I tried a set of these in a dab/FM/Internet radio hoping they would last longer than Eneloops. I live in a very strong dab signal area but the noise from the internal circuitry in these batteries interfered with the dab reception so much that I could not use them. They were ok on FM and internet though.
Well thanks to my electricity principals class back in my first semester, I actually understand everything lol. Thank you for running the test. I was just looking at the two AA options from xtar. Guess I'll do some further research. Of course I know better than to trust manufacturer specs.
@DubiousEngineering OH yeah lol. I've been into car audio also and their are some cheaper brands that make ridiculous claims. Glad we have content creators with Amp dynos to show real world power. Would be nice if these companies would just be honest.
@@DubiousEngineering don't know about EVERYONE. Panasonic Eneloops are pretty close to their stated specs 🙂as well as everyone else who sells re-labeled Eneloops (aka NiMH cells Made in Japan). There is only one factory in Japan making NiMH cells... so as long as it's REALLy made in Japan, no matter the brand, you pretty much know what you are gonna get. Same BTW for LG, Samsung, Sony Li-Ion cylindrical cells. Unless by EVERYONE you mean every Chinese maker 🙂 Thank you for the review! I was going to get some of the earlier XTAR cells for no reason other than a nice rainbow effect in the charger 🤣 (I already have 8 of the latest and greatest). But your camera mishap has me second guessing the wisdom of such move 🥶
L4 uses CVSA tech to charge Ni-MH which results in faster charging and less heat build-up on cells. BC4 can be used as a powerbank and flashlight, but does not use CVSA tech. Also, the L4 is hollowed out for better ventilation of heat build-up on cells. The BC4 is completely covered up and does not let heat dissipate as good. I have the L4, and it is an amazing Ni-MH charger. It charges my Ni-MH cells better than my Dragon VP4 Plus, SV2 Rocket, and FC2. Probably because of the CVSA tech.
I have tested two brands. One claims 3600 mWh produces less than 1800 mAh another claims 3500 mWh and produces over 2200 mAhs. Both needed to be cycled a couple times to give a good reading. The first had two dead batteries out of 12 after three charge cycles (at 500 mA) Good investigation about noise. I have not noticed a problem in my trail cameras but other people have. You can not judge the batteries by the claimed mWh.
Is it possible to wrap the battery bay with shielding, directly ground it to the batteries negative to isolate the device in use from those emi? I really want to use this in my multimeter as it couldnt take freshly charged eneloop @ 1.2v without low voltage warning. Lithium energizer is good but I dont like disposable battery.
thank you for measuring the noise as well. I bought some Hixon recently and wanted to use them in my weather station capable of receiving the DC77 time and weather data over terrestrial broadcast at 77 kHz - and it didn't work anymore with these batteries. Are there any batteries of that type without that noise? Can I shield them somehow?
@@DubiousEngineering I am a bit confused here about frequency interference. We saw 25 kHz noise and 250 kHz noise in your analysis. Why would this be interfering with 77 kHz signal? Never min GHz range frequencies of WiFi (2.4, 5, and 6 GHz)???
4:05 It looks like the slide switch on the probe is set to X10, not X1? Found your video while looking for someone putting these XTAR batteries through a proper discharge test. Testing inside electronic devices is neat and all, but actually testing the capacity and comparing against the claims is really the only way to rate a product like this, especially in a market rife with bogus claims. Thank you very much!
I would have thought because they were lithium they would deliver the full 1.5 not 1.38. 1.38 would be expected for Nicad or metal hydride. I would buy them if I was sure I was getting 1.5 but now not so sure. Could your tester be wrong since it doesn’t recognize it as lithium. Just curious
Hello, does this charger work with USB-C PD power sources? I mean, it takes 5V all right, but what I want to make sure of is that would it work correctly and take 5v with 100W PD charges and cables (that power macbooks etc.). I want to buy the item but want to make sure before buying because I don't want to invest for a new brick and charger just for this. Thanks in advance!
@@DubiousEngineering Of course, I'm okay with that, as long as it works. Some items that hav USB-C ports just refuse to work with PD chargers and cables even with 5v only, that's what I wanted to ensure of. Does it work with PD chargers and cables, even only 5v?
@DubiousEngineering Catch-up: Confirmed by xtar themselves on Reddit and bought it, and it does work indeed. You plug a PD adapter and cable, it works and charges with 5v, but the voltage was not my problem, it working at all was.The USB-C Standards require the manufacturers to add 5.1k resistors if the device inners are built like usb 2.0, and some manufacturers don't do this. This results of the devices not being charged when plugged to a PD charger.
@@ardatubes This is an interesting question. I have an 8 by version of this charger, XTAR BC8, and it does work with both standard 2 A 5V USB as well as a Macbook Pro PD charger. I don't have a way of testing what voltage / current it draws though. To make up for this, I "invested" -- all of 6 Euros on Amazon Black Friday deal -- in a QC 3.0 charger and another 12 Euros in a USB power metering gadget. Will be interesting to see what the BC8 charger draws with different power supplies 🙂
Take it apart and give it a clean, and it will work again, I had a leak on one of mine so took it apart and cleaned it so it is now back outside working again, they cost too much to throw away.
Not good news on the camera, can we see inside, find the extent of the damage, you're handy with a soldering iron. I recognise that plastic cup on the bench at the end!
Thanks for the noise test. I was going to get these for my ft817 radio tranceiver. That noise is a deal breaker
I love the ft817 bit fiddly to drive, slightly low on power, but overall, a cracking little radio! ….
I tried a set of these in a dab/FM/Internet radio hoping they would last longer than Eneloops. I live in a very strong dab signal area but the noise from the internal circuitry in these batteries interfered with the dab reception so much that I could not use them. They were ok on FM and internet though.
Yup... Absolute nightmare right!! Dam DC buck conversion!!
Well thanks to my electricity principals class back in my first semester, I actually understand everything lol. Thank you for running the test. I was just looking at the two AA options from xtar. Guess I'll do some further research. Of course I know better than to trust manufacturer specs.
Yeah, they are all over specified …. Everyone does that…. Remember tiny computer speakers that used to claim to be 1000watts ? :)
@DubiousEngineering OH yeah lol. I've been into car audio also and their are some cheaper brands that make ridiculous claims. Glad we have content creators with Amp dynos to show real world power. Would be nice if these companies would just be honest.
@@DubiousEngineering don't know about EVERYONE. Panasonic Eneloops are pretty close to their stated specs 🙂as well as everyone else who sells re-labeled Eneloops (aka NiMH cells Made in Japan). There is only one factory in Japan making NiMH cells... so as long as it's REALLy made in Japan, no matter the brand, you pretty much know what you are gonna get. Same BTW for LG, Samsung, Sony Li-Ion cylindrical cells. Unless by EVERYONE you mean every Chinese maker 🙂
Thank you for the review! I was going to get some of the earlier XTAR cells for no reason other than a nice rainbow effect in the charger 🤣 (I already have 8 of the latest and greatest). But your camera mishap has me second guessing the wisdom of such move 🥶
what is the difference between xtar BC4 charger and xtar L4 charger?
L4 uses CVSA tech to charge Ni-MH which results in faster charging and less heat build-up on cells.
BC4 can be used as a powerbank and flashlight, but does not use CVSA tech.
Also, the L4 is hollowed out for better ventilation of heat build-up on cells. The BC4 is completely covered up and does not let heat dissipate as good.
I have the L4, and it is an amazing Ni-MH charger. It charges my Ni-MH cells better than my Dragon VP4 Plus, SV2 Rocket, and FC2. Probably because of the CVSA tech.
I have another XTAR charger coming for review.... hope to get it done in a week or two.
Excellent information / review. Thank you.
Glad it's useful 😃👍
I bought these lion batteries, they perform that well i bought 12 more and binned my nimh batteries 😊
Absolutely fantastic technology... But be aware they can be noisy in terms of RF so may cause WiFi issues....
I have tested two brands. One claims 3600 mWh produces less than 1800 mAh another claims 3500 mWh and produces over 2200 mAhs. Both needed to be cycled a couple times to give a good reading. The first had two dead batteries out of 12 after three charge cycles (at 500 mA) Good investigation about noise. I have not noticed a problem in my trail cameras but other people have. You can not judge the batteries by the claimed mWh.
Your last statement is key!! I agree 👍
Is it possible to wrap the battery bay with shielding, directly ground it to the batteries negative to isolate the device in use from those emi? I really want to use this in my multimeter as it couldnt take freshly charged eneloop @ 1.2v without low voltage warning. Lithium energizer is good but I dont like disposable battery.
