The goal was to enable an already feature-rich radio with SDR receive capabilities near that of a Flex Radio or K3 with LP Pan. There has been much debate within the TS-480 Yahoo forum surrounding which IF to tap, 10Mhz vs 70Mhz. (Ask me why I no longer participate in said forums…)

The 1st IF (70Mhz) provides much more spectrum to feed into PowerSDR although required specialized hardware to even tune the 70Mhz IF. If you already have made a capital expense into a Perseus or like radio this wouldn’t be an issue. The 2nd IF is downstream from the roofing filter which limits width to roughly 20khz. I know what some of you are thinking.. “This is useless, you don’t know what you’re doing. Go die in a car fire!” I beg to differ. (Ask me about forums again…)

If you need 96k or 192k of SDR bandwidth, buy a Flex 3000 or 5000 like I ultimately did. They rock! But if you want to have some fun with what you already have, read on.

Here’s what you’ll need:

WARNING!!! – I am not responsible if you wreck your radio. You assume full responsibility for your actions. This WILL void your warrantee. You have been warned.
Now drink because I’m writing this based on my memory of doing this project almost a year ago.

When you open up your radio (the side with the lit logo), you will be faced with the logic board. This board is where the filter board and voice keyer plugs in. Disconnect the grey coax jumpers (these are the IF lines), remove the grey cover where the voice keyer goes. Also remove the filter board.

Remove the remaining screws holding the board in place and remove the board from the chassis. Turn it upside down. We will be working on the underside. What was once on the right will now be on the left (for the spatially challenged).

Read this part carefully.
Cut the teflon coax in half, solder one end of the cut RG-174 to the input of the buffer, the other to the solder side of the board where the 2nd IF coax socket is located (circled in RED). Center conductor to the small solder point (top), shield to the larger (bottom).

We now need to provide power to the Z10000 buffer. I accomplished this by piggy backing power from the PWR1 (HX model) side of the radio. The reason for doing this is to provide power to the buffer even if it is in RX Only mode (HX model) with one leg of power connected.

Carefully turn over the radio and remove the panels to expose the RF deck. Locate the radio’s power leads (large red and black wires). Solder some power wire (light gauge) to the power input of the buffer and route it through the side of the chassis to reach the other (top) side of the radio. Solder the buffer power leads to the power leads of the radio. See photos.

Power up the rig. If it works, you did it right! Congrats on not destroying your radio!

Turn off the TS480 and connect the Softrock antenna input to the mini-sma connector you’ve just installed in the 480. Power the beast back on.

Tune your Softrock receiver to 10.550 which I believe is the 2nd IF frequency of the TS-480 (going on memory of a year ago). The audio output should be wide frequency audio with very high pitched sound and should change as you roll the VFO knob.

Download and Install PowerSDR-IF from WU2X. Follow through the steps he’s indicated in the “Getting Started” section. With some success, you should see similar results as below.

SDR Bandwidth – Going back to the 1st vs 2nd IF debate, I’ve had excellent results with the approximate 20khz bandwidth provided by the 2nd IF. With applications like CW Skimmer, I was able to “hear” CW QSO’s 10khz above and below my selected center frequency. Eg, Tuning to 7.010Mhz would provide decoding of 7.000 to 7.020. The waterfall in Skimmer was much clearer with more successful decoding by utilizing IF tuning over typical 3khz audio output. With this setup I was able to dramatically increase my CW QSO rate in a contest only weeks after I completed this project.

Buffer Gain – I stated that I “winged it” when I selected 4db of gain on the buffer when I ordered it. This was based on documentation interfacing the Kenwood TS-2000 to the LPPan. I felt they may be similar.

Panadapter Anomalies – A noticeable null in signal is present in SSB and CW modes on the panadapter at the center frequency. This is not audibly present. A workaround I employed was tuning my IF receive frequency down by 5khz (10.500) on the Softrock and adding offset to PowerSDR to line everything back up. This may be caused by the Softrock. Need further testing to prove out.

Mirrored Waveforms – You may see mirrored waveforms surrounding the center frequency. I believe this to be caused by delay in phase between the I and Q outputs of the Softrock. This should be resolved by utilizing a higher quality IF receiver such as an LP Pan or like hardware.

With that out of the way, I was on a search for some aluminum and recently encountered a Hy-Gain Explorer 14 (EXP-14) that was in the attic of a local ham. I knew nothing of this Hy-Gain model, but the specs seemed to be right in line of what I was looking to accomplish. The price was right and it was in excellent condition. In speaking with the seller, the beam used to belong to a local club who unfortunately lost access to put up towers for field day and this beam was one of the casualties.

The Hy-Gain EXP-14 has a unique feed point (as they even state in the manual) with parasitic driven elements on 10m. It weighs approximately 45lbs, 14ft boom with a 17ft turning radius, perfect for my rooftop mount.

