nimh batteries

[buttons]

i just got an 8-bay battery charger with nimh AA's at 2600 mah. the thing is, they don't work. i was wondering if it was because they are 1.2v (rather than 1.5v) and the missing .3v spread out over 6 batteries is a substantial enough loss that it won't turn on. but, i thought there were people on here using rechargeable nimh's... any ideas?

[Dj Frantic]

I used some rechargeable duracels I got at cosco and they sucked big time. They last about 2 hours tops on full charge.

[Lopar-XL]

I use rechargable batteries in my SP-404 all the time and they work well enough at least. Duracell batteries have to be charged twice in a row first before they work. I'd stay way from Digital Concepts', as they apparently don't hold their charge very long in the SP and aren't compatible with those quick chargers (Duracell ones, at least).

[vivi pedraglio]

i use rechargable batteries sanyo and sony, work perfectly in my sp-404 and my micro-br too.

[koala form]

i dont understand the allure of using batteries.

[Lopar-XL]

I don't know about you, but I don't like being tethered to an electrical outlet.

[John P]

one word: ENELOOP.... the best rechargeable batteries out there.

[koala form]

idk, to me it seems normal to be 'tied down'. For the most part every instrument in a band is plugged into a wall, or stationary to some degree.

[Lopar-XL]

That's cool. Whatever works for you. I just really dig the portability of the 404. I'm sorry if my comment there was flippant.

one word: ENELOOP.... the best rechargeable batteries out there.

I'll look into that.

[buttons]

thanks, i will check out the eneloops. i double charged mine and no luck. for me, portability is really liberating. for instance, i am flying across the country soon and 5+ hours on a plane is begging for some sampling...

[Lopar-XL]

There will probably be many interesting sounds on the plane, but I doubt the crew will allow you to sample, though.

[UnCL0NED]

Hey, I'm new to this forum: It's great, some handy tips I've tried already. I hereby like to submit some tips from my side:

I had exactly the same problem when I got my SP404 and bought a pack of rechargable AA batteries. But what I found out is that the 404 only accepts "L6" and "LR6" batteries. I had bought "LH6". It's mentioned in very small letters in the bottom! I never had any problems with electrical equipement before, but it apparently does make a difference with the SP 404. Now I'm a happy travelling SP user
I hope this helps!

UnCL0NED

[PHeMoX]

Welcome to the forums UnCloned, and thanks, we appreciate every little tip here.

[Jim Y]

I don't think it's the lower voltage - alkalines are not much higher after some use but the 404 still works.
You only need 1 bad cell of the 6 to stop the job. If you have a multimeter you can check each cell while in the 404 and it's switched on. A test of each cells voltage isn't worth doing unless it's under load, a bad cell can test ok when it's not doing anything and that can fool a charger into thinking it's ok & done.

Jim

[Yatmandu]

one word: ENELOOP.... the best rechargeable batteries out there.

Sanyo ENELOOP's are the best. They don't lose their charge as fast when not in use. Regular NiMH's leak charge every day when not being used. Eneloops are a slightly different battery technology than regular NiMH's, and I think some other brands are now starting to adopt this.