Farhan Talks Radio Tech at SolderSmoke HQ (EAST) (TWO VIDEOS!)

Great stuff!  We were really fortunate to have Farhan and Humera visit the SolderSmoke East shack after Dayton and FDIM.  Dean and I had a chance to talk BITX with the creator. Here is the two part video.  Most of the tech talk is in Part II (below).  

 

Farhan and his zBITX

Dean and Farhan with three sBITXs

Dean's homebrew sBITX

Farhan Phone

SolderSmoke Podcast #247 -- Hating on the IC-7300, Pete Goes FT-8 with a KWM-1, Bill's 15-10 Rig, MAILBAG

Bill's 15-10 Rig -- Click on image 

SolderSmoke Podcast #247 is available: 

Audio Podcast:  http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke247.mp3

Video:  (482) SolderSmoke 247 -- Hating on the IC-7300, Pete goes FT8 (with a KWM-1), Bill's 15-10 rig, Mailbag - YouTube

Bill’s Bench:

The 15-10 Dual Bander.

n  10 pole crystal filter at 25 MHz.

n  G3UUR, Dishal, AADE and all that..

n  Testing woes.  Looked bad.  But it was a bad test cable. Duh.

n  VFO (Colpitts) at around 3.5 MHz.

n  Buffer blues:  Bad J-310s.  Beware!  

n  Variable cap from a Heath Q Multiplier

n  A bit of a black art – competing goals. Freq coverage, etc.

n  BFO needed an amp to turn on the diodes in the balanced modulator

n  TIA amps.   SIX dual direction TIAs.  18 transistors.

n  On a pine board (like Frank Jones)

n  Will use the N6QW all discrete AF amp.

n  Maybe an RD16 in the final?

n  Will build a second one for the DR.

 Shameless Commerce:  Mostly DIY RF and the PSSST kit.  Todd K7TFC reports:  “The P3ST is on track for Lee Deforest's birthday release (August 26th). I'm going to send out another newsletter on July 4th, and I'll give some details on P3ST development.” Results of Todd’s Survey.

Pete’s Bench

n  FT-8 on the KWM-1!

n  Presentation to the ham club.

n  Why the Icom 7300 is the anti-thesis of homebrew.

MMAILBAG:

-- SPRAT 195  Summer 2023, in the mailbox.  A happy day at N2CQR

-- Armand WA1UQO sent a wonderful book about Faraday and Maxwell… And told me Jim K8OI was heading to our area.  I met Jim at the VWS Field Day event.  FB.  Thanks Armand.

-- Tony G4WIF sent Father’s Day greetings.

-- Alvin N5VZH asking about electrolytics for his 2-B.  Hayseed Hamfest!

-- John AC2RL replacements for the IBEW.  We need to start over!

-- Steve “Snort Rosin” Smith WB6TNL was in the area.  Sorry I missed him.

-- Joh DL6ID helping us to track down origins of a homebrew receiver Grayson saw in Berlin.

-- Grayson KJ7UM was in Europe visiting his wife’s relatives.  But I think he is back in the USA.

-- Walter KA4KXX sent a QRP HB family portrait. 

-- Wouter ZS1KE sent info on surface mount soldering.

-- George Zaff KJ6VU Ham Radio Workbench – re-runs! Recommended audio processor.  Let me know how it sounds. 

-- Michael AA1TJ   Great to hear from him. 

-- Alan Wolke W2AEW on the toroids  he used in Diode Ring video.  Thanks Alan!

-- Dean KK4DAS, AI and SWR meter project  And new lexicon word:  Hamsplaining. 

-- Bob N7SUR --  Let me know we are semifinalists in the Hack-A-Day prize!  

The 15 - 10 rig from above -- Click on image

SolderSmoke Podcast #233: PIMP, Boatanchors, Novices, MMM, Heathkits, DC Receivers, Mailbag

SolderSmoke Podcast #233 is available. 

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke233.mp3

Travelogue: Cape Cod. SST. Marconi Site.

The WFSRA:   The World Friendship Society of Radio Amateurs.

