New Fusion V3.3 Board for Skyzone Steadyview/RapidMix Module Fixes Dark Rolling Issues

Skyzone has released a new Fusion V3.3 board for the Steadyview and Rapidmix modules that come with their SKY04X, SKY04L, CobraS, and CobraX goggles. The new board reportedly fixes the dark/rolling image issues so that it is now stable and clear.

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The Dark/Rolling Screen Issue

The original version of the Skyzone Steadyview receiver was reportedly causing video desync to some users in Mix Mode. When the desync happens it randomly makes your image go darker (sometimes goes red/purple too), in some situations it also your OSD text shaking from left to right. Here’s an example of the dark/rolling screen issue.

I didn’t have this issue personally, it seems to only affect certain camera/VTX and not all of them, and I am not exactly sure what combinations trigger it. Anyway the new V3.3 fusion board is supposed to fix that.

Here’s Skyzone’s announcement in their FB group:

For those customer who have dark/rolling image issue, we totally solved this by change the hardware, the image is stable and clear now. also we have another version with ELRS backpack build in, for those who have ELRS system, user can use their radio to sync the VTX and VRX, also set an aux switch(like arm switch) on radio to start/stop DVR. The New Fusion board is basically our BOM price for old user, considering those old customer’s support those years, thank you guys.

Where to Buy Fusion V3.3 Board?

The new Fusion board is not free, existing customers will have to pay for a new version to replace their original module.

The Steadyview receiver module consists of two boards, the top board is the fusion board, the bottom board is the receiver board, they are connected by header pins. The dark/rolling screen issue is caused by the Fusion board, so that’s the one we want to replace.

Get your V3.3 Fusion Boards here:

• Standard Version ($30)
  • Skyzone: https://oscarliang.com/product-sask
  • AliExpress: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DeRin35
• ExpressLRS Version ($35)
  • Skyzone: https://oscarliang.com/product-563a
  • AliExpress: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DES1iEP

If you own an old Steadyview module, you only need to get the new Fusion V3.3 board (the top PCB board that sits on the Steadyview module), Skyzone says they are selling it at BOM. You can also get the whole new module if you want but it costs a lot more as it’s sold at full price. The ELRS version has a built-in ExpressLRS receiver that can be bound to your ExpressLRS radio system to sync the VTX and VRX, and also can be setup to automatically start recording DVR in your Skyzone goggles when you arm.

People purchasing the latest batches of Skyzone goggles (SKY04X, SKY04L, CobraS, and CobraX) have reported that they were shipped with the new V3.3 board.

Installing Fusion V3.3 Board

The new fusion board is already loaded with the latest firmware, so there is no need to flash it when you get it. All you need to do is to plug it into your existing receiver module (swap out the old fusion board on top of the module).

There’s black glue between the pin connectors, to remove the top board you need to peel away the glue first. Make sure the
orientation is correct when installing the Fusion board with USB connector facing away from the SMA connectors.

Updating Goggles Firmware

There are 3 different versions of goggles hardware, each version requires different firmware so make sure you check which hardware version you have before updating. Flashing the wrong firmware will cause the menu and DVR to stop working.

• V1 – Original
• V2 – Upgraded 60FPS DVR capability (if you previously bought the 60FPS DVR kit to update your V1 hardware, you will also need to update the V2 firmware)
• V3 – New MCU due to global chip shortage, but performance is the same as V2 (that’s why goggles are still called V2, but hardware is V3)

To check which version you have, go to the System menu, scroll down to Firmware version and see what “FW1” is:

• V1.x.x = V1 hardware
• V2.x.x = V2 hardware
• V3.x.x = V3 hardware

Download firmware here: https://www.skyzonefpv.com/pages/download

Unzip the file, it should contain two .bin files, A and B (A is for the goggles firmware, B is for the menu).

1. Connect goggles to the computer via the USB-C port (no need to plug in battery)
2. Hold down the left wheel button, then press the power button
3. A new removable drive should appear on your computer
4. Copy the firmware files (A and B) to the drive, while copying, the goggles will install the update at the same time
5. Once the file copying is done, you can eject and remove the drive and restart your goggles

Now check firmware version to see if it’s been updated.

