MK Hexa XL to buy or not to buy?

[marksabs]

Hello All,


I am new to this forum and this is my first post so firstly I'd just like to say hi to everyone. I was put onto this forum by a nice chap from DIYDrones.


Secondly I'd like to apologise for asking a question for my first post but I only have until tomorrow evening to make a decision on the following:
I have been given the opportunity to buy a Hexacopter XL at a good price including navi gps and compass modules and lipos. In addition it comes with a second set of spares for nearly all the components. I can get it for a little over £1000 which seems like an absolute bargain to me but as this is such a lot of money I am naturally concerned whether it is money is well spent.

I have viewed various posts on the subject from this forum and the subject of DJI vs MK seems to be highly contested. Some people seem to swear by MK whereas others seem to be disappointed with the QC and general setup difficulty.

Coming from a software and electronics background I had started to build my own from scratch but with three young kids I've found it difficult to find the time and I'm getting to the point where I'd really like to fly something in the not too distant future.

I have noticed that more recently there have been a lot of good flight controller boards available with all the essential sensors, IO and open source firmware at very reasonable prices. Does anyone know how close the open source stuff comes to the quality of a MK? I think I'd rather build my own from components but if I end up spending the same as the price of this Hexa then perhaps I should buy it and be done with it (perhaps make a low cost one for the fun of it).

So I suppose my questions are:
a) does it seem like a good price for a second hand but unflown Hexa XL?
b) is it likely that I'll be left high and dry for updates in a year when they bring out a new all singing and all dancing model?
c) is the Wookong just money better spent?
d) could I achieve a similar level of quality with some of the more recent off the shelf components?

Lastly, I'd like to point out that I have flown various gliders and helis over the years and I'll be taking all precautions necessary to ensure I don't end up being yet another clot who crashes their rather expensive 'copter on it's maiden voyage (though I won't make any promises :nevreness.

any thoughts, positive or negative welcome!

Mark




Mark

 

[wizprod]

a) yep, if it is more or RTF?
b) nop, they have a history of having quite good backwards compatibility.
c) There are pros and cons to both system. MK might be a bit harder to set up, but can be adjusted more precisely due to that same fact.
d) Yes and no, depends on what you're looking at?

 

[marksabs]

Thanks for the reply wizprod.a)I believe all it needs is a receiver, I was hoping to use my trusty dx6i to control it. It has been setup completely but never got used in anger (it's a company that is selling it). I would have like to do the setup myself but would probably save me a lot of time. If I get it I'll probably follow through the steps again so I know exactly what's involvedd)In terms of what I want to do with it: first and foremost I'm an enthusiast. I think the ability to perform(semi) automomous flight and carry payloads is an absolute marvel. I don't want it specifically for taking high quality photos/video but it would be nice to have the option.I was captivated a few years back when I first saw the hexacopter in flight. It had such power an precision that it sort of set a benchmark in my head and I'm worried I'd be a little disappointed if I go for a cheap setup. One thing I thought was impressive was their use of i2c interface over pwm. When I was building my own one of the main stumbling blocks was finding an i2c esc. If they're more prevalent now then I'd be more tempted to continue building my own.

 

[PeterLester]

Since I have invested my time and money into DJI products I am most inclined to stay the course and remain out-of-touch with the MK path.
IMHO the pilot does not program his MR system, it is the MR system that programs the pilot into a particular preference and way of thinking such that bias becomes strongly embedded.

In any case here is an interesting screen capture of this forums traffic specific to each MR manufacturer..... not the very high traffic in the DJI area relative to most others..... not sure what that says though.
View attachment 11171

 

[marksabs]

Hi Peter,

I see what you mean. MK looks very much like niche market compared with DJI.