If you just received your frsky version of the QX70 quadcopter and are a little confused about how to get started you have found the right article. Here I will talk you through the process of getting started including binding, and configuring the R/C controller. And we will also setup the flight controller and set flight modes. I also discuss some extra things such as installing new firmware onto the flight controller.
Three versions on the QX70
The QX70 flight controller includes a built in receiver. There are three options, that are either Flysky, Frsky, or Spektrum compatible. So this will dictate what radio you need to use with your QX70. This guide is divided into three sections, one for each version of the QX70, click the appropriate link below to jump to the appropriate section.
- QX70 Flysky Setup
- QX70 FRsky Setup
- QX70 Spektrum Setup
- How to use the FPV camera/VTX
- QX70 Flight Controller pinout diagram
- Fix motors spinning when you connect the battery (after you update firmware)
Configuring and Binding your Flysky Radio
The most popular radio for beginners is the flysky i6 as it offers all the features you need at a great price and is the one I would suggest you get with the QX70 if you dont already have a R/C controller.
The first thing you want to do is setup your radio controller model and aux switches. The video below shows you how to quickly setup your flysky radio.
Once your radio model has been setup and the aux channels are configured you simply need to press and hold the bind button on the front of the flysky radio to enter bind mode.
Then you need to press and hold the bind button on the QX70 flight controller as you plug in the battery which is shown in the image below. This can be particularly tricky so you might want to get someone to help hold the bind button while you plug in the battery.
Once the QX70 enters bind mode the LED will flash quickly. Once it has paired/bound with the LED will turn off for a second and then stay on.
You can now unplug the battery and once it is plugged in again it will blink quickly showing that its connected to the R/C controller.
If you have any trouble getting your flysky radio to bind to the qx90 make sure that AFHDS mode is enabled on the radio. This is set within the RX setup menu.
Within cleanflight/betaflight you need to make sure you select the receiver mode to be RX_PPM
You will also need to setup the channel mapping to be AETR1234, if this is confusing to you check out our video on throttle mapping
Setting up AUX switches and flight modes
The last thing to do is to set your AUX switches on your flysky radio. The video above shows you how to setup the aux switches via the functions setup menu. You can decide what switches you want to use, but its a good idea to use a 2 position switch for arming and disarming such as SwA, and a 3 channel switch for flight modes (SwC)
Then you need to set the flight modes within cleanflight. The 2 position switch should be used for the arm switch (to arm and disarm your quad) and the 3 position switch is used to select 3 flight modes.
Within the flight modes tab of the cleanflight GUI, this is how I suggest you set your flight modes, but feel free to experiment and change them to suit your needs as you become more familiar. I have set the two position switch (AUX1/Channel 5) is used for arming/disarming. The 3 position switch in the up position is in horizon mode that helps keep your quadcopter stable (great for beginner pilots), and the middle position is angle mode for more acrobatic like performance, and finally air mode is for full acro allowing you to flips etc..
Configuring and Binding your Taranis for the QX70 (FrSky Version)
Although this guide is specifically written for the Frksy Taranis radio (which is probably one of the best radios on the market) you are not limited to just this radio. You can use any Frsky compatible radio that uses the XJT module. Examples of this include the impressive TBS Tango with the XJT module, as this is a popular radio for FPV pilots thanks to the built in FPV receiver and screen.
Please note that the QX70 is only compatible with Frsky international firmware in D8 mode.
If your radio uses the EU LBT firmware you will need to flash the international firmware onto your taranis or XJT module.
The first thing is to create a new quadcopter model on your radio, and within the model setup menu make sure you select D8 mode as shown below.
Scroll down to select the Bind option to initiate the bind sequence as shown above. At this point you will hear a chirp noise on your taranis to indicate it is looking for a receiver.
When you hear the chirp noise you will now need to connect the battery on your QX70 while holding down the bind button. This is usually abit tricky on your own so you might want to get someone to help. It is also much easier if you first remove the FPV camera mount to expose the flight controller. If you have done this correctly the Blue LED on the flight controller with turn to a solid blue indicating the receiver is in bind mode. However since your radio is already in bind mode, it might turn on for a second and then turn off.
Once the bind process is complete the blue LED will turn off, indicating the bind process is complete.
Configuring the receiver within cleanflight/betaflight
Out of the box this has already been completed, but just in case you update firmware you will need to reconfigure the ports to tell the flight controller what type of receiver you are using.
To do this go to the ports tab within cleanflight and enable Serial RX on the UART2 port as shown below.
You will also need to select the receiver mode to be RX_SERIAL set the receiver provider to be SBUS. Depending on the version of cleanflight/betaflight you are using, this will either be on the configuration tab, or the receiver tab.
The last thing you will need to do is to specify the input mapping to be TAER1234, if this is confusing to you check out our video on throttle mapping
Setting up AUX switches and flight modes
The final thing you will need to do is the configure the aux channels on your radio to enable you to arm/disarm the QX70 and also change flight modes.
You will first need to assign two extra channels to switches on your taranis within the mixer screen. I suggest you set CH5 to be a 2 position switch to arm/disarm. CH6 should be a 3 position switch so you can use 3 flight modes.
