Argtek mod... garbage?

Did the 10dbi Argtek mod extend your range?

  • Yes

  • No

  • Range unchanged


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So I ordered the Argtek mod with 10dbi antenna last month. It arrived last week. I wanted to conduct pure range test (no wifi, cell tower interference) so I packed up my P3S and flew to Mexico City. Found an empty field with at least 10km of empty space.

I performed the first test with the stock antenna and reached 1.325km before losing signal. Installed the mod and performed the test again, at the same location. Signal dropped at 600m.

I checked the connections twice over and everything is good (connected properly, connector not dirty). As a last ditch attempt, I re-paired the controller. Didn't change anything. All 3 antennas do not look defective (the connectors anyway.

Is this thing really this bad?

This was a test to see what the Argtek mod can do. I'm sure other mods are better but I conducted this test specifically to see what distance the Argtek mod can achieve under perfect conditions.
 
stock antena : 200 mtr then RTH
ARGtek : not event reach 100 mtr

I was looking to improve my video reception more than overall distance so after much research I opted for the Intelite DBS mod version instead of the Argtek. Just way to many negative reviews in regards to the Argtek especially on Amazon. That's what scared me away, for every positive review there's numerous negatives where distance was ether not affected at all or reduced. I wonder if it could be coincidence or maybe locations where interference was present and simply increased along with signal gain
 
I heard of this mod a couple of days after I purchased the P3S from YouTube videos. Re-watching those videos to see if I did anything wrong kind of makes me think that those videos are mostly all sponsored.

I'm going to run another range test this afternoon although I can't get back to where I ran the stock test as it's 4 hours away from where i'm staying. I'll post the results tonight.

I really hope I get a positive result. Got my hopes up about this thing.
 
Definitely more neg than pos on this mod! I'm using 1 at the moment and works as advertised. Stock 1500' vs. 4400' w/ mod
 
That's what I find screwed up. t's like they're pumping out more defective products than working ones. I knwo I installed this thing correctly so I'm pretty sure the item is defective. They didn't put up a fight though and shipped out another one.

I didn't have a chance to test today due to a storm, I'm hoping I can get out and test it again before I head back to Montreal.
 
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I haven't done fully exhaustive testing but I did get a mile out of the setup a couple days ago. Best I did stock was about 1800 feet.

This was not in the same area so I don't know if this has increased my distance or not. I do know that a mile is more than enough for me, especially for what I wish to do as far as watching boats.
 
Just a point. If you are testing any antenna in an area with interference you may end up having less range with a so called better antenna because it's picking up more interference. Biggest issue with a lot of reviews are no one knows conditions. An issue I've had in the past was while using my Nvidia Shield K1 I was getting really crappy range especially with video reception I found the problem was my cell phone linking with the receiver from the car screwing things up when I shut wifi off on my cell phone range was back to normal, I have repeated this issue so I know at least in my case it was a problem. I now make sure there is only one device around with wifi when i FLY.
 
Just a point. If you are testing any antenna in an area with interference you may end up having less range with a so called better antenna because it's picking up more interference. Biggest issue with a lot of reviews are no one knows conditions. An issue I've had in the past was while using my Nvidia Shield K1 I was getting really crappy range especially with video reception I found the problem was my cell phone linking with the receiver from the car screwing things up when I shut wifi off on my cell phone range was back to normal, I have repeated this issue so I know at least in my case it was a problem. I now make sure there is only one device around with wifi when i FLY.
Putting device in airplane mode really helps also
 
I have been trying my P3S with the ARG mod. Very reduced range. I was flying at the beach with unobstructed landscape, even over water. I did realize that I was standing about 30' from my wifi router. I was wondering if this could be the problem.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots
 
Yesterday, after reading several post regarding ARGtek antenna mod and poor range on a Firmware update topic, I downloaded the FW update mentioned and uploaded it to the P3S through the SD card in the drone. Flew a test flight today and it seemed to fix the range issues. I am doing a range test tomorrow in a unobstructed area. Looking forward to a good test.


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots
 
Good to hear people are getting there birds back
 
Argteck antennas are pretty good if you got the real ones. (lots of knockoffs on ebay), I was only gettin 450-480m with stock antenna, after Argteck I can reach 2,200m (7200feet).

Be sure to downgrade to 1.5.7 and check for antennas and other sources of interference. A good antenna will perform even worse than a bad antenna on high interference areas.
 
7 and 10 dbi didn't work for me at all... on panel 11 dbi i was getting about 800m so wasn't great as well
 
Original internal antennas are way much better than anything else I've tried (including self designed and various argtek-like mods).
 
so stock i would get about 1600' with windsuref 23-2600' argtek today with the 10 dbi omni antenna 3700' witht he panel 4300' but aiming was so difficult i usually fly at 350 ft altitude.. this test was done this morning
 

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