(Personally...)
The U3 started as a simple beacon best suited for sending preset
short, repeatable stings of data.
There was a great movement for the inclusion of whatever was the
latest digimode to the U3 just because it could, rather than
perhaps if is the best use in a U3.
The legacy of which, we have today.....
The U3 has limited IO's, can anyone suggest a simple way to get live
messages such as from a keyboard into a U3 to warrant the inclusion
of QSO modes, for those operators that wish undertake 2 way
exchanges?
My rejected thoughts:-
The U3 can be configured as a CW TX, maybe if it had the CW decoder
/ edit function of the QCX spliced into it's firmware, CW in FT8 out
but not realy live.
Maybe appending the NMEA string in some way?? but that's not an easy
way and requires external resources......
Without an easy input route the U3 is limited to whatever is in it's
message memory and #LT, it makes for laborious "typing".....
before Xmas there was some development of an off-line click &
load computer application to edit the eep file, has / can that
progressed to on-line creation of messages?
Regarding one way propagation tools or beacon mode
I struggle with the need or the wisdom of announcing your
presence on the band using a mode optimised? for two way QSO
exchanges* but indicating you wish to behave as a virtual beacon /
do not wish to partake in to QSO.
If you just want to see a spot pop up on a computer screen there are
better modes adopted for such spotting? (Historically, human read
QRSS skimmers, then later the inclusion of automated centralised
WSPR database.)
These have specifically reserved allocations in the band plan so
such interested RX stations partaking know where to "find" you,
rather than being a lone "adopted" beacon mode lost in the Data
allocation of the band.
Also running for instance FT8 / JC8call TX's in the Weak Signals sub
band may be considered as bad practice by some?
* copy & pasted directly from relevant application /
modes homepage:-
WSJT-X implements communication protocols or "modes" called FT8,
JT4, JT9, JT65, QRA64, ISCAT, MSK144, and WSPR, as well as one
called Echo for detecting and measuring your own radio signals
reflected from the Moon.?
These modes were all designed for making reliable, confirmed QSOs under extreme weak-signal
conditions.
from the experimental? mode of the month / FT8 upgrade is.....
"JS8Call is software using the JS8 Digital Mode providing weak
signal keyboard to keyboard
messaging to Amateur Radio Operators.
For easy QSO Digimode use, await a widely anticipated project
rather than a U3?
IF, there is a real
need.
Rather than trying to enforce
a beacon condition on an existing QSO mode, maybe there is a
need to define an updated world standard for Beacon / one-way
only optimised mode.
Alan
On 19/04/2019 18:27, TrueBlue wrote:
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Fri, Apr 19, 2019 at 08:33 AM, Arvo W0VRA wrote:
Would a responsible way to use FT8 for checking a
station's propagation would be to call CQ DX...
No.
I addressed this some messages back.
It would be absolutely no different with FT8 than it is with JT9
or JT65 or any other of the U3S's many so-called "QSO
modes."? Why this suddenly and retroactively became a big issue I
can't imagine.
FT8 changes absolutely nothing, except by working better.?
The U3S is a beacon, not a transceiver.? You monitor propagation
via online reception logging.? It's a hands-off arrangement
attractive to lazy persons like me who find personal QSOs tedious
and excessively laborious.
If you do not send a CQ you owe nobody a QSO.?
Think about it.
Some people add a "B" character to signify beacon status.
Automation rules!
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We probably don't really need those four pins anyway...which pins are missing? just kiddin' "0)
FB on SKCC stuff.
Se ya !
72 / 73,
Bill, N4QA
dit dit
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Re: U3S transmitting through the case
Hi Chris?
There are no issues with the relay board.
Please check the jumpers you installed are in the correct positions..
Also check that the configuration you set up was correct: the U3S transmission screens need to specify the correct band slot for the frequency you are transmitting and it is easy to get this mixed up.
73 Hans G0UPL? ?
It's the blooming relay board!
Now it's configured to run without the relay board it works fine. Loads of spots.
It all looks okay??
- The highest frequency LPF in position 1- Yes
- Shorts -? None seen, and buzzed out okay
- Relays clicking during operation -Yes
- Tried new positions for LPF - Yes
- Check links against instruction - Yes
?Are there any common issues with this board?
