Blog or Die H-RADIO 4.2 Indicators and Panel

Specifications

• Model: H-RADIO 4.2
• Frequency Bands: FM, SSB
• Display: Indicator panel
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
• Power Source: Battery

Product Usage Instructions

Main Screen:
The main screen displays the tuning frequency, stereo broadcast reception indicator, current date and time, and RDS information for the FM band.

Home Screen Buttons:

• • UP/DN: Search for broadcast stations up or down in frequency.
  • HAM: Select an amateur radio band.
  • SCAN: Range scanner.

Quick Start Panel / BFO Generator:
The quick start panel allows you to quickly include circuit elements such as Bluetooth module, HF preamplifier, antenna input impedance switching, and touch screen lock.

Indicators and panel quick start

• S-meter (press to change the view and switch to the histogram or “waterfall” mode for the low-frequency signal, press and hold to turn metering on/off RSSI/SNR signal quality, use for  reduce digital noise
• volume (press to turn sound on/off)
• SQ – indicator of a working squelch MF – simultaneous function indicator listening to multiple frequencies (page 5)
• indicator panel for switching on circuit elements (click to display control buttons)  (page 3)
• Wi-Fi connection (tap to turn on/off) indicator color: green – connection active orange – no Internet connection red – connection error gray – no available networks
• battery charge level (tap to display in percentage or volts) “lightning” is displayed while the battery is charging as the charge level decreases, the color changes to yellow and red

Status panel

• use of BFO generator for fine tuning to frequency
• automatic gain or attenuator
• LF bandwidth
• range
• modulation
• setup step

Main screen (FM band)

• tuning frequency in MHz (press and hold to switch between VFO A/B)
• signal quality:
  • RSSI – level
  • SNR – signal-to-noise ratio
• stereo broadcast reception indicator in range FM (press to turn on/off stereo reception)
• current date and time
• RDS information (station name, text, and program type)

Main screen (SSB modulation)

• tuning frequency in kHz (click to directly set frequency without using BFO offset, color the numbers will change to white)
• indicator of a variable digit in the frequency when tuning (click on the corresponding digit to installations)
• indicator of the passage of waves on the selected range (information obtained from the Internet), the otherr indicator shows the quality of passage (red – bad, yellow – average, green – good)
• information about the type of amateur radio communication used in the current range section

Buttons

• HAM selection of amateur radio band (page 6)
• BAND selection of broadcast band (page 6)
• FREQ frequency setting / simultaneous mode listening to multiple frequencies (page 5)
• STEP selection of tuning step (page 6)
• BANDW selection of bass bandwidth (page 6)
• MODE modulation selection/decoder modes (page 6)
• VOL / MUTE volume control (page 4)
• AGC on/off automatic gain (page 4)
• ATT attenuator control (page 4)
• BFO control of BFO oscillator/frequency generator SI5351 (page 3)
• UP search for broadcast stations up in frequency
• DN search for broadcast stations downward in frequency
• SCAN range scanner (page 8)
• LIGHT display brightness control (page 19)
• MEMO memory of stations and cities (page 9)
• RETRO retro receiver scale (page 12)
• CB civil band CB channels (page 11)
• FM fast switching of saved stations FM band of current location (page 11)
• RDS on/off RDS functions
• SETUP device settings (page 13)
• INFO information about the device, settings, and passing waves (page 17)
• NEXT / BACK switching between pages

Panel for quick inclusion of circuit elements

Called up by clicking on the panel indicating the inclusion of circuit elements.

• BT on/off the Bluetooth module to connect a wireless audio device
• LNA on/off HF preamplifier
• HIZ antenna input impedance switching 50 Ohm/Hi-Z
• LOCK locks the touch screen and encoder (press to open the lock panel)

Lock panel

• SCREEN Enable touch screen lock, used to block accidental taps on the screen (can also be used to reduce your digital noise)
• FREQ on/off encoder rotation lock The locks are disabled by pressing the encoder button.

