Stop what you are doing! Go to the Radio Garden!

This is really fantastic.  The screen display is like Google Earth, but all the green dots are local broadcast radio stations.  Put your cursor on the dot and listen to that radio station live.  And it works very well.  If there are several stations in the same town, just zoom in.  

In the course of a few minutes this morning I was listening to stations in Guatemala, Costa Rica, Getxo Spain, and Bengaluru India.  

Go to the radio garden: 

https://radio.garden/

Another Amazing SSB Rig: VK3HN's "Summit Prowler 6"

Here is another truly amazing compact SSB rig.   Paul Taylor VK3HN is a true homebrew wizard.  So many great homebrew rigs come out of Australia.   

More details: 

https://vk3hn.wordpress.com/2019/05/01/summit-prowler-6-a-pocket-sized-ssb-cw-transceiver-for-80-40-30-and-20m/

Paul's QRZ.com page: 

https://www.qrz.com/db/vk3hn

Peter DK7IH's Amazing Rigs and Blog

It has been a few years since we last mentioned Peter DK7IH.  He has continued to melt solder and to document his work on an excellent blog: https://radiotransmitter.wordpress.com/

I was especially interested in the rig pictured above.  NOTE:  NO GLOWING NUMERALS.  That rig has an analog VFO.  The blog article provides some great pointers on how to achieve thermal stability.  Also, be sure to check out his "Old School" rig.  

I've put Peter's blog in the blog listing on the right side of the SolderSmoke blog.   

Book Review: "Man of High Fidelity: Edwin Howard Armstrong" (Free Download)

Dave W2DAB sent me this wonderful book.  He picked up a copy at a recent Columbia University lecture on E. Howard Armstrong.  Written by the notable science writer Lawrence Lessing, the book was first published in 1956.  The paperback copy that Dave sent me came out in 1969; while 50 years old, my copy is in remarkably good shape. 

I really liked the book.  The author captures the technical achievements of  Armstrong, while also describing vividly the world in which Armstrong lived.  Being from the area, I especially liked Lessing's description of New York City and the Hudson Valley in the early years of the 20th century. This was the world of my grandparents; Lessing's book helped me understand it better. 

For the radio amateur, I think the most gripping part of the book is the way Lessing describes  the excitement of early radio.  Armstrong was a true enthusiast for the new technology, and he was -- even as a teenager -- at the cutting edge.  He was constantly striving to improve the technology, especially the receivers.  Like us, he often became obsessed with his radio work, often forgoing sleep and missing family meals as he toiled away in his workshop. Lessing tells us of Armstrong's astonishment and joy, when, upon inventing the regenerative receiver, he was suddenly able to clearly receive signals from distant stations that previously had been barely discernible.  Realize that when he was doing that, he was the only person on the planet who was doing it.  He was the inventor. He was the first. 

Lessing gives us a lot of great information about Armstrong's work as an officer in the U.S. Army Signal Corps in Paris during World War I.  We learn more about how his desire to be able to detect noise from the electrical systems of enemy airplanes led him to the invention of our beloved superhet receivers.   But my favorite Armstrong in WWI story involves his visit to the radio shack of the ship that was carrying him to the war.   In the radio shack he found a conventional station.  But he asked the operator if he happened to have one of the then new audion tubes.  On the spot, Armstrong took the tube and rigged up a regenerative receiver.  He and the ship's radioman then delighted in hearing stations that had never before been audible.   Amazing.     

I was less interested in the sad tale of Armstrong's legal patent battles, so I kind of skimmed through that.  I'm also not much of an FM guy, so I'll save those portions of the book for a later date.  

I think this is an important book about a significant part of radio history.  It is well written.  It gets almost all of the technical details right (but sorry Mr. Lessing,  radio waves are not composed of electrons).  The book deserves a place on the shelf of all radio history libraries.   If you can't get a print copy, an online version can be downloaded here: 

 https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.189098

Thanks again to Dave W2DAB.   

