collin using alfa antenna

Toiletbowl · Dec 14, 2015

i think this event in jakarta indonesia and collin use alfa antenna and 3dr now start to expand in asia
Halo Robotics - Photos from Halo Robotics's post | Facebook

Maddog · Dec 14, 2015

So, is this an admission from 3DR that their stock antennas suck?

Jubalr · Dec 15, 2015

Maddog said:
So, is this an admission from 3DR that their stock antennas suck?

Could be he likes the Alpha; But likely he traveled there for the launch and just used what ever was there locally.

Maddog · Dec 15, 2015

Jubalr said:
Could be he likes the Alpha; But likely he traveled there for the launch and just used what ever was there locally.

Well, I would think the stock antennas were there with Solo, no?

Andrew McCuaig · Dec 17, 2015

What do you guys think about these Alpha dual band antennas? I'm not sure the Solo even uses 5Ghz, but the "supposed" gain on the 2.4Ghz channel is slightly higher..

Alfa APA-M25 dual band 2.4GHz/5GHz 10dBi high gain directional indoor panel antenna with RP-SMA connector (compare to Asus WL-ANT-157): Amazon.ca: Electronics

Maddog · Dec 17, 2015

Andrew McCuaig said:
What do you guys think about these Alpha dual band antennas? I'm not sure the Solo even uses 5Ghz, but the "supposed" gain on the 2.4Ghz channel is slightly higher..

Alfa APA-M25 dual band 2.4GHz/5GHz 10dBi high gain directional indoor panel antenna with RP-SMA connector (compare to Asus WL-ANT-157): Amazon.ca: Electronics

I tried them and they made my range shorter than stock. Others have had good luck with them, though.

Andrew McCuaig · Dec 17, 2015

That's very interesting... I suppose it may come down to build quality of the antennas, environment surroundings, and pointing perhaps? I guess the best thing to do would be FPVLR's solution as far as ease of installation goes.

Maddog · Dec 17, 2015

Andrew McCuaig said:
That's very interesting... I suppose it may come down to build quality of the antennas, environment surroundings, and pointing perhaps? I guess the best thing to do would be FPVLR's solution as far as ease of installation goes.

That's what I have now. Was able to go out to 4000', 200' altitude over Phoenix before RTL.

Andrew McCuaig · Dec 17, 2015

Maddog said:
That's what I have now. Was able to go out to 4000', 200' altitude over Phoenix before RTL.

That sounds awesome. Did you need to add powered amplifiers?

Maddog · Dec 17, 2015

Andrew McCuaig said:
That sounds awesome. Did you need to add powered amplifiers?

No amps- I only flew that far to test it out a few times. I'm sure there are locations, etc. where it won't perform that well.
I'm not really concerned about distance because I can't see Solo out past about 500'- my main concern was being able to "power thru" bad locations with lots of wifi, etc.

Also, the FPVLR's require more attention to pointing the antenna towards Solo to maintain contact.

Andrew McCuaig · Dec 18, 2015

Maddog said:
No amps- I only flew that far to test it out a few times. I'm sure there are locations, etc. where it won't perform that well.
I'm not really concerned about distance because I can't see Solo out past about 500'- my main concern was being able to "power thru" bad locations with lots of wifi, etc.

Also, the FPVLR's require more attention to pointing the antenna towards Solo to maintain contact.

I bet the system made by Jake at "Drone Evolutions" as mentioned elsewhere around here would add welcomed peace of mind in that department. It should make a more "robust" connection in my mind. I am certainly eyeballing it.

Raston Warrior · Dec 22, 2015

I really depend on Alfa antennas over stock, they made a very big difference in my flights and confidence. They are directional so you have to angle them toward your drone which can be a trick when you can't see it anymore..!
I got a pair of them from Amazon. Make sure you have the words "Alfa" pointing towards the Solo (the instructions don't exactly say that..).

Dash Hewes · Dec 29, 2015

with that said; Colin's antenna orientation is odd, one up one down. see pix. any input?

Screen Shot 2015-12-29 at 4.14.18 PM.png

Raston Warrior · Dec 29, 2015

I suspect that configuration would be useful for a closed environment as opposed to log range run; in other words, when he was on that stage the Solo was flying overhead and didn't go further out than 100' or so - that antenna configuration would confirm contact whether he was flying overhead or behind him. That way he can also show people the screen and what he's doing without having to worry about antenna orientation.

Cosber · Jan 9, 2016

Finally got my gimbal back and went for a fly. I didn't feel like spending $150 on the FPLVR or whatever they're called, so I thought I'd give the Alpha a try. Doing a comparison test, the stocks went 2400 ft before losing signal. This was in a wide open area. With the Alpha's, I was at 3800 ft, with 2 bars when I got a low battery warning, and brought it back immediately. $40 for two Alphas that give me at least twice the distance, and since I couldn't see it, LOS comes into play, I think the Alpha's are a much better bargain.

Maddog · Jan 10, 2016

Cosber said:
Finally got my gimbal back and went for a fly. I didn't feel like spending $150 on the FPLVR or whatever they're called, so I thought I'd give the Alpha a try. Doing a comparison test, the stocks went 2400 ft before losing signal. This was in a wide open area. With the Alpha's, I was at 3800 ft, with 2 bars when I got a low battery warning, and brought it back immediately. $40 for two Alphas that give me at least twice the distance, and since I couldn't see it, LOS comes into play, I think the Alpha's are a much better bargain.

They definitely are cheaper- wish they had worked for me.

Maddog · Jan 10, 2016

Does anybody know if the Alfa's are as directional as the FPVLR's?

PdxSteve · Jan 10, 2016

Maddog said:
Does anybody know if the Alfa's are as directional as the FPVLR's?

No, they're not. They send a flat type signal while the FPVLR sends a conical type signal out the antenna. FPVLR is a lot more focused so the signal is stronger. However, that also means the FPVLR needs to be pointed more directly at the Solo than Alfas do, since Alfas spread the signal more (like the stock antennas do). Stock sends signal in 360 degrees. Alfa is more like 180 (so more focused). Not sure what the spread of the FPVLR is, but is probably closer to 60 deg. The fewer degrees of signal spread, the more "focused" it is.

Ian [P13] · Jan 11, 2016

I've always said people don't need to spend silly money on antenna.

pyrate · Jan 11, 2016

not even sure you need to spend money on those
They have been on my Amazon wish list for months.
Just dont seem to need them. Now maybe if I were hiking into some remote part of the world and filming ancient ruins somewhere