So made some progress on merging Narsil 2 channel and 3 channel, so I have one source code base now with a header file called setups.h. In setups.h, you define all the board configuration settings and other compile time user option settings.
It's compiling now for 2 channel and 3 channel, with indicator LED enabled or disabled, and using R1/R2 or internal V1.1 ref for voltage monitoring.
Totally untested, but it compiles.
Next to do is actually try it...
Some Details:
It has the more advanced, simplified version of the configuration settings UI that's in the 2 channel latest version of Narsil, v1.3. One new feature is ability to set the temperature threshold for thermal stepdown. There's probably a couple more tweaks as well in LVP and thermal stepdown, results from more recent testing.
Testing will take some time - may need to actually build up a couple boards, etc.
looks like the new BLF GT buck driver that's in the design/proto phase will be a perfect fit for this combined Narsil version - I'm calling it NarsilM for now: Multi-channel configuration
the GT buck driver will just be another channel configuration, but with some special needs. Two I/O PWM pins, but slightly different behavior
I'm a big fan of the TA triple drivers, so I want/need to get this done!! (as I hit myself over the head...)
You will need to add a resistor inline with the LED in this case or it will drain the battery very quickly. A normal through hole resistor could be used easy enough. Something around 30k-50k ohms generally works out ok.
Are you guys talk'n bout a tail bleeder LED (Bistro - clicky) or locator LED w/Narsil? For Narsil I use somewhere between 2K and 15K, depends on the LED(s) and visibility of the LED.
Well, it sounds like he is talking about installing an indicator LED using the tailcap bleeder pads.
So it would remain on 24/7 and drain the battery continually. 50k ohm resistor tends to have the final output be around ~0.050ma from my testing, so a little over 1ma per day of drain.
This makes more sense and it also means you don’t need a resistor, or at least as big of one. But in this case you can’t use the bleeder resistor pads. I am not sure what pads you need to use but I think the voltage divider pads. Never used an indicator LED with narsil before myself.
BTW, I have a 1.45 milliamp drain on one of my drivers. Is that considered high? It has had zero effect on battery life so it doesn’t seem to be a big deal.
Narsil is wayyyy lower, after you wait 10 secs or so from turn OFF. Did you wait long enough? In the newer versions it's reduced to 5 seconds or so.
It should be 0.021 mA without R1/R2. If you are using R1/R2, depends on what values you use. I typically use 192K and 47K - 10X less drain for the old resistor values, so resulting drain is 0.038 mA.
the locator LED/sideswitch LED can be used with tailswitch lights without a problem, that was its main purpose
for lights with no tailswitch a locator LED should have a pretty high resistor, like Texas_Ace wrote to get low parasitic drain, you can still get brighter that trits with parasitic drain af a few 100uA