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Newly minted ham checking in, VE2YHF. Met a nice guy at a wedding I went to back in August who had brought his radio with him. I'd been interested in amateur radio for a while but after talking with him I finally got inspired to study for and take the test. Today I was skimming through this thread from the beginning and I found a post from myself on page 18, six years ago! Never did pick up code but the money situation improved  Now I need to figure out my antenna situation and get a radio. I'm in an apartment but it has a balcony, and I'm on the top floor so I have vertical space to work with outside.
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Sep 25, 2014 05:16
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Apparently the yospos radio thread isn't getting much traffic and I didn't punctuate this post. Sorry. I'm following these instructionsPuTTY riot posted:im gonna make a discone for my sdr dongles cause im not picking up 700mhz stuff as well as i'd like to w/ the included antennas:
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Sep 29, 2014 19:37
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ebay has got to be the best thing that's ever happened to this hobby, here's what $200 gets you from "connekt" my pride and joy, 15 meters of RG-405 with blue jacket with appropriate plugs for SMA m/m angled/f/f bulkhead mount, N and BNCs, various adapters N-SMA etc. and ten RG-58 solder N connectors. They even gave me half off DHL shipping for this order. If I take that same money to Farnell I might get a single bag of SMA connectors (which is what I do at work), it's ridiculous. At least for the SMA connectors they literally look the same as the TE Connectivity ones except they're not individually wrapped and the chinese ones come with the dielectric already inserted, which can be a real pain in the rear end to do by hand with the expensive types. Insertion loss is negligible in both types up to 6 GHz (haven't checked SWR) My long term goal is to get rid of all my UHF connectors in favour of SMA and N, considering the prices there's almost no cost penalty for using N and I'm told a regular style UHF connector has around 1 dB loss at 450 MHz. PuTTY riot posted:Apparently the yospos radio thread isn't getting much traffic and I didn't punctuate this post. Sorry. I'm following these instructions SMA female is probably the best choice, I suggest getting some RG-405 to install it, the solid copper shield can be soldered directly to the antenna ground structure for mechanical strength. It's a Teflon dielectric so it won't melt like the RG-174 cable that comes with those antennas will, and the soldered connection between the cable and connector will provide some degree of waterproofing. SMA connections themselves aren't waterproof of course, so you'll need some self vulcanizing tape or glue+shrink tube to seal the connection for mounting outside. I did a mod on one of my dongles by removing the MCX connector and soldering some RG-405 in, then a SMA female poking through the chassis, but it might be simpler to find a PCB mount SMA connector that fits. longview fucked around with this message at 15:26 on Oct 2, 2014 |
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Oct 2, 2014 15:19
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Still rocking my Baofeng UV5R for the moment, but I do have my callsign now - KE0BUI checking in Made my first contact last night while connected to a local repeater! 
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Oct 15, 2014 15:52
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Longview, mind posting Connekt's eBay store or such?
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Oct 16, 2014 22:04
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Question: Would it be plausible to do short-range PSK31 using an (unlicensed, not amateur) carrier-current transmitter system? I looked through the FCC regs and (assuming you're in the AM bands) it looks like you'd have to stay below 1000 mV conducted emissions (carrier-current not intended for standard AM reception) as well as the 15 uV/M at 48000/F(KHz) radiated emissions limit, but I don't see anything forbidding digital modes. http://transition.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Engineering_Technology/Documents/bulletins/oet63/oet63rev.pdf http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/15.221 It's been too long since I did radio theory stuff, what would be a reasonable guess for the range of something narrowband like PSK31 while staying within those limits? Normal DSB AM reception range is something like 200ft from the power line, I presume PSK31 is farther but I don't have a sense of how much farther. 1000ft? A couple miles? Paul MaudDib fucked around with this message at 21:47 on Oct 17, 2014 |
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Oct 17, 2014 21:43
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Well poo poo... I finally decided to try and overcome my anxiety and try to talk to someone on 10M and what happens? My power supply dies. At least I can still use my 3 amp PSU to listen. Suggestions on a cheap decent power supply? Need 20-30A to run a Kenwood TS-120S. (EDIT: When I get a new PSU, anyone in the southeast US wanna chat? My antenna setup probably won't get too far out.) josiahgould fucked around with this message at 22:39 on Oct 17, 2014 |
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Oct 17, 2014 22:36
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josiahgould posted:Well poo poo... I finally decided to try and overcome my anxiety and try to talk to someone on 10M and what happens? Unless you can't outrun a hoveround, there's nothing to be anxious about.
