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FlexRadio Systems FLEX-5000 Series Owner's Manual
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FlexRadio Systems FLEX-5000 Series Owner's Manual

Hf-6m transceivers
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Owner's Manual
HF-6m Transceivers
Version 1.14.0

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Summary of Contents for FlexRadio Systems FLEX-5000 Series

  • Page 1 ® ® Series Owner's Manual HF-6m Transceivers Version 1.14.0...
  • Page 2 FlexRadio Systems. Information contained in this document may contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Information may be changed or updated without notice. FlexRadio Systems may make improvements and/or changes in the materials at any time without notice. All materials are provided "as is". FlexRadio Systems makes no representations or warranties, expressed or implied to the accuracy of the copyrighted materials.
  • Page 3 (13) Line-Out and Line-In Audio Jacks..................11 (14) Balanced Line Input......................11 Connecting to a Balanced XLR Connector....................11 (15) PTT Jack........................12 (16) RF Ground Terminal......................12 FLEX-5000C Computer Connections................13 Wireless Keyboard and Mouse....................13 FireWire Cable........................13 Monitor or LCD Display......................13 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 4 (7 AND 7B) FILTER CONTROLS...................57 Labeled Filter Buttons....................57 Variable Filter Buttons....................58 (8) MODE SPECIFIC CONTROLS..................59 Phone Controls ......................59 CW Controls........................60 Digital Controls......................62 (9 AND 9B) DISPLAY CONTROLS................62 Screen Controls......................63 Display Selection Controls....................63 Display Type Descriptions.....................63 Spectrum..........................64 Panadapter (Panoramic Adapter).....................64 Histogram..........................65 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 5 FLEX-5000 Config...........................81 Receive Only............................81 Radio Model............................82 DDS..............................82 Options Sub-Tab......................83 Options..............................84 Process Priority............................84 ClickTune Offsets (Hz)..........................85 Miscellaneous............................85 Keyboard..............................86 Custom Title Text...........................86 Calibration Sub-Tab......................87 Filters Sub-Tab......................88 RX2 Sub-Tab.......................89 AUDIO TAB.........................90 Primary Sub-Tab......................90 Buffer Size............................90 Sample Rate............................90 Mic Boost..............................91 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 6 TX Profiles............................111 Transmit Filter............................112 DC Block.............................112 Tune..............................112 Noise Gate............................113 VOX..............................113 Monitor...............................114 AM Carrier Level...........................114 Standard TX Profiles..........................114 PA SETTINGS TAB.....................115 Gain By Band (dB)..........................115 APPEARANCE TAB ....................116 Display Sub-Tab......................116 Overall Display.............................117 Cursor/Peak Readout..........................117 Panadapter............................118 General Sub-Tab......................119 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 7 CWX Memories........................144 Special Characters.......................144 Keyboard and Extended Controls.................145 Extended CWX Controls......................145 Morse Definition Editor......................146 (37) MIXER......................148 Input..............................148 Output..............................148 (38) ANTENNA......................149 Simple........................150 Expert........................151 (39) ATU........................153 Operating Mode............................153 Tuning Options.............................153 SWR Threshold............................154 Tuner Feedback............................154 VOLTAGE AND TEMPERATURE INFORMATION............154 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 8 FLEX-5000C EMBEDDED COMPUTER SPECIFICATIONS..........197 FLEX-5000 ARCHITECTURE..................198 DECLARATIONS OF CONFORMITY................199 FCC..........................199 EU Compliance......................199 A BUFFERS AND SAMPLE RATE..........201 FILTER EFFECTS.......................201 LATENCY EFFECTS....................204 UNDERLYING THEORY....................204 B UPDATING THE FLEX-5000 FIRMWARE.........207 AUTOMATICALLY......................207 MANUALLY.......................207 Download and Extract the Firmware................207 Update the Firmware....................208 viii © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 9 T A B L E C O N T E N T S C OPTIMIZING THE AGC............211 D WINDOW FUNCTIONS............213 © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 10 FlexRadio Systems is committed to ensuring that your experience with the FLEX-5000 will be one of the most enjoyable you have with Ham radio. If you have any questions, issues or problems operating...
  • Page 11 Acknowledgments FlexRadio Systems could not be as successful, nor could the FLEX-5000 radio be what it is today without the many selfless contributions from our users all over the world. These contributions have spanned and continue to span improvements to our hardware and software, ranging from bug reports and feature requests to actual design and implementation of certain functionality.
  • Page 12 If the hyperlink has been previously clicked, it will be shown in magenta instead of blue. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] Adobe and Reader are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems, Inc. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 13: Hardware Installation

    FLEX-5000A: Install and configure the FLEX-5000 FireWire Driver This driver is required to enable the computer to interface with the FLEX-5000. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] FireWire and the FireWire logo are registered trademarks of Apple, Inc., under license. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 14: Unpacking And Deciding On A Location

    If you ever need to ship your FLEX-5000 anywhere, especially back to FlexRadio Systems, this is the preferred packaging to use. For the FLEX-5000A, you may need to acquire a 4-pin to 6-pin cable if using a laptop Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation Acronis is a registered trademark of Acronis, Inc.

