I'm now an old electrical engineer. I haven't done circuit design and board layout in 15 years. This video was nostalgic. I've missed the design process, and your description reminded me exactly what it was like, and the joy of using a combination of experience, intelligence and testing to continuously improve a design. I always loved designing every aspect of a product like this so I could make optimal tradeoffs between software and hardware, such as your microcontroller generation of PWM signals for the switch mode power supply.

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

Thanks yes it's a lot of fun (alongside stesss and frustration). Maybe you'd enjoy my other video about adding VGA output. That was really cool. PWM easy by comparison :-) But the PWM buck converter is a lot more useful to 99.99% of the kit owners :-)

I saw this video land earlier started watching but came back to see it all in detail again just now. As a "true amateur" with little electronics training, the content was nearly 100% new instruction for me. Thanks for taking the time and including the detail and clarity. No one matches QRP-Labs in final product or in helping understand details of why decisions are made. Thanks Hans

The engineering involved in board layout is remarkable. It’s certainly more that just making making sure the components fit and the traces are routed.

I enjoyed your explanation of the PIN diode bias power problem and solution. I'm proud that I understood all of it - though it's probably more down to your ability to clearly explain it ;)

I had a great fun building it...but messed it up, soldering L4. ( 10 m version ). My project has stranded.

Thanks for a great video. Again top notch support from QRP-LABS. Keep up the good work 👏 Looking forward to new kits in the future.

Wow. As a veteran of several Weber kits, the ATS series of QRP trail rigs--I really wish we had had this level of clarity back in the 90's with that collaboration. Anyway, this is remarkable content and I laud your efforts. DE W0XO

Really interesting video Hans. Clever changes. Keep up the hard work - it’s much appreciated.

Awesome! Blowing Q7 was a bummer so it’s great to see this particular improvement!

Brilliant, just brilliant Hans ! Love your kits. What a large value measured against the fun had!

Fascinating update Hans, I've done just enough board layout and kit design/stuffing to appreciate what a fantastic job you do with your products, and it's wonderful how open you are with it all too, despite the threat of knock-offs potentially ruining your business. I've just received my first QDX in the post this morning, and I'm really looking forward to putting it together. it's a very interesting little radio, and probably one of the most innovative radios ever offered in kit-form. it's also really damn cute! Thanks! -Leon

👍 Thanks for posting Hans. Very interesting. An efficient solution in terms of reducing wasted power and using available resources is excellent Engineering.

Great changes. I have the REV 1 device and have just ordered the new REV 4. Time to upgrade a great product that will be used with the new WSJTX-Z software. 73, Hank K9LZJ

Excellent! I was itching to make some mods to my Rev3 bds, even if they don't need it. I hate using unmodified gear. It seems so generic.

I just bought mine. Waiting for rev 5 with two or three more bands, swr meter, extra physical console port and vga port

Great video! I very much appreciate your ongoing tweaks to the QDX and its firmware. Did the arrival of the new QDX boards coincide with new UB4 boards??

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

No... U4B PCBs are made and are now waiting in line for PCB assembly then have to be shipped to me, I have to test etc. So it's looking like 2nd half October sometime.

@d.jensen5153

Жыл бұрын

@@QRPLabs I hope your family and friends are okay!

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

@@d.jensen5153 Thanks, everything OK... we are about 750km from the tragedy so unaffected here.

Hans love the v3 I am using at least once a week at a POTA site! Is there a way to make the QDX 40m, 20m, 15m, 10m to match my EFHW 40-10m resonant antenna. Or, better question is there any plans to make instructions for ‘pick your own’ bands you wish to operate. This is a newbie amateur question, but I’m certain someone has asked it and you’ve probably answered it 1000 time over. I also would love to see an amp kit specifically for the QDX as it sets, say 5w to 20w. Keep doing great things! Thanks, 73!

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

Hi James, QDX (install latest firmware) can already be configured for any combination of bands in the firmware; the question then is how to support that in the hardware; You have a BPF coil with 4 taps for receive, and on transmit three LPFs so if you want 4 bands, 2 have to share. It takes some design. I am not sure I can ever come up with a cookbook for any permutation of desired bands. So something will probably always be up to the experimenter/community in that case. But I do intend to release a "high bands" version soon.

@jameski5oeb668

Жыл бұрын

@@QRPLabs Hans, I say again and again, you are a genius! I will add that in speaking to my local club friends about your product, the QDX, I offered to make these for any club member who buys one. My radio is awesome and want my friends to have the same joy I’m getting from the kit. Thank you!

@jameski5oeb668

Жыл бұрын

@@Randrew Bring that to the HamFest 5 November. I will be with Joe Eisenberg and his build session on the NE corner of the Stride Center. He has a 10$ FM radio kit he is demoing and doing some SMA connection techniques! 20 people! I will be his assistant and body guard, hehe! Oh by the way, I did invite Hans to our Hamfest(no joke), but he had to decline.

@Randrew

Жыл бұрын

@@jameski5oeb668 I will try to make it there! BTW, your talk about an amp kit inspired me to complete my task of testing the QDX with QRP-Labs 50W Power Amplifier kit that's intended for use with the QCX. I dialed it so the QDX is putting about 2.8W into the PA with the PA putting out 25W. The PA is intended to run intermittently for CW operation, so running FT8 or (heaven forbid) WSPR at 50W is like a real hot, long key-down for the PA. Anyway, I figure any more than 25W out on FT8 is cheating :) I haven't gone on the air with this 25W configuration yet - just into my Rohde & Schwarz CMU300.

@jameski5oeb668

Жыл бұрын

@@Randrew my ICOM box doesn’t really want to do more than 25 watts FT8. Now I really want to see what you have!!!

My goal is to run the QDX in a stable and long endurance mode. Does the new SMPS upgrade make it safer to run a full 12v VCC when before it was most cautious to run it at 9v? BTW, I ordered one last week.

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

I don't think I ever said it was more or less cautious to run it at 12V or 9V. There are advantages and disadvantages both ways. The SMPS reduces TX heat production by providing a more efficient method of forward-biasing the PIN diodes. But yes, it has a greater benefit for 12V operation than for 9V operation. In both cases it is an improvement; but the improvement is bigger, for 12V operation.

@Aimsport-video

Жыл бұрын

Does this mean that in pre-assembled units there still is a 12v and 9v build? Or has the new rev expanded the acceptable range of input? Is the 12v limit inclusive of 4S LifePO4 “12v” batteries that are actually a higher voltage?

So what (if any) changes should I make to a V3 (NOT V3a) board, and can use the V5 firmware on the V3 board?

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

All firmware versions are backwardly compatible. Using the latest firmware is recommended. You should not make any changes to a Rev3 board. Just use it happily!

When will you finally release the QSX? You have been talking about it for 5 years. I built the 10 watt amp for it while waiting for the main kit. We are waiting for a real SSB rig.

I haven’t gotten to watch the whole video so I apologize if you cover it, but if I ordered early Sept will I get 3a or 4.

@rhgw71

Жыл бұрын

Same question here. I placed my order two days ago.

@Randrew

Жыл бұрын

Same boat, but I'm assuming 3a or Hans would have put out a video earlier. I'll have no problem with it - perfectly happy with my first Rev 3a and will be thoroughly pleased to have 2 more when they arrive. Hans did say the Rev4 will be shipping in a few days, so maybe that IS what we're getting. I DO like the 0.1" pin spacing for the BS170s in Rev4. I was wishing I could install pin sockets myself. I did some experimenting to push output power (by raising supply volts). My final iteration was to use the original 4 x BS170 configuration but replacing the bolt, nut and washer with the following: 1 - a long-finned heatsink measuring roughly 22 x 22 x 36 mm 2 - the BS170 transistors potted with a thick paste of high-temp silicone + fine aluminum filings 3 - the original small bolt with screwed into a hole drilled and self-tapped in the above heatsink 4 - a 24 x 24 mm hole cut in the QDX enclosure top half to allow the heatsink to stick out With that configuration I've run at 12 VDC (~7.8W out by my measure) making FT8 contacts in a long session as I normally would with no problems. The heatsink gets notably warm, but not scarily so. I have briefly transmitted at 14 VDC supply just for measurement purposes, but I do not trust the heat transfer of either my potting compound nor the transistors themselves enough to operate that way.

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

Almost everyone who has an outstanding pending order now, will get a new Rev 4 PCB. If I had any Rev 3a left, I would have shipped them out already rather than kept people waiting. But I say "almost everyone" because who knows, someone might find a Rev 3 around here ship it. If you want to be 100% sure please raise a helpdesk ticket and ask for it to be noted, for your order ID.

@neilcherry6452

Жыл бұрын

@@QRPLabs Got one of the 3a boards but that's okay. I'm going to have fund building it and this video will help with the mods (not going to try the smps solution but loved the explanation). I'm doing this to learn and use the EET degree I earned all those years ago. I love this, it's what I've always wanted to do. 🙂

@Randrew

Жыл бұрын

@@neilcherry6452 I think you'll love it like I do mine! Just read each section of the assembly instructions fully before performing that step. I'm the impatient type and found myself backtracking or worse, *wishing* I'd read through first!

Will these be the ones shipping in the current preorder? Sorry if you answer this in the video, I'm impatient 😁

@Randrew

Жыл бұрын

You're too impatient to even read the comments ;) Yes, Rev4 is what's shipping for Sept+ orders.

At least it's an ethos dude 😎

@QRPLabs

Жыл бұрын

It really ties the room together

Hans G0UPL please help! My QCX Mini does not receive any signals and no one knows how to make it work. I opened a ticket more than 2 weeks ago but never received any replies. Please help. 😢