nicFW 880 BETA 01 Release
Added 2025-09-15 08:34:30 +0000 UTCIMPORTANT:
I have a Radtel RT-880, a Radtel RT-880G and an iRadio UV-98 Plus, all of which have serial numbers greater than 300 (i.e. current models). These are the ONLY radios I can support. Radtel assure me that the sub 300 serial number units differ only by the firmware flashing process so these Radtel units "should" work (you have to select UV-98 as the model during flashing), but I have no way to verify this, thus I cannot support them. Similarly, early models of the iRadio UV-98 have obvious hardware differences that have been demonstrated. Since these early units are no longer manufactured and are now unavailable, I cannot obtain one for testing so I have no way to support them. Sorry.
New Feature: DTMF Preset System
Default DTMF Menu Open Key: SP-S2 (configurable)
DTMF Preset Menu Controls
Up / Down: Browse to next or previous preset
Red: Exit menu
Green / PTT: Select and begin transmitting DTMF sequence
0–9: Enter DTMF preset number
Long Press Green: Edit DTMF preset name
Main Menu – DTMF Category
Deviation: Controls the loudness of the DTMF tones
Digit Time: Duration (ms) each digit is transmitted
Gap Time: Silence (ms) between digits
Start Pause: Delay (ms) after transmit is engaged before tones begin
Preset: Edit stored DTMF digit sequences
Editing Preset DTMF Digits
When editing, key mappings differ:
0–9: Enter digits 0–9
Green, Up, Down, Red: Enter DTMF digits A, B, C, D (respectively)
*, #: Enter Star (*) and Hash (#)
PTT: Confirm entry
S1: Backspace
S2: Abort entry
Notes:
Entering a blank/empty DTMF sequence will delete/deallocate the slot.
The DTMF Preset menu will only open if:
There is at least one valid DTMF Preset saved
TX Is permitted
DTMF Decoding is planned and will be implemented in a future release.
PTT ID
DTMF Preset #99 is used for the PTT ID sequence.
Extras
Added long-press action to copy the currently selected channel to the VFO
Increased scanning speed
Numerous tweaks and fixes based on feedback from the ALPHA 19 release
To Do
GPS, APRS & DTMF Decoding functions will be added in a future release.
Comments
1. You got that totally wrong. LP-3 starts a scan, if you're in VFO mode it starts a VFO scan using the menu settings, if you're in channel mode it starts a channel scan, if you're in group mode it starts a group scan. LP-4 starts a VFO scan and uses the current VFO settings. 2. Use * to enter a decimal point (note nicFW has had this since day one) 3. I'll look into that. 4. Use * to enter a decimal point 5. And open the list how? You'd have to press a key to open this list, then press keys to get to the range you want and another key to enter it. Pointless. 6. That's what groups are literally for 7. Already implemented for multi watch, power levels I'll consider 8. NO! Those buttons have standard functions that are uniform for all radio models. 9. Use * and 0 to browse groups I suggest you read the release notes, almost everything you asked is explained. Many functions are standard for nicFW regardless of the model of radio and there is a documentation PDF right here. I suggest you read it. It would have saved you and I a lot of time.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-16 21:30:31 +0000 UTCThanks for all your hard work. I was surprised how quickly you progressed through alphas. I love how quickly the radio boots and that you don't have to wait for a reboot to switch work ranges or tuning modes. I assume the documentation will come with the full release. I've been going through all the alpha release comments to try to see what still applies to beta 1. Sorry if any of my questions were already covered. 1. I didn't understand why there were 2 separate scan functions (and shortcut keys)--one for channels and one for VFOs: Start Scan (Menu) and Start Scan (VFO). It seems like both do the same thing. For example, if I choose Start Scan (VFO) when it is in memory mode, it does a channel scan, not a VFO frequency scan. Can't one command be eliminated and the other be renamed to simply 'Start Scan'? 2. I noticed when you enter frequencies in VFO or SI4732 Tuner mode, you have to enter a different number of leading zeros depending on whether it's expecting a 2 or 3 digit whole number (plus decimals). For example, to tune 29.000, you must enter 29000 in tuner mode, or 002900000 in VFO mode. However, when you type 2 leading zeros it only shows 1 zero on screen (which may disappear as you type other digits) and it's not clear if you entered enough zeros until you're done. I think it would help if it showed all the 0s as you enter them and the decimal point so it's clear how much you need to enter. It also would be nice if you could choose to enter 3 decimal places instead of 5 like the Radtel firmware allowed. Or, maybe press the green button after typing the first few digits, for example 00295 for 29.5mhz to accept the current value without having to type the remaining decimals. 