--
Best regards,
Chris
M0XFL
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Hi all
1). The latest batch of QCX PCBs arrived here yesterday (Thursday) evening. We shipped out 38 today and will ship out the remaining pending orders on Monday/Tuesday. Apologies for the abnormal delay, for people who have been waiting..
2). Anyone ordering a QCX from now on will be shipped out within 1 business day as usual.
3). There appears to have been a supplier mistake and a small percentage of the kits have 24-pin sockets instead of 28-pin. I'm not sure what percentage yet.?
Since we already sent out a few 10's of kits today, and earlier in the week, some from US stock to US customers... there will be some people such as Lloyd K3ESE who got the 24-pin socket. Please do NOT use bandwidth on this group for this going forward; if yours has a 24-pin socket please email me off-list and I will sort out a replacement for you.
For any kits shipped from now onwards we will make sure they are checked and only correct 28-pin sockets sent out.?
4) the new batch of kits incorporates the improvement to the keying envelope that is this modification:? This means, certain component values have changed. The PCB (Rev 4) is the same.? If you started building a kit from the new batch (means any kit shipped on or after 13-Apr-2019) then you need to use the component values mentioned in the modification? I will update the assembly manual to show this, as soon as possible (and Monday at the latest).
73 Hans G0UPL? ?
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Re: qrp labs QRSS Transmitter
HI, i'm all the way down in South Somerset. good to know though. i'll keep at it & see where i get. thanks. Gary
On 19 April 2019 at 18:04 Stephen Farthing G0XAR JO92ON97 <squirrox@...> wrote:
Where are you Gary? I kitted these back in the days when Hans and I started QRP Labs. I¡¯ve probably got all the spare parts. Apart from crystals. I¡¯m near Norwich.?
Regards,
Steve G0XAR?
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hi, Bill!
I'll enjoy what I can of the build, but they shipped a 24-pin socket for IC2, rather than the 28 required, so there will be a caesura...
WB8YYY and I, and others, are often found doing SKCC things, of late...
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Hi Lloyd.
Enjoy the build, om !
Good to see you on here and...is that Curt, WB8YYY that I see on here too?
Cool ! Pretty soon the whole QRP-L gang will be over here !
72 / 73,
Bill, N4QA
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Re: 5W CW transceiver kit Arrived yesterday
Chris
Your enthusiasm is infectious,? enjoy your group build.
Due to small labels on board, and large manual, I suggest building near a screen to show you where each part goes.
Here in Maryland our club is doing a ubitx group build, so we don't get to do the toroid winding. Suceeding on that 4 winding coil is the thrill, and its a nifty rig. I hope it inspires you to try learning cw.
Curt
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T1 is step one. Sure gonna be careful with this one...
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Re: Multi band QCX plus Party time...
Hi guys.
A couple of times today, I've had to disconnect the stock QCX-17 from the downspout antenna and hunker down here, just off Studio B, with the wife and our pup, due to tornado warnings.
?
On the transmit side, the stock QCX-17 has, once again, been heard on the 80, 60, 40, 30, 20, 17 and 15 meter bands thus far into the new 'RBN week', which began at 0000z today.
It is seeming likely that I'll have to bypass the internal lpf of the stock QCX-17 in order to generate enough power output in order to be heard on the 12 & 10 meter bands.
I'm in no big hurry to do that.
?
On the receiving side of things, here's a sampling of the stations & their frequencies of which the stock QCX-17 has managed to have good copy.
?
CHU 3330, 7850, 14670 ( only during periods of unusually short skip condx for that last one ).
?
WWV & WWVH 5000, 10000, 15000 kHz ( 20000 still a holdout ( WWV-only, this freq ) ).
?
Several as yet unidentified AM SWBC stations between approximately 3300 and 15000 kHz.
?
I've had several actual QSOs on the 30, 20 and 17 meter bands so far and am confident that 80, 60, 40 and 15m are also doable.
?
Nevertheless, the stock QCX-17, except on its design band, does not hold a candle to any well-designed multi-band rig...and that's ok :0)
Like many others, I'm sure, I anxiously await the arrival of the QSX !
?
Have fun, all !
?
72 / 73,
Bill, N4QA
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Re: Multi band QCX plus Party time...
Hi Nigel,
A take away from each person having an individual goal is the fully
engineered solution may require alternative BPF, LPF & optimised
PA tuning for each band, alternatively do as Bill...
