ESC's are all flashed with SimonK firmware.  The one problem I had was that I flashed the wrong firmware on one of them and it started smoking one of the motors.  Now even though it took the new flash, it will not power the motor correctly so I have some troubleshooting to do.  The motor actually tested out fine, but we'll relegate it to the spare, as I don't know if its lifespan has been reduced or not.

I haven't posted what I got for my drone yet... but it's as follows:

Hobbyking X580 frame (will modify motor mounts to make sturdier)

4x F30A brushless speed controller (flash to SimonK firmware)

MultiWii Pro with GPS (will upgrade to Pixhawk later on)

 4x Turnigy D2836-9 brushless motors (268 Watt max power, 950KV)

12x4.7 SF props.  Will get some CF props soon, but these will get us airborne.

2S Lipo 2700mAH.  Will get some 3S also.  2S should be okay for testing, but may not have the payload capacity we need.

Will be using my ER9X flashed Turnigy 9X, with FrSky DJT module (telemetry enabled).  I had bought this a few months back from birthday money with the quadcopter project in mind for the future.

Received most of the parts in for the quad last week, but due to a planned vacation, couldn't work on it much.  I did however manage to get the Multiwii pro flashed and the frame put together.

Today I finally got around to working on the meat and potatoes of my first quadcopter.  Today I soldered some leads on the first ESC, and after pounding my head against the computer for 3 hours, finally managed to get my ESC flashed with SimonK firmware.

For reference, I'm using an AVR Pocket Programmer from Adafruit.  It has the USBTiny chip.  The ESC I programmed was a HobbyKing F30A.  It's runs on the ATMEGA 8A.

Also in the last two weeks bought a Digispark for the other aspect of this stuff I'll be working on. More to come on that... but not until later!

Thinking of a name for a company.

What to specialize in, sell or develop?

Looking at drone control boards today
3D Robotics APM 2.6 Cost 239.98  Open source, large-ish community of developers
     includes: output module (for motor control)
     3-axis gyro, accelerometer and magnetometer, along with a high-performance barometer
     Onboard 4 MegaByte Dataflash chip for automatic datalogging
     Optional off-board GPS, uBlox LEA-6H module with Compass.
     One of the first open source autopilot systems to use Invensense's 6 DoF Accelerometer/Gyro
        MPU-6000.
     Barometric pressure sensor upgraded to MS5611-01BA03, from Measurement Specialties.
     Atmel's ATMEGA2560 and ATMEGA32U-2 chips for processing and usb functions respectively
     Requires GPS unit and external compass for full autonomy
--- Further research reveals that APM 2.5 and 2.6 are being phased out by hobbyists in favor of pixhawk platforms.....so:

3D Robotics PX4 FMU with I/O kit 199.99
     expandable, modular system

3DR Pixhawk 279.98
     PX4 open-hardware project
     32 bit  ARM Cortex® M4 Processor running NuttX RTOS
     168 MHz/256 KB RAM/2 MB Flash
     32 bit STM32F103 failsafe co-processor
     14 PWM/servo outputs (8 with failsafe and manual override, 6 auxiliary, high-power compatible)
     Abundant connectivity options for additional peripherals (UART, I²C, CAN)
     Integrated backup system for in-flight recovery and manual override with dedicated processor and 
       stand-alone power supply
     Backup system integrates mixing, providing consistent autopilot and manual override mixing
        modes
     Redundant power supply inputs and automatic failover
     External safety button for easy motor activation
     Multicolor LED indicator
     High-power, multi-tone piezo audio indicator
     microSD card for long-time high-rate logging
     ST Micro L3GD20 3-axis 16-bit gyroscope
     ST Micro LSM303D 3-axis 14-bit accelerometer / magnetometer
     Invensense MPU 6000 3-axis accelerometer/gyroscope
     MEAS MS5611 barometer
 
Aeroquad 32 V2 168MHz 32-bit RISC processor, 149.99  Open source, good community
     1MB flash ROM, 192KB RAM 
     uses the HMC5983-TR for locked in heading hold
     uses the trusted MPU6000 in SPI mode for ultra fast senor sampling for rock solid stability
     come pre-loaded with flight software for a Quad X
    MS5611-01BA03 barometer, 10cm resolution, 24 bit ADC, stainless steel cap
    HMC5983-TR magnetometer
     Typically driven by the motor's electronics speed controllers (ESC) +5V output, so no more extra
      connections from your power harness is required. The additional ESC power outputs power the
      optional camera stabilization servos and ultrasonic sensor.
     Board can be powered from USB, 5V output will have ~4.7V in this case, which should work with
      most receivers