Re: [Flexradio] Question for all
Bill, I use my Flex 5000A with an ALS-600 and the only time it ever faults is when I forget to manually set the amp's bandswitch to the correct frequency range. The first question I would ask is if you transmit into a 50 ohm dummy load does the amp behave correctly? Since you are using the Palstar antenna tuner I would assume there is no mismatch, but there is a possibility that you have RF feedback and an oscillation is causing the Flex to take off, which the amp will interpret as too much power appearing on its input. I'd be most suspicious of that scenario. A second thought is that the ALS-600 doesn't need a whole lot of drive to make 600 watts PEP so I wonder if maybe you have a peak here and there that crosses the threshold that the fault circuit will tolerate. The ALC adjustments on the back panel and front panel of the ALS-600 will have no effect since there is no ALC connection between the Flex and the amplifier. Are you using the leveler in PowerSDR? Although it doesn't seem to work as effectively as a hardware limiter, it might help to control a rogue peak that sneaks through here and there. After a couple of years of using the native voice processing within PowerSDR I ended up running my station's external audio chain into the balanced input on the back panel. The last active element in the external audio chain is the compressor/limiter which I use to brick wall the audio peaks so that I can raise the average audio content much higher than is possible with the voice processing within PowerSDR. That approach has made a huge difference in the loudness of my signal with voice modes and has eliminated the excessive peaks here and there that used to show up and cause mischief. The ALS-600 seems very comfortable with this approach, and my AL-82 never flinches no matter what I pour into it with the Flex. Good luck! Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Transmit Profile Index
Larry, As Ray indicated, this can be done manually, but you have to pay very close attention as you do it. When I manually edit a database, I use the export function in PowerSDR to save 2 copies to the desktop and simply rename one copy to edited.xml so that I know it's the one I have tinkered with. When you've done that, close PowerSDR down and open up edited.xml in Notepad. Use the Find function in Notepad to locate the name of the particular TX profile you want to move. Then scroll up and down and study all the entries for that profile. (There are lots of them!) Examine the point where the TX profile you want to relocate begins and where it ends in the database. Then, paying very close attention to the beginning and end points, select the whole TX profile you wish to move and do a cut. This will remove that TX profile from the database and lift it into your system clipboard. Scroll through the database and find where you want to insert the TX profile that you wish to move. Look closely at where the TX profile above ends, and where the TX profile below it begins, place your cursor at that point, and then do a paste. This will insert your relocated TX profile into its new position. Save the edited.xml file, exit Notepad, and then open up PowerSDR and import the edited.xml database back into PowerSDR. If you did everything correctly, it will work fine and your TX profiles will be in the order you desired. If you messed up, PowerSDR will almost certainly choke on it, so simply import the other clean database you saved to your desktop and you will be fine once again. If you want to take another shot at it, delete the mutated edited.xml database and export another copy to play with and try again. This kind of stuff isn't for the faint of heart but once you get the hang of it, the task isn't really that bad. Good luck! Rob W1AEX -- One thing I'm certain of is that there is too much certainty in the world. ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Typical Peak Output on SSB VS CW on Flex 5000A using PSDR 2.6.4
Hi Bill, Running a test with my Flex 5000A (PSDR ver 2.6.4) on 40 meters I see pretty consistent results when using the PowerSDR Tune function set to a power level of 100 to produce a steady carrier into a dummy load: Flex Fwd Pwr meter display = exactly 100 watts Nye RF Power Monitor (PEP watt meter) = exactly 100 watts Palstar PM2000AM (PEP watt meter) = a bit over 100 watts (best guess about 103 watts) Drake W-4 (AVG watt meter) = 105 watts Speaking into the station mic while in the SSB mode (with the ALC bouncing around between -5 dB and -3 dB and now and then reaching -1 dB) I see the following results: Flex Fwd Pwr meter display = 57 to 85 watts Nye RF Power Monitor (PEP watt meter) = 50 to 100 watts (10 to 20 watts when set to AVG) Palstar PM2000AM (PEP watt meter) = 65 to 100 watts Drake W-4 (AVG watt meter) = 15 to 20 watts Using the Two Tone Test in the PowerSDR Tests tab with the Power field set to 100 and TX EQ switched OFF I see the following results: Flex Fwd Pwr meter display = 99 watts Nye RF Power Monitor (PEP watt meter) = 105 watts (90 watts when set to AVG) Palstar PM2000AM (PEP watt meter) = 110 watts Drake W-4 (AVG watt meter) = 98 watts (Note that during the PowerSDR Two Tone Test the ALC indicates a steady 1 dB of ALC compression) All of my external power meters are analog but they seem to be fairly trustworthy. Note that I see similar results when looking at the output of my Kenwood TS-590S. The Kenwood exhibits roughly 30 watts of overshoot on the initial keying or voice peak and the analog meters definitely show that. I do not see any indications of overshoot with my Flex 5000A. The software Fwd Pwr meter in PowerSDR seems to be in close agreement with steady tone signals but is stingy with SSB peak readings with peak indications about 15% lower than the external meters. The only conclusion that I've reached from all this is that my wife should definitely buy me an LP-100A digital watt meter for my birthday. 73, Rob W1AEX -- One thing I'm certain of is that there is too much certainty in the world. ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Need monitor recommendation (RFI-proof)
Mike, I have a Samsung SA300 22 LED monitor with the infamous touch sensor controls that can be problematic. My monitor would turn itself off whenever I ran my amplifier on 160 meters. This is quite disconcerting while you're operating your Flex. I had no problems with any other bands. By using a field strength meter, I was able to observe that RF was coupling into my rotor cable as it came down the tower and traversed the 100 foot run from the tower to my station. This was happening even though all the cables from the tower are grounded before they make the run up to the second floor. At any rate, I had a nice big mix 43 donut in the junk box and wound the rotor cable through it 20 times. That was the end of that problem. So... it seems that this particular Samsung model is problematic. By the way, Samsung technical support was completely useless. I made the mistake of contacting them by email, and they made such helpful suggestions as moving the monitor at least 75 feet from the transmitter or turning the transmitter off whenever I needed to use the monitor. Yeah, they were really helpful, but they did pass my email address along to their marketing people so that I was getting several offers each day until I added them to the black list on my mail server. Good luck! 73, Rob W1AEX -- One thing I'm certain of is that there is too much certainty in the world. ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] SDRDataTransfer Setup Data Updated
