BuschBarber

My Feedback: (2)

What is the Telemetry reporting with regards to Fades, Frame Losses, and Holds? If no Telemetry, was a Flight Logger used? That would be the first thing I would be looking at after the first event or during each Range Check.

predman

My Feedback: (7)

I have had my DX8 for a month now and not a single issue. Last week i saw 2-planes go down one w a newer JR radio and the other Futaba and i watched them go down so i know it wasnt dumb thumb. Now it happens to them all, so pointing out Spektrum is not right. All my planes are always checked over before and after flight. So many planes ive seen go down because of a failing clevis,screw, or just setup wrong. I only use 6v in my planes and a load test on batteries is always part of my preflite check whether its the first flight of the day or the second etc. Now lets face it sometimes a lemon might get out there as with all brands and recalls. When the DX8 first came out i waited till all the bugs were corrected because i knew there would be some. Hitec had their bugs and so did JR and futaba. Sounds to me like most of the brownouts were electrical issue(low voltage) Sure you had the plane for years but did you check or change the battery? There could be problems w 2.4 that we dont even know about.

rmh

- I never saw that issue in the US .
The radio is not like the DX8 nor is the "internals" used then , the same .
The two use compatible rx in most cases - that is about the end of similarities. I had three DX7 and have had 2 DX8 and my son has one
Thanks for your reply

llindsey1965

My Feedback: (-1)

wow this is so natural  we have had several guys crash their planes due to no apparent reason flying dx8   that is why i have always and shall contuine to fly with my futaba 9c  top line radio  only plane i ever  lost was cause of dumb thumbs

Kruzer

Amazing reading.
Like I said in another post. I'm done with Spektrum & JR.
As for Futaba, what I hear of their attitude, no thanks.
It looks like it'll have to be something else.

Thomas B

My Feedback: (4)

Sorry to hear about your problems.

I had one question. You do not mention any range checks during any of these issues. Can we assume you did the Spektrum range check, per their written procedure? Or?

The only time I had a DX8 issue, I had dropped the TX. Seemed fine, but I did not range test before the next flight. Had a model go failsafe around 300 feet out, but managed to get it back and landed it. A range check showed 4 paces of range at range test power, model on ground, instead of the 30 paces you must have.

I am guessing you might have a TX issue, perhaps a loose connection somewhere. Rare, but it happens. I have seen a very few DX7 and DX6 (originals) that had a loose or damaged coax (very tiny coax) connection btween the main board and the RF board in the TX and they sometimes acted as you describe. My theory is when I dropped the DX8, it dislodged this connection.

I sent the TX to HH and got it back withing 9 days, no charge, even though it was my fault. I consider HH to have superior customer service, based on this and several other service calls.

Even though it will be annoying and unhelpful to you to hear this, I have at least 600-700 trouble free flights on my DX8 on around 25 models...exept for the flight after I dropped the TX....sigh.

Luchnia

My Feedback: (21)

I fly in two clubs and we have all sorts of radios. Mostly Spektrum, JR, and Futaba. I would say more Spektrum than anything and we often are flying 3-5 planes at the time. We rarely if at all have any radio issues.

So far in the last three years I have not seen one or two issues that could not be identified. If enough research and time are put into the process you can usually find the cause. I had one plane that kept acting odd and it would glitch and momentarily I would lose control. I was very quick to blame the radio. After some thorough research I stumbled upon the problem. It was an aileron connector that was moving lose during vibrations and heat. I fixed it and never had another issue since with that plane.

The only other thing I had happen is unexplained but I think I know what happened just not why it happened. I was flying as normal and started on takeoff and then a left turn into a climb. As I started to level off I heard a small sound as if I had flipped a switch on my radio and I momentarily did not have control of the plane. The control came back though and I landed. I checked everything over a couple times and could not find any issues. I continued to fly the plane throughout the year and into the next year. My only guess is that the radio did a reboot however nothing I could find had low power or would have caused it. Never again has it occurred.

