voice isolation change: Part 5

Post Reply
Keith Smith
Posts: 9939
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2010 8:38 pm
Location: Pompton Plains, NJ
Contact:

voice isolation change: Part 5

Post by Keith Smith »

EDIT: 4/21/20: Tower and approach repeater will be combined as of tomorrow.

If you've flown on PilotEdge before, you probably noticed that there are shared repeaters on the clearance, ground and tower frequencies. This allows you to hear other pilots on those positions within a given coverage area (ZLA or WUS) any time you are on a clearance, ground or tower frequency. This reduces the instances of blocked transmissions and increases the number of calls that you hear on the radio.

These repeaters don't exist above the tower level, though. So, once you're on approach and center freqs, you only hear pilots who are on the same frequency as you and are within range.

As of today (10/10/18), the service now includes repeaters on the approach positions, and separately, repeaters on the center positions, too.

What does this mean for you as a pilot on the network?

It means that when you're on an approach frequency, you'll hear all the other pilots who are also on an approach frequency within that coverage area. 4/21/20 update: tower and approach repeaters are being combined.

If you're on a center frequency, then you'll hear all the other pilots who are also on center frequency within the service area.

This should mean that it's a bit less lonely during the departure, enroute and arrival phase of flight. We cover so much airspace, we were finding that in most cases pilots weren't hearing any other pilots other than when they were on the ground.

It's a challenge to balance technical realism with a strong user experience. We feel as though users are better served by being able to hear other contextually relevant traffic (ie, approach level calls when you're tuned to approach, and center level calls when you're tuned to center), stopping short of simply having a party line where you hear all the pilots being worked by a controller.

If you're an active member, give a try and let us know what you think of the change!
nandrews0424
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Feb 25, 2018 1:40 pm

Re: voice isolation change: Part 4

Post by nandrews0424 »

Late to the party here, but I think this is a big improvement. It's easier to avoid stepping on people on and it feels a lot more like a busy frequency. This and the VHF simulation really make it feel next level.
damien
Posts: 24
Joined: Mon Sep 02, 2013 6:33 pm

Re: voice isolation change: Part 4

Post by damien »

Excellent improvement. Thanks!
Dj_Evola
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Aug 16, 2019 4:03 am

Re: voice isolation change: Part 4

Post by Dj_Evola »

We need more pilots!!
I'm doing a very good review here with my IVAO friends about your network. I expect some users to come and try the demo.
Keith Smith
Posts: 9939
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2010 8:38 pm
Location: Pompton Plains, NJ
Contact:

Re: voice isolation change: Part 5

Post by Keith Smith »

UPDATE: as of 4/22/20, tower and approach repeaters are being combined due to increased traffic. Most of the blocks are occuring across this boundary, so this change should alleviate a lot of that issue. The Center repeaters will still be active, but separate.
larryav8r
Posts: 6
Joined: Mon Jul 23, 2012 11:10 am
Location: Champaign, IL

Re: voice isolation change: Part 5

Post by larryav8r »

I'm glad I found this thread. I recently rejoined Pilotedge after a 7-year hiatus and was a bit overwhelmed, at first, by the amount of other-frequency chatter. I thought I had incorrectly configured something. That said, I'm warming to it now. It does make for more interesting flights. A couple of times it has forced me to change my speed or descent profile when a controller got busy. For instance, yesterday, I was handed off to KBFL tower and had to wait a considerable amount of time to check in while the controller was providing a "teachable moment" to another pilot on a different frequency. Instead of getting impatient, I opted to drop gear and flaps much earlier so I'd have more time to make the call. All stuff, I've had to do IRL.

Anyway, thanks for the great service you provide. It's good to be back.
Calmer than you are.
Keith Smith
Posts: 9939
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2010 8:38 pm
Location: Pompton Plains, NJ
Contact:

Re: voice isolation change: Part 5

Post by Keith Smith »

Welcome back, Larry. We have provided guidance controllers to minimize the duration of 'teachable moments' for the very reason you just mentioned. I'm glad it worked out. The voice isolation/repeater design has gone through many iterations to reach its current state. The network is getting busier all the time and we're aware that ultimately, staffing needs to increase to accomodate it. In fact, a new full-time controller is being unleashed on ZLA as we speak! The repeater design is a compromise of realism and scale. It's not perfect, but the reality is that compromises need to be made if we're going to support realistic freq changes for pilots without having real-world staffing levels (something which would actually require MANY hundreds of controllers online at once).

I'm glad it worked out in your case.
arb65912
Posts: 646
Joined: Sun Jul 17, 2011 5:40 am
Contact:

Re: voice isolation change: Part 5

Post by arb65912 »

I was away for 8 years from PE and I am back again and enjoying it to the max.

I was also wondering why and who I I hear when tuned to a particular tower frequency and after finding this thread all became totally clear.

I understand the need for decreasing the time of "teachable moments" as well as the fact that on PE we need to hear repeaters so Controller does not get pilots transmitting at once.

I think that the recent PE setup is the best for the purpose PE is serving.

Thank you Keith!
Post Reply