After the update, firmware version will tell you exactly what hardware version you have, e.g. Sky04x V1 / V2 / V3 etc, this has been confusing a lot of people so I thought I should point it out.

The next thing to do in the goggles after installing the new module is to choose SteadyviewX mode instead of RF-Normal. This is very important because it will not work at all if you don’t switch to Steadyviewx mode.

Then recalibrate RSSI so the % numbers are accurate. For the calibrations, the options are LOW and HIGH. Calibrate on LOW first with VTX powered off. Then, power on your drone (VTX) and run the HIGH calibration, with the drone around 2 meters away.

What Are MIX1, MIX2, MIX3, DIV Modes

The Steadyview module with V3.2 or newer hardware have 3 MIX modes and 1 DIV mode.

MIX1 mode provides basic fusion processing to reduce excessive intervention of the circuit on the picture.

MIX2 mode improves synchronization stability, especially under weak signal to maximize synchronization and lock video.

MIX3 mode enhances the synchronization signal on the basis of Mix2, maximizes the stability of the video image, and maximizes compatibility with other display devices. In this mode, the brightness of the video signal will be reduced.

DIV mode, the fusion processing will be turned off, and the receiver will work in the traditional diversity receiving mode, and the audio and video signal output corresponding to the channel with the highest RSSI intensity will be selected.

ELRS Backpack

If you got the Steadyview+ELRS module (not the standard version), you can set it up to sync the VTX and VRX channel automatically, and it can also be setup to automatically start recording DVR in your Skyzone goggles when you arm.

Here’s how to set it up:

1. Goggles must be flashed to the latest firmware
2. Goggles must be on Steadyview X mode
3. If your goggles have two module bays, make sure the Steadyview+ELRS module is installed on the left bay (HDMI port side)
4. Binding the VRX backpack and TX backpack (instructions below)
5. In the ExpressLRS LUA Script, VTX Administrator, sync the VTX and VRX. You can also assign an AUX switch to start/stop DVR

Binding VRX Backpack with TX Backpack

You can simply flash the VRX Backpack with your binding phrase, similar to how you flash a ELRS receiver (detail instructions below).

Alternatively you can manually bind it:

1. Put the VRX Backpack in bind mode by power cycle the Steadyview module 3 times (you can do so by plugging in USB-C cable and unplug it, when you connect it the 3rd time just leave it plugged in), the green LED on the receiver should double blink indicating it’s in bind mode
2. Go to the ExpressLRS Lua script on your radio, select the Bind option. The LED on both Backpacks should now stay SOLID indicating that the binding was successful

DVR Control

You can setup an AUX switch to control DVR recording in the ExpressLRS LUA script. If you wish to start/stop DVR recording automatically when the drone is armed/disarmed, just set it to the Arm switch.

Updating VRX Backpack ExpressLRS firmware

1. Hold the ELRS boot button, connect the receiver to the computer via USB-C cable
2. In ExpressLRS Configurator, on the left hand panel, select “Backpack” tab, in Device Category => VRX, Device => Steadyview+ELRS Onboard Backpack, Flashing Method => UART

Updating Receiver Firmware

The receiver module also has its own firmware, so it works with ELRS.

Download firmware here: www.skyzonefpv.com/pages/download, find “Steadyview_ELRS_Vx.x.x”.

1. Hold the boot button and plug the receiver to PC (windows)
2. Computer will automatically install the driver, a new removable storage should appear shortly after
3. Copy the Firmware File (e.g. N32L403_APP_V1.1.1, and Steadyview_ELRS_APP_V1.1.1) to the new storage (NOT the SD card).
4. Receiver will installing the update while the files are copying, when the copying is done, the firmware
   upgrade is also complete

Disabling ELRS

To disable the ELRS, when power on the receiver, the green ELRS indicator is on, hold the ELRS boot button
for 10s to disable the VRX-backpack, the green indicator will turn off, to enable the VRX-backpack, hold the
ELRS boot button for 10s to enable it, the green LED will turn on.