transmitters to avoid?
 

I'm looking for a newer 2.4GHz system and am on a limited budget. So I am looking in the used market. My budget is around $100 for trx and rx together. Any particular ones to avoid? It is for my xray 808 '11 spec nitro buggy.

Avoid the venom or axial (same ones really, just rebadged). Also I would avoid the spektrum dx3e as for a little extra you can get a much nicer radio.

Worst case get one from hobbypartz. The gtb3 is supposed to be great, can be hacked for added functionality, and additional rx's are like $8!

+1 on the spektrums being garbage. +1 for getting the flysky. I own a flysky and have had no problems other than a couple recievers going bad. It's cool though cuz recievers are $8 a piece so buy in bulk.

I agree. I run the GT3B on 7 cars and my brother in law runs his on 2 cars, we run them alongside of spektrum, sanwa, etc, no issues whatsoever. You can't get anything better for that price.

I disagree. You are correct in saying that there is nothing better...for that price. There isn't, but it is still not a very good radio. You have to reprogram them to get them to work as they should.

I have spent too long reprogramming these radios getting them to work right. The latest firmware brings the latency down to around 20ms or so, previous to that it was around 70!

Now, it you are just bashing around, try it,. It most likely will go well. If you are racing at all, stay clear and buy a better radio.

I have two very good buds that used these radios for racing and they swore by them. I reprogrammed them and they were happy but could never get the car to handle right. They spent so much time tweaking, changing their setups and could never get the car to go well. No matter how many times you told them it was they radio they wouldn't listen.

Eventually, one decided to get a Futaba 4pl. He imediately went from finishing in the lower ranks to finishing in the top 3 of our mains. Last week, the other coverted to a 4pl and he too went to the A-mains.

There might be some that doubt this is entirely due to the radio, but not from where I stand.

For bashing, it is great. For racing, nope, steer clear and get a better radio. It doesn't matter how much the rx cost and the radio costs if you aren't having any fun racing and driving your car.

What about a used ko propo? I'm only planning to run 2 rigs on it.

I didn't say ALL spektrums were garbage. Just that for a few bucks more you can get one of the S or R variants which add alot of good features.

the ko propo is supposed to be pretty good but i never was comfortable when i got to play around with one. the one i currently use is a futaba 3pm-x and its been great although the menus are a little clumsy

+1!!!!!

Had the same exact thing happen to me, I eventually upgraded to the futaba 4pl and it was a world of difference.

If your racing DO NOT get the fly sky, but if your bashing i guess your all right...but I still don't recommend it.

I just dont like spektrum because of the issues it has. Runaways b/c of low reciever voltage, and outdated frequency hopping systems. There's a reason why only the spektrums have problems when running near flysky's. I do agree the flysky latency issue is a little slow but not a hinderance with me. My friend reguarly tq's at our races no problems. I will however upgrade to a futaba 4pl or airtonics mt-4 in the near future. Most likely futaba b/c of backlit screen, cheaper and i don't have to have telemetry.

I have been looking at buying a new radio all summer. Ive been very patient with it, because I intend on keeping it for a long time. Ive had the Helios since its release (ordered it from my LHS when it was released) and have been happy until recently. I need 3 channel mixing (for 2 esc's) and the radio doesn't do that. I have no choice but to move on. I love the KoPropo radio's, but cant see buying the KIY for 550+ USD. There are sooo many options out there now, and cost to me is a factor. I will be getting the 4PL within the next month. It does everything I need to do and the price is right. As far as latency issues with the flysky radios. Im sorry, but you can overcome that stuff if you can drive. I drive peoples cars and trucks all the time, and I always put down better lap times than they do. Do they get mad, no, they just see there is potential and realize its not the car, but their own hesitations and mistakes.
btw, im not braggin, just been doing this long enough to know what I am talking about.

+1 I really need to save up for a 4pl. My flysky works great for racing. sure the reaction time could be better but i can't remember the last time i wasn't in the a-main with it. The latency is hardly an issue, almost all driver, you can easily adapt your driving to it. If the reaction time is.001 off of a higher end radio it's not that big of a deal.

The one i'm looking at is the ex5ur.

sorry I gotta :lol:.....posting about making or not making the A-main with a certain radio is just pointless. A-main drivers at one track could all very well be C or D main drivers at another track. It's just not a comment that holds water for me.

Carry on..;)

I agree i do very well locally, But when i went to dallas for the first time, wow, instantly sent to c main. It's amazing how much better the drivers are at really large races. Just trying to prove that the radio is a very small variable for racing. It's mainly all driver. I make my way around the latency issues and saying that when someone switched from a different radio and instantly got better is far from true. It could have been the way the wheel felt, or how springy the trigger was, or how the grip felt, but most likely it was all mental and the driver just became better due to experience.

I personally would not trust my expensive models to a cheap $35 transmitter. In fact I wouldn't put one in my beater cars. What good is a $8 RX if you have to buy in bulk because you know they fail ? Do yourself a favor and get a decent radio, it will really enhance your ability to tune your car to suit your driving style. A XRAY 1/8 buggy deserves a decent radio. Save a little more and look at something like this, especially if you may have more than one car:

http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...vers-No-Servos

That comes with 2 RX for 179....

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXZZD1&P=0

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXXRL8&P=0

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXXZJ4&P=0

All good radios, but if you are going to build another car down the road the KO is the best value.

