AetherSweep

AetherSweep

AetherSweep is AetherSDR's in-panadapter SWR sweep analyzer. It walks the current TX band, transmits a low-power tune carrier in 20 kHz increments, samples SWR and forward-power meter data per step, and overlays the resulting curve directly on the panadapter spectrum — right under the active slice flag.

Introduced in v0.9.4 (#2202 / #2220 / #2230, jensenpat) and polished in v0.9.6 Phase 2 (#2320, jensenpat).

Quick start

1. Set the active slice to the band and frequency you want to sweep.
2. Open the slice's ANT sub-menu (left-side spectrum overlay).
3. Click Start Sweep.
4. Wait — AetherSweep walks the band edges, plotting SWR on the spectrum as it goes. The cyan caret marks the lowest measured SWR (resonance).
5. Click Clear Sweep to remove the overlay.

A 1–10 W sweep-power slider sits next to the buttons; default 1 W. Adjust to your antenna's SWR response — too low and the reading is noisy, too high and you waste an extra 9 W of heat into a mismatched load.

Reading the overlay

Visual	Meaning
Curve color	Logarithmic SWR scale; band-shaded green (1.0–1.5), amber (1.5–2.0), red (>2.0)
Cyan caret + dot	Resonance — the lowest SWR point measured
Notch markers	Sweep start / end frequencies
Bracket spans	Interpolated bandwidth at SWR ≤ 1.5 and ≤ 2.0 (corner readout shows BW values)
Corner readout	Best SWR + resonance frequency in kHz

Safety

AetherSweep refuses to start when:

• The radio is currently transmitting
• Split is active on the slice
• The band is wider than the radio's max pan width
• A Power Genius XL (PGXL) amplifier is in OPERATE mode (force STANDBY first — AetherSweep handles this for PGXL automatically via its API; you'll see a confirmation prompt)

⚠️ Third-party amplifiers are not auto-detected. AetherSweep only knows how to put a PGXL into standby. If you have an ACOM, SPE, Elecraft KPA, OM Power, or any other linear amplifier connected, put it into bypass / standby manually before sweeping — low-VSWR sweeps into a hot amp can cause amplifier faults or component damage.

TGXL bypass

If a 4o3a Tuner Genius XL is in line, the TGXL Bypass option in the sweep menu pulls the tuner out of the path during the sweep so you measure the antenna and feedline only — not the antenna plus the tuner's match. Restored to its previous state after the sweep finishes.

Settings

Key	Default	Description
SwrSweepPowerWatts	1	Tune-carrier power (1–10 W)
SwrSweepBandRefusal60m	True	Refuse to sweep on the channelized 60 m band
SwrSweepMaxPoints	260	Hard cap on samples per sweep

Limitations

• Walks in 20 kHz steps with edge guards — fine resolution near band edges, coarser at band centre. For finer resolution, reduce the sweep range by tuning narrower before starting.
• Doesn't talk to non-PGXL amplifiers; you must put them into bypass yourself.
• The sweep is per-slice — a multi-slice setup needs to sweep one slice at a time.

See also: Panadapter Controls for the spectrum overlay context; TGXL Tuner Control for tuner bypass behaviour.