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ZumSpot Hotspot Kit Build

Discussion in 'Amateur Radio News' started by K0LWC, Feb 4, 2019.

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  1. K0LWC

    K0LWC XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Ham Radio Outlet is selling the new ZumSpot 2 with the 1.3” OLED screen. This is how you assemble it with the case.

    I highly recommend this hotspot to anyone looking to get started in digital protocols.

     
    KE0DVW, WA6QGH, K5UZZ and 5 others like this.
  2. K3SZ

    K3SZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    I just built one recently. Everything worked well. Then I wanted to wire this into my LAN as opposed to using wireless. Got this device on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Plugable-Eth.../B00RM3KXAU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1549417742 which is a micro-USB to RJ-45 ethernet adapter. Nothing to configure. It was recognized by the Raspberry Pi and the bottom of the OLED displays "eth0" as opposed to "wlan0" next to the local IP address. Recommend rebooting though after the hardware addition.

    Additionally, I did have to tweak the RxOffset setting in the modem to minimize BER for DMR.
     
    K0LWC likes this.
  3. K0LWC

    K0LWC XML Subscriber QRZ Page

    Weird, ZUMSpots often work out of the box with no RXoffset tweaks.

    Also, I’m curious why did you really want LAN versus wireless?
     
    W0AMT likes this.
  4. N6RLG

    N6RLG Ham Member QRZ Page

    Good instructional video. Case is definitely hard if your hands are large like mine. Worse, if you have arthritis in several of the thumb/finger joints. YL came over to help twice with the very small pieces and the screw caps. Nice presentation, though.
     
  5. KF5FEI

    KF5FEI Ham Member QRZ Page

    Yep. If you have hams for hands, juggling all the little plastic bits you have to stack to assemble the case is a beach. Now that I see they are selling one with the OLED display, I know why they dropped the price on the previous model.
     
  6. K8ZFJ

    K8ZFJ Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    if running off the LAN, it mite eliminate use of external power pack, but not certain
     
  7. WE5B

    WE5B Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    Loving my zum2. Thank you W6GPS!
     
  8. N8MLP

    N8MLP Ham Member QRZ Page



    Also curious..
     
  9. K3SZ

    K3SZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    I found that out the box, the BER was enough to where I wasn't being understood on DMR. I have no other digital modes to try to see if they were impacted. I was able to minimize my BER, as it appears in the PiStar dashboard, by applying a value to the RXOffset field. I wouldn't have known this was a potential issue if I had not read this thread first -- https://forum.pistar.uk/viewtopic.php?t=368

    With regard to my LAN, I prefer to keep my wireless LAN usage minimized to cell phones, tablets, laptops. The radio shack's location is not optimized to where my wireless access point is. It was very simple to plug into one of the four network switches I have in the house with the adapter I described earlier -- so it was only a matter of preference.
     
  10. KT4RK

    KT4RK Ham Member QRZ Page

    I have the original ZUMspot and I am thinking of adding the OLED display. Is it a worthwhile addition?
     
  11. K3SZ

    K3SZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    Mine already came with the OLED display. But I find it handy as the ZumSpot is set-up in a place I can see it easily. When the activity lights activate along with the display, I can take a quick glance to see who's there.
     
    KT4RK likes this.
  12. KE5MC

    KE5MC Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    I upgraded my original in the C4Labs case with HRO’s OLED with shim connector. I also got the C4Labs upgrade kit. I found there was interference with the OLED pcb and one of the layers in the case upgrade kit. I worked directly with C4Labs to troubleshoot the problem. They ordered a new OLED display as they believed mine was a newer version than the one they originally used. It was easy with a file and Dremel tool on the C4Labs layer to improve size and position for the display.

    I believe it a good upgrade, but not great. Access to push buttons eliminated as well as LED status lights. LED status is duplicated by the display. Also bottom row of unused pins on the shim interferes with pushing down the shim on the large connector. Easy fix with dikes as pins not needed. Display connects to the upper row of pins.
     
    KT4RK likes this.
  13. KF5FEI

    KF5FEI Ham Member QRZ Page

    We had a local ham do a presentation on DMR and hotspots, and the only advantage I could see with the OLED display was knowing what IP address the hotspot obtained, so you can log into it and view the dashboard, etc... Otherwise you need to scan your network to find it. Many current DMR radios will let you store the ID list and display the call and name of the users on the radio, so having it on the hotspot is not really a plus.
     
    KT4RK likes this.
  14. K3SZ

    K3SZ Ham Member QRZ Page

    I ended up telling my router to reserve a specific IP address (in my range for DHCP addresses to be handed out) when it sees it on the network (based on MAC address). Since I don't always have my DMR radio turned on to see or hear who's on the air, this is where the OLED display comes in handy.
     
  15. KE5MC

    KE5MC Premium Subscriber QRZ Page

    Modifications I made to plastic.
     

    Attached Files:

    KT4RK likes this.

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