  • Page 15: Location Considerations

    [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] Identifiers refer to the same controls and connectors on the FLEX-5000A and C models. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 16: Front Panel

    Make sure the FLEX-5000 is turned on and then wait 10-15 seconds before starting PowerSDR. Otherwise, PowerSDR will indicate a communication error and offer the option to run in Demo mode. Click No to close PowerSDR, turn on the FLEX-5000 and restart PowerSDR. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 17 FLEX-5000 The pin-out is similar to that normally found on Yaesu radios These microphones may not sufficiently drive the rear audio inputs (13) and/or (14) (see page 10) without an external preamp. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 18: Back Panel

    The FLEX-5000 has the ability to connect up to three different antennas to the receiver and or transmitter and up to two additional receive only antennas. All of these are assignable on a per band basis. The antenna connections are as follows: © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 19 [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] Second receiver is standard with the FLEX-5000D Older radios may have only 1 red and 1 black wire, which are connected to the + and – terminals respectively. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 20 TRS/TS plug for a straight key. The pin-out is shown in Table 3 below. Table 3: Key Jack Pin-Out Keyer Straight Connector Signal Ring Dash Sleeve Common Common FireWire is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 21 Accepts input from an optional 10MHz, 0 to +10dBm reference source, such as a GPS disciplined or high precision clock source. This enables greater frequency stability for those operators requiring such, e.g. for VHF+ operators operating in the GHz range. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 22 A family of FlexWire peripherals will be forthcoming from FlexRadio Systems. This is not another “CAT” port, but an industry standard bidirectional communications bus based on the I (pronounced “I squared C”) protocol along with AF I/O lines.
  • Page 23 Table 7: XLR Male and Female Connector Pin-out Contact Description Connector Pin 1 Ground or shield connection Positive phase for balanced Pin 2 mono signals or mic (+) Negative phase for balanced Pin 3 mono signals or mic (-) © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 24 FLEX-5000 to the metal chassis of your computer with a low impedance ground strap, such as a 1” braid or copper strip (the screws that hold the computer power supply in place make an excellent grounding point). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 25 Do not confuse these with the internal speaker or external speakers you may have connected to the Powered Speakers jack (11), which are strictly used for receive audio by the FLEX-5000. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 26: Network Connection

    6. Press and release the connect button on the wireless keyboard controller again and press and release the connect button on the bottom of the mouse. 7. Move the mouse and check for pointer motion on the display. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 27 If an Internet connection is found, several screens will follow to set up your Internet connection. If the search times out, you will see “An Internet connection could not be chosen”. Click Next. To skip the search, click Skip and go directly to the next screen. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 28: Reference Documents

    The computer within your radio has a hidden restore partition on the hard drive called the Secure Zone ® 1 . It contains a complete copy of the originally shipped factory software. In the event you have a Secure Zone and Recovery Manager are registered trademarks of Acronis, Inc. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 29 The entire restore process should take less than ten minutes. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 30 (blue LED is off, see Figure 1 on page 4). It is also a good idea to close all other applications. Double click on the extracted driver installation file to open the FLEX-5000 Setup Wizard (Figure 5). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 31 [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] All screenshots in this manual are as they would appear when using the Microsoft Windows XP operating system. The screenshots may look slightly different when using Microsoft Vista, but the steps are the same. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 32 Figure 6: FLEX-5000 Driver Setup Wizard - Select Destination Location We recommend you accept the default location to install the FLEX-5000 FireWire to. Click the Next button to continue to Figure 7. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 33 If you do not want the FLEX-5000 Control Panel icon on your desktop, uncheck the “Create a desktop icon” option. Click the Next button to continue to Figure 8. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 34 [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] This warning is displayed because the hardware driver has not passed the formal Windows Logo Testing program. The FLEX-5000 driver has, however, been extensively tested and will not destabilize or impair your system © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 35 After a brief moment, you will hear the power relay click and the blue LED will illuminate the power button. When this happens, Windows XP will detect the FLEX-5000A and display the Found New Hardware Wizard (Figure 10). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 36 Select the option No, not this time when you are prompted to use Windows Update to search for software. Click on the Next button to continue to Figure 11. Note: Figure 10 above may not show up in some systems. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 37 The Found New Hardware Wizard will request you to please wait while it installs the software. If a Hardware Installation warning appears, click the Continue Anyway button to proceed. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 38 Alternatively, click on the Start button (bottom left of your screen) and then on All Programs. Select the FlexRadio FLEX-5000 program folder and double click on the FlexRadio FLEX-5000 application. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 39 You should start with these values and if you desire you can experiment with other settings. In some cases, where audio drop outs are being experienced, larger buffers may need to be used. Also, see Appendix A for more detail. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 40 PC is going to perform. Note 2: The sample rate will automatically follow whatever is set in PowerSDR (see page 44). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 41: Operation Mode

    Technically these Operation Modes control how successfully the hardware driver recovers from buffer over and under runs. Some hardware drivers and third-party applications issue what are called delayed procedure calls (DPCs). Higher Safe Modes allow the driver to handle longer DPC latencies at the cost of more audio latency. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 42: Dpc Latency Checker

    Safe Mode setting. For Safe Mode 1, the minimum buffer size at 192 kHz is 2048, at 96kHz is 1024 and at 48 kHz is 512. DPC Latency Checker Figure 15: FLEX-5000 Control Panel DPC Latency Checker © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 43 FlexRadio Knowledge Center on our website and read the article How to Use the FlexRadio FireWire Driver DPC Latency Checker to Determine Operating Mode (search for firewire card in our Knowledge Center at http://kc.flex-radio.com/search.aspx). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 44: Upgrading From An Earlier Version

