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Showing posts with label Parent -- Allison. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Parent -- Allison. Show all posts

Saturday, September 18, 2021

SolderSmoke Goes FT-8 (Briefly, I Think)

 
Idle hands are the devil's workshop my friends.  I was home alone this week, and kind of ran out of things to do.  I started thinking about all those signals on the FT-8 frequencies that I'd hear when the rest of the band was vacant. You know how it is:  One thing leads to another.  I remembered that Rogier  PA1ZZ had sent me some interface boards.  Soon I was downloading WSJTX.  Then I bought a USB-Serial converter from Bezos.  

I hit a major bump in the road when I managed to destroy the little optocoupler that the interface board used for T/R switching.  No big deal though -- Pete has a simpler T/R circuit that worked fine: 


I even made it a bit simpler -- instead of putting an SPDT relay on the Collector of the 2N3904, I just ran a lead to the PTT terminal on my BITX mic input connector.   This terminal just takes one side of the BITX TR relay to ground on transmit.  With Pete's circuit, the RTS signal from the computer causes the 2N3904 to conduct, in effect grounding the BITX T/R relay. Bob is your uncle.  Building this little circuit was fun. 

I used the 600-600 Ohm  AF transformers on Rogier's interface board.  I scrounged up the appropriate connectors and soon I was on 17 meter FT-8.  After about an hour of casual operating (mouse clicking, really) I'd worked HC1HC, HI8CJG, DK4RL, J69DS, F5NBQ, PT2ADM, 8P6ET, KP4JRS, XE2YWH, F4DIA, EA4R, CO3DK, and HI3MRV.    All this while no SSB signals were heard on the band. I was running about 50 watts to my 75 meter doublet tuned to 17. 

The amount of DX you can work is impressive, but I don't know if I'll stick with this mode.  It kind of reminds me of 2-way WSPR.  I find myself wanting to TALK to the DX stations.   FT-8 doesn't let you do that.  But hey, I am not alone in trying out FT-8.  In fact, one of the very first calls that I saw on my screen was the very familiar KB1GMX.  That is Allison, a true radio genius.  That's a good sign.  So maybe I'll have to give FT-8 more of a chance. 

Saturday, September 19, 2020

SolderSmoke Podcast #225: Mars, uSDX, G-QRP, HP8640B, DX-390, Rotary Tools, Walla Walla SDR, MAILBAG

SolderSmoke Podcast #225 is available

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke225.mp3

Mars,  West Coast smoke.

Pete's Activities: 
-- DC receivers.
-- CW offset
-- GQRP talk
-- The uSDX project

Bill's Bench
-- Sliding into the Vintage Test Gear Cult:  HP8640B . 
-- Fixing up and figuring out Radio Shack DX-390 receivers.  
-- 220 to 110 on a few remaining devices.     
-- Got myself a Dremel-like rotary device.  

Tech News: 
-- ARRL/TAPR Convention:  SDR project from Walla Walla University students.   Intuitive explanation for why desired and image freqs in a mixer come out with very useful phase differences.  

-- Chuck Adams' Amazing Lab Notebook.   Includes a simple circuit to measure resistance and Q in crystals.  FB. 

MAILBAG: 

-- Dino KL0S  SITSing in his shack, homebrewing 9 MHz filters  FB Dino.  Airborne! 
-- Dave NT1U sent us the famous 1968 QST Article by W7ZOI re DC RX.  
-- Ron K0EIA listening to SWBC staions with uBITX.  
-- Ted AJ8T  Korguntubes making a 12AX7 equivalent.  
-- Joel N6ALT sent me a nice DX-390 manual.  Thanks Joel
-- Bob KD8CGH alerted us to the uSDX project -- story on the blog. 
-- Craig AA0ZZ Sent a great message with insights on computer code -- I will put up on the blog. 
--Tracy KN4FHX reports on optimistic prognosis for SolarCycle 25.  Some chickens may have to be sacrificed.   
-- Stephen M0OMO Thanks SolderSmoke for rekindling interest in this hobby. 
-- Paul VK3HN  has a cool new rig -- The Prowler -- check it out
-- Steve N8NM working on his Sunbeam car -- Pete already knew about the carburetor synch problem.  N6QW knows everything. 









