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uBitx v4.3 won't Transmit
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Hello to One and All .... looking for some help on this v4.3 of mine . The radio receives perfectly and I upgraded the Firmware to KD8CEC's version for this model . If I plug in a Key & go to send nothing happens . It's the same also if I plug in a microphone . The Radio won't go into TX mode . Any ideas as to where I should start looking for problems or have I adjustments to make via the Menu before I use it for transmitting . Not very technical here either so just have the basic tools ( and very basic knowledge ) ...a lot of this modem stuff gets to me and turns me off trying to figure it all out ... Thank You in anticipation of your help Kind regards Peadar Ei 2if
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Jerry Gaffke
Nothing happens, meaning it continues to receive?
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I'm not sure what v4.3 is, that sounds like a firmware revision. I'll assume you have the current v6 uBitx, with the 18 pin connector from Raduino into the main board. If you have an earlier uBitx with a 16 pin connector from Raduino into the main board, then look at the schematics for both the main board and the Raduino to find where the PTT, T/R and 12v pins are. The earlier uBitx versions work the same, but those signals will be on different pins. Try keying that mike. This should cause PTT at pin 2 of the 18 pin Raduino connector into the main board (see the v6 schematic) to fall from 5v (pulled to 5v by a resistor inside the Nano) to ground (the PTT button is shorting it to ground). When the Nano sees PTT low, it should assert the T/R at pin 18 of that same Raduino connector to go from 0v to 5v. The 5v on T/R into Q15 causes relay K1 to turn on, which puts 12v on the TX power rail instead of on the RX power rail. You can see all those voltages with any voltmeter. If you have trouble figuring out which end is which of that 16 pin connector, note that pin 4 should have 12v on it (but be very careful not to short the 12v to any other pin, as that will destroy something.) Jerry, KE7ER
On Tue, Jan 26, 2021 at 04:10 PM, Patrick Peter Rosney wrote:
Hello to One and All .... looking for some help on this v4.3 of mine . The radio receives perfectly and I upgraded the Firmware to
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Evan Hand
Patrick,
Based on your profile picture I believe that you have a v4 uBITX in an AmateurRadioKits.in case with a Nextion display. It is hard to see, so I could be wrong in that assumption. If my assumption is true, then I would look at the wiring between the Raduino board and the front board with the 3.5mm jacks to verify that all of the jumpers are in place correctly. There are no adjustments to make in the settings of the Raduino Nano code. As Jerry has suggested, you need to find out why the PTT signal is not getting to the Raduino and then the mainboard. For the v4, the easiest way would be to measure the PTT or KEY pin on the 8 pin connector on the Raduino. Here is a picture of the Raduino out of the radio: The connector to test is in the upper left of the picture, the white 8 pin header type. The CW Key input is the second from the right, the PTT is 4th from the left. Should be Blue and Orange wire colors respectively. You should be able to get a probe on the backside of the connector with the jumper in place to verify that the Key and PTT pull the respective pin to ground when pressed. Here is a link to a uBITX wiring diagram for reference: https://ubitx.net/2019/09/05/ubitx-v5-alternative-wiring-diagram/ Hope this helps. 73 Evan AC9TU
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Thanks for getting back to me, Jerry . Yes ...nothing happens , when I press the mike or press the key...the receiver still receives and keying either item makes no difference to the receiver . The Raduino is the 16 pin connector that connects to the main board . I have looked at the wiring diagram and all the coloured wires match up perfectly ( both the Audio & Digital connectors ) ...I am going to look at the Schmetic and try and find the PTT , T/R & 12V pins ...I have to try and go back to see what Firmware Version I downloaded onto the Arduino Board ( did this awhile back ) . I am always very careful when measuring voltages on three small boards in case one of the meter leads touches off the wrong pin etc. this is another reason why I don't know much or do much with these boards because everything is so small . Thank You Very Much for Your suggestions , Jerry . I will keep you posted as to what happens next.. Kind Regards Peadar Ei 2 if
Nothing happens, meaning it continues to receive?
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On Wed, 27 Jan 2021, 09:37 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: Patrick, That is a different uBitx in the Profile Photo ! Evan ...that's a V3 that I modified ... This present uBitx is the V4.3 , that's what appears on the screen when I turn it on ! If my assumption is true, then I would look at the wiring between the Raduino board and the front board with the 3.5mm jacks to verify that all of the jumpers are in place correctly.
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Evan Hand
Here is a picture of my v4 board version identifier:
If you getting the TX indicator on the display when you press the PTT or the CW KEY? If so, then the signal is getting to the Raduino/Nano boards, and the problem is with K1 or Q15. 73 Evan AC9TU
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Thank You so much for your help , Evan . As You can see from my Photo , it is the same Board as Yours ie the V4 . When I press the mike or the key no TX comes up on the Display , there is no reaction at all & the radio stays in receive mode . So I presume no signal is going to the Raduino / Nano Board in this case ? Thanks Evan Kind Regards Peadar Ei 2if
On Wed, 27 Jan 2021, 10:03 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: Here is a picture of my v4 board version identifier:
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Evan Hand
Patrick,
Yes, I would say that the PTT and CW KEY signals are not getting to the Raduino/Nano as the most likely cause. I would trace out the Orange or Blue wire from the Raduino control header and try shorting one of them to ground. That should put the uBITX into transmit. If not, then you may have an issue with the Nano on the Raduino board. If shorting the wire does put the radio into TX mode, then I would look at the ground connections of the two 3.5mm jacks. The ground wire may have broken off. Trace out the Yellow wire from the Raduino connector and verify that it is going to the shield connections of the two plugs. 73 Evan AC9TU
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Still back at square one with this Radio ... measured 0.4V between Pin 2 ( blue wire ). and Pin 5 ( orange wire ) of the Raduino whether the Key is pressed or not ... not very good at following & reading circuits so don't know where to look or go next Radio receives lovely but will not transmit when I press my key ... Have this radio left to one side Thanks Peadar Ei2if
On Wed, 27 Jan 2021, 10:51 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: Patrick,
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Evan Hand
The blue wire is the CW key input, the Orange is the PTT for the mic. To go into transmit, one or the other, not both, needs to be shorted to ground. As stated before, If the radio will not go into transmit when the blue wire is shorted to ground then the Nano or connections to the Raduino are faulty.
