Pls note I'm only interested in electric planes and may be hand
launched electric gliders for the next 3-4 years.
If Spektrum DSS or Tracker III are the only two options, what will you
choose? Or why you will not choose either?
Hope I have not started a fire....
I don't have any receiver currently. I would appreciate couple of
important reasons why you would go with JR and not Specktrum or Tracker
III?
Solcat wrote:
Though not admitted and frequently denied, the Spektrum certainly
appears to be JR. The flow of program setup for mixing and the other
bells and whistles that go with a digital radio are virtually
identical to the 6 ch JR radios, and so is the box the transmitter is
housed in.
When recently faced with the same decision you are contemplating, I
went for the Spektrum 6, and have no regrets. Beside the freedom
from concerns about interfering with others or being interfered with,
the supplied airborne package is well suited to the small electric 3D
type models that have captured my fancy. Recently replaced the GWS
Rx in a foamy that was experiencing sporadic motor (ESC) shutdowns,
apparently due to electrical noise. With the Spektrum Rx - no more
unexpected shutdowns. A little more costly than parts to fix the
noise problem at the source (probably commutator arcing in the ferrite
can motor) but a darned sight easier and less time-consuming, and more
certain.
Abel
The Spektrum is from JR. It works only with the Spektrum receivers. So
if you had been flying for a while and had a bunch of receivers, they
all would be incompatible with the Spektrum. But being that you
apparently are new to the hobby, you will be having to buy new
recievers anyhow. So go for the Spektrum, it's a big advantage to not
have to even ask what channels are occupied, just fly. You will not be
shot down.
Hmmm,
Every model needs a receiver unless you're into swapping receivers
around. With the Tracker III you can use any receiver you want, in any
price range and/or application.
CR
Solcat wrote:
With the Tracker III you can use any receiver you want, in any
That was true until the Spektrum became available, you can not mix Tracker
and Spektrum.
Ed
Ted shuffled out of his cave and grunted these great (and sometimes not
so great) words of knowledge:
The Tracker III is most likely going to be your best bet. The Tracker
has a SUBSTANTIALLY longer range than the Spectrum. You will need the
range for the gliders.
| Ed Smega wrote:
| > With the Tracker III you can use any receiver you want, in any
| > price range and/or application.
| >
| > That was true until the Spektrum became available, you can not mix Tracker
| > and Spektrum.
|
| True but what a nit-picker. ;^)
Some nits are best picked. Let me pick that nit a bit more ...
The Tracker III also isn't likely to control AM receivers at all, and
probably can't do anybody's PCM (unless there is a Polk brand PCM RX,
which seems unlikely.)
And then of course, if your Polk TX is 72 MHz, it can't do 27, 50, 53,
or 75 MHz, or any of the R/C bands in other countries.
But yes, the original idea is still true ... if you already have a
bunch of existing RXs, the Tracker will probably work with them, and
the Spektrum will not, which gives the Tracker a big advantage. If
you're starting from scratch, this is not an issue.
The Tracker will also give you better range than the Spektrum stuff
... 1.5 miles vs. 2000-3000 feet. For small electrics you may not
care, but for gliders you might. (I've had my gliders up over 2500
feet before, for example.)
And the computer functions of the Spektrum DX6 are rather limited
... no expo on the rudder, for example. I don't know about the
Tracker, but I'm guessing it's not so limited.
Personally, I'd suggest the Spektrum, based on what we've been told
about what is needed.
| Personally, I'd suggest the Spektrum, based on what we've been told
| about what is needed.
Of course, you also said electric gliders, which puts it into more
doubt.
You might want more than 2000 feet range for an electric glider (but
on the other hand, 2000 feet is way out there, so maybe not.) And you
might have a full house electric glider which will require seven
channels to properly control everything and give you full span
ailerons. You can do it with six channels as well (by putting the
flaps on a Y connector) but then you can't do full span ailerons.
(The Spektrum DX6 is 6 channel. The Tracker III is 8, though the RX
that comes with it only does six channels. But of course you can buy
other receivers.)
But not having to worry about interference is a very nice thing.
Also, there's the matter of price. The DX6 is $200, and comes with
TX, RX and four micro servos. The Tracker III is $180, comes with TX
and RX, and one standard servo. (One servo? Why bother?)
For Electric Gliders (and any plane) I won't fly it if I can't visually
appreciate its beauty in the air.
So 2000 feet is some thing I would probably never do because the glider
will be nothing more than a dot (Well, may be bigger than a dot).
I beleive Tx range of 2000-3000 feet should be more than enough for any
non-pro flyer....
Doug McLaren wrote:
Ted,
I was just replying to Doug.....
For Electric Gliders (and any plane) I won't fly it if I can't visually
appreciate its beauty in the air.
So 2000 feet is some thing I would probably never do because the glider
will be nothing more than a dot (Well, may be bigger than a dot).
I beleive Tx range of 2000-3000 feet should be more than enough for any
non-pro flyer....
Ted Campanelli wrote:
| For Electric Gliders (and any plane) I won't fly it if I can't visually
| appreciate its beauty in the air.
When you're flying a glider (especially a non-powered one), few things
are more beautiful than getting it so high up that you can barely see
it -- it means that you found some damned good lift!
... of course, to complement that, there's the sense of terror where
you realize that the spot you were flying is actually a bird, or is a
spot on your glasses, or you just don't know where your plane is
anymore.
| So 2000 feet is some thing I would probably never do because the glider
| will be nothing more than a dot (Well, may be bigger than a dot).
I've flown a 2 meter glider at up to 2600 feet. (I know it was that
high because I had a recording altimeter in it.) It was an
irregularly shaped speck -- I could sort of tell which direction is
was pointed in, but not much more than that. I also lost track of it
once or twice, and that's when I decided that it was time to come down
again.)
| I beleive Tx range of 2000-3000 feet should be more than enough for any
| non-pro flyer....
Actually, I doubt the `pros' speck out their gliders as much as us
amateurs do. They may be able to speck them out much better than we
can, but they don't need to as badly as we do.
When finding thermals is hard (because conditions are bad, or you're
unskilled) once you've found one, you don't want to give it up. And
2000 feet of altitude means that you've got 2000 feet of altitude to
use up to find your next thermal -- but 2100 feet would be even
better. But when finding thermals is easy (either because you're
skilled, or conditions are good) you're more likely to go look for
another thermal at only 1000 feet. (And really, even 1000 feet is
pretty high up there.)
Also, it's not all about altitude. When flying a glider, you tend to
look for lift in a large area, with the size of the area increasing as
1) your altitude increases (you always want to be able to bring the
plane back if you can't find lift) and 2) your skill increases (as
better pilots can spot lift from further away, and are more likely to
find lift in any given situation, so they'll push their luck more.)
Once you get away from gliders, I suspect that 99+% of all powered R/C
plane flying is done at less than 700 feet of altitude or so. Sure,
you can go higher, but why? And they don't usually go too far away
horizontally, because there's little benefit to that either.
I'm guessing you made the right decision.
Thanks Doug,
I'm glad some of my thoughts as a newbie to rc are in sync with an
experienced rc flyer like you.
I'm placing an order for spektrum shortly.
Thanks for all folks who gave their thoughts. I knew choosing between a
tarcker III and specktrum is not easy for a newbie. Not any more :)
Doug McLaren wrote:
They seem like a great deal - though no expo on the rudder is a bit
annoying - some people have been popping the RF board from the Spektrum into
the JR6102
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