getting new radio, maybe.

So I was surfing through horizon hobby .com and I notice they are marketing a new radio system by some one I have never heard of before.
this is it:http://www.horizonhobby.com/Shop/ByC...ProdID=SPM2460

Is it any good? is what they say about the frequency thingy going to any unused band so I can fly any time real?? that would be so cool if it were. what do you guys think? by the way I do have a radio but its a basic 4 chanel and will do for my 2nd plane but the 3rd and 4th that im eyeing will need a computer radio to fly them to there fullest (use flaps/ retracts and stuff)
So how will this stack up agianst the JR Sport radio in 6 chanel?? thats what Im really intersted in knowing.

It's a park-flyer radio, the 2.4ghz type. Only good for about 2500 feet distance as I've read.
According to the advert it seems to be only good for electrics. Hope thats what you have in mind.
IAs far as I'm concerned, I would wait a while to see how the wind blows on this technoloy
before investing. If you got money burning a hole in your pocket, go for it!

I am guessing that you are talking about the new park flyer spread spectrum system. Your link ran on to a sentance and does not work.

They first arrived with surface radios and now this new park flyer system has hit the market. It operates on a much higher frequency band and I will leave a tech explination to someone more capable but there are issues with antenna radiation in the environment we operate in and this unit is only for park flyers with a very limited range. It would not at all be usable for the type airplanes you are flying. We can hope in the future though[8D]

John

This is the Spektrum DX6 DSM 6CH Park Flyer System in case you don't want to copy and paste the link. It's the 2.4 ghz spread spectrum deal that has generated a bunch of discussion in other threads.

Spread spectrum is touted by some as the solution to frequency conflicts, shootdowns, interference; just about everything except dumb thumbs, and possibly even that. Others say the claims are exaggerated. I have no idea, but reality is probably between the extremes.

I don't know much about the technology of radios but I would guess that something specifically called "Park Flyer System" in the description (multiple times) would have really limited range and not be suited for bigger models.

I'm lucky to be in a small club with very few pilots on the same channel. For me, plain old 72 mhz FM (PPM) works just fine and presents no issues.

We had a big discussion regarding spread spectrum at our club meeting tonite. The jist of it is, the system works on a basis similar to cellular phones, of the transmitter scanning for unused "channels" within the 2.4gHz range. The receiver will only "recognize" a transmission from "its" transmitter, so other planes flying are doing the same, and no interference between transmitters. This system was supposedly tested in all conceivable circumstances and environments to see if there would be "glitching' by control rods, on-board electronics, etc--all the stuff we have to watch out for with the present 72 mHz system. So far, nothing has been found to be a problem. The limiting factor right now is Tx range, which is why it's only being used for park flyers right now. According to one of my clubmates, somebody at one of the recent fly-ins at Joe Nall (Tripletree) took a Tx out to the highway, there at the railroad tracks for those familiar with the area, and it still controlled the plane they had on the flightline at the gazeebo. That's well over 1/2 mile, probably closer to 3/4 mile. Maybe the reliabilty at that distance is still debatable, but this is supposedly the future of R/C transmitters. from what I understand, the 72 mHz band will stay with us for a long time, we're not giving one up to get the other. Don't throw your old Tx away just yet

http://www.horizonhobby.com/Shop/ByC...ProdID=SPM2460

Let's see if this works. Yep, this is where they are trying to go with technology. We'll have to see how it goes as far as range and reliability.

Being in the IT industry I have quite a bit of experience with Spread Spectrum technology. This is the same technology that wireless equipment for computers use. In regards to our radios, the technology works because the equipment is designed to work "together" with all other devices in the 2.4 Ghz range. This means that if more than one radio is turned on your receiver is supposed to listen to your transmitter only. It will still receive other transmissions but will discard them because it's "not their signal".

Is this the end all, be all of radio technology? Who knows?

Will it help our current situation? You bet it will. Especially at crowded flying fields where pilots wait for long periods for their frequency to open up.

Will this eliminate frequency conflicts? Nope, don't even try to think it will. Even when the Spread Spectrum is released for the majority of flying, not everybody will move to it immediately. Your fields will still have to maintain frequency control procedures since the existing frequencies are still going to be in use. I think that I can safely say that you'll see frequency control boards stay in place for at least the next 10 to 15 years to accommodate those pilots that use older radio equipment.

You have to remember that this is a brand new technology, and it's still in it's infancy. It's going to chance and improve as it enters the market and becomes more available. About all I can recommend is to be patient, it'll get there.

Ken

ok im waiting, impatiently though.

I keep seening reference above to "park flyers", "limited range" etc. but nowhere in any of the ads for this equipment is range mentioned. The few first hand accounts I heard of on this does not limit range to any more or less than what we are using now. Where are you folks getting this "limited range" information? I can't verify that it is any more limited than the normal range we now have.

Quote from manual for radio system: "PARK FLYERS ONLY The DX6 system is designed for parkflyer type craft only. This includes all forms of compact electric and non powered airplanes as well as micro electric helicopters. While the system has more than adequate range for these types of aircraft, it is imperitive that the sytem not be used in larger aircraft that could exceed the range."