Anyone know?

[neweuser]

I love my new sytem i have. But i can't get distance with it. When I'm driving away, it goes only so far and the brakes just stop my stop to a flipping hault? Anyone know how i can get my truck to run further than 20 feet from?:035:

[BrianG]

Only 20ft?? Sounds like you have some sort of interference. I assume it's an AM radio?

Some things to try:

- Relocate antenna further away from other electronics, especially the BL motor wires (high current AC runs through those wires). Some people have trouble depending on the material of the chassis. Sometimes, metal to metal gears cause noise as well.
- Make the antenna sit higher.
- Go to a different location. There may be some RF transmitter nearby.
- Get a different radio. FM and digital systems are much more tolerant to noise.

[neweuser]

FM Radio....but not digital. And yeah, my antenna goes right between the motor wires os i'll have to move that. I run plastic gears right now except my pinions. But will eliminate all that was said above. Thanks Brian G!

[BrianG]

Wow, right between the motor wires eh... that would explain things. :) Those motor wires (and the coils of the motor itself) emit a fair amount of noise. The switching frequency of the ESC should be far below the FM RF range, but if there is enough of it, it can cause problems.

Once you move your antenna, you should be golden.

[Sylvester]

Hence the word "Should" :)

[BrianG]

Originally Posted by Sylvester

Hence the word "Should" :)

Well, as with any problem, "should" is the best to hope for until the problem is truly solved. I always start with the easiest and cheapest (preferably free) solutions and go from there...

[neweuser]

i agree. i figured that would be a problem. Ordered an antenna mount so i can put it in the back. What do you guys think about running an extended wire from the receiver to do this? Otherwise, i'm looking at moving everything back there!

[Sylvester]

Extended wont hurt, but FYI, it wont add any further distance in reception, unless you've kept it relativly small now.

[BrianG]

Extending an antenna might help, but most antennas are tuned to a specific frequency bandwidth. If you "detune" the antenna too much by lengthening it or shortening too much, you could actually reduce the range. If you want to extend it, I'd extend it no more than 10% of it's current length. If that's too short, you can double it. Lengths in between will probably be detrimental.

[neweuser]

what i mean is, extend the wire so i can run it to the back....the receiver wire from novak was already way short compared to the stock one! but i won't have enough length to run it to the back of my truck unlees i extend it, or move the receiver and move everything else! Sorry for the confusion!

[neweuser]

thanks for all the help. so far, i am putting on a new chassis and stuff. relocated my antenna to the back...let's hope this works!