Mikebergy said:
Yes, I have a good multimeter, but was hoping for something nice without having to open the charger up. Luna basically told me they can't or don't want to offer a charger to me with the charger set to 12s. They suggested a balance charger setup to me (not what I want). A Satiator would be perfect if it were not as expensive as it is - I don't need all the options it has, either.
Maybe you missed my post, or perhaps I didn't describe well what this product does.
The Mean Well is my third 12S Lipo bulk charger, and I am convinced, my last.
It is, in effect, a poor man's Satiator in the way it works and what it can do.
The first thing that is noticed is it's weight, It no lite weight, due, no doubt, to to it's robust construction and the fact that is fully potted. I have not used it as an on board charger yet, but would have no qualms doing so. It is very slim and I'll take on some extra weight if it means the charger is vibration and weather proof(Designed for outdoor installations).
Here are some of it's features;
Auto adj. AC input, 115V or 220V.
95% effcicency
Short circuit/over-current/over-Voltage/over-temp. protection.
Voltage adjustable(42-53V for HLG-320H-48A, 48-59V for HLG-320H-54A)via internal potentiometer reached from the outside though a port(see pic).
Constant Current level(0-6.75A) adjustable via internal potentiometer.
How it works;
First off, unlike some balance chargers, it makes no difference on the order of how it is connected.
I plug in the AC cord first and the mini Voltmeter I added reads the final out-put Voltage(For example, I set it to 48V for an end-of-charge storage Voltage of 4.00V/cell).
Then I plug it into the pack(I never get a spark doing this) and the mini meter reads the pack's state of charge Voltage.
It starts charging immediately and silently and it is fast.
Unlike balance chargers, it does not interupt the charging, to cycle though, to read cell Voltages.
Just a constant 320 Watts(the Satiator does 380W).
As it approachs the end-of-charge value, the Constant Current mode attenuates to current to the shut-down point, at which the current is just a trickle and a soft internal switching relay can be heard.
It is safe to leave it this way, but since we are talking Lipo, the charging process should not be left unattended anyhow. A timer on the AC input could be installed to turn it off completly(reports from other users, report that is only a very small drain when the pack is left connected w/ no AC input).
I may add something to read Volts and current, but so far, I just leave the current adj. to max.
Words cannot describe how nice this unit is to use. It makes my old Thunder 1220 seem like a PInto compared to a Caddy.
Since it is designed for industrial use, it is much better quality that any of the chargers designed for RC use.
It might seem expensive at $135, but w/ a 5 year warrenty, I would say it's a bargin and one of the best Ebike purchases I have made.