Thanks Ray, I imported my 2.4.4 database into 2.5.3 and everything was there except for my custom bandstack registers. Your utility took care of that in a few seconds. As others have said, your work is much appreciated! Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] BandTextEditor v1.0.0 Released
Ray, Very nicely done! When executing BandTextEditor version 1.01 for the first time it prompted me to update to Microsoft NET Framework 4.0.3 (that was long overdue on my WinXP station computer) and once that was done it has run flawlessly. The interface allowed me to customize every band for my operating uses in less than 10 minutes! Great job! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Windows 7 crashing since upgrade
Rich, A couple of things to do that might make it simpler to troubleshoot: 1. From the Windows 7 desktop, click the menu icon in the lower left corner and then in the Search programs and files box type the word: environment 2. From the short list that shows up, click on: edit system environment variables 3. From the Startup and Recovery portion of the dialog that shows up uncheck: Automatically Restart This will hold the system at the blue screen message rather than initiating a restart so you can identify any drivers that might be identified as problematic. From the same Search programs and files box, type the words: event viewer 1. Look through the list that shows up in the sections and see if any Warning or Critical Error events are showing up. 2. Make note of any conflicts or any services that may have started up before the BSOD event I just went through troubleshooting an issue here with my 5 year-old machine that I use with my Flex 5000A and PowerSDR 2.4.4. That system has been unconditionally stable since I built it in 2007. Unfortunately, within a day of installing version 2.4.4 it suddenly began to blue screen randomly. It always seemed to occur when PowerSDR was running (which is pretty much always) along with either Firefox, Adobe Photoshop, and/or Adobe Audition. Other variables thrown into the mix was that I had also recently upgraded Firefox, Thunderbird, and the Adobe Flash plugin. My first suspicion was that perhaps the new Flex firewire driver was the problem, but the BSOD was not naming it and was instead showing the DRIVER_IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL message with a memory address line showing all zeroes. As it turned out, one of my RAM sticks was beginning to fail and running MemTest confirmed a flood of read/write errors. Clocking the memory down from 800 MHz to 667 MHz immediately stopped the instability issues, so new RAM sticks are on the way. In my case, the timing of the 2.4.4 upgrade was pure coincidence and had nothing to do with the issue I was seeing. The issue showing up with your IMac I-5 might not be hardware related as my issue was, but it's always worth investigating that when a specific driver is not named. At any rate, I hope you track it down and get it resolved quickly. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] great audio !
John, The Flex really does a beautiful job of reproducing the big Wurlitzer Jukebox sound while tuning around on the AM BCB. By the way CFZM out of Toronto on AM 740 has the cleanest sounding signal that I have found while listening here in New England. There's no sign of the over-compressed and distorted sounding stuff on their signal that is heard just about everywhere else on the band. It's a pleasure to listen to their music format with the Flex. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] FLEX-1500 optimized mic audio settings ?
It looks like you have got your 1500 all set Mathias but I'll pass this along in case someone else is looking for it. At the suggestion of a number of Flex users, a few changes were made to the original posting that Mike W5CUL has kindly re-posted. While the Flex Wiki is being relocated, the updated version can be viewed at the site at the link in my sig below. On the index page, skim down to Setting TX Audio Gain in PowerSDR and that should get you there. 73, Rob W1AEX -- W1AEX-Rob www.w1aex.com ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] PowerSDR v2.3.5 Installation Comments
I installed v2.3.5 about an hour ago and went through all my settings and have started making new TX profiles. The upgrade notes Flex released covers everything nicely and there were no surprises as it all went perfectly. I've got to say that there's a lot to like about the new version and I haven't run into anything that I don't like. With that being said, it's very nice that the new firmware version is compatible with v2.2.3 so that you can continue to use that version until you get everything the way you want it with v2.3.5. That should make people a lot less anxious about the update! The expanded scope of settings that are carried within each TX profile is a huge step forward and allows the freedom to experiment with a lot more variables that previously affected all TX profiles. Nicely done! Also, Beppe did a beautiful job on the new skins, but that's no surprise given what we have seen him produce in the past. Thanks for all the work that went into this release, it's much appreciated. I'm looking forward to messing around with it some more after I make another cup of coffee! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Flex 5000A on AM
I agree with you completely Dick. The Flex 5K is the king of multi-mode rigs when it comes to running AM. It runs circles around my big plate modulated rigs in the areas of fidelity, asymmetry, brickwall bandwidth control, and ease of use. Add to that the synchronous detector and independently variable bandwidth for each sideband on receive and there's nothing out there that comes close. I can run my external audio rack into the balanced input on the back of the 5K, but to be honest, I can duplicate all that voice processing and attain nearly the same results by running an electret condenser mic right into the front panel and using the voice processing and 10 band EQ built right into PowerSDR. Instead of adding AM as an afterthought as other manufacturers have done, Flex has put a lot of thought and effort into the implementation of this mode. If it could only make great coffee it would be absolutely perfect. Maybe that feature can be added into the 2.3.x release before March 5th? Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Possible AM drive issue?
