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I'm curious what is considered good range in a crowded city with apartment buildings, trees exct. So far I have done the following modifications
Both 2.4ghz antenna mods with Amps and same on the 5.8ghz. I have Alpha panels and upgraded the 2.4 GHz birdside antennas with P3 pro antennas. (Pics included) This is a heavily crowded area and I'm getting 3,000 -3,500 ft. It will have full bars on signal and then all of a sudden nothing, RTH starts. Is this as good as it gets? Should I expect more with a P4 or Mav? Or is there another mod I haven't considered?

Btw in a rural area this thing is endless. I'm scared to push it because I don't want to crash on RTH.
 

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I'm curious what is considered good range in a crowded city with apartment buildings, trees exct. So far I have done the following modifications
Both 2.4ghz antenna mods with Amps and same on the 5.8ghz. I have Alpha panels and upgraded the 2.4 GHz birdside antennas with P3 pro antennas. (Pics included) This is a heavily crowded area and I'm getting 3,000 -3,500 ft. It will have full bars on signal and then all of a sudden nothing, RTH starts. Is this as good as it gets? Should I expect more with a P4 or Mav? Or is there another mod I haven't considered?

Btw in a rural area this thing is endless. I'm scared to push it because I don't want to crash on RTH.

I was getting that with just my controller modded and not with amps you should be getting better than that plus make sure to keep your bird in the line of site

Loving the mods thro dude
 
Your luckey I'm in a somewhat crowded area in CT and I only get 1,600 feet it's kinda depressing.but I like your setup looks bad ***
 
Dude... Awesome setup! Awesome! Far as your question about range in the city. In downtown Cincinnati very close to Channel 9's broadcast center and at least 4 other high powered radio station towers plus who knows how many cellphone towers I fly in Eden park sometimes and consistently get similar range. (3,000 to 4,000ft) I fly with exactly the same Afla panels you have on an argtek blue proton base. With no amplifiers, just the 1 alfa 5.8ghz 10db apa-m25 and the 2 2.4ghz 7db panels you have. I'm getting simalar range. I think I know why. I may be wrong and I hope someone smarter corrects me if so. However I believe while your setup is far more powerful than mine neither one of our antenna arrays achieve better distance in the city because at a certain point the magnitude of the signal dissipates over distance and signals more local to the drone's position superimpose over the remote control transmitted signal which is at a greater distance away. So I think its like this. Think of the drone's receiver as a human ear. If you are standing front stage at a rock concert you hear it well. Although if you were a mile away from the concert next to someone quietly playing an acoustic guitar you would be more clearly hearing the quiet acoustic guitar because its sound (reasonance) had superimposed the more powerful sound coming from the amplifiers at the rock concert because 1mile away the concerts sound was at a much lesser magnitude than the magnitude of the acoustic guitar nearer its location. So think of modems, routers, microwave ovens, AC power transformers, etc. and other electrical noise as the acoustic guitar in the above metaphor. While your awesome setup has plenty of transmitting power. The further from it the drone happens to be, the weaker its subjective local magnitude becomes. Therefore it is more easily overpowered (superimposed) by other electrical noise more close to the drone's position. In a class I took in college we learned about wireless communications and superimposed signals effect on inductive and reactive resonant circuits. In this class we would use analog and digital oscilloscope. When ranging an analog scope you would see lots of signals besides the rlc or ilc circuit in question. We were told these other signal were typically wifi networks interfering with our lab. Same may be the case when flying quadcopters at long distances. Not positive. However it is my current hypothesis.
 
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I could change the output cable on the battery to the USB output Wich is 5V split 3 ways instead of 12V. I'll try that and see what happens.
 
Tried the 5V out put and it didn't help. I put it back on the 12V and got to 4,000 FT before signal lost. I guess it's because where I'm flying it there's no clear sight. Once I get to around 2,500 ft there's trees and buildings in the line of sight. I would have to increase the altitude to 400FT and that wouldn't make the airport that's close by to happy. It's more of a private airport but there's always traffic in and out. I'm lucky I'm just outside of the no fly zone.
 
Tried the 5V out put and it didn't help. I put it back on the 12V and got to 4,000 FT before signal lost. I guess it's because where I'm flying it there's no clear sight. Once I get to around 2,500 ft there's trees and buildings in the line of sight. I would have to increase the altitude to 400FT and that wouldn't make the airport that's close by to happy. It's more of a private airport but there's always traffic in and out. I'm lucky I'm just outside of the no fly zone.
Call the control tower and very kindly ask if there is any time in the near future it would not conflict their incoming or outgoing flight plans for you to take a 20min flight in a SPECIFIC location and or what altitude they need you to stay below. I call Lunken airport and CVG air traffic control towers very frequently. I made an 850ft altitude over 1 mile each way test flight about 2miles from the airport with permission. Just don't tell them weather you are or aren't a 107 commercially certified UAV pilot. For instance when I made that flight I was only a hobbyist FAA registered pilot. Even though technically I needed a 107 commercial FAA registration to do that "legally". I had the airport's permission so what did I have to worry about? Nothing. Who's going to report me? The airport I have permission from? Why would they? If you actually call especially the private airport control towers and ask permission most will find a window for you. At least in my experience. Technically flying over 400ft is illegal these days without 107 commercial certification but in some places class g airspace goes up to 800ft or more so the airports will likely work with you. Plenty of UAV/UAS pilots don't even call and inherently cause problems for control towers because the pilots are typically untraceable anyway. So I have noticed if you call the tower and respectfully ask permission, they usually cooperate. With their permission who is going to bust you for breaking FAA regulations? Unless you have a neighbor with a 70ft tower in their backyard and 3/4 million dollars in radar equipment along with active flight maps at their disposal. Just make sure you have at least your hobbyist FAA registration number on your drone (costs five bucks) and local airport permission. You will be fine. Might make a new friend. Look up the phone number for the control tower if you don't already have it.
 
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I have just added the same boosters as you and I live in a sprawling, warehouse, homes and malls area(congested wifi)
I'm getting the same distance as you so yeah this may be as good as it gets. I'm using 8 dbi omnis for the birdside and the DBS itelite and was thinking about getting the P4 pro birdsides but from your post I'm assuming they won't help.
 
I'm curious what is considered good range in a crowded city with apartment buildings, trees exct. So far I have done the following modifications
Both 2.4ghz antenna mods with Amps and same on the 5.8ghz. I have Alpha panels and upgraded the 2.4 GHz birdside antennas with P3 pro antennas. (Pics included) This is a heavily crowded area and I'm getting 3,000 -3,500 ft. It will have full bars on signal and then all of a sudden nothing, RTH starts. Is this as good as it gets? Should I expect more with a P4 or Mav? Or is there another mod I haven't considered?

Btw in a rural area this thing is endless. I'm scared to push it because I don't want to crash on RTH.

The mavic pro is the best drone unless your into pics / vids then it would be the phantom 4 but by all means the mavic does not disappoint in any of them fields and in my opinion you would still be disappointed I truly think you need to change where your flying see I was once thinking like you about my p3s but I took it a different place and oh my god it’s a hole new experience I was going to get a mavic pro on finance which I’m so gladei didn’t I would really recommend you try this and then consider your options I hope it’s like a rebirth for you as it was for me and as I said before love you modded controller I think you could earn a few quid there
 

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