Need advice on choosing a quad.

C

careless

New Member
Hi, any advice will be greatly appreciated. I'm new to flying quads. The only experience I have is with the "toys" that are common in places like walmart. I know what I want my new quad to be capable of, but the choices available seem overwhelming. What I'm looking for in a quad is this: speed, agility, flight time, range, and a good fpv system. I don't have any interest in elaborate AP systems, although I would prefer to have the option of mounting a gimbal/go pro in the future. I also don't care about features like GPS and return to home. After watching videos and researching what's out there, I'm leaning towards fpv racing quads; but, I could still use some help making a decision. I'm not interested in actually racing, so my new quad doesn't need to be the fastest in it's class or anything. I just want something that's a joy to fly and will put a smile on my face. One thing I have to keep in mind is my budget, I can't afford to put a ton of money in this. Is building my own quad less expensive than purchasing a rtf quad? Thanks, careless.
 
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I don't have much experience at all really. My first quad was one of those super-tiny Estes copters, which wasn't the best choice to learn with. It was very sensitive to even the tiniest movements of the sticks. Almost lost an eye several times, lol. Also, the small size combined with the surprisingly bright LED's made it difficult to tell which end was the front and which was the rear.


My next purchase was a Sky Viper "stunt drone," and despite being a $40 walmart toy, it was/is a joy to fly and changed my interest in quads from a mild curiosity into a full fledged addiction. I practiced with it until I could fly it around the house without crashing it into lamps and other fragile stuff.


Then I purchased the big brother to the Sky Viper stunt drone, which had a small camera. It wasn't quite as fun to fly, but was more powerful and had a larger capacity battery. Unfortunately, I got a little too ambitious while flying it outdoors after only owning it for two weeks. I wanted to see how high I could take it, (which was pretty impressive actually), and while it was up there I started the camera while rotating the quad to record the area 360 degrees. After spinning it around a couple times the wind picked up and started carrying it over the trees, (I live in a heavily wooded rural area). Of course, after spinning it around I wasn't sure which direction it was facing and before I could figure it out my newest drone was gone, lol! Still haven't been able to find it. I got a new one two days ago, so I'm able to continue learning again.


Anyways, while I've had enough "stick time" to react instinctively and become familiar with how a quad moves, I can guarantee I don't have the skills to push even the most forgiving racing quad, although I'm confident I can learn without destroying it in the process if I end up purchasing one.


Thanks for the suggestion about the Echine! I didn't realize I could get a decent "racing" quad for that price.


I have another question, though. I'm very interested in flying FPV using goggles rather than a screen. Some of the goggles I've looked at seem to suggest a binocular setup, is there a goggle/camera setup that gives the pilot a degree of depth perception? I've yet to find anything that explains things in newbie terms. The main reason I'm interested in FPV is because I have a lot of difficulty handling the right stick once the quad is facing a new direction. FPV removes that struggle, and it would be awesome to have depth perception while flying FPV. Maybe mount two cameras spaced apart, each transmitting to the corresponding eye via goggles?


Thanks again for the help!


P.S. While my budget is limited, I expected to end up paying around $350 for the quad + $350 for the goggles, so I'd welcome anybody's quad suggestions that would fit that budget.
 
Im reading good things about the XK Detect 380 model which is full off hobby grade options with gps hold and true return to home features and also has a 1000 plus meter range...Just an option to consider for under $300.00
 
careless said:
I don't have much experience at all really. My first quad was one of those super-tiny Estes copters, which wasn't the best choice to learn with. It was very sensitive to even the tiniest movements of the sticks. Almost lost an eye several times, lol. Also, the small size combined with the surprisingly bright LED's made it difficult to tell which end was the front and which was the rear.


My next purchase was a Sky Viper "stunt drone," and despite being a $40 walmart toy, it was/is a joy to fly and changed my interest in quads from a mild curiosity into a full fledged addiction. I practiced with it until I could fly it around the house without crashing it into lamps and other fragile stuff.


