Quantar as a repeater and TAC receiver

[kd6kml]

Can a Quantar be programmed to be both a repeater and provide TAC receiver with one PL for repeater and the other for the voting?

We want the station to keep status tone on the line unless a 131.8 tone is received, then the RX audio is put on the line. When a 141.3 tone is received we want it to repeat, but not remove status tone and apply audio to the line.

The idea is to get rid of our Micor Spectra TAC receivers which are acting up, and use the Quantar for both repeaters and voters. (The voter keys up another transmitter at another site with the 131.8 tone.)

Any guidance would be of a big help. We are still getting used to the Quantars and all of their abilities.

Thanks,
Josh

[RKG]

Off the top of my head, no. For SpectraTac operation, the Quantar is configured as a "Base Station" in the "RF Configuration" screen, requiring an external key signal (and defeating the built in repeater controller). This setting is done on a per radio basis, not a per channel or per tone basis. When set as a "Base Station," the receipt of valid freq and tone will not key the transmitter or gate receiver audio to the transmitter.

[ASTROMODAT]

I believe you could probably accomplish your needs by programming the Quantar as a base station, and then hanging an external controller on the MRTI/6809 port. The new SCOM controller (that replaces the older 7k) could be programmed to work in its normal repeat mode when it sees the proper PL. Then, if the PL chnges to whatever you program, you could set the 7k to not repeat. Simple.

Larry

[RKG]

I thought about essentially running a second controller in parallel with the SpectraTac, set for the in-cabinet repeat tone, but the problem is that SpectraTac doesn't decode tones; it would repeat whenever the Quantar receiver unsquelches, on either PL, no?

Also, if you set the "Comparator" field to "SpectraTac" in the wireline screen and enable the status tone, how do you shut the status tone down when the in cabinet PL is received? Or do you just hope to notch it out over the Rx line to the remote controller?

I also wondered how you would set the Tx PL. In Spectra Tac mode, the radio keys with the PL set in the Channel Configuration screen, whenever (and however) keyed. With a remote controller, the Quantar operates in CSQ mode and the Tx PL is made in the controller and sent over the wireline.

[ASTROMODAT]

I could very well be wrong, but my sense is that an external controller could pull it off, so long as you place the controller in the position of being 100% "in charge" of ALL control and signalling functionalities (e.g., ALL decoding and encoding of BOTH PL and control tones), and then program the controller logic to emulate the functions of the underlying equipment. I don't see anything that you've mentioned that a sophisticated controller couldn't do, albeit you may have to "trick" the system so that the underlying gear does not act independently on tones, etc. instead of being 100% steered by the controller logic/commands. You might have to place the controller in a position to be able to swallow some, or all, of the control tones so that if any of the underlying infrastructure can't be overriden from acting on these tones,etc. they will be prevented from ever hearing such tones in the first place. This could involve digital buffering, with a downsteream encoder and logic that could kill the tone(s) permanently, and/or regenetrate them elsewhere, and possibly at a different point in the your logic set-up. Again, none of this is difficult for a sophisticated controller.

Larry

[kd6kml]

I have been playing with the station, and think I may have got it without an external controller....

1. Set the station up as a Spectra TAC base with in cabinet fallback. The fallback time is 1ms. (there is no tx wireline connected, only RX to the comparator).
2. In multi-code squelch I set entry 1 for the tones I want for repeater (rx 141.3, tx 131. and entry 2 for the tone I want to apply audio to the wireline (rx & tx131.8. Entry 2 is "access disable".
3. On the wildcard action menu, with the states of "RX qualifiers met" and not "rptr ptt" The action is RX WL enable and inaction is RX wireline disable. (RX audio only passes to the wireline when the transmitter is not keyed and the rx qualification are met)
4. PTT priority is R>L>W>M>D

This seems to be working, the repeater keys up when 141.3 is received, adn transmits 131.8 and when 131.8 is received, the status tone mutes and RX audio is applied to the line.

Everything else is pretty much default settings.

Any thoughts my 9 hours of playing around???

Josh

[RKG]

If I understand, you are using an "inactive" tone essentially to pull in a relay that passes Rx to the comparator when pulled in and sends idle tone to the comparator when dropped out. Very clever.

Implicit in this is that the state "RPTR PTT" is satisfied only if the transmitter is keyed by the Quanter internal repeater controller, and not if it is keyed by the wireline. This isn't clear from the Quantar manual, but if the wireline Rx doesn't drop out as soon as the comparator keys the transmitter (over the wireline), then it must be true. (In your description, change "when the transmitter is not keyed" to "when the transmitter is not keyed by the Quantar's internal repeater controller". Also you should note in your description that, if a comparator is selected in RF configuration and WL is disabled, the Quantar will send the idle tone over the Rx wireline, which is not obvious but is stated in the Quantar manual.)

Since your logic assumes that WL Disable is the default state, I'd add a wildcard page for State is Cold Start or Warm Start and action is WL Disable. Otherwise, on reboot, the WL will be active (and the comparator will receive no idle tone, until your first transmission with the 131.8 in.)

As I said, very clever.

CW56X: take note.