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Why is the Mavic Air so loud?
13209 15 2018-1-27
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Oracle Miata
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I ordered mine and am really looking forward to this new bird and it’s skill set.  I’ve made my peace with battery life and WiFi.  This bird has the new ESC’s and fixed props but man is it loud.  Louder then the MP, MPP, and the Spark...  I was really hoping for a MPP’s sound footprint.  What are your thoughts?






2018-1-27
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A CW
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It doesn't have the new winglet 8331 props but does have the new FOC ESC's so my guess is that it would be louder than the Mavic Pro Platinum with the old 8330 props on the MPP. Having smaller motors too will probably cause more of a high pitched frequency like the Spark. I would think the Air is slightly quieter than the Spark, as loud as the original Mavic (or very slightly louder) and noticeably louder than the Mavic Pro Platinum with it's 8331 props in use. You know whats coming next right - the Mavic Air 8331's - I'll put money on it LOL
2018-1-27
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DroneFlying
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I'd guess that it's mainly due to smaller props. Less surface area means less lift, and with a comparable weight (the Air is only about 20% lighter than the Pro) and smaller propellers they have to spin faster to compensate, which in turn creates more noise. A similar situation exists when you fly the Pro with the propeller cage: it has to carry more weight using (slightly) smaller propellers, and the result is significantly louder flight.
2018-1-27
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Wachtberger
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DroneFlying Posted at 2018-1-27 07:32
I'd guess that it's mainly due to smaller props. Less surface area means less lift, and with a comparable weight (the Air is only about 20% lighter than the Pro) and smaller propellers they have to spin faster to compensate, which in turn creates more noise. A similar situation exists when you fly the Pro with the propeller cage: it has to carry more weight using (slightly) smaller propellers, and the result is significantly louder flight.

Thank you, that sounds very plausible and after all the difference is not that dramatic. I see an advantage too. From all videos it looks as if the Air has only two smal LEDs in front and one in the back, nothing on the bottom like Spark. Thus in difficult light situations the sound will help locating it in the sky I believe.
2018-1-27
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hallmark007
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DroneFlying Posted at 2018-1-27 07:32
I'd guess that it's mainly due to smaller props. Less surface area means less lift, and with a comparable weight (the Air is only about 20% lighter than the Pro) and smaller propellers they have to spin faster to compensate, which in turn creates more noise. A similar situation exists when you fly the Pro with the propeller cage: it has to carry more weight using (slightly) smaller propellers, and the result is significantly louder flight.

I think difference in weight is much greater than 20% Mavic approx 740 grams MavAir approx 430 grams.
2018-1-27
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A CW
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hallmark007 Posted at 2018-1-27 09:22
I think difference in weight is much greater than 20% Mavic approx 740 grams MavAir approx 430 grams.

Yeah, it's 42% lighter than the 734g Mavic with the gimbal cover removed.
2018-1-27
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DroneFlying
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hallmark007 Posted at 2018-1-27 09:22
I think difference in weight is much greater than 20% Mavic approx 740 grams MavAir approx 430 grams.

You're right about my weight percentage being off, but I do believe the propeller size is the main factor in the higher noise level.
2018-1-27
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hallmark007
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DroneFlying Posted at 2018-1-27 09:55
You're right about my weight percentage being off, but I do believe the propeller size is the main factor in the higher noise level.

Yes I think you could be right, maybe we will see further developments in props as they have done with new Mavic props to make all drones a little quieter.

I think most of the general public think all drones are noisy and the slight difference in the noise of MPP would not register with them, maybe ear muffs for the pilots will help ignore the difference in decibels. Lol...
2018-1-27
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Lucas775
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It has the same FOC esc as the Platinum, but assume with the smaller props that makes it noisier.
2018-1-27
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A CW
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Smaller props without winglet tips and smaller motors definitely adds to the noise.
2018-1-27
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fans6379104e
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Doesn't make much sense why they wouldn't use the new lower noise propellers, its not like its a huge cost saver.

High noise drones is not good publicity for DJI or drones in general
2018-1-27
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A CW
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fans6379104e Posted at 2018-1-27 11:09
Doesn't make much sense why they wouldn't use the new lower noise propellers, its not like its a huge cost saver.

