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FAQ and advice on radio operations
Q: I am having trouble hooking up the ICOM A20 - A21 handhelds to the XCOM Intercom what can I do
Q: I am using the Microair VHF 760 radio and the XCOM Intercom - when I push the PTT button I get a loud squealing noise.
Q: How do I hook up the Icom A23-A5 to the XCOM Intercom ??
Q: How do I wire up a Microair to the XCOM Intercom ??
Q: How do I wire up a ICOM ICA200 to the XCOM Intercom ??
Q: How do I get the remote toggle feature to operate the flip-flop and remote toggle to work ??
Q: Do you have an emergency or priority button to bring up 121.5 ??
Q: How do I toggle memory or flip flop the channels remotely ??
Q: What is Sidetone ??
Q: What is the difference between Intercom Squelch and Normal Squelch ??
Q: What type of dimmer do you recommend ??
Q: Do you need a backlight switch if you use a dimmer ??
Q: Why is a external intercom switch needed if the intercom can be turned off with the "setup" mode ??
Q: You mention the radio chassis needs to be earthed... how do I do that ??
Q: I am getting noise or a hiss coming trough the headsets ??
Q: My display has come up with faint or Chinese looking characters
Q: Does the radio come with a DB 15 Connector ??
Q: How do I wire up the XCOM to helicopter heatsets ??
Q: What is the best aerial cable length ??
Q: How do I hook up the electrolytic capacitor ??
Q: How do i wire up the XCOM for use in a glider using a boom microphone ??
Q: I am having trouble hooking up the ICOM A20 - A21 handhelds to the XCOM Intercom what can I do......
A: There is an issue with the earlier ICOM handhelds which allow them to transmit a carrier but no voice, its a simple fix with a small modification to the Microphone lead. Please follow the directions in the attached drawing.
Q: I am using the Microair VHF 760 radio and the XCOM Intercom - when I push the PTT button I get a loud steeling noise.
A: This is an easy fix and its just the Microair's sidetone working against the XCOM Intercom, using a small flat screwdriver go through the side of the Microair into the pot marked sidetone and turn the Microair's sidetone off by rotating the pot counter clockwise. That's it problem solved.
Q: How do I hook up the Icom A23-A5 to the XCOM Intercom ??
A: Follow the diagram below.
Q: How do I wire up a Microair to the XCOM Intercom ??
A: Follow the diagram below
Download this diagram in PDF format for easy colour printing CLICK HERE.
Q: How do I wire up a ICOM ICA200 to the XCOM Intercom ??
A: Follow the diagram below
Download this diagram in PDF format for easy colour printing CLICK HERE.
Q: How do I get the remote toggle feature to operate the flip-flop or the remote memory toggle ??
A: This feature utilizes the Co-Pilot PTT switch. You need to wire an additional Co-Pilot PTT switch to the pilots stick and enable the feature in the setup screen. If the radio is in normal mode the switch will change the active to the standby channel and back again. If the radio is in the memory view mode it will cycle up through the stored memory channels.
Note: Using the remote toggle feature the Co-Pilot PTT switch does not transmit and has the same functions as the pilots toggle switch.
Q: Do you have an emergency or priority button to bring up 121.500 ??
A: Push the volume knob and the channel knob together. This will immediately bring up memory channel zero 121.500
Q: How do I toggle memory or flip flop the channels remotely ??
A: In the programming section you can activate the remote flip flop and memory toggle using the copilot PTT switch. If you want this function wire a secondary PTT switch into the pilots stick and activate the software in the setup screen. When you push the copilot PTT with the software active it will flip the active and standby channels in normal mode or scroll up through the memory channels in memory mode
Q: What is Sidetone
A: Sidetone is the sound of the speakers own voice, normally when you talk into the microphone you can hear your own voice coming back through the headsets, this is sidetone. In a glider install you can turn the sidetone off to conserve power
Q: What is the difference between Intercom Squelch and Normal Squelch ??
