Steve Kroop at Flytec USA <<info>>
writes:

A common question from pilots is: "how do I make my vario more (or
less) sensitive?" The answer is a little more complicated than it seems since
the acoustic sensitivity is a composite of the vario threshold and the vario
dampening. For example, the threshold can be set very low but if the dampening
setting is high, you could fly through a weak thermal and the instrument would
not beep. Therefore it is important to understand the difference between these
two parameters when setting your acoustic variometer. The acoustic vario
threshold is the minimum ascent rate required for the vario to beep and is
expressed in ft/min or m/sec. Typically we ship instruments with a setting
between 8 and 20 ft/min. Dampening in the amount of delay before the beeping
starts once the threshold has been exceeded. It is actually a bit more
complicated than just a delay but thinking of it as a delay will make it easier
for the purpose of setting the sensitivity. Typically we ship instruments with
low to moderate dampening.

Some pilots prefer the vario to not beep at every minute bit of lift which would
require a threshold around 20 ft/min. (or higher in regions that have strong
thermals). Some pilots want the vario to beep if they are just maintaining
altitude, in that case a threshold 0 ft/min would be appropriate. Most pilots
will use a setting somewhere in between. When setting the dampening you will
want to consider the type of air you will be flying in. If the air where you fly
is smooth and the thermals typically light you would use a lower to lowest
dampening setting. Conversely, if the air is turbulent with strong thermals you
would use a higher to highest dampening setting. Since the acoustic variometer
is so subjective it can take a little tweaking to get the settings just right. I
recommend that you start with threshold and dampening setting lower than you
think would be appropriate and slowly increase the settings (if necessary) after
flying the instrument in typical air.

Accessing these setting differs depending on the series instrument and is
covered in their documentation. Below are simplified instructions:

6030:

Dampening: Menu>Basic Settings>Acoustic vario>Customize sound>Damp. (range 1-35)
Acoustic threshold: Menu>Basic Settings>Acoustic vario>lift audio threshold>
range 0 to 40 ft/min or 0-20 cm/s

6015:

Dampening: Menu>Vario set>Vario filt> range 0, 1, 2, 3 Acoustic threshold:
Menu>Climb Aud>Climb thr> range 0 to 40 ft/min or 0-20 cm/s

6005/6010:

Dampening: 3 sec. Press Speaker key=Set mode> range 1, 2, 3, 4 Acoustic
threshold: 3 sec. Press Speaker key=Set mode>3 sec. Press Speaker key= Option
mode>2x short press of Speaker key= level 3option mode> adjust with up/down keys
(each blinking segment is 4 ft/min or 2 cm/sec)

5030:

Dampening: Menu>Basic Settings>Vario tone>Damp. (range 1-35) Acoustic threshold:
Menu>Basic Settings>Vario audio threshold>range 0 to 40 ft/min or 0-20 cm/s

4000 series:

Dampening: 4 sec. Press Speaker key=Set mode> range 0.5, 1.0 or 1.5 Acoustic
threshold: 4 sec. Press Speaker key=Set mode>short press 2 option keys= Option
mode>short press of Speaker key= level 2 option mode> adjust with up/down keys
(each blinking segment is 4 ft/min or 2 cm/sec)