Massive amount of questions

New into the world of RC Helicopter's. I have a WL Toys V911 4 channel that I'm having a blast with. I'm thinking I should get a good transmitter like the 8s or 10. I have been reading a ton but still unsure if I understand this all correct. If I get a DEVO 8s or a 10 out of the box it will only fly Walkera birds?
If I download these software programs I will be able to fly or bind with basically any mini or micro helicopter that is to small to have a receiver right? ie... WL toys, Hisky. I did find a post here that I thought was for a V911 and it required wiring a transmitter into the radio. Any help would be great. Thanks from a new rc guy.

get the minicp devo 8s bnf package and dive in. mini cp is what i started learning collective on, with the right settings it flys like a dream.. solid tail very tame, good for beginners

I think I'm starting to understand this but let's make sure. If I purchase a DEVO 8s or 10 TX and install "Deviation" on it I will be able to fly a Walkera, dsm2, dsmx and newer Nine Egales. If I want to fly WL Toys or Hisky I will nee to purchase hardware. Right?
What brands use dsm2?
What brands use dsmx?

Could I remove the hardware from my current WL Toys V911 TX and soldering it into my DEVO Tx.
At what point do you purchase a receiver and place it on the helicopter, if ever.
This seems like the way to go, much better then purchasing a Speckturm Tx and being limited in your ability to fly various helicopters right?
I'm sure these seems like basic questions but again I'm new and very thankful for the information.

chrisdank wrote: get the minicp devo 8s bnf package and dive in. mini cp is what i started learning collective on, with the right settings it flys like a dream.. solid tail very tame, good for beginners

So the mini cp BNF and then purchase the devo 8s Tx.
I have also heard good things about the Super cp what do you think?
Where would be a good place to purchase these?

Thanks PhracturedBlue, just read the posts on adding the module to the Tx, this is some CRAZY info I love it.
Anyway, this is the best way to go right?

if your planning on learning cp or even buying more expensive fp helis devo 8s is a great choice because of the firmware. but the stock v911 tx is fine because you cant adjust much on those cheap helis anyways

shop around. different prices on different websites. ill try and look for a good deal and post it

www.myrcmart.com/walkera-mini-cp-3axis-6...-devo-8s-p-6199.html

this is a good deal, i bought from them before... this is a fun little bird, it really got me hooked into this hobby i was able to learn basic 3d almost right away, and if you do crash parts are cheap and easy to replace.

Hey LL,

I'll give a whack at your questions and a basic history/reason behind this, and let the "pros" correct me where I fall short. PB, FDR others...

Yes, you have seem to have a pretty good grasp of the situation.

Yes, you can cannibalize some of your other equipment for these mods, in some cases.

The point where you start exchanging RXs (receivers) to match your TX (transmitter) becomes time and cost effective after you leave the cheaper, less dangerous and mostly Nano and Micro UAV "RTF" (ready to fly) and "ARF" (almost ready to fly) models.

Finding a compatible TX/FC (Flight Controller)/RX combo for each model is disproportionately large investment to the original cost of the model in terms of knowledge effort and money.

Hence, Deviation; A universal software/hardware solution that runs on a nice line of transmitters that can, which with some mods, becomes a multi RX/Protocol compatibiltiy solution.

Here is an incomplete and rough list that I have cobbled together from various sources of potentially Deviation compatible protocols and chips: Note that Devo runs the CYRF6936 natively.

Please double check:
Manufacturer, Protocol Transceiver
Walkera, DEVO, CYRF6936
Walkera, WK2x01, CYRF6936
JR/Spektrum, DSM2/DSMX, CYRF6936
???, J6Pro , CYRF6936
FlySky, Flysky, A7105
Hubsan, Hubsan, A7105
???, Skyartec, CC2500
Frsky, Frsky1, CC2500
Frsky, Frsky2, CC2500
???, V202, NRF24L01 / BK2423
???, V922, NRF24L01E
???, NE260, NRF24L01
???, AnyLink, NRF24L01


Essentially, this is an older sport/hobby that had a fairly limited technology and audience, that has exploded, because of access to newer, more efficient technologies; like batteries; micro electronics; RF frequency availability and a flood of companies selling "comparatively" very inexpensive gear.

This flood creates a fractured landscape of technologies, with many different and some very untested or non robust designs. This is apparent more in the beginner space than anywhere else.

Because Nano and Micro UAVs tend to be so cheap and there is Market share advantage to having incompatible systems the manufacturer includes their own solution of the cheapest FC/RX combo he can source and a $10 transmitter that works.

Safety and reliability issues:
As long as you are playing with Micro/Nano UAVs losing your UAV is about as bad as it gets, however when you move up to the larger UAVs with larger motors, weights and propellers things start to become more risky, the potential for injuries or even death become a distinct possibility.

Then comes the new enduser that has more than one type model and wants a single robust transmitter that will run all of his gear.

