Limited range on new RX's

[NKYEd]

Hello there, I have a problem I need help with.

I have a X20R with firmware 1.5.15 and RF firmware 1.1.14

I have a new Archr Plus GR8 with FW 1.0.11 that I get no range with when doing a range check. On the other hand I have a TW GR8 HW 1.1.0 FW 1.0.7 that range checks just fine. I have a couple of the Archer Plus 6's that I can not get any range on a range test. These have the 3.0.3 FW.

So do I need to update my RF module? If I do do I need up up date the recivers as well?


Ed

 

[HENNY]

Hello there, I have a problem I need help with.

I have a X20R with firmware 1.5.15 and RF firmware 1.1.14

I have a new Archr Plus GR8 with FW 1.0.11 that I get no range with when doing a range check. On the other hand I have a TW GR8 HW 1.1.0 FW 1.0.7 that range checks just fine. I have a couple of the Archer Plus 6's that I can not get any range on a range test. These have the 3.0.3 FW.

So do I need to update my RF module? If I do do I need up up date the recivers as well?


Ed

Hi Ed, when you indicate you get no range during check what does that mean. So during range check the X20R will reduce transmitter power by a factor of 100. Under range check mode you should be able to get at least 30 to 50 meters of range before receiving low RF prompts or indicated 45 to 35db of signal strength, you should also be facing your model, and have it elevated above the ground. Also worth mentioning how have you located the receiver antennas which must be away from batteries, servos, cabling and not inside a carbon fibre fus.

You also need to perform X20R firmware and RF firmware updates to Ethos 1.6.6 and RF firmware to 3.03.

 

[NKYEd]

Hi Henny,

What I meant by no range was 8 to 10 feet. The the signal strenth was 2. I pulled the reciver out of the plane to check it and it did the same thing. Been doing this a long time and this was the first time I had an issue like this. It is a pain sometime to route the antennas out of a F5J carbon fuse, not much room to work with.

I have been reluctant to upgrade the firmware to 1.6.6, but I guess I will have to now. All was working well so I had no need to upgrade until now. LOL

 

[Wayne]

You might as well update to the newer RF firmware. Sooner or later this will make life easier for you. I do not expect this to improve the range issue though.

Curious, do you have any ARCHER receivers that are performing well on range check? Is it just 2 that seem to be acting up?

Just trying to understand what might be going on.

 

[NKYEd]

I had to go look in my planes to be sure. All my other recivers are either TW's or the older X8 and 6's. The Archers seem to be the only ones I am having an issuse with. Could it be the RF firmware?

So can I go from 1.5.15 to 1.6.6 with out any problems? It should not effect my Michael Shellim sailplane program should it?

 

[HENNY]

I had to go look in my planes to be sure. All my other recivers are either TW's or the older X8 and 6's. The Archers seem to be the only ones I am having an issuse with. Could it be the RF firmware?

So can I go from 1.5.15 to 1.6.6 with out any problems? It should not effect my Michael Shellim sailplane program should it?

Update is simple if you use Ethos Suite for PC, here is a link to it. https://github.com/FrSkyRC/ETHOS-Feedback-Community/releases/tag/suite1.7.2 Once you have Ethos Suite you will be able to save your model setups before updating the radio firmware.
Antennas inside a carbon fuse may well be your issue, also do not tape the antennas to the carbon fuse, the antenna should be in free air outside the fuse..

The update 1.5.15 to 1.6.6 is radio firmware, not RF.

 

[NKYEd]

As I stated above I pulled the receivers out of the plane and had the same issue. It was a non carbon fuse as well, my little sub 250 gram sailplane.

The problem seems to be with only the ARCHER receivers and the X20r. I bound one the ARCHER receivers to my Taranis X9D and it seems to work fine. No problrm with a range test.

So I don't know if it is an issue with the RF module firmware or what. My TW receivers are working fine with my current set up. So......

I will wait and see what Wayne thinks about all this. Might just send him the radio for all the upgrades and a check up to be safe.

 

[Wayne]

Honestly I do not know. The TW and the Archer as far as I know are using the same RF chips and antenna. Maybe I am wrong on this, I'll reach out to frSky to find out during the week. Otherwise I'd think maybe something wrong with the transmitter, especially since the receivers work well with the X9D.

Very odd.

 

[NKYEd]

Now I am confused. This morning I went and created a new model with the using the same receiver. Bond it to the transmitter and now have full range. I did a range check and got out 50 paces and still had a reading of 65 RSSI. So what is happening? Did the other model setup have a bad file in it? The new model was a clone of another as I alway do for the sailplane programmimg. , I always go in and delete the old receiever from the new model and never had an issue until this one model. Any ideas on what happened? I also checked another Archer reciver withe the new model and it range checked fine.

 

[HENNY]

Now I am confused. This morning I went and created a new model with the using the same receiver. Bond it to the transmitter and now have full range. I did a range check and got out 50 paces and still had a reading of 65 RSSI. So what is happening? Did the other model setup have a bad file in it? The new model was a clone of another as I alway do for the sailplane programmimg. , I always go in and delete the old receiever from the new model and never had an issue until this one model. Any ideas on what happened? I also checked another Archer reciver withe the new model and it range checked fine.

I believe because you are a good person GOD sent you a favor.

 

[Wayne]

I also duplicate my models when setting up a new plane. This is perfectly fine and normal to do. This will have no effect on the RF performance.

The RSSI and more importantly the VFR (what you would be monitoring instead of RSSI) will not be affected by the programming of the model. So something in the environment may have changed. For example, at the field versus at the home.

VFR is a better data point to watch. VFR Stands for Valid Frame Rate, and this calculation uses RSSI and several other data points to tell you the health of the packets making it to your receiver.

 

[NKYEd]

I went and redid my other plane that had the Archer in it, cloned a differnt model and set it up and all works fine now, plenty of range on the range check range.

When and and looked at the files on planes program where the Archer had no range and there were a few strange things in it. So some resaon all the VARS had double entries, not sure what was up with that. Needless to say I deleted that model setup from the transmitter. May have been a glich in the duplication, may never know. Everything seems to work fine now.

Thank everyone for your help.

 

[Wayne]

Keep an eye on it for the first few flights just to be safe.

 

[NKYEd]

For sure! Nothing like a good mystery to make things spicy!

 

[gnichola]

@NKYEd do you still have the "bad" models? Could you share one of them?

 

[NKYEd]

@NKYEd do you still have the "bad" models? Could you share one of them?

I should have saved one, but I deleted them off the radio. Sorry about that.