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Set the radio nickname, callsign and station name

Set a human-readable nickname, your callsign, and a station name on the connected FLEX-8600. These values identify the radio and this client to other multiFLEX stations on the network.

Before you start

  • AetherSDR must be connected to the radio. The Radio (tab) controls are not available without an active connection.

Steps

  1. Open Settings > Radio Setup....
  2. Click the Radio tab.
  3. In the Radio Identification group, locate the Nickname field. Type the nickname you want to assign to the radio.
  4. Press Tab or click away from the field to confirm. AetherSDR sends the new name to the radio immediately.
  5. In the Callsign field, type your station callsign.
  6. Press Tab or click away from the field to confirm.
  7. In the Station Name field, type the name that identifies this client to other multiFLEX stations.
  8. Press Tab or click away from the field to confirm.
  9. Click Close to dismiss the dialog.

What each control does

Control Description Default
Nickname User-friendly label for the radio. Sent to the radio as the radio name. Radio's reported name
Callsign Your station callsign, stored on the radio. (blank)
Station Name Identifies this AetherSDR client to other multiFLEX stations. OS hostname
TX Follows Active Slice TX follows the active slice. Mutually exclusive with Active Slice Follows TX. Disabled automatically during Split operation. False
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. False
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
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
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 is hidden from the Connected status if a ShackSwitch (not a standard Antenna Genius) is the connected device. Connect
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 is hidden from the Connected status if an Antenna Genius (non-ShackSwitch) is the connected device. Connect
⚙ 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. —
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. INTERNAL
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(). Use Aether defaults
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. —

Firmware update (Radio tab)

Use the firmware update controls in the Radio tab to check for and apply firmware updates to the radio.

To check for a firmware update

  1. Open Settings > Radio Setup....
  2. Click the Radio tab.
  3. Click Check for Update.
  4. If an update is available, the status label shows the available version number and instructs you to download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com, then use Select Installer... to stage it.
  5. If firmware is up to date, the status label confirms the current version in green.

To stage and upload firmware

  1. Download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com. AetherSDR accepts .msi (FlexRadio v4.2+ WiX installer), .exe (older self-extracting installer), or a pre-extracted .ssdr firmware file.
  2. Click Select Installer...
  3. The file picker opens with the filter set to *.msi *.exe *.ssdr.
  4. Select the downloaded file and click Open.
  5. AetherSDR begins preparing the firmware automatically. The status label shows "Preparing firmware from \<filename>..." and the progress bar appears.
  6. The firmware stager auto-detects the file format from the first 8 bytes (OLE/MSI magic vs PE/COFF MZ) and extracts the .ssdr payload without external tools.
  7. When staging is complete, Upload Firmware becomes enabled.
  8. Click Upload Firmware to send the firmware to the radio.
  9. A progress bar tracks the upload.
  10. The status label reports the result when the upload finishes.

Note: In v0.9.3 the button formerly labelled Browse .ssdr... was renamed to Select Installer... and extended to accept .msi and .exe installer packages in addition to .ssdr files. The automatic download-and-stage path that had been triggered by a second click of Check for Update was also removed; download the installer manually from flexradio.com instead.

Firmware update controls

Control Description
Check for Update Queries the update server for the latest available firmware version.
Select Installer... Opens a file picker. Select a .msi, .exe, or .ssdr file. AetherSDR stages the firmware automatically after selection.
Upload Firmware Sends the staged firmware to the radio. Enabled only after a file has been successfully staged.
Firmware status label Empty until an operation begins, then shows progress and result text.

Frequency calibration (RX tab)

The RX tab provides manual frequency offset calibration regardless of whether a GPSDO is installed.

  • If a GPSDO is installed, the status label reads "GPSDO installed. Manual frequency offset calibration available." in green.
  • If no GPSDO is installed, the status label reads "Manual frequency offset calibration available." in amber.

In both cases the Cal Frequency (MHz) field and the Start button are always shown.

To run a frequency calibration

  1. Open Settings > Radio Setup....
  2. Click the RX tab.
  3. Enter a known reference frequency in the Cal Frequency (MHz) field.
  4. Click Start.
  5. The button label changes to Busy and is disabled while calibration is in progress.
  6. A status label beside the button shows the current state (for example, "Starting…").
  7. AetherSDR resets the frequency error to 0 ppb (radio set freq_error_ppb=0) before initiating the calibration sweep.
  8. Wait for the status label to report completion. The Start button re-enables automatically.

Cal Frequency (MHz) field behavior

Condition Result
Field is empty when Start is clicked Status label shows "Enter cal frequency" in amber; calibration does not start.
Valid frequency entered AetherSDR sends radio set cal_freq=<value>, resets freq error to 0 ppb, then starts the PLL calibration sweep.

RX tab controls

Control Description Default
Cal Frequency (MHz) Reference frequency used for manual calibration. Always shown from v0.9.2.1 onward, regardless of GPSDO presence. —
Start Starts the frequency calibration sweep. Disabled and labelled Busy while a calibration is running. —
Freq Offset (ppb) Manual frequency offset in parts per billion. —
10 MHz Reference Source Selects oscillator reference: Auto, TCXO, GPSDO, or External 10 MHz. Options shown depend on installed hardware and the oscillator state reported by the radio. The combo is populated dynamically: Auto is always present; TCXO appears when the radio reports a TCXO or oscillator status is available; GPSDO appears when a GPSDO is present; External 10 MHz appears when an external reference is detected or oscillator status is available. If the radio reports ext as the oscillator value, it is treated as external. Lock status updates live alongside the selector — green when locked, red when unlocked. When Auto is selected
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