Out of 12 receivers I have, only one failed after a year for no visible reason. Another did cause it was torn apart in a crash, which is not the receivers fault. All others are flawless.
I also think it's funny that you don't want to trust your models to a 35$ transmitter, when more models have been wrecked due to glitches with a 150$ Spektrum transmitter.

+1 spektrum runaways

The airtonix I'd an attractive setup too. Will most likely come off Ebay....

That's why I would never recommend Spektrum ... I use a 4PKS and my son uses a 3PKS. I have owned every high end Futaba 3ch radio since the 3PB in 1990 and have never had a TX or RX fail on me, in fact the 3PB still works flawlessly.

Futaba , KO, and Airtonics all have solid reputations.

http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile...9_955146_n.jpg
Steeeeve :D sorry had to do it.
But i agree futba makes a quality product and the best racer at our track uses his 4pk all the time. I really need to pick up a 4pl when i get the cash.

Frequency hopping? Are you sure because Futaba, Airtronics, KO all use frequency hopping but Spektrum doesn't, their DSM protocols lock onto a frequency.

Receiver low voltage isn't a problem only to Spektrum, it happens whenever you use an ESC with a weak BEC and stick on a mega powered overkill servo.

Don't know where you get your information but you need to fire your fact checker.

Bottom line is that the low end Spektrums are OK but not great. The DX3R is good and performs well all the time. I have never had any range or interference problems at any of the tracks I race at, indoor or outdoor, electric or nitro.

I also have a Futaba 3PKS and 4PL both are good but the 3PKS weighs too much, the 4PKS cost too much. The 4PL is about right but I use it only with my crawlers. At least the receivers are only $35-40 for the S-FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum).

not that i did have a issue but the radiopost was just a weird piece of equipement.....for me


the spektrum is so perfect in my hands

Ok. So i'm looking into the futaba 3pm, ko 3x5ur, airtronics mx3x. Will depend on which one I can find the best deal on....used of course.

here is the simple rule if its a manufacturer that has been making radio's for a while go for it you for sure don't want a spektrum because they get brown outs all the time and you have to add glitch busters to the system if you run a decent servo. Now as for radios I flew airplanes professionally for a while and used JR they are amazing and as for now i use Futaba and really love eveything about it. so go either Sanwa, JR or Futaba like the 3PL.

Spektrum brown out all the time? I don't think so.

Hey did you know that five or six years ago JR 2.4GHz radios and Spektrums all came out of the same factory. Yes, it's true they did and the biggest difference was the name label on them.

I'm not a fan boy of any radio but I have had very good service as does many of the racers I race with using Spektrum. Is the DX3R as adjustable as a 4PKS, no but then it is $150 less too. Does it have all the bells and whistles for 1/12, 1/10 and 1/8 racing, yes.

I have a question, why use a 400oz/in servo in a 2WD buggy when a good 100oz/in servo is more than adequate. Overkill is popular because of the attitude if a little is good than much much more has to be better, not true.

However, you are entitled to your opinions as I am. Remember that these are opinions and not fact. The bottom line is that you get the best performance from a radio that you are comfortable with.

The Spektrum brownouts even happen with standard servos like the savöx 1258 and the DS 1015, both which are not overkill in most trucks and buggies.

Avoid the Futaba 4pl, in 7-8 yrs of RC racing etc it's the only transmitter I have had that has literally fallen apart on me, and I am pretty careful with my gear. Spektrums have brown outs with powerful servos and the range isn't the best compared to other brands. I suggest the Airtronics radios.

I picked up a futaba 3pm off the for sale section so that's what i'mgoing with.

Savox regardless of torque pull a lot of amps.

Your that one guy that said the futaba was crap on the other thread. Everbody including the moderator disagreed with you. You're the only one who has had bad luck with it. You obviously got a dud because literally everything i've heard about this transmitter was positive. Everybody else DISREGARD THAT GUYS POST. The futaba is a top notch radio.

+1!!!!

The thread starter has asked for people's opinions and I have given him my opinion based on my experiences. Whether you agree or disagree is up to you but how is my opinion any more or less valid than yours or anyone elses?

What makes your opinion more important than mine?

My two cents...my Spektrum DX2E/SR300 combo is no good. Total waste of money

Your opinion is just as important as anyone elses. The thing is if an unbiased thread is saying a product is very good, then it most likely is. The fact that at least 20 people from all over the world agreed on a product being good is more reliable than just one person who had a bad experience. I can almost gaurantee that if you purchased another futaba radio, you would have a way better experience with it and be quite impressed.

The airtronics MX3 Sport is $99 and it a pretty good entry level radio. Or you can get a used MX3X for the low 100s. I personally like the Airtronics and futaba radios, never had issues with either, I would not own a spekrum. I own a Fly Sky with the .50 firmware and it is fine, some local guy reprogrammed it for $5.

What is wrong with spektrum radios.I've used them for years without any issues along with several others I race with.Never had any issues with range or interference.Really most any mondern radio will give you good service and most problems are user error.

No, most issues are caused by DSM not being error resilient. DSM2 is said to be better.

I got rid of my Spektrum dx3r pro cause it felt like it came from toys r us. Can you say fisher price?..

Get anything used from airtronics, KO or Futaba. I personally hate Futaba but that's a personal thing, they are still five million times better than any of the el-cheapo crapfest radios out there. I'd rather have an FM M8 than one of those things.

I'm not a fan of anything Spektrum either but they are better than most at that price. Still, I would go used with the three I mentioned above.