Since setting up the new HAM station here in the UK the one band I’ve not yet got back onto is 160m, one of my most favourite bands in the HF spectrum and one that I was addicted to when I live in France (F5VKM).
Having such a small garden here in the UK there is no way I can get any type of guyed vertical for 160m erected and so I needed to come up with some sort of compromise antenna for the band.
Only being interested in the FT4/8 and CW sections of the 160m band I calculated that I could get an inverted-L antenna up that would be reasonably close to resonant. It would require some additional inductance to get the electrical length required and some impedance matching to provide a 50 Ohm impedance to the transceiver.
Measuring the garden I found I could get a 28m horizontal section in place and a 10m vertical section using one of my 10m spiderpoles. This would give me a total of 38m of wire that would get me fairly close to the quarter wave length.
For impedance matching I decided to make a Pi-Network ATU. I’ve made these in the past and found them to be excellent at matching a very wide range of impedances to 50 Ohm.
M0AWS Homebrew Pi-Network ATU
Since I still had the components of the Pi-Network ATU that I built when I lived in France I decided to reuse them as it saved a lot of work. The inductor was made from some copper tubing I had left over after doing all the plumbing in the house in France and so it got repurposed and formed into a very large inductor. The 2 x capacitors I also built many years ago and fortunately I’d kept locked away as they are very expensive to purchase today and a lot of work to make.
Getting the Inverted-L antenna up was easy enough and I soon had it connected to the Pi-Network ATU. I ran a few radials out around the garden to give it something to tune against and wound a 1:1 choke balun at the end of the coax run to stop any common mode currents that may have appeared on the coax braid.
Connecting my JNCRadio VNA I found that the Inverted-L was naturally resonant at 2.53Mhz, not too far off the 1.84Mhz that I needed. Adding a little extra inductance and capacitance via the ATU I soon had the antenna resonant where I wanted it at the bottom of the 160m band.
M0AWS 160m Inverted L Antenna SWR Curve
With the SWR being <1.5:1 across the CW and FT8 section of the band I was ready to get on 160m for the first time in a long.
Since it’s still summer in the UK I wasn’t expecting to find the band in very good shape but, was pleasantly surprised. Switching the radio on before full sunset I was hearing stations all around Europe with ease. In no time at all I was working stations and getting good reports using just 22w of FT8. FT8 is such a good mode for testing new antennas.
As the sky got darker the distance achieved got greater and over time I was able to work into Russia with the longest distance recorded being 2445 Miles, R9LE in Tyumen Asiatic Russia.
In no time at all I’d worked 32 stations taking my total 160m QSOs from 16 to 48. I can’t wait for the long, dark winter nights to see how well this antenna really performs.
M0AWS Map showing stations worked on 160m using Inverted L Antenna
The map above shows the locations of the stations worked on the first evening using the 160m Inverted-L antenna. As the year moves on and we slowly progress into winter it will be fun to start chasing the DX again on the 160m band..
UPDATE 6th October 2023. Been using the antenna for some time now with over 100 contacts on 160m. Best 160m DX so far is RV0AR in Sosnovoborsk Asiatic Russia, 3453 Miles using just 22w. Pretty impressive for such a low antenna on Top Band.
Going through some old photos today I found a few great memories from the past of my old valve radio stations that I’d restored over the years.
These old radios gave me some wonderful moments over the years and a fair few hours of restoration to get them into operational condition. They sounded great on air and I often got comments from other amateur stations about how warm the audio sounded. Some did also mention the drift of the transmitter with temperature changes but, you just have to accept that when using vintage radio equipment.
M0AWS FT101E Transceiver, FL101 Transmitter, FR101B Receiver and TS520S Transceiver.
Above is my old FT101 line up. It consisted of the great FT101E transceiver, a complete standalone solution that was extremely popular in its day. Below it is the FT101 line up made up of the FT101 transmitter, FR101B receiver and matching speaker.
Top right is the lovely Trio TS520S with the matching digital frequency display which is incredibly rare and very sought after today.
These radios gave me a lot of pleasure for many years and I wish I still had them today.
My second Yaesu valve line up took a lot more restoration than the 101 series and was quite challenging at times but, with a lot patience and time spent sourcing parts I got them back to as close to new operational condition as was possible.
M0AWS FLDX400 Transmitter, FRDX400 Receiver, FL2000B Amplifier and FTDX501 Transceiver.
The Yaesu 400 series line up consisted of the FLDX400 transmitter, FRDX400 receiver and was finished off with the FL2000B amplifier. These 3 pieces of radio equipment looked beautiful in the flesh and were wonderful to operate. Taking a good 15mins to warm up and become stable you couldn’t rush getting on air. This line up was my favourite by far even though they weren’t as good as the 101 line up.
