I am struggling to get VARA FM setup to work with my ID-5100A using Digirig and could really use some help! I already have WInlink, VARA AC and VARA HF set up and running with my IC-7300 and working with no problems. I added the VARA FM module and set it up for Digirig. My PC recognized the Digirig and assigned COM4 as the port for Digirig. COM3 is assigned for my IC-7300 by the way. The problem is that VARA FM does not give me any option for a COM port when I try to configure it. The dropdown for COM port selection is blank in the software.
I am only getting more confused searching around the internet for a solution. Any ideas how to resolve? Do I need to set up a completely separate installation of Winlink, Soundmodem, etc. for FM to get this to work? Since VARA FM has a separate setup for sound, I assumed the answer is no. Also, any guides on ID-5100A settings once I get VARA FM working would also help. For example what mode do I use? FM Voice or DV?
Thanks for the response, but the point is that there is no COM port to select in the dropdown menu for “Port:” despite the fact that it shows up under Device Manager that there is an active COM4 port using the Proper Silicon Labs driver.
That is frustrating. Could you post some screenshots of the configuration windows and device manager? Maybe someone else here will be able to pick up on something.
As you can see, there is no COM port to select for PTT even though everything looks OK in Device Manager. All drivers are up to date and this works OK for VARA HF connected directly to my IC-7300.
Yes, my VARA FM Setup in Winlink matches that. I have not any any more luck. Hopefully someone familiar with the issue will stumble across this thread.
So is the COM port dropdown disabled or shows an empty list?
I would try launching this config immediately following the reboot of the computer to ensure no other software is getting exclusive access to the port before you have a chance to select it.
Yeah, I’ve tried to launch config immediately after reboot. Same problem. Nothing in the dropdown list to select. Just a blank. Something is preventing access to the COM port. I have BitDefender installed and I disabled USB port scans. Also, it says that it has not blocked anything. I am struggling to figure out how to totally disable BitDefender without uninstalling it.
This doesn’t appear to be a Digirig specific problem since your IC-7300’s port is also not in the list.
Try reinstalling VaraFM, disable/uninstall the any software that you think might interfere, try on a different computer.
My IC-7300 shows up as COM3 when it is connected only. It was not connected when I took the screen shot because I did not want to have the possibility of a conflict. My laptop is new and dedicated just to Winlink and basic service operation. All I have loaded on the laptop is MSOffice, Bitdefender, Windows Process Explorer (in the last day for troubleshooting) and Winlink/VARA components. For some reason, Winlink/VARA AC/VARA HF recognize COM3 when I have my IC-7300 connected and everything works fine. VARA FM does not recognize COM4 when I have Digirig connected. However, Windows does recognize COM4 is active when I connect the Digirig. This logically implies to me that there is some problem with the VARA FM software recognizing the port rather than the Digirig hardware. I am an amateur at this though. As stated earlier, all cables I am using I purchased from Digirig. I have tried connecting with and without the USB port isolator - no difference.
Since my last post, I have totally disabled Bitdefender without effect. I deleted all traces of VARA FM and re-installed using a fresh download. No change. I downloaded Process Explorer to see if some software is tying up the COM port and did not see any evidence of that. I am exasperated! I hope someone has another idea because I’m out of them. I want to use my Digirig!
Hmm. Even the UART chipsets are the same between IC-7300 and Digirig.
Are you able to access Digirig’s port from other software such as WSJT-X or PuTTY?
Great idea to try other programs! I verified that WSJT-X works to control my IC-7300 on COM3 as configured for Winlink. Then I shutdown, plugged in the Digirig, restarted WSJT-X, got the expected error because COM3 was not there, went to settings, and there was COM4 for the Digirig in the dropdown list! Do we conclude from this that there is a bug in the VARA FM code?
Sounds like it, but I don’t remember hearing about this issue from other operators. You can try finding earlier versions of the app to see if they suffer from the same issue.
FYI, with help from the Winlink Development Team, my problem was resolved by editing the .ini file for VARA FM to indicate the actual COM port for the Digirig rather than the assigned (by default?) COM1 port. Secondly, I was told that Vara FM 4.3.7 resolves the issue with blank dropdown lists under Window 11.
