Best Range Extender for Mavic 2 Pro

[Shivmo]

Hi there!

This is my first post on this site, so please excuse any mistakes I make.

I just purchased the Mavic 2 Pro, and it is quite different from the Phantoms I am used to. For my Phantom 4 Pro v2.0, I purchased a cheap no-installation-required range extender, but it worked only so well, considering I live in an area densely populated with trees. For the Mavic 2 Pro, I am looking for a range extender that is able to send signal through trees and get me the 4-5 miles advertised by DJI. I am open to any sort of extender.

I did some surface research and found DroneWorld's antenna with installed Helical antenna/range extender. Has anybody bought this remote? And do I need to install anything on the drone unit itself if I already bought it from a vendor other than Drone World? Or can I just connect the new remote to the vehicle?

Thanks

 

[Elton Hammonds]

Hi there!

This is my first post on this site, so please excuse any mistakes I make.

I just purchased the Mavic 2 Pro, and it is quite different from the Phantoms I am used to. For my Phantom 4 Pro v2.0, I purchased a cheap no-installation-required range extender, but it worked only so well, considering I live in an area densely populated with trees. For the Mavic 2 Pro, I am looking for a range extender that is able to send signal through trees and get me the 4-5 miles advertised by DJI. I am open to any sort of extender.

I did some surface research and found DroneWorld's antenna with installed Helical antenna/range extender. Has anybody bought this remote? And do I need to install anything on the drone unit itself if I already bought it from a vendor other than Drone World? Or can I just connect the new remote to the vehicle?

Thanks

If by range extender, you're referring to antennas, which I believe you are, I've been extremely pleased with the Raptor XR that I installed last month.

It's large, but detachable.

 

[Elton Hammonds]

If by range extender, you're referring to antennas, which I believe you are, I've been extremely pleased with the Raptor XR that I installed last month.

It's large, but detachable.

It's wider than my 10" tablet, but not as tall, as you can see...

 

[Shivmo]

It's wider than my 10" tablet, but not as tall, as you can see...View attachment 50264View attachment 50265

Thank you Mr. Hammonds!

I did mean antennas, and I will definitely look into the Raptor XR. Do you recommend a place to purchase it?

Thanks

 

[Elton Hammonds]

Thank you Mr. Hammonds!

I did mean antennas, and I will definitely look into the Raptor XR. Do you recommend a place to purchase it?

Thanks

I found most places were sold out of them, so I went directly to the 4Hawks website, and after emailing back and forth about the product, I ordered it directly from them.

They are in Poland, which is where they make it, which I liked because everything seems to be made in red China these days.

It took about 3 weeks to get here, but it works so well and is so light that I think it's worth it.

BTW: I added the little rubber feet on the bottom edge as a cushion for it. (Atari feet like these are available on eBay and I use them on everything around the house...)

 

[Spike151]

Looking at range extenders previously for my P4P, the research I read seems to favour left hand circular or right hand circular polarizations for penetration through trees over the standard linear polarization. There are several on the market for the Mavic 2 that use these polarizations, but I think they are all single band, though I stand to be corrected on this. Titan drones make a LHC/RHC polarization range extender, which comes in both flavours, 2.4ghz or 5.8ghz but not dual band, as do FPVLR. The Raptor Xs and XR are dual band but are linear polarization.

 

[CanadaDrone]

How do you guys deal with always having to have a spotter when flying at such long distances? What kind of optics are you using to spot the drone several KM away? To me that would be the most difficult part to work out, assuming there are VLOS laws where you are of course.

 

[Elton Hammonds]

I'm speaking in terms of my experience with HF communications, which these drones are.

I spent most of my young adult years humping thru volcanic jungles in SE Asia with either a 3 foot tape or 10 foot mast antenna on my back.

The best way to establish and maintain effective comms is to have the best known and tested antennas and pushing pwr thru them whenever the occassion calls for it.

And, if it's not make by the reds, that's a good sign for freedom. LOL

(That's humor for those that read this later and don't recognize it.)

The antennas aren't illegal anywhere, but provide a much higher quality signal in more challenging areas.

Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) can be caused by many things and a pilot may not always be aware of potential sources before facing the effects of it.

Heck, there's countless places that even the military just declares as "dead zones" and just moves on.

Hope this helps.

