xDennis

My Feedback: (2)

I am in the market for a Radio and I don't really know which one to get or If i am over donig it.

Plane:

Carl Golderbrg Eagle 2 w/ OS .46 AX ABL


This is my first plane, I want to eventually get into Aerobatics and 3D aero. I was concidering the Futaba 9C But I think that has a little more then what I really need. I don't know if I will ever need anything more then a 4-channel? What else can I do with a basic flyer?

edit: Don't just vote, let me know why you voted that way it would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Dennis R

MerlinL14

I voted for the 6EXA, I have 2 of them and have not had a problem. They are easy to programme and other than not having a timer, they have all the functions I require (for now anyway).

JohnBuckner

My Feedback: (1)

Optic 6 - Without the combination of a systhesized module and selectable tx modulation shift of the Hitec the others are still in the dark ages. Even with a synth module but no shift select feature you still are not compatable with a huge number of FM(PPM) Rx's out there.

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

When I got back into flying I chose the 6EXA. I'm still very hapy with this choice. It's got plenty of features for beginning, and many other, fliers. These include dual rates, throttle cutoff, electronic trims, multiple model memory, electronic servo reversing, and a few more I'm not remembering right now. I also ended up buying a 4YF. My reason for doing this is it gave me another complete flight pack, a second transmitter (in case something goes wrong with the 6EXA, or to use as a buddy box), and a second transmitter battery (I usually keep both transmitters charged, in case I decide to stay at the field a long time). The rest of my flight packs have been from other manufacturers, but haven't bought any more transmitters.

So, I voted for the 6EXA. Unless you know you'll outgrow its features within a year or two, it's hard to beat the $135 price at Tower right now.

Maniac

The Optic is far more capable and will grow with you in the future. The 6EXA is a fine entry level radio but does not compare to the Optic feature to feature. The Optic is much closer in capability to the 9C than the 6EXA is to the Optic. If you plan to stay in this hobby the Optic would be a much better choice. If you want to spend the minimum amount of money now and buy something better later then go with the 6EXA.

Search on the Optic and see what others have to say. It has got rave reveiws.

Maniac

XJet

What's the point of a poll like this -- since the only people whose vote actually counts are those who have had both a Futaba 6EXA *and* a Hitec Optic -- which is probably very, very few.

Most people would simply vote that *their* transmitter was best -- without knowing how much better the alternative might be.

Mike in DC

Actually, I imagine there are a lot of people who, while they don't actually have both transmitters, may have spent a lot of time studying which to buy, and are willing to share their knowledge.

I just bought the 6EXA for two main reasons: It's $130 compared to $210 for the Hitec (each with 4 standard servos). It's also available now, which was important to me.

Dennis, do you know you can download the manuals? That should give you a good feel for the difference between the models you're looking at.

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

I have two of the three radios in the poll. I don't have the Hitec. When the poll came up I went to look at the features, and price, of the Hitec. My conclusion is if I was buying another radio, right now, I would still end up with the 6EXA. It's got the features I need at a very good price. If there are features in the Hitec that a person actually needs, and they are worth the extra money to that person, then by all means, get the Hitec.

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

I've been flying for 20+ years. The 6EXA has all the features I need for the 3 planes I have flying right now as well as for the 13+ kits waiting to be built.

I've observed that a significant majority of fliers never use more than 4 or maybe 5 channels. Personally, I can't understand why those who own the more advanced transmitters feel compelled to convince beginners they should spend an extra $100-200 on a transmitter without at least explaining that the extra features may never be needed.

The typical justification is that since they outgrew the basic radio, it's obvious that everyone else will too. However, the reality is that many people starting out will never advance beyond 4 channels. That's why I usually recommend a basic radio, such as the 4YF to a beginner. This is enough to get started and even if they decide to upgrade to a new transmitter, the original set was not much more than a flight pack, the transmitter can be used as a buddy box, and also as a spare transmitter in case the more advanced transmitter needs service.

The current price of the 6EXA makes it also worth serious consideration for a beginner. It's only a little more than the 4 channel, but the extra features greatly simplify setup of even a trainer.

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

The 6EXA has a lot of cool features for the price. And the features only matter if you use them right? I have the 6EXA and really like it. The only thing I'm running into now is that I need more fully adjustable channels for ailerons and elevators. The 6EXA has the channels but they are not fully ATV adjustable and the trim only affects one. This forces me into the 9C which I will probably get this spring. But for the money, it's hard to beat the 6EXA.

Volfy

My Feedback: (23)

The Optic 6 has the advantage of using an interchangeable TX module, instead of swapping crystals directly. This flexibility alone would make my decision if I were shopping for a entry level computer radio.

Then again, I an seeing several good deals on the Eclispe right now that is almost down to Optic 6 price levels. I am one of those that always recommend getting more TX than you can possibly think of right now. To me, it's a no brainer. Considering the cost of everything else you will spend money on, the TX is just about the only piece of equipment that will last you years and years, not get crashed, and work for several if not all of your aircrafts. If you are going to spend a little extra on something - it should be your TX.

