XT90 - Measured and tested
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- Опубликовано: 4 апр 2018
- Everything you need to know about the XT90 connector, from a build-your-own-drone perspective. Current capability, size, weight, how to use it, what type of mustard it goes best with.
For more information on 6s vs equivalent 4s, check out Joshuas video here: • 6S is the new 4S | HYP... 
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XT90S (anti spark variant, only available in the 90 form factor) is my favorite connector nowadays regardless of it's ampacity (used XT60 before and had no situation where I hit a _sustained_ load that it would matter, would you punchout in a drone so hard that a connector melts, I want to see that battery you're using, I want one :)). Not flying so much these day but for my skateboards, scooter and ebike my battery connectors looked burned and always almost explode and spark when connecting my huge up to 20S packs to the initial discharged condensator (2000uF / 100V on my scooter for example) and kind of short circuit for a brief time period. This damages the contacts of the connectors pretty badly and can reduce the performance drastically (hav have this on drones too but less severe) , XT90S solved that problem for me finally. Thanks amass
I would LOVE for you to do similar load testing for SEVERAL of the popular high amperage connectors to see if they live up to their hype as well as the XT series
This is a nice, succinct, and informative video, and I salute your use of serious test equipment to establish the working limits of the XT90.
300A, during 10 sec that is sick.
I am building battery for my ebike, which will draw around 100A in peak and chose xt90 connector for this purpose...it's so nice to see this test vidro, that assured me, that my choice was correct 🙏 many thanx
Yea dude, you are killing it! All the info of a JB video without the monologue. I like both and you got a sub!
AWESOME!!!! I was actually here for something else but the quality of the content kept me here!!!
Great video showing actual true results unlike some of the others online. Keep up the great content.
I love these videos. Please make more!
Great series of videos i've learnt a lot from XT 30 60 & 90 Connectors :)
Thanks! I hope to make some more this year, once it gets a bit warmer outside!
Hello, I'm extremely interested in a comparison between xt90, qs8, 8mm bullet, and there are some others a bit higher than that. I would love to see the same type of amp load testing on 10 gauge, vs 8 gauge. Please let me know your thoughts.
You guys are the best with these video's!
There really isn't enough information like this out there
Great work! XT150 testing please 😁👍
your videos are great,i just subscribed and hope to see new video from you every few weeks .
Great tests. Think I’ll stay with XT90
This is easy to follow and learn from. This is great!
Glad you like it, those are the qualities we strive for! :)
Great video. I'm using these on rc cars. I was considering going up in size. Nice to see there is a lot of headroom above 90amps.
theres a difference between RMS and peak ratings. is your ESC rated lower than 90amps?
There are two more connectors in that series the XT150 and AS150 (three if you count the XT90S). Both of those are shrouded bullets and are intended more for big 12S helicopters and planes rather than drones.
There are also the MR30/MR60 and MT30/MR60 three poles connectors intended for connecting ESCs to brushless motors, they use the same pin size of the respective XT30/XT60s.
The MR have the pins in line while the MT in a triangular shape.
please please please do this testing with the Deans connectors! would be a huge asset to the entire RC community.
They tested the deans in the XT60 video. Almost as good as the XT60, but a tad more resistance.
i do not need to go to 6s, i'm already at 10, 13,14,20 and 96s, but not on a drone. Thanks for a video.
great video, very useful information, Thanks
Nice video! Thanks for this "limit" test. Without the faintest intention to being picky, the de-soldering on the video might have been partially contributed also to the awg10 wire heating and not just due to the ohmic losses through the connector. A heavier wire might allow higher current, but would be to much weight for a drone. I am planning to use the XT90 for an electric boat motor, weight is not a big problem so i will use the bulkiest wire on XT90 which i can fit. The XT90 was the best priced solution i could find for about 100A loads, I looked at the Anderson ones (too expensive), the SAE (which was immediately dropped as it can handle maybe up to 10A)
Great work!
