CF8 Main LED Flickering Effect Problem

Just wired my first BBW tri-cree with the blues in series and when I turn the saber on, I get a static blade.

Checked the config file and I have flks set to 3. Changed the flks value to 20 to see if it would change and even then I get a static blade.
I then undid the wiring and tried wiring up just one blue die to the main LED and I get the flicker effect that I want.

Not sure why this is happening; is it something to do with wiring the blue dies in series?
Hopefully someone out there can help me figure this out!

Here's a picture of my BBW tri-cree wired in series just in case:
Attachment 15829

1. What battery solution are you using?

2. That wiring looks wrong, I would need to see a wider shot the board connections as well to be sure. You should also use different colored wires for (+), (-).

1. 7.4v Li-ion 3400mAh 18650 Battery Pack

2. Whoops, my understanding was positive of one die1 goes to the board. negative of die1 goes to positive of die2. negative of die2 goes to the board. I'll get pics of the board up in a moment.

EDIT: are there any particular areas of the board that a closer shot of would be helpful? Otherwise I'll take a general bird's eye pic

Board wiring:
https://imgur.com/8GAkECz

What you described is correct. A picture that includes the LED and the board will be fine.

I don’tsee the connections to the main LED pads on the CF.

Awesome, glad to know that the way I wired the LED in series seems to be ok. Just gotta have better color schemes for the wiring in the future.

I've actually been using alligator clips for the main LED + and - as well as for the main board + in order to do a quick bench test.
Don't know if that affects anything, but I can solder the actual wires to the board to see if that changes anything when I get the chance to tomorrow.

Asides from that, I'm out of ideas as to why this is happening :(

I don't know anything about a crystal focus. I'm going to read the wiring diagrams now, because you've got me curious about why you have your LED wired like that, but if that is what the directions say to do then ok.

Looking at your board, the RGB accent LED: leaving those legs open like that, in proximity to all those other pads, resistors, wires, board components is an invitation to future disaster. Perhaps some shrink as a bit of insulation? I get that you are doing a rough wiring here to test. I'd fix that. Using leads to test is inconsistent at best. I'm going to read the CF8 manual, I'm pretty good with understanding wiring diagrams. My guess is that when you run one diode at a time and get the effect you want, that the answer lies therein.

Hmm, I have heard all the great things about CF8, and I'm sure its a great board, but those wiring diagrams don't look very simple. I assume you're trying to wire your single color (blue) saber, and avoiding the additional CEX to save some cash, and thus wiring your LED in series to the onboard main LED driver. But when you do so, you're not getting the behavior you desire with flicker. I leave you to the experts on CF8, and I'm watching this thread with curiosity. Reading that manual has cured me of needing a CF8 anytime soon. I know I eventually want one, but needing the CEX on a 7.4 v solution makes that thing very expensive! Good luck solving the issue, I'm curious to see how it all works out.



Tom

SOLVED!
Played with increasing the flkd value in the config file and that seems to have solved it!
Now that I think about it, I don't know why I didn't think of adjusting the flkd when I first tried increasing the flks value. Gonna be more thorough with the testing next time.

Addressing a few things from Tom Tilmon:
1) I have my LED wired like that because I intended this saber to be a single color blade. Since I'm using a 7.4v battery pack, I've elected to wire both blue dies in series instead of parallel.
In series, you wire the dice together, positive to negative, effectively making a single LED. The voltages will be added together, but the current requirements are equal to that of a single LED. The advantage is that series wiring gives a longer run time. Although I didn't use the best color scheme when wiring things up sooo the picture of my LED module wiring can be a bit confusing.
You can read more about series vs parallel wiring here: http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com...476#post240476

2) The main reason I've elected not to use the CEX is because as mentioned above, wiring the LED in series gives me a longer run time (not because I'm trying to save costs lol). If I had a RGB tri cree with a 7.4v battery pack, I'd definitely be finding a way to utilize the CEX :cool:

3) Yeahhh the legs of the RGB accent LED are quite exposed. For now, I'll be leaving it as is since the legs are quite rigid and won't be moving about. Plus, I've kept the wiring around that area very tidy so I'm not too worried about it at the moment. Although in the future I might elect to add some insulation of some sort.
If anyone else feels that this is a huge red flag and should be insulated right away, please let me know!

The CF is definitely worth it, although the wiring can get complex if you want to fully utilize all its features!

Well, what I didn't say was that the soldering work on your board looks great. I'm still learning the CF8 stuff. Eventually I'd like to wire one into a nice saber. I understand series wiring, just didn't understand why. I had no idea CF8 only had the main channel and FOC, and you had to go external with the PEX. I figured with everyone boasting about it, that it was an all in one board, kind of like the Prism. But after reading your thread and the manual, I think I'll wait a bit and wire a few more boards before I give the CF8 (unhacked) a go. I do want the volume of a CF8. If I do wire a CF8, it will be RGB. I now understand your wiring plan completely given what is available on the unhacked board without CEX. It was just different than I was used to on NBIV, Prism, NEC. Those are the boards I'm familiar with. All 3.7 beginner stuff I reckon. Ha!

You and FJK are far more knowing than me on CF8, so I'm learning with input. As you were, sorry to hijack the thread.

PS, ok so wiring them in parallel reduces your energy consumption. Would that also not impact the brightness of the LED? Again, I'm a 3.7 v guy. I know nothing of these 7.4 v boards.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tom Tilmon

Well, what I didn't say was that the soldering work on your board looks great. I'm still learning the CF8 stuff. Eventually I'd like to wire one into a nice saber. I understand series wiring, just didn't understand why. I had no idea CF8 only had the main channel and FOC, and you had to go external with the PEX. I figured with everyone boasting about it, that it was an all in one board, kind of like the Prism. But after reading your thread and the manual, I think I'll wait a bit and wire a few more boards before I give the CF8 (unhacked) a go. I do want the volume of a CF8. If I do wire a CF8, it will be RGB. I now understand your wiring plan completely given what is available on the unhacked board without CEX. It was just different than I was used to on NBIV, Prism, NEC. Those are the boards I'm familiar with. All 3.7 beginner stuff I reckon. Ha!

You and FJK are far more knowing than me on CF8, so I'm learning with input. As you were, sorry to hijack the thread.

PS, ok so wiring them in parallel reduces your energy consumption. Would that also not impact the brightness of the LED? Again, I'm a 3.7 v guy. I know nothing of these 7.4 v boards.

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No, it wouldn’t necessarily impact the brightness. I’ve been using CF’s since version 2.6 (long before all the other board you mentioned even existed). 7.4V builds use to present their own challenges, most notably short run times, given most of the battery solutions that were commonly used years ago by many, myself included.