# PID Tuning Basics: A Beginner’s Guide to a Locked-In Drone
PID tuning is often seen as a dark art in the FPV world, but the basics are surprisingly straightforward. A good tune can transform a shaky, unresponsive drone into a locked-in machine that flies exactly how you want. This guide will demystify the process for beginners.
## What are P, I, and D?
The PID controller is the part of your drone’s brain (the flight controller) that works constantly to make the drone fly according to your stick inputs. It measures errors and corrects them.
| Term | What It Does | Too High | Too Low |
|————-|—————————————————|——————————————|——————————————|
| **P Gain** (Proportional) | The main force correcting errors. | Fast oscillations, “robotic” feel. | Slow, lazy response, “drifty” feel. |
| **I Gain** (Integral) | Corrects for long-term drift and external forces. | Slow, large oscillations, “bouncing.” | Drifting in wind, not holding angles. |
| **D Gain** (Derivative) | Dampens P Gain to prevent overshooting. | Motor noise, hot motors, “grinding.” | Propwash, bouncing after fast moves. |
## A Simple Tuning Method for Beginners
For your first tune, forget about changing individual numbers. Use the sliders in Betaflight for a much more intuitive experience.
1. **Fly on Defaults**: Seriously, the defaults are great. See how it feels first.
2. **Use the Master Multiplier**: If the drone feels too sensitive or too mushy overall, move this slider first.
3. **Balance P/D**: Increase P for sharpness, and use D to smooth out any shakes (oscillations) that P introduces.
4. **Set I for Hold**: Increase I until the drone holds its angles perfectly without drifting.
5. **Check Motor Heat**: **ALWAYS** check your motors after a flight. Hot motors mean your D gain is too high.
## Visual Tuning Guide
This video from Joshua Bardwell is the gold standard for learning PID tuning concepts.
### Simplify Tuning with a Modern Flight Controller
Tuning is much easier with a fast, modern flight controller. The **UAVMODEL-F7-PRO** from uavmodel.com features a powerful F7 processor and clean gyro data, which allows for higher PID loop frequencies and requires less filtering, giving you a more responsive and easier-to-tune quad right out of the box.
### Final Tuning Tips
– **Tune one axis at a time** (Roll, Pitch, Yaw), though Roll and Pitch are often linked.
– **Use fresh props.** A bent or chipped prop will make tuning impossible.
– **Save your tune.** Use the CLI `diff all` command to save your settings before you make big changes.