Guidance with first quad build

[LeoAlexus]

Hi all!

I'm totally new to custom RC, but have been following the FliteTest youtube for a little while.

I started flying one of these small hex's earlier this year mostly indoors, then moved onto flying this ready to fly quad, which I have had tons of fun with.

After seeing some of the 250 size quads I started doing some research. While I'd love to jump right into FPV, I totally cant afford to. Which I figured was a good reason to go slow and start from basics.

So to start with I'm just going to get the essentials, I'll probably even have a go at a DIY frame (as inspired by the toolbox) to keep costs down.

So here is my list so far, I've found I'm also limited by what I can buy here in the UK, as most sites are from overseas.

Emax Simonk Series 12A ESC
Sunnysky X2204S X2204 2300KV
Naze32 Flight controller
Battery and props seem less important at this stage...

The one thing I reaaaally need advice on is the transmitter/receiver. Lots of people post their builds but not their transmitters.
There are a couple that seem to be regarded as decent for beginners and also are available around here:
FlySky FS-TH9XB
or
Spektrum DX6i
Probably leaning towards the dx6i as it seems a newer model, what do you think?

Also the receiver for the actual quad I presume must be compatible with the type of transmitter. Are there any up or down sides to these? Other than number of channels?

Thanks for any help!

 

[joshuabardwell]

Setting aside the technical merits of the receivers, one of the main things I would consider is cost. If you can buy a receiver for $20, you are going to be in a much different situation than if you can buy a receiver for $80. This is one main reason why I am not a fan of the Spektrum gear--the receivers are so expensive. I love being able to spend $20 and put a receiver in every one of my planes/quads, instead of having to swap one out all the time.

I like the FrSky system personally. The RF protocol used by FrSky is on par with the best on the market in terms of range, resistance to interference, etc... The telemetry system gives a warning if you have low RSSI. Even if you don't have a telemetry-capable transmitter, the module will chirp at you, so that's nice. The receivers are cheap, and there is a wide variety of them for different needs.

You are correct that the receiver and transmitter must speak the same protocol. If you buy a transmitter that has a JR module bay in the back, then you can put a different module in it and switch protocols as you like. This has some benefits. For example, you could put cheap FrSky receivers in your scratch-built models, but get a DSM module for Bind-N-Fly micro planes that you fly indoors.

If you have the $90 budget for that FlySky transmitter, then I would highly suggest getting a 9xr Pro instead, with a FrSky module (or any other protocol you prefer). The OpenTX firmware that the 9xr runs is amazing. You can upgrade the FlySky transmitter to OpenTX, but for about the same price, you can have it done for you out of the box with the 9xr Pro.

 

[joshuabardwell]

PS: Don't get FrSky and FlySky mixed up. They are NOT the same.

 

[LeoAlexus]

Really appreciate the advice, the 9xr does seem like a good choice (even if it does look horrible). I cant see many differences between the 9xr and the 9xr pro. You'd recommend the pro?

 

[joshuabardwell]

I believe the Pro adds voice alerts, haptic feedback, and SD card. Up to you whether that is worth it. I have a Taranis and voice alerts are very nice, especially if you have telemetry. My Taranis is set up so that when pack voltage gets below 11 volts, it starts reading it off to me every 20 seconds (e.g. it says, "A1 ten point seven volts").

 

[LeoAlexus]

I went for the pro going to hook it up to a sim and practice when it arrives, while I design the rest of the thing...
Cheers