black pearl and immersion 600mw tx best antenna upgrade

[capodrone81]

Hello all.

This ones for the forum moderators or anyone that has long term ownership in FPV systems..

Currently running immersion tx 600mw with stock antenna
and black pearl monitor with stock antenna

although video signal is decent i get interference lines in video picture .. should i switch channels on the TX ? if so what is best channel i believe I'm using channel 1 right out of the box all 4 dip switches on..

thanks for technical input. !


Salute!

 

[Cessna]

Do you have the 7 or the 32 channel black pearl monitor? The 32 channel back pearl monitor will have limited range when used with the immersionrc tx.

 

[Ingsoc75]

I to would like some recommendations for the same setup (my BP is 7ch and I've been using the Fatshark mushroom shaped antennas.

 

[capodrone81]

7 channel thanks.

 

[capodrone81]

Bump for answer

 

[QYV]

another thread discussing antennas running right now, may help you out?
viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32410

also this "transmitter wattage chart" has been posted around here for some time, shows which channels are the strongest on various transmitters. I can't personally verify the data but this is widely accepted. Honestly those stock whip antennas are complete crap, you'll get much better range with better omnidirectional antennas

you also mentioned "interference lines in the picture": there's 2 main topics around here on that subject:
1) is your receiver attached to your RC? If you use the front little metal mount, we've seen that interference can be caused by the RC itself. switching to this monitor mount moves the receiver to a position which drastically reduces or eliminates certain kinds of interference
2) many folks around here report that something about the H3-3D USB connector causes the issue.. something about the power delivery and video signal being so close to each other. folks around here report modding their ribbon cable with a bit of tape to suppress the power delivery to the gopro eliminates some interference.
I have not personally done #2, and I'd try #1 first since it's easier but if you do a little searching and browsing around here I'm sure you can find the threads with guys talking about that tape mod, posting before/after videos and such. I know I've seen the threads I just haven't bookmarked any of them since I dont have the issue

 

[Hughie]

2) many folks around here report that something about the H3-3D USB connector causes the issue.. something about the power delivery and video signal being so close to each other. folks around here report modding their ribbon cable with a bit of tape to suppress the power delivery to the gopro eliminates some interference.

That is interesting, I would be keen to hear if anyone knows more on this. Is this related to the "anti-interference board" which I received with my H3-3D ?

 

[QYV]

2) many folks around here report that something about the H3-3D USB connector causes the issue.. something about the power delivery and video signal being so close to each other. folks around here report modding their ribbon cable with a bit of tape to suppress the power delivery to the gopro eliminates some interference.

That is interesting, I would be keen to hear if anyone knows more on this. Is this related to the "anti-interference board" which I received with my H3-3D ?

not entirely sure... everybody I know has the interference board installed and people still report that interference that can be fixed with the tape mod. I'd suggest going looking for some of those threads, I can't remember if they're in FPV or H3-3D forum

 

[capodrone81]

I heard something about setting go pro output from ntsc to pal , somehow causing the horizontal rolling lines in picture.. anyone else hear this,

Thanks for the input I installed the antinterferance board inside the shell next to the naza using the oem mounting points

If you can link me to the tape mod tgread that would be very interesting to read..

Also on the black pearl monitor and immersion tx I just bought some ib crazy circular antennas hopefully this will help a bit..,, any further info would be appreciated

 

[capodrone81]

another thread discussing antennas running right now, may help you out?
viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32410

also this "transmitter wattage chart" has been posted around here for some time, shows which channels are the strongest on various transmitters. I can't personally verify the data but this is widely accepted. Honestly those stock whip antennas are complete crap, you'll get much better range with better omnidirectional antennas

you also mentioned "interference lines in the picture": there's 2 main topics around here on that subject:
1) is your receiver attached to your RC? If you use the front little metal mount, we've seen that interference can be caused by the RC itself. switching to this monitor mount moves the receiver to a position which drastically reduces or eliminates certain kinds of interference
2) many folks around here report that something about the H3-3D USB connector causes the issue.. something about the power delivery and video signal being so close to each other. folks around here report modding their ribbon cable with a bit of tape to suppress the power delivery to the gopro eliminates some interference.
I have not personally done #2, and I'd try #1 first since it's easier but if you do a little searching and browsing around here I'm sure you can find the threads with guys talking about that tape mod, posting before/after videos and such. I know I've seen the threads I just haven't bookmarked any of them since I dont have the issue

