RIGblaster Plus II USB rig to sound card interface Owners Manual RADIO WEST MOUNTAIN http://www.westmountainradio.com 1020 Spring City Drive, Waukesha, WI 53186 tel 262.522.6503 fax 262.522.6504 © 2015 West Mountain Radio, All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Thank for purchasing a RIGblaster Plus II. The Plus II is easy to install and automatic in operation, It is compatible with virtually every radio ever made and includes over 150 Amateur Radio programs! A whole new world of operating experiences awaits you with the availability of all of these outstanding programs the Plus II offers.
You must be certain there is only one physical ground on your station, as you will now have a radio and a PC. Before you hook up the RIGblaster Plus II, disconnect any wires that may be between your radio and your PC, but leave the power cords plugged in. Put an AC voltmeter between the chassis on your radio and your PC.
TABLE OF CONTENTS DIAGRAM: Connections, controls, and indicators Page 1 SOUND CARD OPERATION, INSTALLATION AND SETUP Step 1: Install PSK31 Software: Connect Receive Audio and...
RIGblaster Plus II connections, controls, and indicators 1 RIGblaster Plus II
SOUND CARD OPERATION, INSTALLATION AND SETUP (READ CAREFULLY and PROCEED IN ORDER) These instructions explain how to use and setup only the RIGblaster Plus II. Refer to the manual for your radio, the help files for your PC and third party ham radio software for the other necessary information. Step 1: Install PSK31 Software — Connect Receive Audio and Start Receiving The RIGblaster is not needed to receive, only transmit, and is recommended to remain in its enclosure.
Now tune in some PSK31 signals on: 14.07015, upper side band. You may use any band but 20 meters always has signals without a good antenna. If you are an advanced user and are trying another mode, tune to a frequency appropriate for that mode. There is a digital mode frequency chart on our DVD for your convenience. Open your Windows virtual control panel for your sound card input recording controls. Select and enable whichever input you are using, mic or line-in.
Step 2: Windows® Plug and Play USB Installation Plug the supplied USB cable between the RIGblaster’s USB port and the USB port on the PC that you plan to use regularly. The Windows® Plug & Play wizard will automatically run from the DVD to install the software. It is recommended to allow it to search the Internet for the best driver files. The software has Microsoft® Logo Certified drivers and the wizard should find these files the Microsoft® driver update server if connected to the internet.
Step 3: Install Your Microphone and Test Its Operation on the Air The unique feature of the RIGblaster Plus II is that out of the box it will work with over 2000 different radios. Because different brands of radios use the same microphone connectors, however, each requires a different wiring. A simple and elegant solution integrated in the unit is microphone wiring jumper blocks to allow for universally matching the different wiring schemes.
NOTE: RJ45 square Modular mic connector radios are used by plugging the radio’s mic into the back of the RIGblaster Plus II,screw in the supplied mic cable onto the front of the RIGblaster, and the RJ45 Modular end into the radio. NOTE: Unusual or old radios may not be included in the assortment of ISC’s supplied. They may be able to be hooked up with individual jumpers. Check our support page for individual wire jumper diagrams for one of these radios.
Step 5: Check That Your Software Will Generate Transmit Audio Tones Set your PC sound card volume. In Windows 98 through XP turn the “Volume” and “Wave” sliders about ¾ of the way up; in Vista or Windows 7, turn up the “Device” and “Application” sliders. Your radio should be off or into a dummy load. Activate transmit on your PSK program with the program’s virtual transmit button or control.
NOTE: Driving to full power, and activating ALC, especially with the radio’s power control turned down at all will result in a wide and distorted signal that is difficult or impossible to copy. Always set the audio drive from the PC to less than full power with the radio’s power/drive control set to maximum. TIP: Once you have the audio transmit power set correctly, you may adjust your PC speaker volume knob for a comfortable level.
NOTE: If you do not set up the software for RTS to do PTT control, you will have to set the radio for break-in or semi-break-in CW operation; both options will properly. Test CW operation by transmitting with the CW software. The radio should transmit CW and the RIGblaster Plus II red CW keying LED indicator should flash with the dots and dashes. The PTT should come on steadily in transmit if you have configured the software for that on RTS. Step 3a: Have Fun Working DX You are on the air with CW.
Step 2b: Configure the PC and Radio for RTTY FSK Operation Presently, to our knowledge the only RTTY software that works with the RIGblaster Plus II or any USB-to-serial interface is MMTTY, and that only by using the author’s EXTFSK extension. The reason is that USBto-serial interfaces will not go down to 45 baud. Follow the MMTTY Help files for setting up the program using the EXTFSK extension to use the correct COM port with PTT on RTS and FSK keying on DTR.
NOTE: If you wish to do both rig control and sound card operation at the same time, you need a single program that does both of those functions. If you wish to use two different programs, one for rig control and one for sound card you must have two interfaces. Programs that do both rig control and sound card operation include Hamscope and MixW.
Step 3c: Setting Up Rig Control Software for Rig Control Since radios have settings for the rig control communications, it is logical that the software must be set to match those settings exactly. Most rig control programs will use the radio default settings if you select the exact model radio. Be aware, for example, if you have an IC706MKIIG and you set your software to an IC706MKII (NO “G”) the rig control will not work at all! This is true of other series of radios also.
TROUBLESHOOTING If you have installed the RIGblaster Plus II, step-by-step, from this manual you need not go back to a previous step. The problem is isolated to the step that you had a problem on. If you contact us for support please be sure you know which step of this manual you cannot go any further on before calling or writing. Most RIGblaster problems usually have nothing to do with the RIGblaster or how it is connected. They are typically software related and can only be fixed with a mouse.
TIP: The RF power / drive control on the radio is not set to maximum causing the PC not to have enough audio to drive the radio even to half output. TIP: The RF power / drive control on the radio is not set to maximum causing the drive stages and ALC to distort your signal causing it to be wide and distorted. Set the RF drive to maximum and turn down the audio drive to the desired RF power level. TIP: Low impedance headphones or speakers are loading down the audio output from the sound card.
RIGblaster Plus II Warranty RIGblaster Plus II is warranted against failure due to defects in workmanship or materials for one year after the date of purchase from West Mountain Radio. Warranty does not cover damage caused by abuse, accident, misuse, improper or abnormal usage, failure to follow instructions, improper installation, alteration, lightning, or other incidence of excessive voltage or current.
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