HobbyPCB HARDROCK-50 User manual

HARDROCK-
50
Operating
Instructions
Jim Veatch
WA2EUJ
3 April 2015
50
Instructions

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 1
2. BA IC OPERATION ................................................................................................................................. 2
Connecting the Hardrock-50 Amplifier ............................................................................................................... 2
QRP Transceiver etup: Basic .......................................................................................................................... 3
QRP Transceiver etup: With PTT ................................................................................................................... 3
QRP Transceiver etup: With PTT and Band Data ........................................................................................... 3
DR Transceiver etup: Band Data from Computer ........................................................................................ 4
Using the HR50 as a Driver for a QRO Amplifier ............................................................................................. 4
Operating the Hardrock-50 Amplifier ................................................................................................................. 5
Tuning on the HR50 ......................................................................................................................................... 5
The RX creen .................................................................................................................................................. 5
The TX creen .................................................................................................................................................. 6
afety ................................................................................................................................................................... 7
RF Input Power ................................................................................................................................................ 7
DC Input Voltage ............................................................................................................................................. 7
V WR ............................................................................................................................................................... 7
Temperature ................................................................................................................................................... 7
3. MENU ETTING .................................................................................................................................... 8
Basic Menu Navigation ........................................................................................................................................ 8
Menu Items ......................................................................................................................................................... 9
4. AUTOMATIC ANTENNA TUNER ........................................................................................................... 11
ATU pecifications ............................................................................................................................................. 11
ATU Menu Options ............................................................................................................................................ 11
ATU Operation .................................................................................................................................................. 13
Tuning ............................................................................................................................................................ 13
Recalling tored Tuning olutions ................................................................................................................. 13
QRP Mode ..................................................................................................................................................... 14
5. TRAN CEIVER INTERFACING................................................................................................................ 15
Elecraft KX-3 ...................................................................................................................................................... 15
Yaesu FT-817 ..................................................................................................................................................... 16
Flexradio Flex-1500 ........................................................................................................................................... 17
AE9RB Peaberry DR ......................................................................................................................................... 18
6. ERIAL COMMAND ............................................................................................................................ 19
7. FIRMWARE UPDATE ............................................................................................................................ 22
Installing the U B drivers and Bootloader ........................................................................................................ 22
Updating the Hardrock-50 firmware ................................................................................................................. 23
Updating the ATU Firmware ............................................................................................................................. 24

[1]
1. INTRODUCTION
This instruction manual covers the operation of the Hardrock-50 amplifier. It will cover basic operation, the automatic
antenna tuner (ATU), if equipped, interfacing and operation with various transceivers, serial communications, updating
the firmware and firmware revision notes.
The instructions are based on amplifiers running firmware version 3.0 or later. If you amp does not have at least version
3.0 you can use the instructions in the firmware update section of this manual to install the latest firmware.
The Hardrock-50 (HR50) is a 5W input 50W output linear amplifier designed for use on 160 to 6 meter Amateur Radio
bands. It is FCC Type Accepted for use on frequencies up to 22 MHz. Licensed Amateur Radio operators may use the
amplifier on frequencies up to 54 MHz.
ITEM SPECIFICATION
Frequency Range 160, 80, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15 meter Amateur Radio Bands
Coverage of 12, 10 and 6m available
Input Power 5W maximum, typically 2-3W for full output
Output Power 50W nominal 35W on 6 meters
DC Power 11-16 Volts, 10 Amps typical, 12A maximum
Keying Modes tand-by, Carrier Operated, Push-to-Talk
Input/Output Jacks UHF Connectors
ize 4.25” W by 3.5” H by 7.5” D
(133.4mm W by 88.9mm by 190.5mm)
(not including switches and connectors)
Weight 3 lbs (1.4 kg)
The HR50 can also be equipped with an internal automatic antenna tuner, high-speed diode T/R switching and a driver
amp that lowers the drive requirements to 0.5W or less for full output.

