📄
SPAD.neXt
  • SPAD.neXt Manual
  • About SPAD.neXt
  • Getting Started
    • System Requirements
    • Supported hardware
      • Check Hardware
    • Installation
      • Simulation Specifc Steps
        • SimConnect Configuration
        • MSFS: Enable PMDG data access
        • X-Plane Configuration
    • First Start
      • Configuration Wizard
    • Common Tasks and Issues
      • SPAD
        • Online Services
        • Fresh reinstall
        • Move SPAD.neXt to new Computer
        • License Issues
      • MSFS Specific Topics
      • X-Plane specific Topics
      • Saitek/Logitech MP/RP blinking
      • USB Powermanagement
  • Guides and Videos
    • New User Series
    • MSFS SimConnect
    • L:Vars / H:Events and B:Events
    • Features & Functions
    • Device Specific
      • Arduino / SPAD Serial
      • Authentikit
      • Cockpit Simulator CDU
      • Honeycomb
      • Joystick (Generic HID)
      • miniCockpit
      • RealSimGear
      • Saitek/Logitech
      • Script Panel
      • Stream Deck
      • Thrustmaster TCA
      • vFIP
      • Virtual Avionics
      • vJoy
      • VRinsight
      • X-Touch MC Mode
      • X-Touch Midi Mode
    • Simulation Specific
      • ATR 600 (MSFS)
      • AS CRJ 550/700/900/1000 (MSFS)
      • FBW A32NX (MSFS)
      • FFX/MG HJet (MSFS)
      • FFX Vision Jet (MSFS)
      • FSW C414AW (MSFS)
      • PMDG 737 (MSFS)
      • PMDG 777 (MSFS)
      • SWS Kodiak (MSFS)
      • WT CJ4 (MSFS)
      • WT G1000 NXi (MSFS)
      • PMDG 777 (P3D)
  • User Interface
    • UI Familiarization
      • Home Page
      • Profiles Page
  • Features
    • Expressions
      • Values
      • Referencing Simulation Data
      • Operators
      • Functions
      • Examples
    • Tuner Acceleration
    • Event Execution Order
  • Simulations
    • MSFS 2024
    • MSFS 2020
    • X-Plane
      • Pre-Requisites
      • Dataref Tool
      • Helping Spad Help You
      • Dataref vs. Command: Know Your Copilots
      • Basic Flight Controls – Axis Setup
    • P3d and FSX
    • Other
  • Hardware specific
    • USB HUB Requirements
    • CPFlight Devices
    • Saitek FIP (Flight Instrument Panel)
      • Saitek FIP: Driver & Function Check
    • Loupedeck Image Devices
    • Midi Devices
      • X-Touch Mini
    • Serial (COM) Devices
    • Skalarki
    • VRInsight Overhead
  • Extending and API's
    • Gauges and Extensions
      • SPAD Gauges: GaugeSettings
    • C# Scripting Interface
      • C# Scripting: ScriptStub
      • C# Scripting: Provide Values
      • C# Scripting: PreCompile
    • Device Interface
      • Device Communication Flow
        • Device INIT-Phase
        • Device CONFIG-Phase
          • Device options
          • Device COLORSET configuration
          • Device PROFILE configuration
          • Device OUTPUT Configuration
          • Device INPUT configuration
            • Device input AXIS
            • Device input ENCODER
            • Device input PUSHBUTTON
            • Device input ROTARY
            • Device input SWITCH
            • Device input SWITCH3
            • Device LABEL
          • Device config: Advanced topics
        • Device STATESCAN-Phase
      • Device General Commands
      • Device commands
        • Page-Control
      • Device SPAD.neXt Events (2)
      • Device Simulation Events (Channel 4)
      • Device Data (Channel 5)
      • Device LED Update (Channel 6)
      • Device Display Update (Channel 7)
      • Device Input Updates (Channel 8)
      • Device Virtual Power
      • Device Custom UI
      • Device HTML UI
      • Device preconfigured definition
      • Serial V2
        • Command 1,RAISE
        • Command: 0,AUTH
    • X-Plane Datarefs & Commands
    • FSUIPC: Custom Offsets
    • RestAPI
    • HTML Rendering API
    • Other API's
  • FAQ
    • General FAQ
    • MSFS: Lost profile aircraft assigments
  • Changes
    • 0.9.21
    • 0.9.14.0
    • 0.9.13.39
  • Glossar
  • Old-Docs
    • Old-Getting-Started-Guide
Powered by GitBook
On this page
  • Speed
  • Enable DTR
  • Enable RTS/CTS
  • Device wakeup time
  • Common Issues
  • Access to ComPort denied

Was this helpful?

  1. Hardware specific

Serial (COM) Devices

PreviousX-Touch MiniNextSkalarki

Last updated 1 month ago

Was this helpful?

SPAD.neXt supports a wide range if serial (COM) devices, however there are many different serial chipsets around, specially for USB2Serial devices.

Some of those chipset require a special treatment (notably the fake CH340 chipset), which you can configure in the serial device setup.

Select the appropiate Port and Protocol. For some protocols (e.g. VRInsight) no options will be available.

Speed

If you notice grabage being sent/received then lower the speed. For an USB2Serial device 115200 is usually a good choice, but if the device is too slow to handle this speed, lower it.

Enable DTR

Data Terminal Ready - It telsl the device that something is connected to it's serial port. This should be ON in most of the cases.

Exception: If the device is CH340 based, this has to be set to OFF, because the DTR signal will make the device reset.

Enable RTS/CTS

RequestToSend/ClearToSend Signaling A hardware handshake protocol to ensure no data is lost in transmission because of a buffer overrun on the device. In most of the cases this should be set to ON. If you device does not seem to send/receive any data, set it to OFF

For CH340 based devices this has to be turned off, unless it's configured in the device's firmware.

Device wakeup time

Time in ms before spad will try to send anything to the device after opening the port. For a real USB2Serial chipset this is not needed (set to 0). However e.g. the CH340 fake serial chip has an odd bootloader which will go into device-programming mode if anything is received on the port while device is booting up and in result the device will not respond to any data sent to it. If that happens, set this wakeup time. You might need to experiment with the settings but 2000ms is a good starting point. Devices with a lot of stuff in it (e.g. displays) might need a longer wakeup time (e.g. 3500ms).\

Common Issues

Access to ComPort denied

If you get "Access to ComX is denied" error when starting SPAD.neXt after a fresh computer reboot with a serial device, this is most likely because you have Skype or the Arduino IDE running. Serial devices are recognized as audiodevices and locked by skype for unknown reason. (Same can appliy to other software locking up the port)

Solution: Unplug serial usb and replug it, this will release the lock on it.

Serial Device Configuration