AmateurRadio.com

As I briefly mentioned in my blog post titled KX3 – The First 24 Hours.  I spent a little bit of time experimenting with the iOS App titled PSKer.  This experimentation included operating it in an over the air method.  Meaning I have no audio cables running between the iPad and the KX3.  I’m simply relying on the iPad built-in microphone to pick up the audio signal from the KX3 speaker for receive and using the iPad speakers and the KX3 microphone for transmit.  The image below is a snapshot from the PSKReporter website.  I’m running 5 watts into a ground mounted Hustler 6BTV.  My transmitted audio IMD is –34 as recorded by my KK7UQ IMD Meter in the shack.

Of course, an optimum setup would include some sort of audio interface to directly connect the KX3 and the iPad.  While I’m still looking into these options, I’m fairly pleased with the performance in the testing.  Also, while I had always envisioned this process to be a bit awkward by having to hold in the PTT mic switch and fumble with typing on the iPad.  The KX3 makes this much easier with an XMIT button.  I can press the XMIT button on the front of the KX3 and the rig will switch into transmit mode until I press it again.  I think this is better than using VOX.  All I need to worry about is making sure the microphone is positioned near the iPad speakers and the iPad is near the KX3 speaker.   More about the KX3 speaker in just a bit.

While I would not opt to use this setup in the ham shack.  I’m thinking this will be perfect for SOTA activations.   Again, I think a direct cable solution is optimum, I’ve not seen any schematics or plans anyone has designed to date.  At a minimum I believe the iPad needs to receive audio from the KX3 via a cable.  During the maiden SOTA activation for the KX3, I realized just how weak the KX3 speaker is in an outdoor environment. 

With a light breeze and the KX3 sitting on a foam pad on the ground, I had difficulty hearing stations on SSB.  I had to use my ear buds and even those proved to lack the quality when connected to the KX3 (as compared to my 817).  Of course, what do you expect with a $2 pair of cheap ear buds.  I will look into other alternatives before the next activation.

Final comment on the KX3 speaker.  I don’t fault Elecraft.  As I mentioned in my blog post titled KX3 – The first 24 hours, Elecraft has stated from the beginning that the quality of the built-in speaker will be compromised due to size and recommended either external speakers or earphones/headphones when using in a noisy environment.  I’ve done a little research on the Chill Pill mobile speakers.  These have been discussed on the Elecraft Yahoo reflector with mostly positive reviews.  Weighing in at a mere 7 ounces, they won’t break my back or take up much room in my pack.  

I did some testing earlier to see if I could feed audio from the KX3 into the iPad and the PSKer app.  The picture below is the setup I used.  The white piece is the iPad Camera Connection kit.  This connects to the bottom port on the iPad and provides a standard USB connection.  Connected to this (via USB) is a Plantronics USB soundcard adapter.  I plugged a short stereo patch cable into the KX3 headphone jack and the other end into the microphone input of the Plantronics USB adapter.  I connected a second stereo cable from the KX3 mic jack and the other end to the headphone jack on the USB adapter.This does work.  But….

The weak link in this is the connection at the iPad.  The iPad Camera Connection kit (the white piece) with the added length (approx. 3 inches) of the Plantronics USB soundcard device makes it hard to keep it all plugged into the iPad.  On a SOTA activation I am sitting on the ground and will have the iPad in my lap.  I can easily see where the connector will get unplugged. But as you can tell it does work.  In the picture below I have my iPad running the PSKer App connected to the Elecraft KX3 via the Apple iPad Camera kit and the Plantronics USB sound card device. 

I recently created a YouTube video where I discussed this setup and the items I used to connect the iPad to the KX3.  I’m going to continue to experiment with other options and will blog about these findings at a later date.   You can watch the video below.

Watch this video on YouTube.

 Until next time…

73 de KD0BIK

Introduction:

• Richard is still in the process of moving, but did get his WinLink rms gateway running as described in a previous episode.

Announcements:

• Jay Forrest has lauched The Linux News Podcast. The podcast will focus on topics such as software freedom, Linux development, Open Source software, Android and mobile devises, security issues, and Linux distribution releases. Our hosts offer their opinions.
• Ohio LinuxFest will be held in Columbus, Ohio on September 9-11, 2011. (Note: Russ will not be there, but maybe YOU can represent LHS. Visit the web site and look at the Ambassadors page to learn how.)
• Texoma Hamarama will be October 21-22, 2011 in Ardmore, OK. Richard might be there, so if you’re in the area, look for him!

Topics:

• Our hosts discuss the ARRL statement regarding HR 607, “Broadband for First Responders Act of 2011″. This bill provides for the re-allocation of the 420-440 MHz band, calling it part of the “Public Safety” spectrum. This is not the case, and we should contact our representatives and voice our opposition to this bill. The ARRL offers sample letters you can send to your representatives.
• Richard and Russ talk about various amateur radio programsfor Linux offered by Ted, WA0EIR.Russ built them all from the available source code on his Linux Mint Debian Edition 10 computer. In order to do so, he installed a number of development libraries:
  • libmotif-dev
  • libxmu-dev
  • libxpm-dev
  • libxbae-dev

  These are header files necessary for the compiler to properly build the programs.