Things can happen and radios are not free from having issues no matter what brand it is. Being silly making claims that somehow you must have a Futaba is ignorant if nothing else. A good radio is a good radio. If it is backed by a good warranty and built by a reputable company which leads in innovation and quality (which I think all the major brands attempt to do) then it should be fine. Can you get a bad one? Yes, you certainly can and maybe this gentleman got a bad radio.

My hope is that he can find out what is going on because planes are costly. I think Spektrum is good and I also think Futaba is good. I have not had a lot of calls to HH but the ones I have are always outstanding service. I can understand his anger with them if they have mistreated him as he states.

fragile

AFTER THE DSM 2 FIASCO AND A CLEVER COVER-UP WITH A MISLEADING 100 TRANSMITTER VIDEO,
I WOULD STAY CLEAR OF THIS BRAND.

CHECK THIS OUT:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1R8fSf4pa_c

SkidMan

My Feedback: (17)

Dude in the video is flying with an Orange RX.

Next time lay off the all caps.

matoran629

...

BuschBarber

My Feedback: (2)

Brownouts have nothing to do with Transmitters.

Credibility eauals Zero

mongo

My Feedback: (15)

rather than argue endlessly with the folks, none of whom will ever change their minds(pro or con), just sell it at fair market value for a used dx8, i gave 275 for a DSMX version, to whoever will buy it. get yourself a futaba, airtronix, turnigy or whatever to replace it and move on with your life.

wallace.tharp

My turn, great thread. I have a JR 9303 & love it. Very few problems using 6vlt NMHI or or 2 cel lipos for rx power. Range checking as per JR instructions is good. My friend, an electical engineer and a guy who helped develop the fly by wire and auto land systems for several aircraft had problems with his DSM . Being a widget with plenty of high end test gear Bill got right down to it. Figured out it was an antenna problem. Sent it to HH and they fixed it. End fo story. Good luck. Wallace L Tharp AARCS & Aux 6 Fliers.

Twin_Flyer

My Feedback: (4)

Only question I have is, what happened when you called Horizon Hobby? Im sure they said they would fix it, but what else did you expect them say or do that upset you?

Without it being in their hands, not much then can do to diagnose any issues except for what you say you saw/did with it.

Send it in, have them go over it, and see what happens. They may actually say "Yes xx was broken and we replaced/tuned/etc. it" and go fly.

And since you dont like Futaba (due to their attitude? Not sure what that means) that only leaves Airtronics...

As I said im still on 72 mhz with a 9C and love it. I do own a DX6i, but its only for my small helis (not much choice on the small BnF stuff) and i have no plans to use it in my aircraft.

Mainly so i dont get in the habit of not having to pull out the antenna on the DX6 and then forget to do it on the 9C!

Bill S.

Greenfuelboy

My Feedback: (60)

I had the same problem with a radio. I was flying with two 2 cell 4000mah 40c lipos in my plane. I used a Castle 20 amp bec, the new one not the old one. I had enough power. None of the servos were binding I was good and every thing was double checked. The plane just flew away, I was really upset. I sent the radio in for service and I was told they put a new board in it. I flew a few more times when the radio came back before I lost another plane. The plane I was flying had a sub c NIMH pack and I lost that plane too. I sent the radio in again, I was told it was in good shap. I was just confused by then. Now when I set up my planes I always use my watt meter with servo adapters hooked up. I can see in real time what my battery power is doing. If it spikes to a lower level when I do a snap rool on the bench I will change the battery for a bigger one. I do not feel in any way I had power problems. My first go with my old radio was a eye opener. I do not know what happened the second time but the first must have been bad enough for them to install a board. You may have not had the power problem, but Maybe you can try the watt meter trick and see if your power level drops. I can watch the amps and the voltage at the same time on my watt meter. It will let you know for sure if that is the problem. If the power does not drop and it still fails then your radio has some issues and you can tell customer service how you tested it and they can test further.

