CQ CQ CQ 70 Mhz SSB..

Here it is, my new addition to the shack, the Spectrum Communications TRC4-2sL Transverter… it has been a while since I have been active on 4m SSB but at long last I will get active again. I seen the transverter for sale on Facebook, I was not exactly looking out for one but this was at a good price and was the one I was looking for, input on 2m and the output on 4m… I organised buying it and picked it up at the Lough Erne Radio Rally yesterday.

There is no need for me to go into detail about the specs on this as they are well documented elsewhere on the internet and are very highly regarded..

I will be getting a 3 element beam up for SSB and the plan is just to point it into central Europe and leave it fixed there for the rest of the year.

Seeing that I will be using my Yaesu FT857D into the transverter and that I have a digital interface connected which I use on HF for PSK, I hope to have some contacts using PSK on 70 Mhz as well.
The last time I was on 70 Mhz SSB was nearly 4 years ago...  time to catch up on a bit of DX...

I had a quick look on “DX Maps” to see if there is any activity but there is nothing showing there at the minute but the "Cluster" is showing a little activity…

Let’s hope it will get better.

EI4FMG still on test, but not for much longer..

EI4FMG on test in my Shack.

I have not posted about the 4m Gateway EI4FMG in a while, that’s because I have been having a small issue with it and it took a while and a bit of head scratching to sort it out.

The gateway works perfectly when on test in my shack, but as soon as I bring it to site it plays up and picks up a steady noise level on the interface when everything is connected up.

I brought it up to a friend’s QTH recently with a view of leaving it there on test and see how it behaves but the issue was still there, after turning off his electricity in his house and connecting a portable generator the problem was still there.

So we disconnected everything and brought it home, set it up in my shack on a dummy load and it was fine!!!! 

I reckoned it was an grounding  problem and went through it all again, took it off my power supply and put it on a temporary power supply  and the problem returned, so all I done was connect a wire from the chassis of the radio to the chassis of the computer and the noise disappeared.

So now the plan is this week to locate the gateway to a secondary testing location, it will probably only be on beacon mode for a while to ensure that it keeps performing to proper parameters.

Tait TM8110, Altai 5-7amp Power supply, EI4JR interface.

On test.

When the gateway returns to service it will be operating from a new radio, a TAIT TM-8110, running 15 watts and an Altai 5-7 amp power supply, also updated is the computer, the old one became faulty; the sound card started to play up and did not want to accept any input audio…

The interface by EI4JR will still be used, the gateway node number is still the same: 57006.

Simoco PRM8041 up and running.

Recently I posted that I was looking for help with programming a Simoco PRM8041, the Simoco is an unusual one in that it is not widely used over this part of the world.
I put my post on a ham radio Facebook page in Australia, seeing that this type of Simoco was originally  made for the Australian market.
One of the guys who read the page sent me a message that he had the software that I needed and that he would be willing to send me a copy.
So he sent me a link as to where I could find it and I downloaded it and put it on my very old Windows 95 computer.
The software itself dates back to 1997, so you can imagine how old the radio is!!!

After I played around with the software, it is very similar to the PRM80 and PRM8030, I managed to figure it out!!!
The radio needed to be programmed via the Control Head, which is different to what I normally do with the Simoco's. The software required me to do two sets of programming, one for the control head and the other for the eprom.
Now here is the unusual thing, once I had it programmed (with 20 popular 4m channels) I decided to plug the Control Head into a second PRM8041 body that had PMR frequencies on it, the head automatically reprogrammed the body to work on 4m,
So there you have it, with many thanks to the guy in Australia with the facebook name of "Yobbo Muller" I have the Simoco PRM8041 up and running on 70Mhz...

Tony Fay EI6EQB picks up his prize.

I had the very great pleasure today of getting to meet the winner and  hand over the Cleartone CM-7200 4m radio to it's new owner.

Let me introduce Tony Fay EI6EQB (In his own words):

My Name is Tony,

I live in Artane, on the North side of Dublin City, Locator IO63VJ.

I have an interest in all things electronic.

My Father is Tom, EI6K, who was an RO in the 50's and did Radio and TV repairs from the family home, and it is to him I owe my interest in radio, electronics and computers from an early age. I have been working in Data Comms and the computer industry since 1979.

Since 1992 I have been a member of the North Dublin Radio Club EI0NDR.

I am mainly active on VHF/ UHF but I am now redeveloping my interest in HF now that I have erected a Dipole antenna for 40 Meters at my QTH.  The take-off for this antenna is NE and SW.

I am delighted Tony has won the radio and he promised me that he would make me his first contact on 4m!!!
Keep an ear for him on the band and I wish him lots of hours of enjoyment with the radio.

Competition for Cleartone CM-7200 4m AM/FM radio is now closed.

I have been overwhelmed by the number of people who have put their name in to see if they would win the radio, it is a pity that there can only be one winner.

I was over at the local Post Office yesterday and got prices for postage to the different countries  from where the call signs below are from. 
(For Ireland €12.50, For Europe €40.00 and for UK €30.00).

So when the lucky person is drawn today there will be also 2 runner's up drawn, I will email the winner with postage details and make arrangements for payment, the radio will be posted as soon as I have a day from work which should be no later than next Saturday, if the winner changes his/her mind about the radio for any reason then the 2nd runner up will be notified, if the 2nd runner up changes his/her mind also then the 3rd runner up will be notified, nobody is under any obligation what so ever to take the radio, all three call signs will be put on my next post this evening.

One of the following 40 people will be the winner of the draw:

EI7IW, EI2HEB, EI3HGB, PA3BAS, PA1FOX, EI4IP, PD1BT, PC5E, PE1PQX, PE5ED, MI6CQS, EI2HJB, PA2EFR, PA0HJA, PE2AAB, ON4PC, PE5HV, PA0FMY, ON7WP, PE1IOC, G8JGO, EI4IN, M0XTA, G7AGI, EI3FW, EI2HX, EI2HYB, EI3HBB, EI6EQB, ON2TD, EI3HCB, EI6FR, EI9KF, PA7EY, EI4GGB, MI0RRE, EI5GN, PA3MET, EI4FNB, GW4JQP.

Winner will be announced later today.

Cleartone CM-7200 Giveaway.

I am going to give away one of these fine radios to someone, the radio will be:
completely and absolutely free, you only pay for postage.

The one I am giving away is the one I reviewed in my Blog. See POST below for all details on the radio..
Please note the radio is a second hand (used) ex-pmr radio.

Now, here are the rules!!!! 

Firstly you must have PayPal or be able to pay postage by PayPal and also I want you to email me with the reason as to why you should get the radio, not an essay, just a few words.
Secondly, you must have a Ham Radio license, I am unable to give the radio to a person who has no Ham Radio License, I do not think it would be fair to that with actual Ham Radio Operators applying to win the radio.

This is not a joke or anything like that, just send me the details and that will be that…

Email me at: ei4dib@gmail.com

Winner will be notified on 30^th June about postage costs etc and arrangements will be made to get the radio shipped to you. If by chance that the winner changes his/her mind or thinks the postage is prohibitive then the next runner up will be notified.
The radio will not be given away until after the 30th June, I will not end the competition early for any reason, all people who send in a request their names will be put into a hat and my 6 year old grandson will pick out the winner.
One more thing... When the winner receives the radio I would like for them to send me a photo of you with the radio so that I can put up on my Blog...

GOOD LUCK......

International Space Station Contact to be relayed live via EI4FMG.

ARISS contact planned with ESA Space Camp in Dublin, Ireland.

Sunday 22 July 2012, at approximately 17.25 UTC, which is 18.25 Dublin time and 19.25 CEST, an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact is planned for ESA Space Camp in Dublin, Ireland.

This will be relayed live through EI4FMG at the times above.

The European Space Agency has locations in several European countries. The annual summer space camp is an occasion when the children of staff employed at ESA get a chance to mix with each other in an environment which allows them to be immersed in space activities and cultural events.

This year the 160 ESA campers will land in a traditional "Harry Potter” style boarding school near Dublin, in a country full of mystical stories and a breath taking landscape, on 14 July 2012. St Columba’s College offers the amenities where children will learn about Space Ship Earth in more detail, with emphasis on hands on activities and having fun whilst learning.

As part of their 2 week stay at the camp, the children aged 8-17 years, will take part in sporting events, field trips where they will explore more about what earth is made of, look more closely at how we explore other planets and design their own launchers and space suits. They will be visited by an ESA astronaut who will join in the activities and explain about astronaut training and human spaceflight.

The space talk will be a telebridge contact operated by W6SRJ, located in Santa Rosa, California.

ARISS is an international educational outreach program partnering the participating space agencies, NASA, Russian Space Agency, ESA, CNES, JAXA, and CSA, with the AMSAT and IARU organizations from participating countries.

ARISS offers an opportunity for students to experience the excitement of Amateur Radio by talking directly with crewmembers on board the International Space Station. Teachers, parents and communities see, first hand, how Amateur Radio and crewmembers on ISS can energize youngsters' interest in science, technology and learning.