The questions that you ask are the ones that I assume most of us have asked at one point or another.

I'm fairly new to all RC stuff myself and it has taken many hours of research and reading to get what I know figured out, plus I have a pretty deep technical background in communications, hardware and electronics.

Good luck and welcome aboard!
OH2

Personally, I would not cannibalize an existing Tx, but buy a module from eBay/Aliexpress. Modules are cheap ($5-$15) enough.

If you cannibalize your toy Tx, you won't be able to sell your toy RTF quad when you are bored with it (or hand it over to a friend/nephew/kid). Also, having the original radio still working helps immensely in troubleshooting problems with the Devo programming and your module soldering. Last but not least, if you damage the cannibalized module when soldering, you won't fly , while if you damage a cheap eBay module, you can keep flying with the original Tx. For what is worth, soldering a module is an easy soldering task, no SMD skills required

I recently installed the A7105 module in my Devo 7e, and my Hubsan x4 is a completely new (and 10 times better) quad. I never realized how bad the original Tx was until I tried the X4 with the Devo 7e.

Great info! Thanks for the link for the mini cp! I think I will try and find out about the super cp also, as I have read it's very stable and best for a beginner 3d as I am. Anyone have thoughts on the Mini Cp vs the Super CP.
And is the DEvo8s with mini worth the extra $70.00 Vs DEVO 10 with mini?

I have the Mini CP and it is very stable.
I converted it to brushless using a 10A ESC with the BLheli code.
For a beginner I would stay with the stock motors for less damage in a crash as the motors have less power and rpm than the upgraded motors.

The Mini CP has very bad flight times out of the box, under 2 minutes!
Changing the main gear size, motor, and better battery I am getting 6+ minutes flight time.

The Super CP has very mixed reviews, about 50/50.
But out of the box flight times are much better that the Mini CP,
5-6 Minutes.

Differences between the Mini CP and Super CP are the reciever, servos, motor, canopy.

There are a lot of threads on Mini CP vs Super CP you can check out on Helifreak.com


I have a full detailed review of the Mini CP stock and brushless on my web site.

www.rcproreviews.com/

And is the DEvo8s with mini worth the extra $70.00 Vs DEVO 10 with mini?
see: < deviationtx.com/articles/21-which-devo-tx-should-i-buy >

Super-CP vers. Mini-CP
Chassis and many (most) parts are identical:
different are:
- Motors (main and tail)
- RX
- Servos
With Super-CP the servo electronic has moved into the RX,
thus servos are cheaper.

oregonh20 wrote: Manufacturer, Protocol Transceiver
???, V202, NRF24L01 / BK2423
???, V922, NRF24L01E
???, NE260, NRF24L01
???, AnyLink, NRF24L01

Some corrections about nRF24 based protocols. It probably makes sense to mention the chip as nRF24L01+, as it is current modification supporting 500kbit/sec data rate and as such, compatible with all other nRF24 chips. This data rate is also supported by BK2423 (as opposed by BK2421, which is a clone of the original nRF24L01).

Also, there is no such chip as nRF24L01E, there is nRF24LE1, which is 8051 SOC with nRF24 RF. It is radio-compatible with nRF24L01+, the problem is that the implementation of protocol in the chip is not easily reversable. If what you mention in your "Transceiver" column are the actual chips, it's OK. If it is what is needed to support the protocol in Deviation, it is wrong.

My table for nRF24 would look like this:

Manufacturer	Protocol	RF Chip to support
WL-Toys	V202	nRF24L01+
HiSky	V922, a.k.a. HiSky	nRF24L01+
Nine Eagle	NE260	nRF24L01+
Tactic	SLT (AnyLink is a device)	nRF24L01+
ESky	ESky	nRF24L01+ (in progress)
Skyline	YD717	nRF24L01+
Bitcraze	Crazyflie	nRF24L01+ (in progress)

Thanks guys, it's easy to get information over-load for a new guy. But I think I have decided on the DEVO 10 over the 8s. I'm a function over fashion guy and if you can see the lcd better during the day that wins over the slower input of information with the buttons. Any I just need to figure out the bird now, I'll research the Super vs Mini, but I have to say if the Super is getting longer flight times out of the box by 3-4 minutes I would like to know what the down side is . Thanks and hope to hear from any who has flown the Super and or Mini.

victzh,
Thank you for the help!
OH2

LeatherLung,

Here's a primer if you haven't read it already. It will answer some of you questions.

www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1918045#post25347384

Thanks Daryoon,I have read almost all of this thread hours of fun! So now I'm looking for the A7105 and the NRF2401 module as inxpensive as I can find it. But wanted to make sure to get the right one with the correct range of transmision. So as long as it's a A7105 or NRF24L01 with a range of 500m right. I have found lots with les trmsmiion range 50-150m for $3-5.00, but the 500m ones seem to more like $12-15.00. This seem right. Do you know whre o get the best buy on these? Thanks for your help.