I too am getting no joy with the update to V4. After the concatenated command crashed, I entered the commands individually to find the failing command. Here it is:
?
pi@sbitx:~/sbitx $ cd ~/sbitx
pi@sbitx:~/sbitx $ git pull
Updating 0e97172..3150940
error: The following untracked working tree files would be overwritten by merge:
? ? data/result_rows.txt
Please move or remove them before you merge.
Aborting
?
Not knowing the structure of the library and code, I haven't a clue.
?
What is my next move?
?
(BTW, I still haven't figured out how to navigate Discord, so I'm staying with groups.io.)
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Keyboard/Macro CW Keying with Fldigi?
Just curious if anyone has had success with Keyboard/Macro CW Keying with Fldigi and sBitx v3?
?
73? Chris M0KNF
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Re: Hendricks BITX20 C18 Procrastinator Question
So this chart is wrong??
?
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Re: Hendricks BITX20 C18 Procrastinator Question
From the internet Green trimmers 2.5-22pf
Have a look at
Hello,
? I finally finished the Hendricks BITX20 kit, I started who knows when. The postmark said 2008 on the box. I am missing C18, a 30 pF green trimmer in the receive filter. I do not have a replacement but do have an orange, blue and white trimmers. My wife has offered to look, but I don’t want her trying to clean up my junk area :-)
? Just hate ordering one of anything and have many other trimmers, just not the green ones. Isn’t that how it always goes? Would one of the gurus out here know whether it could be substituted?
thanks
JP
KA3BWP 
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Hendricks BITX20 C18 Procrastinator Question
Hello,
? I finally finished the Hendricks BITX20 kit, I started who knows when. The postmark said 2008 on the box. I am missing C18, a 30 pF green trimmer in the receive filter. I do not have a replacement but do have an orange, blue and white trimmers. My wife has offered to look, but I don’t want her trying to clean up my junk area :-)
? Just hate ordering one of anything and have many other trimmers, just not the green ones. Isn’t that how it always goes? Would one of the gurus out here know whether it could be substituted?
thanks
JP
KA3BWP 
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I use a linux program called Meld that allows me to compare two files and displays the differences.
Ron
On Friday, October 11, 2024 at 05:13:36 PM EDT, Tom ak2b <raccoonnyc@...> wrote:
My sBitx
I bought my sBitx because of a video where it claimed to be a CW Dream Machine. I bought only the? board since I already had the other components in my shack. If you use a keyboard for cw then you might declare it dreamy but if you prefer using paddles or a straight key, like myself, it was less than that.
The latest 64 bit version 4 software update made things a lot better.? Sometimes it will miss a leading character but so much better than before. It would be nice if at least the straight key mode could be interrupt driven and bypass the encoding, decoding stuff and go straight to keying the radio. I have no problem using an external keyer.
?
Aside from those issues I have become fond of editing the software for my own personal needs. Unfortunately this became a problem with software updates as it would wipe out all my efforts. So, I asked ChatGPT to write a program that looked through the lines of code for changes I made that were marked with //ak2b.
i.e
pi@sbitx:~/sbitx $ ./findak2b src/sbitx_gtk.c
?? ? ? ? {0.066,0.082,0.361}, ? ? // COLOR_BACKGROUND//ak2b
?? ? ? ? {0.690,0.075,0.353},? ? //SPECTRUM_BACKGROUND//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_FIELD_LABEL, 0.388, 0.717, 0.968, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_CW_RX, 0, 1, 0, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, ? ? ? ? CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? //line below added above int y = f-y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? console_cols = console_cols -6;//ak2b
? ? ? ? int y = f->y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SET",686,screen_height - 140 ,45 ,45);? //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("CW_INPUT", 5, screen_height - 140, 75 , 45);//ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SIDETONE", 5, screen_height - 90, 75, 45);//ak2b
?? ? ? ? //oled_toggle_band();//ak2b
?? ? ? ? focus_field(get_field("#step")); //ak2b
?
At some later date I might ask Chat CPT to insert these lines into the updated files. For now though I’m going to set back and marvel on how easy that was. ChatGPT even gave me the command to compile the code.
The amazing thing is I know little about c programming, let alone Linux!
?
There are times with this radio that have been very frustrating but when I put it away in the closet it is not long before I pull it out again because my 78 year old mind has thought of other ways to mess with this radio. You just can’t do that with an Icom!