High noise drones is not good publicity for DJI or drones in general

Have you ever heard a P4P or Inspire 2 - thats loud! Some people want noise to assist with VLOS navigation. It's always good to present options to your customers. Personally, I prefer 'quieter the better' as I fly in areas where there are dog walkers etc around that I don't want to disturb so they don't disturb me LOL but there have been times when I've flown in low light conditions in more remote areas whereby having a louder drone than my MPP would have been more beneficial. As I said in post 2, I'm sure winglet props on the Air and may be even the Spark will come along soon enough. Also, the mini size drone class (Spark, Mavic Air) are very innocuous to passers-by due to their size so even if they see the drone most will probably misperceive it as a toy and walk on - unlike the larger drones which require far more preflight planning.
2018-1-27
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fans079c1359
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I would like to chime in on this. Last Friday, I went to Munich to see the DJI MAVIC AIR presentation held by German Dealer Globe Flight. I was very impressed with the mavic air and decided to buy one on the spot.

I have a hearing problem and a long standing strong Tinnitus (inner ear damage resulting in a constant ringing of the ears). During the presentation, the noise of the Mavic Air seemed to me tolerable ...much more high pitched than a "normal" drone but not really offensive.
In the night from Friday to Saturday I had a massive attack of Tinnitus during the morning hours. The high (10 khz) noise in my ears was practically doubled in strength and since you cannot turn it off it becomes quite unbearable. I can only put this to the noise of the Mavic Air during the presentation, they flew the machine indoors in  a studio and  an "flight cage" enclosure .  I tried flying it myself and of course I got pretty close to it.The tinnitus  subsided a bit since but it's still stronger than "normal".

Warned by this, I have unboxed and flight tested my Mavic  very carefully using ear plugs, and even with them, I still get problems with the tinnitus. I suppose there is a mixture of extremely high frequency hissing noises coming primarily from the blade tips. I ran the machine with the props off and the motors don't make a lot of noise themselves, it's all from the props. They go over a part of the drones body while rotating and this too might create some high frequency noise. Plus the resonance when 4 props are rotating with varying speeds very close to each other.  I never had any problems with the other, bigger  drones I have, and I have flown them for years. If anyone has the equipment to do a kind of spectral analysis of the noise, it would be interesting. I believe there are a lot of ultrasounds there.
So here is my warning :Use earplugs when flying indoors or next to you in an outdoor situation. The resonance from the walls of a room might lead to peaks of noise far beyond the 100 dB that are dangerous for the ears. And be especially careful if you already have a hearing problem of any kind.  
The Mavic Air is a dream machine , and I would greatly regret not to be able to use it because of the noise.

2018-2-14
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xfirf_
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fans079c1359 Posted at 2018-2-14 06:15
I would like to chime in on this. Last Friday, I went to Munich to see the DJI MAVIC AIR presentation held by German Dealer Globe Flight. I was very impressed with the mavic air and decided to buy one on the spot.

I have a hearing problem and a long standing strong Tinnitus (inner ear damage resulting in a constant ringing of the ears). During the presentation, the noise of the Mavic Air seemed to me tolerable ...much more high pitched than a "normal" drone but not really offensive.

I´m having a Tinnitus too.
Hopefully this will not occour to me. :-|
2018-2-14
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AIister
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i have tinnitus and am very happy with how quiet the air is.  i also have a p3p so i know what loud can be.

luckily like many people my tinnitus isn't caused by the actual ear itself.  the only noise that makes my ears ring worse was the last metallica concert!  
2018-2-14
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LoSBoL
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AIister Posted at 2018-2-14 07:38
i have tinnitus and am very happy with how quiet the air is.  i also have a p3p so i know what loud can be.

luckily like many people my tinnitus isn't caused by the actual ear itself.  the only noise that makes my ears ring worse was the last metallica concert!

I wished Tinnitus was caused by the ear itself. Because if it was, something could be done about it...

Still consider myself Lucky though, there are enough horrorstories around in which it being so loud it will ruin your life.
2018-2-14
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