Anyone use one of these in a mod? I like using carts and didn't want to run them at 6v.
Thanks
Thanks
Diode or resistor
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Thanks CaSH, I'll have to give it a try, how much of a drop with 1ohm? You have become a wiring guru since your new Prodigy adventure...
Hope I not butting in, but it's relatively easy to figure the voltage drop. Add the resistance of your coil, say 3.5 ohms, to the resistor value, 1 ohm. Total resistance = 4.5 ohms. Divide voltage of the cell by the resistance (I = V/R, roughly 6/4.5) = 1.3 amps. When 1.3 amps flows thru 1 ohm, it drops 1.3 volts (V = I*R). Your nominal 6 volt cell will now deliver 4.7 volts across your coil, and 1.3 volts across your resistor, wasting 1.8 watts (P = I*E, watts = 1.3 amps * 1.3 volts) as heat in the resistor.
Don't freak out if the above is too math intensive, just plug in your real values and follow it step by step. Nothing more than a four button calculator can handle. If you don't know your coil resistance, 3.5 ohms probably isn't far off.
With a resistor you will draw less current but still waste power (as heat) that would be avoided by using a few diodes instead.
The diodes (connected in series) will not get hot and your battery will last longer.
If you use a resistor, you should use at least a 0.5w one (better 1w); this will get hot.
To get say 4v across atomizer from a 6v battery, the resistor needed will be half that of the coil in ohms : about 2 ohms.
A suitable voltage regulator chip could also be used (at least 1A rated).
The diodes (connected in series) will not get hot and your battery will last longer.
If you use a resistor, you should use at least a 0.5w one (better 1w); this will get hot.
To get say 4v across atomizer from a 6v battery, the resistor needed will be half that of the coil in ohms : about 2 ohms.
A suitable voltage regulator chip could also be used (at least 1A rated).
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Thanks Guys. I found a thread that was talking about all the different resistors/diodes and I am going to give the TI diode a try ( 5V output ) in my screwdriver mod, plus it's great since Ti sends a free sample. 
I'll try the resistor as well in one of my magnum modes.
I'll try the resistor as well in one of my magnum modes.
The best solution is a voltage regulator that has a low 'forward voltage drop' (say 0.5V) so you have room for the battery to fade and it still works (and more consistently).
Using a resistor is just a bodge and really best avoided.
With power diodes you may need quite a few depending on the 'forward voltage drop' value. So it's really best to use the regulator. A diode or two would be ideal when the voltage decrease is just one volt or so.
Using a resistor is just a bodge and really best avoided.
With power diodes you may need quite a few depending on the 'forward voltage drop' value. So it's really best to use the regulator. A diode or two would be ideal when the voltage decrease is just one volt or so.
I like using diodes. The 1N4001 is about 1.6 volts and the 1N4004 is about .8 volts.
1.6 volts should put your mod in a pretty good range for super vapor production. I'm at 4.7 volts on my MVP mod and it's hits are fantastic.
1.6 volts should put your mod in a pretty good range for super vapor production. I'm at 4.7 volts on my MVP mod and it's hits are fantastic.
The problem we had (testing voltage regulators/diodes/resistors)
Voltage regulators were either way tooooo small or quite large, and finding the perfect one was quite difficult.
Diodes = Millions under the sun. We essentially had to string 3-4 together to get the voltage drop where we wanted.
Resistor ... Compact, long leads, did the job consistently.
Voltage regulators were either way tooooo small or quite large, and finding the perfect one was quite difficult.
Diodes = Millions under the sun. We essentially had to string 3-4 together to get the voltage drop where we wanted.
Resistor ... Compact, long leads, did the job consistently.
We tested a series of 1N4001 - 1N4006's, and really couldn't find a happy medium, not to mention, the consistency stunk ...
These diodes we picked up in a couple 25 packs from Radio Shack. The TVS Diodes we used actually seemed quite a bit more consistent, and we didn't need to string more than 2 together. Although, I personally got quite lost in the testing faze ...
LOLThese to be specific:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062589
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Wow. 2 year old thread. lol. Someones been doing his homework.....
Neither. Regulator.
I suppose you could use zener diodes to build your own inefficient regulator... but why? The regular diodes and resistors still suffer from the voltage curve issue.
Reminder: Batteries have a voltage curve. The regulator is just that...it regulates to a consistent voltage until near the very end. Inexpensive and not hard to mess with. Some are even 3 pin (in, out, ground). I use the 4 pin with an activation pin/mosfet so I can use a small button.
Neither. Regulator.
I suppose you could use zener diodes to build your own inefficient regulator... but why? The regular diodes and resistors still suffer from the voltage curve issue.
Reminder: Batteries have a voltage curve. The regulator is just that...it regulates to a consistent voltage until near the very end. Inexpensive and not hard to mess with. Some are even 3 pin (in, out, ground). I use the 4 pin with an activation pin/mosfet so I can use a small button.
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just was seeing diodes in booster mods... but never really understood why...
i mean ive never really seen a place on the ecf that explain its uses and doides vs. resistors,
so i dug this out of the old dusty pages...
so i guess what i really trying to get going here is the "why, what, where" of doides and examples of there uses and how it helps with the mod.... sorry if im asking something stupid but its been bugging me lol
i mean ive never really seen a place on the ecf that explain its uses and doides vs. resistors,
so i dug this out of the old dusty pages...
so i guess what i really trying to get going here is the "why, what, where" of doides and examples of there uses and how it helps with the mod.... sorry if im asking something stupid but its been bugging me lol
Like I said, you're doing your homework! I wish everyone (myself included sometimes) would search history more. lol.
