The Dummy Load with power meter for Ham Radio from QRPLabs. Review and 3D printed case.

Тәжірибелік нұсқаулар және стиль

If you are a Ham Radio operator dedicated for QRP (low power) work, you will certainly like (and need!) this accessory from the QRPLabs. It’s an easy to assemble 20W Dummy Load with a very useful feature - measuring the output power of the transceiver.
This video is a review of the 20W Dummy Load produced by QRPLabs company, with some measurements and tests conducted by me with some intriguing results to discover. I also explain in detail the assembly of the unit into the 3D-printed box.
The link to the printables.com for the STL files if you’d like to print your own box:
www.printables.com/model/3943...
These 2mm Banana plug sockets should fit nicely into the holes in the box, as the holes are 6mm in diameter as is the socket’s mounting part (affiliate link, I earn small commissions at no extra cost for you if you purchase through this link)
amzn.to/3lfCOky
Any digital, or even coil-based analogue multimeter can be used with this dummy load. I used this (affiliate link, I earn small commissions at no extra cost for you if you purchase through this link):
amzn.to/40XFqUT

Пікірлер: 18

  • @haxwithaxe
    @haxwithaxe9 күн бұрын

    Some noninductive resistors have a little inductance because they spiral the resistive material to make it fit in the form factor. Also the parallel PCBs will have a tiny bit of capacitance. At HF it won't matter but at higher frequencies they act like resonant filter components.

  • @MikeL78
    @MikeL787 ай бұрын

    The 0.7v (estimated) diode drop needs to be added to the voltage measurement. For the 5W measurement it would be 21.9 + 0.7 = 22.6 Vpeak. 22.6*22.6 / 100 = 5.1w

  • @AndreasSpiess
    @AndreasSpiess Жыл бұрын

    High frequency dummy loads use some sort of compact „SMD“ resistors to avoid stray capacitances and inductances because of very short leads.

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks Andreas! Yes, I used to have one 100W SMD- resistor based dummy load in a huge cylinder-shaped heatsink. It was working fine with flat SWR on VHF/UHF bands too. Unfortunately, after some ten times of use (with not even 100W applied) it kicked the bucket and it’s now quite a problem to find the SMD resistor replacement of the right size :)… 73! Linas LY2H

  • @robertehartley9691
    @robertehartley9691 Жыл бұрын

    Thank you for another great video! I built a couple a these dummy loads to go with the pair of 40m QCX-Minis I have. They are really good for testing the radios, and were highly effective at attenuating the signal while testing the CW decoder - I just walk across the room and the signal gets really faint. Thanks for the enclosure link - I am going to print a couple of them tonight.

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks! That’s just one great idea of your’s about decoders! 73! @Linas_ LY2H

  • @NickCraigWood
    @NickCraigWood Жыл бұрын

    Nice video thank you. I built one of these recently and it was very useful for peaking the output power of my QCX mini. Even with the clever trick I still found it quite hard getting all the resistors in place though 😅

  • @ardilla8651
    @ardilla8651 Жыл бұрын

    I have this dummy load and there is a issue with a lot of resistors through the hole, too much reactance for high MHz. But working for dummy. Not for measurement. Congrats for the 3d enclosure! 73 from Jon EA3BV

  • @kennethblackwell1137
    @kennethblackwell1137 Жыл бұрын

    NIce presentation. I have one too.

  • @Obeeewaan
    @Obeeewaan Жыл бұрын

    great video and well timed as I ordered two of these kits last week for my QCX mini and QDX and was wondering what kind of a case to use... and you have provided a perfect answer... thanks 😎

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks and good luck with your new gear! 73! Linas LY2H

  • @vladtepes481
    @vladtepes481 Жыл бұрын

    I have another dummy load of similar construction. It is also only good for HF. You could improve your measurement by purchasing a precision dummy load with a BNC connector and thus only exchange the dummy loads. I think the results would still show that you have a HF dummy load.

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Thanks, good point. I think, it depends on the type of the resistors, length of the leads, connectors etc. Actually, I’m pretty happy with it being HF only, that’s what I needed it for :) 73! Linas LY2H

  • @chrisherd991
    @chrisherd991 Жыл бұрын

    Hi if you add in the voltage drop of the diode into your calculations do you get a better result?

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Hi! Probably I do, but who knows :)… The drop may differ from diode to diode, the DVMs used may have a different input resistance which may change the current through the diode, which may change the voltage drop… So , as it is noted in the very well written user manual, it will not be a precise measurement, but still “ a useful indication of relative power”. 73! Linas LY2H

  • @johnwest7993
    @johnwest7993 Жыл бұрын

    A plastic box? It seems like ventilation holes would be in order.

  • @Linas_LY2H

    @Linas_LY2H

    Жыл бұрын

    Yes, I discuss this in the video :). No holes in the plastic box because there is no heat to worry about in the way I use it. 73! Linas LY2H

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