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Transfer antenna mods from Mini 1 to 2?

peterf

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I have a CE Mini with the specific dual band 4Hawks antenna that was offered for it, and I made it a point to buy boosters that are also dual band (SHRC5824G2WP)

I realize that physically installing it on the Mini 2 controller would pose a challenge in itself, but I'd figure something out for that. What I'm not sure about is whether there's any reason why it wouldn't work in terms of signal.
 
Can I ask why you would want to do this?
Is not major selling point of the Mini 2 that is comes with a greatly increased control range when compared the the MM, WELL beyond VLOS. And of course opening the controller would, surely, void any warranty on it?
 
Can I ask why you would want to do this?
Is not major selling point of the Mini 2 that is comes with a greatly increased control range when compared the the MM, WELL beyond VLOS. And of course opening the controller would, surely, void any warranty on it?

I have a long-term project in an area where the unmodified Mini 1 controller was starting to have trouble at 200m and quickly become unusable past that. The antenna and amplifier maybe doubled or, if I'm lucky, tripled my usable range in that environment.

I'm very much looking forward to the improved signal from Ocusync, but I think I would have a hard time selling my old kit for a decent return, so I'm pretty much stuck with it. So if I can use it to make the Mini 2 work even better, that's a plus for me.

The warranty is not a huge concern for me, I already did this procedure for my original mini which was only a few months old.
 
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@peterf as you are aware the placement of the antennas in the new style controller are totally different to the original MM controller so you would have to fashion something to connect them to the RC somehow i would try flying the Mini 2 over the same places that you had signal issues with the MM and then you will know if the mod is worth the effort
if you want to hang on to the hawks then remove it from the MM RC and wait and see if the company bring out a fitting kit for the new RC at a later date
 
@peterf as you are aware the placement of the antennas in the new style controller are totally different to the original MM controller so you would have to fashion something to connect them to the RC somehow i would try flying the Mini 2 over the same places that you had signal issues with the MM and then you will know if the mod is worth the effort
if you want to hang on to the hawks then remove it from the MM RC and wait and see if the company bring out a fitting kit for the new RC at a later date
4Hawks already has one out for the Mini2 and MA2. The installation looks somewhat concerning for the non-technical......

 

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4Hawks already has one out for the Mini2 and MA2. The installation looks somewhat concerning for the non-technical......
The mounting and connections on the antenna side are different from their traditional setup. I don't have high hopes but they could come out with a conversion kit if they wanted to. Ultimately the connection to the controlller's motherboard is the same though so I can work with that and do my own mounting, I'm just unsure if the signal coming out has some intricacies that would preclude it from working with the CE mini 1 antenna.
 
If nothing else that looks like a good dismantling video for this type of controller. Though I wonder if any prying marks were left?
 
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The mounting and connections on the antenna side are different from their traditional setup. I don't have high hopes but they could come out with a conversion kit if they wanted to. Ultimately the connection to the controlller's motherboard is the same though so I can work with that and do my own mounting, I'm just unsure if the signal coming out has some intricacies that would preclude it from working with the CE mini 1 antenna.
I've used both 4Hawks and Alientech on the previous DJI RCs, both with good success. I installed the Alientech internals (with the QMA connections) in the RCs and for comparative purposes I got the QMA-SMA plugs to connect the 4Hawks antennas.
The center to center measurements are the same.

For the new model RCs (MA2 & MM2) I also installed Alientech internals, (also on my SC).

If you get the Alientech Bracket and install it and get the QMA-SMA plugs you can use your 4Hawks antenna.

 
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My Mini 2 appears to have amazing range that exceeds battery life. Very impressed, better than my original Mavic and my Air
 
I’m waiting for someone who knows more than I about the mini 2 to inform us as to why it appears this model only uses one antenna. I’ve got an inquiry in with DJI, but I’m not optimistic I’ll get the technical answer I’m after. I modded my mini 2 remote with the alientech qma connector bracket and it appears that only one of the antennas does anything. I can fly out 10k feet and unplug one and it’s still connected. Plug back in and unplug the other, no connection and auto RTH kicks in. No idea, but it really looks like anyone interested in modding the Mini 2 only needs to look into a single connector and amp. I’d love to know more about it if anyone has more technical details. Maybe one is 2.4 and the other is 5.8? I only fly in 2.4 due to my amps, so that could explain why one antenna doesn’t matter for my long range flights.
 
