I've been saying this for ages.
You can watch the screen on a test flight. I've not had any compass problems ever.Careful approach to cars, power lines etc do not register.Only hand held a few inches from a car, cable or concrete ever throw it.
Almost everything said about the compass is anecdotal.
If anyone sees their sensor go AWOL mid air we would have something to go on.That some distant welder or such can can infect the compass needs substantiating.
It would also make me grateful if I knew how 2 compasses fix what is not a problem for me, given that they are always subject to the same 'interference'.
No flyaway has ever satisfied me that it was just that. Even when a spark is replaced DJI do not say why.
I love the spark, and have no problems at all.  CS on WiFi is superb.
But then I haven't crashed it or flown it behind skyscrapers in high wind.

Bright Spark Posted at 2018-1-24 23:42
I've been saying this for ages.
You can watch the screen on a test flight. I've not had any compass problems ever.Careful approach to cars, power lines etc do not register.Only hand held a few inches from a car, cable or concrete ever throw it.
Almost everything said about the compass is anecdotal.

Good preparation and good envoirment will greatly help avoid problems.

Thank you. Hallmark007

Thank you for the tips.

Had to dig this thread back up to say that I was wrong. I guess the Spark IS smart enough to correct for declination.

Just returned from my trip to Japan, and did not have any problems with the compass. Was not asked to calibrate, and compass interference level was in the green at around 12 the times that I looked at it. Did not calibrate the compass and the Spark flew great!

Mine must've just had a poor initial calibration from the factory.

I travel around Europe quite a lot and my Spark accompanies me, however I hav ne’er had the need to calibrate the compass. The pte flight check given by Hallmark is what I do each time, always works for me.

Firehawk989 Posted at 2018-2-4 23:33
Had to dig this thread back up to say that I was wrong. I guess the Spark IS smart enough to correct for declination.

Just returned from my trip to Japan, and did not have any problems with the compass. Was not asked to calibrate, and compass interference level was in the green at around 12 the times that I looked at it. Did not calibrate the compass and the Spark flew great!

Good job, hope  you had a good trip , maybe wo will see some footage from Japan .

Spark Kam Posted at 2018-1-15 13:43
Again.....My remarks are not towards you. Everything you posted could be 100% correct. I don't know. I read your tips when you first posted them. I replied on your thread because DJI chose to highlight YOUR thread then submit contradicting information yesterday.
It seems you're offended with your "high horse" and "never bothered to read" comments.  Again....I have zero interest battling or debating with you about anything. I'm asking simple questions to DJI NOT you. Which is the proper procedure?
There are endless forums, facebook, groups, message boards, etc....relating to DJI products with self proclaimed experts giving their opinions about everything under the sun which is great.

Most of the "fly away" is human error, as happens with the flight accidents with real aircraft.

MaxBDS

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-2-5 02:27
Good job, hope  you had a good trip , maybe wo will see some footage from Japan .

Yep, definitely one of the best trips of my life!

Unfortunately I only got to use my Spark briefly on 3 different days; the rest were puking snow and/or cloudy/misty or a few were a combination of that and too windy.  The snow/clouds made for ridiculously good skiing, which was the main goal of the trip, but not so good for Spark flying.

Still, I do have a few clips to stick together, so I'll certainly post the footage when I get that done!

Sorry, you have overestimated the knowledge level of at least some of us. What is "AC" please?

djiuser_OwXhUOLtXxnY Posted at 2018-2-14 08:04
Sorry, you have overestimated the knowledge level of at least some of us. What is "AC" please?

Aircraft...

Totally agree, a great reminder! My favorite is #1

1/ Never calibrate Compass unless prompted to.

Thank u 4 sharing

Thanks a lot for sharing!

Would you recommend this before each flight session, or every battery change as well?  I have had many compass errors when I tried to take off from the hood of my car, as opposed to the grass.  I find after doing as you suggest here that everything goes back to normal states and the drone flies as expected.  

The Bash's Posted at 2018-3-8 21:26
Would you recommend this before each flight session, or every battery change as well?  I have had many compass errors when I tried to take off from the hood of my car, as opposed to the grass.  I find after doing as you suggest here that everything goes back to normal states and the drone flies as expected.