Yup, as Bill said, it will work fine that way, but you are missing out on an interesting feature for the AM mode that is built into the Flex - PSDR architecture. From page 161 of the PowerSDR 2.x manual: The Carrier Level determines the percentage of carrier level to be applied to the transmit signal where 100% is one quarter of full power output (25W when Drive on the front console is set to 100). So a setting of 80 would yield roughly 16W when Drive is set to 100. This is useful as it allows the modulation to appear much stronger due to the weaker carrier. I typically run a carrier level of 45% and a drive level of 12 - 20 to drive my pair of 3-500's to reach an AM carrier level of between 120 watts to 200 watts output. Watching my bench scope, I set up the audio chain to modulate to roughly 125% - 135% positive. It's certainly capable of even higher percentages without the disadvantages of a plate modulated rig which will splatter and distort as it hits the baseline in the negative direction. Many boat anchor receivers with simple diode detectors have difficulty handling signals with positive peaks beyond 135% so that has to be kept in mind. Also, if you drop the carrier percentage too low, you will begin to sound more like a double sideband signal than an AM signal. At any rate, it's fun to mess around with! 73, Rob W1AEX I am not sure why you would ever run with the carrier level at anything other than 100%. 73, Harry W0LS ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] FlexRadio Digest, Vol 80, Issue 17
Brett, can you make an mp3 recording of what you're hearing? Maybe you could post it to the AM forum where a number of Flex users hang out. I do hear a buzzy quality on audio peaks during selective fades when listening in the AM mode that I never hear with the SAM detector. When listening to strong signals on the AM broadcast band with the AM detector stations always sound perfect. I made a pre-processed recording of an extremely clean AM signal (It's another Flex so of course its clean!) on 80 meters yesterday. I then used video/audio capture software to make two recordings as I played it back with the AM detector and then again with the SAM detector so exactly the same conditions are present in both recordings. The distortion that I hear with the AM detector can be clearly heard as the signal is tossed around during selective fading. That distortion is not present at the same points of the second recording when the SAM detector is being used. I'm not sure what can be done by the user to clean up the buzzy quality while using the AM detector, unless some optimization can be done in the DSP tab's AGC settings of PowerSDR. AM detector - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlVjEfE6Z28 SAM detector - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9NkPXOFRmw Does the first recording with the AM detector resemble what you are hearing? Rob W1AEX (Flex 5K) On 12/17/2011 1:00 PM, flexradio-requ...@flex-radio.biz wrote: From: Brett Gazdzinskibrett.gazdzin...@verizon.net To: flex Reflectorflexradio@flex-radio.biz Subject: [Flexradio] still broke.. Message-ID:43105127CDB447FE80140B761C9FAF85@brettPC Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset=iso-8859-1; reply-type=original I have a hard time believing that no one else hears this, its quite nasty on my radio using headphones. -- One thing I'm certain of is that there is too much certainty in the world. ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] FlexRadio Digest, Vol 80, Issue 17
Thanks for the detailed reply Bob. For the reasons you have stated, the vast majority of people I know use the synchronous detector while running AM with the Flex. If somewhere down the road, the synch detector could be user adjustable in PowerSDR to lock up faster, that would be a huge improvement for those times when the older transmitters in a multi-station QSO drift. Also, for the reasons you and Kevin stated, I'm glad the AM detector wasn't dropped. It's nice to use as a baseline for comparison when looking at signals in the BC/SW and amateur bands. At any rate, thanks for your efforts past-present-and future to keep surprising us with what PowerSDR can do in all the modes. It sounds like what Brett is experiencing with the AM detector is something different than what's heard during a selective fade. Hopefully, he can get that resolved. 73, Rob W1AEX On 12/18/2011 12:33 PM, Bob McGwier wrote: Absolutely NOTHING. That is the REASON for having the (synchronous AM) SAM detector. Maybe we should not have included the AM detector at all but I thought it would be of interest to compare them side-by-side so the differences in signal processing could be seen. When the selective fading takes out the carrier, the exact same distortion occurs on the AM detector that would happen if you overmodulate an AM carrier, it is the same phenomenon mathematically. On selective fading HF channels it is more complex distortion, but nevertheless the same. SAM zero beats the signal and then detects it as a DSB signal and coherently adds the sidebands. Since the carrier is tracked and replaced overmodulation doesn't occur. Further, since the DSB out of SAM is not run through an ugly nonlinearity to detect it, you do not get IMD and other ugliness. It does have nonlinear processing, just not as nasty as a full wave rectifier followed by a filter AFTER the IMD damage and multiplication by noise has occurred. If what we are experiencing is AM being hit by selective fading, then use SAM. Bob ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] grunge on rx audio..
