Yagi range extenders

[Rene Artois]

More like signal concentrators. They are passive so there's no increase of overall output. Rather it takes a wide signak beam and narrows it to where it's needed most.

So in a nutshell, they are extending the signal. ??

 

[DanMan32]

I guess you could look at it that way, but with a narrower beam. There is after all a tradeoff. If you let the AC get behind you, the signal will be worse than without the extender.

 

[cgmaxed]

More like signal concentrators. They are passive so there's no increase of overall output. Rather it takes a wide signak beam and narrows it to where it's needed most.

I like the idea, not to use the word "Range" or "Extender. For some, it gives the impression a person wants to fly further when that is not necessarily the case. Most of us want a more stable signal to control the drone. It's disconcerting when the signal gets fuzzy and the video feed gets blurry.

 

[Brojon]

I’ve noticed that Yagi range extenders for the Mini work on the 5.8 Ghz frequency (as advertised). Does this mean if you use them you have to switch from auto to manual in the Fly app and select 5.8 Ghz or can you still use them in auto? I am asking this as I think I may get a pair in my stocking this Christmas.

Yagi's are designed for specific narrow band frequencies. It will always work best at the design frequency.
They are technically end-fire traveling wave antennas with some fairly critical dimensions.
Summary - best used at design frequency and it will probably degrade signal at any other.The reason they picked 5.8 is because the dimensions are small enough for mounting directly. The dimensions would have to be roughly doubled for 2.4 Ghz. Unfortunately 5.8 being a shorter wave attenuates faster (trees etc) and has less reflectivity (nearby buildings and such). But then there's usually less interference.
My favorite is still a BiQuad antenna which you can build yourself

Biquad Antenna Construction

 

[DanMan32]

5.8 band has more channels too.
2.4 only has 3 channels that don't overlap: 1, 6 and 11.

 

[netfolks2000]

They are designed for 5.8Ghz and you should manually select to fly on 5.8Ghz otherwise it's just an pretty decoration on your controller.

But isn't it true that 5 GHz is for shorter distance, especially around home WiFi? 2.4 GHz goes much further, so wondering if the yagi is useful at all. If it worked on 2.4 GHz they'd really extend. Am I reasoning right?

 

[aschwabe]

I’ve noticed that Yagi range extenders for the Mini work on the 5.8 Ghz frequency (as advertised). Does this mean if you use them you have to switch from auto to manual in the Fly app and select 5.8 Ghz or can you still use them in auto? I am asking this as I think I may get a pair in my stocking this Christmas.

I read that you should switch to manual 5.8 GHz only when using a Yagi Uda extender. I've used it in 5.8 mode only on both my Air 2 and Mini 2 and I've basically not seen stutter or connection issues since (and I was having some noticable issues).

 

[dwallersv]

More like signal concentrators. They are passive so there's no increase of overall output. Rather it takes a wide signak beam and narrows it to where it's needed most.

Yup. That's why in engineering land we use the term "gain", which encompasses amplification, signal concentration, directionality, etc.

Amplifiers have gain, antenna designs have a gain factor, etc. It all results in the same -- a stronger signal to process -- hence you can compare the "help" of a particular (directional) antenna design to an amplifer.

 

[DanMan32]

Another way to visualize it.
A wide river flows more slowly than when it funnels into a narrow area. Same rate of water, but more spread out in the wide section, and more concentrated in the narrow section.

 

[DavidT_ NZ]

I launch my Hot Air Ballon and fly my drone from the gondola. I can see everything. JUST KIDDING. I live in Florida, its very flat, lots of water and marsh land. My house is built on cement pilons, essentially making it a 2 story house. There is a balcony that surrounds it's entirety. So, I can move around if a tree or two gets in my way. There are no buildings where I live, just radio towers. Most houses are only one story. If I fly long distances, I usually do it at night with multiple anticollision lights. I can see them over 4 miles away. They are made by FIREHOUSE. My patio allows me to see above the tree line and all the houses near by, so I can stay under 395ft without any issues. I use powered antenna boosting systems. This allows me to stay in complete control. I can see the airspace very clearly, in case any manned aircraft are nearby. I also use an app called FlighRadar24 that shows real-time ADS-B transmission of any aircraft nearby.

And that is the norm for all of these range test postings? No. Also, FR24 apparently has some lag and will only show aircraft fitted with transponders. At four miles out, you can see what and who you are flying over? Like I said, in the desert (or everglades ?), no real problem.

 

[mini5]

Does the MM/MM2 change channel or band (2.4/5 GHz) even during flight? Or it just chooses the best channel before takeoff and you need to "live" with it for the whole flight?

 

[Jovis]

From what I've read the MM2 switches between the channels to keep the best signal during flight!

Don't have a mini 1 !!

 

[dwallersv]

From what I've read the MM2 switches between the channels to keep the best signal during flight!

Don't have a mini 1 !!

Yes, but this is configurable in DJI Fly.

 

[dwallersv]

The length of those little perpendicular nubs is related to the frequency... 2.4Ghz yagi they're about 4x as long. A dual-band design would be much more physically complex, expensive, and probably wouldn't sell at all when you can just use 5.8Ghz alone.

 

[DanMan32]

Although 5.8Ghz is more prone to obstacle attenuation, there are more channels and less crowded. Wireless doodads tend to only support 2.4Ghz so far.

 

[Scoobychief]

bought one from amazon on sunday and was delivered today and had a quick go with it, previously i was getting max 700m and weak signal and drone would return home, same trip but i forgot to actually just choose 5.8ghz so it was set to auto dont know if it matters or not? but i got to 1250m before weak signal and drone returned home, so that was a good £12 spend i would say. must add that this was very urban test middle of an housing estate.

 

[dwallersv]

bought one from amazon on sunday and was delivered today and had a quick go with it, previously i was getting max 700m and weak signal and drone would return home, same trip but i forgot to actually just choose 5.8ghz so it was set to auto dont know if it matters or not? but i got to 1250m before weak signal and drone returned home, so that was a good £12 spend i would say. must add that this was very urban test middle of an housing estate.

You should set transmission to 5.8GHz in DJI Fly when you use the 5.8GHz yagi extender.

However, simply having it attached will make 5.8GHz work better (stronger, less noise) than 2.4GHz, so even in auto mode the RC is likely to operate entirely in 5.8GHz when you get more than a few hundred feet away and are pointing the antenna at the aircraft (thereby realizing the gain from the Yagi).

 

[shaneb50]

I bought a pair of yagi antennas but I have not used them yet. I’m still hoping to get to try them out [emoji106]

 

[CaptSheffield]

I’ve noticed that Yagi range extenders for the Mini work on the 5.8 Ghz frequency (as advertised). Does this mean if you use them you have to switch from auto to manual in the Fly app and select 5.8 Ghz or can you still use them in auto? I am asking this as I think I may get a pair in my stocking this Christmas.

They are available for both freq. Diff configuration.

 

[CaptSheffield]

Try and fit those on a Mini 2 controller rather than your Mini 1 and you will struggle.

There's somebody in the UK who makes and sells parabolic and yagi-uda's. Don't remember name, but has a you tube site.