[bensidus197217]

Right now I have all Fat Shark gear with Attitude goggles and an Immersion 600mw transmitter I want a better view than what I have and the only thing I haven't changed is the camera. My camera is the one from Fat Shark with the slot in the top for micro chip recording and it appears to have a bubble in the lens from day one which may be my problem. Any suggestions?

[bcsaltchucker]

I suggest getting a 'normal' FPV cam. a good quality one like Superhad600 (PZ0420). Mostly likely runs on 12V and can be powered off your main battery.

But if you really want a 5 volt cam, there are some out there sold by ImmsersionRC - often the same exact cam as the $30 Superhad600, but cost you $80 instead.

If you want a smallish HD cam that has SD card in it, then perhaps looks into a Mobius HD cam - the live out works well and the video quality is fairly amazing. $70 plus mabe $8 for wiring harness. Have to deal with a little latency - not a problem on a quad or trainer

[bensidus197217]

Can a normal FPV camera be made to work with a Fat Shark system?

[bcsaltchucker]

yes, pretty much any camera made. They use the std NTSC and PAl signal. You could plug in a 1985 camcorder, or any SD security camera made. It's just the power voltage you have to wire correctly and carefully.

[bensidus197217]

So does the Fat Shark use both those signals? Sorry about the stupid questions but I am very green at this.

[rc-ame]

Thanks for the posts guys I am just looking into FPV as well. Good info..

[bcsaltchucker]

Originally Posted by bensidus197217

So does the Fat Shark use both those signals? Sorry about the stupid questions but I am very green at this.

nowadays it seems the cams work with both PAL and NTSC - but not all. The PZ0420 definitely works with both types - can choose in the OSD menus built into the cam. Same with Mobius.

I think in 3 years of FPVing, I have had to change the PAL/NTSC setting only once (and that was on an OSD telemetry unit). I default to NTSC

Some of the cheapo CMOS cams come in NTSC and PAL only.

IIRC the Fatshark and Boscam goggles autoadjust to PAL/NTSC, so even if you bought the wrong camera, you would still get perfect image to fly with.

[aerosport]

http://www.readymaderc.com/store/ind...cPath=11_62_12

420 to 600 line cameras (lines of resolution) are probably your best bet.

Here are some beginner packages too:

http://www.readymaderc.com/store/ind...=index&cPath=4

This YouTube series should answer any questions you may have:

You Tube

You Tube

[bcsaltchucker]

readymade rc is great for a lot of stuff, but very overpriced for cameras. They are asking $100 for the same camera you get for $30 at Surveilzone. OK RMRC has it mounted in a case for you, but you can buy a case for a pz0420 for 5 bucks

Aerosport I have to disagree with most of your post. Other than Alex's FPV beginner FPV series which is well done. But you should have included the link here: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1355327
BTW Alex Grieve from that video is the guy who got me onto using the PZ0420 From SC2000.com , among other things.

For one, the resolution of the camera is not all that important. All we get is 480 TVL max on the video feed. So no need to fuss over resolution. The key here is the specific model and type of camera. I own pretty every FPV cam being made today, btw - or at least the board cam version.

The most popular FPV camera today is the PZ0420 also called the SuperHAD600 cam. It has excellent performing Wide Dynamic Range - which means it illuminated the ground much better despite bright sky hitting the sensor at the same time. All the cheapo cameras cannot do this well at all - you get blacked out ground when the sensor sees a lot of sky. It is also super sensitive for dusk flying, so you can keep flying when all the line of sight pilots have had to pack up and leave cause they cannot see the plane. Now most of the thos CMOS cameras are also real bad for seeing dark ground and flying at dusk.

This PZ0420 is sold under many different brands. Generally most of the cams being sold that say they are 600TVL and WDR are a PZ0420 cam inside. Like I say, this is only $30 at Suveilzone, and $45 at SC2000.com, so no need to waste $ at RMRC. You can add a case, but I prefer to fly them without a case. Can be purchased with an IR filter to get more vivid colour, or run without the filter for better dusk lighting.

A good step up in quality is the Pixim 690TVL cam. It is also WDR and generates more dramatic colour. Several places sell a version of this one. Surveilaone and SC2000 have it for $50-70. RMRC has them. and TeamBlackSheep has a customized version of it for nearly $200. Main downside is that it is pretty heavy. Even my board cam Pixim is heavy and bulky.

Bottom of the barrel are the CMOS cams. They come with the fpv starter kits like the one Bensidious bought. You can buy them cheap for under $20, and some have been modified to be easy to put in to FPV use for like $30. I like them because some of them are very narrow and small - even micro and nano sized right down to 1 gram. They perform very poorly as a camera compared to the CCD cameras like the PZ0420 and Pixim. But good when you want aerodynamics, lightweight. Typically $30 at Foxtech, but more at RMRC. FPVHobby.com has all the exotic micro CMOS cams (and other micro equipment) It's not only micro foamies that need the tiny CMOS micro gear - some of the parkflyers can't handle the weight/drag of regular sized fpv stuff. On my Wildcat and Albatros, I put the camera further back where a board cam might catch wind and throw off balance, so I have used small CMOS on those planes. I put a PZ0420 high and back on my Cap232 and it hurt the flight character due to drag - that plane might be better with a small CMOS.

[bensidus197217]

Thanks for all the info Scott I will be one of the cameras you recommend very soon. One more question, the Immersion 600mw transmitter has dip switches to change frequency do you find these make much difference to the camera view as far as clearing up what you see?