
Maestro harmoniously combines a high definition 8 inch touch display in concert with ergonomically designed controls to enhance ease of use and maximize workflow efficiency in virtually any SmartSDRTM application.
Maestro places the most frequently used controls directly at your fingertips. Controls are labeled for intuitive operation and designed to minimize hand motion for the most common operations. Occasionally used controls are easily accessible on the large touch screen display bypassing the complexity of multi-function buttons and multi-level menus found on most transceivers. Like modern phones and tablets, capacitive touch control is provided on the large LCD display for intuitive pan, zoom, tune, and menu operation.

Ever wish you could monitor the bands or work DX from the comfort of your living room or out on the patio? Now you can! Maestro's small footprint and minimal wiring cleans up your operating position and lets you mount the radio virtually anywhere in the shack or around the house. Its sleek, lightweight design makes it easy to carry or pack. An optional battery pack even lets you operate completely untethered. Off the shelf VESA and VESA to RAM® adapters provide a wealth of mounting options.

Tim - W4TME, Customer Experience Manager
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- EXCITED!!!!
Posted 4 years ago
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Peter K1PGV, Elmer
- 541 Posts
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Bravo.
Peter
K1PGV
- 942 Posts
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But, still looking forward to William's app and my cobbled up masterpiece!
James
WD5GWY
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- Maestro tunes and listens on SSB band
- the other band DAX on PC for digitals or Skimmer

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keyboard and mouse for those so inclined. Also, to free us from needing a PC device of
some kind, a way to do logging via Maestro would be very useful. A window into
the home PC comes to mind. Something like that would also allow remote control of a
rotor and other devices at the home station. I suspect Flex has give some thought to this.
Ned, K1NJ
- 110 Posts
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I wish and hope it could switch on the radio if Remote ON is enabled, I think the time has come for this function to be implemented.
KY6LA - Howard, Elmer
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Jon...kf2e
KY6LA - Howard, Elmer
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I can just see it on my desk!
PRETTY
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William
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Gerald,
If you still have time, you might want to rethink the microphone connector. A connector that is 6000 series compatible would save a lot of grief and complaints.
My $0.02
Mike wa6fxt
PS: Mine's on order.
Oh? - Will I be charged the full amount on my PayPal, when it ships or will I be asked first? (Do I need to keep the $900 on tap, or will I get notified first?)
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George Molnar, KF2T, Elmer
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http://youtu.be/CK8ptGlRDjw
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Jon...kf2e
- 1138 Posts
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I am glad it is big, easier to use.
I can afford it easily but I don't see the point to have it in your house, unless I can take it outside in the sun. Call me when it can use a WAN.
What can it do that a laptop cannot?
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It's got knobs and buttons and physical controls
Presumably, it will would just fine and dandy with 2.x
- 439 Posts
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I was considering something like the MS Surface Pro 3 (or the eventually to be announced Surface Pro 4) to serve a similar purpose, previously. I'm a bit confused by the apparent thickness of the unit. Tablets (and laptops) seem significantly thinner in modern design.
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KY6LA - Howard, Elmer
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Give me an iPad app
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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Thanks,
William
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I guess there just ain't no such thing as a free lunch.
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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Ok! It's on order; however, I think FRS should reconsider not providing either a microphone or the adapter to use the radio's mic. For the price, it should come with some form of microphone setup.
73's de Mike wa6fxt
- 573 Posts
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What is the pinout of the mic connector anyway? Yaesu, Icom?
I also think the little feet stands should be included as well.
William
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There are *NOT* plenty in the station that are compatible with the Maestro. If it was 6000 series compatible, then I would agree.
Mike
Ken - NM9P, Elmer
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I have two mikes, one for the 6500 and one for my 1500, so I would be good either way if I chose to purchase a Maestro.
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Flex products are always well engineered so I am confident that by the time the final product is shipped they will have a reasonable solution for how to use our existing MICs with the Maestro, for those who wish to do so.
Reg
- 865 Posts
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AD-100: Demultiplex adapter for FT 100. RJ11 to 8 pin Yaesu
http://www.heilsound.com/amateur/support/adapters/171
Undoubtedly FRS will have a adaptimicator/pigtail available when the product ships.
Regards All,
k3Tim
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It appears that out of the eight 24 AWG cat 5 wires only four carry PoE. And depending on the length there is considerable amount of voltage drop.
Plus if you look at how many people post problems with basic networking I could see how this could create a potential support nightmare for Flex.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_over_Ethernet
Good suggestion and kudos for thinking outside the box. :)
- 275 Posts
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We have been given a sneak peak at a product that is still in development. The Maestro will not be shipped till the end of the year and a lot can change between now and then.