[2]
2. BASIC OPERATION
Connecting the Hardroc -50 Amplifier
Before you can begin using the HR50, you’ll have to connect it to other equipment in your station. Here are the basic
items you’ll need:
•13.8V nominal, regulated DC power supply capable of supplying up to 12 amps of current.
•DC power cable with Andersen Powerpole connectors on the HR50 end, attached to the power supply on the
other end. The HR50 does not have an internal fuse so using an external 15A fuse in the positive lead of the
power cable is a good idea. HobbyPCB.com sells power pigtails for the HR50 amp.
•A QRP radio. The HR50 is designed to work with every QRP radio. Drive levels from 5W down to 20 mW can be
supported. The maximum continuous drive is 6W and no damage has been reported with short bursts of 15-
20W. Putting 100W into the input of this amplifier will damage the amp. The radio connects to the amplifier
using a 50 ohm coax jumper with a PL-259 on the amplifier end and the appropriate mating connector on the
radio end. It is possible to find exact fit replacement connectors for the HR50 so the amp can use BNC or other
popular connectors.
•An antenna. The HR50 primarily delivers power into 50 ohm loads. The amp is tolerant to mismatches consisting
of any passive load from a dead short to an open circuit. The optional ATU can help match a wide range of load
impedances for better power transfer. The antenna connects to the HR50 using a PL-259 connector.
Let’s look at the rear panel:
CONNECTOR
SIGNAL
IN
RF Input, 1.8
-
54 MHz, 0.02
–
5W
from transceiver
OUT
RF Output, 50W nominal 35W on 6 meters
to an
tenna
13.8V DC
DC INPUT, 11
-
16 Volts, 10 Amps typical, 12A maximum
U B
Universal erial Bus connection to PC
PTT
Amplifier keying signal, ground to key, RCA connector
ACC
Various interface signals for transceiver/amplifier communications

[3]
QRP Transceiver Setup: Basic
The HR50 amplifier is connected in between the transceiver and the antenna. The band is selected manually and the
amp keys when RF is detected at the input to the amp (COR mode). For SSB transmissions, be sure to set the COR Hang
Tine for at least 500-1000 msec for smoother T/R action
QRP Transceiver Setup: With PTT
A shielded wire connects the PTT output from the transceiver to the PTT input on the amplifier. This allows the amp to
operate in PTT mode which improves operation for B voice, data and CW Q K modes. The PTT line keys the T/R relay
or the Q K PIN diode switch, whichever is installed in the HR50.
QRP Transceiver Setup: With PTT and Band Data
In this setup the HR50 receives frequency information from the transceiver to automatically select the operating band
and proper ATU channel. The specific detail of this connection is highly dependent on the type of transceiver complete
details are provided in the transceiver interface section of this manual.

[4]
SDR Transceiver Setup: Band Data from Computer
DR software running on a computer can provide band/frequency information to the HR50 amplifier via a U B port.
pecific information about the software and DR’s currently supported is found in the transceiver interface section of
this manual.
Using the HR50 as a Driver for a QRO Amplifier
The HR50 amplifier can be placed between the DR or QRP transceiver and a high power tube or solid state amplifier
allowing the station to produce any power level up to the legal power limit. On the HR50 the PTT line is bridged from the
ACC jack to the PTT jack so high power amplifiers that have DC keying can be tied directly to this line. Older high power
amplifiers that key using AC voltage should be connected with a DC relay. The HR50 has a programmable key-up delay
that can be used to insure that the high power amplifier is online before the HR50 applies RF to prevent ‘hot’ keying.

