We have been asked at various points in time in the past - is that a modded drone remote? What is that thing on top? What does it do? Is it really good? Does it make you high?
Yes, most of us at Beyond Visuals use a modded antenna attached to the top of our DJI remotes. Before we proceed further and discuss how and why you can do this, the standard disclaimer applies! The BV team bears no responsibility for what you do with your drone. Please be safe and drone responsibly. Without further ado, lets look at our take on modifying your remote and adding an antennae!
Before modifying your remote, let's look at some of the merits and demerits of doing so:
Merits:
- Longer signal transmission range
- Reliability of signal transmission
Demerits:
- Directional signal transmission, instead of omni-directional
- If you forget your antenna attachment, you can't drone!
Our recommendations:
In general, we have always used Alientech antennae (not actual alien technology). Based on different drone models, we recommend different antennas. The selection of antenna is subject to the frequency channels the drone uses to communicate with the remote controller.
| Drone Model | Recommended Antenna |
|
Mavic Pro |
ALIENTECH PRO 2.4G AMPLIFIER SIGNAL BOOSTER WITH ANTENNA RANGE EXTENDER |
|
Mavic 2 Pro |
The reason why the Mavic 2 series and Mavic Air 2 is best suited to use with the "Alientech DUO" is because Occusync 2.0 works with both 2.4Ghz and 5.8 Ghz frequencies. The remote will change the frequency automatically during flight to ensure it maintains the best line of communication with the drone. Therefore, by using a Duo frequency antenna, it ensure that signals transmitted by both channels are amplified.
Must read (!):
Alientech signal boosters / range extenders are directional antenna devices. What this means is you have to point your antenna facing the drone for the drone to receive signals from the controller. i.e., if you drone flies towards the south and you are facing the north, you will likely lose connection within a short distance! So, if you ever lose connection, you should try to pinpoint the location of your drone and align the antenna with your drone. The diagram below illustrates the difference between the original antennae and the modified antennae:
If you want to boost your signal while maintaining the stock omni-directional antenna. The alternative is to use FCC frequency bands instead of CE bands. We will dive into that in a separate blog post. Until then - drop us any questions you have about modded antennae in the comments below, or message us on Instagram as you always do!
The Beyond Visuals Team 