Welcome to the Doghouse Network — A Guide for Amateur Radio Operators

Station: KN1B — Kirk, Titusville, FL Contact: kn1b@outlook.com | Full station details on QRZ.com under KN1B Last updated: 2026-07-28

If you’ve found your way here, you’ve probably heard the Doghouse Network mentioned on AllStarLink, EchoLink, YSF, D-STAR, or one of the DMR talkgroups it bridges — or maybe you’re a fellow operator wondering how to connect. This guide explains what the network does, how to reach it from whatever radio or app you already have, and what to expect once you’re connected.

What This Is

The Doghouse Network, run by KN1B, is a single point that ties several different ham radio networks together, so that operators on completely different systems can hear and talk to each other. Think of it as a crossroads: no matter which road you came in on, you end up in the same room as everyone else.

Specifically, this one network bridges:

• AllStarLink (node 54218) — the worldwide network of internet-linked repeaters and hotspots
• EchoLink (KN1B-L) — a separate, long-running internet ham radio network
• YSF — Yaesu System Fusion — via a reflector (a kind of meeting room) called “US Doghouse”
• D-STAR — via reflector XLX649, module A
• M17 — via this station’s own reflector, M17-DHN, module A
• TGIF Network — a DMR digital voice network, talkgroup 36940
• HamUnited — another DMR digital voice network, also talkgroup 36940

Anyone connected through any one of these can hear and be heard by everyone connected through any of the others. A DMR radio on TGIF, a YSF hotspot on the other side of the country, a D-STAR user linked into XLX649, an EchoLink user on their phone, and KN1B’s own physical radio can all be in the same conversation, even though they’re using completely different technology.

Why This Is Useful To You

• You don’t need to own every kind of radio. If you only have a DMR hotspot, you can still reach people on YSF or AllStarLink, and vice versa, just by going through this one bridge.
• More people to talk to. Each network has its own community; bridging them means a quieter night on your home network might still have activity coming through from one of the others.
• One reliable meeting place. If you’re trying to coordinate with someone who’s on a different mode than you, “let’s meet on the Doghouse” (or TG 36940) is a simple way to guarantee you can actually hear each other.
• Severe weather awareness. This station automatically announces active National Weather Service watches, warnings, advisories, and statements for the Titusville/Brevard County, FL area across all the bridged networks — useful situational awareness if you’re listening in, even if you’re not local. Warning-class alerts (tornado, severe thunderstorm, flash flood, etc.) are preceded by a brief attention tone, so they stand out from less urgent alert types. Current alerts are also shown at a glance on the Doghouse Network website’s status banner.
• Time and weather, on the hour. A routine, low-key time and current-weather announcement plays every hour — handy if you’re working the bands and want to know what’s happening locally without checking another device.

How to Connect, Based on What You Have

There’s no single “right” way in — pick whichever fits the equipment you already own.

📻 By Radio (a physical handheld or mobile radio)

In range of N4NMF (Titusville, FL)? You can reach the Doghouse with just a plain handheld or mobile radio — no hotspot, no app, nothing to program beyond the repeater itself. Tune to 224.320 MHz, -1.6 MHz offset, CTCSS 123.0, key up, and you’re on the network.

Not in range of a linked repeater? You’ll need a small internet-connected “hotspot” device that your radio talks to over the air, which then reaches the network for you.

• Get a hotspot device — boards built around the MMDVM/MMDVM_HS chipset (sold under many names — Zumspot, openSPOT, SharkRF, the HotSpotRadio-USB used by this station itself, etc.) work with a Raspberry Pi or similar small computer.
• Install Pi-Star (the most common hotspot firmware) — download images and setup guides at pistar.uk.
• Once it’s running, use its web dashboard:
  • For YSF: under “YSF Link Manager,” select the reflector US-Doghouse, click Link.
  • For D-STAR: under the D-STAR/DCS or XLX linking option, link to reflector XLX649, module A.
  • For M17: Pi-Star’s own M17 support is limited and being phased out, and mainline WPSD dropped M17 support too in 2025 — install the WPSD-M17 Community Fork instead (same hardware, currently public beta), then link to reflector M17-DHN, module A — host doghousenet.com, port 17000.
  • For DMR (TGIF or HamUnited): configure your DMR master server as TGIF or HamUnited, set your radio’s talkgroup to 36940.
• Then just key up your radio normally — the hotspot handles the rest.

