I just ordered one of these, plus the enclosure. QRP Labs no longer sells the enclosure, but BaMaTech does. So, for a complete kit it takes two orders; transceiver from the UK and the enclosure from Deutschland. Based on the specs and your review, this seems to be the best single-band QRP deal around, and I've been through many of them beginning with the old Heathkit HW-7 back in the 1970's. Thanks for taking time to review and share.
Hi,freind I want to know how to get this PCB,I search all I can search in internet，but I still not found. if you know how to get it ,please tell me,thank you very much
Hello Cliff, this is Juddie WD8WV. I commented a few months ago about your excellent video. Since then I have received my QCX 40 and built it. I have two videos on my TH-cam channel in my Amateur Radio playlist where I built it and another where I used it during the 2018 Field Day. I made over 30 contacts from my deck in the back yard with a 40 Meter end fed 1/2 wave antenna. Since then I ordered the QCX Enclosure that BamaTech makes for QRP-Labs. I mounted the QCX in the enclosure but of course it covers S1 switch that you use to send CW. So I wanted to modify the case. I ordered some parts from BamaTech and it looks factory. I have that video posted as well with measurements if you would like to take a look at it. Again thanks again for an excellent review of this little rig. Juddie WD8WV
Cliff, I have the 20, 30, and 40. They work great and are a blast to use. I’m 64. My two, older, twin brother ham have each built a couple. Recently, we had a family QCX 3-way QSO on 40. Two of us were in Arizona and one in Texas. 73, Larry W7LDT
Hey, on those micro-screwdrivers used for alignments; you know, the ones that are never the right size for the job. Metal ones change the inductance/capacitance of the variable component, and the plastic tools always wear out. The fix is this.... next time you're at the grocery, pick up a pack of those bamboo skewers. Using a sharp blade, cut the shafts to the desired length, and trim the tips to any blade length/thickness needed. The wood is dense, easy to cut precisely, and is hard and holds its shape well. When the tip gets malformed from use, just touch it up with the penknife. You can make a set of different sizes, or use just one that is cut to proper size for each job.
@@QRPSchool I'm glad the metal drivers don't really affect the values on those variable micro-resistors... especially since I've got one on order :). But, I've seen some circuits that went nuts if a metal tip got near 'em.
Excellent video Cliff! As a big fan of kit building and QRP rigs I'll indeed have to buy and build the QCX transceiver. My QRP collection is growing fast. Does it ever end....lol! 73!
I have to build mine. I’ve had it for a number of months and haven’t had the time to build it. I did, however, finally finish my original Rockmite 20m that I bought from Dave way back in 2003 (I still had the postage on the envelope to show the date). My goal is to build the QCX in less than 15 years though... N1XF
A tip to those who don't own a plastic alignment tool. You can shape a matchstick very effectively with a razor blade. Just shape it like the head of your terminal screwdriver. But don't slice your fingers up while doing it and don't blame me if you do.
I built the 40m one.. Works nice. 5w out... Important that one tweaks one of the lowpass filter toroids for this... I added a momentary mini pushbutton switch for checking the watt output.
Cliff, Thanks for this appetizing video. I have 3 of them to build once all the spring yard prep is done, the dock restained, the boat in the water, and no company visiting on the calendar. Ha! Anyway, I have lots of fun things to do once all the work is done. I think I got more done before I retired. Dave K8WPE
Thanks for the great video. I also like the CW decoder this radio has too. Minus the antenna and the power supply almost everything else that's important is built in.
A think I learned with toroid winding years ago is this... IF you think you might need another turn or two (as with this kit), go ahead and add them. If it turns out you have too much inductance, all is necessary is trim a bit of insulation off two adjacent turns on top of the mounted toroid, and add a drop of solder to short the turns out. That effectively turns two turns into one, and drops the inductance by one-turn. Compare that to desoldering toroid leads on a thru-plated PC board and the choice is clear. :)
That's some wild stuff right there. I am still playing with Heath lunchboxes and am looking into a radio kit for cw. Evey time I use CW I send slow and the return operator always goes too fast, so I am disappointed with most operators. The reader will help[ a lot
Hi Cliff, I enjoyed the video. Nice video, nice radio :-) One comment on your BPF Peaking. I noticed the trimmer capacitor is fully un-meshed (minimum capacitance). This indicates that the band pass peak is a little BELOW the 40m band. You will have some dB of attenuation in the 40m band, which you ideally don't want. You need to remove a few turns from the long winding of T1, to bring the resonance up into the 40m band. The trimmer capacitor setting should be neither fully un-meshed, nor fully meshed. When you've done this the sensitivity of the receiver will be improved (because you removed the unwanted attenuation). It isn't normally necessary to remove T1 turns on 30, 20 and 17m versions of the kit, but sometimes on the 40, 60 and 80m versions where the T1 long winding has quite a few turns, it is necessary to remove some for the trimmer capacitance to be able to peak the resonance. I also recommend using a 50-ohm dummy load during alignment of the radio, which most closely matches what your radio will (hopefully) see with the antenna connected. It does make a small difference to the BPF peak. Glad to see you're having fun with the kit! Current sales have reached 5,070 in 9 months since launch so it is an unbelievably popular kit. 73 Hans G0UPL (QCX designer) qrp-labs.com
Hans, thank you so much for the wonderful radio and for taking the time to watch/reply. It's hard to imagine that my radio could perform better - I'm very happy with it - but I'll do as you say and will remove a few turns from T1 after I get home from my current vacation... and will re-peak the BPF. Thanks again for the great contribution you've made to our hobby! - Cliff
@@QRPSchool That bodes well when Hans watches your video and gives incite! Clearly a man who is not just doing a "job". The passion that both he and you have shines through! Glad to be in good company. Jay KY9I
It’s a great kit. I just built one-third or fourth kit of electrical-anything that I’ve ever built. Works perfectly well and would certainly be better if I weren’t surrounded by immense radio-noise. I might order another and expand my band coverage.