BFO generator

• To fine-tune the transmitter frequency in SSB mode, use a BFO generator.
• Entering the oscillator trim mode is available for each amateur radio band.
• BFO button or long-press the encoder button.
• In this case, each range retains its own BFO frequency value.
• The adjustment frequency value varies from -1999 to +1999 Hz. The adjustment step is displayed on the status panel and can be changed by pressing the STEP button.
• If the device uses a SI5351 generator, then to fine-tune it is necessary to use the
• BFO Press the BFO frequency once and the SI5351 frequency will be displayed.
• Reseng the BFO or SI5351 frequency to default values is done by long pressing the frequency.

Volume control

• To control the volume, press the VOL button or the encoder button once.
• To mute the sound, press the MUTE button or the volume indicator.
• To automatically mute the sound when there is no station signal, use the squelch.
• To adjust the squelch level, press in volume control mode to the value volume or once on the encoder button. The squelch level bar will be highlighted. Brighter and can be adjusted using an encoder.
• Squelch is not available for SSB mode.

Auto gain and attenuator

• Use the built-in attenuator to control signal gain. Entering control mode the attenuator is performed by pressing the ATT button. Set the required value using the encoder attenuator level to eliminate overload at the RF input. The higher the value, the weaker the signal amplification.
• Press the ATT button again to exit the attenuator adjustment mode.
• The set level will be displayed in the status bar.
• Press the AGC button to enable automatic signal gain. The status bar will display the corresponding indicator. Press the AGC button again to set the maximum level gain. The corresponding indicator in the status line will be extinguished.

Direct frequency entry buttons

• Press the FREQ button on the main screen to enter the frequency or set the listening mode to several frequencies.
• Use the number buttons to enter the frequency. The units of measurement will be selected automatically.
• Use the dot to enter the FM broadcast frequency.
• To delete incorrectly entered numbers, use the button. A frequency that cannot be set is displayed in red.
• Click OK to set the frequency. The range and type of modulation will be selected automatically.
• To exit without changing the frequency, press CANCEL.
• Press SCAN to enter multi-frequency simultaneous listening mode.
• This mode is not available for SSB.
• For each range and type of modulation AM or FM can be created in your list of 7 frequencies to scan. The range will be selected automatically according to the entered frequency.
  • MODE selects the type of modulation, if possible
  • OFF disables the frequency of the selected slot from scanning
  • ADD adding the current frequency to a free slot
  • DEL release the selected slot
  • SCAN starts listening.
• The sound will be muted and scanning of frequencies from the list will begin. When a signal appears on one of the frequencies, scanning will pause and the frequency will appear in white.
• Tap the screen to exit the mode.

Amateur radio bands

Broadcast bands

• Lists are available using the HAM and BAND buttons.
• The lists contain frequency ranges allocated for radio amateurs and radio broadcasting. Range boundaries can be overridden in the file setting.ini. Frequency values are available for viewing in the INFO section.
• To select modulation, bandwidth, or tuning step, click the appropriate
• MODE, BANDW, or STEP button on the main screen.
• The current range, modulation type, bandwidth, and tuning step are indicated in the lists pressed button.
• Ranges and types of modulation not available in the receiver configuration are indicated by gray buttons and cannot be selected (see the description of your device).
• To exit without changes, click on the frequency.

Types of modulation/decoder of Morse code and digital modes of communication

• All possible types of modulation are available for the amateur radio and HF bands.
• The CWR and CW buttons enable the Morse code decoder. Select the alphabet in the settings (page 14).
• The DIGI button opens a list of digital communications to launch the corresponding decoder (page 7).
• When you select a band, the priority modulation type will be turned on automatically.

Morse code decoder

• For successful decoding, align the red mark on the “waterfall” with the signal while adjusting the frequency.
• Select the volume level so that the signal is visible at the “waterfall” (usually volume 45).
• The yellow indicator will flash in time with the signal. The decode line displays the decoded characters and words per minute.