I had to beam built, tuned and installed in what seemed to be record time, only taking 3 1/2 hours. Part of that time included running out to Home Depot for a 12″ mast (above the rotor) and prepping the coax with ring terminals.

Once the beam was up, I could hear a drastic difference compared to my temporary bob-tail curtain on 20m. The first stations I heard were from India and Oman. Keep in mind, all of this was going on during the CQ Worldwide CW contest that I unfortunately could not commit a serious amount of time in due to the holiday, but ended up being a good time to test the new antenna and tweak the station.

The antenna is only sitting about 25ft off the ground, 6ft from rooftop. I was concerned with takeoff angle with the antenna being so close to the ground, but the fact that I was able to work into the Middle East, India and Asiatic Russia all while barefoot, says something.

In the photo, it may look like the antenna is mounted to the chimney, which it is not. The mount is a modified non-penetrating roof mount for DirecTV-type satellite dishes with 8 low-profile concrete blocks acting as ballast. The lower mast is guyed to the plate that holds the blocks. The mast is then guyed to the 4 corners of the house and attached just below the rotor.

My search ended while browsing some eBay auctions and was instantly introduced to the Chinese OEM-type switching supplies used in various devices and appliances. The prices were very reasonable, 30A supplies for approximately $50. How good could they really be?

I remembered hearing something early on about switching power supplies causing interference in the shack, or generating hash so loud, it would cover-up the reception of weak DX stations. I immediately started my search on eHam to see if anyone else had attempted using similar supplies and expected to hear the usual horrific war stories. I was surprised to hear something positive on the subject with many hams having gone the same direction.

Here’s a link to one of such discussion threads:
http://www.eham.net/ehamforum/smf/index.php?topic=71829.15

With that in mind I found an eBay auction for 2 units and purchased both.

Upon wiring up one of the supplies with Anderson power-poles leads for output DC and the stripped back end of an extra computer power cord for the input AC, I was ready to unleash my abuse. Below you will see my findings tested with a power meter used for troubleshooting electric RC airplanes. The meter displays voltage, current draw, watts and amp hours and has been a very sought after tool in my shack. I highly recommend picking one up.

The first photo shows current draw on one supply leg of a 200w Kenwood TS-480HX at 100% duty-cycle, full output. Current draw measured was 19.5A.
The second photo captures nominal output voltage of 13.24V at minimal load. 1.2A was measured with the radio on and idle. This was the maximum voltage I could get out of this supply.
The third photo indicates the voltage drop with a 19.5A load. Output only dropped .25V.

OK so it looks like the supply will do 20A fairly easy. But will it output it’s rated 29A? I was able to draw the radio’s maximum current draw from just one supply. This is probably a bad idea but it does seem to do it.

In addition to testing the supply on the bench with an oscilloscope (which output a clean DC trace), I also tested it with the 480HX at full output on CW. Not a hint of RF hash was detected.

I’m only a couple days on the new supplies and I’m very happy with my decision to go this route. The RF hash issues with these types of supplies seems to be a thing of the past. Long gone as the technology has gotten better. However I did notice a voltage output difference between the two units I bought. One of them outputs 14.8V max and the other 13.6V. This doesn’t seem to be all that critical for this application, but could indicate a QC issue during manufacturing. I don’t know who made mine, since I can’t read Chinese, but similar supplies can be found on-line under the name Mega-Watt or other makes with the similar red lettering in the upper left-hand corner of the printed label.

One of the other things to keep in mind is that the terminals are exposed, a concern especially for the AC input terminals. I plan to mount mine in a 2U rack enclosure with Power-pole panel mounts, an AC switch and volt meter. That should address the electrocution any nosy cats who may exploring the shack.

Until next time, 73!
de N3QO
dit dit

Don, W6GPS pulled me back from the ledge and we were able to resurrect my Geosat5. It appears there was some serious corruption to the data on the SD card which caused it to go “missing”.

Don had recommended deleting most of the data on the card except some very key items and re-flashing the software on the card. Unfortunately I was unable to perform the delete from my Windows XP system and had to go as far as mounting the SD card on my Linux system, removing a few files and then performing a remount of the card in Read/write mode. This process had to be repeated a number of times until I was down to the bare essential files on the SD card. For some reason as the computer would read the card, it would force the mount into Read-Only mode. Weird.

It took me a bit to really think about the sudden failure, and I overlook the most obvious reason, the AvMap’s environment.

Think about it, the SD card sits in an enclosed piece of plastic (the GPS) on your dashboard, attached to the windshield in direct sunlight with no airflow. We all know how hot a car gets in the summertime. Come to think of it, I’m surprised the technology even works at all. So for now I’m functional, but who knows for how long. Most likely I will need a new card as I expect this one to deteriorate over time.

