Recommend me a battery charger

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now looking at the venom pro quad charger and the Dynamite prophet sport quad, seems to me just a rebrand also like the hobbyking reaktor but in AC form.
 
Looking at that Dynamite prophet sport quad - it is still just 50w per channel - so basically only a 2s @1c charger. Also, reading the specs, it does not list different charging modes - like storage or discharge. My Dynamite prophet sport Duo did not have these two options, which are very nice to have if you use lipos.

The Venom charger is beefier, at 100w/7a per channel. Still only 1c, but it should push most 4s packs at 1c.

Between these two, I vote Venom, if you can swing the $$$. More power, plus storage and discharge, but $40 extra.

Looking at the bigger picture - if you are running only 2s, then the Venom seems great. If you are running 4s/6s, then I would look to the Reaktor again.
 
Jerry-rigged said:
Looking at that Dynamite prophet sport quad - it is still just 50w per channel - so basically only a 2s @1c charger. Also, reading the specs, it does not list different charging modes - like storage or discharge. My Dynamite prophet sport Duo did not have these two options, which are very nice to have if you use lipos.

The Venom charger is beefier, at 100w/7a per channel. Still only 1c, but it should push most 4s packs at 1c.

Between these two, I vote Venom, if you can swing the $$$. More power, plus storage and discharge, but $40 extra.

Looking at the bigger picture - if you are running only 2s, then the Venom seems great. If you are running 4s/6s, then I would look to the Reaktor again.
Click to expand...
I'm looking at the dynamite quad 4x100w version 10 amps each which is going up against the venom, seems like a better deal since I can get it for $180

Oh yea sorry forgot to add the 4x100 since they also make the 4x50w with the same name

I'd like to add that when looking at the 4x100w video people did show storage and discharge option, basically the same as the reaktor except in AC version
The up120ac seems to be about the same with the exception that it is 20w more powerful

Do they all come from the same place? Programs and button layout for the realtor,up120ac, and prophet quad 4x100w are all very very similar
 
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OK, I see the 4x100w version now. HH lists it "on sale" at $239, so if you can get it for $180, then that is a great deal! AC, 100w per channel, full modes, sounds like a great deal. And I can attest that if you every have an issue, Horizon Hobbies both will answer the phone, and take care of you. I'd say jump on it.

Only semi-negative I see is for racers and 1/8 scale guys, they will want more power. But for a basher / mostly 2s needs, I don't see a down side.
 
Jerry-rigged said:
OK, I see the 4x100w version now. HH lists it "on sale" at $239, so if you can get it for $180, then that is a great deal! AC, 100w per channel, full modes, sounds like a great deal. And I can attest that if you every have an issue, Horizon Hobbies both will answer the phone, and take care of you. I'd say jump on it.

Only semi-negative I see is for racers and 1/8 scale guys, they will want more power. But for a basher / mostly 2s needs, I don't see a down side.
Click to expand...
What will I need for 6s then? I thought 100w was enough?:eek:
 
justatree said:
What will I need for 6s then? I thought 100w was enough?:eek:
Click to expand...
You need to take cell count x 4.2 volts per cell x amps that you want to charge at. So with a 6s 5000mah battery it would be:
6 x 4.2 x 5 amps (1c) = 126 watts.
 
If you don't mind a charge taking 2+ hours, then there is no issue. If you want to do at least 1C charging, then you need big wattage for big batteries. Chevys post has the math.

What is your battery collection? what batteries do you use the most? If you only use 1 or 2 6s packs a month (or less) then the 100w will be a non-issue. Especially as you have 4 channels - 1 or two will push that 6s and you still have the others for your smaller packs. If most of your running is 4s, with a few 6s thrown in, I still think it will work, if you don't mind waiting on the 6s packs to finish. If most of your running is with 6s, though, I would go fewer channels and more wattage/amperage. (Which is actually what I did, 2 channels of 300w/20a).

One last thought on charger wattage - I would not advise getting a charger with the plan of running it at 100% max wattage or max amperage all the time. You want to have around 20% "spare" capacity for your Normal charge. Running your charger at 100% every now and again won't be an issue, but day in and day out, it will wear it down.

