Review: KD 7135 V2 drivers 3040/2280/1520 mA with mode configuration

So lower modes are PWM, but on high ti is current regulated?

Yes, you can use 26650 Li-Mn and have not more mA. ;)

I will be annoyed if so, no PWM is the reason why I bought this driver. KD state that all modes are current regulated.

All 7135*8 are current regulated. They are current controlled on High mode and PWM on Medium an Low. A difference, regulated - controlled. They want to say constant current.

This driver using the 380mA chips seems the same.

I got mine in the mail today, they are tiny...

My soldering iron is way too big to even attempt it and I doubt hold my hands steady enough to hold the soldering iron anyway.

Or maybe I can find smaller tips but there isnt any electronics shops around here.

before I got an iron w/ small tip I would do tiny stuff by stripping more of the wire, putting a little blob of solder on the end of it, putting that in place and then holding the iron onto the wire as close as i could get to the blob...

and, as for pwm - i must be the luckiest budget light guy, w/ respect to pwm - i have to try to notice it and it doesn't bother me (though, I'm sure I haven't seen the worst stuff that's out there...)

I received my set of five today and didn't waste any time.

You need steady hands for soldering on to this drop-in, it's the size of a 5p coin!

I soldered the supplied wires for the LED and soldered the points to allow for memory and Hi-Med-Low sequence.

After a little sanding of the drop-in I placed it inside a Ultrafire C8.

This is all a very much first impressions basis, however the drop-in appears to be fantastic! Low is very low, I'd call it 'near moonlight', it's actually brighter than the typical 0.2L of moonlight - very useful.

Medium is a perfect brightness. Inside a C8 body you can leave medium running until the cows come home without fear of thermal issues.

High is very bright!

Tailcap Measurements

Hi: 3A
Mid: 880mA
Low: 7mA

PWM

Low: ?? - Unable to detect.
Med: 15.4khz
Hi: ?? - Unable to detect.

The PWM on medium is fantastic, this drop-in shows that PWM can work well. Not only is it of a high frequency but also a high duty cycle is implemented. I'm very sensitive to PWM and I'm unable to see evidence of PWM with my eyes.

Low leaves me scratching my head a little, as I'm unable to measure the PWM frequency, which is rather unusual. I'm guessing that the frequency used is too high for my testing method. As you can imagine, I can't see any signs of PWM with my eyes.

Building my first couple of drop-ins has been so much fun, I definitely recommend it to those that haven't done so.

I now have a neutral tinted (T6-3C) C8 and a cool white (T6 1A) C8 with will spaced modes, no flashes, moonlight mode with crazy runtimes and I am able to use all 3 modes without the annoying strobing affects of poorly implemented PWM, the likes of which is found in so many budget lights/drop-ins.

I plan to write up a more in depth write up soon, but this is all for now. :)

Is there any way to disable the modes on these drivers and make them single mode only?

The reason I ask is to use one in a light for a gun and obviously you do not want to be sending SOS messages to your quarry.

I am absolutely with you on that one. I really have to work hard to notice any modest PWM. Besides, I think my hands are shakier than what the average PWM will produce (and they're really not that shaky) so it's a moot point anyway! haha

Smelly: You could solder a small wire from the mode controller's VCC pin to it's PWM pin, then it'll be just single mode.

Hi Doc

Many thanks for that. Can you point me in the right direction to identify these pins?

I am very sorry I was mistaken. I had the new Shiningbeam driver which is different from the old Nanjg 105C. I was so excited that the reflash worked I never looked close enough to determine there is in fact another new driver on the market.

The driver pictured is the one I reflashed all the old equipment works on it.

This one is the so called Nanjg (ROHS) 106

Beamshots with this driver in an Ultrafire C8 host? Go on then!

Ultrafire C8 - KD8x7135 - XM-L T6-1A
Ultrafire C8 - KD8x7135 - XM-L T6-3C


Lowest brightness - KD8x7135-C8- XM-L Cool White, KD8x7135-C8- XM-L Neutral White, Zebralight SC600w


High mode

F/8 2 seconds ISO: 400



Comparison shots




@Smelly: Look at the picture in the first post, locate the big 8-pin chip, top row of 4 pins. The PWM pin is the second from left, the VCC pin should be the rightmost pin (I don't have that driver, so I'm not completely sure, I judged from images). It should be OK to add a big blob of solder over the three right pins (PWM pin, VCC pin and the one between them) - as long as you don't have any of those mode group pads solder-bridged on the other side.

Many thanks Doc.

Mousover version:

Tony, I've done a four-stack with these KD V2 3040mA boards to independently regulate each of 4 XMLs, and the MCU was able to control all 32 chips just fine. Just make sure that you remove absolutely everything but the 7135 chips from the slave boards. If you're using XMLs, which are pretty low Vf compared to other LEDs, you'll want to stick to the Vin range of paralleled Li-Ion cells to avoid the stacked drivers from over heating. Even 4.8V from 4*NiMH cells can quickly become too much when you're driving XMLs from a stack of these.

By the way, I love the map-light / moonlight low mode on these. It's why they're my new favorite driver.

just thought i'd mention it..kd will change the low from moonlight to 50ma if you email them..

hi all,
I would like any advice.

I'm new to modding lights.
I got the KD 8*7135 3040mah driver,when I solder it to a Xm-l emitter, I end up getting only 1 mode although I did not bridge any of the S1-S4 points. By default it should be 6 or 7 modes.
Any idea what am I doing wrong? I have followed the KD instruction sheet to solder accordingly.
Appreciate your help greatly.


philip