Help TRUE diversity / Max penetration 5.8g
 

There is lots of stuff about diversity but hardly anything on the plane (broadcasting) side. All talks about dual or quadruple receivers but I found very little on how to setup the plane/drone.

Due to my flying environment I need maximum penetration and only medium (5km) range for occasional trips. The standard answer would be: use 1.3GHz but that’s not so simple due to the fact that I fly 2.4GHz for the control and you should not use a higher frequency for controlling the plane then the video signal is travelling. On one test plane I will use TBS Crossfire to test 1.3GHz but ideally all other planes (10+) should stay on 5.8GHz but delivers maximum penetration. I also do not fancy the idea of using an antenna tracker for various reasons. Here my questions/problems: (see pic for detailed solutions/ideas) Diversity only on the receiving end?? That’s how it’s been presented almost everywhere but some claim you’ll gain approx. 10% signal. For my understanding that’s not true diversity because what about the TX? Having at least 2 TX in my plane will give me the advantage of hardware redundancy, different brands might behave differently, different antennas, and utmost important different antenna locations. The first question was how do I connect the camera rsp. the OSD output? Simply putting a Y or T connector will not work. The same goes for adding a second antenna to one transmitter. I found (surprisingly small market for these goods) some active video signal splitters:
2-way: FlyTron
4-way: FPVModel

QUESTIONS:
Q1) Do I need a splitter with gain control when splitting the camera/OSD signal?
Q2) Where do I place the FC filter – after camera or before TX?
Q3) With a 5.8 dual TX diversity setup can I still do 5.8 relay from GroundStation to Goggles? (if using different frequencies for each TX of course) or do I have to wire my goggle?
Q4) If doing a full blown setup (2x1.3g + 2x5.8g) will that be too much signal broadcasting?
Q5) If going for the “simple” setup is it better to use a 4-RX or 2x2-RX + EagleEyes?Q6) If doing a relay from ground station to goggles will that not increase the latency vs using a cable? If yes how much additional latency to expect? The main reason I want to go for 4 antennas is the ability to combine circular and polarized antennas and cover my entire flying area without having to move the antennas (or use a AAT). 1 circular + 3 polarized mainly due to the low vertical range.

Thanks to anyone that can bring some light in one or the other question!

Stuwe
YouTube: stuwe911