Sure seems to me that it would be a lot easier to make several littler boards to provide better shield ing between stages. ? Put the amplifier off by itself as a module. ? Try to deal with the skinny/longer trace issues. ? There might be a way to use more than one SI 5351 so you could avoid some of the cross talk. ? ?Add in a physical mode switch so you can solve the thorny CW offset issues, by knowing for certain which mode is requested BEFORE The key is pressed. ?
By adding in a duplicate receiver portion, and some diode switching, you might make a full break in CW Station.?
I¡¯m just talking out of my head but I bet some people know how to do all of this easily.?
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On Nov 13, 2020, at 18:13, Jerry Gaffke via groups.io <jgaffke@...> wrote:
?Fritzing is apparently easy for a beginner to get started, but limited.
For example, a max of 2 layers.? It does create gerbers.
If you prefer a standard C tool chain over the Arduino IDE,?
you may not like Fritzing.
gEDA is worth a look, it's a powerful set of tools.
I've concluded that for my needs, it's either Kicad or gEDA.
Kicad is moving forward with new releases, gEDA is not.
Though if gEDA is good enough, that might be a good thing.
I'm not impressed by the 3D models some packages offer.
Perhaps if I was designing something really tight and complex
in all three dimensions, like a cell phone.? But otherwise that 3D stuff
is mostly just eye candy, and a huge waste of disk space.
Creating netlists can be done with any schematic editor, that's
a separate process from laying out a board.? Creating a netlist by hand
in a text editor can be faster than doing it in a schematic editor.
A python script to reduce a hierarchical circuit description in?ASCII text
to a netlist would be fun and easy to create.
A visual representation can be helpful, especially with analog circuits.
But ASCII text is a lot more malleable, a couple decades of writing VHDL
for FPGA firmware has made me quite comfortable with just text as a way
of describing a hardware design.
Jerry, KE7ER
|
Fritzing is apparently easy for a beginner to get started, but limited.
For example, a max of 2 layers.? It does create gerbers.
If you prefer a standard C tool chain over the Arduino IDE,?
you may not like Fritzing.
gEDA is worth a look, it's a powerful set of tools.
I've concluded that for my needs, it's either Kicad or gEDA.
Kicad is moving forward with new releases, gEDA is not.
Though if gEDA is good enough, that might be a good thing.
I'm not impressed by the 3D models some packages offer.
Perhaps if I was designing something really tight and complex
in all three dimensions, like a cell phone.? But otherwise that 3D stuff
is mostly just eye candy, and a huge waste of disk space.
Creating netlists can be done with any schematic editor, that's
a separate process from laying out a board.? Creating a netlist by hand
in a text editor can be faster than doing it in a schematic editor.
A python script to reduce a hierarchical circuit description in?ASCII text
to a netlist would be fun and easy to create.
A visual representation can be helpful, especially with analog circuits.
But ASCII text is a lot more malleable, a couple decades of writing VHDL
for FPGA firmware has made me quite comfortable with just text as a way
of describing a hardware design.
Jerry, KE7ER
|
I use Express pcb and Robot room copper connection to convert the file to Gerbers. True express PCB and RRCC do not have all the bells and whistles but simplicity is its key. You can print the image off and iron it onto copper clad and etch or you can convert to gerbers and send it to a board house. Though a bit more labor intensive I have made some pretty nice boards with it.
Ian K3HQL
On Friday, November 13, 2020, 07:15:58 AM CST, Gerard <kabupos@...> wrote:
Hello, Several decades ago, we made a PCB with a pen, then pellets and tape. Today we can make a nice PCB with software.I used simple free software, where you have to connect all the tracks manually and place the components yourself.
That¡¯s what I used to feed my Ubitx power. Some software are only in demonstration and do not allow to print or save.With a little time, I focused on Kicad.
It is true that this software is not constrained and it is free.At first, I thought it was fantastic software and making a pcb would be simple.
So I watched several videos....
I thought we could have imported a diagram from a pdf for example, and not possible.
So we have to recreate everything manually, the diagram, then choose the components.
After that, it remains to create the PCB. I told myself, that with all the informations it will propose me one, that to rigor I could modify.
No, there too none of that.
You must also choose everything manually.? Only positive thing, you have a 3d view of your circuit.
