Cleanflight v1.7.0 release candidate firmware is out

[Hands0n]

Beware! This is a release candidate so if you load it just be careful.

v1.7.0 firmware available as release candidate, please let us know of any issues via the forums or IRC.
Changes:
Three new pid controllers, feedback wanted so we can decide which to keep.
LED strip thrust ring.
LED strip color configuration.
LED strip on/off via mode/channel.
CC3D - USB VCP support. Flash .hex with USB->UART. Flash .bin with GCS as before. Configure via USB.
Blackbox logging improvements (autotune, etc).
Virtual current meter.
Current meter and ADC improvements and fixes.
XBUS / Align JR01 DMSS Receiver Support.
Fix PWM failsafe channel mapping issue.
Servo mid-point decoupled from RX mid-point.
Many, many code cleanups.
Notes:
Upgrading to this firmware will reset the configuration. Ensure you have a backup before flashing.
Configurator v0.61.0 is required for LED strip configuration.

[teslahed]

Well i';ve just installed it and i will experiment with the different PID controllers later.

Unfortunately the one i liked the look of is PID controller 2 which doesn';t work with PID tuning over an Aux channel

Fortunately i was able to pop into #cleanflight on the freenode irc server and talk to Hydra directly. He';s working on sorting that little bug out for me which is nice.

Until then i think PID controller 1 looks like a good safe bet.

[Hands0n]

Fortunately i was able to pop into #cleanflight on the freenode irc server and talk to Hydra directly. He';s working on sorting that little bug out for me which is nice.

I have to say that is one of the most appealing things about CF, that the lead developer takes such a positive and active hands on approach. From what I';ve seen on github he interacts and makes reasonable conversation with other devs and punters, even if the answer is "No"

[teslahed]

I am now waiting for him to prepare a new binary for me to test. Hopefully PID controller 2 will soon be available. No promises until testing is complete though.

[Trev2971]

Why am I still scared to leave baseflight when all this is going on?

[Fletch]

you can change ... and unless you start messing with the other options (autotune, additional PID, LEDs)
you probably won';t notice much difference.

It just then gives you flexibility to extend when you feel ready ... or leave the extras alone!

[teslahed]

Why am I still scared to leave baseflight when all this is going on?

Given the price of the Naze32 boards on hobbyking if you are really that worried just buy a second one and use that for testing cleanflight on.

If you backup all your settings (including the CLI dump which i save to a text file) then you can flash cleanflight on your current board then go back to baseflight without any real issues but it';s always a bit of a pain to lose a known working setup for something experimental which is the main attraction of baseflight.

[kilby]

If I manage to get some cash together I suspect my next build will either be TauLabs or Cleanflight equipped working gps support will probably be the deciding factor

[atomiclama]

So what is it about Taulabs then Kilby?

Had a quick look at the code and it seems to be heavily based  on openpilot.

So what does it do different?

[shazzy]

If I manage to get some cash together I suspect my next build will either be TauLabs or Cleanflight equipped working gps support will probably be the deciding factor

Why not get the sparky board? I';ve got it and it';s running Taulabs but will flash over to cleanflight for a bit to test out how the fw handles the new hardware

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

[Hands0n]

... If you backup all your settings (including the CLI dump which i save to a text file) then you can flash cleanflight on your current board then go back to baseflight without any real issues but it';s always a bit of a pain to lose a known working setup for something experimental which is the main attraction of baseflight.

Hold that thought! 

Cleanflight is a significant and very serious refactoring of Baseflight code to make it follow software development best practise. At the same time all of the substantial defects of Baseflight are being attended to.  These would be broken GPS, Mag and Barometer functionality. 

Essentially, anyone buying a Naze32 full flavour today is wasting their money and would be better off buying the Acro. That functionality in the Baseflight code does work.  Even Timecop states that Baseflight is experimental hobbyist code in his various rantings.

That said, Baseflight is in a state of flux also as the developers of that code base work at fixing flaws. There seems to be little new or innovative stuff going on in that version.

I agree, there are risks to using the new functionality in Cleanflight - like anything code-wise bugs may creep in. And we see how the developers swiftly respond to genuine bugs reported.  That is a good thing.

For me, and I suspect very many others, the key interest is in getting working properly the fundamentals of such a flight controller as Naze32 (full), Flip32, Sparky.  LEDs and suchlike are bells and whistles, and reflective of the large and growing developer set that are supporting Cleanflight.

And if folk on Baseflight are interested in experimenting - pick up a Flip32 from Banggood UK warehouse for £18 and fill yer boots

[kilby]

Well I have APM and baseflight, I have no use for a Naza so there';s not a lot else about.

While the cleanflight folks are adding stuff the majority of it is fluff as I couldn';t care about LEDs and stuff.

The TauLabs guys tend to deliver what they say they will and they say decent gps is on the way.

So why not give it a try

[Hands0n]

Thats the problem, none of the 32bit boys (outside of ArduPilot on Pixhawk) have their GPS working correctly.  Neither Taulabs (Open Pilot fork) or Cleanflight (Baseflight fork).  In all of them the code is rudimentary at best.

Dominic Clifton (Cleanflight) has made a public commitment to get GPS, Mag and Baro working correctly.

Timecop (Baseflight) says if you want those things then go buy DJI

Tau Labs are working on their code base also, reports are that the GPS, Mag and Baro operate better on a given FC than does either CF or BF. That is today.

My money is on Cleanflight and Tau Labs actually delivering.

[teslahed]

As of 10 mins ago v1.7.0 now contains Hydras fix based on my bug report for PID controller 2 so that you can now use the PID tuning via aux channels on your TX the same as the other PID controllers.

[Hands0n]

Err, gosh! That was quick!!  That is some serious support

[kilby]

Why not get the sparky board? I';ve got it and it';s running Taulabs but will flash over to cleanflight for a bit to test out how the fw handles the new hardware

Oh that';s an easy one, I don';t think I will have any money available to buy anything (apart from props) until at least May, and by that time GPS may be acceptable in one or the other bits of software, or perhaps something different will have turned up by then.

Whatever it is I hope it has a vtail profile