Posted: 6/20/2015 7:46:21 PM EDT
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This is a long shot, but maybe someone can help me out.
I bought a new windows based tablet with a detachable keyboard. So, I am playing around with configuring the various digital software to work with my KX3 and if it ever stops raining I am going to get it going with my FT-857 mobile rig for ARES purposes. So let me start out by saying that I have run digital modes for years and have set this same software up on a dozen different computers, but I am having problems I never encountered before. On WSJTx, things seem fine. I actually had this same computer and the same software working with my Flex radio with no problem. But now with the KX3, it is not decoding anything. The signals are streaming down the waterfall, but nothing is decoding. I have the audio into the software about mid-scale (37db). I have gone through the menus several times and I can't see what I am doing wrong. Moving on to FLDIGI, It receives and decodes fine. It even transmits sort of. But every time it starts to transmit, there is a delay of a couple seconds with the rig keyed, and then it starts actually transmitting. I have never had this happen before and I believe in those beginning seconds it is transmitting some kind of gibberish. I also don't know if the data it is transmitting is OK because I have never had anybody answer me. FWIW: it did this same thing with the Flex and the KX3 so I think this problem is definitely in the computer and not the radio or interface but again, I don't know. When I go to transmit, all the lights come on, then a few seconds pass, then the macro message I pressed starts printing on the screen. I am not sure that this makes any difference but with the KX3 I don't have any rig control because I only have one USB port on this computer and I am using that for the audio interface. I dont' have a spare USB hub lying around. I ordered a small 4 port hub from Amazon today, so I won't get it for a couple days but I don't see how this could be an issue, but once again, I don't know because I can't figure this out so it could be anything at this point. I am trying to take the easy way out by posting this. I have fought stuff like this for days and finally got it to work. Sometimes I never even knew what I did, but I got it working. I am hoping that somebody has had this problem before and can simply give me the magic potion and I don't have to go through the headache of figuring it out myself. I have been screwing with this for a couple hours and am about to call it a day. |
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How do you have the audio and mic cables hooked up? With a Signalink USB interface using the KX3 mic and phones jacks. I should also point out that I have had this KX3 working with this same software on several different computers using this same interface. I even had it working with no problem on a Raspberry Pi using this same radio and same interface. The receive audio works with both pieces of software. The PTT works with both pieces of software. The transmit audio SEEMS to work with both pieces of software. However with WSJTx it isn't decoding the signals. The software is clearing getting the signals the waterfall is filled with signals. The audio level seems fine (normal).......................... And with FLDIGI, there is some kind of glitch with transmitting. The rig is keyed. The light on the Signalink comes on for transmit, the light on the radio comes on for transmit. But there is this delay and I think it is transmitting some kind of spurious signal when it is in this delay. |
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What are you using for time synchronization for WSJT-X? DING DING DING And we have a WINNA Dimension 4 downloaded but never configured. Just sitting in the download folder. Working like a champ now. I KNEW someone would get it. Thanks aa777888-2 you win the internets for the evening. I kept going over in my head, why the hell would I be getting a good signal but the software doesn't decode it ?????? And as soon as you said that, I knew you were right on the money. I'll even tell you the best part................I KNEW my clock was wrong. I just downloaded new firmware for the KX3 and when I was in the utility program I hit the button to set the KX3 clock and compared it with the one on my main PC and SAW that the clock in my tablet was wrong. This is what happens when you look at a problem too damn long. You get tunnel vision or no vision or some kind of abnormal vision. This was in part why I posted this. I needed a fresh set of eyes. |
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What are you using for time synchronization for WSJT-X? Computer time out of sync is the most likely cause of failure to decode on detectable signals. I don't want to hijack but I'm looking for a way to sync my laptop or tablet to either WWV (preferred) or GPS. Presently I just tune WWV on the rig and manually set the time, or observe the GPS time. IIRC GPS time differs from UTC due to leap seconds inserted into UTC. ETA: LOL fixed while I was typing. |
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Almost all is right with the world. '
I worked Ukraine, Eastern Russia, Germany, and California running 3.4 watts into my wire. Thanks again for getting me straight with WSJTx If anybody has any ideas on FLDIGI, let me hear them. I will tackle that tomorrow. 73 to all, and to all a good night. |
You are very welcome. I am waiting for my chicken DINNA! 
