Following on from the previous exploration of how receivers convert a CW signal into an audable tone, we will take the next step in our journey to understand why pre-DSP receivers have a fixed pitch CW tone, and the oft overlooked feature there to ease your ears.
Continue reading Making CW your easy listening station of choice.
Needing a paired 49:1 transformer and a common mode choke (CMC) for a permanently installed EFHW, I whipped one of each up and mounted them in some 50 mm PVC pipe.
Continue reading A 49:1 & CMC pair
Small, high performing and cheap, what’s not to love about bifilar wound common mode chokes (CMC). This article will walk through the process of building one (or two).
Continue reading Building bifilar common mode chokes.
Does your amateur radio station comply with EMR safety guidelines? The WIA and RSGB tools enable you to quickly evaluate, mitigate and document your compliance. I expect that in most instances, it would take less than 10 minutes to complete. It really is as easy as a, b, c.
Continue reading EMR Safety Management Book – a, b, c
There was no issue when I had but one radio capable of CW. My straight key and paddles were plugged into their respective ports on the back of my TS-590SG. In time I acquired an all mode 2 m rig, so a second straight key went onto the desk. Then the TS-520S and FT-101E followed over a twelve-month period. Each additional radio increased the number of keys on my desk, and a corresponding decrease of available desk space.
Continue reading CW Key to Radio Switch
TinyGS is a great project with a very simple installation. The documentation however is several years out of date, so prepare the pull your hair out. After installing it twice with a six month interlude, I forgot what I needed to do, so am documenting it here for future me.
Continue reading Setting up TinyGS on Heltech Wireless Tracker V1.1
Many software packages deigned for encoding and decoding RF protocols have the capability of keying a transceiver via serial RTS or DTR lines. Here is a simple design to achieve this with a common USB to Serial TTL adapter.
Continue reading Building a USB PTT Interface
There is plenty of published information on how to build common mode chokes (CMCs), but not much related to measuring their performance. This post details three such tests using a Nano VNA. If anyone is aware of additional tests which will shed light on a CMC’s performance, I’m all ears.
Continue reading Measuring Common Mode Chokes
Getting voice digital voice keying (DVC) working between N1MM+ and my TS-590SG has been an elusive target, but after another contest without it, I decided it really was a bullet which needed to be bitten. The post will explain the vagaries of the TS-590SG, and why it’s not as straight forward as perhaps some other radios.
Continue reading Digital Voice Keying a Kenwood TS-590SG from N1MM+I’m super stoked. I listened to the International Space Station (ISS) pass yesterday with my kids. Lots of beeping and screeching, but it was coming from a radio on the ISS, that we were hearing in Margate, so it was exciting none the less. So this morning I thought I’d best install some decoding software (MMSSTV) to see if we could receive the images they were transmitting, which I did, and wouldn’t you know it, the ISS was due for a long pass (eight minutes) almost directly overhead as soon as I’d finished. 