Test/Review of Charger SkyRC MC3000

[kreisl]

yeah, green snb led would mean that the program finished normally. a program on a bad cell can finish very fast, see MH-C9000 behavior on bad cells . termination criteria like cut-off voltage or target voltage are reached fast due to the high internal resistance which causes a high voltage step at high charge (or discharge) rates. so that's explained by that.

the connection break is not easily explained by me, the maker would know the internals (code) and the explanation. but it is something like what i said. when the onload voltage surpasses an internal threshold, the slot breaks the connection (for 'safety reasons') and throws a Break Connection message.

If you try to charge with a low current, you'll see that there will be no Break Connection message.

 

[MarioJP]

If you try to charge with a low current, you'll see that there will be no Break Connection message.

Yeah, i tried that, even went as low as it can go. This only makes it last longer before the connection break error occurs. I am surprised how the DMM was able to function and it has lasted pretty long time too. The meter is a radioshack brand 2 AA's. so efficient that i even forgot that i had enegizers left. Very impressed by this digital multimeter.

 

[kreisl]

This only makes it last longer before the connection break error occurs.

I was able to charge (all) my super bad NiMH batteries with low currents and proper 0dV termination. No connection break error.

 

[MarioJP]

Thats what i did not change is the dv setting. Just left it at 3dv

 

[kreisl]

 

[C & R]

HKJ I wanted to take a moment to thank you for your technical review. I can only imagine the time that you spend to create reviews like this one. It has helped me to select this as my next charger.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

The more hardware faults you find in this charger the less i want to buy it.

On another subject.

The £(UK Pound) is lowest against the $(US Dollar) in 9 years, So now is the time to buy anything from the UK, like Crumpets or English Mustard.

John.

 

[kreisl]

tell us the hardware faults you've found in your mc3k unit

i didn't find any in mine

i win

bye

 

[HKJ]

tell us the hardware faults you've found in your mc3k unit

They may not be faults, but issues:

1) Not all cells make contact when placed at the bottom of the slots.
2) Charger cannot do a full power discharge, it often has to reduce current (Fixed in current production version).
3) USB is unstable, this may be a hardware issue (Especially because a very good cable will mostly fix it).


1) Is probably difficult to fix for all cell sizes/types.
2) Is fixed and can be fixed on first generation chargers with a hardware modification, but do not really matter in most cases.
3) Can be problematic for people that want to log.


None of it prevents it from being a very good charger/analyzer.

 

[kreisl]

Thanks.

I got a premium-like 1m data cable the other day and my Tomo powerbank LCD showed 1.75A transfer rate, which i found amazing for a 1m cable being a data cable! But the more often i plugged and unplugged it the rate dropped significantly (compared to 30cm charge cables), down to 0.30-0.50A. My only logical explanation for the performance drop is the degradation of the USB connectors on the "premium" cable. What a shame!, since the cable itself (=everything but the connectors) is premium, i can tell and i know it. I am in contact with the seller and the cable manufacturer.

Now for logging data and transferring firmware with mc3k i use a new FT braided USB data cable. It has high resistance, slow transfer rate, but at least that slow rate is stable, now matter how often i repeat the plug test. Before ppl point at my cable recommendations when they brick their chargers with the cable, i better **** the **** up and don't recommend any cables on the forum haha.

But i guess it's true .. one could mess up things (interrupted data logging, bricked chargers) with a poor quality USB cable. Especially during firmware transfer one needs to make sure that the transfer happens in a reliable stable way. Ppl should gather much experience with PCLS data logging (with their USB cable) first, before they decide to use that particular USB cable for firmware updating. And, to be on the safe side, no other USB device (like USB printer/fax/scanner/copier/etc) should be connected to the PC and or mc3k *during* the fw updating procedure.

Last night i submitted bug reports re 1.04c fw, all of minor nature (k#33-37), and if it continues like that, 1.04 will never reach final release status lol. Maybe when we reach the end of the alphabet, 1.04z, we'll think 'ah wth **** **' and release that as final 1.04.

