Honorable Mention: Bruce KC1FSZ's SolderSmoke Direct Conversion Receiver ON A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

This is obviously not the style of construction that we would recommend for new builders.  Thus the "Honorable Mention" category.  But Bruce is not a new builder -- in fact he has been a friend of the SolderSmoke podcast for many years: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/search?q=KC1FSZ   When Bruce sent us the above video and a report on his build of the SolderSmoke Direct Conversion Receiver,  we thought it was so cool that we wanted to share it with the community. Be sure to go to Bruce's GitHub page for more details: https://github.com/brucemack/kc1fsz-tjdcr

Bruce writes: My unauthorized modification is in the construction realm.  I've built Bill/Dean's original circuit in a compact form on a commercial PCB. This was a good chance to practice with KiCad, Chinese PCB fabs, and SMD soldering. Huge thanks to Scott KQ4AOP for making me the PTO form! The rig works great.  Thanks to Bill/Dean for leading such a successful/educational build project.

Hi Bill:

I had refrained from any postings of my work because the "purity" of my build may be called into question and I didn't want to create further distractions from your efforts. HIHI.  If you scroll down this page you'll get an idea of what I've been up to: https://github.com/brucemack/kc1fsz-tjdcr.

I also see that you've switched away from the Schottky diodes which I have not done, so I'll make that change to see how it impacts performance.

Moving fully into the realm of unauthorized deviations, I've been experimenting with the simple "frequency offset" feature shown in SSDRA on page 218. Hanging that simple circuit from the high side of C2 seems to provide the hook needed for a simple companion CW transmitter module. Joking aside, I'd never built an analog VFO before the TJDRC project, nor did I ever learn CW, so it's been quite interesting to try to create a sister board that stays true to the TJDCR ethos but can still make legit contacts.

Thanks for all the work you guys are doing to educate the rest of us,

Bruce KC1FSZ

Dean and Bill:

What you guys have done with this project is truly amazing. I didn't build the rig in the "original wave," but I recently made one just for fun.  I finally got around to looking at your Discord this weekend and was completely amazed...  And Dean's tutorial videos are surely headed for YouTube platinum status!

Congrats and 73s,

Bruce MacKinnon KC1FSZ, Wellesley, MA

Bruce:  There are several builders on Discord who would be very interested in your CW transmitter module. 

Thanks Bruce!  Congratulations!  73  Bill  Hi7/N2CQR