Mavic Air - boost options

[BobDoLe]

Hey guys sorry if my search/google scope was too narrow to find what I am looking for.

i am in the US (fcc mode) in a mostly urban area with a lot of 2.4ghz interference. i avoid people/houses/buildings, but range and feed quality still seems to get a big hit.
i tried one of those cheap parabolic things that was mostly useless. it seems what i need is more power.
in searching around, i came up with cheap chinese amplifiers - it seems they've been tested by hobbyists who can confirm performance is there, albeit with some noise. sounds like my solution?

however, i like some portability too. is it impossible to go boosted and not look like you're strapped into a sci-fi mech suit?

i was thinking of a 4hawks sr with a 5w 5.8ghz amp SZHUASHI HS5805MN1 (which goes for $48 straight from china or $60 from amazon).
i'd mount the amp in the space between the controller and antenna (i assume it is shielded from the controller/phone) with a little clearance for heat dissipation.
i'd place a small battery in a similar location opposite the amplifier (thinking amp on top and battery on the underside).
as this should be overkill for the mavic air's battery range.. i'm thinking just one amp is needed for the RX/TX side and i would leave the RX side untouched.

is this about right?
i can't be the first person to do this, can someone point me in the right direction of someone who has?



EDIT: ENDED UP GOING WITH ALIENTECH PRO 5.8G AND GOT 2.5X RANGE THROUGH SUBURB WITH HEAVY INTERFERENCE Mavic Air - boost options post #10

 

[大疆御Air]

This is what I have....2.4 GHz Boosters. Only a couple hundred feet further better without it flying in Urban Areas full of interference. Used to fly in 5.8 GHz no video lags but 2.4 a lot of video lags and lost image transmission. So going to return these 2.4 and order the 5.8/2.4 boosters. You better order from Amazon in case of return.

 

[BobDoLe]

This is what I have....2.4 GHz Boosters. Only a couple hundred feet further better without it flying in Urban Areas full of interference. Used to fly in 5.8 GHz no video lags but 2.4 a lot of video lags and lost image transmission. So going to return these 2.4 and order the 5.8/2.4 boosters. You better order from Amazon in case of return.

. Similar setup to what I was considering, except with 2x 2.4ghz and it didn't help much?
What's your total range?
Thinking of alientech pro 5.8g now

 

[大疆御Air]

Not happy with 2.4 in my area. Well, it good in open area, I tried. Strong wind so I didn't do a range test but it got around 8000 ft without video lags. I already have the 4hawks Raptor SR for quite some time and happy with it flying 5.8 GHz getting around 7000ft plus in my Urban City. Alientech is a good choice if you willing to wait for it.

 

[BobDoLe]

Not happy with 2.4 in my area. Well, it good in open area, I tried. Strong wind so I didn't do a range test but it got around 8000 ft without video lags. I already have the 4hawks Raptor SR for quite some time and happy with it flying 5.8 GHz getting around 7000ft plus in my Urban City. Alientech is a good choice if you willing to wait for it.

2.4ghz is pretty much unusable in my area and 8000ft would be insane. Have you tried 2.4ghz without amplification?
Regarding alientech what is the wait?

 

[大疆御Air]

Alientech mainly have to order directly from China...That's what I meant and I never fly 2.4 on Stock before.

 

[BobDoLe]

looking like just over a week for the alientech... i'll update then.

 

[BobDoLe]

like clockwork


haven't been able to take the mavic air out with it yet... but i'll do a comparison (with a stock controller) in an area where i've only been able to go as far as 3000ft/900 meters.
and just because they provide adequate tools to do so, i couldn't resist checking underneath that front plastic logo (taped on)



oh man.... (puts the logo back on)...

i'll put it to the test tomorrow and will record the whole thing of course.

 

[AlexM1982]

I have the 4Hawks Raptor SR. I've seen a slight increase in range in heavily wooded areas. Open areas its been a big boost. The Raptor just can't cut through the trees. I have a pair of Sunhans 2W dual band 33 dbm amps coming today that I'll be testing as soon as the weather improves.

 

[BobDoLe]

wow.. what a relief... it works well. i easily increased my range through interference (2.5x) and that is a conservative estimate because i stopped going when i got weak signal.

some minor user error issues:
- when I first tried to use it, I forgot to switch to custom 5.8 (to prevent auto switching to 2.4ghz as this thing does NOT support 2.4ghz unless you get the 2.4ghz version).
so i hit 260+ feet and disconnected. i went into a little panic for a few seconds until i noticed it was in 2.4G... after switching it was pretty solid.
- i also noticed that if i don't have it aimed almost directly at the drone, signal starts to drop. it seems like it should maintain 3 bars until you fly so far the battery dies... if you can keep the panel aimed at the drone.
the further i went, the trickier it seemed to be. because of this you'll see in the screenshots below i found i had to switch to the map miniview in order to know where it was.

i plan on doing further comparisons in areas without the interference just to see what actual range is - i'm almost certain the battery will be the limit.
i'll also throw together a video with the screen recording.

my range tests here done within minutes of each other as it seems that range in this area changes throughout the day.
i've tried using parabolic "extenders" or "windsurfers" but they did absolutely nothing for me in these areas.

test one - going west
1,576 feet until loss of signal using unmodified controller (weak signal issues at 1400ft)
4,147 feet until WEAK signal using Alientech Pro 5.8G

test two - going north
1,827 feet until loss of signal using unmodified controller (weak signal issues at 1300ft)
4,642 feet until WEAK signal using Alientech Pro 5.8G

[unmodified controller going west]



[Alientech Pro 5.8G going west]











[unmodified controller going north]





[Alientech Pro 5.8G going north]


so in a nutshell... doesn't look too pretty on the inside, but it definitely does the trick.

