I've wanted to test the capacity down to 2.5v on my Li-Ion 18650 cells, in order to find out if they are close to their 3000 mAh rating, but I couldn't go below 3.0v in the standard settings on my B6 charger. Thanks to you Richard, I now have several options w/o having to go out and buy a separate load tester! This same method also works on several of my other charges, so again, great work!
You're most welcome. I'm glad and very happy to know that I could help you. Thank you so much for watching, commenting and the very kind words. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
Q. How can I find out what kind of cells I have foe a down tube ebike battery and how to discharge. I just found out about this tool and is this the right one to get. Thanks
Not sure what kind of batteries or how many you have or if it has a battery manager so I really can't answer you. But you can use this charger to charge individual cells as well as multiple cell batteries (if you connect it correctly). I still use mine today. Thank you so much for commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
Isn’t there a device similar to this where you can select the cutoff voltage of the discharge? I liked this battery analyzer but unfortunately you have limited options for discharging.
i have this charger as well, but for some reason any time i set a discharge rate onver 1.5a on a lipo/li-ion, when it ramps the amperage, it drops to 0 at 1.6a. know of any way to stop that?
You may have a counterfeit charger and sometimes those don't work right. I bought a Turnigy Accucel-6 as an upgrade and it works great. Thank you so much for commenting and the very kind words. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
I have a potentially newer version of the B6 (AC/DC Dual Power Professional V2), I'm not sure, but it will not let me reduce the discharge cutoff voltage to 2.6 like yours does on the screen. When I go into Skyrc I can create a custom program to discharge or charge.. etc.. I created one for these for that batter you did alot of testing on, the LIPO 200 AMP 8-9ah? With a cutoff voltages of 2.5 it refuses to start saying there is an issue with the main port. If I do a normal discharge using an LIFEPO it errors out. Finally figure out it was due to the current volts on the battery. So if I start the discharge with the LILO option it believe it has a good battery and gets moving... then half through that discharge I need to switch to my custom one that takes it down to 2.5 and then when i finished I have to start another task to charge it all the way back to 4.2v Have you found any way around this where the charger ignores the current volts? Or any way of performing a normal cycle on this LIPO 8-9AH similar to Liito Kala or Opus test mode where it charges first and then discharges and back again recording the amp hours accepted by the battery? any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
I do not have access to your version of the B6 so I can't really comment, perhaps someone else here can. Thank you so much for watching and commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
Hello Mr Richard, well explained, I having confusion am having 32650 LiFePo4 batteries, I would like to balance the batteries with I Max b6 charger, question is I can charge 6 batteries at one time, when it comes to discharge as I saw video they are saying that I have use one battery to discharge, I request you to please explain how to balance the 32650 LiFePo4 batteries possibly a video, thanks in advance
Agreed not the easiest menu system but glad you posted the video makes much more sense now thankyou. If you want to discharge more than one cell at a time and want to find out the capacity of each one do you have to test them individually to have a correct reading of the capacity ? Ordered my charger and 4 sets of 4 18650 holders to enable charging 16 cells but not sure about discharging them.
Hi Richard, very helpful video thanks for posting. My just acquired Imax B6 (clone) is giving very inaccurate discharge test results - 2/3 or even half what they should be. I actually returned a couple of new 18500's to the seller for them to check, they tested ~ 1200mAh, seller confirmed capacity of ~2000mAh. Is there a way of callibrating an Imax or fixing this?
My new imax acb6- trying to discharge my 32650 Lifepo4 battery discharging by 2a- capacity shows more than the rated capacity 6000mah whereas used cell... Also tried to 18650 battery around 2200mah battery but capacity shows 5000mah ++ .. I turned off all option like max capacity, low voltage, safety timer etc... I checked with imax acb6 with another device result shows same like error
On my Imax B6AC v2, there is no such option "User Set" on the top line of the screen. The information that appears is BATT / PROGRAM. Do I need firmware updates or any command to access this menu? It is parameterized in the Dircharge Li-Io 3.6V (1S), 7.2 (2S) and so on function. For Li-Po is 3.7V (1S), 7.4 (2S) and so on. How do I set the minimum discharge function of 2.8V (1S) for Li-Ion and 3.0V (1S) for Li-Po? I appreciate your help. Thank You.
There are a bunch of clones out there, mine being one of them. I got lucky though as it is well calibrated. I have a video here on how to set custom values here: th-cam.com/video/ZA3aivsR7DY/w-d-xo.html but again mine is a clone so it could be different for you.Thanks.
