new to FPV

[johnreto]

Then how would you describe how they are to props?

Any structure made of metal will be grounded. This will make it so it acts as an antenna with a higher gain due to its size and will absorb the signals before they reach your fpv gear if you put it between you and your craft. Light poles that use high current AC (stadium/field lighting) will have a magnetic field around the areas where that high current flows. That can scramble or reflect radio signals. They also usually have huge metal reflectors that are grounded and they will be like antennas and absorb radio signal and sink them to ground. Expect the signal loss in certain areas and it becomes a minor issue if you know when you power loop that light fixture you lose signal at this angle for a brief second and just power thru the maneuver like normal most times you will be fine. Just know your gear and that only comes from continual use under varying situations.

Most of the FPV things you need to know are common sense once you understand how it all works. There are simple things you can do to avoid most of it. First off is to look at and PAY ATTENTION to your surroundings before you fly. That means putting away your cell phone and any other distractions that are not involved with flying your craft. Flying should be your ONLY focus when you are in the air. Second is to not just toss your craft in the air and see how far you can go. Start close and slow and work your way outwards.

If you fly the same place for practice you will learn over time what areas to avoid and these checks won't need to be done all the time. If you are flying a new area you should be starting your session every time like this. Also do NOT go by "My buddy flys here all the time with no issues" mentality. Each piece of gear is just a tiny bit different and will act in different ways to various things. Just be smarter then the gear you are using and make sure you know its quirks and limitations.

After that the flying becomes seriously fun because you can relax and trust your gear. If you do not trust your gear then you should not be flying in that place or at the very least adjust what you are doing so you can trust your gear. Simple things like an antenna change or a channel change can make far more difference then just cranking up the power.

good thing we dont have that many light poles (none) where i plan to fly hehe. Mostly just BIG vast grassy fields.

interestingly enough i'm pretty much one of the only rc/fpv flyers here, just one other guy
here that flys (he's got 20+ planes in the cellar ) but doesnt fly fpv, so have to make my own experience there.
most of the time i fly at the same place.

which antennaes give the best and farthest reception?

when i receive the gear i'll have to figure out how to change the channels

thnx

 

[sprzout]

which antennaes give the best and farthest reception?


thnx

Unfortunately, this is something of a loaded question. Certain antennas give better reception in certain situations.

I've got a set of TBS Triumph antennas, a set of the circular mushroom style antennas, and a set of dipole antennas.

The Triumph antennas are a covered cloverleaf style antenna, and work fairly well on most channels with my Fatshark Attitude v4's and my Spektrum VTX that came with my Blade Conspiracy. I get pretty good video range out to about 400-500' away with that combination, with a few quick breaks of video drop here and there in the course of flying (i.e., the antenna's rolling away from me in a turn, I pass around an object at 300 feet away and the picture goes to a very weak static signal and then comes back a split second later, that sort of thing).

The circular mushroom style antennas, I have discovered at certain locations, that I get a better signal with them - that is, no video drop up to the range limit - but I get less range. If I'm flying at small areas, say, the soccer field at the local park, I'm more likely to run with the mushroom style antennas for the better picture.

The dipole antenna that I have, I got that with my Quanum Cyclops headset - the very first headset I ever bought for FPV. The dipole is mediocre at best with my Blade Conspiracy, but oddly enough, I get a better signal using the dipole when flying my little Inductrix Pro with FPV around the house. The only thing I can guess at there is that 1) the dipole antenna is longer than the Triumph and the range is a little better, and 2) the antenna on the Inductrix Pro is a little wire, so it's a "like to like" type of antenna situation. That said, I'm not a fan of the dipole antenna; I only have it because it's a spare antenna for my Cyclops headset.

In addition, all of these tests are with ONE antenna, using the stock receiver module on the Fatshark Attitude V4 and the stock receiver on the Quanum Cyclops V2 headset. I don't have a diversity setup, like one might with a Laforge or True-D module for the Fatsharks, and that's supposed to make the signal better by having it trade off from a patch antenna and a circular or cloverleaf style antenna, switching between them to give you the best signal. I've never used a diversity setup, so I can't comment on quality of signal with diversity, but I'm sure someone like Psyborg can.

Lastly, I'm going to say that this is all from my OWN experience; your situations and your equipment may vary.

 

[johnreto]

I've got a set of TBS Triumph antennas, a set of the circular mushroom style antennas, and a set of dipole antennas.

Ok, sooo, if i understand correctly, the dipole antennaes (straight "rods") are usualy the stock ones that come with the gear.

The cloverleaf antennaes are either, like cloverleaves, or/and have a mushroom style top look.

And the triumph antennaes are also basicaly covered cloverleafs.

