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You just bring two of your best buddies with soldering irons to help you with the switches. Teamwork makes the dream work

Just a heads up for anyone who will need to desolder those switches: Use big chisel type Soldering Iron tip with ~350-400C setting. Angle the tip more parallel with the board and place enough extra solder on those 3 pins so that you enclose all 3 in melted solder once all 3 are liquid pull out the switch. Afterward, clean the holes of solder(solder wick or suction). Place new switch into the hole, place PCB and tighten PCB screws then solder the new switch into place(switches are angled slightly so this is the way to solder them back correctly). Hope this will help out.

When we can flash ELRS on the internal tracer module this is gonna be really interesting!

The best thing I like about my Tango 2 is the compactness of it. The less space it takes up the better. It’s my daily driver and I don’t think I could go for the Mombo. I’m not knocking the Mombo but do like the idea of more switches available, it’s tempting. TBS products are tops in my book and hope to see even better products continue to be created.

Bardwell is also a quick change artist! I noticed a few times when he changed his shirt 🤣 Thanks for the review! 😁

It would have been an epic move if the Mamba was milti-protocol with Crossfire and Tracer inside, I would have paid more for it.

i have felling that a couple months down the road we will get new board revisions for this just as they did with the Tango 2

I just added a tbs crossfire module… and it my new daily driver… love it!

I love that they direct soldered to the board. To me. It’s more of a reliability issue of the switch actually working. and to swap them. Not hard at all. Get a solder sucker. Or solder wick.

Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and…😂😂. Classic JB

In the tbs lounge someone decased a crossfire micro TX, routed the sma up to the external Mambo's antenna spot and that way you are able to use both and still fit the Jr bay cover on

Just converted my fleet to express LRS and i love it, also bought a jumper t-lite second hand. Would love to upgrade to a TBS radio if i could keep using my express LRS.

I'm the Tango 2 user trying to move to Tracer... or at least the tracer option. My shoulder buttons were stiff and stand was a bit wobbly, but mine was one of the first batches. they sent replacement parts which arrived in days. I still want the Mango... The Crossfire / Tracer combo, Tango2 switches, Mambo screen, size is about perfect. think the Tango2 is built a little bit better.. but again... first batch against my V3 Tango2. I'd buy both again. But what I really want is the The Mango... or is it Tambo? Tango2 + Mambo /2 + ELRS the Rumba or Cha Cha Cha...

The shoulder Buttons are 87% pushed by accident xD 13:00 makes a point. looking forward for that video 16:25 ^^ ouman the impact goes from the switch direct to the pcb...i hope that only the switch brake and not the pcb I will stick to my QX7 with TBSCF Great video, thanks.

Betchya TBS releases a Crossfire variant like 6 months to a year later. After the market has been saturated with as many Tracer models as possible. I assume it’s greedy business practices. Those three position switches are also mounted to that PCB at a slight angle, so it’s nearly impossible to pull off. You rock JB. I fing love you bro! Lol.

Regarding switch replacement - I heard the same argument from Stingy in his review, but it seems like the simple solution is just destroy the broken switch if you need to replace it. By that I mean cut it to pieces with wire cutters or whatever so that all that remains are the solder tabs, and then de-solder them one-by-one.

I for one, freaking love that the Mambo is Tracer. CRSF has been back ordered for months. I had ZERO issues ordering Tracer components because the masses are gaga over CRSF. Now I can fly without waiting on back order units to become available.

Gotta say, if they had an option to ship with a built in multi-protocol module, I would already have one of these on the way.

Try low temp solder for that switch, pilgrim. Melt a little low temp onto each of those solder joints and it will drop right out of the board.

Regarding the soldered switches, just use a solder wick

My deal breaker for me is no way to buy one with Crossfire embedded. I don't want to use another module. That's the one great thing about the tango.

Stingerswarm mentioned in his review that the switches are soldered in at an angle, so even if you are able to desolder, when it is time to solder the new ones in you'll have a hell of a time getting the angle right.

looks like a nogo for people using crsf but as beginner radio it is pretty useful. starting out with frsky is just a pain in the a.

