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Electrifly's Triton 2 EQ AC/DC Computerized Charger/Discharger/Cycler/Balancer Review
By 78dave
Mar 28, 2009, 04:25 PM
Introduction
Each of us has different needs when it comes to battery chargers. Some need a charger for high amperage NiMH RC car racing packs, and others charge only LiPo packs. Some need to discharge and cycle, others never do either. We also have certain favorites that have provided us great service for years; I still use my trusty Triton charger, and for years had no way to even balance my LiPos but I still charged them with no problem. Now we have something new and really well engineered. The Triton 2EQ builds on Electrifly’s reputation of making quality chargers by keeping one of the simplest programming sequences available and coupling that with one of the few AC powered chargers available for RC hobbyists. This is clearly a case of having your cake and eating it too! The Electrifly Triton 2 EQ is the perfect charger for entry level though intermediate charging needs.
Special Features:
Kit Contents
The Triton 2 EQ is a complete package. Mine arrived in great shape, and I appreciated the secure container.
Kit Includes:
Kit Options:
Walk Around
The familiar red trim and aluminum frame are present, but instead of a molded box the new versions are formed aluminum. The backlit LCD screen is adjustable with three detents. The tried and true two buttons and dial are present and work exactly like previous versions.
LiPo Charging
The LiPo charging sequence is very easy to work with. All Li parameters use the same sequence, and the Triton 2 EQ provides the correct current.
Triton 2 EQSetup
To charge, you have to correctly connect your battery to the Triton 2 EQ charger which requires both the power leads and the balancing leads. As soon as the balancing lead is attached, the charger will begin trying to balance the battery by very slightly discharging cells with higher charges. If you are not using a balanced cell, this feature is not active. At this point in the development of Li battery technology, you should not have many cells that do not have balancing taps. A few small applications use a 3.7 volt 1S cell so no balancing is present.
The power leads have to be used if the balancing tap is connected. Two connection boards are provided. The Electrifly board is the common JST-HX tap you will find on most of your batteries. This type receives the tap with the two small arrows on one side of the tap. The other connector is typical of the Thunder Power and Flightpower packs with a small keeper or locking device on one side.
Connect the balance tap, connect the power leads, and finally, connect your temperature probe. Electrifly’s temperature probe never seems to be big enough, so I just slit it and tape it to the battery. I would guess other probes that use the same polarity and two-pin flat plug will work as well.
You can program up to 10 different memories for each battery type. Select your battery type, then the battery capacity and finally the battery voltage. The Triton 2EQ charges Li batteries at a fixed 1C parameter. You can also program the buzzer melody, safety timer, temperature scale and cutoff using the menu button. Each setting submenu is adjusted using the dial. The dial has a two click detent between setting changes. Once end points are reached, the dial has to be reversed to return to previous settings.
Begin the charge by holding the dial down for two seconds.
In this sequence below, note how fast the amperage is below 1.5 amps. Because this is a constant current (CC) process, the Triton 2 EQ is getting to 1.5 amps as fast as it can.
Data Views
Once the charge is underway, you can easily move through the data by pushing the Battery Type button and turning the dial. Some very nice features are present in each sequence.
The next sequence shows the sub menus that provide information about the cell conditions. By pushing on the dial and turning you can rotate to the next cell. Information is provided to the thousandths place. This is one of the few chargers you will see that provide this detail of battery information.
The data view provides some additional information to better help you understand the condition of your battery. It is typical that one cell would be slightly different than the other two, but the balancing is designed to equal the cells throughout the charge.
A few extra Lipo notes
I did not charge a Li-Ion or LiFe but believe both will charge in a similar manner to the LiPo. There are a couple things that might come up that you should be aware of that are not concerning, just informational. When the Triton 2 EQ charges using the CC/CV method it reduces the voltage to about 0.1 amps near the end of the charge. It will vary back and forth between 0.1 and 0.2, but your capacity will go beyond the stated capacity of the battery. I contacted Electrifly, and here is their response: “The design of the charger is such that it will deliver as much charge energy as the battery will take up to certain limitations. At the end of a LiPo charge process, the Triton charger will allow the battery to take as much energy as it can take (as opposed to the charger forcing energy to the battery deliberately). So, if a battery rated at 1300mAh was able to take 1369mAh, or 1390mAh, it's not unusual nor alarming. However, if the pack VOLTAGE exceeded 12.6V by some significant value, I would then become alarmed. But the charge routine described here sounds very normal.” I also noted that the charge times seemed long and the battery lingered as it was trying to end the charge. I asked and received this response: “Often, at the very end of charge, the balance currents will be very low, enough so that the charger will stay in ‘charge’ mode but the actual current being delivered is tiny as the charger is trying to finely balance all cells. If the time-out expired before full charge ended on its own, chances are the amount of energy left that the battery could have taken was very, very negligible.” You do have a safety timer option, so if you are timing out, you can increase the charge time.
