Seen a lot of good stuff in the PIMP My EAGLE and other threads.
Wanted to reply, but, too much to reply, so, I'll just post it all in my
observations.
It doesn't have to be an FTDI chip to have good USB to Serial interfacing.
It just has to be a cable or a method that meets ALL known RS232 standard
specs.
We use to chip one cable that had an FTDI chip, and it worked perfect,
until the mfg changed the circuit.
Once they changed the circuit, it would not work properly with some
versions of PC hardware and/or some versions of rigs. Not just TEN-TEC.
The Eagle and the Argonaut VI, they do NOT have built in FTDI chips, they
use the USB interface provided by the PIC chip, which is in many ways far
superior to the FTDI chip. I know, I've tested MANY for adherence to all
RS232 standards, and what is sold even with FTDi chips will fail someday
due to MS adherence to standards. Over time, MS is beginning to enforce
more and more of the standards requirements, where in the past, as long as
it worked with xxx, then the cable worked. But, soon, someday, a lot of
FTDI cables will start failing, like the one we originally shipped as the
316 did fail.
Yes, USB interface is VERY important, but to be compatible with almost
every single CAT program out there, it has to be a virtual serial or real
serial port. No CAT vendor will convert their program over to real pure USB
for any single transceiver vendor.
The Eagle was designed very modular, so that if you wanted to create a new
product with better signal processing, well, take out the SPU board, and
put in a new one. Heck, the SPU board that uses a DSP could be replaced
with an SPU board that uses a CUDA processor instead, ......
Same for the CPU board, if we wanted to add a heck of a lot of
bells/whistles, change out the CPU board. If we wanted to remove the front
panel entirely and make it a 100% remote controlled rig only, change out
the CPU board.
Same for the receive band path, preselector board. Want to add 2m? change
out that board (oh, and the TX path as well, and verify the PA handles 2M,
etc.)
You will see changes come down the pike where TENTEC is reusing as much as
it can from existing Eagle/OMNI-VII/Orion architectures/hardware/software
to create new and improved products.
I think there needs to be a "mobile Eagle", well, maybe not an Eagle, but a
mobile rig, geared for what Jack wanted as a mobile rig. No menus, easy to
use, a few buttons to select a given setup. You program that setup at a
computer, and then use the four buttons to select which of four.... modes,
frequencies, etc. etc. so that you don't have to look at the rig. Of course
a few items are still adjustable, but, in general, it is a 40 memory driven
unit, period.
I think there needs to be a "super Eagle" that takes the Eagle hardware and
improves it's DSP processing capability, gives more front panel controls,
maybe in either an OMNI-VIIish box or an Orionish box. Or heck, offer both,
the migrate the one in the Orionish box into a true Orion III.
There will definitely be a place for SDRs in the product line, but then I
don't think we can ever forget the guys who want to tinker with their own
rigs. So, why not continue with a traditional design until the parts are
unobtanium? Why not? Give the guy/gal something he/she can solder,
something he can tinker on the open source code. Look at what has happened
with the Rebel and Patriot, there are so many hardware shields provided by
people now, additions in features. That $299 little box has proven to be as
powerful as a $1500 transceiver sold by competitors. All because
entrepreneurial hams have taken it and added things to it. Who would have
thought that little 299 box could or would be made to have (all at once), a
GPS interface for 10MHz reference and time and location, handle JT65, drive
an OLED display, do bluetooth, appear to be a full blown rig to a CAT
program, etc. etc. etc. There are now features in that little box that are
beyond what a lot of bull blown 10k rigs do today. Amazing. So what do you
think will happen when... well, read my next paragraph.....
Open source, a lot of the software in the future TEN-TEC rigs really needs
to be open source. JMHO. Let the guys who can really do a good front panel
control system do whatever they want to the buttons, knobs, encoders. Fix
the mistakes TT makes in the base front panel code.
Of course, the DSP code is the IP of the company, so, it would be provided
in a binary form only so that when customers make their own rig control
software, they still get the stellar DSP performance of a TEN-TEC DSP. AND,
at the same time, keep all of the "HW damageable" control code in the
TEN-TEC rig off limits to open source. I don't want a hack to change
something that could cause the unit to think it is reading an improper SWR
and auto tune to a point that one of the parts lets some smoke out.
Protections.....
Believe it or not, but the DSP that is used in the Eagle is so
underutilized. Using about 1/4 to 1/2 of the code space, it is sitting
there idle over 50% of the time. So, once a few things are done, that
little Eagle (well, not the same Eagle) could inherit a LOT of the Orion
featuring, simple. (hah, yeah right).
I still go back to what a lot of focus groups and forums have said as the
ultimate Orion III.
Take an Orion II, add 6 meters, correct the output issue that was lost
going from the Orion to the Orion II (Barry knows this one better than I),
add Ethernet, and a few other items. Well, all of that (PLUS SO MUCH MORE)
can be achieved by marrying Eagle pieces parts with OMNI-VII pieces parts
with Orion II pieces parts, the code sets are very similar, with some
things TEN-TEC has had in R&D for years.
e.g. just a piece of info.... Remember, the Jupiter (and really the
OMNI-VII too), has a PS2 keyboard connector on the back. It was designed
FROM THE FIRST DAY OF PRODUCTION to be able to take a PS2 keyboard for CW
Type at some future date. Well, the code for it was done and tested near
the first day of production, HOW MANY YEARS AGO. Reason I stress that, that
code sat in the development PCs for a LONG time before we ever put it into
a firmware update just a few years ago.
Now, if that one little tidbit of "test code" was there for MANY MANY years
before it ever made it into the unit, what do you think is also true????
MANY MANY other R&D test items are also just sitting in a PC, waiting for
time to put them into a real product.
AND, since the code is similar between Eagle/OMNI-VII/Orion, it is
transferrable (not cut/paste, but algorithmwise, logic wise, etc.) from any
of the above.
Super Eagle, think of how much the Eagle guys would like to have the Orion
feature of SAF?
TEN-TEC is known for good audio quality, well, there are some tricks I know
to improve the audio quality even further that will be seen in future rigs.
So, even though someone has just improved theirs? well, TEN-TEC will raise
the bar, again, above competition, with a couple of simple changes.
I hope that people do recognize something common now within my posts and
Mike Dishops posts on qrz.
ENTHUSIASM.
There is so much that could have always been done, that was always held
back. Now, there is an owner that is committed 100% to "Let's Make Things
Better" (sorry Philips guys, had to steal that for this post).....
ok, I will get off of my cheerleading super pro fan boy post for TEN-TEC,
but I hope all see, there is a definite future for TEN-TEC, "It can only
get better from here"
73, KI4JPL
John Henry
(ps. I will not argue about any of my directions indicated above, because,
after all, I'm right, and y'all are wrong, lol, for those that know me, I'm
just kidding.....)
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