Firehouse Technology ARC XL strobe, What’s your verdict with the MA2?

[volition]

I’m enjoying learning how to fly Practicing lots of “line of sight” I wouldn’t mind some assistance in spotting the drone. I looked around and found these drone strobe lights. Arc XL drone light they seem to be popular and do what I am after.

anyone had any direct experience with the MA2 and these lights? What’s your take? Any issues with payload modes? Do you find it helpful? Etc. looking for some feedback before I buy one.

 

[pelagic_one]

I’ve got a Velcro patch on my MA2, top front, for my Arc XL. No payload mode is activated, and it’s pretty wind resistant up to about 30 mph. That tone after a few minutes of inactivity is what puts me at ease.

I also have arm mounts for my Arc II lights.

 

[HavingFun999]

I’m enjoying learning how to fly Practicing lots of “line of sight” I wouldn’t mind some assistance in spotting the drone. I looked around and found these drone strobe lights. Arc XL drone light they seem to be popular and do what I am after.

anyone had any direct experience with the MA2 and these lights? What’s your take? Any issues with payload modes? Do you find it helpful? Etc. looking for some feedback before I buy one.

I bought one of these a few weeks ago. It is plenty bright but the issue was where to mount it in the drone. I have a Mavic Air 2 and the sensors on the back preclude installation there. Underneath would usually be a good option but no place to not block sensors there as well. Which left the top the drone. It’s not ideal but I installed it flat. I can glimpse it from time to time during the day. At dusk/night I’m sure it would be quite visible. I’m considering buying the cargo mount sold on Amazon for this bird and finding a way to mount it 90degrees to the top surface facing the back. Then I should be able to rotate it in place If need be in flight to find it. Right now I can usually see it ok if i get enough altitude to see it against the sky vs it blending into the earth scenery. I hope that helps.

 

[volition]

I bought one of these a few weeks ago. It is plenty bright but the issue was where to mount it in the drone. I have a Mavic Air 2 and the sensors on the back preclude installation there. Underneath would usually be a good option but no place to not block sensors there as well. Which left the top the drone. It’s not ideal but I installed it flat. I can glimpse it from time to time during the day. At dusk/night I’m sure it would be quite visible. I’m considering buying the cargo mount sold on Amazon for this bird and finding a way to mount it 90degrees to the top surface facing the back. Then I should be able to rotate it in place If need be in flight to find it. Right now I can usually see it ok if i get enough altitude to see it against the sky vs it blending into the earth scenery. I hope that helps.

Overall would you say it’s a worthy investment, that is with the mount issue. I probably will only bother with it on top.

Does it do a decent job at assisting with being able to quickly spot the drone when scanning a region of the sky if I say look down at my screen for a moment and look back up?

 

[GadgetGuy]

Don't forget the built-in white LED landing light can be activated at will by pressing and releasing the Fn button to cycle through the three modes of ON, OFF, and Auto. It can be used to find the drone in the sky at night, especially when the drone is flying away from you, or hovering, or backing up while facing you. The forward tilt during flight affects the visibility from below, depending upon the direction of flight, as it is in the rear, designed to illuminate the area directly below it.

 

[Tony McDrone]

The firehouse lights are a worthy investment if you fly at dusk, dawn or night. Do not trust Velcro to retain them in the event of an UNPLANNED crash!!! Who plans to crash anyway? You’ll need either mounts or zip ties to hold on to them...even in a low speed crash. Don’t assume that you’ll find them just because they are lit or flashing, if they are used in daylight hours.


Does this sound like someone who’s been there? I’m still pissed about that missing red LED light! It has been a month.

 

[pelagic_one]

The only way to mount the Arc XL on the MA2 is with Velcro up top. Even if it were to dislodge during impact, the 90db tone every few minutes should facilitate retrieval. However this configuration doesn’t really assist too well with VLOS, but they do a great job as collision avoidance lights (with 3 statute mile visibility).

The Arc II lights can be mounted on the arms to assist with VLOS, but do not emit a piercing tone upon detection of inactivity. AerialPixel is also a forum approved vendor.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Would any of you folks care to contibute to the thread Could we build up, from members responses, a comparison of strobes?

 

[volition]

The only way to mount the Arc XL on the MA2 is with Velcro up top. Even if it were to dislodge during impact, the 90db tone every few minutes should facilitate retrieval. However this configuration doesn’t really assist too well with VLOS, but they do a great job as collision avoidance lights (with 3 statute mile visibility).

The Arc II lights can be mounted on the arms to assist with VLOS, but do not emit a piercing tone upon detection of inactivity. AerialPixel is also a forum approved vendor.

View attachment 110454

Can I Ask let's say you have the Xl on the top would just a pair of the Arc II be sufficient say on the rear arms. as a sort of general VLOS assist.

 

[volition]

Would any of you folks care to contibute to the thread Could we build up, from members responses, a comparison of strobes?

Ah, I'll check that thread out. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Thanks

 

[pelagic_one]

Can I Ask let's say you have the Xl on the top would just a pair of the Arc II be sufficient say on the rear arms. as a sort of general VLOS assist.

