Anyone experienced with this? I'm satisfied with the performance of my Y6 now and would like to try FPV.
At $189.99 the price seems right. Any reason(s) not to use this system?
I already have an AV-USB adapter to start out using a laptop, may get monitor to mount on the tx later.
Thanks.
Replies
3DR offers this antenna:
https://store.3drobotics.com/products/clover_antenna
Probably not as good as the ImmersionRC product, but I'm working within a budget .
The TBS camera is nice. Again, breaks the budget.
Thanks for the info, ordering the 3DR kit today. Haygood, thanks for the tip on the cable.
After using a 3rd party FPV system, I got the 3DR kit. The best thing is the OSD... since it is designed specifically for the Mavlink protocol you get tons of great info on your hud (like an arrow pointing back to home, an artificial horizon, battery info, etc). The range isn't anything amazing, but I've upgraded the antenna to the new version cloverleafs from ImmersionRC (the ones made with red wire) and that seems to increase the range significantly. The camera is OK, but it's nowhere near as nice as a good CCD based FPV cam (like the Team Black Sheep TBS69 camera). I am using a TBS69 on a sport-FPV miniquad and it is flat-out amazing... the little Sony camera feels pretty cheap now when I go back to fly my Y6.
Pro: Good price considering all you get
Pro: Easy hookup (all components are plug and play)
Pro: The OSD is awesome
Con: The camera is ok, but you're missing out if you haven't tried a "real" FPV camera
Con: Powering the system is awkward. Either you carry around an extra battery, or you tap into the main flight battery... BUT if you're flying with 4S batteries you'll need to get a 12V UBEC so you don't fry your stuff.
Thanks all.
I'm not well versed in FPV but did watch several videos and searched multiple websites for FPV kits. The Sony camera from 3DR appears to be good quality.
Many of the FPV kits were out of stock or out of the U.S. which I have had bad luck with ordering. Hobby King? Well, two weeks to receive an item that's in stock in the U.S. warehouse isn't worth the few bucks saved. I wouldn't know what to get and don't care to spend that much time researching.
I'm finding it difficult to locate a FPV kit with a decent camera and batteries that is competitive with 3DR's kit which includes everything except a monitor. 200mw is weak, but I think at 5.8 ghz it's more wise to get the better antennae than increase the power for the range <1.5km, and it needs to be LOS with 5.8 anyway. Increasing to 400-600+ mw just doesn't make sense to me for the distance gained. Also, nearly every single kit uses the mundane rubber duck antenna as standard.
There was one website that had stuff in stock, but of course I didn't bookmark it, and it may have been an overseas outlet which I don't care to risk. One place even had a warning about customs holding up this type of equipment.
I'll do some more searching, but as it stands the 3DR kit doesn't look like a bad price, plus at least since I purchased stuff from them I receive it in a few days, and their customer service has been very good (had a bad telemetry radio, returned it for replacement no problem).
If anyone has a specific place to get better FPV kits close to 3DR's pricing (under $250), feel free to post the link.
Here's a sample URL I used as reference:
http://fpvlab.com/forums/showthread.php?116-FPV-PILOT-TRAINING-CENT...
Using a video capture device with my macbook for viewing, and I'm happy with it. Makes recording FPV easy, and I'm getting good video back from about 1km.
What video capture device are you using with your Mac?
Thanks,
Richard
I'm using an August VGB200:
http://www.amazon.ca/August-VGB200-Quality-Capture-Adaptor/dp/B008F...
It does the job. A quirk with the app on Mavericks is that if you change the window size in settings, it will go back to the video native size when you hit the record button. The only issue with this is that you can't record if the window is full screen. You can use the Command+Scroll Up trick on the Mac to increase the size of the video window on the screen, you just can't use the capture app's built-in full screen capabilities. If you get a different one and can go full screen while recording, let me know!
Works well with the camera from the 3DR kit, but I haven't tested with the GoPro yet.
My mistake. Forgot the kit comes with the OSD. Make sure you get the USB / FTDI cable.
Regards,
David R. Boulanger
I also replaced the lens with a wider angle lens bought from ReadyMadeRC. I'm pretty sure it was this 2.8mm version, but it could have been the 2.1. It doesn't sound like it would make a huge difference, but it really did. I no longer feel like I have blinders on.
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&a...
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&a...
Here is the FTDI cable you need to program the OSD. Not crucial, but I'm glad I got one. $18. You will use it once or twice to get things set up. https://store.3drobotics.com/products/ftdi-cable-3-3v
Same FTDI adaptor at Hobbyking is $14: http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__24779__ftdi_adapter_usb_...
I highly suggest you wire the video transmitter in to the copter's main battery so you have one less connection to make. I use the little batteries that come with the kit to power my receiver and my FPV monitor. One battery will run both for well over half an hour. I use a monitor from a Panasonic car DVD system. It is a slave monitor from the pair in the system. It even uses the correct A/V cable.
I also got from ReadymadeRC a video switcher, so I can transmit from the FPV kit camera or the GoPro. I used a 4 wire usb adaptor to connect to the GoPro so I could power the GoPro from the copter's main battery. That took a little rewiring of the 4-wire's cable ends. Get the correct voltage, or you will kill the goPro. If you are trying to capture video of anything in particular, this is pretty much invaluable. You need to have an RC channel available to switch the video source. If you have a GoPro 3 and can aim it, you could just forget the little FPV camera and transmit from it directly. Despite earlier complaints, the new GoPros definately transmit fast enough for FPV use.
The antennae are lousy, as are most stock system antennae. You can buy this same setup for less from HobbyKing and other places. There is a lot of information out there on video systems, such as the videos by FliteTest on Youtube. Be sure the video frequency will not interfere with your radio transmitter frequency (often 2.4GHz for Spektrum and most others). The lower frequencies penetrate obstacles better, but the higher frequencies give the best picture.
I use the 3DR system simply because that's what came with it when I bought it. I knew nothing about any of this at the time. It works fine. With good antennae on it I expect it to be much better. I have a set of IBCrazy BlueBeam antennae, but need to order some adapters to get them to fit correctly.
DG, I have had one for a year with no problems. Get the OSD while your at it, otherwise you will just find yourself ordering it a week later. There is also a cable you need to buy to program the OSD.
Regards,
David R. Boulanger
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