Follow this guide AFTER following Packet Radio Basics with Software TNC.
Vara is a WAY faster way to upload and download data from a Winlink or packet node. Created by EA5HVK, Vara comes in a number of varieties. The type we’ll be working with today is the FM version, which works on 2m/70cm much like traditional 1200 bps packet. The kicker is that it can burst up to 14 kbps in the same bandwidth and conditions as 1200 packet. It also has the ability to adjust it’s speed based on RF conditions. Packets will not fail when some interference blows in, the speed will just slow down some until they’re successful.
The downside to Vara FM is that it doesn’t play nice with others. It requires a direct connection from node to node and doesn’t account for or allow others to connect to the same node at once. It will not evenly divide up the available airtime between other communicating nodes. Additionally, it is not free software. Speed without a license will be limited to 566 bps.
That being said, it’s still great to have in the toolbox when trying to quickly download files that would otherwise take significant time.
Programs to Download
Install
Installation of these is pretty straightforward as they all come with a standard Windows installation process. Unzip the downloaded files, then double click to start the process. Make a note of which path they install to.
Vara FM defaults to c:\vara fm\varafm.exe
Vara Terminal defaults to c:\vara\vara terminal.exe
Setup Process
After install, be sure that any other packet related software like soundmodem and Winlink Express are closed. These tend to take control of the serial PTT port and will cause conflicts.
Open varafm.exe.
Notice the audio input is rather low. We’ll need to set that up to point to your previously set up USB Audio Device from the Software TNC guide preceding this.
Click “Settings” followed by “Vara Setup”.
Make sure “FM System” is set to NARROW. This is the mode that’s sure to work on all setups. You can experiment with WIDE after the initial setup and connection is successful.
If you have a license key from purchasing Vara, enter it under Vara Licenses on the upper right. Press “Close”.
Select the “Settings” menu again, then “PTT…”
Select “COM”, then choose the same port as we chose in the previous guide for soundmodem. Select “Close”.
Again, under “Settings”, select “Sound Card…”.
Here, change the Device Input and Output to your USB Audio Device. This will match the ones you selected in the previous guide as well.
We will attempt to set your card levels automatically using your existing levels that work with soundmodem. They make a good baseline. Generally speaking, your input level is probably going to be fine, however, Vara tends to require additional output levels. We’ll let it decide for itself.
Press “Auto Tune”.
Under “Calibrate with”, type the name of a Vara FM station that’s within working RF distance to your station. Consult your local hams or online resources to determine what this might be. One way is to open Winlink, start a Vara FM Winlink session, then press “Channel Selection”. Update the table via internet. You should see a list of available Vara FM nodes sorted by distance from your location. Choose the closest one and use that to fill in the window pictured above.
Press the electrical plug button.
Vara FM will start sending data to the node you chose. With each one it sends, it will increase the volume or “drive level” of the signal. The receiving node will measure the signal-to-noise ratio of each of these transmissions and determine which is the best. At the very end, the receiving node will transmit the results back to your station.
At this point, you will see the results of your testing. If everything is good, you’ll get the stamp of approval like above. In the event that something needs adjusted, it will tell you exactly what it wants. Go back to the OLD Control Panel, then “sound” in Windows. There you can make the necessary adjustments, such as increasing or decreasing the volumes on your USB Audio Device.
In case you cannot contact the remote station you’re testing with, you may get a response that says “No Signal”. This means your Vara FM software cannot hear the remote station. Run the process again and see if you can audibly hear the station responding over your radio speaker. If you can, you may need to adjust your input volume level until the computer can clearly hear it too. If you can’t, either the station isn’t hearing you clearly (adjust output volume levels as in the previous guide), or it’s just too far away. Choose another station from the list to test with.
Once you have the stamp of approval, press “Close”. Close Vara FM.
Sending A Message
You’re all set to begin using Vara FM with both BPQ nodes and Winlink nodes. Winlink is the easiest to test since it automates most of the process.
Open Winlink Express and start a Vara FM Session. Choose your Vara FM capable station from the Channel Selection List. You should be able to choose either a Narrow or Wide station. When choosing a Wide station, it will automatically adjust back to Narrow. Press “Start”.
If all went well, you now have a fully capable Vara FM station!
Connecting to a BPQ Node with Vara FM
Vara Terminal is used to connect to a Vara BPQ node, much like EasyTerm is used to connect to a BPQ node with soundmodem. Consult your local hams for a list of BPQ nodes capable of Vara. This is much more rare than packet, but if you’re lucky, there may be a couple.
Close all instances of Winlink, Vara FM, and soundmodem.
Open Vara Terminal, select “Settings”, then “Terminal Setup”.
Be sure “Vara FM” is selected under “Vara Mode”. Fill in your callsign. You can optionally choose to have the Vara Terminal program automatically launch Vara FM. If you choose this option, verify the path matches the actual location of your installed Vara FM program.
Press “Update”.
Open Vara FM if you didn’t select the option to automatically open it, then press “Connect”.
Enter the node call of the station you wish to connect with, then press the electrical plug button.
If successful, you should see a Connect message just like using soundmodem and 1200 bps packet!
Conclusion
At this point, you have a working multi-modal packet and Vara station! With this baseline knowledge you can now connect to any node, using any type of software TNC. Vara and packet are the most common, but there are a wealth of modes in packages like FLDigi and others that are begging to be experimented with. Contact your ham buddies and see how quickly you may be able to transfer a file using these methods.
Next, we’ll go into how to setup your very own BBS that other hams can “dial” into just like the other nodes you’ve worked with so far. The most common way to do this is BPQ, but we’ll go into simpler solutions first.