this is why I'm asking for more info...
I do a good amount of night flying..
My Son's Bixler runs a 3 cell 2200 Lipo, and there is NO noticeable difference in power (or in flight time) with lights on or lights off.
Everything in the airplane (including the LEDs) are powered by the same Lipo.
the biggest difference I can see between the OP's setup and mine is that mine has no controller or regulator, the LED's are wired directly into the ESC (I tap power off the ESC from the wires connecting the battery to the ESC)
You can see from the pic's, they are BRIGHT.
I'm thinking either:
1) the OP's battery isn't up to the task
2) the battery wasn't fully charged
3) the LED's he is using have a HIGH forward voltage requirement (they need a lot of volts to light up)
4) the controller itself requires high voltage
count me among the 'not an electrical engineer' types, but I have have a fair amount of practical experience...
pics:
