450 Gyro, what to choose.

[benram]

I'm gonna' build my first 450 heli, and I'm pretty shure it's gonna' be a T-rex.

I have doubt's about what gyro to choose.

Should I go for the kit with 3GX, GPRO or buy a kit without gyro and buy a Spektrum AR7200BX. And how is the Gpro compared to AR7200?


I got the Spektrum DX6 G2, and for what I can see, the 3GX mr/mrs wont work with this setup.


Heeeelp!


TX

Benjamin

 

[Smoggie]

Hi Benjamin, welcome to the forum,

FBL technology is moving rapidly. The 3GX was discontinued some time ago and replaced by the Gpro, but that too is now discontinued. On all of Align's new 'super combos' the Beastx Microbeast is included (which is a nice controller but pricey if you buy it separately).

The 3GX is best avoided because there are much better options available today that not only perform better but are a lot easier to set up. It's been discontinued for quite a while now so any kits with the 3GX must have been on the shelf for a long time. The Gpro is a better unit but unless the deal is very good I'd give that a swerve too, I think they worked well enough but they aren't supported any more and there are not many users around to give advice. The fact that Align dropped it so quickly probably says something.

As luck would have it the AR7200BX is also discontinued, you are unlikely to find one for sale anywhere these days except in the second hand market. The replacement is the AR7210BX which is very similar but has optional (pay extra) 'stability' and 'rescue' (Horizon call this 'SAFE') features. The AR7210Bx is an excellent unit but expensive once you include the optional SAFE features.

Other options worth looking closely at are the Spirit or Spirit Pro these are excellent controllers that have all the latest stability and rescue features built in without paying extra. The MSH Brain is another good option but that's about to be replaced by the Brain 2 so you might be better waiting and getting the latest version if you went for the Brian.

If you are on a budget the 'Kbar' is worth a look at. it's a clone 'rip-off' of the Mikado Vbar but they work fine and are dirt cheap. They don't have the fancy stability or rescue options of the latest controllers but for $25 you cant complain!

Just ask if you need more info....


EDIT.. PS I moved the thread because you had put it in the forum for helis with 400-500mm blades (i.e. 500 size helis)... A standard '450' has 325mm blades so goes in the 300-400mm blade forum (confusing I know, blame Align)

 

[benram]

Thanks Smoggie.

Really, that helped me ALOT!

My local shop has the 450L dominator 3S with 3GX, and 450L dominater 6S Gpro. Both for the same price at about 300£. what to choose?

I got the horizon/safe modes on my blade 200 srx, so I'm familiar with that. I guess ill buy one of the kits, and then buy the AR7210BX and swap it with the align gyro.

 

[Smoggie]

If they are the same price then the 6s version with the Gpro would be the one to go for, no question. The 6s version of the 450L has a number of upgrades including bigger (360mm) blades and better servos. I think the Gpro worked pretty well and it has decent intuitive software (unlike the 3GX). The main issue is few people have used the Gpro because it was discontinued quite shortly after it's release, so help on setup might be hard to find if you needed it.

The only down side of the 6s version is the batteries are a bit more expensive.

 

[benram]

Thanks again.

In the meantime I called the shop, and they could offer me 450L Dominater Super combo 6S with Microbeast Plus, only 15£ more. I can see that it can be upgraded with horizon/safe too.

Will that work with spektrum 6ch. ? Maybe with an Orange RX that suports SBUS or PPM.

Sorry for all these questions.

 

[Smoggie]

Questions are good!

I'd bite their hands off for the Microbeast upgrade. You are correct in that you will need a DSMX receiver, preferably one that supports single line output.

The 'official' Spektrum offering is the AR7700: https://www.spektrumrc.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=SPMAR7700

'Lemon-Rx' also do a nice looking receiver that supports PPM and has built in telemetry: Lemon Rx DSMX Compatible 7-Channel Full-Range Telemetry with Diversity Antenna Receiver + PPM By coincidence I ordered one of these just a few days ago but i havent got it yet.

Yes, it will work with 6 channels though I'm not sure how the SAFE activation would work.

 

[benram]

Great!

I will go for the microbeast!

Thanks for the help. I really appreciate your time. Hope you have a good weekend

 

[Smoggie]

Thanks, The weather forecast looks like perfect flying conditions so hopefully i will have a good weekend!

