I first discovered the world of legal micro-broadcasting back in 2010. The AM broadcast band was my focus, as the regulations in the US for that band are more generous than those which cover the FM broadcast band. My first transmitter was an SSTRAN AMT3000. It worked well throughout the house, but didn’t radiate much […] [...]
14 years ago (where does the time go?) I was looking for a way to broadcast very locally, to my neighborhood, legally. The operative word was legally and, somehow, I discovered the world of Part 15 broadcasting on the AM broadcast band. FCC regulations under Part 15 allow for a wide variety of unlicensed devices […] [...]
It’s not too often that I post about projects which are incomplete, but this one has reached a stage where, although I’m not sure if I will fully finish it, I feel that my progress so far is worth sharing. I appreciate the feedback I receive on my posts, so there’s always the chance that […] [...]
Every year in the summer, The California Historical Radio Society (CHRS) in Alameda, CA host their annual “Radio Day by The Bay”. If you live in the area, or are visiting, it is the very best time to get a feel for all the things that CHRS do to preserve the history of radio and […] [...]
My, how time flies. This is a post I have been meaning to write for nearly 3 years now. Back in late 2018, after a search for a small portable SW receiver, I purchased a C Crane Skywave SSB. It had a lot of the things I wanted in a portable radio and, at the […] [...]
Next month (August) will mark 10 years since I built my little Sproutie HF Regen Receiver. I recently received an email from Bob W3BBO. A few years ago, he built a Sproutie, and he has just built another one – more on that later. Bob’s first Sproutie is shown in this post, along with a […] [...]
I don’t need to explain the attraction of low power operation; if you’re reading this, the chances are that you are already a convert. I’ve been operating with low power ever since first being licensed in the UK in the late 70’s as G8RYQ, and then G4IFA. One of my first rigs was a homebrew […] [...]
As well as the small stash of finished projects that grace my living space, I also have two small boxes containing various boards. Some of them are boards from part-finished projects that didn’t work. For whatever reason, I ran out of steam and, instead of troubleshooting them, put them carefully into a small box along […] [...]
Here’s a little project I put together on a whim about 18 months ago. It was my tribute to the unlicensed (i.e. pirate) beacon cluster around 4096 KHz. There were several of them operating in full force, with powers ranging from around 100mW to a watt or so a few years ago. Their heyday was […] [...]
Back in 2009/2010 the Arizona QRP Scorpions released a little kit designed by Dan N7VE, called the Fort Tuthill 80. It was a QRP CW transceiver, with a direct conversion receiver and a transmitter capable of putting out about 3W. It caught my imagination, and I just had to build it. I have never had […] [...]