Above the 400 series is the later FTDX501 transceiver with matching speaker. This was a great radio in its own right but, not as much fun to operate as the 400 line up. To the right of the FTDX501 is the matching Yaesu Microphone for the 400/500 series. This mic is incredibly rare and I had to visit many radio swap rallies to find it, worth the effort though.
Top right you can see my old SWL receiver, the great Drake SW4A. I never had a Drake line up as they are quite rare in the UK but, it certainly would had made a great addition to the station.
M0AWS FLDX400, FRDX400 & FL2000B Station being operated by M1ACB and G6ALB
Finally this is a photo of two friends of mine, Steve Thomas M1ACB (Current General Manager of the RSGB) on the right and Andy, G6ALB with whom I spent many hours sending and receiving morse with to get our Class A licences. We had a fun day together operating the old radios and taking it in turns to handle the pile ups!
Many years ago I had an MFJ-259B antenna analyser that I used for all my HF antenna projects. It was a simple device with a couple of knobs, an LCD display and a meter but, it provided a great insight into the resonance of an antenna.
MFJ-259B Antenna Analyser
Today things have progressed somewhat and we now live in a world of Vector Network Analysers that not only display SWR but, can display a whole host of other information too.
Being an avid antenna builder I’ve wanted to buy an antenna analyser for some time but, now that I’m into the world of QO-100 satellite operations using frequencies at the dizzy heights of 2.4GHz I needed something more modern.
If you search online there are a multitude of Vector Network Analysers (VNAs) available from around the £50.00 mark right up to £1500 or more. Many of the VNAs you see on the likes of Amazon and Ebay come out of China and reading the reviews they aren’t particularly reliable or accurate.
After much research I settled on the JNCRadio VNA 3G, it gets really good reviews and is very sensibly priced. Putting a call into Gary at Martin Lynch and Sons (MLANDS) we had a long chat about various VNAs, the pros and cons of each model and the pricing structure. It was tempting to spend much more on a far more capable device however, my sensible head kicked in and decided many of the additional features on the more expensive models would never get used and so I went back to my original choice.
Gary and I also had a long chat about building a QO-100 ground station, using NodeRed to control it and how to align the dish antenna. The guys at MLANDS will soon have a satellite ground station on air and I look forward to talking to them on the QO-100 transponder.
M0AWS – JNCRadio VNA 3G PackagingM0AWS – JNCRadio VNA 3G in box with connectors and cables
Initially I wanted to check the SWR of my QO-100 2.4GHz IceCone Helix antenna on my satellite ground station to ensure it was resonant at the right frequency. Hooking the VNA up to the antenna feed was simple enough using one of the cables provided with the unit and I set about configuring the start and stop stimulus frequencies (2.4GHz to 2.450GHz) for the sweep to plot the curve.
The resulting SWR curve showed that the antenna was indeed resonant at 2.4GHz with an SWR of 1.16:1. The only issue I had was that in the bright sunshine it was hard to see the display and impossible to get a photo. Setting the screen on the brightest setting didn’t improve things much either so this is something to keep in mind if you plan on using the device outside in sunny climates.
(My understanding is that the Rig Expert AA-3000 Zoom is much easier to see outside on a sunny day however, it will cost you almost £1200 for the privilege.)
A couple of days later I decided to check the SWR of my 20m band EFHW vertical antenna. I’ve known for some time that this antenna has a point of resonance below 14MHz but, the SWR was still low enough at the bottom of the 20m band to make it useable.
Hooking up the VNA I could see immediately that the point of resonance was at 13.650Mhz, well low of the 20m band and so I set about shortening the wire until the point of resonance moved up into the band.
JNCRadio VNA3G showing 20m Band EFHW Resonance
With a little folding back of wire I soon had the point of resonance nicely into the 20m band with a 1.35:1 SWR at 14.208Mhz. This provides a very useable SWR across the whole band but, I decided I’d prefer the point of resonance to be slightly lower as I tend to use the antenna mainly on the CW & FT4/8 part of the band with my Icom IC-705 QRP rig.
Popping out into the garden once more I lengthened the wire easily enough by reducing the fold back and brought the point of resonance down to 14.095Mhz.
JNCRadio VNA3G showing 20m Band EFHW Resonance 14Mhz to 14.35Mhz Sweep
The VNA automatically updated the display realtime to show the new point of resonance on the 4.3in colour screen. I also altered the granularity of the SWR reading on the Y axis to show a more detailed view of the curve and reduced the frequency range on the X axis so that it showed a 14Mhz to 14.35Mhz sweep. With an SWR of 1.34:1 at 14.095Mhz and a 50 Ohm impedance, the antenna is perfectly resonant where I want it.
