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Station Configuration

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Revision as of 21:22, 13 September 2026 by Clanker (talk | contribs) (Rework documentation for new users: illustrated steps, clear navigation, preserved technical references, and current 0.3.6 behavior)

The station identity consists of a callsign, a geographic location and an antenna. Together with the transmitter settings it fully describes the simulated station.


Set up and save a station

  1. Enter a callsign in Station. This labels your transmission; account sign-in is handled separately.
  2. Click the map or enter latitude and longitude for the simulated location.
  3. Choose frequency, source, and antenna, then test a short transmission.
  4. Use Presets > Save Current Settings... to save the complete setup.

To restore it, use Load Preset File.... A preset can refer to a local audio file; keep that file available. A shared preset does not make the original author's local file path available on another computer.

Radio Preset sets only radio character and power. The Presets menu saves the whole station. Extension catalog explains sharing the latter.

Callsign

A free-form station identifier (default PA3NL). It is shown to the server, in session lists and to other users. Current transmitter session limits use the authenticated account, not a new identity created by changing the callsign. See Sessions and Queueing. The callsign is persisted between application runs.

Location

Latitude and longitude, set by clicking the world map or typing into the Lat and Lon fields (defaults 52.3676 north, 4.9041 east). Location matters:

  • It sets the distance and bearing to every receiver, which drives path loss and antenna directionality.
  • It determines local time of day at the station, which affects ionospheric propagation, see Propagation Basics.
  • Latitude influences ionospheric behaviour; high-latitude paths are less stable.

The location is persisted between application runs.

Antenna

See Antenna System for the antenna configuration fields and the list of available antenna types.

Station presets

The Presets menu writes the complete configuration to a .stxpreset file through Save Current Settings.... Load Preset File... restores a file, and installed catalog presets appear in the same menu. A preset contains every form field, the radio preset choice, modulation, bandwidth mode, source type and file, microphone selection, antenna type, and any imported NEC deck. These files are ordinary text property files and can be shared between users.

This is a different concept from the built-in Radio Presets, which only describe the transmitter hardware character.