The QCX is amazing. But what would I like to see in a (single band) QRP rig, without the need for other features?
I can't find what I need in any easily available QRP rig, so let me set out my thinking:
Objectives of the rig
- Easy to build from easily available parts, ideally tolerant large components
- CW only and anything from 1W to 5W or more
- No need for digital frequency readout
- No concerns about chirp or even a little drift
- No major concerns about harmonics, it is QRP, there's nothing up at 22.2 MHz
- Wide receive no need for narrow filter, the brain can filter
- No need for receiver to even be single side band, could be double
- Low current drain on receive standby would be a plus
- Enough audio for a loudspeaker, with ability to optionally plug in headphones
- Wide range of power e.g. 9V-20V, if possible
- Volume and on/off
- Optional: sensitivity and/or filtering
- Ideal: if a Z match SWR LED system can be built in, otherwise external
- Ideal: switch to internal dummy load for local training sessions and CW practices
- A tuning range of at least a few kHz, e.g 10121-10129 kHz
- Ideal: an RIT so that tuning RX doesn't mean changing TX frequency
Definitely not requires are things such as digital read outs, narrow filters, just the ability to have a better RX than the pixie, ie not pull in strong signals from MF stations, not overload the speaker but better to loud than too quiet. Something that can be left on even at a base station as a monitor with suffience sensitivity and RX bandwidth for a 3-6 (or 6-12kHz if DSB) range of frequencies.
Such a rig would make for a good emergency standby, field QRP or even base station QSX rig.
How I miss my HW-8, much more advanced than these requirements, but made up of discreet components.
Also: such a rig for 60m too. Covering both 60m and 30m gives great emergency communications coverage. A dual band would be amazing.
Is this a project worth while doing that any of you could assist with designing?
Building such a radio, if it doesn't already exist, would be a fun activity for CW classes, and students can then use it in the glass via the dummy load, learning lots of practical skills from the teacher. They can later take these rigs home and put a wire on the antenna output and continue to QSO with their fellow students, as licensed radio amateurs.
There seems to be more concentration of QRP rigs for 40m and 80m, but the 30m is generally neglected and also 60m would cover most requirements along with 30m, for propagation. This could also help activity in the "TOP 9" of 30m.
So, in the above "specifications" for this desirable 30m CW rig, even a XTAL at 10126 if they can be obtained or made from harmonics of lower xtals, and with some ability to pull a (few) kHz or so each way, would be fine.