First laser ... Nova x125

It took me forever to finally decide which laser to get.  I was originally going to get one from WickedLasers, but after visiting this forum I changed my mind pretty fast.  I wanted an small green laser with descent power.  So I decided on the Nova X125 with the X-series key switch.  I didn't want one of my kids to find it and accidentally shine themselves in the eye.  After talking to Nova, they told me that a batch of X125 lasers is about to come out of production/testing and that there was only one other person in front of me in the queue.  It should ship within a week.

I'll post the specs once I've received it.  

I am extremely glad that I discovered this forum before making my purchase.  I almost dropped $499 for a Fusion at WickedLasers.... and I have a feeling I may not have been as happy with it as I will with the one from Nova.

Welcome to the forum and I know you made a wise decision. I have my X105 out right now and am doing some tests with my power meter. The specs I received from Nova on my laser is very close to what my meter is showing and it is in Nova's favor! My meter is showing a few more mw's than what Nova tested it at...

What's the mw reading your meter shows?

welcome, extelon, i'm sure you'll love your nova

extelon said:

What's the mw reading your meter shows?

Click to expand...

It peaked once at 132...but mostly it has peaked at 128mw's. The average seems to be right at 120 mw's.

Nova spec'ed it at 122.4 peak and 117.7 average.

I am sure Nova's readings are more accurate...but I believe mine is peaking more than what they said it was.

Also I don't know what batteries they were using for testing. I use Sanyo Eneloop nimh batteries and I love them!

WOW! That seems incredible for a 105, but what do I know... I'm just starting to figure this stuff out. Are the Nova lasers typically that good?

Where do you buy your batteries from? Do you have a good source or should I just google them?

I heard that the WickedLasers' dragon case will fit the X-Series. Do you have one? If so, is a good fit?

Nova's lasers are underrated meaning everyone receives them with more mw's then they are listed as.

You might be able to find a better price on the eneloops through google.but I got mine from Battery Bob. He is a great guy to deal with and was very responsive to my e-mails.

http://batterybob.com/

It is interesting to note I did not see any difference with my testing between Eneloops and E2 Lithiums..this tells us the lasers are very well regulated. I did not try alkaline's...I have replaced everything I can with Eneloops. Just make sure you have a decent charger...most chargers will work fine with them.

I don't know anything about the WL dragon cases...sorry. However most of us highly recommend their lasershades for green or red protection. They have a lower OD rating which allows the dot to be viewed easily while still providing ample eye protection.

I also recommend ordering the Nova package with the case, you will also get light years and a membership that will save you money on most of their accessories. And you will probably receive a free diffraction grating too. For the extra $20.00 it more than pays for itself.

I just got my X105 last week and its a great laser

126mW peak and 122mW average

Wow. Tell us the spec sheet nova sends you when you get it. It'll probably peak around 140mw. Unless you get lucky and get a freak (over 150mw)

If this is your first laser, then it'll blow you away! ;D

I certainly will. As long it can pop balloons fairly well, I'll probably be blown away anyway since I have no reference for comparison. I have a feeling this laser thingy is going to become addictive and it probably won't be too long before I get another to compare it against.

I hope my x125 averages 17mW higher like that X105.

Well I decided to charge my eneloops and try again. It peaked at 138.8 mw's. I am going to graph it.

Gazoo said:

Well I decided to charge my eneloops and try again. It peaked at 138.8 mw's. I am going to graph it.

Click to expand...

WAAAAHHHHHHH

IWANTAMETER!!!!!!



Larry

extelon said:

I certainly will.  As long it can pop balloons fairly well, I'll probably be blown away anyway since I have no reference for comparison.  I have a feeling this laser thingy is going to become addictive and it probably won't be too long before I get another to compare it against.

I hope my x125 averages 17mW higher like that X105.  

Click to expand...

haha welcome to the club

Well either I was seeing things or the 138.8 reading I got was a fluke. It could also be it is a little cooler in here at night and maybe that had something to do with it. Right now it is 80 degrees and the humidity is 55%.

I made a few graphs and will try tonight to see if I can get a higher reading on the laser. The first one was done with a fresh set of Energizer Alkaline batteries.

In this graph I used Lithiums. The first dip in the graph was the result of me making sure the beam was lining up with the sensor properly.

Finally here is a graph of Eneloops that were used for maybe a minute or two before I ran the test.