While we're on the topic of PC time synchronization, I had been using Dimension 4 but it always did weird things on system startup/restart. At the recommendation of one of the developers on the ANAN radio Yahoo Group mailing list, I uninstalled that and installed Meinberg NTP instead. Meinberg NTP is a full NTP implementation and will actually steer the clock of the computer, as opposed to the SNTP solution provided by Dimension 4 that just jams the new time periodically. Not that you need that level of accuracy, but Meinberg has run absolutely transparently and flawlessly. I don't even know it's there unless I use Meinberg's NTP Time Server Monitor program, which gives you cool stat's like this: 
In a pinch always remember that JT65 or JT9 time sync isn't rocket science. You can do it without even a broken sundial just by eyeballing the waterfall display and adjusting your PC's time manually to match the signals you are seeing. |
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Computer time out of sync is the most likely cause of failure to decode on detectable signals. I don't want to hijack but I'm looking for a way to sync my laptop or tablet to either WWV (preferred) or GPS. Presently I just tune WWV on the rig and manually set the time, or observe the GPS time. IIRC GPS time differs from UTC due to leap seconds inserted into UTC. ETA: LOL fixed while I was typing. Quoted:
Quoted:
What are you using for time synchronization for WSJT-X? Computer time out of sync is the most likely cause of failure to decode on detectable signals. I don't want to hijack but I'm looking for a way to sync my laptop or tablet to either WWV (preferred) or GPS. Presently I just tune WWV on the rig and manually set the time, or observe the GPS time. IIRC GPS time differs from UTC due to leap seconds inserted into UTC. ETA: LOL fixed while I was typing. First let's clear up a misconception. While it is true there is such a thing as GPS time and indeed it is different than UTC, this is merely of academic interest since the specifications for GPS Precise Time and Time Interval (PTTI) interfaces require that the so-called 1PPS output of GPS receivers be synchronized to the start of every UTC 1 second epoch and that the time reported in the data messages from the GPS be UTC time including all leap seconds and other corrections. There are messages that will give you GPS time, but those are rarely used by anyone but researchers and are generally not implemented in most GPS equipment. That said... Your bet best is to simply use the aforementioned Meinberg NTP software. It will query Stratum 1 or 2 time servers on the internet and keep your PC typically within 50mS of being perfect. And guaranteed most of those Stratum 1 and 2 servers, if not all of them, are using GPS to determine time. If you prefer to have your own local NTP time source you can sometimes find deals on GPS based NTP server devices, like this one on fleaBay. Assuming it is in working order, just plug it into a UPS, put it on your home network, dump the antenna outside, let it discipline for a while and now you are your own NTP site and all of your PCs in your house can access it. Or you can spend some big bucks for something like this. Almost no one uses WWV for time or frequency synchronization anymore. GPS is much less expensive and much more accurate and reliable. |
I have never been able to get the Meinberg NTP software to run 
I have read for several years about how it is the only way to go. I spend a few minutes screwing with it, it never works, and I try again in six months. I admit, I have never read all the documentation for it. I just downloaded it and tried to install it. I have got it installed but it won't start. I would like to get it going. I guess I am going to have to get one of my IT buddies over here some time and see what the hell I am doing wrong. |
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You are right, installing Meinberg is non-trivial. You can't just throw it on there and hope it works.
Here is the guide I followed: http://www.satsignal.eu/ntp/setup.html I made sure to create the NTP account, BTW. |
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BktTimeSync
This is the time sync I use. Works well and was easy to set up. |
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Awesome! I am looking for an internet-independent solution for remote operations. I run some navigation and data acquisition at sea, and the vessels I work on these days don't tend to have atomic clocks. 
I'll give that a try. It never came back on my google searches. I've used his IC-7000 control program, it works pretty well but the user interface is very busy. I only need to sync with GPS +/- a second or so, both for JT-xx use and for data acquisition. |
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You are right, installing Meinberg is non-trivial. You can't just throw it on there and hope it works. Here is the guide I followed: http://www.satsignal.eu/ntp/setup.html I made sure to create the NTP account, BTW. I couldn't make it work unless I used "system". But, I believe it is running. |
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Awesome! I am looking for an internet-independent solution for remote operations. I run some navigation and data acquisition at sea, and the vessels I work on these days don't tend to have atomic clocks.
I'll give that a try. It never came back on my google searches. I've used his IC-7000 control program, it works pretty well but the user interface is very busy. I only need to sync with GPS +/- a second or so, both for JT-xx use and for data acquisition. Quoted:
Awesome! I am looking for an internet-independent solution for remote operations. I run some navigation and data acquisition at sea, and the vessels I work on these days don't tend to have atomic clocks.
I'll give that a try. It never came back on my google searches. I've used his IC-7000 control program, it works pretty well but the user interface is very busy. I only need to sync with GPS +/- a second or so, both for JT-xx use and for data acquisition. Hmmm, interesting. I could see this maybe getting it to about a tenth of a second accuracy, I suppose, depending on how many NMEA messages per second are coming out of the GPS. Certainly plenty good enough! |