Cliff, damn fine summary of this kit! You covered the high points very well. Would only add maybe more details on the CW reader/decoder display as it truly adds value to those hams wanting to get into CW or freshen up their rusty skills. By the way, your SK and paddle "fist" skills are pretty awesome! 71/72 de k6whp dit dit
Cliff, a growing fan of your videos and fellow QCX owner. Candidly, mine's still a kit as of this writing (February 2019) but wanted to recommend the case that Hans sells with for the QCX. It's a little pricey at $40 + shipping from Turkey but it's worth it. The good news is that, if they are in stock, it's about two weeks to your door. No pecuniary interest in this; just thought you might like to know! 72 de k6whp dit dit
I do a similar thing with the components, but I stick them in white polystyrene packing and write on that. Bumping the table isn't such an issue now :)
Jeff W It is worthy of a fancy enclosure but I'm thinking of just carrying it an anti-static bubble bag, protected by a plastic case of some kind. -Cliff
Bend some metal, re-purpose something else. Take some amateur gear (old stuff) enclosures apart, see how simple they really are. Just glancing around the room, I see that a gutted comtrend router case could be a good size. Mod panels to suit your needs. Ham it up. (I am fabricatory type).
I got my 40m version together, had some real issues with the instructions. My instructions on alignment calls for using the gain control to raise the number to a certain level, while also calling to decrease the level using the three variable resistors. The gain setting is apparently not a "set and forget"... you "start" at the halfway position. You can't possibly keep raising the gain setting to "keep it at about 9" while simultaneously reducing the level with the vari-resistors. Appreciate the video, but noticed you used a "set and forget" gain setting. I think I'm supposed to set the gain setting initially, but not touch it again; it's the only way the process will work. Maybe it's just me, but I've been building kits for 50-years.
I've got it built but when I go to peak BPF I'm not getting that 700 hz audio I see the graph on the LCD but can only get to 7 and 5 if i want the graph farthest to the right...
I chose 40m because it's the band that is open most often. There's pretty much always someone to talk to... especially in the evenings after work, when I've got more spare time. - Cliff
It's a great rig for the money, no doubt about that. But the latests version has a neat trick where the S-meter disappears when various parameters are changed in the menu! OK, so the S-meter isn't calibrated and varies with the volume setting, but it's slightly irritating!
Hmmm... It sounds like a software problem. I hope Hans will fix this. I'm going to see him in 3 weeks at the Four Days in May event, held by the QRP-ARCI organization. I'm hoping he'll have good news about his new radio.. the QSX. This will be an all-band, all-mode, SDR-base radio for $150, as I understand it. It promised to be a game-changer. - Cliff
Hi Cliff. Nice video. I have the OHR 100a for 40 meters. I know you have one too. How would you compare the receiver in the QCX to the OHR? Of course the QCX has a bunch of other differences. :) Thanks for all your work!
In a previous purge of radios, I sold my OHR 100A. Don't worry, I still have 8 QRP radios! I can't do a fair comparison of the 100A receiver with the QCX since I no longer own one. However, I had no issues with the receiver in the 100A. I will say that the QCX receiver is excellent and you can buy FIVE OCX radios for the price of ONE OHR 100A w/ keyer. Given the additional features of the OCX, I would hesitate to recommend someone pay the additional money to build the OHR 100A unless it's for sentimental reasons... which is always valid. But, that's just my two cents. - Cliff
@@QRPSchool Thanks Cliff. I agree, and am ordering the QCX today. Will move out the OHR to a new home. It is a great radio, just different. Kind of like comparing a Collins 75S-3B to an Icom 7300. :)
I was a little interested throughout the beginning of the video, but as silly as it sounds, the onboard key makes me want to get this for sure. Is the key rugged enough for repeated use? I really enjoy SOTA, and want to get back into it this summer, so will the whole radio be tough enough if I box it up? Specifically, are the jacks attached firmly to the board so they won't pop loose in the chaos of a SOTA activation.