So to use Chevy's example - if you have a 6s, 5000mah pack, it will need 126w to charge it at 5a/1C. You will want a charger / PS that can supply (126 + 25)= 150w. If you buy the 100w charger, and will be frequently charging the 6s packs, you will want to run the charger closer to 80w to 90w - which works out to about 3a to 3.5a charge rate. Even running at the full 100w, you will still be at just under 4 amps charge rate.

Make sense?
 
Jerry-rigged said:
If you don't mind a charge taking 2+ hours, then there is no issue. If you want to do at least 1C charging, then you need big wattage for big batteries. Chevys post has the math.

What is your battery collection? what batteries do you use the most? If you only use 1 or 2 6s packs a month (or less) then the 100w will be a non-issue. Especially as you have 4 channels - 1 or two will push that 6s and you still have the others for your smaller packs. If most of your running is 4s, with a few 6s thrown in, I still think it will work, if you don't mind waiting on the 6s packs to finish. If most of your running is with 6s, though, I would go fewer channels and more wattage/amperage. (Which is actually what I did, 2 channels of 300w/20a).

One last thought on charger wattage - I would not advise getting a charger with the plan of running it at 100% max wattage or max amperage all the time. You want to have around 20% "spare" capacity for your Normal charge. Running your charger at 100% every now and again won't be an issue, but day in and day out, it will wear it down.

So to use Chevy's example - if you have a 6s, 5000mah pack, it will need 126w to charge it at 5a/1C. You will want a charger / PS that can supply (126 + 25)= 150w. If you buy the 100w charger, and will be frequently charging the 6s packs, you will want to run the charger closer to 80w to 90w - which works out to about 3a to 3.5a charge rate. Even running at the full 100w, you will still be at just under 4 amps charge rate.

Make sense?
Click to expand...
I'm planning on running smc 4300mah 6s for the outcast whish is around 108W so that would be running the charger at max on one channel so maybe I'd want the up120ac. Though I think I will have 1 6s for a while
 
Run two 3s packs in series and 100w per channel is plenty. Get two sets and you could hot lap them (i.e. run one set down while you charge the other). You could drive till your fingers are numb.
 
Dustin Mustangs said:
Run two 3s packs in series and 100w per channel is plenty. Get two sets and you could hot lap them (i.e. run one set down while you charge the other). You could drive till your fingers are numb.
Click to expand...

This is a great plan if you only have one car that needs 6s. Yes, the 2 3s packs will take half the charger, but you can charge a 1c or better, with no issue.
 
Hey everyone. I've read through this entire thread, but I'm still kind of at a loss as to which charger to purchase.

I'm using (2) Onyx DTXC2001 7.4V 6000mAh 50C 44Wh LiPo's.

Right now I'm using a Traxxas EZ Peak Dual 100W (the charger my kids use for their Stampedes), but I have to charge them one at a time in order to charge at 6amps. Otherwise I have to charge 2 simultaneously at 4amps. I'm looking to charge at 1C, though.

My "wants" in a charger:
- I want to charge both batteries at once, at 1C.
- I want the option to charge 4 at once in order to accommodate the Stampedes once we convert to LiPo. They'll get my batteries listed above and I'll be using 3S 6000mAh batteries.
- I want it to charge fairly quickly (I understand 1C is the quickest I'll get, as Onyx recommends it for their batteries) because I absolutely refuse to leave them unattended, and I work extremely long hours (up at 3AM, home at 6PM), so I don't have a ton of time to babysit batteries if I want to use them during the week while the sun is still up.j
- I prefer an internal power supply.
- I want to purchase it via Amazon.
- I want to keep it reasonable as far as price goes. I don't want to spend $200-$300

I've been looking at this charger, but it's a bit concerning reading about heat issues, lack of customer service, and no software (though I know I don't need it). It does, however, seem like the charger I would want. I would feel safer purchasing the Reedy version of this charger, but $70 more for the same product?!

I'm not opposed to parallel charging (and by what I have read, it seems to be better for the batteries?), but this route always seems to point to the iCharger 206b. Problem is; I would then have to purchase a power supply and that would put me inside that $200-$300 mark. I know I can build my own power supply, and I know my way around them enough to do so, but I don't want to go that route as I want my 11 and 14 year olds to learn safe LiPo handling...and hacking up a power supply to make this work just doesn't set a good example.

