TOPIC PAGE Using the FOXPRO FX3 Digital Game Call Quick Operating Guide About the FX3 Speakers Batteries and Charging Auxiliary Jack Function Using the Remote Control Reprogramming Sounds Online Programming Support Center Downloading the FOXPRO Programming Utility Programming Your FOXPRO FX3 Printing a Sound List Maximizing Remote Control Range 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 6 7 10 10 11 Important Information FOXPROs goal is to provide our customers with the highest quality products in the industry. We take great pride in manufacturing our products in the USA. Please do not hesitate to contact us for assistance, comments or questions. FOXPRO Inc. 14 Fox Hollow Drive Lewistown, PA 17044
(717) 248-2507 Fax: (717) 247-3594 Hours of Operation Monday Friday 8AM 5PM EST Contact Us Customer Service: (717) 248-2507 Toll Free Orders Only: 866-463-6977 General Inquiry E-mail: sales@gofoxpro.com Stay up to date with the latest sounds by visiting our online sound library. Watch for new products and upgrades from FOXPRO. Visit us online:
www.gofoxpro.com Using the FOXPRO FX3 Digital Game Call Congratulations on the purchase of your FOXPRO FX3 digital wildlife caller!
You have chosen a highly advanced product with reliability, ease-of-use, and features that are second to none. The FX3 is the product of an engineering effort that spanned several years. Please take this time to read and understand the information in this instruction booklet. This will ensure that you receive the maximum benefit from your new FOXPRO FX3. Features 1. Rugged injection molded ABS housing 2. On/Off switch-manual volume control 3. Rear Speaker Slide Switch 4. Front Speaker Slide Switch 5. Low Battery Indicator LED 6. Sound Up/Down Keys 7. Reflex Horn Speaker 8. Rear Cone Speaker 9. Charger Jack 10. Rear Ext Speaker Jack 11. Auxiliary Jack 12. Front Ext. Speaker Jack QUICK OPERATING GUIDE Since the FX3 is shipped from the factory with no batteries installed, the first step is to install 8 AA batteries. These may be alkaline or rechargeable types. We strongly recommend high capacity NiMH rechargeable batteries over alkaline types for maximum performance, particularly when using loud volume levels. Installing Batteries in the FX3 1. To install batteries, remove the battery door. The battery door is located on the side of the caller, and is held in place with a knurled thumbscrew. 2. Orient the batteries as per the directions shown in each cavity within the holder. NOTE: The battery polarity alternates. 3. Replace the battery door after the batteries are installed. Installing Batteries in the TX5-LRB The TX5-LRB transmitter operates from a 9V battery. Please use a high quality alkaline battery. 1. Remove the battery compartment cover located on the rear of the transmitter. 2. Connect the 9V battery to the connector plug, and orient the battery in the transmitter. 3. Replace the battery compartment cover. Playing Sounds Manually 1. Make sure that at least 1 of the speaker selector slide switches is set to the right, or ON position. 2. Click the On/Off/Volume switch to the on position. Please note that this switch is also the volume control when the unit is operated without the remote control. The further clockwise you turn the knob, the louder the unit will play. At this point, the LCD display on the FX3 will be flashing
- -. 3. Press the up or down arrow keypad button on the FX3 to select a sound number. Once selected, release the button, and the sound will play. To select a different sound, simply press the up or down arrow buttons again to your desired sound. Please note that by pressing and holding either the up or down keys the numbers will ramp slowly at first, and then increase to a faster ramp speed. Playing Sounds with the TX5-LRB Remote Control 1. Turn on the TX5-LRB transmitter by pushing any of its keys. Choose the sound number to be played by using the transmitter sound up or down buttons. 2. When the chosen number is shown in the transmitter display, push the SEND button. NOTE: Although the FX3 enters remote mode un-muted, no sound will be heard because volume is preset to minimum. 3. To adjust the volume, press and hold the VOLUME UP key on the transmitter. Release the key when the volume reaches a suitable level. If no sound is heard you may have inadvertently pushed the MUTE button. Note that the mute function is latching. That is, the first button push will mute or pause the sound and the next will allow the sound to play. The MUTE will cause the sound to pause in addition to muting it. Use the AUX button to activate a device such as a decoy or camera connected to the FX3 AUX connector. Remember to turn the volume control to OFF when you are finished using the caller. MUTE is not OFF. Some battery drain continues in MUTE mode. ABOUT THE SPEAKERS This caller incorporates 2 different types of loudspeakers. The front speaker is a high efficiency horn with maximum sensitivity in the frequency range necessary to reproduce small animal distress sounds. Distress sounds of rabbits, small rodents, birds, canines, and many others are best reproduced by using the front horn only with the rear cone speaker turned off. This will also ensure maximum battery life as playing both speakers requires almost twice as much battery power. The rear cone speaker is best suited to sounds that have significant lower frequency content. These sounds would include bear growls, mountain lion roars, certain owl hoots and some other large mammal sounds. The rear speaker, however, is not as efficient as the front horn. Because of this, it will not play as loud as the horn. Understand that not all calling sounds will benefit greatly from playing both speakers at once. If you elect to do this, remember that battery life will be reduced. BATTERIES AND CHARGING Your FX3 operates on 8 AA batteries. For optimal performance