Ships Deep space explorer, need some AFMU advice

equex

equex
I recently finished my ASPx extreme range explorer (59.46 Ly) but I have a question about wether to have one or two AFMU's.

All my modules are stripped down to minimum size classes, with maximum Lightweight mods except Power Plant because it cannot be repaired.
So the Power Plant is a 2A that is G5-Armoured with Double Braced experimental effect, giving it an integrity of 142.

At the moment I have shielded 5A and 3A AFMU's but my question is if the Power Plant is going to wear out long before i get trouble with the AFMU's, in which which case I could fit something else instead of one of them, since i would have to return home when my PP starts dying. I won't need two AFMU's to repair each other if my Power Plant is about to die anyway.

I plan to go as far as i can into black this time, maybe hitting up some Neutron Stars as well. I'm basically going to take a look at lots of stuff on the maps in EDDiscovery.
But my previous longest trip was the "Palin 5K run" :)

So for those of you that's been going on long trips, you think I should keep the 3A AFMU ?
I kind of want to put in a corrosion resistant cargo rack in case i find anything out there, or maybe something else.

Thoughts welcome.
 
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varonica

varonica
equex said:
I recently finished my ASPx extreme range explorer (59.46 Ly) but I have a question about wether to have one or two AFMU's.

All my modules are stripped down to minimum size classes, with maximum Lightweight mods except Power Plant because it cannot be repaired.
So the Power Plant is a 2A that is G5-Armoured with Double Braced experimental effect, giving it an integrity of 142.

At the moment I have shielded 5A and 3A AFMU's but my question is if the Power Plant is going to wear out long before i get trouble with the AFMU's, in which which case I could fit something else instead of one of them, since i would have to return home when my PP starts dying. I won't need two AFMU's to repair each other if my Power Plant is about to die anyway.

I plan to go as far as i can into black this time, maybe hitting up some Neutron Stars as well. I'm basically going to take a look at lots of stuff on the maps in EDDiscovery.
But my previous longest trip was the "Palin 5K run" :)

So for those of you that's been going on long trips, you think I should keep the 3A AFMU ?
I kind of want to put in a corrosion resistant cargo rack in case i find anything out there, or maybe something else.

Thoughts welcome.
Click to expand...

Just on my way back from a 60kly round trip and didn't even bother taking an AFMU. If you are a careful explorer and don't bother with neutron star boosts for medium sized trips like that they are pretty much surplus to requirements. Depends how you explore I guess. I suggest taking two for this trip and see how you use them then for the next trip you will actually have some idea of whether you do actually need two.
 

Fenris Wolf

Fenris Wolf
I've got one 3A AFMU fitted to my AspEx and it only gets used to repair the FSD after several (20 or so) Neutron Star jumps.

Just make sure you have plenty of ingredients for synthesized refills for it.
 

equex

equex
varonica said:
Just on my way back from a 60kly round trip and didn't even bother taking an AFMU. If you are a careful explorer and don't bother with neutron star boosts for medium sized trips like that they are pretty much surplus to requirements. Depends how you explore I guess. I suggest taking two for this trip and see how you use them then for the next trip you will actually have some idea of whether you do actually need two.
Click to expand...

I guess at least one AFMU is pretty much required for when doing lots of Neutron boosts, but i intend to only do a few of them for famous spots that might require one or two such jumps.
Save for a couple of rough landings on high G planets that annhilated my shields, i've never taken any damage or needed AFMU myself either.
So i guess i maybe should take one.

Did you fit anything else on your 60kly trip instead of AFMU or did you fly with empty slots ?

Fenris Wolf said:
I've got one 3A AFMU fitted to my AspEx and it only gets used to repair the FSD after several (20 or so) Neutron Star jumps.

Just make sure you have plenty of ingredients for synthesized refills for it.
Click to expand...

Did your Power Plant take any damage ?
I have a lightweight modded powerplant in storage i could fit instead of the armoured one for a bit more range.
 