    After reviewing the new version and verifying that your setup works, uninstalling previous versions is fine (but not necessary). Note that in order to completely remove previous versions you must manually delete the database file (PowerSDR.mdb) from the application directory (usually c:\Program Files\FlexRadio Systems\PowerSDR vn.n.n). PowerSDR Installation Download PowerSDR v1.14.0...
  • Page 45 Setup.exe program. You should see the screen shown in Figure 17. Figure 17: PowerSDR Installation Welcome Screen Click the Next button to continue to Figure 18. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 46 You can change the installation directory here, though we recommend you use the default for troubleshooting purposes. Click the Next button to continue to Figure 19. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 47 Figure 19: PowerSDR Installation License Agreement Read the GNU Public License. If you accept, click I Agree and click the Next button to continue to Figure 20. Otherwise click Cancel. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 48 Click the Next button to confirm these settings and to copy the necessary files to the selected install directory. Once the files have been copied, you will see the screen shown in Figure 21. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 49 Desktop (or through the Start menu). When you run a new release of PowerSDR for the first time an optimization routine will run and the screens shown in Figure 22 will appear. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 50 When the routine has completed, a brief startup sequence will follow, after which you should be greeted by the PowerSDR Setup Wizard as shown in Figure 23 below. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 51 EQForm, GroupList, Memory, TXProfile, UCB and/or WaveOptions if any. We recommend you keep a copy of your original database before transferring any tables. Click the Next button to continue to Figure 24. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 52 Select the FLEX-5000 radio model as shown in Figure 24 above. Click the Next button to continue to Figure 25. Note: If you are running without a radio, e.g. for demonstration purposes, select Demo/None. For the SDR-1000 see the SDR-1000 Owner's Manual. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 53 PowerSDR will offer the ability to start in demo mode. Click No to close PowerSDR, power up the FLEX-5000 and restart PowerSDR. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 54: Initial Powersdr Configuration

    Click the OK button to start the transfer of calibration data. You will see the progress indicator shown in Figure 28. When the transfer is complete, PowerSDR will complete starting up. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 55: Audio Parameters

    If the sample rate and buffer size set for the FLEX-5000 hardware driver (see Figure 13 on page 27) are different than the PowerSDR sample rate and audio buffer size (Figure 29), audio drops will most likely occur due to buffer alignment issues. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 56 Only the ANT3 port meets the -60dBc spurious output requirement at 6m. For the later HRFIO ASSY 34, this is not the case and the 6m transmit antenna port can be assigned to any of ANT1-3, just like any other band. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 57: Audio Mixer

    Output channels can be selected. Mic is the front panel microphone connector, whereas all other channels refer to the various audio inputs and outputs on the back panel. For more detailed information see page 148). Note: The Internal Speaker output is unavailable for the FLEX-5000A, which has no internal speaker. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 58: Completely Factory Calibrated

    FLEX-5000 has several options and settings in PowerSDR unavailable to the SDR-1000. Especially new are the Mixer, Antenna and ATU forms. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 59 Up/Down controls are similar to a Text Box, but are limited to numeric input. They also have  arrows for simple increment/decrement behavior. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 60 Note 3: Corresponding main and second receiver control identifiers have corresponding numbers, with the latter appended by the letter b. Hint: Hovering with your mouse over any control will show a brief description of that control’s function. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 61 See the Tuning Methods on page 158 for more details on how to tune. Note that when The band text returns by turning RX2 off, or leaving RX2 on, but turning split and/or multiRX off. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 62 No RX2 or RX2 Off: RX1 MultiRX Transmit Frequency Frequency. RX2 On: RX2 Frequency Figure 36: VFO B The operation of VFO B is similar to that of VFO A. However, VFO B is used only in specific instances. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 63 ADC L (Analog To Digital Left): Calculates the level in dBFS (decibel full scale) of the Left  input from the internal I/Q ADC. ADC R (Analog To Digital Right): Calculates the level in dBFS (decibel full scale) of the Right  input from the internal I/Q ADC. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 64 ALC Comp: Reads the gain in dB applied by the ALC algorithm. The gain is always <=0 in dB.  The minus sign is implicit. CPDR: Reads the power in dB after the compander, where 0dB is ideal. If the compander is not  enabled, it reads the same as Comp. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 65 The VHF+ button (RX1 only) will swap between the typical HF bands and any configured transverter bands (see the description of the XVTRs Form on page 141). The VHF band buttons work in the same way, but for the frequencies within the transverter frequency range. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 66 DRM: Digital Radio Mondiale (requires licensed external demodulator software not available  from FlexRadio Systems; Enables VAC if VAC Auto Enable is engaged, see page 93) Hotkeys are available in the Setup-Form, Keyboard Tab to cycle through the various modes using the keyboard (see page 123).

  • Page 67: Labeled Filter Buttons

    Each of the 10 (7 for RX2) labeled filter buttons can be customized for any of the modes. To do so, right click on a filter button and select Configure… to bring up the screen shown in Figure 42. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 68: Variable Filter Buttons

    Shift: Shifts the selected filter passband up or down from its normal center frequency. This can  help to eliminate interference caused by signals in close proximity of the received signal. The behavior of this control is set in the Setup Form – General Tab, Filter Sub-Tab (page 88). © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 69: Phone Controls

    DX: click to enable the DX compander (a form of compression), which has been optimized to  give your voice an extra punch, especially useful in DX situations. Adjust its level with either the slider or the text box. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 70 The CW controls, shown in Figure 44 below are available when either CWL or CWU is selected. Most of these controls can be found on the Setup Form-DSP Tab, Keyer Sub-Tab (see page 106, where you can also find a more detailed description). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 71 Break In: check the Enabled box to activate Break In for the internal keyer. Set the delay in  the Delay text box. See also page 108. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] ClickTune is a trademark of FlexRadio Systems. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 72: Digital Controls

    The former act on the screen as a whole, where as the later determine the display type to be used for RX1 (9) and RX2 (9b) respectively. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 73: Screen Controls

