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Comments on PF-Lighting scanners

Plan B

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Jan 7, 2011
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Hello all,

I’ve recently been entertaining the idea of purchasing a laser show scanner and have been out kicking a few tires. In my search, I came across a few interesting threads on PL about the PF-114 scanner from PF-Lighting.

http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/showthread.php/9417-300-mw-R-G-B-Chinese-Projector-399.00?highlight=pf-114

http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/showthread.php/10142-PF-114-RGV-300mW-ILDA-anyone-own-one?highlight=pf-114


Now I understand this is just another cheap Chinese laser but the adjustable (no glue) optic mounts and the price had me very interested. I’m sure most experienced hobbyist would suggest I build my own but I think it may be difficult to match the prebuilt price even using comparable cheap parts. I contacted the company and asked for power, price and scanner speed of the PF-114 and two other models. What I was quoted did not quite match the specs listed on their website.

http://en.pf-lighting.com/category.php?id=7
-------------------
PF114 350mW RGB is :$260 :Red 650nm 150mW + Green 532nm 50mW + Blue 405nm 150mW
PF115 1W RGB is :$650 :Red 650nm 500mW + Green 532nm 200mW + Blue 450nm 300mW
PF111 650mW RGB with SD card is :$600 :Red 650nm 250mW + Green 532nm 150mW + Blue 405nm 250mW
All of the scanners now for RGB laser light is :25Kpps.
--------------------

I have my doubts about the quoted 25k galvos. I’m betting they are still using the same 10-15k sets in the PF114’s as others have reported and probably the same for the other models. I’m personally more interested in beam effects over graphics so I think I can live with the crappy galvos for now. For that reason I think the PF115 might be the way to go??? More beam power to start with (450nm) and the bigger case give me more options when upgrading. I’d love to find some pictures of the insides of the PF115 but haven’t had any luck. I’d really like to see what the optic mounts, laser modules and general layout look like. If anyone has a link, please let me know.

So I’d like to hear all your thoughts and comments on these scanners. Do you think they are a good bang for the buck or a waste of time and money? What questions should I be asking PF-Lighting when I contact them again? At this price level would building be a better option or are there better prebuilt options out there?

Cheers,
Plan
 





Grix

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Don't expect the lasers and galvos to be on-spec. Also I doubt all of their lasers have adjustable optic mounts.

But hey, for that price, what are you gonna do. After all you had to pay several thousand for a 1W RGB just a year ago.
 

Plan B

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Hey Grix, thanks for the comments. I'd have to agree that these laser modules will probably not be up to spec but if they are in the ball park it's still a pretty good deal for the price. I'm all but positive that the galvos are under spec. Again you get what you pay for.

I see from your PL posts that you were just recently researching the same market before buying from Laserking. Which laser combination did you end up going with? The 2nd one you posted looks very comparable to the PF-115.

Thanks again.
 

Plan B

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Jan 7, 2011
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Hey Grix, I found your review over on PL about the Laser King scanner you bought. Seems to be a very nice piece of kit. It definitely out classes the PF-115 scanner in terms of laser module and galvo quality. It's also %30-40 more money, so a bit of a trade off. If I had a few more bucks it's an option I'd consider highly.

Anyway, if anyone is interested, I started a thread over at PL about the PF-115 1W RGB scanner. I tracked down an interior picture from the manufacture and it seems it does have adjustable optic mounts. PF-115 Laser Scanner It really seems to be a decent system for the money so I've decided to order one. If there is interest, I can post a short review when it gets here.
 




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