Number of channels?

[xwing]

Fellow fun flyers... i think its a silly question to ask... but how many channels do i really need for airplane... as in whats the most anyone has used for his entire "career" in flying? 6?7?9? i know the more the merrier... but more also mean more $$$ i don't wanna end up saving for a 9channel monster and only using 5 channels all the time...


And what brand do you recommend? hitec?futaba? help?

[jinglejangle]

hi i'm new to the RC scene but i heard from most people that 6 channels are enough. The brands Hitec, Futaba and JR are currently the 3 most used in the market. Hitec and JR are American Brands, Futaba is a Japanese brand. But JR would have the best quality as it is made entirely in Japan. Hitec and Futaba are both made in Taiwan(someone correct me if i'm wrong). If you surf around the forum here, you would find that most people are using Optic 6s by hitec. However, if you decide that RC is going to be a hobby you're going to stick with all your life and you don't really have any budget constraints, go for a JR 9 channel as you'd probably use it for the rest of your life as long as you don't drop it and stuff. What i personally think is that if you have budget constraint and you're just starting out, get a 4 channel transmitter. if you think you're going to make RC part of your life, go for the JR 9 channel. just my 2 cents worth. =)

[nato]

Some correction. Hitec is Korean and both Futaba and JR are Japanese.

[jinglejangle]

whoops. are you referring to the assembly line? because i heard from a shop owner that Futaba is now manufactured in china/taiwan. About where hitec is manufactured i'm not sure.

[xwing]

So i would still need to save up for a 9 channel... is futaba the best then? i think the 9xcap is selling for something like 500++ for the transmitter alone... btw... is it compatible with GWS's rx?

[chiadennis]

I used to have a 9 channels JR. I never got to use all the channels. The most used were 7 channels.
1. throttle
2. Flaps
3. Aileron
4. Aileron
5. Elevators
6. Rudders
7. Gears

Remember it's a hobby. enjoy what you are playing and don't burn your pocket when doing this. There is almost no limit of what you can spend in this hobby.

[jinglejangle]

yep, dennis is right. don't go burning a hole in your pocket. why not get a plane that already comes with a 4 channel transmitter to check if you like flying? if you don't like it, at least you won't be spending so much. and if you wanna sell it, it's easy to sell to noobs or cheap enough to pass on to family members like cousins etc. and i would recommend JR over Futaba anytime. they're the best in the market considering they've got the best QC.

[xwing]

Erm... question... who sells JR in singapore? is it more ex too? cause better QC is likely to mean more $$ also... and is it more user friendly? i've been reading some Tx manual... alot like very "cheem" as in complicated...

[chiadennis]

Erm... question... who sells JR in singapore? is it more ex too? cause better QC is likely to mean more $$ also... and is it more user friendly? i've been reading some Tx manual... alot like very "cheem" as in complicated...

Hobby Shack at Fook Hai Building is selling JR. I think Rotor Hobby is also selling but they may not have the full range. The 9 channel TX set is abou SGD1000+.
Drop by at some of the flying site I am very sure that some of the nice guys will explain to you how the radio works. Of course don't talk to them when they airborne.

[xwing]

woh... thats way beyond my reach... maybe another 10 years later.... thanks for the info

[jinglejangle]

well you don't have to go get the entire set. the thing i'd reccomend you to do would be to get just the PCM 9x Tx and get your plane with a transmitter that would suit well with JR electronics. that way you'd save about 500 bucks.