Discharging Li batteries
It is recommended that when your Li batteries are going to be stored that rather than charge them for storage, you should safely discharge them and then store. This can be easily done using the Triton 2 EQ. The discharging also lets you check to see if the battery can deliver its rated capacity. The rule of thumb is to divide the capacity by 5. So a 2000 mAh pack divided by 5 would have a discharge current value of 400 mA or 0.4A. The cutoff voltage also has to be set before discharging.
It is recommended that a pack be discharged over 2 hours’ time. The maximum the Triton 2 EQ can discharge is 3.0 amps and 20 watts. If the battery voltage is greater than 6.0 volts the discharge current will be reduced. Discharging can be stopped at any time by pushing the menu button.
Li Discharging
You may or may not discharge your Li batteries. It is recommended for storage, but the ability to discharge the Li prior to the first use is a good idea. The option of short charging the Li is solved by discharging the battery and balancing to ensure a full charge when you do fly. Using the discharge process, you can draw down the cells in a balanced process and then charge back to the battery’s capacity. Some manufacturers recommend you draw the battery down only to only half the capacity for the first five cycles. After cooling charge back at 1C for the first five cycles before in the case of some 30C and higher batteries (only if manufacturer rated at 2C) you charge to 2C after those first break-in cycles. A word on the discharge formula: one method provided is C/5/1000 to obtain a mA value. I found this way too slow and pushed it to 1 amp. Even at this the discharge, it was very slow. But this is not a full power discharge and rather a balancing discharge across all the cells. Don’t be too quick to increase the amps. For the FlightPower EONLITE I have a 2100 mAh 3S 11.1V pack capable of 42.0 amps @ 20C continuous and 84.0 amps at 40C as a maximum burst. The formula of 2100 mAh = 2.1 amp hr x 20C = 42 amps the battery is capable of producing. At 40C I have 2100 = 2.1 amp hr x 40C = 84 maximum burst amps. This draw down is also called internal resistance. The usage draw differs significantly from the balancing draw down. You can increase the amperage draw much higher than 0.5 amps to a 3.0 amp discharge but this is a balancing discharge and that is why we do not have available higher amperage draw numbers.
NiCd and NiMH Cycling, Charging and Discharging.
I believe the benefits of the Triton 2EQ are far greater than just the balance charging of Li batteries. At 8 amps of quick charge (100 watts maximum and maximum of 12V) and discharge (20 watts maximum and 3 amps maximum) capacity, the Triton 2 EQ is certainly capable of holding its own against most chargers. Factor in the simplicity of programming, and you are hard pressed to argue any faults at all. Capable of 10 cycles, the Triton 2EQ can push the limits of NiCd and NiMH batteries. Up to 24 cells and a 300mA trickle along with a charge delay, and any battery should be race-ready. More docile charges of receiver batteries, transmitter batteries and small flight packs are perfectly in tune with the capabilities of the Triton 2EQ. I put an Electrifly 1100 mAh 7-cell, 8.4 volt battery through a few procedures. It has the some of the same preset parametrics as the Li including safety timer, temperature scale, temperature cutoff, add peak delay, delay between cycles, peak sensitivity, maximum charge and top-off charge.
The cycling process is very straightforward. Select if you want a charge to discharge cycle or a discharge to charge cycle. Input amps and discharge amps are selected along with the number of cycles. The menu is easy to follow, and rotating and pressing the dial inputs the values.
The ease of programming your battery charging is no different for NiMH, NICd than it is for Li.
Conclusion
The Triton 2EQ is a great charger capable of meeting just about any charging need. The Triton technology is well tested, and the intuitive programming method is easy. I thought the Triton 2EQ was simple to use, and will be fully compatible with most of my needs for a long time. Overall, I like the Triton 2 EQ. It is not a hugely powerful charger, but it is one capable of charging across the normal distribution of users. It is not a charger that is fully programmable, but it is very user friendly. The programs are easy to follow, and if you have ever used a Triton charger before, it will be easy to jump into. I really liked the backlit screen for its viewing ease. Electrifly should be applauded for pushing the design envelope to include AC power something otherwise avoided due to risks associated with charging Li batteries. They also deserve some praise for providing cell values beyond 0.00.
My Hat’s Off:
Keeping my hat on:
Last edited by Angela H; Mar 28, 2009 at 04:25 PM.. |
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Thread Tools |
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Mar 28, 2009, 07:54 PM
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#2 |
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Balsa just crashes better
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Bradenton, FL
Posts: 352
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Nice review- I have been waiting for info on this charger.
