Accessories reviews
Review of N6FN’s Nifty Mini-Manuals
Like many aids I suspected that I would not really use them… Turns out I was wrong, the cards are handy to have in the car, as well as the books. I keep the Kenwood card on me when I take out the HT, and the book for the 2720 in the glove box of the car. The fonts look as if they were selected to be readable, and the use of Bold for headings, and non bold for the actual information is well thought out. Major Categories are in Bold Red, while sub categories are in Bold black, while the actual data on how to do something is in normal black text, all on a white background. all in all it looks very much like an index in a book, and is easy to follow. For instance, in the Kenwood card, the section om Memory programming is titled “Memory Programming”, in red, under that are 6 steps, (in blue), each step further broken down into actions, (in black), covering exactly how to program the memories. It sounds complicated, but if you look at it, your eyes just go where they need to… Very well thought out, and very easy to use. Continue reading
Review of the Challenger DX Antenna by GAP
This review of the Challenger DX Antenna by GAP Antenna will not be a highly technical review, it will be performance based. First off what is the GAP Challenger antenna? It is a vertical, which can be ground mounted. It has a limited number of radials, because it is not the traditional vertical, it is a vertical dipole, this gives it several advantages over a standard 1/4 wave vertical. Chiefly the reduced number of radials… Continue reading
Review of the iMate by BetterRF
This review of the iMate by BetterRF was prompted by my entering the last SS contest, and getting really, really tired of saying my call sign over and over… This device allows for remote triggering of the four memories in my Icom 756 Pro 3. Triggering is accomplished by simply pressing a button on the iMate, which is labeled for which memory you wish to trigger. The iMate does not allow for programming, only triggering the playback of a previously recorded message. It also does not store the messages, you only get four messages, four for CW and four for voice. The iMate inserts between your Microphone, and your radio, after any level conversion hardware for digital. This allows for an easy install, without re-wiring your entire station audio chain. The device is a small plastic box, with controls mounted on the top of it. This allows for easy placement on your working surface. Once installed, you just press a button leaving the Icom radio controls set as you normally would. I leave my Band scope up at all times, and after the last SS, (first phone contest for me, I normally do RTTY and CW), I realized that I could not live without the band scope, (the 756 PRO 3 will not show the band scope if you are in memory playback mode without teh iMate), hence the purchase of the iMate. Continue reading
Review of the MFJ-856 Directional Noise Finder W/ 3 El. Beam
Overall it was useful to me in locating a few sources of RFI, you point it in the general direction of a noise source, and wave it around until you get a peak in the meter. Once you have that, you walk towards the source, waving the antenna around, following the peaks.
The device is reasonably well constructed, MFJ quality control seems to be good, as the unit I got has no defects in it. It came boxed nicely, and was simple to construct. There were a few items to note… Continue reading
Review of Ameritron’s AWM-30 Wattmeter
This review of Ameritron’s AWM-30 Wattmeter is short, as this device is designed to do one thing, measure output power, and it does it well. I use the AWM-30 in my shack between the AL-82, (Ameritron amplifier), and the AT-1000 tuner made by LDG. That way I see what the Amplifier sees with regards to SWR. I do not bother to power up the AWM-30 Meter often, as my Ham Shack is in a lighted environment and I don’t need the back lights.
The meter is constructed of heavy gauge metal, painted Ameritron Black, to match the rest of the product line. It has a removable SWR sensor, so you do not have to run your RG-8 coax to the meter, you can just add it where it is most convenient. This allows the control head of the unit to be placed in the shack and not a pair of heavy coax cables around the back wiring of your shack. Continue reading
Review of West Mountain Radio’s Rigblaster Pro
West Mount Radio has a device called the Rigblaster Pro. This device is designed to connect your radio, to your computer in a safe and effective way. This device does exactly what it says! The Rigblaster Pro comes with a truly amazing set of cables, and is quite intimidating upon unpacking. Fortunately the manual is written clearly, and concisely. If you try and second guess the manual you will find that things don’t go well… If you just turn off your brain, and do exactly what the manual tells you to do it works. I know because I tried to get ahead of things and not read the manual. Continue reading