It’s interesting to note that the antenna is actually useable between 13.5Mhz and 14.5Mhz with a reasonable SWR across the entire frequency spread. Setting 3 markers on the SWR curve I could see at a glance the SWR reading at 14Mhz (Marker 2) , 14.350Mhz (Marker 3) and the minimum SWR reading at 14.095Mhz (Marker 1).
The male to male SMA connector that Neil, G7UFO kindly posted to me arrived late this afternoon and I wasted no time getting it connected between the 2.4Ghz up-converter and the 12w amplifier.
Male to Male SMA connector for QO-100 Ground Station
Initially when I powered up the 12v to 28v converter board the output voltage was only showing 22v and so I had to adjust the onboard variable resistor to get the voltage closer to the recommended 28v for the amplifier. I decided to run the amplifier at 27v so that it wasn’t being pushed to it’s full and so readjusted the voltage converter back down to 27v. This seems to work very well with the amplifier not getting very warm at all during use.
M0AWS QO-100 2.4Ghz Uplink Hardware.
Getting on air I was really impressed at how strong my signal was on the 10Ghz downlink. With my own signal peaking 5/9+10dB I was very happy with the performance of the ground station.
I made a few contacts very quickly with the first being OH5LK, Jussi from Helsinki Finland. Jussi was actually the first station I worked on CW too when I was running just 200mW, it was great to have him for both of my first contacts on QO-100.
I then went on to work a few stations from Wales, Germany, Poland and Belgium but, the one that I was totally shocked to get on my first real day of QO-100 operations was ZD7GWM, Garry (HuggyBear) on St. Helena Island, South Atlantic Ocean. This is an Island that I have never had a contact with before on any band and so I was extremely happy to get a new first especially on my first QO-100 day.
Garry and I chatted for some 25 minutes covering many topics, it was great to have an armchair copy over such a distance, something that would be impossible on the HF bands. What a great way to start my QO-100 satellite career!
One of the things I really like about the operators on QO-100 is that they have time to stop and chat, this is so refreshing and a rarity today. I’m really going to enjoy this satellite.
I’ve been waiting for over a week so far for a male to male SMA connector to arrive from Amazon so that I can connect the 2.4Ghz up-converter to the 2.4Ghz amplifier. Since it still hasn’t arrived I decided to connect the up-converter directly to the IceCone Helix antenna to see if I could get a signal into the QO-100 satellite.
To my surprise I could easily hear my CW signal on QO-100 even though the total output from the up-converter is only 200mW.
I didn’t expect to be able to hear my signal since it’s a tiny amount of power that has to travel some 22500 miles to the satellite but, I could hear it and was amazed that it was peaking S8 on my SDR receiver.
2.4Ghz Up-Converter connected directly to the antenna bypassing the 2.4Ghz Amplifier
Being excited I put out a CQ call that was soon answered by OH5LK, Jussi in Finland. Jussi gave me a 579 report which I was extremely pleased with. He was of course much stronger at a 599+ at my end. We had a quick QSO and exchanged details without any problems at all. Its really nice to get a QRPp contact without any QSB or QRM.
M0AWS QO-100 1.1m off-set Dish and IceCone Helix antenna ground station
Neil, G7UFO who I chat with regularly in the Matrix Amateur Radio Satellites room has posted a connector out to me so I’m hoping it will arrive on Monday and then I’ll be able to connect the amplifier and hopefully get a few SSB contacts.
UPDATE: I’ve since had 2 SSB contacts via QO-100 using just the 200mW O/P from the up-converter. Both times I got a 3/3 report not brilliant but, perfectly acceptable for the amount of power I’m putting out.
Over the years I’ve built many multi band vertical HF antennas including multi-element quarter wave verticals like the DXCommander configuration, multiple end fed vertical dipoles all on the same pole and a host of other configurations. As with all multi band antennas there’s always a compromise, on some bands it performs well and on others it doesn’t, it’s the nature of the beast.
For some time now I’ve been using a multi band vertical antenna that has over the last year performed incredibly well on all bands from 80m to 10m. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not perfect however, it has out performed every other multi band HF vertical I’ve tried to date even though it’s by far the simplest antenna design and according to the antenna modelling software I have it shouldn’t be as good as it is.
So what is this magical multi band HF vertical I speak of? Well it’s nothing more than a piece of wire 13.4m long taped up a 12.4m vertical Spiderpole with 1m of wire tucked down into the top of the Spiderpole.