[5]
Operating the Hardroc -50 Amplifier
Tuning on the HR50
When you first turn on the HR50 the display remains blank for 3 seconds. During this time the HR50 is attempting to
connect with the bootloader. Starting with S/N 1400, the bootloader no longer waits 3 seconds for a connection and the
splash screen appears right away If no connection is made the splash screen is displayed and normal operations begin.
The bottom row tells which version of the firmware the amp is running and, if the ATU is installed, the version of
firmware the ATU is running.
The RX Screen
When the HR50 is not keyed, the RX screen is displayed and the LED is green. On the top row of the display the HR50
shows the currently selected keying mode and band. On the bottom row of the display the HR50 shows the current
heatsink temperature (which can be setup to display in either C or F) and the input DC voltage to the amp.
The KEY MODE button cycles through the various keying modes. OFF > PTT > COR > QRP > OFF

[6]
•OFF – The HR50 will not switch to TX under any circumstances. Any signals applied to the amp pass through
without any amplification or filtering.
•PTT – The HR50 will switch to TX mode in response to grounding the PTT line on the rear panel RCA jack or pin
4 of the ACC jack.
•COR – The HR50 will switch to TX mode when at least 0.1 watts of RF energy is present at the input to the
amplifier. Using COR mode with a SSB transmission can cause the HR50 to key on and off in response to varying
audio level In this case set the COR Hang Time (Menu Item 8) to a higher value or connect a keying line from the
transceiver to the HR50 and use PTT mode
QRP Mode is only available if the ATU is installed
•QRP – The HR50 will switch to TX mode in response to the PTT line being pulled low or RF detected at the RF
input of the amplifier. However the 50W power amplifier will not be engaged so all of the TX displays and ATU
functions are available to the exciter running barefoot.
The BAND ELECT buttons are used to manually select which band the HR50 is operating on. The ‘+’ moves to the higher
band, the ‘-‘ button moves to the next lower band. The band select relays do not change until the HR50 is switched to TX
mode to extend relay life. The BAND ELECT buttons override any external band or frequency information received by
the amp. However new band or frequency information received after a BAND ELECT button is pressed will be
interpreted and update the band/frequency as required.
The 60M band is only available if the ATU is installed The lowpass filter for 60M is located on the ATU board The
amplifier skips over 60M automatically if the ATU is not installed
If UNK is displayed in the BAND portion of the LCD, the amp has received a frequency with is outside the Amateur
Radio bands and the HR50 cannot be put in TX mode until a correct band is selected.
The TX Screen
When the HR50 is keyed by either a PTT or RF signal, the TX creen is displayed. The screen consists of three sections:
•Bar Graphs – The bar graphs display forward and reflected average power, on the top and bottom respectively.
Each segment represents 3 Watts of power. The averaging interval is 1.5 seconds so the display moves very
slowly.
•SWR – The WR area displays the calculated WR provided that the forward power exceeds 10 watts. If there is
less than 10W of average power, the display reads - : - .
•PEP – The PEP section display the instantaneous forward peak envelope power.

[7]
Safety
The HR50 will provide years of reliable service but there are a few areas where it helps to know the amplifier’s limits.
RF Input Power
Most of the input power ends up in four, 1.5W 50 ohm resistors so the HR50 can tolerate 6W input indefinitely and
maybe 10 – 15 watts for short periods of time. The only unit that I know was damaged by excessive input received
100W.
In most cases 5W will overdrive the amp. There generally isn’t 3 dB difference in output when the drive is increased
from 2.5W to 5W which means that the amp isn’t in its linear region. I generally find the 3W is a great level for good
output with low distortion, maybe a bit more if the Q K board is installed.
DC Input Voltage
The amps DC input is rated at 11-16V. All of the components in the amp are rated at least 25V but the dissipation in the
voltage regulator becomes an issue and under some RF loads the MO FETs may see voltages outside their limits with DC
voltages over 16V. Below 11V, the output is reduced and when the voltage is below 9V the relays may fail to engage.
VSWR
The Mitsubishi RD16HHF1 MO FETs used in the HR50 amplifier have a maximum V WR of 20:1 when operated at 16V.
Given that we are operating at a slightly lower voltage and there is quite a bit of circuitry between the MO FETs and the
output jack, there is no passive load that will damage the MO FETs.
Temperature
The Mitsubishi RD16HHF1 MO FET has a maximum channel temperature of 150⁰ C and a thermal resistance of 2.2⁰ C
per watt. In the HR50 the worst case efficiency is about 40% so if the amp is putting out 50W it’s taking in 125W so the
amp is dissipating 75W of those watts, call it 20W per MO FET so there's 20 X 2.2 or 44⁰ C difference between the case
of the MO FET and the channel so we need to keep the case of the MO FET less than 100⁰ C. There's a little resistance
between the case and the heatsink maybe 0.5⁰ C per watt so give it another 10⁰ C and say the MO FETs are safe at
heatsink temps of 90⁰ C.
Heatsink temperatures of 60⁰ C (140⁰ F) are perfectly safe; if you start seeing higher temperatures, consider some forced
air cooling.

