Commander 15.8.

9
Overview .................................................................................................................................................................2
Prerequisites ...........................................................................................................................................................3
Download and Installation ......................................................................................................................................4
Quick Setup ............................................................................................................................................................5
Configuration ..........................................................................................................................................................6
S-Meter Display ................................................................................................................................................... 31
Transmission Meter Display ................................................................................................................................ 33
User-defined Controls .......................................................................................................................................... 36
Changing Frequency ........................................................................................................................................... 49
Changing Mode and Filter Setting ....................................................................................................................... 62
Changing Receiver Bandwidth ............................................................................................................................ 63
Using Memories ................................................................................................................................................... 65
Controlling Multiple Radios .................................................................................................................................. 67
Keyboard Shortcuts ............................................................................................................................................. 69
Network Service................................................................................................................................................... 71
Monitoring Messages........................................................................................................................................... 73
Interoperating with Satellite Tracking Applications .............................................................................................. 75

1 Commander 15.8.9
 Overview
Commander enables you to
• control your Elecraft, FlexRadio, Icom, Kenwood, TenTec, or Yaesu radio from your PC
• see DX Spots plotted on a zoom-able bandspread display of your radio's currently-active band
• see frequency-dependent control settings for devices like tuners and amplifiers
• store and recall frequencies (and associated modes) from 100 memories organized into 10 banks
• manually or automatically switch between up to four connected radios
• monitor messages between your radio and your PC
• provide DXKeeper, PropView, SpotCollector, and WinWarbler with access to your radio's frequency and
mode

2 Commander 15.8.9
 Prerequisites
To use Commander, you need
• a PC running Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98SE, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP,
Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10, ideally
o 133 MHz Pentium or better
o 64 MB RAM or better
• an SVGA display or better
• a serial port connected to your radio via an appropriate radio interface

If you plan to run other members of the DXLab Suite in parallel with Commander, additional memory and a faster
processor will be required for satisfactory performance; beyond 3 or 4 DXLab applications

Defects in Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows 98SE precludes their use.

Windows 7, 8, and 10 require more RAM and CPU horsepower; consult Microsoft's prerequisites.

3 Commander 15.8.9
 Download and Installation
Installing or Upgrading the DXLab Launcher
The DXLab Launcher automates the installation of new DXLab applications, including Commander, and the
upgrading of already-installed DXLab applications.

If you're an aspiring DXLab user who has not installed any DXLab applications on your PC, or if you're a long-
time DXLab user who has never installed the Launcher, then installing the Launcher will make it easy to install
new DXLab applications and keep them up to date as upgrades are released.

Step-by-step guides for installing the Launcher are available, both in HTML for browsing
(http://www.dxlabsuite.com/dxlabwiki/InstallLauncher) and in PDF for printing
(http://www.dxlabsuite.com/Download%20and%20Installation.pdf).

You can uninstall Commander by running the Add/Remove Programs applet on the Windows control panel.

If you have questions or suggestions, please post them on the DXLab reflector at https://groups.io/g/DXLab.

If you’re not a member, you can sign up at https://groups.io/g/DXLab.

4 Commander 15.8.9
 Quick Setup
Quick Setup instructions: controlling one radio
Step Directions
1 in the Radio panel on the Configuration window's General tab
• select the radio's Model
• if you've selected an Icom or TenTec Omni,
o indicate whether you'll be specifying the radio's CI-V Address in
decimal or hexadecimal radix (radio addresses given in Icom and
TenTec manuals are in hexadecimal)
o enter the radio's CI-V Address in the specified radix
o set the radio's CI-V Transceive parameter off (using its
menu system)
• if you've selected a FlexRadio Signature that is connected to the same
local area network as the computer hosting Commander, specify its
Serial Number in the Radio Selection panel
• if you've selected a Kachina, specify the Control Filename established
by your Kachina software
• if you've selected a TenTec Pegasus, specify the Control Folder
containing your Pegasus control software; this folder should contain a file
named PEGASUS.OUT
2 in the Serial Port panel on Configuration window's Ports tab (skip if the radio
Model is a FlexRadio Signature, Kachina, or TenTec Pegasus)
• designate the serial port that is connected to your radio interface
• select the baud rate that matches your radio's settings
• if the radio requires that the RTS modem control signal be asserted,
place this signal in the always on state; the Kenwood TS-2000, for
example, has this requirement.
• if an external interface is being used and it derives its power from the
serial port's DTR and/or RTS modem control signals, place these signals
in the always on state
3 on the Configuration window's General tab, check the Continuous Frequency
and Mode Interrogation box and set the interval to 200 ms
• older radios like the Yaesu FT-767 require longer intervals, e.g. 400 ms

Note that checking the Continuous Frequency and Mode Interrogation checkbox with your Icom or TenTec Omni
radio's CI-V Transceive parameter set on will degrade Commander's ability to track changes in your radio's
frequency.

5 Commander 15.8.9
 Configuration
Commander's Configuration window provides 10 tabs, each contains a related group of settings and controls that
you can inspect and/or modify:
•
General o Radio panel
▪ radio model and bus address
▪ polling and command execution interval
▪ memory scan dwell time
▪ radio-specific options
o General panel
▪ mousewheel disablement
▪ Dual Receive enable/disable
▪ compute frequency-dependent device settings from transmit
frequency when operating split
▪ display of User-defined Controls
▪ use of dual monitors
▪ diagnostic logging enable/disable
o transmit/receive switching
o VFO autorepeat rate
o Initial command
o Sub-band definitions
o Online help access
Ports o Primary CAT Serial Port panel
▪ serial port parameters
▪ DTR and RTS behavior
o Secondary CAT Serial Port panel
▪ serial port parameters
▪ DTR and RTS behavior
▪ CAT Protocol, CI-V Address, and Interrogation interval
▪ Radio vs. Transceiver Control Application
o SO2R Serial Port panel
▪ serial port parameters
▪ DTR and RTS behavior
▪ SO2R protocol
▪ Auxiliary Output frequency-dependent device control
o Parallel Port panel
▪ parallel port parameters
▪ radio selection and RX-TX switching
▪ data signal frequency-dependent device control
o Modem Command panel
Frequency- o device name (appears as tab caption)
dependent o control names
Devices (3) o control settings for each frequency
Filter Groups o Filter names and bandwidths
o Filter Group behavior when radio's mode changes
Memories o titles for each memory bank
o memory import and export controls
Multi Radio o names and polling rates for up to 4 controlled radios
o serial port parameters for each controlled radio
o automatic radio selection by band

6 Commander 15.8.9
 Bandspread o bandspread dial orientation (lower frequency on top or bottom)
o time trigger for pushing a frequency onto the current band stack
o bandspread mousewheel control by mode
o Active DX callsign parameters for both the Bandspread and Spectrum-
Waterfall windows
Transverters o supports the specification of transverters for the 6m, 4m, 2m, 1.25m, 70cm,
33cm, and 23cm bands

A separate Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window is provided to configure operation of the Spectrum-Waterfall

window.

For information about the purpose of any Commander control, allow the cursor to linger over that control for a
second or two; a box containing explanatory text will appear. This feature can be disabled if desired.

General tab
• Radio panel
Setting Provided for Description
Model all radios the radio or panadaptor being controlled, or the satellite
tracking application with which Commander will interoperate
CI-V Address all Icom, the radio's CI-V bus address in either hexadecimal or
TenTec Omni decimal
VI
Note: when controlling an Icom or TenTec Omni VI,
Commander's Main window will display a CI-V indicator to
the right of the Scan checkbox if the radio reports a CI-V
bus collision
Hexadecimal all Icom, if selected, the CI-V Address is interpreted as a hexadecimal
TenTec Omni (base 16) number
VI
Decimal all Icom, if selected, the CI-V Address is interpreted as a decimal
TenTec Omni (base 10) number
VI
Interrogation all radios when checked, Commander directs the radio to report its
frequency, mode, VFO, filter, and S-meter data at the
specified rate specified by the Command Interval

7 Commander 15.8.9
Command Interval (ms) all radios the time interval between command groups sent to the
transceiver, in milliseconds
o if no value is specified, 200 ms. is used
o values less than 10 ms. are interpreted as 10 ms.
o values greater than 60,000 ms. are interpreted as
60,000 ms.
o 200 ms. is a reasonable setting for most PCs and
radios
▪ if the transceiver is a Yaesu FT-747, values
less than 2000 ms. are interpreted as 2000
ms.
▪ if the transceiver is a Yaesu FT-767, values
less than 400 ms. are interpreted as 400
ms.
▪ with a fast Primary CAT port baud rate,
recent radios like the IC-7800 can handle
command intervals of 20 ms. or lower,
yielding smooth tuning but increasing
Commander's use of your PC's CPU time
No interrogation while all radios when checked, Commander will not ask the radio to report
transmitting its frequency, mode, VFO, filter, and meter data while
directing the radio to transmit; this option should not be
enabled unless the transceiver cannot generate smooth
CW while being asked to report this information
Verify CI-V command all Icom, when checked, waits for a positive acknowledgement after
acceptance TenTec Omni transmitting each CI-V command and resends the command
VI if either a negative acknowledgement or no
acknowledgement is received; when enabled while
controlling an Icom or TenTec Omni VI as the primary radio,
the Messages window's Exec function is disabled

note: if the Verify CI-V command acceptance option is

enabled, the transceiver's CI-V Transceive menu setting
must be disabled
Sync transceiver all Icom, when checked, informs applications that log and spot that
frequencies before TenTec Omni the active transceiver does not report changes in VFO B so
logging or spotting VI they can direct Commander to refresh its VFO frequencies
and disseminate them so that logged and spotted
frequencies are accurate
Set radio UTC time on IC-756PROIII, when checked, sets the transceiver's UTC date and time
startup or selection, and IC-7600, IC- from your PC's date and time when Commander starts or
at the beginning of each 7610, C-7700, when the transceiver is selected, and at the beginning of
hour IC-7800, IC- each subsequent hour
7850, IC-7851
Emit subreceiver audio IC-7800 when checked, directs the transceiver to emit subreceiver
when dual receive audio via backpanel connector ACC-A's AF signal when dual
enabled receive is enabled; when un-checked, the transceiver emits
main receiver audio via this signal
Display outgoing CI-V IC-7600, IC- when checked, outgoing CI-V commands are displayed in
commands in Message 7610, IC- the Message window (useful when connected to the radio
window 7700, IC- via a USB cable)
7800, IC-
7850, IC-7851

8 Commander 15.8.9
Log Mode for Data-L or transceivers specifies the "mode to be logged" conveyed to other
Data-U for which applications, e.g. PSK31 or SSTV or FT8
Commander If DXKeeper is installed, this selector is populated with the
provides a modes specified in DXKeeper's Modes.txt file if present, or
Data-L or its DefaultModes.txt file.
Data-U mode
Log Mode for PKT or transceivers specifies the "mode to be logged" conveyed to other
PKT-R for which applications, e.g. PSK31 or SSTV or FT8
Commander If DXKeeper is installed, this selector is populated with the
provides a modes specified in DXKeeper's Modes.txt file if present, or
PKT or PKT-R its DefaultModes.txt file.
mode
Log Mode for DIGL or Flex Signature specifies the "mode to be logged" conveyed to other
DIGU 6000 Series applications, e.g. PSK31 or SSTV or FT8
If DXKeeper is installed, this selector is populated with the
modes specified in DXKeeper's Modes.txt file if present, or
its DefaultModes.txt file.
Data sub-mode IC-7600, IC- specifies which Data Sub-mode is selected when the mode
7700, IC- is set to Data-L or Data-U
7800, IC-
7850, IC-7851
RTTY sub-mode K3, KX3, K4 determines whether the radio's data mode is set to FSK D or
AFSK A when its mode is set to RTTY or RTTY-R
Control Filename Kachina specify the Kachina control filename

Control Folder Pegasus specify the folder containing your TenTec Pegasus control
software; this folder should contain a file named
PEGASUS.OUT
provide A/B and TF-SET TS-480, TS- when checked, Commander's Main window provides A/B
buttons 590, TS- and TF-S buttons instead of AxB and XFC buttons
590SG, TS-
2000
provide a TF-SET button TS-990 when checked, Commander's Main window provides a TF-S
button instead of an XFC button
Data transmission from TS-480 when checked, the TS-480 is directed to transmit audio from
ANI input the ANI signal in its backpanel ACC2 connector rather than
from its front panel MIC input
Data transmission from TS-590, TS- when checked, the transceiver is directed to transmit audio
USB interface or ANI 590SG, TS- from its USB interface or from the ANI signal in its backpanel
input 890, TS-990 ACC2 connector rather than from its front panel MIC input
Assign subreceiver to Orion when checked, the Orion's subreceiver is assigned to VFO A
VFO A when dual when dual receive is disabled; when unchecked, the
receive disabled subreceiver is unassigned

9 Commander 15.8.9
Radio's minimum VFO FT-1000D, when checked, operations that QSY the radio by 10 hz (e.g.
step is set to 10 hz MP- wheeled mouse movements) will be accomplished by
1000MKV, sending a "Step VFO" CAT command instead of the
MP-1000, FT- standard "QSY" CAT command, thereby avoiding any
990, FT- muting of receiver audio
990_12, FT- This capability is disabled if the Secondary CAT Port is
900, or FT- configured to Lead or Follow and Lead with the Interrogate
890 selector not set to off.
Convey Decoded CW to K3, KX3, K4 when enabled with WinWarbler running, decoded CW is
WinWarbler conveyed to WinWarbler
Convey Decode RTTY K3, KX3, K4 when enabled with WinWarbler running, decoded RTTY is
to WinWarbler conveyed to WinWarbler
Communicate via TCP K4, Thetis when enabled, connect to a K4 or Thetis panadaptor
connected to the local area network via the specified IP
Address
IP Address K4, Thetis specify the IP address to which a K4 or Thetis Panadaptor is
connected on the local area network
o for a K4, obtain the IP address from the K4's IP
Address menu item
▪ port 9200 is used for CAT control
▪ port 9201 is used for Spectrum data
o for a Thetis panadaptor, obtain the IP address from
the TCP/IP CAT Server panel on the Thetis Setup
window's Network tab
IP Port Thetis obtain the IP port from the TCP/IP CAT Server panel on the
Thetis Setup window's Network tab
Monitor Connection Flex Signature when enabled, Commander pings the radio once per
6000 Series second, enabling it to report a disconnection
Create VFO B at startup Flex Signature when enabled, Commander will create VFO B (slice 1) on
6000 Series startup if it does not already exist
No Split on VFO B Flex Signature when enabled, the Main window's Split box will be
transmitting 6000 Series unchecked (instead of checked) when the radio reports that
slices A and B are both active with slice B configured to
transmit
Full-width RX Filters Flex Signature when disabled, the maximum CW RX filter bandwidth is 1
6000 Series KHz, and the maximum SSB, RTTY, and DIG RX filter
bandwidth is 5 KHz

when enabled, the maximum CW RX filter bandwidth is 12

KHz, and the maximum SSB, RTTY, and DIG RX filter
bandwidth is 12 KHz
Radio Selection: Serial Flex Signature If more than one Flex 6000 is present on the network,
Number 6000 Series specify the serial number of the radio to which Commander
should connect
Radio Selection: IP Flex Signature If Commander cannot connect to a Flex 6000 because its
Address and Port 6000 Series "here's my IP address" broadcast is not being heard, specify
the radio's IP Address, and set its IP Port to 4992

10 Commander 15.8.9
Scan Dwell all radios specified the amount of time (seconds) spent listening to a
memory's frequency before advancing to the next memory
when Memory Scanning is enabled
Xmit Meter Argonaut VI, specify the meter to display while transmitting
Eagle (requires No interrogation while transmitting to be disabled)
FT-450, FT-
950,
FT-891, FT-
991,
FTDX-1200,
FT-2000,
FTDX-3000,
FTDX-5000,
FTDX-9000
IC-746Pro, IC-
756ProIII,
IC-7000, IC-
7200, IC-
7300, IC-
7400, IC-
7410, IC-
7600, IC-
7700, IC-
7800, IC-
7850, IC-7851
TS-590S, TS-
590G, TS-
990, TS-2000
Read radio's EEPROM FT-817, FT- when checked, determines VFO selection and Split state by
to determine VFO and 857, FT-857D, reading the radio's EEPROM; this increases the risk that a
Split status FT-897 CAT command will be changed by RFI or other data
communications malfunction to a command that resets the
radio.
Set default width & shift FT-DX-10 when checked, changing mode sets the transceiver's width
after mode change and shift to its default value for the new mode
Reset all radios when clicked, resets communications with the transceiver
o can also be invoked by depressing the CTRL and
SHIFT keys while clicking the Main window's Config
button
Display Error Log all radios when clicked, displays Commander's Errorlog.txt file
Display License all radios when clicked, displays Commander's License
Set Time IC-7300, IC- when clicked, updates the transceiver with the current UTC
7600, IC- date and time
7700, IC- o for this function to work correctly, set the radio's
7800, IC- UTC offset menu item to 0
7850, IC-7851 o this button will be temporarily disabled for up to a
minute after being clicked, or after startup or radio
selection with the Set transceiver UTC time on
startup or selection option enabled
Net Serv all radios when clicked, displays Commanders Network Service
window, which governs communication with other
applications via UDP and TCP

11 Commander 15.8.9
• General panel
Ignore when checked, directs Commander to not change transceiver frequency when you
Mousewheel rotate your mousewheel
Accept 'Dual when checked, allows other DXLab applications to enable the radio's Dual Receive (if
Rcv On' available), e.g. when double-clicking on one of SpotCollector's Spot Database entries
directives that specifies split frequency operation
Accept ' Dual when checked, allows other DXLab applications to disable the radio's Dual Receive (if
Rcv Off' available), e.g. when double-clicking on one of SpotCollector's Spot Database entries
directives that specifies simplex operation
Use TX freq when checked, settings for frequency-dependent devices are computed from the
for devices transmit frequency when operating split
when split
Switch to when checked, leave Split mode when the current VFO's frequency changes by 1 MHz
simplex on 1 or more
MHz QSY
Use multiple when checked, windows that resided on a secondary monitor during the previous
monitors session will be restored to the same secondary monitor on startup; when not checked,
all windows are restored to the primary monitor on startup
Log when checked, directs Commander to record diagnostic information in the file
debugging errorlog.txt located in Commander's folder
Information

• PTT panel
Commander can switch the radio between receiving and transmitting by
o sending the radio an appropriate command via the serial port (if supported by the radio, and
not suppressed)
o controlling an external interface via the serial port signals RTS and/or DTR
o controlling an external interface via parallel port pin 17

TX clicking this button directs the radio to switch from receiving to transmitting
RX clicking this button directs the radio to switch from transmitting to receiving
suppress CAT when checked, CAT commands will not be used to switch the transceiver between
receiving and transmitting; presumably a hardware signal (serial port DTR, serial port
RTS, or parallel port pin 17) will be exclusively used for this purpose, e.g. when an
external sequencer is in use

• Frequency Colors panel

In clicking this button specifies the font color for in-band frequencies displayed in the
Main window's primary VFO panel and all frequencies displayed in the secondary VFO
and Memory Bank panels
Out click to specify the font color for out-of-band frequencies displayed in the Main
window's primary VFO panel
Back click to specify the background color for frequencies displayed in the Main window
Def click to set the font colors for in-band frequencies and out-of-band frequencies and the
background color for frequencies to the factory default values: cyan font for in-band
frequencies, yellow font for out-of-band frequencies, and black background

• VFO Autorepeat Rate panel: determines the rate at which the Main window VFO's ▲, ▼, ◄, and ►
buttons autorepeat when you click and hold them.