• Each program requires the following commands to compile and install. Change to the directory containing the program and type:

    ./configure
    ./make
    ./make-install

  (You may wish to be root to perform the make-install command.)

• TWLOG – A basic QSO logging program. Useful for day-to-day logging, but not recommended for contest logs. It will export to ADIF. It requires the Xbae Matrix Widget.
• TWPSK – A simple bpsk/qpsk program. Co-written with Hansi, DL9RDZ
• TWCW – A Morse Code trainer that also allows keyboard CW operation.
• TWCLOCK – A world clock application that will also automatically send a CW identifier every 10 minutes.
• Check the /etc/X11/app-defaults directory for the “X resource” files to change the configuration options for these programs. For example, in that directory is a file called twclock that contains the callsign transmitted by TWClock.
• PSK31LX – A curses-based PSK31 program, so it runs in a terminal window or directly in a terminal session. For help, a man page is included. (Type “man psk31lx”.) It makes use of the arrow, control, and function keys. You can choose the audio and serial devices with command line parameters at start. Configuration parameters are stored in your home directory in the file .psk31lx.ini.

Feedback:

• Don, WS4E, asks for Internet resources for handicapped amateur radio operators. He’s familiar with the Handiham  organization, but wonders if there are others.There are many newsgroups and mailing lists dedicated to hams with disabilities. A Google search should return several. The Canadian National Amateur Radio Society site Amateur Radio for the Disabled, has several useful links. Richard mentions Lighthouse for the Blind. The ARRL has a page listing several articles. There’s also a Facebook group, Blind Amateur Radio Operators.
• Petr, OK2CQR, the author of CQRLOG, responds to Torsten’s (K5TOR) problems installing CQRLOG on a 64-bit machine: CQRLOG already has native 64-bit version. There is no need to install the 32-bit version. You can use the ppa at launchpad.net with packages for Lucid, Maverick, Natty and Oneirc. Version 1.2.1 will be part of the Oneiric release as well. More information is here.
• Donation from Paul G. Thank you! If you’d like to donate, please visit the website and click on the Donate link.

Contact Info:

• Contact Richard at [email protected], Russ at [email protected], or both at the same time at [email protected].
• Listen to the live stream every other Tuesday at 8:00pm Central time. Check the LHS web site for dates.
• Leave us a voice mail at 1-909-LHS-SHOW (1-909-547-7469), or record an introduction to the podcast.
• Sign up for the LHS mailing list.
• Sign up for the MAGNetcon mailing list.
• LHS merchandise is available at the Merch link on Web site. Check out the Badgerwear or buy one of the other LHS-branded items at PrintFection.com/lhs or Cafe Press. Thanks!
• Thanks to Dave from Gamma Leonis for the theme music.

Music:

• “Rise” by Rob Warren from the album “Rise,” courtesy of Jamendo.
• “Mechanical Butterfly” by Mechanical Butterfly from the album “Mechanical Butterfly,” courtesy of Jamendo.

Conditions were again great on 6 metres yesterday afternoon and evening, with the Sporadic E favouring Scandinavia and the Baltic countries. After making a few contacts on SSB – it’s always gratifying when using an attic dipole to have stations come right back to your call and give you a 59 report – I was tuning up the band and heard the unmistakable sound of PSK31 activity.

I worked LA8OKA and OH2NAF using PSK31 and SM7OYP using PSK63. I thought these may have been my first PSK contacts on 6m but my log tells me I worked Spain using the digimode during June last year.

Signals were strong and steady and most people were using their regular macros and brag files and exchanging greetings rather than sending quick report and locator overs as you might expect for sporadic propagation.

Some bloggers have been advocating using the weak signal digital modes like WSPR or JT65A on 6m but when propagation is this strong I’d rather use a digital mode that allows me to have a proper QSO and exchange names and other details with the stations I’m working.

I’ve been slow to adopt digital communications for a very practical reason: between the day job and writing books, I spend ten to twelve hours a day on a computer keyboard. When I get on the air, I prefer my keyer paddle or microphone when I reach out and touch. But friends kept evangelizing about the wonderment of PSK31, and I kept seeing rare DX entities that I covet being spotted on PSK31 and RTTY, so I finally bit the bullet. Well, sir, I have seen the light! I am officially converted!

