Issues with forum colors (particularly DVA)?

[dobralov]

Hello fellow US-lovers,

Just wondering if anyone has encountered an issue with forum colors when ordering a staff.

I ordered two apprentice v4s in dark violet amethyst (DVA). One has premium v4 sound, one is a stunt. BOTH have lithium-ion and both were fully charged at time of testing.

The stunt saber looks great, especially in UE. The saber with sound, however, is noticeably more pink. Closer to violet amethyst. I would post pics, but I've already sent the sabers back to US for repair. I'm wondering if this is why they're "forum colors" and not standard offerings, or if deviation is just expected in general. Maybe I just sound like an anal jerkwad, but I ordered twin DVA because the idea of a DVA staff sounded sweet. Half DVA/Half pinkish awful is decidedly UNsweet.

This is my second attempt to resolve this issue and I do admit to feeling some frustration, even though US and Marlena have been communicative and willing to work with me to resolve the issue (thank you!). Should I just abandon the twin DVA idea and switch to tri-cree Guardian Blue? I could be down with that...

[scifidude79]

There could be a few issues that would cause this.  The simplest would be different resistors on the red LEDs to make the purple color.  I've heard you can get variations in mixed colors depending on who is building the sabers.  Also, keep in mind that the power levels coming off of the board could be different from the ones coming off of a battery pack.  Do they both have buck pucks or does the stunt have a resistor?  That could make a difference too.

[dobralov]

I ordered the Buckpucks on both, though I *did* have an issue where they forgot to install the li-ion setup on my stunt, which I sent back. So stunt sabers and Premium Obs sabers can run different colors? If so, that's pretty darn irritating. I specifically paid for the Li-ion upgrade to my DVA stunt saber to avoid the battery-depletion issue.

[Darth Logos]

I ordered the Buckpucks on both, though I *did* have an issue where they forgot to install the li-ion setup on my stunt, which I sent back. So stunt sabers and Premium Obs sabers can run different colors? If so, that's pretty darn irritating. I specifically paid for the Li-ion upgrade to my DVA stunt saber to avoid the battery-depletion issue.

If I remember hearing correctly, Forum colors are a little tricky to match, or something to that effect. They do their best to match during assembly. But I'm not sure if the power system has an effect on how the color mix is achieved. If the stunt was setup with std power instead of Li-ion, this may account for the color difference after the power issue was resolved.

More than likely the power drain will be significantly greater on the saber with saber, but the Buckpuck will ensure that the light and sound don't fade as power drops. From my experience, when there isn't enough power left the saber just shuts off. With std set-up stunts, the light just steadily dims as power. But the only sabers I have with Buckpucks all have sound.

Hope this helps.

[dobralov]

If I remember hearing correctly, Forum colors are a little tricky to match, or something to that effect. They do their best to match during assembly. But I'm not sure if the power system has an effect on how the color mix is achieved. If the stunt was setup with std power instead of Li-ion, this may account for the color difference after the power issue was resolved.

More than likely the power drain will be significantly greater on the saber with saber, but the Buckpuck will ensure that the light and sound don't fade as power drops. From my experience, when there isn't enough power left the saber just shuts off. With std set-up stunts, the light just steadily dims as power. But the only sabers I have with Buckpucks all have sound.

Hope this helps.

Yes, which is precisely why I chose Li-Ion Buckpucks for both - to avoid the fading color issue and general annoyance of battery replacement. I've tried standard setups before and that came to a quick end.

I mean, if there's a detectable saber-to-saber variance with forum colors, it would be nice to see such a warning on the saberstaff-ordering page, or in the forum post about how to order them (http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=4475.0). It's a noticeable, drastic difference between the two. The definition of DVA might be subjective, but one should be able to order a staff knowing they will match each other.

As I said, they're working on it for me, though if there's variance, I'd love to see some updates happen in the store, the forum, or both. Not just for my sake, but for other customers and for less headaches for US.

[Darth Logos]

Yes, which is precisely why I chose Li-Ion Buckpucks for both - to avoid the fading color issue and general annoyance of battery replacement. I've tried standard setups before and that came to a quick end.

As I said, I don't have experience with Buckpucks w/o sound, unless muting a Obs V4 puts the same draw on the batts. With sound and single LED, I've had roughly 30min of continuous use before the power dies. That is full brightness and full volume. But it's also a red LED. From what I know of physics, red light has a longer wavelength and has less energy. I'm not sure if this has any significant effect on power consumption. You are running 2 LEDs, and the dominant color is blue.

I mean, if there's a detectable saber-to-saber variance with forum colors, it would be nice to see such a warning on the saberstaff-ordering page, or in the forum post about how to order them (http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=4475.0). It's a noticeable, drastic difference between the two. The definition of DVA might be subjective, but one should be able to order a staff knowing they will match each other.

That's what I mean. The difference in initial power setup may have caused the MLS to be setup to match, but the std power was a mistake that was later corrected.

Another possibility is that the difference between power draws between the sound and no sound sabers is enough to cause different voltages to reach the MLS.
I'm not well versed in low voltage electronics, and only speculating, but I know enough science to know that sometimes very small variables can have drastically different outcomes.

As I said, they're working on it for me, though if there's variance, I'd love to see some updates happen in the store, the forum, or both. Not just for my sake, but for other customers and for less headaches for US.

One advantage of a forum like this is they have a direct line to getting our feed back. But they can't just change on a dime.