Eric Bergmueller The little microswitch will have a mechanical and electrical durability rating on a data sheet somewhere... but I don't know the manufacturer or model of the component. From poking around, looking at microswitch datasheets, they seem to promise tens of thousands of actuations, at a minimum. Of course, it's not hard to replace the switch if it ever wears out. (Heck, you can replace the entire radio for $49! Amazing price.). The jacks fit tightly to the PCB (you can bend the pins slightly before inserting to make it very tight) plus they are soldered in place. My only concern is in packaging it. You can get fancy and "remote" the knobs and switches in a traditional enclosure. There is a link on the qrp-labs.com website called Builder's Gallery where you can see examples. Me... I'm thinking of just transporting it in an anti-static bubble bag! - Cliff
As you can see I'm KD1S - had my extra since 1993 so I had tot he 20WPM code. I'm seriously out of practice though. And I have a QRP Pixie 40m CW kit - have to find it and put it together. Someone likes to clean up and put things in places where I don't' expect them to be.
If you can only have one band, make it 40 meters! The 40m band is open every day, guaranteed. If you want to try for DX during the day time, 20m is your next choice. - Cliff
Thanks for your review! I just purchased this radio yesterday and can't wait till it gets here. I have already built to Chinese Pixie kits! But I wanted something more! I have been away from the hobby for 12 years and just got back into it. Kept my license renewed since 1996 but got out of it in 2006 and sold everything after issues with my heart. Now I am back have a HF station setup, but I want to do qrp and portable operations. If you have any tips on building this radio, other than. Trying to do it in one night, LOL, please share. I have sub'd to your channel especially since I noticed it is called qrp school. 73 Juddie WD8WV
Welcome back to the hobby, Juddie! You already know my #1 tip: Don't stay up until 3AM working on it... or you're bound to make a mistake! :-) Just take it slow and double-check everything before you solder the part in-place. You'll be fine. Oh, and it doesn't hurt to leave some extra wire when winding the T1 toroid. If the ends of the wires are short, it's harder to get all 8 of the wires hanging off that toroid until their respective holes. The manual shows you a way to wind that toroid with a single piece of wire, creating "loops" that you'll cut afterwards to form the leads for the 4 windings of that toroid. I wound all 4 independently and left the leads a little longer than necessary to make it easier. That T1 toroid is the only part of the build that is tedious. Just take your time. It's not a race. Let me know how it turns out. - Cliff
QRP School , thanks for the advice Cliff. I have already printed the manual and put in a 3 ring binder. I sat down this evening and read pretty much all of it. I saw that sketch using one single wire to wind the T1. I am no stranger to winding toroids. I just built the Chinese qrp tuner and had to wind the toroid for the inductor switch. Very poor quality of parts in that tuner! I also bought a QRPGuys Portable No Tune End Fed Half Wave Antenna kit and had to wind a toroid on it. Right now I am looking at different builds in enclosures trying to think of a good one to do. I may order the QCX enclosure that Hans has now for the QCX. Again thanks for a great review and your response. 73 DE WD8WV
N4CCB de N0NJY, thanks for the video. I've got a little Pixie kit here I'm about to build, and was looking for a multiband qrp rig. Came across this one today, and watched your video. I suspect you're selling these rigs for the maker (by simply posting your video!!!) Well done, thanks. 73
Preston Shute Winding T1 is the only tedious part of the kit. It's really not the winding that's the problem... it's the 8 wires dangling from the toroid that have to be routed into the proper holes AFTER the winding. Make sure to leave extra wire for each lead to make it easier. Think of it as pedaling a bike up a hill...it's a bit of work but great fun when you're flying down the other side! I measure 3.8 watts out at 13.17 volts... which matches the chart found in the assembly manual. - Cliff
Hi Cliff, N4CCB de K1IR. Great, great video. I've been thinking about building one of these kits for quite some time. Haven't done it yet. Your video gets me thinking about it again . . . I thought you might be interested in learning a little bit more about the QSO you made in the video. I am the trustee of the NN1AA callsign. The Morse Contesters is a small group of New England ops who enjoy contesting, particularly CW contests. We operate from my home station, which just happens to be on Morse Road. It was fun hearing you work us. I suspect that QSO was during the 2018 WPX CW Contest. One of our our best ops, Lars KE1J, was at the helm piloting our station to first place in the 40 meter single-band category. Turns out, he set an all-time US record in that contest. Here's the write-up: www.cq-amateur-radio.com/cq_contests/cq_ww_wpx_contest/2018-CQ-WW-WPX-CW-Results.pdf 73 Jim K1IR
This looks like a great product, and I would love to buy one, however, the QRP-labs website indicates that payment can be made with a credit card. Then, when i get to the payment options, there are only 2 options, Paypal, and Bank transfer. They need to fix their website.
Jim, I believe if you choose PayPal as the method of payment, you will then have the options of logging into your PayPal account OR entering a credit card number to use PayPal as a guest. Give that a try. I could be wrong... -Cliff
Thanks Cliff. Question: Do you think you'll build another one of these for another band option? I've been looking hard at the uBitx, but it's just not "dialed in" for cw, which makes this kit look better, but for getting only one band. Yes I know, some kits are rock-bound for just "one" freq. Just haven't taken the plunge yet.