12 Commander 15.8.9
• Sub-band Definitions panel
Edit edits the sub-band definition file BandSegments.txt; if this file doesn't exist, creates it
from DefaultBandSegments.txt
Reload reloads sub-band definitions from the file BandSegments.txt if it exists; otherwise, from
the file DefaultBandSegments.txt
• You can define up to eight sub-bands for each amateur band from 160m to 23cm; when the primary VFO
frequency does not lie within a defined sub-band, the frequency is displayed in the specified out-of-band
color. By default, sub-bands are defined by the contents of the file DefaultBandSegments.txt in
Commander's folder. Each line in this file defines a sub-band by specifying a name, a lower-bound (in
mHz), an upper-bound (in mHz), and a code (unused, set to 0).
• 160M, 1.800, 2.000, 0
80M, 3.500, 3.750, 0
75M, 3.750, 4.000, 0
40M, 7.000, 7.150, 0
40M, 7.150, 7.300, 0
60M, 5.330, 5.405, 0
30M, 10.100, 10.150, 0
20M, 14.000, 14.150, 0
20M, 14.150, 14.350, 0
17M, 18.068, 18.168, 0
15M, 21.000, 21.200, 0
15M, 21.200, 21.450, 0
12M, 24.890, 24.990, 0
10M, 28.000, 28.300, 0
10M, 28.300, 29.700, 0
6M, 50.000, 54.000, 0
4M, 70.000, 70.500, 0
2M, 144.000, 148.000, 0
1.25M, 222.000, 225.000, 0
70CM, 420.000, 450.000, 0
33CM, 902.000, 928.000, 0
23CM, 1240.000, 1300.000, 0
• You can also define up to 10 bands below 1 MHz, for example:
• 2190M, 0.1357, 0.1378, 0
630M, 0.472, 0.479, 0
• No more than one lower-bound can be specified in each 100 kHz slot below 1 MHz, and the defined
bands cannot overlap. This set of definitions, for example

630M, 0.472, 0.479, 0

625M, 0.480, 0.490, 0

would cause Commander to report that it is ignoring the 625m entry because the 630m entry's lower
bound already occupies the 400-499 kHz slot. In contrast, both of these entries would be accepted:
• 750M, 0.350, 0.450, 0
630M, 0.472, 0.479, 0
• Modifying or Defining Sub-bands
• To modify these sub-band definitions or define new sub-bands, click this panel's Edit button; this will
create a file named BandSegments.txt initialize its contents from the file
DefaultBandSegments.txt, and open BandSegments.txt for editing. If you hold a General Class
license in the United States, for example, you might define the following two sub-bands:
• 80M, 3.525, 3.750, 0
75M, 3.850, 4.000, 0
• Save your modifications, and click the panel's Reload button to put your new sub-band definitions into
effect. When subsequently started, Commander will load sub-band definitions from BandSegments.txt.

13 Commander 15.8.9
• The following sub-bands are currently fixed, and cannot be modified by the user:
• 1.25M: 222.000 to 225.000
33CM: 902.000 to 928.000
23CM: 1240.000 to 1300.000

• User-defined Controls panel

Show within checking this box
Main window o unchecks the Show by expanding Main window box, reducing Commander's
Main window to its standard height
o disables all three Frequency-dependent device panels
o displays a User-defined Controls panel containing 8 buttons and 4 sliders
that can be used to invoke and edit User-defined Controls
Show by checking this box expands the height of the Main window to display a User-defined
expanding Controls panel containing 16 buttons and 8 sliders that can be used to invoke and
Main window edit User-defined Command Controls

• Initial Command panel: specifies a command to be executed when Commander starts, or when a new
radio Model is selected
Command Function
a hexadecimal radio all characters are sent to the radio via the primary CAT serial port, two
command specified by an per byte (useful for Icom, TenTec, and Yaesu radios
even number of hexadecimal o substitution strings: slider value, CI-V address
characters, e.g.
FEFE26EO0700FD
an ASCII radio command each character following the apostrophe is sent to the radio via the
specified by a sequence of primary CAT serial port (useful for Kenwood and Elecraft radios)
ASCII characters preceded o substitution strings: slider value, ASCII character
by a single apostrophe, e.g.
'AN1;
a sequence of ascii ASCII radio command -- each character following the tilde will be sent
characters preceded by a to your radio via the TCP/IP connection (useful for Flex Signature
single tilde, e.g. radios)
~slice set 0 rxant=ant1 o substitution strings: slider value, ascii character

• Initial Command Sequence panel

Enable when enabled, specifies a Command Sequence to be executed when Commander
starts, or when a new radio Model is selected
o If an Initial Command is also specified, the Initial Command Sequence is
executed after the Initial Command
Edit when clicked, displays a window that lets you define, edit, and test the initial command
sequence

• User-defined Sequence after Mode Change panel

Name specifies the name of a User-defined Command Sequence to be automatically
executed when the primary radio's mode changes
Delay specifies the number of milliseconds (up to a maximum of 10,000) to wait before
executing the specified User-defined Command Sequence after the primary radio's
mode changes

14 Commander 15.8.9
 • Guidance panel
Browser if this setting is blank, Commander displays online help using your PC's default HTML
pathname browser; if this setting contains the pathname of an HTML browser, Commander
displays online help using that browser.
Select button displays a file selector dialog that allows you to choose a Browser pathname
show control when checked, enables the display of explanatory information when the mouse cursor
explanations lingers over a textbox, button, checkbox, display pane, or setting.
Help button displays the information you are now reading

A separate Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window is provided for controlling the Spectrum-Waterfall window.

Ports tab
• Primary CAT Serial Port panel
o Port# selector: specifies the PC serial port to which the radio is connected
o Baud Rate selector: specifies the baud rate that the radio is using (hardwired in some radios,
menu-configurable in others; consult the radio's manual)
o Parity selector: specifies whether parity is enabled (hardwired in some radios, menu-configurable
in others; consult the radio's manual)
o Word Length selector: specifies the number of data bits that the radio is using (hardwired in
some radios, menu-configurable in others; consult the radio's manual)
o Stop Bits selector: specifies the number of stop bits that the radio is using (hardwired in some
radios, menu-configurable in others; consult the radio's manual)
o DTR selector: specifies the behavior of the Data Terminal Ready modem control signal of the
selected port
Off DTR is never asserted
On DTR is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from DTR is in use)
TX DTR is asserted when Commander is directed by another application to transmit,
or when TX is clicked until RX is clicked

o RTS selector: specifies the behavior of the Request To Send modem control signal of the
selected port

Off RTS is never asserted

On RTS is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from RTS is in use)
TX RTS is asserted when Commander is directed by a client application to key the
radio, or when the PTT On button is clicked until the PTT Off button is clicked
Flow RTS is asserted when Commander has data to send to the radio via the serial
port; this data will not be sent until the radio responds by asserting the incoming
modem control signal Clear To Send (CTS)

15 Commander 15.8.9
• Secondary CAT Serial Port panel
o Enable: when checked, Commander will control the radio, device, or application attached to the
Secondary CAT Port as specified by the Behavior options and using the specified CAT protocol
o Behavior options
▪ Follow Primary: when selected, Commander will direct the radio, device, or application
connected to the secondary port to track changes in the primary radio's frequency and
mode, and provides the Update every 200 ms option (not available when the Radio
Model is set to SatPC32 or S.A.T.)
▪ Lead Primary: when selected, Commander and the primary radio will track the frequency
and mode of the radio, device, or application connected to the Secondary CAT Port (not
available when the Radio Model is set to SatPC32 or S.A.T.)
▪ Follow & Lead Primary: when selected, Commander, the primary radio and the radio,
device, or application connected to the Secondary CAT Port will track each other's
frequency and mode (not available when the Radio Model is set to SatPC32 or S.A.T.)
▪ Follow uplink: when selected, Commander will direct the radio, device, or application
connected to the secondary port to track changes in the primary radio's uplink frequency,
and provides the Update every 200 ms option (only available when the Radio Model is
set to SatPC32 or S.A.T.)
▪ Follow downlink: when selected, Commander will direct the radio, device, or application
connected to the secondary port to track changes in the primary radio's downlink
frequency, and provides the Update every 200 ms option (only available when the Radio
Model is set to SatPC32 or S.A.T.)
▪ Update every 200 ms: when checked, Commander will update the radio, device, or
application connected to the Secondary CAT Port to track primary radio's frequency and
mode every 200 milliseconds; enabling this option will convey the primary radio's
frequency and mode to a radio, device, or application connected to the Secondary CAT
Port that is powered up or started after Commander is already running
▪ Follow Alternate VFO when Split: when checked and Commander's Split box is
checked, the radio, device, or application connected to the secondary port will follow the
primary transceiver's alternate VFO
▪ Follow & Lead Alternate VFO when Split: when checked and Commander's Split box is
checked, the radio, device, or application connected to the secondary port will follow the
primary transceiver's alternate VFO, and the primary radio's alternate VFO will track
frequency changes from the radio, device, or application connected to the secondary port
o CAT protocol selector: specifies the CAT protocol to be used for interaction with the device
connected to the Secondary CAT Port:
Argonaut V, a TenTec Argonaut V or Argonaut VI transceiver
Argonaut VI
BobCAT the BobCAT SDR Console using the ICOM CI-V protocol via a connected virtual
serial port pair
CW Skimmer CW Skimmer using the Kenwood protocol via a connected virtual serial port pair

Eagle a TenTec Eagle transceiver

Elecraft an Elecraft K3, or an application that emulates the Kenwood protocol
FlexRadio a FlexRadio SDR via a connected virtual serial port pair
FT-450, FT-817, a Yaesu transceiver or an application that emulates the Yaesu protocol used by
FT-818, FT-857, these transceivers
FT-857D, FT-891,
FT-897, FT-950,
FT-991, FT-2000,
FT-5000, FT-9000,
FT-1000MP
ICOM an Icom transceiver, or an application that emulates the Icom CI-V protocol

16 Commander 15.8.9
 Jupiter a Tentec Jupiter transceiver
Kenwood a Kenwood transceiver, or an application that emulates the Kenwood protocol
Omni VI, Omni VII a TenTec Omni VI or Omni VII transceiver
Orion a TenTec Orion transceiver
Perseus a Microtelecom Perseus
▪ via a connected virtual serial port pair to the virtual serial port created by
the radio's USB interface
▪ communications employs the Icom CI-V protocol
▪ CI-V commands will be sent to mute and un-mute the Perseus' audio
when the primary transceiver switches from RX to TX and from TX to RX
respectively
PW1 an Icom IC-PW1 amplifier (Commander will send alternating frequency and mode
updates every 2.5 seconds to prevent CI-V bus collisions)
Note: Commander will display a PW1 alert indicator above the CAT Protocol
selector when a CI-V message is received from the PW1, and will display a PW1
indicator to the left of the Main window's Help button. This is normal when
powering up a connected Icom transceiver or when powering up the PW1, and
should be reset by clicking either indicator. If either PW1 indicator appears
after power-up, CI-V bus collisions could be compromising frequency
tracking; do not operate the PW1 with automatic frequency tracking until
this situation is corrected!
SteppIR a SteppIR antenna controller using Icom CI-V instructions (sends frequency
updates every 2.5 seconds)
o CI-V-Addr box: if the CAT protocol is Icom or PW1 or SteppIR, specifies the CI-V Address in
hexadecimal
o Interrogate selector: if the CAT protocol is Icom or Kenwood, determines whether and at what
rate to request frequency and mode reports.
▪ when the CAT protocol is set to Kenwood, Commander issues an AI1, or AI2; command
that directs the connected device or application to automatically report frequency or mode
changes, making polling unnecessary. Because some applications do not correctly
respond to AI1; or AI2; commands, Commander provides the polling option. If the device
or application connected to the Secondary CAT port responds to AI1; or AI2; commands
by automatically reporting frequency and mode changes, the Interrogate selector should
be set to Off; this can be determined by monitoring the secondary CAT port using
Commander's Messages window.

o Port# selector: specifies the PC serial port; if the specified port is assigned to an enabled
transceiver on the Configuration window's MultiRadio tab, that transceiver's Main window
selection button will be disabled ("grayed out")
o Baud Rate selector: specifies the baud rate
o Parity selector: specifies whether parity checking is enabled
o Word Length selector: specifies the number of data bits
o Stop Bits selector: specifies the number of stop bits
o DTR selector: specifies the behavior of the Data Terminal Ready modem control signal
Off DTR is never asserted
On DTR is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from DTR is in use)

17 Commander 15.8.9
 o RTS selector: specifies the behavior of the Request To Send modem control signal
Off RTS is never asserted

On RTS is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from RTS is in use)
Flow RTS is asserted when Commander has data to send via this serial port; the data
will not be sent until the connected device responds by asserting the incoming
modem control signal Clear To Send (CTS)

• SO2R Serial Port panel

o SO2R protocol selector: specifies the SO2R protocol to be used (microHam or OTRSP)
o Enable: select to send commands to an attached SO2R device using the specified protocol to
convey radio selection changes, band changes (OTRSP protocol only), and ACC/Auxiliary Output
changes as a function of the current transceiver's frequency; no commands will be sent unless
multi-radio support is enabled and a radio is selected.
o ACC/Auxiliary Outputs panel: displays the last ACC/Auxiliary Output command sent to the
SO2R device
Enable when checked, the integer value of the selected Device Control is placed onto
the specified ACC or Auxiliary outputs
Device specifies the frequency-dependent device whose Control value is placed onto the
specified ACC or Auxiliary outputs
Control specifies the frequency-dependent device's Control whose value is placed onto
the specified ACC or Auxiliary outputs
▪ note: if the SO2R protocol selector is set to microHam, the selected frequency-
dependent device's Control must specify the band with two digits, e.g. 01 for 160m, or 11
for 6 meters.
o Port# selector: specifies the PC serial port
o Baud Rate selector: specifies the baud rate
o Parity selector: specifies whether parity checking is enabled
o Word Length selector: specifies the number of data bits
o Stop Bits selector: specifies the number of stop bits
o DTR selector: specifies the behavior of the Data Terminal Ready modem control signal
Off DTR is never asserted
On DTR is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from DTR is in use)
•
o RTS selector: specifies the behavior of the Request To Send modem control signal
Off RTS is never asserted
On RTS is always asserted (required if an external interface that derives its power
from RTS is in use)
Flow RTS is asserted when Commander has data to send via this serial port; the data
will not be sent until the connected device responds by asserting the incoming
modem control signal Clear To Send (CTS)

18 Commander 15.8.9
 • Parallel Port panel
o Enable Radio & PTT: if this box is checked, Commander encodes the currently-selected radio on
pins 16 and 14 of the specified parallel Port Address, and asserts pin 17 when Commander is
directing the transceiver to transmit.
Radio Parallel port pin 16 Parallel port pin 14
1 0 0
2 0 1

3 1 0
4 1 1
o Port selector: chooses one of four standard parallel port addresses
o Port Address: selects a parallel port
o Data Signals panel: if the Enable box is checked, Commander places the integer value of the
selected Device Control onto data bits 7 (most significant bit, pin 9) though 0 (least significant bit,
pin 2) of the specified parallel port
Enable when checked, the integer value of the selected Device Control is placed onto
the specified parallel port's data bits
Device specifies the frequency-dependent device whose Control value is placed onto the
specified parallel port's data bits
Control specifies the frequency-dependent device's Control whose value is placed onto
the specified parallel port's data bits

• Modem Command panel

Command if Commander is controlling a remote transceiver via a serial port connected to a
modem, use this textbox to specify the modem initialization and dialing
commands to be sent when the Send button is activated; if a command is
specified, Continuous Frequency and Mode Interrogation is disabled on startup
Send button when clicked, sends the Command to the modem via the serial port

Frequency-dependent Device tabs

Devices like antenna tuners and linear amplifiers have controls whose settings are frequency-dependent. While
high-end units do this automatically, most require the operator to manually set the controls whenever the
operating frequency changes. Commander enables you to specify tables for such devices; it then performs a table
lookup based on the transceiver's current frequency and displays the correct settings, eliminating the need for
paper tables taped to the front-panel. Up to four different frequency-dependent devices are supported, each with
up to three controls.
• You can optionally place the settings from one control of one device onto a parallel port's data bits; this
permits the direct control of external devices like antenna switches.
• You can optionally use a control's settings to set the value of one a command-generating slider; this could
be used, for example, to automatically control your transceiver's power output as a function of frequency

The right side of Commander's Main window is shared by frequency-dependent device readouts, receiver filter
controls, and eight banks of ten memories. If the frequently-dependent device panels are not visible, clicking the
Main window's Filters & Devices button will make them and the receiver filter controls appear in place of the
memory banks.

Initially, Commander refers to the four frequency-dependent devices as Device 0, Device 1, Device 2, and
Device 3; as part of the setup procedure, you can replace these generic names with more meaningful names like
Amplifier, or Tuner.

19 Commander 15.8.9
To setup a frequency-dependent device, use the following procedure:
•
Step Directions
1 on Commander's Main window, click the Config button

2 on Commander's Main window, click the Filters & Devices button if its visible
3 on Commander's Configuration window, select the Device 0 tab (you can use the Device 1,
Device 2, and Device 3 tabs to setup a second, third, and fourth frequency-dependent device, if
desired)
4 check the Device 0 tab's Enabled box; in the Main window, you'll see a Device 0 panel appear
(the contents of this panel will be updated as you complete this procedure)
5 enter the name of the device in the Device Name box; the name of the tab will change from
Device 0 to the name you specify
6 enter the number of controls associated with this device in the # Controls box; accepted values
are 1, 2, or 3.
7 enter the name of the first control in the Control 1 box; if there's a second control, enter its
name in the Control 2 box and if there's a third control, enter its name in the Control 3 box.
o to drive a command-generating slider with a control, set the control's name to <Sn>
where n is a number from 1 to 8 that identifies the slider being driven
8 scroll the Device Table to the frequencies of interest, and enter the control values for each such
frequency; after entering each value, strike the Enter key
o to modify an existing device table entry, select the information you wish to change by
clicking it with the left mouse button, and then type in the new information
o to add a new entry to a device table, scroll to its bottom, where you will find a blank line
with an asterisk in the grey left-most column. Key in the entry's frequency in
kilohertz, and then strike the Enter key. Commander automatically sorts the Device
Table in ascending frequency order, so the new entry may disappear from view. If
you're planning to add several entries, it is more efficient to first create the entries, and
then scroll through the Device Table entering control values for the newly-created
entries.
o to delete an entry in the device table, select it by clicking in the grey left-most column;
then strike the Delete key.
o it is not necessary to enter control values for every frequency in the table
o depressing the CTRL key while clicking on a Device Table entry will QSY your
transceiver to that entry's frequency, making it easy to determine or verify settings
9 enter a percentage in the Tolerance box (2% is a reasonable default)
o the percentage difference between the frequency of the Device Table entry closest to
your radio's current frequency and your radio's current frequency must be less than or
equal to the specified Tolerance for that entry's control settings to be displayed
o if there is no Device Table entry within the specified Tolerance, the Device's control
settings will be blanked
10 click the Save button and specify a destination filename into which the Device data just specified
will be saved for use in subsequent Commander sessions.
.
If Commander is terminated and later restarted, saved device data will automatically be reloaded for each Device
that was enabled when Commander was terminated.

You can use the above procedure to record data for an alternate device -- e.g. a backup amplifier -- in a separate
file. The Select button allows you to choose the file from which the Device data will be loaded. The ReLoad
button restores the Device data to the values contained in the most recently-loaded file.

20 Commander 15.8.9
You can specify the colors used to display a Device's settings on the right side of Commander's Main window via
buttons in the Setting Readout Colors panel:
• Font - click this button specify the font color for this device's settings displayed in the Main window
• Background - click to specify the background color for this device's settings displayed in the Main
window
• Default - click to use "factory default" colors for this device's settings displayed in the Main window: cyan
font, and black background

You can select one control of one frequency-dependent device whose integer value will be placed on data bits 7
through 0 of a specified parallel port. This can be used to control an antenna switch, for example.

