IIRC this is even a loading screen hint, but just in case anyone missed it (or is interested in the actual ratio), I decided to quickly test it.

Zonai Charges Capsules Ratio
1 small 1 1 : 1
2 small 3 1 : 1.5
3 small 5 1: 1.6
4 small 8 1 : 2
5 small 12 1 : 2.4
1 big 10 1 : 10
2 big 22 1 : 11
3 big 34 1 : 11.3
4 big 47 1 : 11.75
5 big 60 1 : 12

Conclusion: if you find a Zonai Device Dispenser with stuff you really like, feed it 5x Big Zonai Charges at once for maximum payout. The smaller Zonai Charges are best kept for other stuff, like checking what exactly a newly discovered dispenser spits out or refilling your battery in a pinch.

EDIT / ADDITION:

If you mix-and-match, you get the following output in capsules:

Zonai Charges 0 small 1 small 2 small 3 small 4 small 5 small
0 big 0 1 3 5 8 12
1 big 10 12 14 17 21
2 big 22 24 27 31
3 big 34 37 40
4 big 47 50
5 big 60

The blank squares are impossible as you can only put 5 items at once into the dispenser.

The Ratio:

1:X Ratio 0 small 1 small 2 small 3 small 4 small 5 small
0 big 1 1.5 1.6 2 2.4
1 big 10 6 4.6 4.25 4.2
2 big 11 8 6.75 6.2
3 big 11.3 9.25 8
4 big 11.75 10
5 big 12

What about Construct Horns?

These are always a 1:1 deal. Even if you put 5x Captain Construct IV Horns into the Device Dispenser at once, will you get 5x capsules in return.

  • _TheThunderWolf_@lemm.ee
    2·
    1 year ago

    What about construct horns? How efficient are those? What if you mix? Is there a calculation to this? So many questions about this.

    • Wolf Link 🐺@lemmy.worldOPM
      1·
      1 year ago

      The few times I’ve used Construct Horns weren’t worth it (5 horns = 5 capsules, no multiplier), so I never bothered again … but that was early in the first playthrough, with the “low grade” Construct Horns, so I’m just going to run a few new tests ;) Thanks for the question! Answer will be provided soon.

      EDIT: 2 new tables in the main post with the new results. ;)