Pete's Bench:

The Pimp.
The NCX rig.
The Collins.
The many DC receivers built worldwide.
The parts shortages are real! Several key radios on hold. Si5351 sub.
Talk to G-QRP convention

Bill's Bench:

FT-8. Not for me. I tried it.
Novice Station Rebuild.
Globe V-10 VFO Deluxe.
Selenium rectifier removal CONTROVERSY?
Not crazy about my Novice station. Not crazy about CW. 
Mate for the Mighty Midget. Again. 
Mike W6MAB -- Detector problems LTSPICE Check
One more mod for MMM RX. Ceramic filter at 455.
Dropped screw inside tubular cap on Millen 61455 transformer. 
Talk to the Vienna Wireless Society
Thinking of a Moxon or a Hex beam.


BOOK REVIEW Chuck Penson WA7ZZE New Heathkit Book. http://wa7zze.com

Mailbag

-- New SPRAT is out! Hooray!
-- Todd K7TFC sent me copy of Shopcraft as Soulcraft. FB.
-- Dean KK4DAS building an EI9GQ 16 W amp. FB.
-- Jack NG2E Getting close on Pete's DC receiver.
-- JF1OZL's website is BACK!
-- Tony K3DY sent link to cool books. 
-- Sheldon VK2XZS thinking of building a phasing receiver.
-- Peter VK2EMU has joined the WFSRA. FB!
-- Ned KH7JJ from Honolulu spotted the Sideband Myth in the AWA video.
-- Chris M0LGX looking at the ET-2, asks about the variometer.
-- Pete Eaton Nov 64 anti HB rant in november 1964 QST. Wow.
-- Josh Lambert Hurley spreading FMLA stickers in the UK. FB
-- Stephen VE6STA getting ready to melt solder.
-- Got a great picture of Rogier PA1ZZ back on Bonaire.
-- Farhan reading the manual of Hans's new digital rig.
-- Paul G0OER wonders if FMLA getting ready to move on 5 meters.

Some Initial Thoughts on FT-8

 -- This is really interesting technology.  Three cheers for Joe Taylor and colleagues.  This mode would obviously be very useful for fast, weak signal contacts as are needed on meteor scatter or EME. 

-- FT-8 does give you the chance to work DX that would have been difficult on other modes. 

-- Chinese hams showing up on FT-8 -- more than other modes. 

-- I think FT-8 is good for hams who just want to have a lot of "contacts." It is definitely not for the rag-chewer. 

--  I find it it kind of cold and antisocial.  More like a computer game than ham radio. A bit like sending  short text messages on a cell phone. 

--  I think FT-8 contacts are in some ways more meaningless than a "59!" contest exchange -- unless you look, you don't even know the report you got,  nor do you know the report you sent. 

--  For me it is more impersonal than CW.  But at least we let the technology decode the characters instead of having to memorize dot and dash sounds.  In a phone contact you can hear the other person's laugh.  In a CW QSO, you hear him key "HI HI."  FT-8?  No laughter at all. 

-- With PSK Reporter, FT-8 gives you a good feel for how propagation changes during the day. But it is kind of like 2-way WSPR.  As with WSPR, it is -- at first -- fascinating, but then it loses its charm. Yes, everyday you are heard in Belgium. 

-- It seems to be getting kind of crowded.  The passband for FT-8 contacts is often full, and it is hard to find an open space.

-- There is little opportunity for the homebrewer.  I hooked it up to my homebrew transceivers and had a small bit of fun using a 2N3904 as a switch triggered by the RTS signal for T/R.  But that's about it. 

-- I get the sense that the ham himself is not really needed in FT-8.  This mode seems like it could easily be automated or run by an AI.  Just tell it to go out there, make a lot of contacts and log them.  Maybe prioritize the DX you "need."  Has this already been done? 

--  After a session with FT-8, I had a really nice 17 meter ragchew SSB QSO.  That SSB contact left me happy.  The FT-8 session was a bit like spending time on social media or a video game.  It left me edgy.  FT-8 made me appreciate phone even more.

But hey, to each his own.  A lot of people really like FT-8.  I hope they have fun. 

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.