Change the default position of TACAN and ILS volume knob when spawning in flight

[darkman222]

I know its not an F16 specific question, but the F16 has the most annoying default knob positions. I often play on the just dogfight server, where you spawn in flight. So every knob has its default position. And the volume of the ILS and TACAN knob is somewhere in the middle volume position. So every time i respawn, it resets to that position and you hear the annoying morse code of the TACAN and even when landing the inner and outer beacon ILS marker.

 

 

 

Is there a LUA file which I can modify the default position to "off". Otherwise everytime I respawn I have to turn the volume down by hand in the cockpit.

[RustBelt]

The servermaster could go in and change the starting conditions of the planes in the mission if they wanted to. It's a feature of the Mission Editor.

[Frederf]

ILS off and TACAN silent are the most sensible positions for the knobs regardless of start state (ramp cold, ramp hot, runway, air, day, night, etc.).

[darkman222]

But could it not be possible to override that in some LUA file? I dont know if I get something wrong here, but what worked very well already, was to change the default flare program in a LUA file, which nicely passed integrity check on the server.

 

I already found the entry for "Tacan" in the "clickabledata.lua" file. But no value for volume. Maybe there is a file for it that stores the information for the starting condition which is then called by the mission editor. So maybe the "in air" condition has that value.

EDIT: I just checked the knob when I set the F16 "start on ramp" where I guess it would be set to off (0 volume) . Both ILS and TACAN are in the same position as when I start "in air" maybe its state is just not defined in the starting condition yet.

Edited May 12, 2020 by darkman222

[shaddo]

You can set it to 0 actually.

I found it in the Eagle Dynamic Program files folder

 

C:\Program Files\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World OpenBeta\Mods\aircraft\FA-18C\Options

 

Then open the file:

 

AircraftSettings.lua

 

and modify the section that you want. For me, it was these following sections:

 

			{ id = 'Volume Panel', name = _('ot_Volume Panel', "Volume Panel"), type = 'section', childs = 
				{
					{ id = 'TCN', name = _('ot_TCN', "TCN"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 0, min = 0, max = 100},
					{ id = 'AUX', name = _('ot_AUX', "AUX"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 100, min = 0, max = 100},
					{ id = 'MIDS', name = _('ot_MIDS', "MIDS"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 100, min = 0, max = 100},
					{ id = 'RWR', name = _('ot_RWR', "RWR"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 50, min = 0, max = 100},
					{ id = 'WPN', name = _('ot_WPN', "WPN"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 50, min = 0, max = 100},
					{ id = 'ICS', name = _('ot_ICS', "ICS"), control = 'spinbox', defValue = 100, min = 0, max = 100},
				}
			},	

 

Just set the defValue to 0.

 

I haven't checked the modifications on servers but it works on single player

 

o7

[darkman222]

Thanks! But the file you were modifying was for the Hornet not the Viper The Viper unfortunately does not have a "AircraftSettings.lua" in the option folder. But good to know there is a way to turn it down, maybe one day when ED will put a comparable file in that folder.

Copy pasting and modifying it from the Hornet to the Vipers Options folder does not work.

 

What worked for me was to bind the volume knobs to to a switch on my throttle which is a permanently active 2 way switch. So I just keep the switch in the position where it will turn down the volume when I spawn in mid air. This only works if DCS is set to "synchronize cockpit controls with HOTAS at mission start" Its kind of a hack, but if it works it aint stupid

Edited April 25, 2021 by darkman222

[Florence201]

And what about those of us that generally spawn cold on the ground? We’d now have to turn up the volumes to check and ident TACAN and ILS channels. 

[Machalot]

I'm missing something. When you air start on this dogfight server, are your TCN and ILS automatically tuned to active stations to give you the Morse code? And why are you flying over the approach beacons to land on an air start dog fight server, is that typical? I thought you were always supposed to get a new jet to start a new dogfight. 

Edited April 26, 2021 by Machalot

[shaddo]

Sad to hear that it doesnt work with the viper but your solution with the hotas is clever !

 

@Florence201 Well it's up to you, I prefer having them on and reduce the sound so that I don't forget they're on when I start playing. It may be a good option for home cockpits just as the option darkman said in his post when the game retrieves the current hotas positions

 

 

 

Edited April 26, 2021 by shaddo

[darkman222]

On 4/25/2021 at 9:33 PM, Florence201 said:

And what about those of us that generally spawn cold on the ground? We’d now have to turn up the volumes to check and ident TACAN and ILS channels. 

Hmm well thats a good question, I did not think about yet. But why would you need to listen to TACAN and ILS when you take off? But I get your point.

The even better question is in deed why it is tuned in on the dogfight server. Of course you get a new jet, with volume pumped up and miraculously tuned in TACAN stations and I think it plays every TACAN morse code you fly over. Thats whats really weird.

 

But the solution I was looking for, was the one shaddo found for the Hornet instead. A Lua file with default volume settings. Of course the default would be "on" for people who start on the ground. So I would change it to "off" in my mods folder.

 

Same thing I do for the Countermeasures in the F16. I changed them in the LUA file to suit my needs because, when you respawn on the dogfight server, you have no time to configure a Flares program, because only seconds later you are in a dogfight. Downside is, every time DCS updates, the file is reset to default. So I just copy paste my own file over the default one after every update.

I thought maybe for the TACAN volume the same procedure might be possible. But maybe we will get that same LUA file the F18 has at some day in F16 folder too.

Edited April 26, 2021 by darkman222

[Machalot]

1 hour ago, darkman222 said:

I think it plays every TACAN morse code you fly over.

Are you sure you're hearing TACAN?  This does not sound like TACAN.  TACAN plays only the Morse code of the station it is tuned to a long as the signal is received, regardless of what you happen to fly over. 

[Florence201]

13 hours ago, darkman222 said:

Hmm well thats a good question, I did not think about yet. But why would you need to listen to TACAN and ILS when you take off? But I get your point.

The even better question is in deed why it is tuned in on the dogfight server. Of course you get a new jet, with volume pumped up and miraculously tuned in TACAN stations and I think it plays every TACAN morse code you fly over. Thats whats really weird.

 

But the solution I was looking for, was the one shaddo found for the Hornet instead. A Lua file with default volume settings. Of course the default would be "on" for people who start on the ground. So I would change it to "off" in my mods folder.

 

Same thing I do for the Countermeasures in the F16. I changed them in the LUA file to suit my needs because, when you respawn on the dogfight server, you have no time to configure a Flares program, because only seconds later you are in a dogfight. Downside is, every time DCS updates, the file is reset to default. So I just copy paste my own file over the default one after every update.

I thought maybe for the TACAN volume the same procedure might be possible. But maybe we will get that same LUA file the F18 has at some day in F16 folder too.

 

Ok, having had time to re-read your concern/bug, I have the following points

 

1. Viper has the ability to listen to 1 TACAN and 1 ILS only

 

2. The default TACAN (unless changed in the ME) is 1X. There are no map gnd stations on 1X

 

3. Likewise, the default ILS is18 something, so unless you’re near a single airfield with that ILS freq you won’t hear the Morse. 
 

4. What I suspect is actually the case, is you are flying on a server on the Caucasus map and are in actual fact, hearing all the outer and inner marker beacons for the airfields. This is a DCS bug, in that ALL marker beacons will be heard. IRL. This is nothing to do with TACAN or ILS. 

[Frederf]

Marker beacons are on a dedicated receiver and all share the same frequency. They broadcast straight upward so there's no worry of interference. It's normal to hear marker beacons on overflight regardless of ILS or TACAN settings.