Phoenix Setup FAQ

[Iseldoff]

I'm having a issue I haven't seen in this thread yet when I have my dx6i in acro mode in Phoenix I can use my idle up switch because that is the only one to respond in the sim to channel 5 so I can set idle up to channel 5 and use it but when that's like that I can't use my throttle hold switch then if I put it in heli mode on the tx (dx6i) I can use my throttle hold switch just because it works but there is no channel 5 there for idol up does not work and I have to assign it to the keyboard but if I do that then even if I can get into idol up that way throttle hold switch won't work again. All I want to do is go from idol up to throttle hold ?

[TexasPilot]

Bum,

Thanks again for your willingness to help those in need.

Will you please take a moment to help with an issue several in this thread have posed but not successfully rectified?

Q: Why is my heli rolling left? It is preventing me from achieving and maintaining a stable hover.

Notes:

I have followed all directions to a "T" and read this entire thread as well as many others that are specific to my DX6i transmitter.

Everything else is functioning very well.

I fly several helis in real life and do not have this issue.

YES, I HAVE CALIBRATED. AND CALIBRATED. AND CALIBRATED SOME MORE.

railfan1975 and several others have posted the same issue. I followed your instructions on each post to no avail.

Bum, any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated. I am about ready to sell my copy of Pheonix and its too bad because I know it could save me a lot of $$$ in repairs.

[TheBum]

Originally Posted by TexasPilot

Bum,

Thanks again for your willingness to help those in need.

Will you please take a moment to help with an issue several in this thread have posed but not successfully rectified?

Q: Why is my heli rolling left? It is preventing me from achieving and maintaining a stable hover.

Notes:

I have followed all directions to a "T" and read this entire thread as well as many others that are specific to my DX6i transmitter.

Everything else is functioning very well.

I fly several helis in real life and do not have this issue.

YES, I HAVE CALIBRATED. AND CALIBRATED. AND CALIBRATED SOME MORE.

railfan1975 and several others have posted the same issue. I followed your instructions on each post to no avail.

Bum, any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated. I am about ready to sell my copy of Pheonix and its too bad because I know it could save me a lot of $$$ in repairs.

Check your trims to make sure they're 0. Also, make sure you have set the servo type in the model you're using for Phoenix to 1 SERVO.

[TexasPilot]

Bum,

I found something that works for me that others might find useful.

You can reduce the amount of cyclic roll induced by the tail of the heli in the advanced setup of the heli itself.

Detailed model attributes>Fine tuning>Tail wash tuning

I turned it down to zero and that got rid of that awful roll. All of it.

I know this might not seem lifelike, but in real life I have never noticed any of my helis rolling left like they do in the sim.

Thanks again, Bum for this great thread and thank you for taking time out of your day to respond.

Cheers.

[joeblades]

Very quick and simple question.....Do the settings on the Dx6i affect the sim? If not ,,,I have an SR and I have set the tx as posted in the SR forum ,,,,for example you might have a mix setting on something,,,,,can I set the sim to match that setting?

I know,,,that was two questions,,,but I wanted to make myself as clear as possible.

[joeblades]

Originally Posted by TheBum

Check your trims to make sure they're 0. Also, make sure you have set the servo type in the model you're using for Phoenix to 1 SERVO.

Why do you roll left.....well mine did the same, you should select HELI on a blank profile / model and do the calibration first then all that extra work to stop the roll left can be avioded,,,,,particularly if you are flying a CP heli. If you are flying / using a FP heli then aircraft mode works just fine.


Model type is important.

[artcominio]

This is a very basic Newbie observation that tripped me up for a short while. I have a DX6i (DSMX), the latest beta version of Phoenix 4.0.h, and a couple of Blade Helis. I only use the Sim to practice for the helis I own and fly, and for the next one I plan to buy.

When I started, I had a basic question that is answered in this thread if you dig deep enough. But it may help other Newbies to understand that there are things you should set up in the Sim, and things that you should set up in the radio (not the Sim) so you can fly both your real heli and the Sim with the same radio model setup.

I use one of the 10 positions in my radio for a straight-forward Sim set-up with all linear curves, no dual rates, no expo, etc. That is the setup I use to calibrate the Sim, but I don't use it to fly anything, either a real heli or the Sim.

Then I set-up my radio (using the 9 remaining DX6i slots) for my real, physical helis. I calibrate the Sim *ONLY* with the straightforward basic setup. This tells the Sim what the range of the channels are, what the channel assignments are, etc.

Then I run on the sim with the DX6i model selected just as when I fly the real heli. That way all the work is being done in the radio for exponential curves, dual rates, etc. I *NEVER* calibrate the Sim with any DX6i setup other than the basic one. Likewise, I never fly the sim with the basic set-up used exclusively for a one time calibration of the Sim to the Radio.