N4QA seems to do just fine putting his two QCX's 80 &17 on
adjacent and farther away bands.
With acceptable results perhaps not optimal results but contacts
count?
Doing nothing but adding an External LPF (or low loss BPF) for Tx
filtering, remembering the presence of the internal LOWPASS filter
is in series unless bypassed, if thinking of TX or RX above build
Freq !
the TX efficiency will be lower but the PA will still function in
class D rather than on the as built band in class E
I'm surprised at the success and wide band operation of the RX side,
but if it works for him with no secret sauce added to the recipe
you don't know if if you dont try it....? it should work for
you.......
If you currently have a QCX30 then try it on a lower band, just spin
the dial, I don't think there are band limits imposed in firmware?,
Or if you don't mind loosing any presets & personalisation do a
factory reset and choose band, you will at least get a feel if it
works for you.
(IQ / Balance Alignment is physical presets, so not disturbed by a
reset)
Search out his posts if you have not being following the threads.
Have fun with whatever route you decide.
Regards postal & charges, don't disrepair your homeland may have
that to come...... :-[
Depending on your locale, doesn't have to be S Africa, just one you
or someone you know has convenient links to
find out what yachtsmen / women or back packers use these days, my
daughter used drop box addresses where we / she could advance post
parcels into the next country, for pick up later.
Radio kits tend to be smaller than replacement sails or 6 months
supply of teabags and marmite because she misses "home"...... =-O
Wasn't the CW "party" carefully so named to allow the
inclusion of the WARC bands.
It's only a "contest" if you make it one, otherwise its a
watering hole for like minded operators??
Alan
On 19/04/2019 14:44, Nigel wrote:
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
Good day Alan and thank you for sharing your thoughts.
All noted and understood.?
I have already taken a step back to review my goals and best way
forward (but is bound to change -again!- unless I just start
construction <smile>) with conclusion that have confirmed
purpose of obtaining a QCX 30m version was three fold, 1
experience performance offered by using design based on Taylo
receiver concepts, 2, actively explore 30 m propagation from ZS
land using WSPR and 3, ?have a QRP portable tranciever. Whilst
experimenting with making the QCX a mult band device would be both
a challenge and fun, I have been procrastinating far too long and
as a result am not making any headway other than arriving at point
of paralysis by analysis! ?
Sad fact of life is that with a dysfunctional postal service in
this part of the word (recent example being receipt last week of a
water and lights municipality bill dated August 2018 - distance
between Municipality offices and post box being less than 10Km)
importing anything is VERY expensive given the ZAR exchange rate
AND need to use courier service to endure delivery. So whilst idea
of obtaining QSX when available sounds good, I do not have the
budget...?
Guess will have to find another way to join in the QCX party
challenge or perhaps some creative QCX owner can propose a non
contest activity that those of us with WARC band units can pursue?
73
Nigel ZS6RN ex G8DEV?
|
On Fri, Apr 19, 2019 at 08:33 AM, Arvo W0VRA wrote:
Would a responsible way to use FT8 for checking a station's propagation would be to call CQ DX...
No. I addressed this some messages back. It would be absolutely no different with FT8 than it is with JT9 or JT65 or any other of the U3S's many so-called "QSO modes."? Why this suddenly and retroactively became a big issue I can't imagine. FT8 changes absolutely nothing, except by working better.? The U3S is a beacon, not a transceiver.? You monitor propagation via online reception logging.? It's a hands-off arrangement attractive to lazy persons like me who find personal QSOs tedious and excessively laborious. If you do not send a CQ you owe nobody a QSO.? Think about it.
Some people add a "B" character to signify beacon status. Automation rules!
|
Re: U3S transmitting through the case
It's the blooming relay board! Now it's configured to run without the relay board it works fine. Loads of spots. It all looks okay??
- The highest frequency LPF in position 1- Yes
- Shorts -? None seen, and buzzed out okay
- Relays clicking during operation -Yes
- Tried new positions for LPF - Yes
- Check links against instruction - Yes
?Are there any common issues with this board? -- Best regards, Chris M0XFL
|
Re: qrp labs QRSS Transmitter
Where are you Gary? I kitted these back in the days when Hans and I started QRP Labs. I¡¯ve probably got all the spare parts. Apart from crystals. I¡¯m near Norwich.?