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Oct 17, 2014 22:43
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josiahgould posted:Suggestions on a cheap decent power supply? Need 20-30A to run a Kenwood TS-120S. Just buy a 30-40 amp Astron. It's not decent, but it should be cheap (used) and a retarded monkey could keep one running when it fails. Speaking of which, what kind of power supply do you have now? If it's a linear it's probably in need of like $6 worth of parts and if it's something common I can probably point you somewhere to help you troubleshoot it.
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Oct 17, 2014 22:48
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Motronic posted:Speaking of which, what kind of power supply do you have now? If it's a linear it's probably in need of like $6 worth of parts and if it's something common I can probably point you somewhere to help you troubleshoot it. It's a Pyramid Phase III Model PS-20.
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Oct 17, 2014 22:58
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josiahgould posted:It's a Pyramid Phase III Model PS-20. Not much to it:  Have you opened it up yet? Look for something burnt/toasty and/or smell stuff until you find what let the smoke out. Post pictures. I bet it's something simple and you can fix it yourself.
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Oct 17, 2014 23:02
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I figure it's nothing difficult to repair, but I have close to zero knowledge when it comes to repairing electrical things. Nothing obvious to my eyes, caps all look good, fuse is good, transformer hums like it did before it stopped working. It's above my (current) level of knowledge but there are a few guys around that can fix it and show me how they did it.
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Oct 17, 2014 23:11
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josiahgould posted:I figure it's nothing difficult to repair, but I have close to zero knowledge when it comes to repairing electrical things. Nothing obvious to my eyes, caps all look good, fuse is good, transformer hums like it did before it stopped working. Well, up to you. Feel free to post as decent of pics as you can get/describe what's going on if you want to take a shot at repair. Otherwise like I said......grab an Astron or similar. Should be cheap enough, especially if you can find one on Craigslist or at a hamfest. But if you buy another do NOT throw that one out. Someone (maybe you) can use it in the future. It's probably in pretty decent shape.
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Oct 17, 2014 23:13
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DJ Commie posted:Longview, mind posting Connekt's eBay store or such? Sure, http://stores.ebay.com/rfadapterconnectorpigtail/ There's several other stores that have slightly different selections, some may in fact be the same store: http://stores.ebay.com/3w-DIY-cable-kom?_rdc=1 Good selection of pigtails, some antennas, adapters http://stores.ebay.com/RF-Basic-Store?_rdc=1 US seller, not as cheap as the Chinese suppliers but has a nice component selection and distributes RF Bay modules http://stores.ebay.com/rfsupplier?_rdc=1 Another Chinese store, very broad selection outside of just RF, doesn't have things like blue jacket semi rigid or certain types of connector/cable combinations (RG-405 N and BNCs are fairly rare) And I'm sure everyone in this thread is familiar with 409shop for cheap radios.
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Oct 18, 2014 14:30
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If you've got USB>Serial adapters or programming cables you should probably give this a read: http://hackaday.com/2014/10/22/watch-that-windows-update-ftdi-drivers-are-killing-fake-chips/
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Oct 22, 2014 20:15
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MisterOblivious posted:If you've got USB>Serial adapters or programming cables you should probably give this a read: http://hackaday.com/2014/10/22/watch-that-windows-update-ftdi-drivers-are-killing-fake-chips/ Luckily a couple days later they realized how immensely loving stupid that was.
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Oct 24, 2014 19:33
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I built this: http://www.qsl.net/kf4cpj/qha/ antenna to pick up signals from the NOAA satellites at the 137.1 MHz frequency. After I built it, I plugged it into a network analyzer and my VSWR was ~2 at center frequency so I thought this was ok. I hauled it outside and plugged it into a spectrum analyzer when a satellite was supposed to be overhead but I was getting no signal at all. On the spectrum analyzer I can see distinct peaks for FM radio at 90-110 MHz and TV station signals at >200 MHz but nothing in between. I can even zoom in on the 90-110 MHz range and identify peaks of specific stations. I'm not sure what is wrong here or if my method of testing with the spectrum analyzer is totally invalid. Any advice?
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Oct 25, 2014 20:06
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IratelyBlank posted:I built this: http://www.qsl.net/kf4cpj/qha/ So you tested it inside or somewhere with other objects close to it (and it looked fine) and then your brought it to an operating position and it wasn't OK? If so, that's not a surprise. Tune it under the conditions where it's going to be used.
