Best setup for new Discovery pilot?

[almightybunghole]

Hi all

I have been learning to fly on a Hubsan X4 and am ready to move onto a bigger quad, pretty much decided on a TBS Discovery and interested in FPV altho probably not to start with.

So now I have to decide what components to start with. Happy to do the build as I enjoy that sort of thing and am handy with a soldering iron [emoji1] but question is what motors, ESC';s props etc.

I was thinking of Spektrum radio gear since I';ve used it in the past but other than that, not really sure what to get.

Interested to hear any opinions!

Thanks

George

[guest325]

You could save a lot of money (for other bits) by going for a HJ 500 frame, for the cost they are really good. Have a look here:
http://www.multi-rotor.co.uk/index.php?topic=11560.msg98268#msg98268
Motors - I would get either Emax or Sunny sky 2212 900 (ish) kv. ESC';s get either  Emax or Afro';s 30A probably best to go for and go for 3S or 4S batteries.  9x4.5 props on 3S or 8x4.5. on 4S.
Then you just need to decide what you want from your FC - GPS or not. To start with a Naza lite with gps is good but if you are up for more involvement  something like a Pixhawk with GPS is more configurable  but more difficult to set up.
HTH

[Paul01]

Or better still get the White Sheep whilst its still available

http://www.banggood.com/Diatone-White-Sheep-PCB-Version-FPV-Quadcopter-Frame-Kit-p-970933.html

[xxpitt]

you will have a nightmare with jello on the tbs frame, i did anyway. So if you really want to go down the tbs route i would have to say get the tbs pro or don';t bother at all. Just my opinion of course. As for what to put on it i we would need to know what your price range is. The obvious route would be to go for t-motors somewhere between 750kv-920kv on a 10 inch prop or 920kv-980kv on a 9inch prop. You will want 30a esc';s, i';m kind of out of touch with esc';s for AP platforms not been keeping an eye on that side of things for a while. I used hobbyking F-30a';s flashed with simonk myself though.

i was just looking for motors to link and came across this little package,looks a good deal to me

http://www.quadcopters.co.uk/t-motor-air-gear-350-combo-pack-1717-p.asp

don';t have any experience with those motors or esc';s though. i know i said 30a esc';s but my qav was only pulling 46a full throttle so thats 12a per esc. i just like a little room for comfort, 20a would be plenty though

[flybywire]

Oooh, no bias here then!  Listen mate, i';ve never owned a tbs frame myself, but from what i have seen iof them footage wise, they are no worse vibes wide than any other.  Vibes  usually come from badly balanced motors/props, not frames, although there are other factors which can creep in of course.
What i am saying is, don';t let politics put you off, if you like a frame, from whoever, then go for it!

Remember the adage, ';bad workmen always blame their tools!';  I';s true.
Cheers

Andy

[voo2doo]

Try this to cut the vibration out of a TBS frame if you are using a Mobius.
J
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuNhiJAVum0

[flybywire]

You could save a lot of money (for other bits) by going for a HJ 500 frame, for the cost they are really good. Have a look here:
http://www.multi-rotor.co.uk/index.php?topic=11560.msg98268#msg98268
Motors - I would get either Emax or Sunny sky 2212 900 (ish) kv. ESC';s get either  Emax or Afro';s 30A probably best to go for and go for 3S or 4S batteries.  9x4.5 props on 3S or 8x4.5. on 4S.
Then you just need to decide what you want from your FC - GPS or not. To start with a Naza lite with gps is good but if you are up for more involvement  something like a Pixhawk with GPS is more configurable  but more difficult to set up.
HTH

Hey Darrell, you could save even more by just not doing anything at all! 
Just trying to save you some dosh mate. 

[flybywire]

Oh yeah, Spektrum all da way!  All,other radio gear sucks!!!!

[Paul01]

Oh yeah, Spektrum all da way!  All,other radio gear sucks!!!!