Monday, August 31, 2020

Global Collaboration: The uSDX -- A Multi-Mode QCX


Bill:
There is a new open source, home brew, multi band, multi mode QRP transceiver that grew out of the QRP Labs QCX. Through some serious magic it retains an efficient class E RF amplifier for sideband and digital modes. It crams impressive SDR capabilities into an Arduino. More info at https://groups.io/g/ucx/topics

The basic work appears to have been accomplished by Guido Ten Dolle PE1NNZ. It uses pulse width modulation of the PA supply voltage to transmit  modes other than CW while retaining class E efficiency and uses a direct conversion SDR receiver.
There are several variants by different developers. I built a variant designed by Barbaros Asuroglu WB2CBA  
https://antrak.org.tr/blog/projeler/usdx-an-arduino-based-sdr-all-mode-hf-transceiver-pcb-iteration-v1-02/ that uses through hole components (mostly) and I'm pleased with it's performance. I also designed and 3D printed a case.



This has an interesting development process with contributions by many, including the usual gang of suspects: Hans Summers, Ashhar Farhan, Manuel DL2MAN, Kees K2BCQ, Allison KB1GMX and Miguel Angelo Bartie PY2OHH. I apologize to the many others whose names I didn't list.

The band switch multiband version by DL2MAN is even smaller, but with SMD components which I wasn't ready to tackle yet.

BTW - your podcast encouraged me to go in this direction. I built a BITX 40, a uBITX (sent you a pix of it in an old Heathkit Twoer case), U3S, QCX and now my first step from kits to built from plans.

73
Bob   KD8CGH


https://antrak.org.tr/blog/projeler/usdx-an-arduino-based-sdr-all-mode-hf-transceiver-pcb-iteration-v1-02/

Saturday, December 29, 2018

KC1FSZ's Peppermint III Homebrew BITX with Mods


Hi Guys:

I had some time over the holiday to finish off my second scratch-built rig.  I am very thankful that I got the work done on these projects before I read Pete's "Don't Build It" diatribe.  That would have been very demoralizing. :-)

Scratch build #2 (called Peppermint III) is still fundamentally BITX although I've made changes this time around.   I've switched to ADE-1 mixers with LO ports driven by adjustable gain buffers (ala N6QW LBS).  I've noticed that performance can be improved a lot if you can buffer/tweak the LO levels of the VFO and BFO (particularly carrier suppression on TX).  I did W7ZOI TIAs in the IF chain.  I've also taken the shielding/layout of the finals more seriously and have been able to dial up the power a lot (I did the KB1GMX thing with cutting off the drain pin on the IRF510 and using the tab).  The software is also greatly improved and now supports LSB/USB modes as well as software-driven PTT control for RTTY/FT8 and the hooks for my poor man's panadaptor.  I've been working lots of stations on QRO.

Total build time was about three months (half the time of #1) and the layout came out much smaller than before.  I made a trip over to Williams/Sonoma after Christmas and picked up the 2018 edition of the Peppermint Bark candy tin on discount and I think I can make it all fit.  More to follow ...

Happy New Year and 73s,

Bruce KC1FSZ




Saturday, August 22, 2015

SolderSmoke Podcast #179 SPECIAL TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION




SolderSmoke Podcast #179 is available:

22 August 2015


YESTERDAY MARKED 10 YEARS OF THE SOLDERSMOKE PODCAST
-- A clip: The first minutes of SolderSmoke #1
-- A trip down SolderSmoke memory lane.
-- The SolderSmoke lexicon -- words and phrases we use (a lot).

BENCH REPORT
-- Pete's antenna project.
-- Pete's new Blog:   http://n6qw.blogspot.com
-- Bill's big amplifier problem fixed thanks to Allison KB1GMX.
-- Six digit freq readout with an Altoids case.

THE Si5351 PHASE NOISE CONTROVERSY
-- ALL oscillators make noise.
-- Keeping things in perspective:  It is 100 db down!
-- Observations and tests from LA3PNA, NT7S, and K0WFS:

-- Try it, you'll like it!  The benefits trying things on real rigs.

NEWS
Interviews on "QSO TODAY" with Eric 4Z1UG.
Horrible band conditions.
Looking at Saturn with telescope.

MAILBAG
Another recruit for the CBLA:  Paul KA5WPL.
Ron G4GXO on Bell-Thorn and Eden9 SSB rigs.
Rupert G6HVY on Kon Tiki radio and Mr. Spock.  
Mikele's Croation BITX rigs.
Dean AC9JQ's TIA.
Bryan KV4ZS will build an LBS receiver.
Dave Anderson give Pete good antenna advice.
Steve Smith moves in from the garage.

Pete has built  12 SSB transceivers.  Intervention time? 

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20
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