Digital mode decoders

• To decode RTTY, PSK, and Feld-Hell transmissions, align the red mark on the “waterfall” with the signal and adjust the volume. For RTTY L, use the left signal stream, and for RTTY U, use the right signal stream.
• To manually scroll the RTTY, PSK, and FT4/FT8 decoding screen, press SCROLL and rotate the encoder.
• The SET button for RTTY sets the baud rate to 45.45/50/75 baud. For Feld-Hell, turn on/off anti-aliasing.
• Pictures. For PSK, switches between BPSK31 and BPSK63 modes. In FT4/FT8 decoder it is used to set time manually (page 13).
• To move the Feld-Hell picture up or down for
• For ease of reading, use the SCROLL button.
• Decoding FT4/FT8 broadcasts requires an accurate setting of the time. Connect the receiver using Wi-Fi to the Internet or set the time manually.
• When the time is set, it is displayed in the UTC TIME line.
• For each FT4/FT8 gear, time, and power are displayed signal, offset in seconds from the start of the session, offset frequency from the set one and the transmission data packet.
• The frequency at the cursor position
  • Rotate the encoder to move the cursor or select a location on the display
• Indication of types of amateur radio communications
• Scale
  • initial and final scanning frequency
  • marks of found signals
• Signal graph
  • scale step
  • chart scale
  • graph based on RSSI and SNR of the signal
• Buttons
  • FREQ horizontal scale control
  • RSSI vertical scale control
  • SNR graphics contrast control to control, rotate the encoder or press and hold in the center of the graph to set the default value
  • PAUSE Press to stop scanning and listen to the broadcast turns on automatically when you move the cursor
  • STEP press to select the encoder setting step

Station memory list

• The current frequency, modulation type, and range can be saved into the receiver’s memory.
• To set settings from a saved memory cell, rotate the encoder to search for the desired cell, then press the encoder button or SET button for the desired cell.
• The list display filter is set in the SETUP -> MEMORY LIST section (page 14).
• To save the current settings, press the ADD button. To edit a saved cell press the EDIT button. To delete a cell, press DEL.
• When saving or editing a memory location, you must enter the station name using the on-screen keyboards. Then, rotate the encoder to select a location where the station can be received.
• This – the station will be saved for the current city. ALL – the station is available in any city. NONE –
• There is no connection to the city.
• The current city is shown at the top of the list. Press CITY to go to the list of cities.

List of locations (cities)

• For the correct display of time and distribution stations in the cities you are located in add your location to cities memory.
• Just like city stations, you can add, change and delete. After editing the city name, you must
• Rotate the encoder to select the time zone.
• Press SCAN to search and save the FM stations range (page 10). Use the FM button to go to the list of saved FM stations for the city.
• For each new location, unique lists of FM stations can be saved. You can manually add stations to the receiver’s memory or edit memory files (page 19). You can automatically search for FM stations and save them to the receiver’s memory for the current location. First, add your location to the list of cities (page 9). Press SCAN to start automatically searching for stations.

Automatic search for FM stations

• During the search process, the current frequency will be displayed, displayed real of stations found.
• You can abort the search at any time without saving a list of found stations by pressing the CANCEL button.
• When the search is complete, save the stations found.
• Then press the FM button and change the station names created automatically. You can edit the list on your computer (page 19).
• Saved station names will be used in FM mode (page 11), as well as in retro scale (page 12).

For each new location, unique lists of FM stations can be saved. You can manually add stations to the receiver’s memory or edit memory files (page 19). You can automatically search for FM stations and save them to the receiver’s memory for the current location. First, add your location to the list of cities (page 9). Press SCAN to start automatically searching for stations.