[8]
3. MENU SETTINGS
The Hardrock-50 amplifier has a menu system for setting some of the operating parameters. This section covers the
operation of that menu system.
Basic Menu Navigation
To access the menu the amp must be an RX mode. The menu system is unavailable during TX. Press and hold the ‘MODE’
button for 2 seconds and the screen will change to the menu.
To move around the menu items press the ‘+’ and ‘-‘ keys.
When the parameter you want to adjust is displayed press the ‘MODE’ button to select the item.
To change the selected item use the ‘+’ and ‘-‘ keys to show the available settings and press the ‘MODE’ button to store
the new setting.
To exit the menu, navigate to menu item #1 (Exit) and press the ‘MODE’ button. We’ve also made a short cut; pressing
and holding ‘MODE’ for 2 seconds stores the current settings and exits the menu.
I know it’s a bit confusing (we only have 3 buttons to work with) but you’ll get the hang of it. There’s a Youtube video
that shows and early version of the menu that might make it a bit clearer. The menu choices are now expanded and the
exit shortcut hadn’t been implemented yet but you’ll get the basic idea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q 7dwe0eYEY
To complicate matters further, not all versions of the amp support all of the menu items. ome items will be missing
from amps with serial numbers less than 1200. If the ATU is not installed, ATU menu setting will not be available.

[9]
Menu Items
All menu items are stored in non-volatile memory and restored when the power is turned on.
electing ‘Exit’ return the HR50 to the RX mode. The amp will not key while the menu is displayed.
The ACC Baud Rate is the communication speed of the serial port on pins 2, 3 and 5 of the ACC jack. It is used to
communicate with transceivers like the KX3 and others that use TTL level serial ports. This must be set to the same
speed that the transceiver uses. Available settings are 4800, 9600, 19200 and 38400. On HR50 amplifiers before /N
1200, this is also the speed of the U B communications with the PC used when setting up Power DR or HD DR.
Note: This menu option is not available on amps before S/N 1200
The U B Baud Rate is the communication speed of the serial port connected to the U B communications with the PC
used when setting up Power DR or HD DR. This setting does not change the speed of the bootloader which is fixed at
19200. Available settings are 4800, 9600, 19200 and 38400.
The Elecraft KX3 transceiver uses inverted logic for TTL serial communications. etting ‘KX3 erial’ to ‘Yes’ inverts the
data on the ACC port allowing communications with the KX3. etting ‘KX3 erial’ to ‘No’ does not invert the data for
communications with other transceivers. On amps with serial numbers less than 1200 setting KX3 erial to ‘Yes’, disables
the U B serial port.
Note: This menu option is not available on amps before S/N 1200
The Yaesu FT-817 transceiver has an analog voltage that is proportional to the band that it is operating on. etting ‘FT-
817 Mode’ to ‘YE ’ disables the ACC serial port and tells the HR50 to measure the voltage on Pin 2 of the ACC jack and
set the band accordingly. . etting ‘FT-817 Mode’ to ‘NO’ enables the ACC serial port and disregards the analog voltage.

