AlexMos Brushless Gimbal controller from Desire RC V1.01

[Jumpy07]

My Alex Mos Brushless gimbal controller finally arrived this morning from Desire RC.

The board is manufactured by Desire RC under license from Alex Mos, is significantly more expensive than the Opensource controllers from retailers such as RcTimer. (£108). However it is said to perform much better and be easier to setup... (I have still to confirm this)

As you can see from the pics below... it comes with on board Bluetooth module for firmware updates and to change settings. The board comes configured with latest firmware and is already setup to work with the Rctimer GoPro gimbal.

What you see in the pictures is what you get.. disappointed no cables and plugs for motors or power input.. will need to source these from somewhere else..

The boards are connected to the GUI via Bluetooth only so you will need either a Bluetooth enabled PC or a Bluetooth dongle.

This video was taken with the board and GoPro..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zINIKe9NxRg


GUI that can be downloaded from here: http://desirerc.co.uk/down-load-files.html

I am still waiting on my Gimbal so cant do anything more at the moment.. but will update this thread with more info as I progress..

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More details here: http://desirerc.co.uk/controllers.html

Setup instructions here: http://desirerc.co.uk/instructions.html

[Jumpy07]

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After some investigation.. battery socket is designed for 3S balance cable to power board.. so powered it up with a 3s and it fired into life.,.



Plugged in a Bluetooth Dongle to my Window 8   machine...  it auto installed the drivers..

Scanned for new device and it found the BLG controller.... entered password 1234.. and hey presto connected on Com7

Fired up the GUI.. and  connected to Com 7

Some screen shots of the GUI Software...

[Gaza07]

Look forward to seeing how you get on with this Craig, although I doubt you can do firmware updates through blue tooth because it will need the extra connections to write the firmware to the board that a ftdi port has 
But it will be very nice to be able to set it up wire free, I have the open source board from rctimer and it is a pain to setup made worse by the fact you have to have it plugged in to the usb   

[Jumpy07]

Yeah not sure about the firmware update via Bluetooth.. there is an option in Gui.. but think it says future feature..

Looking at the board.. it looks very similar to the new one on Goodluckbuy..  which also uses same GUI.. but doesent have Bluetooth
http://www.goodluckbuy.com/universal-2-axis-brushless-gimbal-controller-with-sensor-and-voltage-regulator-v2-0.html

Don';t know much about these things yet.. you guys have a head start on me.. so steep learning curve..

[bunnygirl80]

Hi Craig,

Yes, mine arrived this morning too! Loved the carboard tube! LOL. Unfortunately, it was just before I set off to work in London for a few days. So, I';ll have to look at it when I get back.

Didn';t your gimbal motors come with cables?

Good luck,

Thxx

[Rafter]

Got mine this morning as well (in the tube) Royal Mail must have had a busy morning.

I';m having a problem though.

I';m using the RCTimer gimbal.    The hole centres on the gimbal are all 45mm but on the controller board they are 46mm.  This means that when I use the plastic stand offs that came with the gimbal, they are twisted at an angle so not only do they twist the board, it';s difficult to fit to the gimbal.

On the orignal controller from viacopter, all the sockets are facing outwards, where on this controller they all face upwards, so when you connect the plugs there';s no space.  I';m going to have to use a power lead connector left permanently connected to the board

The motors that came with the gimbal have servo connectors but the board has molex connections.

If anyone is using the RCTimer gimbal, I';d appreciate any help (pics etc) on how they';ve fitted the controller.

Peter

[bunnygirl80]

Got mine this morning as well (in the tube) Royal Mail must have had a busy morning.

I';m having a problem though.

I';m using the RCTimer gimbal.    The hole centres on the gimbal are all 45mm but on the controller board they are 46mm.  This means that when I use the plastic stand offs that came with the gimbal, they are twisted at an angle so not only do they twist the board, it';s difficult to fit to the gimbal.

On the orignal controller from viacopter, all the sockets are facing outwards, where on this controller they all face upwards, so when you connect the plugs there';s no space.  I';m going to have to use a power lead connector left permanently connected to the board

The motors that came with the gimbal have servo connectors but the board has molex connections.

If anyone is using the RCTimer gimbal, I';d appreciate any help (pics etc) on how they';ve fitted the controller.

Peter

Hi Peter,

I have an RCTimer gimbal but I';m away from home at the moment and wont be putting it all together until Friday. As soon as I do, I';ll post some photos.

Stef

[Rafter]

Thanks a lot Stef.

As we';re both in Preston, could I pop round and compare boards?

In the meantime I';ll contact Simon.

Peter

[dani_r]

I will be receiving my board from Simon sometime this week hopefully. I am also curious as to why the motor connections have the JST style connectors on and not the servo connections that the RCTimer brushless gimbal comes with? I have asked Simon and I';ll let you know when he replies.

Apart from that, looks like a nice bit of kit! The brushless thing is new to me so should be interesting!

[Rafter]

I';d be interested to know as well ';cause you have to dismantle the whole gimbal just to disconnect something.

Peter

[dani_r]

Ok. This is the reply I got from Simon this morning - I';m sure he won';t mind me posting this as it';s just a general question/answer -

"We use the jst connectors because they stay plugged place! I will be selling
the wires with the plugs but there is no problem using servo connectors -
just make sure you put a little bit of tape on them to keep them secure."

