What quad charger for a beginner?

[doberman]

As I am working on my build and collecting rest of the things I need, the next item on my list is a charger. What do you guys think about the Skyrc Q200? I really like the ability to monitor with a phone. Are there better ones you guys recommend?
Thank you.

 

[theGreenOrange]

Imax B6-AC with parallel charging board.

 

[doberman]

Imax B6-AC with parallel charging board.

Barges only 1 at a time though right?


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[PhoenixFord]

Barges only 1 at a time though right?


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That is correct. But you can't beat it for the money.

 

[theGreenOrange]

Barges only 1 at a time though right?


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That Is what the $10 parallel charging board is for.

 

[doberman]

So the B6-AC with the parallel board will do the same as Skyrc Q200?

 

[theGreenOrange]

It will charge up to 6 batteries (or is it 5?) at a time, at up to 5A total charging current. That is enough current to charge 4x 1300mAh batteries at 1C charge rate (1.3A each), or you could charge up to 6 batteries a little more slowly.

 

[theGreenOrange]

Like this one

Amazon.com: YoCoo® 2-6S RC Lipo Battery Charger Parallel Balanced Charging Plate Charging Board with XT60 Plug: Toys & Games

 

[PhoenixFord]

So the B6-AC with the parallel board will do the same as Skyrc Q200?

The SkyRC charger will charge 4X faster. (Charging 4 batteries at the same time)

 

[theGreenOrange]

You don't usually want to charge any faster than 1C unless your battery is rated for it. Even then it may shorten the life. So 4 batteries at 1C is pretty good. Divide the mAh of your pack by 1000 to get charging current in amps for 1C rate. 1300mAh is 1.3A, 1500mAh is 1.5A etc...

I'm not saying it is quite as good overall, but if you are charging racing packs it is basically just as fast. If you are charging 2200mAh packs or something then q200 would be substantially faster.

 

[theGreenOrange]

The SkyRC charger will charge 4X faster. (Charging 4 batteries at the same time)

Not so, if you charge at 1C. You can set the B6 output to the max of 5A, which will give you 1.25A per battery. So the SkyRC would charge .05A faster for 1300mAh packs at 1C.

 

[PhoenixFord]

"Doby" - Even though I'm an electrician. I'm an AC elect. Not a DC elect. Before you purchase a charger, study up on charge / discharge rate of lipo's. And also charge rates vs charger power ratings of the charger's themselves. According to the spec's of both chargers in question, buying the Sky charger is going to be like buying 4 of the B6AC chargers. I'm not saying that the SKy charger is a good charger. There are other things to consider when buying electronics like this. IE: circuit design, heat sink capacity. ect. But It will take the B6AC charger 4 X as lon to charge (4) batteries as apposed to charging 4 batteries "parallel" on the B6AC. (According to the specifications of each charger). I don't think that you can doe real balance charging of any battery combination above 6S on the B6AC

 

[PhoenixFord]

Not so, if you charge at 1C. You can set the B6 output to the max of 5A, which will give you 1.25A per battery. So the SkyRC would charge .05A faster for 1300mAh packs at 1C.

So -If I were to charge 4 Batteries in parallel (any type but all the same) @ 1C vs. charging 4 batteries (same as before) on individual chargers @ 1C, they would all finish at the same time???

 

[theGreenOrange]

So -If I were to charge 4 Batteries in parallel (any type but all the same) @ 1C vs. charging 4 batteries (same as before) on individual chargers @ 1C, they would all finish at the same time???

As long as 1C x4 does not exceed the maximum current for the charger, yes. You would set the charging current to 1C x4 (5.2A for 1300mAh packs). In the case of the B6 the max is 5A so it would charge 4x 1300mAh packs at 0.05A below 1C concurrently. If your packs are more than 1300mAh then the q200 would begin to pull ahead.

 

[PhoenixFord]

As long as 1C x4 does not exceed the maximum current for the charger, yes. You would set the charging current to 1C x4 (5.2A for 1300mAh packs). In the case of the B6 the max is 5A so it would charge 4x 1300mAh packs at 0.05A below 1C concurrently. If your packs are more than 1300mAh then the q200 would begin to pull ahead.

OK. Maybe Im way off here. My thinking is (considering all things equal, IE: pack size, charge rating, ect)
Parallel - 4 X 1300mH = 5200 mh (to charge to full)
4 Individual chargers - 1 X 1300mH (Charge to full).
The chargers will be loading (mH) at about the same rate. But the individual chargers will finish first because of the lower capacity vs. the parallel charging?

 

[theGreenOrange]

5.2A going into the batteries is 1.3A per battery, no matter if it is from 4 chargers doing 1.3A each, or one charger doing 5.2A in parallel.

 

[PhoenixFord]

5.2A going into the batteries is 1.3A per battery, no matter if it is from 4 chargers doing 1.3A each, or one charger doing 5.2A in parallel.

OK, I see where your going. Still, isn't balancing a problem?

Also: most packs are rated at charge rates above 1C. I know that slower charge rates are better. But I like to charge @ 50% or more of the max charge rating.

 

[theGreenOrange]

It would be a little better to balance them individually, but parallel works pretty good. In parallel the #1,#2, etc. cells for each of the 4 batteries will all charge at the same voltage since they are on a common node for Vin and ground. The lower voltage ones will take more current at first and catch up. Then the charging voltage will start to increase. They will all reach the same 4.2V by the end of the cycle. The only danger is that the lower cells will charge above 1C until they equalize. It would be a good idea to individually balance every so often, maybe 5 or 10 cycles.

 

[PhoenixFord]

Once again, I might be way out in left field. But it's my understanding that the B6AC is only capable of balancing battery combinations totaling not more than 6S. And any individual cells in parallel will not be capable of balancing correctly?

 

[theGreenOrange]

The balance plugs are connected to the parallel board. Lets call batteries A, B, C, D. Then let's call the cells 1,2,3,4. So A1, B1, C1, D1 will all receive the same voltage. The lower discharged batteries will take more current until the A1, B1, C1, D1 reach the same voltage. Then they will charge roughly equally until they reach 4.2V. Balancing is charging each cell to an equal voltage, which will be achieved. But the lower cells will receive current above 1C in the beginning. Once voltage of A1=B1=C1=D1, they will draw the same current until they reach 4.2V.