I MoonGel worth it for reducing vibration... or alternatives?

obrienimages · Sep 19, 2017

To reduce vibration in videos I'm doing some mods to my 3DR Solo (soft replacement Data cable, Relish3D replacement flat HDMI cable, balanced my props etc.. I've read mixed reports on using MoonGel... some people say it melts in hot weather, us messy.

Any input on MoonGel and has anyone had good success with it or other products to dampen micro vibrations?

skyhax · Sep 19, 2017

The moongel is the best and only about $8. I cut one piece the long way and put half in each rubber ball. Earplugs are OK but not nearly as good.

obrienimages · Sep 19, 2017

skyhax said:
The moongel is the best and only about $8. I cut one piece the long way and put half in each rubber ball. Earplugs are OK but not nearly as good.

No Problems with it melting or getting messy?

pyrate · Sep 19, 2017

moongel melts
I use sorbothane
ribbon cables suck (based only on my experience with them) others have had luck

brianuc4 · Sep 19, 2017

pyrate said:
moongel melts
I use sorbothane
ribbon cables suck (based only on my experience with them) others have had luck

So the ribbon cable didn't work for you? I was about to order one today since I've read a lot of positive reviews on it.

brianuc4 · Sep 19, 2017

obrienimages said:
To reduce vibration in videos I'm doing some mods to my 3DR Solo (soft replacement Data cable, Relish3D replacement flat HDMI cable, balanced my props etc.. I've read mixed reports on using MoonGel... some people say it melts in hot weather, us messy.

Any input on MoonGel and has anyone had good success with it or other products to dampen micro vibrations?

I want to balance my props too, and I've been thinking about buying some moongel since alot of people have had good results.

skyhax · Sep 19, 2017

obrienimages said:
No Problems with it melting or getting messy?

It's only 8 bucks, you're not buying a condo.

RichWest · Sep 19, 2017

obrienimages said:
some people say it melts in hot weather,

Pretty much all viscoelastic materials absorbs moisture, both moon gel and sorbothane do. One just does it faster than the other....

Like skyhax, at only $8, how can you go wrong by trying moongel. Sorbo is about $1 for the same amount, but usually it's sold as 12"x12" sheets at $20-30 each...lifetime supply for most. And even at 30 duro, it's not near as soft as moongel.

You're on the right path by replacing with a softer data cable. It resolves the majority of the micro vibes, period. Stock HDMI cable is the best off the shelf solution, just form it so it won't contact the gimbal or isolators. The relish flat cable seems to miss the mark inside Solo, the frame is just too confined to allow it to work as it should.

If you have any example videos of your current install, it would be interesting to see your progression as you reduce the vibes. Good luck!

IrishmanPDX · Sep 19, 2017

My stock solo had noticeable micro vibrations in the video feed. So I actually did replace the stock cable with the Relish 3D ribbon cable and honestly, it did help. I'd say it reduced about 90% of the vibration visible. The remaining 10%? Well I've bought Moongel, have three little tins of it and I'll give it a go. I'll try and dig up some old footage and do a side by side comparison. Will be Thursday before I get to put the gel in the drone, so if it's not raining, I can hopefully get good footage of the results.

obrienimages · Sep 20, 2017

I came across another product similar to MoonGel called Drumdots which claims not to melt (there is a even a brief video on Youtube from a drummer who used it in very hot weather with no problem) I've seen posts about Moongel melting... so I think I'll give DrumDots a try. Anyone else used DrumDots?

DJMc · Sep 20, 2017

obrienimages said:
I came across another product similar to MoonGel called Drumdots which claims not to melt (there is a even a brief video on Youtube from a drummer who used it in very hot weather with no problem) I've seen posts about Moongel melting... so I think I'll give DrumDots a try. Anyone else used DrumDots?

Thanks for the info, sounds an interesting alternative - please let us know how it goes.

Pedals2Paddles · Sep 20, 2017

A lot of people have connection issue with the HDMI ribbon cable. They seem to be made a few microns too loose to make snug and reliable contact in the HDMI socket of the gimbal and IMX. The only way to mitigate it is carefully pinch the HDMI sockets a little tighter with pliers. And even that doesn't always help. The symptom is choppy and freezing video in flight once it starts to vibrate.

I absolutely despise the the gimbal's power/data cable. It's like they were actually trying to conduct airframe vibration into the gimbal with that. And the stock HDMI cable isn't much better when it comes to that either. Neither have a good off-the-shelf easy solution that is reliable though.

Where you guys getting your sorbothane from?

RichWest · Sep 20, 2017

I buy from McMaster-Carr. You can buy it in smaller sections, but your limited with Duro and/or thickness. Most people just buy off Amazon or eBay.

pyrate · Sep 22, 2017

Pedals2Paddles said:
A lot of people have connection issue with the HDMI ribbon cable. They seem to be made a few microns too loose to make snug and reliable contact in the HDMI socket of the gimbal and IMX. The only way to mitigate it is carefully pinch the HDMI sockets a little tighter with pliers. And even that doesn't always help. The symptom is choppy and freezing video in flight once it starts to vibrate.

I absolutely despise the the gimbal's power/data cable. It's like they were actually trying to conduct airframe vibration into the gimbal with that. And the stock HDMI cable isn't much better when it comes to that either. Neither have a good off-the-shelf easy solution that is reliable though.

Where you guys getting your sorbothane from?

That soft data cable user is selling is nice

Pedals2Paddles · Sep 22, 2017

Who is selling a soft data cable for gimbal??

RichWest · Sep 22, 2017

Pedals2Paddles said:
Who is selling a soft data cable for gimbal??

You're acting like you've been hidden away coding or something, you need to get out once in a while...

https://3drpilots.com/threads/gimbal-data-cable-extension.9920/

Pedals2Paddles · Sep 22, 2017

LOL. I think that's probably accurate. PM'ing him now.

IrishmanPDX · Sep 25, 2017

OK, so this is an unedited video of my coast trip (hence the lack of music, the lack of sound, visible props and washed out colors). However as you can see, it's vibration free, did a nice hover test 45 seconds in. Unfortunately I didn't have the camera set up properly during this flight, so footage isn't as good as it could have been. This is just using the Relish HDMI ribbon cable, no moon gel or any other anti-vibration techniques used. I'll try and get some footage of the vibrations that I had when using the stock HDMI cable.