HDZero Shark Byte Long Range and Penetration Testing! Digital FPV Testing and Mountain Surfing!

So this is Part II of my HDZero SharkByte "Journey into the Mountains"! In this video I test some newly built Helical antennas and push the limits of range and penetration. I'm very excited about the results, and I'm now building a new 7" drone to continue pushing the system further, so stay tuned!
If you haven't seen Part I, check that out too: • HDZero SharkByte First...
Setup Information:
- Link to my Simple Helical DIY: • Easy DIY 5.8ghz Helica...
- Link to the Helical Antenna 3d file I used: www.thingiverse.com/thing:367500
* On my print I had to drill the holes out pretty big because I used thick copper, and it took a lot of effort to get it through, but end result is nice.
- Link to my Simple Li-Ion DIY: • DIY Long-Range FPV Bat...
- Check out HD Zero Site for more info: www.hd-zero.com/?AffCode=DC55...
If you have any questions or comments please feel free to ask. cheers!
Video Summary:
0:00 Intro
0:17 Video and Antenna Summary
1:10 Penetration Test in "The Gauntlet"
2:50 Hardware Failure and Crash Landing...
4:05 1st Range Test using a 5" Quad
5:08 OSD Issue and Fix Review
5:55 Range Goal Reached!
6:18 Pro Tip: Flying with Helical Antennas
6:57 Made it Back, Successful Test!
7:10 2nd Range Test, Mountain Run (HDZero Camera)
8:25 Flying Up to the Mountain Peak!
8:47 Pro Tip: VTX Antenna Position
9:10 NEW Record Range!
9:25 Thoughts, Goals and Summary
9:58 Coming up Next Time!
10:20 Ending Scene, Thanks for Watching!
Equipment Overview:
* 5" Drone Test Setup Details
- Frame: Some random thing…
- Flight Controller: Holybro Kakute f4
- VTX: Divimath HDZero SharkByte (Backup Analog: Matek Mini 800mw , TBS Unify Pro HV)
- GPS Module: TBS GPS Module
- Motors: XING-E 2306 2450KV
- ESC: Aikon AK32 35A 2-4S BlHeli32
- Propellers: HQ Ethix S5 5x4x3
- FPV Camera: RunCam Nano SharkByte (Analog: Foxeer Toothless which is also very nice, but also really like the Caddx Ratel)
* 6" Drone Setup Details (Changed from 5" to 6" props as I'm focused more on long-range)
- Frame: Some old cheap ZMR250 thing…
- Flight Controller: Matek F405-CTR
- VTX: Divimath HDZero SharkByte (Backup Analog: Matek Mini 800mw , TBS Unify Pro HV)
- GPS Module: TBS GPS Module
- Motors: XING-E 2306 2450KV
- ESC: Aikon AK32 35A 2-4S BlHeli32
- Propellers: HQ Ethix S5 5x4x3
- FPV Camera: Foxeer Toothless which is also very nice, but also really like the Caddx Ratel
- Radio Receiver: TBS Crossfire Nano RX
- Receiver Antenna: TBS Crossfire Immortal T V2 Antenna
- VTX Antenna: Current - TrueRC OCP, Previously - SpiroNET Omni - 5.8GHz CP Antenna /
- ViFly Finder 2 Buzzer, highly recommend
* For Long Range Missions - I also use/I'm working on a lightweight drone with a Naked GoPro which has an AUW under 250g. Amazing!
Googles/Antennas
- Fatshark HDO with Rapidfire Receiver
- Hd Zero Shark Byte VRX
- Foxeer Micro Lollipop 3 CP
- SpiroNET 5.8GHz 13dB Patch
- DIY 5 Turn Helical Antenna, Amazing!
- DIY 7 Turn Helical Antenna, Even Better!
Controller/Transmitter
- FRSKY Taranis X9D Plus with TBS Crossfire Micro TX V2
Cameras, Footage, and Software
- GoPro Hero 8 Black, shot in 2.7k and 4k
- Various iPhones
- Final Cut Pro X (FCPX) editing software
If you have any questions or comments about my setup please leave a comment.
Note: All equipment and flight plans were in accordance with current local laws. Special thanks to my spotters who hiked hard terrain with me in order to achieve this flight footage.
Keywords: FPV, drone, VTX, Transmitter, RX, Antenna, Fatshark, DJI, Freestyle, Race, Mountain, Forest, Norway, Norge, quad, kwad, taranis, frsky, matek, Foxeer, 21700, 16850, li-ion, tbs, team black sheep, immersion RC, x-ing, xing, motor, brushless, ethix, GoPro, GPS, iFlight, Matek, failsafe, range, test, cinewhoop, cinematic, FCPX, CP, Circular Polarized, Patch, 13dbi, dbi, helical, DIY, build, solder, carbon fiber, diatone, dal props, bheli, esc, runcam, crash, RTH, long range, flow, RCgroups, intofpv, RCIndia, how to, first person view, Hero, ND Filters, Dalprops
Lithium Ion, Divimath, HDZero, SharkByte, digital system; #Sharkbyte #HDZero #Divimath #rangetest #range #longrange #digitalfpv #review #antenna #runcam

[@nikotttin]

Beautifully made video. I'm impressed! You got me hooked back then with the helical antenna... Now I'm addicted to your channel 😜

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yes, great comment! Really appreciate the support, I’ll try to keep it interesting going forward. Cheers!