    ) and three time domain display types (Scope, Phase and Phase2). Panafall and Panascope are only available when RX2 of off (or not installed). For RX2 the choice is Panafall is a trademark of FlexRadio Systems. Panascope is a trademark of FlexRadio Systems.
  • Page 74 Figure 48 Panadapter Display The Panadapter Display is similar to the Spectrum Display with several differences. The maximum display width is a function of the selected sampling rate, no matter what filter  bandwidth is selected. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 75 The green signals are previous peaks on that same frequency that will fade as time goes by (a type of history, hence the name). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 76 The Waterfall Display can be customized on the Setup Form- Display Tab This allows custom  setting of the dynamic range and coloring for the display. (See the Setup Form-Display Tab on page 97 for more details.) [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 77 If the circle distorts into an oval or a straight line, the input phase is off balance which would indicate a connection or hardware problem. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 78 When RX1 and RX2 displays are both showing, the cursor position read-out relates to the respective display the cursor is in, either the RX1 (upper) or RX2 (lower) display. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 79 VFO B if RX2 is not installed or off, or in the lower section of VFO A if RX2 is on (see page 51). In the Panadapter and Waterfall Displays, its passband is shown in blue, but only if it © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 80 ANF (Automatic Notch Filter): Activates the Automatic Notch Filter algorithm.  NB (Impulse Noise Blanker): Activates the Noise Blanker algorithm (see page 102).  NB2 (Mean Rank Noise Blanker): Activates the Mean Rank Noise Blanker algorithm (see  page 102). © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 81 RX2 to the same frequency RX1 is on. A< B: Transfers the contents of VFO B to VFO A (frequency, mode, and filter). If RX2 is on, this  tunes RX1 to the same frequency RX2 is on. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 82 Frequency (IF, usually 9kHz). In voice operation the MON feature will allow you to hear the effects of MIC gain, TX equalization, compression and compansion and to adjust them in real time. The AF control can be used to adjust the monitor volume. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 83 This feature is used to simplify the antenna tuning process for proper load matching. With the ATU, TUN activates the ATU tuning function. When the ATU is in Bypass, the TUN  function operates just as if the ATU were not present. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 84 (23) Drive (Transmitter Power Output/Tune Power) This control adjusts the percentage of maximum power that will be available when transmitting. The Drive control may be adjusted while either receiving or transmitting. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 85 (squelch open: only the red level is audible with SQL enabled). Squelch can be very useful to remove all noise from CW signals, especially in narrow filter settings. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 86 Pan: Move left or right to position RX2 anywhere in the left-right audio spectrum.  Vol: Adjusts the RX2 audio volume relative to the total RX1 + RX2 audio gain. The latter is  controlled with the AF slider (see above). © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 87 Each of these items opens a form, which is used while operating. Please refer to the Operating Forms chapter below for more detailed information on each one. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 88 EEPROM in your FLEX-5000. If you have used the default directory during installation as recommended, the database file will be in C:\Program Files\FlexRadio Systems\PowerSDR vn.n.n\. The database file is called PowerSDR.mdb. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally]...
  • Page 89 Cancel: Reloads the values from the database into the Setup Form and closes the form. This  button can be used to reverse unintended changes to the Setup controls. Apply: Immediately saves the current values to the database.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 90: General Tab

    Check this box to use only the receiver, while disabling the transmitter. When checked, MOX, TUN and VOX will become unavailable on the Front Console and PTT (either via the MIC connector or the back panel PTT connector) will also not function. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 91 Adjust the Clock Offset control until the dot in the phase display is (almost) standing still. Don't forget to turn the internal signal generator off, when you are done. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 92 However, if you are experiencing low frequency noise, such as spurs that cannot be eliminated with the Spur Reduction (SR) enabled, you might try adjusting the IF. Options Sub-Tab Figure 67: Setup Form - General Tab, Options Sub-Tab © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 93 Systems recommends using the Normal setting, if you are experiencing audio glitches or are using a slower machine, selecting Above Normal or High might improve the performance of the software. Note that FlexRadio Systems does not recommend using the Real Time setting as this could cause timing problems with the operating system.
  • Page 94 – RIT frequency. This can be useful if you want to zero beat the receive frequency without changing the transmit frequency. Mouse Tune Step: When checked, clicking the mouse button (middle click) will cycle through  the tune steps. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 95 VFO frequency due to accidental key presses. Custom Title Text Enter the text you would like appended to the standard text (FlexRadio Systems PowerSDR v1.n.n) in the title bar of the Front Console. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally]...
  • Page 96 If you decide to proceed tune your radio to a known accurate frequency source (e.g. WWV), enter the frequency in the Frequency control and click the Start button. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 97 Filter Low and High Cut controls on the front panel. Default Low Cut (Hz): Sets the default low frequency cut-off for the USB/LSB filters.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 98 Check Auto Mute RX2 on TX to mute the second receiver RX2 while transmitting. Check Auto Mute RX1 on VFOB TX to mute the first receiver RX1 while transmitting on the RX2 frequency shown in VFO B. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 99: Audio Tab

    It is this trade- off that needs to be made, especially for CW where latency is more critical. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 100 15ms. We recommend using the default automatic latency setting for best results. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 101 Virtual Audio Cable Setup Select the driver type you wish to use. With most digital software MME will work well. Select the Input and Output channels as shown in Figure 76. Gain (dB) Figure 77: Gain (dB) Controls © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 102 Allow PTT to override/bypass VAC for Phone Check this box if you wish to override or bypass VAC when activating PTT, e.g. to use your microphone. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 103 I/Q signals. Check Calibrate I/Q to correct the raw I/Q signal and avoid any image signals going to the third-party software. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 104 S E T U P F O R M C H A P T E R Display Tab Figure 80: Setup Form - Display Tab [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 105: Spectrum Grid