3. In SI4732 Tuner mode, if you are at the minimum frequency for the current range and press down, instead of wrapping to the max frequency, it goes to one step below the max. For example, in the LW range, go to 530khz and press Up to go to 148khz, then press down and instead of going to 530, it goes to 529 (assuming the step is 1khz). It does this in each tuner range, except for SW 12-30mhz which works correctly. 4. Related to #3, in Tuner mode, it shows the current freq like x.xxx MHz (in SW1.7-6.0 range). However, but when you type a frequency, it expects 2 whole digits. So, 1234 gives you 12.340 instead of 1.234. It would be clearer if it showed the leading zero for the current frequency and expected you to type the same number of digits to change frequencies for each range. 5. When you short press the S1 key while in Tuner mode, it cycles through each of the 6 ranges. Could you display a list so you can jump to the one you want instead of having to cycle through all of them just to go back? Or, could you merge the 3 SW ranges (1.7-6, 6-12, 12-30) together so there are less ranges to go through? 6. Can I exclude channels from scanning? For example I have NOAA and APRS channels in my Favorites group so I can get to them easily, but I don't want them scanned if I choose to scan my Favorites group. 7. Could you consider adding a shortcut key functions for switching power level? 8. I would like to be able to switch the short press commands of the red button and # button. Since # is labeled "# V/M" I'd prefer to use that to cycle between VFO/memory channel/zone mode. Then, the red button could switch between areas a/b/c. 9. When you press the Select Group function shortcut key, you get a box where you can enter a group number. Could you also use the up/down keys to browse the groups (and display the group name/number) in that corner as you browse up/down? 10. It would be nice if there was a visual indication of Squelch Override mode. The area turns green, but that just indicates squelch is open. While you're in override mode you can change channels, but you can't start scanning and it isn't obvious why or how to get back to 'normal' mode where you can start scanning. 11. It would be nice if any button would exit scan mode. If I'm scanning and hear something interesting, I can't always get to the red button to stop in time. For example, if I'm wearing the radio, pressing the EMG or PTT button is much easier but doesn't cancel scanning.
Eric Black
2025-09-16 20:18:35 +0000 UTCAnother discovered issue with the RMS, when loading a startup logo it messes up the power calibration settings. This is not critical as most people never touch the power calibration anyway, but nonetheless it's fixed next release.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-16 08:58:48 +0000 UTCFor the next release I am working on DTMF decoding. I am noticing that the sending radio (also an 880) has to have a very high DTMF Deviation before all digits decode properly, the setting I have found is 110-115 which is almost full deviation. So the default for this setting will change next release. Bear in mind however that if you increase TX Deviation (which affects EVERYTHING) DTMF Deviation will likely have to decrease to prevent over modulation. Interestingly, the 880 requires way more DTMF Deviation than the H3, 890 and 900.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-16 06:59:13 +0000 UTCExplosions can be fun.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-15 19:54:29 +0000 UTCJust FYI: I have a 285XX serial number RT880G. I loaded Beta01 using the new RMS, and everything seems to be working fine. Of course I have not tried out every single feature, but I have not seen any issues. I had previously loaded Alpha 19, also with no issues. Hasn't exploded yet ;-)
Ken Roberts
2025-09-15 19:37:23 +0000 UTCFantastic work boss.. Each release just keeps getting better and better.. Happy were in the Beta stage now :)
R.D.M.
2025-09-15 19:10:09 +0000 UTCI release a new version of the RMS each time for a reason.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-15 18:25:45 +0000 UTCAfter installing beta 1 over alpha 19 I can no longer use the home screen color customization. No theme works anymore, only the default look. Is this how it should be or did I do something wrong?
Евгений Конрад
2025-09-15 18:22:00 +0000 UTCHUH? There is no BETA 19 bin file? And I have said many many many times before, you have to use the matching RMS and Firmware, you can't mix things. That's why a new version of the RMS is released each time a new firmware is out. Currently this is BETA 01, so you need the BETA 01 bin file and the BETA 01 RMS.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-15 13:28:06 +0000 UTCWill the ALPHA 19 RMS work with the BETA 19 BIN file?
Ken Roberts
2025-09-15 13:19:35 +0000 UTCI discovered a small glitch, the delete channel option in the CMS menu doesn't correctly delete channels it just messes up the RX frequency. This will be corrected next release.
Marcus Dudley
2025-09-15 11:59:25 +0000 UTC
