W5OLF WSPR beacon

W5OLF - WSPR-AXE-CW beacon

There are other solutions around for WSPR (like the Ultimate 3 kit from Hans Summers - excellent I am told) but I have had Wolf's 10m 500mW,  fully stand-alone, WSPR beacon (WSPR-AXE-CW) running more or less continuously for 6 months now. This fits in a small Altoids sized box and needs no PC at all. The frequency is randomised but always on TX. My antenna is a 3 band low wire and certainly not the best for 10m. Despite this, it has been copied in the USA most days for months and has been spotted in every continent on the planet including Antarctica and Australia. If I am around, the 10m WSPR beacon is usually on. If you are after a fully stand-alone WSPR beacon for 30m, 20m or 10m these beacons are on a single PCB and work well. As the photo shows, the board is simple and the kit comes with a pre-programmed chip with your callsign, locator and power ready for use.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/w5olf .

W5OLF's WSPR beacon

See http://w5olf.com .

As a user for several months of a W5OLF WSPR 10m beacon OK I am biased. However, if your interest is a small WSPR beacon for 30, 20m or 10m then I can honestly recommend this kit. There are others  such as the Hans Summers "Ultimate" beacons. These are more flexible but they need several small PCBs. Jay's WSPR dedicated beacons fit on a single small PCB that fits inside an Altoids tin.  As my 10m unit has been copied all over the planet (including Australia and Antarctica), I can highly recommend this design. It really does work well. If you enjoy WSPR you'd be hard pressed to find a neater, smaller solution. I love it. Mine runs lots of the time. Usually it is started up at breakfast time and runs through until the DX disappears the following night. It will probably be on 24/7 during the Es season unless I want to work SSB,CW, FM or AM on the other rigs.

W5OLF website

W5OLF's tiny WSPR-AXE-CW

Jay, W5OLF, the creator of the "no PC needed" WSPR-AXE-CW beacons for WSPR on 30m, 20m or 10m has just started a new website.  He expects to start selling the new versions of his little beacons, either as kits or built and tested units, in late January. These stay on all the time (the PA can be turned iff) , but frequency is randomised over 100Hz within the WSPR window. Once set, the timing is fine for ages and ages - certainly days or even weeks.

Jay's email (replace the (at) with @ ) is: w5olf(at)comcast.net .

His new website is www.w5olf.com .

I am privileged to be a beta tester of his 10m version (500mW). As you will have read in earlier posts, this unit certainly works very well, mine having been copied all over the planet in just a few weeks. Just press a button to sync time on an even minute and watch all the reports come flooding in. I was blown away with mine. Tiny, but brilliant. If you like WSPR I can thoroughly recommend this little unit. It comes pre-programmed with callsign, locator and power level.

UPDATE 1448z: This little unit has been spotted in Antarctica (13676km) 8 times today already. My antenna is nothing special, just a low 3 band end-fed wire.

WSPR

As regular readers of this blog will know, I just love WSPR. It amazes me that such weak signals can be detected so well at such great distances using this mode. I am even more impressed that such a simple "stand alone" (no PC needed) beacon can be constructed.  My very simple, TINY little 10m W5OLF WSPR-AXE beacon has been copied all over the world now. It is truly TINY.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WSPR_%28amateur_radio_software%29 .

10m stateside

Conditions on 10m today definitely seem poorer than yesterday. I am still using my little 500mW WSPR beacon by W5OLF.  There were spots all day from UR/SWL56 and this afternoon from 4X1RF (3519km), all afternoon. So far, 4X1RF has spotted me 20 times.

My first USA spot was WG2Z (5600km) at 1220z. Since then I have had USA spots from several USA stations, but I think fewer than yesterday.  The W5OLF WSPR-AXE 10m 500mW beacon really does work, without a PC. I am still in awe that something so small and beautiful is copyable so far away. It would fit in an Altiods tin - a real favourite with QRPers.

The beacon is still on and running, but I don't expect any magically far DX between now and switch off, which will probably be around 1830z.

UPDATE 1902z:  I am just about to turn off my little W5OLF 10m WSPR beacon. The last stateside station to spot my 500mW was KB9AMG (6300km) at 1712z - no other spots since. Definitely conditions on 10m were not as good as yesterday.  Still, yet again the 10m band was open to the USA and 500mW was quite enough. Worse report was -25dB S/N with most reports in the teens suggesting even less power would have been enough.

UPDATE 1910z:   10m WSPR beacon is now off.

Using the W5OLF 500mW 10m WSPR beacon today

W5OLF WSPR beacon - complete - no PC needed

This WSPR-AXE really is a very impressive little rig, in my case for 10m WSPR.  Because of my current disabled state -  I find all electronics building just about impossible - Jay very kindly sold me a built unit to evaluate. Results in just a few hours of operating have been truly impressive. No PC is needed as long as the push button is pressed at the start of an even minute. Jay says it stays stable for weeks thereafter. I ran mine for 3.5 hours and got masses of decodes. After lunch it has been getting LOTS of spots from the USA. I am sure it will reach Australia soon.

The unit needs about 15 minutes to frequency stabilise and is always on (the PA can be turned off), but it randomises the slots within the WSPR transmit window. This means it is unlikely to be "clobbered" by more powerful stations or cause others co-channel issues. 500mW seems plenty. In a word - BRILLIANT.

Best DX report (so far) today is FR1GZ (9724km).

10m WSPR - unique spots with the W5OLF beacon today, arranged by distance

If you want to buy one Jay W5OLF may be contacted on w5olf@comcast.net .

W5OLF WSPR kit

Jay has been working on new versions of his little WSPR beacons. All being well I should receive a 10m 500mW out version in the next few weeks.

Jay is writing the manual(s) and has asked me for my feedback, which I shall, of course, provide. The new version is a single board (again) but transmits continuously, randomising the TX frequency on each TX burst to minimise interference to/from others. It needs several minutes to thermally stabilise but uses the uP to generate everything needed such as the WSPR tones, so no PC is needed. The transmission is started manually on the start of an even minute with a push button. The PA can be separately enabled.

This should be fun. I'll give more information when it arrives and I get a chance to try it on the air.

W5OLF WSPR kit?

My soldering skills are rather "challenged" since my brain bleed 13 months ago. I have an un-built Ultimate 3 kit waiting for my better health. Several kind people have offered me help to build and test it: you know who you are and thank you!  The kindness of fellow QRPers knows no bounds. It is so lovely to find how many really kind people there are around. There are far more good people in the world than bad ones.

Some years ago W5OLF sold a very simple, single board, few parts, WSPR TX which I think I could manage to build. I could not find it advertised. Anyone know if it is it still available?

UPDATE Oct 19th 2014 1208z:  Good news - Jay tells me (by email) that kits are still available.