Once the extra channels are set, you can check everything is working correctly within the Receiver tab of cleanflight/betaflight before proceeding to configure the flight modes.
Within the flight modes tab of the cleanflight GUI, this is how I suggest you set your flight modes, but feel free to experiment and change them to suit your needs as you become more familiar. I have set the two position switch (AUX1/Ch 5) is used for arming/disarming. The 3 position switch (AUX2/CH 6) in the up position is in horizon mode that helps keep your quadcopter stable (great for beginner pilots), and the middle position is angle mode for more acrobatic like performance, and finally air mode is for full acro allowing you to flips etc..
Configuring and Binding your Spektrum Radio to the QX70
If you are using the Spektrum version of the QX70, then the binding procedure is slightly different as this version does not have a bind button (as its all done via software). The QX70 is compatible with either DSMX, DSM2 protocols.
The first thing is to connect the QX70 to cleanflight and enter the CLI mode and use the set spektrum_sat_bind command.
- For DSMX type
set spektrum_sat_bind=9followed bysave
- For DSM2, type
set spektrum_sat_bind=5followed bysave
As soon as you enter the save command the flight controller will reboot into spektrum bind mode, at this point you can disconnect the USB cable from the QX70 to power it down.
After a few seconds you can reconnect the USB cable and the orange LED should start flashing. Now you can turn on your R/C transmitter while holding the bind button (Some Spektrum radios do not have a bind button as the bind process is done via the menus as with the DX9 radio)
Once the bind process is complete the orange LED should be on solid. Now you can simply connect to cleanflight/betaflight GUI to turn of the bind mode. To do this go back to the CLI tab and type set spektrum_sat_bind=0 followed by save
Configuring the spektrum receiver within cleanflight/betaflight
Out of the box this has already been completed, but just in case you update firmware you will need to reconfigure the ports to tell the flight controller that you are using the spektrum receiver
To do this go to the ports tab within cleanflight and enable Serial RX on the UART4 port as shown below.
Then you will need to go to the receiver tab to set the receiver mode to RX_SERIAL and set the serial receiver provider to SPEKTRUM1024
The last thing you will need to do is to specify the input mapping to be TAER1234, if this is confusing to you check out our video on throttle mapping
Setting up AUX switches and flight modes
The final thing you will need to do is the configure the aux channels on your radio to enable you to arm/disarm the QX70 and also change flight modes.
Depending on your spektrum radio you may need to configure the aux switches via the menus (refer to spektrum manual). I suggest you set CH5 to be a 2 position switch to arm/disarm. CH6 should be a 3 position switch so you can use 3 flight modes.
Once the extra channels are set, you can check everything is working correctly within the Receiver tab of cleanflight/betaflight before proceeding to configure the flight modes.
Within the flight modes tab of the cleanflight GUI, this is how I suggest you set your flight modes, but feel free to experiment and change them to suit your needs as you become more familiar. I have set the two position switch (AUX1/Ch 5) is used for arming/disarming. The 3 position switch (AUX2/CH 6) in the up position is in horizon mode that helps keep your quadcopter stable (great for beginner pilots), and the middle position is angle mode for more acrobatic like performance, and finally air mode is for full acro allowing you to flips etc..
The Camera and VTX
The FPV camera and transmitter is very impressive tiny unit that has the ability to change between 48 channels on the 5.8Ghz spectrum.
Depending on where you are, or your preferences you can switch between PAL and NTSC using the button on the front. Press it for 2 seconds to change between NTSC and PAL. If you short press it you can flip the video display.
On the back PCB board there is another switch that is used to change between the VTX broadcast channels. There are 48 to choose from to it can get slightly finicky. Long press the button for 2 seconds to change the frequency group (FR in table). Quickly press the button to cycle between the various channels (CH in table) in the current frequency group. There are loads of LED’s at the back of the camera that will change depending on what frequency group and channel you have selected.
QX70 Flight Controller
The flight controller on the QX70 is tiny, and yet it is based on the SPF3 flight controller and has a built in Receiver (Either FRsky/Flysky/Spektrum)
The top of the flight controller includes a bind button (used for pairing with your R/C radio), the power connector (max 3.7V) a buzzer connector (not included) and a RGB LED strip connector.
There are also two LEDs on the top board. The blue/orange LED is used to show the receiver link status. If this LED is off it means it is not getting any signal from your R/C radio. The green led is used to show the arm status of your quadcopter.
On the bottom of the flight controller is the USB connector (requires special USB to serial cable that is included), and the 4 motor connectors. The fact that there are motor connectors makes it easy to replace motors that get damaged without any soldering. The bottom also includes the main F3 MCU (the big chip in the middle).
Motor spinning when I connect battery fix
If you update the firmware most of the settings get reset, and being a brushed quadcopter a common problem after a firmware update is the motors start spinning up as soon as you connect the battery.
To solve this issue you simply need to go to the configuration tab and view the ESC/Motor features. Select the ESC/Motor protocol to be Brushed.
If you do not see this option (as it is not yet added to cleanflight GUI) all you need to do is go to the CLI and once loaded, simply type set motor_pwm_rate=1000 followed by save.
As usual if you have any questions or suggestions just add a comment below and I will try to answer.