[10]
The ‘Temp. Display’ setting is used to select whether the temperature displayed in the RX mode will use the Fahrenheit
or Celsius scales.
The ‘Adj Watt Meter’ setting is used to calibrate the internal wattmeter for increased accuracy. The HR50 automatically
adjusts the wattmeter for frequency variations so a single calibration value adjusts all bands. Calibration should be
performed on the 20M band. The adjustment range is -25% to +25%.
The ‘COR Hang Time’ setting controls how long the HR50 remains in TX mode after the RF input signal is removed. It is
adjustable from 0 to 3000 milliseconds on 50 millisecond steps. Generally shorter times are used for data modes, and
longer times for voice modes. This setting only affects operation in COR mode.
The ‘Key-up Delay’ setting introduces a delay between the time the PTT signal goes low and the time the HR50 amplifier
keys up. It can be set from 0 to 50 milliseconds in 1 millisecond steps. This is used when the HR50 is driving a high power
amplifier allowing the high power amp extra time to switch to TX mode to prevent ‘hot’ keying.
The ‘ATU Mode’ setting is used to control the ATU and will be described further in the ATU section of this manual. ‘No
ATU’ will be displayed when the ATU is not installed.

[11]
4. AUTOMATIC ANTENNA TUNER
The Automatic Antenna Tuner (ATU) option for the Hardrock-50 amplifier matches the 50 ohm output of the amplifier to
a wide range of load impedances.
ATU Specifications
ITEM SPECIFICATION
Frequency Range 160, 80, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12, 10, 6 meter Amateur Radio Bands
Input Power 50W maximum, >1W drive required for tuning
Tuning Range 10:1 nominal (lower on 160 and 6 meters)
DC Power 11-16 Volts, < 0.5 Amps
Network Type L-network (series L, shunt C); C switchable to input or output
Inductance Range 0-6.4 uH in 128 steps
Capacitance Range 0-1300 pF in 128 steps
Memory Non-volatile storage of up to 343 tuning solutions.
160 – 12 meters every 10 kHz (233 solutions)
10 meters, every 25 kHz (69 solutions)
6 meters, every 100 kHz (41 solutions)
ize Does not affect the overall HR50 size.
Weight Adds about 1 lb (0.45 kg) to the HR50 amplifier
Assembly and installation of the ATU is covered in ATU Assembly Manual.
The ATU is fully integrated with the HR50’s firmware and once tuning solutions are found for each frequency segment
antenna tuning functions will be completely transparent to the operator.
ATU Menu Options
When the ATU is installed, the ATU menu settings are available to select various ATU operating modes. These settings
are:
In ‘Bypass’ mode the ATU is inactive and does not apply stored tuning solutions to the signal path. The output of the
HR50 amplifier is connected directly to the output connector.

[12]
In ‘Active’ mode the ATU monitors band and frequency changes and applies stored tuning solutions in response to
changes in band or frequency. The ATU does not measure the frequency of the TX signal, it uses data received from the
transceiver or the band selection of the HR50 to determine which tuning solution to use. This way the correct solution
can be applied without transmitting.
electing ‘Wattmeter’ mode disables the amplifier, bypasses the tuner and brings up a wattmeter display. The HR50 acts
as a stand-alone wattmeter:
The wattmeter displays forward and reflected average power, peak envelope forward power and WR when the average
forward power is greater than 0.5 watts. The range of measurement is 0.1 to 20 watts with the highest accuracy being
below 30W. The wattmeter calibration in the setup menu does not affect this wattmeter. Pressing the ‘MODE’ button or
turning the HR50 off and back on cancels the wattmeter mode and returns the HR50 to the ATU Menu.
Note: Make sure the HR50’s band is NOT set to 60M or the 60M LPF will be in line with the wattmeter
electing ‘Update FW’ places the HR50 and ATU in a state where it is waiting indefinitely for a connection to the
Bootloader app running on a PC. This mode can be cancelled by turning the HR50 off and back on. Complete instructions
for updating the firmware in the HR50 and ATU are in the Firmware Update section of this manual.
electing ‘Erase Mem’, erases all stored tuning solutions placing the ATU in the default bypass state on all bands and
frequencies. This operation takes a few seconds to complete.