You got your tin hat on tonight FlyBy 

[flybywire]

You got your tin hat on tonight FlyBy 

Just tellin'; it how is is boy!   :evil

[xxpitt]

Oooh, no bias here then!  Listen mate, i';ve never owned a tbs frame myself, but from what i have seen iof them footage wise, they are no worse vibes wide than any other.

its not bias it';s fact, i';ve had 2 of them,  runinng brand new un-crashed t-motors balanced props and i could never get rid of jello even in 60fps on a gopro in a tbs loveseat. even tbs';s own videos had some jello in them when the were using the old disco. the discovery pro seems to produce quality video though, that';s why i recommended it even though i wouldn';t own one myself

here is a vid that has jello in, granted its not awful. They certainly done a better job getting rid of it than i did

Team BlackSheep in Rio [Part 1]

still i wasn';t happy with it, and wouldn';t be happy with it even if i could reduce it to this amount of jello. its a premium frame producing worse video than a racing mini quad

[guest325]

Hey Darrell, you could save even more by just not doing anything at all! 
Just trying to save you some dosh mate. 

That';s true, part of my reasons for mainly flying Planes now - they cost a lot less than  Multis and generally speaking you get much better flight times. I enjoy flying the Multis I have but don';t intend to spend the sort of money on them that most of you do; to me they are just a different model to fly.
In the game of flying  models it';s whatever floats your boat, it';s all too easy to get dragged in too deep for your own comfort / resources and loose enjoyment in the process.

[almightybunghole]

Thanks the the comments all, a few questions :

Darrell - presume you mean I could save the difference in cost between the TBS frame vs say the HJ500 or White Sheep, only seems to be about £40 in it unless I';m missing something? Every little helps of course

Paul - you really think the White Sheep is equivalent or near enough? Can I get an OSD like TBD Core with that frame? Any downside vs TBS?

On yeah, and Spektrum - thought so!!

[guest325]

Yes, just the cost of the  frame but also i';m fairly sure that those who have them say they aren';t so difficult to get rid of jello; I';ve got the HJ frame which I shall be getting up in the air soon (I hope) that will be fitted with an SJ4000 for AP. I';m going to be using a very simple FC - Thunder QQ super, it only has stability mode but is very easy to set up and flies very nicely and is inexpensive.
Radio gear? I have an old DX7, a Hitec Aurora9  and a cheap Turnigy I6, they are all ok but the A9 is streets ahead in terms of ease to program. The i6 is great for £35 Inc.  2x 6 channel rx';s but is used as my ';chuck in the car'; tx along with my cheap ';chuck in the car'; planes; I  wouldn';t really use it for anything of high value just in case ::)

[Paul01]

Paul - you really think the White Sheep is equivalent or near enough? Can I get an OSD like TBD Core with that frame? Any downside vs TBS?

I have the Alien clone and its better suited for a GoPro like camera but doesn';t have a mount for an FPV board camera which I think its a nice inclusion, considering I use a Mobius I would purchase the whitesheep if I did it again. I haven';t used a genuine TBS frame before, so cant comment on if they are as good or not, I paid £11 for my frame and i have no issues with it and it pretty solid and the arms that came with it, are comparable to the genuine DJI arms i have.

As for jello, I took my mobius out for the first time on my TBS clone yesterday and with a make shift mount there was no jello!

Take a look at few other radio before purchasing and see what you like, personally I';m happy with the FrSky Taranis.

[xxpitt]

you can buy the tbs osd for any frame

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Team-Black-Sheep-TBS-Core-PNP50-for-FPV-DJI-Naza-UK-/171403220709?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item27e86d96e5

i have never used it though so can';t comment further than that

[almightybunghole]

So.......

I just purchased from Banggood:

Diatone Whitesheep frame
Gemfan 8045 props (lots!)
Sunnysky 980KV motors
ZTW Spider 30A OPTO ESCs
Naza M Lite flight controller
4200mah 4S LiPos

Very excited to get hold of it all and start building, the only thing now I need to work on is the radio. I did want to go Spektrum but budget has got the better of me and I need to start small. Can always trade up later in the year when the finances are a bit healthier! I';ve therefore been looking at the Turnigy 9X/9XR, FrSky X9D (but seems impossible to get hold of) or maybe the Turnigy i10 with touchscreen.

