Maestro performance problem

DL4RCE

Hi, I do have a Maestro (v2). I have been using it for about 9 month with version 2.49 and recently upgraded to v3. In the past I sometimes had lags/stutter of the display and at times with audio, too. Mostly happens when using two PA. With one PA it works fine also over extended contest periods. After upgrading to v3 I do experience stutter/lags more often and I have to reboot the Maestro. This helped pretty well in the past with 2.49 but with v3 after a couple of minutes it starts again... I use the Maestro quite often, every day for several hours. Did or do some of you experience similar problems and if yes, what is your solution? Regards Volker, DL4RCE

N8AUM

Are you hard wired into it or using WIFI ? Might be just a coincidence but with me the WIFI link "seems" more critical when I switched to V3

DL4RCE

Hi, thanks for the reply. I am using LAN to connect. Network Status: Excellent, TX RATE abt. 2,8MBPS, Latency 3ms, connected on same switch (6600 / Maestro).

73

Volker

DL4RCE

Any ideas in that? Happend during the Weekend quite often, it was IARU region 1 fd. reboot helped only shortly than again audio stuttering. Volker

Boyan LZ2BE

Hi Volker,

I have similar problem with lag of the display and popping sound when phones are connected to Maestro.

I did a test with Maestro+6600 only (no PC), 2 panadapters, only RX. I was just turning the VFO knobs and zoom in-out panadapter.
Lag appear in less than a minute when I'm using v.3.0.19 and within few minutes with v.2.4.9.
I don't see a difference if Maestro is connected to 6600 directly, via LAN cable or WiFi.
There is a difference only on "link quality" indicator:
- always excellent with a direct cable
- variable from poor to excellent (mostly excellent) with LAN cable via switch. Avg delay 1-2mS, dropped packets 0.00%
- variable from poor to excellent (mostly good/excellent) via WiFi. Avg delay 2-4mS, dropped packets ~ 0.01%

I submitted a request to Help desk and Tim is investigating the problem. 

73 Boyan LZ2BE

DL4RCE

Hi Boyan, exactly the same here. Please update me when you have any info to resolve it. For me it seems that the "tablet" (what a Maestro is) gets out of memory, maybe some memory leak!?

Do you have an extra internal battery attached? I always have one in, maybe that is causing the problem.

Regards

Volker

Boyan LZ2BE

Hi Volker, I don't have extra battery. I'm using the original wall wart supply and it is always plugged in.
73 Boyan

DL4RCE

Did you hear anything already?

73

Volker

Boyan LZ2BE

Hi Volker,
sorry for delay. I will sent it to service to be inspected.
73 Boyan

DL4RCE

Hi Boyan, curious if they find a problem. As long as I do not start the "SmartSDR CAT" Software it works for hours w/o a problem. But if I start it, takes couple of minutes and then I do get performance problems (audio cracks, zoom in/out lags, etc.). I guess I will open a tech-ticket when I have more time.

Regards

Volker

Boyan LZ2BE

Hi Volker,
I'm not a specialist but I think it is related to tablet because it happen even if Maestro is connected by cable directly to 6600. There are no problems when running 6600 with SSDR, CAT and DAX.
I hope they will find the problem and fix it.
73 Boyan

DL4RCE

Hi Boyan, was also playing around a little bit and for sure no problem with SSDR software on PC, even with 4 Panadapters open and CAT/DAX enabled. There are situations where the Maestro lacks performance but still haven´t it figured out. When not connecting / enabling CAT/DAX it seems Ok (but no solution).

73

Volker

Carl

Has anyone found a resolution to Maestro performance issues?  I just got my new Maestro today after ordering it at the Orlando Hamcation.  I am completely dissatisfied with the performance and responsiveness of this device working with my Flex 6400.    The screen is very unresponsive to touch and when it does respond, many functions are 3-5 seconds delayed.  Zooms and pinches are nearly unusable.  This is true even with a single active slice.  (Dual slice operation is much worse.) I have tried a wired and wireless network. Similar results on Battery and Power supply. 

My network connection is "Excellent". Latency is around 2-3 ms, and RX rate is ~1400 Kbps.  Sometimes it seems to improve briefly after a reboot, but then very quickly degrades to a frustrating experience.  I have been looking forward to the Maestro for a couple years now and I have to say: this is a huge disappointment, especially for the price.  I have a 4 year old iPad with SmartSDR for IOS and it is much more responsive and usable even over weak wi-fi connections.   

I'll be calling Flex support in the morning to request a return authorization. I had high hopes, but maybe I just received a defective unit.  :-(

-Carl
W1NDS

N8AUM

Why does it work for some users and not for others?  I gave up with my Maestro that I purchased about 1 year ago and for the past 6 months I use it as a fancy paper weight. I wouldn't mind trying different firmware from FRS to try as long as they pay for shipping in case it gets bricked. 

DL4RCE

Hi all, it is related to 3rd party software that is polling from /pushing to the Maestro. If you have DDUTIL or whatever is out there you will experience problems exactly what has been described several times. EU support also did extensive testing to my Maestro and could not find any problem. Only thing what I heard was that they are working on a fix and problem is acknowledged.

73

Volker, DL4RCE

N8AUM

Forgot to mention that I DO NOT run any "3rd party" software and I live out in the sticks so the WIFI isn't crowded like it would be if I lived in the city. I also have WIFI turned off on my cellphone.

Carl

I too am running 100% Stock.  No 3rd party software. My experience with Maestro is completely different from what I have seen in YouTube Videos and from what I experienced working with the demo unit at theIr Hamfest Booth. It so laggy that it is unusable: stutters, sputters, dropouts with a Screen and Audio. If this is a known issue they should stop shipping and FIX it.

DL4RCE

Oh, that´s not good any answers from flex regarding that issue?

Volker

Mike-N1VE

I have the Flex 6400 and the Maestro, using the latest software.  The only time that I have a problem (stuttering, drop out) is when my WiFi connection is poor.  Apparently some of the units are OK, which might make it difficult for them to locate the problem.

Carl

The Audio drop out is less of an issue for me than the User Interface lag.  I have been working with Flex Radio tech support for a few days to troubleshoot and isolate the performance issue.  The Maestro starts out working well after a cold restart, but quickly degrades after about 5 minutes of run time.  The VFO gets laggy and the menu operations become sluggish and delayed.  This behavior can be consistently reproduced over wifi and direct wired connection.  This issue is also apparent after downgrading the software to 2.6.1.   I created a video to demonstrate the issue for Flex tech Support.  I am waiting to hear from them today to see if there is something more I can test or if I should just ship this one back.  
https://youtu.be/elb6prJfYU0

DL4RCE

Same here!

Dave K5OZ

Anyone have an update on this problem...has it been solved? I have a Maestro on order and would like to know if everyone is having this issue before they fill the order.

Thanks for any updates.

Dave

DL4RCE

Not solved for me, still having problems when bands are really busy (contests etc.).

Volker

Mike-N1VE

I have had the Flex 6400 and Maestro for more than a year and a half. The Maestro often works erratically. Receive audio drops out. The Maestro stops, shuts down, and has to reboot. The transmit audio abruptly stops and starts again and again. Recently I discovered that the problem with the audio dropping out might have been because, unknowingly I was operating on the internal battery because I didn't realize that the 12-volt wall wart had been unplugged. But otherwise the erratic behavior has been something that I just deal with. When the Flex and Maestro are working as they should, it's a wonderful system, but I find myself wondering if I should have spent the money on a different radio.

ka9ees

I'm using a friend's 6400 and Maestro running v2.6.2. I have never seen lag like that.