Obviously this is not going to be resonant on any band without some sort of impedance matching circuit at the bottom of the wire. Originally this antenna was my end fed half wave vertical antenna for the 30m band that was fed via a 49:1 Unun. This antenna worked incredibly well on the 30m band allowing me to work DX globally with ease but, it was a single band antenna and I wanted a multi band solution.
I decided to remove the 49:1 Unun and replace it with a home brew LC circuit made up of a coil made from 5mm copper tubing and a large air spaced variable capacitor I had laying around from an old ATU project I built many moons ago.
This simple LC arrangement at the bottom of the wire worked incredibly well and tuned the wire from 80m to 10m with a perfect SWR on each band using nothing more than a ground rod and 4 x 12m radials. Performance was surprisingly good on all bands 80-10m giving me the ability to get some DX stations that I’ve never been able to hit before. The only drawback to this solution was the fact that I had to go out and manually tune the antenna every time I wanted to change band. Not so much of a problem in the summer but, in the winter in the pouring rain and howling wind it’s no fun at all. (I resolve this issue further down in the article!)
Multi Band Vertical HF Antenna using a 12.4m Heavy duty Spiderpole at the end of the garden
Performance on the HF bands is incredibly impressive with this antenna. Modelling it on EzNEC software it shouldn’t be that great on bands above 20m however, it seems to defy the modelling software as it performs amazingly well on 17m, 15m and 12m, better than any other vertical antenna I’ve made for those bands. How this can be I do not know, normally my antenna builds match closely what the modelling software shows but, in this instance it doesn’t and I’ve really no idea why.
Multi Band Vertical HF Antenna showing loop at top and wire tucked down into pole
Always wanting to put things into perspective here’s some details of the contacts I’ve made on each band showing how well this antenna has performed over the last year or so.
Firstly the 80m band, I’ve not used this band much over the winter months as I’ve got into the higher bands however, the map below shows all the stations worked on 80m using this antenna.
Stations worked on the 80m band from the M0AWS QTH
There are 51 contacts in total, not a big number by any means however, there are some good distances made with contacts into North America, South America and Indonesia. I’m sure I could had done better if I’d spent more time on this band, something to aim for next winter perhaps.
Next is the 60m band, a band I really like and have enjoyed over the winter months. The antenna performs incredibly well on this band even though we have very limited access to 60m here in the UK. With 288 contacts in the log with a good spread of distances I’m really pleased with how this antenna performs on this band.
Stations worked on the 60m band from the M0AWS QTH
Moving up in frequency the 40m band is the next one on the list, this is a great band and one that I’ve loved for many years. I’ve spent countless hours on CW on this band in the past and worked some great DX. The performance of this antenna on the 40m band is excellent, if I can hear the DX normally I can work them regardless of where in the world they are located. With 226 contacts in the log spread globally over the winter here in the northern hemisphere I have no complaints about performance of this antenna on the 40m band.
Stations worked on the 40m band from the M0AWS QTH
Moving up onto the 30m band I have to admit this is probably my favourite band of all. I’ve spent so many hours on CW working some of the best fists I have ever heard on the air I’ve grown to love this band not just for the DX available but, for the quality of operator found on this narrow piece of the RF spectrum. Needless to say since the antenna is a half wave on the 30m band performance is stunning, out performing any other 30m band antenna I have ever made. It’s even better than the 30m Delta Loop antenna that I built and used when I lived in France.
With 467 contacts in the log on the 30m band you can tell this is my goto band and one that offers access to some of the best DX in the world.
Stations worked on the 30m band from the M0AWS QTH
The 20m band is a band that I never really used until I moved back to the UK from France. Living in France I had acres of land and so I was very much into the low bands, 160m to 30m and never ventured above this part of the spectrum. Now living back in the U.K. with a typical U.K. sized garden the low bands are much more difficult to get onto and so my interests have moved up in frequency somewhat.
Getting onto the 20m band I was amazed at how easy it is to work DX stations compared to the low bands, it’s simply a case of if you can hear them you can work them, there’s no real challenge to be honest. Because of this the band is always super busy with people shouting over the top of each other to get the DX. Not to be put off, I’ve made a surprising 412 contacts on 20m covering the globe. This antenna works incredibly well on this band and you really don’t need anything else to work DX on 20m.
