Successfully used a Signalink Soundcard for Winlink - VARA FM Narrow communication
Bryan
Note: Before you read on, I want to point out that I could not get this to work with Winlink Packet. It had no problem transmitting packets to a Winlink Gateway, but it could not decode any packets when received. If you have any ideas of why Winlink VARA FM worked so well but not Winlink Packet, let me know. That said, this is how I got VARA FM Narrow to work.
For this testing I used a Signalink soundcard. However, during the Christmas break coming up, I plan on using a DRA soundcard from masterscommunications.com. I will want to see if both VARA FM Narrow and Wide will work with that soundcard.
There is no Signalink jumper module for this radio’s mic jack configuration. If you buy the Signalink, SLUSBRJ4 it will come with the correct cable, SLCABRJ4. But this cable is simply an RJ45. You probably have some of these cables in storage. Since I happened to have an extra Signalink and an extra RJ45 cable, I didn’t need to buy anything. I figured why not give this testing a try.
Here is the VR-N7500 mic pinout looking down at the wires in the cable connector (not at the radio). All we care about right now is building the cable.
To connect the radio to the Signalink, I used a CAT 5E RJ45 cable. I did not have to modify the cable. Rather, I modified the jumper wires inside the Signalink. The settings below show the jumper wire settings needed inside the Signalink box.
G
G
G ---> 3 (GND)
…
PWR
PTT ---> 5 (PTT)
MIC ---> 8 (MIC)
SPKR ---> 7 (AFOUT)
Connect the Signalink to the computer using the USB printer cable. Turn on the Signalink. Connect the RJ45 cable from the Signalink to the radio’s Mic input.
Next step is to set all the audio settings. Best to download VARA FM and you can easily adjust the receive audio so that the VU audio input is in the middle. Adjusting the audio out is a little more difficult. I used the VARA FM Soundcard>Auto Tune feature which helped a lot. Of course, this can only be done if you have a nearby VARA FM Winlink gateway or you have a second radio running VARA FM.
Here are my settings. They may vary for your setup. Don’t make the same mistake that I usually make. Make sure to write down your original settings before changing any.
Signalink Settings
At the front panel of the Signalink, set the TX to the 3rd notch (facing left), the RX exactly in the middle (facing up), and the Delay to 0 (all the way down and to the left).
HT App Settings
Device Settings
Volume – maxed out to 15 (this gave the highest S/N)
Squelch level – 0
Wired microphone speaker – Off or On (doesn’t matter, I left it off since I use a wireless mic)
General Settings
Microphone Gain – Low
Windows Computer Audio Settings
If using Windows 11 you can find the system sounds by clicking on Search at the bottom and typing system sounds. I’m not sure why Windows 11 makes this so difficult to find now.
Playback>USB Audio CODEC Speakers
Level – 30
Recording>USB Audio CODEC Microphone
Level – 17
Note: Playback is for transmitting. Recording is for receive. Intuitively, it might sound backwards but when you think about it, it makes sense.
Winlink testing with VARA FM Narrow
Since I am currently using a Signalink soundcard, I could only test VARA FM Narrow. However, the results were very good. Using VARA FM Narrow I could send and receive at 12000 bps. This is better than Packet at 9600 baud. Granted, I was sending and receiving to my Winlink gateway, which is only 100ft away from my shack, but it proves that the Vero VR-N7500 can successfully work digital modes such as Winlink using VARA FM Narrow and get maximum throughput. I was hoping that Winlink Packet would work but it could not decode the received packets no matter how I rearranged the sound settings.
Bryan, KF1D
Luke Hopkins
Many thanks for this detailed walkthrough, very useful!
Perhaps it could be converted to PDF and uploaded to the files in Gdrive?
From: <vero...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Bryan <rad6...@gmail.com>
Reply-To: <Vero...@googlegroups.com>
Date: Sunday, December 4, 2022 at 10:17 AM
To: Vero VR N7500 Dual Radio Band <Vero...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [Veron VR-N7500 Google Group] Successfully used a Signalink Soundcard for Winlink - VARA FM Narrow communication
The following explains how I used the Vero VR-N7500 with Winlink and VARA FM Narrow
Note: Before you read on, I want to point out that I could not get this to work with Winlink Packet. It had no problem transmitting packets to a Winlink Gateway, but it could not decode any packets when received. If you have any ideas of why Winlink VARA FM worked so well but not Winlink Packet, let me know. That said, this is how I got VARA FM Narrow to work.
For this testing I used a Signalink soundcard. However, during the Christmas break coming up, I plan on using a DRA soundcard from masterscommunications.com. I will want to see if both VARA FM Narrow and Wide will work with that soundcard.
There is no Signalink jumper module for this radio’s mic jack configuration. If you buy the Signalink, SLUSBRJ4 it will come with the correct cable, SLCABRJ4. But this cable is simply an RJ45. You probably have some of these cables in storage. Since I happened to have an extra Signalink and an extra RJ45 cable, I didn’t need to buy anything. I figured why not give this testing a try.
Here is the VR-N7500 mic pinout looking down at the wires in the cable connector (not at the radio). All we care about right now is building the cable.
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Marnoch Standen
Thanks Bryan
All done.
Min G0JMS
From: vero...@googlegroups.com [mailto:vero...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Bryan
Sent: 04 December 2022 18:17
To: Vero VR N7500 Dual Radio Band <Vero...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [Veron VR-N7500 Google Group] Successfully used a Signalink Soundcard for Winlink - VARA FM Narrow communication
The following explains how I used the Vero VR-N7500 with Winlink and VARA FM Narrow
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