COM Frequencies

[Dave March]

Hi Pete,

Only just noticed the MSFS frequency file output entries from MakeRwys don't actually match the sim frequencies, as they are only 5 digit (nnn.nn), whereas the sim's 8.33 Khz radio frequencies are of course 6 digit.

Eg. EGSS Approach in the sim is 120.625 but in the F5 file it's 120.62. Similarly Tower in the sim is 121.955 but the MakeRwys file has it as 121.95

It's certainly not causing me any issues and I'm sure you're aware of it, just thought I ought to mention it though.

Thanks

Dave

[Pete Dowson]

11 hours ago, Dave March said:

It's certainly not causing me any issues and I'm sure you're aware of it, just thought I ought to mention it though.

Thanks. I hadn't noticed this. I'll see what I can do.

Can this occur in P3D too?

All my radios (in both my 737 cockpit and my VFR Piper cockpit) are only capable of nnn.nn.  This 8.33 change is rather a worry. I do my own drivers for this software, so I can fiddle it a bit, but there's no way I can represent all the 8.33 spaced frequencies reasonably within an xxx.xx display. I might need to resort to the same mechanism I used for NDB's, i.e.

"AutoTuneADF:  This controls an option to ‘auto-tune’ the ADF radio. If this is enabled, when FSUIPC detects no NDB
signal being received it alternates the fractional part of the ADF frequency between .0 and .5 every seven seconds or so.
This allows external cockpits built with only whole-number ADF radio facilities to be used in areas like the U.K. which
have many NDB frequencies ending in .5."

An equivalent facility for COMs might work. But it's quite a lot of work to sort it out in my drivers as well as in FSUIPC. 😞

Pete

 

[Dave March]

Well P3D supports 8.33 but as far as I can see there are no signs of that format in the MakeRwys data for P3D, so I would assume the source you access is all 25Khz. I've certainly never received complaints with regard to my software and P3D frequencies.

Dave

[Pete Dowson]

40 minutes ago, Dave March said:

Well P3D supports 8.33 but as far as I can see there are no signs of that format in the MakeRwys data for P3D, so I would assume the source you access is all 25Khz.

I think MakeRwys is merely truncating them to xxx.xx format. 

I'm looking at fixing MakeRwys for 8.33, but for P3D5 tests I'd need to look for an airport using them. Would there be some add-ons with 8.33 being used, do you know?.

Pete

 

[Pete Dowson]

17 hours ago, Dave March said:

Eg. EGSS Approach in the sim is 120.625 but in the F5 file it's 120.62. Similarly Tower in the sim is 121.955 but the MakeRwys file has it as 121.95

I realised after starting to look at this that your first example is not a good one, as 120.625 is a valid 25kHz spacing frequency too, and normally shown as 120.62 on older radios.

I'm in two minds here. If I change the f4.csv and f5.csv files to provide the full 6-dgit frequencies, this might mess up some less intelligent programs. Also, there are probably many folks (i am one such) with hardware radios which cannot deal with the 8.33kHz spaced frequencies.

I am thinking of having two new files, f4x.csv and f5x.csv which have the 6 digits and the 8.33kHz frequencies, and converting all COM frequecies to 25kHz spacied ones in the existing f4 and f5 files. OR the other way around. Updating f4 and f5 for 8.33 and having new files with converted frequencies.

What do you think?

Pete

 

[Dave March]

Quote

I am thinking of having two new files, f4x.csv and f5x.csv which have the 6 digits and the 8.33kHz frequencies, and converting all COM frequecies to 25kHz spacied ones in the existing f4 and f5 files

I think that's an excellent idea Pete. Gives everyone a clear choice of what to use. Personally I would opt for the new files to contain the 8.33 frequencies.

As for any P3D addons using 8.33 frequencies, I don't know of any but will ask around.

[alioth]

about 8.33 addons, do you mean navaids or planes?  I know flight1 gtn750 gps can be switched between 25 and 8.33 spacing. 

At least in my flight1tech g750 can be done in the settings menu.

When I built my  navcom2 radio with real faceplates but own hardware inside, I put 6 digits 7 segments displays waiting for this moment.

So I will soon recode the radios for 8.33

[Pete Dowson]

24 minutes ago, alioth said:

about 8.33 addons, do you mean navaids or planes?

Addon programs, most usially ATC ones, using MakeRwys generated data files to get the COM frequencies (files f4.csv and f5.csv).

Pete

 

 

[Pete Dowson]

53 minutes ago, Dave March said:

I think that's an excellent idea Pete. Gives everyone a clear choice of what to use.

Okay. I think so too ... I'll make an updated MakeRwys, probably for release tomorrow.

54 minutes ago, Dave March said:

Personally I would opt for the new files to contain the 8.33 frequencies.

Won't you need an option to cater for users with only 25kHz spacing radios?

Pete

 

[Dave March]

49 minutes ago, Pete Dowson said:

Okay. I think so too ... I'll make an updated MakeRwys, probably for release tomorrow.

Won't you need an option to cater for users with only 25kHz spacing radios?

Pete

 

Yes, but you said you would convert the existing files to 25Khz... so the new files will be 8.33... that way addon programs will only have to be changed if they want to use 8.33 frequencies, if not, nothing changes and they will work as they do now.

[Pete Dowson]

17 minutes ago, Dave March said:

Yes, but you said you would convert the existing files to 25Khz... so the new files will be 8.33... that way addon programs will only have to be changed if they want to use 8.33 frequencies, if not, nothing changes and they will work as they do now.

Exactly. I was only thinking of your program, for folks with 25kHz radios if you are only going to support 8.33.

Pete

 

[Dave March]

I'll make it optional so for those, like yourself, with hardware radios that don't support 8.33 they can still have a working system.

[Pete Dowson]

Version 5.02 of MakeRwys is now released.

New files f4x.csv and f5x.csv are 8.33kHz compatible.  The f4 and f5 files only contain 25kHz frequencies with 8.33 ones converted.

Pete

 

[Dave March]

Excellent! Thank you Pete. Going to download it now and will test later this evening.

[Dave March]

Happy to say everything I've tried with the new data files is working fine so far.