Wade - I have a 20m QCX kit to build, but I stole a capacitor from it when I broke one while building the 40m kit. So, as soon as I can get another replacement capacitor, I'll build the 20m version. I bought a uBitx but put it in the corner after I learned that it wasn't really great for CW. - Cliff
In case this excellent review prompted someone to order.... QRP Labs no longer sells the enclosure for the QCX, but the site refers you to Germany-based BaMaTech, which does stock the enclosure. I ordered the enclosure with a PayPal payment, but BaMaTech emailed me a day later cancelling the order. Reason? "no longer shipping to the USA". No further information.
when I looked tonight, there home page said shipping within Europe was highly restricted and outside of Europe not possible. I strongly suspect this is a result of Cov19. It may be a while before the situation eases. I have seen some neat cases made with 3D printers. I am looking at finding some one to print a case for me.
OK, so you've sold me the radio cliff, now I gotta buy one ...and buy a battery, some coax, a portable antenna, a chair and table (rocks give you piles), a notepad and pen, a case for the radio, a carry case to bring all my stuff, a flask and sandwich box, a key of course and some headphones, petrol in the car and get away from the wife and kids long enough to make a few /p contacts but not so long that I'm marked down as an absent father and husband. ..i needn't mention nosey passer-bys, jobsworths and the local cops, bugs, dogs and ticks, rain and wind, my own dissabling anxiety and S7 noise. Why the heck do we do it?? In my experience 5W is more than enough to work the world, it's all the other stuff that makes qrp/p difficult... There's nothing like the buzz you get from it though and that's what drives us to do it again and again ....and that makes us all, effectively, addicts.
John C You are absolutely right... and you probably left out several additional negatives. I do like that you have included a flask among your necessary supplies! Of all forms of ham radio, QRP and satellite work seem most likely to lead to alcohol. But, we love our radios, don’t we? It’s a great hobby with something for everyone. It’s like magic, being able to communicate with someone thousands of miles away, using a piece of wire for an antenna and a small battery powered radio. Hope to talk to you on-the-air someday, John! -Cliff
Hellow fellow im right in you channel like al ot if you dont mine like to ask a quedtion for a Very good video for me the ajustment ois so complicatede like to start on out side willchair portable QRP operador im good on antena so like to as foi ir i send a good G7FEK antena or another that you need to split to this QRP rig or im good to make balum with 200t amidon to make Exchange to this rig can you do that i Send a head some fin that you like antenas balum a can do well .your choice im reali like to have qso with this rig and make nice video what do you fhink?
I just ordered one of these, plus the enclosure. QRP Labs no longer sells the enclosure, but BaMaTech does. So, for a complete kit it takes two orders; transceiver from the UK and the enclosure from Deutschland. Based on the specs and your review, this seems to be the best single-band QRP deal around, and I've been through many of them beginning with the old Heathkit HW-7 back in the 1970's. Thanks for taking time to review and share.
Hi,freind I want to know how to get this PCB,I search all I can search in internet，but I still not found. if you know how to get it ,please tell me,thank you very much
Hello Cliff, this is Juddie WD8WV. I commented a few months ago about your excellent video. Since then I have received my QCX 40 and built it. I have two videos on my TH-cam channel in my Amateur Radio playlist where I built it and another where I used it during the 2018 Field Day. I made over 30 contacts from my deck in the back yard with a 40 Meter end fed 1/2 wave antenna. Since then I ordered the QCX Enclosure that BamaTech makes for QRP-Labs. I mounted the QCX in the enclosure but of course it covers S1 switch that you use to send CW. So I wanted to modify the case. I ordered some parts from BamaTech and it looks factory. I have that video posted as well with measurements if you would like to take a look at it. Again thanks again for an excellent review of this little rig. Juddie WD8WV
Cliff, I have the 20, 30, and 40. They work great and are a blast to use. I’m 64. My two, older, twin brother ham have each built a couple. Recently, we had a family QCX 3-way QSO on 40. Two of us were in Arizona and one in Texas. 73, Larry W7LDT
LARRY TAYLOR What a hoot, Larry! Three brothers, hams, having a QRP QSO together! FB, indeed. -Cliff
Nice job! So far I have two, a QCX and a QCX plus, now I want a QCX-M multi band version. 73 K8BZ
Hey, on those micro-screwdrivers used for alignments; you know, the ones that are never the right size for the job. Metal ones change the inductance/capacitance of the variable component, and the plastic tools always wear out. The fix is this.... next time you're at the grocery, pick up a pack of those bamboo skewers. Using a sharp blade, cut the shafts to the desired length, and trim the tips to any blade length/thickness needed. The wood is dense, easy to cut precisely, and is hard and holds its shape well. When the tip gets malformed from use, just touch it up with the penknife. You can make a set of different sizes, or use just one that is cut to proper size for each job.
Great idea! Thanks. -Cliff
@@QRPSchool I'm glad the metal drivers don't really affect the values on those variable micro-resistors... especially since I've got one on order :). But, I've seen some circuits that went nuts if a metal tip got near 'em.
So glad your making videos again Cliff! I’ve been contemplating a K2, but this is a similar experience for 1/10th the cost.