    CPU Meter (ms): Sets the update rate of the CPU Meter in the lower left of the front console.  Raising the value will add more delay between updates while lowering the value will yield faster responses. Note that the CPU Meter measures your entire system load and not just that of PowerSDR process. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 106 Average Time (ms): The time over which the signal is averaged when using the SigAvg RX  Meter setting. Analog Refresh (ms): Controls how often the analog meter is updated.  Digital Refresh (ms): Controls how often the digital meter is updated.  © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 107 Histogram). Expect to see an up to 4 times narrower area of the displayed “spike” of a tone, especially when the displayed frequency span is relatively large in comparison. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 108 It is best used for speech signals with a good signal to noise ratio or tones. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 109 Use Peak Readings for TX Meter DSP Values When checked, the MIC, EQ, Leveler, CPDR and ALC TX Meters will show peak values instead of RMS values. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 110 1024/192000 = 5ms. In this case the overall latency is determined by the DSP buffer size and the group delay of 11ms. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] The same filter shape is achieved for 96kHz and 1024 or 48kHz and 512. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 111 (=wider filter). Appendix D describes in more detail several of the window functions available in PowerSDR. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 112 Harris will be preferred, except possibly for weak CW signals, where dynamic range is much less important than a narrower passband. Figure 94: 25Hz CW Filter with Hanning (Red) and Blackman-Harris (Blue) Windows [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 113 This Expert check box will show controls that you should only consider using if you are an experienced user. You should proceed with caution. Very rarely, if ever, will you need to access these controls. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 114: Transmit Rejection

    3. If the radio is set to USB, look at the image signal BELOW the carrier in either the spectrum analyzer or the second receiver. If set to LSB, look at the image signal ABOVE the carrier. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 115 The display will continue to read the actual carrier frequency, but the software will provide for an offset to get the desired CW tone. This pitch will determine the automated tuning frequency using the display and mouse “ClickTune” functions. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 116 Disable Monitor: The monitor is typically turned on when using Break In with the internal  keyer. In order to keep the monitor off, check this option. Rev. Paddles: Using this option will reverse the paddle inputs so that the dot becomes a dash  and vice versa. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 117 Delay (ms): Sets the amount of time between the last detected input and when the radio will  drop back to receive. The smallest possible setting is 10 ms. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 118 Max Gain (dB): The maximum amount of gain allowed by the AGC system for signals below  the AGC threshold. The total AGC gain equals the Max Gain + the Slope (Gain). See also Appendix C. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 119 The Compander (DX and CPDR on the Front Console (see Mode Specific Controls – Phone on page 59) work very well with the ALC to increase average power without overdrive. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 120 To change profiles, select the named profile from the drop down list. To remove a profile, select it using the drop down menu, and then click the Delete button. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 121 Front Console (sets the Drive control). Changes made to the Drive level while TUN is active will be reflected in this control. TX Meter: Selects which TX Meter to use when TUN on the Front Console is clicked.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 122 Sensitivity: The threshold above which PowerSDR automatically starts transmitting. Use this in  combination with the Noise Gate for best results. Delay (ms): Time to stay in transmit after the last peak above the threshold.  © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 123 112. To use one of these, click to select it from the list and then click Import. It will now be active and show up in the Profiles list described above. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 124: Pa Settings Tab

    A higher gain figure for the hardware (as shown) means a lower audio drive gain requirement. Reset: this button is included to reset all of the values to 48.0dB (low power output). When you are done, do not forget to recheck Use Advanced Calibration Routines. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 125 Appearance Tab The appearance controls allow the user to completely customize the appearance of the front console. Display Sub-Tab Figure 114: Setup Form-Appearance Tab, Display Sub-Tab [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 126: Overall Display

    Peak Text: The color of the Peak signal location text located under the display.  Background: The background color of the Peak signal location text.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 127 Show Freq. Offset: When selected, the offsets from the Main RX Filter 0Hz line are shown  across the top as opposed to the actual frequencies. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 128 These controls change the appearance of the buttons and the VFOs. Figure 118: Setup Form-Appearance Tab, General Sub-Tab Button Selected: The color of buttons when they are in the selected state. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 129 Active: The color of the band information text when that VFO is active.  Out Of Band: The background color of the VFO band information when outside the amateur  radio bands. Background: The background color of the VFO band information when inside the amateur  radio bands. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 130 Edge displays an analog edge style meter. Digital Text: The color of the text of the digital meter.  Digital Background: The background color of the digital meter.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 131: Original Style

    High Color: The color of the high values of the edge meter’s scale.  Background: The background color of the edge meter.  Indicator: The color of the indicator in the edge meter.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 132 Band, Filter, Mode, RIT, or XIT up or down using the drop down controls in the respective sections. Note: Choosing any of the arrow keys will require using Alt + [arrow key]. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 133: Cat Control Tab

    N8VB’s vCOM virtual serial port software (see page 175), interaction is possible with programs such as Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD), DXLab, N1MM Contest Logger, MixW and numerous other third-party software (aids). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally]john © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 134: Cat Control

