Transmitter

[Mayday]

Hi all, Im a beginner in Heli, have been into RC cars for sometime but have to switch due to some reasons. Ive been buying some "shopping center" toy helis and was hook, so bought a cox lama and now have spent some $300+ upgrades to full extreme parts (not very smart move). Im now thinking of starting full swing, so need all "sifu" experience of what transmitter or how many Ch i would need. Thinking of getting a 9ch but there a few brands and being a beginner like me would not know what trans covers all if not most functions. There are terms like "idle up", 3D, throttle curve....etc any advise out there?? futaba, JR , Hitec ???

[jansonfinn]

Hi all, Im a beginner in Heli, have been into RC cars for sometime but have to switch due to some reasons. Ive been buying some "shopping center" toy helis and was hook, so bought a cox lama and now have spent some $300+ upgrades to full extreme parts (not very smart move). Im now thinking of starting full swing, so need all "sifu" experience of what transmitter or how many Ch i would need. Thinking of getting a 9ch but there a few brands and being a beginner like me would not know what trans covers all if not most functions. There are terms like "idle up", 3D, throttle curve....etc any advise out there?? futaba, JR , Hitec ???

I would say a minimum of a 6 channel, comfortably a 7 channel is good enough for helis n planes. 9 Channel r for those scale nitro planes or helis with extra servos for scale purposes.

As for the 3D terms functions, IMO, I would recommend in the order of JR, Futaba n lastly for budget-wise, a Hitec

[kaon]

I use Spektrum DX7, which is quite popular.
Mode 1 / Mode 2 is not user-changeable.
If you get the improved DX7SE, (double the frame rate and double the resolution), IIRC, it does not support the simulator cable.

[cyz0301]

Hi all, Im a beginner in Heli, have been into RC cars for sometime but have to switch due to some reasons. Ive been buying some "shopping center" toy helis and was hook, so bought a cox lama and now have spent some $300+ upgrades to full extreme parts (not very smart move). Im now thinking of starting full swing, so need all "sifu" experience of what transmitter or how many Ch i would need. Thinking of getting a 9ch but there a few brands and being a beginner like me would not know what trans covers all if not most functions. There are terms like "idle up", 3D, throttle curve....etc any advise out there?? futaba, JR , Hitec ???

hi, since you have decided to invest in a good transmitter then it is worth buying a good one. some brands that you can never go wrong with: JR futaba and spectrum. best to go 2.4ghz now. Some models u may want to consider: JR9XII the new one, DX7 or SE, i'm not sure about futaba models but there are worth considering also. good luck hope to see u flying around some day

[foxkilo]

If you're just flying one or two dedicated models, then yes, 2.4 GHz is the way to go. JR and Spektrum (you can think of it as a cheaper version of JR) are good brands, and their interface is quite friendly and intuitive.

Else, 2.4 GHz receivers are expensive... that's my main complaint.

If you want to save $, go for one of the pre-owned 6-channel Hitec Optic 6 on offer in the Marketplace. This is unquestionably the best 'bang-for-buck' transmitter. Can be used for both airplane and heli models. Works with FM receivers, and also easily converted to 2.4 GHz thru after-market modules.

[Mayday]

Thank you all for the valuable advise, think i will probably go for 9 to 10 ch, kinda love scale helis. I have been downloading Futaba, JR etc manual and yes, lots of info in there for newbies. Think will be starting off with a sim call phoenix, read somewhere that its the best sim in it's price range.
Btw I have three more questions for all Sifu's,
1) what is the diff between twin bladed and multi bladed helis?? Lifting vs agilities?? have never seen any RC multi-blades doing 3D.
2) what is head lock gyro???
3) "3s 2250mah 20C lipo" batt, the 3s means 3 cells?? and 20c means discharge rate??

Sorry.... lots of new terms for me to catch up.....

[Super-Hornet]

Let me reply on the multibladed question:

1) what is the diff between twin bladed and multi bladed helis?? Lifting vs agilities?? have never seen any RC multi-blades doing 3D.

There should not be called "twin bladed". The proper name should be:
1. Tandem rotor
2. Coaxial rotor
3. Intermeshing rotor

All 3 types of heli has 2 sets of rotor disc. The easiest to know the different is by looking at the real/full size heli as an example:
1. Tandem => Chinook, Sea Knight

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tandem_rotors

2. Coaxial => Kamov Ka-32A-12, Ka-50 Black Shark

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coaxial_rotors

3. Intermeshing =>Kaman K-MAX

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermeshing_rotors

Multibladed heli is a generic/common name given for helicopter that has 3 or more blades in a rotor.
Most full size heli tend to be in multibladed...except some older heli.

In terms of lifting power, of course multibladed has more lifting power than 2 bladed heli. The more blades u have, the more lifting power it can generate...provided the motor/engine/power system can handle/provide it. Do note that, 4 bladed does not mean 2x of 2 bladed heli. It is like less than 2x.
This is due to the efficiency of the lifting power drop as more blades is added.

Multibladed heli tend to have higher inertial that causes the heli to be more sluggish than heli with lesser blades.

So far, multibladed heli owner are mostly scale pilot. Scale pilot not really interested in using their multibladed to do 3D. Whether can do 3D or not, I never try before. I haven't really see anyone doing it also.

[kaon]

Thank you all for the valuable advise, think i will probably go for 9 to 10 ch, kinda love scale helis. I have been downloading Futaba, JR etc manual and yes, lots of info in there for newbies. Think will be starting off with a sim call phoenix, read somewhere that its the best sim in it's price range.
Btw I have three more questions for all Sifu's,
1) what is the diff between twin bladed and multi bladed helis?? Lifting vs agilities?? have never seen any RC multi-blades doing 3D.
2) what is head lock gyro???
3) "3s 2250mah 20C lipo" batt, the 3s means 3 cells?? and 20c means discharge rate??
Sorry.... lots of new terms for me to catch up.....

I use Phoenix. You may want to confirm compatibility with which models of transmitters.
1. Not sure. I also have never seen multi-bladed used for 3D.
2. Most (maybe all?) gyros nowadays are "head lock" or "heading hold". Means they can sense a particular heading, so when rudder stick is center, the gyro commands the tail servo to keep the heading constant, even in wind or changing collective. Contrast with older gyros which are only "rate mode" capable. They can only "damp" the tail movement so that it is easier for human reflexes to control the tail.
3. 3S means 3 cells in series, so you can work out the voltage, nominal is 3.7V per cell, but fully charged, is abt 4.2V per cell. The "C" current rating works like this: 1C means it will empty/fill the battery in one hour. 20C means it will empty/fill the battery in 1/20 of one hour, i.e. 3 minutes. If a battery has 2200mAh, then 1C is 2.2A, and 20C is 44A.

[jffry7]

1) what is the diff between twin bladed and multi bladed helis?? Lifting vs agilities?? have never seen any RC multi-blades doing 3D.
2) what is head lock gyro???
3) "3s 2250mah 20C lipo" batt, the 3s means 3 cells?? and 20c means discharge rate??

Sorry.... lots of new terms for me to catch up.....

I also use Phoenix, great controller and cheap. Although RealFlight is also now catching up, the good thing about it is you dont burn battery life cause it has its on controller/TX

1. Multiblade = more lift but lessens battery life due to increase in rotating mass. definitely for scale guys. Problem with multiblade is its easily affected (compared to 2 blade) by balloning effect that cause heli to go up and down easily on strong winds
2. In addition to what they said, if you like scale you will probably want "rate mode" turning heli feels/looks more life like compared to Heading Hold. But of course you can achive same results provided your hands will be ultra smooth/sensitive on the stick
3 (X)S(Y)P : X is the number of cell in series which determines the total voltage while Y is the number of C cell in parallel. I.E 3S2P would mean total of 6 cells but its 2 x 3S setup. Advantage of more parallel cel is capacity in mAh but disadvantage is weight (heavier)

Hope this helps

[SkyLine.ph]

Hi all, Im a beginner in Heli, have been into RC cars for sometime but have to switch due to some reasons. Ive been buying some "shopping center" toy helis and was hook, so bought a cox lama and now have spent some $300+ upgrades to full extreme parts (not very smart move). Im now thinking of starting full swing, so need all "sifu" experience of what transmitter or how many Ch i would need. Thinking of getting a 9ch but there a few brands and being a beginner like me would not know what trans covers all if not most functions. There are terms like "idle up", 3D, throttle curve....etc any advise out there?? futaba, JR , Hitec ???

Buy a new one. And buy the best radio that you can afford. It is the only thing that will not crash in the field.

If you're thinking for a 9Ch radio like Hitec, JR, or Futaba, go ahead! You know your budget than me.

Don't think that you will buy this one, but later on you will again be buying another one. Invest on a radio

[Lplate]

My opinion is....
Either buy the cheapest and most popular DX6i OR...
buy the best radio that you can afford.

Dx6i can sell easily without losing much money if you want to upgrade later, because it is so popular and cheap.

But if you have a radio that is more expensive and less people can afford, you will have problems if you ever have to sell it.

[Lplate]

oops just saw that he wanted 9 channel heheh. ignore my last post.

[Mayday]

Thanks Thanks to All again, especially to Super Hornet and Kaon for that multi bladed and battery explanation. The only think I'm still not so sure is that head lock gyro thing.
I figure that head lock means it will stop not only the heli from spinning but also from forward or rearward (elevator)movements or even side ways (aileron) if you let go the sticks.
The gyro controls the rudder which primary role is to counter the torque from the main blade which inturn stop the heli from spining, so if the gyro is not connected to the cyclic servos, even if it can sense side ways or forward movements, how is it going to hold any foward or side movements other then rudders?? I saw on utube that a new TT innovator heli demostrated that head lock by gently pushing the heli when hovering.It will drift a bit the still itself again.Is that a head lock??
Sorry for my long winded questions, im a bit slow.

[Super-Hornet]

Compare Heading Hold Gyro to Rate Mode Gyro, the easiest way to explain it is like this:
Rate Mode Gyro
It sense any changes in Yaw direction of the heli (tail turning) and then try to compensate it by moving in opposite direction to counteract it. When the power up, the neutral line/position is acquire. Therefore, any yaw to the left or right is considered an offset to the neutral position and the gyro will compensate/counteract it in order to move it back the the neutral position.

In Heading Hold,
It behave like normal Rate Mode gyro...but this time, the center/neutral line/position varies. It is dynamically change. The center/neutral line will not fix to one position.

SH

[Mayday]

Hi Super Hornet, thanks , good explanation btw Ive found a good clip from utube that best elaborate your point.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6gbDex7C3g