Finding the best connectors for 4S and higher applications

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
DaniC

DaniC

Well-known member
Messages
508
Reaction score
573
Location
Galway, Ireland
Corally RC's
  1. Kronos XTR
Hi guys,

I got started on the hobby a couple of years ago, and my first rig was a Traxxas MAXX, as I was new to all this I just went with a Traxxas dual channel charger and 2 x 5000mah 4S batteries. A decision I new greatly regret! Since then my fleet has grown to 10 cars, the 2S and 3S ones came with deans and that's ok I guess. But my 4S rig still has TRX connectors and my 6S rig has XT90 connectors. My batteries however are TRX connector. So as you can see I have a bit of a mess.
So far I've soldered XT60, XT90, XT30, deans and TRX connectors, and in that same order the level of difficulty soldering them, in my opinion. The XT90's I think are harder than XT60 because they'd typically go with a higher gauge wire.
So, I want to switch all my 4S and higher applications to something better and easier to solder. After doing a good bit of research I think my preference at the moment are either the XT150 or the AS150 bullet connectors. I like these because soldering bullets is way easier than connectors with plastic housings, you don't get solder running inside the wire making them stiff and brittle, you remove the need of Y adapters when wanting to run two (or more) batteries in series and easier to switch just one of the terminals if one goes bad as opposed to the whole connector. And then the main difference for choosing AS150 over XT150 is that they are anti-spark, but they are also considerably more expensive so I haven't decided which one I'd go.
I also still need to decide if I want to swap the connectors on my TRX batteries, as that means putting balance terminals onto them and I worry they'd end up a bit like frankenstein batteries. Otherwise I'd have to think about getting new batteries, but there's still plenty of life on the TRX ones.
What do you guys think? Anyone using these connectors?
 
I use EC5 connectors on most of my vehicles, primarily because I have several Arrma 3s and 6s vehicles and that's what they come with. I do use XT90 batteries for my Radix6 because that's what Corally uses from the factory. I personally see no need for anything higher than an EC5 or an XT90 for any of my vehicles, whether they be 3s, 4s, or 6s, because I don't believe any of my vehicles draw more current than the EC5 is rated for. If I had an 8s vehicle I might consider an XT150, but not for anything 6s or below.

I also have four Traxxas vehicles and batteries, and I keep the Traxxas connectors on them simply because I don't do enough soldering to be proficient in it.
 
morrjr71 said:
I use EC5 connectors on most of my vehicles, primarily because I have several Arrma 3s and 6s vehicles and that's what they come with. I do use XT90 batteries for my Radix6 because that's what Corally uses from the factory. I personally see no need for anything higher than an EC5 or an XT90 for any of my vehicles, whether they be 3s, 4s, or 6s, because I don't believe any of my vehicles draw more current than the EC5 is rated for. If I had an 8s vehicle I might consider an XT150, but not for anything 6s or below.

I also have four Traxxas vehicles and batteries, and I keep the Traxxas connectors on them simply because I don't do enough soldering to be proficient in it.
Click to expand...
I get what you're saying. But for me it's not so much about having a higher current capacity connector, it's more about standardising on one contractor for the bigger rigs, and about simplifying the process of installation and maintenance of the connectors. I couldn't standardize on a XT60 for example because that would be no good on 6S+, but there's no harm using a 150amp connector on a 4S rig. But then it would be so easy to take 2 of those 4S batteries plug them directly in series on an 8S rig, without the need of a Y connector or two XT90 connectors on the ESC. Less connectors, less cabling, cleaner build.
 
DaniC said:
Do you use them much?
Click to expand...
Yes, they're on everything (inc Arrma's and Tekno's) except my 8s stuff..!!
Kronos, Radix, Sketer

IMG_0088.jpeg
IMG_2930.jpeg
IMG_3373.jpeg
 
Last edited:
If you’re buying Arrmas, definitely IC5/EC5 for anything 1/10 and bigger.
 
DaniC said:
Nice! And what's the rule in terms of where red female/male and black female/male go? Red/Black female battery side? Or a mix of female/male on either side of the connection?
Click to expand...
If you look at my pics above, I have mine so you can't accidentally plug the wrong plug in.
 
A lot of your choice is a matter of preference more so than a matter of amperage. Because I am not proficient at soldering, I standardize on what is the most common connector my vehicles come with, which is EC5. I buy my batteries accordingly, and don't buy batteries that I need to change the connector. Except for a couple of vehicles like my Radix 6 and a 1/6 scale 1941 Willys Jeep, most of my batteries are either EC5 or Traxxas.
 
morrjr71 said:
A lot of your choice is a matter of preference more so than a matter of amperage. Because I am not proficient at soldering, I standardize on what is the most common connector my vehicles come with, which is EC5. I buy my batteries accordingly, and don't buy batteries that I need to change the connector. Except for a couple of vehicles like my Radix 6 and a 1/6 scale 1941 Willys Jeep, most of my batteries are either EC5 or Traxxas.
Click to expand...
Yes that's very true, personal preference plays a big role.
 
DaniC said:
Bought a few XT150's to dip my toes in the water. I have a Max8 ESC with very short cables so I'll make an extension for it using the XT150s.
Click to expand...
I don't know why some manufacturers put such short cables on their ESCs. My Castle MMX 8s is a good example: it has a four-inch ESC cable, and I need to use a six-inch EC5 extension cable to connect the ESC to the battery on my Kraton 6s. I guess Castle assumes users of that ESC are going to use two 4s batteries with a Y cable, and it would make sense to have a shorter cable from the ESC. The issue is that if a person is only using a single 6s battery, a four-inch ESC cable is way too short.
 
@BashingBrian quick question, do you ever wish the XT150's had anti-spark making you regret not having gone with the AS150's instead? I'm just wondering if I'll be in this situation after having switched to XT150! 😅
 
I'm not bothered about sparks 😎 they make me feel alive.!!
On a side note, I've never had sparks from any XT150's it's only my 8mm bullets that spark on my 8s rigs, also some ESC's have anti spark built in so you don't even need anti spark connectors in my opinion.
 
I run XT90 on everything I own (no single 6s packs). Simplifies the whole experience. I see people with all these different adapters and I just scratch me head!
 
BashingBrian said:
I'm not bothered about sparks 😎 they make me feel alive.!!
On a side note, I've never had sparks from any XT150's it's only my 8mm bullets that spark on my 8s rigs, also some ESC's have anti spark built in so you don't even need anti spark connectors in my opinion.
Click to expand...
Yup, you're right! Thanks buddy, my mind's at ease! 😉

winterlong75 said:
I run XT90 on everything I own (no single 6s packs). Simplifies the whole experience. I see people with all these different adapters and I just scratch me head!
Click to expand...
Yeah that's exactly what I want to avoid.
 
Back
Top