 

[大疆御Air]

I'm not happy with 2.4 GHz boosters. I returned mine and still thinking I should order the $60 a piece 2.4/5.8 booster.
I got 7124ft using 5.8 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR. And 7415 ft using 2.4 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR with the 2.4 GHz Boosters. I guess my area is so much congested than yours.

 

[BobDoLe]

I'm not happy with 2.4 GHz boosters. I returned mine and still thinking I should order the $60 a piece 2.4/5.8 booster.
I got 7124ft using 5.8 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR. And 7415 ft using 2.4 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR with the 2.4 GHz Boosters. I guess my area is so much congested than yours.

Wow a lot more congested!
Were you up high or on the ground?
How did the 4hawks Sr compare to the original unmodified controller?


I should have mentioned I was in the doorway of my house. I have some patio furniture set up in a secluded spot that I like to hang out in. Signal had to pass through my house and some trees. It is a bad spot to remotely control a drone from, but hey, that's part of why I wanted amplifiers.

i threw this video together. music track was one of the free youtube ones - as there's no voice-over, it can be muted. i'll try to get more tests done and put together another video with a review or something if i get a chance.

 

[大疆御Air]

Wow a lot more congested!
Were you up high or on the ground?
How did the 4hawks Sr compare to the original unmodified controller?


I should have mentioned I was in the doorway of my house. I have some patio furniture set up in a secluded spot that I like to hang out in. Signal had to pass through my house and some trees. It is a bad spot to remotely control a drone from, but hey, that's part of why I wanted amplifiers.

i threw this video together. music track was one of the free youtube ones - as there's no voice-over, it can be muted. i'll try to get more tests done and put together another video with a review or something if i get a chance.

It's on the ground, without mod I hardly reach 3000ft. 5.8 GHz still rules. Sub Urban area its about 10300ft with Raptor SR.

 

[BobDoLe]

I'm not happy with 2.4 GHz boosters. I returned mine and still thinking I should order the $60 a piece 2.4/5.8 booster.
I got 7124ft using 5.8 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR. And 7415 ft using 2.4 GHz on 4hawks Raptor SR with the 2.4 GHz Boosters. I guess my area is so much congested than yours.

i apologize if this comes across as creepy, but can you try this again just using the 4hawks and going down Broad St? It looks like a nice open 4 lane road which should give better VLOS. i wonder if you can get 9km there
unfortunately where i am, most of what i'm trying to go through are houses/trees/hills.

 

[大疆御Air]

i apologize if this comes across as creepy, but can you try this again just using the 4hawks and going down Broad St? It looks like a nice open 4 lane road which should give better VLOS. i wonder if you can get 9km there
unfortunately where i am, most of what i'm trying to go through are houses/trees/hills.

Lol....9Km....I don't have the audacity....It'll go beyond City Hall

 

[大疆御Air]

@BobDoLe
Look closer on your video. You have to chop off those trees in front of your patio to get better range

 

[BobDoLe]

@BobDoLe
Look closer on your video. You have to chop off those trees in front of your patio to get better range

Yeah there's a lot of tree in the way. I'm also lower in elevation than the houses to the west. But if I got rid of the tree cover, I wouldn't want to hang out back there.
I think I just wasn't aiming it right. My radar doesn't actually always show where I'm pointing or where the drone is. It seems like it is consistently to the right a little.

I was going to do a range test comparison in an open area yesterday, but the stock controller ruined that when it took me out 2.25 miles (2.4ghz) without even a video transmission hiccup. it came back with 18% battery.

 

[大疆御Air]

Yeah there's a lot of tree in the way. I'm also lower in elevation than the houses to the west. But if I got rid of the tree cover, I wouldn't want to hang out back there.
I think I just wasn't aiming it right. My radar doesn't actually always show where I'm pointing or where the drone is. It seems like it is consistently to the right a little.

I was going to do a range test comparison in an open area yesterday, but the stock controller ruined that when it took me out 2.25 miles (2.4ghz) without even a video transmission hiccup. it came back with 18% battery.

When doing range test don't use sport mode and watch out for the wind. Its will drain your battery. I almost lost my drone 2 week ago. The wind drained my battery and I couldn't made it RTH. Fortunately, It auto landed it in an empty lot and abled to recover it. Its was scarcely when its auto land at 15% and it hovered at 1m till the battery ran out then landed.

 

[大疆御Air]

And regard to the radar compass. I have the same problem. It's the phone internal compass not calibrated. I use a App Compass Map and open it before I connect the Go 4 app. Then it will show the correct direction.

 

[BobDoLe]

And regard to the radar compass. I have the same problem. It's the phone internal compass not calibrated. I use a App Compass Map and open it before I connect the Go 4 app. Then it will show the correct direction.

i'll have to try calibrating compass on phone in the controller when i calibrate the drone compass.

When doing range test don't use sport mode and watch out for the wind. Its will drain your battery. I almost lost my drone 2 week ago. The wind drained my battery and I couldn't made it RTH. Fortunately, It auto landed it in an empty lot and abled to recover it. Its was scarcely when its auto land at 15% and it hovered at 1m till the battery ran out then landed.

yeah i had it out of sport mode and wind seemed calm moving in normal gps mode at 18mph... but then on the way back i was only going 14mph! lucky me i got some tailwind gusts...