SDR4everyone

Flex-1500: QRP is an alternative

2012-03-01T13:24:00.000+01:00

Last weekend I was able to contact an Special Event station, on 80m, using just the 5W my Flex-1500 provides. I had already logged the contact an hour earlier using a 200W rig (my Yaesu FTdx-5000MP) but I was curious about using QRP to do it, so I tried. And it worked :-)

So, yes, with patience, this small QRP rig works wonders.

73 JOSE EB5AGV

The beginning: SoftRock RXTX 6.2

2011-07-19T23:05:00.000+02:00

This was my first SDR, built in December 2008, and was quite a surprise for me, as it received beautifully.

I got it as a kit from Tony KB9YIG:

I carefully assembled it:

and mounted it inside a recycled Ethernet switch box, as you can see here:

Here you have a sample of reception with Rocky program:

So that was my beginning with SDRs!

73 JOSE EB5AGV

PowerSDR-UI: a great idea by DH1TW

2011-07-18T15:03:00.001+02:00

One of the main problems found by hams when they approach to SDRs is the User Interface, as they are used to knobs and buttons and not to click with the mouse. But this is no longer a problem, thanks to Tobias DH1TW. Please, take a look at his PowerSDR-UI Project at:

http://www.dh1tw.de/powersdr-ui

There is also a YahooGroup devoted to this interesting project at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PowerSDR-UI/

Hope this helps!

73 JOSE EB5AGV

Introduction

2011-07-18T14:10:00.005+02:00

I should confess that I am addicted to SDRs... Yes, I am hooked with Software Defined Radios. I think they are not only the future but the present of Amateur Radio.

I began with the tiny SoftRock SDR, exactly with a RXTX 6.2 for 40/80m. This was quite a discovery, as it opened (literally) my eyes to a new radio experience. Since then, I have got several other SoftRock kits along several assembles SDRs, as the RFSPACE SDR-IQ, a Flex-5000A, a FUNcube Dongle and, just a week ago, a Flex-1500. I am now toying with another idea: to get an HPSDR kit.

So, yes, I am addicted to SDRs!

My idea of this BLOG is to show my adventures with SDRs as they may help to other people.

Comments welcomed!

73 JOSE EB5AGV