Cheers

Dani

[Jumpy07]

Yeah standard servo plugs fit the motor connections..

The Power connection is a 3s balance plug style..    12v recommended..   so (+12v * * -)

Not confirmed but most of these boards can take a 4s .. but not recommended..     they also recommend using separate battery from main lipo.... 

[teslahed]

Here is Warthox';s test of his new alex mos setup;

http://vimeo.com/68798773#at=0

[Gaza07]

Crickey thats one heck of a test 

[learnerdriver]

Yeah standard servo plugs fit the motor connections..

The Power connection is a 3s balance plug style..    12v recommended..   so (+12v * * -)

Not confirmed but most of these boards can take a 4s .. but not recommended..     they also recommend using separate battery from main lipo....

I think these are jst-xh plugs lipo balance style rather than standard jst plugs , can someone please confirm ?

[Gav]

Gaza now folks are using and trying out the AlexMos board in the UK (me too ) can you ban anyone from the forum if they post another ';gimbal in mirror test'; video O0

[bunnygirl80]

Hi guys,

Well, I can confirm that the cables on the servos do fit into the board motor connectors. If you look at the desire RC website, there are full instructions and also the cables should you want to buy the proper ones.

http://desirerc.co.uk/instructions.html

Peter, you';re more than welcome to pop over to see the gimball, but to be honest looks quite simple to connect.

Thxx

[Rafter]

Hi Stef, yes the boards look OK but the problem I had was that the holes in each corner of the board are 46mm centre, where the holes on the RCTimer boards are 45mm centres.
When you come to put the things together, the board bends and you have to bend the nylon spacers, which puts tension on everything.

I had to drill out the holes on the RCTimer boards but there';s still pressure. 

I rang Simon to ask why they were 46mm centres instead of 45mm and he said that they were the measurements Alexmos had sent them !!!  All the other distributors have the measurements as 45mm    http://quadcopters.co.uk/alexmos-simplebgc-brushless-gimbal-controller-inc-sensor-718-p.asp

I know it';s only 1mm but I had to spend ages trying to get things to fit easily, that';s why I wondered if I had got a rogue board and to check the distances on your board.

You';ll also find that the nylon spacers that come with the RCTimer gimbal are too small if you fit the servo leads to the board.  So that';s another thing I';ve spent a couple of hours trying to find, some longer nylon spacers.

I';d be interested in how your going to fit yours.  I';ve got mine together now if you want to have a look how I';ve done it.  Tel. is local code 611590.

Peter

[mickyt]

Hi Peter where did you get your nylon standoffs from i need some too,

Is anyone not connecting to their flight controller and just letting the alexmoss board do the work? And any pics of you connections and orientation of the imu.

Also are the rctimer dampners too soft and if so where do you get the next grade up? All these questions lol.

[Balders]

the rctimer dampeners are VERY soft, I was dubious of the generally accepted fix of stuffing foam earplugs inside the rubber bellows, but it actually works.  Just takes a little bit of the "bounce" out. Been getting solid vibe-free footage out of mine.

[Gav]

Nice idea Steve.  I';ve got some ear plugs lol.

Picked up my blue toothed AlexMos board today woo hoo goodies galore to tinker with.

[learnerdriver]

did it come with the motor cables ?

[mickyt]

Nice idea Steve.  I';ve got some ear plugs lol.

Picked up my blue toothed AlexMos board today woo hoo goodies galore to tinker with.

i didnt get those plugs with mine   

[Rafter]

Hi Peter where did you get your nylon standoffs from i need some too,

Is anyone not connecting to their flight controller and just letting the alexmoss board do the work? And any pics of you connections and orientation of the imu.

Also are the rctimer dampners too soft and if so where do you get the next grade up? All these questions lol.

I searched for the standoffs all over the place and finally found them at Hobbking UK.  They';re like rocking horse muck...

I used the dampeners that came with my landing gear, which are far harder than the RCTimer ones, although the ear plugs will work OK.

[Rafter]

i didnt get those plugs with mine   

Can you solder the wires on the wrong way round (silly question I know but how do you know which is the right way round)

Peter

[Gav]

Na doesn';t matter on the motor connection but good question as gimbal motors are wound different to a normal motor.  Just swap any 2 wires to reverse direction.

Yes I got the propper motor to board connectors too  :))  Simon sells those separately

[learnerdriver]

Na doesn';t matter on the motor connection but good question as gimbal motors are wound different to a normal motor.  Just swap any 2 wires to reverse direction.

Yes I got the propper motor to board connectors too  :))  Simon sells those separately

:-( why doesnt the proper motor to board connectors come as standard in the kit ?   :-(

[learnerdriver]

website says motor to board connectors are not available yet :-(   

[Gav]

Sorry you';ll have to give Simon a bell at RCDesire to find out about that matey.

[Gaza07]

They are 2s balance plugs I would suggest if your going to get some make sure the leads are the soft silicone type as the cheap stiff plastic wire is going to fail after being moved about so much, I have the rctimer gimbal and it came with nice soft silicone servo leads