The website says a 10S setup with AXI F3A motor was what they had in mind. I have flown the prototype a little bit too. I am going out on a limb and saying you will need to go 10S with an outrunner like the AXI or the Hacker A60 series. Considering the availability of the True RC packs which are fairly cheap, it shouldn't be that expensive to do as a 10S configuration. I think the plane is just too big for an 8S setup.