Troubleshooting 101. My clients used to get all sorts of upset with me when they called…
Client: My computer doesn’t work!
Me: What did you do that you shouldn’t have?
It was probably best that I just started working for myself.
I think the neighbors got wind of what he was doing. 
Seriously though I cant help you with the pc but when it came to the tutorials from the likes of Hoop I found it invaluable on how to set up for flashing but could not work out how to flash. There was a helpful member here that held my hand through many frustrating pm’s until it clicked on what I was doing. Saying that I need a Hex file to be able to flash a driver. I cannot make one but can use one.
Good luck.
Unfortunately, all I have is the bastard file I use to file my heatsinks.
As long as its only a bastard file you have and not anything else that is a bastard. :innocent:
Richard, I am really looking for a few of the 219b 4k led’s like the one that came in the BLF / Astrolux copper. I have several 4.5k Nichia’s and just do not like them as much! I think they are the SW40’s.
I'll have to take a look around. I've seen them before at a few places but I'm not sure about current availability. I'm definitely not going to buy a full reel of those.
Matt - Give me a holler. I bought three from him a while back and never used them. You're welcomed to them and I've already flowed them to a MCPCB...
Edit: I take it back. I have three of the 4500k 219b's. I might have one if you can find two more.
Dale - The 219B that was in the 18650 Copper Sinner that I just gutted and turned into a Triple XPL HI; didn't that 219b have a 4000k tint? I remember you saying that you took it out of a 'Copper BLF' light just for that build.....
That’s right, it did! I bought the little BLF-348 just for that emitter! Nice memory…. 
Awesome! Thanks Dale!
Matt - it's yours buddy! I'll send it with the P60 and other blank light engines that I've built for you
tha
Myron… that would be great! I have several 4.5k and a few 5k 219b’s and just really do not like them nearly as much… I have a few of the XP-G3’s in 4 and 5 bin on order with Matt (VOB) but who knows when those will come into stock.
yeah turns out I have 3x 5000k bin. Where'd u find the 4500k binned 219b's?
Having some interesting issues with the latest care package from mtn.
Built up a quad nichia 219c using a mtn-17ddm with bistro firmware.
Having the odd issue where the light will go down to a lower light level after just about 5 seconds when on turbo. I turned off thermal protection and it still happens, tried a factory reset as well to no effect.
Any ideas? Or is the driver bad?
Things also tried with no change:
- Different batteries
- benchtop cc/CV power supply
(When using the supply the driver makes a audible high pitched whine when it goes to the lower mode)
That’s very interesting because I had two of my own built drivers do exactly that just yesterday! Modes cycle fine, reversing works fine, timings seem to be perfect, but it steps down in 4.5 seconds every time, even turns off it left on in moon mode for that 4.5 seconds. Beats me, and I sure tested the snot out of both of em you can bet on that! I’ve built hundreds like this, never ran into it before.
This was on OSHPark driver boards on Wights layout with premium components. I flashed the MCU myself with a firmware file I’ve used literally hundreds of times. Figured it wasn’t my day to mod…
Some possibilities:
- Voltage measurement is broken. Symptoms: All modes step down in coarse steps, repeatedly, until the light shuts itself off. Battcheck mode shows crazy values like 1.1V or 2.5V, or zero blinks, or just one blink, on a full cell.
- Voltage measurement is off by a bit. Symptoms: Highest mode(s) step down in coarse steps then stabilize. Battcheck mode shows results lower than expected, but still within li-ion ranges.
- Thermal calibration is off. Symptoms: Med-to-highest modes step down in fine steps until ‘low’ is reached, then it stabilizes.
I discovered my issue on the two I built that immediately stepped down and turned off.
UserID10T Error.
In other words, I’m an idiot.
I put the offtime cap and R1 resistor crosswise across their respective pads. Twice. Duh! So the offtime cap was running beside the edge of the 7135 chip instead of running into it. Hence, no low voltage protection reading at all as the R1 had one side on the ground pad where it goes, and one side on the ground pad for the offtime cap, where it doesn’t go. Somehow, coming back from vacation, I brain fahrted.
I am having the same exact step down issue in a Ti sinner with a triple XP-G3 and one of the new MTN17DDm-NUV with Bistro. Making me a bit crazy! I also have tried both setting, and disabling thermal regulation. Interestingly, it does not step down while it is in turbo mode for thermal calibration. That is the only time it stays in turbo with no step down…
drives me a bit nuts too. It not stepping down in thermal calibration really perplexed me, yet even thermal protection disabled it still steps down at about 4-5 seconds each time in normal use.
I have never bothered really using the voltage check feature much on bistro but the output of flashes do not coincide with the two bistro fw sample lights i have out right now. It blinks about 6 or 7 times, pauses for a second then repeats for a cell measured at about 3.96v
The batt check should show a solid blink for each number of Volts, a weak blink as the decimal point, then a solid blink for each tenth of a Volt. So 3.96V would show . with an asterisk meaning solid blink and the period being the weak blink or flash. Then it would pause and repeat. On repeat, it might show 4V by doing .(nothing, to indicate zero tenths).
If it’s not accurate, it’s not calibrated perfectly for the cell and components in this particular light. And this is the weak point of this feature, it really needs to have a battery calibration flashed to the MCU and be tested at different voltage inputs, then calibrated specifically for the individual light. THEN the firmware re-flashed. So it can be kind of a pita to get it just right.
What mine was doing, with the R1 and OTC crossed over, it wasn’t reading voltage properly and would step all the way down and turn off. If I turned it on in moon it would turn off in just under 5 seconds.
If thermal calibration is causing a step down from Turbo, you either need to set the thermal stepdown point in the calibration mode or turn step down off. This has been well described earlier.
Sorry if i was not clear, ill try to reword things.
i quoted in my post above what is stated in the bistro firmware readme file on the voltage readout’s use, and i noted in my post that what i am seeing is not following that for two lights i have in-front of me (i’ll check another one i have if i can find it.)
ti does not seem to actually be inaccurate but instead totally different output, it just has a continuous: “pause 1 second…blink 6 times…” repeating pattern.
and i have attempted with thermal protection turned off and it has no effect. still steps down at about 4/5 seconds. :weary:
Does it continue stepping down until it turn off?
When you turned off thermal protection, I’m curious how you went about it, in other words, if it is still stepping down are you sure you actually did turn it off? The procedure is relatively simple, but it has been missed before. When configuration mode is entered and the light gets to the 7th blink and stutter, half press to engage. The light will come on in approximately medium mode. Turn it off while in this mode and it disengages the thermal step-down. Is this what you did?
If the firmware is for the A6, not Bistro, a pause then 4 blinks would indicate 4.2V or 100% charged. 5 blinks would indicate over-charged or 4.35V. There shouldn’t be a sixth. And of course, there is no thermal stepdown option in A6.