I was on the verge of doing a quick and dirty hookup just to get a feel for the stuff but I had an order I was submitting to DX Engineering anyway so I included a SignaLink USB in the shopping cart. Of course, I managed to order the wrong interface cable for my Kenwood TS-2000…it would have worked but I would have had to plug and unplug the microphone…but DXE handled the swap seamlessly. And in no time, I was PSKing with the best of ’em. Downloading and setting up my software
of choice took most of the time. The SignaLink only required setting some jumpers internally for my radio. The manual and an extra sheet were well-written, though I did have to go to the Internet to get some tips on working with Microsoft Vista. That should make it into the standard manual soon, I would hope.

I confess I did quite a bit of RTTY back in the ’70s, when we used old, noisy, oil-and-sprocket-slinging surplus teletype machines and boxes of fan-fold paper. I recall that back then, unless you were blessed with pretty decent power, and with constant duty that required a hefty amp and power supply, the mode was susceptible to QRM as well as drifting, and more. I did enjoy it, despite these drawbacks.

But I’ve quickly learned there is no comparison with PSK31. I have not even tried RTTY yet due to my fascination with this narrow, narrow mode. Friends told me, but I didn’t believe them. When I was ready to go and tuned the receiver to 14.070 and heard that caterwauling bunch of cats in heat, I smirked and said to myself, “Self, there is no way you can pull any intelligence out of all that screeching!”

But there on the waterfall (I use Ham Radio Deluxe Digital Master 780 software) were a good dozen clearly defined traces. I could copy any one of them. I tried a couple of them so dim I could hardly see them in the clutter and got almost solid print on them, too. Finally, I clicked on one and saw it was a UA9. When he finished his QSO and called CQ, I answered, making sure to keep the power level low…about 20 watts…as advised. He came right back and we proceeded to have a nice chat. I’ve had a bunch since, all over Europe, the US, and South and Central America, mostly on 20 and 17.

Just the other night, I gave UX1IW a call and, as I have grown accustomed to, he came right back. We were chatting away (he gave me an RSQ of 599) when I noticed each of my wattmeters were barely moving off the peg. Huh? Oh. I had been using the amp on CW earlier in the evening and had left the RF out on the TS-2000 on 35 watts. With the audio out from my sound card set as usual, I was barely running 5 watts!

So, I’m evangelized. I do wish there was a little less reliance on the canned macros, one of the other things I did not like so much in the old RTTY days. But all in all, I am darned impressed with this PSK31 stuff.

Moral of the story is that we can always learn something new. And it is always surprising how something as simple as trying a new band or mode can reinvigorate our interest in this wonderful hobby.

As if I need reinvigorating!

73,

Don Keith N4KC
www.n4kc.com
www.donkeith.com
http://n4kc.blogspot.com

I finally got caught up with things so I could find time to experience the HF band conditions everyone has been talking about. I put the K3 on 10m WSPR while I was doing my computer jobs. I missed some chances of being heard because the WSPR rig control doesn’t switch the K3 into DATA mode and in SSB mode only the microphone is live not the line input. My apologies if the sound of typing affected anyone’s WSPR reception! After spotting the error and correcting it I was received by five VK stations, which is quite pleasing for 20 watts to an attic dipole!

When I was finished with the computer I had a listen around the 10m band. There wasn’t as much happening as the WSPR results would suggest so I tried 12m, where some PSK31 was heard. After making one contact there (ER1RY, Moldova) I went back to 10m and saw some faint traces. I worked several Russians and heard but didn’t work three South African stations. I was also spotted from Madagascar by someone on the PSK Reporter site. That would have been a nice contact! I checked the SSB end from time to time but only heard a handful of signals too weak to work.

Ten metres is one of my favourite bands so it is great to see some signs of life. But I fear that improved propagation is going to bring problems for digital mode enthusiasts. As Paul, PC4T complains in his latest blog post, when you get good propagation people operate wherever they can within the band plan so the weak signal modes get trampled over by the wide, loud modes.

Unfortunately there is no “gentleman’s agreement” that says PSK has exclusive use of 14.070 – 14.072 or that only JT65A can be used from 14.076 to 14.078. Here in Europe, even the band plan separating CW, digital and voice modes is only a gentleman’s agreement. The frequencies mentioned above, like the QRP frequencies and others, are just “watering holes” that benefit people who operate those modes but can be ignored by others with no fear of any official penalty.

There has been an explosion in the use of digital modes over the last few years as more hams connect their computers to their radios and discover sound card software. The effect of this has mainly been that you could often find PSK31 activity when nothing else could be heard. Poor conditions have prevented the bands from getting too overcrowded.

But with better propagation people are going to be fighting for space. PSK is going to need to spread beyond its usual 2kHz on the most popular bands, as will JT65A. The “modes du jour” most of which offer no significant benefit over those that already exist will cause confusion by operating on top of one another. And the outmoded, inefficient RTTY, for which no technical justification for its continued use exists, will stomp over everything running the legal limit just as it always has, only this time more people are going to have their contacts spoiled and get angry about it.

It’s going to be a fun few years!

This is a short introduction to Linux for Amateur Radio Operators showing a few things that are available for Amateur Radio.