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uBitX CAT problem on 40m #ubitx #ubitx-help #ft8

 

Hello all,

I just put my antenna in a u-shape in the attic and have a better swr now so I was able to try the uBitX on 40m for the first time.
What I experience only on 40m is that while using WSJT-X my uBitX locks up and gets stuck on TX. All the shorter bands (30/20/17/15/12 and 10) don't cause this issue.

Running CEC firmware v1.095 with Nextion 2.4 display.

When the lock up happens I get the warning message "RIG Control Error, Do you want to reconfigure the radio interface" and when I look on the uBitX the TX symbol is lit.

I don't have any chokes on my audio cables and have been working on the higher bands without any problems.

Any clues?

John
 


Sounds like a Bit of RF is getting in there ...


Gw0wvl

On Fri, 20 Jul 2018 at 13:24, John
<jjczon@...> wrote:

Hello all,

I just put my antenna in a u-shape in the attic and have a better swr now so I was able to try the uBitX on 40m for the first time.
What I experience only on 40m is that while using WSJT-X my uBitX locks up and gets stuck on TX. All the shorter bands (30/20/17/15/12 and 10) don't cause this issue.

Running CEC firmware v1.095 with Nextion 2.4 display.

When the lock up happens I get the warning message "RIG Control Error, Do you want to reconfigure the radio interface" and when I look on the uBitX the TX symbol is lit.

I don't have any chokes on my audio cables and have been working on the higher bands without any problems.

Any clues?

John
M Garza
 

I would suggest putting a clip on ferrite core on the USB cable, right at the Raduino connector and one on the wires from the Raduino connector going to the encoder.
Others have brought this issue up and this was the easiest and quickest solution.
73s,

Marco - KG5PRT?

On Fri, Jul 20, 2018, 8:04 AM Marc Jones via Groups.Io <gw0wvl=[email protected]> wrote:

Sounds like a Bit of RF is getting in there ...


Gw0wvl

On Fri, 20 Jul 2018 at 13:24, John
<jjczon@...> wrote:

Hello all,

I just put my antenna in a u-shape in the attic and have a better swr now so I was able to try the uBitX on 40m for the first time.
What I experience only on 40m is that while using WSJT-X my uBitX locks up and gets stuck on TX. All the shorter bands (30/20/17/15/12 and 10) don't cause this issue.

Running CEC firmware v1.095 with Nextion 2.4 display.

When the lock up happens I get the warning message "RIG Control Error, Do you want to reconfigure the radio interface" and when I look on the uBitX the TX symbol is lit.

I don't have any chokes on my audio cables and have been working on the higher bands without any problems.

Any clues?

John
Gordon Gibby
 

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Radio interference! Happens on whatever bands you get currents through sensitive junctions.?

Experiment try to fix it, add grounds, single point ground, try ferrites lots of different places, eventually you will stop the current that is locking up the rig.


On Jul 20, 2018, at 08:24, John <jjczon@...> wrote:

Hello all,

I just put my antenna in a u-shape in the attic and have a better swr now so I was able to try the uBitX on 40m for the first time.
What I experience only on 40m is that while using WSJT-X my uBitX locks up and gets stuck on TX. All the shorter bands (30/20/17/15/12 and 10) don't cause this issue.

Running CEC firmware v1.095 with Nextion 2.4 display.

When the lock up happens I get the warning message "RIG Control Error, Do you want to reconfigure the radio interface" and when I look on the uBitX the TX symbol is lit.

I don't have any chokes on my audio cables and have been working on the higher bands without any problems.

Any clues?

John
 

Hi John,

I assume that you are using a computer connected to the radio since you are running WSJT-X AND CAT. It may be the computer that is being tickled by stray RF.

How is your RF ground configured? The shrortest cable possible to a good earth ground is desirable but may have a length that presents a high impedance to ground for RF at one or more bands. Before you put a lot of effort into that (assuming you already have some sort of grounded cable) try to connect your computer 'common' to the same RF ground you use for your radio. At least bond the radio chasis ground and computer ground. If I don't have that RF ground included on the computer frame I have some nasties that show up too.

The suggestions in the other replies this far are good too.

73,

Bill KU8H

On 07/20/2018 08:24 AM, John wrote:
Hello all,

I just put my antenna in a u-shape in the attic and have a better swr
now so I was able to try the uBitX on 40m for the first time.
What I experience only on 40m is that while using WSJT-X my uBitX locks
up and gets stuck on TX. All the shorter bands (30/20/17/15/12 and 10)
don't cause this issue.

Running CEC firmware v1.095 with Nextion 2.4 display.

When the lock up happens I get the warning message "RIG Control Error,
Do you want to reconfigure the radio interface" and when I look on the
uBitX the TX symbol is lit.

I don't have any chokes on my audio cables and have been working on the
higher bands without any problems.

Any clues?

John

--
bark less - wag more
R. E. Klaus
 

I had the same issue with my Yeasu when I first started using Fldigi. I put snap on Ferrites on the audio leads and wound the control cable about 6 turns around a ferrite toroid and that solved the issue for me.
Gordon Gibby
 

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The USB input to the raduino is particularly vulnerable. ?Ferrites there are a good idea, and also use a one to one current balance on your antenna cable. ?

The cause is unbalanced feedline currents looking for an RF connection. ??


On Jul 20, 2018, at 10:28, R. E. Klaus via Groups.Io <reklaus@...> wrote:

I had the same issue with my Yeasu when I first started using Fldigi. I put snap on Ferrites on the audio leads and wound the control cable about 6 turns around a ferrite toroid and that solved the issue for me.

 

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I have the same issue with both of my uBitx’s only on 40 meters. Last weekend I was at Lobstercon and Dave kd1na on his bitx40 also suffered from RF getting into his but again just on 40 meters. The two I have and Dave’s are v3 boards. Also I will add that both mine are shielded and Dave’s has his in a metal case. I have found using a different antenna helps.. ie using a end-fed it will always suffer from RF getting into the mic audio, using a dipole normally no issues as long as it’s at least 50 feet away. My 80 meter loop also works well. Using my 160m doublet will cause the issue. 40 meters again is the only band this happens on.?


On Jul 20, 2018, at 9:27 AM, R. E. Klaus via Groups.Io <reklaus@...> wrote:

I had the same issue with my Yeasu when I first started using Fldigi. I put snap on Ferrites on the audio leads and wound the control cable about 6 turns around a ferrite toroid and that solved the issue for me.

 

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Sorry Dave was using a ubitx also..?


On Jul 20, 2018, at 9:49 AM, bill richardson <ng1p.bill@...> wrote:

I have the same issue with both of my uBitx’s only on 40 meters. Last weekend I was at Lobstercon and Dave kd1na on his bitx40 also suffered from RF getting into his but again just on 40 meters. The two I have and Dave’s are v3 boards. Also I will add that both mine are shielded and Dave’s has his in a metal case. I have found using a different antenna helps.. ie using a end-fed it will always suffer from RF getting into the mic audio, using a dipole normally no issues as long as it’s at least 50 feet away. My 80 meter loop also works well. Using my 160m doublet will cause the issue. 40 meters again is the only band this happens on.?


On Jul 20, 2018, at 9:27 AM, R. E. Klaus via Groups.Io <reklaus@...> wrote:

I had the same issue with my Yeasu when I first started using Fldigi. I put snap on Ferrites on the audio leads and wound the control cable about 6 turns around a ferrite toroid and that solved the issue for me.

 

Eventually I'll set up a proper ground island and shielding (like put my uBITX in a case), but in the meantime I'm having success with these?toroids on the USB Cat cable. The black cable, with one at the radio and one at the raspberry Pi. This also helps reduce the RF noise from the Pi while receiving.

The clamp-on filter, on the white cable, is for the connection to a USB audio adaptor. I used a 2-3/8 toroid on the HDMI cable.

Transmitting on 80 meters was causing my internet to quit. I wound the power and ethernet cable to my router through a 2-3/8" toroid and that fixed that. I placed a grounded shield (aluminum "mini loaf" pan) around the power supply for the internet modem to get rid of the noise it was causing in the receiver. Eventually, I'll move all the wiring for the internet elsewhere, as far as possible from my ham station.?

On a side note, I used one of the 2-3/8 toroids to make a 1 to 9 impedance matching transformer for my 55 foot long (stealth) 80 through 10 meter non-resonate antenna. I placed another 2-3/8 toroid (with 10 turns of coax) 25 foot down the coax of the antenna cable to block the common mode RF. (The shield is the main counterpoise) Amazingly, it is a fairly good match for those bands, but I normally use it with an auto tuner.

I purchased these toroids from Palomar Engineering. The small ones on the black USB cable, were rated for 1 to 10 MHZ. The large ones, if I recall, were 1 to 30 MHZ.



Tom, wb6b
 

All,
?
Two remarks:
a) My uBITX v4, is transmitting little power at 40m in FT8, approximately 0.3W;
b) I noticed that it does not indicate the transmission frequency, but it indicates the reception frequency in the JTDX.
Could anyone tell me what would be causing these bugs?
Rubens

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