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Saturday, October 28, 2023

Mattia Zamana's Amazing Direct Conversion Receiver

Thanks to Ed KC8SBV for sending me this awesome video.  It looks like Mattia built this receiver way back in 1995.  The tuning indicator is very cool, and I had not seen a similar indicator before (could this be a way for us to escape the clutches of the San Jian counters or the Arduinos?)  The Italian ham magazine articles are great, and you can follow the rig description even if you can't read the Italian.  The pictures in in the attached drive are also very good.  

WB9ZKY used Google Translate to get English versions of the articles.  Thanks Chuck! 

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/kil3osilchqlyk8afim2r/part1.pdf?rlkey=9ubgaqb8t4k91d1a10su9mw1p&dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/t2790qatf5riepyqh5oj1/part2.pdf?rlkey=bhs77gkcchziakh7ngjbpuaz7&dl=0

I have been in touch with Mattia via YouTube:  He reports that he has done other electronic projects, but he considers this to be the most interesting.  He does not have a ham license -- he has a Shortwave Listener license.  His father was a ham:  I3ZQG. 

This is one of the rare cases in which the builder should -- I think -- be issued his ham licence purely on the basis of this build.  

Mattia writes:  

Jul 25, 2023 ITALIA

Mattia Zamana


7 comments:

  1. Bill, I think you have the authority to bestow honorary licenses.

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    Replies
    1. Under the authority assumed to be granted to me by The Radio Gods, Jean Shepherd, Frank Jones, Guglielmo Marconi, and a bunch of other people, I hereby and henceforth grant to Mattia Zamana an Honorary ADVANCED CLASS amateur radio license (because it is the coolest of all licenses), with all of the rights, privileges and benefits that from it derive and pertain, in perpetuity.

      Delete
  2. Bill -

    Thanks for posting, great video.

    Here are my attempts at using Google Translate on the two articles by Mattia (hopefully people will be able to copy the long URL):

    https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/kil3osilchqlyk8afim2r/part1.pdf?rlkey=9ubgaqb8t4k91d1a10su9mw1p&dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/t2790qatf5riepyqh5oj1/part2.pdf?rlkey=bhs77gkcchziakh7ngjbpuaz7&dl=0

    Best Regards,
    Chuck, WB9KZY

    ReplyDelete
  3. VFO at 21Mhz is amazing all in itself

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  4. Nice translation job, WB9KZY! It's all there.

    This is really a great article and well written. The details incorporated in the text are important and the author includes as much as he can in a limited space so the reader can understand his design process.
    Details such as understanding the hum issues encountered with direct conversion, and the measures the author took to remedy them-excellent.
    The use of the analog meter for frequency is clever. Rather than using a digital frequency counter with its sometimes difficult spurs plus noise that can ruin a receiver, his method neatly side-steps the problem. You can still use a digital counter, just be ready to buffer and shield it from the rest of the receiver!

    Hey, they give out Honorary PhD's, why not an Honorary Amateur Radio License?

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  5. This is a very interesting take on the Direct Conversion set. Nicely written too.

    https://acidbourbon.wordpress.com/2021/04/11/a-74xx-defined-radio/

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  6. Lovely work, on every level. Congratulations Mattia! -- Paul VK3HN.

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