Which version of PSDR are you using Brett? Version 2.2.3 fixed a very big issue with AM reception (AGC tracking the sideband energy rather than the carrier energy) that was present in all the previous 2.x.x versions and the later 1.x.x versions. That being said, I do notice what sounds like peak distortion on some strong signals when using the AM mode. I do not hear it when listening with other conventional AM receivers that I use. Adjusting the AGC-T slider in PSDR doesn't seem to stop it, but I wonder if adjusting the variables in the DSP AGC/ALC setup tab might address it. The max gain and attack values might be a good starting point for experimentation. Curiously, I never hear that distortion with PSDR when listening to strong signals on the AM broadcast band, so it may have something to do with selective fading and the way PSDR deals with it. As Tim may have been inferring with his question, the peak distortion phenomenon is not present on those signals when listening in SAM mode. Unfortunately, some of the older AM transmitters being used are not perfectly stable and tend to move a few Hz when modulated. The SAM detector warbles now and then with those stations as it tracks them on peaks. It's most notable on 10 meter AM where there's a multiplication factor being applied to the VFO in the older transmitters. So, at this point, I find that I switch back and forth between AM and SAM to see what seems to work best with different stations I run into. I'd be curious what others may have noticed when operating AM or when SW listening in the AM or SAM modes. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Which monitor has the least RFI??
Hi Dennis, I have had very good luck using Samsung monitors with my Flex 5000 and currently have an LED Synchmaster SA300 (21.5 widescreen 16:9) installed at the operating position. It's perfectly quiet on receive and although it has the electronic soft-touch buttons it does not flinch even with full legal limit output on any band from 160 - 10 meters or 100 watts on 6 meters. That being said, I have no doubt that the soft-touch controls could certainly be an issue if the RF field in the station is high and I would definitely have avoided that feature had I been aware it was potentially problematic. At any rate, I've used 3 different Samsung monitors with my Flex and none of them produce any garbage on HF or 6 meters. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Single core Pentium
I ran my Flex 5000A on a single core 3.0 GHz Pentium with 1 GB of RAM running XP/SP2 for the first year. My experience was similar to Jim's. It ran PowerSDR fine and typically displayed between 18% - 22% CPU utilization when I was not multi-tasking. If I opened up other applications such as Firefox or Photoshop the CPU utilization would jump to +60% momentarily as the program(s) loaded and then drop back down to around 20%. I did have to fatten up the TX/RX buffers to prevent occasional dropouts. That system was built around an ASUS board that exhibited very low DPC latency (which is something to check on the system you are considering) so it really was not problematic. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Single core Pentium
I forgot to answer the other half of your question. With my single core Pentium there was no problem running PowerSDR 2.x.x along with things like VAC and Ham Radio Deluxe with any of its associated programs such as the logbook and DM-780. The CPU utilization would creep up to +35% but it never sputtered during digital mode sessions. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers
Hi Mike, I have a Klipsch ProMedia 5.1 system that I used with my Flex 5000A initially. Although it sounded beautiful, the built-in switching power supply located in the bass unit produced very strong buzzy oscillations that populated the 160 meter and 75 meter bands. Using a brute force filter in the AC line and ferrite chokes on each audio line to the bass unit and control head diminished the noise somewhat but it was still an annoying issue. I ended up moving the Klipsch over to my gaming system with a power strip so that I could shut it off when it's not being used. I have no idea if they still employ the same type of power supply in later models, but you might want to keep this issue in mind if you decide to run with the Klipsch ProMedia. I ended up installing a Bose Companion Series 2 system (dual input shared between the Flex and the PC) and it has been trouble-free. As previously mentioned in the thread, it was necessary to run a ground strap from the Bose control head speaker to the station ground to eliminate RF feedback when the PC was connected to the second input. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Why doesn't MON button work in AM
It would be great if a monitor function for AM was present in the Flex hardware but since it's not, many Flex operators who run AM build a little RF sampler to monitor the quality of their AM transmissions. The one I built is based upon a design from the East Coast Sound section in the www.amfone.net archives. I really like this one because it provides enough output to drive standard hi-fi type headphones, it has an oscilloscope tap, and the parts cost less than 15 bucks (even less if you have a good junk box). I use the Bose Companion II series speakers which provides two audio inputs with my Flex. I run a patch cord from the RF sampler audio output into the second input of the Bose speakers and then plug my headphones into the Bose headphone jack. Once you balance the audio level of the Flex receiver with the audio level of the little RF sampler you are good to go. When you transmit, the only audio you will hear in your headphones will by from the RF sampler, and when you receive, all you will hear is the Flex. The link below is to a JPG of the simple schematic. 73, Rob W1AEX http://www.w1aex.com/756AM/RFsamp.jpg ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Band/ freq changes after shutoff
Hi Scott, A few weeks ago I noticed something unusual when stopping PowerSDR and shutting it down that might be related. Because I recently installed a different computer to handle Flex duties in my station I have been watching DPC latency fairly closely on the new system to see how it behaves. Initially, about 50% of the time I would see an enormous DPC latency spike for several seconds when stopping and shutting down PowerSDR. I typically ran in safe-mode 1 with my old system, but had to run this system in safe-mode 2 to eliminate random unstable behavior such as PowerSDR occasionally shutting down when exiting the setup menu until I found the driver(s) that were causing the issue. (Upgrading the motherboard chipset drivers eliminated the DPC latency issue.) I wonder if perhaps you might be experiencing a similar period of DPC high latency that is causing PowerSDR to shut down a bit ungracefully, and perhaps without writing to the database when it closes. It's just a thought, and simple enough to check by moving to a more conservative safe mode setting. If you are at Normal try moving it a notch to safe-mode 1 to see if it resolves it. You might even find it more useful to start with safe-mode 3 and work in the other direction to see if it resolves the problem. 73, Rob W1AEX (Flex 5000A) -Original Message- From: Scott Simmons - WA4DOS [mailto:scott.wa4...@gmail.com] Sent: Friday, October 14, 2011 18:19 To: flexradio@flex-radio.biz Subject: [Flexradio] Band/ freq changes after shutoff Any ideas? Would resetting to factory defaults fix the anomaly? ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] PowerSDR Skins Tutorial Update, New Slider Packs, Three New Skins Available...