"Want one!" F6DMQ's Remote Rig

I talked to Yves F6DMQ last night on 20 meters.  I was on my all-analog BITX20.   Yves was up in Toulouse, operating his station near Cannes via this EXTREMELY COOL remote rig.   He connects to the home station via 4G.   Check out the rest of his station here: 

https://www.qrz.com/db/F6DMQ

The Echophone EC-1 -- Chicks Dig it! In the Middle East! With a Hookah!

We've covered the success of this fellow before:  
https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2017/09/hallicrafters-and-romantic-life-of.html

But never before with a hookah! 

"The Bit Player" A New Movie on Claude Shannon

The Bit Player Trailer from IEEE Information Theory Society on Vimeo.

Thanks to Bob KD4EBM for alerting us to this.  As Bob put it, Shannon definitely had The Knack.  Check out the trailer (above)  for this new movie.   It looks like the IEEE is still working on the release plan for the film.  Does anyone have info on this? 

More info on the film here: https://thebitplayer.com/

Four years ago we reported on a video about Shannon: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2015/09/claude-shannon-had-knack-video.html 

Thanks Bob! 

SSB on the QCX? Sounds pretty good here (Video)

In SolderSmoke #211 we reported on recent efforts to generate SSB from the QCX CW phasing rig -- we said that we'd heard that the effort wasn't very successful.  But today we got an e-mail from Jim W4JED pointing us to YouTube video from Guido PE1NNZ.  

I must say the signal sounds pretty good to me, and it looks good in the waterfall.  Listen for yourselves via the video above.  His is the signal on the left. 

Guido has a great write up, along with software here: 

https://github.com/threeme3/QCX-SSB 

I hope this all works out -- it would be great to get on phone with Hans Summers' amazing phasing rig. Here is a picture that hints at the potential: 

Go Guido! 

SDR vs. HDR - Is the Superhet Dead?

Pete N6QW had this very interesting video about Software Defined Radio on his blog.  Thanks to G3WGV for putting this presentation together. 

It is very interesting, but -- for me -- it is also troubling.   I think something important is being missed in this discussion. You have to listen carefully, but if you do the thing being missed becomes apparent. 

Like many others, G3WGV asserts that very soon, 100 percent of commercial radios will be SDR.  Traditional superhet radios will be a thing of the past. 

OK, but I will make a parallel assertion:  Looking ahead, I think 100 percent of TRULY homebrewed rigs will be HDR.  

Of course, this really just comes down to how you define "homebrew."  I'm a traditionalist here.  I think of homebrewing as actually building -- from discrete components -- all the stages that send or receive radio signals.  By my definition, I don't think you can really "homebrew" an SDR radio.  Taking an ADC chip and connecting it to a computer running SDR software is not -- by my definition -- homebrew.  Even if you wrote the software yourself, writing code is not the same as wiring up all the stages that go into a superhet-style transceiver.    

There were a few lines in G3WGV's talk that seemed to confirm this difference:  The SDR radio is defined as a "server." Commercial manufacturers like SDR because they can use the same components that go into cell phones (exactly -- and people will soon have the same relationship with these "radios" that we have with their cell phones). 

I kind of grimaced when G3WGV described the two sets of users of SDR technology: the "early adopters" who are "technology enthusiasts",  and the "pragmatists" who don't care what's in the box -- they just want to talk on it.  I think "pragmatist" is a nice way of saying "appliance operator." Even the "early adopters" are pretty far from the world of traditional homebrew.  And for me that gets to the point that is being missed in all this -- this shift away from hardware is also a shift away from homebrew.   

But hey, this is a hobby.  To each is own!  Have it your way.  For myself, I plan to continue with the hardcore, radical fundamentalist, hardware-defined, discrete component, fully analog homebrew radio.  This morning I am attempting to stabilize a cap and coil VFO.  And I'm liking it.  As the world shifts to SDR, I look forward to the appearance on e-Bay of massive quantities of old forsaken HDR rigs.  We will buy them for pennies on the dollar and use the parts for new HDR Superhet rigs.  

Viva  E. Howard Armstrong!   Viva!   

