The Elad FDM-DUO (Photo: Dennis Walter)
Many thanks to Dennis Walter who shares the photo above from the 2017 Ham Radio Friedrichshafen convention.
I’ve always thought the FDM-DUO was a cool transceiver, but I must admit it looks even better in camouflage.
I did warn our buddy Clint (Oxford Shortwave) that he should stick with his stock black FDM-DUO. You see, he takes his FDM-DUO to the field…literally. Can you imagine how he’d feel losing his top-notch camouflaged DX rig in the rough? 🙂
The new Icom IC-8600 at the 2017 Hamvention
At the 2017 Hamvention, I spent a little time checking out Icom’s latest wideband communications receiver: the IC-R8600. Check out the photos above and below.
The IC-8600 Back Panel
I spoke with Icom North America at Hamvention–the representative told me the MSRP of the IC-R8600 would be about $2,999 US, but that retail pricing would be lower.
Universal Radio now has the IC-R8600 in stock with a retail price of $2599 US. HRO has the IC-R8600 in stock as well and selling for the same price.
No doubt, at this price point, the ‘8600 is not ideally placed to compete with other receivers and SDRs. I do, however, believe this product will do well with government sales. No doubt, it should deliver benchmark performance (at least one would expect benchmark). Icom has offered to send me an IC-R8600 on loan for a review–it is tempting to see how it might stack up against some of my SDR arsenal.
I’m very curious Post readers: assuming benchmark performance, how many of you would purchase the IC-R8600 at $2,599 US? Please comment!
A map of the United States showing the path of totality for the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse. (Source: NASA)
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Colin Newell, who shares a fascinating 2017 eclipse experiment outlined on the website HamSCI.
Here’s the summary of the experiment:
On 21 August 2017, a total solar eclipse will traverse the continental United States from Oregon to South Carolina in a period of just over 90 minutes.
Previous research shows that the shadow of the eclipse will impact the ionospheric state, but has not adequately characterized or explained the temporal and spatial extent of the resulting ionospheric effects.
HamSCI is inviting the amateur radio community to contribute to a large scale experiment by participating in an Eclipse QSO party and further developing automatic observation networks such as the Reverse Beacon Network.
Data resulting from these activities will be combined with observations from existing ionospheric monitoring networks in an effort to characterize and understand the ionospheric temporal and spatial effects caused by a total solar eclipse.
Click here to read the full detailed experiment at HamSCI online.
(Source: TX Factor)
TX Factor goes digital as Mike Marsh gives Bob McCreadie an introduction to operating on DMR, Yaesu Fusion and D Star as part of his digital fun. In part one of a three-part series, they take a trip to a local farm to see how an amateur has set up his own Fusion Gateway.
Ever wonder why QSL cards take a long time to complete their journey? Bob finds out what we can do to help speed up he process.
Pete visits Norwich to spend a day with the Norfolk Amateur Radio Club at their annual field day event, Radio Active to discover why they won the coveted prize of RSGB Large Club of The Year.
Click here to view Episode 17 on TX Factor’s website, or click here to watch on YouTube.
This is another excellent TX Factor episode well worth your time. I was especially impressed with the in-depth feature about the Norfolk Amateur Radio Club–truly a case study for other amateur radio clubs who struggle with outreach.
(Source: Southgate ARC)
Young radio amateurs Zechariah WX4TVJ, Faith Hannah AE4FH, Hope KM4IPF and Grace KM4TXT have released a video about their Go Box
Many people have asked us to make a detailed video about our Go Box, so we decided to make one. We show you what is in the Go Box and how we installed all of the equipment. There is also some funny stuff in the video, too!
The case we used was a Gator 6 rack unit shallow case:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/252763-REG/Gator_Cases_GR_6S_GR6S_Shallow_Rack_Case.htmlThe shelves are simply vented rack mount shelves. Here is a link to where you can get them:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/RkShelfU1Watch A Close Look at Our Ham Radio Go Box and How We Put it Together:
Click here to view on YouTube.
Lea Family
http://hamradio.world/
These girls do an amazing job with the video–bravo!
I love this setup. While I typically pack very lightly for portable radio work, building a system like this makes for very quick deployment when you require a full 100 watt system with multiple radios and multiple accessories. Radio clubs could easily put systems like this together for events like Field Day or Emergency Comms. It’s grab-and-go at its best!
