Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Nick Booras, who writes:
Hi Thomas
I just picked up a new to me radio that [is] very rare in the US.
I loved it so much I did a comparison to an 8711 and a FTDX101MP. The Skanti presented very well.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Excellent Nick! Thank you so much for sharing this and for demonstrating some weak signal work. You were certainly pitting the Skanti against some benchmark performers!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Giuseppe Morlè (IZ0GZW), who shares the following:
Dear Thomas and Friends of the SWLing Post,
I’m Giuseppe Morlè from Formia, central Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea.
This time I want to show you 2 QRP connections made with minimal antenna over long distance and very few watts of power…
The antenna is a simple dipole, 5 meters per arm, 1/4 wave for 20 meters, on a bnc / banana socket directly on the Icom 705. You’ll see that the ROS is really optimal.
I wanted to experience this very simple antenna, easy to prepare in this location surrounded by greenery, Monte Orlando Park in Gaeta on my favorite DX bench;
this location is at 120 meters above sea level and facing south / west following the long path. A suitable place for the extreme right made especially for a receiver like the Icom 705– fantastic modulation and without any kind of noise.
In the first video the contact with VK2GJC, Greg from Australia who struggles a little to listen to me but immediately understands my name. As you can hear Greg’s voice is without any imperfection even if his signal is not that high:
In the second video, another link with Australia, VK5AVB, Tony from Kangaroo Island.
Tony had a hard time understanding my name but with the help of Nicola, IU5EYV from Tuscany, in pure Ham Spirit, he finally managed to log me:
As you can see, even with very minimal antennas hoisted on nearby trees, not even high from the ground, you can listen and contact over long distances … that’s why I love this place so much!
Thanks to you all, a cordial greeting from Italy.
Many thanks, once again, Giuseppe for showing us just how much fun we can have by building our own antennas and hopping on the air with very little power. I must say: you certainly play radio in a beautiful part of the world! Thank you!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Adid, who writes:
The Erres KY-418 Radio set assembly line. You must watch this:
Click here to view on YouTube.
My heart goes to the poor guys who work under all that machinery noise with no ear plugs or with no mask when spray paint.
Everything is hand made in-house even the loudspeakers, coils or the rotary switches….
Just remember that WWII is on while it was made and I don’t think the KY-418 was a cheap radio…
Regards, Adi
Thank you for sharing this, Adid. You’re right: there were a few generations of folks who lost much of their hearing early on due to the constant noise on factory floors.
That said, I’ve been enjoying these videos of early radio production lines. Thank you!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Hansgen, who shares this video showing how radios were made in the VEF (Valsts elektrotehniska Fabrika) factory in Riga, Latvia in 1936:
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Frans Goddijn, who shares the following article and video originally posted on his blog:
The new SDR-Control app that lets you use certain iCOM radios as remote controlled SDR stations for Macbook or iPad does not yet (May 2022 now) officially support my iCOM IC-R8600 but Marcus Roskosch from https://roskosch.de/ told me that he recently purchased an IC-R8600 and the app already works on an experimental basis.
I immediately bought the app, installed it on my MacBook, connected a network cable between home router and radio and tried it out…
I also show how I use bhi DSP units to filter out noise to enhance speech at the radio and at the computer audio.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Frans Goddijn, who shares the following article and video originally posted on his blog:
I got the little BH5HDE QRP portable QRP loop, assembled it and could not wait to try it out even though it was during that day and signals were sparse and weak.
This new loop performs well, in part thanks to the tuning & impedance knobs. I compare it with the GRAHN SE3 and a big home made loop that I bought second hand. The latter has no tuning but is as directionally sensitive as the others and it delivers an amplified signal to the receiver.
Click here to view on YouTube.
I found a manual for the QRP, not included in the package:
Instructions for use of BH5HDE QRP portable small loop antenna
Welcome to use the BH5HDE QRP portable small loop antenna. This product can easily and quickly set up a short-wave transceiver antenna, allowing you to enjoy the joy of multi-band reception and communication indoors, windows, balconies and outdoors.