Need Some Trans-Atlantic Support -- "The Impoverished Radio Experimenter"

A friend in the UK writes: 

I'm looking for volumes 2 and 4 of the "The Impoverished Radio Experimenter" pamphlets. I've searched in the UK for them - they are available but at silly money (nigh on £25.00 each). No sign of any pdf downloads, either. pdf downloads (preferred!) or purchasing at £10 and under would do me fine, if you know any sources?

Any ideas?    Thanks,  Bill 

SolderSmoke Podcast #211 -- Malicious Code! Spaace! Vintage Sideband! MAILBAG

27 April 2019

SolderSmoke Podcast #211 is available

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke211.mp3

Pete NOT quitting podcast!  Malicious code case RESOLVED! 

Ambiguity and the Digi-Analog Divide

Edwin Howard Armstrong biography 

SPAACE! 
   Apollo 11 50th Anniversary
   Oscar 100 in Geostationary Orbit.  Why can't we have one too? 
   Farhan puts AISAT in orbit.  FB!  
   Space is difficult
   SSTV from the Space Station

Pete's bench report. 

Vintage Sidebanders
    Recording of Midwest Vintage SSB "tune up session" 
    Vintage rigs that sound bad
    Distorted views on "distortion" 

Bill fixing old Bose Wave Radio

NOT GOING TO DAYTON.  AGAIN!  But SolderSmoke rep will be there

75 meter secrets of success (timing is everything!) 

MAILBAG

Steve N8NM sends me FB National Dial
Steve N8NM aspires to complexity -- enough of this simple stuff!
Dave W2DAB goes to Columbia U session on Armstrong, sends FB book. 
Jim W4JED -- reports of QCX sideband a bit exaggerated.  Where is Allison? 
Rob Powell wins beret challenge.  VK2TPM and VK2BLQ also win. CONGRATS!
Colin G3VMU sends nice 1930s radio picture
Alan WA9IRS sends diagram of digi radio signal flow.  CLEAR AS MUD! 
Chris KD4PBJ Grandmother worked at Hammarlund. 
Steve NU0P sends info on Art Collins and the Apollo moonshots. 

BITX on the Beach in East Java (Indonesia)

Nobel Prize winner Joe Taylor, K1JT, Talks to a Radio Club

Really great to see this session with Nobel Prize winner Joe Taylor, K1JT.
I liked his comments on his use of his retirement office at Princeton, University. 
I also liked his slide on how far below the noise level you can go with various modes. 
And then there was his reminder to 1) RTFM and 2) be sure to check the EME delay box so that your software will get the timing right when working earth-moon-earth. 

"Pulsars keep good time." 

A Beautiful Variable Capacitor (from Pete)

Is this a thing of beauty, or what?   Pete sent this to me back when I was having trouble finding a "smooth running" variable cap for my HRO dial receiver.  It has a standard Jackson Brother's reduction drive attached to the shaft, followed by a really cool gear arrangement.  Note the spring loaded teeth on the big gear -- that is to keep the gears tight when turning in both directions.  

As was the case with the HRO dial that Armand sent me, the beauty of this part will cause me to build something with it, really just for the purpose of putting it to use. We've been talking about double or triple conversion superhets with 100 or 50 kHz final IFs.  At those frequencies you can get good selectivity with LC filters.  As with the Drake 2-B.    Steve N8NM is sending me a dial that will go well with this part.  That will add to the already abundant mojo/juju.  I feel a VFO in the works.    Thanks to Pete for being so supportive of my luddite analogism.  

Life in Appliance Land

"Sexiest Radio!"   Hmmmm.

"It's the bomb." 

https://www.facebook.com/DXEngineering/videos/815962828760101/

The 3D waterfall is kind of cool.    As is the big screen on the wall. 

Homebrew Your Own Remote Head (with a 3D Printer) (Video)

After I issued a luddite complaint lamenting the arrival in ham radio of appliance-like "remote heads", Ed KC8BSV pointed out that at least one guy -- Joe VE1BWV -- is HOMEBREWING his own remote head. (You must admit, this sounds really weird.) I still haven't completely got my head around this, but Joe's video (above) is really impressive.  