A single Arc II on an arm would probably give you good VLOS assist, too. You’d know exactly which arm and would know orientation from that alone (e.g. facing you or away from you). Buy a single light and mount, and see how that works for you. You could always buy additional lights, or an alternate colored Arc II.

 

[HavingFun999]

A single Arc II on an arm would probably give you good VLOS assist, too. You’d know exactly which arm and would know orientation from that alone (e.g. facing you or away from you). Buy a single light and mount, and see how that works for you. You could always buy additional lights, or an alternate colored Arc II.

I just realized I have a different strobe light than the Arc II post I originally responded to.

A single Arc II on an arm would probably give you good VLOS assist, too. You’d know exactly which arm and would know orientation from that alone (e.g. facing you or away from you). Buy a single light and mount, and see how that works for you. You could always buy additional lights, or an alternate colored Arc II.

I just realized I have a different make/model strobe than the Arc II. Enjoying the discussion nevertheless.

 

[Northwood Mediaworks]

My setup is like post 7, except I have 1 Arc2 at the front,(Red) a white one at the back, and a third that velcro's on top of the battery. I use the long flash mode on all of them, works better in the daytime.

I also have a velcro strip between the two sensors at the back, sometimes I will move the top facing Arc2 to sit between the two without bothering the sensors, then my Tile goes on top. Having two strobe at the back is very handy for daytime VLOS. The bottom LED in conjunction with all these is a great asset too.

 

[HavingFun999]

I just realized I have a different strobe light than the Arc II post I originally responded to.

Here are a couple of pictures of a very crude mount I made for the strobe.

I just realized I have a different make/model strobe than the Arc II. Enjoying the discussion nevertheless. View attachment 110632View attachment 110632

 

[Mel 08]

Can i just add something without getting into any arguments

It seems most folk are wanting to fly further away from the launch site hence the attachment of strobe lights to their drone.
Good idea if that's what you want.
But using strobe lights as a excuse saying you can use them for the orientation of the drone is pie in the sky
On the ma2 not sure about other drones you have the map feature at your finger tips and the icon bottom centre of screen.
Why do you need lights to tell you where your drone is?

Cheers Mel

 

[PimV]

Can i just add something without getting into any arguments

It seems most folk are wanting to fly further away from the launch site hence the attachment of strobe lights to their drone.
Good idea if that's what you want.
But using strobe lights as a excuse saying you can use them for the orientation of the drone is pie in the sky
On the ma2 not sure about other drones you have the map feature at your finger tips and the icon bottom centre of screen.
Why do you need lights to tell you where your drone is?

Cheers Mel

May be when you lose your telemetry?

 

[HavingFun999]

I just tested it this morning. it works fantastic. Before, when I was out 500 ft or farther, I could not distinguish the drone from the ground terrain (its grey color blends in quite well). I was using the altitude stick a lot to bring it up high enough so it could be spotted against the empty sky.

This morning I could see the strobe at *any* distance/height I flew. If I could not initially see it I (waiting a few seconds for the strobe) I would just rotate the drone until the strobe showed.

I like to fly low so I'm glad I found a way to be sure I know where is at all times.

Your mileage my vary. :-}

 

[volition]

Can i just add something without getting into any arguments

It seems most folk are wanting to fly further away from the launch site hence the attachment of strobe lights to their drone.
Good idea if that's what you want.
But using strobe lights as a excuse saying you can use them for the orientation of the drone is pie in the sky
On the ma2 not sure about other drones you have the map feature at your finger tips and the icon bottom centre of screen.
Why do you need lights to tell you where your drone is?

Cheers Mel

i would like to fly the craft instinctively, looking down at screens won’t facilitate that skill. Each to their own mate.

I’m getting much better at having an intuition of it’s pitch an attitude the more I fly. Most in sports mode at the moment and it’s really honing my skills. Love it! It’ll be interesting to see how this light plays into depths experience.

 

[volition]

Alright guys, So I have had the ARC XL for 2 weeks now and can say it definitely does the trick! Helps with VLOS significantly in most conditions, not as obvious in clear skies but still very good.

I bought the white one and used dual-lock to attach it to the front arm.

in use I have found that when flying away from oneself you obviously cannot see the strobe. I was so impressed I have ordered a red version. Plus I have ordered a front and rear arm mount from Aerial-Pixel. So that will basically cover me. Flying adjacent will still be the blind spot but I find I don’t do that so much, not for too long. And you can see the strobes at even say 70° too. So I will have **** good coverage.

now you could use dual lock for both front and rear but when folding the rear arm underneath it will strain the rotating joint more then I would be ok with (it is only very slight deviation BTW).

so yes, I can recommend the ARC XL without hesitation it also has the LAND system that will beep if the drone goes down so that’s super handy too.

I also can imagine the other Firehouse Technology strobes will be just as suitable. it’s just that the ARC XL was easiest to get in Australia. Probably overkill just for VLOS but it’s not detracting from performance anyway. Others could probably just save some money goin for the strobes wth fewer LED’s.

in addition they make a great little torch too! My only beef is the size, whilst still very small, very small (and light) for the illumination they produce. They are about the size of a 9v battery as a reference.

overall i was not disappointed at all, in fact very very pleased.