KNOWN PROBLEMS AND FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS
I HEAR A CONSTANT TICKING SOUND WHEN POWER IS ON
This is the vibrator for the altimeter, and it's completely normal. The vibrator helps prevent the altimeter needles from
sticking. This is also the number one complaint that I've received on the
last version. It was the first panel I know of to simulate this, and
I think people hearing it for the first time were baffled as to what all the
racket was.
Yes, they are noisy. This
particular sound however is a quieter vibrator that was recorded from a 737-300 and
should ease your nerves a little.
To disable the sound, open up the file named
rp727_2_altimeter.wav with Sound Recorder, reduce the volume to nothing, then
save the wav. Buy hey, you guys wanted realism didn't you?
HOW DO I NAVIGATE?
Navigation is normally
done using VOR or NDB airways that
are published on enroute maps. There's several tutorials on the web
dealing with this. You may want to take the lessons that come with FS
which are excellent and will give you the background needed to use the
navigation equipment. A set of high altitude enroute charts is a good and
inexpensive investment. These are available for order from many online
pilot supply shops.
If you are flying a 727-200 or more recent marque of aircraft, you can also use the INS for waypoint navigation.
YAW DAMPERS
The 727 has two yaw dampers which are
engaged full time. The reason they are installed is to reduce rudder
oscillations that cause the airplane to become unstable in the yaw axis.
When the rudder sensors encounter such oscillations, the yaw damper system bumps
the rudder a little bit in the opposite direction.
The yaw damper is not supposed to limit
rudder travel in the 727, but unfortunately this is the way it works in MSFS.
Some have had problems with crosswind landings due to this limitation. In
this version, the yaw dampers can be turned off. The switches are located
on the overhead panel (Cntl-5). You can also use Cntl-D to turn them on
and off. Yaw dampers are automatically turned off on the ground regardless of
switch setting.
THE FORWARD VIEW IS
SET DOWN
This is a compromise to make
up for not being able to look down over the panel in FS. It's only noticeable
when on the ground. What it does is give a more accurate view angle during
takeoff, landing, and cruise. However when taxiing you'll have to use Shift-Backspace to get the correct view angle.
I personally prefer just to leave the view angled down during taxi as it makes
the markings easier to follow.
YOU CANNOT SELECT INDIVIDUAL ENGINES USING THE KEYBOARD
This is a problem I still haven't been able to fix. Don't touch the "e" key while flying. Instead, use the mouse to select engines if you need to. If you hit "e", you will only be able to use engine one.
If you get caught with this, just go to the Aircraft menu and click
OK.
MY RADIOS DON'T TUNE AT ALL
What's happening here is that you probably have downloaded an aircraft that is set for radios with standby frequencies.
Most 727 radios do not have standby readouts on the radios, and this is what you are tuning (unknown to you because they are not visible on the panel). OK, here's the fix:
Navigate to the main aircraft folder of the airplane that you are having problems with and open up the Aircraft.cfg file using Notepad.
Go down to the section that says [Radios] and change it to this:
[Radios]
// Radio Type=available, standby frequency, has glide slope
Audio.1=1
Com.1=1, 0
Com.2=1, 0
Nav.1=1, 0, 1
Nav.2=1, 0, 0
Adf.1=1
Adf.2=1
Transponder.1=1
Marker.1=1
For convenience, you can just cut and paste from this page. Save the file, load another airplane, then load your 727 again. Your radios should work
now.
Also, keep in mind that I've made the mouse
click areas around the knobs wider than other designers. You should see a
+ or - in the cursor for tuning fractional frequencies, and a blank cursor for
whole ones.
IF THE MANUAL KNOB ON THE AUTOPILOT DOES NOT WORK
You probably have an aircraft configuration file that needs some minor editing. Navigate to the main 727 aircraft folder that has the problem and open up the Aircraft.cfg file with Notepad. Move down to the [autopilot] section and add these two lines at the bottom of the autopilot section:
default_pitch_mode=0
default_bank_mode=0
Your config file should look something like this now:
Save it. Select another airplane then reselect your 727. The autopilot should now work properly.
FLAP SETTINGS ON THE AIRCRAFT DO NOT MATCH THE SETTINGS ON THE FLAP GAUGE
This is another problem with the aircraft configuration file. Some aircraft designers have used the 737 flap settings which are not correct for the 727. Go to the folder of the aircraft that you are having problems with and open up the Aircraft.cfg file with Notepad. Move down toward the bottom and find the [Flaps.0] and [Flap.1] section(s) with entries containing "flaps-position.0" to "flaps-position.8". Change the "flaps-position" settings in each [Flap.0] and [Flap.1] section to match this:
This will correct your flap detents. If you like, you can cut and paste this:
flaps-position.0=0.000
flaps-position.1=2.000
flaps-position.2=5.000
flaps-position.3=15.000
flaps-position.4=20.000
flaps-position.5=25.000
flaps-position.6=30.000
flaps-position.7=40.000
Save the config file, reload the airplane, and you should now have correct flap settings.
IF YOU GET AN ERROR MESSAGE CONCERNING THIRD PARTY PROGRAMS OR MODULES
WHEN LOADING AN AIRCRAFT
You are missing either the rp727_2.gau from the panel folder or fssound.dll
from the \modules folder. Double check your installation. You may have also
neglected to update your FS9.cfg as described in the Readme.
THE AUTO THROTTLE DOES NOT
WORK CORRECTLY
Open up your aircraft's aircraft.cfg file
with Notepad. Scroll down to the
"Autopilot" section, and change your entries to look like the ones
below. You may have to add entries:
[autopilot]
autopilot_available=1
flight_director_available=1
default_vertical_speed=100.000
autothrottle_available=1
autothrottle_max_rpm=99
autothrottle_needs_arming=0
autothrottle_takeoff_ga=1
default_pitch_mode=0
default_bank_mode=0
pitch_takeoff_ga=8.000000
This allows the autopilot and autothrottles
to work correctly. Save the file and reload your airplane.
HOW DO I SET AN AUTOPILOT ALTITUDE?
You don't! The autopilot only holds altitude.
EGT IS TOO HIGH This
is a problem with older 727's that you may have downloaded. Please contact
the developer of that particular airplane - I cannot fix it.
NO FLIGHT ENGINEER PANEL?
No, absolutely not. This is a Captain's simulation and not an FE's. I
don't feel like doing one anyway.
NO VIRTUAL COCKPIT?
Virtual cockpits have to be added to the airplane model at the time they are designed. I cannot do it.
ELAPSED TIME AND TIMER PROBLEM
The elapsed time on the chronograph will not increment when looking in view directions other than forward. This occurs because the clock gauge is not updated unless the main panel is in view. For quick looks around, this shouldn't be much of a problem.
SIM TIME CANNOT BE ADJUSTED FROM THE CLOCK
I've disabled the ability to set the clock with the knob because the texture loading can be aggravating. Use the menu to set the time.
AUTOPILOT LOCALIZER HOLD PROBLEM
The autopilot does not track the localizer well. What worked great for FS2000 is
now broken in FS2004. This is a problem with MSFS itself, and any fixes for this will have to come from
them.
BATTERY GOES DEAD AFTER A FEW MINUTES
If you're running on battery power only, the battery will die after only a few minutes. In real life, the battery will run about 30 minutes. But MS likes to do it this way, so just be aware that it happens and get those engines started quickly. If you have the FSUIPC module, there is a work around for this. It can be found at:
http://www.schiratti.com/dowson
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