When I read the numbers and math involved in LiPo, I understand it...but once I close that page and look into chargers, it all turns to french in my head. I'm slowly learning it, but I'm not quite there. I'm just getting back into RC again and slowly taking all of it in again, so I don't even know what brands to gravitate toward or steer clear of...other than those I'm familiar with from 20 years ago when I last dabbled in the hobby.

So...any suggestions?
 
Fahd said:
Hey everyone. I've read through this entire thread, but I'm still kind of at a loss as to which charger to purchase.

I'm using (2) Onyx DTXC2001 7.4V 6000mAh 50C 44Wh LiPo's.

Right now I'm using a Traxxas EZ Peak Dual 100W (the charger my kids use for their Stampedes), but I have to charge them one at a time in order to charge at 6amps. Otherwise I have to charge 2 simultaneously at 4amps. I'm looking to charge at 1C, though.

My "wants" in a charger:
- I want to charge both batteries at once, at 1C.
- I want the option to charge 4 at once in order to accommodate the Stampedes once we convert to LiPo. They'll get my batteries listed above and I'll be using 3S 6000mAh batteries.
- I want it to charge fairly quickly (I understand 1C is the quickest I'll get, as Onyx recommends it for their batteries) because I absolutely refuse to leave them unattended, and I work extremely long hours (up at 3AM, home at 6PM), so I don't have a ton of time to babysit batteries if I want to use them during the week while the sun is still up.j
- I prefer an internal power supply.
- I want to purchase it via Amazon.
- I want to keep it reasonable as far as price goes. I don't want to spend $200-$300

I've been looking at this charger, but it's a bit concerning reading about heat issues, lack of customer service, and no software (though I know I don't need it). It does, however, seem like the charger I would want. I would feel safer purchasing the Reedy version of this charger, but $70 more for the same product?!

I'm not opposed to parallel charging (and by what I have read, it seems to be better for the batteries?), but this route always seems to point to the iCharger 206b. Problem is; I would then have to purchase a power supply and that would put me inside that $200-$300 mark. I know I can build my own power supply, and I know my way around them enough to do so, but I don't want to go that route as I want my 11 and 14 year olds to learn safe LiPo handling...and hacking up a power supply to make this work just doesn't set a good example.

When I read the numbers and math involved in LiPo, I understand it...but once I close that page and look into chargers, it all turns to french in my head. I'm slowly learning it, but I'm not quite there. I'm just getting back into RC again and slowly taking all of it in again, so I don't even know what brands to gravitate toward or steer clear of...other than those I'm familiar with from 20 years ago when I last dabbled in the hobby.

So...any suggestions?
Click to expand...

My suggestion would be to buy 2 of the Venom Pro Duos. They are around $85 On Amazon and should each charge 2 packs at 1c with no problems. I don't like 4 channel chargers because they generally cost more than two 2 channel chargers and if you have a problem with 1 channel, you lose the ability to charge all of your batteries until it's fixed. If you have 2 chargers and 1 goes bad, you still have half of your charging capacity available until the other half is fixed or replaced. I'm waiting on a little spare cash to pick up another 2 channel venom myself.
 
Fahd said:
Hey everyone. I've read through this entire thread, but I'm still kind of at a loss as to which charger to purchase.

I'm using (2) Onyx DTXC2001 7.4V 6000mAh 50C 44Wh LiPo's.

Right now I'm using a Traxxas EZ Peak Dual 100W (the charger my kids use for their Stampedes), but I have to charge them one at a time in order to charge at 6amps. Otherwise I have to charge 2 simultaneously at 4amps. I'm looking to charge at 1C, though.

My "wants" in a charger:
- I want to charge both batteries at once, at 1C.
- I want the option to charge 4 at once in order to accommodate the Stampedes once we convert to LiPo. They'll get my batteries listed above and I'll be using 3S 6000mAh batteries.
- I want it to charge fairly quickly (I understand 1C is the quickest I'll get, as Onyx recommends it for their batteries) because I absolutely refuse to leave them unattended, and I work extremely long hours (up at 3AM, home at 6PM), so I don't have a ton of time to babysit batteries if I want to use them during the week while the sun is still up.j
- I prefer an internal power supply.
- I want to purchase it via Amazon.
- I want to keep it reasonable as far as price goes. I don't want to spend $200-$300

I've been looking at this charger, but it's a bit concerning reading about heat issues, lack of customer service, and no software (though I know I don't need it). It does, however, seem like the charger I would want. I would feel safer purchasing the Reedy version of this charger, but $70 more for the same product?!