Filter Groups tab

A Filter Group is a named configuration of one or more receiver bandwidth settings. If Filter Groups are supported
for a particular radio Model, Commander remembers the Filter Group last used in each mode. Checking the
restore Filter Group on mode change box directs Commander to automatically restore the last used Filter
Group whenever a new mode is selected.

If the radio Model is an Icom, the Filter Groups tab displays the Icom Filter Group Names panel, which lets you
assign names to the each Filter Group. Early Icom transceivers provides two Filter Groups whose functions are
hardwired: group 1 provides a wide bandwidth filter, and group 2 provides a narrow bandwidth filter. Later Icom
transceivers allow the user to reconfigure one or both filter groups for different bandwidth (by physical
replacement or in high-end transceivers via menu selection), and some include a third group ambiguously
referred to as normal. The Icom Filter Group Names panel lets you assign names to each group that are
meaningful given the actual filter configuration of your transceiver; these names appear in the Group selector in
the Main window's Filters panel, enabling you to change bandwidth with a mouse click.

If the radio Model is set to MP1000 or MP1000MKV, the Filter Groups tab displays the Yaesu FT1000MP and
Mark V panel which contains a table, each of whose rows is comprised of cells that define a Filter Group; a Data
File panel is also display, enabling you to specify the file into which Filter Groups are saved.
• To modify an existing Filter Group's Mode, 2nd IF, 3rd IF, or Sub cell, click in the cell to display a down-
pointing triangle; then on this triangle to display a list of alternatives from which you can choose with a
mouse click. After you change any cell, a pencil icon appears in the row's left-most column:
o to undo the change, strike the ESC key
o to record the change, click on any other row in the table, or strike the UpArrow or DownArrow
keys.
• To delete a Filter Group, click in its row's left-most column, and then strike the Delete key.
• To add a new Filter Group,
1. click on any cell in the bottom-most table entry, which is marked with an asterisk in its left-most
column; doing so will create an empty new row, whose cells you can then populate
2. if you haven't specified a Filename in the Data File panel, select one by clicking the Data File panel's
Select button
3. click the Data File panel's Save button to save all Filter Groups to the specified Filename; Filter
Groups saved in this way will automatically be loaded from the specified Filename when Commander
is started

If the radio Model is set to Argonaut VI, the Filter Groups tab displays a Argonaut VI default bandwidth by
mode panel that provides the option to set the default bandwidth to a specified value when the transceiver's mode
changes.

If the radio Model is set to Eagle, the Filter Groups tab displays a Eagle default bandwidth by mode panel
that provides the option to set the default bandwidth to a specified value when the transceiver's mode changes.

21 Commander 15.8.9
If the radio Model is set to a Flex Signature Series model, the Filter Groups tab displays a Flex Signature
Series panel that provides
• the ability to specify Low-cut and High-cut frequencies for Wide, Normal, and Narrow filter groups for
each mode: SSB, CW, DIGL, DIGU, RTTY, and AM
• a show each mode's Filter Group option that when enabled appends each mode with its associated
Filter Group in the Mode panel on Commander's Main window

If the radio Model is set to FTDX10, the Filter Groups tab displays a Yaesu default bandwidth by mode panel
that provides the option to set the default Width and Shift to specified values when the transceiver's mode
changes.

If the radio Model is set to Orion, the Filter Groups tab displays an Orion default bandwidth by mode panel
that provides the option to set the default bandwidth to a specified value when the transceiver's mode changes.

Memories tab
Textboxes in this tab's Memory panel allow you to establish a title for each memory bank; this title serves as the
caption for the Main window panel that displays the currently-selected memory bank.
• When checked, the Disable Save Buttons box disables (grays out) the Save buttons in the Main
window's Memory Bank panel; clicking the word Save in the Main window's Memory Bank panel will
display the Config window's Memories tab
• The Export Memories button saves the information associated with all memories that contain at least a
frequency and mode to a specified file.
• The Import Memories button loads memories from information contained in a specified file. Any errors
are placed in an error file that's displayed after the operation completes.
• The Clear Memories button erases the contents of all memories in the current memory bank
• The User-defined Sequence after Memory Select option lets you specify the name of a User-defined
Command Sequence to automatically be executed when a Memory Bank panel's Sel button is clicked
after a Delay specified in milliseconds (up to a maximum of 10,000). If no name is specified, no
sequence will be executed; if no delay is specified, the named sequence will be executed immediately.

Multi Radio tab

Using the controls on this tab, you can configure Commander to support rapid switching among up to four radios.
Switching can be manual, via a set of buttons on the VFO panel on Commander's Main window, or automatic as a
function of amateur band.

Controls on this tab's Control panel let you specify a transceiver model, a CI-V Address (for Icom and TenTec
radios), the need for continuous frequency and mode interrogation, and the interval (in milliseconds) between
command groups for up to four radios; these controls are identical in function to the controls on the General
tab. You can specify a unique name for each radio, which is used to identify the radio for both manual and
automatic switching; if you have a pair of Icom 756 Pro radios, for example, with one dedicated to HF operation
and the other to VHF operation, you might name the first HF 756Pro and the second VHF 756Pro. The Enable
boxes in this panel let you designate which radios are active. If you are switching between radios 1 and 2, enable
them both, and uncheck the enable boxes associated with radios 3 and 4.
• If the Model selector is set to K4, clicking the provided Select button displays a small window that
o provides a Communicate via TCP box that if checked means that the K4 is connected to the
local area network, and that Commander should communicate with it via TCP (as opposed to via
a serial port)
o provides an IP Address box that specifies the IP address to use if the Communicate via TCP
box is checked
o provides an IP Port box that is not used, and can be left empty
• If the Model selector is set to Kachina, clicking the provided Select button enables you to choose a
Control Filename for the radio
• If the Model selector is set to Pegasus, clicking the provided Select button enables you to choose a
Control Folder for the radio

22 Commander 15.8.9
 • If the Model selector is set to SDR-6300, SDR-6400, SDR-6500, SDR-6600, or SDR-6700,
o clicking the provided Select button enables you to specify the radio's Serial Number, or its IP
Address and IP Port
o the Interrogate checkbox controls the Monitor Connection setting

Controls on the Serial port panel let you specify serial communication port settings for each of four radios. These
controls are identical in function to those on the Ports tab's Primary CAT Serial Port panel. If you are controlling
multiple Icom or TenTec radios on the same CI-V bus, assign identical serial port parameters to these radios. Due
to space compression, the Serial Port control uses a hyphen to mean "none", and the Parity, DTR, and RTS
controls use single letter abbreviations:
•
Parity Abbreviation Meaning
N No parity
O Odd parity
E Even parity
M Mark parity
S Space parity
•
DTR and RTS Abbreviation Meaning
N Always off
Y Always on while this radio is selected
X On to transmit
F Flow control (RTS only)

Note that each transceiver's Enable box will remain disabled (grayed out) until all of its items have been selected.
If your transceiver doesn't need DTR or RTS, for example, set those selectors to N rather than leave the blank.

If the port assigned to an enabled transceiver is currently specified as the Secondary CAT Serial Port panel, the
transceiver's Main window selection button will be disabled ("grayed out").

Clicking a radio's Update button will update that radio's Multi Radio serial port settings from the settings
specified on the Ports tab's Primary CAT Serial Port panel. Thus once you have the settings on the Primary CAT
Serial Port panel properly configured to enable Commander to control a transceiver, you can "transfer" those
settings to the Multi Radio tab's CAT Serial Port panel by clicking the appropriate Update button.

User-defined Control Set Configuration window

To create, display, or modify a radio's User-defined Control Set, click the radio's Edit button in this tab's User-
defined Control Sets panel. to display the User-defined Control Set Configuration window, which specifies
the Control Set's contents:
• an Initial Command to be executed when Commander starts, or when a new radio model is selected
• the pathname of a file that specifies an Initial Command Sequence to be executed when Commander
starts, or when a new radio mode is selected (after executing the initial CAT command, if one is specified)
• the pathnames of up to 32 files, each specifying a Command Sequence
• the pathnames of up to 16 files, each specifying a Command-generating Slider

The 32 Sequence pathnames and 16 Slider pathnames are organized into two banks, each specifying two rows
of 8 Sequence pathnames and 4 slider pathnames; use the Second row and Alt bank checkboxes to select the
bank and row whose pathnames you wish to view or modify.

23 Commander 15.8.9
To populate an empty new Control Set, in the User-defined Control Set Configuration window,
• optionally specify an Initial Command to be run when a radio associated with the Control Set is selected
• optionally specify an Initial Command Sequence to be run when a radio associated with the Control Set is
selected
• specify a pathname for each Command Sequence to be made accessible when a radio associated with
the Control Set is selected
• specify a pathname for each Command-generating Slider to be made accessible when a radio associated
with the Control Set is selected

If a Control Set for this radio has already been defined, clicking the User-defined Control Sets panel's Edit
button populates the User-defined Control Set Configuration window with the Initial Command, Initial
Command Sequence, Command Sequence selections, and Command-generating Slider selections from that
Control Set.

In the User-defined Control Set Configuration window,

• to load the Control Set with an Initial Command, Initial Command Sequence, Command Sequence
selections, and Command-generating Slider selections previously saved to a file from a Control Set, click
the Load button and select that file
• to save the Control Set's Initial Command, Initial Command Sequence, Command Sequence selections,
and Command-generating Slider selections to a file, click the Save button and select that file
• to clear the contents of a Control Set, click the Clear button

Selecting a radio for which a Control Set is specified

• directs the transceiver to execute the CAT command specified in the Control Set's Initial Command
• directs the transceiver to execute the Control Set's Initial Command Sequence
• loads the 32 Command Sequences from the pathnames specified in the Control Set
• loads the 16 Sliders from the pathnames specified in the Control Set

By default, switching between radios is manual, effected by clicking the radio selection buttons on the Main
window's VFO panel. To enable automatic radio switching, use the Selection by band panel to choose a radio for
each amateur band, and then check the Auto box.

You can configure Commander to identify the currently-selected radio via a binary encoding on pins 16 and 14 of
a specified parallel port.

Bandspread tab
The controls on this tab influence the behavior of the Bandspread window's slide rule dial, its Band Stack, and its
presentation of DX Spots. Controls in this tab's DX Spot panel also govern the handling of active callsigns in the
Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section, and the handling of callsigns displayed on SmartSDR's
panadaptor.

The always on top box, when checked, ensures that the Bandspread window will not be obscured by any other
application window except one similarly configured.

If the color-code frequency pointer box is checked, the current frequency indicator on the Bandspread window's
slide rule dial will be rendered in the specified in-band color if the transceiver's frequency is in-band, or in the
specified out-of-band color if the transceiver's frequency is out-of-band. If the box is unchecked, the current
frequency indicator will be rendered in red, independent of transceiver frequency.

24 Commander 15.8.9
The Spectrum-Waterfall window box is enabled if Commander is controlling
• an Icom IC-7300, IC-7610, IC-7850, IC-7851, or IC-9700 with the Primary CAT Port baud rate is set to
115,200
• an Elecraft K4 connected via IP, e.g. ethernet

Checking this box will display Commander's Spectrum-Waterfall window, which horizontally displays realtime
spectrum data, a waterfall, and the callsigns of active DX stations. Note that Icom radios will only report spectrum
data if they are directly connected to a computer via USB.

The Display calls on panadaptor box is enabled if Commander is controlling a Flex Signature radio. Checking
this box display active callsigns on SmartSDR's panadaptor.

The Orientation panel determines whether the slide rule dial shows lower frequencies at its top and higher
frequencies at its bottom, or higher frequencies at its top and lower frequencies at its bottom.

The Band Stack panel's dwell time setting specifies the interval that determines how long the radio must pause
on a frequency before that frequency and the radio's current mode are saved onto the current Band Stack; the
dwell time is specified in seconds.

The Mousewheel Motion panel determines the increment by which your radio is QSYed when the Bandspread
window is active and you rotate your mouse's wheel by one click. Increments are specified by mode, and
expressed as a percentage of the slide rule dial's frequency range; negative percentages can be used to reverse
the meaning of mouse wheel rotation to suit the user's taste. Fractional values like 0.05 can be specified for very
slow tuning rates. The mode-specific settings make it convenient to setup a faster tuning rate for SSB operation
than for CW or RTTY operation.

In the DX Spot Font panel,

• the Name sub-panel lets you specify a large font to be used to render DX spots on the Bandspread
window's slide rule dial when the font size is 8 or greater, and a small font to be used when the font size
is less than 8; this allows the use of fonts design to be readable at small point sizes, e.g. Small Fonts
• The Size sub-panel specifies the font size with which DX spots are to be rendered on the Bandspread
window's slide rule dial; font sizes can be specified independently for each dial range.

DX Spot settings govern the handling of active callsigns in the Bandspread window, callsigns in the Spectrum-
Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section, and callsigns displayed on SmartSDR's panadaptor:
• if hide duplicates is checked, only a station's most recent spot in each mode will be displayed on the
Bandspread window's slide rule dial and the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section ; if not
checked, every spot will be displayed.
• if Request prop forecast is checked, clicking on the callsign of an active DX callsign in the Bandspread
window or in the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section will request a propagation forecast
from PropView
• if Set Xcvr split is checked, clicking the callsign of an active DX callsign in the Bandspread window or in
the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section that is operating split will place the transceiver in in
split mode (if supported) with its alternate VFO set to the spot's QSX frequency
• spots whose age exceeds the lifetime setting (in hours) will not be displayed on the slide rule dial; you
can specify fractions of an hour using decimal notation, e.g. .5

25 Commander 15.8.9
• the Spot Filter panel determines what subset of the active stations known to SpotCollector is shown in
Commander's Bandspread and Spectrum-Waterfall windows. There are two fixed filter settings and 4
user-defined filters:
o none: all active stations known to SpotCollector are shown
o SC filter: active stations present in SpotCollector's Spot Database Display are shown (so the
filtering is that currently specified in SpotCollector
o user-defined 1: active stations known to SpotCollector are shown if they comply with the first
user-defined SQL expression
o user-defined 2: active stations known to SpotCollector are shown if they comply with the second
user-defined SQL expression
o user-defined 3: active stations known to SpotCollector are shown if they comply with the third
user-defined SQL expression
o user-defined 4: active stations known to SpotCollector are shown if they comply with the fourth
user-defined SQL expression

To specify or modify the user-defined SQL expressions, click the Spot Filter panel's Edit button. In the
Commander User-defined SpotCollector Filters window that appears, you can specify a Caption and
an SQL expression for each of the four user-defined filters. The Caption appears in the Spot Filter panel,
making it easy to recall the function of each user-defined filter. The SQL expression determine what
subset of active stations known to SpotCollector are displayed in Commander's Bandspread and
Spectrum-Waterfall windows; all of the SQL filtering capabilities described here are available.

If one of the user-defined filters is selected in the Spot Filter panel, that filter's SQL expression cannot be
modified via the User-defined SpotCollector Filter window until another filter setting is selected. You
can click the window's Clear Spot Filter button to set the Spot Filter panel to none, thereby allowing any
of the user-defined SQL expressions to be modified. If one of the user-defined filters is selected in the
Spot Filter panel, the number to the left of its caption in the User-defined SpotCollector Filter window
is rendered in bold red font.
• the Log Filter panel determines which QSOs DXKeeper will display when you click on an active DX
callsign in the Bandspread window or in the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section
o if call is selected, DXKeeper will display all previous QSOs with the spot's callsign
o if entity is selected, DXKeeper will display all previous QSOs with the DXCC entity associated
with the spot's callsign
• clicking the Clear button removes all current spots from the slide rule dial
• Controls on the Digital Mode Application panel let you specify the Digital Mode Application to which
Commander will send frequency and mode information when you select an active DX callsign on the
Bandspread window or in the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section, subject to settings on the
panels described below. By default, the Digital Mode Application textbox is set to WinWarbler; if the
Digital Mode Application textbox is empty on startup, Commander sets it to WinWarbler . If you specify a
Digital Mode Application like MultiPSK and click the Connect button, then when you select an active DX
callsign on the Bandspread window or on the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section,
Commander will send the frequency and mode information to that Digital Mode Application from then on.

26 Commander 15.8.9
 • the RTTY Mode if no Digital Mode Application panel specifies the mode to which the transceiver
should be set when you click on a RTTY mode active DX station's callsign with the specified Digital Mode
Application not running
RTTY set the transceiver to normal RTTY mode
RTTY-R set the transceiver to reversed RTTY mode
USB set the transceiver to USB mode
LSB set the transceiver to LSB mode
PKT set the transceiver to PKT mode
PKT-R set the transceiver to PKT-R mode
Data-L set the transceiver to Data-L mode
Data-U set the transceiver to Data-U mode
DIGL set the transceiver to DIGL mode
DIGU set the transceiver to DIGU mode

• the CW Mode panel specifies the mode to which the transceiver should be set when you click on a CW
mode active DX station's callsign
CW set the transceiver to normal CW mode
CW-R set the transceiver to reversed CW mode
CW via DMA if the specified Digital Mode Application is running, convey the
spot information to it
if the specified Digital Mode Application isn't running, set the
transceiver to normal CW mode

• the Phone Modes panel specifies the mode to which the transceiver should be set when you click on an
SSB, AM, or FM mode active DX station's callsign
SSB via DMA if the specified Digital Mode Application is running, convey the
spot information to it
if the specified Digital Mode Application isn't running, set the
transceiver to USB or LSB mode as a function of frequency
AM via DMA if the specified Digital Mode Application is running, convey the
spot information to it
if the specified Digital Mode Application isn't running, set the
transceiver to AM mode
FM via DMA if the specified Digital Mode Application is running, convey the
spot information to it
if the specified Digital Mode Application isn't running, set the
transceiver to FM mode

The User-defined Sequence after Band Change panel specifies the name of a User-defined Command
Sequence to be automatically executed when a band button in the Bandspread window's Band panel or the
Spectrum-Waterfall window's Band panel is clicked after a Delay specified in milliseconds (up to a maximum of
10,000). If no name is specified, no sequence will be executed; if no delay is specified, the named sequence will
be executed immediately.

27 Commander 15.8.9
Transverters tab
A transverter is an external device that enables transmission and reception on a frequency significantly offset
from that of one's transceiver. When operating with a transverter, Commander's VFO displays the transverter
output frequency, and sets your transceiver to the required transceiver input frequency.

Commander supports transverters with outputs on the 6m, 4m, 2m, 1.25m, 70cm, 33cm, and 23cm bands,
providing a dedicated panel on the Transverters tab that lets you specify the frequency offset (in kHz) and
relationship (additive or subtractive) for each band. If, for example, your 6m transverter requires your transceiver
to operate on the 10m band, then you would set the 6M transverter panel's offset setting to 22000, select the +
(additive) button, and check the Enabled box; If QSYed to 50100, Commander would set your transceiver to
28100. If you have configured Commander to control more than one transceiver, each transverter panel lets you
specify the transceiver connected to its associated transverter.

Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window

To display the Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window, click the Spectrum Config button in the Spectrum-
Waterfall window's Control Section.
• The Always on top box, when checked, ensures that the Spectrum-Waterfall window is always visible.
• When controlling an Icom transceiver,
o the Mode AutoTrack box, when checked with a Fixed range, responds to a mode change to CW,
Data, or Phone by setting the range to the sub-band associated with the new mode; changing to
any other mode sets the range to the entire band
o the Frequency AutoTrack box, when checked with a Fixed range
▪ responds to tuning out of the range (but still within the band) by automatically sliding the
range up or down so that the transceiver frequency is visible in the range
▪ if Mode AutoTrack is disabled, responds to a band change by setting the range to the
lowest-frequency sub-band that contains the transceiver frequency; if the current
frequency is not within any of the new band's sub-bands, the range is set to the entire
band
o the Use radio's scroll options box, when checked, enables selection of the SCROLL-C and
SCROLL-F spectrum tracking modes by providing a Scroll checkbox in the Spectrum-Waterfall
window's Range panel. Use radio's scroll options is automatically enabled if the radio reports
its spectrum tracking mode to be SCROLL-C or SCROLL-F.
• When controlling an Elecraft K4, the Update Rate panel displays and controls the number of times the
Spectrum Display is updated each second.
• The Low Pass Filter panel enables smoothing of the spectrum data displayed in the Spectrum Section.
o the Enabled checkbox governs whether low pass filtering is enabled
o in the Time constant slider, higher values produce increased smoothing
• The DX Spot Rows panel specifies the number of rows of active DX callsigns present in the DX Callsign
Section. Increasing the number of rows increases the height of the DX Callsign Section, and increases
the height of the Spectrum-Waterfall window; decreasing the number of rows decreases the height of the
DX Callsign Section, and decreases the height of the Spectrum-Waterfall window. Any change to the
number of rows is reflected in the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Rows panel; any change to
the Spectrum-Waterfall window's DX Rows panel setting is reflected in the Spectrum-Waterfall
Configuration window's DX Spot Rows panel.
• In the DX Spot Font panel,
o the Name sub-panel lets you specify a large font to be used to render DX spots on the DX
Callsign Section when the font size is 8 or greater, and a small font to be used when the font size
is less than 8; this allows the use of fonts design to be readable at small point sizes, e.g. Small
Fonts
o The Size as function of Range sub-panel specifies the font size with which DX spots are to be
rendered on the DX Callsign Section; font sizes can be specified independently for each range.

28 Commander 15.8.9
• In the Colors panel,
o clicking the Receive Freq Marker button displays a color selector that lets you choose the color
of the vertical marker used to indicate the transceiver frequency when not split, or the receive
frequency when split; the currently-selected color is shown in a square to the right of the button
o clicking the Transmit Freq Marker button displays a color selector that lets you choose the color
of the vertical marker used to indicate the transmit frequency (when split); the currently-selected
color is shown in a square to the right of the button
o clicking the Frequency Labels button displays a color selector that lets you choose the color of
the text used to indicate frequencies in the Frequency Axis Section; the currently-selected color is
shown in a square to the right of the button
o in the Spectrum Section sub-panel
▪ clicking the Spectrum Data button displays a color selector that lets you choose the color
used to display spectrum data in the Spectrum Section
▪ clicking the white background button displays spectrum data against a white
background
▪ clicking the black background button displays spectrum data against a black
background
o in the Waterfall Section sub-panel,
▪ clicking the black-to-white button displays a monochromatic waterfall where the absence
of signal is rendered in black, the strongest signals are rendered in white, and signals of
intermediate strength are rendered in shades of grey
▪ clicking the black-to-white button displays a polychromatic waterfall using this gradient
to represent signal strength, from the absence of signal in black to the strongest signals
in white:

▪ clicking the black-to-red button displays a polychromatic waterfall using this gradient to
represent signal strength, from the absence of signal in black to the strongest signals in
red:

• The Mousewheel motion panel determines the increment by which your radio is QSYed when the
Spectrum-Waterfall window is active and you rotate your mouse's wheel by one click. Increments are
specified by mode, and can be specified either as a % or range or as a fixed frequency increment.
These mode-specific settings make it convenient to setup a faster tuning rate for SSB operation than for
CW or RTTY operation
o If the panel's % or range option is selected, increments are specified as a percentage of the
range; negative percentages can be used to reverse the meaning of mouse wheel rotation if
desired. Fractional values like 0.05 can be specified for very slow tuning rates.
o If the panel's fixed frequency option is selected, increments are specified in hertz; negative
values can be used to reverse the meaning of mouse wheel rotation if desired.

29 Commander 15.8.9
• When controlling an Icom transceiver, the Band Settings panel provides the following settings for each
Band from 160m through 23cm:
o Gain: a value between 1 and 2 that expands the magnitude of signals displayed in the Spectrum
Section
o parameters for each band
▪ Lower: specifies the band's lower frequency; striking the Enter key will immediately
update the range for the current band
▪ Upper: specifies the band's upper frequency; striking the Enter key will immediately
update the range for the current band
▪ Ref: specifies the Reference Level to be used when the range is set to the entire band;
striking the Enter key will immediately update the Reference Level for the current band
▪ clicking a band's Default button sets the band's Lower and Upper frequencies from
frequencies specified in the sub-band definition file
▪ clicking the Default All button is equivalent to clicking every band's Default button
o parameters for each band's CW sub-band, Data sub-band, and Phone sub-band
▪ Lower: specifies the sub-band's lower frequency; striking the Enter key will immediately
update the range for the current sub-band
▪ Upper: specifies the sub-band's upper frequency; striking the Enter key will immediately
update the range for the current sub-band
▪ Ref: specifies the Reference Level to be used when the range is set to this sub-band;
striking the Enter key will immediately update the Reference Level for the current sub-
band

30 Commander 15.8.9
 S-Meter Display
If your transceiver is capable of reporting its S-meter reading via its PC interface, then Commander will
continuously display this reading above the VFO's frequency display. By default, the numeric value of this reading
is displayed as an integer between 1 and 16. If Commander's Smeter folder contains a text file whose name
matches your transceiver model (as displayed in Commander's title bar), then Commander will use the entries in
that file to display textual data rather than integers.

The format of this file is illustrated by the contents of MP1000.txt, which is included in Commander's Smeter
folder:
1, S0
2, S1
3, S2
4, S3
5, S4
6, S5
7, S6
8, S7
9, S8
10,S9
11,S9+10db
12,S9+20db
13,S9+30db
14,S9+40db
15,S9+50db
16,S9+60db

Note that there are exactly 16 entries (lines), each containing an entry number, followed by a comma, followed by
textual data; the textual data cannot contain a comma. The following example - the contents of FT817.txt --
illustrates the display of more precise signal level information.
1, < -108 dbm
2, > -108.3 dbm
3, > -107.3 dbm
4, > -106.7 dbm
5, > -106.0 dbm
6, > -105.1 dbm
7, > -104.2 dbm
8, > -103.0 dbm
9, > -100.4 dbm
10,> -84 dbm
11,> -74.5 dbm
12,> -70.1 dbm
13,> -58.9 dbm
14,> -50.8 dbm
15,> -40.8 dbm
16,> -30.1 dbm

31 Commander 15.8.9
By default, the S-meter is rendered as a green bar on a black background. An optional third parameter may be
added to each line of an S-meter file to specify the color used to render the S-meter at that signal strength. The
color-specifying third parameter can be one of the words black, blue, cyan, green, magenta, red,
white, or yellow. Alternatively, the color-specifying third parameter can be of the form
R-G-B
where R, G, and B are each integers between 0 and 255 that specify the relative content of red, green, and blue in
the desired color. Some examples of valid S-meter file entries that include a color-specifying third parameter
follow:
11,S9 + 10db,176-0-0
12,S9 + 20db,192-0-0
13,S9 + 30db,208-0-0
14,S9 + 40db,224-0-0
15,S9 + 50db,240-0-0
16,S9 + 60db,red

To make changes to the S-meter file being used by the current primary transceiver take immediate effect, direct
your editor to save your changes, and then click the Reset button in the Radio panel on the Configuration
window's General tab.

32 Commander 15.8.9
 Transmission Meter Display
While transmitting, Commander can continuously display transmission readings above the VFO's frequency
display for the following transceivers:

Transceiver RF SWR ALC Comp Volts Amps Temp

FTDX-9000 x x x x x x

FTDX-5000 x x x x x x

FTDX-3000 x x x x x x

FT-2000 x x x x x x

FTDX-1200 x x x x x x

FTDX-101 x x x x x x x

FTDX-10 x x x x x x

FT-1000MP x x x x x
FT-1000MP
x x x x x
MarkV
FT-991 x x x x x x

FT-950 x x x x x x

FT-710 x x x x x x

FT-450 x x x

IC-746 Pro x x x
IC-756 Pro
x x x x
III
IC-7000 x x x x

IC-7100 x x x x x x

IC-7200 x x x

IC-7300 x x x x x x

IC-7400 x x x

IC-7410 x x x x

IC-7600 x x x x x x

IC-7700 x x x x x x

IC-7800 x x x x x x

IC-7850 x x x x x x

IC-7851 x x x x x x

IC-9100 x x x x
K3, K3S,
x (see note 1)
KX3, KX2
TS-480 x x x

33 Commander 15.8.9
 TS-590S,
x x x x
TS-590SG
TS-890 x x x x x x

TS-990 x x x x x x

TS-2000 x x x

Disable the No interrogation while transmitting option, and select the meter to be displayed while transmitting via
the Xmit Meter selector on the Configuration window's General tab.

By default, meter readings are displayed as a percentage between 0 and 100. If Commander's TXmeter
subfolder contains a text file whose name matches your transceiver model (as displayed in Commander's title bar),
then Commander will use the entries in that file to display textual data rather than integers. This file must contain
a 17-line section for each transmission meter, with as section's first line specifying a transmission meter name
and its remaining 16 lines specifying data: an entry number and the information to be displayed, separated by a
comma. The format of this file is illustrated by the contents of IC-7800.txt, which is included in Commander's
TXmeter folder:

RF SWR COMP
1,1 W 1,1:1,green 1,0 db
2,5 W 2,1:1.3,green 2,2 db
3,10 W 3,1:1.4,green 3,4 db
4,15 W 4,1:1.5,green 4,6 db
5,25 W 5,1:1.7,yellow 5,8 db
6,40 W 6,1:2.0,red 6,10 db
7,50 W 7,1:2.5,red 7,12 db
8,70 W 8,1:2.7,red 8,14 db
9,90 W 9,1:3.2,red 9,16 db
10,110 W 10,1:3.7,red 10,18 db
11,130 W 11,1:4+,red 11,20 db
12,150 W 12,1:4+,red 12,22 db
13,170 W 13,1:4+,red 13,24 db
14,200 W 14,1:4+,red 14,26 db
15,200 W 15,1:4+,red 15,28 db
16,200 W 16,1:4+,red 16,30 db

ALC Volts Amps

1,0,green 1,8,red 1,0,red
2,1,green 2,12,red 2,1,yellow
3,3,green 3,16,red 3,2,yellow
4,4,green 4,20,red 4,3,green
5,5,green 5,24,red 5,4,green
6,6,green 6,28,red 6,5,green
7,7,green 7,32,red 7,6,green
8,8,green 8,34,red 8,7,green
9,9,yellow 9,38,red 9,8,green
10,10,red 10,40,red 10,9,green
11,11,red 11,44,red 11,10,green
12,12,red 12,48, green 12,11,yellow
13,13,red 13,52,red 13,12,red
14,14,red 14,56,red 14,13,red
15,15,red 15,60,red 15,14,red
16,16,red 16,64,red 16,15,red

34 Commander 15.8.9
By default, a transmission meter is rendered as a green bar on a black background. An optional third parameter
may be added to each data line of an transmission meter file to specify the color used to render the transmission
meter at that value. The color-specifying third parameter can be one of the words black, blue, cyan,
green, magenta, red, white, or yellow. Alternatively, the color-specifying third parameter can be of the
form
R-G-B
where R, G, and B are each integers between 0 and 255 that specify the relative content of red, green, and blue in
the desired color. Some examples of transmission meter file data lines that include a color-specifying third
parameter follow:
6,1:2.0,176-0-0
7,1:2.5,192-0-0
8,1:2.7,208-0-0
9,1:3.2,224-0-0
10,1:3.7,240-0-0
11,1:4+,red

To make changes to the TX meter file being used by the current primary transceiver take immediate effect, direct
your editor to save your changes, and then click the Reset button in the Radio panel on the Configuration
window's General tab.

Notes:
1. When controlling a capable K3-family transceiver, Commander displays any SWR worse than 1:3.8 as "1:3.9+".

35 Commander 15.8.9
 User-defined Controls
Increasingly, modern radios provide for computer control beyond VFO, mode, and filter selection. To provide
access to these capabilities, Commander lets you specify
• up to 33 Command Sequences, each containing up to 64 transceiver commands
• up to 16 Command-generating Sliders

To enable access to all Command Sequences and Command-generating Sliders, check the Show by expanding
Main window box in the User-defined Controls panel on the General tab of Commander's Configuration window;
Commander's Main window will be expanded in height to display a panel containing two rows of eight buttons and
two rows of four horizontal slider controls; if you don't need all four rows of buttons and sliders, you can adjust the
bottom border of Commander's Main window upward by dragging it with the left mouse button depressed.
Alternatively, you can check the Show within Main window box, which will
• display a User-defined Controls panel containing 8 buttons and 4 sliders that can be used to invoke and
edit User-defined Controls - setting Commander's Main window to its standard height
• disable all three Frequency-dependent device panels

Each Command Sequence can optionally display a "LED-like display" beneath its button, and specify this LED's
color.

If you specify Command Sequences or Command-generating Sliders, and are controlling more than one
transceiver, you must specify a User-defined Control Set for each transceiver.

Command Sequences
A Command Sequence specifies 64 commands, where each command can accomplish one of several things:
• convey an instruction to your transceiver (CAT)
• terminates execution of the sequence
• conditionally or unconditionally change the flow of control within the sequence
• do nothing
• update the caption shown on the button used to activate the sequence
• specify the text font color, text font bold property, and surface color of the button used to activate the
sequence
• specify the color displayed by an LED the button used to activate the sequence
• update the contents of the explanatory popup window that appears when the mouse cursor hovers over
the button used to activate the sequence

Command Sequences are numbered 1 through 32, and organized as two banks of sixteen sequences. Two rows
of eight buttons are used to activate the sequences in the current bank; you can also activate sequences in the
current bank by striking the F5 through F12 function keys for the bank's first row of eight sequences, and SH-F5
through SH-F12 function keys for the bank's second row eight sequences (depress this SHIFT key while striking a
function key between F5 and F12). The ALT checkbox located between the sequence buttons determines which
bank is current. To switch banks, check or uncheck the ALT checkbox. Depressing the ALT key while clicking a
sequence button or striking one of F5 through F12 activates a sequence in the first row of the second
bank; depressing the ALT key while clicking a sequence button or depressing both the ALT and SHIFT keys
while striking one of F5 through F12 activates a sequence in the second row of the second bank

An Initial Command Sequence can be optionally executed when Commander starts, or when a new radio
Model is selected. To define, edit, or test this sequence, click the Edit button in the Initial Command Sequence
Panel on the Config window's General tab.

A specified Command Sequence can be executed when you change bands by clicking a button in the Band panel
at the bottom of Commander's Bandspread window.

36 Commander 15.8.9
A specified Command Sequence can be executed when you activate a memory by click a Sel button in the
Memory Bank panel on Commander's Main window.

To define, edit, or test a Command Sequence for a button in the User-defined Controls panel, right-click the
button; you can also depress the CTRL key while clicking that button or while striking it's associated function key
(F5 through F12, as designated above each button). To define a Command Sequence in the second bank, check
the ALT box and then right-click the appropriate button, or depress both the ALT and CTRL keys while clicking on
the button or while striking its associated function key. Commander will display a window that enables you to
name and document a sequence of up to 32 radio commands to be sent to your transceiver when the associated
Command Sequence button is clicked, when its associated function key is struck, or when a directive is received
from another application (e.g. WinWarbler). Each Command Sequence is composed by a list of 32 Commands
and Notes, a Name, and a Function:
Name specifies the name of the sequence; this name serves as the caption on the
associated User-defined Command Sequence button, so choose a name of
appropriately-short length
• if you plan to use conditional branching commands (see Command table
below), the name cannot contain a comma
Note: if you wish to include the ampersand character in the name, use a pair of
back-to-back ampersands, e.g. R&&B.
Button Colors • click the Text button to choose a color for the sequence's button text
• CTRL-click the Text button to make the sequence's button text color be
black
• check the Bold box to render the sequence's button text in bold font;
uncheck this box to render the button text in regular font
• click the Surface button to choose a color for the sequence's button
surface
• CTRL-click the Surface button to make the sequence's button surface
color be the default button surface color (as specified in Windows)
Commands • click the 1 - 32 button to display the first 32 commands in the sequence
• click the 33 - 64 button to display the second 32 commands in the
sequence
LED Display if the Enabled box is checked, a LED-like display appears beneath the
associated User-defined Command Sequence button; the color displayed by this
LED is specified by the Initial Color selector
Function describes the function of the Command Sequence; this information will appear in
a popup explanation window when the mouse cursor lingers above the
associated Command Sequence button if the display of control explanations is
enabled.
Command (1-32) a sequence of radio commands to be executed, beginning with Command 1
Note (1-32) optional information used to document the associated command; this information
is not sent to your radio

Valid commands are enumerated in the following table:

Command Function
an even number of hexadecimal radio command -- characters are sent to your radio via
hexadecimal characters, e.g. the primary CAT serial port, two per byte (useful for Icom, TenTec,
FEFE26E00700FD and Yaesu radios)
• substitution strings: slider value, CI-V address
• execution proceeds with the following command.

37 Commander 15.8.9
a sequence of ascii characters ASCII radio command -- each character following the apostrophe will
preceded by a single be sent to your radio via the primary CAT serial port (useful for
apostrophe, e.g. Kenwood and Elecraft radios)
'AN1; • substitution strings: slider value, ascii character
• execution proceeds with the following command.
a sequence of ascii characters ASCII radio command -- each character following the tilde will be sent
preceded by a single tilde, e.g. to your radio via the TCP/IP connection (useful for Flex Signature
~slice set 0 rxant=ant1 radios)
• substitution strings: slider value, ascii character
• execution proceeds with the following command.
<Band mHz> activates the Bandspread window's Band Stack for the specified band,
setting the radio's frequency to the most recent frequency used on
that band, setting its mode to the mode in use at that time, and
clearing Split
mHz Band
160
1
m
3 80 m
5 60 m
7 40 m
10 30 m
14 20 m
18 17 m
21 15 m
24 12 m
28-
10 m
29
50-
6m
53
70 4 m
144-
2m
147
222- 1.25
224 m
420- 70
449 cm
902- 33
927 cm

For example, the command

<Band 14>

will QSY to the most recent 20m frequency and mode, and clear Split.
<ButtonTextBold On> sets the current Command Sequence's button text bold property to on
or off
<ButtonTextBold Off>

38 Commander 15.8.9
<ButtonTextColor color> sets the current Command Sequence's button text color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan, or
magenta
<ButtonTextColor Q, color> sets the specified Command Sequence's button text color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan, or
magenta
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc.)
<ButtonSurfaceColor color> sets the current Command Sequence's button surface color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan,
magenta, or default (default means "the default button color
specified in Windows")
<ButtonSurfaceColor Q, color> sets the specified Command Sequence's button surface color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan,
magenta, or default (default means "the default button color
specified in Windows")
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc.)
<DataSignalsEnable On> <DataSignalsEnable On> checks the Parallel Port Data Signals
<DataSignalsEnable Off> panel's Enable box, thereby enabling frequency-based control of the
parallel port data output.
<DataSignalsEnable Off> un-checks the Parallel Port Data Signals
panel's Enable box, thereby disabling frequency-based control of the
parallel port data output.
When the value of the Parallel Port Data Signals panel's Enable box is
changed by either of these commands, the new Enable box setting is
not saved in the Windows Registry.
<Dual On> enables or disables the current transceiver's Dual Receive
<Dual Off>
<End> termination
• execution of the Command Sequence terminates.
<FreqDepDevEnable On, N> <FreqDepDevEnable On, N> enables Frequency-dependent Device
<FreqDepDevEnable Off, N> N, where N is a number the range of 0 to 3.
<FreqDepDevEnable Off, N> disables Frequency-dependent Device
N, where N is a number the range of 0 to 3.

