New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

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KV0KEV
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Dec 21, 2021 10:14 pm

New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by KV0KEV »

I just build an MMDVM hotspot. Here is my setup:
Pi Zero 2 W
MMDVM Hat from R&L Electronics (MMDVMKIT)
pi-star v4.1.5

My HT is a Yaesu FT2DR

I am able receive just fine. A new entry appears on the Dashboard under "Gateway Activity" every time I hear somebody transmitting. However, it appears that nobody can hear me when I attempt to transmit. Also, no entries show up on the dashboard when I attempt to transmit.

I'm new to using a hotspot and not sure how to troubleshoot this problem. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

EDIT: Node type is set to public

Thanks

KV0KEV
KV0KEV
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Dec 21, 2021 10:14 pm

Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by KV0KEV »

More information:
  • Mode is YSF
  • Confident that I'm operating in simplex with no offset (I'm using 438.700 MHz). When transmitting, I see the same frequency on the FT2DR display. When using a repeater with an offset, the offset freq is displayed while transmitting
  • YSF00001 - Parrot isn't working.
  • I have been able to listen to multiple YSF hosts, but not able to transmit
For what it is worth, I am able to hit the local Fusion repeaters in my area (over-the-air). I just can't seem to get my MMDVM hotspot to hear me.

I am able to run MMDVMcal, but admittedly don't understand how to use it. Are there any online resources that you can suggest for learning how to use MMDVMcal for YSF?
M1DNS
Pi-Star Team
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Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by M1DNS »

https://github.com/g4klx/MMDVMCal/blob/master/README.md

run it in pistar by issuing the command pistar-cal from the CLI.

Sent via smoke signals from my SM-G935F M1DNS (Admin)

Andrew M1DNS.
Pi-star Admin Team.
AF6VN
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Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 1:15 am

Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by AF6VN »

Just an aside...

Make sure the radio is on lowest power, and maybe ensure there is 10 or more feet between radio and hotspot. Many radios consider 1W to be lowest power (Kenwood D-ATAR and regular FM seem to be most reliable for LOW power cases -- most of mine go all the way down to the vicinity of 0.05W), and even that could overload the front-end of the hotspot.

Don't Yeasu YSF rigs have a mode autosense -- switching between digital and FM based upon incoming signal... Make sure it is configured to send YSF and not FM.

--
AF6VN
Dennis L Bieber
KV0KEV
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Dec 21, 2021 10:14 pm

Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by KV0KEV »

Thanks for the help. I am operational now.

My initial problem was using pistar-mmdvmcal, following the instructions above I simply didn't see anything showing up on my hotspot. Eventually, I expanded the frequency range and saw BER results, but I had to shift -1000 before I saw anything. The sweet spot appears to be -1200 for the lowest BER on my hotspot. I tried all this before, but just didn't lower my frequency range far enough to get any feedback from the calibration tool.

As for the other question, I am using 0.1W transmit power, which is "low1" on my FT2DR.
UT4URT
Posts: 6
Joined: Sun May 28, 2023 3:08 pm

Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by UT4URT »

KV0KEV wrote: Mon Dec 27, 2021 5:51 pm Thanks for the help. I am operational now.

My initial problem was using pistar-mmdvmcal, following the instructions above I simply didn't see anything showing up on my hotspot. Eventually, I expanded the frequency range and saw BER results, but I had to shift -1000 before I saw anything. The sweet spot appears to be -1200 for the lowest BER on my hotspot. I tried all this before, but just didn't lower my frequency range far enough to get any feedback from the calibration tool.
As for the other question, I am using 0.1W transmit power, which is "low1" on my FT2DR.
Greetings!
Would you be so kind to describe step-by-step which commands you typed in CLI to reach the results you did. I have an identical problem with no-Tx(while Rx is OK, can listen to my TGs well). I'm not familiar with CLI and want to be sure I do everything right.
Well, I first I read the instructions here https://github.com/g4klx/MMDVMCal/blob/master/README.md
Then on my hotspot i go to Configuration -> Expert -> SSH Access, the I get the command line pi-star@pi-star(ro):~$ , and now I'm not sure which command to type there. I wish to do some experimenting with changing Rx offset, to make sure my Tx signal from the radio is accepted by the hotspot.
Can anybody suggect a hint how correct command be typed in CLI?
Boris, UT4URT
AF6VN
Posts: 821
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 1:15 am

Re: New to Pi-star. Rx only working, no Tx

Post by AF6VN »

Code: Select all

pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$ MMDVMCal
Usage: MMDVMCal <port>

pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$ pistar-findmodem
You need to be root to run this command...

pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$ sudo pistar-findmodem
Detected DV-Mega  Port: /dev/ttyAMA0 (GPIO) Baud: 115200 Protocol: V1
         Modem Data: DVMEGA HR3.19 - MMDMVM Protocol
pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$

pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$ MMDVMCal /dev/ttyAMA0
Unable to read the firmware version after six attempts
pi-star@pi-star-3b(rw):~$

You will need to know the "port" name that the board is using. (Note: Linux is case sensitive; also note that, as I stated elsewhere, my DV-Mega is not compatible with MMDVMCal)

--
AF6VN
Dennis L Bieber
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