Are the cloverleaves similar or the same as spironet mushroom antennaes or totaly different (in pics they seem the same)?

For my dominator v3 i ordered spironet patch and mushroom antennae

https://www.banggood.com/ImmersionR...p-1187266.html?rmmds=myorder&cur_warehouse=HK

seemed like a good idea.

 

[sprzout]

Ok, sooo, if i understand correctly, the dipole antennaes (straight "rods") are usualy the stock ones that come with the gear.

The cloverleaf antennaes are either, like cloverleaves, or/and have a mushroom style top look.

And the triumph antennaes are also basicaly covered cloverleafs.

Are the cloverleaves similar or the same as spironet mushroom antennaes or totaly different (in pics they seem the same)?

For my dominator v3 i ordered spironet patch and mushroom antennae

https://www.banggood.com/ImmersionR...p-1187266.html?rmmds=myorder&cur_warehouse=HK

seemed like a good idea.

I think you'll be ok with what you ordered.

Here's some examples of the antennae; I ordered these and run them for the most part; they do a pretty good job for what I'd say is 90% of my flying locales:



The Mushroom style that I have are those ImmersionRC SpiroNET antennae that you purchased (minus the flat patch antenna, since I don't have diversity on my headsets). And the dipoles are the long, skinny "stock" antennae that you see most headsets coming with. Dipoles work, but I've found the signal strength to be inferior to the SpiroNET and TBS antennas for most applications.

Again, my own personal experiences, in my particular flying fields; you may experience something entirely different.

 

[PsyBorg]

I see this is getting into splitting hairs for each situation so lets clarify the over all picture here about FPV.

Lets start at the basics of gear. There are so many variants of antennas and transmitters and receivers out on the market. There is no one size fits all. FPV can not be cookie cuttered since every place we fly and even every day we fly is different. To understand this you have to understand how radio wave propagation works. This is part of the HAM test that is required to FPV over 25 mw that is rated by the F.C.C certifications in the United States. That 25 mw is tx power that does NOT equal radiated power which works out on average to about 5 mw depending on electronics quality and antenna accuracy. Even the clouds can effect how good the signal will be. Nailing this down to a specific brand or power or style that works in every scenario is impossible.

Power of your gear. Even if you have your technician class HAM licence that does not mean you can crank up the power and go fly. The use of power gets regulated down to only what is necessary for the situation. Which means you can not go into an indoor session and fire up a 2 watt tx just because you have the HAM and you have the gear. This is where knowing your gear comes into play so you can use it appropriately in any given situation.

Antennas.. Antennas can do a whole lot to change how your experience is. For example most micro style FPV systems use a dipole antenna. They use this mainly due to weight savings over a CP antenna. It also requires less power to put out a stronger radiated signal but is highly subjected to reflections. The use of CP antennas comes into play as they radiate in a swirling pattern where reflections are less likely to cross at the receiver and cancel itself or amplify itself. They take more power to push a radiated signal but that signal is cleaner due to how it propagates as a less likely to be canceled by reflections.

Risk... Every time you fly you take a risk of failure or degraded signal. This is where the whole debate over FPV comes in to play. Choosing the gear for each situation is key and that comes from education, experience and familiarity with where you fly. The farther out you fly the higher that risk becomes for failure.

Personally I don't see the need for long range anything simply for that fact. That said I manage my system for closer range flight. AKA LOS range (lawful flight). There is no one I have come across where I live that is remotely interested in FPV flight other then the "Oh that's cool" factor so I end up flying alone 90% of the time. For me I have tried the expensive antennas as well as the simple freebie dipoles. The combination's that work best for me where I am have been simple (accurately tuned) dipole antennas on the VTX and the freebie dipole antenna and an Aomway CP antenna to take up any slack when inverted or at weird angles. For my Gremlin 50 mw is plenty of power to cover any distance I want to fly where I have to walk to recover a crash. For my race and freestyle quads I use the same antenna set up and 200 mw (ONLY because the power settings available are 25, 200, and 600 mw) I would easily use a lower power if it were available in a more robust tx package then is currently in the market.

So to sum it all up.. there is no one size fits all there are general set ups that have a nice average effectiveness. You will have to find that for your self and what works best where you fly. It is best to see what people who fly in your area use and not just jump on the for example "Mr. Steele uses this" bandwagon as that may not be the best for where you are but it has a high average effectiveness in general. For me my best set ups have been the VTX 03 for my Gremlin and you can look at my crappy yt page and see how many different set ups I went thru to find that combo. For my larger quads more subject to harder crashes and the need for better reliability I found that the PandoRC pro VTX and a dipole antenna have been best. I have adapters on the way so I can try newer CP antennas like the Axii stubbies but I know when I use my current set up I have plenty of distance and incredible signal reliability.

