Unexpected Newbie

JimH

JimH

Member
Hi, I was rather surprised to be given a Phantom 2 as a birthday present. It appears to have been remarkably expensive. While grateful, I really don't want to spend another £500 on a camera and support / gimbal system to make up what I think is called a fpv. I've seen youtube footage of a small camera on a wire boom and I'd have thought a cheap transmitter, small camera and receiver setup should be possible. No doubt this is idiot stuff to most, and probably starting with the wrong platform in the wrong way, but I'd be grateful if somebody could offer a few component names and types that could be bolted or nailed on. I have a soldering iron, an android phone and a mini ipad. I am very very old and live in Scotland.
 
Hi mate FPV is first person view ( that like being on board like what the pilot would see) you can just fit a camera to video and fly line of sight , I use a turnigy camera and an Eachine 2D gimbal
You can get a camera that has a transmitter built in but then you have the cost of a monitor or goggles so it depends on how much you want to spend ,if you want to FPV or not ( this depends on where you live in the UK you can only fly line of sight and 400 feet max height) in the USA you can do long range FPV , Europe has a 250 mw limit on FPV transmitters so cant do long range , this is my wives Phantom with the 2D gimbal and turingy camera from Hobby king
 
Hi here are a few items to look at
http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...i_Action_Cam_1080p_Full_HD_w_Accessories.html
http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...P_Full_HD_Video_Camera_w_Waterproof_Case.html
https://www.google.co.uk/aclk?sa=l&ai=CoUNI5hZfVseeBMb4bKWQgfAE6fneuQeJ1qXQpwKpwvbRyQMIBBABKANgu4azg9AKoAGl44XZA8gBB6oEJ0_QmsLUnKfhwsxIshTMQWs6XSi7p7W3AbXOy_HdnHqFy6g4S8PIT8AFBaAGJoAH4Y6VLogHAZAHAqgHpr4b2AcB4BLA-rHilpWj7LkB&sig=AOD64_0_czB4POWxQrCyVwfhzdaFrHhuUg&ctype=5&clui=12&q=&ved=0ahUKEwjAqpyZx73JAhUKfxoKHWpnDqkQvhcIJg&adurl=http://www.banggood.com/Light-FPV-Brushless-Gimbal-wMotors-Controller-For-DJI-Phantom-p-968168.html?currency=GBP&createTmp=1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_content=saul&utm_campaign=rc-quad-uk
http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...h_2208_Motors_and_3K_Carbon_Construction.html
 
JimH said:
Hi, I was rather surprised to be given a Phantom 2 as a birthday present. It appears to have been remarkably expensive. While grateful, I really don't want to spend another £500 on a camera and support / gimbal system to make up what I think is called a fpv. I've seen youtube footage of a small camera on a wire boom and I'd have thought a cheap transmitter, small camera and receiver setup should be possible. No doubt this is idiot stuff to most, and probably starting with the wrong platform in the wrong way, but I'd be grateful if somebody could offer a few component names and types that could be bolted or nailed on. I have a soldering iron, an android phone and a mini ipad. I am very very old and live in Scotland.
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Hahaha, a phantom 2 is perfect for someone who has never flown to start on as it is almost hands free. Show a picture of what you have right now. That will tell what all you have and what all you need to do what you are wanting. Neil should be able to help you with your phantom if you need to know about modes or flying tips.

@holtneil
 
Thank you Holtneil and GJH105775. That should keep me busy for a while. I shall endeavour to attach a photo, although it is really just a basic phantom2 and has no attachments as yet. My depth of ignorance is on the marianas scale and the main trick is not getting too far ahead of myself. I hope to find out how to limit the height and range of the device, to stay UK legal, and see if I can get it to return to base if I lose the plot / sight of it / the will to live. I think in some ways it is rather smarter than I am but the instructions seem to be translated from Chinese onto a rather small piece of paper.
 

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JimH said:
Thank you Holtneil and GJH105775. That should keep me busy for a while. I shall endeavour to attach a photo, although it is really just a basic phantom2 and has no attachments as yet. My depth of ignorance is on the marianas scale and the main trick is not getting too far ahead of myself. I hope to find out how to limit the height and range of the device, to stay UK legal, and see if I can get it to return to base if I lose the plot / sight of it / the will to live. I think in some ways it is rather smarter than I am but the instructions seem to be translated from Chinese onto a rather small piece of paper.
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I think you have to stay ~<400ft AGL (should be around 115m), I am from the US, so Neil might be able to tell you better. I think you'll really like it hahaha. A cheap, yet good quality camera to get you started would be a Runcam. I have the HD, and it is great. The Runcam 2 just came out, so I don't know much about it.
 
Thanks GJH105775. The forum has been very useful. Do you know if the runcam is compatible with a phantom 2? I'm told the new phantoms (3?) are different and use different types of camera.
 
JimH said:
Thanks GJH105775. The forum has been very useful. Do you know if the runcam is compatible with a phantom 2? I'm told the new phantoms (3?) are different and use different types of camera.
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The Runcam be just allow you to view footage of your flight. It is 100% self contained, you'd just strap it on.

