Opus bt c3100 which version is better. Comparison of two chargers: Opus BT-C3100 v2.2 and XTAR VC4

Greetings to all who looked at the light. The review will focus, as you probably already guessed, on the total refinement of the Opus BT-C3100 universal combine, after which the operation noise will decrease, new features will appear and the usability of the device will improve. All improvements were made using a screwdriver, a clerical knife and a soldering iron, so any master can do it even with the most basic equipment. Who cares, you are welcome under the cat ...

The appearance of the device and the background of the alteration:

A couple of years ago, I already started some improvements, which I told about in this. But after the end of the warranty, I wanted to bring everything to the same denominator, besides, some thoughts appeared, and the charger buzzed in literally this word. Therefore, as soon as free time and incentive appeared, I decided to collect all the improvements in one place and put an end to it. What came out of it, see below.

IMPORTANT: it is desirable to carry out further upgrades after a certain test period after the purchase of the charger, because the improvements described below entail a 100% loss of warranty. For those who have recently purchased this charger, I recommend driving it, as they say, in the tail and in the mane for a couple of weeks, and if there are no complaints about the work (warranty case), then only proceed with the upgrade.

Refinement No. 1. Lubrication (replacement) of the standard fan

It is removed quite simply, you just need to remove the bottom cover of the charger and pull it towards you. To reduce vibration and more secure fixation in the case, it is slightly “tacked” with adhesive:




It is a conventional brushless motor that is installed in almost all computer coolers and as system fans. For additional fixation, a special plastic bar is provided in the charger case:


After removing it, you can find the brand and main parameters of the valve:


Prying up the sticker, you can see a typical plain bearing, no closed hydrodynamic bearings, according to some "experts" are not there, at least in this modification:


It is disappointing that there is no rubberized plug, but a sticker was used instead, but these are all trifles and indirectly affect durability. So that the fan does not “howl” in operation, it must be lubricated. To do this, put a little lubricant there with a watch screwdriver (for example, lithol), or drip machine oil. Because of its density, solid oil is not welcome, technical petroleum jelly is also not welcome, because it becomes harder over time. Various "softeners" such as WD-40 and the like are also not welcome, because they are too fluid and dry out over time.

If, after lubrication, the fan still rumbles, and there is no desire to modify the cooling system, then you can order a new fan in a store, store, auction

Everything, on this first, preliminary stage of refinement is completed. Whoever has a fan that does not make noise and there are no prerequisites for this, I still recommend disassembling and lubricating the fan so as not to climb inside the device in the future!

Refinement No. 2. Removing the switch to the side wall of the case (simple option)

I will warn you right away, this version of the alteration is not mine. Author - comrade Ram with .
The meaning of the refinement: any dielectric plate is taken (ideally, a plastic card) and a standard switch template is cut out in it, along the way, a pin is taken out of the case. Structurally it looks like this:


The design looks beautiful, it is made simply, but there are doubts about reliability. Although, on the other hand, high-voltage banks at 4.35V are already rare, and Lithium Phosphate has somehow not taken root, so the switch will not be used as often. In this regard, I consider this method of refinement to be very successful and I recommend it for repetition. Looks cultural.


I’ll add on my own that it is desirable to glue a small plate to the switch body so that the plastic adapter does not fly off.
Plastic adapter larger:


I found out about this method after desoldering the regular switch, and it doesn’t really suit me either, because. I still have a large fleet of high voltage batteries along with the regular ones and I use the switch frequently. In addition, I need a “fail-safe” option, like a Kalashnikov assault rifle, so there is another way just below.

