Amateur Radio – a hobby where people talk about their hobby using their hobby.
To dial out to an Echolink node on my NORMAD EchoIRLP node, you need to preface the Echolink node number with an “#” on a DTMF pad or the letter “S” if using a command line.
Example: when connecting to the Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club (W6EK) repeater’s Echolink connection for their Coffee Break Net:
Dial “#4128” on the HTs DTMF pad or …
Type “decode S4128” to connect via command line.
I recently upgraded my PiRLP node to a NORMAD node.
The PiRLP node provided EchoIRLP capability. With the node, I was able to use IRLP and Echolink. The PiRLP interfaced directly to my Kenwood TM-D710. I have been using the nodes from David Cameron, VE7LTD, for a number of years with only very small problems now and again.
Once I got my Davis Vantage Pro2 weather station up on APRS via the same TM-D710, I started experiencing problems with the audio output level of the PiRLP node. The big problem was that if I wanted to use the TM-D710 to get on the local repeater, I had to shut down the PiRLP node first. Not ideal.
Enter the NORMAD IRLP node. I first heard about the node on Jeff’s blog at KE9V.net. Like my node for Wires/Fusion, the NORMAD IRLP node has a small transceiver built into it. This is a great solution. It provides me the ability to dedicate my TM-D710 for weather APRS as well as also using it to monitor the local repeater without making any changes here in the hamshack.
The primary purpose of this blog is to act as a station notebook. A log that serves as a record as to what I am doing in the shack, how I configured certain items, how I overcame obstacles that were in front of me. Admittedly I have done a poor job at keeping up. And sometimes I do not realize or remember what I have placed in the log so it could assist me in the future.
My configuration of the Normad for Echolink operations (in addition to its native IRLP ability) is a great example. I wished I had looked here first – it would have saved me about two hours. I received the Normad and swapped it out with my older PiIRLP. Got on to IRLP immediately. NOTE: here two great troubleshooting commands for trying to get Echolink working; killall tbd and tbd -ddd. The results provided by tbd -ddd show if your callsign and password are valid for the Echolink connection. A key place to start when Echolink is not working correctly.
I also enjoy using the Echolink functionality of EchoIRLP – mainly to listen to the Coffee Break net hosted by W6EK, the Sierra Foothills ARC every morning from 7:30am to 10am (Pacific).
If you are lucky, you have been involved in a truly great net at one point in your radio amateur career. The most memorable net for me was a 2m morning commute net back in Hampton Roads, Virginia. The participants were smart, well spoken, and directed the conversation to a number of topics which almost always focused on some aspect of amateur radio. In classic roundtable fashion, the conversation moved cleanly between those that checked in which allowed the focus to be on the conversation. Mark, N1LO, was one of the ringleaders. I miss those guys.
The Coffee Break Net is very similar. Check it out if you can. While the net does run on their terrestrial repeater (145.430 MHz -0.6 Offset PL Tone 162.2), you can join via AllStar (51018), Wires-X (W6EK-2M-ROOM (62545)), or Echolink (4128).
Keeping the shack in some semblance of order has always been a challenge for me. But the battle continues. Maybe a year ago or more I went through my shelves and transferred the vast majority of the contents that had been stored in a collection of totes and cardboard boxes to a fairly standardized set of see-through storage totes. During the holidays I went through these totes again to actually sort through the items to (1) see what I actually have and (2) attempt to organize and group items in some sort of systematized fashion. And now I am just about there.
Here is a list of small projects I have been working on or hope to soon:
(1) I have an EchoIRLP node that is connected to my shack’s TM-D710A. Previously when someone connects to my node, my only indication is to hear the fan start on the TM-D710A. I have an old, unused and gathering dust, Uniden Bearcat BC245XLT scanner that would be perfect to monitor my nodes frequency from inside the shack. The battery pack that supported the BC245XLT had long expired. Now that all my Anderson Powerpole items are organized I was able to find the correct 12v cable with fitting connector to power up the scanner sitting on the shelf. Now if someone connects and I am in the shack, I will certainly hear them.
(2) There is a lot of excess gear in the shack. Stacks of stuff I really do not need and am not going to use. Now it is time to part with it and send it to a good home. And now I can figure out what I have and what I can sell.
(3) Clean up my J-38. I have checked out the key, it adjusts well and I have used it for some QSOs. I have ordered a base for it from Wally, W6PPP, who has an eBay store that sells a variety of sturdy bases for straight keys as well as knobs for keys.
(4) Adding the sidecar (formally called an attendant console) to my Hamshack Hotline connected Cisco SPA525G2. I can use the sidecar to load up speed dial numbers for connecting to RF nodes, a constant stream of Art Bell shows, or the BBC. If you have a Hamshack Hotline, give me a call: 6100000065.
(5) When the weather clears, I hope to get some work done on the dipole as well as replacing the Davis Vantage Pro2.