HELPFILE&BUSINESSHELP
ISSUE 386|COMPUTER SHOPPER|APRIL 2020 121
We’ve got an Anker SoundCore Boost
Bluetooth speaker,which sounds absolutely
great. It lives in our kitchen, but usually
keeps playing reliablyeven if oneofus takes
the phone that it’s paired with intoanother
room. However,itall goes horribly wrong
when we use the microwave.
Iunderstand thatmicrowaves leak waves
in the same radio band that’s usedby
Bluetooth. When theoven goes on, the
music lastsforafewseconds then begins
tobreak up.I’ve tried moving the speakers
across the roomintothe lounge,but if the
playback device stays in the kitchen we still
get the problem. Is thereawaytokeep the
music going while we cook?
John HardingYou’re right that microwaves and Bluetooth
use the same frequency range,but you may
not also realise that it’s the 2.4GHz range
shared with most Wi-Fi networks.Your
problem could thus be Bluetooth or Wi-Fi interference,but it’s quite
likelytobe both. Oneofthe mosteffective waystoimprove
Bluetooth communication isbybringing thedevices as closetogether
as possible,sotry putting the phone ontopofthe speakers.
If that doesn’t help,movethe phone and speakers awayfrom
the kitchen asfaraspractical and see if playback becomes reliable.
Alternatively,youcould place the router closertothe kitchen, ortrytoreposition its antennaetoimprove the signal strength there.
If your router supports the 5GHz band, you could try configuring
your phone(s) so theyonly connecttoa5GHz network, which
should be unaffectedbyleaking microwaves. Some routers let you
configure separate5GHz and 2.4GHz networks with separateSSIDs.
Most phones will prefermore recent networks, so either don’t
connecttothe 2.4GHz network, or connecttothe 5GHz network last.Micronew waveIhaveaWersiVerona electric organ. It’s an
open-architecture system(OAS) model,
which means that the user interface and
operating software rely onabespoke
expansion card fittedtoaconnected
Windows PC.
Wersi’sOASmodelsall ran on
Windows XP,and no drivers areavailable
formorerecent versionsofWindows.
However,Ihadacomponentfailure in
the original PC andIwantedtorun some
newhardware and software,soItook
advantageofan upgradeWersi was
selling. This providedaWindows7host
PC fittedwithamorepowerfulprocessor
and an SSD.
Unfortunately,ittranspiredthat,far
fromincludingaWindows7driver,the
upgraded PC runs theOASsoftware in
Windows XP Compatibility Mode.Since
updating, Windows Media Player no longer
plays backWAVand MP3 files, and it
sometimes crashes the entire system.
I’ve spokentoWersi, whose suggestion
wastosell me an upgradetoanewerOAX
systemforroughly £7,000. That’s clearly
outofthe question. Is there any waytoget
the expansion cardtowork natively in
newer versionsofWindows, or canyou
offer any further advice?
Brian HannahOrganfailure
You’refacing an extremely niche problem
which, unfortunately,it’s impossibleforusto
solve.Modifying the expansion card driver is
beyond our expertise,soweasked theWersi
community whether there were any known
solutions. Jefffrom theWersi Owners’Forum
was alreadyfamiliar with the issues you’re
facing, and suggested that you either trade in
the organforamore recent alternative,
enhance ittouse asapowerful MIDI
controller,orstick with the XP-based
instrument while it still works.From your letter,
Jeff’s understanding
was both that you
have an imageof
the original XP/OAS
installation from
before you
upgraded, and that
this should be
compatible with
your newer
hardware.He
suggested that one
option might betoaskaWersi dealerto
restoreWersi’s modified versionofWindows
XPtothe updated PC.
While we wouldn’t normally recommend
sticking with Windows XP,this does sound like
the most viable waytoreturn your instrument
toastable and usable condition. Use caution,
however,asthe operating system is now well
past its endofsupport.We’d suggest that you
consider the PC only as an integral partofthe
instrument, and that you do youreveryday
computing onadifferent device.⬆⬆SSome routers can run separate 22 .4GGHHzandd 5 GGHHznetworkks.TThhellatter are miicrowave-oven prooff⬅MusicianMark
WhaleplaysaWersi
OASScala,complete
withXP-powered
touchscreen