If the specified frequency-dependent device is disabled,

<FreqDepDevEnable On, N>loads the device's data from the Data
File pathname specified on the device's tab on the Configuration
window
<Goto N> unconditional branch
• execution proceeds with command N.
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop

39 Commander 15.8.9
<IfBand bandname, N> conditional branch based on the current transceiver's current band
• if the current transceiver's current band is bandname, then
execution proceeds with command N
• if the current transceiver's current band is not bandname, then
execution proceeds with the following command
• bandname is a valid band name specified in the current sub-
band definition file; the names 1.25m, 33cm, and 23cm are
also accepted
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfButtonTextBold N> conditional branch based on the Command Sequence's current bold
button text property
• if the Command Sequence's bold button text property is
enabled, then execution proceeds with command N
• if the Command Sequence's bold button text property is not
enabled, then execution proceeds with the following command
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfLED color, N> conditional branch based on the Command Sequence's current LED
color
• if the Command Sequence's LED color is color, then
execution proceeds with command N
• if the Command Sequence's LED color is not color, then
execution proceeds with the following command
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfMode modename, N> conditional branch based on the current transceiver's mode as last
reported to Commander
• if the current transceiver's last reported mode is modename,
then execution proceeds with command N
• if the current transceiver's last reported mode is not
modename, then execution proceeds with the following
command
• modename is AM, CW, CW-R, Data-L, Data-U, FM, LSB,
PKT, PKT-R, RTTY, RTTY-R, USB, or WBFM
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfName name, N> conditional branch based on the Command Sequence's current button
caption
• if the Command Sequence's button caption is name, then
execution proceeds with command N
• if the Command Sequence's button caption is not name, then
execution proceeds with the following command
• the comparison between button caption and name is case-
independent.
• name can contain spaces, but not a comma
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfRadioName name, N> conditional branch based on the current primary transceiver's name
• if the current primary transceiver's name is name, then
execution proceeds with command N
• if the current primary transceiver's name is not name, then
execution proceeds with the following command
• the comparison between the current primary transceiver's
name and name is case-independent.
• name can contain spaces, but not a comma
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop

40 Commander 15.8.9
<IfSeqName Q, name, N> conditional branch based on the specified Command Sequence's
current button caption
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc.)
• if the specified Command Sequence's button caption is name,
then execution proceeds with command N
• if the specified Command Sequence's button caption is not
name, then execution proceeds with the following command
• the comparison between button caption and name is case-
independent.
• name can contain spaces, but not a comma
• be careful to avoid an infinite loop
<IfSplit N> conditional branch based on whether the current transceiver is
operating split
• if the current transceiver is operating split, then execution
proceeds with command N
• if the current transceiver is not operating split, then execution
proceeds with the following command
<LED color> sets the current Command Sequence's LED color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan, or
magenta
<LED Q, color> sets the specified Command Sequence's LED color to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan, or
magenta
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc.)
<LED QF:QL, color> sets the specified range of Command Sequence LED colors to color
• color can be red, blue, green, black, white, yellow, cyan, or
magenta
• QF is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies the first of the
32 Command Sequences in the range (0 for command
sequence #1, 1 for command sequence #2, etc.)
• QL s a number between 0 and 31 that specifies the last of the
32 Command Sequences in the range (0 for command
sequence #1, 1 for command sequence #2, etc.)
• If QL<QF, an error message is displayed and the command is
ignored
<Mode modename> sets the current transceiver's mode to modename
• modename is AM, CW, CW-R, DATA-L, DATA-U, DIGL,
DIGU, FM, LSB, PKT, PKT-R, RTTY, RTTY-R, USB, or
WBFM
<Name text> sets the current Command Sequence's button caption to text
<Name Q, text> sets the specified Command Sequence's button caption to text
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc.)
<ParData N> sets the specified parallel port's eight data bits (pins 9 through 2) to
the least significant 8 bits of N

41 Commander 15.8.9
<ParClearBit B> clears the specified parallel port's data bit B
• B is a value between 7 and 0
• B=7 selects pin 9; B=0 selects pin 2
• clearing a data bit sets its output to ~0 VDC
• after starting Commander, at least one <ParData N>
command must be executed before executing a <ParClearBit
B> command
<ParSetBit B> sets the specified parallel port's data bit B
• B is a value between 7 and 0
• B=7 selects pin 9; B=0 selects pin 2
• setting a data bit sets its output to ~5 VDC
• after starting Commander, at least one <ParData N>
command must be executed before executing a <ParSetBit
B> command
<PriDTR On> enables or disables the Primary CAT Port's DTR modem control
<PriDTR Off> signal
<PriRTS On> enables or disables the Primary CAT Port's RTS modem control signal
<PriRTS Off>
<priXcvr N> selects primary radio N
<QSY +F> increases the current transceiver's frequency by F KHz, e.g. <QSY
+1>
<QSY -F> decreases the current transceiver's frequency by F KHz, e.g. <QSY -
2>
<QSY freq> sets the current transceiver's frequency to Freq KHz, e.g. <QSY
14200>
<Receive> directs the radio to switch from transmitting to receiving (equivalent to
clicking the RX button)
<Reset> resets communications with the primary transceiver and then re-
initializes it
<Slider S, V> sets a specified slider to a specified value
• S is a digit between 1 and 16 that specifies one of the 16
Command-generating slider controls
• V is a numeric value between the specified slider's lower
bound and upper bound
<SO2R text> if the SO2R Serial Port is Enabled, sends the text followed by a
carriage return (ascii 13) to the SO2R Serial Port

42 Commander 15.8.9
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE when controlling a radio with a Spectrum-Waterfall window enabled
L,U> and in Fixed mode, sets the range's lower bound to L and the range's
upper bound to U, where L and U are specified with one of 5 formats:
Format Meaning Example
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE
F set the bound to F KHz
7005,7010>
sets the bound to the frequency
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE
A+F in VFO A (or the Main
A-1,A+5>
VFO) plus F KHz
sets the bound to the frequency
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE
A-F in VFO A (or the Main
A-1,A+5>
VFO) minus F KHz
sets the bound to the frequency
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE
B+F in VFO B (or the Sub
A-1,B+5>
VFO) plus F KHz
sets the bound to the frequency
<SPECTRUMFIXEDRANGE
B-F in VFO B (or the Sub
A+1,B-5>
VFO) minus F KHz
<SPECTRUMMODE M> when controlling a radio with a Spectrum-Waterfall window enabled,
• <SPECTRUMMODE C> sets the Spectrum-Waterfall mode to
Centered
• <SPECTRUMMODE F> sets the Spectrum-Waterfall mode to
Fixed
<SPECTRUMREFLEVEL R> when controlling a radio with a Spectrum-Waterfall window enabled,
sets the current Reference Level to R db without changing the
reference level associated with the current band or sub-band
<Split On> enables or disables the current transceiver's Split
<Split Off>
<Tooltip text> sets the current Command Sequence button's popup explanation to
text
<Tooltip Q, text> sets the specified Command Sequence button's popup explanation to
text
• Q is a number between 0 and 31 that specifies one of the 32
Command Sequences (0 for command sequence #1, 1 for
command sequence #2, etc)
<Transmit> directs the radio to switch from receiving to transmitting (equivalent to
clicking the TX button)
<TXMeter MeterName> sets the Xmit Meter selector to the specified MeterName
<UDPAntSelEnable On> enables inclusion of the specified Antenna name in Radio Info
messages sent to active UDP connections
<UDPAntSelEnable Off>
disables inclusion of the specified Antenna name in Radio Info
messages sent to active UDP connections
<UDPAntSelName text> specifies the Antenna name in Radio Info messages sent to active
UDP connections

43 Commander 15.8.9
 <UDPAuxAntSelEnable On> enables inclusion of the specified Auxiliary Antenna number and
Auxiliary Antenna name in Radio Info messages sent to active UDP
<UDPAuxAntSelEnable Off> connections

disables inclusion of the specified Auxiliary Antenna number and

Auxiliary Antenna name in Radio Info messages sent to active UDP
connections
<UDPAuxAntSelNumber text> specifies the Auxiliary Antenna number in Radio Info messages sent
to active UDP connections
<UDPAuxAntSelName text> specifies the Auxiliary Antenna name in Radio Info messages sent to
active UDP connections
<UDPSendRadioInfo> directs Commander to send a Radio Info message bearing the
primary transceiver's frequency, mode, and other information to active
UDP connections
<XcvrA=B> directs the radio to set the VFO B (or sub-receiver) frequency to the
VFO A (or main receiver) frequency
<XcvrAxB> directs the radio to exchange the VFO A (or main receiver) and VFO B
(or sub-receiver) frequencies
<Wait> pauses for the duration indicated in the Command Interval textbox
after executing the previous transceiver command in the sequence
before executing the next transceiver command in the sequence.

The conditional branch and sequence button naming commands make it possible to create sequences that toggle
a sequence button's function, as shown in this simple example for the Icom IC-756:

44 Commander 15.8.9
Using LED color to display the state of a controlled element, in this case an Icom IC-7700's Twin Peak Filter:

The Save and Load buttons enable you to save a Command Sequence to a specified file, and load a Command
Sequence from a specified file.

Do not attempt to modify a Command Sequence by editing a file created by clicking the Save button. To edit the
Command Sequence associated with a button in the User-defined Controls panel, right-click that button.

If you are controlling multiple primary transceivers, you can define a user-defined control set that specifies the
Command Sequences to be loaded when you switch among primary transceivers.

45 Commander 15.8.9
Substitution strings
Substitution strings let you insert the value of a command-generating slider, CI-V address, or ascii character into a
specified position within a radio command.

The insertion of a slider's value into a template instruction is specified via a substitution string of the form <SFN>,
where
• S is an optional* integer between 1 and 16 that specifies one of the 16 command-generating Sliders
• F is a single letter indicating the Format of the inserted value
o D means "decimal digits" with leading zeros
o E means "decimal digits" without leading zeros
o F means "decimal digits" without leading zeros, with the value divided by 1000 before being
inserted into the command
o R means "6 signed decimal digits in the scrambled format employed by Icom "set RIT" and "set
delta-TX" commands; note: N must be set to 6.
o S means "signed decimal digits"
o H means "hexadecimal bytes"
o B means "unsigned binary bytes"
• N is an optional digit indicating the Number of decimal digits (including the sign in a signed decimal format)
or hexadecimal bytes to insert; when not present, a single decimal digit or hexadecimal byte or binary
byte is inserted. For unsigned binary bytes, N is limited to the values 1 or 2.

For example, the command FEFE6EE01401<2D4>FD will use the current value of slider 2 to set an Icom 756 Pro
III's AF gain. The S is only optional when the substitution string appears in the Command of a command-
generating slider's Configuration window; in this case, the slider's own value is used, as shown in the screenshot
in the section below.

The substitution string <CIV> is replaced hexadecimal radio commands by the current transceiver's specified CI-V
address. Thus, the command FEFE<CIV>E01401<2D4>FD will be executed by the transceiver whose CI-V
address is specified in the Radio panel on the Configuration window's General tab.

When controlling a Flex Signature transceiver, the substitution string <FlexSigPanStream> is replaced by the
hexadecimal ID of VFO A's panadapter. This ID is required by some of the commands used to control a Flex
Signature transceiver.

The substitution string <n> (where n is an integer between 0 and 127) is replaced in ASCII radio commands by a
single character whose ascii value is n; for example, <13> will be replaced by the "carriage return" character.

Command-generating Sliders
One can set the AF gain of a Kenwood TS-2000 by sending it the ASCII command AG0NNN; where NNN is a 3-
digit decimal number between 0 and 255 that specifies the desired gain. One can set the AF gain of an Icom 756
Pro III by sending it the hexadecimal command FEFE6EE01402XXXXFD when XXXX is a 4-digit decimal number
between 0 and 255. A Command-generating Slider lets you "fill in" the NNN or XXXX with an appropriate value
determined by the handle position of a horizontal slider control in Commander's User-defined Commands panel.
To control a TS-2000's AF gain with a slider control, one must at minimum configure the slider with
• a lower bound
• an upper bound
• a specification of where and how the slider's value will be inserted into the command

46 Commander 15.8.9
This information is captured by the slider's Configuration window, which can be made to appear by double-clicking
the label beneath the slider control:
Lower the slider's value when its handle is
bound positioned to the extreme left
Upper the slider's value when its handle is
bound positioned to the extreme right
the amount by which the slider's value is
Small decreased or increased when you click the
step arrow at its extreme left or extreme right,
respectively
the amount by which the slider's value is
decreased or increased when you click the
Big step
in the space to the left or the right of its
handle, respectively
text that will appear immediately below the
slider
• the string <value> will be replaced
by the slider's current numeric
value
• the string <value U> (where U is a
number) will be replaced by the
Label slider's current numeric value
scaled into the range between 0
and U
• the string <value L, U> (where L
and U are numbers) will be
replaced by the slider's current
numeric value scaled into the
range between L and U
text that will appear in an explanatory
popup window if the mouse cursor hovers
above the label immediately below the
The <D3> substitution command does not specify a Function slider
Slider number, so Slider 1's value is used (because • the string <value> will be replace
this is Slider 1's configuration) by the slider's current numeric
value
a hexadecimal or ASCII radio command
that includes a substitution string
specifying where and how the slider's
value is inserted to create a command that
is sent to the transceiver
Command • when Commander starts
• when a new transceiver is selected
(if Commander is configured to
control multiple transceivers)
• whenever the slider's value is
changed
when checked, a slider command is sent to
Initialize the radio on startup or after switching
Radio radios that sets the slider to its previous
value

47 Commander 15.8.9
A slider's value is changed by
• dragging it's handle left or right,
• clicking its left-arrow or right-arrow
• clicking the space to the left or right of its handle
• executing a <slider> command in a Command Sequence
• a frequency-dependent device control configured to drive the slider
• receiving a directive from another application (e.g. WinWarbler).

In the example shown in the above screenshot of Commander User Slider 4's Configuration window, the ASCII
command AG0000; will be generated when slider 4's handle is moved to the extreme left, the ASCII command
AG0255; will be generated when slider 4's handle is moved to the extreme right, and the ASCII command
AG0128; will be generated when slider 4's handle is centered.

Note that while the CI-V commands used to control Icom transceivers are expressed in hexadecimal, variable
settings must often be expressed in decimal. For example, the template used to control an Icom 756 Pro III's AF
gain with slider #2 is FEFE6EE01401<2D4>FD (with a lower bound of 0 and an upper bound of 255) . In contrast,
using slider #5 to select a Yaesu FT-1000MP's mode would be accomplished with 000000<5H>0C (with a lower
bound of 0 and an upper bound of 11).

Only the signed decimal and hexadecimal formats should be used with sliders that can take on negative values.
For example, the FlexRadio template 'ZZWB<1S4> will generate commands like ZZWB+028 or ZZWB-014 .
Commander's 16 sliders are numbered 1 through 16 and organized into two banks of 8, which each bank
containing two rows of 4 sliders. The same ALT checkbox that switches between banks of Command Sequences
also switches between banks of sliders.

When clicked, the Save button saves the slider definition to a file you specify; the slider definition includes the
slider's current value. The Load button loads the slider definition from a file you specify and sets the slider to the
value saved in the file.

If you are controlling multiple primary transceivers, you can define a user-defined control set that specifies the
Command-generating Sliders to be loaded when you switch among primary transceivers.

48 Commander 15.8.9
 Changing Frequency
Using Commander, you can change your transceiver's frequency by
• activating controls on the Main window's VFO panel
• rotating your mouse's wheel
• striking keyboard shortcuts
• selecting a memory
• scanning memories in the current memory bank
• actions in the Bandspread window
• actions in the Spectrum-Waterfall window

If you have configured Commander to support automatic switching between multiple transceivers, then the above
actions may trigger a switch from one transceiver to another when a new amateur band frequency is specified.

If you have configured one or more frequency-dependent device, the settings for these devices will be
continuously updated as a function of frequency. The panels displaying these settings reside on the right side of
Commander's Main window, along with the secondary VFO, Filter, and PTT panels. This part of the Main
window is shared with the Memory Bank panel. If the Memory Bank panel is visible, click the Filters & Devices
button and the device panels will appear. You can select one control of one frequency-dependent device whose
integer value will be placed on pins 2-9 of a specified parallel port. This can be used to control an antenna switch,
for example.

The primary VFO panel on Commander's Main window displays the frequency last reported by your radio, unless
a transverter is active; if you have configured Commander to support one or more transverters on the 6m, 4m, 2m,
70cm, 33cm, or 23cm bands, your transceiver will automatically be set to drive the transverter to the frequency
specified by Commander's VFO. The primary VFO panel's caption indicates whether the radio is displaying VFO
A, VFO B, the Main VFO, or the Sub VFO. For most Elecraft, Kenwood, TenTec, and Yaesu radios, this VFO
identification will always be accurate; for Icom and TenTec Omni radios, however, the VFO identification will only
be correct if VFO selection is accomplished via the controls on Commander's Main window, rather than via
controls on the radio's front panel. You can define up to eight sub-bands per band. You can specify the font colors
to be used to display the primary VFO frequency when it lies within a defined sub-band, and when it does not lie
within a defined sub-band; you can also specify the background color used to display frequencies in the primary
VFO panel.

Commander also displays a secondary VFO panel whose caption indicates whether its contents are those of
VFO A, VFO B, the Main VFO, or the Sub VFO; the panel's caption and its contents will only be valid for Icom
and TenTec Omni radios if VFO selection and modification is accomplished via Commander, rather than via the
radio's front panel. If the secondary VFO panel is not visible, click the Filters & Devices button as described
above.

Changing frequency via the primary VFO panel

• Modifying the frequency display contents and striking the Enter key will radio's primary VFO to the
specified frequency; modifying the frequency display contents and striking the Esc key will set the
frequency display contents to the radio's current frequency.
• The ▲ and ▼ buttons to the left of the frequency display will shift your radio up or down one band. If the
Ham Bands box is checked, these buttons sequence among the ham bands and among 1 MHz
segments of ham bands wider than 1 Mhz; depressing the CTRL key while clicking these buttons will
sequence among the ham bands independent of band width. If the Ham Bands box is not checked, these
buttons shift up or down 1 MHz. If you click and hold these buttons, they will autorepeat at a rate
governed by the VFO Autorepeat Rate slider. If a User-defined Sequence after Band Change is specified,
that sequence will be executed after either of these buttons are clicked.

49 Commander 15.8.9
• The ▲ and ▼ buttons to the right of the frequency display will increase or decrease your radio's
frequency as shown in the following table:
Control Keys Change
10 Hz.
Shift 100 Hz.
Ctrl 1 KHz.
Alt 10 KHz.
Ctrl + Alt 100 KHz.

If you click and hold these buttons, they will autorepeat at a rate governed by the VFO Autorepeat
Rate slider.
• The horizontal scrollbar below the frequency display allows rapid frequency change within the current
band or band segment; the ◄ and ► buttons at either end change frequency down or up as shown in the
following table:
Control Keys Change
1 KHz.
Shift 5 KHz.
Ctrl 10 KHz.
Alt 50 KHz.
Ctrl + Alt 100 KHz.