Well done sir, well done.
good to know, now i can be sure the XT90 will be able to handle being used in my Spotwelder where i expect maximum 200A
I liked your work.
very very very cool, thank you so much for this
i'm building an easy car jump start kit with xt90 connectors(meaning you are not required to open the hood to jump the car) hope it works! (yes i'm using the correect wire)
Very helpful. Thanks
Thanks for all the useful information. I bought some xt150 connectors to use between my motorcycle stator and rectifier. The stator produces 80V at 6.000rpm . You think these connectors will hold up? Thanks!
Lower kv motor =higher wattage and lower amperage? I really enjoy you channel 🤙
Would love to see a video with XT90 vs EC5 :-O GJ thanks
dronelab - I wanted to know whether I can use a single XT90-connector (I am _severely_ space-limited) to deliver _absolute_ maximum of 54A @48V, most likely in less than 50/50 duty cycle), with forced cooling, or do I have to use two parallel connectors. This video answered my question, and I appreciate that. Thanks!
Easily! When we tried them at 90A with a tiny bit of airflow, they stabilised on 82°C, which may be a bit warm. But heat dissipation scales with the square of current, so if you run them at 54A, that's almost 3x less heat - they will certainly stay cool and safe. Just make sure you are using AWG10 as the thick metal conductor helps cool the connector a lot.
I found it extremelly usefull
The problem I've found is getting quad motors that can really handle 6S power. If the wires aren't designed to handle the voltage, they fry almost instantly. The SunnySky Edge Racing R2207 FPV Brushless Motors - 1800Kv I bought fried on 4S but were supposed to handle 6S. I am currently using some T-Motor VELOX V2 2207 1950Kv Motors on 4S but 1 burned up doing static testing on 6S so I'm limiting them to 4S now. Do you think the EMax RS 2306-2750Kv you mentioned here will handle 6S?
Good test. I was wondering if I should use XT90 in my 120 A plane (intermittent).
Yes. Even though the XT60 can handle 120A for a short time (10-20s), on a plane you might want to draw high currents for longer periods when climbing in altitude. The extra 7g of weight probably isn't that significant for you plane either, so you will be much better off with the bigger XT90.
Can you please please test the popular PH 2.0 by JST connector? I'm super curious how it compares to the molex one. Also worth looking at the counterfits that most people buy (different construction).
Hola amigo muchas gracias por la explicación saludos des de chile
Very useful
I use the XT90 connectors for my electric boat motor.
Certainly I've seen ground-based applications where this size of connector would not be overkill. Especially because you don't care nearly as much about the weight.
Nice Video!
Would it be possible for you to test the EC5 Battery connector, because i always questioned me which one is the better one to choose, the XT90 or the EC5.
I'll put it on our "list", though there is so many things to test there, it might take a while before we get there D:
Nice
This is good information. Thanks. I'm not sure but I think your test at the 1 min mark is with 4S power. If you upped the volts to 6S/25.2V, wouldn't the watts be much higher and the amps much lower for that same test. The amp rating would be much lower than 270A, right? And if it was 10AWG, what would that amp rating be? Those are the questions I'm trying to figure out. I don't have the test equipment to do it though.
It's a bit counter-intuitive, but actually the voltage doesn't matter - the current is the only limiting factor for connectors or conductors. In fact, all the tests were performed at below 1V. That's why energy distribution lines run at very high voltages - as high as 400,000V - so that the cables can be thinner and lighter. Similarly, all the USB "fast charging" technologies run at higher voltages than 5V, to be able to deliver more power over the same thin wires and connector. That's also why we recommend an 6s XT60 over a 4s XT90 - they both can deliver roughly the same total power (180A * 16V is same as 270A * 24V), while the XT60 is lighter.
