EMAX HAWK5 Review Part 1: Bench and early Flights

Emax Hawk 5 pictured here with a turnigy graphene 4s 1500mah 65c lipo

So the Emax Hawk 5 has been out for a couple of months now and it has really captured the imagination of community. This is because it was an EMax-USA driven initiative that started as a way to sell more parts (Magnum stack, LS motors, Avan props) but ended up so much more. Where the Hawk 5 separates itself from all other bind and flys that have come before (except perhaps the holybro kopis) is that is more than the sum of it's parts - the development that has gone into matching the components, developing a strong, stiff yet lightweight frame and then tuning the whole package means it is a bind and fly that is genuinely competitive for racing out of the box. Listening to HyphPV and Sean Taylor in various channels they both believe this is a bonafide racer which is high praise coming from them.

I'll try keep this review brief because there has already been a lot said about this quad but I'll try to address the aspects that struck me as peculiar or aspects I don't thik have been well covered.

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Component choice
I think the component choice looks solid but unspectacular however the way that this comes together in for flight is super impressive.

Emax Magnum Stack F4 flight controller

The flight controller is an F4 with a MP6000 gyro so can do 8k/8k pid gyro but no more. This acceptable but once the more advanced filtering like on butterflight and betaflight 3.4+ becomes more widespread it will be adequate but not a lot more.

Emax Magnum stack 30A 4in1 BLHeli_S ESC

The ESC is a BLHeli_S 30a and rated at 3-4s. It does not have BLHeli_32 and some of the advanced features that are offered there *however* Emax have stated this will run 6s with a lower kV motor (1600-1700kV) and this has been confirmed by Conrad "Furadi" Miller in races.

25mW/200mW VTX

The VTX is very simple. It has 48 channels and is power switchable between 25mW and 200mW. It does not have smart audio or tramp protocol which is unfortunate however it easy to change the channel and read the large LCD screen.

Emax Hawk 5 Frame

This is impressive. This is a light and so far strong frame. I'd estimate it at the 70g mark based on final weight of the full ready to fly quad. It has replaceable arms (and comes with a spare!), options for top, bottom or 'toilet tank' battery mounting and a built-in soft mounting setup. It looks like a larger version of a babyhawk R. I have a Floss 2 frame which is very functional and light but this frame is similar in weight and function but just feels more polished.

Emax LS2206 2300kV motors

This is surely the choice that looks peculiar on the surface. Many 4s race drones typically use larger (2207, 2306, 2307) motors that have a higher kV (2500kV). This surely makes the 2206 2300kV motors on the Hawk 5 look under-done. Perhaps they are if you add a go pro but for this quads primary purpose of racing the are not and perform beautifully. I'll cover this more during flight discussion but I can see this choice was not take lightly: they provide plenty of power and do so with excellent efficiency. Don't forget Emax also have a 2207 2400kV or 2550kV motor and consciously chosen not to use this motor here even though it would have cost them no more.

Setup
Rather than going through the setup step by step in boring text, I've screen-grabbed all the relevant tabs from betaflight below. In short this quad includes custom filters setup, PIDs and rates so that you have an excellent tune right out of the box. This perfectly matches the specfic frame geometry, weight, motors and props that are used. Confident tuners will no doubt be able to adjust to their specific feel but I can say that I've come across no better custom tune in any quad yet, it is comparable to the babyhawk R (my review here) which makes sense - it was tuned by the same team.

Quick changes before flight
​As you can probably tell from the image here, I folder out the receiver antennae mounted to the cable ties (tied to the rear standoffs). Not my favourite place to mount but they'll  do. Also I used a sturdy cable tie to mount the VTX antenna to with the usual heatshrink trick. I'll replace this with the included pagoda as soon as I start flying with others since dipole can mor easilt interfere with racers on other channels.

Early flight performance
Wow. I had preconceptions that the 2206 low kV motors would be underpowered but was completely wrong. This is a fast, highly manouverable quad that is well tuned. To date it is the quickest quad I've flown and objectively has been found to hit over 100mph consistently. More than that though it corners well thanks to the 'grippy' props and light weight. I won't carry on here about flight but it felt well and truly locked in, the best quad I have flown. 

In terms of FPV the signal was excellent on 25mW which is what I'm limited to on racing. There was absolutlely no sign of electrical interference or noise on my go-to channel (F2 - 5760MHz) at any throttle level. Just as importantly the image from the foxeer arrow micro pro is surprisingly good. This camera is a surprisingly good improvement over the micro arrow 1 or 2 and the micro swift 1 or 2 - I believe the presets were greatly approved on. I've actually ordered 3 more of these cameras to replace my others with because so far have not been a fan of the newer CMOS cameras.

