Once, a long long LONG time ago, I worked all summer picking range at the golf course and when I was done I had saved enough money to buy a Kraft built Tower 6 channel with 5 servos. Somewhere around 89-90 my wife bought me a JR 6 channel radio for christmas as I had found a kit of the first successful plane I had, an Andrews Big H-Ray on a half price table, that was already half price, and thought I might start flying RC again. I was flying CL at the time. Several years later, and two children, I was tired of wiring planes up to match so that I could fly them with one transmitter and so as a cash strapped young father I did what anyone would do and sold Plasma, twice a week, for quite some time till I saved up about 400 dollars, the price for either an Ace Micropro or a JR 388. I remember picking the kids up from daycare and driving down south to the only hobby shop I knew of in Oak Park mall (kc guys will know) taking them and a wad of money in and the sales clerk just spewing about the wonders of the Micropro, which had servos that pretty much matched the ones I started with 15 plus years ago, that you had to buy extra as well as receivers that was only a little more then what I had while blocking out the sign that said, JR 388's on sale now! for about 350. My 6 channel would work as a trainer box with the 388. I bought it. When I got home I found in the mail a check for my birthday from my parents and one from my inlaws, in all I had about 150 bucks extra. WOWIEE I had a new computer transmitter, money enough for a whole new plane or a good engine?? Sure, I know exactly where the veins in my arms are and can guide the nurse the the sweet spot UNDER the scar on my right arm (nobody uses my left arm, noboby! them veins is flat) but it was worth it!
And now I show you a radio 10 times more powerful then what I paid for in Blood Money for 50 bucks (about 5 donations). The radios I fly with today share the same features and the only reason that they cost as much as they did was I bought it last year. If I was in the market for a new radio this year, the cost of that radio would be 50 bucks. I'm not a pattern pilot, though I have flown pattern. I'm not a race pilot, though I certainly have flown my share of races and even one a couple. I'm not a Sailplane pilot, though I have been seen on the cliffs of Wilson State lake for the Midwest Slope Championships. I am not a combat pilot, though really I am, I'm just in hiatus. I am a decent sport pilot with a bunch of practice under my belt, and a little rust because my golden years are about 10 years in the future so I spend most of them now babysitting. The big folks in the hobbies with the advanced skill sets wouldn't fly the transmitters that Josh or I or 90% of the hobby would use because they're sponsors wouldn't put up with it. And while a 12 channel system may be necessary with some specialized setups. I have to have a couple bomb drops along with separate flaps and ailerons to use all the channels I generally do. I don't have anything with retracts on it right now and half the time I have flaps it's actually flaperons. So I use 5 maybe 6 channels.
The ONLY reason I spent 3-400 dollars on a system ever was to store model memories so that I could have one transmitter and a bunch of different models/receivers. Memory is cheap. Why the heck are we having to pay soooo much for the ability to access it?
So, some high level scale or pattern guy has a 1200 dollar 12 channel platinum cased transmitter. Well I know guys that drive porches and I always ask them the same thing. "Where do you put the rototiller?" I drive a much cheaper Ford F150. Buy a good system that has the features you need that is compatible with the equipment you may already have or at least compatible with as much as you want and pay as little as possible for it. You can trick out this new transmitter with everything it can be tricked out with and still have money left over for a wonderful vacation to
Lucas, Kansas and the Garden of Eden. Or you can buy a high dollar name brand transmitter that will do the same thing. They are all good, quality systems. Some of them however just got caught raping their customers. Their equipment was probably made across the street if not in the same factory as this system was. They've just been charging 10 times more for it and sponsoring a bunch of show teams with the difference.
It's your blood, errr, money.