Refinement No. 3. Removing the switch to the side wall of the case (more reliable option)

For this we need:
- soldering iron and flux
- thin stranded wire, preferably MGTF
- 4 pin switch

I repeat, you need a 4-pin switch, as in the photo below:


If not offline, you can purchase (Search for "3 Position 4 pin SPDT Vertical Slide Switch")

Once you have purchased the switch, you can proceed to install it in the charger case. I recommend installing at the end of the bottom cover, because there it does not interfere with anything and there is freedom to maneuver:


In addition, the grooves of the ventilation holes will act as stops. To do this, you need to bite off with side cutters (nippers) part of the fastening eyelet:


Next, you need to cut a hole for the switch slider. To keep neat appearance, I recommend that you walk with a screwdriver with a small drill along the entire length of the stroke of the slider, and then cut it more accurately with a clerical knife:


Having drilled and carefully cut out a small "window" for the slider, we try on the switch in place. We insert the switch ear into the groove of the ventilation hole:


We fix the switch with an additional emphasis so that it does not “fidget” during operation. To do this, glue a corner from pieces of plastic using superglue:


After that, the switch will not move anywhere. Next, we take three small pieces of wire, preferably MGTF and solder to the contacts. I repeat once again, THE STANDARD SWITCH CANNOT BE DISOLDERED! But at the same time, the slider must be set to the 4.2V position! I soldered it out of interest:


Next, solder the wires to the switch:


When the switch is soldered, the charge goes up to 4.2V (by default). If you number the contacts on the board from 1 to 4 from left to right, then 1 (not soldered, 4.2V), 2 (4.35V mode), 3 (ground) and 4 (3.7V for LiFeshek). The location can be any, but the "ground" must be on any of the middle two contacts, to the left or right of it, respectively 3.7V or 4.35V
After assembly, we stick a tag indicating the modes. If the wires were not rearranged, then the sequence will be 4.2V -> 4.35V -> 3.7V, starting from the side of the standard fan:


The photo has already added a connector for charging 1S Li-Pol batteries for radio models, see it below.

Refinement No. 4. Non-cylindrical Li-Pol or Li-Ion charging (promising/cultural option)

Here it is necessary to recall that Li-Pol batteries are very finicky and do not like overcharging / overdischarging / charging with high current. Complete chargers for RC models, in most cases, are cheap and charge the battery with high current. The standard formula for LiPo is 0.5-0.7C, i.e. for a battery with a capacity of 400-600mah, need a current of 200-300mA. Complete chargers for RU models are often charged with a current of 1C or more, thereby reducing the resource, therefore, in such a situation, the Opus charger will be very useful.

Another advantage of this method is the ability to “push” overly discharged batteries by connecting a working battery to this connector (consider parallel to a “dead” bank). As soon as the voltage on a dead battery increases, you can turn off the donor. "Dead" batteries cannot be restored, but they will last for a long time. I think it's not worth saying that the revision is very necessary (in the future).

The meaning of the revision is simple - to insert the desired (popular) connector into the charger case, or several different connectors, connecting each to a separate channel. Let me remind you that there are four of them in Opus. It is most convenient to do this when inserting the switch. The algorithm is similar: we try on the connector, make a couple of 1.5mm holes with a drill and carefully cut it with a clerical knife. The result should be a square hole (for the JST connector):


Next, take superglue (Moment or similar), drip and press the connector:


Do not forget to cut a small “crook” for the latch from the side of the upper part of the connector:


You can solder to any of the four channels, but it is better to the extreme left, because. the length of the connecting wires will be minimal:


Observe the polarity at the connector, although nothing bad will happen in case of an error - Opus has protection against polarity reversal. The limitation is that only single cell (1S) batteries are supported.

As you understand, you can embed any connector, and even several, if you have a large fleet of model batteries. So far I have given the only quadric, so there is nothing to demonstrate on ...

