@zboblamont said in Ten year anniversary nRF24L01+:

@skywatch 40 Gig in the hobbyist world for domestic spaces where low power is king? Really?

Now that isn't what I said is it? Naughty step for you!

The thing is that many people don't understand RF and have a very simplified view of it.

For the 2.4GHz items many of us use, moving the radio module 5-10cm can make a huge difference in the quality of the signal. These radios obey all the same laws as other radio devices. Changing the attitude of the device from edge facing to flat plane facing can also make a difference as can twisting the device from a horizontal to vertical orientation... With no external antenna (and if there is make sure they are all vertical or horizontal, otherwise signal strength will be reduced).

A lot of the time, simple small movements of the radio device can result in big changes in the quality of signal between two points. This is due to the multipath nature of devices in the home and all the items that can absorb or reflect the signals. Some of these are visible items like radiators, furniture etc, whilst some are hidden like pipework, wiring and metal studs in walls.

Finding the 'sweet spot' may take time, and if you move either end of the link you might have to start all over again!

@alexsh1 Thanks for the advice and sharing your experiences. I have noted that a lot of sellers on ali now show a pro mini without the atmel logo. Maybe the fakers have been forced to stop using the branding. This is why I need to find a source that uses original atmel chips. I have looked at ebay and aliexpress and am not confident of what is likely to arrive.
Bring back shops where I can see things before I buy them.

@nca78 I think you might be confusing range as a dependent only on frequency. Range is not dependent solely on frequency. I have worked on items above 40GHz that had a range of many, many miles.
5.8GHz is the 'newer' wifi band amongst other things. But currently much less crowded than 2.4GHz.

@mfalkvidd Thank you - That is exactly the sort of info I needed - The datasheets are not much use as all the headline parameters seem to be identical with varying parameters also looking the same on paper.

I will try and find some good 328 today - I need 5V ones for in house mains powered projects, I already have a load of 3.3v ones for battery power, but I will check these to see if they are 'P' or not. If not, I may be in for some more soldering practice!

Cheers

I have been looking for some more good pro mini's to get and I noticed that there are options on the controller now - So which one would you choose and why?
Also, who is a good supplier with 'genuine atmel' chips onboard?

Thanks!

SOLVED!

I finally reinstalled the mycontroller (1.4.0) on the rpi and everything started working again.

I am not sure what happened, but at least it seems to be good for 48 hours now, so I am happy that the problem is gone.

Thanks for all the help and suggestions, it's not always easy to find the problem.

@sundberg84 You first have to decide what you are protecting against, then define the parameters you are likely (or even unlikely) to face. You always should have a fuse with a mov. Like all electronic parts there is a whole depth of knowledge and physics waiting for you!

If you have a specific concern then an electronics forum like this one would be a good place to ask. That way you get a lot of opinions and can make a better judgement.

I have rarely needed to use them as I don't build psu's much these days, so I copied what I saw in commercial designs.

@speechsupply 10 Years is a long time for a chip to be manufactured these days.

I guess it is a testament to how well they designed it in the first place. It has little competition, works well and is versatile. I just wish they would make a compatible 5.8GHz as well.

@yveaux Thank you - I always thought of 'chat' as a live session (when both parties were online chatting) and PM as a private email type communication. That was confusing me!

@sundberg84 Try this one......

MOV:Varistors – 10:48
— Electronics Projects

But mainly once you know how they work and what they do, you really only need to look up the data sheet(s) to see which one is suitable for your application.

My rule has been to use 1.5x - 2.0x the usual operating voltage. Remember this is protection from big surges and spikes, not to limit noise and glitches on the power line. For that you need capacitors and a common mode inductor.