I may be wrong, but I have this observation.
What do you use to create your PCBs?
cdt
|
Fritziing, and the whole GEDA series are all free. _._
On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 7:36 AM Kobus ZS6CHK < zs6chk@...> wrote: Using Eagle cad. Paid for license. This is a very potent piece of software. For professional use. Yes, for hobby application KiCad is fine. The are a couple of free cad software available on the net.
Gerard, it appears it is possible to import a PCB image into KiCAD and use it to create a new layout by using Bitmap2Component tool.? I haven't done it myself but here is a thread that discusses it:
Farhan, unfortunate that the PCB files are proprietary.? That only hurts the hobbyists as the professional cloners can strip, scan, and layout a small 2-layer board like the V6 in a couple days, even if they take long tea times.
?- Bill
--
|
Re.
Yes the advantage with UV is that you can make a precision PCB . The problem is that to find the right exposure and bathing time in the perchlorure.
I missed several PCB like that. So I tried the acetone method and I was surprised by the result.
You can start again at infinity. This is not the case with presensibilization, only one luck to be good.
For example:
cdt
|
I do make my own PCB's at home. My setup is as follows.
I am using EagleCad (the professional) version and draw the circuit diagram with EagleCad. Open the auto router and place the components as I wish.Then run it. After that I do alter the tracks sometimes as the human can see the BIG picture better than what a computer can.
When satisfied that it is all ok I print the PCB onto some tracing paper with a laser printer. Do print 2 copies of it. I found that the tracing paper works quite well. On transparencies sometimes it gets smudged. With the tracing paper so far no smudging. The 2 copies I align and glue them together at the edges to form one image. Why 2. It is to make sure that the tracks are black enough.
From there it goes to the UV box. Homemade box with a homemade timer. Has got 2 x UV lights of 18W in the box. Can switch to 1 or both UV lights. For double sided PCB's if required.? (Setable from 1 min.? to 99 min.) I use presensitized PCB's for that. Experimentation brought me to an exposure time of 7min. and 10 sec. with the 18W lamps. Then it goes to the chemical part for exposure and etching. The average exposure/etching time for me is about 1 and half hours.
With some patients and endurance you can make your own too. If I can do it I am sure YOU can do it also.
|
I get my boards back in seven days to my front doorstep from China. ? Three or four times already.?
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On Nov 13, 2020, at 11:25, Jerry Gaffke via groups.io <jgaffke@...> wrote:
?Print the gerbers to a transparancy. Though with the cheap PCB fab options we have nowadays, your best option may be to email those gerbers off to China and sit on your hands for a couple weeks. Two (or four!) layer boards with plated vias are a wonderful thing. Jerry On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 07:46 AM, Gareth Evans wrote:
But how do you get from a file in the PC to an etch resist on the bare PCB?
|
Re: PCB Board Circuit Fabrication
Altium is a well respected tool.
If I had an employer spending $10k to buy Altium (or spend $325/month to rent it),
I'd probably use it at home for hobby projects too.
But I'm retired, and spending that kind of money on hobby projects is ludicrous.
If HFSignals were to set up a shop with Altium and similar high end tools for RF design,
they would have to charge Elecraft prices.? At least.
Jerry,? KE7ER
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On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 09:26 AM, Andy - GM0NWI wrote:
Farhan etc
i know of a group of desingers and fabricators who have used this very intensely professionally and for home construction alike
?
73
Andy
GM0NWI
|
Hello,
If it is a homebrew building, may you put some pictures. I like to see personal achievements.
cdt
|
PCB Board Circuit Fabrication
Farhan etc
i know of a group of desingers and fabricators who have used this very intensely professionally and for home construction alike
?
73
Andy
GM0NWI
|
I found this in the version 4.3 code from Ashhar Farhan: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
// the second oscillator should ideally be at 57 MHz, however, the crystal filter's center frequency?
// is shifted down a little due to the loading from the impedance matching L-networks on either sides
#define SECOND_OSC_USB (56995000l)
#define SECOND_OSC_LSB (32995000l)?
?
?
//these are the two default USB and LSB frequencies. The best frequencies depend upon your individual taste and filter shape
#define INIT_USB_FREQ? ?(11996500l)
// limits the tuning and working range of the ubitx between 3 MHz and 30 MHz
#define LOWEST_FREQ? ?(100000l)
#define HIGHEST_FREQ (30000000l)
?
