Civilian MFAL Comparison

A question that we see continue to pop up, specifically from folks who recently purchased their first night vision device is: “What laser should I get?”
It is a good question because equipping your rifle with an IR laser/illuminator is a valuable capability that can be taken advantage of once you own a night vision device. TNVC keeps inventory of all of the common MFALs (Multi-Function Aiming Light), thus we got them together to present a comparison in a way that is consistent enough to help folks answer the above question for themselves.

    Whether you are a hunter, LEO, military, or prepared citizen, we hope the following comparison helps answer some of the questions you may have. We specifically wanted to focus on illuminator performance, as that is most often the main point of contention when these devices are brought up in discussion. Another focus that we felt was important was using new commercial off-the-shelf devices that conform to the FDAs regulation on power output limitations. We did this because these are devices available to the public, fully supported with warranty by the manufacturers, and do not require buyers to shop on the used/grey market (which certainly has its pitfalls).

The following products are used in this comparison:
-      For photography, TNVC-PVS-14 with L3Harris Unfilmed White Phosphor paired with the Televue PVS-14 Fonemate Phone Adapter, and Samsung S24U in PRO mode.
https://tnvc.com/shop/tnvpvs-14-l3-gen3-un-filmed-white-phosphor/
https://tnvc.com/shop/tele-vue-tnvc-fonemate-night-vision-smart-phone-adapter-system/

-       L3Harris AN/PEQ-15 ATP-000-A18. This is a full-power restricted device and will serve as the “control” for the comparison as it is widely considered as the “standard” to measure civilian legal MFAL performance against.
https://tnvc.com/shop/atpial-anpeq-15-advanced-target-pointerilluminator-aiming-laser/

-       L3Harris ATPIAL-C
https://tnvc.com/shop/l3-insight-atpial-c-class1-ir-laser/

-       Steiner DBAL A3 (9008)
https://tnvc.com/shop/steiner-dbal-a3-class13r-ir-laser/

-       Steiner DBAL D2
https://tnvc.com/shop/ldi-dbal-d2-class-1-ir-laser/

-       BE Meyers MAWL C1+ (original non-triple click version for this test, however updated models are on our website)
https://tnvc.com/shop/b-e-meyers-mawl-c1-ir-visible-laser/

-       Wilcox Raid Xe Low Power
https://tnvc.com/shop/wilcox-raid-xe-low-power/



Test standards:
1.    Use of an object to demonstrate IR performance at measured distances
    a.    One photo series with high contrast steel torso target painted white (C-Zone sized IPSC pattern at 10yd-400yd, full size IPSC at 500yd for increased visibility)
2.    Measured distances
    a.    10, 25, 50, 75, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 Yards
3.    Each MFAL is photographed individually
4.    Dual IR illuminator & IR pointer setting
5.    Illuminators with adjustable divergence are adjusted for the distance
6.    Camera settings adjusted as necessary to replicate the image as seen by human eye

Environmental conditions (Bortle class and moon phase):




While this comparison is focused on illuminator performance, we do want to show a general size comparison, weight, and controls of each device.


Here are the devices and their sizes relative to one another:



Each device weighed without batteries installed on my scale:

L3Harris AN/PEQ-15 ATP-000-A18 (same weight as Atpial-C)


Steiner DBAL D2:


Steiner DBAL A3 (9008)


Wilcox Raid Xe Low Power


BE Meyers MAWL C1+



Basic control and features:




For the following photo comparisons, a particular order was kept throughout the process so that it would be easy to refer to. The order remains the same and repeats at all distances of 10, 25, 50, 75, 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 yards. The order in which the photos appear are:

1.Unilluminated target
2.L3 AN/PEQ-15 (set to low power setting for photos at 10-25yd, and then high power for 75yd and beyond, with divergence adjusted as needed)
3.L3 ATPIAL-C (set to high power setting for all photos, divergence is non-adjustable)
4.Steiner DBAL A3 (set to high power setting for all photos, divergence is limited in adjustability)
5.Steiner DBAL D2 (set to low power setting for photos at 10-75yd, and then high power for 100yd and beyond, with divergence adjusted as needed)
6.BE Meyers MAWL C1+ (set to “short” for 10yd, “mid” for 25-75, and “long” for 100yd and beyond)
7.Wilcox Raid Xe (set to the diffused illuminator for 10yd, and then standard illuminator on high for 25-500 yards, with divergence adjusted as needed)
*The settings above were chosen based on what would commonly be used at each distance given the ambient illumination of the environment.

