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FAQ
Charger
Where can I get the charger to be repaired?
What are
the office hours?
How long will it take for repairing the charger? How
much is the fee? Should I bring along the receipt?
What is the difference between Linear and Pulse
charging? Which one is better?
Why does the charger switch to "slow charge" within
several minutes?
How can I use APEX Chargers to charge a NiMH 3000
battery?
What is the capacity setting for chargers while
charging and discharging batteries?
Speed Controller
How to adjust the
speed controller so that it is more suitable for use on a R/C
aeroplane?
What can I do if the
servo out of control with my Mini-Z?
I cannot use Futaba
model 3PK R/C system for APEX Speed Controllers, what is the
problem?
Others Why do I need the
Internal Resistance Meter (I.R. Meter)?
Q: Where
can I get the charger to be repaired? What are the office hours?
A: Our address is:
Advanced
Avionics Ltd.
6TH FLOOR,
BLOCK B,
SUNVIEW
INDUSTRIAL BUILDING,
3 ON YIP
STREET,
CHAI WAN,
HONG KONG.
Our
service hours are:
Monday to
Friday
9:00am -
12:50pm
and
2:00pm -
5:50pm
Saturday
9:00am
- 12:50pm
Q: How long
will it take for repairing the charger? How much is the fee? Should
I bring along the receipt?
A: All
chargers have life-time warranty (Terms and conditions applied).
Please see our support page for more info. No components or service
charge is required.
All warranty services will only be provided upon presentation
of the original valid product's warranty card with proof of
purchase (dealer's receipt or invoice).
Q: What is the
difference between Linear and Pulse charging? Which one is better?
A: There are
two kinds of charging technology. The first one is Linear charging
where batteries are charged by a constant current. The second one is
Pulse charging where batteries are charged by a frequently on and
off current.
The
difference between the two kinds of charging technique is that a
Pulse Charger can charge a battery to higher power but lower
capacity, whereas a Linear Charger can charge a battery to higher
capacity but lower power.
It is hard
to determine which kind of charger is better. Which one is more
suitable for you depends on the particular situation you are in. For
example, if you still have much electricity inside your batteries
after a race, it is preferred using a Pulse Charger to increase the
power. If you want to have a lower battery power but a longer racing
time, you should charge the batteries with a Linear Charger.
Moreover,
you need to match the charging method with your gearbox ratio and
the number of turns of your motor.
APEX
provides both Linear and Pulse chargers for you to choose.
Q: Why does
the charger switch to "slow charge" mode within several minutes?
A: There are
several reasons:
The
batteries being charged are blend new.
The
batteries being charged are over-charged.
The
batteries being charged have not been used for a long time.
The
batteries being charged have been used over 30 times and have no
balance.
The
socket of the charger is loose.
The
solder bars of the batteries being charged have bad contacts.
The
batteries being charged are damaged.
There are
two solutions:
Turn the
charger to "cycle" mode, it starts discharge and then charge battery
in one cycle.
Use slow
charge to charge the batteries for approximately 14 hours.
If you ARE CERTAIN your batteries are
working properly, and the charger still has problems after you have
performed the above recommended solutions, you have to take or send
the charger to our company.
Q: How can I
use APEX Chargers to charge a NiMH 3000 battery?
A: In fact,
all our chargers are ready for charging NiMH 3000 batteries. We
recommend not to use more than 3A for charging. For model 0 (ZERO),
up to 5A can be used.
When you use m+
(MU PLUS) or b+
(BETA PLUS) charge a 3000 NiMH battery, you can even use up to
6.5A. This is because these two chargers have the "Zero Delta
Voltage Technology" that can cut off the charging of the
batteries at 45 degree Celsius with a very high punch. No matter
which model of our chargers is used, we recommend use of a
cooling fan to cool down the charging batteries. This allows the
batteries to be charged to a higher capacity.
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Beta Plus Battery
Charger
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Q: What is the
capacity setting for chargers while charging and discharging
batteries?
A: Before charging or discharging a
battery, you should check it's battery type and battery capacity.
Make sure the charger support your battery type.
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Charging
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Discharging
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| For Lithium-ion, |
| 1C |
for Japan battery |
| 0.5C |
for lower class battery |
| 0.3C |
for the lowest class battery |
| For NiCd, |
| 2C |
for all battery |
2C |
for all battery |
| For NiMH, |
(0DV
must set) |
| 2C |
for Japan battery |
2C |
for all battery |
| 1.5C |
others |
E.g.
When
using 3000mAh battery to charge in 1C, the charge ampere equals
BATTERY CAPACITY x 1. You should set the capacity to 3A.
When
using 2400mAh battery to disharge in 2C, the discharge ampere equals
BATTERY CAPACITY x 2. You should set the capacity to 4.8A.