@@dronelab1280 That must be the new math you're using. In your example, 180A x 16.8V (4S) = 3,024W. And 270A x 25.2V (6S) = 6,277.5W. The 6S example is a little more than twice the power of the 4S setup. I think maybe the voltages are swapped? To get the equivalent wattage I have to use 4536W or 270A x 16.8V = 4536W. For that same 4536W on 6S I would use 180A x 25.2V = 4536W. I understand the current limit for the connectors. By bumping up the volts, my amps can be less. I use 6S 5Ah LiPos on my EDFs. At 105 -120A, my XT90s connectors get warm. Were I to use 8S power, the identical power would be available at a lower amperage. But the larger AWG wire and XT90 connector would not get as warm as it would at the 6S power setup even though the power is the same. I believe the lower resistance of the larger wire is the reason for less heat.
@@dronelab1280 A shorter way of my other long post is to go to connector rating tables. A JST connector is rated on it amp carrying capacity based on the AWG of the wire it is connected to. I don't have the #s in front of me but on 28AWG wire, the load is about 1A. On 22AWG I believe it is about 6A.
Tin the wire, insert it into the connector using a holding fixture, place the lightly tinned soldering iron against the wire and the connector pin, and let the heat of the wire and pin melt the solder into the connection. Don't put solder in the connector pin, reheat it, and insert the wire while holding it with your fingers.
Am interested in using xt90 for lifepo battery applications for mobility scooter being converted from sla batteries with f2 blade terminals on the batteries.
I'm upgrading my Traxxas X-Maxx, I add a hobbywing Max5 200amp and using two 4s 6500mah 100c,total 8s, is it good to use xt90 connectors?
And is there more than manufacturer for it? How can I get the best quality?
Thank you
What about a 12 cell setup that does 150A full gas . Still xt90? Or bigger? Think xt90 will hold but there is also xt120..... but then a got a third connector type what is not nice whit charging abd i see no antispark.
MORE PLEASE MORE
nice!
02:21 Oh i see, this has to be the new miniquad connector, learned something new today 😂😂😂
but seriously, what connector is this 🤔😅
That's an Anderson SB 350, rated 500A continuous. Used for the battery in electric forklifts, for example.
Can i use xt60 for my small Inverter 12V dc to 230v ac 300W? Fuse on this Inver is 40A dc.
Hello there, if my project is for a 72v battery, could it hold up to 96amps?
I'd be interested to know what type of solder was used on the connection that de-soldered itself.
We used classic, leaded 60/40 solder in all these tests. Some people correctly pointed out that using unleaded solder would increase the melting temperature, and therefore make the connection last a bit longer. But already at 200°C the silicone insolation is subject to degrading, so even if the solder wouldn't melt and fail, at that point the connection is just too hot to recommend. On top of that, most unleaded solders do not handle vibrations very well so we really do recommend leaded solder, as long as everyone pinky swears to take the right precautions when handling and disposing of it.
@@dronelab1280 Thanks for the reply, and I agree with your conclusions. That said, I can't help but wonder what the fail number would have been with Sn/Ag...
You're electric toothbrush pulls 90 amps?
Whatever I lack in personality, I have to make up with shiny white teeth so... yes.
This video only tells half the story but I guess it makes sense given this is a channel about drones. You only tested the burst current rating and that too only in an environment with good airflow.
You should also do a test of the continuous rating both with a fan, no fan but in free air and in an enclosure. Continuous meaning apply the load until there is no longer a temperature rise of the connector
akbar Ramzan - I understand your comment/criticism, and would also like to see a video in which the XT90 connectors are tested to the point of failure. Having said that, this video _did_ provide useful information to me*. However, I do realize why a drone channel does not (and probably should not!) consider sealed enclosures and forced cooling. I would actually argue that no sane person would engineer a product that uses a single 90A-rated XT90 connector when there is a continuous current draw exceeding 270A. TBH, I was actually surprised to see this 'Chinesium' (effortlessly) surviving a 10s 270A burst.
