My new toy an IC-91AD and DStar setup ......

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davecason

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Hi Gang,

So got a sweet deal on a ICOM IC-91AD and went out and bought the RT Sys software and cable for it so that's all working great.
Tossed in my 500 channels of VHF/UHF stuff on the A band and it's all good too .......

Now tonight I've looked on line at DStar for newbies help. (grin) One guide is 100 pages and the second one is only 63 ..... DOH !

So I broke down and started to RTFM the radio's manual ..........

So for the DStar setup starting at Chapter 7 page 34 I've got the MYCALL in all happy but when I carry on and follow the manual on
page 36 to toss in the STATIONCALL of CQCQCQ it comes back and says "Full" in memory slot U01 with REF001BL and when I try to
clear it - it gets testy and defaults back to that.

Can I use the RT systems software to fix up the DStar settings or am I doing something wrong? Also have any of you found a ICOM
IC-91 user's group out there anywhere on the web?

Cheers'
Dave
 

KE5MC

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I use RTS with my 51 and my club had a number of 91 that I worked with, but that was several years back. For starters I would program channels with all the information you need beyond frequency and other parameters like an analog repeater we are most familiar with. I forget if the 91 has GPS and the repeater database so it will show you the closest repeater. It is a steep learning curve. You should register your call sign so you can QSO outside of your local repeater. Old school was to register with you local repeater. Currently there is a website that centralizes the process. I don’t have the link, but I don’t believe it is hard to find. Only register once! I believe you will get an email when registered, but not sure. There are websites for checking if a call sign is DStar registered. That is the easiest and quickest way to check your registration status. Until you are registered you can still use the local repeater. You just can’t link to anything outside of local until registered. Since the 91 the user interface has gotten better, but for the most part the various parameters are the same across radios, just a little more of a challenge with the 91 in my opinion.
Good Luck!
Mike
 

KE5MC

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Tom,
I think that is a good resource.

Dave,
On that page is a DStar calculator and in RTS is what I think is a better one. As you change the different parameters (YOUR, RPT1 & RPT2) it recalculates the text fields to put into the radio. For me it's a great aid to understand by change and result vs. reading the dry text in the manual.
Mike
 

davecason

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Calgary, AB
Hi Guys,

Yep, I'm all registered up that's why I was working on programming the radio. I did the registration first and it's been processed.

I guess the one question is - can I program the DStar stuff with the RT Systems software? Like:

MYCALL = VE6ND
STATIONCALL = CQCQCQ
and according to the site DStar Calc:
RPT1 = VE6IPG-C
RPT2 = VE6IPG-G

but if not does anyone know why I can't overwrite the existing data in that field from the radios keypad?

I am following the steps in the ICOM manual but still no luck? I put in the info but for some reason it won't save it!?!?
Maybe there's a step in hand-bombing an IC-91AD that I'm missing ?

Cheers'
Dave
 

KE5MC

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RTS will do what you want. I've included screen clips in support of that statement from my RTS program. I don't know if front panel programming data checks input, but RPT1/2 should have <spaces> and not <->. "<>" not to be used nor the word spaces. There must be 8 characters in RPT1/2. In my example the repeater has a short callsign so more than one space is included to pad to 8 characters.

This post only answers the RTS part and I don't front panel programming my HTs much so not any real help there. I'll play with the 51 later today and see what I learn. Always a good way for me to learn something when trying to answer a question I have little experience on.

RTS_Prog.png

DS_Settings.pngCalResults.png
 

AK9R

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I don't have an IC-91, so I'm just repeating what I find in the manual on pages 36 and 37.

Here's the procedure for clearing text in the callsign fields:
89574

And, there are these steps for finishing the entry into a callsign field:
89575

Finally, there's this information on the next page:
89576

The instructions for the "edit record" mode on page 95 are:
89577
 

KE5MC

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My RTS cable for a 51 is a USB-RTS05 (orange color) and yes it goes in the data port. You can still program the radio using an SD card if the cable is not the correct one. I'm not sure what the 29a is for. Call their support line and see what they say.
Mike
 
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