PanTast

PanTast
I suggest you bring one or two AFMU's. You don't need them when you have them, but you will miss them when don't have them.

"Haben ist besser als brauchen" :D

o7
 

varonica

varonica
equex said:
Did you fit anything else on your 60kly trip instead of AFMU or did you fly with empty slots ?

Did your Power Plant take any damage ?
I have a lightweight modded powerplant in storage i could fit instead of the armoured one for a bit more range.
Click to expand...

No, flew empty, no heatsinks, just basic shield.

Now the PP damage reflects my point about flying carefully, I did accidentally brush to close to a star and took some heat damage, my inattention caused that, took my eye off while scooping. I had 98% hull at the end and only lost that due to a couple of messy landings on the dark side of a planet. I don't seriously think a 60kly round trip is much of a challenge for a minimally equipped exploration ship. Now if I was going to circle the galaxy like some have done I might throw a few more things on board.
 

LifesAJourney

LifesAJourney
I have 2A low emission power plant and 5A AFMU on my AspX and I'd say that they lose their health at very similar rates. So assuming single AFMU - if it is about to die, power plant is most likely also about to die. You have to go back to civilization and second AFMU cannot change it. So, to summarize, second AFMU is a waste of slot to me.

I definitely prefer repair limpets controller instead since my auto-pilot constantly scratches my ship during landings and once every 20-30 touch downs I need to repair my hull.
 
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equex

equex
LifesAJourney said:
I have 2A low emission power plant and 5A AFMU on my AspX and I'd say that they loose their health at very similar rates. So assuming single AFMU - if it is about to die, power plant is most likely also about to die. You have to go back to civilization and second AFMU cannot change it. So, to summarize, second AFMU is a waste of slot to me.

I definitely prefer repair limpets controller instead since my auto-pilot constantly scratches my ship during landings and once every 20-30 touch downs I need to repair my hull.
Click to expand...

Ah, so you run shieldless and use that slot for a size 3 cargo and the other size 3 slot that would be 2nd AFMU for repait limpets ?
That could work, thanks
 

JetsonRING

JetsonRING
equex said:
I recently finished my ASPx extreme range explorer (59.46 Ly) but I have a question about wether to have one or two AFMU's.
All my modules are stripped down to minimum size classes, with maximum Lightweight mods except Power Plant because it cannot be repaired.
So the Power Plant is a 2A that is G5-Armoured with Double Braced experimental effect, giving it an integrity of 142.
At the moment I have shielded 5A and 3A AFMU's but my question is if the Power Plant is going to wear out long before i get trouble with the AFMU's, in which which case I could fit something else instead of one of them, since i would have to return home when my PP starts dying. I won't need two AFMU's to repair each other if my Power Plant is about to die anyway.
I plan to go as far as i can into black this time, maybe hitting up some Neutron Stars as well. I'm basically going to take a look at lots of stuff on the maps in EDDiscovery.
But my previous longest trip was the "Palin 5K run" :)
So for those of you that's been going on long trips, you think I should keep the 3A AFMU ?
I kind of want to put in a corrosion resistant cargo rack in case i find anything out there, or maybe something else.
Thoughts welcome.
Click to expand...

Many explorers have made long trips with only a single AFMU and even without an AFMU. The only real consideration is that an AFMU cannot repair itself, you need another AFMU to repair a primary AFMU so, if you feel confident you are not going to incur a lot of damage you will probably need only the one. If, however you are the type that bounces off of stars and/or the ground a lot, you may want to consider a redundant AFMU in case the first one "somehow" gets damaged.