A few new things are available for those who are interested in custom skins for PowerSDR: A PDF version of the skins tutorial is now available in the files section of the Flex user group at Yahoo. It's available in the Files\Utilities folder: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FlexRadio/files/Utilities/ Three new slider packs with the narrow track are available at the Skins Tutorial site. (You can install any slider pack by simply unzipping the file into any installed skin.) Three new skins are also available in the download section. (Heavy Metal, Dark Metal, and Dentron) For those who know how to install the custom skin packs, simply browse the available button packs and slider packs to see if there's anything that interests you, and then head to the bottom of the page where the downloads are. Each skin pack contains a custom console, custom buttons and custom sliders in one zip file. For those who are not sure how to install custom skins there are instructions for correct placement of the folders and their files. For those adventurous folks who want to be creative, there are templates so that you can build your own skins from scratch. Hopefully, someone with more artistic skills than me will get carried away and make some nice stuff for all of us! The site hit 1700 hits at noon today, so grab a few skins before my bandwidth limit is exceeded! The link at the bottom will take you to the PSDR Skins Tutorial/Download page. 73, Rob W1AEX http://members.cox.net/w1aex.psdr/psdr.html ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] New PowerSDR skin's
Yup, Hugo has talent! My apologies to those who were looking for the skins tutorial today. The servers hosting the page and its associated files were down for most of the day. It's all back up and running again. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Location of SDRQuickAudio.wav
It is annoying that you can't set the wav files to a directory of your choosing for quick conversion to mp3 format or whatever else you might want to do. It would be an excellent enhancement for future releases. In the meantime, what I do after making a recording is to simply open the Wave menu, then click ADD, but instead of actually adding the file to the queue in PSDR, I right click on it and select Cut. Then I simply paste it to the desktop or into a working directory for processing. That keeps the recordings from piling up in the PowerSDR directory, and places them where I need them without having to navigate to the PSDR folder. Another way around this is to run an audio editing program such as Adobe Audition and use VAC to steer the audio from PowerSDR into the recording input of Adobe Audition, just as you would with any digital mode software. Then set Audition to record your samples as mp3 files and set the output directory to whatever location you want. Still, as Steve suggested, it would be a nice enhancement to be able to handle the file location within PowerSDR. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] Ver 2.1.5: FM mode + squelch = high CPU utilization
My installation of version 2.1.5 went very smoothly, and it's working great, however, I have run into one anomaly: Using a fresh database, while operating in FM mode, when the squelch slider is moved above the threshold point, my CPU utilization rises from 20% to 70%. At that level PowerSDR becomes very sluggish. Dropping the squelch level down below the threshold returns the CPU utilization back to its normal 20% level. Switching to any other mode also drops the CPU utilization back down to around 20%. Engaging TX also drops the CPU utilization to roughly 20%. Engaging the squelch in any other mode does not cause the issue. All the settings in the database are at the default, except for ANT which is switched to ANT3 for my 6 meter antenna. Any thoughts? Rob W1AEX Flex 5000A PowerSDR v2.1.5 Windows XP/SP2 P-4 3.0g with 1g RAM ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Ver 2.1.5: FM mode + squelch = high CPU utilization
Yes, that is correct Tim. Here's a shaky little video showing the anomaly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUxtC39w2fA Rob - W1AEX - When you say above the threshold point do you mean in a positive (going to the right) position so that the signal is squelched? Is that where you see the high CPU? I do not see any difference between non-squelched and squelched FM in regards to the CPU utilization. -Tim Tim Ellison, W4TME ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] CW KEY for Tunning Amplifier
Does anyone have any ideas? I don't have my Flex in front of me Val, but as I recall, I think Iambic needs to be unchecked on the front panel of the GUI when using a straight key. Hope it's as simple as that! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Looks like someone really messed up the Flexwiki
Richard, Thank you for your tireless efforts to keep the FlexWiki up and running. I was watching the flood of attacking IP addresses from around the planet (Germany, Romania, Italy, leased VPN circuits and other persistent attackers) and could see you reversing the damage each time. As far as I can see it all looks intact at this time. I restored my stuff, along with Dan's and Tim's contributions, so you'll see my login present several times as well. Given the open nature of the Wiki format, I'm not sure what the long term solution for this will be, but thanks for your repair work! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Not full output on Flex 3000
Hi Kent, I ran into this on 20 meters and 30 meters with my Flex 5K. It turned out to be an awkward impedance bump, caused by a homebrew RF pickup I was using for my scope, that was in the path between my Flex and the 50 ohm load. I found that if I used a short length of RG-213 directly into my 50 ohm dummy load the Flex made 100 watts on every band. You might try a direct connection just to eliminate any hardware external to your Flex 3K that might be causing the issue. If you still see less than expected output on 40 and 20 meters, I'd suggest that you reset the database in whatever version you are using, and then run a quick check of power supply current draw at maximum output for each band from 160-6 meters. While running directly into your dummy load, record the current you are drawing on each band at maximum output. At 100 watts output it should be around 20 amps, plus or minus a little, assuming your power supply is delivering 13.8 volts to the Flex. If 40 meters and 20 meters are still producing low output, but drawing 20 amps or more, I would suggest you contact Flex Technical support so they can walk you through some possible resolutions. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] TX Audio Chain