Of course, a field DXpedition/SWLing station could also be easily built into this portable system. In fact, I bet an SDR with computer, keyboard, and monitor could be mounted and accommodated in this space.
My personal pick is the Tivoli Model One which goes on sale at 3:15 PM EDT today.
Today is Amazon’s “Prime Day” summer sale.
If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you might follow some of the deals that are being posted. This morning, I spent a little time picking out my favorites from all upcoming deals; ones that might interest SWLing Post readers.
I did not see a single shortwave portable in the upcoming deals, but there are other radios. Note that Prime Day pricing is only available while the deal is active or unless it sells out. Until an upcoming deals is officially posted, the sales price cannot be viewed, you’ll simply need to note the product url and return when it’s activated.
I’ve posted links to upcoming deals and current (pre-sale) pricing. I’ve also noted when these items go on sale today. I saw nothing that I personally plan to jump on. If I didn’t already have a Tivoli Model One, I would follow it closely.
This unit is currently priced at $62.89 US.
The Prime Day sale will discount this price further starting at 11:00 EDT today.
UPDATE: Prime Day sale price is $44.95.
Click here to go to this product page.
This unit is currently priced at $62.89 US.
The Prime Day sale will discount this price further starting at 11:00 EDT today.
UPDATE: Prime Day sale price is $44.95.
Click here to go to this product page.
This unit is currently priced at $99.00 US.
In my opinion, this is the Tivoli Model One is the deal to watch. I’ve owned the Tivoli Model One–it has excellent audio fidelity, smooth analog tuning, excellent FM and AM reception and overall brilliant build quality. It’s worth every bit of $99, so if Amazon discounts it further, it’ll certainly be a good deal.
The Prime Day sale will discount this price further starting at 3:15 PM EDT today.
Click here to go to this product page.
This unit is currently priced at $23.99 US. I have no clue if this AM/FM portable has any good performance characteristics. I encourage you to read the reviews prior to purchasing.
The Prime Day sale will discount this price further starting at 4:35 PM EDT today.
Click here to go to this product page.
This unit is currently priced at $39.99 US. Again, I have no idea if this is a quality recorder or not, but it receives a four star review from Amazon customers (take those with a grain of salt as well). Still, it has line-in recording and could be an inexpensive way to record radio in the field. It appears the line-in jack is the standard 1/8″ variety.
The Prime Day sale will discount this price further starting at 8:00 PM EDT today.
Click here to go to this product page.
Feel free to post other relevant deals in the comments section of this post. Again, these prices are only available during the sale window and while supplies last.
The Solar Boost 3000i solar MPPT charge controller
I’m currently in the process of adding 200-300 watts of 12-volt solar panels to my truck camper.
Solar panels will keep my camper’s 12V deep-cycle battery topped off, thus allowing longer stretches of time for boon-docking or primitive camping, during which an occupied camper is off-grid from shore power.
My truck camper actually came with a simple built-in charge controller which charges the battery via shore power. Thing is…this shore power charger is incredibly noisy when I’m on the radio. The QRM it generates is broadband, and almost entirely wipes out HF and MW radio listening.
Because of this, I’m forced to unplug my power whenever I’m in the camper and want to hop on the air. And since the whole idea of camper living is to enjoy a bit of rest-and-relaxation, in other words, to pursue one’s hobbies in modest comfort, having to unplug the power––or else not play radio––limits my total enjoyment of RV camping.
But. Before I invest in a new solar charge controller, which would essentially charge the battery any time the sun is out, I need to be absolutely certain it doesn’t create RFI, too. Yet I’m finding it difficult to confirm whether a charge controller is RF-quiet prior to purchasing…
What’s more, I suspect I’m not the only radio listener or ham radio operator with an RV who has encountered the noise dilemma.
What’s a radio geek with an RV to do––?
A ham radio buddy who is an avid RVer recommended the Solar Boost 3000i (see top photo above). While it might be overkill for my application, I’m willing to invest, knowing it may charge without creating RFI.
But before I do, I’m curious if any SWLing Post readers have any experience with solar charge controllers, and/or can confirm models that create little to no RFI? I’d even appreciate knowing which models do pollute the spectrum––models to avoid, in other words, if radio listening or ham radio operations are your goal.
My hope is that SWLing Post reader recommendations may not only help me with this problem, but might help other RVer/off-grid radio enthusiasts, as well.