*) I wanted to know whether I can use a single XT90-connector to deliver _absolute_ max. 54A @48V, most likely in less than 50/50 duty cycle), with forced cooling, or do I have to do two parallel connectors. This video answered my question, and I appreciate that.
@@MrZetor XT90 is officially rated for 40A continuous, 90A maximum
Many hobbyists however, run it at 90A “continuous” with forced cooling. I put “continuous” in quotes because the small lipo batteries in drones will drain very quickly at 90A and likely won’t let the connector reach equilibrium
At 90A continuous even with light cooling, the connector will reach temperatures of 120*C or higher. This is the limit of its operating temperature
I have found your video very informative and helpful! Thanks for that.
Can you please compare it to the EC5 connector?
Glad to hear that. I'll try to get a hold of an EC5 connector to give it a try, once our laboratory is no longer on pandemic-shutdown :/ However, since both connectors are manufactured by the same company - Amass - we can to some extent trust their datasheets. And there, the specified maximum currents are the same (90A) for both, while in "rated currents" (safe current w/o airflow, that keeps the connector below a certain temperature) the XT90 has a slight advantage over the EC5 (45A vs 40A). Links to datasheets:
www.tme.eu/Document/d66b125cc4d03b6a25077f0febb346da/XT90H%20SPEC.pdf
www.tme.eu/Document/5a22fb1f56823885355218505744b694/EC5%20SPEC.pdf
This sounds about right, as the connectors are roughly the same size, and made of the same materials. But might be worth verifying with the test in the future anyway!
@@dronelab1280 Thank you so much for the VERY detailed answer! I did not know they were made by the same manufacturer and from the same materials...
Thanks again!
So what do you do against preventing spark when connecting? Sparks damage the connectors...
They make anti spark XT90s which work wonderful from my experience!
which instruments have you used for checking the ampere capacity of connector???
the MOM600 micro-ohm-meter by Megger. It's a fun little (24kg) device purpose-made for testing cables / connectors under loads up to 600A.
What I want is a XT-15 for nano quads
Is that just shorting the current into the wire/connector, Or is the machine designed for that and it just passes through to a resistor or something?
The machine controls the power, so that we can (reasonably accurately) limit and control the current.
Very interesting, thank you. Now, I will use 10 AWG for a power electric bike where I intend to reach 400 A on 60V.
I hope you mean 40A, not 400A or you are in for a smoky surprise!
@@dronelab1280 That's 400 A at 60 V on 10-second peak, with an ASI BAC 8000 controller. Otherwise, normal use will be around 100 A. Do you think 10 AWG is not enough for 10 seconds peak ?
10 AWG definitely not enough. In our tests, it caught fire under 10 seconds at 450A, and smoked at 300A. Use at least 8 AWG. If the wires are in a tight enclosure (no airflow), you might even want AWG 6 to be on the safe side. You can also use 2x10AWG in parallel, if you can fit that into your connectors.
@@dronelab1280 Thank you very much for this technical answer. Perhaps I should also use 2xXT90 in parallel ? Or XT90 can support easily 400 A during 10 seconds ?
Well, finally I decided to use 6 AWG with XT150. 400 A would be 10 sec max. Thanks for your answer.
So i can put XT90 plug in 1:10 scale rc car?
xt60 or xt90
for my *1000W* Ebike?
13s Li Ion (54,6V)
1000W / 50V, that's 20A, an XT60 would handle that just fine. But, since you probably don't care about 15g of extra weight, I would recommend an XT90. It's more comfortable to grip and handle, you can get it in a spark-proof version that makes connecting safer and more pleasant, and you will get a tiny bit less losses (0.5% vs 0.7%) since the bigger XT90 has less contact resistance.