This link is actually the current video lol. But anyway, as mine is original imax b6, it doesn't have at all the option to customize the minimum voltage at 2,5V when discharging. It's a great function in your imax clone, why is this not available on the genuine ones? :/
My Thunder AC6 charger i purchased 7yrs ago has the same features as the iMAX B6, but the discharge voltage for the li-on function only shows 3.0v, if i wanted 2.5v, i would have to use the NiMh or Nicd function... it works either way when testing my Panasonic NCR18650B(japan) 3.7v/3400mah batteries.
Can you tell me what happens if you set the nicd discharge program to auto and are using multiple nicd cells? It seems to work with one cell, but I am not sure how it detects the correct lower voltage when using multiple cells
Indeed, the ONLY discharge profile that lets you modify min (discharge-to) voltage is NiCD. The default min discharge voltage for LiFe is way too low, at 2V. Needs to be more like 2.7. So, to be able to safely discharge LiFePo4, you select NiCd and set the discharge voltage to 2.7. You'd then use that profile (NiCD) when doing the discharge excersize. Don't forget to switch back to proper mode when doing charging. Set the profile to NiCd, discharge voltage to 2.7V, discharge current to 2A, connected my cell (LiFePo4) and started the discharge. It only went for 11secs before current dropped to 0.0 Amp ! Why ? Guess what ! All of these (the original and the clones) can only handle 5W in discharge mode. It needs to be able to dissipate that much power internally, and due to its smaller size, can only handle the 5W max. In my case, single LiFePo4 cell being @ 3.2V, I can only discharge at max of 1.5Amp, so that A*V=P stays under allowed 5W of power. When I set that limit, discharge current to 1.5A, discharge started working as expected. If you want to discharge 2 cells, then the current needs to be halved and so on.
Thanks, I rarely use this charger any longer as it does not have a computer interface. I use the Turnigy Accucel 6 80W 10A Balancer Charger at Amazon: amzn.to/2GFyu9N Or Ebay goo.gl/zeVmpk Thank you for watching and commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.
I need a clarification if you charge and discharge Lithium-Ion(18650)cells like liPo, I think were a missing some capacity, I'm right or I'm missing something
For storage - Whats the difference between using the discharging function to discharge the lipo to 3.8V and using the storage functionality to discharge it to 3.8v?
I am not certain. I believe LTO cells are. I don't have one to test but if you can figure out how to discharge to 1.5V it may work for you.Operating voltageCharge cut-off voltage2.7 VDischarge cut-off voltage1.5 V
So i have a GENUINE imax b6, I gently charge them 1x to 4.18v @ .5 amp, i discharge 18650's to 3.0v at .5a, get a mah count HOWEVER I notice that after this the battery is still at 3.6 volts :( I also use a ZB2L3 cheapy discharger board with 2 resistors BUT it takes em down to 3v or really 3.14v. One NASA Utube guy says the ZB2L3 is NOT accurate. I did a shootout comparison using matched cells from a laptop battery, both had same voltage, charged em up, took em down a bit, recharged to 4.2volts, split the 2 cells and discharged one imax other ZB2L3 and they were within 2% in their mah rating, BUT how can this be when Imax seemingly leaves tons of voltage in the cell???? I'm thinking the C rating may differ between cells. Also i will charge and discharge in 2 cells, pre connected via the laptop packs (reclaimed with at least 2.volts otherwise they get sorted out later) with nickel strips, however i am sure to keep em around .5 amp charge or discharge per cell wether ZB or imax. comments, thoughts, suggestions welcome
Not the easiest thing to master, that said the more you use it the easier it gets, this video will be a great help. ps It`s great for checking MAHs on GENUINE!!!! Chinese li ion batteries.
I agree with you. The menu system is less than intuitive but once you understand the battery chemistry and limitations it makes much more sense. Yes it is very good at proving whether the capacity is true or not. Thanks again and all the best.
I've wanted to test the capacity down to 2.5v on my Li-Ion 18650 cells, in order to find out if they are close to their 3000 mAh rating, but I couldn't go below 3.0v in the standard settings on my B6 charger. Thanks to you Richard, I now have several options w/o having to go out and buy a separate load tester! This same method also works on several of my other charges, so again, great work!
You're most welcome. I'm glad and very happy to know that I could help you. Thank you so much for watching, commenting and the very kind words. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
@@richardlloydusa, please,reply my comment sir.
Q. How can I find out what kind of cells I have foe a down tube ebike battery and how to discharge. I just found out about this tool and is this the right one to get.
Thanks
Not sure what kind of batteries or how many you have or if it has a battery manager so I really can't answer you. But you can use this charger to charge individual cells as well as multiple cell batteries (if you connect it correctly). I still use mine today. Thank you so much for commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
Isn’t there a device similar to this where you can select the cutoff voltage of the discharge? I liked this battery analyzer but unfortunately you have limited options for discharging.
