Commander Online Help Contents
Devices like antenna tuners and linear amplifiers have controls whose settings are frequency-dependent. While high-end units do this automatically, most require you to manually move the controls each time you change operating frequency. Commander enables you to specify tables for such devices, eliminating the need for paper tables taped to the front-panel. Up to four different frequency-dependent devices are supported, each with up to three controls.
You can optionally use a control's settings to set the value of one a command-generating slider; this could be used, for example, to automatically control your transceiver's power output as a function of frequency
The right side of Commander's Main window is shared by frequency-dependent device readouts, receiver filter controls, and eight banks of ten memories. If the frequently-dependent device settings are not visible, click the Main window's Filters & Devices button to make them and the receiver filter controls appear in place of the memory banks.
To setup a frequency-dependent device, perform the following procedure:
| Step | Directions |
| 1 | on Commander's main window, click the Devices tab, and then click the Config button |
| 3 | on Commander's Configuration window, click the Device 1 tab |
| 4 | check the Enabled box; if the main window is visible, you'll see a device panel appear on its Devices tab (the names on this panel will be updated as you complete the next three steps) |
| 5 | enter the name of the device in the Device Name box |
| 6 | enter the number of controls associated with this device in the # Controls box; reasonable values are 1, 2, or 3. |
| 7 | enter the
name of the first control in the Control 1 box; if there's
a second control, enter its name in the Control 2 box
and if there's a third control, enter its name in the Control 3 box.
to drive a command-generating slider with a control, set the control's name to <Sn> where n is a number from 1 to 8 that identifies the slider being driven |
| 8 | scroll the Device
Table to the frequencies of interest, and enter the control
values for each such frequency; after entering each value, strike the
enter key; it is not necessary to enter control values for every
frequency in the table
note: depressing the CTRL key while click on a device table entry will QSY your transceiver to that entry's frequency; this makes it easy to determine or verify settings |
| 9 | click the Save button and specify a destination filename into which the device table you just created will be saved for use in subsequent Commander sessions. |
It is not necessary to enter control values for each frequency in the Device Table. Device table entries without values for each control are invalid and thus ignored.
Whenever your radio changes frequency, Commander performs a device table lookup for each frequency-dependent device. It locates the valid table entry closest to your radio's operating frequency; if the difference between this table entry's frequency and your radio's operating frequency is within the range specified by the Tolerance box, the appropriate control settings are displayed in the appropriate device panel on the Devices tab of Commander's main window. If there is no valid table entry within the tolerance range of your radio's operating frequency, the device panel's control settings are blanked.
You can change the tolerance range by modifying the number in the Tolerance box; tolerance is expressed as a percentage of operating frequency.
If you terminate Commander and later restart it, saved device tables will automatically be reloaded for each enabled device.
You can use the above procedure to create an alternate device table -- say for a backup amplifier -- stored in a separate file. The Select button allows you to choose the file from which the device table will be loaded. The ReLoad button restores the device table to the values contained in the most recently-loaded file.
To add a new entry to a device table, scroll to its bottom, where you will find a blank line with an asterisk in the grey left-most column. Key in the entry's frequency, followed by the Enter key -- as Commander keeps the Device Table sorted in ascending frequency order, the new entry may well disappear from view. If you're planning to add several entries, it is more efficient to first create the entries, and then scroll through the Device Table entering control values for the newly-created entries.
To delete an entry in the device table, select it by clicking in the grey left-most column; then strike the Delete key.