Stations worked on the 20m band from the M0AWS QTH
Next is the 17m band, one of the WARC bands that I’ve never really ventured onto until now. I have to admit I really like this band, when it’s open it’s normally open to the world all at the same time. With an almost undetectable background noise level you can hear the faintest of signal on this band. This is one of the bands that according to the EzNEC modelling software this antenna shouldn’t be any good on but, I have to say that it’s performance is beyond anything I ever imagined. I’ve worked my longest distance yet on this band and with this antenna, ZL4AS at 11776 miles, a distance I haven’t achieved yet on any other band. The 17m band really is a great band, I’d actually say it’s better than the 20m band even though there is considerably less spectrum available. With 220 contacts in the log it’s been a fun band to use.
Stations worked on the 17m band from the M0AWS QTH
Continuing the theme of the WARC bands, the 15m band is another one that I’ve only discovered in the last 12 months. It’s only now that I realise what I’ve missed out on due to my addiction to the low bands for so many years.
I’ve only made 76 contacts on the 15m band, not a lot at all really. This is mainly due to the fact that I get easily side tracked by the 17m and 30m bands most of the time and the radio VFO never gets as far as 21Mhz. Performance of the antenna is good on 15m, I would say not as good as on the 17m band but, it’s no slouch by any means.
As you can see on the map below, I may of only made 76 contacts on the 15m band but, they are spread right across the world proving that this antenna’s DX-ability on 21Mhz really is rather good.
Stations worked on the 15m band from the M0AWS QTH
Finally we arrive at the top of the WARC bands, the little 12m band. Once again this band is very much like the 17m band, super low background noise level, when it’s open you can work huge distances with very little power but, often there is quite deep QSB that can make getting that elusive DX a bit more challenging.
With only 66 contacts in the log once again I’ve not spent a huge amount of time on this band but, it hasn’t disappointed. With global coverage from this antenna on 12m once again I am astounded at how well it works. With software modelling saying it should be terrible on 24.9Mhz with nothing but super high angle radiation, it really shouldn’t be a good antenna for DXing on this upper WARC band but, it is and I have no idea as to why!
Stations worked on the 12m band from the M0AWS QTH
Finally we arrive at the 10m band, another band that I have never got into even though many refer to it as the magic band. This is the band that I’ve made the fewest contacts on, not because the antenna doesn’t work at the dizzy heights of 28Mhz but, because I hardly ever get the VFO dial past the lower bands due to the level of DX available. I really should make more effort to get the best out of the 10m band, especially now the summer is coming.
With a measly 19 contacts in the log I should be ashamed of myself for not doing more on this band as it is very often open and busy with traffic. Since I’ve not really used the antenna that much on the 10m band it’s hard to say how well it performs however, I have had contacts into North and South America and so it shows potential.
Stations worked on the 10m band from the M0AWS QTH
As you can see, the performance of this antenna is self evident from the log entries, it works superbly even though the modelling software says it shouldn’t above 14Mhz. This is now my main antenna here in the U.K. and I’ve only made one change to the initial setup and that is to add a CG3000 remote auto ATU to replace the home-brew LC tuning circuit.
CG3000 Remote Auto ATU housed in a plastic box
With the CG3000 auto ATU in place I no longer have to venture out into the cold, wet garden in the winter months to change band, it’s just a case of sending a continuous 10w signal into it and leaving it to tune in less than 2 seconds. The CG3000 is a Pi Network ATU so it handles both high and low impedance loads with ease. A Pi Network ATU is one of the best you can have, I’ve made my own in the past and had excellent results.
So in summary, 13.4m of wire vertically up a 12.4m pole with 4 x 12m radials, a ground rod and a CG3000 Auto ATU will give any HAM station the ability to work DX on all bands from 80m to 10m without ever having to leave the shack to tune it.
Since I got the CG3000 off of Ebay for a bargain £170 and the 12m heavy duty Spiderpole for under £100 the total cost of the antenna is considerably less than many commercial offerings available and yet performs as well if not better.
If you want to get this antenna onto the 160m band then you just need to add a small coil into the mix at the bottom of the wire to increase the inductance in circuit. The CG3000 will then happily tune the entire 160m band. It’s best to remove this coil though for all the other bands otherwise performance is reduced.
Please be aware that the performance of this antenna will not be anywhere near as good if you use the ATU in your radio at the end of a coax run. This is because the coax becomes part of the antenna and the radiation pattern is all but destroyed. You will be extremely disappointed if you use the antenna in this fashion. The ATU must be at the end of the wire and connected directly to ground and the radials to get the performance that I have experienced.
Finally, if you have an Icom IC-705 and AH-705 remote auto ATU you can use the AH-705 ATU in place of the CG3000, you will get the same results as I have with the CG3000.
