Best 4 in 1 for CX

[oscillator]

Ok, I was out today doing what your are supposed to do with your CX - stupid stuff that you are too scared to try with your bigger/more expensive heli. Trimmed some leaves off a tree about 20+ feet up and came crashing down onto the concrete.

Amazingly nothing mechanical broke (heli is so light it almost floats!). But the 4 in 1 won't initialize (get alternating red and green flash). I don't think it is the FET since I chopped the throttle before impact. My suspicion is the g shock killed the gyro. Time for a new 4 in 1.

So, do I just get the Efilte 4 in 1, or is the Vortex any better?

[carlo_the_wonder_frog]

Do your servos operate correctly? The flashing indicates what you said..it won't initialize. Basically it is looking for your transmitters low throttle , but can't see it, either the receiver portion is hosed or something came loose. Check your crystal and make sure its seated well, it may also be broken. Can you smell a strong burning smell? IF you can then it's probably time for a new 4 in 1 unless you are deft with a soldering iron.

[oscillator]

Yep, checked the crystal, made sure the throttle and trim were at low, etc. Nothing responds (servos or motor), tried a fresh battery too just to make sure the voltage was sufficient. My guess was the gyro had failed as it went in nose first on concrete. No burn smell and the throttle was closed before impact, so I don't think the FET is blown.

I went by the LHS for some other stuff and they were having a 20% off sale, so I decided to pick up a new 4 in 1. Got home, put it in and all was fine, for about 2 min. I was about 6 in off the ground in a hover (nose in, yea!) when one motor surged and the other motor stopped. The chopper landed on its skids and then just sat there. I could still move the servos, but no throttle. Shortly after the burn smell filled the air - so the FET is gone, but I didn't even hit anything! Arrrggghhh!

I'm going to call Horizon and see if they will swap it, otherwise I'll just get the FET from DigiKey and change it - no way I'm buying a 3rd 4 in 1!

[BladeCXMan]

I hate to be an idiot, but exactly what is a FET? Duh!

[rrlc]

I hate to be an idiot, but exactly what is a FET? Duh!

Field-effect transistor: A type of transistor that uses an induced electric field to control current.

[carlo_the_wonder_frog]

I flew my cx into a tree last winter and the blades got stuck in the branches, fried the 4 in 1 almost instantly. The esc is terribly sensitive to overcurrent.

[COOKIEULT70]

Does anyone know what "improvements" were made to the 4 in 1 in the CX2? Did they up the amp rating of the speed control portion of the unit?