I’m new to this. I have several devices, a WisBlock kit at home, a couple T-Beams and several Heltec V3’s. If I use two devices, I have good luck sending and receiving depending on signal strength. However, once I introduce more than two devices to the mesh I can then receive but sent messages never are received. They are almost always acknowledged but they just never show up at my home station.
For instance, if I set up a WisBlock kit at home, and take any one of my other devices and send a message it is received, up to about a mile away with the T-Beams and maybe a little less with the little pocket HeltecV3’s. But for testing I’ve put a second T-Beam in my car as a client and then I’ll go somewhere in range of the car and send a message from home and I receive it fine. But if I reply, I get “acknowledged” on the iOS app but the message never shows up at home.
I’m using the latest stable version 2.2.19.8f6a283 Beta on all devices.
I’ve wiped them all and re-flashed with Meshtastic and I’m just using the Primary channel or attempting direct messaging.
All messages from home to my phone work great with the T-Beam in the car. Without it it’s spotty as there are some walls and very small windows at work. That’s the reason for the T-Beam as a mesh client in the car, to boost my range.
Anyone have any ideas? Am I missing a setting somewhere? I’ve also put a 5db antenna on the WisBlock home unit, and it’s doing great, but still not receiving messages if I have more than one device trying to mesh. The T-Beams are using the stock antenna. I do have another 5db antenna I will try on a T-Beam later but I am wondering if it’s a setting or a firmware issue instead of an antenna issue.
By the way, sending from my phone I either get:
Acknowledged - but message never shows up at home
Implicit ACK from another node - message never shows up at home
If you see “Acknowledged” when sending to a channel, it only means at least one node rebroadcasted your message on the mesh. You’ll see “Implicit ACK from another node” when you try to send a direct message, but another node rebroadcasts it and the intended recipient didn’t acknowledge it. So, it looks like the T-Beam in your car is rebroadcasting it, but it can’t reach your home. However, your home node is able to reach you, maybe because it has a directional antenna.
So, it may be a signal issue from the devices I’m sending from then? Weird that they can hear well but the home unit can’t hear anything back.
I will have to try and get the home unit up higher and try again, it’s using a 5db 915mhz omni. I don’t have an outdoor enclosure yet so all I can do is put it in a window. LOS is an issue in my area. Not much of a way of putting these devices very high, but that’s the reason I wanted the mesh to work.
I’ll re-position or try adding more nodes and see if that helps.
Just as a quick update, it seems to have been a signal issue related to the crappy antennas that ship with the T-Beams. After replacing the antenna on my home unit and on the one in my car, transmission seems to work well bi-directional.
The setup for now is:
Home: Wisblock Kit with a new 5db antenna
Car: T-Beam with a new 5db antenna
Inside the building I’m testing with: Heltec V3 in the pocket of my jacket with only a small exterior window well above where the Heltec V3 is located.
None of these units have LOS, the car and my home units are approximately 8/10ths of a mile apart with trees/houses/etc. and are both at ground level.
Trying without the T-Beam in the car results in random results, if I put the Heltec V3 in a window it works about 80% of the time, otherwise I can receive but not send.
So, if you’re ordering T-Beams get some new antennas off Amazon to go with them, the included ones are junk/very low gain.
I’ve run into this issue with the Heltec V3’s as well. Sometimes the antenna given is a 915mhz antenna and sometimes its not even though I am ordering the US versions. I picked up a pack of 915mhz antennas to replace the incorrect ones off Amazon as well and all of those units are working well.