The Convoy S2+ is the flashlight world's equivalent of a stock small-block engine — cheap, dead simple, and built on a chassis that half the aftermarket already makes parts for. We've covered the big-picture S2+ modding guide and gone deep on battery tubes and reflectors before. This one's about the two parts that actually change how much light comes out of the thing: the driver and the emitter.
If you've never touched either, here's the short version. The emitter is the LED itself — it decides how much light theoretically exists and what color that light is. The driver is the circuit board that controls how much current reaches the emitter, and it decides the modes, the ramping behavior, and ultimately how close you get to that emitter's ceiling. Swap one without the other and you'll leave performance on the table. Swap both together and a $20 light can meaningfully outrun what it shipped as.
Start with the driver: the 519A/SST40
The stock S2+ driver is fine — it's not the bottleneck most people assume it is, but it's also not tuned for maximum output. Our Convoy S2+ 519A/SST40 driver is a direct drop-in upgrade built around Anduril firmware, the same open-source UI that shows up across a lot of the enthusiast flashlight world. Practically, that means real ramping instead of fixed mode-groups, a proper turbo step, battery voltage readout via blink codes, and a lockout mode so the light doesn't turn on in your pocket. It's the single highest-value upgrade on this light because it changes how you use it every day, not just how bright it gets.
One thing to know going in: 519A drivers are paired to specific emitter footprints. The one we carry is matched for SST40-family emitters, which is exactly what you want if you're doing the driver-and-emitter swap together in the next section. If you're only upgrading the driver and keeping your stock emitter, double check the footprint compatibility first — mismatched driver/emitter pairs are the most common way people brick a modding session.
Then the emitter: the 519A LED PCB
The Convoy S2+ 519A LED PCB emitter upgrade is where the actual light output gets a ceiling raise. Stock S2+ emitters are perfectly usable, but the aftermarket options run cooler under sustained turbo, tolerate more current, and in a lot of cases throw a cleaner beam once you're also running an upgraded reflector or lens. Paired with the 519A driver above, this is the combo that gets you noticeably more real-world brightness without touching the battery or the host at all — same $20 body, meaningfully different light.
If tint matters to you as much as output — and for a lot of S2+ owners it does, since this is the light people use as a warm-white porch or camp light as much as a thrower — check the specific tint option before you buy. Emitter swaps are one of the few upgrades on this platform where you're choosing a look (cool white vs. neutral vs. warm) as much as a performance spec.
Don't skip the lens
A brighter emitter through a scratched or poorly-coated stock lens is wasted output. If you're already inside the head doing a driver and emitter swap, it's the right moment to also drop in the AR-coated lens replacement or the TIR lens if you're chasing a tighter, more usable beam instead of a stock reflector spread. Neither is expensive, and doing it now saves you from reopening the head a second time in a month.
What this upgrade path actually gets you
- Driver only — Anduril UI, real ramping, lockout mode, better use of the light you already have. Cheapest upgrade, biggest quality-of-life jump.
- Driver + emitter — the full package. More usable output, better sustained-turbo behavior, and your choice of tint. This is the one that actually changes the spec sheet.
- Driver + emitter + lens — everything above, plus you're not throwing that extra output away on a dull or scratched stock lens.
What you're not getting
None of this touches battery capacity or runtime at a given brightness — that's a cell question, not a driver/emitter question, and it's worth reading our 18650 vs 21700 guide if you're also weighing a battery tube swap alongside this. And a driver/emitter upgrade won't fix a light that's already had its threads stripped or its spring damaged — if your S2+ has mechanical issues, sort those first. Mismatched components are also the most common reason people write in saying their "upgraded" light is dimmer than stock: check driver-to-emitter footprint compatibility before you order, not after.
Is it worth it?
For the price of the parts, yes, on a light this cheap and this well-documented. You're not going to turn an S2+ into a dedicated thrower — for that, look at the Convoy S2+ host itself paired with a longer-range build, or step up to a purpose-built thrower entirely. But if you already own an S2+ and you're wondering whether it's worth cracking open, the driver-and-emitter combo is the upgrade path that actually moves the needle, and it's still a Saturday-afternoon project, not a project car.