Refinement No. 5. Charging non-cylindrical Li-Pol or Li-Ion (alternative)

For this we need:
- two copper-plated nails (golden-pink). At worst, ordinary nails / screws / self-tapping screws are suitable, but there will be voltage losses on them
- copper (not copper-plated!!!) wire/cable of thick section (acoustic wires will do)
- a plastic stick from a lollipop / cotton swab (an empty pen shaft / pen body / wooden peg / what is enough imagination / what is available)
- any female connector:

Or as an option - in the form of a holder / holder (separate module) for prismatic (flat) lithium batteries(you just need to remove the intestines):


There are a lot of options for such shitloads on Ali for 2-3 dollars.

So, if you find copper-plated (copper-coated) nails, then first of all we clean them from grease. Then we tin the hat and solder the wires. I will not describe this procedure in detail, because it is very simple. The result should be something like this:


Next, we press nails / screws / self-tapping screws into the found tube. The main thing is that they do not touch each other. I used a cotton swab, you can use anything, as long as it does not conduct electricity (dowel, plastic dowel, pen parts, etc., etc.):


Next, solder the "mother" connector, or the one that is required. Heat shrink tubing can also be stretched over the connector pins. We wrap it with electrical tape and get something like this:


For example, charging a “people's” Sanyo battery:


I think the meaning is clear - by soldering the desired adapter / connector, you can charge single-cell lithium batteries of any form factors:

Refinement No. 6. Contact loss reduction (shunting)

Calculation example: we have two resistances of 5 ohms each, with a serial connection the total resistance is 10 ohms, with a parallel connection - 2.5 ohms. As you can see, by connecting a conductor in parallel (shunting) - we get a decrease in resistance, which means a decrease in losses. Important feature parallel connection - the total resistance will always be less than the smallest of the resistances.

For those who are "in the tank", an example from practice:
“We have one conductor, with a resistance of, say, 10 ohms. This is a lot, therefore, in order to reduce losses, we connect another conductor in parallel, or, more simply, we shunt it. We take the second conductor from a good wire with low resistance, for example, 5 ohms. In this case, the total resistance after shunting will be, (R1*R2) / (R1 + R2) = (10 * 5) / (10 + 5) = 50 / 15 = 3.33 ohms. As you can see, initially it was 10 ohms, and after shunting it was 3 times less. That's the whole point."

We will shunt the contacts, because the material is not known (most likely based on iron, they are magnetized), and we don’t need extra losses. Not my idea, here it is.
For good soldering, it is better to wipe the contacts with an active flux, for example, orthophosphoric / soldering acid. After that, soldered with a bang. The wires must be taken of the minimum length, but so that you can make a "bend". This is necessary so that when installing the battery, the shunt conductors are bent to the side (to the side), and not down the case, falling into the fan blades (last revision). Something like this:

Refinement No. 7. Refinement of the cooling system

There are enthusiasts who have completely removed from Opus active cooling, weighing the entire board with radiators. But personally, I don’t like this option, because you need to fix it with hot glue, and in case of a breakdown, the radiator will come off with all the elements and tracks of the board. Therefore, I recommend stopping at active cooling.

So, the first thing we need is a suitable 12V 60-70mm fan. The quieter the fan, the better. I used an overflowing fan from the cooler:


We try on the case, the lower the height of the fan, the better:


I recommend resting the fan against the two top/front walls of the Opus feet. With an ordinary awl, we scratch the “through” hole of the fan:


Next, we take a screwdriver, a “non-blunt” drill and begin to drill holes around the perimeter of the future hole. It is necessary to leave a small margin of 1-2 mm from the risks:


The holes are needed so that it is convenient to cut the “hatch” with an ordinary clerical knife. Who has a dremel, this operation will take about five minutes. I don't have a dremel, so Shurik and a knife are our everything.