Automatic search for FM stations

During the search process, the current frequency will be displayed, and several stations found. You can abort the search at any time without saving a list of found stations by pressing the CANCEL button. When the search is complete, save the stations found. Then press the FM button and change the station names created automatically. You can edit the list on your computer (page 19). Saved station names will be used in FM mode (page 11), as well as in retro scale (page 12).

FM channel mode

• Stored FM stations can be switched as a channel list. To enter FM mode channels, press the FM button on the main screen. This mode displays the station name, frequency,
• RDS information, stereo reception indicator, and time. Switching channels is done by rotating the encoder or by pressing the PROG+ and PROG- buttons.The
• STEREO button turns on/off reception of a station in stereo format.
• RDS button turns on/off receiving RDS information.
• To exit FM channel mode, press the FM button.

CB channel mode

• It is possible to listen to CB civil band channels. To enter the mode
• CB channels press the CB button on the main screen. In this mode, the channel number, letter grid designation, frequency, modulation type, and time.
• Channels are switched by rotating the encoder.
• Switching grids is done using the GRID+ and GRID- buttons.
• EU button on/off using the European frequency grid.
• The AM, NFM, LSB, and USB buttons enable the corresponding type of modulation.
• To exit CB channel mode, press the CB button.
• In channel modes, the search for stations up and down in frequency also works using the UP and DN buttons.
• To change the theme, tap on the screen in the center. Four themes are available.

Retro receiver scale

• To display the retro scale, press the RETRO button on the main screen.
• The scale will display stations of the selected band and cities stored in memory cells.
• Navigation along the scale is carried out by rotating the encoder or sliding on the touch screen.
• To automatically advance the scale to the next station, quickly swipe the screen in the opposite direction and release. Rewinding will stop at the first available station.
• The rewind direction is changed by rotating the encoder. To stop, press the screen or encoder.
• To change the scale, click on the red 1:1 indicator on the right and, while pressing,
  Move the scale indicator to the desired position.
• At the top, there is a volume indicator (press to mute the sound on/off).
• The screen displays the current frequency, the name of the band and city, as well as the time and battery charge.
• CITY list of cities
• BAND band selection. The ranges are divided as retro receivers by the passage of waves depending on time days. Color indication shows passing conditions.
• STEP selection of tuning step
• VOL volume adjustment (rotate the encoder to change)
• BFO BFO oscillator setting (available for SSB modulation) Modulation switches automatically depending on the range at the cursor position.

Indication of range and types of communication

To enter setup mode, press the SETUP button on the main screen. Settings are divided into pages. Switching pages is done by rotating the encoder or using the PREV and NEXT buttons. Click WIFI for connection settings (page 15). Press RESET to load default settings. To save settings, press SAVE or EXIT and confirm saving.

RADIO

• ITU region select the region on the map
• RDS time get time from RDS
• FM band starts at 64 MHz beginning of the FM band
• Save step individual for band step can be saved for modulation type or each range. Only until restart
• RBDS program type American standard RDS TP

PERSONALIZATION

• Frequency digit backlight imitation seven-segment indicators
• Highlight the frequency in SSB in color if the BFO is not zero for tuning in SSB mode using Oscillator BFO bias. When the offset is not equal to zero, the frequency digits are displayed darker.
• Buttons click to change the appearance of the buttons
• Language Select the interface language
• Setting the clock manually setting the date and time. Set the date first, then the time. Choose the edit field on the screen aand nrotate theee coder for installation. When the seconds field is selected. The countdown stops. Click OK for precise installation. After which the countdown will resume.

24-hour time format, choice of 12/24 hour format

• Retro S-meter indicator display in retro style
• Audio spectrum switching view S-meter / spectrum

DISPLAY

• Screen saver enable screensaver (page 19)
• Display light off in screen saver turn off the backlight after the period of inactivity has expired.
• Wait time to save in minutes select after how many minutes will the screensaver turn on or go off the screen backlight after the last action.
• Screen orientation select the rotation angle of the display. Quickly rotate the screen at any time: press and hold the encoder and tap on the screen.

