighter thanks to a clearer glass lens and more expensive LED. The downside is that it's double the price, and the standlight sucks in comparison: beam drops sooner, is dimmer, and can't be switched off and on (the switch on the light cuts the *input*).

The Phillips Saferide 60 has two LEDs and a much wider reflector making the contact patch on the ground maybe three times bigger than the Cyo or eDelux — it's like the hand of god on the road. The upper edge of the shaped beam is less defined than the Cyo or eDelux making it harder to see in the super far distance (100m+) but also means that on curvy roads and singletrack the light is much more amenable to being aimed up over the horizon a little. The main downside is that there's a very bright spot immediately in front of your wheel, which basically requires you to have a handlebar bag to block your view of it. The standlight is also fairly dim if you're not in pitch blackness, and it cuts in at around 3mph on my SONdelux hub.

I own all three and have the Saferide on my main dyno ride now, but remain a fan of all of them.

[Saab2000]

^^

This. I have an E3 Triple and even that is kind of underwhelminng. My buddy with the B&M CYO gets better illumination even if in the lab the Supernova is supposedly brighter.

I may well replace mine with an eDelux.

[holliscx]

dhoff not to jack your thread but I swear to god your avatar reminds me of Spain's national mailbox:

buzon-Correos.jpg

[Scott G.]

The E3 Pro stand light when it works is pathetic, the CYO stand light is pretty good,
you can walk with it. I now use an E3, it is a bit dimmer, but has a longer throw
and broader beam than the CYO. I ride on really dark country roads, in the city the CYO is better,
it doesn't get washed out as easily as the E3. I have Princetontec EOS helmet
mounted for stops, good enough to get a cars attention and see around corners.

[dhoff]

dhoff not to jack your thread but I swear to god your avatar reminds me of Spain's national mailbox:
buzon-Correos.jpg

Hijack away, I am going to reply:
It may go away shortly. I took the Red Lantern Avatar as a personal commitment. It was the year of my first race ever, three years ago. I said that I would give up the Red Lantern as soon as I complete a season without ever finishing last. This season, I set out to stay out of the bottom third at all events and so far I have stayed in the top 50%. I know this doesn't mean much to experienced racers, but this is my second season of being in more than one event and I haven't come in last yet. Two more events and I need a new Avatar.

I have a red lantern just like it in the room with my bikes too.

[mjbabcock]

The E3 Pro stand light when it works is pathetic, the CYO stand light is pretty good,
you can walk with it. I now use an E3, it is a bit dimmer, but has a longer throw
and broader beam than the CYO. I ride on really dark country roads, in the city the CYO is better,
it doesn't get washed out as easily as the E3. I have Princetontec EOS helmet
mounted for stops, good enough to get a cars attention and see around corners.

I'm not exactly sure what a stand light is but I'm super happy with my E3 pro. Coming from the world of Niterider and Nightsun, I was blown away by the ability of a dynamo hub to shoot out that much light.
At some point, I feel like we're debating the merits of a bunch of good options. Supernovas are plenty good enough for me and if the rest are better...then we are all in luck.

[holliscx]

Hijack away, I am going to reply:

Thanks for the explanation. My Spanish friends don't see anything phallic about their national mailbox (really?!). I was in the post office the other day and saw an ad - they sell scale models as savings banks - and the ad had a woman cupping a miniature mailbox in her hands!

Re: your racing chapeau. I think where you finish in the pack is relative though. I race 'cross in Catalunya in the Masters field which is strong top to bottom. My first year I finished third from last every race but had a total blast. I would rather finish last in a strong field than first in a weak one. The most important thing is that you're racing not so much where you finish atmo.

Finish strong the remaining two races:

[dhoff]

I'm not exactly sure what a stand light is but I'm super happy with my E3 pro.

Stand light is the function that has the light stay on for a while when you stop. I believe it is a capacitor that holds some current and discharges is slowly. This means you do not go invisible at stop lights and can use the light to read directions, etc, when stopped. I like the light color, brightness and coverage of my E3, but I bought it based on it having a stand light function and am disappointed to find that function unreliable.