Just go to http://soldersmoke.com. On that archive page, just click on the blue hyperlinks and your audio player should play that episode.
http://soldersmoke.com
Oh man, we've all been there in one form or another. The struggle, the frustration, then, THE TRIUMPH! I love when his mother drops the plate. Thanks to John KC0BMF
It has been a while since I visited the Amateur Logic TV site. When I looked in last week I found George and Tommy building a spark transmitter. Pretty cool! The sparks begin to fly at about about the 23 minute point in this video. Very interesting. Way to go guys! SPARK FOREVER! (You will see that emblazoned on the QSL cards of REAL old timers. They were railing against those newfangled Continuous Waves. There is a lesson in there for me... )
Lots of tribal knowledge here! That's the direct conversion receiver that forms phase 1 of Pete and Ben's "Let's Build Something" project. Arduinos! Si5351s! AD9850s! And it will morph into an SSB transceiver. Check it out: http://www.jessystems.com/LBS_Detail.html
Holy cow! Look at that rig. The whole HF spectrum. AM, CW, SSB, Digital Modes, Waterfall display, GPS. It may even have a Vector Network Analyzer! (Deep breaths Pete Juliano, deep breaths!) Michael KE7HIA is trying to get this project going via a Kickstarter campaign. He needs to get to $60,000 He currently has about $47,000 pledged. There are only 42 hours to go: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1703258614/psdr-pocket-hf-sdr-transceiver-with-vna-and-gps Wow, this rig would have been great for my Double A DR DX-pedition!
Features:
Coverage from 0 to 35MHz
Waterfall display that lets you see radio signals
Receives AM, USB (Upper Side Band), LSB (Lower Side Band), and Morse code (CW)
Modulates USB and LSB signals
Variable bandpass filter
Hardware:
Powerful ARM processor
Color LCD display
Dual DDS frequency Synthesizers
Quadrature Sampling Detector & Exciter
Digitally controllable instrumentation amplifiers
Morse Code key (the "Giblet" on the bottom right corner of the enclosure)
Magnitude & Phase measurement chip (for VNA and antenna analysis functions) with Impedance Bridge
Dual SMA connectors, smartphone style earphone/microphone connector, and USB port
GPS
Built in Microphone and Speaker
Internal Lithium Polymer battery with charger and high efficiency switching regulator
MicroSD slot
Pads for grabbing raw I/Q signals, both in and out.
Things it will be able to do with your help:
I designed the hardware to be capable of the following, but I can't write all the software myself. Please note that I can't guarantee when or if these functions will be added, or that they will work as desired.
Work as a full Vector Network Analyzer (VNA)
Work as a spectrum analyzer
Cover more modes, including digital modes and image modes
Work as an emergency location beacon
Antenna Analyzer
Frequency Synthesizer
Media player
E Reader / Picture viewer
Have improved audio
GPS Mapping navigation device
High end ARM development board
USB control of any features, including the possibility to operate the PSDR remotely. The USB port supports USB On-the-Go, making it possible to connect keyboards or other devices. Firmware updates will also be possible over USB.
The K1N DX-pedition is currently on Navassa Island (between Jamaica and Haiti). This made me think of one of my earliest ham radio memories: The 73 Magazine article on a 1972 operation on that island. Here is a short video on that trip. It is kind of wacky and fun.
Excellent Lucien! Thanks for sending this. I know what you mean about a project that doesn't work. It is rewarding and educational to figure out where you went wrong. I knew a guy who would ask, at a hamfest, "Does this rig work?" If the the seller admitted that it didn't, he'd reply, "Good, I pay extra for that!" He liked the challenge of fixing it. Of course, there are limits to this, and sometimes these challenges will make you wish you had taken up stamp collecting.
Hi Bill and Pete,
For me too, it's a happy day - I got the Mighty Mite working! Thank you so much for the inspiration to get into homebrewing...
I'm just licensed for a year now and this was my very first project (except for 2 basic kits that I build) and it really was a great learning experience. The best part: Since it didn't work out "plug'n play", I had to debug the thing and actually start thinking - so I put 2 caps in parallel instead of the wrong one I had used (I found them in a little box some guys at a hamfest gave me for free - never thought I would ever use something from it...). And I had to use the voltmeter to look for a short circuit. Basic stuff, but for me, this was a breakthrough!
Here are some more things I learned during this first project (don't laugh):
Where the heck do I plug stuff that's supposed to go to "ground" in? Now I know: usually to the negative pole!
