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Taming "Sport" mode in the P4 Series
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Cetacean
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Flight distance : 2528264 ft
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Aloha,
  
  
    Taming "Sport" mode in the P4 Series is not as difficult as some might believe.  Personally, I do not do well with racers because I smell the roses whether I want to or not.  Combine that with touchy controller sticks and it is crash city.  But, even racers have programming functions for their drone controllers.  In our Phantoms this function is in General Settings, in the Aircraft (Top Left), then in the Advanced Settings options down at the bottom.  Then look for "EXP" (at or near the top).  The term is actually Expo as in Exponential.  It is the graph with the "S" curve on it that you can change.
  
  
     The default mode is "Normal", but if you flip the "Sport" mode switch to Sport mode, the EXP graphs will change.  (If it does not change to Sport mode, touch "Restore Defaults" and it should then work.)  The lowest (most curved) setting appears to be 20 (on P4 last try) and a straight line is 50.  My P4 Pro went down to 10 though.  I have the Yaw stick (middle) set at 20 so the Yaw is seriously dampened.  The right stick is set at 30 but after a recent flight, I am thinking about putting it at 20 also or maybe 25.  Obviously, I am still working on this so feel free to contribute any thoughts you may have.
  
  
     Sport mode can get very squirrelly.  Reducing the sensitivity of stick angles with the EXP, exponential option, really helps avoid unintended side movements that can really take the P4, P4 Advanced and P4 Pro off the intended course very fast.  This squirrelliness can easily lead to crashes.  Still there are times we want to fly fast and using the EXP graph really improves flight safety.
  
  
     Along with the "Narrow Sensing" used in Tripod, these Expo settings can really help with your film making.  Even in the "Normal" mode, they can really help you steady the shot you want.  And if you should try racing drones, look for the "EXPO" programming so you can survive long enough to learn how to fly them!  Many Phantom Fliers are unaware of these two very beneficial options.
  
  
     Hope this helps!
  
  
Aloha and Drone On!

2017-4-19
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FLIDAHO
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Flight distance : 2010249 ft
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Thanks for that tip!
2017-8-6
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James Whenman
Second Officer
Flight distance : 426375 ft
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I downloaded the DRL simulator onto my desktop machine. It has all those same adjustments. I am still working on finding my sweet spot of settings but I already see how they can be used on my P4P+.
Sport mode is very twitchy and something that will take me a lot of practice to be comfortable with.
2017-9-20
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Cetacean
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James Whenman Posted at 2017-9-20 05:58
I downloaded the DRL simulator onto my desktop machine. It has all those same adjustments. I am still working on finding my sweet spot of settings but I already see how they can be used on my P4P+.
Sport mode is very twitchy and something that will take me a lot of practice to be comfortable with.

Aloha James,

     Very true!  But the twitchiness of Sport mode can be tamed with the EXPO graphs.  Once you have set the "Normal" mode in EXPO, flip the switch in the upper left above the tilt wheel to "Sport" mode and you will see the graphs go back to straight lines.  Now, apply what you learned from the Normal setting of the EXPO to the Sport EXPO graphs.  In my case, I doubled the settings just to get a handle on that twitchiness.  Now they fly straight but fast!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-9-20
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DNR 1
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Flight distance : 1689478 ft
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Just curious.
When do you fly in Sports mode, just for fun or actual racing?

I just got the P4A, so I'm still getting comfortable with plain old P mode for now.

In my P3P, when my SD card would fill up and I had battery left to burn, I'd just focus on flying and seeing what it could do. But at $1,200, I'm still very much on the cautious side right now. I'm sure that will change once I get more comfortable with the P4.
2017-12-3
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Cetacean
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DNR 1 Posted at 2017-12-3 02:07
Just curious.
When do you fly in Sports mode, just for fun or actual racing?

Aloha DNR,

      Where I live and fly is at the bottom of the cliff faces of the Ko'olau Range here on Oahu (NE side of the island).  I live pretty much in the middle of the range in the jungle.  The cliffs are called Pali.  It is a mile to get to the cliff faces and 1640 feet up the mountain to get to the scenic structures.  The mouintains top 2000 feet.  That is a lot of ground to cover.

     The first times I tried Sport Mode, it was squirrely as all get-out.  When I realized I could use the EXPO feature to tame Sport Mode, the Sport Mode became an option for covering distances quickly.  

     One time, I was way up in the cliffs and I was looking intently at the cliff faces when I realized it had started raining, not sprinkling, raining!  Yikes!  I had to get home fast.  The P4 Series bodies are made to be water resistant, although they do not mention that much these days due to liability.  So, I was able to blaze down from a mile away at 1640 feet to my home point at 45 mph or faster (I was going downward after all).  It was still raining when I got to my landing area (back yard) and I did a hand catch to save time.  Then I brought it under the rain tarp.  It was real nice to have Sport Mode for that exercise.

     So, there are many iuses for Sport Mode, but they do not have to be racing.  Knowing how to use EXPO is very useful in taming that squirrely form of flying.

     Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-12-3
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DNR 1
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That's great story!

I'm all for knowing how to get out of location due to a sudden change of weather.

So, your suggested settings are Yaw @ 20 and Right Stick 20-25.

Did you find that to be the optimal dampening effect?

Mahalo nui loa!
2017-12-3
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Cetacean
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DNR 1 Posted at 2017-12-3 21:38
That's great story!

I'm all for knowing how to get out of location due to a sudden change of weather.

Aloha DNR,

      Wow, is that what come of that effect?  For me that seemed to be a much larger to effect.  Oh, well.

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-12-4
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