TS-480SAT - Control head to 1258 or body doesn't work with COTS RJ12 cable?

[W4AFK]

Trying to connect a TS-480SAT control head to the RR-1258 using a standard RJ12 cable (all pins wired). It doesn't work.

To get to a baseline I set aside the 1258 and connected directly to the radio

- Used the stock Kenwood cable and it works (powers up, all functions are OK).
- Replaced it by a store bought RJ12 (1-to-1) cable and it never turns on.
- I bought two RJ12 cables so I tested using a second one ... same results
- Looked at the pins to compare and here is what I see:

Stock Kenwood cable (looking from the front, tab on top, left to right):
1. white, 2. black, 3. <nothing>, 4. red, 5. green, 6. yellow
No crossovers

Store-bought RJ12 cables (same view):
1. white, 2. black, 3. red, 4. green, 5. yellow, 6. blue
No crossovers

Is it possible that the connected #3 wire on the store bought RJ12 cable is causing the problem???

Service manual and other posts in this group show 6 wires and several posts mention than a standard RJ12 cable works. Not here (sigh)

Can it be that this older "2008" vintage TS-480SAT (S/N 00400107) only used 5 wires?

Just asking before I buy some RJ12 connectors (I have the tools but only RJ45 connectors LOL) and modify one of the store bought RJ12 cables

[dj0qn]

A standard RJ12 cable will not work, because only two wires are carried through. Instead, you
need to buy one that has all wires carried through, referred to as a 6P6C cable.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[W4AFK]

Maybe I wasn't clear enough. As noted in my pinouts, the RJ12 cable I have has all 6 wires connected end-to-end, no crossover. Now you are right that I should have called it 6P6C.

As I also noted in my original message, the stock TS480 control head to radio cable doesn't have wire #3 connected (total 5 wires). My "6P6C" cable has all 6.

[dj0qn]

Yes, that wasn't clear, I understood that you didn't have a 6-wire cable and were asking if you needed one.

Whether the TS-480 only uses 5 wires out of the 6 is irrelevant, because you can't buy one. However, a standard
6P6C cable will always work just fine. I have deployed and helped dozens of others  to deploy TS-480 based
RemoteRig systems over the past eight years and they always worked.

I am not really sure why your cables do not work. The older version of the TS-480 is the same, the change was made
in the microphone circuit. Maybe you should try ordering a cable through a different source to see if that works.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[W4AFK]

Mitch ... the 6P6C cables I have don't work so I'll build one (need to buy some 6P6C connectors at Fry's on Sunday).

- I made the suggested SIP changes
- I borrowed the control head to RR1258 cable from my working system and connected it to the new system.

Result: It "almost" works. Radio turns on and I have full control. However, PTT from the mic doesn't work. (This also tells me that the two cables I bought have something wrong. I'll build my own cable)

Here is what I see:

- I connect the mic to the radio's body and PTT works

- I connect the mic to the RR Control unit and there is no PTT from the mic (I can key from the front panel)

Note: I used the RJ45 jumper cable that was provided with the RR1258 to jumper between the RR Radio and the radio itself. I also had a set of Kenwood MIC cable adapters from RR (RJ45 to Circular M and RJ45 to Circular F) so I even tried that cable after mating the Circular M-F connectors. Same results - No PTT from the radio

- I reconfigured RR Control and RR Radio to Config Type 2 (was 1) with no change in the results (no PTT from the mic). FYI - Radio's S/N is 00400107 (July 2008 vintage)

- I re-read the steps in the manual and compared to my functional system but I can't figure out why the PTT doesn't work when the MIC is connected to the RR Control's AUX/MIC port.

Any suggestions?
 

[dj0qn]

PTT and audio are done over the red straps inside the RRC's only. If PTT doesn't work, then either
a strap is broken, or you wired it wrong (easy to reverse which side pin 1 is on). You need to be
very careful installing the straps and never use your hands. I suggest a needle-nose pliers held just
where the insulation starts and gently push straight down until it "snaps" in place. If it bends, throw
it away and do it again. You can use an ohmmeter to check the wiring.

The different versions of the TS-480 won't make a difference here.

I have ordered my cables using various online companies, including Amazon and Ebay. I remember
buying some at Fry's years ago when I was on the West Coast, but I can't remember if they worked.
The European version of the TS-480 has two cables in the box, but I always bought more robust and
longer ones, anyway. I may still have one here in Florida to send you if you want to try.

If you need my Networking Checklist to check things out, drop me a direct mail at dj0qn (at) darc.de,
however it looks like your problem is not the basic installation, but a hardware issue.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[W4AFK]

Thanks again for your help. I added some extra text to my previous message while you were responding. My 480 is July 2008 vintage (S.N 00400107)

Jumpers - I did use needle nose pliers and a lighted magnifying glass to insert the jumpers. Double checked them too. I used the diagram on page 186/247 of the RR manual and followed that pattern.

To play it safe, I will remove all jumpers and carefully rewire.

[W4AFK]

FIXED !!!!

The issue was MY ERROR!

When I wired the jumpers I had wrongly assumed that the MIC/AUX side was towards the other side so I flipped the wiring.

After I re-read the instructions and looked at the picture on page 22/247 I realized my (stupid) mistake.

Result - Apart from the 6P6C 3rd party cable (which I will build on Sunday), everything works now for the basic setup.

