I’ve been using my two S4 Plus V3 for a few days now and I’m not really sure if I like it.
Major annoyances:
-Beeping on power on
-Beeping with no way to disable and leave the screen on
-Compact and congested layout. Getting cells in and out of the charger is very finnicky because the top is so tall and the cells are so tight together.
-Buttons are slow to respond to repeated presses
-No way to set all 4 slots at the same time (that I know of)
Minor annoyances:
-No 4x26650 support (I knew about this going in)
-All 4 slots should be the same in regards to discharge (Also knew about this)
Good things:
-4x3A
-Capacity checking (with a 200maH variance)
-3.7v storage mode
I wanted something to replace my two Miboxer C4-12 Plus that does 4x3A, but my two charger units have wider tolerances than I’d like. IR readings are +/- 10 mohm between units, one charges to 4.22v, the other to 4.19. Capacity checking works, but isn’t as accurate as I’d like
I agree. I wanted to upgrade my Miiboxer C4 (not the 12) as it was such a pain to charge my AAs/14500s in it.
The beeps are beyond annoying on the S4, the cells hold AAs/14500s better but as you said it has other issues.
Lastly, and why I decided to return it for a refund, the DC barrel connection didnt seem grounded properly. It would create huge sparking when plugging/unplugging. I contacted Sofirn to return it, and they said keep it and just refunded me.
I have since replaced it with a XTAR VC4Plus (VC4SL) and I am very happy so far. I would prefer a digital readout to the analog voltage gauges but I am happy with everything else about it. Being USBPD is a huge plus as well.
I ended up opening mine and put some tape over the hole of the beeper to muffle it. It’s now at about half volume. You could snip off the beeper if you wanted. However, it takes a bit of skill and patience to get it disassembled and re-assembled because of the metal sliders.
If you put all the batteries in quickly (before it starts charging/other) then you can select the mode/current and it’ll be set for all slots batteries you just put in.
It is pretty universally recommended to plug the connector into the device first and then into wall power. More than one of my chargers will spark if I do it the other way around.
This is for the coax/barrel connector types of power connections. USB connections have the contacts staggered to prevent, or at least minimize the arcing.
I have seen and used many DC barrel connectors that managed to ensure the ground connected first, at least it sure felt that way. Thank you though, i’ll have to keep that in mind if I experience it in the future.
Still, something I was unaware of when buying this vapcell charger. I could have found out if I realized it, but I was spoiled by the Miiboxer having a direct AC connection, I just didnt think about if it needed a dc brick or not.
They do make the ground first, but it is the positive side that sparks when it draws the power to charge the capacitors in the charger. I forget from time to time…and they will spark. It has never hurt anything though. I guess I wouldn’t do it in an explosive atmosphere…
I have one issue with this charger the right most slot reads differently than the other three. I have noticed the charge rate fluctuates a lot and the capacities vary a lot. I have gotten in the habit of not using that slot unless I am charging 4 cells at a time. That is when I noticed it. I will have to pay attention to what is actually going on next time I put 4 cells in it.
Chris
If you choose to disassemble yours, those temp sensors are just thermistors stuffed into a thermal paste filled cavity under that metal bar in the battery slot.
I’d guess there is a mismatch in the amount of goop or thermistor positioning.
For now, the +10 degrees doesn’t seem to be triggering any throttling, so I’ll leave it alone. If it starts to be an issue, I’ll open it up to see if there’s something I can do. Thanks for the description of the sensor!
The first two were done on Auto current, the last one was done on 1000mAh. They seem low, but is this a typical experience due to this charger just being inaccurate?
This charger shows lower capacity than some others of my chargers, I read also other users experienced the same. If you run it more times and the results are very similar it is at least consistant
But without professional equipment we cannot say this charger is inaccurate or the other chargers
Does anyone have experience with the usb trigger board mentioned above?
I’m looking to charge two 21700 cells at 3A each, ideally off usb c, with nimh support. This charger seems to be the only thing in the market that can do that, as awkward as the 4 slots and this trigger board hack are…
@vapcell_Dennis Are there any releases lined up I should wait for? Can wait a few months