What would be the right settings on the imax b6 mini for charging a Soshine Size 9V 650Mah 6F22 LIION 650 7.4V
i have this charger as well, but for some reason any time i set a discharge rate onver 1.5a on a lipo/li-ion, when it ramps the amperage, it drops to 0 at 1.6a. know of any way to stop that?
You may have a counterfeit charger and sometimes those don't work right. I bought a Turnigy Accucel-6 as an upgrade and it works great. Thank you so much for commenting and the very kind words. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
thats probably what it is. ive had this for a while i seems to work fine, just cant discharge as fast.
I still use mine and it works fine. I use it mostly for charging lead acid batteries. I use the Turnigy for discharge testing though. Thanks again.
I have a potentially newer version of the B6 (AC/DC Dual Power Professional V2), I'm not sure, but it will not let me reduce the discharge cutoff voltage to 2.6 like yours does on the screen. When I go into Skyrc I can create a custom program to discharge or charge.. etc.. I created one for these for that batter you did alot of testing on, the LIPO 200 AMP 8-9ah? With a cutoff voltages of 2.5 it refuses to start saying there is an issue with the main port. If I do a normal discharge using an LIFEPO it errors out. Finally figure out it was due to the current volts on the battery. So if I start the discharge with the LILO option it believe it has a good battery and gets moving... then half through that discharge I need to switch to my custom one that takes it down to 2.5 and then when i finished I have to start another task to charge it all the way back to 4.2v Have you found any way around this where the charger ignores the current volts? Or any way of performing a normal cycle on this LIPO 8-9AH similar to Liito Kala or Opus test mode where it charges first and then discharges and back again recording the amp hours accepted by the battery? any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
I do not have access to your version of the B6 so I can't really comment, perhaps someone else here can. Thank you so much for watching and commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
Hello Mr Richard, well explained, I having confusion am having 32650 LiFePo4 batteries, I would like to balance the batteries with I Max b6 charger, question is I can charge 6 batteries at one time, when it comes to discharge as I saw video they are saying that I have use one battery to discharge, I request you to please explain how to balance the 32650 LiFePo4 batteries possibly a video, thanks in advance
I would like to know what amp do you use to put in storage one lipo 2700mah 7.4v 10c battery?Also what amp do you use to charge this battery?
Agreed not the easiest menu system but glad you posted the video makes much more sense now thankyou. If you want to discharge more than one cell at a time and want to find out the capacity of each one do you have to test them individually to have a correct reading of the capacity ? Ordered my charger and 4 sets of 4 18650 holders to enable charging 16 cells but not sure about discharging them.
I think this can do a balance charge of up to eight cells but I have not done it. Thanks.
you can balance charge a 6s pack
Hi Richard, very helpful video thanks for posting.
My just acquired Imax B6 (clone) is giving very inaccurate discharge test results - 2/3 or even half what they should be. I actually returned a couple of new 18500's to the seller for them to check, they tested ~ 1200mAh, seller confirmed capacity of ~2000mAh. Is there a way of callibrating an Imax or fixing this?
My new imax acb6- trying to discharge my 32650 Lifepo4 battery discharging by 2a- capacity shows more than the rated capacity 6000mah whereas used cell...
Also tried to 18650 battery around 2200mah battery but capacity shows 5000mah ++
..
I turned off all option like max capacity, low voltage, safety timer etc...
I checked with imax acb6 with another device result shows same like error
On my Imax B6AC v2, there is no such option "User Set" on the top line of the screen. The information that appears is BATT / PROGRAM. Do I need firmware updates or any command to access this menu? It is parameterized in the Dircharge Li-Io 3.6V (1S), 7.2 (2S) and so on function. For Li-Po is 3.7V (1S), 7.4 (2S) and so on. How do I set the minimum discharge function of 2.8V (1S) for Li-Ion and 3.0V (1S) for Li-Po? I appreciate your help. Thank You.
There are a bunch of clones out there, mine being one of them. I got lucky though as it is well calibrated. I have a video here on how to set custom values here: th-cam.com/video/ZA3aivsR7DY/w-d-xo.html but again mine is a clone so it could be different for you.Thanks.
This link is actually the current video lol. But anyway, as mine is original imax b6, it doesn't have at all the option to customize the minimum voltage at 2,5V when discharging. It's a great function in your imax clone, why is this not available on the genuine ones? :/
My Thunder AC6 charger i purchased 7yrs ago has the same features as the iMAX B6, but the discharge voltage for the li-on function only shows 3.0v, if i wanted 2.5v, i would have to use the NiMh or Nicd function... it works either way when testing my Panasonic NCR18650B(japan) 3.7v/3400mah batteries.
Yes, this works on different chargers too. Thanks.
Hi. Can we use this product with 19v 4.7a notebook power supply?