As for expalining all the benefits of a more expensive TX, well... it's often difficult to do that when you are still trying to explain the difference between ailerons and rudders. When the time comes, most the added features will become self-explanatory as the bewbie steps up to more sophisticated airplanes.

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

yup, no reason to buy lots of bells and whistles if they stay silent. A high percent of fliers can use many of the features of a basic computer radio such as the 6EXA.
Me too.
Mechanical adjustments and y harnesses can often fix these problems, or you can buy another transmitter. I'm not going to dispute that the more advanced radios have value, and that they've made setup much simpler for things such as you have described. Things people used to labor for hours to do mechanically can be programmed into a radio in minutes now.
Complete agreement.

Rodney

You will most probably make out well with either of the first two, both are good radios. I personally would opt for the Optic 6 due to be able to use the Spectra module and ability to program for either positive or negative shift plus the ability to go to PCM at a later date if necessary. Should you drop or break your transmitter, Hitec is far superior to Futaba for repair turn around time and price of repair.

Harry Lagman

Where are you guys seeing the 6EXA for $130? Tower shows $179 at the moment. Are you factoring in all rebates, certificates and Tower saver options here?

Yeah, I think I've answered my own question...

XJet

Actually I used to think this way but lately I've found that the extra channels are very useful if not essential.

A large percentage of models these days use two aileron servos and it's just so easy to set up a good transmitter so that you can skip the need for a Y-harness -- also giving you the ability to do flaperons/spoilerons if you want.

Likewise, some relatively modest planes are now using two elevator servos -- something which can again be performed at the transmitter end if you've got enough channels.

Take a nice little sports ship with two aileron servos and dedicated flaps -- this can be done very easily with a 7-channel set by simply setting up the transmitter mixes and plugging all the servos directly into the receiver. The same setup with a 4-5 channel set will require more complex flight-system wiring and may have less flexibility.

If you want to get into 3D stuff then having extra channels is also very useful because you can run spoilerons/flaperons and ailervators through some judicious use of those channels and mixing.

The price difference between a budget 5 channel transmitter and an entry level 6-7 channel one isn't really that great when you look closely. I just bought a 6-channel Optic 6 for $109 at ServoCity.com and I'll use one of the spare transmitter modules ($25) that I've already got for my Eclipse. The Futaba 7C is just also $139 at some places and both are pretty capable sets.

As someone once told me -- the pain of buying something better is a one-time event and soon forgotten. The pain of wishing you had something better recurrs every time you use the system you penny-pinched on.

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

This is so true as I'm finding out right now. But then again, I thought I'd be out of this hobby by now. I was in it once before and crashed the plane and bailed out. This time I went through a club, got training. Now I'm totally hooked.

lwien

Why didn't you include the Futaba 7C in this poll.............The 7C is more of a contender to the Optic 6 than either of the other two Futaba's that you included in your poll........

Mike in DC

Can you guarantee this? I'm thinking of using it to explain to my wife why I'm getting myself the big plasma TV for Christmas. I don't mind taking a one-time bit of pain. But if you're wrong, I'm thinking the pain may go on a long time if she doesn't buy your theory!

hebertjj

Dennis,

It's not gonna matter which Tx you get if you don't start with a trainer model and an instructor. You don't need any Tx features after you've crashed you plane. An EagleII is not a trainer for a nuebie. I recommend the Avistar or Superstar. And find an instructor and find out what kind of buddy box situation he has and maybe buy a cord to match your Tx to his.

Tower shows the 6EXA system at $180 and the Optic at $210 (w/o the Spectra module ). The Futaba only stores 6 plane settings with a number, the Optic stores 8 with alph names which is you're in this hobby for long, it's amazing how many planes you can get. Also I think the Optic has more user mixes if you ever get into that. But if you could get a 6EXA system for $130 I might be tempted to snatch one of those up. Or does that mean you can get the Optic for $160? Doooooooo!!!

You don't need to buy the most you can afford, just something that has a little more than you'll need in the next year or two. The way RC electronics go, about every 18 months, the bar gets raised as to what is a basic, intermediate, and advanced computer Tx ANNNNNND the prices are usually better too. So don't go too far past your immediate invisioned needs.

Mike in DC

The $130 figure comes from the $180 advertised price at Tower minus $15 Tower Internet discount, minus $20 Tower Gift Certificate, minus $15 Futaba gift certificate to use at Tower. (Add $8 shipping, but that's about the same as the sales tax savings in my state.)

In other words, the $130 assumes 1) you buy from Tower, and 2) you were going to buy another $35 worth of stuff from Tower as well.

Kensonic

I just ordered a Hitec Optic 6 with the Spectra Synthesizer module (no RX or servos) from Hobby People for $159.95. I needed the extra model memory and that drove me to choose the Hitec over the Futaba. I've used a Hitec Flash 5x for the past two years and it as performed perfectly.