Are ProModeler servos programmable?

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Q. Are ProModeler servos programmable?

A. In a word . . . nope. Honestly, these days instead of programming each servo you use your transmitter for that, instead. This is why everybody flying complex models has shifted away from using a 9-channel transmitter and the kludge of programming each individual servo and instead gone to high channel-count transmitters - like 12, 20, and even 32-channels.

Why? Basically, the strategy is to assign one servo per channel, then use master slave relationships to mix channels together to achieve your heart's content. There are several reasons why.

First, there's more computational power available for programming the channel within the transmitter. Take for example a model of one of Howard Hughes' owned TWA-livery Connie . . . yes the one with the gorgeous triple tail! Such a mode will have a 14 servo wing (four aileron, two flaps, four throttles, two gear doors, two landing gear), plus a two servo elevator, along with three rudder servos (19-channels total - 20 if you add brakes).

Moreover, it's MUCH quicker and easier to set directions, neutral, end points and even speed at the transmitter rather than to screw around with each servo one by one using a programmer - I've done it and I know! Add to it, with the programmer, you have to disconnect servo-by-servo from the wiring harness and plug each servo into a programmer, then move on to the next. Heck, by the time you finish doing all of them you've grown old! And what about making slight adjustments? Yup, unscrew the servo again from the airframe, disconnect it from the wiring harness, plug it into the programmer, and make the slight adjustment. Rinse, repeat, ad naseum! It gets old.

Second, as you can get far fancier with programming carried out within the transmitter. One example include curves (like differential aileron throw to make a model easier to fly), or perhaps creating if-then relationships, flight conditions, and more . . . all by using the significantly greater computation horsepower with in the CPU within the transmitter. This, versus burdening a relatively stupid servo with the calculations (programming features take a measurable toll on performance - check the specs). There are two intangibles which can be calculated. Programmable servos are more costly and none are built as well as a ProModeler servo. And programmers change, e.g. I have a Hitec 10 that's been superseded by a 20, and maybe one more, I don't know because i kicked the habit when I started ProModeler. Also, programmable servos not only have inferior performance but are usually more costly as well. Thus, increased cost per servo outweighs the greater cost of the high channel-count transmitter - or at best . . . it's a wash.

Bottom line? Moving this logic out of the servo and into the transmitter is why I, and virtually all of our competitors, eschew in-servo programming.

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