SCANNER

• Scanning SSB in the AM modulation graph will be displayed for AM modulation when SSB is enabled.

MEMORY LIST

• View not city linked in the list stations with city label NONE are displayed.
• View all cities linked in the list stations are displayed not only for the current cities. Stations linked to other cities are marked OTHER in the memory list.
• View only from the current band in the list stations of the selected band are displayed.

BATTERY

• Battery indicator display battery indicator
• Battery value in volts ddisplayscharge in volts or percent
• Warning about an unacceptable battery level A message will be displayed if the battery is charged batteries will exceeds acceptable levels

HARDWARE

• Encoder reverse, rotation direction selection
• Encoder step select the encoder type
• Beeper selection of beeper sound

ANTENNA

• LNA on/off RF preamplifier
• Hi-Z antenna input impedance on/off matching Antenna Impedance Hi-Z/50 Ohm

SI473x

• Mute the sound when turned on, the sound will be turned off when the receiver is turned on.
• Inversion GPO1 invert control signal on pin GPO1
• Inversion GPO2 invert manager signal on pin GPO2

DECODER

• Decoded data sent to COM port Decoded data can be received  using the Putty program on a personal computer (connect your receiver using a USB cable and install the device driver)
• Feld-Hell picture smoothing image, received when decoding a Feld-Hell transmission will be smoothed for easier reading.
• Cyrillic alphabet in CW for alphabet decoder Morse will use the Cyrillic alphabet.

BT/Wi-Fi

• Bluetooth on/off for connecting wireless headphones or speakers
• Wireless on/off the Wi-Fi module
• Access point mode enables built-in hotspots. The connection can be used if there are no other access points to connect to the receiver (not currently used).
• Select AP displays a list of available access points (also available by pressing the WIFI button)
• Internet access watchdog timer is used to restart the connection if there is no connection Internet access.

Available access points

• Scanning access points takes a few seconds. Then the list and quantity will be output found access points. Rotate the encoder to search. If no access points are found or the signal is too weak, check the Wi-Fi antenna connection (do not use the Wi-Fi module without an antenna).
• WAN on/off Wi-Fi module
• SCAN search for access points
• SET establish a connection to the selected access point or click on the desired access point (when connecting for the first time you will need to enter a password)
• DEL removes access points from saved ones
• SAVED list of saved access points Access Point Name Color: blue – access point in the list of saved ones yellow – a connection attempt is in progress  green – connection active

Selecting your device model

• For the correct functioning of all components of the receiver, it is necessary to select the correct model.
• The currently selected model is displayed on the CONFIGURATION page. Here you can save or restore the settings configuration, as well as load the factory settings.
• Click Select Model. If your device has not been modified and only contains components installed at the manufacturer’s factory, you should rotate the encoder to select your model from the list.
• If changes have been made to your receiver or you assembled it yourself, then choose a model.
• “Generic” Click “next”. And then, by rotating the encoder and pressing the screen, check the boxes opposite those components that are installed in your receiver.
• The following components are available for configuration:
  •  battery charge level indication
  • indication of the battery charging process
  • additional Lock button (present in receivers ATS120 and ATS200 series
  • Bluetooth module
  • Morse code and digital communications decoder
  • HF preamplifier
  • 50 Ohm / Hi-Z antenna impedance switching circuit
  • HF range filters present in various models
  • special mixer of ATS200 series receivers for aviation band
  • non-standard connection of the mixer for the converter  ranges to pin CLK 0 of the SI5351 generator
  • The firmware update can be installed using a PC or obtained automatically from server updates. Information about the availability of an update is available on the UPDATE & LICENSE page.
  • To update online, you must connect the receiver to the Internet. Then click “Update” embedded software.” The update files will be searched for and downloaded. Read the information and run the update process.
  • After updating the software, download additional files (localization file, etc.).
  • If you need to revoke your activation key for use on another device, first obtain the code from the website. Log in to your account using your Email and activation key. Then revoke the key on this settings page.