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I understand; go with your strengths.
Mine have been Powershell on the Windows platform and any flavor of Unix. Spent a career developing server side applications and backend processes.
Hi Marshall?
Great idea,
This is incomplete since it needs to know the lines that it is going to replace.
?
My Linux experience at the moment deals with the sBitx and not much more. I too love the command line but there is a time and place for everything and frankly I have no interest in learning every Linux tool in order to master it. I do admire those that do but realize it isn’t going to be me. Most of what I do is just geared to getting the job done with the limited tools in my mental arsenal. ChatGPT is a great tool if you have the right question.
?
I’m sure the developers would love to have someone with your experience helping the sBitx on its way to stardom.
?
73, Tom, ak2b
?
?
?
?
?
?
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Re: Components sourcing Europe
Hi
?
Here is one on a module if that helps.
?
?
Jim
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Re: Components sourcing Europe
Hello Hubert
?
WM8731 seems to be obsolete, hard to find a secure source.....
?
T37-6 Amidon is available at Reichelt.de (serious shop!)
?
Bonne journée
?
73
Patrick
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Components sourcing Europe
Hello all, I would appreciate an update on sourcing for working Wm8731 and Amidon iron powder cores (T37-6 and so on) I remember a batch from Aliexpress where my low pass filters a 3dB loss in the passband! 73s Hubert
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Hi Marshall?
Great idea,
This is incomplete since it needs to know the lines that it is going to replace.
?
My Linux experience at the moment deals with the sBitx and not much more. I too love the command line but there is a time and place for everything and frankly I have no interest in learning every Linux tool in order to master it. I do admire those that do but realize it isn’t going to be me. Most of what I do is just geared to getting the job done with the limited tools in my mental arsenal. ChatGPT is a great tool if you have the right question.
?
I’m sure the developers would love to have someone with your experience helping the sBitx on its way to stardom.
?
73, Tom, ak2b
?
?
?
?
?
?
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If that works great.
But you could have used awk to do this and learned a little Linux at the same time. Linux is made up of lots of little tools that allow you to,pipe the out pod one into another.
Some people, me included find Linux fun. I started my development career programming in C on a Unix system. I enjoy the command line interface almost as much as I do playing radio.
I’m glad you got this sorted out.?
My sBitx
I bought my sBitx because of a video where it claimed to be a CW Dream Machine. I bought only the? board since I already had the other components in my shack. If you use a keyboard for cw then you might declare it dreamy but if you prefer using paddles or a straight key, like myself, it was less than that.
The latest 64 bit version 4 software update made things a lot better.? Sometimes it will miss a leading character but so much better than before. It would be nice if at least the straight key mode could be interrupt driven and bypass the encoding, decoding stuff and go straight to keying the radio. I have no problem using an external keyer.
?
Aside from those issues I have become fond of editing the software for my own personal needs. Unfortunately this became a problem with software updates as it would wipe out all my efforts. So, I asked ChatGPT to write a program that looked through the lines of code for changes I made that were marked with //ak2b.
i.e
pi@sbitx:~/sbitx $ ./findak2b src/sbitx_gtk.c
?? ? ? ? {0.066,0.082,0.361}, ? ? // COLOR_BACKGROUND//ak2b
?? ? ? ? {0.690,0.075,0.353},? ? //SPECTRUM_BACKGROUND//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_FIELD_LABEL, 0.388, 0.717, 0.968, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_CW_RX, 0, 1, 0, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, ? ? ? ? CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? //line below added above int y = f-y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? console_cols = console_cols -6;//ak2b
? ? ? ? int y = f->y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SET",686,screen_height - 140 ,45 ,45);? //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("CW_INPUT", 5, screen_height - 140, 75 , 45);//ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SIDETONE", 5, screen_height - 90, 75, 45);//ak2b
?? ? ? ? //oled_toggle_band();//ak2b
?? ? ? ? focus_field(get_field("#step")); //ak2b
?
At some later date I might ask Chat CPT to insert these lines into the updated files. For now though I’m going to set back and marvel on how easy that was. ChatGPT even gave me the command to compile the code.
The amazing thing is I know little about c programming, let alone Linux!
?
There are times with this radio that have been very frustrating but when I put it away in the closet it is not long before I pull it out again because my 78 year old mind has thought of other ways to mess with this radio. You just can’t do that with an Icom!
|
My sBitx
I bought my sBitx because of a video where it claimed to be a CW Dream Machine. I bought only the? board since I already had the other components in my shack. If you use a keyboard for cw then you might declare it dreamy but if you prefer using paddles or a straight key, like myself, it was less than that.
