Brushless Gimbals and the 550 what do you recommend.
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photobobga
Member
It all depends on the camera. if you are going to use just the GoPro the Beholder gimbal was an easy build and works without issues for me.
http://www.cnchelicopter.com/servlet/the-2600/Beholder-GoPro-Brushless-Gimbal/Detail
http://www.cnchelicopter.com/servlet/the-2600/Beholder-GoPro-Brushless-Gimbal/Detail
CrashMaster
Member
I think that there are so many on the market now the choice is daunting. Also the prices are beginning to fall now that there are so many. I use the Aeroxcraft brushless gimbal - http://www.aeroxcraft.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4_25&products_id=41
It is rock solid and does what it says on the box. I chose it really because it is based in the UK and I already had another gimbal from the same people. Rob, the owner of AeroXcraft is also on the forums jumping in and helping out when someone raises a problem. Something I doubt you will get from a cheap Chinese supplier.
It is rock solid and does what it says on the box. I chose it really because it is based in the UK and I already had another gimbal from the same people. Rob, the owner of AeroXcraft is also on the forums jumping in and helping out when someone raises a problem. Something I doubt you will get from a cheap Chinese supplier.
My experience of the Aeroxcraft gimbal is somewhat different to CrashMaster's. It worked well so long as it wasn't too windy but in fast forward flight it isn't too clever as there is precious little torque in the motors and with any amount of wind resistance created by the video cable (and I tried loads and in various ways to keep it tucked out of the wind) the gimbal would glitch and reset far too frequently. When I contacted Areoxcraft about the cable issue then pretty much said "yeah it does that, but we're developing a suitable cable" and that was that. If it's not windy and you're not fly too fast then it can produce some nice results, but I just hate having to fly around the limitations of my kit and I found I was having to edit a lot of my footage too.
I eventually bit the bullet and went and bought the DJI Zenmuse H3-2D and it's like night and day. It never glitches or resets and stays rock solid even during fast forward flight. It's twice the money but then it's twice the gimbal. You get what you pay for between these two gimbals, no doubt about it. For a GoPro you're going to be pressed to find a better performing gimbal than the Zenmuse but since most of the alternatives are based on an Arduino/Martinez controller board (like the Aeroxcraft) they are mostly going be roughly the same and you will need to do a heck of a lot of tuning to get it working right. The Zenmuse works out of the box, no tuning, no messing about. What you spend in money you easily make back in saved time.
I eventually bit the bullet and went and bought the DJI Zenmuse H3-2D and it's like night and day. It never glitches or resets and stays rock solid even during fast forward flight. It's twice the money but then it's twice the gimbal. You get what you pay for between these two gimbals, no doubt about it. For a GoPro you're going to be pressed to find a better performing gimbal than the Zenmuse but since most of the alternatives are based on an Arduino/Martinez controller board (like the Aeroxcraft) they are mostly going be roughly the same and you will need to do a heck of a lot of tuning to get it working right. The Zenmuse works out of the box, no tuning, no messing about. What you spend in money you easily make back in saved time.
CrashMaster
Member
Rainman, I had that same problem to start but then realised it was the cables causing the problem so taped them to the gimbal arms and no more problems...
However, I too would like a Zenmuse H3-2D. As I also have a WKM and iOSD already it would just be plug and play. If the AeroxCraft one gives up I may save my pennies and do as you have done.
However, I too would like a Zenmuse H3-2D. As I also have a WKM and iOSD already it would just be plug and play. If the AeroxCraft one gives up I may save my pennies and do as you have done.
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Interesting thoughts guys, initially I was after the zenmuse, but after looking around and taking into account the massive the price difference (in aus the zenmuse is close to $800 vs a hobbyking Tarot or similar for $150). You can understand why i'm looking around.
I'm tempted to try a Hawkeye from my local hobby shop thats going for $199 Aus. Would you still say the zenmuse is worth 4x that amount?
Also am I right or wrong in guessing that the because the zenmuse plugs into the naza it should therefore 'know' what the hexa's next move is going to be, vs a sensor that simply reacts to change of movement?
I'm tempted to try a Hawkeye from my local hobby shop thats going for $199 Aus. Would you still say the zenmuse is worth 4x that amount?
Also am I right or wrong in guessing that the because the zenmuse plugs into the naza it should therefore 'know' what the hexa's next move is going to be, vs a sensor that simply reacts to change of movement?
econfly
Member
I think that's correct (the H3-2D is pulling pitch/roll information from the NAZA). Whether that necessarily is better is hard to say, but I have an H3-2D and it does work really well. I've also tried the Aeroxcraft (had it on a Phantom that I parted with) and it worked well for me also. The benefit of the H3-2D is the elegant design combined with nice integration with the DJI controller.
My evolving view is that these Alexmos / Martinez gimbals really are just the sum of their parts:
- Controller and the software to adjust the PID, motor power, control interface with RC for pitch, etc. The key here is you like the controller, can understand the software to adjust it, and it does what you want. The newer 3-axis gimbals are pretty neat with follow-me enabled for yaw, for example. So far I've just tried this out with an Alexmos controller and it works really well.
- Gimbal motors. No reason to go cheap here because the cost savings is trivial.
- Mounting to your multirotor and isolation from vibration. This is related to the next point, but can be something the buyer needs to create or alter.
- The gimbal frame. Here is where a builder makes a big difference. Anyone can buy a controller, some motors, wire it up and plug in default PID / power settings. But an elegant, easy-to-balance, light yet rigid gimbal frame is hard to find. I would argue this is about 90% of what you pay a markup for -- and if the maker can't justify why their frame is not better than the rest then I can't see the point in buying their gimbal.
Well yes, I can understand why you're looking around because no doubt gimbals are generally expensive, but then I also think the reason you're here is because you're after the benefit of someone elses experience. I've played a few servo based units and also two different Arduino based brushless units including the Aeroxcraft, which I've found to be the best of that type so far and the only one I've used that's worth mentioning but certainly not perfect but as I said previously you get what you pay and they are good value for money. But, if you want the absolute best GoPro 2D gimbal with no mucking around and excellent results right out of the box then the best one out there is the DJI Zenmuse. Consider that you pay 5 times that for a bigger 3D gimbal for a Nex or a GH3 then it is still good value for money, and when you know it's just plug and play with no trailing cables and no guess work it's no competition in my opinion.
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I'm tempted to try a Hawkeye from my local hobby shop thats going for $199 Aus. Would you still say the zenmuse is worth 4x that amount?
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In the UK I paid £450 for the Zenmuse and they are in stock in quite a few places over here, which during the summer wasn't the case as they were almost always out of stock because demand just outstripped supply. I've already tried the half-Zenmuse-price stuff and it is like night and day, there is no comparison. Knowing what I know now I deeply regret spending the 400 quid I already spent on two other brushless gimbals that only part delivered. You have to ask yourself why DJI can command that price and why they frequently end up in short supply ... there is a reason why they sell as well as they do.
The Zenmuse will plug into the Naza or the Wookong as I've used it with both (and probably the Ace 2) but it's not being controlled directly by the flight controller, it has it's own stabilisation module although I believe the flight controller does have some input into the process as you can't use the Zenmuse without a DJI controller but I suspect that's just DJI hooking you into their eco-system more than anything.