Waiting to be able to flash ELRS on the Mambo. I would have bought a Crossfire Mambo, but Tracer, no.

What beautiful words and wonderful editing in such clear and understandable language☺️ I purchased this remote and since then my flights have just become perfect, it flies exactly how I want it to🤟🚀

Oh, that last bit is such a tease... Thanks JB!

Good point at the end on whether it’s the better choice as your first radio.

Got mine for one week now (ethix version). I use it with crossfire and Ghost (yes it works, but with SBUS). Good radio, form factor is awsome

Excellent video JB, like that you give evey angle for your viewers to make their own decision

18:20 you should be using solder wick to remove this sort of component with a soldering iron its really cheap from most hobby or electronic stores

I'm happy with the Tracer inside because like you said I already have a CRSF JR Module and I LOVE the Mambo!

Someone should make a blank radio with no standard protocol, just the case switches, joysticks and module bay, don't know why anyone has done that yet

The switch desoldering issue is really a making a mountain of a molehill. Just stick desoldering braid (copper wick) one there, apply soldering iron, voila.

Because the Mambo is the radio FPV deserves, but not the one it needs right now

I hate the shoulder buttons for arming or disarming. My finger tips rest past the shoulder buttons. I have a hellofa time trying to push the button in without disrupting the throttle or yaw. Plus it takes time to actually contract my hand with the intent to disarm in a emergency situation. I tried to get used to it but I ended up using the inside longer switch on the right side of the radio. Coming from a X9D plus, I still miss using the traditional 2 way switch on the left hand shoulder. I think it would have been better off if they used the shoulder switch similar to the gamer pad style crossfire controller.

As one of multiple ExpressLRS developers with this radio I also would like to see ELRS on it and it is something we are working towards but it is a lot of work. Props to TBS software team for being able to keep OpenTX and Crossfire separate but run on the same MCU!

broken switches: the best chance to replace those soldered ones is to dissamble the switch if possible or to use a saw blade and cut the pin from the upperside. Ones the dead one is cut off desoldering those pins is easy.

18:02 It's really easy to remove solder with a solder sucker.

In my collection of radios theTango 1 is my favorite. Newest isn’t always best.

Tango2 in special features has auto trim you set to a switch so fixed wings are crazy easy to trim, which is on any open tx or freedom TX, totally love mine for wings now

Finally I got my answer 😀😀😀 thanx Joshua

Might get the v2 if it's not exclusively tracer built in. I really like the radio design, but I'm just not interested in tracer. A multiprotocol or crossfire version would be great.

Desolder the switch looks like you'll need to use solder wick and even a sucker, bolt new switch into the case, put the pcb into the case, the switch is now at the correct angle and then apply solder. At least that's how I imagine I would tackle it.

I want a Tango 2 with internal ExpressLRS. I love the ceramic antenna for whoops and toothpicks. Or maybe just give me a cheap crossfire receiver with a ceramic antenna.

Great overview as usual...well done..Yes, those multiprotocol RF units lack range...It's why I have CRSF Module in my Radio master TX16S...🤔🤔😳🇬🇧

I personally have just purchased one of these! for my first build, i have been flying spektrum on Helis for years, i really feel like they rushed this one out the door and skipped a few quality of life "easy fixes" the first being the rocker 3 position switches being directly soldered down what Joshua also forgot to mention as he didnt take the whole PCB out the case/faceplate, is not only are they directly soldered they are soldered at a slight angle so you would need a jigg or mastering soldering skills to get it back/close enough to the original position to slide back through the front cover/faceplate. The other issue is the external antenna being an engineer as trade myself, having people drill out a case for an antenna is a disaster waiting to happen! and almost an afterthought! why not just add a M8/M6 knock out ? it would make the installation of the external antenna far more easy, quick and more importantly a cleaner install. i like the radio of course as i have purchased one to replace my DX8 gen 2 but on the other hand i think they really did rush this one out of the door for sale, rather than send out a few units to reviewers, hobbyists for some feedback! its a cheap good radio but i would of rather spent 20-30 more for the option to make this radio a great radio !

TBS should offer an optional crossfire board for the Mambo with an onboard antenna (if that's even possible). I LOVE the form factor of the Mambo! 🔥

For the hard solder part just get a solder sucker, couple of buck and you do one leg at a time or desoldering braid.

