Quick question about Corbin's Driver

[Kamurah]

Greetings all....I have a quick question about the driver sold here (I assume it is the same as Corbin's Driver)

Anyone know how much power this board can handle? i.e. can it handle a 7.2v pack?

Secondly....I am assuming it outputs 1A of current since it is billed as a 3W driver....is this correct? I am asking because it would make a nice 5W driver too (slightly overdriving the led) if it could handle the FV requirements of the Lux V.

Sorry I don't have any measurement tools or I could find this out myself.

Thanks in advance.

[strengthofrage]

I have a piggy back question for this as well...

If Corbins driver is 1A, how well does it run K2's? (green)

[Kamurah]

I have a piggy back question for this as well...

If Corbins driver is 1A, how well does it run K2's? (green)

Well...I can actually answer this one.....sorta...

You see...right now I am using the driver installed with a K2 Blue. It works just fine and the blade is fairly bright. I assume it is providing 1A which would mean the K2 Blue specs out at around 30 lumens (out of a max of around 45; this is comparable to a Lux III). I already had the K2 installed (that's why I'm using it) and it's in a hilt that only can use a momentary switch (a Graflex).

So, my ASSUMPTION (yeah, I know what the implication is) is that the driver will power a K2 at about 66% of it's max current (1A vs 1.5A), so all things being equal, you should see about 66% of the K2 spec'd brightness (which tends to be ABOUT the same as a Lux III).

So my second ASSUMPTION is there is really no reason to use the driver with a K2 unless you have one lying around AND need a momentary switch AND don't need sound or are going to drive sound separately.

However, IF the driver will accept a 7.2v pack, AND I can get someone to confirm that it drives at 1A, THEN it could be a nice driver for my Graflex (which I have decided will not have sound, but could easily house a 7.2v pack and the driver AND as stated above, needs a momentary switch) with a Lux V Blue slightly overdriving it.

Cheers

[Darth_DevilGuy]

I'm interested in this one too, I'm looking at using a K2 white with colored disks for my first saber, that way I'll be able to get a look at different colors without having to buy a bunch of LED's.

BTW, whats the standard driver people would recommend for a K2?

[xwingband]

Corbin's (the one in the store) does give out 1A. It can handle up to around 12V. On Corbin's killer penny he used 11.1V of lithium ions and it's okay. They found the limit with Acerocket's tri-lux as the driver would start to go all fried. :)

For a K2 it's not ideal, but if you must have the ramp on/off over the max brightness then go for it. To me the effect is more important than the brightness. Run a 1A against a 1.5A and it's noticable but not greatly so. It seem more like low batteries than the kind of thing a person might ask what amperage you are running at.

Right now saberwise for getting the K2 maxed two 700mA buckpucks are close and both Erv's and the Ultrasound will give 1.5A

[Kamurah]

Cool Xwing. Thanks for the stats!

:D

[acerocket]

Actually, three li-ions fried the driver. The li-ions I used put out 4.1V when fully charged so somewhere arounds 12V is the upper maximum, but it's not safe to play in that range. That is why the Killer Penny now has only 2 li-ions in it. As far as driving a 5 watt - no problem as that is what is in the KP. It does get overdriven and you need to make sure you can cool the LED if you run it that way.

Technically, you can run any LED from Corbin's driver. 350mA will be really overdriven and have a much shortened life span and require a lot more heatsink. 700mA will also be overdriven and have a shortened lifespan. 1000mA is perfect. 1500mA and you will be underdriving it - less brightness, less heat, and a prolonged life.

As far as voltage, 7.2V is a good start. You need at least 1V more than the LED takes so anything over 4-5V is going to work.

I did try a tri-lux once with a Corbin driver, but it took three seperate battery packs and three drivers. Not a very cost effective or space saving way to go.

[xwingband]

Cool, I thought you had worked it out for two. I don't like playing that close to the top anyway like you said. 9.6V of Ni-MH would be nice if you could fit it.

[Kamurah]

I just switched out the setup. Quite a bit brighter with the Lux V over the K2 (as expected). Me likey :D

[strengthofrage]

Xwing, do you know if Tim will still carry Corbin's driver? If not, a driver of some sort aside from the pucks? I am more interested in the ramp up/down and clash effects vs. brightness, dont want to do the 2 700 bpuck thing. Right now I have a 1000 puck and a Hasbro sound board (K2 and sound separate)... I was planning on getting Corbins driver when the shop opened again but I am unsure if it will be there due to Corbin leaving.

[Lord Maul]

Tim will still carry Corbin's driver. He carried it before they merged too, so I don't see why he'd stop now.

[strengthofrage]

Cool, thanks Maul (phew lol)