So i guess XT90 with 10AWG is fine for a 700 heli on 12s?
orrrr just get a ic5. idk what they are rated at but the connectors ar .5mm wider and 4mm longer, the actual metal connector. can only imagine they can handle a bit more than the xt90.
i would have loves to see how much the connector can handle with abigger wiers like 8awg so that the failure point is the connector not the wire
We tried it extensively with the XT30, where we found that there is a significant benefit to using an 16AWG over the recommended 18AWG. At 12AWG the connector was definitely the limiting factor, though such a combination isn't practical, as the wire would be disproportionately heavy - an XT60 + 20cm of 14AWG would way the same, and handle more current.
We didn't have a cable thick enough to try it for the XT90, but I wouldn't expect to get much more out of it. I'll be on the lookout for an AWG8 to give it a go at some point though.
@@dronelab1280 yes but with xt90 it would have been very interesting to see it with 8awg wire because a lot of people might go down that rout knowing that the connector propabaly can handel more then the 10awg or a current test of 10awg with a temperatur reading would have also been very conclusiv because from what i have seen on the vidio the cables were hotter then the plug itself meaning that it could propabaly be able to handel way more current
Xt150 is nice to
my 1/8 rc car has a tp4070cm which is rated for 8s 300amps (9kw) peak and 180amp continuous, so I'm guessing an xt90 wouldn't suffice. Even the 10awg wire on the lipos get warm as does the 8awg wires on the castle xlx esc. Right now I'm using 6.5mm bullet connectors, does any know of any other type of connectors that would work?
At that point connectors become very big and heavy. You could consider an Anderson SB120, but that's one *really* clunky piece of hardware. If possible, try to improve the airflow in battery compartment - a pair of vent holes (front and back) can make a massive difference.
OSE QS8 might be good choice.
Hi will 5mm bullets go into xt90 female
What about Amass vs other unbranded XT90's?
The knock-offs come in so many shapes and sizes, even if we test a couple, a viewer would never know if the knock-off they have will perform as the one we tested. So to spare potentially risky surprises, it's best we not publish measurements on components from shady sources. We did however quickly check the plastic quality on two different XT60 clones, and neatly enough both could briefly withstand 200°C, so at least they aren't made of bad plastic. But still, the original amass are reasonably priced and widely available banggood or even some electronic component distributors (like TME) so I would definitely 100% recommend always going with the legit ones.
Will the XT90 connectors prevent spark from happening when disconnecting or connecting them from the battery?
There is a special "Spark-proof" version called "XT90-S". It looks almost identical, with just a bright green stripe. It's only available on the female end (battery side), so you might need to replace the connector on all your batteries. It suppresses sparks very well, just be careful to not leave it half-plugged, and often check if the fit is tight, otherwise the very simple spark-proofing mechanism can burn out.
@@dronelab1280 Ok thanks. I wish that these connectors (XT90-S) come with the battery but I'm afraid they are not... I'm afraid to install the connector on these batteries myself cause I'm afraid of the spark/explosion. The explosion I had caused my finger to burn. My scooter battery is 60V 26 Ah.
@@rockefelleragent1357
Soldering a battery wire is safe, unless you let both of its wire lead touch each other. The safest way to deal with the battery is to cover up the wire you cut. Then do the connections. It don't matter what color, as long as they're not touching.
Hi, my system will draw max 230 AMP, I found the turnigy battery that can handle up to 240 A, wich is the best for me. But unfortunately, they come out with XT-90 Connector, now. Why a 240A max rated battery will come out with this connector ? Can this connector Handle safley 240 A ? THANK YOU continous ?...THANK YOU
Battery manufacturers tend to do that, I'm afraid :D If you only need the 230A for a couple of seconds at a time, the XT90 will be fine. Currents above 100A are a bit impractical, and high-power devices use higher voltages instead. You could use an Anderson Power SB175, that's rated 300A. Though at that point the connectors are *very* large and expensive - we briefly show an SB350 that's rated 600A at 2:22 in this video. Alternatively, for continuous 230A, you can use three XT90's in parallel, or two XT150s in parallel. I would try to reduce the current as much as possible and go higher voltage, though.