We might want to keep that in mind.
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1) it might already be fully baked, just pending a ramped up production slot, in which case feature set is complete.
2) it may still have some feature leeway, in which case some of these ideas may make it into the final product.
Gerald, Steve, are you showing the final product or is there still design, h or s, wiggle room?
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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Cheers
Paul
gi4fzd
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I have no doubt that this is a platform that will evolve with software updates.
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William
Alex - DH2ID, Elmer
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Technically it should be easy to have both connectors on the maestro.
And feet to prop it up are a few $. Not including them is a bit on the
cheap side. Reminds me of my ICOM ID-5100, a mobile TRX which is great
in any other way except that they don't include a mobile mounting bracket!
- 275 Posts
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Every user has something they "think" is valid feedback. We all have a wish list of Features like "N" vs "AC" WIFI, POE or connector type we think a product should do or not do.
What most people forget is so many decisions in product develop are a difficult balance between what it cost to produce and engineering. If ever feature every user wanted two things would happen.
- The product would never be finished and never see the light of day.
- Would cost so much that the market would be too limited. There are products like this but they are designed by committee, take years to build and purchased by the government. :)
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Exactly my point. Having to buy a different mic, than the mic that came with the radio it interfaces to seems like a bad idea.
As for the stand... I believe the unit comes with a "fixed angle" stand.
Mike
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Lee, are you really upset because people arn't asking "may I have some more please sir"?
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RJ-11 - likely this is a pickNplace (pNp) part that is soldered direct to PWB. The 8-pin IF not pNp would add a fair portion to the cost of mfg. A pNp machine is good for about 1 part per second whereas hand solder would take minutes.
The POE is a good thought but would add considerably to the BoM:
http://pdfserv.maximintegrated.com/en/an/AN5044.pdf
I recall reading the battery is lithium phosphate which I assume means Lithium Iron Phospate (LiFePO4). An excellent choice. One could have 2 bats, with one in an external charger at all times, ready to go.
_..--
k3Tim
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Ken - NM9P, Elmer
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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I can see from some comments here that some people have no concept of what it costs to build a quality product for the low volume by definition ham market.
- 275 Posts
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Asking questions before spending $1000 is of course perfectly reasonable but 90% of the post are whining not questions.
Reasonable questions are ...
"How did the knobs feel? Screen quality? Responsiveness?"
"Does the Bluetooth allow keyboard and mouse support?"
"I wish and hope it could switch on the radio if Remote ON is enabled"
Those are reasonable but if you look at the brochure it answers almost every hardware question that has been asked.
With SO much great technology at our fingertips, my disappointment comes from complaints about mic connectors or N vs AC wifi. Really ?
We have just been handed an amazing capability that removes the need for a bug infested Windows OS or laptop. Something with a touch screen that takes up little to NO room and has Knobs !
I am by no means drinking the Flex Kool-aid. The Maestro won't be for every one or even every Flex owner. Others have seen the potential and jumped on the band wagon. But to pick apart the product at this stage of the game in my opinion shows short sightedness and how far ham radio has devolved. This is the source of my disappointment.
- 275 Posts
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Is it a safe to assume that this was an software engineering decision based on the fact that it would require Flex to write a couple hundred USB drivers to support those devices ?
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I don't know how Flex makes money selling to hams.
Which will be first shipped Maestros or WAN?
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james
WD5GWY
Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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I hope the response you received at Dayton on the Maestro was positive.
Of course any positive feedback you received will quickly be a distant memory when people will start whining about when the next Release will be available or why hasn't the Maestro shipped on Oct. 1st. LOL
Gerald, personally I think this move is right on the money and my hope is this will enable Flex to catch the interest of the knob radio users and grow your market share.
If someone has the insight to read between the lines this is just another piece of the puzzle in your long term strategy. It wasn't that clear before but this "appliance" as you call it brings Flex two steps closer to being able to provide a virtual radio environment.
Simply GRAB the Maestro off your desk, throw it in the padded black carrying case with the embroidered Flex logo that is included with each unit (hint, hint) and hit the road. ;)
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Ken - NM9P, Elmer
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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james
WD5GWY
( Also, hoping to see one in action at HAMCOM in Irving next month!)
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Gerald - K5SDR, Employee
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@Steve, points for that come-back!!!
All seriousness aside, that is huge in my book and I am OK paying extra to keep Americans (ok, even Texans, I suppose) gainfully employed. So part of buying stuff from FRS is all part of the Corey Economic Recovery Act.
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Steve K9ZW, Elmer
- 1321 Posts
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The mention of PoE would be a great inclusion/option for many.