I don';t want to wait for weeks for the X9D to come into stock but interested to get some thoughts from the more experienced guys on here. I know these aren';t going to be up to Spektrum/Futaba standards but interested to hear your opinions.

Thanks for all the help so far

EDIT: Also the other thing - I have managed to get my hands on a Sony RX100 camera, screen doesn';t work but takes perfect video, thinking of mounting it somehow, maybe using carbon tubes + a mount, maybe like this:  http://up.itcow.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/DSC05732.jpg - will the kit I';ve spec';d be able to lift this OK or do I need :evil :evil more  power?

[flybywire]

its not bias it';s fact, i';ve had 2 of them,  runinng brand new un-crashed t-motors balanced props and i could never get rid of jello even in 60fps on a gopro in a tbs loveseat. even tbs';s own videos had some jello in them when the were using the old disco. the discovery pro seems to produce quality video though, that';s why i recommended it even though i wouldn';t own one myself

here is a vid that has jello in, granted its not awful. They certainly done a better job getting rid of it than i did

Team BlackSheep in Rio [Part 1]

still i wasn';t happy with it, and wouldn';t be happy with it even if i could reduce it to this amount of jello. its a premium frame producing worse video than a racing mini quad

I must have missed this response, I loved that video footage, one of my favourites, hardly ';spoiled'; by jello!  All I saw, (apart from the awesome footage of course) was a little jitter from the gimbal, not jello per-se. Given that it was filmed halfway up a mountain probably with 30mph onshore winds, it';s hardly crap!
Nope, I';d be happy with that.

THen again, I';ve never owned a Disco!

[almightybunghole]

Sat on the sofa and itching to buy some radio gear so I can put this all together when the bits start arriving, does anyone have any thoughts on the radio gear question I mentioned above?

Very excited to get hold of it all and start building, the only thing now I need to work on is the radio. I did want to go Spektrum but budget has got the better of me and I need to start small. Can always trade up later in the year when the finances are a bit healthier! I';ve therefore been looking at the Turnigy 9X/9XR, FrSky X9D (but seems impossible to get hold of) or maybe the Turnigy i10 with touchscreen.

I don';t want to wait for weeks for the X9D to come into stock but interested to get some thoughts from the more experienced guys on here. I know these aren';t going to be up to Spektrum/Futaba standards but interested to hear your opinions.

[wobblybob]

Just a note on the white sheep frame I have one . It comes with a PCB for 12v and 5v only it';s lacking a 5v or 12v reg  . Not sure if this is still the case .
I built mine with a APM and used the 3dr power module to supply the +12v to power the ESC';s .
A newb so havn';t a clue how you will get round that with a Naza maybe just bridge the gap with wire where the regulator circuit should go .
Hope you get her up in the air quicker and with less mither than I did . ::)

[Dino]

Sat on the sofa and itching to buy some radio gear so I can put this all together when the bits start arriving, does anyone have any thoughts on the radio gear question I mentioned above?

I';ve had the Flysky version of the Turnigy 9x and it was fine.  However, I upgraded to the FrSky Taranis a couple of months back and love it!  In stock at hobbyrc.co.uk at the moment.

[almightybunghole]

Just a note on the white sheep frame I have one . It comes with a PCB for 12v and 5v only it';s lacking a 5v or 12v reg  . Not sure if this is still the case .
I built mine with a APM and used the 3dr power module to supply the +12v to power the ESC';s .
A newb so havn';t a clue how you will get round that with a Naza maybe just bridge the gap with wire where the regulator circuit should go .

Thanks for the tip, already took the plunge and bought a 5v regulator as the ESCs are Optos so no BEC - but hadn';t clocked that the ESCs themselves would also need 12v. Will get on eBay then - cheers!

[almightybunghole]

Thanks for the tip, already took the plunge and bought a 5v regulator as the ESCs are Optos so no BEC - but hadn';t clocked that the ESCs themselves would also need 12v. Will get on eBay then - cheers!

[almightybunghole]

Doh sorry kids using the computer...