One more thing: That battery might not *actually* survive a 240A continuous discharge. The wires themselves would have to be AWG 6 to survive that kind of current for a prolonged time.
Can i use a regular XT90 male connector with XT90S female
XT90S only applies to the female. The male is the same. The female side has a split in one of the terminals/barrels with a resistor in it when you first plug it the first couple of mm. Once it's fully plugged in, the resistor portion is bypassed.
I am new to hobby. Im getn a battery with xt90. I have a iba6+ charger. Do i need to get a xt90 to bannana lead to charge it. ?
Yes. You will need some sort of an adapter to connect that battery to the charger. If your charger comes with an XT60 cable, you can get an XT60 to XT90 adapter pretty cheaply.
dronelab thanks for reply. I orderd banna with male xt90 on it. Only $8 cheers
So will I be better running xt90 or ec5 all I run is 6s LiPo in my arrma ?
Hard to say without knowing which exact arrma you have, but if it came with an XT90, then it should be fine. Otherwise, or if you modded the motor, you need to somehow figure out the current consumption, or how much the battery can give. The XT90 should handle any 4000mAh or smaller battery, if your battery is bigger you need to figure out the actual drawn current, or be careful on the throttle.
dronelab I’ll be running a 1480 kv motor and a max 6 esc and battery will be a 5000 mah 6s
That's borderline ok. We don't have much experience with RC vehicles, but I assume you don't tend to keep the throttle at 100% for more than a couple of seconds, right? In that case it should be fine. You can carefully check the temperature of the connector / wires after a ride. If it's not too hot to hold, you're safe.
why none said how much voltage this can be used for?
The connector is rated for 500vdc, but since it has no physical protection from touching the pins during handling, I would not recommend using it for anything more than the 48v.
Note that the voltage does not impact the maximum current.
HELLO I am contacting you because I would like to know if the XT90 connectors can withstand direct voltage and current
28 volts in approximately 40A?
in fact I have a pack to make in lifepo including 4 batteries in // or 8S/4P given that I have 4 batteries in // per series I was thinking of putting 4 cables and 4 XT90 for the pole + general and also 4 cables and, 4 XT90 for the least general which will be put on the B- of the BMS
the current that will be drawn by my converter will be 140 A max at 24 volts
What do you think? with this situation I think that the current will be divided on the 4 XT90s, i.e. less than 40A per XT90
the cable section will be 10AWG by xt90
Best regards
laurent
An XT90 can handle 40A per each of its two poles continuously at any voltage up to its rating of 500V no problem. It's generally not super safe to use connectors in parallel since if one of them fails, the others have to carry the additional load. But, if you have a lot of overhead, this should be fine. Do you intend to use a total of 8 connectors? 4 for + and 4 for -, each with 2 AWG10 wires? If so, you have a lot of overhead. This should be fine. Just remember to not apply any load (have your converter or anything connected to it OFF) until all 8 connectors are plugged in.
hank you for the information
yes 4 XT 90 connectors on the packs - 10AWG
and the same for the +
otherwise perhaps it is more judicious to use copper tubular eye connectors instead of XT 90?
cheaper to purchase and less risk of defaults?
" Mmmh nice and toasty ."
So safe to say, the xt90 can run between 120ah-150ah no problem?
For a limited time, yes. It can handle 90A continuously, and 270A for 10 seconds. Any current in between will be ok for some limited time. It's worth noting that the heat produced on a connector increases with the square of the current, so going from 90A to 150A will increase the heat by a factor of 2.7x! I wouldn't count on that being safe for more than 30 seconds. You can improve the performance by using even thicker wire - like an 8 AWG.
@@dronelab1280 So better would be the xt150.
Is the xt90 connector waterproof for rc cars?
It doesn't have any official water resistance rating and we never tested it, so it's best to assume that it isn't waterproof. Even thought the fit is pretty tight, it doesn't have any gasket or o-ring to prevent water from getting in. That being said, if you conformally coat the solder posts I would expect it to handle a small splash or spray (driving in light rain), but I wouldn't recommend that if you plan on getting it properly wet (deliberately driving into a deep puddle).
