Hey all...
Since I purchased the H last April, I've been a little disappointed in the range. For the most part, it functions under LOS flight. But I would occasionally lose telemetry and video. In an effort to make it rock solid, I started down the aftermarket antenna and modification path. Along the way I tried to do as much A/B testing as possible by testing one change at a time under like weather conditions in the exact same locations. While the modification videos on YouTube are great, none of them really did much before/after. Thought I would throw out what I've seen from the efforts:
1. FPVLR on the stock ST16 - Significant range boost for control, video, and telemetry. Effectively doubled the limits of the stock antennas
2. FPVLR on ST16+/ST16 modification - Again a large bump in range. All three antennas were FPVLR which produced another 30%. Range test over remote location reached 7200 feet.
3. Aftermarket RP-SMA Cables - Replaced the three main antenna cables inside the transmitter with cables from Embedded Works. Video was immediately pixelated and laggy. Reduced effective control to about 5000 feet. Not the expected result so switched back to stock wires.
4. ITELITE ST16+ Antenna - Replaced the FPVLR antennas with the new ITELITE. Repeated previous range test with a increased result of 8200 feet. No lag on video with picture quality back to standard. Really don't experience any dropout at all now.
As we know, most of these things void the warranty. I didn't have much left and haven't had any real problems so did the modification. My next step will be to mod the H with the exterior antenna modification. At that point, I should be able to fly without any interruption even when I hit the boundary of LOS and turn it back toward the transmitter (only scenario I can get the telemetry to "pause")
Hope this helps! If nothing else, another guy who likes the ITELITE over the FPVLR (in case someones trying to make that decision).
Since I purchased the H last April, I've been a little disappointed in the range. For the most part, it functions under LOS flight. But I would occasionally lose telemetry and video. In an effort to make it rock solid, I started down the aftermarket antenna and modification path. Along the way I tried to do as much A/B testing as possible by testing one change at a time under like weather conditions in the exact same locations. While the modification videos on YouTube are great, none of them really did much before/after. Thought I would throw out what I've seen from the efforts:
1. FPVLR on the stock ST16 - Significant range boost for control, video, and telemetry. Effectively doubled the limits of the stock antennas
2. FPVLR on ST16+/ST16 modification - Again a large bump in range. All three antennas were FPVLR which produced another 30%. Range test over remote location reached 7200 feet.
3. Aftermarket RP-SMA Cables - Replaced the three main antenna cables inside the transmitter with cables from Embedded Works. Video was immediately pixelated and laggy. Reduced effective control to about 5000 feet. Not the expected result so switched back to stock wires.
4. ITELITE ST16+ Antenna - Replaced the FPVLR antennas with the new ITELITE. Repeated previous range test with a increased result of 8200 feet. No lag on video with picture quality back to standard. Really don't experience any dropout at all now.
As we know, most of these things void the warranty. I didn't have much left and haven't had any real problems so did the modification. My next step will be to mod the H with the exterior antenna modification. At that point, I should be able to fly without any interruption even when I hit the boundary of LOS and turn it back toward the transmitter (only scenario I can get the telemetry to "pause")
Hope this helps! If nothing else, another guy who likes the ITELITE over the FPVLR (in case someones trying to make that decision).