This applies to dual rates, expo, Idle-up, throttle hold, pitch curves, and everything else. Naturally you need a radio as least as good as the DX6i to use this approach. But because all of the parameters are in the Radio and *NOT* in the Sim, you can fly both the real Heli and the Sim with the same radio model selected on the Radio itself.

If the Sim and real heli do not perform the same, then I only tweak the model characteristics in the Sim, never the Sim setup parameters.

This may seem laughably obvious to any old timer, but we Newbies need to know the information that is so basic to you experienced guys that you never think to mention it.

Respectfully,
Art

[Rumore]

@TheBum
could you reply here please... http://helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=398523
thanks.

[TheBum]

Originally Posted by Rumore

@TheBum
could you reply here please... http://helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=398523
thanks.

Terry's response in that thread seems perfectly reasonable to me.

[CaptHal8HS]

Originally Posted by Andrews421

I am having a problem with my sim and my macbook Pro, I am running VMware and windows 7 and after I installed the sim its just opening up black and then stops responding everytime, anytime how I can fix this, I get no graphics and no screen anything. Thanks for you help.

Try bumping up the resources that you dedicate to the VM. Incrementally add more memory to the VM along with more video memory. I had to do that under the new version of Parallels and all is well.

[jeraldw.walker]

having all kinds of problems getting my hold and pitch and throtal to work as one HELP!!!

[Dodge DeBoulet]

Originally Posted by jeraldw.walker

having all kinds of problems getting my hold and pitch and throtal to work as one HELP!!!

The DX7s is basically the DX8 as far as Phoenix is concerned; any differences would be handled via programming in the tx itself (i.e. configuring the two flight modes instead of three. There's a lot of information on setting up the DX8 with Phoenix in the threads in this forum, too. If you've looked through those and haven't gotten the proper guidance, can you at least be more specific about the problems you're experiencing?

[CaptHal8HS]

So, being frustrated with the TX settings vs the sim settings, I finally broke down and called HH for some help.
The guy on the other end recommended that I just set up a vanilla model in Acro mode. He had me configure the throttle and collective to act the same. That's it. Now, he said it will fly much better. I can then use the software to modify my model settings. I officially hate this thing. I find this all to be way too difficult and way to convoluted - especially for the noob like me. I have no idea if this thing is flying the same or even close to the real heli. And isn't that suppose to be why we use a simulator?

[mechanicatwork]

Originally Posted by CaptHal8HS

And isn't that suppose to be why we use a simulator?

no matter how good the programmers are, or how good you are at setting up a model, a sim will never be like the real thing. Don't give up. it does take some time. The way I look at it is, if you can fly a heli or plane that is half as good as the real thing, then you will have no problems in the air. The sim is best used to get your muscle memory and orientations down with out the fear of damaging your real model or worse, hurting yourself/others. There is a hell of a steep learning curve involved in this hobby. Stick with it and you'll get it soon enough. Just remember, if you get frustrated, just walk away and relax a bit. (from the sim, not the real thing!! )

[CaptHal8HS]

Thanks for the encouraging words! I do appreciate it! I can hover the Blade 450 in the sim on a mild setting. So, I'm working on it all...
I have an mCPX on the way - the next step for me up from an mSRX. Hope that buggy gets me to the next level so I can fly my 450 this summer!

[whitehedr]

Hi guys, I read thru this entire thread and I was able to get my Idle Up and Throttle Hold switches to work. I am using a DX6i radio. I am at rev 4.0.m on the software and the model I am using is the Trex 500 in Sport mode.

My main rotor has a -4, 0, 9 degree setting for the pitch. Governer is enabled at 2050 rpm. The throttle curve in hold is 0 for all positions. Pitch curve in hold is linear 0 - 100.

Now I need guidance on how to set things up so I can practice Autorotations. I can do them in the sim training mode. I flatten the blades and keep it screaming down out of the sky until I get close and then crank in the collective and flair to slow down my forward speed. That works in sim training mode.

How do I set things up so I can practice while I am doing circuits. Am I correct in assuming that I can simulate a power failure by flipping to TH? If I am correct on that assumption I must have something set up incorrectly because when I go to TH at altitude the blades stop and the heli acts like an anvil.

RWW

[whitehedr]

I disabled the governor, no change. the blades still stop and the heli flys like an anvil.

RWW

[alanthor]

Does kdsk-7xII work on phoenix?

HK 450TT FBL W/ arttech fbl unit, corona 9g servo, 40A brushless esc. (not ready)
KDS 450 Quiet all stock
Stock radios

[suzukirobguy]

-4 low pitch, imho, isn't enough. I fly a trex 500 in the sim, and I use -12, 0 +12. I go full negative to spin the blades up, then roll collective near the bottom. There's a big difference in pitch between the two. Try that and see what happens! Good luck.

[whitehedr]

The problem turned out to be a loose nut on the sticks. I was doing it all wrong. Once I figured out the error the -4, 0, 9 degrees worked fine. I was holding to much positive pitch on it and allowing the blades to stop. All is well now and I can get it down with ease.

RWW