Spektrum DX3r and Sr3000 receiver problems

[Heath M]

Hey Guys,
Today i tried out my new DX3R wheel set in my Whiplash and used a brand new SR3000 receiver, after upgrading from FM due to Glitching Problems and it didn't perform to good at first
I followed the manual to the letter in regards to setting it up and binding the 2 together,did a bench test range check and itworked flawlessly,that is until the boat touched the water..I manged to get half way round the first turn (about 30m from where i was standing on a trailer on a hill ) before it stopped dead DNF for the first race...
After rescuing the boat and inspecting under the hatch i came to the conclusion the my receiver pack must be low ow power as it has not been used for about a month,so i got it on the charger while other heats were being raced...
Race 2 for the Whip,now i'm all excited as its the 3 Whips in our club up against each other for the first time BRING IT ON Needles to say i didn't bring it on However the boat did manage to complete a lap before stopping Another DNF
Now by this point all i'm wanting to do is the boat into pieces, but then i had a brain wave,i'll try the 3100 receiver that came with the transmitter as that has been working problem free in another boat.
Race 3 and i'm all set to go again this time with new receiver in boat and wouldn't ya know not a single problem,i blew past an HM sport20 like it wasn't even there,i was getting excited that the boat was finally doing laps of our course
that i misjudged the top turn in lap 4 and ran right over the top of bouy 6 to dislodge the receiver pack and stop the boat dead , but hey i fixed the problem
Anyways one of the other club members offered to test the SR3000 for me with his DX3 transmitter and didn't get a single Glitch.
So has anyone here had the same problem and know of a way to fix it other than to buy all new receivers??

Heath

[Raydee]

Heath you are not th first person to experience problems with Spektrum and water. I will dig up some posts on other boards where Spektrum has even said NOT to use it on the water because the water reflection causes major range issues.

With that said I have been running Spektrum receivers since the day they were released and besides the very first run that had a problem with the antenna exiting the case wrong and causing them to go into failsafe I have not had a single issue in over 10 or so boats, and at least that many cars. Heck in my Whiplash hull the antenna is even buried under the cowl and I have no problems. I do use a Futaba 3PK with the Spektrum Module so I don't know if that is the reason why I never had a problem or not?
I know I was told a few tips that I follow whenever possible using the Spektrum receivers like not to be level with the water, try and run elevated above the water level. But I have stood right in the water and not had a lockout. Also they say to keep the receiver as far away from the motor and ESC as possible (I do that on all my boats anyway). I have to admit with every boat I build I am worried that this is going to be the hull that gives me problems but so far Spektrum hasn't let me down once.

[Jeepers]

A couple of guys I know use the DX3R in cars and they had problems using the older receivers with the new transmitter as well.

I dont know if its the same problem, these guys dont run boats at all.

[johnnyoverkill]

We have had a slight bit of a glithing issue in our boats too. All of our boats run Spektrum DX3.0 and 3000 receivers.

In the older sport brushed units, it turned out to be an issue with the Astro 212D ESCs, and SS1 brush noise. We moved the ESC in front of the motor to gain a little more distance to the RX and it has all but stopped. In the newer boats we've needed to laminate the CF a little bit better. Nothing like building in a short to kill your range! All of our newer boats are running Hackers and Etti controllers on NiMh and have no issues. I hope this helps.

[Jedi Master]

Hi, I run a DX3R system in all of my boats and cars. My main 'toy' is a Toysport Triton and this runs 60mph so needs quite a bit of range. Although I was told other wise, I run the aerial into an external antenna tube as you would with any non-Spektrum radio. I've never had a single glitch and the range will take it as far as I can 'usably' see it.

I've run is all sorts of conditions at a lake with other RC models running and also a host of 1:1 size ski boats too, and never had an issue.

My LHS has advised me though, that to use it with older spektrum receivers may cause problems, and this has been confirmed by friend who race 1/8 scale nitro buggies. I only run mine with the 3100's and was lucky enough to buy these for all of my models after only recently getting back to the hobby. Someone did say that the technology from DX2 to DX3 is different, but as I've not had the need to look into it, I couldn't confirm this.

I'd say check the Spektrum website and e-mail them if you need to.

Hope that helps some!!!

[Fluid]

There seem to be several misconceptions here. First, RF noise from the motor and ESC do not interfere with 2.4 gig radios....although it is always prudent to keep the receiver away from them. Second, the antenna must be mounted external to the hull, with at least 4" protruding above the deck - I run mine in regular antenna tubes cut short. Third, while the oldest Spectrum modules - sold during the first 6 months of manufacture - may cause more problems on water, later versions have not shown this. Fourth, while "someone" at Spektrum has reportedly stated that 2.4 radios don't work on water, other makers of 2.4 radios disagree, notably Futaba and Nomadio. Fifth, the single biggest problem with the 2.4 technology - no matter whose it is - is the absolute requirement to have adequate battery power. This means a minimum of 6 volts (5-cell packs) and adequate capacity (at least 500 mAh, 1200 mAh is even better).

The only problem I have had with my Spektrums over the past two years - Pro versions or not - has been low receiver pack voltage causing the boat to go into fail safe twice. These were my fault for using a very old pack, and not making sure one was fully charged. I have raced on 1/6th mile ovals with myultiple gas and FE boats, run far away from the course, etc. and have had no range issues.

