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RF GAIN SETTING ON A BAND BY BAND BASIS

PhilM
PhilM Member ✭✭
in SmartSDR for Windows

As I change bands the rf gain setting changes to what I set that specific band to. It appears to sometimes loose the rf gain setting that I had previously set the band to.

If I change the RF Gain setting for a band is there something I need to do to harden the value?

I can always write it down on paper and just put it back, but since it seems to save the value most of the time that seems like it should be consistent.

Phil, NC3S

Answers

  • VE7ATJ_Don
    VE7ATJ_Don Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited August 21

    Hi Phil… one trick that I (and a number of others) do is to set up Global Profiles for each of the bands and modes that we operate. E.g. 15m phone, 15m CW, 20m Phone, 40m CW, etc.). To set these up, I tune up the band & segment just the way I want it — with gain, AGCT, bandwidth, mike selection/gain, etc. set to optimum for the segment — then save the whole thing as a Global Profile.

    Then, to switch modes/bands, I simply select and load the appropriate profile.

    Now, to be 'technically correct' AGC-T and gain settings really need to be set based on current conditions, but I think most of us have found that for our locations, there are 'good enough' settings that will work just fine.

    My $0.02…

  • Mike-VA3MW
    Mike-VA3MW Administrator, FlexRadio Employee, Community Manager, Super Elmer, Moderator admin

    Phil. This is how it should work. Make sure you review persistence in the SmartSDR manual as well.

    How Persistence Handles RF Gain (Preamp/Attenuator)

    Yes, SmartSDR persistence does cover RF Gain (preamp/attenuator) on a per-band basis.

    • Each band stores its last-used RF Gain (preamp/attenuator) setting.
    • When you return to that band, SmartSDR restores the same front-end gain level you had selected last time.
    • For example:
      • On 20m you might have set RF Gain to +20 dB (preamp).
      • On 80m you might have left it at 0 dB.
      • Switching back and forth will recall those exact settings for each band.

    ⚠️ Exceptions / Overrides

    • If you load a Global Profile, it may override the per-band persistence with the RF Gain value stored in that profile.
    • Also, FlexRadio firmware updates sometimes reset persistence tables, requiring you to re-set band gains once.
  • PhilM
    PhilM Member ✭✭

    Ok thanks for the suggestions.

    I think what I'll do is write it down on paper and see if I can notice more accurately when it happens. I to date haven't used profiles but can look into that.

    Is the persistence provided through a global profile? That is, if I create a global profile, does it save all the settings for every band in that profile? If so I could just have 1 profile and reload it if necessary rather than a profile for each band.

    Phil, NC3S

  • PhilM
    PhilM Member ✭✭

    Well I think I have it resolved, its working now as expected.

    I wrote down all the RF gain settings per band, and cycled through the bands, one by one, and it turns out only 15m had the issue. I tried it quite a few times and only 15m had an issue. I only have 1 antenna but since this setting seems to be by antenna position(1/2) I cycled a few times between ant1 and ant2. After that 15m now restores the proper RF gain value when cycling through the bands.

    I guess the status of an internal flag need resetting.

    Many Thanks, PHIL NC3S

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