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ParkBEC and ParkBEC 6V Frequently Asked Questions
I have a 3A BEC in my speed control - why would I want ParkBEC's lower 1.25A capacity?
It is very common for speed controls to have BECs rated at 2 or 3A.
However, what the manufacturers do not tell you is that this
rating is only true for an input voltage of 6V. The BEC on
your speed control is what engineers call a 'linear voltage regulator'.
It works by burning up excess voltage and turning it into heat. The
higher the input voltage, the more heat gets produced. If there is too
much heat, then the BEC will either fry, or shut down! The result of
this is that in real world situations, if you are running a 3S lipo
battery pack, your ESC's BEC will only be able to provide about 0.5A
before it overheats. At 4S, most ESC manufacturers don't recommend you use the
BEC at all, or at best power two small servos.
ParkBEC is a different type of voltage regulator - a switching voltage
regulator. It does not care very much about what the input voltage is,
and as such it can provide your servos with a steady 1.25A all the way
up to 8S.
For more information, please visit our
beginner's guide to switching regulators.
Do I need a ParkBEC?
If you are running an aircraft with a 2S battery pack, chances are you
will not need a ParkBEC. At pack voltages of 4S and higher, you will
almost certainly need to use a switching BEC like ParkBEC or
SportBEC. If you are using a 3S pack, then the answer is 'maybe'.
At
3S, if you are flying a relatively slow airplane with only 2 or three
low-draw servos, then you are
probably safe. If you are flying a fast aircraft, one with large
control surfaces, 4 or more servos, or are
experiencing overheating problems with your ESC's BEC, then a ParkBEC
may solve a lot of your problems. ParkBEC is also a great help if
you're running a parkflyer with a four-servo wing, for a total of six
servos.
What is the difference between ParkBEC and ParkBEC 6V?
ParkBEC supplies a regulated 5 Volt source to power your receiver
and servos, which is the standard for the majority of BECs. ParkBEC 6V
supplies 6 Volts. Powering your servos with 6 Volts will increase the power,
which means that the servos will move faster, and have more torque. For
floater or old timer type aircraft, this additional speed is not usually
necessary or even desirable. For micro helicopters and aerobatic planes,
powering your servos with 6V gives you noticeably better responsiveness.
Using a 6v BEC may also help the tail servo of a helicopter have smoother
response. Most of our ParkBEC 6V customers are flying T-rex sized helicopters.
How does ParkBEC compare to a UBEC?
The UBEC is a fine product made by Kool Flight Systems. Both ParkBEC
and UBEC are efficient switching BECs that work well with high pack
voltages. The difference is that UBEC has a max
current capacity of 4A, while ParkBEC has a max capacity of 1.5A. The tradeoff is that
UBEC is larger, heavier, and more expensive. If you are running a
parkflyer, park jet or a small helicopter such as a T-Rex,
then there is simply no point in weighing down your aircraft and your
wallet with a BEC that is more than you need. If you fly much larger
aircraft with high torque or standard size digital servos and really
need the extra capacity, then we recommend purchasing a
SportBEC.
Will a ParkBEC work with my specific setup?
In general, as long as you stay within ParkBEC's recommended number of
servos, you'll have no problems. If you're the sort of person who loves
to tinker with setups and push limits, we make a product called
ServoSense Plus that you
should check out. With a ServoSense Plus, you can directly measure the
actual inflight load that you're putting on your BEC. So if you're
running a larger switching BEC or a receiver battery and are looking to
shed some weight, using a ServoSense will tell you without a doubt
whether a ParkBEC will work. As long as the Max reading of the
ServoSense Plus is less than 1.7A, the Max15 reading is below 1.5A and
the Avg reading is below 1.25A, a ParkBEC will work without any
trouble.
Do I have to plug the ESC in through the ParkBEC?
Not at all. The inline method of installation is usually the most
convenient. If for some reason it isn't in your case, ParkBEC can be
installed in the same manner as other switching BECs. Cut or remove the
red center wire from the ESC's throttle cable and install the ParkBEC
into a spare RX channel or with a Y cable. Place a piece of
electrical tape over the header where the ESC usually plugs in if you
are not using the pass-through feature.
How much interference does a ParkBEC generate?
Switching BECs have a bad reputation for putting out a lot of EMI
(radio noise) because the first incarnations on the market were
carelessly designed. ParkBEC was designed right from the start to avoid
this problem, and as a result emits almost zero noise in the common
radio control bands. In fact, the local oscillator in your receiver is
a bigger EMI source than ParkBEC.
Here is data showing ParkBEC's noise profile.
As long as you keep ParkBEC more than 2 inches away from your
receiver/antenna, and don't wrap your antenna around power-carrying
wires, it is extremely unlikely that you will run into any problems.
I have a T-Rex (or similar) helicopter, will ParkBEC work for me?
An extremely common setup is a T-Rex with 3 HS-56 servos,
1 Futaba 9650 servo and a Futaba 401 gyro. We have had dozens of
customers use ParkBEC 6V with this configuration, and it works great.
How easy is it to kill a ParkBEC?
It's actually suprisingly hard to do. ParkBECs are mechanically robust
enough to survive most crashes without damage. They will protect
themselves from short-circuit, overloading and over-temperature.
The only thing you really need to be careful of is soldering
them to the battery connector backwards.
What else can I do with a ParkBEC?
Beyond being a great little switching BEC, ParkBEC is also useful as a
general purpose switching regulator. People have used ParkBECs to power
cameras, wireless links, lighting systems or even small motors.
ParkBEC is also useful for running radio systems in R/C cars or
robots that run from high voltage packs.
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