    Parity: Sets whether to send a parity bit.  Data: Sets how many data bits are sent with each byte.  Stop: Sets whether to send a stop bit.  [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 135 FlexProfiler is provided free, courtesy of K5KDN and can be installed from the SVN subversion control location: svn://206.216.146.154/svn/repos_sdr_windows/FlexProfiler/trunk/bin/Release . To do so, you will need to use a program like TortoiseSVN, downloadable for free from http://tortoisesvn.tigris.org/ . Search for SVN on our Knowledge Center at http://kc.flex-radio.com/search.aspx for further information. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 136 Execute button is clicked. Typing the semicolon, the CAT terminator, at the end of the command is optional. The CAT response will appear in the CAT Response text box.. Figure 128: CAT Command Tester Form [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 137 This differs from ClickTune Offsets (see page 83), as the ClickTune Offsets actually change the Front Console VFO frequency, whereas the RTTY Offset only offsets the frequency reported by CAT. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 138 Powered Speaker/Line out jack on the Back Panel. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 139 The effect of the DSP can be observed by comparing the Output signal to the Input signal. RX2: Check to send the generated signal to the second receiver RX2.  Frequency Slider: Determines the frequency of the generated signal  © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 140 In actual fact, the RF signal is generated using the transmit DSP and sent through the QSE, which is then looped back to the QSD and the receive DSP. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 141: Operating Forms

    132). For ease of reference, the numerical identifiers from the previous chapter on the Front Console are repeated in this chapter. Additionally, the key combination Ctrl-Shift-I activates the voltage and temperature form (see page 154) Figure 132: Operating Form Identifiers [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 142 OK button will save the information shown above into the memory database before closing the form. Clicking Cancel simply closes the form (the data is not saved). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 143 Select Close on Recall to close the Memory Form when clicking Recall. Delete: Click the Delete button to remove a memory from the database. A prompt will  be shown to prevent unintended loss of memories. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 144 Next: When there is more than one file in the playlist, clicking this button will cause the next  file in the list to begin playing. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 145 Quick Rec will overwrite any audio file previously recorded in this way. These two buttons perform the same function as the Rec and Play buttons on the Front Console (see page 73). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 146: Record Options

    Sample Rate Sets the sample rate at which the wave file will be recorded. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 147: Band Equalizer

    Low, Mid and High audio bands. The Preamp applies gain across the whole audio spectrum. Easily compare the audio with and without the equalizer using the Enabled check box. The Reset button will reset all of the sliders to the 0dB position. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 148 The 10-Band Equalizer offers a finer degree of audio frequency control than does the 3-band equalizer. You may want to use this equalizer if the 3-band equalizer does not give you the result you want. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 149 End Frequency (MHz): The upper frequency bound for the transverter.  RX Gain (dB): Amount of gain to apply to the incoming signals to compensate for gain within  the transverter. Please note that this does not yet work as intended. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 150 Power control on this form (see above). Otherwise, the Tune Power setting on the Setup Form – Transmit Tab (page 111) will be used. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 151: Standard Cwx Controls

    Repeat Delay: This control specifies the amount of time that the keyer will wait when a special  pause character is encountered. Drop Delay: This control specifies the amount of time that the semi-break in keying will wait  before dropping the transmitter when there is no keying occurring. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 152: Cwx Memories

    The remaining special characters & ‘ ) : ; < > [ ] and ^ are undefined and may be defined to produce any combination of nine contiguous dots and dashes. Characters that are undefined have no dots and dashes and are simply sent as a space. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 153: Keyboard And Extended Controls

    Pressing Alt 1 to Alt 9 or right clicking on the message number button will  cause the numbered message memory to be copied into the unsent area just as if you had typed it. The ditto character is ignored in the keyboard mode.  © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 154 The editor dialog example above shows the ‘]’ character being changed to send didahdidah which is the German code for ä (umlaut a). When your definition appears to be correct, click the Save button and the definition file will be resaved to the disk. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 155 If you mess this file up too badly, simply close PowerSDR, delete morsedef.txt, and a clean, default copy will be created the next time you start. The editor makes simple changes relatively easy to do. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 156 (pin 9). More than one output can be selected at a time. Check to select the output and adjust its level with the slider. Click on Mute All Outputs to mute all the outputs. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 157 You could damage your radio and void your warranty. Note: If you switch between the Expert and Simple levels your settings will be remembered should you decide to change back. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 158 ANT3 port meets the -60dBc spurious output requirement at 6m. For the later HRFIO ASSY 34, this is not the case and the 6m transmit antenna port can be assigned to any of ANT1-3, just like any other band. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 159 In addition to the selections discussed for the Simple complexity level, the Expert level offers the Band control. For each band, set the various controls as desired and these settings will automatically be enabled when operating on that band. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 160 To quickly set the various controls, make the selections first for the Simple complexity level. Then switch to Expert and adjust where necessary for those bands that need adjustment from the original settings. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 161 Use TUN: Check to transmit a carrier at the power level set by the Tune Power control on the  Setup Form-Transmit Tab (see page 111). The ATU will use this carrier when either Memory Tune or Full Tune is selected. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 162 The keyboard combination Ctrl-Shift-I will display the voltage and temperature. Clicking on the temperature will alternate its value between Celsius and Fahrenheit. Either value may be displayed against a yellow or red background indicating increasing levels of criticality. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 163 FlexRadio Systems using the information provided on the Contact page of our website (on our website www.flex-radio.com click About FlexRadio and then Contact Us). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 164 At this point you should see the Windows opening screen. After waiting at least 30 seconds, start up PowerSDR. It will automatically recognize the FLEX-5000 driver. You are now ready to operate. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 165 To turn off the internal computer, click with your mouse on Start and then on Turn Off Computer, just as you would any other Windows computer. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 166: Tuning Methods