Steve Parks Hey, Steve! It's a neat little kit. You NEED one of these little rigs. -Cliff
QRP School NEED? Want? I’m confident I don’t need it, BUT I’m confident I would have fun!
Nice radio ..... I love my OCX-20 rig as well .... many many things this thing does =) Thanks for sharing Cliff =)
Excellent video Cliff! As a big fan of kit building and QRP rigs I'll indeed have to buy and build the QCX transceiver. My QRP collection is growing fast. Does it ever end....lol! 73!
I have to build mine. I’ve had it for a number of months and haven’t had the time to build it. I did, however, finally finish my original Rockmite 20m that I bought from Dave way back in 2003 (I still had the postage on the envelope to show the date). My goal is to build the QCX in less than 15 years though... N1XF
A tip to those who don't own a plastic alignment tool. You can shape a matchstick very effectively with a razor blade. Just shape it like the head of your terminal screwdriver. But don't slice your fingers up while doing it and don't blame me if you do.
I built the 40m one.. Works nice. 5w out... Important that one tweaks one of the lowpass filter toroids for this... I added a momentary mini pushbutton switch for checking the watt output.
This is great! I just got sent this way via FM 2m and this kit is exactly what I ordered
Thanks a lot. Now I have to buy and build this radio. : )
AnythingWithWheels Yes! You will not regret it. Very cool little rig... -Cliff
Me too!
Cliff,
Thanks for this appetizing video. I have 3 of them to build once all the spring yard prep is done, the dock restained, the boat in the water, and no company visiting on the calendar. Ha! Anyway, I have lots of fun things to do once all the work is done. I think I got more done before I retired.
Dave K8WPE
Using a QCX "marine mobile" sounds like a good goal, Dave! - Cliff
Thanks for the great video. I also like the CW decoder this radio has too. Minus the antenna and the power supply almost everything else that's important is built in.
Excellent video. I purchased one of these kits after watching. Thank you, new subscriber.
Aloha and mahalo for a great video. I have one in a box waiting to build after watching this makes me want to get going on it.
A think I learned with toroid winding years ago is this... IF you think you might need another turn or two (as with this kit), go ahead and add them. If it turns out you have too much inductance, all is necessary is trim a bit of insulation off two adjacent turns on top of the mounted toroid, and add a drop of solder to short the turns out. That effectively turns two turns into one, and drops the inductance by one-turn. Compare that to desoldering toroid leads on a thru-plated PC board and the choice is clear. :)
This is an excellent idea. Thanks! - Cliff
Great video. And what a finger-fist! I work guys every day who can't do half that good with an actual key!
That's some wild stuff right there. I am still playing with Heath lunchboxes and am looking into a radio kit for cw. Evey time I use CW I send slow and the return operator always goes too fast, so I am disappointed with most operators. The reader will help[ a lot
Hi Cliff, I enjoyed the video. Nice video, nice radio :-)
One comment on your BPF Peaking. I noticed the trimmer capacitor is fully un-meshed (minimum capacitance). This indicates that the band pass peak is a little BELOW the 40m band. You will have some dB of attenuation in the 40m band, which you ideally don't want. You need to remove a few turns from the long winding of T1, to bring the resonance up into the 40m band. The trimmer capacitor setting should be neither fully un-meshed, nor fully meshed. When you've done this the sensitivity of the receiver will be improved (because you removed the unwanted attenuation). It isn't normally necessary to remove T1 turns on 30, 20 and 17m versions of the kit, but sometimes on the 40, 60 and 80m versions where the T1 long winding has quite a few turns, it is necessary to remove some for the trimmer capacitance to be able to peak the resonance.
I also recommend using a 50-ohm dummy load during alignment of the radio, which most closely matches what your radio will (hopefully) see with the antenna connected. It does make a small difference to the BPF peak.
Glad to see you're having fun with the kit! Current sales have reached 5,070 in 9 months since launch so it is an unbelievably popular kit.
73 Hans G0UPL (QCX designer)
qrp-labs.com
Hans, thank you so much for the wonderful radio and for taking the time to watch/reply. It's hard to imagine that my radio could perform better - I'm very happy with it - but I'll do as you say and will remove a few turns from T1 after I get home from my current vacation... and will re-peak the BPF. Thanks again for the great contribution you've made to our hobby! - Cliff
Designer himself drops by with some tweaks. How cool is that??
It's Mid April 2019, and it's my guess Hans is either close to or past 7000 units sold in QCX versions.
@@QRPSchool That bodes well when Hans watches your video and gives incite! Clearly a man who is not just doing a "job". The passion that both he and you have shines through! Glad to be in good company. Jay KY9I
Very nice video. Thanks.
I just ordered one! Also qrp labs now has a really nice case for it.
It’s a great kit. I just built one-third or fourth kit of electrical-anything that I’ve ever built. Works perfectly well and would certainly be better if I weren’t surrounded by immense radio-noise. I might order another and expand my band coverage.
Excellent many thanks
Well, at least you have a sense of humor.
Thank you for the cool demo.
