Busch & Müller Luxos U Lumotec IQ2 Weird blinking problem
#51
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Word to the wise: don't buy the luxos! It's crap! I've had two of them, and my girlfriend and housemate had one each, and they have all been plagued with serious problems: Completely dying. Not turning off when bike is parked. USB charger failing. Remote cables and buttons failing/breaking. Water intrusion.
BUMM replaced my first dead one, although I didn't have a receipt any more. Kudos for that one. But on the next dead one they royally stonewalled me. I had bought it brand new from a seller on ebay and when it died after a couple months, they wouldn't accept the valid receipt because I wasn't the original buyer. So, I tracked the ebay seller down, sent the light back to him, and he had to take it to the shop for me. They were real a##holes about it; shop (bike24) and BUMM both.
My subsequent negative comments on amazon were removed and my ability to post comments there at all was forever blocked, thereafter. Don't know if BUMM or amazon pulled that stunt.
A much much much better light is the Edelux 2. Fantastic light. It's just about as wide and bright, much smaller, much tougher and way better built. A hella lot prettier too. The luxos is fecking ugly. The switch is magnetic, so no water intrusion will ever happen. And it's dead easy to switch with gloves on, unlike the luxos' ridiculous buttons.
Of course, it has no usb, but there are products for that (don't get one of BUMM's though - they're crap too, I've read). I got a Forumlader, far and away the best usb charger out there. Not cheap, but massively better than anything else. Read up on it. Made by a guy in germany at home.
BUMM is shameless keeping this garbage on the market at all, let alone at this price.
BUMM replaced my first dead one, although I didn't have a receipt any more. Kudos for that one. But on the next dead one they royally stonewalled me. I had bought it brand new from a seller on ebay and when it died after a couple months, they wouldn't accept the valid receipt because I wasn't the original buyer. So, I tracked the ebay seller down, sent the light back to him, and he had to take it to the shop for me. They were real a##holes about it; shop (bike24) and BUMM both.
My subsequent negative comments on amazon were removed and my ability to post comments there at all was forever blocked, thereafter. Don't know if BUMM or amazon pulled that stunt.
A much much much better light is the Edelux 2. Fantastic light. It's just about as wide and bright, much smaller, much tougher and way better built. A hella lot prettier too. The luxos is fecking ugly. The switch is magnetic, so no water intrusion will ever happen. And it's dead easy to switch with gloves on, unlike the luxos' ridiculous buttons.
Of course, it has no usb, but there are products for that (don't get one of BUMM's though - they're crap too, I've read). I got a Forumlader, far and away the best usb charger out there. Not cheap, but massively better than anything else. Read up on it. Made by a guy in germany at home.
BUMM is shameless keeping this garbage on the market at all, let alone at this price.
#52
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I'd be really surprised if anyone buys a luxos after reading very far into this thread, but your point is well taken. So far my IQ-X is working okay and has been soaked many times. I really don't know what to do with the luxos, it has such a nice beam.
I'm really surprised that B&M hasn't fixed the luxos. It's a neat idea. But it's really heavy
I'm really surprised that B&M hasn't fixed the luxos. It's a neat idea. But it's really heavy
#53
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I do not do a lot of night riding, so my experience is more from USB charging, not so much on lighting. And I generally stay out of the rain if I have a choice.
I have been quite happy with my Luxos U, bought it two years ago. But it has only seen maybe 5 or 6 rain storms. I like the internal pass through cache battery.
My first USB charger was combined with a headlight, the AXA Luxx 70 Plus. Bought it on line so was not able to give it a close inspection. I was disappointed to see the USB circuitry was not protected against water at all. That circuitry is on a small circuit board inside the mount, but the mount is two pieces of plastic held together with the mount screws, there is no seal between those to pieces of plastic. Or there was no seal, I put a piece of electrical tape on the gap between the two pieces of plastic. That said, my AXA has not had any water intrusion problems because it has been rained on only a few times.
Because the AXA had such poor water sealing, I bought a Sinewave Revolution as my second USB charger. That is what I take on bike tours for my charging needs. It very well sealed. But it is a USB charger without a light and it lacks a pass through cache battery.