H3-3d im a bit confused my h3-3d does not have a usb connector the go pro plugs directly into the back plate no usb side connector, does this make any sense? Everyone that talks about the zenmuse refers to this usb piece that I dont have what gives? Did they make a design change and I have the later model without the usb connector,

 

[QYV]

H3-3d im a bit confused my h3-3d does not have a usb connector the go pro plugs directly into the back plate no usb side connector, does this make any sense? Everyone that talks about the zenmuse refers to this usb piece that I dont have what gives? Did they make a design change and I have the later model without the usb connector,

You are correct - they made a change. Apparently the very first run of H3-3D (commonly called the H3-3D version 1) had the gopro rear port / hero port / 30 pin connector, looks like this:

But that was only the first edition run; Subsequently they switched to the USB style connector, which looks like this:

the ribbon cable from that USB runs under a sticker on the mounting plate and plugs into a connector in the gimbal.

Here's why we care: The Hero 4 does NOT work properly in a H3-3D via the rear port. The Hero 3 works fine, but the Hero 4 will not presently output video (to a Zenmuse gimbal) via that rear port. If you don't have a Hero 4, don't even worry about it.... but if/when you upgrade to a Hero 4 you'll have to mod your gimbal over to the USB connector. or sell it and get a newer H3-3D.
or sell your H3-3D v1 and get a H4-3D which was just announced at CES

 

[capodrone81]

H3-3d im a bit confused my h3-3d does not have a usb connector the go pro plugs directly into the back plate no usb side connector, does this make any sense? Everyone that talks about the zenmuse refers to this usb piece that I dont have what gives? Did they make a design change and I have the later model without the usb connector,

You are correct - they made a change. Apparently the very first run of H3-3D (commonly called the H3-3D version 1) had the gopro rear port / hero port / 30 pin connector, looks like this:

But that was only the first edition run; Subsequently they switched to the USB style connector, which looks like this:

the ribbon cable from that USB runs under a sticker on the mounting plate and plugs into a connector in the gimbal.

Here's why we care: The Hero 4 does NOT work properly in a H3-3D via the rear port. The Hero 3 works fine, but the Hero 4 will not presently output video (to a Zenmuse gimbal) via that rear port. If you don't have a Hero 4, don't even worry about it.... but if/when you upgrade to a Hero 4 you'll have to mod your gimbal over to the USB connector. or sell it and get a newer H3-3D.
or sell your H3-3D v1 and get a H4-3D which was just announced at CES

Thank you for explanation! Was their any known issues with the h33d v1 that I should be aware of? What was thereason for design change. And lastly would it be possible to mod my gimball to usb ?

 

[dptcalvin]

Yes, all you need is this: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?N= ... yes&sts=pi

Though the "newer" versions that came with the USB ribbon already have a metal weight in place of the 30 pin connector. I believe it helps balance the gimbal.

And just reverse the directions here: http://www.ifpv.co.uk/dji-zenmuse-h3-3d ... r-upgrade/

 

[capodrone81]

Really only 4 dollar part? So uninstall 30 pin and install ribbon cable and possibky balance.

Whats funny is the more I look into the 30 pin connector vs ribbon cable. There are people converting back to 30 pin from ribbon cable..... ah well I might as well buy the part to have in case I really want a crappier setup .lol

 

[capodrone81]

Yes, all you need is this: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?N= ... yes&sts=pi

Though the "newer" versions that came with the USB ribbon already have a metal weight in place of the 30 pin connector. I believe it helps balance the gimbal.