The next step is "cutting". In those places where the width of the plastic is the smallest, we carefully cut it with a knife. Oh yes, I completely forgot - the knife is preferably sharp, and not the one under which "the bread breaks, not cut." The plastic, although soft, is strong enough, so with a dull knife the result will be “handicraft”. After cutting, it should look something like this:


Carefully cut through the sides at the ventilation holes and take out the "hatch":


Now it's the turn of the upper/front legs. We cut through the “unnecessary” part of the leg in several places with a knife, outer part do not touch:


After that, cut off the entire sector flush. We repeat the same operation for the other leg:


Trying a fan:


Important note: if you do not cut off some of the legs, then the fan will be located even further from the front edge of the case (from the standard fan), therefore, the slope of the entire case will be even greater. If possible, place the fan closer to the standard fan!

Now we smooth the edges with the very edge of the blade:


The closer to the edge of the blade you cut, the better, the main thing is not to get hurt! Who can’t get it with a knife - sandpaper to help. There is no particular point in doing it.
After that, we finally try on the fan:


Next, we drill a small hole for the wires to exit, leave a small loop of red (+ 12V) wire and fix the fan:


This loop is necessary to connect the speed controller (input and output of the regulator), we cut off the yellow speed control wire “at the root” so as not to interfere:


The speed controller circuit is simple to disgrace:


The element base is the most common, any analogues will do: transistors KT815, KT817, KT819 with any letter, a variable resistor of 5-10 kOhm (I took 10 kOhm), resistor R2 - any low-power 1-1.5 kOhm. Installation is carried out on the parts themselves. On fans with a consumption of up to 0.3A, the transistors almost do not heat up and they do not need a radiator. To minimize the dimensions, instead of a variable, I used a tuning resistor, because. it takes up much less space and can be glued to the case.
This regulator will allow you to set the required rotation speed at your own discretion - you can increase it in the heat in summer, reduce it in winter with heating. Complete regulator:


The main element here is the trimmer, because it will be glued to the charger case, so do the installation relative to it. Before connecting to the Opus charger, it is advisable to check the regulator on an external power supply.
We solder according to the scheme and glue the trimmer on superglue:


We take power for the regulator from the input DC connector (the fan will always spin):


If soldered to the standard fan connector, the current may not be enough. Fans of automation can add an automatic regulator based on a thermistor to the circuit, but this option is less reliable, because there are at least five or six especially heated places in Opus. At the same time, their heating varies depending on the operating mode and current. Therefore, I do not advise doing this, and even when the fan is set to the minimum speed, it is almost inaudible, so let it spin constantly.

We go further. Solder the power wires and assemble the charger:


You should get the following:




I recommend to perfectionists to isolate the legs of the transistor from each other, and to close the assembly itself with something. It suits me so far, the legs of the transistor are rough, there will be no “random” short circuit.

But that is not all! The main "highlight" is a removable leg. It is made of a thick single-core wire or electrode. I found only lumin:


In order to reduce all kinds of vibrations and noise, I recommend taking a piece of microporous rubber as a sole. To do this, cut off a piece of micropork of the desired size and pierce it through, as if we were going to fry a barbecue:


Instead of micropork, you can use foamed polyethylene, which is often put in parcels:


Next, we mark the distance between the mounting screws in the charger case and carefully bend it along it. We get these "horns":


Then we take a heat shrink tube and cover the visible part of the wire. For those who used wire with insulation - this is not necessary.
We are trying to insert the horn into the screw holes. If the newly made leg dangles, add another layer of heat shrink at the end:


The end result is a simple structure like this:


This leg can be bent as needed.

The idea of ​​a removable leg is not mine, but taken from discussions of improvements in my topic on Fonarevka (author truck), . Looks great, but without cushioning lining:


I did not reinvent the wheel, and as soon as I felt the urge to refine the cooling, I took the simplest and most aesthetic way. This leg can be removed or bent at any time, which is very convenient.

Another option is to use small telescopic antennas. We press the base into the hole, and bend the legs. As a result, the legs will always be with the charger, they will not interfere when folded, they can be set to any length and any angle. But they will have to be bought, which is not good.

