QCX Functional Specification Update
Oh my!?
Soon the QCX will have more Functionality than the Swiss Army Knife.
... and to think it started as a compact CW transceiver.
I'm going to stay Tuned.
-Bob
KQ2Q
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Exact time is set via menu 6.9 ...
With an external receiver tune in WWV
Then goto menu 6.9 and preset next time in advance of WWV time
THEN sync to WWV via? QCX 'Exit' right push button, press and release as WWV top of the minute TONE beeps , press and release? twice.
The QCX beacon screen should appear showing beacon freq and next beacon time expressed in minutes based on menu 6.4 and 6.5
If no QRP Labs GPS receiver connected, menu 8.6 will need to be setup? THEN?? tweeked ocasonally in order for QCX? 'system timing' to keep in step with WWV.
72 73
John
N3AAZ
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Alan,
I though of taking a video and slowing it down but...that just takes time away from building more radios. :)
I'll check the synth on my home receiver tonight. So long as it works :)
Best, Chris.
On Thursday, December 7, 2017, 1:53:41 PM NST, Alan G4ZFQ <alan4alan@...> wrote:
> On power up, does the LED come on first then flash four times?
> Perhaps I'm just missing a flash.
>
Chris,
I've never really bothered, I had a counter on it and that confirmed it
worked.
But I've just tried counting, blowed if I see more than 3 but they are
just short flashes.
73 Alan G4ZFQ
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The way I wrapped T1 was somewhat different than the way Hans described in his documentation.? What I did was start with the large secondary and wrapped it.? After getting to the end of the large secondary I made a loop about 1 1/2" in length, folding the wire tight against itself.? From there I wrapped the 2 other secondaries and the primary leaving the longer legs between each winding group.? Next I stripped the ends of the large secondary using a fine grit sandpaper (about 320 grit).? Then where I had the longer?folded?loops I snipped them apart one at a time sanding the varnish off each leg.? Finally I started with the large secondary, carefully inserting each lead into its appropriate hole.? Using a pair of hemostats I snugged each wire.? Finally starting at the large secondary I soldered the long lead.? After it was tacked I grabbed the lead with the hemos and reheated the connecting making sure it pulled the core close to the board.? I worked my way around the board tugging and soldering each lead.? ? This process is much simpler to perform than to write about.? I don't think it took any more than about 5 minutes to install.? Before trimming the excess leads I double checked each winding to insure I had conductivity.?? 72; Kurt - W2MW
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [QRPLabs] QCX Manual
From: "Shirley Dulcey KE1L" < mark@...>
Date: Wed, December 06, 2017 1:56 pm
To: [email protected]
Most of the toroids are easy. The only challenging one is T1; it takes
a bit of work to get all the wires in the right holes.
On Wed, Dec 6, 2017 at 1:44 PM, Keith VE7GDH < ve7gdh@...> wrote:
> Vernon VE1VDM wrote...
>
>> My kit should be here in a day or two so will be
>> printing it off soon...
>
> I didn't print any of the manuals. I just opened them up
> on a tablet (iPad) and used it while working on the QCX etc.
> I'm about half way through the second one, but haven't wound
> the toroids for the first one yet. Procrastination? Fear?
> I'll decide tomorrow.
>
> --
> 73 Keith VE7GDH
>
>
>
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Just a silly aside. Aldis Lamp signalling ( morse by light flashing ) maximum
speed is supposedly a mere 14wpm. I'm not going to calculate the duration of a
dit at that speed, but the Progrock is certainly faster. Hense the ambiguity
between flashes observed at power-up. I think its three, but it could vary
depending on the software. Over to you, Hans.
<vbg>
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On 7 Dec 2017 at 17:23, Alan G4ZFQ wrote:
On power up, does the LED come on first then flash four times?
Perhaps I'm just missing a flash.
Chris,
I've never really bothered, I had a counter on it and that confirmed it
worked.
But I've just tried counting, blowed if I see more than 3 but they are
just short flashes.
73 Alan G4ZFQ
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Re: QCX Troubleshooting - Please can you help?
I've checked menu 4.9, it's set to 700hz as it should be. Now I'm thinking that the 20Mhz clock might be the problem - if there's no 20Mhz, perhaps that stops the sidetone from being generated? And also stops the optical encoder output from being sampled?
So I've put my scope X10 probe on pins 9 and 10 of the chip - no signal at all. No signal on the 20mhz crystal pins either. No DC either. The crystal is connected to the chip OK, no dry joints or cracked tracks.
So I've replaced the 20 Mhz crystal. No change. tested the old crystal, perfect.
Baffled again.
Please, can someone with a functioning QCX and a ' scope let me know, do you get a 20mhz signal on the chip? and what DC voltage?
As ever, any help gratefully appreciated.
Julian
G4ETS
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On power up, does the LED come on first then flash four times? Perhaps I'm just missing a flash.
Chris, I've never really bothered, I had a counter on it and that confirmed it worked. But I've just tried counting, blowed if I see more than 3 but they are just short flashes. 73 Alan G4ZFQ
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About 6 of us in the local club are building the 20M version as a club project. All the kits arrived last week and we are now getting organized (trying to get organized anyway) to start working on them. A couple of the gang are new to small parts kits so we are trying to do it as a group.
73 - Hew
VA7HU
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On 2017-12-06 9:46 PM, Keith VE7GDH wrote: Hew VA7HU wrote...
I got my kit last week? and just getting ready to start
assembling on the weekend. I have printed the whole manual. I still haven't wound any of the toroids yet, but I have the
80M version otherwise done and and I'm about 3/4 of the way
through the 40M version. Which band did you go for? As I
mentioned, I've just been viewing the manuals on an iPad.
I can zoom and you can put post-it notes on pages you
quickly want to get to!
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The menu item 6.1 Becon: On ?
You also need to have the exact time set and wait for the frame to start. It should transmit on a even minute. Don't know how this is indicated on the QCX thou. In the U3S it says ">20" as in will wait to start at the beginning of minute 20.
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Re: Low Power fix on QCX 80 and a sugestion for a possible addition to QCX test gear to measure inductance.
When I trimmed the number of turns on the inductors (L1, L2, L3 and L4) I decided through lack of time to avoid the cut-n-try approach in favour of the measuring the inductors and adjusting turns until they matched the specified values in the manual. It was more labour intensive but I felt it had a better chance of success given my currently limited spare time.
Robin, Although I do not have a QCX it looks possible just to remove one end of an inductor, unwind one turn and resolder to the top of the board. The unwound length will have only a very small inductance. Then test, remove another turn, or even rewind that turn. That is the way I have adjusted inductors on similar boards. L1 manual says 25 turns (had to remove 5 turns) Of course if you have an inductance meter you can trust then use that. Obviously if you remove more turns than you need then it will appear to work but harmonic rejection may not be so great. 73 Alan G4ZFQ
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What a fun kit to build. Every thing follows your instructions to a T.
I have it transmitting on 20m cw with a recorded CQ.
What I don under stand is wspr. I have all the info set, but what do I do to actually get the WSPR to start?
I read that part of the instructions so many times, that I probably just missed it' so I need someone to slap me in the forehead.
Thanks
Terry? W6LEO
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Hi Alan,
I've taken your suggestion and done the factory reset but still the same issue. On power up, does the LED come on first then flash four times? Perhaps I'm just missing a flash.
Hopefully the issue is with my eyes and not the unit - it does flash quickly. I'll plug it into the receiver in the next few days and see what happens.
Thanks, Chris.
On Thursday, December 7, 2017, 11:59:38 AM NST, Alan G4ZFQ <alan4alan@...> wrote:
> The user manual states that on power up the LED should blink 4 times and
> go out. Mine blinks like a CW 'D' (one long pulse followed by two short)
> and then remains off. Does this indicate a problem?
>
Chris, If it really is a D then I've not seen it.
Try a reset as in section 4.2
All I see is rapid flashes, so fast I'm never sure I've seen 4. But then
I'm probably just slow..
The FOX will be close to 27000000
73 Alan G4ZFQ
> As recommended in the instructions, I've grounded the 1pps pin. The
> voltage regulator (5.2V) and the noise filter (3.7V) voltages are within
> Han's 5% tolerance. My thought is that the timing between the first and
> second pulse is too short to perceive and they are blending into one
> long pulse. The LED turning off should indicate the I2C connection is
> established? I'm using the FOX924B TCXO on the Synth and am new to SMD
> soldering (can't figure out a way of double checking the connections,
> but the solder is very shinny).
>
> Also, can anyone recommend a ballpark reference frequency for the FOX TCXO?
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Re: QCX freq/display calibration
In the alignment menus look at 8.5 that tells you how to align the frequency without a GPS.
Jan
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Re: Low Power fix on QCX 80 and a sugestion for a possible addition to QCX test gear to measure inductance.
Hi Robin,
Sadly I dont think I can help on this one. When I trimmed the number of turns on the inductors (L1, L2, L3 and L4) I decided through lack of time to avoid the cut-n-try approach in favour of the measuring the inductors and adjusting turns until they matched the specified values in the manual. It was more labour intensive but I felt it had a better chance of success given my currently limited spare time.
I performed the measure, adjust and re-measure on each inductor and then re-fitted all the inductors into the board in one operation so I did not notice which (if any) of the inductors made the biggest change to the power output. What I can say is that my inductors started off with the specified number of turns but ended up being way-off due (I suspect) to the well documented and notoriously poor sample-to-sample tollerances of this type of core.
If it helps I can tell you how many turns I had to remove from each core...
L1 manual says 25 turns (had to remove 5 turns)
L2 manual says 27 turns (had to remove 4 turns)
L3 manual syas 25 turns (had to remove 5 turns same as L1)
L4 manual says 24 turns (had to remove 5 turns)
As an aside, I rummaged around the shack and found some old (very old, 20 years +) T37-2 cores and wound the specified number of turns as a check to satisfy curiosity as to the s-p-r-e-a-d in core characteristics with cores from different suppliers and of different ages. The result was that in almost all cases the final number of turns required for a given inductance is subject to "tweaking" due to tollerances in the core. Conclusion: they have not got any better over the years Hi.
Hope you enjoy the QCX and look forward to hearing you on-air.
73,s
Des (M0AYF)
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On Wed, Dec 6, 2017 at 08:52 am, <robin.travis@...> wrote:
Des and Alan
I have just subscribed to the group and I wonder?if?either of you can help an old timer who has?only returned to amateur radio in the last couple of years after 30 years of no activity.
In fact, the last transceiver I built was a Heathkit HW8 which still works?- ?Hi Hi.
I have just completed building the QCX 80 and it worked first time thanks to the excellent Assembly Guide Manual.
In my opinion, I also have a slightly lower power output?than expected.
Using the online power meter, I ?have 5.2 watts on the drains of Q1, Q2 and Q3 (with both 9.5 and 11.3 V power source) and the following measurement across L1:
L1/L2 Junction = 3.3 watts (11.3V)? and?2.3 watts (9.5V)
L1/power output BNC socket = 2.0 watts (11.3V) and 1.5 watts (9.5V)
I understand these power measurements are not necessarily accurate values but serve for the purpose of comparison.
I note the possible removal of turns from the inductances L1, L2, L3 and L4 but before embarking on this I would be interested to know which inductance did you find was the most critical and turns removed.
I am fully aware that inductance values?can vary according to core material, tightness of turns, closeness of turns etc but would greatly appreciate your input as a quick fix until I can set myself up with the inductance measuring circuit.
Kind regards and 73s
Robin
G4DNP
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The user manual states that on power up the LED should blink 4 times and go out. Mine blinks like a CW 'D' (one long pulse followed by two short) and then remains off. Does this indicate a problem?
Chris, If it really is a D then I've not seen it. Try a reset as in section 4.2 All I see is rapid flashes, so fast I'm never sure I've seen 4. But then I'm probably just slow.. The FOX will be close to 27000000 73 Alan G4ZFQ As recommended in the instructions, I've grounded the 1pps pin. The voltage regulator (5.2V) and the noise filter (3.7V) voltages are within Han's 5% tolerance. My thought is that the timing between the first and second pulse is too short to perceive and they are blending into one long pulse. The LED turning off should indicate the I2C connection is established? I'm using the FOX924B TCXO on the Synth and am new to SMD soldering (can't figure out a way of double checking the connections, but the solder is very shinny).
Also, can anyone recommend a ballpark reference frequency for the FOX TCXO?
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Re: Winding Tip for 80 Mtr QCX transformer (T1)
Hi Robin & the group,
I see a number of people have allready responded with some good advice on this one but heres my 10p (10c) worth.
I would go along with the idea that adding a small capacitor in parallel with the trimmer is the simplest option and saves the "stress" of changing the number of turns on T1 and the only issue I can see with that is that by adding a capacior accross the trimmer you slightly reduce the total "swing" or range of tuning possible for T1. So at some future date you may want to peak in a different part of the band and not be able to do so due to the reduced tunning range. In practical terms it may not matter very much as the receiver is very sensitive and even signals off-tune are still of easily copied. My QCX is "peaked" at 3.560 MHz but still works perfectly well over the rest of the CW range. I "peaked" around 3.560 MHz to make it most sensitive in the area where one might expect to hear other (possibly weak) QRP signals.
Regarding "tweaking" T1 turns. I wound my T1 with too many turns on purpose with the notion that it would be easier to take turns off as oposed to adding them. I soldered all but one terminal of secondary 3 into the board permanently. The end of the secondary 3 winding (tuned winding) was soldered in "lightly" so it could be removed without to much difficulty. I had to remove quite a few turns on my T1 but with the aid of a pair of tweezers a few turns at a time can be removed with patience and the end of the tuned winding re-soldered. I seem to remember it took me 3 or 4 re-workings before I got my trimmer roughly mid-position.
73,s
Des (M0AYF)
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Re: QCX freq/display calibration
You need the PPS signal to calibrate the crystal frequencies. The serial data is for time and info only. The calibration takes a few seconds and you should see a new value that most probably don't end in a lot of 0's.
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Hi All,
I just completed assembling a progrock that I'll use in a QRP receiver.
The user manual states that on power up the LED should blink 4 times and go out. Mine blinks like a CW 'D' (one long pulse followed by two short) and then remains off. Does this indicate a problem?
As recommended in the instructions, I've grounded the 1pps pin. The voltage regulator (5.2V) and the noise filter (3.7V) voltages are within Han's 5% tolerance. My thought is that the timing between the first and second pulse is too short to perceive and they are blending into one long pulse. The LED turning off should indicate the I2C connection is established? I'm using the FOX924B TCXO on the Synth and am new to SMD soldering (can't figure out a way of double checking the connections, but the solder is very shinny).
Also, can anyone recommend a ballpark reference frequency for the FOX TCXO?
Best, Chris, VO1CKD.
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QCX freq/display calibration
Greetings all; ? So I put my QCX-20 on the air last night to check calibration. I am using my Yaesu FT-920 as my frequency standard. I noticed both TX/RX freq are a few kHz. I don’t recall anything written about calibration other than using the GPS RX to calibrate the XTAL.?
Has anyone else had a calibration issue? I haven’t seen any discussion about this unless I missed something. 72; Kurt-W2MW?
Get
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Re: QCX firmware 1.00e release
Thanks for the update Hans. 73 Tim KB2MFS<div id="DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2"><br /> <table style="border-top: 1px solid #D3D4DE;"> <tr> <td style="width: 55px; padding-top: 13px;"><a href=" target="_blank"><img src=" alt="" width="46" height="29" style="width: 46px; height: 29px;" /></a></td> <td style="width: 470px; padding-top: 12px; color: #41424e; font-size: 13px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">Virus-free. <a href=" target="_blank" style="color: #4453ea;">www.avast.com</a> </td> </tr> </table><a href="#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2" width="1" height="1"></a></div>
On Thu, Dec 7, 2017 at 3:49 AM, Hans Summers <hans.summers@...> wrote: Hi all
QCX firmware version 1.00e is released. You don't need to upgrade unless you
particularly want/need one of these changes. Changes in this version:
- Bug fix: stored message sending now sends at current keyer speed (not
stored default)
- Bug fix: WSPR tones in the second half of the transmission were
potentially corrupted
As usual, you can download the .hex file from
/g/QRPLabs/files/Firmware%20for%20QCX%20kit/1.00e or
purchase a programmed chip in the shop if you wish
All orders sent out from now onwards (and some of those sent out recently),
are using this 1.00e chip.
73 Hans G0UPL
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Kurt Zimmerman
Mike
Daniel Ekman SA2KNG