If you click and hold these buttons, they will autorepeat at a rate governed by the VFO Autorepeat
Rate slider.
• Depending upon your radio's capabilities, one or more of the following buttons and checkboxes may
appear in the VFO panel:
Button Keyboard Function

A SHIFT-F1 selects VFO A

B SHIFT-F2 selects VFO B

A=B SHIFT-F3 sets VFO B to VFO A's frequency

AXB SHIFT-F4 simultaneously sets VFO A to VFO B's frequency and VFO B to VFO A's
frequency (available if provide A/B and TF-SET buttons is not enabled)
Main SHIFT-F1 selects the Main VFO

Sub SHIFT-F2 selects the Sub-receiver VFO

M=S SHIFT-F3 sets the Sub VFO to the Main receiver VFO's frequency

MXS SHIFT-F4 simultaneously sets the Main VFO to the Sub-receiver VFO's frequency and
the Sub-receiver VFO to the Main VFO's frequency
XFC F1 momentarily exchanges the A and B (or Main and Sub-receiver) VFOs
(available if provide A/B and TF-SET buttons is not enabled)
A/B SHIFT-F4 swaps VFO roles (available if provide A/B and TF-SET buttons is enabled)

TF-S F1 momentarily swaps VFO roles (available if provide A/B and TF-SET buttons is
enabled, and radio is in split mode)

50 Commander 15.8.9
 Split box selects split frequency operation (if using an Icom or TenTec Omni VI
transceiver, see the note below)
• selects VFO B or Sub-receiver VFO on entry
• selects VFO A or Main VFO on exit
Dual selects dual receive or dual watch operation
receive box • selects VFO B or Sub-receiver VFO on entry
• selects VFO A or Main VFO on exit
Dual track when enabled, automatically updates the Sub-receiver VFO frequency to
box match the Main VFO frequency; this option is available if the Dual receive box
is checked and the transceiver is
• an Icom IC-7610, IC-7800, IC-7850, or IC-7851
• an Elecraft K3 with subreceiver installed
• a Flex Signature transceiver
• a Yaesu FT-1000D
• a Yaesu FTDX-5000
• a Yaesu FTDX-9000 with the PEP firmware installed
• a Yaesu FTDX-101
if Dual Track is enabled when a "Set frequency and mode" directive is
received from another application, both VFOs will be set to the specified
frequency; example: double-clicking a Spot Database Entry for a station that
is operating simplex.
Sat Mode sets or clears Satellite Mode when controlling an Icom IC-910H or IC-9100
box • if Satellite Mode is cleared, Commander
o displays the VFO A and VFO B frequencies
o clears Split, and selects VFO A
• if Satellite Mode is set, Commander
o displays the MAIN and SUB frequencies
o sets Split, and disables the Split box

Note: Some Icom transceiver models label their VFOs A and B; other Icom transceiver models
label their VFOs Main and Sub. When the primary transceiver is a TenTec Omni VI or an Icom
transceiver with A and B VFOs, Commander assumes that when Split is enabled, VFO A
specifies the receive frequency and that VFO B specifies the transmit frequency. When the
primary transceiver is an Icom transceiver with Main and Sub VFOs, Commander assumes that
when Split is enabled, the Main VFO specifies the receive frequency and that the Sub VFO
specifies the transmit frequency.
• When controlling a Flex Signature radio, two buttons appear beneath the Main window's Mode panel:
o Slice => VFO A is enabled when a slice other than A or B is made active in SmartSDR.
▪ clicking this button will save the state of VFO A (frequency, mode, pass-band, RX and TX
antenna selection), and then copy the state of the active slice to VFO A
▪ CTRL-clicking this button will copy the state of the active slice to VFO A without first
saving the state of VFO A
o Restore VFO A is enabled when the Slice => VFO A button is clicked without the CTRL key
being depressed; clicking this button will restore the state of VFO A to the last saved values
• The transceiver command buffer overflow message indicates that one or more directives from
Commander to your radio have been discarded. This occurs when large frequency changes are
attempted by holding down auto-repeating keys or buttons, exceeding the radio's ability to keep up.
Recovery in this situation is automatic -- simply click the ok button, wait for your radio to catch up, and
continue.

51 Commander 15.8.9
Changing frequency via the secondary VFO panel
Modifying the frequency display contents and striking the Enter key will set radio's secondary VFO to the
specified frequency. You can specify the font color and background color used to display frequencies in the
secondary VFO panel.

Clicking the 1, 2, 5, or 10 quick split button will select split frequency operation, and set the transmit frequency to
the receive frequency plus 1 kHz, 2 kHz, 5 kHz, or 10 kHz respectively. Depressing the CTRL key while left-
clicking one of these buttons, or right-clicking one of these buttons will select split frequency operation, and set
the transmit frequency to the receive frequency minus 1 kHz, 2 kHz, 5 kHz, or 10 kHz respectively. Depressing
the SHIFT key while left-clicking one of these buttons will select split frequency operation, and increase the
transmit frequency by 1 kHz, 2 kHz, 5 kHz, or 10 kHz respectively. Depressing the SHIFT and CTRL keys while
left-clicking one of these buttons, or depressing the SHIFT key while right-clicking one of these buttons will select
split frequency operation, and decrease the transmit frequency by 1 kHz, 2 kHz, 5 kHz, or 10 kHz respectively.

Changing frequency via mouse wheel

If you have a wheeled mouse, you can QSY your transceiver clicking in Commander's Main VFO panel and then
rotating the mouse's wheel.

When you first rotate the wheel after clicking in Commander's Main VFO panel , a cyan-colored horizontal bar will
appear over the right-most digit in the primary VFO panel's frequency display; this indicates the rotating the
mouse wheel will adjust the transceiver frequency in units of 10 Hz. Clicking the mouse on any other digit position
in the primary VFO panel's frequency will shift the cyan horizontal bar to that digit position, indicating that
subsequent mouse wheel rotation will adjust the transceiver frequency in the units of that digit position.

Clicking in the secondary VFO panel will provide similar mouse wheel control of the secondary VFO's frequency --
except on the following transceivers, which do not provide the CAT control of their secondary VFO to necessary
to implement this capability:
• all Icom models except the IC-7100, IC-7300, IC-7600, IC-7610, IC-7700, IC-7800, IC-7850, IC-7851
• the TenTec Omni V.9 and Omni VI
• the Yaesu FT-747, FT-757, FT-757GXII, FT-817, FT-857, FT-857D, FT-897, and FT-1000D,

If inadvertent mousewheel rotation is problematic, check the Ignore Mousewheel box and Commander will no
longer QSY your transceiver when you rotate the mouse's wheel.

Note: if the minimum adjustment you can achieve by rotating the mouse wheel is larger than one unit, check to
see if you are running the most recent driver for your wheeled mouse.

Changing frequency via the keyboard

• After clicking on the primary VFO's frequency display or the Bandspread window, you can increase or
decrease your radio's frequency by striking the PageUp or PageDown keys respectively:
Control Keys Change
10 Hz.
Shift 100 Hz.
Ctrl 1 KHz.
Alt 10 KHz.
Ctrl + Alt 100 KHz.

• After clicking on the VFO panel's frequency display, you can select its contents by striking the Insert or
CTRL-A key; any digits subsequently entered will replace the frequency display's contents; strike the
Enter key to change your radio's frequency to that shown in the VFO.

52 Commander 15.8.9
Changing frequency via the Bandspread window
Clicking the Main window's Bandspread button displays Commander's Bandspread window, which provides a
vertical slide rule dial showing range of frequencies around your radio's current frequency, and optionally a Band
panel containing an array of buttons corresponding to the 160m through 2m amateur bands.

The Range panel determines the range of frequencies depicted on the slide rule dial. You can vary this range
from 1 kHz to 500 kHz in seven steps; your radio's current frequency will always appear centered in the dial
unless one of the current band's edges is visible, in which case the current frequency indicator will move toward
the band edge.

You can resize the Bandspread window both vertically and horizontally. The Band panel will appear when the
Bandspread window is sufficiently wide. As you reduce the width of the Bandspread window, the number of
options available in the Range panel will decrease.

The current frequency indicator in the slide rule dial can be configured to distinguish between in-band and out-of-
band frequencies.

Clicking on the dial will QSY your radio's primary VFO to the associated frequency. Double-clicking the dial will
QSY your radio to the associated frequency and then reduce the range by one step, unless the range is already 1
kHz. Depressing the Alt button while clicking on the dial will set your radio's secondary VFO to the associated
frequency. Any click or double-click in the dial will terminate scanning. Allowing the mouse cursor to hover over
the dial will produce a small popup showing the associated frequency to which your radio would be QSY'd if you
were to click or double-click.

You can also QSY via the PageUp and PageDown keys.
Commander remembers the last 5 frequencies you visited on each band, and the mode in use for each such visit;
this information is stored in a Band Stack associated with each band. If you QSY the radio, and then let it remain
on a frequency for longer than the dwell time setting, the new frequency and mode will be saved on the
appropriate Band Stack. The Bandspread window's Band panel contains a button for each band between 160m
and 33cm. Clicking a band button sets the radio's frequency to the most recent frequency used on that band, sets
its mode to the mode in use at that time, and clears Split; the Band Stack is then advanced, so that clicking the
same band button a second time sets the frequency/mode to the next-most-recent frequency/mode used on that
band. Using this mechanism, you can QSY to the most recent 5 frequencies. The Band panels in the Bandspread
and Spectrum-Waterfall windows share the same Band Stack for each band.

Executing the Band command in a User-defined Sequence is equivalent to clicking the Bandspread window's
Band button for the band it specifies. If a User-defined Sequence after Band Change is specified, that sequence
will be executed after any button in the Band panel is clicked.

The memory used to provide the slide rule dial and Band Stack are freed when the Bandspread window is closed.

The rectangular indicator in the Bandspread window's lower-left corner changes color to indicate the maximum
degree of need for any active DX station received by SpotCollector but not visible in the Bandspread window.
• allowing the mouse cursor to hover over this indicators displays a small popup window showing the most
recent and needed, unseen, active DX station's callsign, frequency, mode, and time of arrival
• clicking in this indicator resets its color to that corresponding with unneeded
• double-clicking in this indicator sets the transceiver's frequency and mode to that of the most recent and
needed, unseen, active DX station, and terminates scanning.

Clicking the SpotCollector button on the Bandspread window displays SpotCollector's Main window, if
SpotCollector is running.

53 Commander 15.8.9
Changing frequency via the Spectrum-Waterfall window
If Commander is controlling an Icom IC-7300, IC-7610, IC-7850, and IC-7851 using a direct USB connection with
the Primary CAT Port configured for 115,200 baud or an Elecraft K4 connected using an IP connection, checking
the Spectrum-Waterfall window box on Configuration window's Bandspread tab will display Commander's
Spectrum-Waterfall window. Depressing the CTRL key while clicking the Main window's Bandspread button will
enable and display the Spectrum-Waterfall window.

The Spectrum-Waterfall window provides a Control Section positioned above four information-bearing sections:
• the Spectrum Section displays realtime spectrum data
• the DX Callsign Section displays active DX station callsigns
• the Frequency Axis Section displays the range of frequencies being displayed in the Spectrum-Waterfall
window
• the Waterfall Section displays a history of the spectrum section's realtime spectrum data

When controlling an Icom transceiver:

54 Commander 15.8.9
When controlling an Elecraft K4:

In the Control Section,

• the Frequency panel shows the transceiver's current frequency; if operating split, the current receive
frequency is shown.
o The frequency's font and background colors are governed by settings in the Frequency Colors
panel.
o Clicking in this panel makes Commander's Main window visible
• the DX Rows panel controls the number of rows of DX Callsigns displayed in the DX Callsign Section
• the Band panel contains a button for each band between 160m and 70cm. Commander remembers the
last 5 frequencies you visited on each band, and the mode in use for each such visit; this information is
stored in a Band Stack associated with each band. If you QSY the radio, and then let it remain on a
frequency for longer than the dwell time setting, the new frequency and mode will be saved on the
appropriate Band Stack. Clicking a Band panel button sets the radio's frequency to the most recent
frequency used on that band, sets its mode to the mode in use at that time, and clears Split; the Band
Stack is then advanced, so that clicking the same Band panel button a second time sets the
frequency/mode to the next-most-recent frequency/mode used on that band. Using this mechanism, you
can QSY to the most recent 5 frequencies. The Band panels in the Bandspread and Spectrum-Waterfall
windows share the same Band Stack for each band.
• The Range panel can switch the transceiver between Fixed and Centered spectrum tracking modes
o When controlling an Icom transceiver,
▪ When the range is Fixed, the Range panel
▪ provides buttons that make the Spectrum-Waterfall window display the entire
Band, or a particular sub-band:
Band sets the range to the entire current band
sets the range to the current band's CW
CW
sub-band
sets the range to the current band's Data
Data
sub-band
sets the range to the current band's
Phone
Phone sub-band
▪ provides a Zoom In button that when clicked cuts the range in half and centers it
on the transceiver's receive frequency
▪ provides a Zoom Out button that when clicked doubles the range and centers it
on the transceiver's receive frequency

55 Commander 15.8.9
 ▪ displays the range's lower frequency to the left of the Band button, and the
range's upper frequency to the right of the Band button, and updates these
frequencies if they are changed from the transceiver's front panel
▪ When the range is Centered, the Range panel provides buttons that set the range to
widths from 5 kHz to 1000 kHz, and updates this selection when the range width is
changed from the transceiver's front panel
▪ The Scroll box, if present, enables selection of the radio's SCROLL-C (centered with
automatic scrolling) and SCROLL-F (fixed with automatic scrolling) spectrum tracking
modes; if the radio supports the SCROLL-C and SCROLL-F tracking modes, check the
Use radio's scroll options box on the Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window.
o When controlling an Elecraft K4, the Range panel
▪ provides buttons that set the range to 24 KHz, 48 KHz, 96 KHz, 192 KHz, or 384 KHz
▪ provides a Zoom In button that when clicked cuts the range in half
▪ provides a Zoom Out button that when clicked doubles the range
▪ displays the range's low and high frequencies
▪ When the range is Fixed, the Fixed Style panel governs how the Range will change as
the transceiver frequency approaches it lower or upper frequency:
Fixed Range
Button Behavior
Style
when the transceiver frequency reaches either end of the
F1 Fixed 1 range, the range is shifted in that direction by an amount
equal to the range
when the transceiver frequency reaches either end of the
F2 Fixed 2 range, the range is shifted in that direction by an amount
equal to half the range
when the transceiver frequency reaches either end of the
S1 Slide 1 range,, the range is shifted smoothly as the frequency
continues to move in that direction.
when the transceiver frequency approaches either end of
S2 Slide 2 the range,, the range is shifted smoothly as the frequency
continues to move in that direction.
when the transceiver frequency reaches either end of the
range, the range does not change; if the frequency
St Static
continues to change in that direction, the frequency
indicator will no longer be visible
o If you change the range using the transceiver's front panel, the Spectrum-Waterfall window's
Range panel will be updated to reflect that change
• When controlling an Icom transceiver, the Ref Level slider controls the sensitivity of the transceiver's
spectrum display for the current sub-band or band. Changes update the Ref settings in the Spectrum-
Waterfall Configuration window's Band Settings panel, and thus are preserved between operating
sessions.
• The Gain slider specifies a value between 1 and 2 for the current band that expands the magnitude of
signals displayed in the Spectrum Section. Changes update the Gain settings in the Spectrum-Waterfall
Configuration window's Band Settings panel, and thus are preserved between operating sessions.

56 Commander 15.8.9
 • The rectangular indicator to the left of the SpotCollector button changes color to indicate the maximum
degree of need for any active DX station received by SpotCollector but not visible in the Spectrum-
Waterfall window's DX Callsign Section
o allowing the mouse cursor to hover over this indicators displays a small popup window
showing the most recent and needed, unseen, active DX station's callsign, frequency, mode, and
time of arrival
o clicking in this indicator resets its color to that corresponding with unneeded
o double-clicking in this indicator sets the transceiver's frequency and mode to that of the most
recent and needed, unseen, active DX station, and terminates scanning.
• Clicking the SpotCollector button on the Spectrum Waterfall window displays SpotCollector's Main
window, if SpotCollector is running.
• Clicking the Spectrum Config button displays the Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window
• Click the Help button displays this section of Commander's documentation

In the Spectrum Section, Commander displays spectrum data from the radio for the current range. You can
adjust the reference level (Icom transceivers only) and gain via sliders in the Control Section. If not split, clicking
in this section will set the transceiver frequency to the designated frequency; ALT-clicking will enable split and set
the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated frequency. If split, clicking in this section will set the
transceiver's receive frequency to the designated frequency; ALT-clicking will set the transceiver's transmit
frequency to the designated frequency See the table below for additional QSY options using the Shift and CTRL
keys. You can adjust the color used to display the spectrum data and the background color via the Spectrum-
Waterfall Configuration window's Colors panel.

In the DX Callsign Section, Commander displays active DX stations received from SpotCollector, if running.
Between 4 and 32 rows of callsigns can be displayed, as specified in the DX Rows panel; the appearance of a +
symbol in this section means that more DX stations could be displayed if the number of rows were increased.
Increasing or decreasing the number of rows will increase or decrease the vertical height of the Spectrum-
Waterfall window so that the heights of all other sections are unchanged. Settings governing the acquisition,
display, management, and handling of active DX stations are shared with the Bandspread window, and provided
on the DX Spots panel on the Configuration window's Bandspread tab. Commander's behavior when you click on
or hover above a callsign displayed in the DX Callsign Section is described below. If not split and the mouse
cursor not above a callsign, clicking in the DX Callsign Section will set the transceiver frequency to the designated
frequency; ALT-clicking will enable split and set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated frequency.
If split and the mouse cursor not above a callsign, clicking in this section will set the transceiver's receive
frequency to the designated frequency; ALT-clicking will set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated
frequency. See the table below for additional QSY options using the Shift and CTRL keys. Allowing the mouse
cursor to hover for a few seconds over a location without a callsign will display an explanatory popup with the
frequency associated with the location.

In the Frequency Axis Section, Commander displays a horizontal slide rule with frequencies rendered in the
specified font color. If not split, clicking in this section will set the transceiver frequency to the designated
frequency; ALT-clicking will enable split and set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated frequency.
If split, clicking in this section will set the transceiver's receive frequency to the designated frequency; ALT-clicking
will set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated frequency. See the table below for additional QSY
options using the Shift and CTRL keys. Allowing the mouse cursor to hover for a few seconds over a location in
this section will display an explanatory popup with the frequency associated with the location.

57 Commander 15.8.9
In the Waterfall Section, Commander displays a historical record of the spectrum data, with the most recent
signals at top, and the oldest signals at the bottom. You can increase or decrease the height of the Waterfall
section by increasing or decreasing the height of the Spectrum-Waterfall window; doing so will leave the heights
of all other sections unchanged. If not split, clicking in this section will set the transceiver frequency to the
designated frequency; ALT-clicking will enable split and set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated
frequency. If split, clicking in this section will set the transceiver's receive frequency to the designated frequency;
ALT-clicking will set the transceiver's transmit frequency to the designated frequency. See the table below for
additional QSY options using the Shift and CTRL keys. Allowing the mouse cursor to hover for a few seconds
over a location in this section will display an explanatory popup with the frequency associated with the location.
You can select the range of colors used to indicate Waterfall signal strength via the Spectrum-Waterfall
Configuration window's Colors panel.

Gesture Action in Spectrum, Frequency

Action in DX Callsign section
Axis, or Waterfall section
Left click • set current VFO to • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
designated frequency frequency
• if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency
Shift-Left click • set current VFO to nearest • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
100 Hz frequency
• if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency
Control-Left click • set current VFO to nearest • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
500 Hz frequency
• if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency
• if DXKeeper and DXView are running, rotate
antenna to selected callsign's short-path header
Shift-Control-Left • set current VFO to nearest • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
click 1 KHz frequency
• if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency
• if DXKeeper and DXView are running, rotate
antenna to selected callsign's short-path header
Alt-Left click • enable split and set • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
transmit frequency to frequency
designated frequency • if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency
• if DXKeeper and DXView are running, rotate
antenna to selected callsign's long-path header
Right click • set other VFO to • set VFO A or Main VFO to selected callsign's
designated frequency frequency
• if selected callsign is operating split, enable split
and set VFO B or Sub VFO to selected
callsign's QSX frequency

58 Commander 15.8.9
When the transceiver is not operating split, Commander displays a single vertical frequency marker in the DX
Callsign and Frequency Axis sections, its color is set to that specified for the Receive Freq Marker. When
operating split, two vertical frequency markers are displayed in the DX Callsign and Frequency Axis sections,
one designating the transceiver's receive frequency and the other designating the transceiver's transmit frequency.
The colors of these frequency markers are specified on the Spectrum-Waterfall Configuration window's Colors
panel.

