The Speedybee F405 V4 has been one of the vital standard FC stacks for FPV drones over the previous couple of years. Lately, it has been bought out in lots of locations, so I suspected a brand new model could be on the way in which—and I used to be proper! Speedybee has quietly launched the F405 V5. It comes with some nice enhancements, but in addition a couple of design decisions that elevate issues. On this article, we’ll take a look at what’s new and whether or not the V5 remains to be price recommending.
New to flight controllers? Take a look at my Flight Controller Purchaser’s Information: https://oscarliang.com/flight-controller/
The place to Purchase
You may get the SpeedyBee F405 V5 stack from:
V4 No Longer in Manufacturing
SpeedyBee formally introduced that the F405 V4 stack has been discontinued and is being changed by the brand new F405 V5.
Right here’s their full assertion:
What’s New within the V5
The F405 V5 stack is priced at $74.99, in comparison with the V4’s $65.99, a $9 improve. That is doubtless on account of each inflation and the improve to a 32-bit ESC. Personally, I really feel SpeedyBee ought to have saved the extra inexpensive 8-bit ESC to take care of the cheaper price level.
Take a look at my authentic assessment of the SpeedyBee F405 V4: https://oscarliang.com/speedybee-f405-v4/
FC
General Design
The very first thing that caught my eye is the form of the board. I like that SpeedyBee has gone again to a extra conventional sq. form. They’ve additionally relocated the LED pads from the corners to make room for a slot that makes inserting soft-mounting gummies a lot simpler.
That stated, I’ll miss the boot button from the V4 that was very easy to entry from the aspect. On the V5, it’s been moved away from the aspect, that means you’ll most likely want a sharp software to press it when mounted contained in the body.
One other noticeable enchancment is the additional plugs. Together with the prevailing connectors for the DJI Air Unit and 4in1 ESC, the V5 now has devoted connectors for GPS and receiver, making setup and restore even simpler with much less soldering required.
Specs and Options
The specs and options of the V5 look strong and is kind of much like the V4, however with these modifications:
- Wi-fi firmware updates: Beforehand, you may configure Betaflight wirelessly however couldn’t flash firmware. Now you are able to do each.
- Blackbox logging: The MicroSD card slot has been changed with 16MB of onboard flash reminiscence, so no extra worrying about SD playing cards.
- Motor outputs: Diminished from 8 to 4. Not a difficulty for quadcopters, however if you happen to’re constructing a hexa- or octocopter, you’ll must rethink.
- Servo outputs: Elevated from 1 to 2 devoted outputs, which isn’t important for many builds however is good to have.
- Firmware assist: The V5 now helps Ardupilot along with Betaflight and iNav.
- Weight: The V5 is 2g lighter than the V4.
Right here’s the detailed specs comparability desk between the V5 and V4.
| V5 | V4 | |
| MCU | STM32F405 | STM32F405 |
| IMU (Gyro) | ICM42688P | ICM42688P |
| USB Port Kind | Kind-C | Kind-C |
| Barometer | SPA06-003 | Sure |
| OSD Chip | AT7456E | AT7456E |
| Bluetooth Tuning | Supported | Supported |
| Wi-fi FC Firmware Improve | Supported | Not supported |
| 6-pin DJI Air Unit Plug | YES | YES |
| Blackbox | 16MB Flash Reminiscence | MicroSD Card Slot |
| Enter Voltage | 3S – 6S | 3S – 6S |
| Present Sensor Enter | Sure | Sure |
| 5V BEC | 1.5A | 3A |
| 9V BEC | 3A | 3A |
| 3.3V Output | Sure | Sure, 500mA |
| 4.5V Output | 1A | 1A |
| MCU & Gyro Energy | Impartial LDO | Unspecified |
| Motor Outputs | M1-M4 | M1-M8 |
| Servo Sign | 2 (S5, S6) | 1 (S9) |
| ESC Telemetry Enter | Sure | Sure |
| Digicam Management (CC) | Sure | Sure |
| I2C | Sure | Sure |
| UART | 6 UART’s | 6 UART’s |
| LED Pads | Sure | Sure |
| Buzzer Pads | Sure | Sure |
| BOOT Button | Sure | Sure |
| RSSI Pads | Sure | Sure |
| SmartPort | No | No |
| Supported Firmware | Betaflight, INAV, Ardupilot | BetaFlight, INAV |
| Firmware Goal Identify | SPEEDYBEEF405V5 | SPEEDYBEEF405V4 |
| Mounting Holes | 30.5 x 30.5mm( 4mm gap diameter) | 30.5 x 30.5mm( 4mm gap diameter) |
| Dimensions | 39mm (L) × 39mm (W) × 4.9mm (H) | 41.6(L) x 39.4(W) x 7.8(H)mm |
| Weight | 8.1g | 10.5g |
ESC
SpeedyBee has upgraded the ESC from 8-bit to 32-bit, but it surely now runs a closed-source firmware referred to as OX32 (dialogue right here). To be trustworthy, I’m not thrilled about this transfer. Not solely is OX32 new and nonetheless largely untested by the group, however after the drama with BLHeli_32 (learn the total story right here: https://oscarliang.com/end-of-blheli_32/), the concept of one other closed-source ESC firmware doesn’t encourage a lot confidence.
