Advantage of Gimbal?

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What is the advantage of a gimbal over the "stock" gopro mount? I'm guessing, the gimbal gives you remote control over pan/tilt? Is that correct? Are there enough channels on the stock radio to control it, or does it require an aftermarket TX/RX with more channels?
 
The Gimbal will provide stabilization for your video with pan/tilt functionality. Additionally, it will help in diminishing the jello video from the vibration of the motors/props. With the DJI Phantom, there is a channel supported for a Gimbal. You should look into the DJI Zenmuse H3 2D Gimbal that is now shipping and is specifically designed for the Phantom.
 
Just google Brushless Gimbal and you can see all the terrific results people are getting with them. as well as video's of the gimbals themselves counteracting the tilt and roll of the craft.
(don't bother with servo-based gimbals, they just don't cut it)

Basically they keep the camera level when the craft shakes all around the place.
the difference is night and day.

On top of that, nearly all the gimbals incorporate some kind of vibration isolation mount (with rubber balls), that greatly absorbs vibrations to reduce jello in the video.

Plus they also allow you to manually tilt the camera down (while still remaining stable) in flight.

The H3-2d is meant for Phantom, tho at $770 is a bi ton the high side.
also look at the Arris, which is $300, and fits on Phantom as well.
but new to the market is the Tarot, which is only $180 or less,and compares quite favorably with the other two.
 
rctoyguy said:
Holy cow - you're talking about a minimum of $180 on top of the price of the Phantom and a camera?

You just have to work with your Chief Financial Officer to get the funding allocated. I usually start with a some flowers and a nice bottle of wine!

;)

Todd
 
I use a cheap servo gimbal . . .

. . I have no issue with it! I'm yet to see a good enough reason to spend $300+ to replace what I'm currently using.

Here is a vid I recorded yesterday, I've flown with the gimbal before, but this flight was the first I had done with my FPV setup running too, cheap VTX, cheap lcd mounted to my controller.

http://youtu.be/TpzcEVTT_JE

Somebody could probably point out spots where the gimbal is tilted still etc, but I still need to adjust to limits, so I might be able to fix that up some more but I'm honestly not very concerned about it. I also think I have more jello in the videos with the gimbal, than when I was running with the gopro attached using the stock phantom mount . . .
 
http://youtu.be/mOtTwESBi3Q

(No gimbal, no FPV system)

I've got the 7th channel level installed aswell, but I didn't make use of it in the videos (it seems to slip??? I'll open up the controller tonight and have a look what's going on inside)




I had to split the post in two??? It was cutting out random words and sentences???
 
Roadkilt said:
Careful flying and good stabilization software and its as good as a gimbal..

you can come close, provided there's no wind and flying conditions are ideal and you can fly in a straight line with ATTI.

flying with a gimbal means almost no need for post stabilization (which can take hours) and loss of image quality, less rolling shutter as well.
it just increases video quality results across the board.
 
True, I've just seen so many negative gimbal reviews I'm hesitant to blow the $700+ on it....
 
Roadkilt said:
True, I've just seen so many negative gimbal reviews I'm hesitant to blow the $700+ on it....

well there's only one gimbal that costs THAT much.

The hot gimbal of the moment is the Tarot which is under $200, and has been getting great reviews.

I'm planning to get one as well for my next copter build
 
Roadkilt said:
These mounts will go a long way to replacing a gimbal without the cost, performance or weight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NcsZqqCDGQ&sns=em

The advantage of a gimbal is the fact it will keep your shot steady with the horizon no matter what your doing. There is no anti jello mount that can replace a gimbal for the purpose a gimbal is intended, you can get good results using good mount and level smooth flying in calm conditions but a gimbal can do much more then just that. That video example shows that mount work ok there but id want to see it in many more flying conditions before making comment on it. It does show quite simply how it cant compete with a gimbal, the entire frame is tilted and the wind is moving the phantom around. Had this been shot with a good gimbal it would be as steady as if it was dead still in a hover with the horizon level with no small motions from the corrections made in the wind.