**It is important to note that for the L3 ATPIAL-C and Steiner DBAL A3, the test stops at 100 yards, because they are no longer visible beyond that point (neither the camera nor the eye can see them). Starting with the 200-yard comparison, these two devices are skipped but the photo order remains the same.



Just before we get into the illuminator photos, I would like to give the viewer a better idea of the scale of our test area, which is represented by the day-time photo below:



Without further ado, here are the comparison photos starting with the shortest distance first:

10 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

L3 ATPIAL-C

Steiner DBAL A3

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




25 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

L3 ATPIAL-C

Steiner DBAL A3

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




50 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

L3 ATPIAL-C

Steiner DBAL A3

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




75 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

L3 ATPIAL-C

Steiner DBAL A3

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




100 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

L3 ATPIAL-C

Steiner DBAL A3

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




200 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe
(L3 ATPIAL-C, Steiner DBAL A3 no longer used from this point forward)

L3 AN/PEQ-15

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




300 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




400 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




500 Yards - Unilluminated, L3 AN/PEQ-15, Steiner DBAL D2, BE Meyers MAWL C1+, Wilcox Raid Xe

L3 AN/PEQ-15

Steiner DBAL D2

BE Meyers MAWL C1+

Wilcox Raid Xe




The next set of photos are some general side by side comparisons…

Atpial-C (left) and Dbal A3 (right) pointed at the 75 yard berm


Next are the Dbal D2 (left), Mawl c1+ (middle), and Raid Xe (right) pointed at the 75 yard berm


What can we conclude based on this photo comparison?

Firstly, it’s important to understand that the situations you may find yourself using active illumination in will all vary greatly based on ambient lighting conditions (hence why lunar/light pollution data was provided earlier in this post) because existing light natural to an environment acts as a barrier for lasers and illuminators. The same illuminator that works great in a rural setting may not have adequate power to work in an urban environment. Thus, it is important to recognize use-case, and determine what kind of area you will be using active illumination in. A SWAT officer may find that a more powerful illuminator is needed to operate effectively in the city (pushing through vehicle lights and streetlights requires considerable output), while an avid night hunter may decide that an ultra-powerful illuminator is not needed for the rural/dark areas where they typically hunt game. This is why we at TNVC consider the full spectrum of customer needs and offer as many different quality products as possible, vetting them for ourselves before they hit shelves.

What can be gathered from the comparison is that Vertical-cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSEL for short) such as what is found in the B.E. Meyers MAWL C1+ and the Wilcox Raid Xe are designed in a way that allows them to adhere to FDA regulations regarding output for eye safety, while still maintaining the ability to illuminate targets at longer distances, similar to what was once only achieved by full-power laser-based illuminators such as what is used in the L3Harris AN/PEQ-15 ATP-000-A18 and full-power Steiner DBAL variants (A2, A3, i2). Likewise, the illuminator of the Steiner DBAL D2 also accomplishes the same task of long-range illumination, however, it does so with a different type of technology, using a LED-based illuminator system.
With any new technology comes significant cost increases, which shows itself in the price disparities between the civilian-powered laser-based devices we tested (L3 ATPIAL-C and Steiner DBAL A3 [9008]), and the VCSEL based illuminators mentioned above. The DBAL D2 represents a happy medium in price but has a size and weight factor that is higher than average (however it’s not unreasonably sized for a night carbine).

Regardless of which laser you think fits your budget and use case, we hope that this comparison leaves you better equipped to make an educated purchase. Like everything in the night vision industry, MFALs are not cheap, and it helps to have a basis for comparison before spending your hard-earned money.

Thanks for reading and until next time…

Thanks, I can't take all the credit. I had some good input from the rest of the team.

And yes, it's hard not to like the Mawl. For a weirdo like me, the fact that it drops onto a FSP equipped rifle and provides some amazing ergos is a huge plus. They definitely thought outside the box when designing it.

Thank you. It's very difficult to preserve photo resolution when posting online. I had to edit each photo individually and bump up the sharpness and definition to help offset resolution loss from uploading. I'm glad you enjoyed it

Correct, I've updated the post to specify that.

The Triple click version has better performance at distance due to additional output/tighter divergence on the long setting and also a revised mid setting (among other changes)

For those wanting more info on that:
https://www.ar15.com/forums/Armory/-ARCHIVED-THREAD-New-Gen-MAWL/18-527098/?page=1