Anyway, 1.04 is nice. So many little things which got corrected. AUTO fan works now as expected, finally

 

[xdriver]

It appears this is the newest and "best" charger currently out there for a consumer but I would like advice on purchasing a charger if possible. I Have about 50AA eneloops that I typically charge in a maha c808m and have no problems with it. I let the charger do its thing and am happy with it. I purchased that charger because it was easy to use, and was a high quality charger that I could walk away from and not worry that something may catch fire. I now have about 100 18650 batteries that have been pulled from various laptop packs and I would like to go through. I intend to use them in a few flashlights and give them to friends for their lights or vape gizmos. Even on the most simple, press the button and forget it, charge mode of the MC3000, is it the best charger out there for the needs of charging and checking 100 18650 batteries? The cost is not an issue, I simply want a proper charge from a safe charger. (I own an Ultrafire WF-139, and would classify that as not the right charger for my needs). That being said, there is mention in this thread that possibly two Xtar VP2 chargers might be a good option if you need 4 bays of charging. Any insight would be much appreciated. I am also willing to provide any additional information that may be needed in helping to make a decision. Thank you.

Edit: While I prefer not to have to dive deep into making my own programs for every battery, I am capable of doing so with instruction, as I am not a "battery guy," but semi technically inclined.

 

[kreisl]

i am having too much fun with this charger that i could give you a fair non-biased recommendation in your case.

anyone else with a take?

 

[HKJ]

For just charging this charger may be a bit too much, a couple of Xtar chargers would probably be a better solution.
But for checking batteries it is very good. Just make a "test 18650" program and assign it to all slots, then it is just putting four batteries in the charger, press the button, wait, read the result.

 

[Skeeterg]

WOW, what a charger,and i am with some others. A bit much for me,and the cost to.HKJ,great website btw.

 

[xdriver]

For just charging this charger may be a bit too much, a couple of Xtar chargers would probably be a better solution.
But for checking batteries it is very good. Just make a "test 18650" program and assign it to all slots, then it is just putting four batteries in the charger, press the button, wait, read the result.

Thank you for all the time you take to review chargers and batteries and everything on your site. Do you have a link to a test program for 18650 batteries using this charger, or how you would create one based on knowing that the cells I have are unprotected cells pulled from old laptop packs? Would you put an over discharged cell into the MC3000 and let it determine whether it should charge it or not, or would you test it with a voltage tester first? -As now we are digressing from the review, where should I post these questions to get answers. Thank you.

 

[HKJ]

Thank you for all the time you take to review chargers and batteries and everything on your site. Do you have a link to a test program for 18650 batteries using this charger, or how you would create one based on knowing that the cells I have are unprotected cells pulled from old laptop packs?

I like to cycle the cell a couple of times, i.e.:
Capacity: a bit more than the cell is supposed to have, for known good cells it can be off
mode: Cycle
C current: 1A
D current: 1A
Cycle count: 3
Cycle mode: C>D>C
Termination: 0.1
D Reduce: off
Cut voltage: 2.8
Cut time: Off

The 3 final values will be close.

Would you put an over discharged cell into the MC3000 and let it determine whether it should charge it or not, or would you test it with a voltage tester first?

Put the battery in and read the volt on the MC3000, if it is below 2 volt it goes to recycle bin (i.e. I will not try to charge it).

As now we are digressing from the review, where should I post these questions to get answers. Thank you.

Questions related to MC3000 can be posted here or in the other MC3000 thread.
Or if somebody wants to start sharing programs a new thread would be useful.

 

[xdriver]

Thank you,

I have ordered one from ProgressiveRC on Amazon. I am sure I will have more questions as to settings once the charger arrives.

 

[tjh]

Thank you,

I have ordered one from ProgressiveRC on Amazon. I am sure I will have more questions as to settings once the charger arrives.

Read this thread while you wait! It discusses and answers all the questions you'll have, I'm sure.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

morgage or charger, which is more important, if it was morgage or flashlight it would be bought already and i would be shining it around my park bench tonight.

John.

 

[tjh]

morgage or charger, which is more important, if it was morgage or flashlight it would be bought already and i would be shining it around my park bench tonight.

John.

I don't think it's THAT expensive though, for what it is.
A dedicated XTAR charger that just does Lion is what, half the price of this?

This not only does charging, it discharges/analyses, you can tweak every setting perfectly, set high charge currents for faster charging, plus it charges AAA/AA's, NiZN. It's firmware upgradable so it's future proof (as long as the new battery fits into the slot)

You're getting 5 times the functionality for 2 times the price.

Makes perfect sense I think.