The manual states 18V max input. Thanks.
Can you tell me what happens if you set the nicd discharge program to auto and are using multiple nicd cells? It seems to work with one cell, but I am not sure how it detects the correct lower voltage when using multiple cells
Can I use this to dispose of Lipo battery? 0.1V slowly at 0.1A. is this dangerous? Any other options? Battery is a 2700mah 7.4V lipo.
Indeed, the ONLY discharge profile that lets you modify min (discharge-to) voltage is NiCD.
The default min discharge voltage for LiFe is way too low, at 2V. Needs to be more like 2.7.
So, to be able to safely discharge LiFePo4, you select NiCd and set the discharge voltage to 2.7.
You'd then use that profile (NiCD) when doing the discharge excersize. Don't forget to switch back to proper mode when doing charging.
Set the profile to NiCd, discharge voltage to 2.7V, discharge current to 2A, connected my cell (LiFePo4) and started the discharge.
It only went for 11secs before current dropped to 0.0 Amp !
Why ?
Guess what ! All of these (the original and the clones) can only handle 5W in discharge mode.
It needs to be able to dissipate that much power internally, and due to its smaller size, can only handle the 5W max.
In my case, single LiFePo4 cell being @ 3.2V, I can only discharge at max of 1.5Amp, so
that A*V=P stays under allowed 5W of power.
When I set that limit, discharge current to 1.5A, discharge started working as expected.
If you want to discharge 2 cells, then the current needs to be halved and so on.
Thanks, I rarely use this charger any longer as it does not have a computer interface. I use the Turnigy Accucel 6 80W 10A Balancer Charger at Amazon: amzn.to/2GFyu9N Or Ebay goo.gl/zeVmpk Thank you for watching and commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.
I need a clarification if you charge and discharge Lithium-Ion(18650)cells like liPo, I think were a missing some capacity, I'm right or I'm missing something
No if discharging to. 3. That's your reference point any lower 2.5 the battery shuts down garbage good for flashlights lol
For storage - Whats the difference between using the discharging function to discharge the lipo to 3.8V and using the storage functionality to discharge it to 3.8v?
If the battery is above 3.8V you can't logically charge it downward, so then you would discharge to 3.8V.
programming NiCd discharge charge cycle 2. After first discharge it says "voltage error and wont finisih discharge charge cycles.
a bit long but had the information I was looking for :)
You are most welcome. Thank you for watching, commenting and the kind words. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.
I get err when trying to charge my Li on after I discharged too low. What happened ?
Will this discharge 2.4 LTO cell
I am not certain. I believe LTO cells are. I don't have one to test but if you can figure out how to discharge to 1.5V it may work for you.Operating voltageCharge cut-off voltage2.7 VDischarge cut-off voltage1.5 V
Whats the setting if i charge 3s lipo 5500mah?
I am not sure as my charger is a clone thanks.
Extremely useful trick, thank you.
You are most welcome. I was very happy when I figured it out too. Thank you for watching. All the best.
So i have a GENUINE imax b6, I gently charge them 1x to 4.18v @ .5 amp, i discharge 18650's to 3.0v at .5a, get a mah count HOWEVER I notice that after this the battery is still at 3.6 volts :( I also use a ZB2L3 cheapy discharger board with 2 resistors BUT it takes em down to 3v or really 3.14v. One NASA Utube guy says the ZB2L3 is NOT accurate. I did a shootout comparison using matched cells from a laptop battery, both had same voltage, charged em up, took em down a bit, recharged to 4.2volts, split the 2 cells and discharged one imax other ZB2L3 and they were within 2% in their mah rating, BUT how can this be when Imax seemingly leaves tons of voltage in the cell???? I'm thinking the C rating may differ between cells. Also i will charge and discharge in 2 cells, pre connected via the laptop packs (reclaimed with at least 2.volts otherwise they get sorted out later) with nickel strips, however i am sure to keep em around .5 amp charge or discharge per cell wether ZB or imax. comments, thoughts, suggestions welcome
You have the same name as a great guitar instructor check the alchemist guitarist peace by Richard Lloyd
Form the band Television. Thank you for watching and commenting. I appreciate it greatly. All the best.👍😀
This really helped me.
Thank you.
Not the easiest thing to master, that said the more you use it the easier it gets, this video will be a great help.
ps It`s great for checking MAHs on GENUINE!!!! Chinese li ion batteries.
I agree with you. The menu system is less than intuitive but once you understand the battery chemistry and limitations it makes much more sense. Yes it is very good at proving whether the capacity is true or not. Thanks again and all the best.
can someone please help me with the correct setting to charge a 5400mAh LiPo 4K 3S 11.1V 3C LiPo Battery ?