 

[sprzout]

I see this is getting into splitting hairs for each situation so lets clarify the over all picture here about FPV.

Lets start at the basics of gear. There are so many variants of antennas and transmitters and receivers out on the market. There is no one size fits all. FPV can not be cookie cuttered since every place we fly and even every day we fly is different. To understand this you have to understand how radio wave propagation works. This is part of the HAM test that is required to FPV over 25 mw that is rated by the F.C.C certifications in the United States. That 25 mw is tx power that does NOT equal radiated power which works out on average to about 5 mw depending on electronics quality and antenna accuracy. Even the clouds can effect how good the signal will be. Nailing this down to a specific brand or power or style that works in every scenario is impossible.

Power of your gear. Even if you have your technician class HAM licence that does not mean you can crank up the power and go fly. The use of power gets regulated down to only what is necessary for the situation. Which means you can not go into an indoor session and fire up a 2 watt tx just because you have the HAM and you have the gear. This is where knowing your gear comes into play so you can use it appropriately in any given situation.

Antennas.. Antennas can do a whole lot to change how your experience is. For example most micro style FPV systems use a dipole antenna. They use this mainly due to weight savings over a CP antenna. It also requires less power to put out a stronger radiated signal but is highly subjected to reflections. The use of CP antennas comes into play as they radiate in a swirling pattern where reflections are less likely to cross at the receiver and cancel itself or amplify itself. They take more power to push a radiated signal but that signal is cleaner due to how it propagates as a less likely to be canceled by reflections.

Risk... Every time you fly you take a risk of failure or degraded signal. This is where the whole debate over FPV comes in to play. Choosing the gear for each situation is key and that comes from education, experience and familiarity with where you fly. The farther out you fly the higher that risk becomes for failure.

Personally I don't see the need for long range anything simply for that fact. That said I manage my system for closer range flight. AKA LOS range (lawful flight). There is no one I have come across where I live that is remotely interested in FPV flight other then the "Oh that's cool" factor so I end up flying alone 90% of the time. For me I have tried the expensive antennas as well as the simple freebie dipoles. The combination's that work best for me where I am have been simple (accurately tuned) dipole antennas on the VTX and the freebie dipole antenna and an Aomway CP antenna to take up any slack when inverted or at weird angles. For my Gremlin 50 mw is plenty of power to cover any distance I want to fly where I have to walk to recover a crash. For my race and freestyle quads I use the same antenna set up and 200 mw (ONLY because the power settings available are 25, 200, and 600 mw) I would easily use a lower power if it were available in a more robust tx package then is currently in the market.

So to sum it all up.. there is no one size fits all there are general set ups that have a nice average effectiveness. You will have to find that for your self and what works best where you fly. It is best to see what people who fly in your area use and not just jump on the for example "Mr. Steele uses this" bandwagon as that may not be the best for where you are but it has a high average effectiveness in general. For me my best set ups have been the VTX 03 for my Gremlin and you can look at my crappy yt page and see how many different set ups I went thru to find that combo. For my larger quads more subject to harder crashes and the need for better reliability I found that the PandoRC pro VTX and a dipole antenna have been best. I have adapters on the way so I can try newer CP antennas like the Axii stubbies but I know when I use my current set up I have plenty of distance and incredible signal reliability.

That's saying it pretty succinctly. I know what works FOR ME, in the 3-4 different flying areas I fly at, with MY equipment (I wouldn't mind replacing my VTX with a selectable wattage VTX, but I'm not sure what would necessarily fit/connect in easily in my Conspiracy, and I don't want to solder something new in - besides, what I have works, and until it doesn't, I don't see a need to replace it LOL)

I know I'm saying a VERY, VERY basic idea of what Psy just said - he's speaking more to the higher technical side. Ultimately, as he said, it really varies depending on what you fly, how you fly, and where you fly. Certain antennas and power levels work better in certain situations, and I'll agree 110% with flying within LOS (line of sight) even if you're flying FPV. I've never understood why people have to try and see how far away they can fly their vehicles; if it gets so far away that you can't see it and you lose control, how do you know where it went down? How do you recover it?

But that's a discussion for a different day, so I'll try not to get to the politically ugly side of FPV flight and just say that Psy's got it spot on. Go out and enjoy your flights, and keep it within range, because the biggest thing to remember - if your aircraft goes down somewhere, you'll have to make the hike to recover it or consider it lost.

 

[johnreto]

allrighty

lots of infos and tips here. Looks like i'll be waitin for my gear and when i get it, just try it out a bit.
Def flying LOS, but i think i'm not the only one whos curious to see how far it can go hehe
but i think i'll do that on the ground.

thanks for all the tips n advice guys. i'll let ya know how things work out when i get to take-off