[13]
ATU Operation
Tuning
Press the ‘MODE’ button while the HR50 is transmitting and the ATU will drop the power amp off line and search for a
tuning solution that provides the best match, apply the tuning solution and re-engage the power amplifier. The ATU can
find solutions over a range of input power and waits up to 0.5 seconds for forward power to exceed 0.5W so tuning is
possible with a constant signal from the exciter or a string of CW characters or even audio on B (but there must be
some audio, just keying the mic won’t work).
When the operator presses the ‘MODE’ button to start a tuning cycle the display changes to:
If the operator presses the ‘MODE’ button again while the ATU is in the tuning cycle aborts the current tune. If the ATU
was set to ‘Bypass’ in the ATU menu, pressing the ‘MODE’ button during TX will change the ATU to status to ‘Active’.
When the tuning cycle is complete, the HR50 displays the result of the tuning cycle on the display for a few seconds:
Tuned OK –the tuning cycle completed normally and a solution was found and applied
Tune Failed – a solution could not be found and the lowest WR configuration is applied
Power too low – not enough power is present for the tuner to measure the WR
Tune Aborted – the operator pressed the ‘MODE’ button during the cycle
Timed Out – The tune cycle did not complete with 4 seconds
The ATU will only tune the antenna when the ‘MODE’ button is pressed while the HR50 is transmitting There is no SWR
trip point that will cause the ATU to autonomously start a tuning cycle The operator must press the button
Pressing ‘+’ while the HR50 is transmitting places the ATU into ‘Active’ mode and recalls a previously stored solution for
the current band/frequency if one is available.
Pressing ‘-‘ while the HR50 is transmitting places the ATU into ‘Bypass’ mode and removes any applied solutions.
Recalling Stored Tuning Solutions
In order for the ATU to apply tuning solutions, it must be in ‘Active’ mode either by setting it to active in the ATU menu
setting or pressing the ‘+’ key while transmitting.
ince the HR50 can get frequency information from either the operator pressing the band select buttons or and external
source like a transceiver or computer, the ATU, when active, applies the following algorithm to recall tuning solutions:

[14]
1. If a new band is selected either via the front panel switches or an external command, the last tuning solution
used on that band will be applied. If no tuning solution has ever been found for this band the ATU is bypassed
but remains ‘Active’.
2. If frequency data is received from an external source like a transceiver or computer, the ATU recalls the tuning
solution stored for that frequency, if no stored solutions is found, the last tuning solution used on that band will
be applied. If no tuning solution has ever been found for this band the ATU is bypassed but remains ‘Active’.
QRP Mode
When the ATU is installed, the HR50 firmware adds QRP mode to the keying mode selections. In QRP mode the HR50
switches to transmit in response to either the PTT line being pulled low or RF detected at the RF input. In QRP mode, the
power amp is bypassed and the output of the exciter is applied directly to the ATU, all ATU transmit functions are
available and the LCD displays the TX screen. The maximum power in the mode is 20 watts if the T/R relay is used and
5W if the Q K board is installed.
In QRP mode information for the TX screen is derived from the power sensor in the ATU for higher accuracy at low
power levels.