The latest 64 bit version 4 software update made things a lot better.? Sometimes it will miss a leading character but so much better than before. It would be nice if at least the straight key mode could be interrupt driven and bypass the encoding, decoding stuff and go straight to keying the radio. I have no problem using an external keyer.
?
Aside from those issues I have become fond of editing the software for my own personal needs. Unfortunately this became a problem with software updates as it would wipe out all my efforts. So, I asked ChatGPT to write a program that looked through the lines of code for changes I made that were marked with //ak2b.
i.e
pi@sbitx:~/sbitx $ ./findak2b src/sbitx_gtk.c
?? ? ? ? {0.066,0.082,0.361}, ? ? // COLOR_BACKGROUND//ak2b
?? ? ? ? {0.690,0.075,0.353},? ? //SPECTRUM_BACKGROUND//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_FIELD_LABEL, 0.388, 0.717, 0.968, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? {FONT_CW_RX, 0, 1, 0, "Mono", 14, CAIRO_FONT_WEIGHT_NORMAL, ? ? ? ? CAIRO_FONT_SLANT_NORMAL},//ak2b
? ? ? ? //line below added above int y = f-y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? console_cols = console_cols -6;//ak2b
? ? ? ? int y = f->y; //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SET",686,screen_height - 140 ,45 ,45);? //ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("CW_INPUT", 5, screen_height - 140, 75 , 45);//ak2b
? ? ? ? field_move("SIDETONE", 5, screen_height - 90, 75, 45);//ak2b
?? ? ? ? //oled_toggle_band();//ak2b
?? ? ? ? focus_field(get_field("#step")); //ak2b
?
At some later date I might ask Chat CPT to insert these lines into the updated files. For now though I’m going to set back and marvel on how easy that was. ChatGPT even gave me the command to compile the code.
The amazing thing is I know little about c programming, let alone Linux!
?
There are times with this radio that have been very frustrating but when I put it away in the closet it is not long before I pull it out again because my 78 year old mind has thought of other ways to mess with this radio. You just can’t do that with an Icom!
|
I gather from the comments and reference?to the Sbitx that some are thinking of something like the Sbitx?for VHF. How about a straightforward xcvr just like the ubitx without all the bells and whistles having cw and ssb only? It could also include 50 and 70MHz for those who have access?to these frequencies. Or if?it?is considered too complicated to include 50 and 70MHz, the same pcb could be used for single banders with suitable changes to software, filters etc. That would?certainly lower the cost and complexity, both for the pcb design, components and alignmentment. Re FM, there are so many cheap handhelds with?lots of bells and whistles that it's not worth the hassle to include FM in such a set.
Regards and a happy weekend.
Lawrence
I don't understand this...
Farhan designed the sBitx and set up an organization to sell & suport that product.
Subsequently, he scratch-built a sBitx, substituting a few costly components and built it Manhattan style (a style of construction even less conducive to mass production than the old heathkit style of soldering numerous parts on terminal strips).
To make it a "product" for HF Signals to sell, (if I understand correctly) it would require doing a new PCB layout and developing formal hardware testing/certification protocols, along with worker training to assemble new boards.?
These are easy to list, but hard to justify without significant market interest.
As I understood, the whole idea of the sBitx was to show that someone without $400 to spend on an sBitx could build their own radio with slightly less features but at a significantly lower cost. Turning it into a product eliminates many of those cost savings (just shipping it from India becomes a significant expense).
The code is on github, as is the schematic - perhaps someone other than Farhan could generate a PCB to help potential builders? That seems to be Farhan's preference...
As for the implication that HF Signals 'can't afford' to develop this product, let's remember what HF Signals is - it's essentially a charity project, designed primarily to provide skilled, high-paying piece work to poor Indian women, which happens to sell low cost/high-feature HF radios to hams around the world. Farhan isn't trying to be the next Yaesu or Icom, he wants to help low-income indian families prosper.
/soapbox
Just my $0.02,
Ken, N2VIP Too bad. It would be an instant success.
I can only think HF Signals cannot afford the little investment required (which is not so comforting...)
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I don't understand this...
Farhan designed the sBitx and set up an organization to sell & suport that product.
Subsequently, he scratch-built a sBitx, substituting a few costly components and built it Manhattan style (a style of construction even less conducive to mass production than the old heathkit style of soldering numerous parts on terminal strips).
To make it a "product" for HF Signals to sell, (if I understand correctly) it would require doing a new PCB layout and developing formal hardware testing/certification protocols, along with worker training to assemble new boards.?
These are easy to list, but hard to justify without significant market interest.
As I understood, the whole idea of the sBitx was to show that someone without $400 to spend on an sBitx could build their own radio with slightly less features but at a significantly lower cost. Turning it into a product eliminates many of those cost savings (just shipping it from India becomes a significant expense).
The code is on github, as is the schematic - perhaps someone other than Farhan could generate a PCB to help potential builders? That seems to be Farhan's preference...
As for the implication that HF Signals 'can't afford' to develop this product, let's remember what HF Signals is - it's essentially a charity project, designed primarily to provide skilled, high-paying piece work to poor Indian women, which happens to sell low cost/high-feature HF radios to hams around the world. Farhan isn't trying to be the next Yaesu or Icom, he wants to help low-income indian families prosper.
/soapbox
Just my $0.02,
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Sep 13, 2024, at 14:30, IU0KVG <vincenzo.praturlon@...> wrote:
Too bad. It would be an instant success.
I can only think HF Signals cannot afford the little investment required (which is not so comforting...)
_._,_._,_
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See in-line comments... Ken, N2VIP On Sep 15, 2024, at 07:11, Ashhar Farhan <farhanbox@...> wrote:
It is an odd thing though, the Elecraft KH1 is a CW only radio, selling for 600 USD. Not really, if you add all the essentials, it stacks upto 1000 USD. Yet, they sell about 3000 radios per month.
Elecraft has HUGE name recognition, a great reputation, and a comprehensive user community and corporate customer support network. Radioddity sells the Xeigus in even higher numbers.
Well, with the Xeigu radios they came out as lower-priced alternatives to radios like the IC-705 and FT-818, and they are offered by not only Radioddity but by HRO, MFJ (for a while, anyway), and Gigaparts.
On the other hand, QRP Labs or HF signals builds open, hackable radios at about 1/5th the price. Yet, they are an acquired taste, to put it mildly.
QRP Labs and HF Signals lack any meaningful name recognition, and when a prospective buyer of an HF Signals radio takes a look at this group, the official support channel for radios that effectively ship as an unsupported/no warranty product, all I see are people talking about doing things inside the radios with soldering irons or modifying software, which is great, but that is the opposite of the experience with a Xeigu or Elecraft radio.
Some may say that those are complete radios, and these are kits or thst they are not fully functional.
Neither is true, the QMX fully assembled retaila for 220 USD, with the kitchen sink.
A complete radio with no (real) warranty.
The basic function of an sbitx (ssb/cw) is far more stable and superior to the G90. Sure, maybe the FT8 logging doesnt work as expectdd, but the G90 doesnt have it at all!
The G90 is an appliance, the sBitx is a project, as described in your own website. If you want to sell the sBitx in greater numbers, you need to rethink your marketing approach.
I guess, this is the nature of open radios and will remain so. Pretty much like Linux.
Maybe.
But remember, your competition for selling sBitx at $400 is not just other QRP radios like Xeigu, but also the secondhand market. It would be difficult to advise a new ham to send you $400 for an sBitx when he could pick up a nice, clean Yaesu FT-450 for the same money, $400. You can argue for the sBitx features over the second-hand radio from a few years ago, but the perception is just different.
The Linux comparison is pretty close - Linux advocates will go blue in the face telling people about all the vastly superior technology in Linux vs Windows, and then harp on cost ("but Linux is free!"), but the reality is, Linux is not just one thing (all those Distros), it is never 'done' (new releases every 6 months?), and it's not what we use at work, it's not what our kids use at school, and to be honest, the average person never pays a "windows tax" (pay for a Windows license) - it comes bundled with the hardware, and any license fee paid is typically offset by incentives to include/preload 3rd-party software on the desktop/laptop. (When companies like Dell sell new computers without windows, they cost almost the same.)
Hope this helps, I am positive on the work HF Signals does, and I want to see you succeed to the levels you hope for.
