Chris,

Are these commands more or less universal for all Kenwood radios?  I realize
some won't work because a particular radio doesn't have some feature, but it
would be nice if they worked in general.

Steve

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Christopher Moore" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, November 15, 2006 19:37
Subject: reading swr on kenwood ts570


> Hello,
> I've been able to get swr readings from my ts570 using hyper terminal
> (on windows xp) and a serial cable connecting the rig to a com port.
> Below is a quick explanation of the process.
>
> First, you need to connect your rig to a spare com port on your pc.
> Unfortunately, the kenwood needs a male connector which means you need
> to find a 9-pin serial cable with male connectors on each end or use
> some gender changer adapters.
>
> Next, turn on your rig and bring up HyperTerminal and set up a new
> connection.  You'll need to select the com port and port settings (9600
> baud, n, 8, 1).
>
> Now you should be ready to test your connection.  They kenwood has a
> bunch of commands for controlling the rig which can be found in the
> appendix to the manual.  The thing to remember is that each command ends
> with a semi-colon ";" rather than a new-line or <enter> key.
>
> The first thing to try is ask the rig to tell you the current vfo
> frequency.  The command for this is
> fa;
> You should see a response on your screen.   If not, you probably have a
> bad connection between your computer and the rig.
>
> Next set to power level to 5 watts by entering
> pc005;pc;
> The first commands sets the power level while the second reads and
> displays the power level.
>
> Next, tell the rig that you will be reading the swr meter by typing
> rm1;
> You will not get a response from this command.
>
> Next, put your rig in am mode and press the send button.  While
> transmitting an am carrier you can read the swr by typing
> rm;
> You should see something like  rm1003 on your screen.  This would
> indicate a 3:1 swr.  You can change frequencies while in transmit mode
> and take readings to determine the approximate point of lowest swr.
>
> One thing I forgot to mention is that you probably want to turn off your
> antenna tuner before measuring.  Otherwise you will not get a true
> reading of the antenna.  On the 570 this is done by quickly tapping the
> att button.  You'll hear a click indiacting that the tuner is
> temporarily disabled.
>
> I haven't used the kenwood software, but my guess is that they display
> the meters as graphics which won't be read by a screenreader.
>
> Perhaps some of you have discovered other ways to obtain swr readings
> (other than using a tw1).
>
> 73
> Chris w1gm