Flex-6500 using MacLoggerDX FAIL

Andrew Rose

 For a number of years I have logged contacts made on my Flex-6500 using MacLoggerDX either on my [MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2013)] or my [iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch 2017)].

I now have a problem, the “MacLoggerDX” running on my iMac is unable to see or communicate with the radio!  Both computer are on the same WiFi Hub, both have similar settings.  Has any one experienced a similar problem? Does anyone have any suggestions? 

K3SF

few questions

1, what macos are you running on macbook and on the imac?

2. what version of macloggerdx (aka mldx)  ?

3.  In mldx Pref's for Radio, is port type set to Flexradio SmartSDR?

4. anything new or different about your home network since it stopped working?


maybe be as simple as resetting/rebooting the wifi router so everyone one gets new ip address.

Paul K3SF

Alan

I upgraded MacLoggerDX to the latest version and all was good again, connecting to the Flex radio server.  If you are using multiplex, be sure to select the desired client on the radio preferences page.

Alan
WA9WUD

Andrew Rose

few answers to questions

1, what macos are you running on macbook and on the imac? 

None as far as I know.

2. what version of macloggerdx (aka mldx)  ?

Version 6.29

3.  In mldx Pref's for Radio, is port type set to Flexradio SmartSDR?

Yes.

4. anything new or different about your home network since it stopped working?

Yes, replaced the router.  Checked and all items use the same router address.  Also have reset the router.  Also changed my printer which is now only visible on ‘preferences / printers & scanners’ as a 'fax machine'.

PS. Am not sure what (mldx) stands for?

K3SF

hi andrew


well macos stand for the mac operating system ( hence called macos)
this is apples terminology  not mine...for example 10.15.5 OS which i run on my mac minis also known as 'macOS Catalina'

As for 'mldx', that is shorthand or acronym for macloggerdx

that is why i annotated is 'also known as' = ( aka)

hence, (aka mldx) means 'also known as macloggerdx'


last but least the 'what changed' question...actually points to the problem....the router....

for any body to be of any help we need we need to know make and model...

this will allow for any experts on that router to chime in for proper setup....

maybe as simple as turning off DHCP server in the router cause a network does not like two DHCP servers handing out IP address...confuses things...

usually your ISP ( internet service provider) router does the DHCP server function for the whole house

Paul K3SF

Ted VE3TRQ

Andrew, I would also suggest posting this on the MacLoggerDX Google Groups page - there are a lot of Flex users there, and Don (mldx author) is always helpful.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/macloggerdx

K3SF

hi ted

He is also having issue with printer which is not a mldx issue

the big change was the router, that is when things went wrong


just saying

Paul K3SF

Ted VE3TRQ

MacLoggerDX has a pretty good logging facility which may help point in the right direction. We are all sort of shooting in the dark here, Paul.

George KF2T

You need to bond to a GUI client, like DogParkSDR.

George KF2T

Ted VE3TRQ

Andrew indicated he had been working satisfactorily for a number of years with MLDX ("For a number of years I have logged contacts made on my Flex-6500 using MacLoggerDX").

After his router change obviously something (IP addresses?) changed. Figured if he's been using MLDX to log, he may well be using  a hybrid Win/Mac system for his Flex (no proof of that, of course, he did not mention dpSDR :-)

The more resources he has on his problem, the better. Andrew, if you explain your radio environment a bit, we can help.

Alan

Don recently posted the below on the DogPark Forum, relating to the same question here;

Alan
WA9WUD

=================

MacLoggerDX does not connect to a com port or CI-V connection with the Flex. It connects directly to the Flex radio server as a non-GUI client and has always done so.

So I’m curious whether DogParkSDR can deal with the same concern— feeding the frequency information from the active slice to other programs such as MacLogger.

dogparkSDR doesn’t have the same concern - MacLoggerDX gets the active slice frequency information directly from the Flex Radio server not dogparkSDR and has done so since before dogparkSDR was created.

 I’m also not familiar with the degree of integration between DogParkSDR and MacLogger 

Very little. They are independent clients to the radio server - but with the advent of multiFlex, each non-GUI client must be associated with a GUI client. The MacLoggerDX Radio prefs include a popup list of GUI clients currently connected to the Radio server. This is really a MacLoggerDX question since dogparkSDR, or Maestro, or SmartSDR Windows, or SmartSDR iOS aren’t involved directly in the CAT connection between the MacLoggerDX non-GUI client and the Flex Radio server. I have cross-posted this to the MacLoggerDX Group.

or between SmartSDR/Maestro feeding data to a Mac for use with MacLogger. 

No other Flex client feeds MacLoggerDX data of any kind, MacLoggerDX connects directly to the Radio server over the LAN as a non-GUI client and has done so since MacLoggerDX Version 5.49 in 2013. I’m not positive but I think it was the first logger on any platform to do so. https://www.flexradio.com/works-with-flex/ This was only possible because the Flex 6000 series was developed from the start to be a platform-agnostic client-server radio.

MacLoggerDX can however feed the Radio server Spots data. (MacLoggerDX Radio prefs - SmartSDR Radio spots).
Before the Flex Radio server could store and forward spots to clients for display MacLoggerDX v6.19 developed the capability to feed spots directly to dogparkSDR in (MacLoggerDX Radio prefs - dogparkSDR spots)


MacLoggerDX will show every slice it has access to in its VFO popup and you can select the active slice from it.


If you set the radio to split through MacLoggerDX then MacLoggerDX will ask the radio for a second slice - if one is available.


MacLoggerDX tracks the selected and Transmit slice directly and within the limits of the slices it has access to, and can set the active and transmit slice as well as the frequencies and modes - independently of what other GUI clients are doing.


If any client changes the state of a slice - that change is reflected in the other clients - including MacLoggerDX.


In my setup WSJT-X controls MacLoggerDX and the Flex through the MacLoggerDX DXLab TCP server.


WSJT-X get’s the audio from the radio through dogparkSDR and LoopBack.


https://www.dogparksoftware.com/dogparkSDR_Help/dpsdr_wsjt-x_no_xdax.html




https://tinyurl.com/mldx-wsjtx









Unlike dogparkSDR, MacLoggerDX does not support remote connection over SmartLink but you can use xCAT for remote connections or allow dogparkSDR to “Tune” MacLoggerDX for logging...


https://www.dogparksoftware.com/dogparkSDR_Help/dpsdr_smartlink.html

If the Tune MLDX check box is enabled in the Radio prefs, MacLoggerDX will automatically track the active slice frequency and mode without being connected to the radio. This can be usefull when working a remote radio through SmartLink since MacLoggerDX will not need a radio connection of it's own and will log the frequency and mode sent to it by dogparkSDR.

73 de VE3VRW Don Agro

Andrew Rose

Hi Everybody & thank you for your help.  It seems to me that the hart of my problem is probably with the new router.  My wife is giving a webinar this coming Sunday and as her computer and internet connection is fine, I don’t want to conduct any tests etc which may cause her a problem.

Next week I will try reverting to the old router to see if this allows the Flex to mldx to work again then maybe I can isolate the problem.  Thanks again, I hope to report progress later next week.

Andrew  G4AUE