    If RX2 is installed and on, hover with the mouse over the RX2 display and right click to activate the yellow cross-hairs; right click again to turn click tuning off. With the cross-hairs visible, hover over the © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 167 (All these documents and more can be found by searching for either PowerMate or ShuttlePro on our Knowledge Center at http://kc.flex-radio.com/search.aspx) [The rest of this page is intentionally left blank] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 168 Figure 33 on page 50 and for clarity we have left out any identifiers of controls not referenced. Note: In this chapter, we will only describe basic operation using the main RX1 receiver. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 169 ATU, select Automatic on the ATU Form (39) and then click the TUN (19) button. See the section on the ATU Form on page 153 for more on how to use the ATU. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 170 PA ADC. While the average has a short time constant, it is still an average and will not approach 100W in voice modes if calibrated properly even when the Drive control (21) is set to 100. This is also true when monitoring voice transmissions on an external watt meter. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 171 DX (8) control and the associated slider to increase the compression in 1dB steps. This must be done carefully and incrementally as adding too much compression can result in high levels of distortion. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 172 Figure 33 on page 50 and for clarity we have left out any identifiers of controls not referenced. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 173: Initial Settings

    If not using the ATU and not using a 50 ohm dummy load, ensure the antenna presents a 50 ohm load with a low SWR or damage may occur to the SDR output transistor. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 174: Internal Keyer

    If using PowerSDR’s internal keyer, open the Setup Form – DSP Tab, Keyer Sub-Tab shown in Figure 150 below. Several of the controls in this form are also available in the Mode Specific Controls – CW (8) section on the Front Console. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 175 5. You are now ready to begin a QSO. If a 50 ohm dummy load was connected, connect an antenna in its place. Tune to the desired frequency using one of the methods outlined in the Tuning Methods section above. Select either CWL or CWU (6) and proceed with the QSO. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 176: External Keyer

    2. You are now ready to begin a QSO. If a 50 ohm dummy load was connected, connect an antenna in its place. Tune to the desired frequency using one of the methods outlined in the Tuning Methods section above. Select either CWL or CWU (6) and proceed with the QSO. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 177: Third Party Program

    CAT Control Tab. This will open up two additional selection boxes. Set PTT Line to DTR and Key Line to RTS as shown above. 3. In MixW, click Configure on the Menu bar and then select TRCVR CAT/PTT to open the screen shown in Figure 153. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 178 C H A P T E R Figure 153: MixW PTT & CAT 4. On the PTT & CAT Interface, click on the Details button to open the following form (Figure 154): [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 179 Tune to the desired frequency using one of the methods outlined in the Tuning Methods section above. Select either CWL or CWU (6) and proceed with the QSO. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 180: Digital Mode Operation

    Please use Figure 155 to identify the controls referenced in the following step-by-step instruction. For consistency we have used the same control identifiers as in Figure 33 on page 50 and for clarity we have left out any identifiers of controls not referenced. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 181 TX Meter (4) (Set to Fwd Pwr). If using the optional, integrated ATU, select Automatic on the ATU Form (39) and then click the TUN (19) button. See the section on the ATU Form on page 153 for more on how to use the ATU. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 182 However for very narrow and/or steep filters, the latency versus minimum filter bandwidth trade-off holds just as much as with CW. See Appendix A for more detail. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 183: Cat Control Setup

    (N8VBvCOMSetup-226a.exe) and double-click to start the Windows installer. The following screen will appear (Figure 156). Figure 156: VCOM Installer Language Select your language of choice and click OK. The welcome screen appears (Figure 157). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 184 O P E R A T I O N C H A P T E R Figure 157: VCOM Installer Welcome Screen. Click the Next button to continue the driver installation (Figure 158). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 185 O P E R A T I O N C H A P T E R Figure 158: VCOM License Agreement. Review the License Agreement and click the I Agree button. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 186 O P E R A T I O N C H A P T E R Figure 159: VCOM Installer Component Selection. Select the components you wish to install and click the Next button. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 187 C H A P T E R Figure 160: VCOM Install Location Choose the folder in which to install the driver application in and click the Install button. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 188 Click the Finish button to complete the installation of VCOM. The virtual serial port driver will now be installed on your system. A Command Prompt window displaying status messages will open followed by the warning screen shown in Figure 162 below. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 189 By default VCOM will install 4 COM port pairs. To view these pairs, to change the default or to remove → the driver, locate and start the VCOMConfigurator application (Start All Programs). Figure 163: VCOMConfigurator Application This will open the following screen (Figure 164). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 190 PowerSDR software. Start up the program and pull up the CAT Control Tab on the Setup Form. For the purpose of this example, we will use the COM6-COM16 pair. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 191 COM port number. In such a case swap COM6 to COM16 above and connect the digital program to COM6. Alternatively, create an even lower virtual Com port number (e.g. COM3), that is not physically present. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 192: Configure Powersdr Keyer Connections

    PTT Line to DTR and Key Line to RTS. Note that CAT Control must be enabled (see the previous section) before this will work. Click OK. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 193: Virtual Sound Connection

    Figure 167: VAC Connects Audio Digitally Between PowerSDR and a Digital Mode Program Create the Virtual Audio Cables The first step is to create the two identical virtual cables. To do so open the Virtual Audio Control Panel. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 194 Set for each cable when completed. Do not close the Control Panel just yet. Note: Do NOT check the Volume Control box in the VAC control panel. This enables the Windows Mixer and can cause unpredictable results. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 195 In such cases, set the Sample Rate to exactly match that of the digital mode program. Note 2: Certain DRM programs (DReaM, HamPal) require Stereo to be selected. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 196: Setting Up Third Party Digital Programs