Did you send both sabers in, or just the one? Having both should help them get a good match.

[dobralov]

Did you send both sabers in, or just the one? Having both should help them get a good match.

I sent both in, just recently a second time. The first time was necessary to replace the standard battery on the stunt with a lithium-ion (they missed that detail but paid shipping for my trouble). The color was off then, too, but I had assumed it was related to the difference in battery types. They sent it back with the proper batteries, but the colors still did not match after full charge, so I sent them both back today.

Maybe people don't order saber-staffs in forum colors all that much, or maybe they don't order stunt sabers with Buckpuck, so we're breaking new ground? If so, I'm glad we're finding ways to expand the knowledge and make the experience better for everyone. As I said, US has so far been great, just curious about others's experiences with twin-forum-color orders.

[Dauntless Seven]

Maybe people don't order saber-staffs in forum colors all that much, or maybe they don't order stunt sabers with Buckpuck, so we're breaking new ground? If so, I'm glad we're finding ways to expand the knowledge and make the experience better for everyone. As I said, US has so far been great, just curious about others's experiences with twin-forum-color orders.

Hi.  Actually quite a few members purchase stunt and sound staffs.  I have three dedicated ones but order with different colored blades.  The best way to get the closest color duplicate is to purchase the two sabers as a staff and request in the comments section that the builder get the color hue to match as close as possible.  This can be tricky for the blended colors as it is in the eye of the maker.  Of course an Emerald driver will fix this.  But I too would like to see a standard go to recipe/instructions as a starting point for blending the mixes.  Then the Li-Ion batteries and buck puck can do their job by generally maintaining the color and brightness.  

[scifidude79]

I ordered a Sentinel Yellow staff last year and both sabers matched really well.  However, both are also V2s, so they're stunts with the standard battery setup.

I don't know why there's not a set resistor formula for each color, it seems like there's too much guesswork involved in mixed colors.  I'd say the resistor on the red LED in the sound saber is your most likely culprit.  Either they used two different formulas in the DVA modules, or the resistor in that saber went bad.  Since you have them in for repairs, why not send them an e-mail and ask them to check the colors and see if there's something wrong and if they can get them closer?  That's what I would do.

[Darth Logos]

Hmmm.....maybe some colors offer greater match challenges. I ordered the halves of my Menace staff almost 2yrs apart, but the BH was a perfect match.

[dobralov]

Since you have them in for repairs, why not send them an e-mail and ask them to check the colors and see if there's something wrong and if they can get them closer?  That's what I would do.

THat's precisely what I did . I showed the sabers to some family members, who also observed the difference without me pointing it out, so at least I know I"m not losing my mind. Yet. I'm not...exactly...sure... how any tech could look at those two sabers and reasonably claim they're close.

It would be ironic if they had a color-blind tech just trying to do the best he or she can, though, heh.

[Darth Logos]

THat's precisely what I did . I showed the sabers to some family members, who also observed the difference without me pointing it out, so at least I know I"m not losing my mind. Yet. I'm not...exactly...sure... how any tech could look at those two sabers and reasonably claim they're close.

It would be ironic if they had a color-blind tech just trying to do the best he or she can, though, heh.

For the same reason when I order the second Menace half with a Dark Ini V4 in HP, and the got the colors swapped. Or when I got my Dark Arbiter, the Covertec was in the wrong position. Think about how many sabers they produce in one year. Mistakes are bound to occur once in a while. It just always sucks when they happen on our individual orders.

[scifidude79]

THat's precisely what I did . I showed the sabers to some family members, who also observed the difference without me pointing it out, so at least I know I"m not losing my mind. Yet. I'm not...exactly...sure... how any tech could look at those two sabers and reasonably claim they're close.

It would be ironic if they had a color-blind tech just trying to do the best he or she can, though, heh.

As far as I know, they would just need to put matching resistors on to get the same color.  With the buck puck, the power coming from the board/battery should be consistent on both sabers.  Matching resistors isn't exactly a challenge, they've got bands on them that are coded to show their value.  A colorblind tech wouldn't work due to the fact that you have to match wire colors when wiring sabers.  (I know, you were kidding)  The bands on resistors are also color coded.

[dobralov]

Update:

According to Marlena, the saber with the Obsidian sound pulls power from the Li-Ion setup differently than the stunt saber; therefore, it is impossible to match the colors. Bless their hearts, they spent two hours trying.

What I'm still not sure about is whether this is an issue with ALL colors, or just the DVA I had selected. I'm considering switching to Tri-cree GB, but am concerned about the color-match. As I stated earlier, the difference between the two was striking.

They've gone silent - I think they're preparing for a Con, but can anyone relate their experience with color-matching a stunt and a Obsidian saber? Are some colors harder to match than others?

[Darth Logos]

Update:

According to Marlena, the saber with the Obsidian sound pulls power from the Li-Ion setup differently than the stunt saber; therefore, it is impossible to match the colors. Bless their hearts, they spent two hours trying.

What I'm still not sure about is whether this is an issue with ALL colors, or just the DVA I had selected. I'm considering switching to Tri-cree GB, but am concerned about the color-match. As I stated earlier, the difference between the two was striking.

They've gone silent - I think they're preparing for a Con, but can anyone relate their experience with color-matching a stunt and a Obsidian saber? Are some colors harder to match than others?

Perhaps you should just spring for the added sound. I can definitely tell you it adds serious effect hearing 2 blades come on in staggered succession, as well as "whooshing" when twirling.