[@anthonyfpvminiquad1728]

Absolutely great test man! Looks like you're having fun in the process! You will love the 1 watt!!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Appreciate the comment, it’s always fun testing new things, and reaching new goals. Definitely think that 1W will open the system to a whole new group of people, I.e. the Long Range Nuts!

[@flyingsrn]

yeah, 1w would be soooo great 👌

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@flyingsrn Absolutely, excited to add this 1W to the tests.

[@ato6703]

I love this channel, can’t wait for your next build

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Awesome, super appreciated! Helps justify my efforts. I’m trying to setup a camera right this moment to document my 7” build, so stay tuned. Thanks the support, cheers!

[@RimmyTimfpv]

Great video! Can’t wait to see the next one.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yea man, thanks for that, love the support! Justifies the sleepless night preparing this video… haha

[@trumblez]

Great detail and quality Video, totally worth subscribing!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thank you appreciate the support, definitely check out my more recent tests. Getting much better performance now! Happy to answer questions as well, Cheers!

[@gmivisualsjason3729]

Excellent

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks dude, appreciate the support. If you have any questions, or suggestions I’m happy to get feedback. Cheers!

[@gmivisualsjason3729]

@@GiantAntCowboy What I'm interested in is seeing if you can go further than 7km with your DIY antennas. 7km is the longest I've seen the system go. But on that video I'd say only the first 4km were worth watching as then the breakup was crap. Yours was much clearer. Also the dji fpv system has a hard wall of 13km, i don't think anyone knows if the SB system has a similar range limit built in although the assumption is that it hasn't just like analogue. So I wonder just how far can 500mw go??

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@gmivisualsjason3729 Alright challenge accepted! As I mention in the video I'm currently building a new 7" quad for this system as my current 6" can barely make it back from 7km... I have seen that video your referring to and agree the breakup/image quality is awful after 3-4km, additionally he's using nice, but expensive antennas. I'll definitely keep pushing the system and I'm hoping to get a hold of the new 1W board to test out for everyone!

[@gmivisualsjason3729]

@@GiantAntCowboy yeah Carl has just released a short teaser video of it. Looks excellent. But I'm assuming it will take some time to get it out to the majority of us who want one or five! 😂 So your tests on the 500mw is super interesting. I have 2x 200mw boards and 1x 500mw. I've managed to get a digisight V3 but missed out on the Runcam HDzero release. However it seems the new Foxeer surpasses the Runcam in image quality especially with image clarity/Sharpness at distance/horizon where the other cameras seem very analogue like. Your home made antennas are certainly impressive!!!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@gmivisualsjason3729 Nice work getting the new Foxeer, it looks great. I always liked my Foxeer analog setups. In fact I originally had a Digital vs. Analog comparison section in the video but had to cut a lot of sections so the video wasn’t 30mins long haha! But in another video I’ll be comparing my analog Toothless2 to the two current SB cameras I have. You should definitely make a couple of these helical antennas and convert your 500mW setup into a mid-long range craft! Definitely excited about the 1W board and these new cameras. I don’t care about weight and would happily have a large vtx and camera if it greatly improved image quality. Either way (spoiler alert) the SB images from both cameras do look much better than my analog setup. I’ll post the review, test, and comparison video soon.

[@distantfpv7139]

Great job with the test! Looking forward to see what the 1w can do. Really enjoyed the edit 👌

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Appreciate the comment, I definitely spend too much time editing these videos… but try to make it fun/interesting. Currently working on a new antenna configuration which I think will significantly improve both range and penetration! Excited to share the results while I wait for a 1W board to test. Thanks for watching and for the support!

[@distantfpv7139]

@@GiantAntCowboy As long as its fun, its totally okay to spend time on editing. Looking forward to your next test and to see what can be accomplished on 500mw.

[@petersteiner993]

I just discovered your channel. Very cool video! Thanks, keep it up and all the best to you. :) Greetings from Vienna, Austria

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Excellent, appreciate the comment and support. If you’re an HDZero fan I’m *hopefully* releasing a video tomorrow about some new cameras. Cheers!

[@SILVIOFRANCO1]

Great video, Peter. Great content too

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks Silvio, look forward to hearing about your projects. Cheers!

