Basic transmitter and receiver on a budget?

[Glo]

I am pricing out a build and I am not sure on what direction I want to go with it exactly, but I do know I don't want to put too much money into my first build.
I have noticed out of most of the parts I have browsed, the transmitter and receiver seem to be about the priciest. Does anyone know where a decent option is on a budget? What about some sort of "all-in-one" deal where you don't have to buy additional parts?

I wasn't really thinking about building a quad, but when my wife's laptop cooler went out and she was about to throw it away I noticed it looked kind of like a quadcopter frame lol.

I took the old fans out, glued some little wooden sticks to support the arms and added some dots of glue here and there. Now it really does look like a suitable frame and is strong, but just a little flexible.

It measures out to be a 250 size exactly if the motors end up mounted on the ends of the arms. It is 2cm tall, 17 1/2 cm long, 20 1/2 cm wide and weighs only 70 grams like it is. (A side question: Does it matter that the arms are a little wider than the whole thing is long?)

I am thinking about using a CC3D Openpilot FC, not sure on motors yet and of course the ESC's will depend on what motors I end up with.

I just need to find a decent transmitter and receiver (combo with everything needed hopefully to keep things simple) that can get good range and not cost a lot of ca$h?
It don't need to be fancy, just your basic controls and if it gets 300-400 meters range I'll be happy as can be.
If there are not any cheap options I might try buying a cheap RTF quad and using all the parts from it for this build. After all this is just for the fun of it.

Thanks for any help!!

 

[GJH105775]

If you want a band-aid a this is very basic, cheap, full range system but I suggest it only if you are using a FC like the KK2.1.5. I have one and it has all of the features I need to have on the TX (reversing channels, but even that could be done on the KK).

 

[Glo]

Wow now that's cheap.

Lol, maybe I had sticker shock from seeing $100-200 transmitters that said they still needed additional equipment.

I noticed the KK2.1.5 you mentioned is cheap also. Is is stable? The only reason I was looking at the CC3D is I noticed a lot of people saying it is really stable (and they said it can support GPS if I decide to upgrade later).

 

[holtneil]

Hi mate the KK is stable with the right firmware but No gps can be added , the cc3d can be a pain to set up but there are loads of videos on you tube
As for transmitter what about a good second hand transmitter like the spektrum or Futaba loads on e bay Dx6I or DX7 if your lucky you may find a DX8
I was looking the other day and I found a DX18 lower than what I paid for my DX9 the DX18 is the mutts plums
or these are not bad
http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...10_Model_Memory_and_3_Pos_Switch_Mode_2_.html

 

[Jackson]

My pick.
http://www.banggood.com/FlySky-FS-i...ansmitter-With-FS-iA6B-Receiver-p-983537.html

That's the setup with the long range (1000M), PPM/SBus rx. It's a smaller form factor but feels good in the hand. Keep in mind that a TX from HobbyKing adds ~$8 for shipping.

I like the CC3D, there is a new software kid on the block.
http://www.librepilot.org/

With a forum that's getting some traction now.
https://forum.librepilot.org/index.php?board=2.0

One cool new feature is Easy Tune, where you can tweak your settings on the fly, using one of your pots.

 

[Glo]

My pick.
http://www.banggood.com/FlySky-FS-i...ansmitter-With-FS-iA6B-Receiver-p-983537.html

That's the setup with the long range (1000M), PPM/SBus rx. It's a smaller form factor but feels good in the hand. Keep in mind that a TX from HobbyKing adds ~$8 for shipping.

I like the CC3D, there is a new software kid on the block.
http://www.librepilot.org/

With a forum that's getting some traction now.
https://forum.librepilot.org/index.php?board=2.0

One cool new feature is Easy Tune, where you can tweak your settings on the fly, using one of your pots.

Question, my Flying 3D X8 has a transmitter that looks identical to that FS-i6 except it only has 2 switches on the top instead of 4 (SW A: 1,2,3 and SW B: 1,2,3). It also came with the binding plug. What would I need to make sure of first if I wanted to try using it? Would also be great if I could just get another receiver and use the same transmitter on either quad.

The switches control the flying modes on the Flying 3D (altitude hold, GPS hold, automatic orientation control, return to home, etc.)

It also has the "bind" button on the transmitter just like the FS-i6. The only difference I can see are the switches on top and the logos.

 

[GJH105775]

My pick.
http://www.banggood.com/FlySky-FS-i...ansmitter-With-FS-iA6B-Receiver-p-983537.html

That's the setup with the long range (1000M), PPM/SBus rx. It's a smaller form factor but feels good in the hand. Keep in mind that a TX from HobbyKing adds ~$8 for shipping.

I like the CC3D, there is a new software kid on the block.
http://www.librepilot.org/

With a forum that's getting some traction now.
https://forum.librepilot.org/index.php?board=2.0

One cool new feature is Easy Tune, where you can tweak your settings on the fly, using one of your pots.

Are you sure it is 1000m and not 300m (~1000 feet)? Most nice 300$ Futaba or Spektruim radios only get 300m without an upgrade.

 

[Glo]

Are you sure it is 1000m and not 300m (~1000 feet)? Most nice 300$ Futaba or Spektruim radios only get 300m without an upgrade.

It is possible it is 1000 meters if it really is pretty much the same Tx as mine. The Flying 3d x8 gets up to 1000 meters range (I have it limited to 500 meters in the firmware on the quad in case it tries to fly away on me. It is supposed to make it engage 'return to landing' if it goes out of the set range limit.)