You can also get some good shots without a gimbal of high performance type fast FPV flying where seeing the image lean actually adds a bit to the effect and a bit of motion is fine though you still want a nice stable mount to reduce vibrations. A gimbal is not needed for everyone but if your want to take the best video you can from the setup its the only way to go for good consistent results.

If you want smooth cinematic type footage even in some wind and more adventurous flying this is only possible with a good gimbal. From all the examples I have seen the DJI is still the best where it matters and that is the end results, the tarot is pretty close but I have seen more mixed results with this. It appears to be a little bit slower then the DJI and you can see the horizon move much more in the tarot compared to some examples I have seen with the DJI in even pretty strong winds. The big price difference between the 2 is where the tough decision is, if you want the best then you have to pay for it. If your happy with something that does pretty darn well in most situations the tarot is hard to beat, I will probably get one of each and most likely use the tarot for a handheld gopro setup instead and using the DJI on the phantom.
 
martcerv said:
Roadkilt said:
These mounts will go a long way to replacing a gimbal without the cost, performance or weight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NcsZqqCDGQ&sns=em

The advantage of a gimbal is the fact it will keep your shot steady with the horizon no matter what your doing. There is no anti jello mount that can replace a gimbal for the purpose a gimbal is intended, you can get good results using good mount and level smooth flying in calm conditions but a gimbal can do much more then just that. That video example shows that mount work ok there but id want to see it in many more flying conditions before making comment on it. It does show quite simply how it cant compete with a gimbal, the entire frame is tilted and the wind is moving the phantom around. Had this been shot with a good gimbal it would be as steady as if it was dead still in a hover with the horizon level with no small motions from the corrections made in the wind.

You can also get some good shots without a gimbal of high performance type fast FPV flying where seeing the image lean actually adds a bit to the effect and a bit of motion is fine though you still want a nice stable mount to reduce vibrations. A gimbal is not needed for everyone but if your want to take the best video you can from the setup its the only way to go for good consistent results.

If you want smooth cinematic type footage even in some wind and more adventurous flying this is only possible with a good gimbal. From all the examples I have seen the DJI is still the best where it matters and that is the end results, the tarot is pretty close but I have seen more mixed results with this. It appears to be a little bit slower then the DJI and you can see the horizon move much more in the tarot compared to some examples I have seen with the DJI in even pretty strong winds. The big price difference between the 2 is where the tough decision is, if you want the best then you have to pay for it. If your happy with something that does pretty darn well in most situations the tarot is hard to beat, I will probably get one of each and most likely use the tarot for a handheld gopro setup instead and using the DJI on the phantom.


^^^ This.

Its a bit of a disservice to the original poster of the thread to share wishful thinking over fact. The footage used in the video showing "no gimbal" works fine is edited. 95% of the footage will contain the undesired effects of jello and off axis footage. A gimbal is the solution for said issues, and answer to the question posed in this thread.

Note: The video was nice, and presentable. But not realistic, and still full of what gimbals attempt to remedy.
 
Roadkilt said:
These mounts will go a long way to replacing a gimbal without the cost, performance or weight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NcsZqqCDGQ&sns=em

Spoken like someone who's never had the benefit of flying/shooting with a brushless gimbal.
as those wire/rubber isolation mounts do nothing to stabilize video, and even the best post-stailization software technicques can't match footage that's been stabilized in-flight.

If you're looking to shoot the best possible video from your Phantom/Quadcopter, a brushless gimbal will make a HUGE difference.
-
 
I had convinced myself that I was not going to buy a Phantom - even going as far as buying a T-Rex 450 and Spektrum DX7 (Ha, I'll show myself - now I don't have enough money for the Phantom :eek: ) - Now I'm thinking about reselling the heli and looking at this again. I'm still just way too afraid of a fly-away.

All the gimbal talk IS very informative though.
 
I had convinced myself that I was not going to buy a Phantom - even going as far as buying a T-Rex 450

I had one a few years back, but the crashes were so expensive. I never got good enough to really fly it. Sold it, and
spent way too much money on sport kites.
 

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