[@intensegamer7559]

Thanks for this beautiful video from beautiful Norway! HDZero seems to have potential. Hopefully there will be a lot of product releases next year, beause right now the options are pretty limited (you can't even buy HDZero goggles right now, let alone vtx with up to 1W of output power). Let's hope for the best. Keep up the good work, cowboy ;-)

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks for the nice comment, very much appreciated. HDZero definitely has potential, I’ve spoken with the team over there and they are really excited about the system and have a lot of new things in the works, including: a 1W VTX, new VRX which can receive both analog and digital signal, and HD goggles! Additionally Foxeer just released a new camera which is looking great, and I’m sure other camera manufacturers will be joining the game soon. Historically HDZero was working with FatShark and branded as SharkByte, but i think that partnership was actually slowing/limiting the system’s progress. The creator of HDZero has decided to just push the system himself, which is a gamble but many are supporting his efforts, and I think it’s pretty cool! Anyway, definitely stay tuned, I just took a test flight with the VTX accidentally set to 25mW and reached 3km before deciding to turn back. That’s amazing, and the mistake turned out to be a pleasant surprise… Long response… but thanks again for watching, cheers!

[@RyanQuellet]

Great content! I'm excited to see more. You have a lot of sparkles in the video feed though. This can be caused by crossfire antennas being too close to the vtx or the vtx antenna

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey Ryan, thanks for tuning in and for the tip. I’m currently building a new 7” quad for the system and will keep the antenna placement in mind. Definitely stay tuned, have a few interesting improvements I’ll be testing soon. Cheers!

[@BrandonBeans]

Awesome test! I'm impressed and relieved that we have more options available for long range. This is a day to remember! That signal loss in the gauntlet was pretty alarming, surprised you powered out... You might get a few extra dB of signal back if you swap that 90 degree sma adapter on the drone for a 45 or none at all as they're known to attenuate measurably. Nice work!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey Brandon, yea that signal loss was nuts! Had to power out… haha! The 90 degree is actually built into the antenna, so it shouldn’t be to much loss, but not possible to switch either way. Thanks for checking out the video and your support here!

[@p.i.engineer398]

@@GiantAntCowboy that 90 will cause problems because it naturally will want to loosen. You can swap it to a straight solder on sma. look for a sma solder connector for rg402. I just shortened my long truerc antennas with those.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@p.i.engineer398 Interesting thoughts, I'll see if I can find/replace the connector sometime. Finding this is Norway is always tricky... but I could potentially even harvest a connector. Appreciate you sharing! Cheers

[@chuckkissel2785]

Nice testing,

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks for watching, appreciate the comment and stay tuned. Cheers!

[@ValleyFPV]

Looking good!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks, we’re gonna need that 1W soon!

[@ValleyFPV]

@@GiantAntCowboy Oh Yea! That and the new Foxeer 1/2 inch sized sensor camera.

[@tubsucks]

much enjoyed! thanks

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Glad to hear that, thanks watching!

[@breakflight]

Oh... And great production

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks for adding this, I spent like 50hours on it… most of which were between 11pm - 4am! I’ll sleep well tonight, but then gotta start on the next video! Very much appreciated!

[@Leafyfpv]

New sub for this... Props!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Nice, very much appreciated! More to come, feedback always welcome. Cheers!

[@flyingsrn]

Very inetersting test. Did not thought you can push the shark byte system that far for long range. Nice, thank you ;)

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Sure thing, thanks for watching! I wasn’t sure either, couldn’t find much on the internet about it… So I just bought the system to find out. Current tests have been very promising, let’s see how far we can go next! Also I’ll be comparing different cameras soon, the goal is to build a long range alternative to DJI.

[@flyingsrn]

@@GiantAntCowboy this blow my mind! tested shark byte for freestyle but was disappointed in terms of penetration & image quality. when i saw you flying long range, my face looked like this 😳😉 currently i make my first steps into long range. this may be a good use for the existing shark byte vtx 😉👍👍👍 love to see your next experiences 🚁✌️

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@flyingsrn Amazing comment, I’m so glad to hear this. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to make this long range work, but I’m extremely pleased with the current results and excited about the next tests. Definitely build some of these antennas and setup your system up for some long range! Stay tuned, and thanks for the support and encouragement!

[@riofpv]

great job, i will talk about you in my next video!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks man, appreciate the comment and support. I’ll check out your channel and see what you’re up to. Cheers!

[@jackjohnson5024]

That was awesome

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks, appreciate that!

[@dennyrodman2022]

Awasome! Pls dont stop testing hdzero)))))))) Interesting)

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks, really appreciate the support! I’ll be posting my most successful range test yet later this week, and always have more tests and improvements to try. Stay tuned and feel free to ask questions or give suggestions. Cheers!

[@attackfpv]

Not what I was hoping for. But still excited as things improve

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yup, the system is improving all around. What were you hoping for, or expecting?

[@devilsadvocate6989]

nice! i used that exact same 3d print i think only its 5 turn. isnt it such a cool feling to build something like an antenna and see it actually work?? i love it. cheers bud!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Absolutely, I’ve built several of these helicals. My first ones I called Trash Helicals because they were just old parts and pasta sauce lids, but they worked perfectly. You should check out my follow up video to this where I test a quad 7-turn helical antenna setup. Thanks for watching, cheers!