There are no stupid questions. My answer to your original question remains the same, however.
I'd suggest doing some google searches for general electronics for general curiosity. I'm sorry that I can't give you specific links off the top of my head. But there's a lot of general electronics tutorials that discuss this (if that is your question). This thread already discusses some of the issues, like voltage drop and power dissipation.
The booster fans will probably need to chime in here, since that is a more specific question, but in general, they use them for the voltage drop to change (lower) the output range of the circuit. I think they have some other tricks too depending on the device.
Maybe if you start a thread about what you're trying to accomplish (if you are after a specific thing) we can all chime in and help. My answer stands for a dedicated voltage mod as discussed in this thread. However, if you now wish to discuss boosting and vv, there's a ton of threads on it and an entire new can of worms so to speak. Diodes, resistors, capacitors, inductors and tricks included. Searching for vv mods or buck/boost may help you too.
Good Luck and have fun!
There are no stupid questions. My answer to your original question remains the same, however.
I'd suggest doing some google searches for general electronics for general curiosity. I'm sorry that I can't give you specific links off the top of my head. But there's a lot of general electronics tutorials that discuss this (if that is your question). This thread already discusses some of the issues, like voltage drop and power dissipation.
The booster fans will probably need to chime in here, since that is a more specific question, but in general, they use them for the voltage drop to change (lower) the output range of the circuit. I think they have some other tricks too depending on the device.
Maybe if you start a thread about what you're trying to accomplish (if you are after a specific thing) we can all chime in and help. My answer stands for a dedicated voltage mod as discussed in this thread. However, if you now wish to discuss boosting and vv, there's a ton of threads on it and an entire new can of worms so to speak. Diodes, resistors, capacitors, inductors and tricks included. Searching for vv mods or buck/boost may help you too.
Good Luck and have fun!
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This was the answer =]
Basically, efficiency. Diodes or resistors are wasting your battery's power and they don't last long enough as it is. The ones used in booster and such are not on the main power feed but are in the control portion except in certain instances for special applications.
Both diodes and resistors will lower your operating voltage if placed in series with the atty but at a huge cost in efficiency.
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1w resistors. The diodes mentioned ( 1n4001 ) are 1 amp diodes and will fry up. Trust me I have used them. Then I used the 3amp diodes, they do get warm and drop voltage ( for me ) from .4v was the most common, and can go as high as .7v drop. They are big and the leads are very thick. JMO
And? How many mods have been built with this.
LDO 5 volt, 3.0 amp regulator with control pin!
And now this.
Variable Voltage Regulator Board Kit Rev 2
Folks use them and will continue to do so even though probably 40% of the batteries' energy never gets to the atty.
There's lots of things that "are wasting your battery's power", poor connections, mosfets, Control Pins, touch switches, mechanical switches , yet people will continue to use them.
Diodes have their place and uses.
yes, yes, those regs are inefficient, (but they do the job... in tight spaces w/ heatsink)
but my confusion is i thought diodes kinda pull the pulls the energy in a circuit in a direction you wire it... (with voltage drop)
so what im trying to figure out is if you need voltage drop a resistor is all you would need, but then what other purpose(s) do diodes have?
when and where do you need them? ive seen then in booster mods, but why?
if for the voltage drop then a resistor should be effective, why the diode? to only thing i seem to get in a search here (in the ecf) is about the voltage drop... looks like i need to do some googling lol
but my confusion is i thought diodes kinda pull the pulls the energy in a circuit in a direction you wire it... (with voltage drop)
so what im trying to figure out is if you need voltage drop a resistor is all you would need, but then what other purpose(s) do diodes have?
when and where do you need them? ive seen then in booster mods, but why?
if for the voltage drop then a resistor should be effective, why the diode? to only thing i seem to get in a search here (in the ecf) is about the voltage drop... looks like i need to do some googling lol
This is just a guess because I haven't researched the boost/buck circuit that much yet - I believe the output pulse wave is being clipped (removing the negative pulse) by the diode lowering the effective voltage below the 5V that the chip is rated for. Like I said it's just a guess but it allows the chip to be adjusted lower than it was designed to go.
I'm not into mod design, but I'm experienced in electronic theory and application. If you are using diodes as full or half wave devices (bridges and simple rectifier circuits), you need a full wave source for efficiency. If you already have a pulsed voltage (half sine or clipped square/triangle wave) then you are already at the output level of a single diode, for all practical purposes. Using an inline diode to further lower voltage is a waste of power, since it just dissipates as unused heat.
A variable DC supply capable of generating the needed amperage capacity would be more efficient. Would someone post a schematic so I can see how the components are being utilized? Some type of high amperage driver such as a MOSFET or SCR device would be my choice. Filtering would only be necessary to reduce RFI to outside receivers.
A variable DC supply capable of generating the needed amperage capacity would be more efficient. Would someone post a schematic so I can see how the components are being utilized? Some type of high amperage driver such as a MOSFET or SCR device would be my choice. Filtering would only be necessary to reduce RFI to outside receivers.
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