What's new
By:
Aloft Forums

Welcome to Aloft Forums. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

X20S questions

L

LowAltidude

New User
Long time slope glider guider and formerly an active participant in RC Groups here. I was also on the team who ran the flying venues for the AMA Expo and RCX for a lot of years. BUT: I stopped just about all RC activity in mid 2018 due to work and other interests, but I'm about to retire and want to get back into RC slope soaring and sailboats. Enough with the introduction and on with why I'm posting here:

I have a FrSky Tandem X20S that I bought new at the 2019 or 2023 AMA Expo. I can't remember which, but it was when the X20S was brand new and not widely available yet. I had already stopped flying, but I bought it thinking that I'd be flying again soon and it would be a good upgrade for my Horus X10. Well, I never did start flying again and the X20S went on the shelf without ever being charged or even turned on. So here are a few questions I have about waking it up:
  • Are FrSky battery packs available for it? I'm not even going to try to charge the LiPo pack that is in it which is completely dead.
  • Will LiFe packs work in it?
  • It will obviously need firmware and Ethos updates. Will the Ethos Suite automatically perform all the updates in the proper order automatically? Initial investigation suggests that the update process will need to be done in stages. Any other noteworthy advice I'll need to know? (Note: my laptop & desktop computers are Windows 11 with current updates)
  • When does Aloft expect new inventory of TD R6 receivers?
  • How effective are the internal antennas? At what point do external antennas become necessary?
Hello, Wayne!
Pete
 
LowAltidude said:
Long time slope glider guider and formerly an active participant in RC Groups here. I was also on the team who ran the flying venues for the AMA Expo and RCX for a lot of years. BUT: I stopped just about all RC activity in mid 2018 due to work and other interests, but I'm about to retire and want to get back into RC slope soaring and sailboats. Enough with the introduction and on with why I'm posting here:

I have a FrSky Tandem X20S that I bought new at the 2019 or 2023 AMA Expo. I can't remember which, but it was when the X20S was brand new and not widely available yet. I had already stopped flying, but I bought it thinking that I'd be flying again soon and it would be a good upgrade for my Horus X10. Well, I never did start flying again and the X20S went on the shelf without ever being charged or even turned on. So here are a few questions I have about waking it up:
  • Are FrSky battery packs available for it? I'm not even going to try to charge the LiPo pack that is in it which is completely dead.
  • Will LiFe packs work in it?
  • It will obviously need firmware and Ethos updates. Will the Ethos Suite automatically perform all the updates in the proper order automatically? Initial investigation suggests that the update process will need to be done in stages. Any other noteworthy advice I'll need to know? (Note: my laptop & desktop computers are Windows 11 with current updates)
  • When does Aloft expect new inventory of TD R6 receivers?
  • How effective are the internal antennas? At what point do external antennas become necessary?
Hello, Wayne!
Pete
Click to expand...
Yes X20S battery packs are still available.
The charging circuit is designed for 2S lipo.
Ethos is quite mature now so it will work well with this.
Yes internal antennas is all I use and very effective.
I would recommend sending the radio to Aloft for a checkout, fit a new battery and install Ethos at the current version.
An Ethos 458 page manual is available here. https://github.com/FrSkyRC/ETHOS-Feedback-Community?tab=readme-ov-file scroll down for English version
 
I would also suggest you download Ethos Suite here: https://ethos.frsky-rc.com/#ethossuite I am not sure what version they link to so probably need to let it update itself.
Suite is where you will do all your radio updates and firmware downloads (for receivers and such). There is also a Documentation item in the left panel that will take you to the current manual download.
 
The battery that came in my X20S is a FrSky 4000mAh pack. I did some research online and it seems like the biggest replacement pack available now is 2700 mAh.

What’s up with that? Were the 4000 mAh packs burning up or dying prematurely or something? Supply chain issues?

And FWIW, my 4000 mAh pack wasn’t dead like I thought it was. My tester was what was dead. On another tester the cells were at 3.74 & 3.75V (~40%) which is amazing in my mind for a pack that is as old as it is. And it was plugged into the TX the entire time.

But I don’t trust it, not only because of its age, but also the nagging question of why the 4000 mAh packs are no longer available.
 
I think your battery will be just fine. They are a LOW C battery and they usually have very good life spans. We don't hear about any issues with these packs.

I'd suggest sending us the transmitter and we can get it to current Ethos for you. It can be a little daunting to bring an older X20S up to current level.

We have a large order with FrSky and are waiting for it to arrive. (They closed their warehouse for a deep year end inventory.)
 
We try to turn them around within 24 hours of receiving them. $25 for the upgrades and then whatever the return shipping costs us. I suggest you send just the transmitter (and any receivers you may have) and wrap them up in a bubble wrap and box that and send. It will cost less than sending the just the hard case.
 
I suggest using pirate ship to send it. Will save you a lot of money. Natedog has sent me items from CA to Hawaii with zero issues. Uses USPS and FedEx to ship.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Red
Beats the heck out of the post office, and that beats the tar out of UPS stores. Why in the world does anyone use a UPS store?
 
Wow, someone copied the Rollo printer. LOL We use the Rollo's at the office and they are the best label printer out there. I imagine the copy is pretty darn good too. We have had them in use for years and never a hiccup from them.
 
  • Love
Reactions: Red
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

M
x20s and r9mm poor rc reception
Replies
1
Views
250
Gizmo6
G
J
Question on two X20s!
Replies
3
Views
862
Wayne
Wayne
R
CAD Files
Replies
6
Views
971
edwardvasquez
E
TyFlies
Spray paint question
Replies
4
Views
796
Moneyec
M
G
Stabilizer rant
Replies
9
Views
2K
Cole Hallman
Cole Hallman
Back
Top