Gotta Love that NEW LASER SMELL 800mw Laser-Wave Review

[mliptack]

So after weeks of waiting due to the DHL shipping issues. The 800mW from Laser-Wave finally arrived at my doorstep.

If you're interested - read about the DHL fiasco here: http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/...&highlight=dhl

Laser-Wave 800mW 532nm Review

PACKAGING
Package contents:

Laser:
1- Laser-Wave 800mW laser (including power-supply and driver board) ~$2050.00 Including Shipping ($ based on current exchange rates actual quote was 1320 Euro)

Optics:
1- 50mm Linear Diffraction Grating
1- 15mm Red Dichrohic
1- 15mm Green Dichrohic
1- 15mm Red PBS Cube
1- 15mm Blue PBS Cube

So to start off the review upon first inspection everything was packaged and padded very well.

I carefully removed everything from the package and let it warm up to room temperature. Since it was sitting out in snow for about 2 hours.

VOLTAGE SELECTION
While waiting for the laser to warm up I set the power supply to the right voltage (its default position is at 220v). In order to change the power setting one screw needs to be removed (near the terminal block on the side that the power switch sticker is pointing at) and a black plastic pin on the other side needs to be pulled out (I slid a razor blade in between it and the metal case to pry it off). Once this has been done the metal cover can slide freely towards the side that had the pin. Just slide it about a half an inch or so then pull the cover upward. There is a black switch to do the voltage selection set it to the correct voltage and replace the cover (just by reversing the steps you just took to remove it).

NOTE: the black plastic pin is in two pieces, and when you replace it put the sleeve in first THEN push the insert rod through to secure the pin. Or you can do what I plan on doing and just tap the hole with a 8-32 tap and replace the pin with a 1/4" or 3/8" long screw

At this point I removed the European style plug on the power supply and replaced it with a standard Edison Style plug I had.

The laser was just about room temperature at this point.

FIRE IT UP
OK So finally after about 45minutes of pictures and voltage setting changes I have a module ready to be plugged into an outlet and fire it up!

First you have to set the TTL setting to the correct point to allow for CW operation (unless of course you plan on using the analog setting right away).

Now its time for some goggles

I placed the plug into a switched outlet. And fired it up.

WOW... Yeah I am a bit speechless...

The beam is about 3mm in diameter at the aperature.

When metered I get a steady 950mW after warm up (over about 20 minutes the stability was within about +/-2%) with spikes during the warm up period peaking at about 1050mW. Oh yeah, and it does sting, and it will light matches at about 15 feet. At about 20 feet they will smoke (I cant hold them steady enough to have them light). At 20 feet toner on printed paper will start to burn. The beam is clearly visible with the lights on and I can still see the beam (slightly) with my goggles on (OD=4).

I haven't done a really long term (over 1 hour test of power stability yet, however, it's stability (as mentioned above) is well within the specs once it is warmed up. I just currently do not have the facilities to test a 1 watt laser for long durations.

BUILD QUALITY
I have to say the build quality is excellent. The laser head has a nice weight to it. Everything seems as though it was built to last.

I have read other reviews of Laser-Wave before purchasing this one. And the main difference I noticed (may be due to the higher output I purchased) was that my laser has a screw cap on the aperture. Others reported a piece of sticky film. The screw cap is a very nice addition!

Dimensions Including Fan and baseplate(W x D x H):
77mm x 130mm x 96mm
3.03" x 5.12" x 3.77"

OVERALL
I am very happy with the construction of these lasers. They are by far the best lasers I have used thus far. They are really high quality and are promised to be outputting over specs for the first year of ownership.

The customer care is far better than I have seen from any other company that I have dealt with to this date. They're extremely prompt and very helpful.

PICTURES
AND Yes, I know "THIS THREAD IS WORTHLESS WITHOUT PICTURES!" So just hold off your posts for a few minutes while I load all the pictures (I will let you know when I am done posting them all )

Also I will add more information as the time goes by. Unfortunately I don't have the time to write up much more than this. I will be adding more information soon.

ENJOY!

[mliptack]

Here are pictures of:
1 - The box (with the label that came off in transit)
2 - All the laser related parts warming up
3 - A Close-up of the laser head
4 - The optics

[mliptack]

Here are pictures of:
1 - Close-up of removed Power Supply Screw
2 - Me pointing to the location of the PS Screw
3 - Me pointing to the location of the black pin
4 - Close-up Black Pin

[mliptack]

Loading pictures can become a chore...
Here are pictures of:
1 - Screw Aperture with cap removed
2 - Screw Aperture with cap in place
3 - Laser warm and just about ready to be fired up
4 - Edison cable in place... OK NOW ITS READY!

[mliptack]

1 - Ok, its time for some goggle action
2 - Picture at full power, with flash, hitting linear diffraction grating (so it doesn't burn the wall)
3 - In dining room shining into living room (looking towards the module) Notice the diffuse reflections on the walls around me. This is about 25 feet away from the module
4 - A second view like the last one - Please note the beam looks huge in this picture, but in actuality its about 3 inches away from the camera so in perspective it looks large

[mliptack]

1 - POV from the module looking where I was standing in the last 2 pictures
2 - An image of the beam in comparison to a lighter. This picture was taken right after a candle was blown out to add some particulate to the air.

[mliptack]

Ok, that's all the pictures I have for now. I will be posting more soon and I should have some images of it in my scanner in about a week or two.

[Banthai]

nice unit ...

just noticed that on photo 0003.jpg

there is a blue wire from under the fan that looks like its been cut ..... hopefully it is not connected to anything at the other end and short out on the case


all the best .... Karl

[cruch]

I can tell the laser-Wave modules really roxx!!
Do you have a powermeter ??

[mliptack]

nice unit ...

just noticed that on photo 0003.jpg

there is a blue wire from under the fan that looks like its been cut ..... hopefully it is not connected to anything at the other end and short out on the case


all the best .... Karl

Karl good eye! I noticed that too and I checked it out - everything is all and well

I can tell the laser-Wave modules really roxx!!
Do you have a powermeter ??

Yeah these lasers kick a--. Within about 6 months I will purchase a 200-300mw blue from them. Hopefully prices will drop enough to make the 300mw more interesting I have the space all planned out on my table, I have plenty of room for 2 blue lasers so I can combine them with one of my Blue PBS Cubes Can anyone say ~600mW of blue to go with the 1 watt of green, and soon to be ~700mw of red (yeah I know I need more).

RE: Power Meter
Yep sure do. However, its a cheaper eBay unit that doesn't have logging capabilities or any cool stuff like that - it just plugs into my meter. I plan on buying another soon, possibly in the group buy. Or possibly one of Robin's 'Thing' units, but last I heard he hasn't made any more of those...

-Max