Ty so much for your time and effort. I look forward to seeing you in future videos 73 👍🍺🎙🤠
Cliff, damn fine summary of this kit! You covered the high points very well. Would only add maybe more details on the CW reader/decoder display as it truly adds value to those hams wanting to get into CW or freshen up their rusty skills.
By the way, your SK and paddle "fist" skills are pretty awesome!
71/72 de k6whp
dit dit
Amazing video! Thank you!
Cliff, a growing fan of your videos and fellow QCX owner. Candidly, mine's still a kit as of this writing (February 2019) but wanted to recommend the case that Hans sells with for the QCX. It's a little pricey at $40 + shipping from Turkey but it's worth it. The good news is that, if they are in stock, it's about two weeks to your door.
No pecuniary interest in this; just thought you might like to know!
72 de k6whp
dit dit
Thank you. That IS a great-looking case! - Cliff
Glad your back ! love the videos!!
I do a similar thing with the components, but I stick them in white polystyrene packing and write on that. Bumping the table isn't such an issue now :)
Great job!
Hello Cliff!
Great video! I am thinking of buying one of these kits to operate CW in 20m along with my portable loop antenna. 73 from Brazil!
Excellent video! I should have bought one at Dayton when I was there. 73, Stuart KB1HQS
Very nicely done. I am looking for a decent enclosure to tale it on road. Ideas?
Jeff W It is worthy of a fancy enclosure but I'm thinking of just carrying it an anti-static bubble bag, protected by a plastic case of some kind. -Cliff
Bend some metal, re-purpose something else. Take some amateur gear (old stuff) enclosures apart, see how simple they really are. Just glancing around the room, I see that a gutted comtrend router case could be a good size. Mod panels to suit your needs. Ham it up. (I am fabricatory type).
I am looking forward to this one: www.shop.bamatech.de/ (Photo of QCX metal case should be show up on the front page).
Beautiful! Thanks for sharing!
Now that’s what I was looking for!
Cool radio!
I got my 40m version together, had some real issues with the instructions. My instructions on alignment calls for using the gain control to raise the number to a certain level, while also calling to decrease the level using the three variable resistors. The gain setting is apparently not a "set and forget"... you "start" at the halfway position. You can't possibly keep raising the gain setting to "keep it at about 9" while simultaneously reducing the level with the vari-resistors. Appreciate the video, but noticed you used a "set and forget" gain setting. I think I'm supposed to set the gain setting initially, but not touch it again; it's the only way the process will work. Maybe it's just me, but I've been building kits for 50-years.
I've got it built but when I go to peak BPF I'm not getting that 700 hz audio I see the graph on the LCD but can only get to 7 and 5 if i want the graph farthest to the right...
Isn't that the kit where packaging is a beast because the knobs are out of alignment ?
Yep
Which of the kits would you recommend for operation or how to choose the right band. Why did you decide yourself for 40m?
I chose 40m because it's the band that is open most often. There's pretty much always someone to talk to... especially in the evenings after work, when I've got more spare time. - Cliff
Mine is for 30m (music mode only :o) ). Great video Cliff!
Great job.
Kindly suggest some Radio kits for self assembling which can be categorized into Kit-1 and Kit-2
It's a great rig for the money, no doubt about that. But the latests version has a neat trick where the S-meter disappears when various parameters are changed in the menu! OK, so the S-meter isn't calibrated and varies with the volume setting, but it's slightly irritating!
Hmmm... It sounds like a software problem. I hope Hans will fix this. I'm going to see him in 3 weeks at the Four Days in May event, held by the QRP-ARCI organization. I'm hoping he'll have good news about his new radio.. the QSX. This will be an all-band, all-mode, SDR-base radio for $150, as I understand it. It promised to be a game-changer. - Cliff
this is great, thanks Cliff, I want to order one.
thats the nxt kit then!!
Cheers 73
Hi Cliff! As usual with your videos, this video is great! I'm going to link to it from my blog post on the QCX, if you don't mind. 73, Rex KE6MT
Hey, Rex. Feel free to link to this and any of my videos. I'm here to help! - Cliff
Hi Cliff. Nice video. I have the OHR 100a for 40 meters. I know you have one too. How would you compare the receiver in the QCX to the OHR? Of course the QCX has a bunch of other differences. :) Thanks for all your work!
In a previous purge of radios, I sold my OHR 100A. Don't worry, I still have 8 QRP radios! I can't do a fair comparison of the 100A receiver with the QCX since I no longer own one. However, I had no issues with the receiver in the 100A. I will say that the QCX receiver is excellent and you can buy FIVE OCX radios for the price of ONE OHR 100A w/ keyer. Given the additional features of the OCX, I would hesitate to recommend someone pay the additional money to build the OHR 100A unless it's for sentimental reasons... which is always valid. But, that's just my two cents. - Cliff
@@QRPSchool Thanks Cliff. I agree, and am ordering the QCX today. Will move out the OHR to a new home. It is a great radio, just different. Kind of like comparing a Collins 75S-3B to an Icom 7300. :)
Or maybe a KWM-2A since it was a transceiver.