@@dronelab1280 Ok. Thanks for the help.
Hello!
Can anybody identify this current source at 1:24?
It's a "MOM 600" Micro-ohm meter. An old and primitive instrument specifically designed for measuring high current capable wires and connectors. It does offer up to 600 amps of rectified AC, so thats nice.
@@dronelab1280 Thanks!
How many volts were you running at 270A?
Counter-intuitively, voltage transferred does not matter when measuring connector capabilities. All connectors we tested melted/burned with no more than 1V supplied. Since the connector is a purely resistive device, the voltage drop across it (and therefore, the power loss and heat generated) is strictly tied to the current conducted.
So 300V/1A would be fine while 300A/1V might not?
Exactly! That's also why long distance power lines are at very high voltages (400,000V) - so that more energy can be transferred thought the same cables and connectors. Though I wouldn't recommend using very high voltages on the XT90 for safety reasons - the contacts are very exposed and can be accidentally touched.
@@dronelab1280 Oh, okay. I thought it was transferred at high voltages just because there is less power lossed when transferred at high voltage. Thanks for your responses :)
Yes! It totally is to reduce power lost. And that lost power becomes heat, and that heat melts the connector or wire, if there is wayy too much of it. It's all connected.
But my 1/8 rc car draws 300+ amps on 8s. :/
I've seen R/C helicopters that run 14S batteries and 300A ESCs with a 10KW motor.
These remind me of wall-e
lol 6s better then 4s ..... 22v vs 14v . ya you could say that. fun video thanks
Have you tested xt150? 🙂
That is not a 12 gauge wire. That is a fuse.
Most people will never use XT90’s to even half their limit. They are overkill unless you are truly drawing more than 130A continuous!!! I run 97-118A continuous through my XT60’s and they don’t even get warm.
118A continuous sounds like quite a lot for an XT60. In our testing, 75A applied for a couple of minutes, until the temperature stabilised at 103°C - a level that it definitely survives, but it might start deteriorating the plastic in the long term, or damage something more temperature sensitive nearby, like a cap or battery. That's with a steady but relatively low airflow, in room temperature. Without airflow, we got 101°C at just 50A. I guess it boils down to how one defines "continuous". At a steady 118A, a 2000mAh battery would drain in just over a minute, which might not be enough to reach those 100°C+ temperatures, but keep at it for another minute more and the connector might take damage. We stick to the convention that "continuous" means "as long as it takes to reach a steady state", and for that application I would definitely not recommend an XT60 for 118A. In the world of droning, "continues" tends to mean "a couple of seconds, after which your drone flies out of range anyway", which might be quite confusing :D
dronelab Correct. My idea of continuous is more like 18-20 seconds. Bursts are around 4-6 seconds.
@@dronelab1280 so whats the max continuous amps for the xt90 or for that matter whats the max continuous amps before reaching those high (100C+) temps?
@@hgclobo123 In our tests, at 110A continuous, the connector stabilised at 96°C. That's with a AWG 10 wire and in gentle airflow. I wouldn't push it any further than that.
dronelab awesome! Thanks! Great videos.
Vídeo: Consider upgrading to 6s.
Me with a 12s electric skate: Uh
Most of our advice doesn't really apply to anything other than drones, but that being said, XT90 are really good for e-skateboards and e-bikes. At 12s and the rated 90A these can deliver almost 4kW, while being easy to handle and reasonably robust. Note that the 90A rating requires some airflow though, if the connector is hidden inside some compartment or chassis, it's only good for about 45-60A continuous. If that still isn't enough, then maybe it's time to go 14s!
@@dronelab1280 Wow, thanks for replying in a 2 years old vídeo!