Hi Dave, I would hesitate to give any advice on setting up VAC levels as I am a neophyte VAC user. I'm pretty sure from the description of the way you set yours up that you and I are doing the the same thing by using the GUI sliders in the PowerSDR front panel controls to set up the levels for digital TX and RX. I also keep the TX meter pretty much locked to the ALC position for every TX mode and use an external wattmeter for power output monitoring. Using the PowerSDR TX level slider for VAC to throttle back power on PSK to 5 or 10 watts results in very little activity on the ALC meter, and so far the signal reports from others sharing the waterfall have been squeaky clean. I'm sure many others here can detail the best practices for setting up the TX levels for digital modes with VAC. 73, Rob W1AEX On 5/11/2011 12:52 PM, Dave Beumer WØDHB wrote: Rob This is great stuff, Thanks. I'm not clear on where VAC comes into the audio chain and which of these adjustments would impact VAC audio input. Per a prior knowledge base article, I've just been setting the drive to 100, the meter to ALC and adjusting the TX Gain for a -3 reading. Any advice on other adjustments for VAC/Digital ? Dave W0DHB ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] TX Audio Chain
Larry, I emailed a step-by-step article to Neal today for consideration as a possible addition to the Flex Wiki. Most people do exactly what you and I did, plug in a mic, adjust the mic slider in the GUI, and run with it. The necessary information is spread throughout the manual, but as I recall, it's not all in one place. Besides, how many Flex users actually read the entire manual? What I came up with is pasted below. 73, Rob W1AEX -- Audio Gain Distribution Inside PowerSDR: I have encountered lots of Flex/SDR users on the air who sound great in every voice mode. However, it’s not uncommon to hear stations who seem to have a lot of grit, distortion, and harshness in their audio in all the voice modes. As it turns out, many of these stations are completely unaware of the multi-function TX meter and how to use it to correctly set the audio gain distribution throughout the Power SDR audio chain. It’s not unusual to find that one of the stages is inadvertently running at maximum gain while another stage is set near the minimum to compensate. This can invoke strange events such as ringing in the audio, distortion, and aggressive ALC action with pumping and audio artifacts. I certainly don’t know everything there is to know about squeezing the most out of the audio functions in Power SDR, but I did find that balancing the gain from start to finish has brought very satisfactory results for me and a number of others who were becoming very frustrated. Pages 77 and 78 of the 2.x.x Power SDR manual sort of infer the information given below, but I have found that many users are completely unaware of any audio level settings beyond the front panel Mic slider. Hopefully the steps below will help someone to avoid a disappointing result when they start to transmit! 1. Connect the Flex to a 50 ohm dummy load and select one of the voice modes in Power SDR. Make sure that you have a TX profile selected that has your bandwidth set as you deem appropriate for the phone mode you are using. 2. If you have either the “DX” or “Compander” button selected on the front panel of Power SDR, unselect it now. 3. The “Mic” slider on the Power SDR front panel GUI is scaled from 0 to 70. Place it at the mid-point value of 35. 4. In the upper right corner of the Power SDR interface use the TX dropdown in the meter to select Mic”. This allows you to view the level of the first audio stage of your Flex. 5. From the dropdown menus along the top left edge of the Power SDR interface, select “Mixer” and position it on your desktop so you can access it easily. With the Flex connected to a dummy load, key the transceiver and speak into the microphone at the voice level you typically use on the air. Observe the TX meter “Mic” level and adjust your level up or down with the “Mic” input level slider (or the slider for whichever input you are using) in the Mixer so that the maximum peaks reach no more than –2 dBm. 6. Now set the TX meter to “EQ”. This allows you to view the level of your second audio stage. From the dropdown menus along the top left of the Power SDR interface, select “Equalizer” and position it on your desktop so that you can access the Transmit Equalizer easily. I would suggest that you enable the 10 band equalizer function at this time, if you have not already done so. 7. Observe the TX meter “EQ” level as you speak into the microphone and adjust the “Preamp” slider in the EQ interface so that your maximum peaks reach no more than –2 dBm. 8. Set the TX meter to Leveler. Open up the PSDR tab for DSP and go to the AGC/ALC settings page. As you transmit and speak into the mic, adjust the “Leveler” setting upward or downward from the default setting of 5 but make sure that peaks on the TX meter do not exceed 0 dBm. You can further adjust the attack/decay/hang times if the Leveler is not responding quickly enough, or if it seems slow to release. This is largely trial and error, but I found the default decay and hang times to be too long, and reducing them smoothed things so that there was no audible pumping or excessive periods of gain reduction. (Pages 156 - 157 of the PowerSDR 2.x manual provide more details) 9. Set the TX meter to ALC. Open up the PSDR tab for DSP and go to the AGC/ALC settings page. Apply audio and observe that the maximum level of peaks does not exceed 0 dBm. If everything in the preceding stages has been set correctly, you should see that your maximum peaks will end up between -5 dBm and -1 dBm. You can also adjust the attack/decay/hang times of the ALC if you see a peak sneaking through now and then. Again, I found that by reducing the decay and hang times in small steps I could find a setting that resulted in smooth audio without pumping or extended periods of gain reduction. If your ALC levels are exceeding 0 dBm on any peaks, reduce your “Mic” level by using the slider on the Power SDR front panel GUI.
