I’m seeking advice from anyone who would like to help me. I live in a city where, as far as I know, I am the only one interested in Pixhawk flight and as a result have no one to share information with. The idea of autonomous flight has me intrigued and hooked. I have experienced non success which drives me more to succeed. Unfortunately I believe I bought some junk on the internet that is slowly turning into a brick. As a result I have decided not to be so cheap and buy some quality Pixhawk configuration. So far, from what I’ve read, Holybro is a good choice to buy. I’ve narrowed it down to 3 choices to consider and would like to hear your opinions of these choices:
Pixhawk 4
Pix32 “Pixhawk”
PX4 2.4.6
I really don’t feel that I have the experience to make an optimal decision.
All I want is a multicopter that flies stable and uses it various flight modes as described, and of course is capable of autonomous flight. I have become comfortable with Mission Planner, but or course, considering QGroundControl is not out of the question. I would like programming of the drone to not be a gigantic puzzle.
I have modest aspirations and am only interested in addressing my own curiosity with something that seems very interesting. I have no aspirations of going pro or commercial so taking on drone contracts with National Geographic will never be on the table.
Any and all opinions and advice would greatly be appreciated. I thank you in advance for your time and consideration.
Hi Brian @brian_b,
As a new hobbyist myself (about 2 years) I would like to share with you a few insights I gained in those two years.
I have started by watching every YTube video there was and read everything google had to offer and after a while I was sure I can do that. And than I started ordering the stuff from AliExpress and Banggood and all over the world.
That build was a complete disaster. I purchased a bunch of crap and of course ended with one.
It took me a while to figure out the difference between Pixhawk (very old name) flight controllers hardware and firmware, it is a curve on your path.
Which is considered a good FC hardware and what to look for.
As a side note you mentioned Pixhawk 4 from Holybro for myself I had so many problems with it, simply because there was some issue in the sbus pins where until now it’s a mystery.
One more example, when choosing a flight controller, you don’t exactly know what improvements you would want to add when your appetite growth, especially when you want to add sensors and maybe companion computer and the sky is limit here and you would probably need computer power for your fc. Going for a few years old fc would limit your options in the future.
Same goes for every bit in your build. Motors for example you can buy two motors with the same spec but will eventually fail you miserably and the other would keep your vehicle up there.
When selecting a frame, do a serious research on what is available and don’t buy before you know you are going to have the space to position all your parts on it.
Sorry it became such a long post but I hear of many who gets frustrated by hardware and simply abandon that.
Gal
Thanks Gal. I appreciate the time and effort you took to respond.
I was very interested in what you said about the sbus problems with the pixhawk 4. Seems like a major concern with a component that is so fundamental. Besides you, I’ve heard it mentioned too many times. I have realistic expectations and should suspect many generations to evolve on the learning curve. Any more comments you have are welcomed. Thank you.
Thank for your kind words Brian. It’s just there are so many frustrations along the path but the Exhilaration you experience when that bird is doing exactly what you envisioned before, intoxicating
When it comes to selecting any kind of hardware for your vehicle I believe that you need to look not only at the current requirement but also what would be the consequences if you wish to change or upgrade your initial design, would it still be a viable solution?
I have boxes and boxes of unused parts which I thought would fit the needs and ended up in a box.
Any way I ended up using an fc CubeOrange from hex which in my opinion was for present and future needs.
I also know that cuav have great fcs as well.
Well, I am too philosophical today
Gal
Good day,
it depends on the application you need.
If i can advice you… you can opt for the mRo x2.1 red board with F4 MCU or the for the mRo x2.1 777… both are very good fc concentrated in a friendly good size boards. Both fc are very customizable with few uarts… CAN BUS support… dronecode pinout. They provide you a very good redundancy.
Aside the fc you can look also for the Gps LocationOne with the m9n gps that is more fast in aquire signal with the last rm3100 compass…a very low mag field compass…
Thanks to everyone who has replied. The message I’m getting is that choice depends on needs. I have to watch that I don’t get too deep into DIY as I know my limitations. Did not consider the Cube Orange before but now I’m taking a closer look. From what I’ve read/watched this unit has good reports on stability and reliability. The recommended Here2 GPS unit seems impressive. I was wondering what type of GPS unit Gal would recommend on the Cube Orange?. I have a couple of Ublox 7M GPS Modules left over from my failed ebay purchases. Would these be compatable? Cheers
