Before looking for faults check your setup!

Discussion about this major DATV Project. See https://wiki.batc.org.uk/The_Portsdown_Transmitter
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g8lce
Posts: 340
Joined: Sun Dec 06, 2015 10:26 am

Before looking for faults check your setup!

Post by g8lce » Thu Aug 19, 2021 10:42 pm

Hi all,
For many years I have been updating the Portsdown software without a problem. I also use a Pluto driven by a Portsdown over a network! (so those of you that do that know the problems that can cause but reset and off/on switching can make those go away )
BUT lately I have been chasing my tail looking at why my two Portsdown 4 systems had stopped.
The first was the Portsdown with a Lime mini. I had tried the latest Dev release update. There is nothing wrong with the update but my signal stopped. The TX seemed to work from the Portsdown. I checked the linear and drivers. No output! I did notice there was a burst of signal as the Lime gave out its setup pulse. After all the time checking the system I eventually noticed the output was set to go to a Limemini not a LimeDVB and then noticed the callsign had reset to BATC etc. ! This was not the updates fault as the majority of these work. It was just some hiccup that happened in the update process.
OR
Maybe the power had been switched off sometime before the update and corrupted the setup. The Portsdowns are on 24Hours.
SO
If something stops working with a Portsdown setup check the settings first. Do a reset and check again before delving into linears etc.!
The Portsdown driving the Pluto over the network also did not give an output even though the right indications were there. I checked the setup including the Pluto IP address and that seemed to make it work again (even though I did not change it)

In both these cases the indication on the Portsdowns, Pluto with network adapter and the Limemini and their LEDs seemed to say there should be RF leaving to go to the linears - but there was not.

Martin G8LCE

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