Can you make my 6500 startup from the maestro?

Mike · July 2016

I would like to be able to work stations while on vacation using my Maestro. I do not want to leave the radio turned on all the time. At this time the radio will not turn on when power is turned on. If I would be able to use the Maestro to turn it on. Can this be done?

Jim Gilliam · July 2016

That is where the Maestro fails miserably. There is nothing any firmware in the Maestro that could "talk" to the Flex to turn it off. Flex has elected to remote control the on and off functions through a closure connected to a phono-jack on the back of the Flex Radio. Therefore you will need a computer and third-party hardware/software to effect a remote closure.

Jim, K6QE

Dennis Terry W4SG · July 2016

Is it possible to implement a Wake On LAN feature in the Flex 6K like my desktops have?

That would still require a power supply to be active all the time unless you figure out a way to remotely turn it on. If you can do that, then you can just put a jumper on the RCA plug to power up the Flex when the power comes up.

I think the solution is an old PC with Ethernet and Wake On LAN (WOL) capability to power up then turn on the supply for the flex and have it come on. Maybe add team viewer and a cheap USB camera to monitor the equipment.

Dennis, W4SG

Jim Gilliam · July 2016

As a further note, I made the comment the Antenna Genius could supply a separate function that could eventually supply a remote closesure to control the Flex on/off. It would be very possible to add firmware to the Maestro to control the Antenna Genius for this function. I am using an Antenna Genius and it has become an indispensable auxiliary piece of equipment.

Jim, K6QE

Ken - NM9P · July 2016

It is not necessary to have a computer turned on in the shack to operate the remote on/off of the 6000 series. You can use a WiMo or Neo wifi remote AC switch to activate a normally open relay that will do the job. These devices have iPad, iPhone and perhaps Android applications that control the relays. The NEO is about $23 US on Amazon. There is an AC switched relay on Amazon for about $8.95 that is already in a case with AC leads and **** terminals for the relay contacts. So for $30 US you can have a working remote power on/off for your 6000. I have posted the links in another post. I will try to repost them when I get near my regular computer. If you want to remotely control your power supply, top, get another NEO or WiMo and use that to control the PS. Some ops use a third one to power off their shack computer if needed for other functions like antenna rotor or amplifier control.

KY6LA_Howard · July 2016

I remote from all over the world for a good part of the year.

I use 3 WEMO remote switches.

1. Power to Computer (Computer set to auto boot on power on)

2. Power to DC Supply (12V to all station peripherals)

3. Remote on/off switch to 6700

I control the WEMO from an iPad/iPhone App

Has worked flawlessly for at least 3 years now.

Total investment under $100

No need to try anything complicated

Ken - NM9P · July 2016

Here is a link to the AC relay... http://www.amazon.com/Enclosed-AC-Protection-Bounce-Terminals/dp/B017743I7S?ie=UTF8&psc=1&re...

EA4GLI · July 2016

I also vote for FRS to figure out how to Remote Turn on the Radio... it is a networked device and remote on should be part of the functionality of the software without external devices.

Norm - W7CK · July 2016

This is something that could have been learned from Elecraft way before the 6x00 was ever introduced. Elecraft has been providing remote on/off of their equipment for some time now albeit over USB ports. I love being able to turn on and off my KAT and KPA500 gear remotely. I can also turn on and off my IC-7100 remotely. Unless I'm corrected by someone at Flex, I doubt this function can be added to the 6x00 series as it is somewhat of a hardware issue as much as it is software. When the hardware is turned off, the network adapter appears to be turned off as well with no IP address available to wake it up by.

Norm - W7CK

EA4GLI · July 2016

An interesting and inexpensive approach is to add an "internet of things" WiFi relay. ITEAD.cc sells these Wifi low voltage relays for $5.

https://www.itead.cc/sonoff-sv.html

You could add this inside the Flex 6000 and remotely turn on by connecting it to the RCA leads.

It needs voltage 5-24v, so you can use these AC Wifi relays for $5 to turn on your Power Supply remotely.

https://www.itead.cc/smart-home/sonoff-wifi-wireless-switch.html

I bought 4 of them and they work great. They use their own android and apple app... and if you are familiar with MQTT (MQTT is a machine-to-machine (M2M)/"Internet of Things" connectivity protocol)
you can program your own software.

I need to investigate the circuit board of the AC Wifi Switch as I am sure I could get a remote closed circuit out off some of the pins.... I am just afraid of doing something wrong with 120v vs 12v and damaging the Flex.

Anyway, I understand this is something that it is not inside the Flex radio, but these are the little things that make the difference between one radio or another. As radio manufacturers embrace SDR, their new radios will have "similar" RX capabilities... in many cases indistinguishable between each other outside a lab.... but it is the interface, software and capabilities of the radio beyond usual functionality that makes the difference.

Can you make my 6500 startup from the maestro?

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