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Oct 25, 2014 20:40
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Motronic posted:So you tested it inside or somewhere with other objects close to it (and it looked fine) and then your brought it to an operating position and it wasn't OK? If so, that's not a surprise. Tune it under the conditions where it's going to be used. Ideally I would like to but I don't think it is realistic. I can take the spectrum analyzer outside because it is a relatively inexpensive piece of equipment, the network analyzer would be impossible to move. I guess my question is is using a spectrum analyzer a valid way to test the signal strength from a satellite? I usually test antennas using an anechoic chamber and a network analyzer but this antenna is so low frequency that this also isn't realistic due to the size of the wavelengths involved.
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Oct 25, 2014 20:52
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That's why people typically tune antennas like this with portable SWR meters/antenna analyzers.IratelyBlank posted:I guess my question is is using a spectrum analyzer a valid way to test the signal strength from a satellite? I don't see why not.
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Oct 25, 2014 21:14
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IratelyBlank posted:Ideally I would like to but I don't think it is realistic. I can take the spectrum analyzer outside because it is a relatively inexpensive piece of equipment, the network analyzer would be impossible to move. Can't you tune it with a tracking analyzer/noise source and a directional coupler? If you have decent coax and calibrate your setup it shouldn't be too hard to get a decent tuning even from inside... Only downside I can see with a spectrum analyzer is that the sensitivity/noise floor depends on the bandwidth settings, but modern ones have amazingly low noise figures when tuned right.
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Oct 25, 2014 23:02
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IratelyBlank posted:I built this: http://www.qsl.net/kf4cpj/qha/ Honestly I don't know how easy it would be to spot the satellite signal vs an FM Broadcst signal. Near me there's a fairly powerful FM broadcast transmitter that would dwarf any satellie signal, and I don't know what the dynamic range is on your SA but I wouldn't expect to see a peak where I am. If it's got a waterfall view that would make weak signals slightly clearer. Do you have a NOAA weather receiver that you could connect to the antenna that would probably let you know if it's working. Also how long did you check for, was it definitely a time the satellite was transmitting and above your horizon?
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Oct 26, 2014 00:00
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IratelyBlank posted:Any advice? Are you sure it was during a live satellite pass? All of the NOAA birds currently on orbit are decommissioned except 15, 18, and 19.
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Oct 26, 2014 00:09
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Crankit posted:Honestly I don't know how easy it would be to spot the satellite signal vs an FM Broadcst signal. Near me there's a fairly powerful FM broadcast transmitter that would dwarf any satellie signal, and I don't know what the dynamic range is on your SA but I wouldn't expect to see a peak where I am. If it's got a waterfall view that would make weak signals slightly clearer. Do you have a NOAA weather receiver that you could connect to the antenna that would probably let you know if it's working. The FM signals I was receiving were peaking at about -40 dBm. Here is a screenshot I took from the spectrum analyzer showing the FM radio stations with a marker where my NOAA signal should be:  I'm building the receiver myself and I wanted to make sure the antenna was working before I started to plug anything into it. I've finished my mixer, oscillator, and filters but I'm still working on my preamp and FM demodulation components so I am still a little bit away from being able to test the whole system. I tested for about + 10 mins before it was supposed to show up to -10 minutes after it was supposed to be out of range. Totally Reasonable posted:Are you sure it was during a live satellite pass? All of the NOAA birds currently on orbit are decommissioned except 15, 18, and 19. I'm pretty sure, I used this website: http://www.n2yo.com/passes/?s=33591 and was outside several times when it was supposed to be overhead. It is NOAA 19 that I am trying to receive from.
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Oct 26, 2014 21:21
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Got a road trip coming up and I'm wondering if anyone uses 2m simplex anymore, ever. Should I even bother monitoring the freq or would I be better off programming a few repeaters in along my route before i leave?
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Oct 28, 2014 20:32
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IratelyBlank posted:The FM signals I was receiving were peaking at about -40 dBm. Here is a screenshot I took from the spectrum analyzer showing the FM radio stations with a marker where my NOAA signal should be: I hope you were using a smaller span and res.+video bandwidth when doing the reception? You should be able to get the sensitivity down to at least -100 dBm with a reasonable refresh rate, you'd be lucky to see anything at all with a sensitivity of -70 dBm. Using a 1 Hz VBW the R&S ESL6 has a noise floor of something insane like -160 dBm.
