Hello, Ive been having some issues out of getting these modules to work with my two Arduino uno's. Im having a really weird issue where I have to be touching the wires for them to transmit their signals and I cant seem to find a good solid solution to dealing with this for a uno. The device is the spark-fun version of this device. It is red and square. It is not he black one that has the 2x4 pins this has a 1x8. It has a single row of 8 pin holes for the GND,IRQ,MISO,MOSI,SCK,CSN,CE,VCC. In other articles they say this is because of a power issue with the current and you need to put a 3 uF capacitor on the connection between the 3.3v and GND pins, but this is not possible with the spark-fun version, only on the black version of the device. Im also using the RF24-master library and trying to do the getting started tutorials..
PS. I have the accompanying antennas for the devices.
Given that you seem to be able to get it working if you are touching some wires then the problem is almost certainly a wiring issue. Are you connecting everything together on a solderless breadboard? They are notoriously finicky. I have personally had issues using solderless breadboards to connect NRF24L01 radios to my Arduino.
To give us all a better idea of what is going on, can you post a schematic of how you have wired up your radios, and also post the code that you are using along with any error messages you are getting?
This unit has an onboard 3.3V regulator...On-board 3.3V LDO Regulator (3.3 to 7V supply allowed)
Sounds like you need to power it from 5V..
Other: What software are you using??
The RF Power Level can be set. Start with lowest. The possibilities are: RF24_PA_MIN, RF24_PA_LOW, RF24_PA_HIGH and RF24_PA_MAX Keep the two units separated by several feet.
BJHenry:
Given that you seem to be able to get it working if you are touching some wires then the problem is almost certainly a wiring issue. Are you connecting everything together on a solderless breadboard? They are notoriously finicky. I have personally had issues using solderless breadboards to connect NRF24L01 radios to my Arduino.
To give us all a better idea of what is going on, can you post a schematic of how you have wired up your radios, and also post the code that you are using along with any error messages you are getting?
Im not even using a diagram, I was following the guide that was listed on the spark fun website for the module itself. Note I am using an arduino uno and only and am directrly wiring it from the power & GND pins and the digital write pins like in the diagram on this link. nRF24L01+ Transceiver Hookup Guide - SparkFun Learn
What sort of wires are you using to connect the Arduino to the radio? Can you take some decent pictures? I still think my idea about it being a wiring problem is valid.
Can you please confirm- are you powering the radio from the 5V or the 3.3V pin on the Arduino?
I can assure you I have tried both the 3.3v and 5v supplies on the arduino uno board, not only does it work when I barley touch the wires on both devices, if I crank the power high enough, I only have to come within a small proximity of the wire and arduino and it will work, which I think is pretty weird, its like the wires are picking up on the magnetic field of my body.