Installation:
(BNC mount equipment needs to bring a pair of photography tripods)
Use the right-angle adapter and double male docking to connect the antenna to the m seat at the rear of the radio station or erect the ring body to the connector on both sides of the controller and tighten, then install the tripod to the fastening seat on the back of the tuner Open the tripod, place the antenna body firmly on the tripod, and finally connect the feeder (the feeder is attached with a choke, one end of the choke is placed near the small loop antenna).
use:
Now that the small loop antenna has been connected to your radio station, you can now tune in.
First introduce the function of the tuner panel. The toggle switch on the left is the band selection switch (up: 7MHz, down: 14-30MHz).
The main control knob, the upper knob is the frequency tuning knob, the frequency tuning value does not change due to environmental changes; the lower knob is the impedance matching knob, the impedance matching value will change due to environmental changes. (The tuning range of the two knobs is 180 degrees, and the panel value is 0-60).
When you start using the radio, select the desired frequency, and then turn the band switch to the desired band position, then adjust the impedance matching value of the lower knob to 30, and then adjust the upper knob to tune. At this time, pay attention to listening to the noise floor of the radio station. The more resonance, the louder the noise floor of the radio station (in the environment with extremely low noise floor, the antenna resonance noise floor is almost inaudible. It is recommended to let the radio station observe the standing wave). At this time, let the radio transmit (cw, fm, and am modes are available), pay attention to the standing wave indication, and fine-tune the frequency tuning knob while transmitting. Since the knob of the portable version does not have a deceleration function, the method of fine adjustment must be more delicate, and the smaller the rotation angle, the better.
At this time, you can observe a significant change in the standing wave, but generally the minimum standing wave ratio will not be below 1.5. At this time, you need to adjust the impedance matching knob. It is recommended to adjust the positive and negative 5 scale values randomly, and then repeat the frequency tuning steps and observe The standing wave ratio. Due to the change in the matching value, there are two possibilities before the comparison: 1: the minimum value of the standing wave ratio decreases; 2 the minimum value of the standing wave ratio becomes larger. If the minimum value of the standing wave ratio becomes lower, it means that the impedance matching adjustment approaches the correct value and can be further adjusted. If the minimum value of the standing wave ratio becomes larger, it means that the impedance matching is far from the correct value and must be adjusted in the opposite direction.
Repeat the above steps to adjust the VSWR of the antenna to 1.0.
The VHF and UHF bands are fixed with the upper knob hitting 60 to the end, and the lower knob can adjust the impedance to resonate.
Note: The best effect for outdoor use is to use antennas indoors as close as possible to windows, fully enclosed reinforced concrete, against walls and other environments where the standing wave ratio is not ideal.
Advanced technique: when the signal is weak, you can rotate the antenna direction to improve the signal-to-noise ratio, which is conducive to reception. The unique gain lobe of the loop antenna makes the horizontal gain directivity when it is erected, and its characteristics can be used to select multiple signals in the horizontal direction. It can also reduce the co-frequency interference in the horizontal direction. Of course, If the interference signal is extremely strong, much larger than the useful signal that needs to be accepted, the attenuation effect will not be too significant, compared to the whip antenna can still have the attenuation effect.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Giuseppe Morlè (IZ0GZW), who shares the following:
Dear Thomas,
I wanted to share my new purchase with all SWLing Post friends: the Icom IC-705.
It is truly a great portable QRP transceiver and a great receiver for broadcast listening.
In this video, shot on my balcony at home, is the first listening test on short waves. Crystal clear audio with cathedral effect. My portable cross loop antenna pairs very well with the IC-705.
It’s a simple video but it brings out all the listening potential of this 705.
Greetings to you and all the friends of our community.
73,
Giuseppe Morlè (IZ0GZW)
Click here to watch on YouTube.
Thank you for sharing this, Giuseppe! I’ve found that the IC-705 has become one of my favorite portable receivers. It’s truly an amazing radio and, I believe, worth the hefty price tag.
I published a very favorable review of this radio and 13DKA has as well. Also, check out Giuseppe Fisoni’s comparison of the IC-705 and IC-R8600. The IC-705 is a proper enthusiast-grade radio–I would purchase it just for the receiver functionality. Being a ham radio operator, I also take the IC-705 to the field very regularly–I post many of my field reports on QRPer.com. Recently, we’ve posted a number of articles about protecting the IC-705 during travels and in the field.
Thank you again for sharing this, Giuseppe!