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Shawn, it's worth looking at other forums, for example here you can find an interesting FT8 QRP that requires a Discovery Board: Multiband QRPp FT8 Transceiver--
Gyula HA3HZ
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I was thinking, what would really be ideal for SOTA. ?I’ve gone hiking a couple of times with the sbitx. ?Together with the antenna and batteries (a couple of old laptop batteries and an adapter I made for them), it barely fits in my backpack, not leaving enough space for a small laptop (which I don’t necessarily need anyway); but I did manage to squeeze in the external 7” touchscreen last time. ?That and a tiny Bluetooth keyboard made it work well to have wsjt-x and sbitx at the same time. ?But… what if it was smaller? ?I also worry a little about fragility; the encoders could get bumped too hard, or the touchscreen. ?(Which I could probably mitigate by designing a good case for it.) ?So I wonder if the zbitx could end up being smaller just because some of the analog RF stuff is separated from the audio board. ?I think the smallest-possible radio with similar capabilities as the sbitx might be a thing to work on. ?There are smaller touchscreens, like 4” with a suitable resolution (same or higher), and I’ve seen a case to put the pi and the screen into a box around the size of any other rpi4 case (with not enough space for a radio, though). ?I think I can eventually come up with a way to have a remote UI to run on a tablet, phone or small laptop, with the pi acting as a wifi access point, so that the modems still run on the sbitx and the display is still useful, but without having to cram everything onto that display. ?Maybe a pi zero would be good enough. ?(Not that the rpi is the only choice. ?There are so many. ?What about a mango pi, riscv? ?I think eventually we will see something like that with the proper risc-v vector extension, and maybe that will be useful for sdr. ?I will be looking forward to try writing some algorithm that makes good use of it some day.) ?A smaller box like that might be a pretty good SOTA setup. ?Otherwise there are things like the Lab599, but it looks like it doesn’t do as much as the sbitx does. ?(I’d need the usual audio/cat control setup for digital modes, if I can’t run arbitrary apps right on the radio.) ? But it has a reputation for being a really excellent receiver.?
If you can make the sbitx even smaller, and still a bit more-than-QRP like it already is, it would be even more unique.
Best-in-class power efficiency on the finals could make it possible to use a smaller heatsink. ?Try to optimize performance, even if the cost goes up a little because of that. ?Then the batteries would last longer too.
I think I’m fine with using external batteries, because these old laptop batteries work so well, and I’m very happy to have multi-purpose batteries rather than something custom that is not meant for any other purpose.
I have no experience with an ATU yet, and I’m doing ok with trying to achieve actual resonance, so far. ?At least the efhw has a built-in tuner, that helps a lot. ?But I also haven’t been on 80 or 160m yet, because of that. ?So whatever. ?If it adds too much bulk, it’s better to omit it, I guess.
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Sep 15, 2024, at 2:10?PM, Ashhar Farhan <farhanbox@...> wrote:
It is an odd thing though, the Elecraft KH1 is a CW only radio, selling for 600 USD. Not really, if you add all the essentials, it stacks upto 1000 USD. Yet, they sell about 3000 radios per month. Radioddity sells the Xeigus in even higher numbers.
On the other hand, QRP Labs or HF signals builds open, hackable radios at about 1/5th the price. Yet, they are an acquired taste, to put it mildly.
Some may say that those are complete radios, and these are kits or thst they are not fully functional.
Neither is true, the QMX fully assembled retaila for 220 USD, with the kitchen sink.
The basic function of an sbitx (ssb/cw) is far more stable and superior to the G90. Sure, maybe the FT8 logging doesnt work as expectdd, but the G90 doesnt have it at all!
I guess, this is the nature of open radios and will remain so. Pretty much like Linux.
- f
On Sun, Sep 15, 2024, 1:55 PM IU0KVG via <vincenzo.praturlon= [email protected]> wrote: I think the crowdfund could be the best way to check demand (for the assembled units).
Set up a goal of 20,000$ (200$? * 100) and see what happens.?
If the goal is not reached the money gets back, no harm to anyone.
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there is no, it is an option that you can include this as well.
--
Gyula HA3HZ
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Re: Sbitx and ad831 mixer
Hi to all!
?
Today made my first ft8 dx using the ad831 mixer with 40mhz filter and transverter board.
?
I removed the small amplifier before the transverter and improved the vfo feed to the transverter. Gain of the ad831 is at 10db.
?
?
Juan WP3DN
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Bruce W4BRU
JP McGinley
Tom ak2b
HA3HZ