Scrolling a wheeled mouse while the Spectrum-Waterfall window is active will QSY the transceiver as a function
of the transceiver's current mode and the mousewheel motion settings.

When the range is Fixed and you change bands - by using the transceiver's front panel, by double-clicking on the
entry for an active DX station in SpotCollector, by clicking a Band button in the Bandspread or Spectrum-Waterfall
window, or by selecting one of Commander's memories,
• when controlling an Icom transceiver,
o if the Mode AutoTrack option is enabled, Commander will set the range to the sub-band
associated with the transceiver's mode
o if the Mode AutoTrack option is disabled but the Frequency AutoTrack option is enabled,
Commander will set the range to the lowest-frequency sub-band that contains the transceiver's
frequency (receive frequency, if split); if the transceiver's frequency is not within any of the new
band's sub-bands, then Commander will set the range to the entire band.
o if neither the Mode AutoTrack nor the Frequency AutoTrack option is enabled, Commander will
set the range to the sub-band most recently used on that band
• when controlling an Elecraft K4, the width of the range is set to the width most recently used on that band;
"fixed vs centered" and Fixed Style remain unchanged

When controlling an Icom transceiver,

• when the Range is Fixed, the Mode AutoTrack option is enabled, and you change the transceiver's mode,
Commander will set the range to the sub-band associated with the transceiver's mode
• when the Range is Fixed, the Frequency AutoTrack option is enabled, and you QSY out of the current
range but still within the current band, Commander will automatically slide the range up or down so that
the transceiver's frequency (receive frequency if split) will be visible in the new range

Viewing and Selecting DX Spots

If SpotCollector (version 2.7.4 or later) is running and Commander's Bandspread window or Spectrum-Waterfall
window is open, then SpotCollector will automatically send to Commander spots of active DX stations operating
on the transceiver's current band that meet SpotCollector's current filter criteria (with the exception that wildcard
characters in the Call and DXCC filters are not handled). Commander displays each active DX station on the
Bandspread window's slide rule dial and in the Spectrum-Waterfall window unless the active DX station's age
exceeds the specified lifetime.

The size of the font used to display active DX stations in the Bandspread window can be specified as a function of
its slide rule dial range, making it possible to use larger font sizes with smaller ranges. The size of the font used to
display active DX stations in the Spectrum-Waterfall window can be independently specified as a function of its
range.

Active DX station callsigns are color-coded based on settings in the Font Colors panel on the Spot Database
Display tab of SpotCollector's Configuration window; callsigns known to participate in the ARRL's Logbook of the
World (LotW) and/or hold Authenticity Guaranteed membership in eQSL.cc are highlighted as specified in the
Background Colors tab on the Spot Database Display tab of SpotCollector's Configuration window.

In the Bandspread window active DX station callsigns that are close together in frequency are separated
horizontally to form a list of up to 8 spots. For busy frequencies and a long lifetime, it may be necessary to expand
the Bandspread window horizontally to see all of the spots; alternatively, zooming in to a smaller dial range may
separate the spots, or a smaller spot font size can be specified. The appearance of a + at the right of a callsign
means that additional callsigns have been spotted on or near the frequency.

59 Commander 15.8.9
In the Spectrum-Waterfall window, active DX station callsigns that are close together in frequency are separated
vertically in up to 32 rows. For busy frequencies and a long lifetime, it may be necessary to expand the
Spectrum-Waterfall window horizontally to see all of the spots; alternatively, zooming in to a smaller dial range
may separate the spots, or a smaller spot font size can be specified. The appearance of a + below a callsign
means that additional callsigns have been spotted on or near the frequency; you can increase or decrease the
number of rows displayed via the DX Rows panel on Spectrum-Waterfall window.
• allowing the mouse cursor to hover over an active DX station callsign displays a small popup window
showing the spot's callsign, transmit frequency, QSX (listening) frequency if operating split, mode, UTC
time last spotted, LotW participation, areas from which the station was spotted, and spot notes
• clicking on an active DX station callsign in the Bandspread or Spectrum-Waterfall window will
o if WinWarbler is not running, or if WinWarbler is running but the station's mode is CW, SSB, AM,
or FM and Commander has been configured to not route spots in this mode to WinWarbler
▪ if the station is operating simplex
o set the radio to the spot's frequency and the appropriate mode (as specified by
the CW mode and RTTY mode panels)
o configure the radio for simplex operations (disable split and dual mode, if
available)
▪ if the station is operating split and the set Xcvr split option is enabled
o set the radio's VFOs to the appropriate transmit and receive frequencies
o set the radio to the appropriate mode (as specified by the CW mode and RTTY
mode panels)
o configure the radio for split operations (enable split and dual mode, if available)
o if WinWarbler is running
▪ if the station is operating PSK31, PSK63, or RTTY, direct WinWarbler to the specified
mode and optimal frequency;
▪ if the station is operating CW, SSB, AM, or FM and Commander has been configured to
route spots in this mode to WinWarbler, direct WinWarbler to the specified mode and
frequency
▪ if the station is operating split, the set Xcvr split option determines whether QSX
frequency is conveyed to WinWarbler; if not, WinWarbler will not direct Commander to
configure the radio for split frequency operations
o direct DXKeeper (if running) to
▪ initialize its Capture window with the DX spot's callsign, frequency, mode, and gridsquare
(if available)
▪ filter its Log Page Display to show all previous QSOs with the DX spot's callsign or DXCC
entity, as specified by the Log Filter setting
o if both DXView and DXKeeper are running
▪ direct DXView to perform a lookup of the DX spot callsign
▪ if the CTRL key was depressed while clicking on the DX spot, rotate the antenna to the
short path bearing to the spotted station
▪ if the ALT key was depressed while clicking on the DX spot, rotate the antenna to the
long path bearing to the spotted station
• double-clicking an active DX station callsign in the Bandspread window performs all of the operations
described above under single-clicking, and then reduces the slide rule dial range by one step, unless the
range is already 1 kHz.

When the radio QSYs from one band to another with the Bandspread and/or Spectrum-Waterfall windows open,
Commander clears the active DX station callsigns from the Bandspread window and Spectrum-Waterfall window,
and SpotCollector sends Commander each Spot Database entry on the new band that meet its current filter
criteria (subject to the above-mentioned wildcard character limitation). Thus Commander always displays that
subset of SpotCollector's filtered Spot Database entries that are operating in the range of frequencies shown on
the Bandspread window and on the Spectrum-Waterfall window

60 Commander 15.8.9
Commander displays a rectangular indicator in the lower-left corner of the Bandspread window, and in the upper-
right corner of the Spectrum-Waterfall window. The color of the rectangle in the Bandspread window indicates the
maximum degree of need for any active DX station received by SpotCollector but not visible on the Bandspread
window's slide rule dial. Similarly, the color of the rectangle in the Spectrum-Waterfall window indicates the
maximum degree of need for any active DX stations received by SpotCollector but not visible on the Waterfall-
Spectrum window.
• allowing the mouse cursor to hover over one of these rectangular indicators displays a small popup
window showing the most recent and needed unseen active DX station's callsign, frequency, mode, and
time of arrival
• clicking a rectangular indicator resets its color to that corresponding with unneeded
• double-clicking a rectangular indicator sets the radio's frequency and mode to that of the most recent and
needed unseen active DX station, and terminates scanning.

Clicking the SpotCollector button on the Bandspread window or on the Spectrum Waterfall window activates
SpotCollector's Main window, if SpotCollector is running.

The memory used to maintain and display active DX spots is freed when the Bandspread window and Spectrum-
Waterfall windows are both closed.

61 Commander 15.8.9
 Changing Mode and Filter Setting
Buttons representing the modes supporting by your radio appear in the Main window's Mode panel, and identify
the radio's current mode. To change your radio's mode, click the appropriate button in the Mode panel. You can
also change your radio's mode by selecting a memory.

If your radio supports Filter Groups and the restore Filter Group on mode change box is checked, the caption on
each mode button will indicate the last Filter Group used in that mode. In this case, clicking a mode button both
directs your radio to change mode, and establishes receiver bandwidth settings specified by that Filter Group.
LSB selects lower sideband modulation
USB selects upper sideband modulation
CW selects continuous wave
CW-R selects continuous wave, reversed
RTTY selects radioteletype
RTTY-R selects radioteletype, reversed
FM selects frequency modulation
WBFM select wide-band frequency modulation
AM selects amplitude frequency modulation
PKT selects packet
PKT-R selects packet, reversed
Data-L selects data mode, lower sideband
Data-U selects data mode, upper sideband

When an Elecraft K3 transceiver's mode is changed to RTTY or RTTY-R, its data mode is set to FSK D or AFSK
A as specified in the RTTY sub-mode panel.

When an Icom IC-7600, IC-7700, or IC-7800 transceiver's mode is changed to Data-L or Data-U, its data sub-
mode is set to D1, D2, or D3 as specified in the Data sub-mode panel.

If you are using PKT or PKT-R to log digital-mode QSOs in DXKeeper without running a digital mode application
like WinWarbler or MultiPSK, use the Log Mode for PKT or PKT-R setting to specify the digital mode to be logged.

If you are using Data-L or Data-U to log digital-mode QSOs in DXKeeper without running a digital mode
application like WinWarbler or MultiPSK, use the Log Mode for Data-L or Data-U setting to specify the digital
mode to be logged.

62 Commander 15.8.9
 Changing Receiver Bandwidth
Radios differ in the degree to which they permit receiver bandwidth to be controlled from PC software. If
Commander provides bandwidth controls for the current the radio Model, they are presented in the Filters panel
on the right side of the Main window, sharing space with the Memory Bank panel; if the Filters panel is not visible,
click the Filters & Devices button. Commander uses the concept of a Filter Group to bridge these disparate
capabilities: a Filter Group is a named configuration of one or more receiver bandwidth settings. If Filter Groups
are supported for a particular radio Model, Commander remembers the Filter Group last used in each mode.
Checking the restore Filter Group on mode change box directs Commander to automatically restore the last used
Filter Group whenever a new mode is selected.

Elecraft Transceivers
For the Elecraft K3 and KX3, Commander's Main window's Filters panel provides Width and Shift controls.
Clicking the X button to the right of the Width slider selects the default filter widths for each mode. Clicking the X
button to the right of the Shift slider centers the current filter; you can set the Shift control's resolution to 10 Hz or
50 Hz. The Main window's Filters panel also provides Group selector that lets you quickly choose pre-set Wide,
Normal, or Narrow width and shift settings that you've defined for the SSB, CW, Data-L, Data-U, RTTY, and AM
modes on the Configuration window's Filter Groups tab. Enabling the restore Filter Group on mode change
setting on this tab causes Commander to remember the last Filter Group used in each mode, parenthetically
display each mode's last Filter Group in the Main window's Mode panel, and automatically select a mode's last
Filter Group when the mode becomes active.

Flex Signature (6000) Transceivers

When controlling a Flex Signature transceiver, Commander's Main window's Filters panel provides Width , High-
cut, and Low-cut controls. The Main window's Filters panel also provides Group selector that lets you quickly
choose pre-set Wide, Normal, or Narrow width and shift settings that you've defined for the SSB, CW, DIGL,
DIGU, RTTY, and AM modes on the Configuration window's Filter Groups tab. Enabling the show each mode's
Filter Group setting on this tab causes Commander to parenthetically display each mode's last Filter Group in the
Main window's Mode panel.

Icom Transceivers
Early Icom transceivers provide two Filter Groups, whose functions are hardwired: group 1 provides a wide
bandwidth filter, and group 2 provides a narrow bandwidth filter. Later Icom transceivers allow the user to
reconfigure one or both filter groups to a different bandwidth (by physical replacement, or in high-end transceivers
via menu selection), and some include a third group ambiguously referred to as normal. The Icom Filter Group
Names panel lets you assign names to each group that are meaningful for the actual filter configuration of your
transceiver. With the radio Model set to an Icom transceiver, the Main window's Filters panel presents a Group
selector with the choices whose names you've specified. You can activate a Filter Group by selecting its name in
the Group selector on the Main window's Filter panel. When you change filters via the radio's front panel, the
Group selector is updated to reflect your choice. Enabling the restore Filter Group on mode change setting on
this tab causes Commander to remember the last Filter Group used in each mode, parenthetically display each
mode's last Filter Group in the Main window's Mode panel, and automatically select a mode's last Filter Group
when the mode becomes active.

For the Icom IC-756ProIII, IC-7000, IC-7200, IC-7300, IC-7600, IC-7700, IC-7800, IC7850, and IC-7851, the
Filters panel also provides Width, PBT1, and PBT2 controls; PBT1 corresponds to the transceiver's "inner" PBT
knob, and PBT2 corresponds to its "outer" PBT knob. Clicking the X button to the right of the Width slider selects
the default filter width for the current mode. Clicking the X button to the right of either PBT control centers that
control, eliminating any shift.

63 Commander 15.8.9
Kenwood Transceivers
The Filters panel on Commander's Main window provides mode-specific receiver bandwidth controls for the TS-
480, TS-570D, TS-570S, TS-870, and TS-2000 as shown in the following table:
Transceiver SSB CW, CW-R RTTY, RTTY- AM FM
R
TS-480 High-cut, Shift, Width Width High-cut,
Low-cut Low-cut
TS-570S, TS-570D High-cut, Shift, Width Shift, Width High-cut, High-cut,
Low-cut Low-cut Low-cut
TS-870 High-cut, Shift, Width Width Width
Low-cut
TS-2000 High-cut, Shift, Width Width High-cut,
Low-cut Low-cut

TenTec Transceivers
For the TenTec Orion and Orion II, the Main window's Filters panel provides Width and Shift controls.

Clicking the X button to the right of the Width slider selects the default filter width for the current mode. You can
specify the default filter width on the Config window's Filter Groups tab. You can optionally configure
Commander to select the default filter width whenever the transceiver changes mode.
Clicking the X button to the right of the Shift control centers that control, eliminating any shift.

Yaesu Transceivers
Commander's Main window's Filters panel provides comprehensive bandwidth control for the Yaesu 1000MP
family, including the MarkV and MarKV Field. The Filters panel provides controls that allow direct selection of
2nd IF, 3rd IF, and sub-receiver filters. With the radio Model set to MP1000 or MP1000MKV, the Config window's
Filter Groups tab lets you define 12 Filter Groups, specifying a name, mode, 2nd IF filter, 3rd IF filter, and sub-
receive filter for each; you can revise or delete these definitions, and provide new ones. You can activate a Filter
Group by selecting its name in the Group selector on the Main window's Filter panel. When you change filters via
the radio's front panel, Commander determines whether the new filter configuration matches a defined Filter
Group; if so, the Group selector is updated to show the name of the matching Filter Group. Enabling the restore
Filter Group on mode change setting on this tab causes Commander to remember the last Filter Group used in
each mode, parenthetically display each mode's last Filter Group in the Main window's Mode panel, and
automatically select a mode's last Filter Group when the mode becomes active.

For the Yaesu FT-450, FT950, FT-2000, and FT-9000, the Main window's Filters panel provides Width and Shift
controls. Clicking the X button to the right of the Width slider selects the default filter width for the current mode.
Clicking the X button to the right of the Shift control centers that control, eliminating any shift.

64 Commander 15.8.9
 Using Memories
Commander provides 100 memories, organized into ten banks of 10. Memories in the currently-selected memory
bank appear in a panel that shares the right side of Commander's Main window with readouts for frequency-
dependent devices and receiver filter controls. This panel also contains a button for each memory bank that,
when clicked, selects that memory bank and displays its memories. If the currently-selected memory bank is not
visible, click the Main window's Mem button to make it appear in place of the device and bandwidth controls.

Within a memory bank, each memory stores a frequency, mode, and filter setting.
• Clicking on a memory's Save button saves your radio's current frequency, mode, and filter setting in that
memory, as well as the state of Commander's Split, Ham bands only, and Dual receive checkboxes (if
those functions are supported by your radio); to protect memories from inadvertent modification, the Save
buttons can be disabled.
• You can edit any memory's frequency, mode, and filter setting using standard Window's gestures and
keystrokes.
• After clicking on a memory's frequency display, you can select its contents by striking the Insert key; any
digits subsequently entered will replace the frequency display's contents.
• Clicking on a memory's Sel button will set your transceiver to that memory's frequency, mode, and filter
setting if the frequency and mode are valid, and will set Commander's Split, Ham bands only, and Dual
receive checkboxes to the values stored in that memory (if those functions are supported by your
transceiver). Commander disables the Sel buttons associated with memories that do not contain a valid
frequency and mode.
A specified Command Sequence can be executed when you activate a memory by clicking its Sel button.
• You can specify the font color and background color used to display frequencies.

By editing textboxes in the Memory Banks panel on the Configuration window's Memories tab, you can establish a
title for each memory bank ; the title for the currently-selected memory bank serves as the caption of the Main
window panel that displays the currently-selected memory bank. To quickly edit a memory bank's title, depress
the Ctrl key while clicking that memory bank's button.

To help keep track of each memory's purpose, you can record notes that pop up whenever the mouse cursor
hovers over the memory's Sel button. To record such notes, depress the Ctrl key while clicking the Sel button;
Commander will display a Memory Notes Editor window that allows you to capture notes:
• notes may not contain the angle bracket characters < or > .
• clicking the Notes Editor's Insert Timestamp button appends a the current UTC date and time to the
notes

You can direct Commander to display each memory's notes in place of its frequency, mode, and filter -- simply
click the command button captioned ~ in the upper right corner of the memory bank panel. To return to a display
of memory frequency, mode, and filter, click the ~ button again.

To clear a memory's frequency, mode, filter setting, and notes, depress the Ctrl key while clicking the Save
button.

Scanning and "Band Hopping"

To continuously scan valid memories in the current bank, check the Scan box on the Main window. With memory
scanning enabled, Commander will sequentially activate each of the current bank's memories that contain a valid
frequency and mode, skipping memories not containing a valid frequency or mode. The time between activations
is defined by the Scan Dwell setting. If none of the current bank's memories are valid, Commander will uncheck
the Scan box and stop scanning. While scanning, the following actions will uncheck the Scan box and stop
scanning:
• clicking in the Bandspread window's frequency dial
• double-clicking the Bandspread window's SpotCollector Alert indicator
• receipt of a QSY directive from another application

65 Commander 15.8.9
This scanning functionality can be used to implement "Band Hopping" - continuously scanning a sequence of
FT8 or FT4 sub-bands. With an appropriate Scan Dwell setting (.e.g. 120 seconds) and a multi-band antenna, a
single instance of WSJT-X can populate SpotCollector with local spots of decoded FT8 or FT4 stations from
multiple bands. However, it should not be used with SteppIR or other automatic tape extending antennas, as the
frequent band changes may cause decreased antenna life time.

Saving and Restoring Memories

To save the information associated with all memories that contain at least a frequency and mode, click the Export
Memories button on the Configuration window's Memories tab. Commander will prompt you for a filename, and
then store the data in a format described below.

To load memories with information from a file, click the Import Memories button on the Configuration window's
Memories tab. Commander will prompt you for a filename, and then interpret each line of the file as specifying the
contents of one memory via the following tags:

Tag Description
<Memory n> n is an integer between 1 and 100, inclusive
<Frequency f> f is a valid frequency, in kHz
<Mode mode-name> mode-name specifies a valid mode, e.g. USB or CW
<Filter fg-name> fg-name specifies a valid filter group name, e.g. narrow or sharp
<Split on> enables split
<Split off> disables split (default)
<Hambands on> enables "ham band only"
<Hambands off> disables "ham band only" (default)
<Dual on> enables "dual receive"
<Dual off> disables "dual receive" (default)
note-text contains any valid ascii characters except the angle brackets <
<Notes note-text>
or >
• To be valid, a memory specification line must contain a valid <Memory n> tag, a valid <Frequency f>
tag, and a valid <Mode mode-name> tag.
• The absence of a <Split on> tag is interpreted to mean "disable split"; the equivalent is true for the
<Hambands on>, and <Dual on> tags.
• The order of memories within the file is irrelevant, as is the order of tags within a line.

