by 5B4AIY » 05 Dec 2022 16:22
In order to connect to the amplifier's RS-232 port you will need to make a cable with a 3.5mm stereo (Tip-Ring-Sleeve) plug on one end and a female DB-9 connector on the other end to connect to the male DB-9 connector of a standard USB to RS-232 adaptor.
With the internal jumpers on the Frequency Sense board in the NORMAL position, the tip of the 3.5mm plug is RX-Data, the ring is the TX-Data. The tip has to be connected to pin-3 of the DB-9, and the ring to pin-2, and the sleeve or screen connected to pin-5 of the DB-9 connector. (This is for a standard USB to RS-232 adaptor.) If the internal jumper is set to the PROGRAMMING setting the tip and ring connections are reversed.
You will also have to enable the Serial Test suite in the User Configuration setting, as it is normally defaulted to OFF. In order to enable it, you must also select a non-serial frequency sense mode, also in the User Configuration menu. (See Serial Port Mode on page 8 of the User Manual)
Once you have done this, connect your serial cable to the USB to RS-232 adaptor, plug the adaptor into your computer and identify the COM port, and then launch a serial terminal program. For all my testing and software development I used Simple Term. By entering '?' at the terminal you should get the response from the amplifier as shown in Annex A, pages 21 through 27 of the User Manual.
To display the calibration and configuration settings, enter 'E', and you should see them dumped. Simple-Term allows you to copy the screen contents to a file, or else simply make a note of the settings on pages 42 and 43 of the User Manual.
Once you have made a note you can now perform a hard reset. With the amplifier powered OFF, press and hold the BAND+ button and turn the amplifier on. (As you cannot turn it on from the front panel, you will need to place a jumper on J4, and then turn the main power supply on.) See page 6 of the User Manual.
Once you have reset the amplifier, see if that has changed anything.
As for the temperature always showing 0C, if a hard reset does not fix this, it indicates a fault in the Bias & Temperature sensing logic, and you would need to make some measurements. This would be somewhat intrusive, so wait for a Rowaves response.
You can always test to see if the amplifier will go into transmit, plug a standard 3.5mm to 3.5mm stereo patch lead into the T/R socket, select the OPERATE mode, and ground the tip to the chassis, the amplifier should go into transmit. If the bias supply is operative, then you should see bias current when you switch to the current display. If in transmit there is no current displayed, then this confirms a bias fault.
Adrian, 5B4AIY
- Attachments
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simpleterm.zip
- Very simple terminal program
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