Spektrum DX9 or DX8

[Slobberdog]

Guys and maybe girls,

whoever has a DX9 and has time to live with it, could you fill us slow moving people that would like to upgrade in on your thoughts/experiences with this new TX.

Me I am pondering between the DX8 and DX9 and wondering would the 9 be worth the extra or will it just be wasted on me.

Come on don't hold back, and no sitting on the fence.

 

[pvolcko]

I've moved all my models over to it at this point. I was a bit wary of moving my larger, more expensive models over to it until I had put it through it's paces, but I didn't find any major problems with the gimbals or switches. When the Dx8 first came out there was a recall due to some oddly behaving gimbals, I believe. But this DX9 appears to be working just fine.

The voice alerts are a bit of a gimmick, but I've found using them for a minimum of items (timer reset, flight mode, timer alerts, etc.) they can be useful without being annoying. If I had telemetry on something I think it would be very cool to have it able to call out alerts on low voltage, over heat, etc. And if you're into planes there are probably other uses I haven't considered yet.

It has a rubberized menu roller which I really like. The DX7s has a mirrored type finish on it which can slip on the thumb sometimes.

Stick ends can be set pretty low, which I also liked.

Triple posiition switches except for the 2 two position switches at the top back corners. As I said, everything is assignable. If you have planes with retractable gear, flaps, etc, you can setup switches with sequenced output controls, very nice.

On the back grips there are two dial/slider type controls. They control whatever you want them to. But generally they are used to control AUX 3 and 4. Their resolution is not the best, but they would be useful for flaps perhaps, or controlling a turret on an apache model, or maybe controlling a couple of axes on a camera gimbal. I wouldn't use them for any precision flight surface or function, only rough control options.

It is a powerful transmitter in terms of features. More than I'm ever likely to use and as such I expect I will be using it until it stops working.

I'd recommend it in general. Compared to a DX8... tough call, especially with the recent price drops on them and the likelihood there will be some of them hitting the used market with people upgrading to DX9. You'll have to make your own bang for the buck determination on that score.

 

[Slobberdog]

Thanks Paul,

Yeah DX8 over here £205 Dx9 £299 so quite a diff,

second hand not seeing many yet and people asking nearly 90% of the new value still cos of what they paid for them, cheaper ones coming up are usually Dsm2 models so not really worth it and have to travel a long distance to pick up, would want to collect it as I can then see it first hand and not just have to accept it when it turns up on my door step.

 

[BOKI]

Slobberdog ; Just bought the DX9 about a month ago & already had a DX8 ! Had & Old Rc guy helping me build a Sig LT 40 Eg ARF Plane & we Set it up on the DX9 & bound the DX8 to it for a buddy box setup !

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Slobberdog ; Just bought the DX9 about a month ago & already had a DX8 ! Had & Old Rc guy helping me build a Sig LT 40 EG ARF Plane & we Set it up on the DX9 & bound the DX8 to it for a buddy box setup ! The Guy helping me thought he wouldn't like it he had Futaba Radios his whole life ! Anyway by time we set up the SIG LT 40 EG ARF he was loving the DX9 ! The DX 9 is going to be a Great Radio ! Really seems just easy to use & I think I'm going to be really liking it ! If you buy one you won't be Disappointed !

 

[Slobberdog]

thanks boki, how much better is it than the dx8, take away the talking gimmick,

 

[Derek]

There is only 1 feature about the DX9 that I really like. It's the wireless buddy box capabilities. However, I'm loving my DX8, so I really have no need to get the DX9. Oh, I forgot...I do like that the antenna is fixed on the DX9, just as it is on the DX18. I'm not real fond of the flexi antenna on my DX6i and DX8, but...it is what it is.

Would it be worth it to me to get a DX9? Not at this moment in time. Good luck with your decision making, Kev!!!

 

[Slobberdog]

yes the stubby aerial I do like, but with the price diff and like I said above about taking the gimmicks aside would it be worth it for me, i don't know, aghhh

 

[Ken Jackson]

I like my DX8 and if the only difference is the talking gimmick and one channel I'll stay where I'm at. Got my DX8 just as I upgraded my 500 to DFC and I love them both.

Ken

 

[Tony]

There is a lot more to it than that Ken. You have the voice prompts, you have the wireless buddy box, when you see the list of models, the empty ones do NOT show up, you no longer have to change a model or power cycle the Tx to get into the first setup screen and so on. There are a lot of updated features of the DX9. I like it and I'm really thinking about getting one. Some day.

