NEW Portable DPSS Wavelength - 556nm 20mW CNI

[Helios]

The only thing power is good for is making the wavelength more visible. You have atleast 90% of the real laser enthusiasts behind you. I don't think anyone wants to poke fun. Some may want to know price to consider a possible purchase.

To have 1 of only 2 handheld lasers in a certain wavelength speaks for itself regardless of price.

 

[aryntha]

Well, no more being coy, then. These lasers cost a kilobuck, just about dead on, plain and simple.

Now, keep in mind, 473 used cost this much, too, pretty recently. Yellows, too; and those have gone down some. I think we're getting CNI to realize that there's "something" to the hobbyist market, though, and maybe we'll see, down the road, some of these wavelengths available for less (though as Qume says, likely never 'under $100' or something)...

... And I know some of us are going to keep pushing CNI to make available new wavelengths alltogether.

Wolfman: As for wavelength collecting, try it, I don't think you'll be sorry. I'd say go after a low power 589, however I can't really recommend the GLPs at the moment, as Qume and I (and at least one other person I know) had theirs poop the coop pretty prematurely. 18 days out of warranty in my case.

 

[Wolfman29]

That is pretty pricey! I have a feeling, though, that my collection won't be able to grow past simple DPSS systems and diode lasers for a while then... just because my mom would kill me if I ever spent that much money on a laser

But, thanks to people like you, we will be getting these cheaper and cheaper! Because, after all, if you can make $500+ on a single purchase from a hobbyist... why not get into the hobbyist market? That's pretty good profit

 

[Helios]

It has to start somewhere.

+rep for being the ones to get this pushed through. Prices won't ever come down if they never start making them.

 

[aryntha]

Well, with the exception of yellows, I'm not so entirely sure that these more exotic greens and some of the DPSS blues cost all that much more (in raw materials) than a good 532 to produce.

That said, time is also money, and I don't know what yield is like on 457 DPSS, 556 DPSS or 561 DPSS. It may require a week's worth of extra alignment, and yield at stable powers may be low. But the process could mature and yields could increase.

Generally the 'succesful yield' you see out there is somewhat proportional to the power availabilities. When inquiring to CNI about new DPSS wavelengths we don't usually ask about the ones that they only state maximum power ranges of say, "1-10mW".

If they can do it in 50-100mW, it generally means their yield is higher and process is more mature, and is a more likely candidate for a portable.

 

[qumefox]

I just want to collect all the visible wavelengths heh. I.E. 400-700nm. I only have a moderate interest in CO2, due to a cutter/engraver being on the future project list, but other than that, I honestly don't have much interest in non-visible lasers.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

That said, some of us are into this hobby for a multitude of reasons, and i'm OK with my collection.

LOL! You're only "OK" with you collection

If you're ever decide you're not ok with it, I'll be happy to take it off your hands:shhh:

I see what you're saying about price vs mW though. The 532nm and 445nm lasers have left people spoiled in terms of raw power and visibility. (I include myself among these people) I remember paying $50 back in 2007 for a 5mW green... and my friends called me crazy.... The prices on higher powered greens were absolutely astronomical. So even now, outside of this forum I generally never say how much I paid for any lasers.

 

[Wolfman29]

Ah - makes sense. I was wondering why people don't have some of the more interesting DPSS colors that I have never seen before on CNI, like 266, 355, and 543 (I would love to have some 266 or some 355 ).

EDIT: Regarding some of the non-visible wavelengths... I really want to collect essentially everything that our eyes can even a little bit see, including 780nm, 808nm, and possibly 355nm (even though I have no idea if we can see that at high powers or not).

 

[qumefox]

Wolfman: As for wavelength collecting, try it, I don't think you'll be sorry. I'd say go after a low power 589, however I can't really recommend the GLPs at the moment, as Qume and I (and at least one other person I know) had theirs poop the coop pretty prematurely. 18 days out of warranty in my case.

I still want to buy your borked 589 GPL if CNI refuses to fix it and wants to charge an arm and two legs to fix it. I want to make another attempt and transplanting the cavity into a labby housing.

Ah - makes sense. I was wondering why people don't have some of the more interesting DPSS colors that I have never seen before on CNI, like 266, 355, and 543 (I would love to have some 266 or some 355 ).

EDIT: Regarding some of the non-visible wavelengths... I really want to collect essentially everything that our eyes can even a little bit see, including 780nm, 808nm, and possibly 355nm (even though I have no idea if we can see that at high powers or not).

Um, you do know you wouldn't be able to see either of those wavelengths right? They're UV. Though it's interesting how they're made. 355nm is the 1064 line tripled, and 266nm is it quadrupled. Going by what little info CNI has posted on it. I know 266nm lasers actually also make 532nm as well, and the 266nm line is selected out via prism and the 532nm is pretty much just dumped.

 

[Wolfman29]

Yeah... they sort of already charge an arm and two legs just for a new 589nm laser (at least, from my perspective). $500 for a 1.9-2.9mW laser is a bit pricey for me :\

 

[qumefox]

They will likely come down somewhat.. But it's unlikely to ever to be 'cheap'. Not for DPSS anyway.

 

[rhd]

My sense is that the hobby market isn't so different from the academic market, the scientific market, etc. If a university needed a 556nm, my sense is that they would also generally just buy one or two.

I think what often hampers us in terms of credibility, is when people make silly and repeated inquiries, with no intent to buy, haggle over price, and expect big companies to cut them some sort of break. It's even worse if the inquirer hasn't done research first, and has basic level questions that they want answered.

If you make a serious, honest inquiry, very few companies will treat you poorly right off the bat.

That said, though it erks me a bit, I'm semi glad that Aryntha mentioned the price. I had visions of 20 different inquiries going to CNI for pricing, and it wouldn't be unreasonable to think that they might put two and two together, and get a bit frustrated with us.

I have found CNI to be a pleasure to deal with, and look forward to interesting new interactions with them again.

 

[Wolfman29]

Yeah - I never expect to get big companies to change their prices for a single customer... because if they are a big customer, they obviously have enough purchases that they can be firm on their prices without losing business.

EDIT: A random thought... I would like to see if anyone ever gets a true, 555nm laser. That would be incredible, just to say that you have the brightest possible laser.

 

[aryntha]

Well, seeing as the 556's are +/- 2nm depending on temperature, that likely has already happened

 

[qumefox]

I honestly doubt you could tell any difference of 1nm at the same power without specialized test equipment.

And rhd.. I was kind of assuming people would use tact when talking to CNI to get pricing, however, now that I think about it. That's probably expecting too much of a lot of people heh.

Though I do think them getting asked by people about exotic wavelengths would help show them that there IS an interest/demand for them.

 

[Wolfman29]

I would think that temperature would increase the wavelength with usage, so the only way to decrease the wavelength to 555nm would be to cool it, which probably isn't happening? And regarding telling the difference between 1nm... that's not the point The point is to say that "MY laser is the brightest of all lasers. Even though you can't notice it, it is!"