    Note: Instructions for MMTTY, MMSSTV and WSJT 6 and others can be found in our Knowledge Center at http://kc.flex-radio.com/search.aspx. Using MixW with PowerSDR Start MixW, which may be downloaded from http://www.mixw.net/. Figure 170: MixW Console © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 197 CAT is set to Kenwood). On the PTT & CAT Interface, click on the Details button to open the following form (Figure 172): [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 198 On the MixW front console, click again on Configure on the menu bar and this time select Sound device settings… to open the following form (Figure 173): [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 199 Click the Start button to turn PowerSDR on and make sure MixW is running. When you now view the VAC Control Panel it will look like Figure 174 below: [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 200 To change the default sound card, in Windows click Start and then Control Panel. In Control Panel, double-click on Sounds and Audio Devices to open the Sounds and Audio Devices Properties Form (Figure 175): [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 201 VAC comes with a utility called Audio Repeater. Locate Audio Repeater in the VAC program folder and double-click to start it. You should see the following screen (Figure 176): [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 202 You should keep the Total buffer (ms) as small as practicable to prevent long latency between the sound arriving at the virtual audio cable and it being played to the sound card. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 203: Specifications And Architecture

    FLEX-5000A and FLEX-5000C Transceiver Specifications Table 14 on page 196 displays an overview of the specifications for the FLEX-5000A and the FLEX-5000C transceiver. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 204 (SSB): Flat Response 10 Hz to 20 kHz, 3-band or 10-band Software EQ Order IMD Better than 33 dB below PEP @14.2 MHz 100 watts PEP Microphone Impedance 600 Ohms (200 to 10 kOhms) Balanced Line In Impedance 600 Ohms (200 to 10 kOhms) © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 205 External (not supplied); VGA or (dual) DVI; Resolution: 1024 x 768 min/2048 x 1536 Monitor(s) Software Operating System Windows XP Professional PowerSDR Latest version installed Collection of Ham Radio Software installed, including vCOM virtual serial port Other software [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 206 S P E C I F I C A T I O N S A N D A R C H I T E C T U R E C H A P T E R FLEX-5000 Architecture The FLEX-5000 full duplex/triplex architecture is shown in Figure 177 below. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 207: Declarations Of Conformity

    EQUIPMENT CLASS: B WE, THE UNDERSIGNED HEREBY DECLARE THAT THE EQUIPMENT SPECIFIED ABOVE CONFORMS TO THE ABOVE STANDARDS PER 89/336/EEC. FlexRadio Systems Date of testing: August 23, 2007 FlexRadio Systems 8900 Marybank Drive Austin, TX 78750 [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally]...

  • Page 208: Filter Effects

    It is clear that as the Sample Rate increases and/or the DSP Buffer size decreases, the filter skirts become less “brick-wall” and more “roll-off”, thus reducing a filter's effectiveness. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 209 Black - 4096 Figure 179: 2.7kHz LSB Filter at 96kHz Sample Rate DSP Buffer Sizes: Red – 512 Green – 1024 Blue – 2048 Black - 4096 Figure 180: 2.7kHz LSB Filter at 192kHz Sample Rate © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 210 Black - 4096 Figure 182: 25Hz CWL filter at 96kHz Sample Rate DSP Buffer Sizes: Red – 512 Green – 1024 Blue – 2048 Black - 4096 Figure 183: 25Hz CWL Filter at 192kHz Sample Rate © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 211: Latency Effects

    (see page 102 and Appendix D), such that the spectral smearing is limited, but it is not completely eliminated. Each window function has advantages and disadvantages depending on the situation at hand. For our purposes, the Blackman-Harris window offers the best trade-off between loss of frequency resolution and stop-band characteristics. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 212 Clearly we cannot have both a high temporal and a high frequency resolution. We must make a  trade-off by setting the temporal resolution (latency) to an acceptable level and accepting the resulting frequency resolution (minimum filter width). [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 213: Download And Extract The Firmware

    Save the zip-file to a location on your computer, extract it and then open it. Inside you will find four files. Open the text file labeled FLEX-5000_Firmware_ReadMe.txt to verify you have the correct firmware version. This file also contains instructions on how to update the firmware. Close the file when you have finished reading it. © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

  • Page 214: Update The Firmware

    Deleting Flash Image and then Programming Flash Image, each preceded by a progress counter. When the upgrade is completed successfully you will hear the relays click and see the screen shown in Figure 185 below. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 215 (see Figure 26 on page 43) all is well. If you do get the error message, try updating the firmware again following the procedure described above. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 216 If the Max Gain setting is increased, say from 60dB to 78dB (the blue line), the output signal level reaches its maximum at a lower signal level. For a Max Gain of 78dB, the AGC Threshold is at -91 dBm © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 217 If the desired signal is a very strong signal, the benefit will be that its output level can be reduced, thus also reducing the noise level. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 218 As a result, you will have the greatest sensitivity in the power spectrum and the greatest bleed through or interference with adjacent bins. Figure 187: Rectangular Window Function and Frequency Response to a Sinusoid [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 219 (weak signal) CW using the narrowest filters. Hanning (also known as Hann): Figure 188: Hanning Window Function and Frequency Response to a Sinusoid Hamming: Figure 189: Hamming Window Function and Spectral Response to a Sinusoid © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 220 = 0.01168 Blackman Nuttall: a = 0.3635819, a = 0.4891775, a = 0.1365995, a = 0.0106411 Their graphical representations are shown in Figure 187 through 188 respectively: [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 221 A P P E N D I X Figure 190: Blackman Window Function and Frequency Response to a Sinusoid Figure 191: Blackman-Harris Window Function and Frequency Response to a Sinusoid Figure 192: Blackman-Nuttall Window Function and Frequency Response to a Sinusoid © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...
  • Page 222 For further reading on windowing, including many more examples of window functions, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_function. [The rest of this page has been left blank intentionally] © 2003-2008 FlexRadio Systems...

This manual is also suitable for:

Flex-5000cFlex-5000a