We're living in the future my friends!

Remote your heads!  With 3D printers!   

Our Dismal Digital Future?

I'm sure some would find this device appealing -- to each his own.   But I don't like it.   It seems to mark another step down the path toward the complete appliance-ization of ham radio.  Note how the control head is looking more an more like something for your car audio system, or your cell phone.  

YUCK.  

Count me out. 

Just say NO! 

Menus are for RESTAURANTS!  

RIGS NOT RADIOS!   

HDR FOREVER!   

https://qrznow.com/barrett-4050-hf-sdr-transceiver/?fbclid=IwAR1LEoJ-nyeRKuzEu9tNdHcb1rRlTaD3zWnFDuIPrEdQ3cgytMU0hbQxOoc

From Cuba: "Technological Disobedience"

Necessity is indeed the mother of invention.  

This video made me think of the Jaguar DSB transceiver made in Cuba from the parts of Soviet-made television sets.  

Somehow I wish we were more technologically disobedient. 

"The Hobby Song" from Saturday Night Live

I kept waiting for OUR hobby to be mentioned....

Understanding Fourier Transforms

Lots of wisdom and insight here:

http://www.jezzamon.com/fourier/index.htm

Strongly recommended for those trying to understand mixers and harmonics. 

Digital Engineering vs. Analog Engineering

In  a book review Thompson makes this observation about the digital-analog divide: 

One difference might be that human beings can deal with ambiguity, and computers really can't. If you've done any Python [coding], you make the tiniest mistake, and everything stops immediately. That’s what makes it different even from other forms of engineering. When you are trying to fix a car, if you fail to tighten a bolt on one wheel as tight as it should be, the entire car doesn't stop working. But with code, an entire app, an entire website can go down from the misplacement of a single bracket. I think that's the one thing that sometimes scares writers away, because they are more accustomed to working with ambiguity.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/04/how-the-new-art-form-of-coding-came-to-shape-our-modern-world/

I am definitely more accustomed to working with ambiguity. All of my rigs are filled with ambiguity. 

Understanding Digital Radios

Alan WA9IRS writes: 

Hi Bill,

Thought I would drop you a brief note.  I have been catching up on my listening to past issues of Soldersmoke podcasts and was particularly interested in the discussion between you and Pete concerning the simplicity associated with non-digital, integrated circuits and microprocessors and all of the rest of the very small miniaturized circuit elements.  You rightly pointed out that you desired (along with a lot of the rest of us) to fully understand what was going on in a circuit and for that reason desired to maintain the simplicity of transistor and discrete components in your design and build projects. 

 I agree with you completely but offer the alternative to the simple circuits in the form of the attached simple diagram of the signal flow path in a digital radio. I found this some time ago in a digital electronics magazine and thought you and Pete would find it interesting.  Perhaps this might be something to spring on Pete on 4-1-2018.

Take care and thanks to both of you for many pleasant and thoughtful hours of enjoyment listening to Soldersmoke!

All for now, 73,

Allan,  WA9IRS

My response: 

Thanks Allan, Very illuminating.   It is all clear to me now.   I feel so much better.  FB OM.   73  Bill 

Circuit for Farhan's Satellite -- Arduino in SPACE

Farhan sent me the schematic of the AISAT amateur digital satellite that went into orbit on April 1, 2019 from India.   He notes that the circuitry is very simple.   Indeed, it reminds me of the very simple but effective circuitry we saw in satellites in the early days of the space age.  Beautiful simplicity, with an Arduino on-board.   And it is great to see that Farhan did not forget the low pass filter.  FB OM.  

Packets from Farhan's Space Ship

Farhan's AISAT flew over this morning.   Using HD-SDR software, an RTL-SDR Dongle,  and my Dominican Republic refrig tubing quad I was able to capture some the packets.  Above you can see one of them, floating like a flying saucer in the waterfall.  Pretty amazing that that signal came from a machine put in space by our friend Farhan.  

