Quote:
|
Originally Posted by squeeforever
Brian, why not the E-Station 902?
|
You know, I must have been posting while you posted or something because I didn't even see yours until just now. Anyway, I just looked at the 902 and it does seem to have many of the features I was looking for. Kinda weird that the 902 will charge 12s, but the optional balancer only goes to 5s. Can these be daisy-chained for more cells? The manual says it can show the V of all 12 cells...
If I had to give up something in a charger, I could settle for a Li-only charger, 6s @ ~8A, but an
adjustable nominal cell voltage. The 902 only selects 3.6 or 3.7v. I'm just trying to find something that will charge all Li, including future technologies. If I can't find all the features I would like, I'll probably get the Multiplex from Mike along with a 5s balancer (he only has a 4s). Or maybe the e-station BC5 might work then - that one has a built-in balancer.
Back to my previous post; if you look at the attachment, is that how a balancer is hooked up to balance while charging? And, am I right that you can only go up to about 3A charge current before the taps start heating up?
Thanks for the suggestions!
Side note: from what I've read, it looks like LiPo charging works this way. It will charge at a constant user-selected current (current is constant, voltage changes) until the charging voltage reaches a threshold value (4.1v?). At this point, it switches to constant voltage mode (voltage is constant, current changes) until the charging current goes to 0, which indicates a full charge. If that's all there is to it, why not a simple combination circuit that will charge at a constant voltage with a current limit? Wouldn't that essentially be the same thing?