Review: FASST Compatible Receiver

Your Reviewer

My Credentials
So who's doing this reviewing then?

Well I've been building and flying or driving radio controlled models for over 40 years and during that time I like to think I've built up a reasonable amount of knowledge.

I'm also a qualified electronics engineer who has worked in radio frequency, analog, digital systems and software for more than three decades. In fact I designed and built my first RC set back in 1969.

For the past nine years I've also been involved in the design and manufacture of some rather sophisticated engine technology and UAV flight control systems.

So, chances are I've been there, done that and have a huge pile of tee shirts to prove it.

Right now I'm heavily into 3D flying and enjoy all aspects of the RC hobby. I may be old but I don't feel it.

In the Pipeline

Here's just a little bit of what's to come on this site...

RC explained: Demystifying terms such as PCM, PPM dual conversion, single conversion, full-range etc., this feature will explain it all.

Cheap Chinese Engines: Just how good are those cheap Chinese glow and gas engines that sell for half the price of their "brand-name" equivalent? I put several to the test.

Build your own radio gear?: Back in the old days, building your own RC gear was not uncommon and now the arrival of 2.4GHz has made it practical again.

Review: FASST-compatible TFR8 receiver

CAN THEY REALLY BE AS GOOD AS FUTABA'S?

Dated: 10 Aug 2010

The brand-name RC manufacturers have made a killing in the shift to 2.4GHz.

Just as with PCM, buying into a brand-name 2.4GHz system means that you then have only one source of new receivers and those receivers will cost whatever the manufacturer thinks the market will bear.

While RC fliers love the reliability and convenience of 2.4GHz systems, they hate the fact that brand-name receivers are often three to five times as expensive as the Chinese-branded equivalent. The only problem is that until now, you couldn't use anything but a Futaba-made receiver with your fancy FASST transmitter.

Well it could be that the days when Futaba could demand an arm and a leg for a tiny bit of plastic, solder and a few electronic components has just come to an end.

In this review, I take a look at the first-ever Chinese-made FASST-compatible receiver, a unit that looks set to reshape the hobby for those who have found themselves locked into high prices through brand-loyalty.

First Look

The review sample is one of only five in existence at the time this was written.

Despite obviously being a pre-production sample the TFR8 is well made and reflects good design decisions in respect to construction and layout. It is a little wider than the equivalent Futaba receiver but much thinner due to its single-deck construction, versus Futaba's two-deck method (as seen below).

This is obviously not a "clone", the differences are many and varied so there's no risk of law-suits on the basis of simply copying the original. This is good news for prospective buyers and sellers.

The unit I tested was "naked", simply a circuit board with no case or even heat-shrink, I suspect the production units will be encased in something to avoid accidental short-circuits or damage to the components.

Setting up

To bind the receiver was a piece of cake. Following the instructions, I simply held down the "bind" button on the receiver while turning on and "bingo" it was bound.

I did note that switching back and forth between 7-channel mode and 8-channel mode required the receiver to be rebound - but the fact it supports both modes is great.

These receivers have user-definable failsafe settings on all eight channels and configuration is dead-simple. Just press the receiver's bind button once the system is linked up and the servo positions in effect at the time will be stored as the failsafe settings.

Comparing to the 8-channel FASST

It seemed most logical to compare the FASST-compatible receiver to the equivalent genuine Futaba product so I used a genuine 8-channel Futaba R608FS FASST receiver as a benchmark for the performance of the TFR8.