Top of the car is a real No No, if you are changing your battery then you are starting a new flight so yes same exercise.
Good luck...

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-3-9 02:12
Top of the car is a real No No, if you are changing your battery then you are starting a new flight so yes same exercise.
Good luck...

Is taking off from the top of the car a bad thing because of the compass or something else that I am missing?

The Bash's Posted at 2018-3-9 19:53
Is taking off from the top of the car a bad thing because of the compass or something else that I am missing?

Any metal objects will effect compass .

This forum is turning out to be a beam of light at the mouth of a long dark tunnel, thank you kindly for being here.

Juan Gonzalez Posted at 2018-3-13 10:20
This forum is turning out to be a beam of light at the mouth of a long dark tunnel, thank you kindly for being here.

Your welcome, hope it helps fly safe.

You missed the most important thing:: CHECK PROPS FOR DAMAGE

Bill-Fly Posted at 2018-3-28 03:32
You missed the most important thing:: CHECK PROPS FOR DAMAGE

Hey Bill as a commercial pilot I am required to do a full preflight check, this is separate to this check which is basically a launch check , I will leave a link below of my comprehensive preflight check list which should be done prior to launching, you might find it helpful.

https://forum.dji.com/forum.php? ... &fromuid=260008

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-1-25 07:07
Good preparation and good envoirment will greatly help avoid problems.

That would be true for commercial heavy lifters.... we speak almost toys here.
I want to go out, open the bag and be airborne in 2 minutes. No planning, spontaneous shots. These are usually the best ones.

thanks for the information man! good job!

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-3-28 05:39
That would be true for commercial heavy lifters.... we speak almost toys here.  
I want to go out, open the bag and be airborne in 2 minutes. No planning, spontaneous shots. These are usually the best ones.

The OP, was there for those who needed help in trying to avoid flyaways or crash , if you are not concerned about checking gps lock or whether you have a good compass and IMU , it’s your toy to do with as you wish.
Getting good shots can be spontaneous or they can be planned whether one is better than the other is subjective.
My reason to post opening post was to help others concerned as to why flyaways happen and how they can be prevented.
Regarding preflight checklist link I posted this was in answer to a question as to why I left out checking props.
Spark is probably one of dji’s aircraft that because of less redundancy might benefit from exercise I posted which probably takes less than 1 minute as soon as you get used to doing it,

I posted as I’ve said to help those concerned and anxious about flying.

Thanks, this is informative

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-3-28 05:39
That would be true for commercial heavy lifters.... we speak almost toys here.  
I want to go out, open the bag and be airborne in 2 minutes. No planning, spontaneous shots. These are usually the best ones.

Spontaneous is good.  Bring a long lens so you can get a good shot of the rear of the Spark disappearing into the distance as it "flies away".  Some shallow DOF and vignetting to really make the Spark pop from the background.

Aircraft have never been a jump in and go.  At least, not for long.  There are "jump in and go" pilots and there are "old" pilots.  There are no,....

Gunship9 Posted at 2018-3-28 14:29
Spontaneous is good.  Bring a long lens so you can get a good shot of the rear of the Spark disappearing into the distance as it "flies away".  Some shallow DOF and vignetting to really make the Spark pop from the background.

Aircraft have never been a jump in and go.  At least, not for long.  There are "jump in and go" pilots and there are "old" pilots.  There are no,....

Actually.... it's design flaw in Spark, having cheapest possible magnetometer on the market. Note it's MEMS device and the Spark one is the first one I've ever seen that can be disrupted by inertia, not only EM/ferro interference. Either that or sub par coding like not syncing gsp vs. magnetometer (compass) readings. Checking it or not, will make 0 difference on the outcome. If something is really wrong initially, app should throw an error, not that pilot should actively look at his crystal orb and predict what might happen.

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-3-29 01:53
Actually.... it's design flaw in Spark, having cheapest possible magnetometer on the market. Note it's MEMS device and the Spark one is the first one I've ever seen that can be disrupted by inertia, not only EM/ferro interference. Either that or sub par coding like not syncing gsp vs. magnetometer (compass) readings. Checking it or not, will make 0 difference on the outcome. If something is really wrong initially, app should throw an error, not that pilot should actively look at his crystal orb and predict what might happen.

I think it is a design flaw.  My RC helicopter and airplanes have none of that navigation equipment and have managed to safely fly for years.  But I don't open the bag and be airborne in two minutes with them.  I evaluate the flying environment for: safety, clear radio spectrum, and no structures to endanger the flight.  I also check over my aircraft and make sure it is ready to fly.

Most INS boxes I have worked on have been able to fail.  Half million dollar boxes happily showing the airplane flying backwards on nav screens.  Then the pilot is forced to work.  Sadly, sparks don't have pilots.  They have photographers who freeze when actual flight turns out to not be like a video game.  Photographers that will happily put the radio controlled aircraft at great risk to get the shot.  

Maybe that is the problem.  They expect the video game to operate exactly the same every time.  After all, flying drones looks to be just an app on the phone like any other video game.  Chasing pokemons.

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-3-29 01:53
Actually.... it's design flaw in Spark, having cheapest possible magnetometer on the market. Note it's MEMS device and the Spark one is the first one I've ever seen that can be disrupted by inertia, not only EM/ferro interference. Either that or sub par coding like not syncing gsp vs. magnetometer (compass) readings. Checking it or not, will make 0 difference on the outcome. If something is really wrong initially, app should throw an error, not that pilot should actively look at his crystal orb and predict what might happen.

So it’s a flaw with spark that it has the cheapest magnetometers , maybe dji’s cheapest drone should have the same magnetometers as the Matrice 210 , that would make sense NOT, what your saying is just clap trap, you said you could create this at anytime but we have yet to see you do it, and it’s fair to say we see very little of it happening around here anymore, surely if there was a fault because of magnetometers every spark would be dropping out of the sky. Or where the cheap magnetometers only reserved for some sparks, Ridiculous.....

anyone else notice the increased number of the interference alert showing after the update?

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-3-29 14:13
So it’s a flaw with spark that it has the cheapest magnetometers , maybe dji’s cheapest drone should have the same magnetometers as the Matrice 210 , that would make sense NOT, what your saying is just clap trap, you said you could create this at anytime but we have yet to see you do it, and it’s fair to say we see very little of it happening around here anymore, surely if there was a fault because of magnetometers every spark would be dropping out of the sky. Or where the cheap magnetometers only reserved for some sparks, Ridiculous.....

As a matter of fact, looks like M210 might actually have the very same magnetometer as Spark.... As the issues are the same... on pro grade gear... go figure.

SOUNDWAVE439 Posted at 2018-3-29 14:45
anyone else notice the increased number of the interference alert showing after the update?

Uhm... what update?

Realy good.

this is a realy good post.

eYeSkYeYe Posted at 2018-4-5 07:37
As a matter of fact, looks like M210 might actually have the very same magnetometer as Spark.... As the issues are the same... on pro grade gear... go figure.

Now I know you know nothing about anything.

Thanks so much!

I'm a noob and signal/compass issues and flyaways are my biggest fears!

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-4-5 12:01
Now I know you know nothing about anything.

Instead of ad hominem qualifications, in lack of real arguments, let's see some FACTS with PROOF:

1. More than 50% M200/M210 users participating in a survey DO have compass/gps issues with M200/M210 platform.
Proof: https://forum.dji.com/thread-136512-1-1.html

2. Issue is known for at least couple of months now and DJI is not able to deliver the fix either HW or SW. Proof: https://forum.dji.com/thread-132467-1-4.html

If you read topics carefully, you will soon realize symptoms are exactly the same as with Spark.
Compass error followed by GPS lock loss....

In my book, this is design flaw as it takes loooooooong time to fix and no fix on horizon yet.

Another interesting thing is that DJI is not selling naive and trivial interference story to the pros. It seems interference theory is only good for consumer/prosumer category.

agentasian Posted at 2018-4-6 00:36
Thanks so much!

I'm a noob and signal/compass issues and flyaways are my biggest fears!

Your welcome hope it helps.

thank you hallmark for the tip, will be following you advice.

Picanoc Jack Posted at 2018-4-28 23:02
thank you hallmark for the tip, will be following you advice.

Thank you, hope it helps.