I was a little interested throughout the beginning of the video, but as silly as it sounds, the onboard key makes me want to get this for sure. Is the key rugged enough for repeated use? I really enjoy SOTA, and want to get back into it this summer, so will the whole radio be tough enough if I box it up? Specifically, are the jacks attached firmly to the board so they won't pop loose in the chaos of a SOTA activation.
Eric Bergmueller The little microswitch will have a mechanical and electrical durability rating on a data sheet somewhere... but I don't know the manufacturer or model of the component. From poking around, looking at microswitch datasheets, they seem to promise tens of thousands of actuations, at a minimum. Of course, it's not hard to replace the switch if it ever wears out. (Heck, you can replace the entire radio for $49! Amazing price.). The jacks fit tightly to the PCB (you can bend the pins slightly before inserting to make it very tight) plus they are soldered in place. My only concern is in packaging it. You can get fancy and "remote" the knobs and switches in a traditional enclosure. There is a link on the qrp-labs.com website called Builder's Gallery where you can see examples. Me... I'm thinking of just transporting it in an anti-static bubble bag! - Cliff
Very nice video, could I use this device in 27 MHZ? 7351.
João Faria I don’t think so. -Cliff
@@QRPSchool Thank you. 7351. I´m looking forward one kit for 27MHZ, on SSB QRP 5Watts but could not find it. Thanks.
Was that a surface mount chip in there? Is that already installed or do we have to do that ourselves?
K2CJB Radio There are 2 SMD chips that are already soldered onto the PCB. So, we are spared from that task. -Cliff
QRP School That's good! I couldn’t imagine trying to solder those in!
As you can see I'm KD1S - had my extra since 1993 so I had tot he 20WPM code. I'm seriously out of practice though. And I have a QRP Pixie 40m CW kit - have to find it and put it together. Someone likes to clean up and put things in places where I don't' expect them to be.
Could you make a metal detector out of an arduino?🤔
EU and US directives dictate that we don't let the smoke out but in the old days we tuned for maximum smoke. I liked those days!
That is very impressive!!!
DE K5CLC
Belinya..dmn...mr
Did I see WSPR as a function on that rig??
Yes. QRP Labs has an excellent WSPR kit, as well. They built that into this rig, too. - Cliff
When you get the case please do an install video
73
wd4dda
wich band choise? am in uk what is popular to choise bandwich ?
If you can only have one band, make it 40 meters! The 40m band is open every day, guaranteed. If you want to try for DX during the day time, 20m is your next choice. - Cliff
Thanks for your review! I just purchased this radio yesterday and can't wait till it gets here. I have already built to Chinese Pixie kits! But I wanted something more! I have been away from the hobby for 12 years and just got back into it. Kept my license renewed since 1996 but got out of it in 2006 and sold everything after issues with my heart. Now I am back have a HF station setup, but I want to do qrp and portable operations. If you have any tips on building this radio, other than. Trying to do it in one night, LOL, please share. I have sub'd to your channel especially since I noticed it is called qrp school. 73 Juddie WD8WV
Welcome back to the hobby, Juddie! You already know my #1 tip: Don't stay up until 3AM working on it... or you're bound to make a mistake! :-) Just take it slow and double-check everything before you solder the part in-place. You'll be fine. Oh, and it doesn't hurt to leave some extra wire when winding the T1 toroid. If the ends of the wires are short, it's harder to get all 8 of the wires hanging off that toroid until their respective holes. The manual shows you a way to wind that toroid with a single piece of wire, creating "loops" that you'll cut afterwards to form the leads for the 4 windings of that toroid. I wound all 4 independently and left the leads a little longer than necessary to make it easier. That T1 toroid is the only part of the build that is tedious. Just take your time. It's not a race. Let me know how it turns out. - Cliff
QRP School , thanks for the advice Cliff. I have already printed the manual and put in a 3 ring binder. I sat down this evening and read pretty much all of it. I saw that sketch using one single wire to wind the T1. I am no stranger to winding toroids. I just built the Chinese qrp tuner and had to wind the toroid for the inductor switch. Very poor quality of parts in that tuner! I also bought a QRPGuys Portable No Tune End Fed Half Wave Antenna kit and had to wind a toroid on it. Right now I am looking at different builds in enclosures trying to think of a good one to do. I may order the QCX enclosure that Hans has now for the QCX. Again thanks for a great review and your response. 73 DE WD8WV
Thanks for this video. Just got mine in the mail, today, and looking forward to the build. ki4ckz
N4CCB de N0NJY, thanks for the video. I've got a little Pixie kit here I'm about to build, and was looking for a multiband qrp rig. Came across this one today, and watched your video. I suspect you're selling these rigs for the maker (by simply posting your video!!!) Well done, thanks. 73
Cliff
Could you talk about winding the T1 toroid and how much power (watts) out did you get.
Thank for being back on the channel again
73
wd4dda
Preston Shute Winding T1 is the only tedious part of the kit. It's really not the winding that's the problem... it's the 8 wires dangling from the toroid that have to be routed into the proper holes AFTER the winding. Make sure to leave extra wire for each lead to make it easier. Think of it as pedaling a bike up a hill...it's a bit of work but great fun when you're flying down the other side!