It’s unclear whether or not these ESCs will be flashed to AM32 (the open-source different), however hopefully that turns into attainable sooner or later.
Personally, I want SpeedyBee had provided an 8-bit ESC choice preloaded with Bluejay firmware. That combo is cheaper, dependable, and has all of the options most individuals want. Efficiency-wise, 32-bit ESCs don’t actually carry a lot noticeable profit for FPV drones, so from a funds stack perspective, this improve feels pointless.
Wanting on the specs, the brand new V5 ESC isn’t dramatically completely different from the V4 model. The principle addition is ESC telemetry, which is barely attainable with 32-bit processors. That stated, ESC telemetry isn’t one thing most pilots use typically, so the profit is insignificant.
One actual benefit is weight: Speedybee claims the V5 ESC is over 4g lighter than the V4, regardless of having heatsinks on each side of the board. Nonetheless, I’m unsure if the design is water resistant, or how straightforward it’s to take away the heatsinks if you wish to apply conformal coating.
| SpeedyBee OX32 55A 30.5×30.5 4in1 ESC | SpeedyBee BLS 55A 30×30 4in1 ESC | |
| Default Firmware | OX32 | BLHeli_S J-H-40 |
| Steady Present | 55A * 4 | 55A * 4 |
| Burst Present | 70A * 4 | 70A * 4 |
| TVS Protecting Diode | Sure | Sure |
| Exterior Capacitor | 1000µF | 1000uF |
| ESC/Motor Protocol | DSHOT300/600 | DSHOT300/600 |
| Enter Voltage | 3-6S LiPo | 3-6S LiPo |
| Present Sensor | Sure | Sure |
| ESC Telemetry | Sure | No |
| Mounting Holes | 30.5 × 30.5mm (Ø4mm) | 30.5 x 30.5mm( 4mm gap diameter) |
| Dimensions | 40.9mm (L) × 44.9mm (W) × 8.0mm (H) | 45.6(L) * 44(W) *8mm(H) |
| Weight | 19.1g | 23.5g |
Commonplace and Deluxe Variations
The Commonplace model comes with simply the FC and ESC boards (plus the same old equipment).
The Deluxe model consists of extras:
- Soldering apply board
- Energy extension board
- USB extension board
- Brief-circuit safety software
Various Funds FC/ESC Stacks
If you happen to’re purchasing round, listed below are a few different funds stacks price contemplating:
I’m additionally at present reviewing one other new funds stack — keep tuned if you happen to’re available in the market for one.
Conclusion
I’m glad to see the SpeedyBee F405 stack get an replace, however the choice to make use of closed-source ESC firmware is questionable. Hopefully, it is going to be attainable to flash it to an open-source different sooner or later. Within the meantime, I’ll proceed testing different funds choices to see which stacks really stand out and are price recommending going ahead.
You may get the SpeedyBee F405 V5 stack from: