Remote Rig
RRC 1258 Support in English => Configuration, RRC 1258 => Topic started by: WU6X on 2019-09-03, 18:16:36
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Was using N3FJP contest software and the WinKeyer connected directly to the radio, paddle to the WinKeyer and USB cable connected to the WinKeyer. New setup here uses a RemoteRig control box (RRC) instead of a radio in the shack ... controlling a remote base station.
Configuration looks like this:
* Computer to WinKeyer USB --> Paddle connected to WinKeyer --> WinKeyer connected to RemoteRig RRC paddle input
All settings I've tried on all three configurable softwares (N3FJP, RemoteRig and WinKeyer) produces a "squeeze key" type response from the RRC; continuous dit-dah, dit-dah, etc.
Anyone using this configuration that can offer a solution? PS: The paddle connected directly to the RRC works perfectly!
73,
Dennis, WU6X
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Dennis,
Going to the RRC's paddle input will always use its keyer function. You want instead to use a straight-key/external keyer interface.
To do that, you need instead to connect to the RRC's I/O jack. Go to the manual, pages 94-95 and Appendix B (page 242).
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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Thank you Mitch ... I'll give that a try.
73,
Dennis, WU6X
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UPDATE: I tested with a CAT5 cable into the I/O port on the RRC, with different connections to the KEY1 and PTT outputs on the WinKeyer USB (WK3USB), using the cable supplied by K1ELsystems (RCA to 3-conductor stereo). I assumed the 3-conductor stereo connector would connect tip, ring & ground. However, no combination of connections could get the RRC to play CW. Looking at the schematic for the WK3USB did not help as the RCA outputs show as KEY1 and PTT, not tip, ring & gnd. At this point, I've exhausted the trial and need to look for a definitive connection scheme, or assistance with how the RCA outputs of the WK3USB should be connected to the I/O on the RRC. The Appendix on page 243 of the RemoteRig User Manual appears to be for keying the RRC with a computer ... a different application.
Any further suggestions would be appreciated.
73, Dennis - WU6X
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Dennis,
It should work just fine if wired correctly. Did you make sure that the I/O settings are set per the manual to make this function?
Is VOX turned on on the radio?
Otherwise, Mike or someone with more experience may be able to say what may be wrong.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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I'll go over it again today with a fresh mind. I'm pretty sure I had everything setup correctly, but there are a LOT of variables. Another quick question: should I be able to make a change in configuration while connected to a remote base, like changing the sidetone frequency, without disconnecting? The reason I ask is that I did this last night and now my RRC won't connect to either of the 2 remotes I have access to.
Dennis, WU6X
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No, every change requires you to reboot the RRC. It is best to first disconnect before making a change, then save and reboot.
There is no real reason why it won't reconnect. Sounds like it is not on your network, so double check to make sure (also reboot
it again).
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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Thanks Mitch and all ... What I've come up with, the simplified version, is this:
If you want to connect an external keyer to the RRC you must use the RJ45 I/O port on the RRC. Connecting a WinKeyerUSB is described in the following example:
1. Connect the center pin of the RCA KEY1 or KEY2 jack on the WinKeyer to PIN4 (blue wire) of the I/O RJ45 on the RRC
2. Connect the shield (gnd) of the RCA KEY1 or KEY2 jack on the WinKeyer to PIN8 (brown wire) of the I/O RJ45 on the RRC
3. Connect a paddle to the PADDLE input on the WinKeyer
4. Disable the internal keyer on the RRC KEYER Settings menus (I think ...?) I'll test this tomorrow morning.
5. Set VOX to "ON" on the radio control head in CW mode
I hope this helps someone trying to connect at WinKeyer, at least. Everything else appears to be working tonight and I'm able to switch between two remotes using a browser interface.
73, Dennis, WU6X
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Updates:
Still not working correctly. What should the Keyer Menu settings and I/O menu settings on the RRC be set to for an external keyer? With Keyer "enabled" in the Keyer Menu, I am keying the radio, but it's producing a steady stream of dahs. With Keyer enabled in the Keyer Menu, no keying, no sidetone, etc. I've tried I/O menu settings for IN0 set to both "Keyer" and "I/O" with same results; no radio keying unless "keyer" is enabled in the Keyer Menu.