My GPS (Garmin 64) is not a cycling specific one, it is a general recreation one. It will not take a charge from the Sinewave or AXA, requires a pass through cache battery to charge it while riding. Thus, I can charge my GPS on the Luxos U or if I also use an external pass through cache battery I can charge it with either the AXA or the Sinewave.
Power wise, I think the Sinewave produces the most power of my chargers, followed closely by the Luxos U with the AXA behind that. But a direct comparison is not practical when the Luxos U has an internal battery or when I am making my opinions on charge rates based on occasional glances at an ammeter. I do not have a Forumslager, the data I have seen indicates they put out the most power.
Since I bought the Sinewave, that is the only charger I have used on a bike tour. My next bike tour will again rely on the Sinewave Revolution for USB charging. Since I almost never use a headlight when touring, for my next tour my headlight will be a cheap one I got on Ebay that is powered by a USB cord to a powerbank. In the past I brought a dyno powered headlamp but used it so little it was not worth mounting on the bike, that is why I am bringing a non-dyno one. Touring, I use a pair of AAA powered taillights powered by rechargables.
For headlights when I do venture out in the dark, I like the light pattern out of the Luxos U best, followed by the IQ-XS and the AXA Luxx 70 Plus. I have not compared any other headlights (like the IQ-X), as almost none of my friends have a dynohub so I can only compare what I personally own.
A friend of mine did the Northern Tier from end to end with a Luxos U, worked the whole time and when you are on a two and a half month bike tour, your bike gets wet quite often. But if it was me, I would have put a plastic sandwich bag over the light in the worst rain storms.
I have been quite happy with my Luxos U, bought it two years ago. But it has only seen maybe 5 or 6 rain storms. I like the internal pass through cache battery.
My first USB charger was combined with a headlight, the AXA Luxx 70 Plus. Bought it on line so was not able to give it a close inspection. I was disappointed to see the USB circuitry was not protected against water at all. That circuitry is on a small circuit board inside the mount, but the mount is two pieces of plastic held together with the mount screws, there is no seal between those to pieces of plastic. Or there was no seal, I put a piece of electrical tape on the gap between the two pieces of plastic. That said, my AXA has not had any water intrusion problems because it has been rained on only a few times.
Because the AXA had such poor water sealing, I bought a Sinewave Revolution as my second USB charger. That is what I take on bike tours for my charging needs. It very well sealed. But it is a USB charger without a light and it lacks a pass through cache battery.
My GPS (Garmin 64) is not a cycling specific one, it is a general recreation one. It will not take a charge from the Sinewave or AXA, requires a pass through cache battery to charge it while riding. Thus, I can charge my GPS on the Luxos U or if I also use an external pass through cache battery I can charge it with either the AXA or the Sinewave.
Power wise, I think the Sinewave produces the most power of my chargers, followed closely by the Luxos U with the AXA behind that. But a direct comparison is not practical when the Luxos U has an internal battery or when I am making my opinions on charge rates based on occasional glances at an ammeter. I do not have a Forumslager, the data I have seen indicates they put out the most power.
Since I bought the Sinewave, that is the only charger I have used on a bike tour. My next bike tour will again rely on the Sinewave Revolution for USB charging. Since I almost never use a headlight when touring, for my next tour my headlight will be a cheap one I got on Ebay that is powered by a USB cord to a powerbank. In the past I brought a dyno powered headlamp but used it so little it was not worth mounting on the bike, that is why I am bringing a non-dyno one. Touring, I use a pair of AAA powered taillights powered by rechargables.
For headlights when I do venture out in the dark, I like the light pattern out of the Luxos U best, followed by the IQ-XS and the AXA Luxx 70 Plus. I have not compared any other headlights (like the IQ-X), as almost none of my friends have a dynohub so I can only compare what I personally own.
A friend of mine did the Northern Tier from end to end with a Luxos U, worked the whole time and when you are on a two and a half month bike tour, your bike gets wet quite often. But if it was me, I would have put a plastic sandwich bag over the light in the worst rain storms.
#54
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the luxos u beam is awesome, especially on high beam. Too bad they were more obsessed with venting than with the problems water ingress could cause.
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