OrderlyHippo

New member
Hi there! I'm new to this and have never posted on any forums before so... have mercy!
I've never flown or built an fpv quad or any rc things before. I'm dying to do it though! And determined to do so.

I'm building an fpv race quad, for the first time, following this guide:

I'm using the "upgraded parts" as listed in the video description.

This is the build vid that goes in to detail on piecing the parts together:

NOW FOR MY ACTUAL ISSUE:

My radio inputs don't seem to be reaching the flight controller or the ESC. When I connect the battery I get the initial na na na ... naaa naaa and it won't arm. The radio is paired successfully with the receiver it shipped with. In Cleanflight the radio inputs aren't showing up in the Receiver tab but the motors do work using the Motor's tab. I configured everything in Cleanflight the same way it is in the vid, though the guy in the vid used Betaflight. I even checked the manuals for my parts to make sure the settings were right and I'm pretty sure they are. My receiver is soldered to the flight controller via the UART 3 port. I tested it on UART 2 and it didn't work there either (yes i had serial Rx turned on for UART 2 when I did this). The FC is connected to the ESC's motor solder spot things in the correct order (like in the vid).
I'm really stumped and could use some help. This issue is making me loose interest in finishing the build... Any suggestions are very much appreciated!!!
Thank you!!!!!!!
 

FDS

Elite member
You can check this by plugging in a battery. Some receivers don’t power on when just the USB is connected.
Use a smoke stopper when you try a battery for the first time.
I would also re check that the receiver is bound to the transmitter, regardless of wether it was factory done or not.
 

OrderlyHippo

New member
You can check this by plugging in a battery. Some receivers don’t power on when just the USB is connected.
Use a smoke stopper when you try a battery for the first time.
I would also re check that the receiver is bound to the transmitter, regardless of wether it was factory done or not.

When I try to see the radio inputs in Cleanflight I always have the quad connected to the battery and the pc via usb. The receiver is powered only by the battery. The radio inputs still don't show up...
 

ElectriSean

Eternal Student
Mentor
The FS-iA6 isn't a serial receiver, it is PWM only unfortunately. You need a FS-iA6b or similar with ibus or CPPM output.
 
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FDS

Elite member
That receiver isn’t designed for quads, some FC’s do support PWM but you introduce a lot more latency doing that vs an Ibus receiver, which will also be much smaller. See comment above. This receiver on Banggood might be a good alternative, it does Flysky/ibus and FRsky Sbus. There’s also a smaller Turnigy receiver that is Sbus and cheap that should work well.
On the bright side it would work great in a plane so you can build one of those too!
 
Last edited:

OrderlyHippo

New member
The FS-iA6 isn't a serial receiver, it is PWM only unfortunately. You need a FS-iA6b or similar with ibus or CPPM output.
That receiver isn’t designed for quads, some FC’s do support PWM but you introduce a lot more latency doing that vs an Ibus receiver, which will also be much smaller. See comment above. This receiver on Banggood might be a good alternative, it does Flysky/ibus and FRsky Sbus. There’s also a smaller Turnigy receiver that is Sbus and cheap that should work well.
On the bright side it would work great in a plane so you can build one of those too!

Thank you guys so much! I never would have figured that out on my own.
 
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OrderlyHippo

New member
That receiver isn’t designed for quads, some FC’s do support PWM but you introduce a lot more latency doing that vs an Ibus receiver, which will also be much smaller. See comment above. This receiver on Banggood might be a good alternative, it does Flysky/ibus and FRsky Sbus. There’s also a smaller Turnigy receiver that is Sbus and cheap that should work well.
On the bright side it would work great in a plane so you can build one of those too!

My radio only does iBus not sBus. Could I still use that Turnigy receiver with my radio?
 

FDS

Elite member
Yes. It’s ibus compatible, Turnigy and Flysky are the same products with different branding, just check the transmitter you have uses AFHDS 2 not just AFHDS.
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