Dear 3DR I love pixhawk FC and used it for years,, But Solo *********

[ChrisM101]

The entire Problem with Solo is that it was released like a puzzle, and even then the pieces didnt fit properly to make the product complete. Its not an RTF AP Platform, Unless the translation of RTF is Ready to Firmware, Ready to Fall over on its head, or Ready to Flop the gimbal limply.

No one intended to buy a product that would eventually work

 

[Rodney Johnson]

Do you have a link to this Receiver Update thread?

Sorry..not a firmware update,, updating the reciever itself pulling the stock GPS.
when I get off work and around a pc I can find a link... cell phones are not the answer for threads and posting. ..

 

[Rich]

Sorry..not a firmware update,, updating the reciever itself pulling the stock GPS.
when I get off work and around a pc I can find a link... cell phones are not the answer for threads and posting. ..

Oh I thought the whole point of this thread, and the point of me (and most other people) purchasing the Solo was for us NOT to have to retrofit and replace parts of it to get it to fly as it should.

I should NOT have to replace the GPS module to achieve acceptable GPS performance.

I should not have to install after market WiFi antennas, nor adjust internal WiFI parameter tables to get the communications link to work acceptably and not experience so much interference in today's WiFi laden environments.

One of the main reasons why I purchased a Solo, was so that I did not have to tinker with things, tune things, replace parts, and just do development type activities to get acceptable performance, for that I have my home-brew Pixhawk based quad.

For the Solo, I expect to be able to take it out of the box and just fly it. Perhaps, at most, I expected to, perhaps, to balance the props, but not much else should be needed to get expected and advertised performance.

 

[Rodney Johnson]

Oh I thought the whole point of this thread, and the point of me (and most other people) purchasing the Solo was for us NOT to have to retrofit and replace parts of it to get it to fly as it should.

I should NOT have to replace the GPS module to achieve acceptable GPS performance.

I should not have to install after market WiFi antennas, nor adjust internal WiFI parameter tables to get the communications link to work acceptably and not experience so much interference in today's WiFi laden environments.

One of the main reasons why I purchased a Solo, was so that I did not have to tinker with things, tune things, replace parts, and just do development type activities to get acceptable performance, for that I have my home-brew Pixhawk based quad.

For the Solo, I expect to be able to take it out of the box and just fly it. Perhaps, at most, I expected to, perhaps, to balance the props, but not much else should be needed to get expected and advertised performance.

I'm glad you said,, now the flames will start. Stop drop and roll.

 

[Arthur Burke - N4PJ]

As I have said before,,
I'm not an expert,, In this hobby I don't believe in the word EXPERT.
I believe words like EXPERIENCED,,, honesty and truthfulness come to mind ,, Over my 40

SNIP - SNIP - SNIP

+ hours and still performs flawless.. yes others have had issues with the Inspire just as others have had issues with the SOLO and Phantoms and anything else that flies ..
Personally experiencing issues with the SOLO I took the Inspire for a full day of testing in the same area I had flown the Solo,, I had ZERO issues with the Inspire flying in the same area I had flown the SOLO..

Inspire
TWO mile FULL HD SOLID video link ,,
NO fancy aftermarket antennas.
No fighting GPS issues.
No compass issues.
The App is very well setup with all flight data and even warns you when you are reaching the point of no return on battery life. Once your flight time and battery power data intersect its time to turn back for home.. Very nice..
SOLO app,, no comment.
No issues with GPS compared to the SOLO testing in the same test area and environment.
There is so much with the Inspire that the SOLO is lacking..

Yes,, YES I know you cant compare the SOLO to the Inspire 1 and you have to compare it to the Phantom but my point is this... Price point,,, BANG FOR THE BUCK..

By the time you purchase a SOLO , GOPRO 4 , Gimbal and all the other updates to get the SOLO to be reliable enough to use your pushing over $2000.00.
Inspire 1 cost $2900.00..
For $900.00 more you get 80% more machine...

3DR
I had HIGH HOPES for SOLO but it was only a wet dream.. I was wishing that 3DR would give DJI a run for there money but its not going to happen this year. I hope that Summer of 2016 the SOLO II will be released and I will once more try a SOLO.. If you have no SOLO 2.0 please start selling the Pixhawk II FC So I can try this in some of my new designs.