[@shtarktv]

awesome results!) did you specifically fine tuned antennas using any kind of measurement hardware? or did you just made an antennas based on printed samples and simply cut them at end?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

No advance techniques or tools were used, super quick and simple construction. I demonstrated in a previous video that these can be made from trash with very little accuracy and still perform amazing. Here’s a link to that video: “Trash Helical” kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioSXl4yZiZh3e6c In the past I’ve just wrapped copper around a tube, using a ruler to set the coil distance, and they worked great. The 3D printed versions just look nicer and are more durable. Anyway, thanks for checking out the video, definitely build some of these antennas and get out there! Let me know if you have any questions. Cheers!

[@MrJT270567]

make Sure you try a 5s1p Liion battery in your 7" build. it's the best compromise between 4s and 6s. 👍 (Power to weight Ratio) for 7" Props i would recommend the dal7056 and the gemfan7040. with 7" the real midrange/longrange Game IS a Lot of fun and smooth flying. Hope to See your 7" experience soon. Happy flying & greetings from Germany. JT

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Awesome, thanks for the feedback. Definitely gonna make some 5s packs, really I’ll probably just add a 5th cell to my 4 cell packs, 😄 I’ll check out those props. Are you using 2 or 3 blade props?

[@MrJT270567]

@@GiantAntCowboy the Sound and efficiency of the Gemfan 7042 biblades are great but they cause a Lot of jello with my 7" frames. better use triblades for smooth Videos.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@MrJT270567 ok. At the moment I have HQ 7x3.5x3 props I’m gonna start with. Also have some 7x4.5 two blade that I’ll try, but historically i prefer the thrust character of 3 blade props.

[@aviphysics]

Just when I was starting to think about whether to do 5 or 6 turn helicals (or would Crosshair antennas be better?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

These are 7 turn, but I’ve used 5 turn with success in the past. However the benefit of 5 turn is a wider beam, so it’s easier to aim, but I have no problem aiming the 7 turn so it’s probably worth having the higher gain. I’ve heard good things about Crosshair antennas, supposedly they are also easy to make, but I have no direct experience with them. Let me know which direction your go and if you have any successes! Cheers!

[@steve_beatty]

Nicely done..imagine what that red 1w vtx will do for range..I know I am ...😉 thanks for the ride 🖖🏼

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey Steve, thanks for coming along on the ride! That new 1W VTX + these antennas will get us half way to the moon! 🤙

[@steve_beatty]

@@GiantAntCowboy I'd settle for a little less..that sounds like a heck of a recovery walk...🥴 🖖🏼

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@steve_beatty 😂

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@steve_beatty 😅 I know. When I’m flying mountains I can actually hike, I’m almost more nervous because I’ll have to go on a search and rescue mission… versus un-hikable mountains where I’d just have to accept the loss. Had a number of long hikes, mostly due to poor battery planning … 🤷

[@jamesjameson4438]

did you go with 2 omni antennas to the top of the mountain? If not, how for do you think you could go with hdzero sharkbyte and omni antennas with straight line to the drone?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

I used the two helical (directional) antennas shown in the video, and the stock patches for this test. How far you can go with omni antennas of course depends on the which VTX and which Omni antennas. I’d say you could probably go 3km (1.5miles) if you had clear LOS, but the stock patch antennas would probably be doing most the work…

[@HolaACchillin]

Legit!💯🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks! Great results so far!

[@WindjumbieFPV]

Excellent test bro, I’m considering getting sharkbyte ✌🏼subbed

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks, very much appreciated! I’m definitely pleased with my recent tests and flights. The company is currently testing a 1W which should be awesome for range and penetration, but depending on your uses the 200mW boards work very well too. Additionally Foxeer just released a new camera which looks great. So, it’s an exciting time for the system. Stay tuned and reach out with any questions. Cheers!

[@SmudgeFPV]

Hey man how many mW of your vtx? Do you have to use Shark byte vtx or not?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey bud, this is a 500mW HDZero/SharkByte VTX. You don’t have to use a SharkByte VTX, up until recently I used standard analog VTXs for long range. Check out my other videos for examples, also the videos descriptions for equipment details. The benefit of SharkByte is HD fpv image in the goggles. Let me know if you have any questions.

[@excellenceinanimation960]

I was trying to learn more about making antennas and stuff. What about those big one that they had on flite test back in the day? Would those get better range than the tiny helical one you have won your quad. And the big base station setups? I’m interested in doing some longer range flying so I’m definitely going to sub and learn all I can!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hi, thanks for watching and supporting the channel. I guess the real question is how far are you hoping to fly? These antennas I’m using have potential to reach 7-10km+, which is pretty far. In fact where I am it’s very difficult to find 10km with clear LOS, unless I’m at the top of a mountain. Additionally if you’re flying drones battery life will limit your range. If you’re just starting in long range, I wouldn’t worry about researching or making huge antennas. Just make or buy some helical antennas and focus on increasing range 1 or 2km at a time. You’ll wanna make sure you quad is setup for long range too, li-ion batteries, GPS, RTH, Self-powered buzzers, etc.

