Which receiver for Radiomaster TX-16S and Tamiya Tiger?

[Lenny Warren]

Thanks for all the advice, although as a newbie I'm still learning...

I'll be using the standard electronics that comes with the Tamiya kit to start with. I may upgrade in the future, but just wonndering what would work well with TX16S and strandard Tamiya electronics, but would work if I upgraded???

[Jofaur86]

Hello, any electronic will work with your radio, and the adapted receiver, advises you to read the links on Rad's Blog .... everything is perfectly explained there.

[MrChef]

The OP's question didn't really get resolved. The title already lists the TX. He is asking about the receiver that connects to the Tamiya DMD board.

I am in the same position and am interested in using the Radiomaster TX-16S as well but I still need suggestions which exact receiver is compatible with the DMD board? I know I only "need" 4 channels. Thats not what I am asking. I'd prefer something without an external antenna. I was interested in the Radiomaster ER5CI but it is ELRS/PWM which is getting alot of raves but from what I've read it isn't plug and play compatible with the Tamiya DMD? That's what I'm looking for a Plug and Play Radiomaster Receiver that is compatible with the Tamiya DMD board? This will guide me to which Radiomaster TX-16S to purchase.

https://www.motionrc.com/collections/rc ... rand=2-143

I am all aware that the Tamiya board is basic and I am also interested down the road in installing a Beier Board. I am not doing that yet. I just want to build the tank now and get it running before any further Board upgrades.

Any help or answers are greatly appreciated.

[Panzermechaniker]

Mr. Chef when I first built my Tamiya Tiger I used these build videos and they were a huge help. I know you want the Radiomaster TX but in this one he does go through the programming of a digital Turnigy TX/RX combo for it. The only problem I encountered and I am as dumb as a post when it comes to radios is that because Tamiya wants steering on right stick and throttle on left which I hate as I like all driving inputs on right stick. When I tried this by changing the endpoints it would work on the FlySky if I used the Tamiya steering on left stick throttle on right but I could not get it to work using elevation and turret rotation on left stick. I know there is a way to make it work and I have been told quite bluntly I'm an idiot for not being able to do it however nobody has ever explained what the actual solution is to this idiot so I just stay with the Futaba's on my Tamiyas. But it is an interesting bunch of 4 videos to maybe watch before you start your Tiger build. He starts on about setting the radio up around the 13 minute mark. Hope this can help you out in other areas of the build even if the radio thing doesn't work.

phpBB [video]

[Jib]

I use the TX16S ELRS and the Radiomaster ER8 RX (usually two of them for 16 channels) in all of my builds.

I do not own any modern Tamiya’s, but, doesn’t the modern DMD have 4 PWM outputs (that’s what it looks like in the video) The ER8 also has SBUS capability as well if that’s what it uses.

Now the TX16S definitely has a steep learning curve, it did for me at least, but I’ve come to love all the things you can do with it.

[tankme]

It's all about the setup of the radio really. They always recommend that old Futaba radio for the Tamiya if you are going to use the exact Tamiya controls and setup. It's recommended mainly for the slider based trims and not digital trims like most modern radios use. I'm using a Frsky Taranis QX7 running OpenTX for my Tamiya tanks. I use the X8R or X4R 2.4G 16CH SBUS Smart Port Full Duplex Telemetry Receiver. I have it setup with driving on one stick and turret on the other. That actually required me to move some of the physical connections on the receiver. Yeah, I realize it could've probably be done via radio settings, but I didn't do it that way. I also don't use the trims as the radio is adjusted to compensate for the trim shenanigans. It will fire the main gun and the machine gun from just stick movements. That was done using radio programming. I set it up and have copied the config to my other Tamiya tanks so I'm not well versed on where I found the info to set it up the way I did as it was years ago at this point. I have two Tamiya tanks new in the box right now (Sheridan and the Lang) which will be using Tamiya Fine Spec radio instead of my Frsky. Nothing wrong with the Flysky except maybe the battery life. I'm just going to dedicate it to my large scale builds. I can take a look at my Tamiya KV-2 and see how I set up the RX and report back if that helps anyone.

Of course a quick Google search using "how to fire tamiya tank gun without trims" reveals a lot:

Firing a Tamiya RC tank gun without using analog trim tabs requires tricks to reach the maximum voltage endpoints that the Multi-Function Unit (MFU) interprets as a fire command. The best way to achieve this is by re-calibrating the tank or using programmable radio mixes to send a +125% or -125% signal to the gun channels, rather than the standard 100%.

Here are the methods for firing without manual trim adjustment:

1. Re-calibrating the DMD/MFU Unit

Instead of teaching the tank that 100% stick movement is the maximum, you can teach it a smaller range (e.g., 50-80%) during the setup process.
Method: Press the setup button on your Tamiya MFU to initiate calibration. When asked to move the sticks to their maximums, only move them about 50% to 60% of their full travel.
Result: Once finished, moving the stick fully (100%) in operation will be interpreted by the tank as "beyond 100%" (or over 125%), triggering the gun without needing the trim lever.

2. Programming a Modern Radio (Endpoints/Mixes)

If you are using a modern, programmable transmitter (like a Flysky i6, Taranis, or Spektrum), you can set the gun to a dedicated switch.
Endpoints (Travel Adjustment): Set your channel endpoints (EPA) to 125% in both directions.
Switch Assignment: Map the gun channel to a momentary switch (or a 2-position switch). When activated, this switch sends the maximum ±125% signal, triggering the gun.
Mixing: You can "slave" the elevation channel to an AUX channel, allowing you to trigger the shot with a switch rather than a rapid stick movement.

3. Physical Modification (Hardware Switch)

If you have basic soldering skills and want to use a specific toggle or momentary switch for firing:
Open the transmitter and identify the potentiometer (pot) for the elevation/firing channel.
Solder a normally open pushbutton switch across the pot, configured so that pressing the button shorts the pot to its maximum value, simulating full trim + full stick.

4. "Quick Flick" Method

If you cannot reprogram the radio, you can sometimes fire by using rapid, jerky, full-stick movements.
Main Gun: Instantly slam the right stick (elevation) fully forward while stopped.
Machine Gun: Instantly slam the right stick (elevation) fully backward.
Note: For these to work reliably without trim, the tank must be in "stopped" mode (no driving input).

[Jimster]

My go-to receiver.
It’s capable of 16 channels. Bullet proof quality.

FrSky FrSky X8R 2.4G 16CH SBUS Smart Port Full Duplex Telemetry Receiver With New Antenna

[Jib]

So with four channels you have drive, steer, traverse, and elevation, and then you use analog trims (if you have them) to fire the machine gun and main gun? Do a lot of radios still have analog trims? I’m only acquainted with HL, Torro, FlySky i6x, and TX16S. Just seems like an antiquated system, especially for the price, but maybe I’m just living in a bubble.