2:20 WTF was that!?!
a 500A connector from an electric forklift
Electric scooters
Definitely a solid choice for that, the extra size makes it more robust and easy to handle. But funny enough, even a 1000W motor at 24V is *just* 40A. A 500W at 24V could technically run on a tiny little XT30 :D
ACK. Currents are seldom anywhere near the limit of even a XT30. But it's a nice chunky connector that is easy to grab.
My scooter has a 10s, soon 12s, battery. That means the currents seldom exceed 15A.
@@dronelab1280 24V bikes have been obsolete for a decade now, its all 36 and up to 96, and amps can go up to 300 ;)
lol a 90+amp toothbrush
Incorrect info. The 6s battery has more watt hours than the 4s. Please don't spread misinformation.
We're discussing *efficiency*. With the same voltage * kv product motors, a 6s setup will be a little more efficient (take less watts for the same output power) and can weight less due to lighter connectors and wires. If you get 6s and 4s batteries with the same watt hours (example: 1200mah 6s and 1800mah 4s), and optimise both drones for their voltage, the 6s will fly longer.
There is a reason why trains run at voltages like 25kV, and this is the same reason here.
The problem is the 6s will not weigh less. They will both be using xt60 connectors and the same gauge wire if you are sizing it for a 5 inch drone. The 6s has more "packing material" inside it. IE stuff that doesn't produce power, such as the internal tabs on the cells and the packing foil for the individual cells, as well as the plastic insulating pieces. You also are not taking into account the weight of vregs that have to handle the higher voltage. You're going to need bigger components for a vreg to be able to drop 6s down to 5v instead of 4s. The 6s battery also has a much more pronounced throttle drop throughout the flight of the pack. Delta Voltage on the 6s pack is 5.4V between full and empty, whereas on 4s it is only 3.6V.
The train analogy is also terrible. The primary reason for the extremely high voltages are due to transmission loss over distance due to internal resistance of the conductor. They are not using 25,000 volt motors on trains. There is a transformer in the locomotive to step the voltage down.
In the video we are comparing a 4s that requires an XT90 to a 6s that delivers the same power on 4s. In this context, the 6s will be lighter, and this is the only context discussed in the video. We are very careful not to spread misinformation. We never stated that 6s is *always* lighter than 4s.
Sure, the packaging might be a bit heavier, but those are tiny differences. And the Vregs are *not* bigger for the 6s. If anything, a step down will be smaller, as it needs less input current, but it's not like you pick those parts individually anyway. You get what is available on the market, and most parts support 6s.
And about the "more pronounced throttle drop". 5.4V is 25% of 6s, 3.6 is 25% of 4s. In both cases the throttle drop is the same 25%.
What 1300-1800 mah 4s battery uses an xt90? I'd like to know because I have NEVER seen a miniquad battery use an xt90 connector. You stated the 6s will fly longer and can weigh less due to lighter connectors and wires. It's right there in the first comment. The packaging is not a negligible difference. Looking at batteries I can find online I'm seeing about an extra 15 grams, and that's just what is published.
The Vregs require capacitors to operate. The higher the voltage, the bigger capacitor you are going to need. There is no point in mentioning step down vregs because ALL vregs on a miniquad are stepdown. All of the components run off of 5v or 3.3V, so unless you're using a 1s battery, you will always be using a stepdown. I don't know why you bothered to mention step down.
To put this scenario into perspective, the difference between 6s and 4s which produce the exact same wattage is about 40 amps. So you would need a quad that is going to max out the xt60 on 6s in order to require an xt90 on 4s. At this point, from your own testing, you would need to be pulling 180 amps through an xt60 at burst, this means that the miniquad would need to be pulling 4kW of power on 6s. This is a stupid amount of power. When we actually have components and batteries that can support this then maybe the jump to 6s will be worthwhile, but as it stands it just makes the hobby more expensive than it already is.
I'm not saying the higher voltage isn't more efficient, but you are failing to account for real world scenarios.
I think I liked the other guy better 🤔
(oh my, what a plot twist)