DJI F550 will E310/E305 give better efficiency then E300

[neilm]

Hi all,

The Hex is a fully loaded F550 with DJI NAZA, E300 power set, GoPro, Gimbal etc and weighs in at 2600g.
With a 6000Ah 4S pack I get around 8 mins flight time before I';m down to 20%.

This gives an average power of 530W and efficiency of 4.9g/W
The motors are running at 433g/motor or 72% of the 600g max rating

Taking the specs off the DJI website

An Inspire 1 with a 5700mAH 6S gives (claimed) 18 minutes for 2900g of weight giving
Power = 330W or 8.6g/W

I know this is comparing a quad with a hex but the efficiency of ny F550 seems to be a little low.

I';m thinking of upgrading to the E310 or E305, the E305 looking as if its aimed at 4S usage with the 800kV motors.

My question is, has anyone been down this path?
What';s the main difference between the E310 and E305. All I see is no leds for the E305 (dead weight) and that the E305 is geared towards 4S.

Also any other setups for better run time like heavey lift kits etc

[Gatallica]

Hi Neil

I feel your frustrations. I too have an almost identical setup to you, except I also have the GS system, and the quest for a longer flight time eludes me. I have tried all sorts of battery configurations from 4s to 3s, including doubling up, but still I can never seem to get past my record of 12 minutes and that was on a 3S believe it or not! There are higher Mah Lipos available, but then the weight issue comes into play! I have yet to try the new higher voltage lipos.

I even signed up to eCalc in an effort to find the perfect configuration, but it proved fairly fruitless.

My thoughts are that F550 flight times are fairly standardised at the 8-12 minute mark until battery technology moves on a bit. (I guess you could experiment with lower KV motors etc but where does the spending end???)

Seriously thinking of moving away from the DIY stuff and buying a Phantom in the new year as they seem to offer it all.... long flight times and great camera stability.

[Friskle]

I will be sorting a P3 Pro out at somepoint in the near future, the Q500+ i bought is pretty decent, flies well, fantastic stability on the camera, everything on screen, and i get 19 to 23 mins of flight time from the stock batteries.

Building is all well and good, But, RTF machines are so much better now, and imho very well priced really, as you also take into account, no messing around , its hardly worth building anymore.

[neilm]

I';m coming to agree with the RTF stuff. The 550 came in at just under £1000 and that';s not including the radio gear.
That money now get';s a P3 Pro or Q500.

Tempted by the Inspire but need justify the price tag (and the £200 batts when £100 gets you equivalent Optipowers)

Had a look at the Q500 whilst in the model shop. It feels a bit plasticky, toy like but I guess this is where the weight saving is to be had.

Has anyone tried the 4k version, and if so how does it compare with the GoPro H4.
Also what';s the screen like on a bright sunny day?

[Friskle]

I only decided on  the Q500+ , partly as i dont really need 4K, the camera went faulty, but i did get sent a Brand new one, took a week to sort out, i would take a look at the "yuneec Q500 owners" on Facebook, many on the there have the 4K.

If i was looking at 4K though, i would go for the P3, mainly because the DJI go App is so much better, the app for the CGO yuneec cameras does not do much, otehr than a few camera settings and stop/start video and take stills whilst using the supplied Steady grip.

The info on the ST-10 TX is good though, they do look plasticy, but Q500+ or 4K, the quad and ST10 is exactly the same, but it does fly well. its not a fast Quad, its purely an AP Quad, but it will fly a lot faster with GPS disabled.