TEST: SPCMaker S125

[Drone News]

INTRODUCTION

The SPCMaker S125 is the first compact (3″) FPV racer directly integrating the great Runcam Split Mini module. What does it mean ? It means that you can enjoy a great FPV feedback with a powerfull CCD sensor while recording simultaneously and without extra latency some 1080p@60fps videos !!!!. It’s a huge step forward in the FPV racing area…..Maybe in a couple of years, the 1080P resolution will be also for the FPV link. Whatever, with the S125, we have a 125mm machine with 1106/5500Kv 4S compatible motors, super strong 20A BLheli_S/Dshot600 ESC. As already mentioned the FPV/DVR part is based on the Runcam Split Mini. Two different FOV are associated with this sensor: one about 135 degrees for the FPV live part, a 160 wider for HD recordings. All the electronic is completly jailed into a pure 3K carbon structure where arms are 3mm. The machine can be found in BNF with two type of receivers: a FrSky XM+ (D16) and a FlySky AFHDS-2A. Let’s discover this potential new most advanced FPV racer.

BOX CONTENT

+ 1 x SPCMaker S125
+ 4 x 3″ props (2 CW, 2 CCW)
+ 1 x Battery strap

No spare props …. no instruction manual at all to help to bind the receiver, to set the VTX….. A real shame…. from a deluxe machine like the S125.

OVERVIEW

It’s compact…. 125mm machine… where the free room when the runcam split mini is installed is almost 0mm.

Arms are 3mm and look strong even if arms looks not so large…

-FRONT VIEW

The runcam mini is connected to send the video signal to the FC & VTX modules….

But as you can see, no other connexion on the free RX&TX pads to control for example the camera trigerring via the remote… What a pity !!!!! You will need first to disasemble all the machine to access more easily to these pads and the UART3/6 pads ….

-SIDE VIEW

The microSD slot is located on the right side. First raise the metallic bar to insert the card until you hear the click. Thanks to this bar, the risk of ejection during a crash is mimized.

The 40CH 5.8G VTX installed on top offers one unique button. The Vfreq/Vband/output power selection is done sequentially.

Notice the Vfreq are sorted ascendly according to the following table

The default Vfreq is the A1=5645Mhz. The selection is done as this diagram. Press 3s to enter into the Vfreq selection mode, then short press to cycle within the selected row. Long press one more time 3s to select the row… and one more time 3s to choose between 25mW and 100mW.

The Runcam module is installed with a fixed angle about 30 degrees…. and no possibility to tune it

Good news, a small caps is installed behind the buzzer-lights module in order to filter out most noise from ESC/motors.

-REAR VIEW
Two lights are jailing a buzzer. These lights are not programmed in Betaflight ….. What’s a pity.

-UPPER VIEW

The FrSky XM+ is attached to the 5.8G antenna via a zip-tie. The bind button is easy to access.

-BOTTOM VIEW

-WEIGHT
108g without the battery…. so about 18g more heavier than 120mm with classic FPV solution.

A litttle bit less than 170g with a 4S 500mAh LiPo.

Motors and props

1106/5500Kv Sunnysky motors. Very strong…… and no problem to support 4S setup. They are just warm after usage.

Some 2840 props triblades are provided. They required 10mm M2 hexscrews. What a pity that no spare props are provided in the bundle.

Camera module

A raw video sample of 1080p@60fps recording

UNBOXING, ANALYSIS, CONFIGURATION AND DEMO FLIGHT

The default PIDs of Betaflight 3.17 shows low values for P & D. They have been optimized for this machine. In another hand, BF 3.17 is quied old now and no possibility to enjoy the runcam protocol for example with this branch.

As already mentioned, unfortunatly the FrSky XM+ receiver is not flashed with a modern firmware exporting the RSSI on the last channel. And no possibility to flash it directly without desodering the receiver from the FC.

The Betaflight settings have been optimized for PIDs. You have to program your own OSD & flight modes and Lights preferences.

When the battery is connected, the runcam split automatically starts the recording. Good news, even if the battery is disconnected while recording, most part of the file is not corrupted.!!!!! That’s great. In 4S, the machine hoover from 25% of throttle input. There is a huge amount of power available !!!!! Really impressive. No oscillation with maximum throttle inputs!!!! Great. More in 6-axis stabilized modes, no drifts at all. A really pleasante flyer. A small red circle point is here in the FPV signal to indicate when recordings is turned on. What is impressive is the super low latency of the runcam split mini….. ideal for FPV racing. More…. both FPV and 1080p offers jellofree rendering. In term of flight time, with a 550mAh 4S LiPo you can expect 3min30 of flight time.

CONCLUSIONS

The SPCMaker S125 represents clearly the most advanced advanced compact FPV racer. It’s powerfull, well tuned, durable and the runcam split mini is a great little combo. This machine would have been perfect if two minors details were there: i) The possibility to control the Runcam Split Mini via the FC… It need to solder two wires from the camera to the FC and ii) to flash the FrSky XM+ with a recent firmware to enjoy RSSI on OSD.

PROS

+ Great and powerfull flyer
+ Most advanced 3″ FPV racer
+ Integrated Runcam Split Mini
+ Great FPV cam
+ Jello free for both FPV & 1080p videos
+ 20A BLheli_S/Dshot600 4S compatible ESC
+ Solid frame
+ Autorecording by default
+ Video files almost entierly saved even with a hard crash

CONS

– Runcam split mini not connected to the FC
– Fixed orientation of the camera
– FrSky XM+ not flashed the RSSI compatible firmware
– No possibility to control the VTX via OSD
– Partial occlusion of props & frame in the 1080p recordings
– No instruction manual
– No spare props
– Flashed with an old BF version

Dump_BF_3_17_S125

This quadcopter have been courtesy provided by Banggood in order to make a fair and not biased review. I would like to thank them for this attitude.
You can find it actually for 229USD at https://www.banggood.com/SPC-MAKER-S125-FPV-Racing-Drone-PNP-Omnibus-F4-20A-Blheli_S-ESC-Runcam-Split-Mini-5_8G-40CH-VTX-p-1295246.html

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