Also, I have verified with an ohm meter that I am getting proper key closures coming from the KEY1 jack of the WinKeyer, dits and dahs with proper spacing, now being fed to PIN4 of the RJ45 I/O and Ground PIN8.
Tnx for any suggestions,
Dennis, WU6X
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What kind of rig is it? Some rigs have a paddle jack and a straight key jack. The output of the RRC must
go to the straight key jack.
Otherwise, the settings for the I/O is in the manual pages I sent you before. The keyer settings would not
have any effect, since you are bypassing the keyer.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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The rig is a Kenwood 480HX, and it does have both a keyer and a key input. I'll check with each remote base and make look at how it's been connected. That might explain why it works just fine with a keyer but not a straight key.
I've verified the WK3USB external keyer is putting out an open/close, straight key type closure, and I've connected that to PIN4 with PIN8 ground. Currently, the RRC acts like I'm holding the paddle in one position or the other, keying the radio accordingly. But, it just won't make Morse code.
Thanks for the tip ... I'll check and advise.
73, Dennis
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Winkeyer emulation via N3FJP now working perfectly using Com30. No external box needed.
Thanks for all the suggestions and assistance, guys!
73, Dennis-WU6X
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.... and then it wasn't. :(
I was experimenting with USB-to-serial control and really messed up configs. Can someone offer the TS-480HX I/O settings, both ends, to enable the keyer? Just too confusing ... screen shots will be taken, next time, I promise!
Tnx, Dennis-WU6X
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Dennis,
I just looked at one of my installations:
Radio RRC:
Out0 = I/O
Out2 = Baudot/RTTY
Out3 = Keyer
Control RRC:
IN0 = Keyer
Out0 = connect
Out1 = I/O
Out2 = I/O
73,
Mitch
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Thank you Mitch. I finally got it working again today. So, now I'll go back to looking at macro keying under N3FJP Winkeyer emulation and see if that corrected itself as well.
73, Dennis-WU6X
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It all works now, even without configuring the Winkeyer emulator in N3FJP. I guess I hadn't tried that before? So many variable I can't remember. In any case, I'm working on getting RTTY to work now with MMTTY. I can key the remote radio but it sends only a carrier, no "diddle". Any ideas?
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What kind of radio is it?
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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Oops! Sorry about that ... Kenwood TS-480HX. I looked through the manual and everything in the radio is set to default.
Dennis, WU6X
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Hi Dennis,
The TS-480 requires a mono plug in the key jack to make it work. If you are using a stereo
plug, then you will have a continuous tone when trying to send FSK using the RRC's FSK
over COM0/COMEXTRA feature.
I hope this helps.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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Perfect! I'm not sure what is installed now, but I'll check. I assume using a mono plug won't effect CW ops?
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Correct!
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Okay ... mono cable installed and MMTTY configured as shown in the manual. CW is working, but FSK node is not keying the TS-480. What else should I look at?
Tnx, Dennis-WU6X
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Dennis,
It could be a number of things, which I can't tell without looking at your settings. I suggest
that you take a look at the following:
- I/O settings on control RRC:
INO mode: Keyer
OUT0 mode: Connect
OUT1 mode: I/O
OUT2 mode: I/O
rest disabled
- I/O settings on radio RRC:
OUT0: PTT or I/O
OUT1: Baudot-RTTY/45
OUT2: Keyer
The last two may be reversed, not sure, but this is what is in the manual page
97
Control RRC Serial Settings:
COM3/Extra to mode-10, Baudot-RTTY
Select the COM3/COMEXTRA Windows assigned port found in the Windows Device Manager to the RTTY program
It has been several years since I installed this at our stations and I never use FSK, so this is sort of out of my fading
memory. All I really remember is that we needed to change the stereo plugs to mono to make it work. I am sure that
it is something minor in the settings somewhere.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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Thanks for the quick response, Mitch. I've gone over the settings and had/have then set exactly as described and, have tried both mono and stereo cables between radio end KEY output and PAD connector. CW still works, but RTTY not keying the radio.