Have a repeater instead of a personal hotspot? It can join too — but the exact path depends on what kind of repeater it is, and it’s always the trustee’s call, not an individual member’s:

• DMR repeater (MMDVM-based controller) — set its master server to TGIF or HamUnited, talkgroup 36940, the same way a hotspot would.
• Fusion/YSF repeater — only works directly if the repeater’s controller is MMDVM-based (e.g. Pi-Star/WPSD driving the actual repeater hardware); link it to “US-Doghouse” the same way a hotspot does. A genuine Yaesu Wires-X-only repeater (HRI-200) can’t reach a YSF reflector directly — Wires-X is a separate, closed system, and bridging it to YSF requires a dedicated radio-in-PDN-mode setup that Yaesu doesn’t make easy.
• D-STAR repeater — if its controller is MMDVM-based, link it to reflector XLX649, module A, the same way a hotspot would.
• AllStarLink-enabled repeater — if its controller runs Asterisk/app_rpt directly, it can link straight to node 54218.

Trustees interested in linking a system in should reach out (see Contact, below).

📱 By Mobile App (phone or tablet)

A couple of notes: - EchoLink requires a one-time license validation the first time you use it — see echolink.org for instructions. - DVSwitch Mobile is the same app used for this station’s own approved IAX2 users — if you’d like standing access configured the same way, contact Kirk (see Contact, below). You don’t need that just to connect, though: node 54218 also permits AllStarLink’s WebTransceiver (WT) mode, so DVSwitch Mobile’s own built-in “WT Mode” (under More → AllStarLink) lets anyone with a free allstarlink.org account reach it directly, no setup on this end. The app is also capable of DMR, YSF, D-STAR, NXDN, and P25 — but only when pointed at a separately run DVSwitch server, which is independent infrastructure this station doesn’t provide. - No app, no radio, not even a hotspot? Node 54218 also permits AllStarLink’s Telephone Portal — call (763) 230-0000, enter the PIN from your free allstarlink.org account, choose node access, and enter 54218 to talk into this network from any phone. - DroidStar is the most flexible single app here — it can reach YSF, D-STAR, and DMR directly without needing separate hotspot hardware, similar to a software-only hotspot. Search for and connect to “US-Doghouse” (YSF), reflector XLX649 module A (D-STAR), or talkgroup 36940 (TGIF and HamUnited) from within the app. - RepeaterPhone is a polished, paid alternative for iPhone/iPad users, with Apple Watch support — it can reach this network through either EchoLink or AllStarLink, whichever you have an account for. - BlueDV is different from DroidStar/RepeaterPhone in one important way: it needs an actual small USB AMBE hardware dongle plugged into your device to do the digital voice conversion — it’s not a “no extra hardware” option, but it’s a solid choice if you already own one of these dongles. - QSO One is a free multi-mode client — one app reaches AllStarLink, EchoLink, DMR (TGIF and HamUnited), YSF, and M17. Currently available for Windows (10/11, 64-bit) and Android (8.0+); iOS, macOS, and Linux are listed as coming soon. Requires a free account sign-in at qso1.net to download.

💻 By Computer (Windows, Mac, or Linux)

QSO One is currently the most actively developed option here, and reaches the widest range of networks (AllStarLink, EchoLink, DMR, YSF, and M17) from a single Windows app — worth trying first if you’re on Windows. EchoLink’s official Mac/Linux support is limited (the mobile apps are the more reliable route on those platforms) — DroidStar is fully cross-platform and a solid option if you’re on a Mac or Linux machine and want to reach YSF or DMR without separate radio hardware.

What You Might Hear (and Why It’s Normal)

• A brief tone or click with no voice. This is usually routine network telemetry (a connect/disconnect notification, or a courtesy tone) — not a malfunction, and not someone trying to talk to you.
• An automated voice announcing the time and weather, on the hour. This is expected, routine, and not a live operator.
• An automated voice announcing a tornado, severe thunderstorm, or other NWS alert. This is the severe weather feature working as intended — take it seriously if you’re in or near the area it covers.
• A brief attention tone immediately before that voice announcement. This only happens ahead of Warning-class alerts (tornado, severe thunderstorm, flash flood, etc.) — Watches, Advisories, and Statements play without it. It’s intentional, meant to flag the more urgent alert types, not a malfunction.
• Cross-talk from a network you’re not directly on. If you’re connected via YSF and suddenly hear a DMR conversation, that’s the bridge working correctly — someone on TGIF or HamUnited is talking, and it’s reaching you too.

The Two DMR Networks Bridged Here

TGIF and HamUnited are separate, independently-run DMR networks — both happen to carry talkgroup 36940 into this bridge, but joining one doesn’t automatically join the other. Here’s what each one requires:

M17 — Open Source, and Built to Be Explored

M17 gets its own section here because it’s not just another mode to connect to — it’s one you can actually get inside of. The protocol specification, the voice codec, and the reflector software this station itself runs are all open source, free to read, modify, and build on.

