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Post by sgmason on Jul 22, 2012 9:48:48 GMT -4
I have a Accucell 8150 charger and it meets my needs fine, but someday I may want to step it up to a better charger. My power supply is a converted PC power supply that also works fine for now, but it is the first thing I plan on upgrading in my charging station.
Just what should I be looking for in a power supply? I would want something that works with my current charger(10v-18v) but would still be good for any future considerations I may have. I am not so much looking for power supply suggestions as I am for features and specifications I should be looking for because the PS upgrade will be something that will be done down the road 6+ months at the ealiest
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Post by chumley on Jul 22, 2012 10:23:50 GMT -4
I don't think you can do better than the Hyperion chargers that can take up to 29 volts DC. The EOS 720i Super DUO3 has two 500 watt chargers (http://www.readyheli.com/Hyperion-EOS-0720i-Super-DUO3-7S-Dual-Port-Charger_p_37917.html). Then get two server power supplies and hook them together in series (http://www.serversupply.com/POWER%20SUPPLY/SERVER%20POWER%20SUPPLY/575%20WATT/HP/335892-001.htm). The charger is a little spendy, but the power supplies are cheap and you will be able to charge a lot of batteries very quickly.
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Post by sgmason on Jul 22, 2012 12:54:40 GMT -4
You do realize that I was only asking about power supplies right For now I think I am good with what I have, I am just planning for the future. I think I will even keep the setup I have right now for travel charging.
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Post by Valkman on Jul 22, 2012 17:22:20 GMT -4
In all fairness your qeustion is a bit confusing. Do you plan to keep your charger? It looks like you do. So what output does your PSU give? If your chargers max input is 18v and you want max just make sure your PSU has 18v output and a wattage to match plus say 20%. A server or PC PSU is by far the cheapest route. I don't think I would use a refurbished unit as you will be using it near max power all the time. Not like in a PC.
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Post by chumley on Jul 22, 2012 19:59:09 GMT -4
You do realize that I was only asking about power supplies right For now I think I am good with what I have, I am just planning for the future. I think I will even keep the setup I have right now for travel charging. Nope - I understood that, but the best power supplies I've seen are the server power supply I showed the link for. The problem with those power supplies are is that they are only 12 volts and you get much better charging with higher voltage. Most chargers are only good for 18 volts, so you are limited to one power supply. I was only offering the Hyperion information as it is one of the few chargers that can accept more than 18 volts. You can easily spent many $ and get a 15 volts power supply, or you could get a couple of these cheap but very good server power supplies - but you would need a charger that can use 24 volts. As the power supply and charger work so close, its hard to separate the discussion - sorry.
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Post by chumley on Jul 22, 2012 20:00:45 GMT -4
In all fairness your qeustion is a bit confusing. Do you plan to keep your charger? It looks like you do. So what output does your PSU give? If your chargers max input is 18v and you want max just make sure your PSU has 18v output and a wattage to match plus say 20%. A server or PC PSU is by far the cheapest route. I don't think I would use a refurbished unit as you will be using it near max power all the time. Not like in a PC. All of us at my field have been using the refurb server power supplies and are maxing out a 400 watt charger attached to the 575 watt power supply and haven't had any problems. I like to limit the power to around 80% capacity of the PS and it doesn't get very warm. I've been very impressed with this unit.
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Post by Valkman on Jul 23, 2012 6:32:29 GMT -4
"output and a wattage to match plus say 20%"
"I like to limit the power to around 80%" Same thing! Not all of them PSU are 12v. You can also get them with jumper connectors to change the voltage so you can have 18v if you searched.
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Post by sgmason on Jul 23, 2012 6:54:19 GMT -4
I am thinking more along the lines of plug and play hobby specific type of power supply for home use as apposed to having to modify a PC power supply. Even though I went to college to be a Electrical Engineering Technologist, I haven't used any of that knowledge in so long most of it is forgotten To my understanding right now 24V is the way to go, and while I know that my Turnigy charger is not the greatest it does the job for now. Valkman is correct in that it is a 11V-18VDC input, and .1-7.0A charge current. I am pretty sure that the PC PS I have right now peaks at 12V, and I know that if I try to charge at over 1C (5A) I get input voltage errors on the charger. My packs are suppose to be OK to charge at 2C, so cutting that 1+ hour charge time would be nice when getting ready the night before a planned flight. Right now I only have the 2 5000mah 25C 6s Zippy packs so 2+ hours to charge the night before isn't that bad, but add in a couple more packs and I would have to spend the night charging There are a few things I plan to pick up over the off season (AKA freakin cold Canadian winter) like a couple more packs, and the PSU
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