I also have a Triton1 I have been using with a Astro Blinky to balance and a power supply. I had been waiting for a higher amp ac capable balance charger and this looks to fill the bill. They also have a new Triton Jr charger in this same series- other than the thermal probe what other features do I get for the additional dollars in this one? Thanks Cub Fan |
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Mar 28, 2009, 08:24 PM
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#3 |
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Dr. Dave
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Howard County, MO
Posts: 861
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I am not that familiar with the EQ. I do know the EQ2 has twice the wattage in both the AC and DC, 8 amp charge over a 5 amp charge, the probe, 3 amp instead of a 1 amp discharge, and a 10 battery memory over the one on the EQ. Note the Triton jr is not in this class of AC chargers. Here is a link to the Electrifly page:
http://www.electrifly.com/charger.html |
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Mar 28, 2009, 08:29 PM
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#4 |
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War Eagle!
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Posts: 6,600
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Nice review, Dave!
It's nice to see a charger that has all the features yet still can plug straight to the wall. And that's a very nice contrast on the screen! That's a huge plus! 
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Mar 29, 2009, 01:18 AM
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#5 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Corvallis, OR
Posts: 1,081
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Bang up job!
I had listed my opinion of this review and a list of errors that I had found. However, a moderator has agreed to and approved a warning for this post so I have decided to delete all previous content and change my opinion to one that is agreeable to all parties.
Great review! I have been looking forward to a review of this charger for a while now and am thrilled that you took the time to review it for us. Last edited by SteveM732; Mar 29, 2009 at 02:03 PM. Reason: Received a warning |
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Mar 29, 2009, 07:45 AM
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#6 |
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Dr. Dave
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Howard County, MO
Posts: 861
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The text was reviewed and approved by Electrifly before publication.
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Mar 29, 2009, 12:38 PM
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#7 |
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Balsa just crashes better
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Bradenton, FL
Posts: 352
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Yes you are correct- The Triton EQ says it is based on the Triton Jr charger and the Triton 2 EQ on the Triton 2 charger. Guess I didn't give you enough info. Sorry
I was trying to understand the difference between the two in features- I noticed the EQ does not have the thermal probe but was confused it it still had all the balancing set up. I do not fly any packs bigger than 3 S so just was trying to be sure I need the more expensive of the two? Thanks Cub Fan |
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Mar 29, 2009, 01:23 PM
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#8 |
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DW Foamies nut.
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Just moved to Crest California
Posts: 11,453
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Schweet! Looks like an awesome charger. Nice review too
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Mar 29, 2009, 01:30 PM
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#9 |
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$$$ Cash for RC Carnage!
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NYC
Posts: 1,128
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I would like to know, Where does this charger stands compared to the
FMA Pro, E-station and Hyperian chargers? I very happy with the Triton JR....very nice, very solid charger, so I was waiting for this review. Fred |
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Mar 29, 2009, 01:32 PM
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#10 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Greenwood, South Carolina, United States
Posts: 262
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Deleted at request of Moderator, happy to comply.
Best regards to All sarg96 Last edited by sarg96; Apr 21, 2009 at 10:25 AM. |
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Mar 29, 2009, 01:57 PM
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#11 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Corvallis, OR
Posts: 1,081
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Excellent charger and review, everyone should buy two.
Last edited by SteveM732; Apr 21, 2009 at 12:23 PM. |
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Mar 29, 2009, 02:31 PM
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#12 | |
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$$$ Cash for RC Carnage!
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NYC
Posts: 1,128
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about your post
Quote:
If you knew about this charger you should have started your own threat... Know one doubts your qualifications and wanting rc flyers the best but I think it was not a good choice. I follow many threats and I have yet to see any of yours like in the FMA Cell pro or others. Hope you can contribute to any off them and not pick this one. NOT FARE! I believe he did a nice review! fred |
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Mar 30, 2009, 12:55 PM
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#13 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 15
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I agree with the guy who criticized the review: I think the review was lacking in professionalism and not very good technically.
And what is that about the moderator removing the post that was critical of the review? Are we forbidden to criticize certain manufacturers on this website? I do appreciate the reviewer taking the time and effort to write that review, though, less-than-perfect is better than nothing. |
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Mar 30, 2009, 01:14 PM
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#14 |
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Corvallis, OR
Posts: 1,081
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Excellent charger and review, everyone should buy two.
Last edited by SteveM732; Apr 21, 2009 at 12:22 PM. |
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Mar 30, 2009, 04:27 PM
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#15 |
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"Have Glue - Will Travel"
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Ft. Worth, Texas
Posts: 2,407
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GREAT review Dave! I think I just found my next charger!
Ronnie |
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