5.8 video transmission problems are ruining my day, every day

G

girthquake

Member
Hi,
I'm amazed to see so many people here getting usable video signals on here! I personally have been struggling to get even static most of the time. I've been flying an s800 and 3dr x8 for a while and from the get go there have been video transmission problems. I don't know how much more troubleshooting I can do before I get to the conclusion that I personally am the biggest source of RF interference on the planet and any radio frequency withing 5 miles of me will bend itself in knots to avoid reaching the receiver. I've used the stock DJI avl58 tx/rx with stock antennas and it doesn't matter if I'm in the city or 50 miles away from anything, the best signal I've ever gotten was in black and white and very noisy and disappeared after 50 ft (and in this particular instance the rx and tx were on completely different channels!) I've tried 3 or 4 different kinds of monitors. I've used whips, cp, and helical antennas and they are all equally bad. I've put the tx in as many different places on the craft as possible, or just hand held them to remove all interference. I've pointed my antennas every which way. I've tried running 5v fpv cameras that are supposed to work out of the box and got nowhere. I've used a mondo stinger/yellowjacket diversity combo, an immersion diversity receiver with 600mw 5.8tx spliced into the DJI osd via the avl58 cable, 3dr's tx/rx fpv system, and I've got a bighead fpv monitor with a built in diversity receiver. None of them will give me a picture I can use, and any signal I do get is gone after I leave my 50 ft maximum range. So at this point I have no idea what to try fixing because nothing I've tried has improved anything. All of my aircraft came with 5.8 setups and I'm not thrilled about the prospect of switching to another frequency but I'm seriously considering it. I've heard about people getting the range I need out of 5.8 but my experience has made me wonder whether you're all lying or just crazy. I'm not even trying to fly fpv, I'm doing professional AP work completely blind and getting lucky enough with my framing, but I need the other people on the ground to be able to see what I'm pointing at without having to playback from the camera when we land. I've been poring over every forum out there and pouring more money than I should be on gear to test out but it's not going anywhere. All of your advice...please.
 

Carapau

Carapau

Tek care, lambs ont road, MRF Moderator
I would try a test involving using the kit OFF the multi rotor. I wonder if there is something causing interference on the machine itself hence my suggestion. Set up your VTX/VRX separately and see how it goes. If it works well then fly the MR starting some distance out from the VTX and then fly it closer until you are hovering overhead.
 

G

girthquake

Member
Doing that test with no success is what finally led me to post here, I walked all around my ground station carrying my immersion tx and a 5v camera and only got static!

Carapau said:
I would try a test involving using the kit OFF the multi rotor. I wonder if there is something causing interference on the machine itself hence my suggestion. Set up your VTX/VRX separately and see how it goes. If it works well then fly the MR starting some distance out from the VTX and then fly it closer until you are hovering overhead.
Click to expand...
 

Benjamin Kenobi

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
Get an ImmersionRC 600mW tx and a good rx with a patch antenna. I get 2Km with mine. 25mW should still get you 500m.

I meet a lot of people who buy 5.8GHz video equipment assuming it'll work but not all 5.8GHz stuff is the same. You need matched components. The rx antenna is the most important part. A patch will give fantastic range.

You've probably just got stuck in a cycle.

Please list your video equipment below and we'll start from there. :tennis:
 

G

girthquake

Member
Like I said I've been trying a lot of different equipment with a lot of different combinations. The walking around with the fpv completely detached was with an immersion 600mw tx with a 3 fan rhcp antenna running from a 5v camera, and an immersion 5.8 duo diversity receiver with 7" helical antennas. I've tried the immersion stuff going straight out from the DJI iosd with the same results. I've also tried going from the osd through the stock dji and with a yellowjacket 5.8 pair and no luck.

Benjamin Kenobi said:
Get an ImmersionRC 600mW tx and a good rx with a patch antenna. I get 2Km with mine. 25mW should still get you 500m.

I meet a lot of people who buy 5.8GHz video equipment assuming it'll work but not all 5.8GHz stuff is the same. You need matched components. The rx antenna is the most important part. A patch will give fantastic range.

You've probably just got stuck in a cycle.

Please list your video equipment below and we'll start from there. :tennis:
Click to expand...
 



DucktileMedia

DucktileMedia

Drone Enthusiast
Without getting to involved here are the reasons my setup didnt work in the past:

1. monitor didnt show static and went blue very easily.
2. not enough voltage/current to vtx/vrx.
3. antennas not pointed up and down. if using clovers supposedly the 3 lobe goes on the heli and 4 lobe on ground station. But thats not your problem.
4. channels not the same.
5. massive source of interference.


The 1st 2 things were instantly noticeable. they made the difference of being able to go 10-20' to farther than I cared to fly. If you arent getting a clean signal within 100' you have basic issues. The direction, antenna type, channel stuff only helps go further at the very edge of it's capability.


Start simple. Use a 3s lipo to power the stuff instead of something a transformer from an old piece of electronics( which was what I did). Plug your camera direct into the monitor to make sure those work. Isolate the system step by step. If none of these help you got bad gear.
 

H

haha49

Member
Benjamin Kenobi said:
Get an ImmersionRC 600mW tx and a good rx with a patch antenna. I get 2Km with mine. 25mW should still get you 500m.

I meet a lot of people who buy 5.8GHz video equipment assuming it'll work but not all 5.8GHz stuff is the same. You need matched components. The rx antenna is the most important part. A patch will give fantastic range.

You've probably just got stuck in a cycle.

Please list your video equipment below and we'll start from there. :tennis:
Click to expand...

10mw I was getting 800m with the fatshark attenas. 1 is for reciver 4 poles 1is tx 3 poles. Other then that make sure they're pointed at each other and make sure you check the conection (male female sma other type of conetor)


I had a transmitter with a bent pin I put pressure on it and it fixed it so I just bent it back and had no more problems.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Benjamin Kenobi

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
They don't make 10mW 5.8GHz transmitters. And you wouldn't get 800m if they did. I suspect you mean 2.4GHz which should get you a mile or so.
 





You must log in or register to reply here.
Top