Wow! Kind of informative, but kind of a diatribe at the same time. The "tone" of your comments almost insinuates that your experience automatically qualifies you to "...know better than anyone else...."

Your observations, despite the length of the post, still don't begin to explain why so many don't seem to have serious problems. Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos work as advertised. Yes, the "gimbal wait" and having to add a GoPro (or buy one, obviously) and other problems with the rollout - all this has somewhat contributed to prospective buyers backing away, maybe even running away.

Maybe 3DR will get lucky and a good-sized consumer base might yet make the Solo a success. The hindsight that time will provide will tell all.

By the way, as a self-proclaimed grammar nazi, your post would not have survived freshman English! One more two-part "by the way - I do own several quads, some of them pretty new, some of them pretty old but still working. And, part two, I do not own a Solo, so you can't re-attack me as a vociferous defender and kool-aid drinking of 3DR. I participate in numerous forums from various competitors - it's often fun to see who's saying what about the "other" guys.

Art Burke - N4PJ
Leesburg, FL

 

[Rich]

I'm glad you said,, now the flames will start. Stop drop and roll.

Yes, I know.... I already had some flames for stating that the WiFi protocol was not as robust for flight controls as the RC frequency hopping spread spectrum protocols that are in use today.

I won't start that discussion again (as it's in another thread), but I know what years of personal experience has shown me, and what the few months of use of the Solo has demonstrated to me already.

 

[Marich]

Oh I thought the whole point of this thread, and the point of me (and most other people) purchasing the Solo was for us NOT to have to retrofit and replace parts of it to get it to fly as it should.

I should NOT have to replace the GPS module to achieve acceptable GPS performance.

I should not have to install after market WiFi antennas, nor adjust internal WiFI parameter tables to get the communications link to work acceptably and not experience so much interference in today's WiFi laden environments.

One of the main reasons why I purchased a Solo, was so that I did not have to tinker with things, tune things, replace parts, and just do development type activities to get acceptable performance, for that I have my home-brew Pixhawk based quad.

For the Solo, I expect to be able to take it out of the box and just fly it. Perhaps, at most, I expected to, perhaps, to balance the props, but not much else should be needed to get expected and advertised performance.

Well now...
I dunno bout all that - whatta list of woes - but I haven't replaced my GPS module, adjusted anything wifi related, replaced antennas, or anything else.
I insert a battery, power everything up, and fly.
Sorry, but hard as I try, I just can't seem to have a problem!

 

[rrmccabe]

Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos work as advertised.

In all fairness Art no one's solo works as advertised.

73
Kd0zv

 

[Rich]

Well now...
I dunno bout all that - whatta list of woes - but I haven't replaced my GPS module, adjusted anything wifi related, replaced antennas, or anything else.
I insert a battery, power everything up, and fly.
Sorry, but hard as I try, I just can't seem to have a problem!

Yes, I know a lot of people are like this. I've heard that some of us with 'first batch' Solo's have had issues, where those with later 'batches' claim their GPS is perfect and never has an issue. My GPS will lose lock just by walking near it sometimes, and almost always by just leaning down to turn on my GoPro power (or pre-gimbal to start it recording just prior to take off).

Of course the WiFi issue is very dependent on where you fly and the WiFi landscape there. I had one very scary moment where my Solo lost controller connectivity just 40 feet from me! Now that I know it's susceptible to WiFi interference, I always scan the WiFi environment before I fly. I NEVER have to do this with my RC protocol flight controllers

 

[Jubalr]

In all fairness Art no one's solo works as advertised.

73
Kd0zv

Very true.. Should have stated.."Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos & Gimbals work great.

 

[Adimuzio513]

Time to unwatch another thread brought to you by the same folks that sit on RCG complaining all day long. The tone of this thread from the first post was all setup so an "experienced", "prodigy", could get his rocks off arguing the same points people have whined about for months. I tried to give the benefit of the doubt and respect my elders initially and participate but this is obviously a troll or just a sad way to spend your time. I feel like I'm reading Craigiri literature all over again, good luck to those who want to waste the time.