A way to interface one's usual microphones, hand mic, boomset or audio equipment would be something that interests me.
- Could a dedicated hardcase be configured & offered?
- Curious how Maestro will update/upgrade with SmartSDR evolution?
- What is the plan with the Version 1 and Version 2 mentioned at Dayton?
- Will Maestro be software updatable or is this a physical update to the unit?
- Will colors options be user configured (thinking of high contrast configurations for low light use)?
- Will the F-Keys be user configured and could they control station gear other than the Flex-6x00 itself?
- And can I borrow a prototype for a week? (Hopeful - and know if you don't ask it is certainly never going to happen!)
- Am I going to hurt it if it freezes?
- What if it goes -25c, is it okay?
- Ditto on if it is exposed to 125 F heat?
- Water resistance?
Very excellent concept looking to be a lovely product.
73
Steve
K9ZW
Steve - N5AC, VP Engineering / CTO
- 1045 Posts
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This is an excellent idea. I'll look into if it would be possible to add this.
A way to interface one's usual microphones, hand mic, boomset or audio equipment would be something that interests me.
Maestro will have 1/8" mic and headphone inputs as well as an RJ-45.
- Could a dedicated hardcase be configured & offered?
- Curious how Maestro will update/upgrade with SmartSDR evolution?
- What is the plan with the Version 1 and Version 2 mentioned at Dayton?
- Will Maestro be software updatable or is this a physical update to the unit?
- Will colors options be user configured (thinking of high contrast configurations for low light use)?
- Will the F-Keys be user configured and could they control station gear other than the Flex-6x00 itself?
- And can I borrow a prototype for a week? (Hopeful - and know if you don't ask it is certainly never going to happen!)
- Am I going to hurt it if it freezes?
- What if it goes -25c, is it okay?
- Ditto on if it is exposed to 125 F heat?
- Water resistance?
Very excellent concept looking to be a lovely product.
- 1787 Posts
- 622 Reply Likes
Regarding this item:
- What is the plan with the Version 1 and Version 2 mentioned at Dayton?
I'm sure you were bombarded with questions at the booth this week. But when we were talking about Maestro I asked whether it could be be used "with SSDR" as a control surface only. In other words use both my PC running SSDR and Maestro connected to the radio at the same time and using the Maestro knobs, buttons and touch display for controlling the radio only and not displaying the panadapter/waterfall. You suggested that the display on Maestro could be used for additional radio information and not display the panadapter and waterfall in this mode. You said this capability and the ability to connect both the radio and Maestro at the same time might, or might not, be available in version 1. (i.e. it could be in a later version 2 release).
Several of us were discussing this capability at our table at the Flex dinner and it's a variation on the question that my neighbor asked about the "knobs only" prototype that was shown at the dinner. It would be basically a FlexContol on steroids. There was a lot of interest in this capability / mode (about 40 hands raised if I remember correctly).
This might be what Steve is referring to:
Regards, Al / NN4ZZ
al (at) nn4zz (dot) com
Steve K9ZW, Elmer
- 1321 Posts
- 668 Reply Likes
I did pick up on the mention of Ver1 and Ver2 - but perhaps that was simply a way of describing the roll-out feature set become richer with later updates?
There is a LOT of positive to what Maestro will do for a ham - personally I already see how it will open up the possibilities for my vacation QTH site shack design with the LAN removing the need to be in absolute proximity of the radio rack. I'm thinking to use a Maestro along with a Pad to let me move my operating station to anywhere around the QTH's wireless network footprint. Rack of gear can remain physically secure in a server room type environment while I operate from the deck enjoying nature while piling on QSOs. Very fine vision.
Since I'm asking questions:
- Will the configuration of a Maestro be clone-able to another Maestro if I had more than one?
- Will the Flex-6x00 have a timer watchdog or deadman feature to stop transmitting and/or shut down if network to the Maestro is lost?
- Can a Maestro be configured to require a PIN to start a session, or is another security method planned?
- The mention of checking for update via internet, will a non-internet connected private LAN Maestro require occasional internet hookup, or could updates be brought to the private network to seed the update? (Thinking of my Island efforts - often without much in the way of internet).
- Could a Maestro used in the occasional access to internet seed a SmartSDR version update to the remote LAN?
- Or is there a better strategy for handling potentially a mix of version levels that might evolve?
Again many thanks for putting up with all the questions and hoping Maestro is the success it feel like it should be!
73
Steve
K9ZW
Steve K9ZW, Elmer
- 1321 Posts
- 668 Reply Likes
Will the spec sheet we updated as follow up to all these great questions and bits of information?
73
Steve
K9ZW
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