 

[jaysrmc]

How do you guys deal with always having to have a spotter when flying at such long distances? What kind of optics are you using to spot the drone several KM away? To me that would be the most difficult part to work out, assuming there are VLOS laws where you are of course.

To be honest, I think a lot of people fly beyond line of sight.

 

[WWK888]

It's wider than my 10" tablet, but not as tall, as you can see...View attachment 50264View attachment 50265

That set up looks a little awkward to control the sticks.

 

[WWK888]

I have used Titan Drones for my P4 and would highly recommend them over DroneWorld which I think overcharges. Titan Drones has great customer service.

 

[CanadaDrone]

To be honest, I think a lot of people fly beyond line of sight.

Yeah, you're probably right. Users that only follow the rules that are convenient to them are dangerous for the hobby IMHO. There are already enough restrictions on these things!

 

[Elton Hammonds]

That set up looks a little awkward to control the sticks.

I haven't found the sticks to be obstructed at all.

 

[Spike151]

Yeah, you're probably right. Users that only follow the rules that are convenient to them are dangerous for the hobby IMHO. There are already enough restrictions on these things!

If you are flying beyond VLOS, you need to risk assess, is there any known aircraft traffic in the area? gliders? microlights? para gliders? consult drone apps that show risk areas, consult local ATC centers to ask if there are regular or ever flights in the area you want to fly your drone. If there is no reasonably foreseeable risk and you have an unobstructed view of the drones flight path, even though you cannot see the drone itself, I believe you are taking reasonable steps to ensure you are flying safely.

 

[CanadaDrone]

If you are flying beyond VLOS, you need to risk assess, is there any known aircraft traffic in the area? gliders? microlights? para gliders? consult drone apps that show risk areas, consult local ATC centers to ask if there are regular or ever flights in the area you want to fly your drone. If there is no reasonably foreseeable risk and you have an unobstructed view of the drones flight path, even though you cannot see the drone itself, I believe you are taking reasonable steps to ensure you are flying safely.

Most places I have been to have laws/regulations against flying beyond VLOS without a spotter - that may not be the case everywhere but it has been for me. If people start only adhering to the rules that are convenient to them, that is a real problem for all drone users IMHO. There is only so much you can do to accurately predict what you might run into several KM away from your launch site. It's highly unlikely most people flying beyond VLOS bother to check all the things you mentioned either. If a drone is equipped with a parachute, would you consider it acceptable to ignore the laws and fly over a large group of children, public event, or crowded city center? I'm not trying to be argumentative, I just feel like if someone is going to pick and choose the laws they adhere to based on what is convenient, that is bad for the hobby and restrictions are only going to get tighter. What rule will the next person pick to ignore?

A related example - my city recently passed a bill to make residential speed limits 40 KM/h which is absolutely ridiculous. You have a few idiots blowing through neighborhoods at high speeds and all the busybodies band together and make a change that negatively effects the 99.9% of people driving responsibly.

 

[Spike151]

Most places I have been to have laws/regulations against flying beyond VLOS without a spotter - that may not be the case everywhere but it has been for me. If people start only adhering to the rules that are convenient to them, that is a real problem for all drone users IMHO. There is only so much you can do to accurately predict what you might run into several KM away from your launch site. It's highly unlikely most people flying beyond VLOS bother to check all the things you mentioned either. If a drone is equipped with a parachute, would you consider it acceptable to ignore the laws and fly over a large group of children, public event, or crowded city center? I'm not trying to be argumentative, I just feel like if someone is going to pick and choose the laws they adhere to based on what is convenient, that is bad for the hobby and restrictions are only going to get tighter. What rule will the next person pick to ignore?

A related example - my city recently passed a bill to make residential speed limits 40 KM/h which is absolutely ridiculous. You have a few idiots blowing through neighborhoods at high speeds and all the busybodies band together and make a change that negatively effects the 99.9% of people driving responsibly.

Well I cant answer for everyone else, I do my due dilligence before I fly, every time. If I go beyond VLOS it will be out to sea, over a reservoir or water or below tree top height where I can be 99.99999% sure I will not encounter any air traffic. All laws are open to interpretation, or there would be no need for lawyers in this world. In law intent is everything. Youtube has millions of videos online of people flying beyond VLOS, I would hazard a guess that the majority of drone users do fly beyond VLOS even though they know the rules. But the CAA in the UK and the FAA in the USA, do not prosecute these people. Why? Because it is not worth their while doing it. It would clog up the already clogged up legal system. They only prosecute people who show no regard for dangerous flying. I am not condoning flying however you like, regardless of the risk, far from it. But people who do not push back against tougher and tougher legislation, when that legislation is mostly based on fear, and hysteria in the press do our hobby no good whatsoever in my opinion.