Now going back and thinking about my review on the product; Do I think I was a bit harsh? Yes and No. The review was based on my real-world experience with the product and the frustration the quickly followed. Would I recommend the AvMap to someone else? Most likely yes, but with some caveats. The GeoSat really does have great potential, and I’m hoping a number of the bugs that frustrate me can be resolved in future software and hardware revisions.

So for now I’m functional, but who knows for how long. Most likely I will need a new card as I expect this one to deteriorate over time…

de N3QO

While at Dayton this year, two fellow ham friends of mine purchased the all new Avmap Geosat 6. Since one of them already had a Geosat 5, I decided I would purchase his year old unit he purchased at Dayton the year before. I knew he took very good care of his and was very confident in my purchase, until I used it….

My review of the Geosat 5 in one word. FAIL!
My review based on 1st and 2nd hand knowledge of the Geosat 6, nice try but also FAIL!

Why my harsh criticism?

What’s the purpose of a GPS navigation unit???? (reader of article inserts form of intelligence here).
A function both models of these unit’s are horrible at, let alone their various quirks that make them nowhere near ready for prime time.

The best way to approach my review will be in numeric, order of importance starting with the PROS (in order to be fair, it does some cool stuff).

PROS

CONS – Aka, bring on the hate.

If I would’ve read an honest review on this unit before I bought it, I would’ve gone a different route. The ham I had purchased it from actually asked me a couple weeks later if I would be willing to sell the Geosat5 back to him because his Geosat6 sucks so bad.

I know Don, W6GPS has been pushing the platform for the last couple years, and I met the guy out at Dayton this year. He seems nice and very knowledgeable about the product, but I have to think he has brought these issues up to AvMap. How could you not!? How do not notice something is wrong here? Even at the factory? If I was developing a product that turned out this poorly I’d be afraid to ask money for it, let alone put my company name on it.

What else do I hate about this thing?

The other day I powered the unit up and this came up on the screen. It was working perfectly only 15 minutes previously. I tried a software upgrade, a master reset, nothing I comes on, beeps and displays, “Device not Present, please verify”. Seriously? How the hell does this happen? It’s on my dash, attached to the windshield, I know it’s there, but apparently it thinks it’s elsewhere. So my rating on their customer service will be reviewed once I find out why it’s doing this and how much it’s going to cost me to fix it.

Stay tuned as the drama unfolds.

de N3QO

For our 2nd excursion to Dayton, we left on Wednesday morning to make the early Thursday morning start to Contest University (CTU) coordinated by K3LR. If you have never been, I highly recommend attending CTU. Much information is to be had as well as networking with fellow contesters but here and abroad. The material was fairly technical, although it applied directly to my operating methods and will hopefully help me work towards optimizing my time contesting. For the price ($50~$90) it was well worth the experience. More information including webinars are on their site http://www.contestuniversity.com/

Since Dave (NB3R) scored us Flea Market vendor spaces, we had to make the 7:30AM cutoff to get in the area to park. All three days consisted of 5AM wake-up calls, which I seemed to have no problem doing at Dayton.

More updates and photos to come later tonight.

73
–jeff
N3QO

During the 4 hour trip, I worked a number of DX stations on 17 and 20m including Russia and Belgium. Having HF in the car definitely makes the time go quick, but logging becomes the difficult and hazardous part.

Once on-site, our tour guide took us around league headquarters where we visited the Logbook of the world (LoTW) and certificate department as well as Product Test Lab, Marketing & Advertising, and VEC departments. While there Laurie (KB3SIK) was able to find out the status to her recent upgrade, which happened to arrive in the mail that day. In the outgoing QSL card bureau, we found cards destined for NE3F, the local contest station in Reading, PA, which I found rather funny.

We also had a tour of the ARRL employee station, W1HQ which had a decent amount of gear including a SteppIR beam and 6 meter King Conversion amplifier. I’ll be adding W1HQ to my rare DX list.

It was nice to be put faces and names to the ARRL and see what they do from their perspective. They do alot with what they have and make use of every piece of equipment they have; Something quite apparent in the Lab and Art departments.
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After lunch at a local pizza place, we put in some operating time at W1AW, their visitor operator station. W1AW is also the station that provides the on-air ARRL bulletins as well as qualifying Morse code runs. I ended up running their Yaesu FTDX-9000D on 15m for a bit. The station has alot of different gear and operates a number of modes.
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The remainder of the photos and video can be found here.

And then there was RL3A, a Radio club centered in Moscow just down the band from the Italian station. Slava, UA4HTT was operating a kilowatt into a 7x7x7 15m stack at his club station, which is probably his signal was so huge and how I got such a great report out of Russia. More information about their station is on their website, http://www.rl3a.ru.

Thanks Ore, Tony and Slava for a fun drive into work this morning.

The following day, Laurie and I made some adjustments to our 2 meter stack by adding a tilt-over base which allowed me to change the polarity on the cubical quad. Now I can get into N2KEJ’s repeater in South Jersey.[simage=463,576,n,center,][simage=462,576,n,center,]