Array Solutions PowerMaster II, Manual

Page 1: ...m Rev 4 1 February 23 2017 1 PowerMaster II Digital RF Power VSWR Measurement System Array Solutions 2611 N Belt Line Rd Sunnyvale TX 75182 USA http www arraysolutions com phone 1 214 954 7140 e mail sales arraysolutions com Manufactured in the U S A ...

Page 2: ...troduced back in 2005 We are very proud of our latest product and are interested in learning about your experiences with this meter We also want to know if you have ideas about new features we can develop for the meter We think you will agree that this is a totally new concept in an RF Wattmeter and one that should extend its lifetime for a long time to come So what s new in the Power Master II Th...

Page 3: ...tisfied with your purchase If you have any type of problem please check the Trouble Shooting section of this manual If your problem persists call our Customer Service Department at 1 214 954 7140 Please have the PowerMaster and this manual at hand when you call Write your new PowerMaster serial number and calibration data for your coupler here see coupler cover Serial Number _________________ Date...

Page 4: ...rom that to which the receiver is connected Consult a qualified radio TV technician for help Properly shielded and grounded cables and connectors must be used in order to meet FCC emission limits Array Solutions is not responsible for any radio or television interference caused by using other than recommended cables or connectors or by unauthorized changes or modifications to this equipment Unauth...

Page 5: ...DABOVE CONFORMS TO THE ABOVE STANDARDS PER 89 336 EEC Array Solutions Date of testing March 1 2012 Copyright and Trademark Disclosure Array Solutions Power Master and PowerMaster II are trademarks of Array Solutions The firmware for the PowerMaster II is copyrighted 2012 by Array Solutions All rights reserved The Power Master Basic II application software for the PowerMaster II is copyrighted 2012...

Page 6: ...TENTS Unpacking and Setup Page 7 Quick Setup Page 8 Installation Page 9 Using the PowerMaster Front Panel Page 10 Rear Panel Connections Page 11 Remote Coupler Mounting Page 19 Accuracy and Calibration Page 20 Options Page 22 In Case of Trouble Page 23 Specifications Page 24 Warranty Page 25 ...

Page 7: ...f the software for your PowerMaster II If anything is missing give us a call and we ll remedy the problem The PowerMaster consists of two major components The Display and the RF Coupler The RF Coupler is installed between the output of your transmitter and your antenna or antenna tuner input A six foot 1 8m cable is provided for connection between the Display and the Directional Coupler You may us...

Page 8: ... that a separate power supply is used to power the unit Using the same power supply connected to the transceiver may cause RFI and malfunction You should observe that the display illuminates and the firmware version number will be displayed initially then the unit will display the operational mode screen as in the image on the cover of this manual You are now ready for a test Simply use your norma...

Page 9: ...t supplied NOTE We recommend the use of a separate power supply for the unit and not the same PS feeding your transceiver to avoid RFI and potential malfunction of the PowerMaster II DIRECTIONAL COUPLER WIRING Since the purpose of the PowerMaster is to provide an indication of the match of your antenna system to your transmitter it is critical that the Directional Coupler be installed as the first...

Page 10: ...de selection Push the mode select button to scroll through the 5 modes of operation F Fast release of peak hold 0 2 second M Medium retention of peak hold 1 second S Slow release of peak hold 2 seconds L Long peak hold 5 seconds V Reflected Power is displayed on the Bar Graph see next image Peak power in digits is always displayed in the upper right corner and SWR is displayed in the middle of the...

Page 11: ...k 2 1 mm coaxial DC input connector 12 to 15 V DC 500 mA typ PTT In From your radio PTT Out To your amplifier RS232 You may use this if you have an RS232 connector on your computer USB USB Mini B connector to connect to a USB port on your computer Note You may not use both the RS232 and USB connections at the same time Only connect one to your computer The RS 232 port is disabled by the firmware w...

Page 12: ...elect button to select the VSWR alarm trip point Off 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 Push the mode select button to reset the VSWR alarm and LED Coupler Type Coupler 1 shown Push the mode select button to select the type of coupler connected to Coupler 1 input 3KW 10KW VHF 1 VHF 2 UHF QRP HF Note If Coupler 2 was active you would see the same options for Coupler 2 More on couplers selection later ...

Page 13: ...o the PTT ALC relay only not the Power Monitor relay Low Power Alarm Menu Push the mode select button to choose trip point in watts Off 5 50 100 250 500 1 000 2 000 Note the 10 kW coupler will show higher ranges VHF UHF and QRP couplers will show lower ranges If the peak power remains below this setting for a few seconds the power alarm LED will light and the power monitor relay will actuate Push ...