I want to thank you for your patience and your feedback as it had me rethink what I was doing and solve the core issues.

===Next=====
My next configuration will be for CAT control and to build an audio I/O cable to be able to use the setup for audio/computer based data (FT8, JT65, WSPR, etc.).

I need to connect the computer to the "RR Control" so I plan to use the USB port for radio control and a DB9F-DB9F 1-1 from the "RR Radio" COM2 to the radio's COM port. That should take care of radio control.

For audio I/O - On the "RR Control", I plan to build a custom RJ45 MIC cable to feed audio from the computer to the radio, and use the SP(eaker) output for the audio IN on the computer. I will need to match the audio I/O levels to/from the computer but I don't have any other option as the USB port on the RR Control doesn't support audio.

I don't believe I need anything on the RR Radio side as long as the levels are OK on the RR Control side and that I have computer control (i.e. configured properly).

I am open to any suggestions/configurations :-).

If you prefer, my E-mail is w4afk.home(at)gmail.com
 

[dj0qn]

Glad to hear it, that is actually a common mistake, which is why I mentioned it.

The way to use digital modes is easy as you seem to know: just use the AUX/MIC and SP jacks of
the RRC and it works fine after setting the audio levels. Sometimes Windows plays tricks on this, so
one must be careful with the correct sound card levels. That problem causes most of the support questions.

Here is my CAT checklist for the TS-480:

CAT CHECKLIST
---------------------
IMPORTANT: In both scenarios, you MUST first install a standard serial cable between the TS-480 body and COM2 of the radio RRC!

USING A STANDARD SERIAL CABLE
============================
1) Change the CAT rate on the TS-480 to 4800 baud (menu 56). This rate keeps traffic over the internet to a minimum and faster is not necessary for CAT.

2) Change the COM2 serial settings of the radio-RRC to mode-4, 4800 baud, data bits 8, stop bits 1 and submit/apply changes.

3) Change the COM2 serial settings of the control-RRC to mode-4, 4800 baud, data bits 8, stop bits 1 and submit/apply changes.

4) Plug a serial cable in between your PC and the control-RRC COM2

5) Set your software to use the correct COM port on your PC at 4800-8-1-N

USING A USB CABLE
=================
1) Change the CAT rate on the TS-480 to 4800 baud (menu 56). This rate keeps traffic over the internet to a minimum and faster is not necessary for CAT.

2) Change the COM2 serial settings of the radio-RRC to mode-4, 4800 baud, data bits 8, stop bits 1 and submit/apply changes.

3) Install the Microbit Setup Manager if you already haven't. You don't need the problem for this, but this installs the correct drivers on your PC.

4) Change the COM2 serial settings of the control-RRC to mode-4, 4800 baud, data bits 8, stop bits 1, "use USB Com Port as COM2" to "Yes" and submit/apply changes.

5) Plug a USB cable between your PC and control-RRC. Make sure you do NOT do his before step 3 above!

6) Find out the correct port in your Windows Device Manager to use by looking for the "Microbit RRC Virtual COM Port (COM2)"

7) Set your software to use the this COM port on your PC at 4800-8-1-N.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

[W4AFK]

Thanks Mitch, that will be very helpful as I start the setup of the DATA part before moving the radio, RR Radio & PSU to the shed :-)

FYI - RJ12 cable issue - It WAS the two cheap cables I bought at Fry's. The bag says "RJ12 6 pin, 6 connections" but neither cable worked. I even tried tightening the connector to no avail (used my RJ11/12 crimp tool). I am certain that if checked each wire that I would have found some "anomalies".
So ... while at Fry's I bought the last bag of RJ12 (6P) connectors they had and wired my own 6P6C cable. The result? It works great!

Moral - Don't assume that you cannot have two cables from the same 2-cable bag that are both defective. A "good price" is NOT always a bargain LOL.

[dj0qn]

Hi Bruno,

Glad that you verified that the cables were crap. Sometimes I do know what I am talking about ;-)

Good luck and let me know if you need further assistance.

73,
Mitch DJ0QN / K7DX

P.S.: I see that you are in Carlsbad. There and Naples were the two finalists when we retired to the U.S., but
Naples won in the end. Tell Cecil from PAPA hi from me when you hear him.

[W4AFK]

Small world LOL. I know Cecil so I'll say hi. Along with PARC, I am a member of the PAPA system and use the analog, DMR and D-Star repeaters.

As for Naples or Carlsbad, well Naples is cheaper. I lived in West Melbourne for ~8 years and just relocated back to EXPENSIVE SoCal :-). I went through the last two hurricanes (Cat 1 on our side). The second one damaged our roof and we were almost flooded (6 more inches) as the retention ponds overflowed and they could not pump the water into the canals as they were also over capacity. We ran our generator for 36+ hours so we didn't lose any food and kept cool with some fans. This is nothing compared to what the west cost of the peninsula got. I hope you did not sustain too much damage.

This being said, although I am not thrilled about the cost of living over here, I do prefer the SoCal climate over the hot, humid and stormy Florida coast. Our daughter lives around 20 miles south of us (Mira Mesa), which also compensates.

I will report back to this thread regarding my data connections so that others can have reference.

73 and I'll share non thread stuff and Cecil's response via E-mail.