Congratulations to Farhan on New Amateur Satellite Launched 1 April

This is not an April 1 trick.  Farhan and Exseed Sat have put another bird in orbit.  
Details here: 
http://amsatindia.org/

This site in Argentina gives pass information: 
http://amsat.org.ar/pass?satx=aisa1

I will be listening tonight! 

Congratulations Farhan! 

More info: 

https://www.isro.gov.in/launcher/pslv-c45-emisat-mission

https://makeinhyderabad.com/private-satellite-with-hyderabad-origin-aisat-starts-off-well/

Malicious Code in the Si5351 -- Pete quitting podcast

Those of you who have been reading Pete N6QW's blog (and all of you should be reading it!) will have seen a recent post about his efforts to modernize (digitize) the VFO in an old tube-type Ten Tec Triton IV model 544.  Pete complained that --oddly -- in spite of replacing the old analog tube-type VFO, the rig with a modern, rock-stable Si5351 VFO, the old rig CONTINUED TO DRIFT.  That had Pete and a number of us scratching our heads.  How could that be?  

Pete then completely removed the Si5351 VFO from the old boatanchor.   Sitting on his bench, all by itself, THE DAMN THING EXHIBITED ALL THE CHARACTERISTICS OF ANALOG VFO THERMAL DRIFT.  Wow!  Why?  Pete was really pulling his hair out on this one. 

We immediately began to see if others were getting the same results.  Nope.  None of our Si5351 VFOs were doing this.   This was REALLY strange.  

At this point we had to turn to a real Arduino expert, a guy who I had met during my time in Italy: Luigi Bugiardo from the Arduino research center in Bocalupo, Calabria.  Pete gave him remote access to his computer and he began to poke around.  

It didn't take long.  Luigi quickly found the problem:  He found several lines of malicious code "embedded in the Si5351.h and si5351.cpp files –sort of lurking out there and not easy to spot." 

Pete then removed this code and -- BINGO -- no more drift.   

Now I know some of you guys are thinking that this was just a bit of harmless fun.   But Pete is really angry about this.  He feels like he has been played for a sucker by some ham who was pretending to collaborate with him.  Pete sees this as yet another violation of the unwritten ham code of conduct.  To him this is another intrusion of computer/hacker noob hazing into the ham radio world.  And worst yet, he thinks this malicious code came to him because of this involvement in the podcast and his blog -- that participation resulted in the widespread exposure that got him into this mess.  

Pete is so upset that he has vowed to drop out of the podcast and shut down his blog. 

So come on fellows.  It is time to 'fess up.  If you did this, or if you think you know who did this, please send an e-mail to me at soldersmoke@yahoo.com   I think being able to pinpoint the prankster will help Pete deal with this whole thing, and hopefully get him back into the SolderSmoke...   

So Much Cool Stuff on Pete N6QW's Blog

There is so much tribal knowledge, so many good ideas.  Be sure to visit Pete's blog regularly.  

http://n6qw.blogspot.com/

He needs the meter from an SBE-33.  Somebody out there must have one.  

Check out his stepper motor antenna tuner video.  

And be sure to leave some comments or to send Pete an e-mail with feedback.  I live in fear that he will think no one is reading and then stop posting.  We can't let that happen!  

Apollo 11 -- The Documentary

My wife is a kind and tolerant person.  Proof of this is that she went with me to see the Apollo 11 documentary that we recently posted about.  

I think you have to be a geek and/or have The Knack to really like a 90 minute documentary with no audio other than Walter Cronkite's reporting and the recorded dialogue among the participants.   But of course, I loved it.  Amazing video, especially of the Saturn V.  

Bob Scott KD4EBM found this great interview with the film maker: 

Video:

https://www.tested.com/science/space/869951-apollo-11-still-untitled-adam-savage-project-31919/

Audio only (downloadable)

https://d2rormqr1qwzpz.cloudfront.net/podcast/stilluntitled_20190319.mp3

Amazing New Geostationary Amateur Satellite -- LISTEN ONLINE!

