| Problem |
Suggested solution |
| Display shows noise but no signals |
Check audio and RF cabling. Make sure the correct sound card and driver are selected in NaP3. For Yaesu rigs, make sure the IF output is turned on in the menus. |
| There are two sets of signals that move in
opposite directions as I tune, ie. there is no image rejection. |
Check that you are getting audio from both
I & Q channel. Check sound card settings Check cabling Read the section titled Eliminating Images for a more detailed explanation of the causes and cures of images. |
| The audio in the SDR app drops out
frequently, or "motorboats" |
Read the excellent paper Vista
Tuning for LP-PAN.pdf written by
Dave, W8FGU. It is useful for all Windows versions. Increase the latency setting in NaP3's audio setup. |
| The sidebands are reversed when I listen
to NaP3 output. |
Check your audio cabling. If you are using
color coded audio cables, the white cable should connect to the Left
(I)
input of LP-PAN, and red to the Right (Q) input. You can also reverse
sidebands by clicking the "Swap IQ" checkbox on the Input tab in NaP3. |
| There is a “hump” or “hole” in the noise
floor near the center of the display. |
Check your cabling for a loose connection Check the Bal/Unbal switch on the back of LP-PAN, or the BAL-UNBAL jumpers on LP-PAN 2. Check for power supply ground differences between radio and LP-PAN. Could be the result of using non recommended sound card Could be an anomaly of the rig's IF output (poor filter matching in an older Kenwood, for instance). |
| The signal's frequency in the display does
not match the rig frequency. |
Perform the IF Frequency offset
adjustments for your rig as shown on the NaP3 Help page. Make sure your
settings match the pictures, except for the Global
Offset which will vary slightly from rig to rig. Adjust Global Offset
to sync
the display with your rig in AM mode if necessary. Also, make sure I and Q are not swapped. |
| I get a big red X in the pan display
window. |
This is generally caused by a bug in NaP3
v4.0. In Setup, in the Display tab under "Band Plan", make sure that
the IARU region is set to Region 1 (even if you're not in region 1). |
Uninstalling
/ changing / fixing NaP3 problems...
Many
of the problems associated with the software have to do with wrong or
corrupt entries in the database files for NaP3. To
understand how to address problems and correct them, it helps to know
what files are created when the programs are installed, and where they
are
stored.
The main installation
folder can be found
in this folder…
C:\Program
Files\NaP3
The files in the folder include the
program (NaP3.exe), a help file and supporting files. Because of the
UAC user
account rules in Vista / Windows 7, NaP3 does not save the
database files for preferences and settings in this folder, but rather
in one of the following AppData (or Application Data) folders…
The
folder contains a preferences file, called NaP3.xml. This file contains
all the settings
from the SETUP section of the program, and other parameters such as
WBIR seed values, band stack data, etc. Another file called wisdom is
also stored here. This file is created when you first start NaP3 and it
calculates the forward and reverse FFTs.
The
files can be found in the following paths
based on your OS, substituting
your user name for the name Larry ...
XP
C:\Documents and
Settings\Larry\Application Data\NaP3\NaP3.xml
Vista & Win7
C:\Users\Larry\AppData\Roaming\NaP3\NaP3.xml
With Vista and
Windows 7 you can also
enter the following shorthand
in Windows
Explorer, %username%\AppData\Roaming\NaP3
to quickly navigate to the file. This shortcut should be entered
exactly as typed here (do not change the word "username" to your user
name).
It is probably
smart to create a
shortcut to the appropriate folder for your OS, so that you can easily
navigate to these folders in the event that your settings become
damaged. It also makes sense to save a backup of the two database files
to another folder somewhere.
If it becomes
necessary to start
over, here is the procedure I would use to uninstall / reinstall NaP3…
Uninstall all
versions of NaP3
on your computer using “Add / Remove Programs” or “Programs and
Features” in the Control Panels folder. The one to use depends on your
OS. I would also delete the NaP3 installation folders in Program
Files after uninstalling, and remove the NaP3 folder in the
AppData folder. This removes the database files where NaP3
stores your user preferences and settings. The exact path will depend
on your OS and whether you chose "Just Me" or "Everyone" when
installing NaP3. If you chose "Everyone", and log in with more
than one username, you will have to delete the AppData database files
for each user, or for "All Users". We recommend using the "Just Me"
option.
You
will need to substitute your
username for "Larry" in the examples. Once you have removed all the
NaP3 remnants, NaP3 should install as though it was on a
virgin computer. You will need to re-enter all your settings unless you
have previously saved a backup of the files.
Support is also available directly from TelePost through at n8lp@telepostinc.com anytime or telephone at 734-455-3716 during normal business hours. There is also a Yahoo User Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LP-PAN/ with a large number of helpful users.