I’m waiting for someone who knows more than I about the mini 2 to inform us as to why it appears this model only uses one antenna. I’ve got an inquiry in with DJI, but I’m not optimistic I’ll get the technical answer I’m after. I modded my mini 2 remote with the alientech qma connector bracket and it appears that only one of the antennas does anything. I can fly out 10k feet and unplug one and it’s still connected. Plug back in and unplug the other, no connection and auto RTH kicks in. No idea, but it really looks like anyone interested in modding the Mini 2 only needs to look into a single connector and amp. I’d love to know more about it if anyone has more technical details. Maybe one is 2.4 and the other is 5.8? I only fly in 2.4 due to my amps, so that could explain why one antenna doesn’t matter for my long range flights.
Interesting...

Please clarify "I only fly in 2.4 due to my amps". I am probably misunderstanding something here .

Have you flown in the manual transmission mode and tested both the 2.4 and 5.8 ? If so, what were the results ?
 
Ah, yes, I can see how that’s confusing. My amps and antennas are 2.4ghz only. They’re super nice RF Linx that I built out for my phantom 4 a few years back for setting up an in-car command station. Love it.

Anyway, I’ve flown in auto and 2.4 only because of this - and with the antennas connected auto uses 2.4 since it’s so much stronger in signal.

Does that clarify or did I make it worse? :)
 
After seeing the thread below I’m now pretty convinced the mini 2 is using a separated antenna setup for 2.4 and 5.8. The disassembled alientech antenna is separated out in this way, so it aligns with what I’m seeing. I’d love to have an expert confirm my suspicions but this feels like the answer:

 
After seeing the thread below I’m now pretty convinced the mini 2 is using a separated antenna setup for 2.4 and 5.8. The disassembled alientech antenna is separated out in this way, so it aligns with what I’m seeing. I’d love to have an expert confirm my suspicions but this feels like the answer:

Also, sorry to spam, but I wanted to point out that the linked post is for the mavic 2 pro. I know it’s a different controller, but I’m still leaning the direction of a similar setup being used in the mini 2 remote.
 
Just check how the Allientech DUOII is connected and how they use the antennas.
IMG_4586.jpg

IMG_4714.jpg
IMG_4718.jpgIMG_4720.jpg
 
Yes, thank you, those are the same images you posted on the thread I linked. The mini 2 remote doesn’t label internally with a 2.4 and 5.8 for the antennas, just a “W” and “B” for white and black stock antenna cables. It really seems that the separated frequencies are true for the mini 2 remote since alientech lists their DUOii as compatible with the mini.
 
This is not a concrete finding, but it goes to confirm my suspicions at least. The antennas do appear to be separated by frequency. I flew out a few thousand feet, manually set the connection to 5.8ghz, without antennas connected (still can't believe that's even possible) and got it down to "moderate signal." I then proceeded to cover the 2.4ghz QMA jack tightly with my fist. As suspected, no change in signal strength. I did the same for the 5.8ghz QMA jack and voila, the signal bars start dropping.

With this finding, I'm going to re-work my amplifier plans and build out a 5.8ghz amplified omnidirectional antenna to match up with my 2.4ghz omni. :)
 
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This is not a concrete finding, but it goes to confirm my suspicions at least. The antennas do appear to be separated by frequency. I flew out a few thousand feet, manually set the connection to 5.8ghz, without antennas connected (still can't believe that's even possible) and got it down to "moderate signal." I then proceeded to cover the 2.4ghz QMA jack tightly with my fist. As suspected, no change in signal strength. I did the same for the 5.8ghz QMA jack and voila, the signal bars start dropping.

With this finding, I'm going to re-work my amplifier plans and build out a 5.8ghz amplified omnidirectional antenna to match up with my 2.4ghz omni. :)
That will be interesting.. Please post pics of your 2.4GHz setup as it is now and your 5.8GHz when ready...
 
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