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Oct 28, 2014 20:39
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PuTTY riot posted:Got a road trip coming up and I'm wondering if anyone uses 2m simplex anymore, ever. Should I even bother monitoring the freq or would I be better off programming a few repeaters in along my route before i leave? What I have seen used is APRS Voice Alert which is a way for APRSers to know when they're near each other and where to simplex chat, but that's a bit of a special case.
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Oct 28, 2014 22:07
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PuTTY riot posted:Got a road trip coming up and I'm wondering if anyone uses 2m simplex anymore, ever. Should I even bother monitoring the freq or would I be better off programming a few repeaters in along my route before i leave? I've been active on and off again since 2001, and not once have I ever managed to strike up a conversation on a roadtrip on the 2m calling frequency. Color me bad luck, but 11m it is not.
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Oct 31, 2014 05:54
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Hu Fa Ted posted:I've been active on and off again since 2001, and not once have I ever managed to strike up a conversation on a roadtrip on the 2m calling frequency. Color me bad luck, but 11m it is not. I've been surprised by the number of people who monitor 146.52 but never call. I have left the radio in my car on .52 for months without ever hearing anything, but when I get bored enough to transmit, I get a response more times than I'd expect. I've also heard a number of strange cryptic conversations out in the 'sticks with no call signs there. They never answer me, and go silent when I try to interject, so I assume they're unlicensed preppers or something who heard that ham radio is for when the "SHTF" and found the calling frequency on google.
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Oct 31, 2014 17:39
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eddiewalker posted:I've been surprised by the number of people who monitor 146.52 but never call. I have left the radio in my car on .52 for months without ever hearing anything, but when I get bored enough to transmit, I get a response more times than I'd expect. That, or just some unlicensed guys out 4wheeling/hunting and "bought those UV-5Rs cause they got good reviews on amazon"
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Oct 31, 2014 19:54
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Most of the time that .52 was doing anything out here, we had a local group of guys that would jaw on it and knew each other, and generally didn't bother with the 10 minute call sign rule. If you wanted to chat they'd sometimes be in and out but these were base stations so if you were mobile it wasn't going to work. There was a lot of bitching that .52 is for calling and not talking - even though it's empty. Having driving up to Toronto (I am in NY) I could still hear the same guys on .52 so I could see why it would be annoying, but, still, harmless. My mobile (Alinco DR-600) finally poo poo out, after probably 2+ years of monitoring .52 with not a peep.
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Oct 31, 2014 20:27
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I always get a response on 2m simplex from a retired drunk who apparently monitors it 24x7.
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Oct 31, 2014 20:50
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blugu64 posted:I always get a response on 2m simplex from a retired drunk who apparently monitors it 24x7. i'm not sure what it says about this hobby that it's largely kept alive by broken old men
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Nov 1, 2014 08:04
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CreppyMonkey posted:i'm not sure what it says about this hobby that it's largely kept alive by broken old men If there were some way we could turn it in to a crumudgeony ad-hoc wireless network of some sort it'd explode.
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Nov 1, 2014 20:15
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e.pilot posted:If there were some way we could turn it in to a crumudgeony ad-hoc wireless network of some sort it'd explode. http://www.broadband-hamnet.org/
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Nov 1, 2014 20:44
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I knew I was holding onto those three WRT54Gs for a reason. It's because I'm an idiot.
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Nov 2, 2014 05:35
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I'm going to buy a Baofeng and leave it on 6.52 forever. If you roll through denver, shout. (speaking of which, what's the model to buy/avoid right now?)
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Nov 6, 2014 06:54
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Jonny 290 posted:I'm going to buy a Baofeng and leave it on 6.52 forever. If you roll through denver, shout. I have a plain ol' UV-5R and it seems to be decent and the extended battery fits without dremeling anything.
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Nov 6, 2014 23:36
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Jonny 290 posted:I'm going to buy a Baofeng and leave it on 6.52 forever. If you roll through denver, shout. If I ever get around to getting my license I'll give you a shout, I live in the springs but I'm in Denver pretty much every day.
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Nov 6, 2014 23:51
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Jonny 290 posted:I'm going to buy a Baofeng and leave it on 6.52 forever. If you roll through denver, shout. I have 146.52 programmed into my Baofeng (UV-5R, it's pretty sturdy and I think looks nice) and I usually have it scanning, so if there were any activity around here I'd pick it up... but so far I haven't seen anything.
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Nov 6, 2014 23:54
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