[15]
5. TRANSCEIVER INTERFACING
This section covers interfacing the HR50 amplifier with specific transceivers. In most cases this involves connecting the
PTT line from the transceiver to the amplifier and establishing a communications path for frequency data. HR50
amplifiers with serial numbers less than 1200 require modification to the rear panel PCB to support serial
communications on the ACC jack. If your amplifier’s serial number is less than 1200 and you have not made these
modifications you will be to follow the instructions on the transceiver interface page at the HR50 builder’s site:
https://sites.google.com/site/hardrock50beta/home/transceiver-interfacing
The ACC jack is one means of interfacing transceivers to the HR50 amplifier. The jack is a standard DB9 female connector
with the following pin assignments:
Pin 1 – Not used
Pin 2 – erial data into the HR50 or analog band voltage input
Pin 3 – erial Data out of the HR50
Pin 4 – PTT input to the HR50
Pin 5 – Ground
Pins 6-9 – Not used
Elecraft KX-3
The Elecraft KX-3 transceiver works very well with the HR50 amplifier. To enable these features you must change the
following settings in the KX3’s menu:
AUTO INF – et for ANT CTRL (causes the KX3 to send frequency data)
R 232 – 19200 (could be set to other baud rates as long as the ACC Baud Rate in the HR50 is the same)
ACCIO2 – ON (enables the PTT output)
The HR50 menus also need to be setup:
ACC Baud Rate – 19200 (must be the same as the KX3)
KX3 erial – Yes (inverts the data coming from the KX3)
FT-817 Mode – No (FT-817 mode overrides the KX3 mode)
The KX3 must be connected via the KX3’s ACC1 and ACC2 port and the HR50’s ACC port. The HR50 only listens to the
data coming from the KX3 so it is possible to add a 3.5mm jack the duplicates the functions of the KX3’s ACC1 jack
allowing computer access to the KX3 via the KXU B cable to run logging or rig control apps.
The following diagram shows the required connection:

[16]
Yaesu FT-817
The Yaesu FT-817 is a very popular QRP transceiver and interfaces with the HR50 amplifier for PTT keying and automatic
band selection. The FT-817 provides an analog voltage output the level of which indicates the transceivers band setting.
The HR50 can read this voltage level and set the amplifier’s band accordingly. If the FT-817 is operating on a band that is
not supported but the HR50 (2m and 70cm) the amp will display UNK for the band and remain in bypass.
FT-817 Mode must be enabled in the HR50’s menu to support automatic band selection. HR50 amplifiers with serial
numbers below 1200 do not support FT-817 band selection using this technique
The following drawing shows the required connection:

[17]
Flexradio Flex-1500
The Flex-1500 QRP DR and be connected to the HR50 amplifier for PTT and automatic band selection. PTT requires a
cable that connects the Hardrock-50 ACC port to the Flex-1500's Flexwire I/O. Automatic band selection uses a U B
connection between the computer running Power DR software controlling the Flex-1500 and the HR50. To configure
Power DR to send frequency information to the HR50, follow these setps:
1. tart Power DR
2. elect ETUP
3. Click the CAT Control tab
4. On the CAT Control frame, select the port that the HR50 uses and if you haven't changed the HR50's U B Baud
Rate in the menu, set the baud rate to 19200.
5. Check the Allow Kenwood AI Command box
6. Check the Enable CAT box
7. Click OK
The following drawing shows the required connection:

[18]
AE9RB Peaberry SDR
The Peaberry DR does not provide quite enough drive to reach full power output with the HR50 amplifier. HobbyPCB
sells a 0.5W input 5W output driver amp that can be integrated with the HR50 to provide additional gain. Unfortunately
the driver amp and the ATU cannot be installed simultaneously so to use the HR50/ATU combination with the Peaberry
DR, the driver amp must be mounted in the enclosure with the Peaberry DR or in its own enclosure.
Frequency information from software running the Peaberry DR can be routed to the HR50 for automatic band
selection. For Power DR setup see the instructions in the Flex-1500 section of this manual. For HD DR setup use the
Omni-Rig interface with the Hardrock-50.INI files that is available here:
https://sites.google.com/site/hr50atu/home/files
The PTT signal from J3 on the Peaberry DR can be connected directly to the PTT jack on the HR50 with suitable adapters
or a cable can be made that connects the PTT signal on Peaberry DR J3 to the ACC jack on the HR50. The following
drawing shows the required connection: