Hardware

Amplifiers

See the Amps tab on the Setup form to enable all supported amplifiers.

KPA500

Connection

• Using a standard (straight-through DB9 M-F) RS232 serial cable connect the KPA500 (PC port) to a serial port on the PC.

Functions

• 160-6m operation
• Remote operation
• Automatic band switching
• Automatic drive control when the DDUtil Auto Drive feature is used.
• Amplifier fault alert and reset control.

Please see the owners manual for a more complete description of controls and amplifier functionality.

Controls

• Fan Speed
  • Sets the amplifiers base fan speed. Double-click to change base speed.
  • Note: the amplifier controls fan speed based on PA temperature. See owners manual for info.
• Temp
  • Displays PA Temperature in centigrade.
  • Note: background color changes with temperature increase.
• Band
  • Located between the enable check box and the Pwr button this label shows what band the amp is selected to.
• Pwr
  • Toggles the main power to the amplifier.
• Mode
  • Toggles the amplifier mode (Operate and Standby).
• Fault
  • Alerts when the amp has experienced a hard fault. The Fault button turns pink, a warning message is flashed on the screen and the fault message is displayed in the KPA500 message window.
  • Press the Fault button to reset the amplifier and the Fault button color.
• PA Volts
  • Displays the PA volts.
• PA Amps
  • Displays the PA current.
• Message Window
  • Displays system information and fault messages from the amplifier.
  • Double-Click to clear.

Notes

The baud rate is fixed at 38,400 (8N1) for the KPA500. Make sure the amp is set accordingly.

SPE 1K-FA

Controls

All controls should be self explanatory and approximate the amplifier front panel and Tool Tips are available by hovering the cursor momentarily over the control of interest.

• 1/2 - selecting this check box will direct the Auto Drive feature to set the drive level to the low-power setting as defined on the Auto Drive Settings form when the amp is placed in its half-power mode.
• Temp PA temperature.
• Output - selects Full or Half power output from the amp.
• IN - pressing this button will toggle the Input ports on the SPE amp.
• <<<, >>>, SET - consult the user manual for use of these controls.
• Ant - pressing this button rotates the antenna selection of the available outputs on the back of the amp. Selection is displayed in the box to the left of the Ant button.
• PWR, OFF - control the AC main power to the amp.
• Mode - toggles Operate and Standby modes of the amp.
• Tuner - activates the auto antenna tuner feature of the amp. See the user manual for more detailed information.
• Disply - pressing the display button will force the amp to dump the last 10 error messages sent by the amp.
  • If the Disply button is colored Pink this is an alert that an error message has been received by DDUtil.
  • Double-clicking the message window will clear the message window and reset the Display button color.
• Message Display - shows amplifier status and error messages.

Setup

• Use the RS-232 connector on the back of the radio with a straight through cable (null modem NOT) to a hardware port on the PC.
• See the 1K-FA user manual for connection information and pay special attention to section 18.
• Also, see this excellent how-to article by Bernie W4BGH.

Operation

• See the 1K-FA user manual for general operation.

Note: section 18-22 of the user manual details a method for setting PowerSDR power settings by band internally in the amp. However, it is recommended to use the DDUtil Auto Drive feature instead as it allows greater interaction with the amplifier.

SPE 1.3/2K

See the SPE 1.3/2K page.