Receiver Packs

Introduction To The Receiver Pack

With a BEC (Battery Eliminator Circuit) standard on most current ESC's, it's not often that anyone using an electric RC would even care to run a receiver pack anymore. Some people will run a receiver pack so they can try to get a longer runtime, and to an extent this will work since the receiver won't be powered by the battery pack that provides power to the motor. However, with the large capacities of today's batteries that's hardly a concern anymore. The headache of swapping out receiver batteries just isn't worth the small increase in runtime. So most of the time a receiver pack is something that's only used by someone running a nitro-powered RC or when running more than 7-cells in an electric powered RC, because most receiver will be damaged when connected to a pack with more than 8.4 volts. However if you are interested in running a receiver pack, you'll find the information below useful.

Rechargeable NiMH Cells

One option is to use rechargeable NiMH AA cells in place of the alkalines. However if you do this, you need to remember that a rechargeable NiMH AA battery only gives you 1.2 volts instead of the 1.5 volts that you receive from an alkaline battery. This may not seem like much at first, but when you consider that 4 alkalines give you 6 volts and 4 NiMH AA cells give you 4.8 volts, the difference stands out a little plainer. What this means is that your servos will be operating with 4.8 volts instead of 6 volts, and this will result in them having less torque and a slower transit time. To some people this may not make a difference, in many cases however this is not the preferable method due to the impact on performance and handling.

Rechargeable Alkaline Cells

Another option is to use rechargeable alkalines AA cells. The cells themselves are cheap, and the charger itself is reasonably priced, which makes them a good alternative. They also give you 1.5 volts per cell which means that you will have a total of 6 volts when using 4 cells, so they have an advantage over the NiMH cells in that aspect. However their overall lifespan is nowhere near as long as a set of NiMH cells, often being 5-6 times shorter. So plan on buying replacement cells more often than with rechargeable NiMH cells.

Rechargeable Receiver Pack

The first two options involved the use of AA cells that fit in the stock receiver pack. There is a disadvantage in that method due to the fact that when you change the cells you must physically remove them to charge them. This often requires removing the receiver pack's cover in many trucks. However a third option offers the ability to charge without being removed from the truck and the best features of the other methods above. That option is a rechargeable receiver pack such as the Trinity RC5304 Receiver Pack. This pack easily fits in most battery boxes, and gives you a full 6 volts, due to the fact it uses 5 1.2 volt cells. With a little creative wiring it can also easily be charged without having to remove it from it's normal resting spot.

Below is a list of receiver packs that should work for powering the receiver.

• HPI 1200 Mah Hump Pack
• OFNA 1400 Mah Hump Pack
• Racers Edge 1400 Mah Hump Pack
• Traxxas 1100 Mah Hump Pack
• Trinity 1100 Mah Hump Pack
• Trinity 1200 Mah Hump Pack
• Venom 1200 Mah Hump Pack