WS-2350 Serial spikes

[guyfawkes]

Hi everyone

I recently got a WS-2350, it works ok with cumulus with the USB serial converter, which is good.

However I want to connect the weather station directly to my 9 pin serial port, because Cumulus has many spikes when using the USB-Serial converter.

When I plug the cable in the 9 pin socket, Cumulus (or my PC) does not recognize any data...

The driver worked fine for the USB connection, should I install the driver or use another driver when connecting it directly to the serial port?

Any help I will be thankful
Many thanks!!!




Operating sysem: Windows XP

[steve]

You don't need a driver for a serial connection. You need to make sure that your serial port is visible in the Windows device manager, that you have it set to 2400 bps, 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, and that you've specified the correct serial port number in Cumulus.

[guyfawkes]

Thanks for the very quick reply!

In device manager its not visible which could be the problem...

I would try changing those settings if i could see the device in device manager.

I'm guessing that it would be COM1 when i set it in Cumulus?

I contacted La Crosse but no help,
thank you so much.

[steve]

Assuming the serial port is on your motherboard, is it enabled in the BIOS?

[guyfawkes]

I presume it would be... I'm not so sure how it could be disabled, but i'll have a look.

Would i see it as COM1 or Serial PCI or what?

Thanks

[steve]

It would normally appear as "Communications Port (COM1)" under "Ports (COM & LPT)".

[guyfawkes]

ah, ok i'll check that, if device manager doesn't recognize the device does that mean that it is certainly not going to work with the PC or Cumulus?


PS; If its you who made Cumulus, well done! its an amazing software for free

[mikechristelow]

If your PC recognizes the COM port in Device Manager, there's no reason why it wouldn't recognise the connection from your weather console once you connect it.

[guyfawkes]

I see what you mean, the problem is that the PC doesn't recognize the console in device manager, so nothing on the PC can tell if a device was connected.

Thanks for reply

[guyfawkes]

I checked in BIOS and the serial port is enabled.
What should show up in device manager when I plug the WS in?
As far as i can see nothing new comes up...
The port isn't broken so what else could be stopping it from showing up in Device manager?

Thanks again

[steve]

As I said above, it would normally appear as "Communications Port (COM1)" under "Ports (COM & LPT)". It should be there all the time, whether the station is plugged in or not. The problem is nothing to do with the station.

The port isn't broken

How do you know?

What is the make and model of your motherboard? Do you have any unrecognised devices in device manager? Perhaps you need to install motherboard drivers.

[guyfawkes]

I see, the problem is i don't have Communications Port (COM1) in device manager at all, so you could well be right that I need to install motherboard drivers!

I only have 2 in Device manager>>Ports

One is COM3, and the other is LPT1 (printer port)

This could be why, i'm unsure of the motherboard model but i'll try to find out.

Do you know how I could download/install motherboard drivers to get the serial port recognized by the PC?

Thankyou

[steve]

Do you know how I could download/install motherboard drivers to get the serial port recognized by the PC?

They usually come on a disc with the motherboard. With a ready-built PC you would expect them to have already been installed. To get the latest ones you would need to go to the motherboard manufacturer's web site.

I think that you would expect to be seeing an unknown device in device manager if it was just that the drivers weren't installed. Maybe not...

[guyfawkes]

I'll test the port with another device and see if it works.

If not, it must be the motherboard drivers or the port is broken itself.

I don't have a driver disc for the motherboard so i would need to find a model number?
Is that inside the PC or where is it located?

Thx

[water01]

One is COM3, and the other is LPT1 (printer port)

What is COM3? Are you sure that setting COM3 in Cumulus and defining the settings as Steve stated previously will not work?