RX failure rate

Problems, experiences or just something to say about RC gear? Say it here.

Rx failure rate

0%
4
57%
1-5%
2
29%
6-10%
1
14%
11-20%
0
No votes
21-30%
0
No votes
31-40%
0
No votes
41-50%
0
No votes
>50%
0
No votes
 
Total votes : 7

RX failure rate

Postby Tim » Sat May 22, 2010 11:53 pm

I’ve had a bit of bad luck with the receivers that I have purchased this year, so I would be interested to see what success rate other people are having. Possibly I need to buy some better quality receivers, or was it just bad luck?

Of the 5 receivers purchased, 3 where either DOA or failed the pre-flight test.

1. Hitec Optima 7. Used successfully for about 2 hours. The rx has never been crashed. Then one day I did the preflight checks and the servo response was delayed/jerky and occasionally went into failsafe. Hasn’t worked properly since.
2. Hitec Optima 7. No problems except that the servos jump quite a bit at power up (3A SBEC, not using SPC)
3. Corona 4ch 35MHz single conv crystal based. Works well and very cheap. So I decided to buy another…
4. Corona 4ch 35MHz single conv crystal based. Very poor range (~1m with tx antenna extended)
5. Corona 4ch 35MHz single conv crystal based. Thought receiver 4 above was unlucky, so bought this one :( . Jerky/delayed servo operation (particularly ch4 ). Unusable.


Anyway, I would be very interested to hear what rx failure rates other people are having (excluding interference, crystal, power supply, or crash damage issues). The poll questions are not scientifically constructed, but might be interesting anyway.
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby RCModelReviews » Sun May 23, 2010 1:48 am

I guess someone's got to get all t he bad stuff, looks like it's you :-)

I've had:

1 x FlySky 2.4GHz receiver that was low-range
1 x FD receiver that is just dead
2 x Corona receivers that are either faulty or the wrong version for the module I was using
1 x FMA M5 that went glitchy
1 x Sombra Labs synthesized 72MHz receiver that just stopped working
1 x Hitec QPCM receiver that is very jerky in operation

When you consider that this represents the sum total of problems out of a total of about 20 receivers over a period of 7 years, that's not too bad. By comparison, I've had four DVD players go bad, one TV set die and 2 desktop PCs die during the same time.
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby RobC » Mon May 24, 2010 11:04 am

let's see,
I've got about 6 RadioLink 2.4 rx, 2 had to be exchanged dead on arrival.
5 or 6 Corona 2.4 - all perfectly well behaved
A few Corona 4 and 8 ch 35Mhz synth, all have very weak aerials which are prone to dropping off.
10 FrSky 2.4 - one 4 ch unit had the aerial drop off (subsequent rx supplied have a blob of silicon to support the aerial) one 8ch had a dry joint on ch6 fixed by resoldering all the joints, and one popped it's smoothing cap, but it still works and replacing the cap was easy enough.
3 Futaba 35Mhz rx, no faults but all prone to glitching in a noisy environment (eg electric power, noisy servos etc.)
Couple of Micron kit built 35Mhz - one has a low range, but they are getting on a bit - 15-20 years old?

Overall I'd say the Chinese still have a long way to go in regards to quality control, but nothing has failed in mid air as problems are always obvious on test or installation.
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby GeicoGecko » Tue May 25, 2010 12:41 pm

AR6200
AR7100
AR6100e
2xAR6400

So far the only issue I've had is with the AR6100e not being able to perform a range check on a single day. I'm putting this down to interference at the moment but it has made me a little nervous.

I'm going to look into the Hitec 2.4Ghz module for my FF8. It should offer better interference rejection and the receivers are cheaper :)
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby RCModelReviews » Tue May 25, 2010 9:22 pm

GeicoGecko wrote:I'm going to look into the Hitec 2.4Ghz module for my FF8. It should offer better interference rejection and the receivers are cheaper :)

I think the only problem you might have with going Hitec is finding receivers. It looks as if it's become a wildly popular system (a good review at RCModelReviews will do that (yeah.. right!)) and receivers seem in short supply.

Strangely enough, the same seems true for FrSky :shock:
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby sturdybird46 » Wed May 26, 2010 5:19 am

Assan X8 R4 and R6
Optima 6 and 7
spektrum Ar7000, 6100, and 6200
Futaba R617FS

I have yet to find any fault with any of these receivers. I don't think I have ever given them a good test either. I pay a lot of attention to receiver/antenna placement. I test servo loads and receiver voltage drops before I complete each model. I pay attention to my flight timer and never run my batteries too low. I fly in a park usually by myself or with one other person so there isn't much radio traffic from other rc transmitters. I plan to join a club this summer and give them a good test around some real radio traffic. I am a little disappointed with Hitec because their receivers are hard to find and they lack park flier sized receivers. My local hobby shop is reluctant to stock more Hitec radio products. The owner of the shop doesn't believe that they are as popular as they are. I guess he doesn't follow all the info on the internet and hasn't noticed all the people selling their DX7s and 9303s to buy Hitec Aurora systems. I am a big fan of the Futaba FASST system and as soon as I win the Lottery I will be able to afford to buy more receivers. For now I am fortunate to have my pic of the lot in case I run into any troubles.
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby UncleFesterUK » Fri May 28, 2010 6:57 pm

I have had 2 x Frsky 4 channel receivers give Short range, always at the furthest point in the turn ( about 150 metre out ) one plane i recovered the other i repaired :)
i now only using the 4 channel in indoor Foamies, will stick to the 8 channel ones at the field, i have eight of these giving no problems.
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby RCModelReviews » Fri May 28, 2010 9:28 pm

That's interesting -- as I've mentioned previously, I regularly fly my 4-channel FrSky receivers to the limit of visibility with my DLG. Do your 4-channel systems range-test okay on the ground?
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby UncleFesterUK » Sun May 30, 2010 9:03 pm

When they were tested the first time, it seemed fine, only when i flew the planes i found it, both planes at nearly the same place straight out in front of me, about 25 feet from ground, and only for 2 sec ( long enough to try and move airilons, then try again and it worked ok ) after the repair to my Funtana, i have not tried them again. :cry:

only thing of note, is that the antena in both planes was pointing and close to the battery, ( not sure if that would cause any problem ) :!:

PS: i said that the airilons did not respond, should note that none of the controls did..
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Re: RX failure rate

Postby RCModelReviews » Sun May 30, 2010 9:34 pm

UncleFesterUK wrote:only thing of note, is that the antena in both planes was pointing and close to the battery, ( not sure if that would cause any problem ) :!:

A single-antenna system is far more susceptible to shadowing by conductors in close proximity.

When range-testing, it pays to try the model at all orientations.

Set the failsafe to some obvious setting (such as full up-elevator), place the transmitter on the ground or a bench then walk away with the model. As you walk away, keep turning the model so that it presents all aspects to the transmitter. If the elevator pops up (failsafe) before you've reached an acceptable distance then rotate the model and see if you can spot what attitude it needs to produce the failsafe condition. Try adjusting the receiver/antenna position to improve the situation. if no improvement can be had, fit a receiver with dual antennas.
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