[TenTec] TenTec Product Status Update

[Bruce McLaughlin]

 Thank you so much for the information. I have an Orion II but I also have a number of other radios including a flex 5000A,  a Yaesu FT 5000MP  and an ICOM 756 pro. The Flex, in particular, has a very fine sweep function with the pin adapter and a number of other displays. I have been hoping that the long announced high-speed sweep board would in fact materialize. It was very encouraging to read that it has resumed development. I will certainly look forward to adding it to my Orion II when it is available. I certainly  thank you for your diligent work and I will look forward to additional announcements and developments from TenTec.

 Bruce-W8FU


On Nov 10, 2010, at 1:35 PM, Henry, John wrote:

> In order to help keep our customers up to date with what is going on
> within TenTec, I'm posting the following:
> 
> 1 - Eagle - We are working on a Software Update for the Eagle, which
> should be posted to the Internet for download by Thursday of this
> week. 11-11-2010 (if it isn't up by Thursday, it will be up Monday of
> next week, never release firmware on a Friday). This software will
> provide more CAT functions as requested by customers, includes a few
> items to assist in factory test automation, also includes the audible
> QSK Delay function, etc.. I am also planning on releasing the official
> programmers reference manual to support the firmware release version a
> day or so later.
> 
> 2 - Orion 565 Firmware Update - Now that the Eagle is maturing to a
> more stable baseline, I am restarting the efforts on the Orion 565
> Firmware Update process. This release is intended to resolve a few
> known issues, and to get to a baseline that performs best for
> contesting. This means that some changes may not be exactly as per
> desire of some casual users, but the main purpose of the Orion and
> Orion II are to provide the best contesting rigs that TenTec can
> offer, so that original philosophy will remain in tact for this coming
> upgrade. Goal is to have the beta group informed of the schedule by
> the end of next week. Have the set of changes required finalized and a
> schedule for release committed to by the end of next week. This
> doesn't mean the update will be ready next week, but a firm schedule
> will be in tact and I can then share it publicly by then. Target date
> for the entire update is before the end of the year. I think that it
> is possible, however it is very aggressive, and may not be met, but
> that is the goal.
> One MAJOR note to make, this will be an update based on V2 firmware,
> not V1. It may mimic the functionality now seen in the latest Orion II
> firmware release. But the main goal is stability, removing receiver
> losses, etc.
> 
> 3 - High Speed Sweep Board - Yes, it has frozen over...., The High
> Speed Sweep is back on the development path. We are working with a 3rd
> party vendor who has committed time and resources to complete this
> project. When a schedule is made more firm, and we seem to be meeting
> the early milestones, I may indicate a projected production start
> date, I may not, will have to see as time progresses how the venture
> works out. Either way, we are committed to providing this
> functionality with the best "wow" feature set for a built in sweep
> that we can provide with the hardware/firmware/DSP/etc that we have in
> the Orion 2 and OMNI-VII.
> 
> 4 - Jupiter Update - Providing a resolution to the receiver lockup
> when turning on AN/NB/NR all at the same time, adding a feature if
> possible as requested. Projected update timeframe - December 2010
> 
> 5 - OMNI-VII - There is a request from ESSB operators to provide SB
> transmit bandwidth up to 6kHz. Currently reviewing with the league, if
> the HW is capable, etc. Feasibility is being reviewed.
> 
> Yes, we are working on several other projects at the same time that
> may also be finished and made public during the timeframe of the Orion
> 565 and HSSB projects, but once I commit to a schedule, I will do
> everything in my power to get it completed on time, with quality, and
> with the customers desires in hand.
> 
> Best Regards,
> John Henry
> TenTec Engineering
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