I am having a heck of a time getting Thetis (running on my HL2 ) to talk and listen to FLdigi. Surely settings are wrong, but finding the right ones on either or both is daunting to say the least. Will digirig automate the process or make it less byzantine to an old analog oriented guy? Anybody done it and care to share?
73 Jim KD4YLQ
Not automate, but maybe help with performance. HL2 is digital. Thetis uses the PC’s soundcard to convert the signals to analog audio, but then you want to keep them on the computer to pipe them to fldigi for further processing. Digirig might be helpful for a PC with a poor soundcard.
Here’s what the FAQ FAQ · softerhardware/Hermes-Lite2 Wiki · GitHub says:
I use HL2, in a limited way, with Quisk and fldigi. I had difficulty getting Thetis to do what I wanted on transmit, so I invested my time in Quisk. Of course Thetis is very popular and many people succeed with it.
I see that you are also active on the HL2 discussion group:
I agree with the advice to Install and use the Virtual Audio Cables to connect Thetis audio to fldigi audio.
How far have you gotten in the process?
73 Constrainted
Hi! I bought the Virtual Audio Cables and connected as per recommendation - now I have audio to run & decode the waterfall. My next step - the one I’m really wary of - is getting FLdigi to control Thetis, so I can jump to whatever signal I want on the waterfall directly and start transmitting without going to Thetis manually. There are no rig configurations in Hamlib or RigCAT for HL2, so it’ll be hit and miss (miss more likely) trying to set up rig control using flrig or C-Media PTT or Hardware PTT in descending order.
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OK, so you are making progress! Great.
73 Constrainted
@KD4YLQ Congratulations on the VACs. Which one did you choose?
I am not trying to talk you out of Thetis. With Quisk, you can succeed with fldigi using xml-rpc protocol. Probably with Thetis, too. xml-rpc is the way W1HKJ has designed fldigi to communicate with flrig, so it is well supported on the fldigi side. Here are the relevant Quisk v4.2.23 and fldigi v4.2.03 config pages:
I think Thetis probably has a similar configuration option. Maybe on this page from beta release v2.10.3.3-HL2 of Thetis for HL2.:
73 Constrainted
Yes, you can use Digirig for PTT on the HL2. I prototyped a custom cable TRRS ↔ TRS, configured a digital mode application (not fldigi) to pull PTT on TX, set the appropriate config in Quisk, and the Digirig did the job.
73 Constrainted
Thanks for the screenshots and thoughtful comments. I am pretty committed to Thetis & HL2 now and have been making steady progress. Got breakthrough help help from Tim ZL3PIE and am now able to run both FLdigi and WSJT-X. Some nagging issues remain, but probably all my own fault for lack of proper understanding. Now I need to absorb a lot and make the inevitable on-the-air mistakes so I can get real-time feedback from those who are fluent in the digital modes and improve my op skills. Thanks again for the assistance and hope to meet you on the bands!
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@KD4YLQ Congratulations on your success and thanks for reporting back. Is the Digirig a part of the solution?
73 Constrainted
Inspired by your success, I took a dive into Thetis again. Thetis does not support xml-rpc protocol that flrig and fldigi use. It does support another client-server method, transceiver control interface, TCI. fldigi does not have a client for TCI yet, but flrig does on port 40001, since version 2.0.02.
Another way to connect fldigi and Thetis, is to use virtual serial ports (VSP). I used that method and have it working for frequency, mode, band and PTT. I could have used the Digirig for hardware PTT, but I didn’t for this exercise.
73 Constrainted
I can see how Thetis supports voice communication very well. Thanks to your inspiration when I went back to Thetis I dug in and solved my problems with protecting the RX input stage during TX. Now I know maybe I won’t blow the LNA up!
Have fun with your HL2.
73 Constrainted
Yes, I did use virtual serial ports - a rather expensive (for limited budget guys like me) aftermarket software solution, but it works. Thanks for your followup investigation!
73 de Jim KD4YLQ
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I share your budget. I wish we had been in communication. I found a VSP for amateur radio operators which K5FR provides at the cost of an email and a call sign:
VSP Manager - DDUtilV3 (k5fr.com)
73 Constrainted
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