USB Connection
The most common way of interfacing your radio to the computer is via a standard A/B type USB cable. No other cables or interface (e.g. SignaLink, Rig Blaster, Rig Expert, or other interface) is required because this USB cable provides the connection for the Rig Control and it also carries the Audio for the radio's built-in soundcard which is accessed by a "USB Audio CODEC" once the proper driver from the radio's manufacturer is installed.
About the USB driver: Icom HP (http://www.icom.co.jp/world/support/ index.html) gives the USB driver and the installation guide download service.
Below is an image of the USB cable we recommend. Notice the "Ferrite Chokes" on each end of the cable. These chokes help prevent RF radiation, which may be present in any shack, from feeding back into the computer, which can sometimes cause some very strange behavior in the HRD software. If the cable you are currently using or plan to use doesn't have the ferrite chokes, it's recommended you purchase some of the "snap-on" chokes that are available from Amazon.com or on eBay and attach them to the cable you are using.
The USB interface provides for Rig Control and an Audio Codec for the radio's internal soundcard. This method requires a Virtual Com Port driver, which can be downloaded from the radio manufacturer's website.
Note:
Insure you have installed the Virtual Com Port drivers for your radio or interface before connecting the USB Cable to the computer. Connecting the cable before installing the proper driver could result in a "Generic" driver being installed by Windows which could result in issues later on. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to install the drivers, or, if you have problems locating or installing the drivers, please contact the device manufacturer's support team for assistance.
Locating The COM Port#
Regardless of whether you are interfaced to your radio, for Rig Control, using a direct USB from the radio to the computer or using a USB/Serial converter, this procedure will identify the COM Port/s used by your radio. Once the drivers for the device are installed we need to determine the COM Port that has been assigned by Windows. To do this, make sure your USB cable is now connected between the radio and the computer. Turn your radio ON. We can now open our Windows Device Manager and locate the Port# the radio is connected to.
For Windows 10 users: right-click on the "Start" button (Little Window button in lower left corner on the task bar). When the menu opens select "Device Manager". You could also open the Windows Control Panel and locate and open the "Device Manager"
For other versions of Windows: navigate to your Device Manager by clicking on the "Start" button, then RIGHT-CLICK on "Computer" and select "Properties". In the upper left corner of the Properties screen, click on " Device Manager". You could also open the Windows Control Panel and locate and open the "Device Manager"
In the list of devices in the Device Manager, locate the hive called "Ports (COM & LPT)" (#1 above) and double-Left click on it to open it.
Once the "Ports" hive is open, you will see one or more Com Ports listed. If you have more than one Com Port showing, make a note of all the port numbers. Then, the easiest way to determine which one is connected to the radio you are attempting to connect, just follow the USB cable from the radio back to the computer. Unplug that cable from the computer and the Com Port that is being used will disappear from the list. Plug the cable back in and the Com Port being used will reappear.
With many of today's modern radios that connect via a USB cable, when the drivers are installed, two Com Ports are created. In the image above, the driver for an Icom IC-7100 has created 2 Silicon Labs ports. If you have two or more radios that require two Com Ports, the Com Ports for the ports for each radio should be numbered sequentially (3 and 4, 5 and 6, etc.). You can locate the port combination that's connected to the radio you are adding in the same manner as explained above. The pair of ports connected to that radio will "disappear" from the Device Manager when the cable is unplugged Plug the USB cable back in, and the pair of ports will re-appear.
If no COM ports disappear or re-appear when the USB cable is unplugged from the computer and plug it back in, this indicates either the device driver is not installed, installed incorrectly or in some way not recognized by Windows then you need to contact the device manufacturer for assistance with installing the proper drivers for the device.
Now that you know which port/ports your radio is connected to, make a note of the COM Port number that reappeared when you plugged the USB cable back in. For those with 2 COM Ports, make a note of what the "STANDARD" port number is. You will need to know the ports in the next step to connecting your radio.
NOTE:
Up to this point, if you have had any problems installing the drivers and the COM ports are not showing in the Device Manager, DO NOT contact HRD support. Here is where you need to contact the radio manufacturer's technical support team for assistance.
Radio Menu Configuration
Once the drivers are properly installed we can move on to configuring options in the radio's internal menu system to enable it to properly connect to the computer and the HRD software.
You may need the IC-7600 manual to learn how to access the radio's menus and change settings needed for operation with the HRD software. If you don't have the manual, you can download a PDF manual for your radio from the Icom website.
In the radio's menu sytem, please set the following options as indicated below:
DATA OFF MOD: Set to MIC,ACC
DATA1 MOD: Set to USB
DATA2 MOD Set to MIC,ACC
DATA3 MOD: Set to MIC
CI-V BAUD RATE: Set to 9600
CI-V TRANSCEIVE: Set to OFF
CI-V SERIAL FUNCTION: Set to CI-V
When all of the above menu options have been configured correctly you can close out of the radios menus and continue setting up HRD.
Connecting to Ham Radio Deluxe
Once the radio has been configured we can now connect it to the HRD program. Run the HRD software and when the Rig Connect Screen opens, configure all the options as shown below.
When you have the Rig Connect screen configured exactly as shown above, click on the [Connect] button to start the connection process. You will see activity in the "Status" window while the software checks every port at every speed until it locates your radio. Once the radio is located, the main HRD Rig Control screen will open.
If you have any problems getting the software connected to the radio, please contact HRD Support for further assistance.