I measure 3.8 watts out at 13.17 volts... which matches the chart found in the assembly manual. - Cliff
No case included?
Case sold separately but it is stunning.
AS ALWAYS a great video de ne4am
Hi Cliff, N4CCB de K1IR.
Great, great video. I've been thinking about building one of these kits for quite some time. Haven't done it yet. Your video gets me thinking about it again . . .
I thought you might be interested in learning a little bit more about the QSO you made in the video. I am the trustee of the NN1AA callsign. The Morse Contesters is a small group of New England ops who enjoy contesting, particularly CW contests. We operate from my home station, which just happens to be on Morse Road. It was fun hearing you work us. I suspect that QSO was during the 2018 WPX CW Contest. One of our our best ops, Lars KE1J, was at the helm piloting our station to first place in the 40 meter single-band category. Turns out, he set an all-time US record in that contest. Here's the write-up:
www.cq-amateur-radio.com/cq_contests/cq_ww_wpx_contest/2018-CQ-WW-WPX-CW-Results.pdf
73 Jim K1IR
This looks like a great product, and I would love to buy one, however, the QRP-labs website indicates that payment can be made with a credit card. Then, when i get to the payment options, there are only 2 options, Paypal, and Bank transfer. They need to fix their website.
Jim, I believe if you choose PayPal as the method of payment, you will then have the options of logging into your PayPal account OR entering a credit card number to use PayPal as a guest. Give that a try. I could be wrong... -Cliff
@@QRPSchool You are absolutely correct Cliff, that worked , and I'm looking forward to building and testing this little bad boy. Thank you. jim d
T1 on the 80m version tests your metal ... might make the 30m next 😂😎
Nick Trotman I'm sure you're right, Nick! -Cliff
Thanks Cliff. Question: Do you think you'll build another one of these for another band option? I've been looking hard at the uBitx, but it's just not "dialed in" for cw, which makes this kit look better, but for getting only one band. Yes I know, some kits are rock-bound for just "one" freq. Just haven't taken the plunge yet.
Wade - I have a 20m QCX kit to build, but I stole a capacitor from it when I broke one while building the 40m kit. So, as soon as I can get another replacement capacitor, I'll build the 20m version. I bought a uBitx but put it in the corner after I learned that it wasn't really great for CW. - Cliff
This is funny - why haven't i seen you before ?
In case this excellent review prompted someone to order.... QRP Labs no longer sells the enclosure for the QCX, but the site refers you to Germany-based BaMaTech, which does stock the enclosure. I ordered the enclosure with a PayPal payment, but BaMaTech emailed me a day later cancelling the order. Reason? "no longer shipping to the USA". No further information.
when I looked tonight, there home page said shipping within Europe was highly restricted and outside of Europe not possible. I strongly suspect this is a result of Cov19. It may be a while before the situation eases. I have seen some neat cases made with 3D printers. I am looking at finding some one to print a case for me.
OK, so you've sold me the radio cliff, now I gotta buy one ...and buy a battery, some coax, a portable antenna, a chair and table (rocks give you piles), a notepad and pen, a case for the radio, a carry case to bring all my stuff, a flask and sandwich box, a key of course and some headphones, petrol in the car and get away from the wife and kids long enough to make a few /p contacts but not so long that I'm marked down as an absent father and husband. ..i needn't mention nosey passer-bys, jobsworths and the local cops, bugs, dogs and ticks, rain and wind, my own dissabling anxiety and S7 noise. Why the heck do we do it?? In my experience 5W is more than enough to work the world, it's all the other stuff that makes qrp/p difficult... There's nothing like the buzz you get from it though and that's what drives us to do it again and again ....and that makes us all, effectively, addicts.
John C You are absolutely right... and you probably left out several additional negatives. I do like that you have included a flask among your necessary supplies! Of all forms of ham radio, QRP and satellite work seem most likely to lead to alcohol. But, we love our radios, don’t we? It’s a great hobby with something for everyone. It’s like magic, being able to communicate with someone thousands of miles away, using a piece of wire for an antenna and a small battery powered radio. Hope to talk to you on-the-air someday, John! -Cliff
First wife! Ha!
Hellow fellow im right in you channel like al ot if you dont mine like to ask a quedtion for a Very good video for me the ajustment ois so complicatede like to start on out side willchair portable QRP operador im good on antena so like to as foi ir i send a good G7FEK antena or another that you need to split to this QRP rig or im good to make balum with 200t amidon to make Exchange to this rig can you do that i Send a head some fin that you like antenas balum a can do well .your choice im reali like to have qso with this rig and make nice video what do you fhink?
I'm sorry. I don't understand your question. Please try using Google Translate to ask your question again: translate.google.com/
Four Mistakes - You admitted you make mistakes. ;-)
Escape the Matrix - That one was intentional. :-)
@@QRPSchool *lol*
Add SSB / PHONE and I am in
I have one of those feline destroyers of all things, not cat like.