One thing that felt unfamiliar to me were the way the props delivered power and the noise or the lack thereof. Additionally they pull a lot of current -I peaked at 110A on a 1500mah 4s pack. My guess is that in order to take advantage of the relatively low kV motor they went with a VERY agressive propeller with a distinct geometry. After swapping over to a HQ 5x4.8x3 which is stilla fairly agressive prop the Hawk 5 felt much more familiar and predicable to me with a power delivery and audible feedback I'm much more familiar with. I didn't feel I lost anything in speed or grip but peak current draw dropped off to 97A, i.e. 10% improved efficiency at high throttle. I need to note that props are a personal thing and this is my preference. You may find you like the stock Avan Flow props much more, I'm more of a HQ/Dal guy.

Lastly I'll say the efficiency on this is very impressive, again probably down to their choice of motor.. Everyone flies differently so will get different flight times depending on what they are doing but this I founf that even with my most tired 4s 1000mah pack I was able to get 3 minutes of flight which outperformed my lighter Floss 2 build which hand 'only' 2205 motors. On a good 1300mah I got 4 minute sof hard flying and from 1500mah about 4.5 - 5 minutes.

Conclusion
If you are looking for a 5" bind and fly quad quite simply this is the one to get. $250 sounds like a lot compared to other cheaper ones but as I've said before this is so much greater than the sum of it's parts. The clever choice of components, lightweight frame and wonderful tune make this a great quad and it shows - at the time of writing it is always in and out of stock depending on where you shop. Since so many have sold there is also a very big community - more people to solve problems and enhance. For example customs canopies, go pro mounts and recommendations for budget meaningful modifications and customisation is much more readliy available than for less common quads that tend to come and go. I'll bet this quad will be around and supported well for a long time.

Support is great - as you can see above all parts are available from many retailers so replacements are not just available but commonly available. 

I can't speak to reliability yet since I haven't flown enough but since they haven't gone with the very latest and leading edge technology and hardware, that means there have been time to iron out the bugs. I'm expecting few problems but will certainly report back if there are.

Lastly I'll make a note again on the efficiency. In the race for power with bigger motors and steeper props this often gets forgotten but EMax seems to be going down the path of optimised efficiency and it shows here. The rhetoric from them is the the LS and newer RSII series are motor were not developed for all out power but more for efficiency which is what racers have really been demanding - making sure that on fast tracks that they still have battery left at the end. This is a benefit to the racer of course but for the casual pilot more efficiency = longer flight time = more stick time for learning and more of the the fun part of FPV... actual flying!

In summary this is a great model and comes highly recommended from me. Of course I'll be looking to improve where I can do so effectively and cheaply and will write about this where it's meaningful. Gearbest kindly supplied me this model and I'd encourage you to purchase from them as per the link below. Using this affiliate link comes at no cost to you but will help me to continue making and publishing reviews like this and recommendations for improvement.

Updates! I've new written a blog on bang for buck upgrades and also a comprehensive walkthrough on a VTX upgrade to allow DVR, smart audio, great power options.

Emax Hawk 5 Bind and Fly Quadcopter from Gearbest (currently in stock at time of writing):

https://www.gearbest.com/brushless-fpv-racer/pp_1670812.html

Parts available:

Emax Hawk 5 5 inch replacement arms
Banggood ($8 for 2)
Emax USA ($8 for 2)

Emax Hawk 5 6 inch arm upgrade
Banggood ($8 for 2)
​Emax USA ($8 for 2)

Emax LS2206 2300kV motors:
Gearbest ($`18)
Banggood ($18)
Emax-USA ($18)

Emax LS2206 replacement motor bells (x2)
Gearbest ($14)
Banggood ($14)
​Emax-USA ($14)

Emax Magnum F4 stack (ESC, FC, VTX, Reciever)
Banggood ($110)

Emax Hawk 5 Magnum 30A 4in1 ESC
RaceDayQuads ($45)

Emax Hawk 5 Magnum FC
Emax-USA ($29)

Emax Hawk 5 complete frame
Banggood ($45)
Emax-USA ($45)

Emax Hawk 5 Magnum 25/200mW VTX
Emax-USA ($22)

Emax Avan Flow 5" Props
Banggood ($4)

Foxeer Arrow Micro Pro Camera
Gearbest ($28)
Banggood ($25)

Emax Hawk 5 Hardware Kit
Banggood ($5)