I am starting to use my Phantom 4 and 3 Pro a little more now that the weather is getting better. I'm still green and get really nervois when I lose signal. I know I'm not more than a mile away but when my display goes blank it really bothers me. I dont want to go futher out because I dont want to get myself into a pickle. I know my units are capable of a lot further distance. Sometimes I'm only 10 feet away from the drone and it says week signal strenth and get poor reception. Is there anything I can do to make my reception better.
Thanks

Hey Franko, please refer the below video and try to adjust the antennas when you got poor reception. Regarding the display goes black, could you be more specific about this?

First there are many variables that can play a part here
Your antennas should be set vertical to the quad, so as not to be pointing at the quad.  Having the antenna point at the quad will either weaken or cause the loss of signal.
Next, loss of video does not mean loss of control, there are two different transceivers at work one is the video telemetry and the other is the RC control signals.  Meaning losing picture does not mean you cannot still control the bird to come home etc.
Next everything works on line of sight.  Any reasonable obstructions can cause loss of signal or signal degradation.  Even a stand of trees can be enough to cause signal problems, so you need to have a clear line between you and the bird.  Also, home or business wifis can be a real source of interference as well as some nearby antenna and cell towers, which means avoiding them or staying clear.
Many will give you advice about manually selecting and using 2.4 vs 5.8 gig frequency and then also manually choosing what channels to use.  While those are certainly options to use, it can be confusing and if you are not sure about what you are doing you could reduce your ability to communicate with your bird rather than improve it.  Therefore I'm not going to even try to explain that, others I'm sure will be more than happy to weigh in.
Lastly, you could try using range extenders.  They are parabolic panels that go behind your antenna that can better focus your signal (they do not strengthen or improve it beyond simply gathering more signal waves) and thus allowing you some strengthened signal for greater range.
Here is an example: https://www.amazon.com/TOZO-Para ... d+Extend+%5BGold%5D

Hope this helps...

OK I'll try that. I was pointing antennas towards the drone.
Thanks

HI greeny join the club

Go to a big wide open space, set your RTH to 20m higher than the highest point around you, trees, buildings etc, for when there is a signal disconnection make sure its set to RTH and not Hover or Landing and with a full battery, use auto take off (precisions if ya want), make sure the homepoint is recorded correctly on the map and then send the drone out 50m so you can easily see it and monitor it and cancel the rth if needs be, now comes the brave part, do this one of 2 ways, either turn off the controller or if that worries you some close the antennaes and shove in a jacket or the like or put it behind something to break the connection and see what happens, if the above has been double checked she should come back to you this will then give you more convidence knowing that she does what she is supposed to.

Make this part of your pre-flight check; always double check that its set to RTH on disconnect and not hover or landing, and always make sure the height is set to miss the highest point around you. Folks say that RTH is default, where this is mostly true, its not always, there was one version of the app where this was set to landing, so always double check just in case the app updated during the night or whenever......

Great information. Thank you. I do have it set to return to home and do have it set at about 200 feet high. I'm not worried about it coming back as it always does. My problem is I want to get out further than a mile. That's about when I encounter the loss of communication on both video and controls. I now realize that the way I have the antennas pointed is most likely my main reason however as Genghis9 mentioned I do have a lot of homes around me with wifi and the area where I want to fly the drone has a cell tower in between the control and the drone. My next day off is Monday. I'll try her again then but I am going to order the range extenders mentioned. For 15 bucks I don't have much to lose.
Thanks again for your help.

Went out the other evening and made sure I aimed the antennas correctly. Maybe got 200-300 feet further but not a huge improvement. Losing signal at around 4000 feet. I can get out to about 5000 feet but want to get out over twice that. This is pretty much the same for my P3P and P4..
I'll try a pair of these and report back.
https://www.amazon.com/TOZO-Para ... d+Extend+%5BGold%5D

Wide open space is key for range, i mean fields and fields and fi.. as far as the eye can see with nothing in view except for the horizon, a nice sunny, windless day too.

PS, The range will vary day by day even going to the exact same spot, atmospherics have a lot to do with it

Where are you located?  Are you in CE mode?  If so, your signal strength is compromised.  

To maximize distance, you want lots of open space around your view of the AC.  LOS is NOT good enough.  You also want to be in a rural area away from civilization.  A large flat open field with flat terrain for many miles is good.  The top of a hill is better.  A mountain top is even better.   The best scenario is a mountain top from which you fly down into a valley due to the favorable tilt of the AC leg antennas relative to your controller.  

What controller are you using?  The GL300A is the most powerful, followed by the GL300B.  The GL300C is the weakest controller.  

Try using a table or a tripod to keep your controller very still.  Then aim the controller as carefully as possible - like a sniper rifle - and aim just above the distant horizon.  Then fly your AC into the distance but at the dame time into the strength of the signal.  Start flying at about 50' height and gradually increase height at each sign of signal weakness.  Keep going.  

You must be aggressive.  Turning around at the first sign of weakness will never give you good range.  You want to be brave and push through the signal weakness.  Keep moving further and further out regardless of what is showing on your app.  Have confidence in RTH.  When your heart begins to pound very hard and your hands shake, that's okay.  It's normal.  Keep going.  Don't slow down, don't stop, and don't turn around.  Let RTH turn around for you.  

Always check the wind before you fly and plan your flight carefully relative to the wind.  Always start with a fully charged battery.  Know that your AC will begin auto-land at 10% and it can't be cancelled, but you can fight it with the left stick.  Be wary of the wind.  



Good luck.   

my max distance with my Phantom 3 SE is about 3500 meters in open field ... panic to go further lol of course in FCC , not possible do it in CE .

like Mark said .. aim the controller as carefully as possible - like a sniper rifle  

I'll have to check my settings but I'm hoping to get out a lot further than 5200 feet. Not worried about if returning. Yes I do get nervous however I do trust my RTH.

Not in a rural area but up high. Also the drone is high and line of sight, nothing in between but air!. There is a cell tower and power lines along the way but other than that just the normal residential area. I'd really like to think that I can get out over 2 miles. So would the ocean, line of sight be better? I know it amplifies radio transmission. Also I dont know what CE mode is or how to change it. Is that done in the settings tab on tablet?
Thanks

Mark The Droner Posted at 2018-4-4 03:23
Where are you located?  Are you in CE mode?  If so, your signal strength is compromised.  

To maximize distance, you want lots of open space around your view of the AC.  LOS is NOT good enough.  You also want to be in a rural area away from civilization.  A large flat open field with flat terrain for many miles is good.  The top of a hill is better.  A mountain top is even better.   The best scenario is a mountain top from which you fly down into a valley due to the favorable tilt of the AC leg antennas relative to your controller.  

What can I say? Wow!!! Taking it down to two percent battery shows  excellent calculations and no fear. Awesome!

WhiteLightnin' Posted at 2018-4-4 15:17
What can I say? Wow!!! Taking it down to two percent battery shows  excellent calculations and no fear. Awesome!

It certainly shows something........

Franko Posted at 2018-4-4 14:39
Not in a rural area but up high. Also the drone is high and line of sight, nothing in between but air!. There is a cell tower and power lines along the way but other than that just the normal residential area. I'd really like to think that I can get out over 2 miles. So would the ocean, line of sight be better? I know it amplifies radio transmission. Also I dont know what CE mode is or how to change it. Is that done in the settings tab on tablet?
Thanks

This is the same situation that many people report. 'Cell tower and transmission lines', neither of those have any effect on your range, yet oddly 90% of flyers think they do. 'but other than that just the normal residential area', there is the real culprit, all those houses with probably each one having a WiFi router in it, that the source of intereference.

Bashy Posted at 2018-4-4 20:19
It certainly shows something........

I believe the "something" is luck. Perhaps a 2mph head wind for one minute over the 9 miles flown could have resulted in a shutdown. I would never try such unless I had money to experiment. In any case,  it shows the strength of the drone and how well it can perform.

Geebax Posted at 2018-4-4 20:40
This is the same situation that many people report. 'Cell tower and transmission lines', neither of those have any effect on your range, yet oddly 90% of flyers think they do. 'but other than that just the normal residential area', there is the real culprit, all those houses with probably each one having a WiFi router in it, that the source of intereference.

re home wifi, is that not where the auto frequency comes in to its own, i mean, many use the default settings for the channels at home anyway, my router is either 2.4 or 5.0ghz so in effect only 2.4 would be a concern cause the 5ghz has the worst range anyway, its primary useage is to carry more transmissions, when i say worst i mean bad, the range from one room away drops massively and cannot get it in the garden. 2.4 on the other hand i can get in the garden just but having had an extender put in, its now at full strength in the garden, but not once has it interfered with my 2.4 RC whilst testing (i only ever use 2.4), i can also pick up about 5-10 neighbours wifi on my phone and still no interference.


Flying over a housing estate at say 50m -100m the signal from the 2.4 homes would be very low, for one, the signal normall has to go through 2 floors, ground floor ceiling, 1st floor ceiling and the roof, that right there is enough to send out any signal upwards from that property but having done a search on google, in the US, it says the wifi signal goes down  and out, UK BT says up, down, out. one is right, as to who?? so, lets go with the US seen as only (i know youre an aussie) you guys are allowed to fly over towns and cities, it says the wifi doesnt go up, just down and out, says to place the router high up. so if thats the case then the only issues for drones will be from highrises and the such and to fly near them is asking for trouble due to the winds etc adn not to mention just plain irresponsible.

Anyway, my point is, surely the sophisticated tech does exactly what we need it to do and thats find the best channel, and that is all down to how busy each channel is, back to my original statement, most housholds have their routers setup as default and therefore many are on the same channel anyway.


Anyhoo, it was 5:15am when i started, needed sommat to babble on about, i dont really have a clue whan im on about either, just sounded good in my head

Bashy Posted at 2018-4-5 20:46
re home wifi, is that not where the auto frequency comes in to its own, i mean, many use the default settings for the channels at home anyway, my router is either 2.4 or 5.0ghz so in effect only 2.4 would be a concern cause the 5ghz has the worst range anyway, its primary useage is to carry more transmissions, when i say worst i mean bad, the range from one room away drops massively and cannot get it in the garden. 2.4 on the other hand i can get in the garden just but having had an extender put in, its now at full strength in the garden, but not once has it interfered with my 2.4 RC whilst testing (i only ever use 2.4), i can also pick up about 5-10 neighbours wifi on my phone and still no interference.

Normally the antenna on a WiFi router is a small whip, not unlike the one on the Phantom RC unit, and as such, if you imagine a donut (large) placed over the whip, that is how it radiates. So the transmission pattern is no different to that of the RC unit really.  Home routers are a worse problem in some respects because they are what is called 'frequency agile', meaning they can change frequency to find and use a clear channel, just like the Phantom. So if you have a number of devices in your household connected to your network, then each one will normally be on a different frequency. And the Phantom may not be able to find a clear channel to use as a result. Radiating out through the walls or upwards is no problem for a WiFi signal, but as you say, the range is not that great. However it does not have to be.

If you are at one end of a football field for example, and your aircraft is at the other end, the aircraft may be much closer to someone's WiFi at that end than it is to your RC unit, therefore it is receiving a stronger signal from the WiFi than it is from you. The same applies in the opposite direction, your RC may have difficulty get reception because of WiFi Routers at that end of the field.

The worst environment though are industrial WiFi systems, the type they install in large office blocks, shopping centres or particularly, schools. Always regard a school as a possible danger area, because if the campus is spread out, they will use higher power transmitters to cover it.

Then there are the thousand and one other devices out there that also use the same frequencies, but that is another story for another time.

Thats interesting, if the ac was at the other end of the field and there was interference from a router, wouldnt it just search the channels and find a clearer one an switch though.

Are you 100% sure that the different devices in the household are on different frequencies? i thought it was one frequency for all devices and that is dependent on the channel the router chooses, what would make a it harder for the AC is the channel hopping the routers partake in if they are set to auto, most are.

It would be interesting to see a WFI usage map from say 100m high in a town, just to see how strong the interference is, but if the signal is down and out, being up in the air surely diminishes the signal even further and perhaps to the point of being negligible, most new routers nowadays are good for 150ft indoors i believe? thats on the 2.4, and thats LOS, i have an (n) router and thats about 150ft indoors, i have a small bungalow and there are 2 walls blocking it to the outside, standing at my backdoor i get 1 signal bar and lose it totally at the end of the garden, 70ft long. Now, as the signal does not go up, then at 50m high, theres no way i would pick up my router would i? thats a question, not rhetorical Also you say it radiates through the walls, a wall is one of the worst things for a wifi, it weakens it 4 fold, but you also said it radiates upwards, how does that work if the signal is down and out? sorry, just trying to get my head around it.

I have seen so many videos on YT where theyve done distance tests over towns/cities with not one ill effect, when i say over, i mean they started out in the sticks and flew over the town/city. with that in mind, i think we are talking about different scenarios,  when you are setting off from within the town/city and  because the controller is so close to the wifi sources, not the actually aircraft itself, it can become a big problem, i think thats your scenario, me,  my scenrio has been about starting out in the open and then flying over the settlement,  it makes more sense now