And just reverse the directions here: http://www.ifpv.co.uk/dji-zenmuse-h3-3d ... r-upgrade/

Thank you btw for the links and info!

 

[dptcalvin]

You're welcome!

 

[QYV]

There are people converting back to 30 pin from ribbon cable

yep, many of us modded our H3-3D v2 FROM the USB connector, TO the 30-pin rear-port connector... and that was working great on Hero 3 series GoPros.

unfortunately the new Hero 4 will NOT output video to a H3-3D via the rear port... so we wound up having to mod back to the USB connector to use Hero 4

I can't actually remember how we got on this subject, I know we started the thread talking about antennas but now we're talking about H3-3D and rear port vs usb plug... I guess my point is there's not really much reason for you to mod over to the USB connector unless you want to run a Hero 4.

If your H3-3D v1 is in perfect condition with all the peripherals, you may want to consider just selling it... there's still a big market for guys with Hero 3 who WANT the rear port connector, and someone who doesn't want to mod the gimbal personally will probably just buy one. Then you could buy the new H4-3D

 

[capodrone81]

There are people converting back to 30 pin from ribbon cable

yep, many of us modded our H3-3D v2 FROM the USB connector, TO the 30-pin rear-port connector... and that was working great on Hero 3 series GoPros.

unfortunately the new Hero 4 will NOT output video to a H3-3D via the rear port... so we wound up having to mod back to the USB connector to use Hero 4

I can't actually remember how we got on this subject, I know we started the thread talking about antennas but now we're talking about H3-3D and rear port vs usb plug... I guess my point is there's not really much reason for you to mod over to the USB connector unless you want to run a Hero 4.

If your H3-3D v1 is in perfect condition with all the peripherals, you may want to consider just selling it... there's still a big market for guys with Hero 3 who WANT the rear port connector, and someone who doesn't want to mod the gimbal personally will probably just buy one. Then you could buy the new H4-3D

i think we stumbled on this because of the love of information lol.

Im glad this came to light because i was actively searching for a hero4 but now have since gone back to my original thoughts of buying the black 3plus it seems like that is still the way to go with 2.7k video reliably and a better price point.

if i chose the hero4 i will still keep my 3d v1 and directly wire usb out to tx with the cable sold by rcdepot for 1.90 this way i still don't have to use the ribbon cable, it just seems nonsense to modify a perfect connection ( 30 pin) to what seems like a temporary patch ...

any thoughts on hero3+ vs hero4?

Im looking for the best bang for your buck.

 

[dptcalvin]

IMO, the 3+ Black and 4 Silver are equal as far as video quality. It's not until the 4 Black that you really see an improvement. I have a 3 Black and plan to upgrade to the 3+ Black as it's more than suitable for my uses. I'm disappointed with what I'm getting out of the 3 Black that I have now.

FWIW, I have two 4 Silvers and they are awesome (thanks to the improved video quality over my 3 Black and the addition of the built-in LCD).

 

[QYV]

yea imo if you're already going to be spending a few hundred dollars, don't be cheap throw another little bit and get the Black. My Hero 3+ black was nice, but the Hero 4 black is amazing. 2.7k @ 48fps videos are beautiful, and 1080p @ 120fps is a lot of fun... I've filmed some waterfalls and other moving things and when you slow it way down it's super cool.

I say splurge on the Hero 4 black but yea then you'll either have to mod your gimbal or make a custom cable... capodrone you're setting up FPV right? so it's not as simple as "connect the gopro to the transmitter" you have to go to the iOSD Mini first. really unwise to fly FPV without an iOSD mini

if it were me, I'd either sell the H3-3D v1 and buy a new gimbal, or mod your gimbal over to the USB connector so that you can use the plug and play cables for FPV system