Here are some sample memory specification lines:

<Memory 1> <Freq 3,013> <Mode CW> <Filter Narrow> <Split On> <Notes 5R8FU stakeout>
<Memory 11> <Freq 14,260> <Mode USB> <Filter Narrow> <Notes 20m IOTA>
<Memory 12> <Freq 21,260> <Mode USB> <Notes 15m IOTA>

Errors encountered while importing memory specifications are recorded in an error file that is displayed when the
import operation completes. The name of the error file is composed by appending _errors to the name of the file
being imported.

66 Commander 15.8.9
 Controlling Multiple Radios
Primary CAT Port Switching
Commander can be configured to rapidly switch its Primary CAT Port among up to four simultaneously-connected
radios, either by clicking selection buttons that appear in the Main window's VFO panel, or automatically based on
frequency. The Configuration window's Multi Radio tab lets you specify control and serial port settings for each
radio, and assign each radio a unique name. If a FlexRadio Signature, Kachina, or TenTec Pegasus radio is
chosen, a Select button appears that when clicked lets you specify a Radio Selection, Control File or Control
Folder respectively. Each enabled radio's name appears on a selection button on the Main window's VFO panel;
a radio can only be enabled on the Configuration window's Multi Radio tab if its Model has been specified.

Clicking a radio's Update button in the Multi Radio tab's CAT Serial port panel will update that radio's Multi Radio
serial port settings from the settings specified on the Ports tab's Primary CAT Serial Port panel. Thus once you
have the settings on the Primary CAT Serial Port panel properly configured to enable Commander to control a
transceiver, you can "transfer" those settings to the Multi Radio tab's CAT Serial Port panel by clicking the
appropriate Update button.

Clicking a radio's selection button on the Main window's VFO panel sets the Radio Model, CI-V Address (if an
Icom), Continuous Interrogation, Interrogation Interval, and Primary CAT Serial Port settings to the values
specified for that radio on the Multi Radio tab.

User-defined Control Sets

If you've specified an Initial Command, an Initial Command Sequence, on or more Command Sequences, or one
or more Command-generating Sliders, and are controlling more than one primary transceiver, you can define a
User-defined Control Set that enables these items to be automatically populated when a primary transceiver is
selected at startup, manually, or automatically:
• an Initial Command to be executed when the transceiver is selected
• the pathname of a file that specifies an Initial Command Sequence to be executed when the transceiver is
selected (after executing the Initial Command, if one is specified)
• the pathnames of up to 32 Command Sequences to be made accessible when the transceiver is selected
• the pathnames of up to 16 Command-generating Sliders to be made accessible when the transceiver is
selected

The 32 Sequence pathnames and 16 Slider pathnames are organized into two banks, each specifying 16
Sequence pathnames and 8 slider pathnames.

To create, display, or modify a radio's Control Set, click that radio's Edit button in the User-defined Controls Sets
panel on the Config window's Multi Radio tab to display the User-defined Control Set Configuration window.

Selecting a radio for which a Control Set is specified

• directs the transceiver to execute the CAT command specified in the Control Set's Initial Command
• directs the transceiver to execute the Control Set's Initial Command Sequence
• loads the 32 Command Sequences from the pathnames specified in the Control Set
• loads the 16 Sliders from the pathnames specified in the Control Set

You can configure Commander to automatically switch among simultaneously-connected radios by specifying the
radio to use for each amateur band. Check the Selection by band panel's Auto box, and Commander will
automatically switch to the correct radio as a function of operating frequency.

You can also configure Commander to identify the currently-selected radio via a binary encoding on pins 16 and
14 of a specified parallel port. These signals can be used to control external hardware that connects an antenna,
microphone, key, headset, soundcard, and/or FSK signal to the currently-selected radio.

67 Commander 15.8.9
Secondary CAT Port
Commander's Secondary CAT Port can be connected to
• a radio or (via connected virtual serial ports) so that it can track and/or control the Primary transceiver's
frequency and mode
• a Software Defined Radio (SDR) Console so that it can track and/or control the Primary transceiver's
frequency and mode
• an external device like a tuner or amplifier so that it can track the Primary transceiver's frequency

You can configure the Secondary CAT port so that the connected radio or SDR Console
• follows frequency and mode changes in the radio connected to the Primary CAT Port
• leads the radio connected to the Primary CAT Port by conveying frequency and mode changes
• follows and leads: both follows frequency and mode changes in the radio connected to the Primary CAT
Port, and conveys its frequency and mode changes to the radio connected o the Primary CAT Port

When connected to an external device like a tuner or amplifier, the Secondary CAT port should be configured to
follow frequency and mode changes in the radio connected to the Primary CAT Port

Select the CAT protocol to be used on the Secondary CAT Port. If the Secondary CAT Port is connected to an
Icom or Icom-emulating transceiver, specify its CI-V Address.
• If the Secondary CAT Port is connected to an Icom or Icom-emulating transceiver whose CI-V
Transceive menu setting is disabled, and if the Secondary CAT Port is configured to lead or follow and
lead, direct Commander to periodically poll the secondary transceiver's frequency and mode by specifying
an Interrogation Interval; in this configuration, the Radio's minimum VFO step is set to 10 hz option
available with certain Yaesu models will be disabled.
• If the Secondary CAT port is configured to follow frequency and mode changes in the radio connected to
the Primary CAT Port, the Update every 200m option will if enabled causes Commander to update the
radio, device, or application connected to the Secondary CAT Port with the primary radio's frequency and
mode 5 times per second; this can be used to update a radio, device, or application connected to the
Secondary CAT Port that is powered up or started after Commander is already running.
• If the Secondary CAT Port is connected to a software-defined radio controlled by the PowerSDR console,
enable the Allow Kenwood AI Command option on the PowerSDR Setup window's Cat Control tab.
• If the Secondary port's CAT protocol is set to PW1, Commander assumes that an Icom PW1 amplifier is
connected to the Secondary CAT Port, and emulates an Icom transceiver whose CI-V address is
specified by the CI-V Addr box by sending the PW1 alternating frequency update and mode update
messages every 2.5 seconds. This enables the PW1 to track primary transceiver's frequency, even if the
primary transceive is not an Icom transceiver. It also prevents CI-V bus collisions that can prevent the
PW1 from accurately tracking the primary transceiver's frequency.

Instructions for configuring Commander for use with a PW1 can be found in
https://www.dxlabsuite.com/dxlabwiki/PW1Control.

68 Commander 15.8.9
 Keyboard Shortcuts
To allow operation without removing one's hands from the keyboard, Commander provides the following keyboard
shortcuts for navigation.

Main window Main VFO frequency display shortcuts

The following shortcuts are effective when the mouse cursor resides in the Main window's Main VFO frequency
display
Control Key Shortcut Effect
Control-A selects the current contents of the Main VFO frequency display

Shift Key Shortcut Effect

Shift-A sets the transceiver mode to AM
Shift-B equivalent to clicking the Main window's Bandspread button
Shift-C sets the transceiver mode to CW
Shift-D equivalent to clicking the Main window's Filters & Devices button
Shift-F sets the transceiver mode to FM
Shift-L sets the transceiver mode to LSB
Shift-M equivalent to clicking the Main window's Memories button
Shift-P sets the transceiver mode to PKT or Data-L
Shift-Q sets the transceiver mode to PKTR or Data-U
Shift-R sets the transceiver mode to RTTY
Shift-U sets the transceiver mode to USB
Shift-X selects the Configuration window's General tab

Function Key Control Keys Effect

F1 Shift equivalent to clicking the A or Main button

F2 switch from transmitting to receiving

F2 Shift equivalent to clicking the B or Sub button

F3 Shift equivalent to clicking the A=B or M=S button

F4 switch from receiving to transmitting

F4 Shift equivalent to clicking the AxB, A/B, or MxS button

69 Commander 15.8.9
 Key Control Keys Frequency Change
PageUp + 10 Hz.
PageUp Shift + 100 Hz.
PageUp Ctrl + 1 KHz.
PageUp Alt + 10 KHz.
PageUp Ctrl + Alt + 100 KHz.
PageDown - 10 Hz.
PageDown Shift - 100 Hz.
PageDown Ctrl - 1 KHz.
PageDown Alt - 10 KHz.
PageDown Ctrl + Alt - 100 KHz.

Configuration window tab shortcuts

The following shortcuts are effective when a Configuration window's tab name is selected
Shift Key Shortcut Effect
Shift--B selects the Configuration window's Bandspread tab
Shift--F selects the Configuration window's Filter Groups tab
Shift--G selects the Configuration window's General tab
Shift--0 selects the Configuration window's Device 0 tab
Shift--1 selects the Configuration window's Device 1 tab
Shift--2 selects the Configuration window's Device 2 tab
Shift--3 selects the Configuration window's Device 3 tab
Shift-M selects the Configuration window's Memories tab
Shift-P selects the Configuration window's Ports tab
Shift-R selects the Configuration window's MultiRadio tab
Shift-T selects the Configuration window's Transverter tab
Shift-X selects the Main window's Main VFO frequency display
Shift + selects the first tab-able control on the current Configuration window's tab

70 Commander 15.8.9
 Network Service
Commander's network services are configured via its Network Service window, which can be displayed by
clicking the Net Serv button in the Radio panel on the Configuration window's General tab.

Commander can
• issue N1MM-style Radio Info messages via UDP to applications running on the host computer, or to
applications running on computers connected to the host computer via local area network.
• listen for incoming commands conveyed via TCP from applications running on the host computer.
• interoperate with the Waterfall Bandmap application via UDP messages

UDP Network Service

Commander's Radio Info messages include fields that describe the currently-selected transceiver's
• Freq - receive frequency
• TXFreq - transmit frequency
• Mode
• IsSplit
• RadioNr - primary transceiver number (1-4)
• App - DXLab

If the current primary transceiver is enabled and specifies a name, each Radio Info message will specify that
name in the RadioName field.

Radio Info messages can be configured to include the Antenna name specified in the Antenna Selection panel
by checking this panel's Enable box via the <ANTENNA> tag.

Radio Info messages can be configured to include the Auxiliary Antenna number and Auxiliary Antenna
name specified in the Auxiliary Antenna Selection panel by checking this panel's Enable box via the
<AuxAntSelected> and >AuxAntSelectedName> tags, respectively.

Checking the Enable box causes Commander to send Radio Info messages to each address-port pair that
specify an IP address and port
• when the primary transceiver's receive frequency changes
• when the primary transceiver's transmit frequency changes
• when the primary transceiver's mode changes
• when the primary transceiver's Split state changes from disabled to enabled, or from enabled to disabled
• when the primary transceiver's Transmitting state changes from Receiving to Transmitting, or from
Transmitting to Receiving
• when a new primary transceiver is selected
o setting the New Xcvr Delay textbox to a value other than 0 will delay the outgoing Radio Info
message by the specified number of seconds after a new primary transceiver is selected
• when the UDP Network Service panel's Send RadioInfo Packet button is clicked
• every 10 seconds

To send Radio Info messages to

• an application running on the computer hosting Commander, specify an IP address of 127.0.0.1
• an application running on another computer connected by LAN to the computer hosting Commander,
specify the other computer's IP address
• multiple applications running on multiple computers connected by LAN to the computer hosting
Commander (e.g. all on the same subnet), specify a network address with the subnet address set to 255,
e.g. 192.168.1.255

Click the Restart button after making any changes to an IP Address or Port.

71 Commander 15.8.9
By default, N1MM+ sends Radio Info messages to port 12060. If you have the Broadcast Data tab of the
N1MM+ Configurer window configured to send Radio Info messages to

127.0.0.1:12060 192.168.1.255:12060

then to configure Commander to emulate this behavior when N1MM+ is not running, specify:
UDP # IP Address Port
1 127.0.0.1 12060
2 192.168.1.255 12060

TCP Network Service

The TCP Network Service panel enables you to specify the Base Port that determines the port to which
Commander listens for incoming TCP commands
• Commander accepts TCP/IP commands at an offset of 2; e.g. if the strong>Base Port is set to 52000,
Commander accepts commands via Port 52002
• The Default button sets the Base Port to 52000
• The Restart button re-initializes TCP command acceptance; after changing the Base Port, click the
Restart button

Waterfall Bandmap Service

The Waterfall Bandmap is a separate application developed by Steve N2IC with which Commander can
interoperate via UDP messages. It provides a live waterfall display with callsign and frequency spotting
information. The Waterfall Bandmap tracks the frequency of your transceiver, and can obtain the callsigns of
active DX stations from Commander (which receives them from SpotCollector). Commander provides all the
information that the Waterfall Bandmap needs to work with your SDR receiver or sound card I/Q output to
synchronize with Commander's primary transceiver. The Waterfall Bandmap works with any radio compatible with
LP-PAN (such as the K3), with the FlexRadio Signature series, and with most SDR receivers, such as the
Perseus, QS1R, or SDRplay.

In the Waterfall Bandmap Service panel,

• check the Enable box to enable interoperation with the Waterfall Bandmap application; the square
rectangle to the right of the Enable box will be red if Commander is not receiving messages from the
Waterfall Bandmap application, or green if messages are being received.
• the Directives IP Address and Reports IP Address specify the IP address of the computer hosting the
Waterfall Bandmap application; if the Waterfall Bandmap application is hosted by the same computer that
hosts Commander, set both IP addresses to 127.0.0.1
• the Directives Port should be set to 13063
• the Reports Port should be set to 13064
• clicking the Default button sets the Directives IP Address and Reports IP Address to 127.0.0.1, sets
the Directives Port to 13063, and sets the Reports Port to 13064.
• clicking the Restart button restarts the Waterfall Bandmap service on the specified IP Address and
Ports.

72 Commander 15.8.9
 Monitoring Messages
Commander Online Help Contents
Commander's Messages window can capture and display messages between your PC and the radio connected
to Commander's Primary CAT Port, and can capture and display messages between your PC and the radio or
application connected to Commander's Secondary CAT Port . If more than 65K message characters are received,
the first 8K characters received are deleted and message capture continues.

You can also use the Messages window to send an arbitrary CAT command to the Primary CAT Port, and enable
or disable Continuous Frequency and Mode Interrogation.

To display Commander's Messages window, click the Main window's Msgs button.
• To enable the capture of Primary CAT Port messages, check the Capture and display Primary CAT
Port Messages box; note that capturing messages may reduce program performance, resulting in poor
tracking between the radio's frequency display and the program's frequency display.
• To enable the capture of Secondary CAT Port messages, check the Capture and display Secondary
CAT Port Messages box; note that capturing messages may reduce program performance, resulting in
poor tracking between the radio's frequency display and the program's frequency display.
• Captured messages are preceded by a P or S (for Primary or Secondary), a sequence number, a date,
and a directional indicator: > for transmitted messages, < for received messages
o when monitoring an Icom or TenTec CI-V bus, all messages will be designated as "received".
o Messages can be displayed in Decimal, Hexadecimal, or Ascii as specified by settings in the
Message Display panel.
o When capturing messages from both the Primary and Secondary CAT Ports when these ports
are configured for different CAT protocols, set the Message Display panel to Native; this will
display messages in the most natural representation for their protocol, e.g. Kenwood messages
are displayed in Ascii, Icom messages are displayed in Hexadecimal, etc.
• Selecting text in a captured message and striking CTRL-C places the selected text in the Windows
Clipboard
• If the Configuration window's Continuous Frequency and Mode Interrogation box is checked, you should
see the PC issuing "request frequency report" and "request mode report" messages, and your radio's
responses; if not, check your radio's address, baud rate, and PC connections.
• If the Configuration window's Continuous Frequency and Mode Interrogation box is not checked, you will
only see messages when the radio's frequency, mode, or filter selection changes, or when Commander
sends a directive to your radio.
• The Interrogate Radio panel's Freq? and Mode? buttons send messages to your radio requesting that it
report its current frequency and mode respectively.
• The Interrogation panel's Continuous checkbox shows the state of Continuous Frequency and Mode
Interrogation and provides a convenient means of enabling or disabling it.
• In the Execute CAT Command panel,
o the Exec button sends the command specified in the CAT command box to the transceiver
connected to the Primary CAT Port; this function is disabled when Verify CI-V command
acceptance is enabled while controlling an Icom or TenTec Omni VI as the primary radio
o the Clear button clears the CAT command box
o the CAT command box specifies the command to be sent to the transceiver connected to the
Primary CAT Port
▪ a hexadecimal command composed of an even number of hexadecimal characters for
use with Icom, TenTec, and Yaesu radios, e.g.FEFE26E00700FD
▪ precede an ascii command with a single apostrophe to send that command to the
transceiver via the primary CAT serial port for use with DZKit, Elecraft, Flex, Kenwood,
and recent Yaesu transceivers; in an ascii command, the substitution string <n> (where n
is an integer between 0 and 127) is replaced by a single character whose ascii value is n;
for example, <13> will be replaced by the "carriage return" character.

73 Commander 15.8.9
 ▪ precede an ascii command with a single tilde to send that command to the transceiver via
the TCP/IP connection for use with an Elecraft K4, or Flex Signature transceiver) ; in an
ascii command, the substitution string <n> (where n is an integer between 0 and 127) is
replaced by a single character whose ascii value is n; for example, <13> will be replaced
by the "carriage return" character.
▪ striking the Enter key will send the command to the transceiver connected to the Primary
CAT Port (equivalent to clicking the Exec button)
▪ striking CTRL-W will clear the CAT command box (equivalent to clicking the Clear
button)
• In the Captured Messages panel,
o the Note button records documentary text to be inserted into the message store; the note will not
appear in the message store until the next message arrives
o the Save button places all captured messages in a file
o the Clear button empties the store of captured messages.

74 Commander 15.8.9
 Interoperating with Satellite Tracking Applications
Commander can be configured to interoperate with the SatPC32 satellite tracking application or the S.A.T. (Self-
contained Antenna Tracker). In these forms of interoperation, SatPC32 or S.A.T. directly and exclusively control
your transceiver; Commander
• interacts with SatPC32 or S.A.T. to track your transceiver's uplink frequency, downlink frequency,
and mode, making these available to other applications just as it does when directly controlling a
transceiver
• obtains the current satellite name from SatPC32 or S.A.T., and makes this available to other applications

o to satisfy LoTW, AO-07 is reported to other applications as AO-7, and ISS is reported to other
applications as ARISS
• computes the satellite mode from the uplink frequency and downlink frequency, and makes this
available to other applications

To configure Commander to interoperate with SatPC32,

1. on the Configuration window's General tab, set the Radio panel's Model selector to SATPC32
o a SATPC32 panel will appear in the upper-right corner of Commander's Main window showing
▪ connection status
▪ if not connected to SatPC32, a Connect button
▪ if connected to SatPC32 with its active satellite above the horizon, the name and mode of
that satellite
o panels and buttons not used when interoperating with SatPC32 will be hidden or disabled
2. if SatPC32 is not already running
o start SatPC32
o after SatPC32 is running, click the Connect button in Commander's SATPC32 panel

To configure Commander to interoperate with an S.A.T.,

1. on the Configuration window's General tab, set the Radio panel's Model selector to S.A.T
o a S.A.T. panel will appear in the upper-right corner of Commander's Main window showing
▪ connection status
▪ if not connected to S.A.T., a Connect button
▪ if connected to S.A.T., the name and mode of its selected satellite
o panels and buttons not used when interoperating with S.A.T will be hidden or disabled
2. if your S.A.T. is not already running
o start S.A.T.
o after S.A.T. is running, click the Connect button in Commander's S.A.T. panel

75 Commander 15.8.9