When 2 lines cross in a schematic, that doesn't mean there's a connection!
How do these ready-made breadboards actually work? Had to try out...
It's important to think about the actual layout beforehand!
When debugging, trial and error doesn't help.
There's yet another crazy foreign unit called "gauge"! (I used smaller magnet wire than recommended, it still seems to work...)
9V-blocks get VERY hot when shorted for a minute or so!
Attached is an image of my ugly prototype, now I want to give it a better "home"... And here is a little video, demonstrating that it works, inspired by IZ1KSW:
This is my very first homebrew project guys and I'm so excited! I started from scratch... and when I say from scratch, I mean that I didn't even have one of the 7 components required, no PCB boards, no junkbox, nothing... just the soldering iron and the will to "build something".
Thanks to Pete suggestions I managed to put some components together and now I have a (small) junkbox (I'm very proud of it) and thanks to soldersmoke I entered the ranks of the homebrewers.
I send you also a couple of pictures, I used Manhattan style and I found it very useful to understand the circuit. It's far from being a clean and neat building but it's a first step.
These little frequency counters from China have a lot of potential. And they add a dash of digital color to an otherwise bland analog hamshack. I got mine on e-bay. My BITX17 has now been "accessorized" with 1) A rotatable Moxon antenna (big improvment!) 2) A 120 watt Communications Concepts Linear amplifier (another big improvement) and 3) This digital frequency readout. What next?
"SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" is now available as an e-book for Amazon's Kindle.
Here's the site:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004V9FIVW
May 18, 2024. Any one have one of these?
-
With a price point of about $250 you would think this is like hitting the
lottery. Any blog readers have one of these?
This is the Xiegu G106C currently ...
Velocity factor measurement
-
A frequently asked question is how to measure transmission line velocity
factor. The wide adoption of the NanoVNA has spurred these questions. So,
it is go...
ICOM hint at new 60th anniversary X60 product
-
At the Dayton Hamvention this weekend, ICOM put on display are number of
printed circuit boards from what is supposed to be the 60th Anniversary
Concept ...
Moorabbin Radiofest
-
The Moorabbin RadioFest was a terrific show this year. The turnout looked
good to me although I'm told it was down on past years.It was great to see
a vend...
Broadcast Band AM Radio
-
See the YouTube series for more information:
http://www.youtube.com/c/CharlieMorrisZL2CTM
Buffer Amplifier
Low Pass Filter
IF Ampli...
An Inline RF Step Attenuator for QRPp Work
-
I don’t need to explain the attraction of low power operation; if you’re
reading this, the chances are that you are already a convert. I’ve been
operating ...
A 51S-1 Restoration Story
-
I came across my Collins 51S-1 in a big junkyard in Ankara, Turkey around
2012. It was in a pile with a lot of other electronic scrap, probably from
one o...
New QRP Cluster Online From OM0ET and OM6APN
-
By DX EXPLORER
DX EXPLORER
Paul OM0ET and Peter OM6APN recently launched a new cluster dedicated to
QRP operations. Have a look and I hope you will enjoy...
3D Printing The Hadley 114mm Newtonian Telescope
-
Yes, we’re building a 3D Printed Newtonian Telescope called Hadley. It’s
being printed in PETG and in the video below, I give a quick tour. My build
isn’...
3D printed project boxes
-
I have been busy with some other things that have kept me away from
electronics projects for quite a while. Now I can get back to them, but
realize I n...
Daylight Again – An all Analog Radio
-
What’s all this? In 10 seconds, A high performance, 7MHz, 5 watt SSB rig
Draws just 24 mA of current 90 dB dynamic range, 80 dB close-in dynamic
range 3D ...
Adding Enclosure to your sBitx Boards Order
-
The early buyers of the sBitx board set who bought it for $270 USD might
want to also add the enclosure (box) for in the kit. What you will now get
is a f...
Digi-chirp! Digital synthesis of ‘nostalgic’ CW
-
The bottom ends of 80, 40 and 20m are not what they used to be. For
starters, the busiest part is the digital segment where computers talk to
computers – l...
-
A Simple Speech Processor
(For QRP/SSB Homebrew Transceivers )
Over the last few weeks I had been thinking to build a small AF speech
processor to add to...
A New Look for your uBitx!
-
Adding a "Cool Blue" Display to your uBitx!
The standard "green background" with black lettering frequently reminds me
that I suffer from Chronic seasickn...