CHIRP
| CHIRP | |
|---|---|
| Type | Radio programming software |
| Cost | Free; open source |
| Original author | Dan Smith, KK7DS, with many volunteer contributors |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Use | |
| Current version | CHIRP-next, released as date-stamped builds |
| Supported radios | Hundreds of models, mostly analog FM handhelds and mobiles |
| Connection | USB programming cable, or USB built into the radio |
| Files | Radio image (.img); CSV import and export |
| Data | |
| Repeater data | Built-in queries of RepeaterBook and other online sources |
CHIRP is free, open-source software for programming the memory channels and settings of amateur radios from a computer. It supports hundreds of models from dozens of makers, from inexpensive imported handhelds to radios from Yaesu, Kenwood, Icom and Alinco, and it shows every radio's memories in the same spreadsheet-like grid. Because it works the same way whatever the brand, it is often the first programming tool a new ham learns, and many clubs use it to share standard channel lists of local repeaters and simplex frequencies.
What it does
Entering channels from a radio's keypad is slow and error-prone. CHIRP reads the radio's memory into the computer, where each channel appears as a row with its frequency, name, offset direction and amount, tone settings for CTCSS and DCS, power level and mode. Channels can be typed, copied and pasted between radios, or imported from a CSV file or an online database. For many models CHIRP can also change the radio's menu settings.
Most radios are programmed in clone mode: CHIRP downloads the radio's entire memory as a single image, the image is edited, and the whole image is uploaded again. A few radios work in live mode, where each change goes to the radio as soon as it is made.
CHIRP has limits. It is mainly a tool for analog FM channels. The codeplugs of DMR radios, and many features of digital-voice radios generally, need the manufacturer's own programming software. New models may not be supported yet, and because support for each radio is written by volunteers, often owners of that radio, its completeness varies.
CHIRP-next
The current version is CHIRP-next, a rewrite with a new interface that replaced the older "legacy" version, which is no longer updated. New builds come out frequently and are named by date rather than by version number. Before reporting a problem, install the latest build, since support for a radio may have been added or fixed recently. The project's list of supported radios shows which models work and how fully.
Cables and drivers
Most handhelds connect through a programming cable with a USB-to-serial adapter chip built into it. The computer sees the cable as a serial port, a COM port in Windows, and CHIRP talks to the radio through it. Driver problems with these chips cause more trouble than anything else in CHIRP.
The most notorious problem involves cheap cables built with counterfeit Prolific chips. Current Prolific drivers refuse to work with counterfeits, and Windows shows an error on the device instead of a working port. The reliable fix is a cable with a genuine chip from FTDI, Prolific or another established maker; counterfeit FTDI chips exist too, so buy from a reputable seller. Other common causes of failure:
- A plug not fully seated. The two-pin plugs used by many handhelds must be pushed firmly all the way into the jack, sometimes harder than seems reasonable.
- The wrong port. Check which COM port the cable was given, and pick that one in CHIRP.
- The wrong model. Choose the exact model, and variant if listed, of the radio.
Some newer radios have a USB port of their own and need no separate cable, though they may still need a driver.
Using it
- Connect the cable to the radio and computer, and turn the radio on.
- From the Radio menu, download from the radio, choosing the port, maker and model.
- Save the downloaded image straight away, before changing anything, and keep that file as a backup.
- Edit the channels. To add repeaters, query RepeaterBook from within CHIRP by location or band, or import a CSV file exported from a repeater listing, and copy the results into the radio's tab.
- Upload to the radio, then check a few channels on the radio itself.
The untouched backup is the way back if an upload goes wrong or a setting is changed by mistake. On some models the image also contains calibration data unique to that radio, so an image downloaded from someone else's radio should not be uploaded whole. Open it in a separate tab and copy its channels instead.
RepeaterBook and similar listings are compiled by users and can be out of date. Confirm the frequency, offset and tone of an important repeater with its owner, its club or a local ham before relying on it.