The emf comes from the battery terminals…. Sadly, you can’t get rid of it, however, it may not affect a good meter as they have filtered PSUs
What would be the effect of using these in an audio recorder considering the noisy voltage? Thanks
Shouldn’t affect audio, the RF interference is too high a frequency….
thank you for measuring the noise as well. I bought some Hixon recently and wanted to use them in my weather station capable of receiving the DC77 time and weather data over terrestrial broadcast at 77 kHz - and it didn't work anymore with these batteries. Are there any batteries of that type without that noise? Can I shield them somehow?
Kratax are better
@@DubiousEngineering I'll try them, thank you very much! :)
@@DubiousEngineering I am a bit confused here about frequency interference. We saw 25 kHz noise and 250 kHz noise in your analysis. Why would this be interfering with 77 kHz signal? Never min GHz range frequencies of WiFi (2.4, 5, and 6 GHz)???
4:05 It looks like the slide switch on the probe is set to X10, not X1?
Found your video while looking for someone putting these XTAR batteries through a proper discharge test. Testing inside electronic devices is neat and all, but actually testing the capacity and comparing against the claims is really the only way to rate a product like this, especially in a market rife with bogus claims. Thank you very much!
Aha! Thanks, if it is set to X10 then the scope will likely compensate as I checked the scope was set correctly. Thanks for the thanks! :-) 🙏👍
Perhaps they have a problem when connected in series.
Quite possibly...
I would have thought because they were lithium they would deliver the full 1.5 not 1.38. 1.38 would be expected for Nicad or metal hydride. I would buy them if I was sure I was getting 1.5 but now not so sure. Could your tester be wrong since it doesn’t recognize it as lithium. Just curious
There will be a voltage drop depending on how much current is being drawn. If I connect a volt meter only, they show 1.5
hixon vs kratax? would be interesting comparison
Never tried Hixon - keen to give them a go!
Hello, does this charger work with USB-C PD power sources? I mean, it takes 5V all right, but what I want to make sure of is that would it work correctly and take 5v with 100W PD charges and cables (that power macbooks etc.). I want to buy the item but want to make sure before buying because I don't want to invest for a new brick and charger just for this. Thanks in advance!
Sadly…. Not PD …. Standard 5v 2A …. So charging times will remain the same.
@@DubiousEngineering Of course, I'm okay with that, as long as it works. Some items that hav USB-C ports just refuse to work with PD chargers and cables even with 5v only, that's what I wanted to ensure of. Does it work with PD chargers and cables, even only 5v?
@DubiousEngineering Catch-up: Confirmed by xtar themselves on Reddit and bought it, and it does work indeed. You plug a PD adapter and cable, it works and charges with 5v, but the voltage was not my problem, it working at all was.The USB-C Standards require the manufacturers to add 5.1k resistors if the device inners are built like usb 2.0, and some manufacturers don't do this. This results of the devices not being charged when plugged to a PD charger.
@@ardatubes This is an interesting question. I have an 8 by version of this charger, XTAR BC8, and it does work with both standard 2 A 5V USB as well as a Macbook Pro PD charger. I don't have a way of testing what voltage / current it draws though. To make up for this, I "invested" -- all of 6 Euros on Amazon Black Friday deal -- in a QC 3.0 charger and another 12 Euros in a USB power metering gadget. Will be interesting to see what the BC8 charger draws with different power supplies 🙂
How is the battery holding up now? Any issues?
See my "are lithium aa batteries noisy" video.
@@DubiousEngineering That's an old video. I just want to know if these batteries are still working now.
Take it apart and give it a clean, and it will work again, I had a leak on one of mine so took it apart and cleaned it so it is now back outside working again, they cost too much to throw away.
Thanks for the tip... I'll give it a try!!!
Not good news on the camera, can we see inside, find the extent of the damage, you're handy with a soldering iron.
I recognise that plastic cup on the bench at the end!
The plastic cup deffo has some good ingredients 😀 ... Big hugs bro!
If you really need 1.5v/cell then fine but I'll stick with NiMH, not only cheaper but so much quieter.
Definitely quieter 😜
All I can remember now is.....Finger hole.
Do love a good finger hole!!! :-) 🤩