We don't really understand how this driver works. Swapping FETs could cause big problems. That said, maybe a PowerPAK SO8 style FET would be a good choice. For example, the SIR462DP can handle more current and has much lower RDS(on) figures than the stock FET. You'd have to take a look at what is under the FET and make sure that you weren't bridging anything. I wouldn't do it.
AO4468 is also used on other drivers, most common one is probably the 3-toroid SRK drivers. If you have any dead drivers laying around it's worth a look.
edit: Also, I doubt there is any other FET out there that will survive having the resistor bridged. Being a boost driver, the input current isn't self-limited by the LED voltage like in a DD setup, and that's why these same parts survive fine in other driver designs but not in this one.
My comments on replacing the FET were not intended to facilitate bridging the resistor, just decreasing the resistance. It’s still not a great idea either way, as I mentioned.
I got confused when making these adapters. Do not use them, they are clearly wired wrong. I knew better than to do this and did it anyway - oops. I’ll re-attack the problem and get it right next time.
OK, v04 -> v06. Now the adapters should be functional, but after that last mistake I wouldn’t trust me if I were you.
I didn’t bother to keep track of what order the pins are in now compared to where I thought they were with the previous version of this adapter. They are in the order that was easiest for me to route while still making GND and VCC connections. So the firmware I posted above (and never tested of course ) may need some tweaks to work with this board. Pins 2, 3, 5, 6, & 7 are all straight through. Pin #1 on the ATtiny (PB5) goes to the location of Pin #4 on the PIC (GP3).
I think there is no interest in running STAR on this light using the stock levels, but for the record I think the latest firmware I posted has an error. It looks like I forgot to set “RUN_PIN” to output along with the MODE_X pins.
I have replaced the mosfet but I noticed that the sprint of the driver gets really hot after some seconds of running. I worry that might some other components have damaged, except the replaced mosfet. Using a fet driver with star firmware is my next step, what do you think?
Do not bypass these resistors. Bypassing a boost driver which does not have an additional limit is bad. For example, people do a bypass on Fenix boost driver sense resistors, but those drivers have a 4.5v voltage limit. That keeps the current from getting so high that it destroys those drivers.
The spring getting hot may be normal. If so, a copper braid mod is in order. Maybe comfychair or someone else can tell us. Did you remove the bypass?
An FET driver will require you to put the emitters in parallel.
I removed the bridge that caused the mosfet meltdown. I am planning to use a noctigon triple in parallel. xpl would be great but they are damn expensive for now.
I would measure the current draw. If you get the expected numbers then I think it’s safe to say the spring is just crap. [EDIT: Well, maybe not crap. Let’s just say “not the best”.]
I've been ignoring this driver while doing other stuff... well, not really ignoring it, just giving it some free time to float around in the ol' brain computer.
As we know, the modes come from enabling small FETs that use a limiting resistor to control the output level. No PWM. Each 'mode channel' is used independently, only one in use at any one time. Would there be anything to be gained (moar output!) by switching them on concurrently? Like, low = channel 1, medium = channel 1 + channel 2, high = 1 + 2 + 3? Or would that overload the smoke-prone AO4468? Is it already too close to max output in stock form running thru the original resistors?
zeremefico got 11A at the tailcap when he torched his. It seems that the stock turbo is 5.5A @ tailcap on an MNKE cell, see post #13 here. In post #1 of the same thread vinhnguyen54 mentions that he purchased some to mod before he realized that the stock turbo was just as high as he was planning to take high.
If we are assuming that the smoke comes out with an input >5.5A and <11A then… I’d say leave it alone. Remember on the tail end of the discharge you’re pulling like 25% more or something, so you’ve got to have some headroom. So we may draw up to… what, 7A or something on a mostly dead cell on Turbo w/ the stock setup. That’s a lot of guestimation, but I don’t see much space for increasing the current.
Switching them concurrently could be used to give more granular mode spacing, as I’ve described in other threads for use with a 7135 driver. This would be slightly different of course.
Wouldn't that be rather straight forward though? Rework the pcb with pads for the switch, throw on BLFDD hardware with the old switch, wire emitters in parallel, and it's done. Old driver should still be good in case the BLFDD driver doesn't work out. I want to say that if no one else did this, I eventually would, but this light appears to be out of production and the replacement is currently listed with a very high price, so perhaps I took too long.
Eh? You are talking about taking a regulated, no-PWM-at-all, boost-driver-having light and changing it into an unregulated DD light with PWM. Totally different subject. Please skim the thread in order to get up to speed if you haven’t yet.
BG probably isn't. They've been telling me via email that this light is out of stock and they can't find new stock, but their webpage sure doesn't reflect that.
Yeah, I'm thinking of something totally different. I'd hate to muck up the stock driver without a backup to fall back to.
You may not want that thing you linked to. It seems to be a clone of the SF lantern head, AFAIK the universal opinion is that the lantern head sucks. I bought the SF one even after reading people’s opinions because “how bad could it be”. It was bad. Totally useless and completely unable to distribute light the way you might think it could. I kept it on the parts shelf for about 6 months and finally threw it away. I couldn’t think of any use for the parts and it would never be useful as a lantern so there was no logic in gifting it.