Then I purchased the big brother to the Sky Viper stunt drone, which had a small camera. It wasn't quite as fun to fly, but was more powerful and had a larger capacity battery. Unfortunately, I got a little too ambitious while flying it outdoors after only owning it for two weeks. I wanted to see how high I could take it, (which was pretty impressive actually), and while it was up there I started the camera while rotating the quad to record the area 360 degrees. After spinning it around a couple times the wind picked up and started carrying it over the trees, (I live in a heavily wooded rural area). Of course, after spinning it around I wasn't sure which direction it was facing and before I could figure it out my newest drone was gone, lol! Still haven't been able to find it. I got a new one two days ago, so I'm able to continue learning again.


Anyways, while I've had enough "stick time" to react instinctively and become familiar with how a quad moves, I can guarantee I don't have the skills to push even the most forgiving racing quad, although I'm confident I can learn without destroying it in the process if I end up purchasing one.


Thanks for the suggestion about the Echine! I didn't realize I could get a decent "racing" quad for that price.


I have another question, though. I'm very interested in flying FPV using goggles rather than a screen. Some of the goggles I've looked at seem to suggest a binocular setup, is there a goggle/camera setup that gives the pilot a degree of depth perception? I've yet to find anything that explains things in newbie terms. The main reason I'm interested in FPV is because I have a lot of difficulty handling the right stick once the quad is facing a new direction. FPV removes that struggle, and it would be awesome to have depth perception while flying FPV. Maybe mount two cameras spaced apart, each transmitting to the corresponding eye via goggles?


Thanks again for the help!


P.S. While my budget is limited, I expected to end up paying around $350 for the quad + $350 for the goggles, so I'd welcome anybody's quad suggestions that would fit that budget.
Click to expand...

Concerning your question about "depth" in your fpv video, fatshark attitude v3's support 3d, maybe that's a place to start
 
Yeah, I found out about 3d goggles early in my "research," I simply couldn't figure out if that was a kind of simulated 3d effect or if it provided depth perception. I finally found a few cameras that had dual lenses, so they should be able to give the pilot some depth perception. Dunno how well it actually works though. It's also a lot more expensive than I'd like, too. Maybe I can find some "gently used" stuff near my price range.
 
careless said:
Yeah, I found out about 3d goggles early in my "research," I simply couldn't figure out if that was a kind of simulated 3d effect or if it provided depth perception. I finally found a few cameras that had dual lenses, so they should be able to give the pilot some depth perception. Dunno how well it actually works though. It's also a lot more expensive than I'd like, too. Maybe I can find some "gently used" stuff near my price range.
Click to expand...

My attitudes are on layaway at a local hobby shop lol, much easier to pay for that way
 
How about:
http://www.banggood.com/Eachine-Rac...-OSD-With-HD-Camera-BNF-Version-p-995366.html
instead ?
The arms are a little thicker than the other Eachine. (hopefully tougher) .
with this camera setup:
You'd be able to take your stable aerial footage, yet remove the gimbal as you please, and 'razz' around to your heart's content.
He's 'The Man' anyway. :cool:

For what seems to be cheap yet 'immersive' goggles, sound out member's experience of Quanum V2.
I know it seems like strapping a shoe box to your head, but hey look at the cost saving if you have a broad-shouldered mate as your 'spotter' !
(Gotta be worth a Cold One or Two for him. :p)

Cheers
MalcB
 
MalcB said:
How about:
http://www.banggood.com/Eachine-Rac...-OSD-With-HD-Camera-BNF-Version-p-995366.html
instead ?
The arms are a little thicker than the other Eachine. (hopefully tougher) .
Click to expand...
I don't know about that, there is something to be said about the typical ZMR type frame that can use standard components mounted in the normal fashion.

ViewImage.aspx

Changing out an ESC, for example, on the other one means buying one of their proprietary types and jumping through some hoops mounting it.
 
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