[@excellenceinanimation960]

@@GiantAntCowboy Ok thanks! is there anything that will cut throught say forest or are we prity much limited to open area?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@excellenceinanimation960 unfortunately 5.8ghz doesn’t have great penetration qualities, so ultimately you just need High Gain Directional Antennas and a High Output VTX. Helical or Crosshair antennas are probably the best for penetration. If you’re using or planning to use HDZero, then stay tuned for the new high powered VTX coming next month. If you are in the forest and it’s mostly tree trunks you’ll have good signal, it’s the leaves and foliage that really blocks the radio signals. The other alternative is you start using a lower frequency system like 1.2ghz… but this is more complicated and will have higher latency.

[@excellenceinanimation960]

@@GiantAntCowboy ok thank you! This is really great information!

[@ls4life544]

Nice!! How long is the walk or ride to the mountains? Those batteries were very low and you had no fear about the drone dropping of the air.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Oh man, if I landed on the mountain... that's a day hike, especially if it's not easy to find. However, the "low battery" is a bit misleading because I'm using a 4000mAh Li-Ion battery pack which can discharge down to 2.5v/cell. I'm currently building a new 7" quad for the next test which will have far better range, so we'll see how far we can push it then! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@ls4life544]

@@GiantAntCowboy I'll be waiting for the next video. I won't if you'll be able to get close to that lake we saw in your last video. Great work 👏🏽 👍🏾

[@mattyofpv]

i cant get lq to work on any of my quads idk what i am doing wrong

[@GiantAntCowboy]

You see signal bars, but no LQ? Make sure the firmwares are up to date and match between the VRX and VTXs, that can cause weird problems.

[@richierich142]

Impressive!!! 5.6km on a 5 inch. Think it’s time to setup my long range game as well. I see you didn’t have a GoPro (or recording device) on the drone. Guess that might be a little heavy for the 5inch, especially going that far. Gonna put it on the 7 inch I imagine?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey man, so the first two tests were with an old 5”, but the last part when I went 5.66km was with my 6” drone. The 6” will carry a GoPro no problem but I left it behind because the focus of the video is the digital system, and also for weight savings/less stress if I do lose the drone while testing… haha What’s your current range max? Definitely looking forward to pushing the new Chimera7!

[@richierich142]

@@GiantAntCowboy I see, yah that makes sense. My current max is just over 4km and at that time I was still rocking two 1500mah lipo’s and I couldn’t really go any farther due to battery life (GoPro + two lipos make for a heavy ass drone), but I’ve recently built a 4200mah li-on so I got the juice, now I just need better antenna’s for my HDO2’s, Soon!!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@richierich142 oh nice! Got a Molicel P42a pack now?! It’s the only thing I fly for the most part now a days. Obviously helicals are where it’s at, if you don’t wanna make them ORT makes decent ones, and honestly any helical is probably fine. You’ve seen mine, they’re hardly “precise instruments of perfection”… Additionally TrueRC X2-air antennas are supposed to be dope. Don’t remember if you saw my recent post but I got 3km+ with the VTX at 25mW using helical antennas… crazy!

[@richierich142]

@@GiantAntCowboy Yup bought some Molicel's and made my own pack. Yah I'll do some more digging before making or getting some antennas. But they are for sure a must. I did see your other video, I was impressed that's for sure!!

[@elxero2189]

What are the song credits you used on this video

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Sorry, I’m not even sure anymore, but I use Epidemic Sounds for all my audio content. 👍

[@thomasgilbert6924]

Hvor i landet flyr du stilig jeg kjøpte meg sharkbyte modulen og 500mw Vtx en men jeg kommer ikke halvparten så langt ut som deg men har ikke testa det i åpent terreng veldig bra test elsker de antenne dine er de vanskelig og lage jeg har printer masse hilsener fra Telemark porsgrunn 😎

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Greetings, I’m in the Romsdal region, great place for FPV. The 500mW SharkByte/HDZero works great, I mainly use the newer 1W now, but will be installing my 500mW VTX in another build soon. These antennas are really incredible, I just posted an updated range test a couple weeks ago that you should check out. They are very cheap and easy to make. Here’s a link to my DIY video. Let me know if you have questions, cheers!

[@m3chanist]

What channel are you running on? I.E the frequency match to your tx antenna

[@GiantAntCowboy]

I’m running on channel R1, specifically because at lower frequencies most VTXs can transmit at a higher power. (Ex: a 1W VTX might transmit at 1W on R1, but only 400mW on R8) I don’t have an RF meter but several others have confirmed this. This power transmission affects the signal much more than the specific tune of the helical antenna. I’ve tested several channels out to 7km and did find R1 performed the best. Long answer… but wanted to share some insight. Here’s an updated range test I did recently with the HDZero 1W VTX and Two Helical antennas. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gILMfZ2Diph9b5I Let me know if you have any questions, cheers!