I have used my AH-705/IC-705 combo quite a few times with this antenna with excellent results although, the big antenna can sometimes result in the receiver of the IC-705 getting overloaded especially on the lower bands. This is easily resolved by reducing the RF Gain on the radio.
Since getting my Icom IC-705 I’ve had problems with computer noise causing interference when connected via USB. I solved the problem mostly by winding both the USB and coax cables around 240-31 ferrite toroids. This resolved the problem nicely on all HF bands except 10m. With further investigation I realised that the 240-31 ferrite toroid doesn’t provide much choking resistance at 28mhz and so a 240-43 would be better for the higher bands. This would mean I’d need a longer USB cable and coax to the AH-705 so that there was enough cable to wind around two ferrite toroids to cover all the HF bands.
Whilst this will almost certainly provide a complete solution to the problem there is of course another way around this issue. The IC-705 is a rare beast in that it has wifi capability built in. The wifi on the IC-705 is capable of operating in one of two different modes, Access Point (AP) and Station, a host on an existing wifi network.
Since I connected my IC-705 to my in-shack wifi I am using the radio in station mode for connectivity via wifi. By connecting it this way my MacBook Pro will also have access to the internet at the same time as connecting to the radio giving me the best of both worlds.
You can of course put the radio into AP mode and connect your computer directly to it via wifi however, you won’t have any internet access from the computer as it will be connected directly to the radio. This is how it will be used when in the field for portable operations unless you have a portable 3/4/5g wifi router.
Getting the radio connected to my shack wifi was easy, just go into the IC-705 menus, switch the WLAN on, pick the SSID of my wifi router and enter the password, the radio connects immediately. You will also need to switch on the network control option and also set up a user and password that is used when connecting to the radio from your computer. Refer to the IC-705 manual on how to do this if you haven’t done it already.
To be able to use the radio wirelessly from any Apple Mac computer you will need 2 applications, WFview and Blackhole. Both of these applications are Opensource Software, I’m a huge fan of Opensource Software and have over the years been involved in a number of opensource projects.
I’m fully aware that there is an application called SDR Control available on the Apple App Store for around £90.00 that can be used instead to connect to the IC-705 wirelessly however, I prefer to use Opensource software where possible.
Before proceeding with the instructions below make sure you have an up to date backup of your system. This installation and configuration shouldn’t cause any issues at all, it worked fine on my MacBook Pro but, it’s always best to backup before you install more complex software like this.
First you need to download WFView from the Download page, make sure to download the MacOS Universal package which was v1.1 at the time writing this article. Do **not** install WFView yet, the sequence of installation is important!
WFView Download page showing the MacOS (Universal) Package v1.1
Next download the Blackhole Virtual Audio Cable application from the download page. You will need to enter an email address and your name to be able to download the application. It’s not clear how much email/spam will be sent to you but, you will need to get at least one email to obtain the download link with the authorisation code in it.
Once you’ve entered the information and submitted it you will get an email with a URL enclosed, click the URL and goto the download page. On the page there are 3 options available for download, select the “Blackhole 2 Ch” option only. At the time of writing this v0.2.10 was the current version available.
Blackhole Download page showing the 3 options available
Once downloaded you need to install the Blackhole application first as it will create the necessary virtual audio cable for WFView to use to provide sound to WSJT-X and other digital mode applications. Installation is simple and follows the normal MacOS installation process. Double click the installation package and follow the prompts accordingly.
Once installed reboot your Apple computer to make sure it starts up OK with the new kernel module installed. When your system comes back up, login and open the “Audio Midi Setup” application. (The Midi app is in Applications >> Utilities)
Once the application opens you should see that you have a new audio device called “Blackhole 2ch”. On both the Input and Output tabs set the format to 48,000Hz. This setting will get the best results when using applications like WSJT-X for FT4/8 digital modes.
Apple Audio Midi Setup showing 48,000Hz selected
Leave everything else as default setting in the Audio Midi App, nothing else needs changing. Leave the Master volume at the default max as levels are controlled from the other apps.
Once you’ve set the 48,000Hz on the two tabs quit the audio midi app as it’s no longer required.
Next you need to copy the WFView app that you downloaded into the Applications folder on your Mac. Once in the applications folder you can create a shortcut to it on the dock by dragging and dropping the app icon onto your dock bar.
Next goto your IC-705 and go into the WLAN settings and make a note of the IP Address assigned to the radio from your wifi router. You will need this IP Address later.
At this point you are half way to having wireless control of your IC-705.
Start the WFView application and goto the settings tab.
The following settings need to be made:
1: Set Data Mod Input to LAN
2: Click the Connect Over LAN radio button.
3:Enter the IP Address from your IC-705 into the Radio IP Address field.
