FPV newbie question

[johncanfield]

Be kind to me ...

Equipment P2, Zenmuse 3D gimbal, Hero4 Silver. I want to assemble an FPV system and here's my equipment list so far:

- Black Pearl monitor
- iOSD mini
- ImmersionRC 600 mw video transmitter
What else??

Now for the newbie question. Will the Hero4 feed video to the ImmersionRC video transmitter? If not, what are the alternatives?

 

[Zoeconner]

http://fpvlr.com/shop/index.php?route=p ... duct_id=97

 

[johncanfield]

Huh? That link is for antennas.

 

[Zoeconner]

Yea get it. I have the same setup. Your going to want them

 

[johncanfield]

Right - love the antennas, but what about the Hero4 video out??

 

[GoodnNuff]

Huh? That link is for antennas.

You are going to need quality antennas.

I putting together the same set up, just haven't connected everything yet - hopefully this weekend.

I don't have an answer regarding the Hero4

 

[Zoeconner]

The 3+ is an awesome camera. You probably won't even notice the difference. Save your money.

 

[johncanfield]

The 3+ is an awesome camera. You probably won't even notice the difference. Save your money.

I already have the Hero4 Silver. Actually I was looking for a Hero3Black+ but Amazon sold out of them several days ago.

Okay - I think I found my answer on a GoPro forum. It does seem that the H4 will output video so I feel comfortable ordering the FPV stuff.

 

[johncanfield]

All-righty, FPV stuff just ordered:

- Black Pearl receiver
- DJI iOSD mini
- ImmersionRC 600mw 5.8Ghz transmitter
- Plug 'n play cable from iOSD to transmitter
- Rave monitor mount
- IBCrazy 5.8 GHz Bluebeam Ultra Antenna Set

Receiver, iOSD mini, cable ordered from Amazon
Transmitter, antennas ordered from getfpv.com
Rave monitor mount ordered from extremeuas.com

 

[tgreenstone]

All-righty, FPV stuff just ordered:

- Black Pearl receiver
- DJI iOSD mini
- ImmersionRC 600mw 5.8Ghz transmitter
- Plug 'n play cable from iOSD to transmitter
- Rave monitor mount
- IBCrazy 5.8 GHz Bluebeam Ultra Antenna Set

Receiver, iOSD mini, cable ordered from Amazon
Transmitter, antennas ordered from getfpv.com
Rave monitor mount ordered from extremeuas.com

Very interested to see how it all works out for you, i am looking to do the exact same set up.

 

[Cloud9]

Be kind to me ...

Equipment P2, Zenmuse 3D gimbal, Hero4 Silver. I want to assemble an FPV system and here's my equipment list so far:

- Black Pearl monitor
- iOSD mini
- ImmersionRC 600 mw video transmitter
What else??

Now for the newbie question. Will the Hero4 feed video to the ImmersionRC video transmitter? If not, what are the alternatives?

Make sure you ordered the Black Pearl monitor 7 CHANNEL version.
The more common 32ch one doesn't play well with immersionrc transmitters and the Black Pearl company made the 7ch specifically for Immersionrc.

 

[phynesse]

I must have missed this info... Receiving shipment with immersionrc and 32ch version today :-/
What do you mean by doesn't play well?

 

[Cloud9]

I must have missed this info... Receiving shipment with immersionrc and 32ch version today :-/
What do you mean by doesn't play well?

As in a dramatic decrease in reliability and range. It will still work but there was like a 40 page thread with folks trying to figure out why the 32ch BP wasn't getting good range with the Immersionrc.

" The SMA version is 7 channels (BAND F only) specifically designed to have best performance on Fatshark/ImmersionRC frequencies.
1. Can I use Immersion RC / Fatshark video transmitters with the 32 channel RP-SMA BlackPearl? YES ! You can, but the performance (range) will not be as good as with the dedicated 7 channel SMA Black Pearl."

It is suggesting that the 7ch version has better sensitivity for Immersion/Fat shark freqs perhaps due to being able to tweak the Rx for a more limited range of freqs."

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=16963

Not trying to rain on your parade at all, just want you to get the right equipment for the job. As I said, the 32ch will get you video, but it tapers off between 100-200 meters. Even more if you're not LOS.
if that's enough distance for you, try them out and see how you like em.
If it's cutting out, I'd highly recommend exchanging for the 7ch.

 

[phynesse]

thanks for info.
just found this from a FlySight rep: "[The 32ch] has a slight difference with the video pre-emphasis and RF bandwidth characteristics."

i have arranged an exchange. not spending all that $$$ for sub-par performance

 

[johncanfield]

..Not trying to rain on your parade at all, just want you to get the right equipment for the job. As I said, the 32ch will get you video, but it tapers off between 100-200 meters. Even more if you're not LOS.
if that's enough distance for you, try them out and see how you like em.
If it's cutting out, I'd highly recommend exchanging for the 7ch.

Oops. Guess I'll send it back to Amazon for the 7 channel version.

Just ordered the 7 channel version, it will be here tomorrow. I'll return the 32 channel one and eat the shipping cost because of my goof-up.

 

[johncanfield]

Okay, finally got the time to put it all together. Mounted the mini iOSD inside the case, installed the 3D gimbal*, the ImmersionRC, and fired it up and the bench test was all good, the Hero4 Silver will output video . Tomorrow I'll do some test flights.

* note about the gimbal and Hero4 - I did have to grind off a relief for the H4's side button. Five minutes with the Dremel tool and it's all good. My H4 and the gimbal seem to be very well balanced so I did not have to do the "penny" trick.

 

[Jourei]

All-righty, FPV stuff just ordered:

- Black Pearl receiver
- DJI iOSD mini
- ImmersionRC 600mw 5.8Ghz transmitter
- Plug 'n play cable from iOSD to transmitter
- Rave monitor mount
- IBCrazy 5.8 GHz Bluebeam Ultra Antenna Set

Receiver, iOSD mini, cable ordered from Amazon
Transmitter, antennas ordered from getfpv.com
Rave monitor mount ordered from extremeuas.com

I'm a complete noob at this too. Could anyone explain me briefly what the components do and why I should need them? Also, what prices am I looking at?

 

[tgreenstone]

- Black Pearl receiver $230 - Wireless 7" monitor that receives the feed from the ImmersionRC transmitter so you see what the GoPro sees
- DJI iOSD mini $70 - As you see the feed from the GoPro on the Black Pearl, You will now see flight data, such as GPS sat count, Height, Direction, Battery voltage, etc...http://download.dji-innovations.com/downloads/nazam-v2/en/iOSD_mini_User_Manual_v1.02_en.pdf

- ImmersionRC 600mw 5.8Ghz transmitter $70 - Transmits GoPro feed wirelessly from the Phantom to your Black Pearl monitor for viewing.
- Plug 'n play cable from iOSD to transmitter $15 - Makes life very easy with connecting everything on the Phantom, no soldering, just plugging it all in

- Rave monitor mount $15-25 - Holds Black Pearl on the controller.
- IBCrazy 5.8 GHz Bluebeam Ultra Antenna Set $40-90 - Upgraded antenna set to help keep a solid feed from the ImmersionRC TX to the Black Pearl.

Hope that helps!!

 

[johncanfield]

Yea! Maiden FPV flight completed this morning. I was a little overwhelmed with all of the flight data displayed - should have read the iOSD manual first . I kept it fairly close to me while I was parsing the video feed and trying to get an idea of how to control it with just the video. The video quality was very good and only had a half a second dropout once in a while when yawing the P2. I did see the monitor switch antennas from the rubber ducky to the Bluebeam once in a while. All in all, a very good experience.

 

[tgreenstone]

Glad to hear it went well. I flew my first FPV on monday, and your right, it is a lot to take in. I did an aerial here at work hitting 100m (airport is 1.5 away so had to keep it under 122m) and i never lost feed. I believe we are running twin set ups haha. Interested to hear if you have any issues/tips.