Wow, quite a step forward in the amateur satellite world.  Qatar and AMSAT-Germany have collaborated to put an amateur radio repeater in geostationary orbit.  That's pretty amazing.  Read more here: 

https://hackaday.com/2019/03/18/eshail-2-hams-get-their-first-geosynchronous-repeater/

Read about a group of Norwegian students working on a satellite station for this bird: 

https://www.la1k.no/2019/02/20/getting-ready-for-e%CC%B6s%CC%B6%CC%B6h%CC%B6a%CC%B6i%CC%B6l%CC%B62%CC%B6-qo-100-part-2-how-we-did-it/

And this is really fun:  LISTEN TO THE DOWNLINK LIVE VIA WEBSDR! 

We can't hear this thing from North America -- it is flying over the Congo.  But stations in its footprint are putting their receivers online -- you can listen to the 10 GHz downlink via WebSDR: 

UK WebSDR:   https://eshail.batc.org.uk/nb/

Brazil WebSDR:     http://appr.org.br:8902/

DISAPPOINTED! No Takers on Mechanical Filter Question! SAD!

So, in our last podcast I asked the group to take a look at two pictures of a mechanical filter that I had recently taken out of its case.   These pictures appear above and below. After a discussion of magnetostriction,  I asked the group if they could spot anything unusual about this particular device. 

I expected many responses.  What did I get?  CRICKETS!!  What is wrong with you guys?  Are you spending so much time with software and FT-8 and lines of code that you can't deal with a simple analog question like this?  SAD! I guess I will have to answer the question myself.  Scroll down. 

The diagram below presents the conventional Collins arrangement for a mechanical filter.   Note that at the input and at the output there is a coil.  This coil creates from the signal a varying magnetic field.  Because of the principle of magnetostriction, this field causes the resonators/rod assembly to flex and vibrate, much like a musical tuning fork.  At the output, this means that inside the core of the output coil there is a piece of metal vibrating at the signal frequency.  This will produce an output signal.  

But take a look at my little mechanical resonator.  Where are the input and output coils?  

THERE ARE NONE!  See those little rectangular things at either end?  Those are piezo-electric crystals that are MECHANICALLY connected to the disc/rod assembly.  So when the signal comes in, it is applied electrically to the piezo material which then physically vibrates. This vibration passes through the filter and to the piezo device at the other end. There the mechanical vibration results in an electrical signal at the output.  

So, I think it is time for you all to hang your heads in shame. Perhaps go to the doctor to see if you still have The Knack. Ask for forgiveness from the radio gods.  

We have lost our spiritual leader: George Dobbs G3RJV, SK

Yesterday we received the very sad news that George Dobbs, G3RJV has died. 

I think it is no exaggeration to say that with George's passing, we have lost our spiritual and  philosophical leader.  The founder of the G-QRP Club and Editor of our beloved SPRAT journal, George took his strong technical skills and his talent for writing and combined it with the wisdom about life that came from his religious vocation. He was a prolific writer and speaker, and in all his work you will find a unique combination of the technical and the philosophical.  Not only did he teach us how to build our own rigs, but he taught us why we should build them.  

We talk a lot about tribal knowledge -- George was definitely the source of much of that.  But he went beyond that and also became a major source of what we can call tribal wisdom.  He was one of our tribal elders. Instead of speaking to the tribe around a roaring fire, George spoke to us through SPRAT, through articles in other ham magazines, through his books, and through his talks at rallies and hamventions, many of which have been preserved in YouTube videos.  George's friend Tony Fishpool sent us the one embedded below. 

We are of course very sad to see George go, but we can all take comfort in the fact that he will -- through his writings and through his recorded talks -- remain with us. For years to come people who feel a strange urge to build their own radio equipment will find themselves reading George's work or listening to recordings of his melodious voice.   They will find there not only the needed technical information, but also the encouragement and tribal wisdom needed to carry on.  There will be a bit of George Dobbs in all their rigs.  In that way G3RJV will stay on the air.  And I know that George would be delighted by that.  

73 G3RJV.     

Viking Rigs Save the Day!

I attribute the success to the Times Sequence Keying.  And, of course, to the analog VFO.  

Thanks again to Jeff Murray.