[@m3chanist]

@@GiantAntCowboy That was exactly what I wanted to know and why I wanted to know it. I've been spending much time of late looking for R1 optimal antennae. ;)

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@m3chanist Wez Varty, (YT) said the TBS Triumph antennas were tuned more towards R1, so they’d make a good VTX antenna option. I’m currently using a TrueRC Singularity, but also have a TBS Triumph. My initial tests didn’t show much of a difference between the two, wish I had proper test equipment but if I had a spare $30k I’d properly buy something else. Lol

[@haka8702]

Ok, so you are out on a mountain at 3.3V per cell. How could you get back ? Or is that mountain filled with dead quads from one-way reviews ?:)

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Haha! Yes, many viewers have thought the same thing… especially in my follow-up video where I didn’t quite make it back: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nam2l3dsha1khpI However I must point out that I’m using DIY Li-ion packs which can safely drain to 2.5v, these packs are really great for long-range, and also pretty cheap and easy to make. I have a simple diy video, check it out if curious. Anyway, I’ve since built a proper long-range drone to test the new HDZero 1w VTX which had been great, so stay tuned for that, cheers!

[@heggy_fpv]

beautiful area, where is this? I would love to come fly long range there

[@heggy_fpv]

still haven't gotten hdzero, and this summer flying season had all of the possible troubles with sharkbyte, so stayed on analog for now

[@GiantAntCowboy]

I’m up in Norway, incredible backyard right? 100% perfect place for this hobby!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yea, there was a shipment issue it seems. A lot of camera seem stuck in customs or some shopping center… total bummer. I’ll be posting a review/comparison of the HDZero Micro camera soon, I got mine recently and have been testing it.

[@kabirahmed9845]

Subscribed 👍

[@GiantAntCowboy]

👊 Very much appreciated!

[@kabirahmed9845]

Hey Man! Im recently into this hobby. I've ordered helical antenna from Banggood. Hoping to get the long range 🤞

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@kabirahmed9845 Not sure how much experience with FPV drones you have, but it’s an incredible hobby! Long Range is amazing, but the risk of losing your expensive drone is very high. Things like flight planning, antennas, GPS and loud self-powered buzzers can help a lot, but no guarantees. If you have questions let me know, and stay tuned! Cheers! Fe

[@kabirahmed9845]

@@GiantAntCowboy Its been a month ago. Im trying to build new quad and will be build soon. I agree with you its long learning curve and alot of skills required and I have still long way to go. Im impressed with your flight and love watching your videos 👍 Happy Flying!!

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@kabirahmed9845 Absolutely, as long as you enjoy learning, troubleshooting and long walks… it’s a great hobby and you’ll do great! Thanks again for watching the channel! 🤙

[@breakflight]

I would call that losing at the gauntlet for the FPV system, and winning at the gauntlet for the pilot.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Haha! Yea, not pulling it out of a tree was “the win” there… I have an idea to improve penetration further and will have another go at The Gauntlet soon! Cheers and thanks for watching!

[@theroburrito]

Was this the 200mW vtx?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

No, this is actually the 500mW double board. I’m gonna try to get a hold of a 200mW version to see what sort of range we can get with it. I’m curious as well.

[@InfinityDrones]

What HDZero vtx was that? What was the output? 200mw?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

This was actually the older 500mW VTX, but check out my recent video because I do a few range tests using 25mW, 200mw and 500mw: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nam2l3dsha1khpI I’ll be testing the new 1W VTX in the next couple weeks, so stay tuned and let me know if you have any questions. Cheers!

[@InfinityDrones]

@@GiantAntCowboy I'll do so. I'm just sad that there is no point in investing into Hdzero atm since there is not stock for us guys wanting to do freestyle and long range. I think there are a lot in my situation, I'm newish to FPV, I'm not in interested in 200mw but if I go Hdzero I would want/need to convert my quads... There is just no stock...

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@InfinityDrones Yup, 100%. I think this issue will be resolved early next year. In fact I think they’ll be announcing something next week. I’ve heard new VTXs, cameras and VRXs are in development and testing. Very excited about the new VTX for freestyle/long range use. Check out this video/range test of the VTX-L by Wez Varty: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4qofaeCbaZ2rdk

[@InfinityDrones]

@@GiantAntCowboy I hope so. I jumped to express lrs and I'm very happy I did that. The way they are approaching it is great. Hoping to jump on the Hdzero train once they start selling "real" tickets hehe. I watch Wez's video and that made me just want to go this route more. Just seems ill have to wait 6-12 months realistically, which is sad.

