Welcome to the FlexRadio Community! Please review the new Community Rules and other important new Community information on the Message Board.
Need the latest SmartSDR or 4O3A Genius Product Software?

SmartSDR v3.9.19 and the SmartSDR v3.9.19 Release Notes
SmartSDR v2.12.1 and the SmartSDR v2.12.1 Release Notes

The latest 4O3A Genius Product Software and Firmware
If you are having a problem, please refer to the product documentation or check the Help Center for known solutions.
Need technical support from FlexRadio? It's as simple as Creating a HelpDesk ticket.

Smart SDR software question

espo53
espo53 Member ✭
in FLEX-8000 Signature Series
Hello, I just ordered my 8400 M a few days ago and it is supposed to be delivered this weekend. I am confused about the software. Does the radio come with operating software or is the Smart SDR the software needed to operate the radio. I have down loaded the software to my PC so I have it ready when the radio arrives.
This is my first time using SD radios so forgive me for the simple question.
Tony
KQ4SZL

Best Answers

  • KD0RC
    KD0RC Member, Super Elmer Moderator
    Answer ✓

    Hi Tony, the radio comes with its software loaded, and because you have an M model, it will operate stand-alone right out of the box.

    You can also run SmartSDR on your computer and connect to the radio that way. You can connect up to two GUI clients (Maestro, Front Panel, SmartSDR) at a time, and each will be a separate "station" operating the radio independently (with a shared transmitter).

    One operating mode that you might be interested in is called SmartControl. Check out section 9 of the Maestro operating manual. It allows you to control the same two slices (receivers) at the same time, one with SmartSDR and one with the front panel.

  • Russ Ravella
    Russ Ravella Member ✭✭✭
    Answer ✓

    Yeah Len, that's a much better answer. I missed the "M" in the question. All of that's still true though when not using the radio's front panel which I understand many users sometimes don't (apparently it can be bypassed). And apparently you plan to do so also since you downloaded SSDR so you can always operate that way if you want. Also the radio can be operated by two remote clients simultaneously if desired.

    GL 73 Russ KR6W

Answers

  • Russ Ravella
    Russ Ravella Member ✭✭✭

    Hey Tony,

    Totally reasonable question. The answer is, both. And this gets confused a bit. The radio will come loaded with the latest firmware. Always remember, Flex radios are really radio servers. And as severs, clients are used to communicate with and control them. The software you downloaded is Flex's client software. Both are required. In use, you'll start the radio server which will among a lot of other things launch its server software, then start a client - in this case SSDR - to interact with it.

    Something that gets confused with this is, when performing an update, you're running update software on your computer where the client, not the server live. So is only the client getting updated ? What about the server ? Is an additional step required for that ? And the answer is, no, the update package updates BOTH parts of the software together. So when you're done with that, you're done.

    It will all make more sense when the time comes and you do it yourself for the first time. But for now, when you get the radio and plug it into your LAN, and start your computer running SSDR which is also plugged into that LAN, they'll see each other and off you go.

    Hope that helps. 73 Russ KR6W

  • espo53
    espo53 Member ✭
    Thank you both. I appreciate both the answers and the way you both made it simple to understand. I really appreciate it and am really forward to getting the radio.
    Tony
    KQ4SZL
  • Russ Ravella
    Russ Ravella Member ✭✭✭

    You’re gonna love it, Tony !

  • Neil D Friedman N3DF
    Neil D Friedman N3DF Member ✭✭✭✭

    Bear in mind that you can view a greatly enlarged version of what’s on the 8400M’s screen, without a computer, by simply plugging an hdmi cable between the 8400M and an external display.

Leave a Comment

Rich Text Editor. To edit a paragraph's style, hit tab to get to the paragraph menu. From there you will be able to pick one style. Nothing defaults to paragraph. An inline formatting menu will show up when you select text. Hit tab to get into that menu. Some elements, such as rich link embeds, images, loading indicators, and error messages may get inserted into the editor. You may navigate to these using the arrow keys inside of the editor and delete them with the delete or backspace key.

Comment As ...

Categories