PS: Remember that (a) the AFMU uses materials for fuel, you will want to have those on-hand and (b) leave it turned off unless you are using it. It sucks up a significant amount of your power budget and repairs stuff (using materials) you may not necessarily want to have repaired continually or right now. o7
 
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Qadosh

Qadosh
Hey Equex,

Could I see your ship build? Going to start tinkering with an extreme AspX build as well. Would love to see what you've done! If you could note any of the Engineering you've done on the mods that would awesome too (I have 90% of engineers unlocked). Thanks :)
 

xtnsgo

xtnsgo
After two long trips sustaining almost no module damage (so far i haven't used neutron boosts that much) but a bit of hull damage I decided to replace my redundant AFMU with a 1D repair limpet controller. The security of an AFMU and repair limpets feels good:)
 
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Numenor1379

Numenor1379
Qadosh said:
Hey Equex,

Could I see your ship build? Going to start tinkering with an extreme AspX build as well. Would love to see what you've done! If you could note any of the Engineering you've done on the mods that would awesome too (I have 90% of engineers unlocked). Thanks :)
Click to expand...

Here is my nearly maxed AspX build (in game range is actually 54.76ly on a full tank, not sure where Coriolis is losing that, probably some mod I forgot to correct the value of):

https://eddp.co/u/qgSneEKl

Aside from the Life Support G4 mod I don't have access to yet, the only way to increase the range further is to strip out modules or decrease their size. You could drop the shield, and heat sink if you wanted to chance it. Likewise the fuel tank could be downgraded to a 16t, and the SRV could be taken down to a 2G. Also you can go with the stock DSS as both Long Range and Fast Scan add mass.

I don't think the compromises are worth the slightly increased range however. If you want +60ly jumps go with a DBX or Anaconda.

EDIT: Just for giggles, here is a 61ly AspX stripped bare, with one max range jump per tank: https://eddp.co/u/PKcRXd7q
 
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khaos526

khaos526
I used 2x3A when I was using my AspX for exploring. Try it with both just to get the feel of it and see if you need that many in the future. Best to start out over cautious until you get a good idea of your style.

Take two and head to Sag A* and then see how you are doing after using a few Neutron Jumps. Then if you don't want the extra AMFU, drop it off at Colonia and continue your exploration. This way you at least get a feel for it and Colonia is a good spot still to unload unneeded mods...
 

Qadosh

Qadosh
Numenor1379 said:
Here is my nearly maxed AspX build (in game range is actually 54.76ly on a full tank, not sure where Coriolis is losing that, probably some mod I forgot to correct the value of):
Click to expand...

Hey Thanks Numenor! Very helpful :)
Spent last night and this morning outfitting/engineering and was able to get about 59ly currently with a full tank (32T).
https://eddp.co/u/oEJKtAfR
Coriolis says 60ly, but it's really 59ly in game.

I can cut eek another .45 on it if I strip down the Shield Gens & Life Support to G5. Not sure it's worth that to get a mere half a LY.
 

Numenor1379

Numenor1379
Qadosh said:
Hey Thanks Numenor! Very helpful :)
Spent last night and this morning outfitting/engineering and was able to get about 59ly currently with a full tank (32T).
https://eddp.co/u/oEJKtAfR
Coriolis says 60ly, but it's really 59ly in game.

I can cut eek another .45 on it if I strip down the Shield Gens & Life Support to G5. Not sure it's worth that to get a mere half a LY.
Click to expand...

Heh, well LS only goes to G4 but I get your point. As for myself, I personally feel stripping that much out of the AspX compromises too much on ship capabilities. I will gladly trade a few light years for an extra SRV and better shielding.

The AspX really is not meant ro be a 60ly ship, it is a 55ly ship. If you want 60ly, do a DBX or even better an Anaconda where you can carry everything and the kitchen sink and still have the +60ly range.
 

disorganise

disorganise
As far as I'm aware from discussions waaay back, the afmu will work correctly all the way down to 1% health. When it hits 0, it stops working. But..... At that point you can do a reboot repair to get it back to 1% and carry on.
I've gone shieldless, with repair limpets and single afmu for my galaxy circumnavigation (DECE). I've had one FSD malfunction which prompted me to do a repair and I've repaired the hull a couple of times mainly due to landing oopsies. No regrets. Over 200kly and half way around o7
 
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