[@mark6302]

those flashing battery warning make my stomach drop

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Haha yea. The warning is setup for LiPo, but I’m flying Li-Ion packs here.

[@RandomMiscShit]

Have you done any long range with dji? I am looking to get into long range flight..

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Unfortunately I haven’t used DJI. When making the switch to digital I looked at both options and even though no one was doing LR with HDZero at the time I decided to try it, and have had great success! (Check out my more recent videos) DJI works well and has nicer image quality, but comes with a few sacrifices. Ex: Doesn’t have full OSD, doesn’t record OSD, limited to 13km, has variable latency, and actually the worst thing… it’s a two-way system that can de-sync or un-bind when you have weak signal or lose LOS. If this happens it could take minutes to re-establish the video link which could easily result in a lost quad. DJI is more plug-and-play currently, but of course with less options. HDZero is quickly evolving, and inventory sells quickly which can be tricky, but it has an excellent community of helpful people which is a pretty unique Pro for the system. Ultimately there’s a lot of Pros and Cons, if you currently have a nice pair of goggles with an HDMI input HDZero would be a good option to upgrade. With regards to Long-Range, make sure you have GPS and that your GPS data is setup to display and log on your transmitter. It’s easy to lose signal, crash and never find your quad and GoPro again. Which gets expensive… hopefully this was helpful, thanks for watching and stay tuned, cheers!

[@RandomMiscShit]

@@GiantAntCowboy yea.. so far I have yet to be able to get a GPS to work. I have some box analog with no hdmi input, and I was given DJI gear so I a waiting to see what happens with the new goggle war to see which to buy. HD zero is winning given I know it ca handle long range.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Gotcha. Do you have DJI goggles then? Or just the VTX/camera? Definitely get GPS working it’s very important. Tells you speed, location, distance, has a home arrow, and GPS rescue is a life saver … when installing the module make sure you don’t have the RX/TX wires reversed or it won’t work, and make sure you’re outside when try to get satellites. You’ll never get satellite indoor or through a window.

[@RandomMiscShit]

@@GiantAntCowboy yea.. 3 quads and gps doesn’t lock or show in beta flight. I will check the wires, but I was sure on the last one it was right, but I am very new at building and flying. I haven’t had a chance to troubleshoot it. As for dji, I was given the whole system, quad, goggles and controller. He didn’t like how it flew, and didn’t feel it was desirable to put in the practice as he has automated drones.

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Cool, well I’d fly DJI if you have all the stuff, just don’t fly behind mountains or cliffs and the de-sync issue I mentioned won’t be a problem. As far as GPS definitely try to swap the RX/TX wires, and if that doesn’t work there’s are number of good setup videos, J.Bardwell for example which should guide you ti success. 👍

[@MrJT270567]

i guess you are flying Crossfire, so what Power Level U use for a range of 4 to 6km? i am using expresslrs 868mhz on 250mw but i didnt Test Out the max range yet... greetings from Germany

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hi, yes this is 868mhz crossfire, and I believe I currently have it set to 1W (probably unnecessary). I’ve never had issues with the system, and have been out to about 7km. I’m currently building a new 7” long range quad, so we’ll find out soon how well it works. Are you using HDzero/SharkByte? Cheers from Norway, thanks for watching and commenting!

[@MrJT270567]

@@GiantAntCowboy thanks for your answer, currently i am flying analog with caddex Ratel, akk Race Ranger and fatshark hdo2. i am looking forward to get hdzero for some of My Quads. btw. i also use the diy 7turn helical and it's amazing. you have great Landscapes around you to Explore. waiting for some nice longrange Footage from snow powdered norway 😁 always Happy flying & greetings from Germany. JT

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@MrJT270567 Thanks for the nice response. The Caddx Ratel is my favorite analog camera, hope they make a HDZero/SharkByte camera eventually. These DIY helicals are the best, and perfect for exploring the mountains. We literally got snow everywhere this morning, so stay tuned. Thanks for watching, stay in touch. Cheers!

[@Chimavideo]

Hello I from Ukraine,your video very interesting

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thank you. I appreciate the support. I’ll be sharing some new testing and projects soon. Cheers!

[@stevedenton7986]

Do you long range airplanes as well?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

I have not build a long range FPV plane yet, it’s on my “to do” list. All my planes are currently just “look up in the sky and fly”… when it comes to range planes are very appealing though.

[@stevedenton7986]

I was a commercial pilot for many years until I lost my medical due to health reasons. One of the funniest things that I miss dearly is flying by instrument’s (IFR). I want to make an fpv airplane with full heads-up-display and go cloud surfing. To be able to fly solely by instruments and maintaining complete control of the aircraft would be awesome! I have to find someone with the knowledge and set up skills to help me out with this. One day…

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@stevedenton7986 do you currently fly RC planes?