//we directly generate the CW by programming the Si5351 to the cw tx frequency, hence, both are different modes
//these are the parameter passed to startTx
#define TX_SSB 0
#define TX_CW 1
?
char ritOn = 0;
char vfoActive = VFO_A;
int8_t meter_reading = 0; // a -1 on meter makes it invisible
unsigned long vfoA=7150000L, vfoB=14200000L, sideTone=800, usbCarrier;
char isUsbVfoA=0, isUsbVfoB=1;
unsigned long frequency, ritRxFrequency, ritTxFrequency;? //frequency is the current frequency on the dial
unsigned long firstIF =? ?45000000L;
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The highlighted text would be the values that you will need to change.??This was in the file?ubitx_v4.3_code.ino?starting at line 173.? The archive is here:
?
There should be similar entries in whichever version you are using, including those from other authors.
73
Evan
AC9TU
|
Print the gerbers to a transparancy.
Though with the cheap PCB fab options we have nowadays,
your best option may be to email those gerbers off to China
and sit on your hands for a couple weeks.
Two (or four!) layer boards with plated vias are a wonderful thing.
Jerry
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On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 07:46 AM, Gareth Evans wrote:
But how do you get from a file in the PC to an etch resist on the bare PCB?
|
There are folks using Kicad at CERN where much of it was developed
to better suit their needs.? I'd count them as some awfully high level hobbyists.
It can take time to figure out any PCB layout package.
At work we used Pads-PCB for over three decades, mostly because it would have
been such trauma for an entire engineering team to switch over to something else.
?
Here's a list of board layout packages:
My criteria:
Not locked to a particular PCB vendor, must be able to emit gerbers.
Low cost, prefer open source so they can't suddenly jack up the price.
Able to do complex multilayer boards.
Not stuck under Microsoft Windows, I have no interest in that world.
EagleCad used to be very popular with hobbyists.
Currently the free version is restricted to a two layer 3x4 inch board,
costs $100/yr to do a 5x5 inch board, $495/yr to do anything as big as a uBitx.
For occasional use, I'll happily deal with any warts Kicad might have.
The gEDA stuff once looked interesting, but it hasn't been worked on in almost a decade.
And reports are that it is a collection of programs that are not a well integrated whole.
But I haven't looked around much recently.? I am curious what others are finding
that works well for them, especially if they meet my criteria above.
I applaud HFSignals for releasing the schematics and firmware for the Bitx40 and uBitx.
Holding back the PCB files should present a very low bar for anybody wishing to recreate either one.
Anyone doing so will likely have a significantly different board layout and some different parts,
otherwise why not just buy a uBitx???
You will need to learn how to use Kicad (or similar) if you are going to make even a small change
to Farhan's layout.? The time needed to lay the board out will be far less than that required?
to learn how to use the tool.? And far far less than the years Farhan has spent developing the uBitx.
In spite of how easy it should be, nobody has bothered to clone the uBitx.
I'm not aware of an alternative that comes close to the capabilities of the uBitx at this price.
Jerry, KE7ER
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On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 06:36 AM, Kobus ZS6CHK wrote:
Using Eagle cad. Paid for license. This is a very potent piece of software. For professional use.
Yes, for hobby application KiCad is fine. The are a couple of free cad software available on the
net.
|
But how do you get from a file in the PC to an etch resist on the bare PCB?
73 DE GARETH G4SDW AR K
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On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 01:25 PM, Ashhar Farhan wrote: I used the pcb express free tool for a while. Then I switched to kicad. It
has a bit of a learning discipline (you cant layout unless you have drawn
out the schematic first, etc.). My only complain about it is the component
libraries suck. In each version they try fixing and it breaks the earlier
version and makes it even worse.
I learn this useful tool from OM Bhatnagar, he is on this group.
- f
|
Hello to group.
I have built and calibrated a homebrew Raduino. Works all OK
I would like to built it into a homebrew TXR I am constructing.
My? TXR has an IF of 72 Mhz, not 45 Mhz as per the Raduino.
I am not an Arduino expert, and I cannot find where to change the IF offset in the sketch.
Can any Arduino gurus point me in the right direction?
Many thanks
Richard? VA3NDO
|
Using Eagle cad. Paid for license. This is a very potent piece of software. For professional use. Yes, for hobby application KiCad is fine. The are a couple of free cad software available on the net.
Gerard, it appears it is possible to import a PCB image into KiCAD and use it to create a new layout by using Bitmap2Component tool.? I haven't done it myself but here is a thread that discusses it:
Farhan, unfortunate that the PCB files are proprietary.? That only hurts the hobbyists as the professional cloners can strip, scan, and layout a small 2-layer board like the V6 in a couple days, even if they take long tea times.
?- Bill
|
Gerard, it appears it is possible to import a PCB image into KiCAD and use it to create a new layout by using Bitmap2Component tool.? I haven't done it myself but here is a thread that discusses it:
Farhan, unfortunate that the PCB files are proprietary.? That only hurts the hobbyists as the professional cloners can strip, scan, and layout a small 2-layer board like the V6 in a couple days, even if they take long tea times.
?- Bill
|
I used the pcb express free tool for a while. Then I switched to kicad. It has a bit of a learning discipline (you cant layout unless you have drawn out the schematic first, etc.). My only complain about it is the component libraries suck. In each version they try fixing and it breaks the earlier version and makes it even worse. I learn this useful tool from OM Bhatnagar, he is on this group. - f
On Fri 13 Nov, 2020, 6:46 PM Gerard, < kabupos@...> wrote: Hello,
Several decades ago, we made a PCB with a pen, then pellets and tape. Today we can make a nice PCB with software.
I used simple free software, where you have to connect all the tracks manually and place the components yourself.
That¡¯s what I used to feed my Ubitx power.
Some software are only in demonstration and do not allow to print or save.
With a little time, I focused on Kicad.
It is true that this software is not constrained and it is free.
At first, I thought it was fantastic software and making a pcb would be simple.
So I watched several videos....
I thought we could have imported a diagram from a pdf for example, and not possible.
So we have to recreate everything manually, the diagram, then choose the components.
After that, it remains to create the PCB. I told myself, that with all the informations it will propose me one, that to rigor I could modify.
No, there too none of that.
You must also choose everything manually.? Only positive thing, you have a 3d view of your circuit.
I may be wrong, but I have this observation.
What do you use to create your PCBs?
cdt
|
Hello, Several decades ago, we made a PCB with a pen, then pellets and tape. Today we can make a nice PCB with software.I used simple free software, where you have to connect all the tracks manually and place the components yourself.
That¡¯s what I used to feed my Ubitx power. Some software are only in demonstration and do not allow to print or save.With a little time, I focused on Kicad.
It is true that this software is not constrained and it is free.At first, I thought it was fantastic software and making a pcb would be simple.
So I watched several videos....
I thought we could have imported a diagram from a pdf for example, and not possible.
So we have to recreate everything manually, the diagram, then choose the components.
After that, it remains to create the PCB. I told myself, that with all the informations it will propose me one, that to rigor I could modify.
No, there too none of that.
You must also choose everything manually.? Only positive thing, you have a 3d view of your circuit.
I may be wrong, but I have this observation.
What do you use to create your PCBs?
cdt
|
Re: #v6 connect ubitx V6 and Xiegu XPA125B
#v6
I cannot speak to the B version but the A version should not have more then about 3 watts.
Sincerely, ?Frank Krozel?
BSEE, ? AASEET, ? FCC Lic.# PG-18-19178, ? KG9H
Electronic Instrument Associates -?Central, Inc. ...since 1971
w:? ?
See our EMC-specific site ????
d/l our November 2020 linecard at?? ? t: 1-630-924-1600 ? LinkedIn: ?
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On Nov 12, 2020, at 5:40 PM, Alejandro G S¨¢nchez Mart¨ªnez < lurkan@...> wrote:
Has anyone any experience or comment to make of connecting the V6 to a Xiegu XPA125B amplifier. I think there should be no problem but I would like to consult them if anyone has any comments on this. Also know if you can control the output power to the V6 from any menu on the radio. Because what I have read this is not possible. Thank you and 73
|
Gerard
Kobus ZS6CHK
Andy - GM0NWI