Pixie transceivers

The Pixie is a classic low cost CW transceiver usually for 80m or 40m. It started life as the Micro80. Kits are available from China at ridiculously low prices, although some are better than others. 

It uses the PA transistor as a mixer and often suffered from poor selectivity and AM breakthrough. It was let down by this poor RX. Over the years several versions have been created to help with these issues. 

However, it does work and is capable of really get contacts.

The photos show a typical Pixie and my version of the Micro80. 

See  https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/homebrew/8040m-pixie-and-micro80-transceivers .

Sunspots - Monday March 13th 2023

Solar flux is 143 and the SSN 135.  A=4 and K=0. It looks like the page I get my information from is back to normal. Yesterday morning it looked different.

See https://dx.qsl.net/propagation/index.html .

BBC email? - NOT amateur radio

I cannot find the BBC email to whom I should send my complaint.  If you know it, please would you share it?

My complaint is that nearly every documentary seems to have loud and intrusive music that drowns out the speaker. Why? It is almost as if we have to have this music, but why is it so loud?  

It would be good if this music was much quieter or even not there at all! The music is added, I suppose, to give dramatic effect.

The latest culprit is David Attenborough's "Wild Isles" on BBC1.

Please, do not treat us as stupid.

Yaesu FT-710 FT8 - last try!

Having tried most things, I shall give my FT-710AESS one more try on FT8. 

So far, everything I have tried has failed. If it is something I am doing wrong, I have yet to find out what it is! All the drivers are installed, port selection is correct, port properties are correct, rig selection is correct, RTS is selected (as they say), but still CAT fails to work. 

If this fails, the rig will have to go back. I really hope I can crack it. It should not be this hard. If the rig is working, I fail to see why this popular mode is so difficult.

If you have one of these rigs, please tell me your FT8 settings both on the transceiver and WSJT-X. I thought mine were all correct, but obviously not.

Yaesu FT77

Way back in the last century, I bought this radio. It came after the FT7 (which I loved) and had the WARC bands. I guess this would have been in the mid 1980s. I did not warm to the rig. As for the DX worked with it, I cannot remember. As I recall it had a noisy RX. Mind you, after the FT7 most receiver sounded noisy!

See https://www.rigpix.com/yaesu/ft77.htm .

12m QRP FT8 (Sunday)

This is a band I rarely go on and as my QDX covers this and the antenna is still a good match, I am giving it a try.  After about 5 minutes, I am being spotted by 10 stations (3 in the USA) and I have spotted 47 stations including the west coast of the USA.

UPDATE 1747z: Spotted by 140 stations and I have spotted 428 stations on 12m FT8 with the QDX. Now RX only. Power on 12m is about 3.9W.

Stations spotted on 12m
FT8 with the QDX

UPDATE 1929z:  739 stations spotted on 12m FT8 RX.

10FT8R receiver

At the moment 10m is in great shape with plenty of DX via F2 most days. We are also approaching the Es season in the northern hemisphere. My 10FT8R receiver (been on this blog before) makes a great, low cost, 10m FT8 RX. This is very inexpensive, yet works well.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/homebrew/10ft8r-rx

Thetford Priory - NOT amateur radio

This was destroyed by King Henry VIII hundreds of years ago. It upsets me when history is destroyed. Nobody has any right to destroy our past. We may not agree with the views when these things were created, but (please) do not destroy them. Had King Henry VIII has a son early on, history might have been so different.

Coffee time - NOT amateur radio

 

This morning, we went to Thetford. It is about 25 minutes from us. With me driving, it is a bit slower! This was where we had coffee.

10m FT8 RX (Sunday)

Apart from a brief QRP 10m FT8 TX session (11 spots of me) I am on 10m FT8 RX with the QDX. It is now 0930z and 96 stations were spotted after about 20 minutes. We are out for the morning, so just on 10m FT8 RX. After lunch I may try TX.

Stations spotting me on
10m QRP FT8 today

Stations spotted today
on 10m FT8 RX

UPDATE 1430z: 1025 stations spotted on RX and 86 stations have spotted me with the tiny QDX.

UPDATE 1445z: 1066 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX with the QDX and 98 stations have spotted me. I reckon the QDX is about size of a pack of cards. Amazing. It is just too easy!