SmartSDR 1.10 and FlexControl

K1ESE

With SmartSDR 1.10 can I just plug my FlexControl into the back of my 6500?

EA4GLI

I believe that the Flex control interacts with SmartSDR and not with the Flex directly. It makes the most sense that it connects to the computer or device that has the software that controls the radio. I have successfully connected the Flex control on a win8 tablet with an OTG cable.

Mack

No, the Flex control is not implemented. USB adds great new functionality for band data, PTT, and bit level control of external devices. 73, Mack W4AX Alpha Tester

Tim - W4TME

No, and let me explain the reasoning. The USB port on the back of the radio is being used to implement Radio Control Point devices, meaning devices that must reside close to the radio hardware, like an amplifier or a tuner in order to function.

The FlexControl is a Client (operator) Control Point device, meaning it has to be where the operator is located. Since SmartSDR is a client-server architecture and the client (SmartSDR for Windows) is no longer bound to the radio, it can be in a different room, different building, or different country. Since the FlexContol must be associated with the operator, it interfaces with the client software (SmartSDR for Windows).

While a lot of people chose to combine the radio and client control points together since this is how it has been done traditionally, our vision of a distributed radio system differentiates the two and this will become more important when SmartSDR v2.0 is released with native and seamless remote operation of your FLEX-6000 over the Internet.

Lee - N2LEE

This makes a lot of sense to think about the ports as CAT control ports and forget they use USB connectors