TBS's ecxuse to not support crossfire out of the box isn't really valid imo. How am I gonna fly my frsky whoops when the module bay is occupied with crossfire?

Looks like a nice radio, may get one when I choose to start flying again.

I bought the ExpressLRS module for the Mambo. Now i have the best of both worlds, as i see it.

As a former Spektrum user, the bane of my existence is every radio has momentary on the right and toggle on the left. I have to do this mod to every radio. The trick to desoldering 3 pin switches is to lay a piece of low gauge wire across all three pins and set the iron to high and desolder.

Thanks for the review!!! I'm flying with TBS Tango 2 and anjoy this radio! Form factor is pretty cool! All of my qwads carry TBS Crossfire modules and I think it's good idea to build qwads on this platform. Radio is perfect for me as a beginner in previous season.

Those direct soldered switches arnt to difficult to desolder if you've a bit of experience , But saying that , I can envisage a fair few lifted pads and damaged traces happening if you arnt careful.... You could possibly trim the solder pins on the new switch to be really short , And then wire them in place , This would save stressing the pads for a third time if you had to change the switch .

Looks like TBS's version of Radiometer TX12 and Jumper T12. Same materials, same (number of) buttons and switches, the display... Got TX12 and everything looks so familiar. By the way, I had the crossfire and other Lua scripts in TX12.

If this radio had Express LRS I would 100 percent buy it!!!

I guess for Crossfire you need much bigger antenna to get all benefits. And placing it on pcb without snail would be challenging.

I fly a Nirvana with a Tracer module. What I'd really like TBS to do is to make a kind of "Dynamic modulation": basically you set a power, let's say 100mw, and when you exceed the range of that 100mw FLRC it automatically switches to LoRa. Now THAT would really step up Tracer with the competition.

Great video as always.. excited for the expressLRS if that will be unlocked.

Thanks Joshua, very well done review. Gimbal throw as you explained is a big deal for me and i guess for many other thumbers out there who are very used to normal size gimbal(standard throw). So i guess an option to upgrade from an X9Dse it to try Radiomaster t16s.

With those switches at an angle and direct soldered to the pcb, I think there's a good chance of damaging the pcb when you drop it and break a switch! It's also gonna be very difficult to solder a new switch in at precisely the correct angle. For that reason, and including Tracer, I still think the smart purchase is buying the Radiomaster TX16S. It's as near perfect build quality and design as there has every been for any radio, especially for the price. JB uses it for a good reason.

BTW you can't put an STM32-based ELRS module in this radio, because UART RX is inverted (compared to TX16S, QX7 etc.). I had to mod my ELRS module. Broke a trace and mod-wired an inverter.

The simplest way to change a switch would probably be to physically destroy the damaged switch, to the point that the three legs could be desoldered separately. That would have to be done with exceptional care, though. Failing that, reflow the joints with leaded solder before trying to remove them, leaded solder is far more forgiving!

Good review Bardwell. I have no reason to switch from the Tango 2 but good review none the less

Great video Thanks. I am new and I am not. I have been flying DJI for years and am in the industry and want to start playing with my own custom stuff, but this brings up the issue of radios which until now I have not had to deal with. Do you have a series of videos or a video that explains radios and receivers and from beginner to moderate to expert? I am really interested in the differences, capabilities, and situations in which one would be preferred over the other. A video similar to this would be about cameras and transmitters/receivers in the same vien.

I need one of those Drib shirts 🔥 Also I like that it comes with tracer since I already have a crossfire module and could potentially have both with this radio.

I wouldn’t use a hot air station to replace the switch. A half roll of solder wick sucks the through holes clean! My trusty 60 watt RadioShack iron can fix that dropped toggle, old skool.

Really honest review as usual. Good job.

TBS could have easily charged $199 for this and still sold a ton, specially with today’s prices. Good on TBS for pricing fairly, and also they realize that this would hook you into their eco system, like a cheap printer and printer ink.