Ed KA9EES

Carl

I wanted to provide an Update on my Original Post regarding the Maestro performance problems and interface lag. The Flex support team got back to me right away, sent me a replacement unit, and asked me to do a bunch of matrix testing with the different units on different networks and software levels. The replacement unit seemed to function a little better but still degraded in performance consistently after about one hour of run time. Unfortunately none of these tests were able to identify a root cause of the issue. Clearly some of the Maestro units have issues while others work fine. If you get a good one consider yourself lucky.
Ultimately I sent both Maestros back to Flex for a refund. The Support team at Flex went above and beyond to try fix the issue and understand what could be happening. Because I logged the support ticket within a couple days of purchase, they were able to give me a full refund for the maestro. I still use my Flex 6400 with Windows and with My IPad when remote.
I really liked the Maestro when it was working properly and would consider trying a Maestro again if they come out with newer generation Hardware. -Carl (W1NDS)

Mike-VA3MW

The WiFi latency is very strange.

All the Maestros built and shipped have the same WiFi radio and the same software. The settings are all the same across all those shipped. To say it another way, all the software and hardware is the same.

However, there are some users that have no issues at all, and some that have latency issues. While we would love to know 'why' it is really hard to diagnose since all WiFi networks are not the same. You can buy WiFi access points from a dozen different vendors and each vendor will do their own thing on setting it up (there are LOTS of Wifi tuning settings). There is no standard 'setting' for WiFi.

This makes it really difficult for client vendors like us especially if we can't clearly see a failure. And, there is no way to ask each customer to give us their WiFi tuning settings, since you really don't know what they are as each vendor keeps them somewhat secret. The result is that each vendor points the finger at the other vendor. If someone is able to point to a specific tuning variable that makes a difference, then let us know and I will pass it on to Engineering to look into. What I would need to hear is that a specific tuning variable needs to be changed.

Here are just the ones I know (and, this is small subset). These are the ones you can adjust in the Access Point (AP).

CTS Protection Mode

Frame Burst Rate

Beacon Interval

DTIM Internal

Fragmentation Threshold

RTS Threshold

Preamble

Shortslot Override

Bluetooth Coexistence

Multimedia support

MIMO Transmission Rate

If you want to know what each of the above do, have a look at this page on DD-WRT. https://wiki.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Advanced_wireless_settings. It is actually worth the read. Some of the above settings have a strong impact on real time streaming data such as HF streams that we depend on.

If you are still using the WiFi you started with 6 or 7 years ago, it might be time to upgrade.

So, what to do? You can see what other WiFi AP's people are using and how well they work.

Personally, I had good success with IQ Routers, TP-Link M5 Mesh and a Eeros Mesh. I had terrible performance with OpenWRT, but I never spent any time tuning it. I had better success with DD-WRT, but not as good as the the first 3 I mentioned. And, you are also impacted by your neighbors WiFi and it's broadcast settings. It is a jungle out there.

As an aside, once I invested in a M5 Mesh, the family members stopped screaming that the WiFi ****. It turns out that if you get the Maestro performance you like, everyone else should be happy too. It can be a Win/Win.

Others have had good results with Ubiquiti.

Mike va3mw

DL4RCE

Hi Mike, that may all be true. But performance problems are real also with LAN connected directly to the Flexradio itself. I myself had a ticket open and was checked by German support. No solution. On crowded bands you get issues after some time. For me Maestro is for non-contest and for using it just as a control device. SMARTSDR does a far better job on the PC, I am always positively suprised how stable and fast it runs. Looking forward to Maestro v3 with current hardware.

Regards, Volker

Mike-N1VE

Mike-VA3MW,

Can any of the tuning variables be responsible for intermittent problems with the Maestro? I wonder if users of the FlexRadios with the M models have problems similar to those presented in this thread?

Mike (N1VE)

DL4RCE

Hi Mike, M Models have different Display hardware. But I wondered the same.

Regards

Volker

ka9ees

I'm hoping to pick up a used 6400M this week. I will report. It's gonna be hardwired to the network switch. I will also be using my friends Maestro.

73,

Ed KA9EES