The Pixie is available as a 40m transceiver extremely inexpensively from China. It is a low power transceiver, but the receiver is a real compromise often suffering from overload from broadcast stations and with poor selectivity. These mods by VK3YE 9 years ago make it a bit better.
If you are after a really low cost way of getting into amateur radio, this may be it. There have been several variations of it down the years.
The Pixie and Micro80 are also on my website.
I am not really a fan of simulated amateur radio, but I can understand this could appeal to some people with no access to traditional amateur radio transceivers or antennas. I imagine it is less popular when HF conditions are very good, as they are currently.
At this price I am tempted, even though I might use it infrequently.
My gear was turned on at about 0700z. FT8 is a very impressive mode, although not for chatting.
UPDATE 1001z: 84 stations have spotted me with the best 9K2RA-2 (4641km) in Kuwait. Really going down to 1W has made little difference, apart from increasing the fun. I might stick at this power in future, or try even lower! I think the lowest from the IC-705 is 500mW, although I can always add the 15dB attenuator.
In years past I was impressed with 10m AM just above 29.0 MHz. I have not listened for a while so must try again.
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| 630m ATU |
Whenever something sensational happens it seems the media "milks" the story, going on for days and days,
Recently, we had what appears to have been a mentally ill person stabbing train passengers. Whilst fully understanding this must have been very traumatic for those on the train, I get really annoyed that the media goes on and on about it. In this case it was the BBC. It seems that every story must be rung dry and made to last. We rarely get good news as this is, sadly, not newsworthy.
Recent examples have included the UK Prince Andrew.
Suddenly the number people looking at this blog shoots by a factor of about 10. I am sure the popularity of the posts has not suddenly gone up! I have no idea how they measure visits, but I am sure it is not correct.
Earlier in the evening I can go on 40m FT8 TX at 2W via my coax to the 2m big-wheel antenna via an ATU.
UPDATE 1831z: No spots of me although I have spotted a couple of stations in Germany with this ad hoc set-up.
UPDATE 1853z: Swapped to my 10m EFHW antenna via the ATU. Lots more stations spotted on RX, but nobody has spotted my 2W.
UPDATE 1858z: I have come to the reluctant conclusion that 2W is below the noise floor for most stations in Europe. I shall stick with it for a while longer, then go back to 474.2kHz WSPR RX only.
For a total change, I am on 474.2kHz WSPR RX using the coax up to my 2m big-wheel antenna tuned via a ferrite rod ATU and a mains plug earth.
UPDATE 1826z: DC0DX (467km) spotted. This rubbish set-up works!
UPDATE 1916z: Back on 472kHz WSPR RX. DC0DX copied 5dB stronger.
Many years ago I designed and built this transceiver for 80m CW. It has been on the blog before. It is also on my website. It just goes to show what is possible with just 14 parts!
One of the philosophical questions I have been grappling with recently is consciousness outside of space and time.
We live in a world bounded by space and time. We seem to live in a vast universe with time flowing from the past into the future. Trying to imagine things outside of these is all but impossible.
I am reminded of a book I read in the 1960s where everything had just 2 dimensions. Thinking outside of these was almost impossible. An object passing through this world might get larger, then smaller, but it might be hard to understand this in a 2-dimensional world.
The book may have been called Flatland. There are books called this on Amazon, although I am not sure if these are the same book in more recent editions? It was first published as a novella in 1884, so these may well be the same.
I sometimes think we might be like that: unable to think unless they are within the bounds of experience of our finite brains.
We are used to think in our world view, but this may be a very narrow.
Today's Knowledge reports that some things appear to be cyclical. For example, big breasts are popular when times are tough like in wars or when times are hard e.g. with a possible market crash coming.
There is a popular saying, "what goes around comes around".
The Knowledge points out that people who sometimes complain (rightly in my view) about climate change fly around in private jets!
My grandchildren will not eat anything past its "best before" date. I abhor waste.
In years gone by a wolf whistle was seen as a compliment by a girl. These days most men would be too afraid of being had up for sexual harassment.
Now, I strongly believe everyone deserves respect whatever their race, creed, ability, colour, or sexuality.
Sometimes I wonder has the pendulum swung too far?
The Knowledge is a free daily email with a summary of the news from various sources.