Q: How
to adjust the speed controller so that it is more suitable for use
on a R/C aeroplane?
A: Everyone knows that there is no brake
or reverse when an aeroplane is flying. All APEX Speed Controllers
can have the brake and reverse functions disabled. The adjustment is
very simple. You just need to follow the instructions step by step:
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Disconnect the motor from the Speed Controller.
Switch on your transmitter.
Connect the Speed Controller to a fully charged battery and
switch on the power.
Set the transmitter
throttle
position to full reverse
and the trim
to neutral.
Press
the setup button on the Speed Controller for 2 seconds until the
green (on some model is red) LED blinks.
Pull the transmitter
throttle to
full forward and then to
full reverse.
Next, pull the trim
to full reverse.
Leave the transmitter
throttle at
full reverse
and pull the trim
to neutral.
The setup LED will switch off automatically.
Now the Speed
Controller is fully set and you can start to enjoy your APEX Speed
Controller.
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Positive Speed
Controller
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Note:
This adjustment is suitable for all APEX Speed Controllers.
Q: What
can I do if the servo out of control with my Mini-Z?
A: If you find that the servo turns left
and right by itself when the car goes forward, this may be caused by
the motor of your Mini-Z. This is because some motors have very
large noises. We have found a method to fix this problem: (The
method in figure 2 is suitable for all Mini-Z players regardless of
whether you have installed a Turbo-RB or not.)
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1. At the red
circles locate the input wires of the ESC (Orange and Grey), and
disconnect the batteries.
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2. Add one
104 capacitor
between the two poles of the motor. Your problem should be
solved, If not,
go to step 3.
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You can
find the 104 capacitor
at any R/C shop. |
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3.
Un-shield the orange and grey wires in the
middle and
add one 104 capacitor
between two wires. Use a plastic tape to re-shield the wires to
prevent short-circuiting.
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We have
found that some of these cases are caused by the Mini-Z receiver, or
the original speed controller, or the motor. If you still cannot fix
the problem by the above method, try the following steps in order to
find out whether the problem is caused by the Apex Turbo-RB Speed
Controller or the Mini-Z:
Disconnect the Apex Turbo-RB.
Turn on
the transmitter, but do NOT pull out the transmitter antenna. Place
the car 20 feet/6m (outdoor) or 10 feet/3m (indoor) away.
If there
is still problem, the cause is either the Mini-Z receiver or the
original speed controller.
If there
is no problem after the Apex Turbo-RB is disconnected, re-connect
it. Turn on the transmitter and the car but do not press any control
on the transmitter.
If the
problem still occurs, it may be the problem of the Apex Turbo-RB.
You should bring it in for repair.
If there
is no problem when you don't press any control, press the throttle.
If the problem only occurs when you press the throttle, it is caused
by the motor of the Mini-Z. You can run the motor for 10 minutes or
add a capacitor to the motor. You can buy the capacitor in any R/C
Shop.
The
problem for most users should be fixed. If you still have the
problem, you can try the following: (For beginners, we recommend you
ask for help at a R/C shop, as the following steps require having
good skills in soldering.)
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1. Open the case
of your car and find the input filter core
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2. Use a
soldering iron to remove the core
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3. Find the
antenna wire on the next side of the board
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4. Remove the
antenna wire from point A and solder it to point B
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The
problem should be fixed now. You can even use crystals from 26MHz -
30Mhz for the transmitter and the receiver. However, since you have
removed the input filter, when you play the car at a place that has
huge interference, the receiver will jam again.
TIPS: To prevent the problem from being
caused by the original Mini-Z receiver or the original speed
controller, you should NEVER short-circuit
the receiver antenna wire with the batteries.
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NEVER
short-circuit it!
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NEVER
short-circuit it!
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Q: I
cannot use Futaba model 3PK R/C system for APEX Speed Controllers,
what is the problem?
A: For user using Futaba model 3PK R/C
system with APEX speed controllers, may have problem in HRS mode.
Switch the R/C system to PCM or PPM mode can make APEX speed
controller works properly. This method is applied to all models of
APEX speed controllers.
Q: Why
do I need the Internal Resistance Meter (I.R. Meter)?
A: If there will be a race in 30 minutes
and you have 10 discharged batteries, how can you choose the best
one for racing? The I.R. Meter can tell you the result.
If you
have used a matched battery in a race, how can you know that it
needs to re-matched? The I.R. Meter can also tell you the result.
I.R. Meter can immediately provide the performance data of
batteries. You can therefore reserve the best batteries for
the final.
It can
also be used to measure the resistance of motors, speed
controllers, sockets, connectors, wire, etc. I.R. Meter can help
you to find out the best matching of your R/C model. |
I.R. Meter
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