Thanks JB, I learned where my mambo’s sd card was hidden today 🙌🏻

Not only are those switches direct soldered, they're soldered at an angle relative to the board it looks like

So TBS now has 2 radios, both of which have shortcomings for fixed wings. One with long range module without trim switches, and one with shorter range built in module with trim switches.

beginner radio....yes! now if quad oems will offer trcr standard or option on pre-builts

You can use desoldering pump in this case with broken switches.

Fantastic review, Joshua! Thanks a lot! 😊 Well... Looks like we're going to have a ELRS radio soon, so... 😬 Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

I am a pincher but I fly best on the jumper t-lite. My Qx-7 is now collecting dust up in the shelf 🤣. Though i hope i could try holding the mambo to find out how it feels.

I bought this radio in order to replace my Taranis X9d+ with a TBS Micro TX module and remplacing at the same time, the 2.4Ghz FrSky Protocol by Trancer witch is definitly better. But I would like to have the option to try Express LRS and Open Companion (of course).... yes may be Trappy will lose some sales in the short term but it will be a good bet to the future. Express LRS is the way.

Looks like it would be awesome at keeping light breezes from blowing papers off of my desk.

Thanks JB enjoyed the review... Nice...

I have my Ethix Version now for about a month, and I love it. Great ergonomics and the gimbals are so precise, they are definatly better than the M9 from FrSky. And the Tracer built in was for me a reason to get it since I already own a xfire modul

I love your videos and I love my radiomaster tx16s was my best buy yet can do everything I need + more but this thing locks very interesting radio well worth it though

I had a graupner mx20 and got the mambo because the recivers are smaller and I don't like the gamepad style. I like it alot it feels very precise and I don't have problems with range but that's cause I fly on fields

A soldering gun and solder sucker would make replacing those switches easy. I would prefer crsf inside with an internal antenna.

Soon they come out with the crossfire version, I will buy it. They could have combined it and called it TraceFire.

Elrs would be great it would allow to use really cheap and small receivers.

Switch replacement is as simple as Solder wick and a 60 watt iron. Those are tools anyone soldering battery leads to an ESC should really get comfortable with. developing soldering skills is very important to this hobby.

❤️ ya JB .... pitty bout the mambo.... was hoping to love this !

if we talking about the range -Tracer is better than my Spektrum DX8 G2 but because we talking about a range I will not use Tracer(at least for now ), I will keep using my trusty Crossfire module in the back of my new TRACER

Oh my god. I have the Ethics version, and I never noticed the 11 on the knobs...

Just purchased this after seeing the range of the tracer in ludacris mode

To my opinion the mamba with it's trim switches is more suitable for wings and the tango 2 without trim is more suitable for quads. Tracer to my opinion is more suitable for quads and crossfire more for wings. Why not have an option to choose which procol you want your radio to have tracer/crossfire when you buy it. It's not so nice to have two antennas so why not both is clear to me.

TBS: you will not sell any Mambo to us until you offer crossfire mambo built in Easy, isn't it ? and would be fine your quality would be better at delivery cause the first who had bought that radio had already complained the fit of plastics and parts and quality.

Hey Joshua, I've been out of the hobby since about 2017. You said that TBS Tracer is loads better than FrSky, and I was wondering why? I've got a Qx7, and don't necessarily want to upgrade (I mostly fly on a sim anyway) but I was wondering what I'm missing out on. Thanks!

Just got mine in and the SA switch was broken out of the box its the ethix version but hopeing it gets fixed soon but besides that i quite enjoy the remote over my nervana

To remove the switches. Use solder sucker. Suck each one individually. Then remove the switch. Use flux too. That's it. It's madd easy.

I dunno yet how is possible to supply the right current from the 2 18650 to (example) an fully external Crossfire module...

I had complaints with my tango press button switch and they just send me a spare switch. I am stuck now rather i dont change the switch to save my PCB

It should be offered in both versions CRSF and Tracer. Some people just want one radio link and not need extra modules. Just buy the radio and it works for that protocol. If Ethix was CRSF I would have it already. Tracer doesn’t appeal to me. And the Tango 2 for factor doesn’t appeal to me

Wait...I'm just getting back into fpv after 3 years and Frsky used to be the go to. Are we saying that Frsky is crap now??