In any case, 300 meters is fine with me. At the same time, I would assume 300-400 meters shouldn't be too much to ask for out of an affordable Tx.
My little Syma x8c with it's cheap toy-like Tx goes further than I even want to try. Just yesterday I flew it to the far edge of the field I like to fly in trying to test the range and still didn't loose signal. On google maps it says the edge from where I was standing is 424 meters. I only stopped there because I didn't want it to drop in the woods. Also there is a water treatment facility over that way with huge razor-wire secured fences that my luck it would land upside down just inside where I could see it, but not get to it.
It is all stock other than a SJ4000 cam. The manufacturer claims only 50 meters, but ask anyone who has one how far they can fly.

 

[GJH105775]

It is possible it is 1000 meters if it really is pretty much the same Tx as mine. The Flying 3d x8 gets up to 1000 meters range (I have it limited to 500 meters in the firmware on the quad in case it tries to fly away on me. It is supposed to make it engage 'return to landing' if it goes out of the set range limit.)

In any case, 300 meters is fine with me. At the same time, I would assume 300-400 meters shouldn't be too much to ask for out of an affordable Tx.
My little Syma x8c with it's cheap toy-like Tx goes further than I even want to try. Just yesterday I flew it to the far edge of the field I like to fly in trying to test the range and still didn't loose signal. On google maps it says the edge from where I was standing is 424 meters. I only stopped there because I didn't want it to drop in the woods. Also there is a water treatment facility over that way with huge razor-wire secured fences that my luck it would land upside down just inside where I could see it, but not get to it.
It is all stock other than a SJ4000 cam. The manufacturer claims only 50 meters, but ask anyone who has one how far they can fly.

If you are flying LOS you will loose the thing before you get to 300, if you are flying FPV then the longer the better. If you have a reasonable budget I'd suggest getting a Spectruim DX7, Dx8, or Turnigy 9XrPro. Those are nice radios that retain their value pretty well and will last you as long as you are in the hobby.

 

[Glo]

Thanks, yeah LOS is about 300 meters max for me. I can see it further, but it's just a dot. In the Army we only shot targets as far as 300 meters without a scope because that's about as far as you can see the target well enough to shoot and it's similar with quads.. Once you go past 300 meters you might see a dot, but it is just about impossible to keep orientation, tell exactly where you are, or be able to notice how far you are from obstacles.

The more I think about it the more interested I am in FPV, but I'm still not ready to take the plunge yet because of the cost. I'm just having fun flying LOS and working on this little build. I've been playing around on the Quadcopter FX simulator app and noticed how much easier it is to fly with FPV so it has got my interest, but I'm not ready to spend the money on that yet. I don't want my first FPV system to be cheap junk that I don't enjoy so I'll wait for now.

The transmitters you mention look awesome, but they are more than I am looking to spend right now. Is there anything in the $50 range that gets a decent 300-400 meters?

 

[GJH105775]

Thanks, yeah LOS is about 300 meters max for me. I can see it further, but it's just a dot. In the Army we only shot targets as far as 300 meters without a scope because that's about as far as you can see the target well enough to shoot and it's similar with quads.. Once you go past 300 meters you might see a dot, but it is just about impossible to keep orientation, tell exactly where you are, or be able to notice how far you are from obstacles.

The more I think about it the more interested I am in FPV, but I'm still not ready to take the plunge yet because of the cost. I'm just having fun flying LOS and working on this little build. I've been playing around on the Quadcopter FX simulator app and noticed how much easier it is to fly with FPV so it has got my interest, but I'm not ready to spend the money on that yet. I don't want my first FPV system to be cheap junk that I don't enjoy so I'll wait for now.

The transmitters you mention look awesome, but they are more than I am looking to spend right now. Is there anything in the $50 range that gets a decent 300-400 meters?

The Orange brand one that Neil linked is great for that price range, the build quality is about as good as Spektrum, but it is not as up gradable as the three transmitters I mentioned. Being as you are not using the KK I don't suggest the hobby king tx as it is not as programmable.

 

[RGJameson]

Question, my Flying 3D X8 has a transmitter that looks identical to that FS-i6 except it only has 2 switches on the top instead of 4... Would also be great if I could just get another receiver and use the same transmitter on either quad.

The switches control the flying modes on the Flying 3D (altitude hold, GPS hold, automatic orientation control, return to home, etc.)

It also has the "bind" button on the transmitter just like the FS-i6. The only difference I can see are the switches on top and the logos.

You could try it. When you go into it's menu what do you see?

Can you follow the menu examples as in the manual?
http://img.banggood.com/images/upload/2014/04/FS-i6 Maniac.PDF

If not you could try updating the latest FlySky i6 firmware. You'll need one of these.
http://www.banggood.com/FlySky-Data...-T6-Transmitter-Firmware-Update-p-982289.html

 

[Glo]

You could try it. When you go into it's menu what do you see?

Can you follow the menu examples as in the manual?
http://img.banggood.com/images/upload/2014/04/FS-i6 Maniac.PDF

If not you could try updating the latest FlySky i6 firmware. You'll need one of these.
http://www.banggood.com/FlySky-Data...-T6-Transmitter-Firmware-Update-p-982289.html

Thanks for the info. I was able to get into the menu, but I am not able to access all the options like in the manual. I went to firmware version and this is what it shows..




Guess I'll be ordering one of those cables and see if I can update it.

 

[Jackson]

Are you sure it is 1000m and not 300m (~1000 feet)? Most nice 300$ Futaba or Spektruim radios only get 300m without an upgrade.

Yea I'm sure, for one the i6 has twin antennas in the TX and the RX, this will go a long way to insuring/maintaining a signal.

Here's a frame from one vid. using the Turnigy branded i6 and the PPM/IBus RX.

And another.

And another where he claims 2.6km.

Pretty damn good I'd say.

 

[holtneil]

Hi mate range will also depend on where you fly if your up high to start with range will be better but you should always range test as some receiver are better than others