[@Jhaskydding]

wooow how your battery holds on after 3.5?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Hey man, a lot of people wondered this… but I’m using a DIY Li-Ion pack which can drain to 2.5v before it’s game over… that happened in my follow up video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nam2l3dsha1khpI Check it out, also if your curious about making and using Li-Ion for increased range check out my DIY videos. Thanks for watching, Cheers!

[@Jhaskydding]

Wow! Thanks man! Loved your videos! Following to your uploads

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Thanks appreciate the comment and support. Stay tuned. 🤙

[@Jhaskydding]

@@GiantAntCowboy when's the hack for battery?

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Did you mean the DIY video? If so here ya go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/np_NmJeLipira6M

[@Chimavideo]

I very want this system but war .....

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yes, it’s an disappointing time for humanity.

[@jorgeneo560]

the sad and ugly thing in 5.8ghz is range, high frecuncy, short wave, less penetration, :(, i miss the time that we fly at 900mhz and crapy common antennas and do 13 km with ease, however is very respectable the distance you do considering that avaible vtx dont trow more than 1w, i think we are goign ending using a "ground station tracking gimball" in our models with a directional antenna to make long range, or how knows, maybe in a few year with starlink we could use ip cameras micro tx and fly to the edge of the world

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Yea, this is just a 500mW vtx, HDZero will soon have a higher powered VTX which I’ve heard from sources will meet your wishes above. I think we’ll find out very soon actually! Appreciate you watching and commenting, I’ll be posting a follow up to this video shortly so stay tuned! Cheers!

[@elxero2189]

Wait till you get that 1watt

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Maybe I have one already 😉 thanks for watching and stay tuned, cheers!

[@iforce2d]

It would be great if you could stop blurring things out every time a text overlay shows up....

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Appreciate the feedback. I posted a follow up video to this, (longer range testing), and tried shaded boxes instead of full screen blur. I’m just trying to find ways to make text easy to read, and will keep your suggestion in mind for future videos. Again thanks for checking out the video and providing feedback, all a learning process. Cheers!

[@fellpower]

Yeah, sharkbyte is like flying analog...lol...full of bad transmissions.....who is using this? its the same bad picture of analog....lol

[@GiantAntCowboy]

I can’t tell if this is sarcasm or not (?)… lol

[@fellpower]

@@GiantAntCowboy it isnt sarcasm...so much artifacts in the picture. i can fly 10km without any disturbing artifacts - with another big brand... check for that vs videos (there is one in a parking lot) - the big brand works fine the whole time, sharkbyte have artifacts 3sec after start... and look yourself for your video. the picture is very restless, the whole time

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@fellpowerI have a no argument about DJI’s excellent image quality, it looks crazy good! The two systems however work differently. - DJI avoids having signal static by increasing image latency and reducing resolution. - HDZero on the other hand uses fixed latency and resolution, but displays static when signal is disrupted. - Also DJI currently has a more powerful VTX. Again I agree DJI is great and HDZero needs work, but it’s a tiny company that’s working on an alternative solution which I totally support, for team has been improving the system a lot recently. Why I chose HDZero over DJI has a lot to do with cost, I already owned decent analog googles/antennas, so it was an easy upgrade from analog. Also I primarily fly in the mountains and have seen too many stories of DJI units freezing, rebooting and losing signal for several minutes… these could just be outliers, or user error, I don’t know. Anyway, here’s a video I did comparing my analog system to the HDZero system, and you’ll see HDZero is substantially better that analog. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nH2qhYCHgsx3nKc Appreciate you taking the time to respond, and provide feedback, cheers!

[@EnglishTurbines]

You need to remove the words "Long Range" from your video title....So embarrassing...🤔😳🇬🇧

[@GiantAntCowboy]

Well, it's all relative I guess. I read somewhere that over 5km is considered long-range for a drone, however, I'm also aware of those going 40km+ using wind setups... My next target is 7km, what do you think is a realistic goal for this system? Thanks for watching and commenting, I'll try to do better next time for you. 😉🇳🇴🇺🇸

[@EnglishTurbines]

@@GiantAntCowboy Well, for a 5 inch quad it was pretty good. I was really basing my observation on your unique, ideal location, no WiFi, open spaces and flying up the side of that peak in flat calm conditions. Try flying out on level ground at say 60 metres altitude, you'll get a very different result I guarantee...🤔🤔

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@EnglishTurbines yea, well I’m building a new 7” at the moment which will be much better for these sort of tests. My ultimate goal is to build a mid-long range quad to explore mountains using this digital HD system. My analog setup works great, but the image quality is of course less enjoyable… so we’ll see how it goes. I have a few antennas ideas I’m trying out as well, and will share any successes as I progress. Appreciate the feedback, cheers!

[@EnglishTurbines]

@@GiantAntCowboy That's fine, just remember, your location is not typical of most of your followers..Ask how many of them fly at 800 metres altitude for example up the side of a mountain in the wilderness...🤔🤔😳

[@GiantAntCowboy]

@@EnglishTurbines is there something you’d like me to try, or do different? Happy to try different tests. 🤔