and run times, we recommend high capacity 2500 mAh NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) rechargeable cells rather than alkaline types. NOTE: Remove batteries from battery holder when caller will not be used for prolonged periods to help prevent deep discharge. When you ask your FX3 caller to play at extremely loud volume levels, the current demand on the batteries is much more than alkaline cells can deliver. Consequently, the run time of these batteries can be very short. The Zinc Carbon so-called Heavy Duty cells are expressly NOT recommended at all. The performance of your FX3 will be much better with high capacity NiMH batteries. Installing Batteries 1. Remove the battery door which is located on the side of the caller. The battery holder is located beneath this door. Be careful to observe battery polarity! Note that the cell polarity alternates. Batteries may be damaged if installed backwards. Double-check polarity before reinstalling the battery door. NiMH batteries should be charged before first use. CAUTION: Never attempt to charge batteries that are not intended to be recharged! This includes both Zinc Carbon and alkaline cells. The resulting damage can be serious, and will not be covered by the warranty. For maximum charge efficiency, we recommend charging your FX3 in temperatures ranging from 40F to 85F (5C to 30C). To charge the batteries, connect the FOXPRO FX Series charger to the FX3 charge jack. Be aware that the green LED may or may not extinguish when the batteries are fully charged. Your FOXPRO unit incorporates circuitry to terminate charge current if high battery temperatures are detected. Battery temperatures increase at the end of the charge cycle. If the temperature edges towards a dangerous level, the charge current will be interrupted and the green LED will extinguish. If excessive temperature is not detected, the green LED will not be extinguished. It is quite possible for the batteries to be fully charged without their temperature rising to the dangerous level. For this reason, the LED should not be considered as a full charge indicator as it may or may not extinguish when the batteries are fully charged. The batteries are fully charged any time their temperature rises substantially above ambient. How long this takes depends on how much charge has been taken from the batteries and how much time has passed since the last charge. If the green LED goes out, the batteries are definitely charged. If the green LED is on and the batteries are cool, they are still charging. If the green LED is on and the batteries are very warm, they are fully charged and you should terminate the charge by unplugging the charger. You should not permit the charge to continue for more than 12 hours under any circumstances. The batteries need to be recharged when the Low Battery LED is blinking while the FX3 is in use. If this warning is ignored, the FX3 will abruptly shut off and display LO on the LCD display. Battery run time is directly related to how loud you operate the FX3. Using both speakers at the same time rather than only the most appropriate one will have a negative impact on run time. With one speaker playing, expect 6 to 15 hours of run time, depending on the loudness setting. With both speakers playing, expect 3 to 10 hours. Remember that very loud volumes are rarely needed, as animals hear much better than we do. AUX JACK FUNCTION The FX3 is equipped with an auxiliary jack labeled AUX. The purpose of this jack is to allow for the connection of certain external devices, such as the FOXPRO Jack-in-the-Box Decoy, and to be able to turn these on and off with the TX5-LRB remote control transmitter. However, there are some strict electrical limits involved with this jack. If these limits are exceeded, damage to your FX3 will result. This damage is not covered by the warranty. The electrically inclined will want to know that the jack is connected to the drain of an internal Field Effect Transistor with a maximum current rating of 2 Amperes. The tip polarity of the 3.5mm jack is positive, while the sleeve is negative. If the external device is connected with the polarity reversed, an internal protection diode within the FET will conduct, causing the device to stay on constantly. The maximum voltage applied to this jack must never exceed 15 volts. Typical uses for this jack would be to control the FOXPRO Jack-in-the-
Box Decoy, or to start and stop a video recorder. Instructions on connecting various devices to the AUX jack are beyond the scope of this manual. You are urged to seek help from a knowledgeable professional before connecting any unapproved device to this jack. Remember that damage to your FX3 caused by improper use of the AUX jack is not covered by the warranty, nor will FOXPRO be liable for damage to any device connected to this jack. Typical uses for this jack would be to control the FOXPRO Jack-in-the-Box Decoy, or to start and stop a video recorder. USING THE REMOTE CONTROL Note that there is no local-remote switch to flip. Each time the FX3 is turned on, it enters the manual mode. While in this mode, you can adjust the volume with the volume control, and change sounds with the sound select buttons on the keypad. To switch to remote control mode, simply push any button on the TX5-LRB transmitter. The FX3 will auto-detect the remote control mode and silence any sound that may be playing. Once the FX3 has entered the remote mode, its volume control and sound selector buttons are disabled. From this point on you must use the TX5-LRB transmitter to control the caller. Select the sound to be played using the TX5-LRB sound selector buttons, then press the SEND button. Although the FX3 enters remote mode un-muted, no sound will be heard because the volume is preset to minimum. Now push and hold the volume up button on the transmitter until the volume