A: Normal squelch is when the radio actually breaks and you hear static, if you turn the squelch down or off you will hear static sounds in the background, if you turn up the squelch you can get the background noise to switch off, if you turn up the squelch all the way you will block out the weaker stations and only hear stations and aircraft close by. The Intercom squelch is only used to cut out the background noise in the cockpit when the pilot and copilot are plugged in, it cuts down the cabin noise from being heard back through the headsets.
Q: What type of dimmer do you recommend ??
A: A 1k linear pot is fine, it will dimm from zero to full brightness. Radio Spares or Farnel is his best bet ( farnel Part no 350-140 ).
Q: Do you need a backlight switch if you use a dimmer ??
A: No you don't need the toggle switch if you use a dimmer switch.
Q: Why is a external intercom switch needed if the intercom can be turned off with the "setup" mode ??
A: You must use the actual toggle switch to turn the intercom on and off not the software. The software has been included for single seat installations like a glider where they can turn off the internals to the radio therefore saving a small amount of power and making the battery life longer. In a normal powered aircraft you do not turn off the intercom with software
Q: You mention the radio chassis needs to be earthed... how do I do that ??
A: You must earth the radio chassis to the aircraft ground, please see the attached photograph on where to locate the earth wire.
Q: I am getting noise or a hiss coming trough the headsets ??
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A: Probably the hardest of all questions to answer, generally it's interference of some kind, usually electrical but sometimes it can come from the antennae.
Each aircraft MUST be fitted with an Electrolytic Capacitor rated at 22,000 uF at 25V, this will assist in eliminating most of the problems, we also require one be fitted to prevent spikes from the aircraft's power supply which can damage the radio.
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Q: How do I hook up the electrolytic capacitor ??
A: Hopefully this simple diagram will assist you in hooking up the electrolytic capacitor. Please make sure the capacitor is fitted on the power supply side of the fuse as shown in the attached diagram. Try and keep all of the wires as short as possible and position the capacitor close to the radio for best performance. Please note that the capacitor is polarity sensitive, that is there is a positive and negative side to the capacitor.
Q: My display has come up with faint or Chinese looking characters
A: The first 100 radios manufactured had substandard LCD screens. Just before shipping of the first batch it was discovered that the polarizing screen on the LCD was 90 degrees out. If you wore Polaroid glasses then the screen would appear black until you tipped your head sideways to 90 degrees when the screen would appear normal.
The manufacturer who supplied the first 500 screens was contacted and replacement sought. The first 100 replacements supplied, unknown to our engineers were extras from the previous batch and the screen was peeled off and a new one applied 90 degrees out. This obviously has caused some reliability issues with about 30% of the first 100 units shipped serial numbers 0001 to 0100 failing or causing erratic screen behaviour.
If your sub 0100 serial numbered radio is working well then please continue to use it, if you have some strange screen problems please return it for replacement asap.
Q: Does the radio come with a DB 15 Connector ??
A: Sure does.. The XCOM Intercom and Transceiver is supplied with a DB15 connector for soldering to your harness
Q: How do I wire up the XCOM to helicopter heatsets ??
A: Please follow the diagram below for assistance
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H10-26 Pins
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XCOM 760 Pins
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Pilot
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Copilot
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2
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14
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13
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4
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GND
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GND
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1
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GND
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GND
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3
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1
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3
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Q: What is the best aerial cable length ??
Well its all a bit of witchcraft and nonsense to me but our engineer has given me the following advice.... Try to get customers to cut their aerial cables to these optimum lengths.
Suggested aerial cable length in Meters
Suggested aerial cable length in Feet
Q: How do i wire up the XCOM for use in a glider using a boom microphone ??
Wiring up the XCOM radio for use in a glider is fairly simple, please click on the image below to download a PDF the drawing which can be printed out. Additionally the drawing has important information on how to set up the radio to best suit a glider installation, also refer to the glider section of our website.
Please ask your Questions by email to tech@xcom760.com
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