Upgrading Stock antennae

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Has anyone upgraded the antennae on both the phantom and the stock radio? I was flying today in a city park, and after getting up to about 70 ft high, I got a fly away Phantom 2. I had successfully calibrate the compass prior to flying and waited to get gps lock. The Phantom came back after flying away for about 6 city blocks and landed. It scared the heck out of me and I thought I lost it. It seems to me that there was some interference, maybe from some WiFi network. Can you upgrade the antennae on the Phantom and radio to get better range? Thanks for you advice
 
The first thing I did with my P2 was replace the stock controller and receiver with a Futaba T8FG. After hearing all the reports of fly always I didn't want to take any chances with $1500 flying off. There are a lot of theories on what causes them, I personally believe the stock receiver isn’t very good at filtering out outside interference and that’s why I replaced it.
 
The stock antennae are pretty well placed. That shouldn't be your issue. People have been getting 5km of range with the stock setup. If you were in an urban area, it could have been congestion or interference in the 2.4GHz band which can dramatically limit your range.

I have the Futaba TX/RX as well. I initially thought the TX/RX was the Achilles heel of the Phantom. Which it was with the P1. Not so with the P2. I wouldn't mess with it unless you want to go to a Futaba. I would recommend the Futaba if you plan to fly mostly in areas where you know there is going to be lots of WiFi or interference (e.g. very urban areas).
 
Thanks for your answers. I will definitely have to upgrade to a stronger radio, as most of my clients are in urban areas. Are Futabas the best, or are there any comparable competitors. What model radio should I be looking at? TIA
 
Futaba 8FG (aka T8FG aka T8FGS) is very often used with the Phantom. It comes with a radio receiver.

I had to upgrade to a Futaba as my stock RC Tx packed up. I really like the Futaba, because it has some nice extra features that @ianWood created like the ability to make the controls less sensitive so you can get smoother pans etc
 
I think almost everyone is using Futaba and that's where you will find the most support from the community. I use the Futaba T8FG Super and it's a phenomenal radio. You will find the most support for that model here. ianwood has a great thread about setting it up and I think he even has a config file you can download to an SD card and install in your radio.

I came across this site shortly after I set mine up and used this video as a guide which is also pretty good.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ8lkBwu_AY[/youtube]

Also, the Futaba doesn't come like the stock radio where the throttle auto centers. I got used to flying that way so if you want yours to do the same you will need to order a throttle centering kit from Hobby Services. It's free and takes about 3-4 days to get it.
 
hook3m said:
Also, the Futaba doesn't come like the stock radio where the throttle auto centers. I got used to flying that way so if you want yours to do the same you will need to order a throttle centering kit from Hobby Services. It's free and takes about 3-4 days to get it.

The centering kit is no longer free, due to the amount of demand, but its less than $10 inc postage, however you can't buy it online, you have to ring or fax futaba's service company.

I keep meaning to get around to ringing them, but as I'm not in the USA its hard to find a time when they are open and I'm awake ;-)
 
RogerClark said:
The centering kit is no longer free, due to the amount of demand, but its less than $10 inc postage, however you can't buy it online, you have to ring or fax futaba's service company.

I keep meaning to get around to ringing them, but as I'm not in the USA its hard to find a time when they are open and I'm awake ;-)

Nope... It's free. I received mine last week. Didn't cost me a cent.

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