Please give us a build and flight report once you get the 450L. ... By the way, where is 'Denmar' ?

 

[trainrider06]

Hi benram, welcome to RCH! Please post a howdy in the new members section and tell us a bit about yourself! We'd love to hear about you!
First off is this 450L your first CP heli??? Or have you experience with others? I can tell you that the 450L is a hot rod, especially the 6s version! So be careful! She's powerful!
Secondly order some cap head screws first! Do not use those worthless button head screws!!!! You will be thankful that you do especially in the areas of the extra bracings of the tail, and motor mount areas.
As Steve recommended use the BeastX. It's really a great FBL controller, and fairly easy to set up! I'd also use the Spektrum DSMX sat with it.
A hint on the frame assembly also, take a small dab of loctite with a toothpick, or even the end of a small zip tie, and put the loctite into the hole of the threaded metal piece first. Do not put it on the screw and then put the screw through the frame into the metal piece! By doing this some of the holes of the frame are a tad tight, and you'll end up rubbing the loctite off before it screws into the metal piece.
Here is a pic of my baby...

 

[benram]

Smoggie:

I'm from Denmark. Don't know why it says Denmar haha... I'll promise to post some pics of the build.

Trainrider06:

It's not my first heli, but my first heli build. I got the blade 130x and the srx200. I'm more in to drone racing, but I always had that heli build on my list, and now it was time

- - - Updated - - -

And pretty cool T-Rex you got there!

 

[trainrider06]

Thank ya Benjamin! I wanna see the racers ya got! do ya have flight video of it in action? Would love to see that!

 

[Tony]

You made the right choice in getting the BX. It's an awesome gyro. The AR7200BX is well worth the money as well. Ikon is my go to gyro though. I love the ikon! There are so many good ones out there that it's hard for a new guy to choose. But Anything align gyro wise is outdated and very hard to setup. In my videos, I played with those settings for hours to get it to fly like it did in the video.

Post up some video of the new bird when you get it.

 

[KLA]

Hey Ben, welcome to RCHelp. You said you already have a DX6 G2, right? Well, if you go with the AR7210 BeastX you won't need a OrangeRX module or LemonRX module at all. The AR7210BX will bind right to your DX6 G2. You can also download a SPM file with all of the settings from the Spektrum website and upload the file to your transmitter. Then your TX will be ready to fly your new heli and you can tweak the TX settings to your liking.

Good luck and by all means, if you have any more questions or need any help don't hesitate to ask. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people here on RCHelp that will be more than happy to help you out.

 

[benram]

Tony you do a great job with does videos! Spent a lot of time watching them over and over again. Pretty shore I could do the 3GX setup, by watching your video. I really appreciate the work you put in to this. Thanks..

Keith, I know that ar7210 would be the easiest choice, but also the most expensive one. I choose the microbeast, because its in the kit, and not that far from ar7210bx. I actually think that the manual are quite similar.?

Is there a cheaper way to get a USB for the firmware, than buy the original microbeast/spektrum one?

 

[KLA]

Well then if you chose the Microbeast instead of the AR7210BX at most all you need is a DSMX satellite reciever. You can get a Spektrum satellite RX but they are a bit pricey. Your best bet would be to get a OrangeRX DSMX satellite RX from Hobbyking or eBay. You don't need a module, just a DSMX/DSM2 satellite which will bind directly to your TX. The Microbeast is a great FBL unit. I have one on my Align 450 Pro DFC that I just converted to FBL. Very easy to setup and a very reliable FBL unit.

As far as the USB cable, I don't know of a cheaper option, unfortunately you are probably stuck getting the Microbeast USB cable.

 

[Tony]

setup is exactly the same on the two.

 

[benram]

Yes, I will use a orange rx with sat. I got a bunch of those, and Lemon rx + sat too. I use orange rx one my drones, because they can run PPM. Single cable is a must, when you build a race quad. You can't have to many wires

 

[Smoggie]

You can use a sat wired direct to the Microbeast but you need a sat adapter cable because unlike most other FBL controllers the Microbeast doesnt have and dedicated satellite ports. A single line receiver is a good option too. I hope the build goes smoothly.

 

[KLA]

Exactly! Like Smoggie said, you can use just the sat, or you can use just the RX. You don't need both. But, either way you decide to go, you will need either the sat adapter cable or the RX adapter cables. But you don't need to use both. That would just be added weight.