Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Best Selling in Ham Radio Transceivers
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Save on Ham Radio Transceivers
I bought 2 of these. Both had all of the listed parts. Expect about 4 weeks to arrive in the USA. I am happy with the whole experience involving this kit. Not included with this kit, but necessary: A key. A power supply (9 volt battery and clip connector or an AC adapter that is at least 9 volts DC to 12 volts DC maximum). An antenna and lead-in (I used very cheap 75 ohm tv coax). Headphones. Solder and soldering iron. The pc board is very nice but some might find the solder pads a bit small. Unless you have a plan for enclosing this, buy the kit that includes the clear plastic case...very much worth the extra cost. From past experience, I checked the components and, as before, many of the ceramic disc capacitors were way off of the stated values. This is potentially problematic in coupling stages and the harmonic filter network as they can throw off intended impedences and how much signal is passed on to the following stage. Some of the resistors are marked in the odd Chinese 5 stripe fashion. NONE OF THE COMPONENTS ARE SORTED OR LABELED. An ohmmeter and capacitor tester would be quite handy. The 7023 kHz crystal is fairly useless in the USA because it is only proper for those who are licensed to use 7000 to 7025 kHz. There are HC49/US crystals that are fairly cheap, here on eBay. I use machined female header pins in the crystal and S8050 PC board holes to facilitate changing crystals and the S8050 if it overheats. This is v4 which no longer has BNC antenna and power supply jacks. Instead, identical pin/pigtail combos are used. This facilitates flexibility in enclosing the board into an enclosure and deciding what type of connector you desire. Be sure not to mix the pigtails up. Power output is 800mW (claimed) so bear in mind that the S8050 can barely tolerate that in real-world usage. Mine measured 410 mW. A bad SWR might cause sudden failure. A SS8050 would be better, perhaps. FOR THIS REASON ALONE, DO NOT APPLY MORE THAN 12 VOLTS. I managed a 300+ mile, half-hour contact on the first day of usage with RG59 coax and a simple dipole. The receive audio is borderline torture. The volume cannot be adjusted. Loud pops in headphones when keying are unpleasant. Substantial AM broadcast band (MW) interference persists during gray line propagation and into the night. There is a no-cost fix for this (info is on the internet) that involves moving the diode that connects to the IC. There is much help and information about the Pixie 2 on the internet. Aside from that, the receive is good for a $4 transceiver. Transmitted key tone is very good. For those who aren't familiar with QRPp (under 1 watt RF output) operation, don't expect to make hundreds of contacts with these. Performance varies seasonally and throughout the day and night. During the winter, I can hear my signal on webSDR receivers that are hundreds of miles away, every day. This is a $4 kit, so expect $4 worth of performance and you will probably be happy that you tried this ingenious circuit. KE8AOLRead full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Doesn't work. The amp has some weird feedback issue that just overloads audio output. Crystal swap is nice but also meticulous. Shipped in non antistatic which could be root of issue. Was honestly really excited for it but now am just bummed.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Fun kit. Very limited range but at night it is better. On a skip you may be surprised at the range. A good but simple dipole antenna works best.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
This is a bettered version of the original Pixie. Power out : 750mW under 13.8V. Sensitivity astonishingly good for the 40m band ! Pleasant if not a champion
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Very poor design especially the receiver part of the transceiver. The power output is far less than indicated and is about 500mW at best. If you are going to start a radio hobby find a better kit to build with good assembly instructions.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New