Articles

Guides, notes, and background on the ARRG.US XLX reflector array. New articles will be listed here as they are published.

D-Star · Pi-Star · Part 1 · June 2026 Pi-Star D-Star Hotspot, Part 1: Hardware, Assembly, and Installation

Raspberry Pi 5 vs Zero, MMDVM boards, OLED and antenna choices, power supplies, physical assembly, and flashing the Pi-Star image.

Hotspot Setup

D-Star · Pi-Star · Part 2 · June 2026 Pi-Star D-Star Hotspot, Part 2: Pi-Star Configuration and D-Star Registration

Configure Pi-Star for D-Star, link to XLX reflectors, register at regist.dstargateway.org, and troubleshoot gateway issues.

Hotspot Setup

D-Star · Pi-Star · Part 3 · June 2026 Pi-Star D-Star Hotspot, Part 3: Icom ID-51 and ID-52 Radio Configuration

Program DV simplex memories with CS-51 or CS-52 — RPT1, RPT2, URCALL, and first QSO on the reflector network.

Hotspot Setup

D-Star · XLX Reflectors · July 2026 Ham Radio Meets IT: Running an XLX Reflector Like a Production Service

Thirty years of enterprise IT discipline applied to ARRG.US reflectors — test VMs, Zabbix monitoring, Pi-Star hotspots, and the mentor who showed me a hotspot and changed everything.

XLX Reflector Infrastructure

Looking for operating rules or account requirements? See our Dos and Don'ts and Requirements pages, or return to the home page for live reflector status.