Depending on your budget, you could buy the pretty-expensive,-but-maybe-worth it-camera that DJI has for you, or you could go cheaper and have a normal hobby grade setup that is used on many DIY builds, but is somewhat quality.
 
JimH said:
Thanks GJH105775. The forum has been very useful. Do you know if the runcam is compatible with a phantom 2? I'm told the new phantoms (3?) are different and use different types of camera.
Click to expand...
The Runcam would be just a band-aid to allow you to view footage of your flight. It is 100% self contained, you'd just strap it on. Depending on your budget, you could buy the pretty-expensive,-but-maybe-worth it-camera that DJI has for you, or you could go cheaper and have a normal hobby grade setup that is used on many DIY builds, but is somewhat quality.
 
I see. Thanks GJH105775 This camera, noted by holtneil http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...i_Action_Cam_1080p_Full_HD_w_Accessories.html
would appear to have the basics I need. ie a WiFi transmitting camera. I was thinking of a fixed view rather than a gimbal, since that would give me another set of controls to deal with (I might need a brain upgrade) and quite a lot of expense (income upgrade) As I understand there needs to be a camera, recording chip, AV output transmitter, all covered by the camera so far. Then I'll need a receiver and a viewer. I saw a 'cheap and cheerful' Hobbyking DIY fpv device of a screen and a Fresnel lens in a foamed plastic box. Then I guess I'd need a WiFi receiver of some kind, compatible with the camera and the screen. If I put that system together, is there a type or specification I should look for? (This is assuming I haven't made some kind of newbie foolishness) I see that the Phantom has a small ribbon cable with about 8 connectors taped under the body. Am I right in assuming that would be for the gimbal control? Thanks for your time, I hope I'm not keeping you away from more interesting occupations. Jim.
 
JimH said:
I see. Thanks GJH105775 This camera, noted by holtneil http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...i_Action_Cam_1080p_Full_HD_w_Accessories.html
would appear to have the basics I need. ie a WiFi transmitting camera. I was thinking of a fixed view rather than a gimbal, since that would give me another set of controls to deal with (I might need a brain upgrade) and quite a lot of expense (income upgrade) As I understand there needs to be a camera, recording chip, AV output transmitter, all covered by the camera so far. Then I'll need a receiver and a viewer. I saw a 'cheap and cheerful' Hobbyking DIY fpv device of a screen and a Fresnel lens in a foamed plastic box. Then I guess I'd need a WiFi receiver of some kind, compatible with the camera and the screen. If I put that system together, is there a type or specification I should look for? (This is assuming I haven't made some kind of newbie foolishness) I see that the Phantom has a small ribbon cable with about 8 connectors taped under the body. Am I right in assuming that would be for the gimbal control? Thanks for your time, I hope I'm not keeping you away from more interesting occupations. Jim.
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One problem with using WiFi is the range, if range is not a problem for you then this is a good way to go as it is cheap and really easy to use. A gimbal is not as much of a need while using a phantom as it is with other quads because the Phantom is pretty docile.

802.11g (WiFi, g) uses 2.4gHz and is a different protocol and encoding than a 5.8gHz, or 2.4gHz hobby transmitter and video receiver. If you use a WiFi camera then all you need is a tablet or smart phone to view the live video. make sure to turn all notifications and calls off though hahaha. Many people choose to mount their smart device on their transmitter.
 
Jackson said:
Many folks will say that WiFi and flying don't mix well. For FPV 5.8Ghz is a much better all around choice. WiFi is primarily for quick setting/adjusting of the camera.

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I believe that DJI has some of their equipment using WiFi, but unless you are boosting the signal or changing the transmitter and antennas WiFi has terrible range and you loose the signal all at once. One benefit is that RFI won't cause snow in your signal because of the check sums.
 
HI mate If you fit a gimbal the gimbal will keep the camera steady the only control you will have is tilt if you have the lever on the back of the transmitter which you should have , this will let you look down , if you have the money you can get a gopro 3 then Eachine does a transmitter that fits to the side of the camera and runs off a 1 cell battery , its 5.8 g so will be spot on for you , if you want to go this way I have one brand new you can have at a good price so your just need to get the camera
http://www.eachine.com/Eachine-Light-L250-5_8G-250mW-VTX-FPV-Transmitter-For-Gopro-3-p-52.html
The new camera and gimbal on the new Phantoms is very costly as its one of the best you can buy
 
A SJ4000 camera is another option to use with a gimbal. Just make sure if you do that it says "SJCAM" on the front because there are some fake SJ4000's out there, but they don't have the logo on the front. The Runcam, or Mobius might be priced a little less and are just as good. I am just don't know if they will work with any gimbals.?

You can not even worry about controlling the gimbal and just let it keep the cam level on it's own.

For a cheaper mounting option, look on youtube for the "credit card mount". You can easily make this mount for a Runcam, Mobius, SJ4000, GoPro, or any cam really. It keeps the cam a little more level than just strapping it on there and also works very great at reducing the "jello" effect in your videos. Best of all cost almost nothing.

As other's have mentioned, WiFi is not good for FPV. Bad range, and usually delayed video.
 
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