4: Make sure Radio Control Port is set to 50001
5: Enter the Username you configured on your IC-705 into the Username field
6: Enter the Password you configured on your IC-705 into the Password Field
7: Set Sample Rate to 48000
8:Set Audio Output and Input fields to BlackHole 2ch
9: Select the first option available in the Virtual Serial Port field. This should be as shown below:
Leave all other settings as default and click Save Settings and then Exit Program.
You must exit the application in order to restart it with all the new settings.
WFView Settings tab showing all the necessary settings whilst connected to the radio
Start the WFView application again and goto the Settings tab. Click on the Connect Button.
Once it has connected to the radio you will see the RX Latency details etc on the bottom right of the window. Click on the View tab and you should now have an active waterfall.
At this point you have full control of your IC-705 wirelessly. Have a play with the application and get familiar with it.
Fully operational WFView connected to my IC-705 receiving FT8 on 10m
Once I had WFView operational I set about getting WSJT-X connected to the radio wirelessly. This is actually really simple to do and just needs a couple of changes to the settings to make it work.
Start up the WSJT-X application and goto the Radio Settings tab. On this page you need to set the radio to IC-705, serial port to that shown below (Also shown in point 9 in the WFView section above) and Baud Rate to 38400.
Next select the WSJT-X Audio Settings tab and set the soundcard Input/Output fields to Blackhole 2ch. Set both Input and Output to Mono as shown below.
WSJT-X Audio settings
Click OK and return to the WSJT-X main screen. You should now be fully operational for WSJT-X digital modes.
WSJT-X transmitting through WFView to the IC-705
Once I’d made a few contacts with WSJT-X in FT8 mode I went on to try and get FLDigi working with WFView as well.
Unfortunately at the moment I cannot get CAT control working in either FLDigi or FLRig, neither will accept the /dev/ttys000 as the serial device however, I was able to get the audio working into FLDigi and even decoded some morse with it. I need to do little more work to fathom out why the CAT control doesn’t work in these two applications. I’m sure there is a way to resolve this but, I just need to put in a little more time to find the solution.
FLDigi decoding Morse code via WFView
UPDATE: There was some concern in one of the IC-705 Facebook groups that Blackhole wouldn’t work after a MacOS update. I’ve just upgraded my Macbook Pro to MacOS 11.6.6 and BlackHole is still fully functional afterwards. The MacOS update has no effect on the BlackHole service whatsoever. So you can rest easy!
Operating a QRP station can often make you feel like you’re not getting out when no one responds to your multiple CQ calls. This was the case the other day when I was trying out my new to me Begali Traveler Light morse key.
I was on the 20m band calling and calling to no avail, the band was open as I could hear other stations just fine so I knew there was traffic on the band. The SWR on my EFHW Vertical was perfect as it always is and so I knew there wasn’t a problem with the coax/antenna combination.
Wanting to know if my signal was indeed going anywhere I decided to make use of the SeeMe facility on the DXCluster that I use. The SeeMe facility effectively allows you to enable spots for your own callsign from the Reverse Beacon Network (RBN).
The SeeMe facility is easily switched on by issuing the set/seeme command on the DXCluster of your choice. Once enabled you will start to see spots for your own callsign from the RBN every time you call CQ using CW.
RBN Spots for M0AWS calling CQ on the 20m Band
As you can see above, I was clearly getting out very well with some great signal reports from a good spread of stations even though I was only using 5w of CW.
You can of course use the RBN website to view the spots if you prefer, it’s not quite as realtime as the DXCluster but, it provides the same information eventually.
M0AWS spots on the RBN Website
The view on the RBN Website is almost the same as that from the DXCluster however, it also shows your CW speed in WPM. I was also surprised to get a spot from the USA at 8dB, that’s a good signal (Just over S2) considering I was only using 5w of power.
I came to the conclusion that no one needed an exotic M0 call for their log and so I went on to my normal search and pounce approach and worked a bunch of stations spread around Europe and Asiatic Russia. My little 5w signal did well and I was able to get through the pileups by using my slide off to the side technique so that my little signal stood out on it’s own. This technique works well when trying to get a QRP signal into a pileup and is used often.
Needless to say, my Begali Traveler Light twin paddle morse key once setup how I like it was superb to use, light to the touch, quick and responsive. Begali make such beautiful morse keys!
Since purchasing my Begali Pearl twin paddle morse key I’ve been looking to get another Begali for my IC-705 portable setup. Going portable means I need a key that isn’t super shiny like the Pearl, something a little more hardy would be ideal.
