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Assign a USB cable as CAT, BCD, bit or PTT

Use this page to configure the USB serial adapters connected to your FLEX-8600 and assign each one a role — CAT control, BCD band data, individual bit output, or PTT — along with its serial parameters and behavior options.

Before you start

  • Connect the USB serial adapter(s) to the computer running AetherSDR before opening the dialog.
  • AetherSDR must be connected to the radio. The USB Cables tab is not available without an active radio connection.

Steps

  1. Open Settings > USB Cables.... This opens the Radio Setup dialog directly on the USB Cables tab. Alternatively, open Settings > Radio Setup... and click the USB Cables tab.
  2. Locate the cables list on the left side of the tab. Each detected USB cable appears with its name and a Plugged or Unplugged status indicator.
  3. Select the cable you want to configure by clicking it in the list.
  4. Set the cable type using the Name: field and the associated type selector. Choose from CAT, BCD, bit, or PTT depending on the role this cable should serve.
  5. Set Enabled to enable the cable. The cable will not function until it is enabled.
  6. Configure the serial parameters for the cable:
  7. Speed — baud rate for the serial connection.
  8. Data Bits — number of data bits.
  9. Parity — parity setting.
  10. Stop Bits — number of stop bits.
  11. Flow — flow control method.
  12. Configure the behavioral options relevant to the cable type:
  13. Source — selects what drives the cable output.
  14. Auto Report — controls whether state changes are reported automatically.
  15. BCD Type — selects the BCD encoding format (BCD cables only).
  16. Polarity — sets active-high or active-low logic.
  17. Bit Configuration (0–7) — assigns functions to individual output bits (bit cables only).
  18. Repeat steps 3–7 for any additional cables.
  19. Click Close to dismiss the dialog. Settings take effect immediately when each cable is enabled; no separate Apply step is required.

What each control does

Control Description Notes
Cables list / Status Lists all detected USB serial adapters with Plugged or Unplugged status. Select a cable here to edit its settings.
Name: User-visible label for the cable.
Enabled Activates the cable. The cable is inactive until enabled.
Speed Serial baud rate.
Data Bits Number of serial data bits.
Parity Serial parity: None, Even, Odd, etc.
Stop Bits Number of stop bits.
Flow Flow control method (None, Hardware, Software).
Source Selects the radio signal source that drives the cable output.
Auto Report When active, the radio reports state changes to the cable automatically.
BCD Type Selects the BCD band-data encoding format. Applies to BCD-type cables only.
Polarity Sets whether the output logic is active-high or active-low.
Bit Configuration (0–7) Maps individual output pins to specific functions. Applies to bit-type cables only.
TX Follows Active Slice TX follows the active slice. Mutually exclusive with Active Slice Follows TX. Disabled automatically during Split operation.
Active Slice Follows TX Switches the active slice when TX moves externally (e.g. WSJT-X or CAT). Mutually exclusive with TX Follows Active Slice.
Voice / CW / Digital filter sharpness sliders Sets filter sharpness (0=lowest latency to 3=sharpest) per mode; slider is disabled when Auto is enabled. Commands sent as radio filter_sharpness <mode> level=<N>.
Auto (Voice / CW / Digital) Enables automatic filter-level selection for that mode; disables the manual sharpness slider. Commands sent as radio filter_sharpness <mode> auto_level=1.
Connect / Disconnect (TGXL) Opens/closes direct TCP connection to the TGXL on port 9010. Saves IP and port to TGXL_ManualIp and TGXL_ManualPort on connect so AetherSDR auto-reconnects on startup. Required to recover TUNE on firmware 4.2+. When connected, the TUNE button sends the native autotune command directly to the TGXL instead of the radio-side tgxl autotune handle=<H> path broken in firmware 4.2. The TGXL drives radio PTT via its hardware interlock cable; no client-side keying is needed. If the IP field is empty and the radio has discovered the TGXL, the discovered IP is pre-filled.
Connect / Disconnect (PGXL) Opens/closes direct TCP connection to the Power Genius XL (default port 9008). Saves IP and port to PGXL_ManualIp and PGXL_ManualPort.
Connect / Disconnect (Antenna Genius) Opens/closes connection to the Antenna Genius (default port 9007). Saves IP and port to AG_ManualIp and AG_ManualPort. The row shows Connected status only when the connected device is a standard Antenna Genius, not a ShackSwitch.
Connect / Disconnect (ShackSwitch) Opens/closes connection to a ShackSwitch antenna switch via the AG UDP/TCP protocol on port 9007. Saves IP to SS_ManualIp and port to SS_ControlPort. ShackSwitch is detected by the 'ShackSwitch' field in the AG broadcast beacon. Auto-discovery via UDP also works without this row. Row hidden from Connected status if Antenna Genius (non-ShackSwitch) is the connected device.
⚙ Web UI (ShackSwitch) Opens the ShackSwitch device's local web configuration interface in the system browser. Uses the beacon's webPort if greater than 1024, otherwise falls back to SS_WebPort or port 5000.
Select Installer... Opens a file picker that accepts .msi (FlexRadio v4.2+ WiX installer), .exe (older self-extracting installer), or a pre-extracted .ssdr firmware file. The firmware stager auto-detects format from the first 8 bytes (OLE/MSI magic vs PE/COFF MZ) and extracts the .ssdr without external tools. Label changed from Browse .ssdr... in v0.9.3. When an update is available, download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com, then click Select Installer... to stage it.
APD (tab) External Adaptive Pre-Distortion sampler configuration — per-TX-antenna selection of the feedback sample port (INTERNAL / RX_A / RX_B / XVTA / XVTB) and an equalizer reset button. Tab is hidden unless the radio reports apd configurable=1. Only FLEX-8x00 series with SmartSDR 4.2.18+ firmware exposes this; 6000-series and pre-4.2.18 radios keep the tab invisible.
ANT1 / ANT2 / XVTA / XVTB sampler combos (APD) Selects the feedback path the radio uses to sample the outgoing RF for APD training for that TX antenna. Choose an external RX/XVTR input when driving an external linear amplifier. Options are populated live from the radio's apd sampler sub-object. Falls back to INTERNAL if the radio reports an unrecognised value.
Equalizer Reset (APD) Sends apd reset to the radio, clearing all per-antenna APD training data so adaptation starts fresh.
Themes (tab) UI customization tab — currently hosts the Slice Colors section.
Use Aether defaults / Custom colors Switches the slice color scheme between the built-in AetherSDR palette and a fully custom per-slice set. Backed by SliceColorManager::useCustomColors().
Slice A–H color buttons Click any lettered button (A–H) to open a color picker and assign a custom color for that slice. Changes are visible immediately in VFO widgets, panadapter overlays, and CAT channel badges. Buttons are disabled when Use Aether defaults is selected. Up to 8 slices.
Reset All to Defaults (Themes) Resets all custom slice colors to the built-in AetherSDR palette.