Page 14: ...revious page If the peak power exceeds this setting the power alarm LED will flash and the power monitor relay will cycle on and off If the Alarm Trips Amp next menu option is selected then the VSWR alarm LED will also flash and the PTT ALC relay will actuate but will not cycle Push the mode select button to reset the alarm and LED Auto Alarm Reset Menu This will automatically reset the both the V...

Page 15: ... Coupler 50 250 1000 100 500 2500 100 500 1250 200 2500 5000 200 1000 1700 400 2000 10000 1000 2000 3000 1000 5000 10000 Show Call Text Menu Select with mode select button Yes No This will display your call letters or any other text you programmed into the meter via the software application program You must use the software to program the call text ...

Page 16: ...calibration table for 50 MHz Pushing the menu button again takes us to the next menu Set the Reverse Power Trim factor in the same manner as the forward power trim Some couplers have the same trim factor for both HF and 50 MHz Power Display Menu There are new options in the Power Master II Select with mode select button Net Power Forward Power Reverse Power Forward Power only Reverse power is not ...

Page 17: ...ing the Menu Button to the Coupler Input Menu where you select either Coupler 1 or Coupler 2 Press MODE SELECT to switch from Coupler Input 1 to Coupler Input 2 The next menu resumes as normal where you can define the coupler type See Page 12 Note The unique settings for each coupler are stored in the Power Master II s non volatile memory RS232 Port USB Virtual Port Baud Rate Menu Select with mode...

Page 18: ...r graph which makes the adjustment of a tuner very short work In operation when in Toggle Mode Pressing the MODE SELECT button will toggle directly from your preferred forward mode to V mode and back again With a manual tuner this feature is incredibly useful and a real time saver This menu is only enabled if you have the Menu Option set to Toggle The Mode Option Toggle feature allows you to ident...

Page 19: ...between the two couplers through only two button presses on the front panel When operating SO2R you do not want to have to toggle from one coupler to another We make matched couplers available for SO2R users and due to the nature of these couplers being high impedance devices we can actually connect the two coupler inputs in parallel and instead of toggling between the two couplers they will both ...

Page 20: ...the meter and reinstall the 4 screws 2 on either side At this point what you have done is connected the two coupler input jacks together as if they were one So we need to program the meter as if you only have one coupler not two This will allow you to transmit through either coupler and the meter will display that transmitter s output instantly without any switching If you transmit on both at the ...

Page 21: ...0 Watts respectively for a 10 kW coupler The minimum displayed power is 0 5 watt The maximum displayed power is 3030 Watts 3 kW HF coupler Under 100 Watts the meter will display power in tenths of a watt Under 10 watts the meter will display in hundredths of a watt The call sign message which you can program into the display can be up to16 characters long You must connect to a computer to program ...

Page 22: ...e to mount the meter very close to your operating position Since you re routing your coaxial cables through it you are also bringing in possible RFI that can affect your audio CW tone modulation and also your PC The PowerMaster eliminates this possible source of RFI since the signals passed to its display head are merely DC voltages from the remote coupler The remote mounting capability is perfect...

Page 23: ... Power Master coupler are calibrated in two segments HF 1 30 MHz and at 50 1 MHz It has better then 3 accuracy on our certified calibrated lab test equipment We provide a calibration table on each directional coupler just like the calibrated sensors we use from our measurement system The abilityto program the PowerMaster with this calibration trim data assures you that you have the best calibratio...

Page 24: ...4 1 February 23 2017 24 Test equipment used to calibrate and generate calibration tables HP 436A micro wattmeter calibrated and traceable to NIST HP wattmeter sensor with calibration traceable to NIST Bird 30 dB 2 kW calibrated attenuator traceable to NIST ...

Page 25: ...PowerMaster II RF Wattmeter www arraysolutions com Rev 4 1 February 23 2017 25 ...

Page 26: ...uble free service Most of the problems you will encounter usually occur during installation and startup If the items below aren t sufficient to help you solve your problem please give us a call Unit will not come on Check power connections Is the unit on DC Polarity OK High VSWR displayed no forward power displayed Be sure that the SOURCE input to the Directional Coupler goes to your transmitter o...

Page 27: ...overlapping channels of auto ranging 14 Bit effective resolution Peak Power Capture Time 5 milliseconds VSWR Alarm Relay Actuation time 30 milliseconds Bar Graph Response 20 Hz VSWR Alarm Off 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 relay programmable to open or close on trip Low Power Monitor Alarm Off 5 50 100 250 500 1000 2000 watts NC and NO relay contacts are available High Power Monitor Alarm Off 175 225 700 1100 16...

Page 28: ...erse environmental conditions We might elect not to honor the warranty on units modified by you After the warranty has expired you may return the unit to the factory for repair after receiving authorization to do so We will examine the unit for a fee of 25 and give you a quote on the repair costs before any work will be done Any information you can provide regarding the problem you are having woul...