It is true that a number of racers have seen problems iwth 2.4 technology, but in all the cases I've investigated, the receiver pack was only 4 cells, the antenna was kept inside the hull, or the racer had "improved" the coaxal antenna by soldering on an extension because he'd heard "that was the thing to do". BTW, it is NOT.

Six members of our FE club run Spektrum radios, and as long as they keep the receiver packs charged, they have no problems racing.



.

[johnnyoverkill]

Jay, thanks!

It is always best to review our own things first! You pointed out some flaws in the ABC's of boating that I overlooked! First, the radios and receivers that we run are first and second gen. We are also running BEC for sport in the brushed units. After all these years I should have known better and yet I didn't give it a second thought. On my LSH, it does have a TX pack but I just stabbed it with a meter and it does appear to be at the end of it's cycle. That is about to be swapped out, and is those on BEC will now run TX packs. All of our antennas are external through cut down tubes. Also no wiring on or near the CF! Back to the bench!

Thanks aagain for your always valued input!

[Jedi Master]

FLUID: I agree with all of that, and my set-ups conform to all of the points you mentioned, which is probably why I have no problems. I also use a 6v 2400mah 'buggy pack' to power the receiver and I also have an LED indicator mounted on the inside to let me know if the voltage is low.

I hope people won't be put off by the stories they've heard. I'd never be without Spektrum radio gear in my models.

[Heath M]

Thanks for the replies guys
Just to add to my 1st post the antenna was as far out of the boat as possible in a vertical position..
The only problem i had was using the newer transmitter withe the older receivers,when i changed to the new receiver the problems stopped.. It says on Spektrums site that the new transmitter is compatible with the older receivers but that doesn't seem to be the case.I have emailed them about the problem so hopefully i'll get a reply in a day or so..

Heath

[Heath M]

A couple of guys I know use the DX3R in cars and they had problems using the older receivers with the new transmitter as well.

I dont know if its the same problem, these guys dont run boats at all.

Thats the exact problem i had.
Do you know if they found a way to fix it??

Heath

[johnnyoverkill]

Matt there's no doubt that we will never go back to AM or FM. It has been a great reward switching over to the Spektrums. The few troubles, very few, could have been avoided with good RX packs, as Jay pointed out. Needless to say, we are back in the water trouble free again with both old and new receivers.

Thanks to everyone who through up a post!

[wamf]

I use the spektrum in 3 different boats with the antenna on the inside of the boat. I like the clean look. Never had a problem with glitching and the range is beyond my vision. I'm using the rx's that come with the DX3.
MikeV

[Jeepers]

Thats the exact problem i had.
Do you know if they found a way to fix it??

Heath

As far as I know they have not found a solution.

But that being said I had slight glitching with my DX 3.0 today at the races but re binding them solved the problem.

Though I did see TWO runaways today on FM systems an LSH, hull is a total loss, hit a tree on shore and an N-2 sport hydro no damage hit the very soft bank.

[Bigmax]

The DX2.0 & DX3.0 are DSM and the DX3R is DSM2... different technologies. Likewise, the SR3000, SR3001, & SR3500 are DSM receivers and the SR3100 is DSM2.

Don't know what the exact differences are but I do know on the air side of things they don't recommend using the DSM radios in anything other than a park flyer due to the range.

Who is running a DSM TX/RX without any problems? I'm waiting on a BL motor and then I plan on using an SR3500 receiver with a Losi DSM transmitter in my Mini Rio and hoping that I'm not going to have any issues...

[Heath M]

This quote is straight out of the DX3R user manual

Receiver Compatibility
The DX3R features DSM2 technology but is also
compatible with most DSM1 Spektrum surface
receivers. When the fastest response rate is desired,
using the system with a DSM2 receiver like the
AR3100 is recommended as this combination gives
the lowest possible latency/ quickest response rate.
During the binding process the transmitter actually
“learns” the receiver type (DSM1 or DSM2) and
configures itself to transmit that protocol.
Compatible Spektrum Receivers
DSM2
SR3100- 3-channel DSM2 Pro- SPMSR3100
DSM1
SR3000- 3-channel Standard- SPM1200
SR3001- 3-channel Pro-Model- SPM1205
SR3500- 3-channel Micro Race- SPM1210

The SR3000 is the one i was using that had the glitching problems

Heath

[rcflyer55]

I don't have experience with boats but I know in our 35%-40% Planes there were problems when the RX batts were not big enough. Most everyone I know is using 5 cell or A123 packs. The 2.4 Rx's seem to need the higher voltage like Fluid said.

[Doozie870]

No problems with my sr3000's using 4 energizer 1.5v lithium batts

[Heath M]

I don't have experience with boats but I know in our 35%-40% Planes there were problems when the RX batts were not big enough. Most everyone I know is using 5 cell or A123 packs. The 2.4 Rx's seem to need the higher voltage like Fluid said.

I was using 5cell 1400 ib packs, do you think a high mah and maybe 6cells would work??

No problems with my sr3000's using 4 energizer 1.5v lithium batts

Is that using the new DX3R transmitter..
If so can you tell me what your exact setup is please

Thanks

Heath

[Doozie870]

oops wrong transmitter dx3.0

[Heath M]

My reply from horizon hobbies

Thank you for your recent email. The Spektrum system is not recommended for any water application. The surface of the water is reflective and could cause problems with the signal from the transmitter to the receiver. I hope this helps

Heath