As an example, an airline pilot in the UK coming into land at Robin Hood airport near Sheffield reported a close encounter with a "drone", he was at 15,500 feet and flying at 390 mph, this was reported in the UK press. We both know there isnt a drone on the market that would get to that altitude if it took off from sea level, which Sheffield is, on top of that with a maximum decent speed of 3m/s it would never get back down from that altitude before the battery ran out. At 390 mph would you really be able to identify it as a drone, I seriously doubt that.

This above case it typical of drone hysteria by the press and the airlines in general, who would see all hobby drones banned if they could possibly achieve it. In the UK in the 4 years I have been flying I have only ever seen one serious injury, a boy who was blinded in one eye by his father, who was flying a toy drone is his back garden. My government and yours do not put speed restrictors on cars, so they will only achieve the speed limit in towns and freeways despite, many thousands of people being killed by vehicles speeding every year.

 

[DRONEY ISLAND]

Recently ordered these -

ALIENTECH PRO 5.8G Signal Booster
2 summers ago I was in HK and visited a shop that installed the previous version of this booster on my original MPro and was very impressed with it. I Haven't installed the new one yet, I might give it a try this week If i have time. Never performed a MOD upgrade myself so just wanna be sure before I split my remote open in half and dissect it.


MaXX "HD-SIGNAL" MOD DJI Mavic 2 Pro Long Range Antenna Helical Upgrade + Installation by DroneWorld.

This one came installed and ready to rock. I just had to ship them my controller first. I didn't have much time today to really try it out. I'll report back when I can form a better opinion on it. But the few minutes I flew definitely showed significant improvement from the stock RC setup.


Raptor XR / designed for Mavic 2 series by 4Hawks.

Another self install needed for this one, but the real issue is getting a new controller to dedicate to this MOD. I mentioned in a separate thread how I'm bummed it's **** near impossible to find or purchase RC1A controllers on the web. Although maybe contacting DJI direct, in theory they should be able to send customers out a replacement/additional RC, at a price of course. curious to see the results of this MOD. Will also update once I find a controller to MOD. I've got a spare RC from the OG MPro, but not sure if It's possible to use for M2P.

I've also seen these leaked photos on this new RC remote coming. Not sure when it will release, but certainly excited to get a sexy new RC

Drink and Drone responsibly.

 

[DRONEY ISLAND]

To be honest, I think a lot of people fly beyond line of sight.

I try and maintain VLOS whenever I can, but living in NYC, it's pretty difficult to consistently achieve proper VLOS no matter how hard you try.

My rules when flying "out of bounds" so to speak,

Always try to fly a path over rooftops, water, or any empty area with no humans. This helps eliminate a significant part of the risk associated when flying a drone in general, let alone out of VLOS; causing injury to someone else either from a falling drone, or interfering/coming into close contact with any other Air Traffic.

God forbid!

The other X factor, and this is something out of anyones control, no matter how many hours you've logged flying, the experience etc, or if you're a complete n00b,

$H1T will and always does happen!!!

Technology has never been 100%, so just stay very very alert, fly safe, and always have a

plan in place in the case of a fly-away, crash, or lost drone.

drink and drone responsibly.

 

[xMr]

It's wider than my 10" tablet, but not as tall, as you can see...View attachment 50264View attachment 50265

Is This setup being run on a mavic 2 pro/zoom or the older mavics? If so how does the install differ between the older mavics compared to the new rc.

Also you say the patch antenna is detachable so i'm curious as to how long the install/uninstall process would take. I want the best range i can get and it seems like the XR is best for value to performance but am concerned that taking it apart will take a while and I might miss opportunities for shots or people might be bored while waiting for me to set up the drones rc for flight.

One last question. I am imagining that this antenna adds some considerable weight. Considering it looks top heavy does this make it a burden to hold for a full flight?

Thank you in advance cant wait to modify my mavic 2 zoom.

 

[Bryce steiner]

I’ve noticed that every time I look at the screen the drone is no longer in line of sight.