reaches a suitable level. Each time you select a different sound, you must press the SEND button to make that sound play. Pushing the MUTE button will silence the speakers and cause the sound to pause. A second MUTE button push will restore the sound. REPROGRAMMING SOUNDS ON YOUR FX3 The FX3 comes standard with a USB 2.0 port built in (no reader/writer is necessary), which makes reprogramming or adding sounds to your FX3 easier than ever. A computer is required in order to reprogram your sounds. The FX3 can be reprogrammed by using personal computers equipped with Windows operating system version 98SE or later or a Macintosh computer with an operating system of 9.X or later. FOXPROs Online Programming Support Center The Programming Support Center features highly detailed written instructions for programming your FX3 along with a video tutorial that will guide you through the entire process. Please visit the following website for more information:
http://www.gofoxpro.com/program.php NOTE: If operating from Windows Version 98SE, you will need to download a driver that will allow your operating system to work with your FX3. This driver is available at no charge from our website, www.gofoxpro.com, under Programs /
Utilities, and is called Windows 98 SE USB Utility Driver. If you do not have access to a computer, sounds can be reprogrammed or added for a fee by sending your FX3 to FOXPRO Inc. Downloading the FOXPRO Programming Utility We have developed a utility that simplifies the reprogramming of sounds on your FX3. This utility is available for download at no charge from our website. To download and install the Programming Utility from the website:
1. Go to www.gofoxpro.com 2. Click on Programs / Utilities. 3. Once there, double click on the FOXPRO Programming Utility. 4. Double click Download Now. 5. Select Save, and choose the location to store the .exe file. (We recommend saving it to your Desktop). NOTE: The name of the file on your Desktop (if you choose your Desktop as the location to save) will be labelutil.exe. 6. Double click the labelutil.exe icon, and select Run. (This will begin the installation process). 7. At the next screen, select OK. 8. Click on the button where prompted (the button is the one that resembles a computer). 9. Click on the continue button. (This should complete the setup of the FOXPRO Programming Utility). NOTE: The icon on your desktop is only a .exe file used to install the programming utility to your computer. Once you have completed the installation of the program, this icon can be deleted. The actual program will be in your program files on your computer, and is called FOXPRO Programmer. The Programming Utility is also stored on the FX3s memory card. To download and install the Programming Utility from your FX3 1. Connect your FX3 to your PC with the supplied USB cable (once the FX3 is recognized by the PC it will be assigned a drive letter). 2. Enter your MY COMPUTER icon and locate the FX3 from the list of available drive letters (once you have located the drive for the FX3, double-click on the icon to open it up). 3. After the drive is opened, locate the file named labelutil.exe, and then refer to above steps 6 through 9 for installation of the Programming Utility. Programming your FX3 with the FOXPRO Programming Utility To gain access to the FX3s USB port, which is on the side of the caller:
1. The battery door is located on the side of the caller, and is held in place with a knurled thumbscrew NOTE: The USB port is located in the upper left portion of the battery compartment. 2. Connect the provided USB cable between this port, and the USB port on your computer. (Once the connection is made, your computer should recognize the FX3 as a removable drive). 3. Double click the folder on your desktop or go to your programs folder and open the FOXPRO Programmer. (You will be prompted to make a backup of your sounds). 4. Select OK, you will then be taken to the programming utility. 5. Select the proper USB drive for the FX3. (This is marked as Select Device, located in the upper right portion of the programming utility). NOTE: This drive varies on different computers. Once you have selected the proper drive, the list of sounds currently on your FX3 will appear in the right vertical window. You will now notice that a new button appears above the Select Device window that reads Backup. If you have not made a backup of your sounds, click on this button. The programmer by default will backup your sounds to a FOXPRO folder, and a sub folder Backup. This is the best folder to use to add new sounds prior to adding sounds, or reprogramming your FX3. You can also create sub folders for different species, if you choose, rather than to have all sounds located in one folder. Once your backup is complete, you are ready to reprogram your FX3. 6. Select the source folder of your new sounds (located on the left hand side of the programmer screen). This is the folder where your sounds are located. 7. Double click on the C: \ prompt and locate the FOXPRO folder. (The Sounds sub folder should show up, assuming that you have used this folder to store your sounds). If this is not the folder that your sounds are located in, select the proper folder. 