Transmits all modes except CW.

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LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by LearningLots »

My radio puts out full power on all modes including FM but for some reason tonight it won't transmit on CW using the PTT button. That button works for every other mode but on cw I see a weak carrier on the spectrum analyzer but no real output. I changed the BS170 FET's even tho I knew they were good. I reset the radio 4 times, but still no transmit in CW.
I like the size of this radio but I hate the aggravation it has given me. Buying a prebuilt radio has not made ownership any easier.
Any thoughts on what might be wrong? Please don't say the microprocessor because no way I could change or program that.
One step away from throwing it against the garage wall.
Ohwenzelph
 

Posts: 207
Joined: 01 Jan 2022, 03:47

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by Ohwenzelph »

I do not know what is wrong or how to diagnose it, my knee jerk reaction was to suggest trading it for one from someone who is not at all interested in cw. Certainly would be better than a wall impact. I do not understand why only cw would stop working. These do seem a bit quirky, can be difficult to get working perfectly, and occasionally seem to have a random function fail for no reason, but they are fun. Sometimes in a project there is a bug or fault in software or hardware that is not obvious at first despite all attempts to create a good design. Some problems here have been simple assembly errors and failure to exactly follow all directions to the letter and sometimes the supplied parts were not actually correct in type and/or quality. I still wonder if esd might occasionally be the cause of some of these gremlins. So far no expert on esd protection has stepped forward to help guide us. I wish I could be more help, good luck and 73
AC9YY
 

Posts: 133
Joined: 21 Mar 2022, 00:04
Location: Illinois, USA

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by AC9YY »

Do you hear a tone in CW when you press the PTT button? On my unit I do hear a tone if I push PTT in CW mode. Check with the vendor of the unit, they may be able to assist you with this issue.
LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by LearningLots »

Hello,
I do not hear anything when I transmit. The radio works fine in all other modes. It receives fine. This is a very unusual problem.
I did contact the vendor and she has been very helpful. She wants to send a new RF board to fix this problem. I don't know if this will fix the problem but I am hopeful that it does.
It does seem that these radios are very quirky and sometimes have unusual problems. Maybe a new firmware will make them more stable, or maybe some type of ESD protection will help.
The radio has many positive qualities and I think will eventually become a standard for portable/field operation.
I will post the results of this issue as it progresses.
N6ALT
 

Posts: 21
Joined: 02 Jan 2022, 20:02

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by N6ALT »

Could you be in practice mode?

Joel
N6ALT
N6ALT
 

Posts: 21
Joined: 02 Jan 2022, 20:02

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by N6ALT »

I just realized the error of my post, if it was in practice mode it wouldn't transmit in any other mode. :oops:

Joel
N6ALT
LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by LearningLots »

I received the new assembled RF board from Sunny.
After attaching it to my main board the symptoms are the same---receives fine and transmits only on USB/LSB/AM/FM. Still does not transmit on CW and the pwr/eff does not work.
I have advised Sunny and await a possible solution.
So far this radio has had a bad display and now probably a bad main board. Sunny has been very good at supplying replacement parts but clearly their cost and shipping costs have not been a profitable experience for her company.
I have offered to pay a reasonable price for a working main board, this way the loss will not be too severe for either of us and hopefully I will end up with a working radio.
DL2MAN
 

Posts: 706
Joined: 30 Dec 2021, 19:18
Contact:

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by DL2MAN »

That is a very strange error.
Could you please do a factory reset ?
Press and hold rotyry encoder button while powering up the rig.
(You need to re-calibrate your ref-freq after that and in case you use not the standard "lo band rf board" set that as well)
If you still can TX in all other modes but CW, please provide us with a Video of that behavior and your menu setting, so we can comprehend.

73 manuel; DL2MAN
LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by LearningLots »

Hello,
I have reset this radio many times in an effort to correct this weird problem. Resetting made no change to the problem. Yes resetting did require frequency alignment so the reset did occur.
Sunny has just shipped me a new main board and when it arrives I pray the problem will be solved.
I am one of the few people in the world that does NOT own a cell phone. No way to make a video although I can't imagine what a video would show. Zero RF output and zero efficiency shown on the display and only a tiny RF pip on my spectrum analyzer in CW mode. All other modes show normal rf output on the display and a proper size pip on the spectrum analyzer (when speaking into the mike) .
I am guessing the processor has some defect but why only on CW I have no clue.
I will update this post when the new main board arrives.
John
 

Posts: 49
Joined: 19 Feb 2022, 08:56

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by John »