I came to 3dr pilots to get away from this garbage if you want to complain try to come up with ways to solve the issues as well in other posts at least. Every post in this thread is just throwing the ball back and forth, including my own at this point and getting no where. If you returned solo whining about what it did months ago is pretty worthless and obviously not productive or helpful to anyone. Say what you want but I'd rather be learning from experienced guys or trying to help others with issues than sit here having the exact same argument over and over. Seems this type of thread has very little to offer the hobby or anyone involved.

Fly safe, have fun and help eachother out, I'm headed to fly my solo and enjoy my night, hope you all do the same.

 

[rrmccabe]

Very true.. Should have stated.."Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos & Gimbals work great.

Exactly. I think a lot of them that are working very well. 3DR just has not finished the product to make them work as advertised.

 

[Rich]

Not a lot of us are only complaining. I'm still trying to figure out the GPS thing. It's sort of like the "face it North" issue. Who would have thought it's a real thing!

So some of us may be able to find out and fix an issue. I'm hanging in here and hoping we can get things working well.

This place is a far cry from RCG. I can barely stand to even read posts on that place, mostly because of the format of the forum (mega long threads that are useless), let alone the tone of most members.

People here are very nice and civil! I hope we can keep it this way.

 

[Rodney Johnson]

Wow! Kind of informative, but kind of a diatribe at the same time. The "tone" of your comments almost insinuates that your experience automatically qualifies you to "...know better than anyone else...."

Your observations, despite the length of the post, still don't begin to explain why so many don't seem to have serious problems. Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos work as advertised. Yes, the "gimbal wait" and having to add a GoPro (or buy one, obviously) and other problems with the rollout - all this has somewhat contributed to prospective buyers backing away, maybe even running away.

Maybe 3DR will get lucky and a good-sized consumer base might yet make the Solo a success. The hindsight that time will provide will tell all.

By the way, as a self-proclaimed grammar nazi, your post would not have survived freshman English! One more two-part "by the way - I do own several quads, some of them pretty new, some of them pretty old but still working. And, part two, I do not own a Solo, so you can't re-attack me as a vociferous defender and kool-aid drinking of 3DR. I participate in numerous forums from various competitors - it's often fun to see who's saying what about the "other" guys.

Art Burke - N4PJ
Leesburg, FL

A

Wow! Kind of informative, but kind of a diatribe at the same time. The "tone" of your comments almost insinuates that your experience automatically qualifies you to "...know better than anyone else...."

Your observations, despite the length of the post, still don't begin to explain why so many don't seem to have serious problems. Despite the supposed volume of problems, there sure seem to be a lot of people who's Solos work as advertised. Yes, the "gimbal wait" and having to add a GoPro (or buy one, obviously) and other problems with the rollout - all this has somewhat contributed to prospective buyers backing away, maybe even running away.

Maybe 3DR will get lucky and a good-sized consumer base might yet make the Solo a success. The hindsight that time will provide will tell all.

By the way, as a self-proclaimed grammar nazi, your post would not have survived freshman English! One more two-part "by the way - I do own several quads, some of them pretty new, some of them pretty old but still working. And, part two, I do not own a Solo, so you can't re-attack me as a vociferous defender and kool-aid drinking of 3DR. I participate in numerous forums from various competitors - it's often fun to see who's saying what about the "other" guys.

Art Burke - N4PJ
Leesburg, FL

Art
It's pointless for me to even try to explain things some days..
I write things one way and others take it another. That's how wars start as you already know if you participate in forums.

For what is worth, I guess you can read my post and decipher my post any way you see fit just as others have, I would expect nothing less everyone has there opinions.

My years of flying does give me experience enough to know when an aircraft is flying and behaving the way it should Unlike the unexperienced. That was the point to the opening lines and info of my post just so others know im not a beginner at this. So again read it anyway you like and twist and weave anyway you can.

I didn't write this thread to explain the reasons for the Solo issues, that's 3DR's job. I spent three weeks of my time flying / testing and communicating my finding with 3DR and sending in logs and giving them ideas trying to do my part to make Solo better. I will ask you the same as I have asked others, how much time have you spent and what have you done to help Solos success.
You don't own one so I have my answer..
You were one of the smarter ones that didn't drink the coolaid. But again, the only thing I'm out is my time as 3DR did a quick and speedy refund without issues..