 

[Ken Jackson]

I figured there was more to it. Since I have no plan of upgrading for quite a while I hadn't read much about it, thanks for the info.

Ken

 

[pvolcko]

From a DX6 or 7s I think it is worth the upgrade to go to either the dx8 or dx9. You'll get 7 point curves, backlit lcd, 3 position switches on most switch locations, fully assignable switches, far more flight mode flexibility (not just going from 2 to 3, but from 2 to up to 7 or 8 with stages switches for a matrix of flight modes), wireless buddy boxing, etc.

While the voice alerts on the DX9 are a bit gimmicky, they are also potentially useful beyond mere tones and vibration alerts. For instance it will read out how many minutes over timer you are. With telemetry for battery voltage you can have specific voice alerts for voltage warnings that differentiate from other audible alerts. Same for temp sensors on a nitro or electric.

The DX9's model handling is much improved compared to DX7s and DX8. Instead of a fixed number of model slots, DX9 has hundreds of slots and you can organize them as you wish without much difficulty. There are no longer "empty" slots between models, it collapses the list down to only the non-empty model entries. There is menu access to the model selection menu and model setup menu (no longer need to power down and back up again or press the back/clear combo). I don't konw this for sure, but my impression is that the screen layouts on the DX9 are improved compared to DX8, using smaller fonts and better use of icons and whatnot to get more on the screens, but not cluttered.

For me the DX9 was worth it compared to the DX8. But I'd definitely recommend one of the two if you have a DX6 or DX7s.

edit: forgot to mention you have a full diversity antenna in the DX9. The back handle has an antenna in it, along with the antenna in the stub/arial. Better connection to the model by cutting down on path linking induced drop outs or lost frames.

 

[Tony]

The DX8 doesn't have 7 point curves unless there is an update that I need to install. I only have 5 point on my DX8.

 

[Slobberdog]

thanks guys, i had made my mind up and put a dx8 on hold in my LHS he gave me a great price, so it was to tempting.

but now you have just gone and blown that, seems like there is quite a few differences between the two, more than i had initially thought................

 

[Lee]

If i didn't have a DX8 already, I would go for the DX9. The voice features are a great idea. When my alarms go off on the DX8, i'm constantly trying to remember which alarm it is. With out looking down its hard to remember. The antenna is a big bonus to me as well. I'm constantly worried about snapping the aerial off my DX8.

 

[pvolcko]

DX8 doesn't have 7 point curves? Thought it did.

DX9 def does. Very cool feature, especially since the points aren't fixed. You can add and remove them at any point along the stick travel and set the output to whatever you want at that stick position. For instance, on my pitch curve on the gob 500, while I was playing with it, I setup a 5 point curve, but the 2nd point was at 15% instead of 25% stick position and point 4 was at 85% instead of 75%, the two point output settings were 25 and 75 respectively. This setup a nice softened response in the middle range of the stick movement, aka expo for the pitch curve. Once I redid the pitch range setup in the ikon with a gauge I reset the curve to a normal linear curve, but while sussing out the issue and while I didn't have time to make the setup change in the ikon, it was very helpful.

 

[Slobberdog]

Well I went and I had the Dx8 in my left hand and the Dx9 in my right, and had a good look at both, and tbh the only thing that I would say was the best selling point for me was the aerial, darn that thing is nice on the dx9 I could live with 5 point curves and no talking and the turn knobs on the back, man that was a hard decision,

I did come away with a new tx though, now just have to learn how to use it.........

It was the Dx8, I just could not justify the extra 33% for the Dx9 over what I paid for the "8"

Now to program to use with my 130x first.

 

[Ken Jackson]

Congrats on the DX8. I really love mine. I have a 130x and used the book values for Dual Rates, they worked fine for me.

Ken

 

[Slobberdog]

thanks Ken, just got my 130x in the air with the Dx8 and all i can say is OMG WOW.

used all stock programming out of the manual except the dual rates, i have 22% on pos 0 and going down to 14% in steps, just tried it in the living room and the finite control is so much better, even crisp, holding a steady hover was so much easier than with the Dx6i with the same settings, I could not believe it.

still smarting that i did not choose the dx9 but it seems i hame a great tx in the dx8........

 

[Tony]

The DX8 is a great Tx and is a great step up from the 6i. And your right, the feel of the aircraft is quite something that you just can't explain to people unless they try it for themselves. Congrats on the purchase.

 

[Slobberdog]

Thanks Tony, it is an amazing difference,