PS, that's all I have. After modifications to the charger, it is almost inaudible, the batteries are barely warm during charging / discharging, the standard fan does not turn on. Removable leg allows you to store the charger in the same box. Since the charger itself has become “thicker”, it will be necessary to slightly modify the box (“move the bends”). In general, I recommend all the owners to finalize, since all the work takes about four hours. How to power chargers from USB adapters, perhaps, will be in the next reviews, if the topic is interesting (at the end of the month). Good luck with the remodel! Add to favorites Liked +121 +177

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Charger OPUS BT-C3100 v2.2 Multifunctional charger. OPUS BT-C3100 V2.2 Pros and Cons. Overview of OPUS BT-C3100 V2.2. Overview of the OPUS BT-C3100 charger version V2.2. Overview of the charger OPUS BT-C3100 v2.2. REVIEW OF UNIVERSAL GOOD CHARGER OPUS BT-C3100 V2.2 LI-ion NiCd NiMh. Opus bt c3100 v2.2 Best charging. Opus BT-C3100 Charger Review V2.2. Opus BT - C3100 V2.2 is a universal charger. Opus BT-C3100 V2.2 review Gearbest. Opus BT-C3100 V2.2 Smart Universal LCD Li-Ion NiCd NiMh AA AAA 10440 14500 16340 17335 17500 18490 17670 18650 charger.
NEW LED backlight displays charging/discharging/quick test/circuit more clearly in the dark
The new refresh mode can show you the battery capacity, let you know what's out of AIDS
charging current can be selected to be 200mA, ma, 500mA, 700mA or 1000mA (1500mA and 2000mA can only be applied when only slot 1 or 4 is selected). default discharge current 500mA
it provides four independent battery charging slots. charger can charge batteries various types and sizes and with different capacities at the same time
The charger combines minus delta voltage (-ΔV) for Nickel-Cadmium or Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries charging termination, and for Li-ion batteries charging up to 4.2V with pre-selected direct current. (3.7 Li-FeO4 and 4.35 type high voltage battery charging mode can be selected by switch on board)
The charger also includes overheat detection to protect batteries and charger from overheating
new arrivals fast test mode to test battery resistance
Four Working Modes Available by User Choice: Charge, Discharge, Test, Quick Test and Refresh
Easy-to-read LCD with backlight shows Battery Voltage, Charge/Discharge Current, Charging Time, Battery Capacity, etc.
designed for AA (LR6) and AAA (LR3) Nickel Cadmium, Nickel NiMH or 3.7V Lithium Ion batteries in size type 10440, 14500, 16340, 17335, 17500, 18490, 17670, 18650
ideal for office and home use
operating temperature: 0-40 deg. C
Max charging capacity: up to 20000 mAh
Power adapter: DC 12V, 3.0A (Output), 100-240V, 50/60Hz (Input)
1. Voltage refresh rate is 30s to 60s.
2. Charging voltage is adjusted to 4.7V instead of 5.0V, while the load on the power adapter when the batteries are discharged is less. 5.0 V Li-Ion batteries showed incorrect charging capacity value (25 percent). With 4.7V charging voltage, the load on the power adapter is greatly reduced, and thus can make all kinds of batteries charged properly.
3. 4.35V charging time may be very long because the charging current is regulated in the output on the CV stage at 4.12V, which is the same as 4.2V type. now 4.35V charging algorithm changes to 4.27V.
7. Charging current (mA): 200, 300, 500, 700, 1000, 1500, 2000
8. Discharge current
9. Max. charge power: 20000 mAh
type:charger
brand: opus
model:BT-C3100 V2.2
connector: US adapter
Charging Cell Type: Ni-MH, NiCd, Li-Ion
Compatibility: 18500, 26650, 10440, 22650, 10340, 18650, 16340 (RCR123), 14500
LCD Screen: YES
Auto Circuit Detection: YES
Built-in Protected Circuit: YES
Surge Protection: YES
Short Circuit Protection:YES
Charge Protection:YES
Over-loading Protection:YES