I was looking to buy the Begali Simplex Basic directly from Begali as it would be ideal for portable operations however, my lovely wife spotted another Begali key for sale on Ebay and pinged the details over to me to take a look at.
Begali Traveler Light
To my surprise the key for sale on Ebay was a Begali Traveler Light, the perfect key for portable use and at a much lower price than new.
I contacted the seller immediately asking a couple of questions about the key and got an immediate response, always a good sign!
It turned out that the key was being sold by Wallace, MM0AMV up in Scotland. Looking at his QRZ page it’s clear he’s an avid CW fan as he has two Begali keys. This was backed up by the conversation we had via Ebay messaging.
In no time at all I had paid the £170.00 including postage and was the owner of my second Begali morse key.
My Begali Traveler Light Morse Key #904
The key was in as new condition as described by Wallace, clearly it had been looked after well.
It didn’t take long for me to get it hooked up to my IC-705 and on air. After a little adjustment of the gap and return tension I had the key setup comfortably for my weird left-handed use.
The key isn’t anywhere as near as heavy as my Begali Pearl key but, it’s plenty heavy enough to stop it moving around when in use. This is of course is helped by the two fold out legs that stabilise the key firmly during use but, protect the paddles solidly when in transit. It’s a great design and a very unique approach to making a fairly light but, solid twin paddle for portable usage.
In the garden with my Begali Traveler Light and IC-705 connected to my EFHW Vertical for 20m
Once folded the key takes very little space in the IC-705 portable case and completes the setup nicely. IC-705 radio, AH-705 remote auto ATU, Begali Traveler Light, tripod and a few interconnect cables, the perfect portable station.
IC-705 Portable station case with plenty of space for future additions
Since purchasing the IC-705 I’ve found that I’ve hardly used my Yaesu FTDX10, which is strange considering the receiver, filtering, DSP and APF combination is considerably better on the FTDX10 than it is on the IC-705. The IC-705 has a much nicer, easier to use user interface and it’s just a lot of fun to use even though it’s only a QRP rig. I can see me having many happy hours on air with this QRP station.
Since purchasing my new Begali Pearl morse key I’ve been wanting to install the 300hz CW filter into my Yaesu FTDX10. The radio comes standard from the factory with the 500z CW filter preinstalled however, being able to narrow the bandwidth down even further will help to reduce the ringing effect on noisy bands that often plaques CW Ops when trying to catch those very weak DX signals.
Since I had built up some free credit at ML&S by buying all my new radio equipment I decided to put it to good use and put it towards the cost of the optional 300hz filter for the radio.
In years past when I had a Yaesu FT1000MP I installed a full set of filters in it and it made quite a difference DXing on the 160/80/40m bands. Back then things like digital noise reduction (DNR) were in their infancy and so narrow filters were even more important than they are today.
Yaesu XF-130CN 300hz CW Filter for the FTDX10
The FTDX10 300hz filter looked very similar to the ones I fitted in the FT1000MP and it doesn’t look like they’ve changed at all over the years.
Yaesu XF-130CN 300hz CW Filter
Removing the cover from the FTDX10 it’s immediately apparent where the filter goes. A neat little cutout in the RF shield draws your eye immediately to the spot.
Cutout in the RF shield for the optional 300hz filter
Fitting the filter is easy enough however, you do have to take care to move the little black wire to one side otherwise it gets caught under the filter and stops it from seating properly onto its connections. There’s not a lot of slack on the wire either so care is needed to not pull it too taught.
Note the black wire on the right hand site of the connections for the 300hz filter
I was surprised to see how small the standard 500hz filter is in comparison to the optional 300hz filter.
Optional 300hz filter next to the factory fitted 500hz filter
With the filter safely in position and seated perfectly I had the cover and 9 screws back on in no time at all and then got the radio powered up to check if the menu system had the option of a 300hz filter in CW mode.
FTDX10 CW filter menu with 300hz option
Getting on air the filter makes quite a difference to the amount of background noise when listening to weak DX stations. Adding DNR and APF to the equation removes all background noise completely with the 300hz filter making it possible to hear the weakest of CW stations and complete silence in-between.
The bands aren’t in particularly good shape today however, I tuned around on the 20m band and found W7SW in Phoenix Arizona calling CQ. He wasn’t particularly strong but, it was a good opportunity to experience the difference between the filters without any DNR or APF enhancement.
Short video showing difference between 500hz and 300hz filters with W7SW calling CQ
Unfortunately W7SW disappeared before I could make another short video with the DNR and APF on to show the difference. I’ll revisit this again soon and get some video snippets up showing the difference the optional 300hz filter makes with DNR and APF.
More soon …
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