Re: [Flexradio] Mic
Larry, I have several studio quality dynamics from Shure and Peavey, but to be honest, the microphone that consistently gets unsolicited comments about its fidelity while running AM and SSB is a Radio Shack $2.99 electret element mounted in an old Peavey studio mic case and plugged right into the front panel mic input of the Flex. The only modification I made to the electret is that I run the output through an RC pre-emphasis network using a 5k resistor in parallel with a .05uf cap to tame the low end. Those components reside right inside the microphone. The whole mic project cost less than 10 bucks. As was previously mentioned, the audio processing power within PowerSDR can make just about anything sound natural. Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Pre-amp button on 1800khz (Rec 1)
Hi Jim, I don't have the second receiver installed in my F5KA but I saw this behavior as well with 2.0.22 since I installed it when it was first released. It was very persistent and falsely showed the preamp in the ON state, even with skin changes or complete shutdowns and restarts. Oddly, I went back to Power SDR version 1.18.6 today to check a few things, and of course that required loading older (version 1.3.0.8) compatible firmware. When I finished up with 1.18.6 and returned to 2.0.22 the integrated installer pushed the appropriate 2.x.x firmware and two interesting things happened, the BCB preamp button now displays correctly, and my CTRL-SHIFT-I voltage and temperature display (which mysteriously stopped working when I installed 2.0.22) began functioning correctly again. Both functions have worked flawlessly throughout the day even after a shutdown and restart. It might be a coincidence, but that's what I experienced here. 73, Rob W1AEX Flex 5000A PowerSDR 2.0.22 WinXP/SP2 ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Announcing PowerSDR v2.0 Official Release
I can only report that the new firmware the 2.0.22 final release installs works fine with versions as far back as 2.0.19 RC1. I have not fired up versions prior to that so I can't say whether 2.0.16 or older 2.x.x versions will run with the 2.0.22 firmware/drivers or not. 73, Rob W1AEX On 3/28/2011 10:10 PM, Rick Tharrington wrote: Did you have to uninstall 2.0.19 or can you leave it on the same PC and chooses which one you would like to run? Rick Kd4jrx FLEX 1500 ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Using Mini Deluxe with Power SDR and DM-780 but can't connect to HRD Logbook
Thank you to Dave - W0DHB who emailed me with screenshots and a solution to my configuration mistake. It was my belief that all communications were made through Mini-Deluxe and port 7809. As Dave explained, there are actually two different servers running on two different ports: The HRD server (Mini-Deluxe) on port 7809, and a separate Network server running on 7825, which is what DM-780 and the HRD Logbook should be configured for so they can pass data to each other. His sharp eye picked up that I was seeing three connections to Mini-Deluxe when there should have been only two. My mistake was that I believed there was only one server involved, so that all three programs had to be set for the same port to communicate through Mini-Deluxe. Under that misguided notion, I had configured Mini-Deluxe, DM-780, and HRD Logbook to all use port 7809. Running both servers on the same port didn't work out so well! After setting DM-780 and HRD Logbook to run on port 7825 everything is working great! Thank you for the responses, and thanks again to Dave W0DHB for the screenshots, explanation, and solution! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Using Mini Deluxe with Power SDR and DM-780 but can't connect to HRD Logbook
Just on a side note, any special reason you are using Com0com for your virtual serial ports? The only answer I can give is that I grabbed what was recommended by a few members here in the Flex archives and the Flex Wiki. I believe I started out with Vcom, which worked fine for me, but then went to Com0com about 6 weeks ago based upon comments I read somewhere that it offered some advantages with the mix of programs we tend to use. I'm always open to trying out new stuff so I'll take a look at vspMgr down the road. To be honest Michael, I've worked the digital modes for many years, but it's like an all new experience (a good one) with the Flex, so I'm just sitting back and enjoying the experience for now! I have a lot more reading to do before I grasp what DDUtil does. Thanks again for your assistance. 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] Using Mini Deluxe with Power SDR and DM-780 but can't connect to HRD Logbook
Hi, I'm using a Flex 5K with Power SDR 2.0.20 RC2 under WinXP. I've configured VAC 4.9 and Mini Deluxe along with DM-780 and it's working fine for the digital modes. The last obstacle I'm facing is that the HRD logbook will not connect to DM-780 through the Mini Deluxe IP server. I'm wondering what I've missed in my configuration: 1. PowerSDR: CAT enabled using COM ports 16 - 6 DM-780 sees the Flex and controls it fine 2. PowerSDR: PTT enabled using COM ports 17 - 7 DM-780 keys the Flex perfectly for digital transmissions 3. VAC 4.09 runs perfectly and DM-780 receives and transmits digital modes perfectly 4. Mini Deluxe is configured to use port 7809 and the server is enabled and running. It typically reports 3 connections running when I'm operating 5. DM-780 is configured to automatically connect to Mini Deluxe port 7809 and it does so reliably. 6. HRD Logbook is configured to connect to port 7809, but it fails to connect automatically. Manual attempts to connect to port 7809 also fail. The Logbook can manually retrieve contact information when I add the callsign manually and press the QRZ button, but it would be nice if it could connect to DM-780 and retrieve that data automatically. 7. When I want to switch Power SDR over to digital modes I start Mini-Deluxe first, then DM-780, and after they are connected, I start the HRD Logbook, but it fails to connect. All the programs above have been listed as exceptions in the XP firewall. There's no remote operations here, everything is on the same computer (local host). Any obvious screw-ups in my configuration? Any thoughts on what I might have missed? Any other information I can give? Any suggestions for getting the HRD Logbook to connect to DM-780? Thanks for any help offered! 73, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Using Mini Deluxe with Power SDR and DM-780 but can't connect to HRD Logbook