Here is a link to the Wiki on Groups.io: https://groups.io/g/BITX20/wiki/5696 73 Evan AC9TU
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The blue wire is the CW key input, the Orange is the PTT for the mic. To go into transmit, one or the other, not both, needs to be shorted to ground. ....Not good at.all at following Circuits ...if I can ask.a stupid question , what pin or where do I short it to ? As stated before, If the radio will not go into transmit when the blue wire is shorted to ground then the Nano or connections to the Raduino are faulty. I have a Mental Block when it comes to sorting out problems with circuits ...even simple things that should be obvious confuse me Thanks Evan for you patience and reply ... Kind regards Peadar Ei2if
On Fri, 19 Feb 2021, 21:08 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: The blue wire is the CW key input, the Orange is the PTT for the mic. To go into transmit, one or the other, not both, needs to be shorted to ground. As stated before, If the radio will not go into transmit when the blue wire is shorted to ground then the Nano or connections to the Raduino are faulty.
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On Fri, 19 Feb 2021, 21:23 Patrick Peter Rosney via groups.io, <pprosney=gmail.com@groups.io> wrote:
Assume i know nothing 😫
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Evan Hand
Here are two pictures from one of my v4 µBITX:
To test that the CW key input will put the transmitter into transmit mode, you short the yellow wire pin to the blue wire pin. For SSB, the Orange wire to the left of the yellow wire pin is the PTT for SSB. To put it into SSB transmit mode you short the orange wire pin to the yellow wire pin I had removed the two pins on either side of the blue wire pin because I soldered the 4.7kohm resistor to the Raduino board. You cannot see that behind the connector. You will also note that I have added some ferrite beads to prevent RF in the shack from putting the rig into transmit. I hope that this is clear. 73 Evan AC9TU
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On Fri, 19 Feb 2021, 22:15 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote:
Thanks Evan for the pictures and the instructions ... when I short the Yellow & Blue wires the Raduino shuts down & it makes a sound similar to an alarm going off ...when I short the Yellow and Orange wires the radio goes into TX mode and TX pops up on the screen still no TX when I key down my Morse key ..
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Evan Hand
Patrick,
My first guess is that your power supply cannot provide the 2.5amps at the 12volts required. Do you have another way to power the radio? Maybe a 12volt car battery or another power supply. What type of antenna or dummy load do you have connected when to try transmitting? If you do not have a dummy load then I would suggest that you look at the QRP-Labs or QRPGuys dummy load. https://qrp-labs.com/dummy.html https://qrpguys.com/12w-dummy-load-power-meter My first choice is the QRP-Labs because of the higher power rating. Either should work with the µBITX, though do not keep the CW key down too long with the 12watt rated QRPGuys. Try another power supply and let me know what you find out. 73 Evan AC9TU
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Ok Evan , the plot thickens 😜 ...I have a 13.8V. 5/7 amp PSU . I will get my small 12V Golf Buggy Battery tomorrow and try it instead . The antenna is a 135ft long Dipole centre fed with 450ohm cable and it is fed into an MFJ 949E Tuner ( c/w Dummy Load ) Will hook up the battery to the uBitx and use the Dummy Load instead of the antenna and I'll see then how I get on , will have time to spend on this tomorrow morning . Once Again Thank You for your help and suggestions Evan and apologies if I wrecked your head with my stupid questions Thanks Evan , will let you know how I get on tomorrow . Kind Regards Peadar Ei 2if
On Fri, 19 Feb 2021, 23:20 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: Patrick,
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Evan Hand
Patrick,
No need for the other power supply. The next most likely thing is that the antenna is allowing common-mode RF to get back into the shack. You saw the snap-on ferrite in the pictures. That was one of the mitigations in addition to larger ferrites (5) on the coax running into the off-center fed dipole (MFJ-2010) in the attic. I did not have a freeze issue with a dummy load, so quickly figured out the RF in the shack issue. Without a dummy load, the only thing I can suggest is to try a common mode choke to keep the RF out. If you do not have a dummy load, I would suggest you order and build the QRP-Labs version. It is only $8.50 US without shipping. If you do have a dummy load, then see if you have the issue when using a dummy load. 73 Evan AC9TU
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Hi Evan , I have 2 snap on ferrite rings somewhere in my shack , so I will try them out when I find them & see if that makes a difference . This radio has me bugged and everything I try just doesn't seem to work . I don't have the patience for this kind of stuff anymore . It must be old age 😫 and I am starting to make a fine GOM ....grumpy old man 😜 Thanks For Your Help , Evan , You have been extremely helpful and giving of your time . Stay Safe , Kind Regards , P.
On Sat, 20 Feb 2021, 00:34 Evan Hand, <elhandjr@...> wrote: Patrick,
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