As for my grammar, I didn't know I was back in school considering I write from my cell phone when I get a moment and I do it quickly while I'm at work between jobs so I'm not worried about it.
If it bothers you that much,, It would suck to be you. Personally in my life I have bigger and more important things to worry about. I hope you don't read your doctor's notes.

One last thing, I love Nazi's and Hitler and most everything he stood for. It would have been a better world if he was still alive. But again that's my opinion and others will read this and turn it into something it's not just like the rest of my post.
Oh well, don't read it if you don't like what I say or how I word it..
Have a great day

 

[Rodney Johnson]

Yes, I know.... I already had some flames for stating that the WiFi protocol was not as robust for flight controls as the RC frequency hopping spread spectrum protocols that are in use today.

I won't start that discussion again (as it's in another thread), but I know what years of personal experience has shown me, and what the few months of use of the Solo has demonstrated to me already.

Very good point

 

[Rich]

Well to the GPS sensitivity issues. I JUST now received an email from 3DR tech support. They say that there has been no changes made to the GPS since the first shipments started. Everything is the same.

So I guess that puts out the idea that those with a later batch should have better results. These should all be the same.

If someone has some data that shows otherwise, I'd love to hear it!

 

[rrmccabe]

If someone has some data that shows otherwise, I'd love to hear it!

'Something' happened at the first update because everyone got slow acquire times as a result.

So I think the 3DR tech support statement is incorrect.

Unless you are talking hardware.

 

[SloppyDingo]

Well to the GPS sensitivity issues. I JUST now received an email from 3DR tech support. They say that there has been no changes made to the GPS since the first shipments started. Everything is the same.

So I guess that puts out the idea that those with a later batch should have better results. These should all be the same.

If someone has some data that shows otherwise, I'd love to hear it!

This is half true... I'm sure there hasn't been any changes to the physical hardware but there have been changes to their processes and QC. On another forum, frequented by 3DR engineers, I have read a number of posts where people were having trouble with this or that. The engineers actually stepped up and helped an individual troubleshoot his problem. He was not getting GPS lock, ever... 0 sats and 0.0 HDOP (which makes no sense). Turns out, the connector going to the GPS was not seated fully. Once seated he was getting 3D lock in under a minute. The engineer that helped him stated that they were going to modify the QC process to include a check for this. Why it wasn't part of the process before is beyond me but the point is that the QC process is constantly evolving. So while two solos, one manufactured two days ago and one manufactured several months ago may be identical physically, they may not be 100% equal in how they were manufactured or how they were checked before being pushed out the door. Why I never preorder, wait in line or rush out to Best Buy the day a new piece of tech drops. Give it some time, read some reviews and know what you are getting into... Early adopting something is fun and exciting, but definitely a risk.

 

[Rich]

Yes, they probably added a quick or manufacturing step to check that the GPS cables are plugged in properly. But this doesn't solve issues like I'm seeing.

Tech support also said it's normal for a solo gps to not be as good as the u uBlox gps. He didn't state why.

Perhaps the HDOP or EKF algorithms are that much more sensitive on the Solo?

And to answer another comment, yes hardware differences, not software as I assume we are all staying up to date with the software.

 

[Ian [P13]]

This is nonsense sentence "it's normal for a solo gps to not be as good as the u uBlox gps" The Solo GPS is a ublox, it's a NEO-7N and I'd trust the 3DR build of a ublox over the Chinese imports any day and I've used both.

The GPS is a perfectly good unit, it's better than the LEA-6 that was in 3DR's previous gen gear. The only real issues that have occurred was the copper shielding on some Solos was placed too close or onto the feed line from the GPS antenna. Given this has been known about for a while I'm sure it's now addressed in the manufacturing process. It's also a very trivial mod to sort, but 3DR will happily RMA any affected Solo.

The firmware has also been improved over time to deal with quirks in the way the ublox operates. For example in the early firmwares roughly 1 in 5 occasions the ublox would fail to lock any GPS.

There's a firmware enhancement also that checks that the GPS is connected if not the Solo will sound an alarm, as well as refusing to take off.