What makes it different: DMR, D-STAR, and YSF all encode voice using AMBE, a codec licensed from a single company — usable, but closed. M17 uses Codec 2 instead, a free, open-source voice codec developed by David Rowe (VK5DGR), and the whole M17 protocol spec is released under the GNU General Public License. It was started in 2019 by Wojciech Kaczmarski (SP5WWP) in Warsaw, Poland — named after his club’s street address — and has since received ARDC development grants (2021, 2022), been relayed through the QO-100 geostationary satellite, and seen its first commercial handheld ship (Connect Systems’ CS7000-M17, July 2024). Over 130 M17 reflectors are running worldwide as of mid-2026.

Connect to this station’s M17 reflector, M17-DHN: module A, port 17000. Now listed on DVRef’s public M17 reflector directory — the source most clients’ host lists pull from — so it should show up automatically for most setups. If it hasn’t reached your client’s own cached list yet, add it manually using this site’s own address, doghousenet.com. You can also check the live M17 dashboard for current connection status.

Go deeper — explore, experiment, or contribute:

This station’s own MMDVM hotspot — a BridgeCom SkyBridge — was reconfigured from Pi-Star to WPSD specifically to add M17 into the mix for hands-on radio-side experimentation. You don’t need an old or spare hotspot to do the same: WPSD supports the same modes Pi-Star does, plus more, and firmware is available for almost every hotspot currently sold — a straightforward switch worth trying on whatever you’re already running.

This station’s own M17-DHN reflector runs mrefd, open-source reflector software by N7TAE — the same kind of project this list points you toward if building infrastructure, not just using it, is what interests you.

Quick AllStarLink Command Reference

If you’re connecting via AllStarLink directly (not through EchoLink, YSF, or DMR — those have their own normal connect procedures), these are the standard DTMF commands once you’re keyed up on your own node, sent to reach node 54218:

A few general-purpose status commands, useful on most AllStarLink nodes:

(Always key up on your own radio before sending a DTMF command — never key up the radio that’s physically connected to a node you’re trying to control.)

Basic Etiquette

• Pause briefly between transmissions. This gives others a chance to jump in or respond, and lets the network’s own courtesy tones/telemetry settle.
• Identify per your license requirements. Standard FCC ID rules apply regardless of which bridged network you’re using.
• Be patient with cross-network audio quality. Bridging between different digital modes (DMR ↔︎ YSF ↔︎ D-STAR ↔︎ analog AllStarLink/EchoLink) involves real-time audio conversion. Quality is generally good, but isn’t always perfectly identical to a same-mode-to-same-mode conversation.
• If you hear severe weather alert traffic, please let it finish before keying up — these announcements can be important to other listeners.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is anyone actually monitoring this all the time? The network runs automatically and reliably, but it’s not necessarily continuously attended by a live operator. Feel free to call out and wait for a response.

Can I request to be added as a recognized user with standing access? That’s between you and the station owner — email Kirk at kn1b@outlook.com if you’re interested in a standing connection (similar to existing IAX2 users).

Something seems broken — who do I tell? Reach out to Kirk, KN1B, at kn1b@outlook.com. A quick note about what you experienced (what network you were on, roughly what time, what happened) is the most helpful way to report an issue. Full station/contact details are also on QRZ.com under callsign KN1B.

Why do I sometimes hear what sounds like a duplicate or echo? This can happen briefly during cross-network bridging, especially right when a connection is first established. It usually resolves within a few seconds.

Glossary

• Node — a unique number identifying a station on AllStarLink. KN1B’s is 54218.
• Reflector — a shared “room” that multiple stations connect to so they can all hear each other; YSF’s “US Doghouse” and D-STAR’s XLX649 are this network’s reflectors.
• Talkgroup (TG) — like a channel on a DMR network; TG 36940 is the one used on both TGIF and HamUnited for this bridge.
• YSF — Yaesu System Fusion, a digital voice mode.
• D-STAR — Digital Smart Technologies for Amateur Radio, another digital voice mode, common on Icom radios; this network’s D-STAR reflector is XLX649, module A.
• M17 — an open-source digital voice mode using the free Codec 2 voice codec instead of the proprietary AMBE codec used by DMR, D-STAR, and YSF; this network’s M17 reflector is M17-DHN, module A.
• DMR — Digital Mobile Radio, a different digital voice mode (TGIF and HamUnited are both DMR networks).
• Hotspot — a small device that connects your handheld/mobile radio to one of these digital networks over the internet.
• Bridge — the behind-the-scenes software that translates between different network formats so traffic from one can reach another.

Questions about any of this? Kirk (KN1B) is always glad to help — reach out any time at kn1b@outlook.com.

Thank you for being part of the Doghouse Network — whichever mode you came in on. 73!