Close an extra panadapter¶
When you have multiple panadapters open in a multi-slice layout, you can close any extra one to reclaim screen space. This page explains how to close a panadapter you no longer need.
Before you start¶
- Your radio must be connected. The × (close) button is only available when AetherSDR is connected to a FLEX-8600.
- You must have more than one panadapter open. The × (close) button is hidden in single-pan mode.
Steps¶
- Locate the title bar of the panadapter you want to close. It sits at the top of the panadapter and shows a label such as "Slice A" or "Slice B".
- Click the × button at the right end of that title bar.
The panadapter closes immediately. The remaining panadapters expand to fill the available space.
Tips¶
- If you cannot see the × button, you are in single-pan mode — only one panadapter is open, and closing it is not permitted.
- If the panadapter has been popped out into a floating window, the × button is still in the floating window's title bar at the top right. Click it there.
Troubleshooting¶
- The × button is not visible — The radio is either disconnected or only one panadapter is open. AetherSDR hides the × button in both cases. Connect to the radio and add a second panadapter before trying again.
CW decode panel¶
The CW decode panel appears below the panadapter spectrum and waterfall when CW decoding is active. It shows decoded Morse code text, detection statistics, and controls for tuning the decoder.
CW decode text context menu¶
Right-clicking anywhere inside the CW decode text area opens a context menu. In addition to the standard text editing commands (Select All, Copy, and so on), the menu includes a Clear item. Choosing Clear erases the entire CW decode buffer immediately. This is equivalent to clicking the CLR button in the CW panel toolbar.
CW decode TX/RX coloring¶
In the CW decode panel, received text and transmitted (self-sent) text are rendered in different colors so you can distinguish your own sending from incoming CW. The colors are:
- Green: Confidence cost < 0.15 (high confidence)
- Yellow: Confidence cost < 0.35
- Orange: Confidence cost < 0.60
- Red: Confidence cost >= 0.60 (low confidence)
- Cyan (
#5fc8ff): Text decoded from your own transmitted keying
When switching between transmit and receive, a space is automatically inserted to prevent the colored text runs from merging together.
CW decoder controls¶
The CW decoder toolbar includes the following controls:
| Control | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CW stats label | Indicator | Shows detected CW pitch and speed as <hz> Hz <wpm> WPM |
| Sens | Slider (0-100) | Filters low-confidence decodes; higher values mean stricter filtering. Maps to a cost threshold from 1.0 (0) to 0.1 (100). Setting key: CwDecoderSensitivity |
| 🔒P (Lock Pitch) | Toggle button | Locks the CW decoder pitch to the current tuned frequency |
| 🔒S (Lock Speed) | Toggle button | Locks the CW decoder speed to the current WPM |
| Pitch range slider | Range slider (300-1200 Hz) | Double-handle slider to set the minimum and maximum pitch for the CW decoder search. Default: 500-700 Hz |
| WPM range slider | Range slider (5-60 WPM) | Double-handle slider to set the minimum and maximum speed for the CW decoder search. Default: 15-40 WPM |
| CPY ALL | Button | Copies the full decoded text to the clipboard |
| CPY VIS | Button | Copies only the text currently visible in the scroll area |
| CLR | Button | Clears the CW decode buffer |
| ✕ (close CW) | Button | Hides the CW decode panel |
CW hint indicator¶
When PC audio routing is required but not configured, a hint label appears in the CW panel reminding you that "(requires PC Audio)".
RTTY decode panel (v26.6.3)¶
Starting in v26.6.3, AetherSDR includes an RTTY decode panel that appears below the panadapter when the active slice mode is set to RTTY or DIGL. The panel functions similarly to the CW decode panel but for RTTY decoding.
The RTTY panel includes a dropdown to select the RTTY decoder algorithm and controls for adjusting the decoder parameters. The panel is hidden by default and only appears when the slice mode is set appropriately.
Slice title with Multi-Flex¶
In Multi-Flex sessions, the slice title shown in the panadapter title bar uses the radio-provided index letter so the title matches the slice badge. This ensures consistency when multiple clients are connected to the same radio.
Waterfall freeze behavior¶
The waterfall automatically freezes when any client in a Multi-Flex session begins transmitting. The freeze state is driven by the radio's interlock TRANSMITTING state rather than the local MOX edge, eliminating the 10-23 second TX-trail artifact that could appear after unkeying.
On radio reconnect, the desired panadapter FPS and waterfall line duration are reasserted to prevent silently dropping to the radio's 10 Hz default.
Panadapter theming (v26.6.1)¶
In v26.6.1, the panadapter and its CW decode panel now use theme-aware styling instead of hardcoded colors. The title bar gradient, drag grip dots, slice title, stats labels, and CW panel background all reference theme color tokens. This means the panadapter automatically adapts to light and dark themes without requiring manual color overrides. The theme system replaces the previous fixed-color stylesheets with token-based values such as {{color.background.1}}, {{color.text.secondary}}, and {{color.accent}}.