Information section

• The section is entered using the INFO button on the main screen.
• This section contains several pages of information. To turn pages, rotate the encoder.
• Press the screen or encoder to exit the section.
• Here you can find information about the firmware version, and status s of the equipment, and andtheethee
• Wi-Fi, device components, range limits, receiver manufacturer and model, serial device number, software developers, and copyrights.
• Information on the passage of waves on the HF bands, obtained from the website HAMQSL.COM, is also available.
• The date and time of the last download of information are indicated.

Virtual encoder

• In all modes, you can use on-screen buttons that duplicate the actions of the encoder.
• The virtual encoder is called by sliding upward from the bottom edge of the screen.
• To close the virtual encoder, use the slide in the opposite direction.
• After a period of inactivity, the screen encoder will close automatically.
• Press and hold the arrow buttons to simulate encoder rotation.

Actions to take when turning on the receiver

• RESET TO FACTORY SETTINGS
  With the device turned off, press and hold the encoder button and turn on the power. When the LOADED DEFAULTS message appears, release the encoder All receiver settings will be restored to their original values. After the reset, you need to perform the initial setup main parameters.
• FILE SHARING MODE FROM PC
  If you need to access files in the device’s memory before starting, then with the device turned off, press and hold the screen and turn on the power. When a message appears indicating that you are ready to exchange files using the A-explorer program, release the screen and connect your receiver to the PC using a USB cable. The device driver and A-explorer file-sharing application must be installed on the PC. Applications to install and the user manual are available on the website HARDUINO.RU in the “Download” section. Tap the screen to exit the mode.
• SCREEN CALIBRATION
  In file-sharing mode with a PC, press and hold the screen until a message appears indicating that screen calibration has started. Continue holding for reset calibration settings or release the screen and then click on the positions indicated by the green arrow one by one. Calibration is complete.

Files in the receiver’s memory

• To download files from the receiver to your PC, upload or delete, use the A-explorer application. Use notepad for editing.
• city.csv list of locations (id, name, time zone)
• preset.csv list of stations (frequency, name, city ID, modulation)
• label.csv list of frequency boundaries of various types of communication
• decoder.log decoder log file (erased when the decoder starts)
• scan.csv frequency lists for simultaneous listening mode
• ap.csv list of saved Wi-Fi access points
• setting.ini override settings
• lng interface localization files
• value.hex dump of saved settings
• To increase the battery life of your device without recharging, use simple functions.
• Enable a short period of inactivity in the settings until the screen saver appears. During the transition When the receiver enters standby mode, some functions are suspended. At the same time, listening to the broadcast doesn’t stop.
• Enable the settings to turn off the display backlight after a period of inactivity. Disable You can also turn on the backlight by pressing the LIGHT backlight control button on the main screen and then pressing the backlight brightness level indicator. You can turn on the backlight by tapping on the screen.
• Reduce the brightness of the screen backlight. Press the LIGHT button on the main screen and rotate the encoder.
• Turn off Wi-Fi after receiving the necessary data from the Internet. Turn off the Bluetooth module, when not using a wireless audio device.
• Use wired headphones to reduce energy consumption.

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I change the battery charge level display?
  To view the battery charge level in percentage or volts, tap on the battery charge indicator on the screen.
• What does the S-meter do?
  The S-meter can be pressed to change views, switch to hist gram or waterfall mode for low-frequency signals, turn metering on/off for RSSI/SNR signal quality, and reduce digital noise.
• How do I know if the Wi-Fi connection is active?
  The Wi-Fi connection indicator will show different colors: green for connection active, orange for no internet connection, red for connection error, and gray for no available networks.

Documents / Resources

Blog or Die H-RADIO 4.2 Indicators and Panel [pdf] User Manual H-RADIO 4.2 Indicators and Panel, H-RADIO 4.2, Indicators and Panel, Panel

References

• User Manual