My buddy Mark bought a new in the box JR 11X and lost a 50cc Ultimate Biplane the third time he used the radio. It was sent in for service and they checked it out. All I know is that he was using his new radio with DSM2 receivers. He said the radio is solid now It was updated to the newest updates and checked out and he has no problems now.

blhollo2

My Feedback: (278)

Spektrum's motto should be "Causing explained and unexplained crashes since 2007" or " Spektrum radios... keeping Futaba radios in high demand since 2007"

lol just for fun!

pache11

My Feedback: (6)

I have had only one failure with Spektrum. 4 cell battery pack that had one cell fail. I use DX7 tx with over 20 planes and helis.

Rotten40851

My Feedback: (2)

Spektrum = Crap

Luchnia

My Feedback: (21)

Your post reminds me of the guy that dogs Ford while the guy driving the Ford gets 250 thousand miles out of it. The same goes with the Chevy. Does it really matter? If one does the job you could put any name you like on it. Just like some guys flying planes with the 50 dollar Turnigy radios and not having any issues. Would I think a 50 dollar radio would suffice? Not really in my way of thinking.

Yep, Futaba NEVER, NEVER has issues....they are 100% perfect! Beleive that and I would like to sell you some ocean front property I have in Arizona. I watched a man scorch a 50cc running a Futaba radio that glitched. Lost complete control and the plane ditched. As the old saying goes, crap happens.

Let me go watch paint dry now.

Tony Iannucelli

My Feedback: (193)

Just to offer another opinion, it seems to me there are so many variables with all of our crashes it really becomes very difficult to pinpoint the true cause. Radio link, batteries, servos, motor/engine, pilot, wind, etc., and the list is a lot longer. I fly JR 9303, both 2.4 and 72. I use Spektrum, JR, and orange receivers. I've stalled a couple of planes this year, pilot error for sure, but I swear I could have said "I ain't got it" and blamed the radio. The guy I was flying with did exactly that, blamed my radio for my crashes. I knew better. We have had a couple of brownouts, I'm sure battery related, but they are very rare. I do have to say, running five and four cell NiMH batteries in planes and helis on 72, I can't EVER remember having an issue over 40 years of flying. That goes all the way back to when we had just five frequencies for planes. I've flown Kraft, EK Logictrol, Proline, MRC, Futaba, JR, and Spektrum. All have been good to me. I've probably tried 15-20 brands of servos. There have been a few duds among them, but most have been bulletproof.

Sounds to me like this is another Chevy vs Ford, or more appropriately Toyota vs Hyundai vs others. Of the brands mentioned, Castle is the one made here and they have had occasional issues too. No one is really immune. It's tough when you are the one caught up in the problem.

Horizon service has been terrific. So have Hobby People, Tower and Hobby Services in my experience. I'm one of those guys that only seems to have problems with my own thumbs and the older I get, the worse it gets. Dumb luck, but hanging in there.

lourod996

My Feedback: (78)

Why would you even risk using spectrum? Why is it such a complicated system. Why does it need special treatment. Futaba is so reliable and simple with 4v or 6v. I would never take that risk. People at my field have had problems also. Not many but all that matters is that they have issues. I would not risk any of my planes with that system. Futabas technology has been proven and used by the military since WW2. That's all I.have to say..

Luchnia

My Feedback: (21)

Good post Tony. Your years of experience states volumes. I am one that respects and trust those with years of experience.

Rotten40851

My Feedback: (2)

Futaba has far less problems than any Spektra product. all you JR and Spektra users are in Denial. I'm not saying that Futaba products do not have any issues, but there are Many more problems with those other brands.Just keep flying that crap and you will learn your lesson the hard way. Picking up the peices of your crashed airplane from the ground. There is a reason they aremuch cheaper than Futaba products, they are inferior.

rmh

Since WW11?
as long as one is being silly - why not WW11

Twin_Flyer

My Feedback: (4)

WWII!? Not too sure about that one!

They were founded in 1948, but did not start to make radio equipment till 1962!

http://www.futaba.com/corporate/history/index.asp

Bill S.