8. Once the proper folder is selected, double click the folder. (The sounds should now appear in the left side column, called Source Sound Files). Now, determine the position that you would like to add new sounds to your FX3. For example, if you would like to add the Jackrabbit Distress to your FX3, highlight the sound in the left side column. NOTE: If this sound does not have a three digit number and a space located at the beginning of it, you must check the Append Sound Number box located below the left column. By selecting this box, the sound name will not be shortened. If there is a three digit number and a space before the name of the sound, there is no need to check this box. The first four characters will be either truncated or ignored, by not selecting this box. 9. Select the position in the right column where you would like to add the sound. If you want to overwrite the sound in that position, then click on the overwrite box, located between the two columns. This will replace the current sound in that position. NOTE: The sound that was located in that position will be deleted. If you choose to insert the sound in that position and move all other sounds down one, click the insert button. This will add the sound in that position and not overwrite the current sound. If you would like to remove sounds from the right side column before adding new ones, simply highlight the sound, and click on the Remove from List button, located between the two columns. If you would like to relocate a sound in the right sound column, you can highlight the sound and then type the position number that you would like to move it to in the Move To box (located below the right side column). This will move the sound to your designated number. You can also highlight the sound that you wish to move on the right column, and then click on the up or down arrows below the right side column to move the sound one position at a time. If you would like to reset your list at any time, click on the Clear/Reset List button, located on the right side of the screen. This will reset the list to its initial sounds. 10. Click on the Copy to Caller button located on the right side of the screen. Your sounds will now be programmed to your FX3. IMPORTANT NOTE: Your FX3 will play .FXP, .mp3 and .wav files (stereo .wav files at 32 kHz sample rate). Other file types are not supported. Although you may store .FXP sounds on your computer for later use, they cannot be played on your computer, or on any audio player other than a FOXPRO caller. Printing a Sound List With the FOXPRO Programming Utility Opened:
1. Connect the FX3 to your computer using the provided USB cable (the FX3 must be attached to your computer and the USB port on the caller). 2. Select the drive letter for the FX3 (this will display all of the sounds in the Caller Sound File Column). NOTE: Be sure that your printer is turned on. 3. Click the button labeled PRINT LISTS. Your new sound list will then be sent to your printer. UPLOADING SOUNDLIST TO OPTIONAL TX-24 REMOTE CONTROL Program your sounds into the FX3 as outlined in the instruction manual. Make certain that you do not use the same number for more than one sound! Note that the transmitter can only display 21 characters per line. The first 3 characters must be the sound number, from 000 through 023. Place a space between the sound number and the sound name. 17 characters remain for the sound name. Although the sound name can have more characters, the TX-24 will only display the first 17 characters. Any additional ones will not be displayed. 1) Disconnect all accessories from the FX3 (i.e. speakers or decoy) 2) Turn the power off on both the FX3 and the TX-24. 3) Connect patch cable from the sound upload jack on the TX-24 to the AUX jack on the FX3. 4) Turn on the TX-24 5) After being powered on, the TX-24 display will say Turn On Caller 6) Power on the FX3 7) The display on the TX-24 will scroll through all 24 sounds. When its done, the display will say Transfer Complete 8) Unplug the cable from both ends. 9) Turn off the TX-24 and the FX3. 10) Turn on your TX-24 and your new sounds will be displayed. NOTE: This process may take a few minutes. DO NOT turn off the TX-24 or FX3 during this process. MAXIMIZING YOUR REMOTE CONTROL RANGE Your FX3 includes FOXPROs long range TX5-LRB remote control. In order to maximize your remote control range, here are a few tips that you should follow:
1. Elevate your FX3. This step is the most important one to follow to maximize the range of your remote control. If your unit is raised off of the ground, the signal strength received by your FX3 will be maximized. In general, more elevation will yield better performance. Try setting your unit on a stump, fencepost or hang it from a tree limb, where possible. 2. Keep all antennas vertical. When setting up your FX3, be sure to raise the antenna to the vertical position and when operating your TX5-LRB, hold the transmitter with the antenna in a vertical position. Do not point the antenna toward the FX3. 3. Have a clear line of sight to the FX3. Foliage and other objects between the transmitter and the FX3 can greatly decrease the remote range. 4. Keep the transmitter away from your body, guns and shooting sticks. These objects can absorb energy from the transmitter and can detune the antenna, which will decrease transmitter strength. NOTE: Failure to follow these tips will decrease performance of your remote control. Also, please be aware that even if all of the above tips are followed, it is possible that the performance of your remote control could be limited in certain areas due to factors beyond our control, such as proximity to noisy power lines, two way radio transmitter sites and other areas of high RF energy. FCC Information NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that the interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna. Connect the equipment into an outlet or circuit different that to which the Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver. receiver is connected. Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference, including interference that may cause undesired operation of this device. Modifications not expressly approved by the manufacturer could void the users authority to operate the equipment under FCC rules. Industry Canada Notice Operation is subject to the following two conditions:
This device may not cause harmful interference and This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.