That's a great suggestion Michael. I gave it a shot to see what would happen. With PowerSDR running, starting Mini-Deluxe first, it shows 0 connections when it comes up. Starting the HRD Logbook (version 5.0 build 2494) Mini-Deluxe reports one connection a few seconds after the logbook screen comes up. Starting DM-780 (version 5.0 build 2494) from within the Logbook, Mini-Deluxe shows 3 connections when DM-780 loads completely and starts displaying signals in the waterfall. However, at the bottom of DM-780 it reports that it's not connected to the HRD Logbook. Using Sysinternals TCPView I can see the following: MiniDeluxe shows 3 ESTABLISHED connections to localhost port 7809 through ports 1098, 1103, and 1081. One additional connection is LISTENING on 7809 DM-780 shows two ESTABLISHED connections to localhost port 7809 through ports 1098 and 1103. HRD Logbook shows 1 ESTABLISHED connection to localhost port 7809 through port 1081 and 2 connections report a status of CLOSE-WAIT to 2 different noaa servers When I hit the Connect button in DM-780 to establish the connection to the logbook, all three programs light up in TCPView, but their connection status already says ESTABLISHED so nothing changes. All that's missing is that DM-780 and the HRD Logbook won't talk to each other! At any rate, that was a good idea, thanks! Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Using Mini Deluxe with Power SDR and DM-780 but can't connect to HRD Logbook
Dave - Thanks for checking the startup sequence. I definitely only have one instance of MiniDeluxe running. Jim - I have two port pairs configured with com0com, 16-6 and 17-7. Within PowerSDR I have CAT enabled and assigned to port 17. Mini-Deluxe is configured to work with port 7. Also, within PowerSDR PTT is configured for port 16 with RTS and DTR checked and DM-780 is configured with port 6 via serial port connection with RTS and DTR checked. If I understand correctly, you disable PTT within the PowerSDR configuration and allow CAT to handle PTT? Does that require any selection in the DM-780 PTT configuration or do you select None? Thanks for your thoughts on this. I also noticed within Power SDR that the Allow Kenwood AI Command box is checked. I'm not sure if I did that or not, or if it should or shouldn't be checked... Thanks again, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Easy way to record videos of PowerSDR with sound
David, Thanks for the tip regarding the CamStudio software. I had a lot of fun playing around with it yesterday. Although it does produce excellent video and audio AVI formatted files when played through its own internal player, and also VirtualDub, their CamStudio Lossless Codec (v 1.5) does seem to be incompatible with YouTube, where it produces a colorless and odd 45 degree angled shot. I did a some searching at various video forums and apparently many others have run into this, with no solutions offered as yet. I posted a quick video showing the 45 degree angle effect here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PNBLnIUo7g I have used FRAPS for a long time to grab video from games like COD4 and MW2, but would agree that its a resource hog. CamStudio looks like the most promising thing out there for use with PSDR. Hopefully, subsequent versions of the Codec will be more compatible. Incidentally, I did try recompiling the video with various codecs using VirtualDub, but it chokes on the CamStudio AVI format and indicates that its corrupt. Have you found a work-around for dealing with the incompatibility problem? Thanks, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] Need more skin!
Hi Steve, I have made a few of my own with Photoshop that I use, but haven't come up with anything special. It would be nice if there was a repository where we could upload skin folders that could be shared, downloaded, and unzipped into the PowerSDR/Skins folder. I'm sure there are some very creative people lurking in the Flex community who could come up with some great stuff! Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] Flex 1500 - AM mode - MIC level slider changes RF carrier power level and TX audio level.
A friend (W1VZR) is trying to sort this problem out with his Flex 1500. What might cause the MIC Level slider in Power SDR 2.0.16 and also 2.0.8 to alter the RF carrier level in addition to the TX audio level while operating in the AM mode? A MIC Level setting of 0 results in no RF output and advancing the MIC Level control raises the carrier or RF output in addition to adjusting the TX audio level. The problem is present regardless of the Drive Level setting or AM Carrier Level setting. Resetting the database did not change this behavior. I have never encountered this issue with my Flex 5000A while operating in the AM mode. Any suggestions about how to get the MIC Level slider to simply change the TX audio level while in AM? Thanks, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
[Flexradio] Flex Forum
Hi, I'm just curious if the Flex Forum at: http://forums.flexradio.com/ is still being actively moderated. Since September 29th someone selling a line of non-ham radio related products has been actively filling up the board with SPAM. I have reported the posts, but the infiltration continues. Regards, Rob W1AEX Flex 5000A ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] Flex Forum
Tim, Thanks for cleaning up the forum. I appreciate all the time and effort that you and others have invested in providing various paths for all of us to get assistance and advice. I have no doubt that between both reflectors, the forum, the web site and various other venues that it's no simple task! Regards, Rob W1AEX ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