RX tab — frequency calibration (v0.9.2.1)

The RX tab now shows the frequency calibration controls regardless of whether a GPSDO is installed. In previous releases, the calibration fields were hidden when a GPSDO was detected.

  • If a GPSDO is installed, a green status line reads "GPSDO installed. Manual frequency offset calibration available."
  • If no GPSDO is installed, a yellow status line reads "Manual frequency offset calibration available."

In both cases the Cal Frequency (MHz):, Start, and Freq Offset (ppb): controls are always visible.

Calibration procedure

  1. Open Settings > Radio Setup... and click the RX tab.
  2. Enter a known-accurate reference frequency in Cal Frequency (MHz):.
  3. Click Start. The button changes to Busy and is disabled while calibration runs. A status label to the right of the button shows progress text.
  4. "Starting…" appears immediately.
  5. The radio receives radio set cal_freq=<value> followed by radio set freq_error_ppb=0, then radio pll_start to begin the sweep.
  6. If you leave the Cal Frequency (MHz): field empty and click Start, the status label shows "Enter cal frequency" in amber and the calibration does not start.
  7. Wait for the status label to indicate completion. The Start button re-enables automatically.
  8. Confirm or adjust the result using Freq Offset (ppb):.

RX tab controls

Control Description Notes
Cal Frequency (MHz): Frequency used for calibration, entered in MHz to six decimal places. Sent to the radio as radio set cal_freq=<value>.
Start Begins the calibration sweep. Disabled and labelled Busy while a calibration is in progress. Resets freq_error_ppb to 0 before starting. Requires a non-empty cal frequency.
Freq Offset (ppb): Manual frequency offset correction in parts per billion.
10 MHz Reference Source: Selects the oscillator reference: Auto, TCXO, GPSDO, or External 10 MHz. Available options depend on installed hardware and the current oscillator state reported by the radio. The status label next to the selector updates live. When Auto is selected and the radio has resolved to a specific source, the label shows "Auto -> \<source>" to indicate the active hardware. If an External 10 MHz source is selected but no external signal is detected, the label appends "(not detected)". Lock status (Locked / Unlocked) is shown in green or red respectively. The label reads "Waiting for oscillator status" until the radio reports its first oscillator state.

Firmware update (v0.9.3)

In v0.9.3, the firmware update workflow changed. AetherSDR no longer downloads the installer automatically. When Check for Update reports that a newer version is available, download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com yourself, then use Select Installer... to stage it locally.

Supported installer formats

| Format

⚡ Athena AetherSDR Assistant
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