I'm not opposed to parallel charging (and by what I have read, it seems to be better for the batteries?), but this route always seems to point to the iCharger 206b. Problem is; I would then have to purchase a power supply and that would put me inside that $200-$300 mark. I know I can build my own power supply, and I know my way around them enough to do so, but I don't want to go that route as I want my 11 and 14 year olds to learn safe LiPo handling...and hacking up a power supply to make this work just doesn't set a good example.

When I read the numbers and math involved in LiPo, I understand it...but once I close that page and look into chargers, it all turns to french in my head. I'm slowly learning it, but I'm not quite there. I'm just getting back into RC again and slowly taking all of it in again, so I don't even know what brands to gravitate toward or steer clear of...other than those I'm familiar with from 20 years ago when I last dabbled in the hobby.

So...any suggestions?
Click to expand...
I bought the charger you posted from Amazon, and I like it. Mine has no heat issues even when charging 2 6S packs at 1C. I have yet to see the dual fans running together, although that doesn't mean 1 isn't dead. Just never saw it start while charging.
Can't answer for the 2nd one... but I am happy with my charger so far and it's been good to me.
 
mrfurious40k said:
My suggestion would be to buy 2 of the Venom Pro Duos. They are around $85 On Amazon and should each charge 2 packs at 1c with no problems. I don't like 4 channel chargers because they generally cost more than two 2 channel chargers and if you have a problem with 1 channel, you lose the ability to charge all of your batteries until it's fixed. If you have 2 chargers and 1 goes bad, you still have half of your charging capacity available until the other half is fixed or replaced. I'm waiting on a little spare cash to pick up another 2 channel venom myself.
Click to expand...
I thought about that, but I'm trying to keep my options open as far as parallel charging goes, too. If I'm correct, I would charge 2 in parallel at 12amps? So many choices, it drives a man crazy. haha


72Z15SS said:
I bought the charger you posted from Amazon, and I like it. Mine has no heat issues even when charging 2 6S packs at 1C. I have yet to see the dual fans running together, although that doesn't mean 1 isn't dead. Just never saw it start while charging.
Can't answer for the 2nd one... but I am happy with my charger so far and it's been good to me.
Click to expand...
The UltraPower charger? How long have you had it?
 
Venom Pro Duo LiPo/LiHV/NiMH Battery Charger

I ordered this charger hopefuly its good enough for my batteries 89 bucks from towerhobbies
vnrp0685.jpg
 
ARRMAgeddon said:
Venom Pro Duo LiPo/LiHV/NiMH Battery Charger

I ordered this charger hopefuly its good enough for my batteries 89 bucks from towerhobbiesView attachment 8548
Click to expand...

That's the charger I have. I love it. Once you learn the menus it's super easy and I charge everything from my son's 1/18 nimh packs to 3s high capacity lipos. It does a great job balancing the Lipo packs and works really well for a variety of Nimh sizes and cell counts.

Fahd said:
I thought about that, but I'm trying to keep my options open as far as parallel charging goes, too. If I'm correct, I would charge 2 in parallel at 12amps?
Click to expand...

Parallel charging isn't my thing. If I want to do more packs to be done more quickly, I'd rather add more chargers so I can make sure every pack is balanced and getting individual attention from the charger. I've seen some impressive parrallel setups but it just didn't appeal to me. I had all kinds of wild stuff when I raced but I always had trouble with separate powers supplies and anything that involved more than a charging lead and a pack. This time around I'm keeping it simple. Especially because back then I was playing with NIMH packs and they didn't really pose too much threat of burning down your house if you messed something up.
 
Fahd said:
I thought about that, but I'm trying to keep my options open as far as parallel charging goes, too. If I'm correct, I would charge 2 in parallel at 12amps? So many choices, it drives a man crazy. haha



The UltraPower charger? How long have you had it?
Click to expand...
I've had it since November and zero issues so far.
 

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