Re: QSX radio feature requests
I'd like it to be able to operate my toaster too, if possible.
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Re: QSX radio feature requests
from 50 years as an electrical engineer:
The latest "improvement" is always the source of the newest problem.
If you want an all band, all mode, transceiver with internal ATU and
Battery, Elecraft will be more than happy to take your loose
$1,500.00
72
Fred
WD9HNU
On 8/23/2018 3:18 PM, Dave VE3LHO
wrote:
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From: Rick Barnich
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2018 09:53:21 PDT
...
The problems and delays were always caused by changes and new
features.
I would 2nd that: feature churn has delayed and killed more
than one, otherwise good, product.
Dave VE3LHO
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Tries double clicking left button and clicking right button. Did not
cancel RIT
--
Have a GREAT Day
Tom KS5X@...
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This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
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In operating mode display reads VFO and Frequency top row,then -2,040
bottom row which I believe to be RIT off-set. How do I reset RIT?
Have a GREAT Day
Tom KS5X@...
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This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
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Also, no matter how I remove the enamel coating, I always check the leads with my DVM for continuity, just to make sure. I prefer to gently scrape the coating off with a box cutter, taking care not to nick the wire. To me, burning it off smells like feet...not my favorite.
Jack, W8TEE
On Thursday, August 23, 2018, 3:36:43 PM EDT, Alan <g8lco1@...> wrote:
Writing anything to this group ?demands a little thought, most people seem to be starting in the hobby so don¡¯t have the experience or piles of materials that others have. ? A little enamel residue is not very significant but burning off the insulation is not a great idea from a respiration viewpoint, you also coat the copper with oxide which hinders soldering. An easy way of abrading off a little of the enamel is to use a tiny piece of fine sandpaper /wet & dry/ diamond file ?to scratch the coating, solder and heat will do the rest. It is the work of a moment to tin a suitable enamelled wire-? not a big effort. But I do avoid breathing in the fume from the enamel- best avoided. ? There are VERY MANY specialised coatings for motor windings and scan coils. Some are double layer, you wind the coil then heat with a high current to fuse the outer layers together, some coils are wound? using a ?hot lacquer ?spray during winding which is very solid indeed. Windings in induction motors can be malleted in place then varnished. But the majority of low cost wires are low temp self fluxing/ Solder through types- at least the ones made in the last 50 years. I would avoid the older dark varnishes- you might wind something complicated then discover that the brittle old enamel has caused an internal short. ? Simple coils that are loose wound can be a useful source of wire but if the windings are glued together then that¡¯s for the scrap yard. Buying a few reels of enamelled wire is not very expensive, once you are electronically hooked such stock allows you to have a very interesting time in the years to come. ? Good luck, Alan G8LCO ? Sent from for Windows 10 ? ?
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Writing anything to this group ?demands a little thought, most people seem to be starting in the hobby so don¡¯t have the experience or piles of materials that others have. ? A little enamel residue is not very significant but burning off the insulation is not a great idea from a respiration viewpoint, you also coat the copper with oxide which hinders soldering. An easy way of abrading off a little of the enamel is to use a tiny piece of fine sandpaper /wet & dry/ diamond file ?to scratch the coating, solder and heat will do the rest. It is the work of a moment to tin a suitable enamelled wire-? not a big effort. But I do avoid breathing in the fume from the enamel- best avoided. ? There are VERY MANY specialised coatings for motor windings and scan coils. Some are double layer, you wind the coil then heat with a high current to fuse the outer layers together, some coils are wound? using a ?hot lacquer ?spray during winding which is very solid indeed. Windings in induction motors can be malleted in place then varnished. But the majority of low cost wires are low temp self fluxing/ Solder through types- at least the ones made in the last 50 years. I would avoid the older dark varnishes- you might wind something complicated then discover that the brittle old enamel has caused an internal short. ? Simple coils that are loose wound can be a useful source of wire but if the windings are glued together then that¡¯s for the scrap yard. Buying a few reels of enamelled wire is not very expensive, once you are electronically hooked such stock allows you to have a very interesting time in the years to come. ? Good luck, Alan G8LCO ? Sent from for Windows 10 ? ?
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Re: QSX feature request: Can it talk?
Hi Alison,
No worries.
Of absolutely no interest to anyone....
email was sent prior to a read through, wasn't supposed to have
cryptic initials,
more like things for me to check before launch.
?
SW= Steven Weber, KD1JV
DB= Dave Benson, K1SWL
Must also include, David Cripe, NM0S
All of whom have being instrumental in 'lite' SOTA friendly radios
including the "Hilltopper" featuring frequency readout through code.
Thereby the powers of "seven degrees of separation"
Mr David Cripe, NM0S stalwart of Class E and the creator of the
Hypermite AF filter, to name but two.
Ably included in Mr Hans Summers G0UPL famous QCX series of radio's
There by. bring this back neatly nearly on
thread.......
moved on/
Alan
On 23/08/2018 19:15, ajparent1/KB1GMX
wrote:
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Alan,
No foul intended.? The KB1OIQ was based on arduino and I've pushed
him to consider?
as a possible mod to output cat controls as a front end box for
cat enabled radios.
His not doing this is a 24hour day issue not unwillingness.
However...? The code is out there and free to use and it is open
to anyone to
make such a add on via cat interface and not be limited to a few
or part of
specific radios.
Allison
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Re: QSX radio feature requests
From: Rick
Barnich
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2018 09:53:21 PDT
...
The problems and delays were always caused by changes and new
features.
I would 2nd that: feature churn has delayed and killed more than
one, otherwise good, product.
Dave VE3LHO
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Which makes my request unnecessary and is what I had expected
anyway, thus why I hadn't bothered to ask it till now. Its all
good : -)
From: Hans
Summers
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2018 09:08:44 PDT
Hi Dave
Apologies if it is not clear.?
1. Basic: 40m transceiver. It could be built for any HF band
with appropriate BPF and LPF components.
2. 10-band filter board option.?
3. Enclosure option.?
2 & 3 are both independent options. You can have either
one, or both, or neither.
73 Hans G0UPL?
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Re: QCX - Extender cable for LCD?
I wasn't willing to assume I could run the rig without the LCD connected, but if it is safe I can see that as an option. Thanks!
I think it would have been better for me if I could have built it up in functional units and tested those sections.?I wonder if there are any owners that have used this approach.
I'm very inexperienced in component level testing. I borrowed a scope, but the problem is 'weird' (it pops when keying, and changing the rotary encoder can make it louder), not 'inop' so it's harder to understand where the problem is.
I've got a QCX20 coming; I'm hoping I can do a better job the second time around.
73 Greg KE4HBQ
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Re: QSX feature request: Can it talk?
Alan,
No foul intended.? The KB1OIQ was based on arduino and I've pushed him to consider?
as a possible mod to output cat controls as a front end box for cat enabled radios.
His not doing this is a 24hour day issue not unwillingness.
However...? The code is out there and free to use and it is open to anyone to
make such a add on via cat interface and not be limited to a few or part of
specific radios.
Allison
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Re: QSX radio feature requests
All, I am a casual follower of this forum and was excited to see the QSX announcement. The ink was hardly dry and the requests for additional features started pouring in. If you recall, when the QCX was announced a year ago, it was after the product had been supplied to a youth forum and hasn't changed much since that time.?
You will also notice that the revelation of the QSX come after it's introduction to the same group a year later. Hans has developed the product along the same track as the QCX. In this case, the announced product is a single band tranceiver, with multiband capability to follow. I doubt that the QSX will vary much from what Hans has already divulged.?
I am with you in encouraging the simplicity of the QSX at the expense of numerous additional? features. I have over 40 years experience doing embedded systems design and programming. The problems and delays were always caused by changes and new features.
Hans is clearly a master at getting the most bang for the buck.?
To Hans I would say, thank you for keeping your eye on the ball.
73, Rick? KA8BMA
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I always scrape enameled wire, and have never had a problem with breakage.? Use the *back* side of the Exacto blade or a razor knife to reduce chances of nicks.? That side is duller, but scrapes just fine.? A little less pressure also helps.
72,
Michael KD4SGN
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On 8/23/2018 11:52 AM, Glen Leinweber wrote:
With heat-stripping enamel, I scrape through first. Maybe not all the way around, but enough to allow soldering iron to meet fresh copper. It strips much faster, as Alan G8LCO suggests. Burnt residue still requires scraping off. With older high-temperature enamel, a thorough,complete scraping first is absolutely required, and it is visibly apparent when you've missed a bit after tinning. No burnt residue is left. This kind of enamel requires more prep work, which means that nicking copper is a bigger risk. Both types of enamel requires scraping IMO. And tinning with fluxed solder is absolutely required IMO - the risk of remnant nearly-invisible enamel is too great: tinning exposes it. I'd rather put in a full scraping effort, and be assured that enamel is gone for sure, with a clear transition from tinned copper to insulating enamel - that favours the high-heat non-striping enamel.
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Hi Dave
Apologies if it is not clear.?
1. Basic: 40m transceiver. It could be built for any HF band with appropriate BPF and LPF components.
2. 10-band filter board option.?
3. Enclosure option.?
2 & 3 are both independent options. You can have either one, or both, or neither.
73 Hans G0UPL? ?
On Thu, Aug 23, 2018, 18:54 Dave VE3LHO < dave@...> wrote: I have been thinking the same thing, that it'd be nice to add a battery and perhaps an ATU. I suspect others might also have this thought too since these are offered by other radios with similar size and capabilities.
My preference would be that the QRP-Labs supplied case not allow extra room for these however. I would prefer that these and the case to hold them be left as a project for the user. Why? Because I think that the QRP-Labs case should minimize (within reason) the size. Sure there might be room for some smaller add-ons but even a small battery capable of multiple watts and a small tuner will take up a fair bit of space. I don't think the users, who don't want those, should have to put up with the extra size. This is a nice *little* radio. Let's leave it such.
I see Hans has posted dimensions and I don't think that they leave a lot of room. I guess it can be a challenge for those who want to take it on : - )
This does lead to a request however. I'm hoping that there will be an option to buy just the electronics (all-band radio incl. PA and relay/filter board) without the case. I haven't bothered to mention it since its hardly a product design decision and, although Hans has only mentioned a couple of price points (single band and all band with case), I would assume he's also open to other reasonable options. But since you mention this I'll make the request now.
73
Dave L.
VE3LHO
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I burn the enamel using a butane lighter, remove the residue with fine grit sand paper, and then tin the wire.? It works quite well.
73, Art? WB8ENE
On Thu, Aug 23, 2018 at 11:52 AM Glen Leinweber < leinwebe@...> wrote: Am not fond of heat-stripping enamel wire. Yes, a hot soldering iron can eventually strip off the enamel. Applying solder liberally helps this process. But a mess of burnt residue usually is left, which is best scrapped off after cooling. Then the wire end is best re-tinned a-fresh to shed excess solder coating. It is all too easy to apply insufficient heat to actually strip the enamel, but coat the wire with solder. Looks metallic, but not electrically connected to copper.
With heat-stripping enamel, I scrape through first. Maybe not all the way around, but enough to allow soldering iron to meet fresh copper. It strips much faster, as Alan G8LCO suggests. Burnt residue still requires scraping off. With older high-temperature enamel, a thorough,complete scraping first is absolutely required, and it is visibly apparent when you've missed a bit after tinning. No burnt residue is left. This kind of enamel requires more prep work, which means that nicking copper is a bigger risk. Both types of enamel requires scraping IMO. And tinning with fluxed solder is absolutely required IMO - the risk of remnant nearly-invisible enamel is too great: tinning exposes it. I'd rather put in a full scraping effort, and be assured that enamel is gone for sure, with a clear transition from tinned copper to insulating enamel - that favours the high-heat non-striping enamel.
One other thing - reusing old enamel wire is risky. Some windings are fixed in place with a bonding agent - when you remove enamel wire from such a form (like TV deflection scan coils) the enamel can de-bond from the copper. Really old enamel often becomes brittle - you can hear and see it crack and de-bond from the copper when flexed. Not appropriate for a tight toroid winding on small cores. In any case, if you re-wind a toroid, I'd recommend using fresh wire - the original winding has had its enamel stressed too far? - original winding always goes to recycling.
-Glen VE3DNL
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I have been thinking the same thing, that it'd be nice to add a battery and perhaps an ATU. I suspect others might also have this thought too since these are offered by other radios with similar size and capabilities.
My preference would be that the QRP-Labs supplied case not allow extra room for these however. I would prefer that these and the case to hold them be left as a project for the user. Why? Because I think that the QRP-Labs case should minimize (within reason) the size. Sure there might be room for some smaller add-ons but even a small battery capable of multiple watts and a small tuner will take up a fair bit of space. I don't think the users, who don't want those, should have to put up with the extra size. This is a nice *little* radio. Let's leave it such.
I see Hans has posted dimensions and I don't think that they leave a lot of room. I guess it can be a challenge for those who want to take it on : - )
This does lead to a request however. I'm hoping that there will be an option to buy just the electronics (all-band radio incl. PA and relay/filter board) without the case. I haven't bothered to mention it since its hardly a product design decision and, although Hans has only mentioned a couple of price points (single band and all band with case), I would assume he's also open to other reasonable options. But since you mention this I'll make the request now.
73
Dave L.
VE3LHO
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Am not fond of heat-stripping enamel wire. Yes, a hot soldering iron can eventually strip off the enamel. Applying solder liberally helps this process. But a mess of burnt residue usually is left, which is best scrapped off after cooling. Then the wire end is best re-tinned a-fresh to shed excess solder coating. It is all too easy to apply insufficient heat to actually strip the enamel, but coat the wire with solder. Looks metallic, but not electrically connected to copper.
With heat-stripping enamel, I scrape through first. Maybe not all the way around, but enough to allow soldering iron to meet fresh copper. It strips much faster, as Alan G8LCO suggests. Burnt residue still requires scraping off. With older high-temperature enamel, a thorough,complete scraping first is absolutely required, and it is visibly apparent when you've missed a bit after tinning. No burnt residue is left. This kind of enamel requires more prep work, which means that nicking copper is a bigger risk. Both types of enamel requires scraping IMO. And tinning with fluxed solder is absolutely required IMO - the risk of remnant nearly-invisible enamel is too great: tinning exposes it. I'd rather put in a full scraping effort, and be assured that enamel is gone for sure, with a clear transition from tinned copper to insulating enamel - that favours the high-heat non-striping enamel.
One other thing - reusing old enamel wire is risky. Some windings are fixed in place with a bonding agent - when you remove enamel wire from such a form (like TV deflection scan coils) the enamel can de-bond from the copper. Really old enamel often becomes brittle - you can hear and see it crack and de-bond from the copper when flexed. Not appropriate for a tight toroid winding on small cores. In any case, if you re-wind a toroid, I'd recommend using fresh wire - the original winding has had its enamel stressed too far? - original winding always goes to recycling.
-Glen VE3DNL
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Re: QSX radio feature requests
Here is Charley's most recent summary..............
73 Kees K5BCQ
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Re: QSX radio feature requests
Several years ago, one of the AQRP members developed a standalone transceiver for PSK-31 and later added SSB. It utilized the HobbyPCB Transceiver as the RF frontend and a STM32F746G for the microcontroller and color display. The interface between the two is I/Q signals and it's all DSP . It works pretty well according to Charley, W5BAA. I think that one is also a pretty darn good design point.
He made a Power Point presentation at Austin Summerfest one year.
73 Kees K5BCQ
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Re: QCX - Extender cable for LCD?
Hey There Greg!
A length of #28 sixteen conductor ribbon cable will work.? How long of a piece do you need?? Reply off the group (or whatever you call it).? My e-mail address is on QTH.com.? I'll get it in the mail today once I find out how much you want.? Is your postal address current on QTH?
73
Ed.
WA4MZS
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Braden Glett
Fred Piering WD9HNU
jjpurdum
Alan de G1FXB