Hi. I see in your original post you state " but for some reason tonight it won't transmit on CW using the PTT button."
Your comments regarding this very unusual problem seem to narrow down the possible source of the problem to the keying firmware, since essentially all of the hardware involved is also used for other modes that do work. While remote troubleshooting is really nothing more than guesswork, your comment leads immediately to 5 further questions:
1.) Your statement says that "tonight" the CW doesn't work. Did the rig send CW previously and just fail to work tonight?
2.) Your comment indicates that "it won't transmit on CW tonight using the PTT button." Did it do so using the PTT button previously.
3:) Did CW work previously with an external keyer?
4:) Will it work using an external key now?
5:) Has the CW keying mode in the set-up menu changed so it does not correspond to your present keying mode, the PTT ?
If you can let me know the answers to these questions I can try to further narrow down the nature of the problem if necessary.
John - ad0wo
*******
LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by LearningLots »

Hello,
The CW did work using the ptt button and did work via a key using the key jack. It worked for a few weeks in CW and of course the watt meter and eff meter also worked. When the radio stopped producing any power in CW mode, the wattage meter and eff also stopped working at exactly the same time. I tried many resets which did in fact reset the radio but the resets did not fix the CW or the meters.
So, it will not now transmit using the ptt button nor an external keyer. There have been no changes to the keying menu and had there been, the resets should have returned it to factory settings.
A note about RF....the radio produces no RF in CW into a commercial dummy load nor into a resonant antenna HOWEVER, the RF sampler on my dummy load does show a small PIP on the HP spectrum analyzer in CW mode indicating that very low on frequency RF is being produced. One would think there is a power amplifier problem yet proper power is being produced in USB/LSB/AM/FM. Even so I changed all 3 BS 170
FETs and the problem is still the same.
As stated above, I await a new main board which hopefully will correct the problem. I have been building transmitters all my life and this problem is a real stumper. At 75 I no longer want to build tiny radios so this one was purchased assembled. I will post results when the new main board arrives. Thank you for your interest.
LearningLots
 

Posts: 25
Joined: 15 Jun 2022, 17:59

Re: Transmits all modes except CW. SOLVED

Post by LearningLots »

Today in the mail I received the assembled replacement main board for my radio. After installing it and connecting to my dummy load and 12 volts, everything works perfectly. All modes work correctly and the wattage and efficiency meters also work as they should.
Much thanks and appreciation go to Sunny for all her efforts to make my radio work correctly. Her company gives excellent service after the sale and provides a quality product.
W3SI
 

Posts: 24
Joined: 06 Feb 2022, 08:28
Location: Edgewater, FL

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by W3SI »

Great news! Thank you Sunny for continued support.

If you would like to sell extra RF board, let me know.
Bill - W3SI
W3SI
 

Posts: 24
Joined: 06 Feb 2022, 08:28
Location: Edgewater, FL

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by W3SI »

Today, I became the owner of these defective (tr)uSDX radios. I will attempt to revive them and hope for the best.

Thank you @LearningLots for your support of my QRP hobby and I hope to meet you on my next visit to your area.
73 Bill-W3SI
John
 

Posts: 49
Joined: 19 Feb 2022, 08:56

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by John »

Have fun Bill. I would have enjoyed troubleshooting that rig, as it's a very interesting problem. But I haven't even had time to finish tuning my (tr)uSDX inductors. Besides which I'm sitting here with 2 QDX kits I haven't even started on. But please let us know what you find out, since it is indeed an interesting problem, and I made my career out of solving such odd problems, so it's in my blood.
W3SI
 

Posts: 24
Joined: 06 Feb 2022, 08:28
Location: Edgewater, FL

Re: Transmits all modes except CW.

Post by W3SI »

I have not had a lot of time to troubleshoot this issue except to verify that there is still an issue with this radio, even after reloading the firmware. It almost appears to be an issue with the 14 pin header having loose fitting pins. :oops:

NEW Main board is in a case, I reloaded the firmware and tested it on CW . I believe I had CW output and I moved the radio to the radio room and connected it to a known good antenna. Signals came in and I was happy that I had xmit and rcv sent a few test digits and the radio blanked.... waited and it came back on (like a reset) again off and on. I recorded it and posted it on my you tube page. I added a link here so you can see what is happening.

https://youtube.com/shorts/3hgGAuOnTN8?feature=share

OLD (original) main board RF board combination also has loose fitting 14 pin header . Sometimes it will send code with output power to dummy load and other times there is no output.
I have ordered several short female headers and a few 40-pin breakaway male headers and I do have an air de-soldering tool to use in replacing these . I will update again once I get the new headers installed.

I am also printing a new case :D for this radio so it is protected during testing, right now I have one long side installed to keep it from shorting out.
Bill - W3SI
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