Regards,
Steve G0XAR?
|
Re: Good Mileage: Four Laps 190000km 90 cents for fuel (hydrogen )
I already thought radio ballooning was really cool. This float, however, is incredible! From the photos it's obviously not a "weather" balloon, what is it made of?
|
On Fri, Dec 8, 2017 at 04:21 AM, David Bowman wrote:
Our bandplans are very flexible because we behave responsibly.
Hello, David. Would a responsible way to use FT8 for checking a station's propagation would be to call CQ DX..., and then responsibly respond to any stations who answer the CQ?
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Re: Multi band QCX plus Party time...
I did not think that the QCX party was a contest...just a means to get QCX owners on the air at the same time.
So no WARC conflict as I see it.
Roger
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On 19 April 2019 14:44:00 BST, Nigel <zs6rn@...> wrote:
Good day Alan and thank you for sharing your thoughts.
All noted and understood.?
I have already taken a step back to review my goals and best way forward (but is bound to change -again!- unless I just start construction <smile>) with conclusion that have confirmed purpose of obtaining a QCX 30m version was three fold, 1 experience performance offered by using design based on Taylo receiver concepts, 2, actively explore 30 m propagation from ZS land using WSPR and 3, ?have a QRP portable tranciever. Whilst experimenting with making the QCX a mult band device would be both a challenge and fun, I have been procrastinating far too long and as a result am not making any headway other than arriving at point of paralysis by analysis! ?
Sad fact of life is that with a dysfunctional postal service in this part of the word (recent example being receipt last week of a water and lights municipality bill dated August 2018 - distance between Municipality offices and post box being less than 10Km) importing anything is VERY expensive given the ZAR exchange rate AND need to use courier service to endure delivery. So whilst idea of obtaining QSX when available sounds good, I do not have the budget...?
Guess will have to find another way to join in the QCX party challenge or perhaps some creative QCX owner can propose a non contest activity that those of us with WARC band units can pursue?
73
Nigel ZS6RN ex G8DEV?
--
Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail. Please excuse my brevity.
|
Re: Good Mileage: Four Laps 190000km 90 cents for fuel (hydrogen )
I'm thinking it got stuck to a satellite somehow. :)
|
Re: Multi band QCX plus Party time...
Good day Alan and thank you for sharing your thoughts.
All noted and understood.?
I have already taken a step back to review my goals and best way forward (but is bound to change -again!- unless I just start construction <smile>) with conclusion that have confirmed purpose of obtaining a QCX 30m version was three fold, 1 experience performance offered by using design based on Taylo receiver concepts, 2, actively explore 30 m propagation from ZS land using WSPR and 3, ?have a QRP portable tranciever. Whilst experimenting with making the QCX a mult band device would be both a challenge and fun, I have been procrastinating far too long and as a result am not making any headway other than arriving at point of paralysis by analysis! ?
Sad fact of life is that with a dysfunctional postal service in this part of the word (recent example being receipt last week of a water and lights municipality bill dated August 2018 - distance between Municipality offices and post box being less than 10Km) importing anything is VERY expensive given the ZAR exchange rate AND need to use courier service to endure delivery. So whilst idea of obtaining QSX when available sounds good, I do not have the budget...?
Guess will have to find another way to join in the QCX party challenge or perhaps some creative QCX owner can propose a non contest activity that those of us with WARC band units can pursue?
73
Nigel ZS6RN ex G8DEV?
|
CW decoder on QCX question
Hi all, I have a QCX 20 that works great, I take it rallies with me on the FISTS CW Club stand , people? always come and play with it, I normally put in into practice mode so no one really transmits on it (no antenna, well maybe a random bit of wire a couple of meters so the odd signal can be picked up to my amazement.) Anyway I normally put the CW Decode for TX on so people can see it decoded their sending. I was getting ready for Blackpool rally (28th April) and tested the decoder out, I could not get it to do anything, once or twice , normally if I change a preset freq say a * will appear but nothing when transmitting, im sure it was working FB last time I used the TX decoder but not now, any ideas???? Thanks guys Paul M0BMN ?
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Alan de G1FXB
Lloyd K3ESE
TrueBlue
Arvo W0VRA
Braden Glett