I had RTTY producing a solid tone at one point, but now lost that trying various configurations.
Tnx for your assistance ... I can make screen shots if needed.
One thing I am not seeing are other options on the MMTTY Setup/Sound Card tab. I would have expected to see the USB RRC as a selection ... could that be a factor?
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There is no USB audio generated by the RRC, so no. You just take the audio off of the SP jack.
Even then, that would affect the transmit audio.
I think there is some setting somewhere on MMTTY that is messed up. I can take a look using
Teamviewer if you want, but I am far from being an expert. I would just be able to be a second
set of eyes.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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I'm using USB to the Control RRC only ... what SP jack are you talking about? We can do a TeamViewer ... are you in the USA?
If so, send an email to wu6x@hotmail dot com ... as I would rather not post all the connection stuff here. Hi!
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To get audio back from the radio into MMTTY, you must connect to the SP jack of the RRC and
from there to the audio input of your sound card interface or computer. There is no other way
for the program to get audio in.
Audio out for sound card modes like PSK, WJST and AFSK, is done the other way around by going
from the sound card interface or line out of the computer into the RRC's AUX/MIC jack. Since you
are (trying to use) using the RRCÄs FSK generation method, that doesn't apply to you, although it
may be easier on your nerves than what you are going through right now and would allow you to
use other digital modes as well.
I will see if I have time tomorrow afternoon to take a look at your setup.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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I understand ... thank you for a concise explanation. I've been thinking about going AFSK which, as you point out, would give me access to the other digital modes that I'm missing. Right now, I can't seem to key the radio in FSK mode (where AFSK would use VOX). So, I think that must be a setup issue somewhere.
In any case, it's going to be complicated either way as I have to rely on others to cable up the remotes correctly, one on the east coast and one out here in the west, especially if I go serial control.
Hopefully, we can talk soon and compare notes. 73, and thanks for all the assistance you've offered since I began the journey into remote radio control. :) Dennis - WU6X
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It is really not complicated at all to set it up for CAT. You only need a (real) serial cable between the
TS-480's RS232 port and the radio RRC's COM2. The rest is a couple of settings in each RRC. I have a
CAT checklist available when you are ready. That opens up a lot of possibilities, including effectively
using WJST and doing PTT via CAT like I do. Highly recommended, just one cable necessary.
What you need is to forward the web port for the radio RRC after changing and password protecting it to
be able to make changes and tweaks as you go along. You will never need help then at the actual station.
We can go through this stuff on the phone when I get a chance.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX
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WooHoo! You were correct, CAT was easy to set up, and now working as follows:
Control RRC
Prolific USB to Serial adapter connected to COM2
Serial settings as described in the table on page 192 of the RR manual
Radio RRC
Serial cable from radio to RRC Com2
Serial settings as described in the table on page 192 of the RR manual
My logging software (N3FJP) is now reading frequency, band and mode perfectly. This should be the case with any software I run on the computer. Next, connect computer audio in/out of the Control RRC, and in/out of the Radio RRC, and should be set for all the digital modes.
On the Control RRC end, I'm thinking about using my SignaLinkUSB which normalizes the sound levels in/out of the computer. Will that work, or would you recommend direct connections to the AUX/Mic input and adjust levels with computer sound card? Also, on the Radio RRC end, do I need other cabling there besides the RJ11 connection?
Dennis, WU6X
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It is even easier than that: the RRC has a built-in serial to USB converter and you don't even
need the Prolific cable. Just change COM2 setting to set it to use USB and then look-up the
virtual port that Windows issued. Prolific cables are terrible, anyway, never use anything but
FTDI, or you are asking for trouble!
Any sound card interface would be fine, including the Signalink. However, don't use VOX as the
PTT method which is normal on the Signalink.
I was very busy today, so I couldn't call. I have a few minutes now if you are available.
73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX