WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.740 This episode of HamTalk Live is brought to you 00:00:02.740 --> 00:00:05.960 by Tower Electronics. For cables, connectors, 00:00:06.040 --> 00:00:13.080 and more, call 920 -435 -2973 or visit pl -259 00:00:13.080 --> 00:00:17.120 .com and by the HamStation. Get your new radio 00:00:17.120 --> 00:00:23.160 or antenna by calling 800 -729 -4373 or go to 00:00:23.160 --> 00:00:41.750 hamstation .com. It's Ham Radio. Good evening! 00:00:55.840 --> 00:00:58.880 Everyone it's time for another edition of ham 00:00:58.880 --> 00:01:02.979 talk live. It's episode number 37 Flex radios 00:01:02.979 --> 00:01:07.280 with Gerald Youngwood k5 sdr recorded live on 00:01:07.280 --> 00:01:12.799 Thursday October 27th 2016 I'm your host, Neil 00:01:12.799 --> 00:01:16.819 Rapp, WB9VPG. Thanks for tuning into this episode 00:01:16.819 --> 00:01:21.000 of HamTalk Live. Tonight, we're joined by Gerald 00:01:21.000 --> 00:01:25.760 Youngblood, K5SDR, the founder of Flex Radios, 00:01:26.079 --> 00:01:28.900 and we'll take your calls live in just a few 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:31.159 minutes. Remember, if you miss the show, you 00:01:31.159 --> 00:01:34.319 can listen anytime at HamTalkLive .com or on 00:01:34.319 --> 00:01:37.819 Stitcher, iTunes, Google Play, TuneIn, SoundCloud, 00:01:38.040 --> 00:01:41.269 or YouTube. Get your questions ready to go. After 00:01:41.269 --> 00:01:44.209 the interview, you can call us on Skype at the 00:01:44.209 --> 00:01:47.590 username hamtalklive or by telephone, of course. 00:01:48.090 --> 00:01:53.409 That phone number is 812 -NET -HAM -1, 812 -638 00:01:53.409 --> 00:01:58.090 -4261. You can also send your questions via Twitter. 00:01:58.170 --> 00:02:00.909 You can start doing that now, actually. Our Twitter 00:02:00.909 --> 00:02:05.189 handle is at hamtalklive. Well, before we go 00:02:05.189 --> 00:02:08.939 to break, Got a little treat here for everybody 00:02:08.939 --> 00:02:12.539 running CQ worldwide this weekend. We have a 00:02:12.539 --> 00:02:16.800 guest that wanted just a minute to speak to you. 00:02:16.800 --> 00:02:20.620 So this is for all those people working CQ worldwide, 00:02:20.879 --> 00:02:23.620 hopefully including myself this weekend. Everyone 00:02:23.620 --> 00:02:26.979 in the audience on HamTalk Live today is going 00:02:26.979 --> 00:02:30.939 to get one of my favorite things. You get a 5 00:02:30.939 --> 00:02:36.969 -9. You get a 5 -9. Everyone gets a 5 -9. So 00:02:36.969 --> 00:02:41.110 hopefully everybody gets a five nine Well, I'll 00:02:41.110 --> 00:02:44.289 be back with k5 sdr right after this word from 00:02:44.289 --> 00:02:47.669 tower electronics right here on ham talk live 00:02:47.669 --> 00:02:50.250 This episode of ham talk live is brought to you 00:02:50.250 --> 00:02:53.590 in part by tower electronics Tower Electronics 00:02:53.590 --> 00:02:56.810 has been the Ham's Dime Store since 1978. When 00:02:56.810 --> 00:02:59.530 you need connectors, mobile and handheld antennas, 00:02:59.810 --> 00:03:02.990 cables or adapters, visit Scott or Jill at a 00:03:02.990 --> 00:03:06.310 HamFest near you. Or you can order online at 00:03:06.310 --> 00:03:14.069 PL -259 .com or call 920 -435 -2973. Stock up 00:03:14.069 --> 00:03:17.310 on those supplies like PL -259 and end connectors, 00:03:17.729 --> 00:03:20.909 SMA adapters, audio cables, soldering supplies, 00:03:21.129 --> 00:03:23.889 mobile antennas, and hamsticks. Their silver 00:03:23.889 --> 00:03:26.810 -plated end connectors are even used on the International 00:03:26.810 --> 00:03:30.129 Space Station. Tower Electronics carries MFJ, 00:03:30.370 --> 00:03:34.469 Comet, Daiwa, OPEC, Workman, and HamPro products. 00:03:34.810 --> 00:03:38.270 And don't miss their 0 % off sale going on now. 00:03:38.530 --> 00:03:42.870 Tower Electronics online at PL -259 .com. Proud 00:03:42.870 --> 00:03:47.300 to sponsor this episode of HamTalk Live. Coming 00:03:47.300 --> 00:03:49.960 to you live from the glass -enclosed Faraday 00:03:49.960 --> 00:03:53.659 box. Here's Neil Rapp with more HamTalk Live. 00:04:02.139 --> 00:04:04.840 Thanks once again to Scott and Jill at Tower 00:04:04.840 --> 00:04:07.139 Electronics for sponsoring the show to help bring 00:04:07.139 --> 00:04:11.389 you HamTalk Live tonight. They will be at the 00:04:11.389 --> 00:04:14.750 Lawrenceburg Georgia Ham Fest November 5th and 00:04:14.750 --> 00:04:18.750 6th and then Fort Wayne Indiana on November 12th 00:04:18.750 --> 00:04:24.069 and 13th or you can give them a call 920 -435 00:04:24.069 --> 00:04:28.569 -2973 is their phone number or visit their website 00:04:28.569 --> 00:04:33.470 at PL -259 .com and tell them you heard it right 00:04:33.470 --> 00:04:36.680 here on HamTalk Live. HamTalk Live is on the 00:04:36.680 --> 00:04:39.079 air every Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern Time 00:04:39.079 --> 00:04:42.060 right here on HamTalkLive .com and if you missed 00:04:42.060 --> 00:04:44.220 the show, you can listen to the archive on the 00:04:44.220 --> 00:04:47.779 website or download it from most popular podcasting 00:04:47.779 --> 00:04:52.279 websites. Gerald Youngblood founded Flex Radio 00:04:52.279 --> 00:04:57.139 Systems in April of 2003. As president and CEO, 00:04:57.240 --> 00:04:59.779 he is responsible for managing the day -to -day 00:04:59.779 --> 00:05:03.660 operations of the company. Prior to Flex Radio 00:05:03.660 --> 00:05:06.740 Systems, he founded and ran five technology companies 00:05:06.740 --> 00:05:09.579 spanning from hardware, software, and electronic 00:05:09.579 --> 00:05:13.500 manufacturing. He's been a ham since 1967 as 00:05:13.500 --> 00:05:20.639 WA5RXV, KE5OH, AC5OG, and now holds an extra 00:05:20.639 --> 00:05:27.199 class license as K5SDR. Gerald received a BSWE 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:31.160 degree from Mississippi State. And he's the recipient 00:05:31.160 --> 00:05:35.660 of the ARRL 2002 Doug DeMauw W1FB Technical Excellence 00:05:35.660 --> 00:05:40.579 Award and the Central States VHF Society 2004 00:05:40.579 --> 00:05:45.180 John T Chambers Award. So welcome tonight to 00:05:45.180 --> 00:05:48.399 HamTalk Live. We're glad you could join us. Thanks, 00:05:48.519 --> 00:05:52.389 Neil. I really appreciate the opportunity. So, 00:05:52.470 --> 00:05:55.069 tell us a little bit about starting up FlexRadio. 00:05:55.110 --> 00:05:58.949 What made you decide to take the leap to start 00:05:58.949 --> 00:06:03.730 that up and get into the software defined radio 00:06:03.730 --> 00:06:07.649 business? Well, I often call it an accidental 00:06:07.649 --> 00:06:12.269 company. I got into ham radio when I was a teenager 00:06:12.269 --> 00:06:15.329 and just was fascinated with the technology and 00:06:15.329 --> 00:06:19.980 that ended up directing my career into electrical 00:06:19.980 --> 00:06:24.540 engineering and then into starting companies 00:06:24.540 --> 00:06:29.199 as you've said and as many of us do when life 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:33.660 happens and we have kids and career the ham radio 00:06:33.660 --> 00:06:37.360 hobby that we loved as teenagers kind of fell 00:06:37.360 --> 00:06:42.480 to the wayside until my son was about 12 years 00:06:42.480 --> 00:06:47.439 old and I took him to A field day and he got 00:06:47.439 --> 00:06:49.819 interested in getting a license I think it was 00:06:49.819 --> 00:06:51.959 more to just do something with dad and it got 00:06:51.959 --> 00:06:55.519 me back in the hobby and I got really interested 00:06:55.519 --> 00:07:00.879 in PSK 31 That had just come along in the late 00:07:00.879 --> 00:07:04.439 1990s and it intrigued me that maybe I could 00:07:04.439 --> 00:07:07.500 build a radio with a PC and a sound card using 00:07:07.500 --> 00:07:11.759 technology That I learned about in college and 00:07:11.759 --> 00:07:14.889 so that I set off just as a hobby to see if I 00:07:14.889 --> 00:07:17.589 could build a software -defined radio. That was 00:07:17.589 --> 00:07:21.350 about 1999. And I worked about three or four 00:07:21.350 --> 00:07:25.290 years really hard having to dig in and study 00:07:25.290 --> 00:07:28.670 and relearn all the mathematics that I had not 00:07:28.670 --> 00:07:32.610 had in about 40 years. And ended up building 00:07:32.610 --> 00:07:36.949 what became the SDR 1000, wrote a series of articles 00:07:36.949 --> 00:07:40.110 for QEX called the Software -Defined Radio for 00:07:40.110 --> 00:07:46.300 the Masses. generated hundreds of emails from 00:07:46.300 --> 00:07:49.660 all over the world from people who said it had 00:07:49.660 --> 00:07:53.339 reinvigorated their interest in the technical 00:07:53.339 --> 00:07:56.879 part of the hobby. And so through those articles, 00:07:57.660 --> 00:08:03.899 I decided to around 2002, late 2002, decided 00:08:03.899 --> 00:08:09.720 that maybe I would make some of those early SDRs 00:08:09.720 --> 00:08:15.120 available. And I sent an email to a lot of the 00:08:15.120 --> 00:08:17.560 to the list of people who had contacted me and 00:08:17.560 --> 00:08:20.319 said I'll take orders for 10 Tell me why you 00:08:20.319 --> 00:08:22.800 should get one of these 10. Well, I got 50 orders 00:08:22.800 --> 00:08:27.939 the first day and I think I got 500 orders in 00:08:27.939 --> 00:08:31.620 the first nine months and That was how flex radio 00:08:31.620 --> 00:08:35.120 started it was not Something that I originally 00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:38.500 set out to build a product and start a company, 00:08:39.139 --> 00:08:43.139 but it's serendipitously turned into one because 00:08:43.139 --> 00:08:46.019 there were so many people interested. And so 00:08:46.019 --> 00:08:50.840 that was the birth of the SDR -1000. Well, it's 00:08:50.840 --> 00:08:55.100 just taken everything by storm. And so now that 00:08:55.100 --> 00:08:58.820 you've done this for a while and it's a solid 00:08:59.779 --> 00:09:04.039 solid option for hams. What do you think is going 00:09:04.039 --> 00:09:06.399 to happen in the future with software -defined 00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:08.919 radio? Do you think all the radio manufacturers 00:09:08.919 --> 00:09:12.639 are going to try to copy what you've done? And, 00:09:12.639 --> 00:09:15.179 you know, is that going to be the standard? Is 00:09:15.179 --> 00:09:19.220 Super Heterodyne gone? Well, I do believe that 00:09:19.220 --> 00:09:23.600 SDRs will ultimately completely dominate. They 00:09:23.600 --> 00:09:29.370 already do in the cell phone industry. Every 00:09:29.370 --> 00:09:34.590 one of your smartphones are really SDRs, and 00:09:34.590 --> 00:09:39.509 the base stations that run them are SDRs. So 00:09:39.509 --> 00:09:42.610 I would say yes, we're going to see everything 00:09:42.610 --> 00:09:46.409 moving to SDR, or you won't be able to play in 00:09:46.409 --> 00:09:48.970 the future. There are a number of reasons for 00:09:48.970 --> 00:09:53.909 that. First of all, because they're software 00:09:53.909 --> 00:09:58.750 defined, They have tremendous flexibility in 00:09:58.750 --> 00:10:01.370 how you can configure those systems and improve 00:10:01.370 --> 00:10:05.350 them over time. I will say that there's a difference. 00:10:05.950 --> 00:10:09.590 I've started to describe it as big S or small 00:10:09.590 --> 00:10:16.129 S DR. Many things might be a small S DR, a small 00:10:16.129 --> 00:10:20.929 S, in that they might use SDR technology to a 00:10:20.929 --> 00:10:23.690 limited extent, but they're not that flexible. 00:10:24.220 --> 00:10:29.340 in terms of being modified. I use it with a big 00:10:29.340 --> 00:10:34.440 S on the software in terms of being highly configurable. 00:10:34.620 --> 00:10:39.179 In fact, the Flex 6000 series, which we came 00:10:39.179 --> 00:10:43.919 out, started shipping in 2013, everything from 00:10:43.919 --> 00:10:47.139 the antenna port to the audio is software defined. 00:10:47.259 --> 00:10:50.919 In other words, we literally digitize the RF 00:10:50.919 --> 00:10:54.909 signal coming in at the antenna port. And we 00:10:54.909 --> 00:11:00.250 are able to do 100 % of the processing. Everything 00:11:00.250 --> 00:11:05.610 from mixers to amplification to filtering, et 00:11:05.610 --> 00:11:09.710 cetera, is all done in software, all the way 00:11:09.710 --> 00:11:14.509 to the final audio conversion. So it's truly 00:11:14.509 --> 00:11:17.149 software defined. That means that you can change 00:11:17.529 --> 00:11:20.970 modulation schemes, you can add modulation schemes, 00:11:21.230 --> 00:11:24.970 you can change filtering structures, you can 00:11:24.970 --> 00:11:30.149 add and even do things at the RF frequencies 00:11:30.149 --> 00:11:35.570 in programmable hardware called FPGAs. So yes, 00:11:35.809 --> 00:11:40.169 the answer is everything will move to SDR and 00:11:40.169 --> 00:11:43.629 we feel that we have a strong lead in that area. 00:11:44.029 --> 00:11:47.429 And not only in terms of the radio itself, but 00:11:47.429 --> 00:11:51.549 in terms of making the radio a server. Every 00:11:51.549 --> 00:11:55.909 one of our radios are servers that sit on your 00:11:55.909 --> 00:12:00.169 homeland so that frees you from having to be 00:12:00.169 --> 00:12:03.129 at the radio. In fact, I can use my radio on 00:12:03.129 --> 00:12:07.570 the deck in the backyard using my iPad or Maestro. 00:12:07.710 --> 00:12:11.769 You can even use it on an iPhone. So it has so 00:12:11.769 --> 00:12:16.740 many different capabilities that we have not 00:12:16.740 --> 00:12:21.279 even realized all of them yet. And one of the 00:12:21.279 --> 00:12:23.679 things that I found interesting and was all the 00:12:23.679 --> 00:12:27.659 rage at Contest University last year is that 00:12:27.659 --> 00:12:32.379 there is one thing that had to be hardware for 00:12:32.379 --> 00:12:37.279 a lot of people and that's the big knob. So you 00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:40.039 introduced the maestro to take care of the need 00:12:40.039 --> 00:12:44.139 for that big knob. That's right. In fact, we 00:12:44.139 --> 00:12:47.220 did it in a different way from what it's what 00:12:47.220 --> 00:12:50.600 anyone has done before First of all, we went 00:12:50.600 --> 00:12:58.000 out and interviewed about 15 Top contesters and 00:12:58.000 --> 00:13:01.500 we asked them What did they like and what did 00:13:01.500 --> 00:13:04.740 they not like about their current station? What 00:13:04.740 --> 00:13:08.019 were their dreams? What would they? What would 00:13:08.019 --> 00:13:11.879 help them improve their scores? And we use that 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:16.799 to drive the user interface of Maestro. And a 00:13:16.799 --> 00:13:20.639 few things that we heard is that you want to 00:13:20.639 --> 00:13:25.000 have the right controls, no more and no less. 00:13:25.259 --> 00:13:28.120 You may have seen radios that have hundreds of 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:31.419 buttons and knobs. Well, those can be quite confusing 00:13:31.419 --> 00:13:38.210 when you've been up for 24 hours. after 24 hours 00:13:38.210 --> 00:13:40.850 your fingers can get awfully fat. And so we wanted 00:13:40.850 --> 00:13:43.009 to make sure that there was plenty of spacing 00:13:43.009 --> 00:13:45.929 between the controls and they were exactly the 00:13:45.929 --> 00:13:49.330 right controls. So that was step one. Step two 00:13:49.330 --> 00:13:52.570 is we wanted to make sure that you didn't lose 00:13:52.570 --> 00:13:58.389 the visual capabilities that SDR can bring. And 00:13:58.389 --> 00:14:03.789 so we put an 80 inch high definition touch screen 00:14:03.789 --> 00:14:10.090 on the Maestro so that you can see extremely 00:14:10.090 --> 00:14:15.889 weak signals on the display. and simply tap tune 00:14:15.889 --> 00:14:19.009 them if you want a quick QSY. So that was number 00:14:19.009 --> 00:14:22.470 two. Number three is we wanted to make the device 00:14:22.470 --> 00:14:25.450 completely portable so that you could take it 00:14:25.450 --> 00:14:28.370 around the house or on the deck, et cetera. And 00:14:28.370 --> 00:14:32.610 so Maestro with a battery weighs less than four 00:14:32.610 --> 00:14:38.200 pounds. And I have a 12 amp hour battery on mine 00:14:38.200 --> 00:14:40.919 that's the size of a cell phone, and it will 00:14:40.919 --> 00:14:45.720 run for five hours anywhere in my house on that 00:14:45.720 --> 00:14:52.440 battery. So that has been a significant enhancement 00:14:52.440 --> 00:14:56.980 in capability to using an SDR. It works either 00:14:56.980 --> 00:15:02.580 over wired ethernet or Wi -Fi. and it gives you 00:15:02.580 --> 00:15:06.419 complete flexibility of where you use it. In 00:15:06.419 --> 00:15:09.980 fact, some top contesters are using it in recent 00:15:09.980 --> 00:15:14.539 contests. I noticed that Charlie Romeo III Whiskey 00:15:14.539 --> 00:15:20.480 used Maestro with a 6700 in the CQ Worldwide, 00:15:21.080 --> 00:15:26.159 and they made over 10 ,500 ,000 points in CQ 00:15:26.159 --> 00:15:29.799 Worldwide. Half of the contacts were made on 00:15:29.799 --> 00:15:33.919 the 6700 with the Maestro, and so that was a 00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:39.100 real win for us. And K9CT used it in the same 00:15:39.100 --> 00:15:41.940 contest, and they were number one in the US in 00:15:41.940 --> 00:15:45.879 multi -two category. So we're pretty excited 00:15:45.879 --> 00:15:48.059 about that product. I do want to mention also 00:15:48.059 --> 00:15:54.220 that recently we announced Smart SDR for iOS 00:15:54.220 --> 00:15:57.779 that runs on both iPhones and iPads and gives 00:15:57.779 --> 00:16:01.419 you the full capabilities of Smart SDR, which 00:16:01.419 --> 00:16:06.419 is our radio operating environment, and it's 00:16:06.419 --> 00:16:11.039 available now on the Apple Store. Oh, very good, 00:16:11.059 --> 00:16:16.279 very good. For those who haven't seen an SDR 00:16:16.279 --> 00:16:21.519 work or been able to play with one, What would 00:16:21.519 --> 00:16:26.639 you say are the biggest advantages to using an 00:16:26.639 --> 00:16:32.980 SDR over a standard superheterodyne radio? Well, 00:16:32.980 --> 00:16:36.480 I would say the first one that you'll notice 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:40.000 is their visual radios. And if they're built 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:43.740 correctly, I mean high definition visuals. So 00:16:43.740 --> 00:16:46.440 it completely changes your view of the bands 00:16:46.440 --> 00:16:53.019 in that you can very easily see what's going 00:16:53.019 --> 00:16:56.419 on on an entire band. In fact, with some of our 00:16:56.419 --> 00:16:59.139 radios, up to eight bands at once. So you can 00:16:59.139 --> 00:17:02.700 watch for openings on multiple bands, watch the 00:17:02.700 --> 00:17:06.160 beacons. You could be watching for openings on 00:17:06.160 --> 00:17:10.180 six meters while you're working 20 meters. Also, 00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:14.019 you can work on multiple bands at once. For example, 00:17:14.039 --> 00:17:16.640 we've enabled full duplex and single operator 00:17:16.640 --> 00:17:20.650 two radio capabilities. so that you could be 00:17:20.650 --> 00:17:26.069 in a contest running on 20 meters and S &P search 00:17:26.069 --> 00:17:29.950 and pounce on 15 at the same time if you have 00:17:29.950 --> 00:17:35.250 suitable antenna isolation. In DXing, it really 00:17:35.250 --> 00:17:37.589 gives you an advantage in that with the high 00:17:37.589 --> 00:17:42.650 definition display, you can very quickly detect 00:17:42.650 --> 00:17:45.650 what the pattern is and know where the best place 00:17:45.650 --> 00:17:49.450 to call and many times, break the pile up in 00:17:49.450 --> 00:17:53.329 the first or second call. Another thing is the 00:17:53.329 --> 00:17:58.470 performance and the sound. Because we go to digital 00:17:58.470 --> 00:18:03.289 in one step, you eliminate 100 % of the analog 00:18:03.289 --> 00:18:06.809 circuitry that tends to, I say 100%, there is 00:18:06.809 --> 00:18:10.789 a little bit of analog circuitry between the 00:18:10.789 --> 00:18:13.970 digital section and converting it back to audio, 00:18:13.990 --> 00:18:18.500 but you can have extremely low distortion audio 00:18:18.500 --> 00:18:23.039 and ultra -low distortion filters. You don't 00:18:23.039 --> 00:18:25.140 have any ringing like you would in a crystal 00:18:25.140 --> 00:18:27.859 filter. So that's one of the comments we get 00:18:27.859 --> 00:18:31.640 back from our customers is how clean the audio 00:18:31.640 --> 00:18:35.099 is and how it eliminates a lot of the fatigue 00:18:35.099 --> 00:18:39.420 that they are familiar with in the SuperHit roofing 00:18:39.420 --> 00:18:43.160 filter types of receivers that we've all been 00:18:43.160 --> 00:18:46.319 used to in the past. So those are a couple things. 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:50.319 I already mentioned networking, the fact that 00:18:50.319 --> 00:18:53.480 your radio becomes a server. In fact, my radio 00:18:53.480 --> 00:18:58.279 is in a rack, a 12U rolling rack under my desk, 00:18:58.880 --> 00:19:01.119 and the Maestro sits on top of the desk, and 00:19:01.119 --> 00:19:03.019 then I can walk around the house with either 00:19:03.019 --> 00:19:08.000 the Maestro or the iPad. And that changes the 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:13.259 way you think about the radio. Also, because 00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:15.940 it's software, we're able to integrate it with 00:19:15.940 --> 00:19:20.539 other systems. For example, if you work digital 00:19:20.539 --> 00:19:25.079 or modes are ready, you might have an enormous 00:19:25.079 --> 00:19:29.220 rat's nest of cables and boxes and sound cards 00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:33.059 and all kinds of things to get a pan adapter. 00:19:33.880 --> 00:19:36.880 All that goes away. Everything is done in digital. 00:19:37.039 --> 00:19:43.059 So if you're using MMTTY or two tone or FL digi, 00:19:43.420 --> 00:19:48.039 all of those applications communicate 100 % digitally 00:19:48.039 --> 00:19:52.180 without a wire. And that gets rid of all the 00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:56.920 ground loops and problems, RF ingress that you 00:19:56.920 --> 00:20:00.140 have in a lot of the legacy systems we've been 00:20:00.140 --> 00:20:03.240 accustomed to. So those are a few of the things 00:20:03.240 --> 00:20:06.400 that you would notice right off on the front. 00:20:07.289 --> 00:20:11.789 The other thing is because we put a big S on 00:20:11.789 --> 00:20:17.369 SDR, it means that we are constantly enhancing 00:20:17.369 --> 00:20:21.769 the radio and do multiple feature enhancements 00:20:21.769 --> 00:20:25.490 and performance enhancements each year. And so 00:20:25.490 --> 00:20:28.470 it continues to be enhanced. In fact, there's 00:20:28.470 --> 00:20:33.710 a new one coming out in the next week or two 00:20:33.710 --> 00:20:36.970 that will be coming out. So those are a few of 00:20:36.970 --> 00:20:39.769 the things that I think are top of mind. All 00:20:39.769 --> 00:20:43.930 right. And before we go to break, Ralph Fedor 00:20:43.930 --> 00:20:47.150 was on and was telling us about the Bouvet Island 00:20:47.150 --> 00:20:50.809 De -Expedition coming up. And they're going to 00:20:50.809 --> 00:20:54.329 be doing all software -defined flex radios on 00:20:54.329 --> 00:20:57.869 this De -Expedition. So how excited are you about 00:20:57.869 --> 00:21:00.470 that? And do you think that's going to start 00:21:00.470 --> 00:21:03.940 becoming the trend? Well, we are honored to be 00:21:03.940 --> 00:21:07.440 a part of that the expedition that's a very remote 00:21:07.440 --> 00:21:14.319 one of the most remote places on earth and K9 00:21:14.319 --> 00:21:23.579 CTW zero GJ or and Kate Into tu are three Serious 00:21:23.579 --> 00:21:27.079 the expedition operators that are all flex radio 00:21:28.720 --> 00:21:32.240 affectionados, and they will be, I believe all 00:21:32.240 --> 00:21:35.059 three of them are going on that de -expedition. 00:21:35.759 --> 00:21:38.900 And so they have a lot of excitement about using 00:21:38.900 --> 00:21:41.500 our equipment in that environment. They used 00:21:41.500 --> 00:21:46.980 it in the background. W0GJ took it to Palmyra 00:21:46.980 --> 00:21:51.420 and testing there and just was blown away with 00:21:51.420 --> 00:21:57.450 how many QSOs it increased the rate. especially 00:21:57.450 --> 00:22:00.869 on 160 and 80 meters they said it totally changed 00:22:00.869 --> 00:22:03.690 their perspective of the low bands because they 00:22:03.690 --> 00:22:09.029 were able to see and then work stations that 00:22:09.029 --> 00:22:11.930 they would never have known were on the air. 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:17.359 with very heavy QSB. So that's number one. Also, 00:22:17.460 --> 00:22:20.039 I think there's a lot of interest in how they 00:22:20.039 --> 00:22:24.700 might use the client server aspect of our radios 00:22:24.700 --> 00:22:30.460 to remote the transmitter receivers in different 00:22:30.460 --> 00:22:35.599 places on the island. for safety or for isolation 00:22:35.599 --> 00:22:37.700 between the transmitters and receivers. So there 00:22:37.700 --> 00:22:40.299 are a lot of capabilities there that I'm sure 00:22:40.299 --> 00:22:43.079 we'll be exploring over time. They'll be taking 00:22:43.079 --> 00:22:46.779 eight of our stations to that, the expedition. 00:22:46.960 --> 00:22:51.279 So it's a major undertaking. Well, that sounds 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:56.240 really interested and I'll be happy to hear how 00:22:56.240 --> 00:23:00.529 that all goes and expect. some record -breaking 00:23:00.529 --> 00:23:04.109 stuff going on on that de -expedition, so sounds 00:23:04.109 --> 00:23:07.829 like a good plan. Well, it is time to pay some 00:23:07.829 --> 00:23:10.509 of the bills, but we'll be back in just a little 00:23:10.509 --> 00:23:13.150 over a minute. And take your calls right after 00:23:13.150 --> 00:23:15.990 this message from the HamStation right here on 00:23:15.990 --> 00:23:19.529 HamTalk Live. This episode of HamTalk Live is 00:23:19.529 --> 00:23:23.319 brought to you by the HamStation. For over 37 00:23:23.319 --> 00:23:26.400 years, the HamStation has sold new and used radios, 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:29.279 antennas, accessories, and equipment to hams 00:23:29.279 --> 00:23:34.319 everywhere. Give Dan or Jeff a call at 800 -729 00:23:34.319 --> 00:23:41.019 -4373 or order online at hamstation .com. HamStation 00:23:41.019 --> 00:23:44.359 carries all the major brands like Icom, Yezu, 00:23:44.599 --> 00:23:47.640 and Kenwood. And they have a wide selection of 00:23:47.640 --> 00:23:51.420 radio scanners, MFJ accessories, Hile sound products, 00:23:51.279 --> 00:23:54.380 products, amplifiers by Mirage and Ameritron, 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:57.980 Cushcraft antennas and more. Easy online ordering 00:23:57.980 --> 00:24:04.579 is at HamStation .com or call 1 -800 -729 -4373 00:24:04.579 --> 00:24:07.500 to place an order and talk it over with the experts. 00:24:07.799 --> 00:24:10.680 The HamStation, proud to sponsor this episode 00:24:10.680 --> 00:24:18.440 of HamTalk Live. CQ, CQ, CQ, you're listening 00:24:18.440 --> 00:24:24.380 to HamTalk Live with Neil Rapp. Join the conversation. 00:24:24.740 --> 00:24:28.220 Call us on voice with Skype at HamTalk Live or 00:24:28.220 --> 00:24:32.700 give us a call at 812 -NET -HAM -1. That's 812 00:24:32.700 --> 00:24:38.779 -638 -4261. Now, here's more HamTalk Live. Welcome 00:24:38.779 --> 00:24:41.119 back to HamTalk Live. The HamStation has you 00:24:41.119 --> 00:24:43.599 covered for both new and used equipment. Give 00:24:43.599 --> 00:24:49.319 Dan or Jeff a call at 800 -729 -4373 or go to 00:24:49.319 --> 00:24:52.500 hamstation .com and tell them you heard it here 00:24:52.500 --> 00:24:55.819 on HamTalk Live. HamTalk Live is every Thursday 00:24:55.819 --> 00:24:58.319 night at 9 p .m. Eastern Time at hamtalklive 00:24:58.319 --> 00:25:01.099 .com. Check out our Facebook page and our Twitter 00:25:01.099 --> 00:25:04.710 feed to search for HamTalk Live. Well, it's time 00:25:04.710 --> 00:25:06.910 to take your calls this evening. If you have 00:25:06.910 --> 00:25:11.650 a question, you can call us at 812 -NET -HAM 00:25:11.650 --> 00:25:19.019 -1. That's 812 -638. 4261. You can also Skype 00:25:19.019 --> 00:25:21.920 your question to HamTalk Live, that's our account 00:25:21.920 --> 00:25:26.079 name, or you can tweet at HamTalk Live. You can 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:28.500 also post in the comment section on the website 00:25:28.500 --> 00:25:31.779 if you're listening live. Give us a call or a 00:25:31.779 --> 00:25:34.880 tweet or a comment and let's get your questions 00:25:34.880 --> 00:25:40.039 in here about flex radios and what K5SDR has 00:25:40.039 --> 00:25:44.529 been up to. While we're waiting on some of those 00:25:44.529 --> 00:25:47.809 calls, can you let us in on any exciting and 00:25:47.809 --> 00:25:51.170 new things coming up here in the future besides 00:25:51.170 --> 00:25:56.029 the software upgrade you just talked about? I 00:25:56.029 --> 00:25:59.589 think that one of the things that we have made 00:25:59.589 --> 00:26:02.470 a little bit of noise about is that we have a 00:26:02.470 --> 00:26:08.009 new legal limit amplifier that is coming in the 00:26:08.009 --> 00:26:12.690 near future. We showed an early prototype last 00:26:12.690 --> 00:26:15.529 year in Dayton and have been relatively quiet 00:26:15.529 --> 00:26:19.029 about it since then, but it's nearing the beta 00:26:19.029 --> 00:26:22.950 phase within the next few weeks. And once we 00:26:22.950 --> 00:26:27.650 get it through FCC and CE certification, then 00:26:27.650 --> 00:26:32.470 we'll be able to be very specific about when 00:26:32.470 --> 00:26:34.750 it will be available and start taking orders 00:26:34.750 --> 00:26:37.579 at that point. A few of the key things about 00:26:37.579 --> 00:26:43.359 it is that it's a 2kW capable amplifier, which 00:26:43.359 --> 00:26:50.880 means it'll run nicely at 1 .5kW with very low 00:26:50.880 --> 00:26:54.539 distortion and low spurious harmonic output. 00:26:55.059 --> 00:26:58.019 It weighs less than 30 pounds. I actually carried 00:26:58.019 --> 00:27:02.559 it in on my shoulder in a bag in Dayton. It has 00:27:02.559 --> 00:27:07.150 a 3 kilowatt switching power supply in it. And 00:27:07.150 --> 00:27:10.230 so it's designed to be very rugged but lightweight. 00:27:10.490 --> 00:27:13.750 So you'll probably see it going on the expeditions 00:27:13.750 --> 00:27:17.730 as well. And one of the interesting features 00:27:17.730 --> 00:27:22.029 is that it is based on ethernet, which means 00:27:22.029 --> 00:27:25.049 it'll totally integrate with our radios and with 00:27:25.049 --> 00:27:28.880 Maestro. In the future what you'll see is if 00:27:28.880 --> 00:27:33.579 you're on maestro remote The amplifier it'll 00:27:33.579 --> 00:27:35.880 show you the power output of the amplifier and 00:27:35.880 --> 00:27:38.779 the SWR coming out of the amplifier even though 00:27:38.779 --> 00:27:42.400 you're not at the amplifier and All of the switching 00:27:42.400 --> 00:27:45.819 and so forth will be over ethernet It'll also 00:27:45.819 --> 00:27:50.160 be compatible with any legacy radio with inputs 00:27:50.160 --> 00:27:57.150 for BCD cat CI5, etc. So it will be fully compatible 00:27:57.150 --> 00:28:01.650 with other radios as well. So we expect to be 00:28:01.650 --> 00:28:06.349 in production early next year. So that's an imminent 00:28:06.349 --> 00:28:12.529 development. We've been working very hard on 00:28:12.529 --> 00:28:17.710 complete seamless contest integration with the 00:28:17.710 --> 00:28:22.569 main loggers. and eliminating all of the junk 00:28:22.569 --> 00:28:25.710 you had to have to make a contest station work 00:28:25.710 --> 00:28:29.549 in various configurations. In fact, K9CT says 00:28:29.549 --> 00:28:33.930 that he can switch from single operator to multi 00:28:33.930 --> 00:28:38.029 -2 to SO2R in a matter of just a few minutes 00:28:38.029 --> 00:28:43.190 on any mode. And so integration, station integration, 00:28:43.230 --> 00:28:46.950 you'll see a lot coming there. Coming out in 00:28:46.950 --> 00:28:50.910 our version 1 .10 in the next couple of weeks, 00:28:51.309 --> 00:28:56.529 we've added the capability to have a fan out 00:28:56.529 --> 00:29:02.670 of USB to station control devices, including 00:29:02.670 --> 00:29:07.269 USB to serial, USB to BCD, and USB to binary 00:29:07.269 --> 00:29:10.809 control. And you can put a USB hub on the back 00:29:10.809 --> 00:29:16.670 of the radio. and control a large number of station 00:29:16.670 --> 00:29:20.990 devices over a single USB port off the back of 00:29:20.990 --> 00:29:23.549 the radio. The radio does have two USB ports. 00:29:24.410 --> 00:29:27.970 And you can set that up either from Maestro or 00:29:27.970 --> 00:29:33.490 from Smart SDR running on a PC. So that's a capability 00:29:33.490 --> 00:29:40.109 that's coming imminently. And then we are working 00:29:40.109 --> 00:29:48.640 toward now true plug and play remote. And station 00:29:48.640 --> 00:29:51.420 integration is one of the stepping stones in 00:29:51.420 --> 00:29:54.019 that. If you go remote, you need to have seamless 00:29:54.019 --> 00:29:57.799 station integration for multiple devices. So 00:29:57.799 --> 00:30:00.980 all those things play together. OK, we do have 00:30:00.980 --> 00:30:05.099 a call on the line. So let's see what we have. 00:30:05.339 --> 00:30:08.990 Welcome to AMTALK Live. Who's this? Hi, this 00:30:08.990 --> 00:30:13.490 is a Vinny K a to NCV in New York All right, 00:30:13.490 --> 00:30:16.710 what's your question? Yeah, I have a deflection. 00:30:16.869 --> 00:30:19.289 I'm I sure I'm enjoying it. It's been a culture 00:30:19.289 --> 00:30:24.470 shock since Joe pointed out the Definitely not 00:30:24.470 --> 00:30:27.609 having the controls anymore. So one of the things 00:30:27.609 --> 00:30:32.609 I find sort of interesting was sort of upsetting 00:30:32.609 --> 00:30:36.509 is that I belong to one of the chat groups where 00:30:36.509 --> 00:30:40.589 there's always information about the problems 00:30:40.589 --> 00:30:42.930 that come across these software -defined radios 00:30:42.930 --> 00:30:45.210 and every day there seems to be some kind of 00:30:45.210 --> 00:30:48.170 an issue and I find it sort of discouraging because 00:30:48.170 --> 00:30:50.569 technology on this radio is it well how much 00:30:50.569 --> 00:30:53.630 is that fact or fiction and everyone seems to 00:30:53.630 --> 00:30:56.250 have a problem with these software -defined issues. 00:30:57.420 --> 00:31:00.579 Well, I think you would have to say that the 00:31:00.579 --> 00:31:03.079 main reason people would post is when they have 00:31:03.079 --> 00:31:05.940 a question. The people that are happily working 00:31:05.940 --> 00:31:08.559 away are not posting questions, and there are 00:31:08.559 --> 00:31:12.380 many thousands of them that are working away 00:31:12.380 --> 00:31:16.660 every day with just no problems at all. So you'll 00:31:16.660 --> 00:31:21.940 see... Go ahead. No, I haven't really faced any 00:31:21.940 --> 00:31:24.720 of those issues, but it's just like I'm saying, 00:31:25.119 --> 00:31:28.180 like, what's going on here? Every day there's 00:31:28.180 --> 00:31:30.339 another question pop up. This doesn't work that 00:31:30.339 --> 00:31:33.440 doesn't work. I can't get this to work. It's 00:31:33.440 --> 00:31:37.359 very Yeah, a lot of times they don't have anything 00:31:37.359 --> 00:31:40.920 to do with our radios to there people use third 00:31:40.920 --> 00:31:44.059 -party applications like digital mode applications 00:31:44.059 --> 00:31:48.720 or they're using Something that somebody wrote 00:31:48.720 --> 00:31:51.680 to talk directly to our radios because we have 00:31:51.680 --> 00:31:55.480 a you a programming interface And other people 00:31:55.480 --> 00:31:58.279 are writing software to controller radios. In 00:31:58.279 --> 00:32:03.599 fact, I saw a comment today on there where somebody 00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:07.640 else's software had caused a problem. But interestingly, 00:32:09.220 --> 00:32:12.700 we always get credited even if it's someone else's 00:32:12.700 --> 00:32:21.440 problem. an extremely high utilization of our 00:32:21.440 --> 00:32:27.519 community in terms of activity. People are really 00:32:27.519 --> 00:32:31.019 engaged and that's a good thing. But people feel 00:32:31.019 --> 00:32:34.940 very comfortable in asking a question. In the 00:32:34.940 --> 00:32:37.480 past, people could go dig in and try to solve 00:32:37.480 --> 00:32:39.960 the questions themselves and you'd never hear 00:32:39.960 --> 00:32:42.519 about it. Today, we're all on the internet and 00:32:42.519 --> 00:32:47.089 you hear about it. Well, thank you very much. 00:32:47.329 --> 00:32:49.809 It's a pleasure, and keep up the great work. 00:32:50.109 --> 00:32:52.549 I'm looking forward to the new amplifier coming 00:32:52.549 --> 00:32:56.390 out soon. Thanks for calling. Yep, thank you 00:32:56.390 --> 00:32:59.230 very much for calling. Appreciate it. Thank you. 00:32:59.450 --> 00:33:03.630 812 -NET -HAM -1 is the phone number, 812 -638 00:33:03.630 --> 00:33:07.470 -4261. We've got time for... Another call or 00:33:07.470 --> 00:33:09.650 two, if you have a question, jump on in here, 00:33:09.750 --> 00:33:14.789 812 -NET -HAM -1 is the number. Or if you'd rather 00:33:14.789 --> 00:33:19.069 type, you can tweet us at HamTalkLive, or you 00:33:19.069 --> 00:33:23.670 can post a comment on the website as well there 00:33:23.670 --> 00:33:29.519 at HamTalkLive .com. We'll pause here for just 00:33:29.519 --> 00:33:31.940 a minute and see if we get another call right 00:33:31.940 --> 00:33:35.500 away. But one of the things that I did want to 00:33:35.500 --> 00:33:41.240 ask you about is your success with all this software 00:33:41.240 --> 00:33:43.720 -defined radio. What's been the most rewarding 00:33:43.720 --> 00:33:48.880 part of getting this company going and getting 00:33:48.880 --> 00:33:53.170 all this SDR technology out there? I don't think 00:33:53.170 --> 00:33:55.390 I can give you a single one, I'll have to give 00:33:55.390 --> 00:33:59.849 you a few. First of all, I love technology, I 00:33:59.849 --> 00:34:03.190 love being creative, and so it's been extremely 00:34:03.190 --> 00:34:07.769 rewarding to have an idea and then see it come 00:34:07.769 --> 00:34:12.590 into fruition and creation. And also I've always 00:34:12.590 --> 00:34:15.289 loved building businesses and to be able to do 00:34:15.289 --> 00:34:18.010 that in a hobby that I've loved since I was a 00:34:18.010 --> 00:34:24.699 teenager has been very rewarding. When I first 00:34:24.699 --> 00:34:29.099 started this back in 2003, I had some opportunities 00:34:29.099 --> 00:34:33.880 to start speaking to various groups about SDR 00:34:33.880 --> 00:34:38.139 because people had read my articles. And beginning 00:34:38.139 --> 00:34:44.300 with Tapper invited me to speak in 2003. But 00:34:44.300 --> 00:34:48.000 each time I would speak to a group, I would ask 00:34:48.000 --> 00:34:52.780 how many of you know what SDR is. Back in those 00:34:52.780 --> 00:34:56.460 days, I might get three, four, or five hands 00:34:56.460 --> 00:35:01.659 in a room of 100. Today, for example, I go to 00:35:01.659 --> 00:35:04.000 Friedrichshafen for the ham radio convention 00:35:04.000 --> 00:35:08.039 there in Germany, and the room will be filled 00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:12.639 with 350 or 400 people, people sitting on the 00:35:12.639 --> 00:35:16.639 floor. If I ask that same question, nearly 100 00:35:16.639 --> 00:35:20.929 % of the hands will go up. And so I would say 00:35:20.929 --> 00:35:24.929 it's extremely rewarding to have been a part 00:35:24.929 --> 00:35:28.550 of something that has an impact on a hobby that 00:35:28.550 --> 00:35:32.530 I love, ham radio. And so I would say that's 00:35:32.530 --> 00:35:36.610 probably the most rewarding part of it. All right. 00:35:36.610 --> 00:35:40.050 Very good. We have another call. So welcome to 00:35:40.050 --> 00:35:43.849 HamTalk Live. Who's this? Hi, this is Steve, 00:35:43.909 --> 00:35:48.699 N8DEZ. I'm in California. and great to hear you 00:35:48.699 --> 00:35:55.019 guys tonight. I saw a talk from Dr. McGuire, 00:35:55.179 --> 00:36:01.420 N4HY, at the EWRL digital communication conference 00:36:01.420 --> 00:36:06.219 and he was talking about the new modulation that 00:36:06.219 --> 00:36:09.820 they're going to be using for AMSAT phase four 00:36:09.820 --> 00:36:14.539 and mentioned Flex is a possible hardware manufacturer. 00:36:14.639 --> 00:36:18.690 I wonder if you could comment. Yes, we've been 00:36:18.690 --> 00:36:24.110 collaborating with Bob and the team there at 00:36:24.110 --> 00:36:29.650 Virginia Tech. In fact, Steve Hicks is our VP 00:36:29.650 --> 00:36:32.590 of Engineering and he's been working very closely 00:36:32.590 --> 00:36:39.070 with the team on that project. It's still very 00:36:39.070 --> 00:36:43.250 early in terms of discussions of the architecture. 00:36:44.219 --> 00:36:47.079 how that might come to fruition and of course 00:36:47.079 --> 00:36:50.599 you have to have a launch vehicle too. But the 00:36:50.599 --> 00:36:55.539 answer is we're definitely involved in that and 00:36:55.539 --> 00:37:00.039 interested. We think it's a pretty exciting project. 00:37:01.440 --> 00:37:06.300 Cool. The other question I had, I'm a VHF, UHF 00:37:06.300 --> 00:37:10.619 microwave contester and I see a lot of the hacker 00:37:10.619 --> 00:37:15.460 groups have uh... radios that are coming out 00:37:15.460 --> 00:37:18.599 now if you know with the really uh... whiz bang 00:37:18.599 --> 00:37:21.840 f p g a's i'm wondering if you guys have any 00:37:21.840 --> 00:37:24.699 thoughts about uh... radio that would operate 00:37:24.699 --> 00:37:28.079 natively in the v h u h f microwave and without 00:37:28.079 --> 00:37:32.360 having to use outboard transporters uh... i would 00:37:32.360 --> 00:37:35.860 say that uh... i'd like to comment on any products 00:37:35.860 --> 00:37:39.219 but i can say that uh... they're some pretty 00:37:39.219 --> 00:37:44.190 exciting technology uh... that the whole Cell 00:37:44.190 --> 00:37:47.309 phone industry as well as some of the the Wi 00:37:47.309 --> 00:37:52.869 -Fi and moving up in frequencies Will probably 00:37:52.869 --> 00:37:58.030 make that over time more cost -effective and 00:37:58.030 --> 00:38:03.710 we're seeing Digital analog converters and analog 00:38:03.710 --> 00:38:07.550 to digital converters starting to move up in 00:38:07.550 --> 00:38:10.829 frequency. So I think the possibility exists 00:38:10.829 --> 00:38:15.170 in the future for that to occur. Very cool. And 00:38:15.170 --> 00:38:17.869 then one last question. What's the range on the 00:38:17.869 --> 00:38:21.489 Maestro if you were remoting it like in a de 00:38:21.489 --> 00:38:24.449 -expedition? What kind of range away from the 00:38:24.449 --> 00:38:27.269 box can you get with the Maestro? Well, that 00:38:27.269 --> 00:38:30.510 would be like if you're in a de -expedition, 00:38:30.670 --> 00:38:35.860 you can use high -gain antennas. Um, and, um, 00:38:36.079 --> 00:38:40.099 probably a little more power. So, um, that would, 00:38:40.099 --> 00:38:44.639 um, extend it. You can extend it, um, by line 00:38:44.639 --> 00:38:47.820 of sight with gain antennas, probably over a 00:38:47.820 --> 00:38:51.599 mile or more. Oh, neat. Okay. Well, thank you 00:38:51.599 --> 00:38:54.699 so much for taking my questions and you guys 00:38:54.699 --> 00:38:57.860 have a great night. Seven three. Thank you for 00:38:57.860 --> 00:38:59.760 calling Steve. Thank you very much for calling. 00:38:59.880 --> 00:39:01.860 We appreciate you taking the time to do that. 00:39:02.940 --> 00:39:05.940 812 net ham one is the number I know we had another 00:39:05.940 --> 00:39:08.539 call there we couldn't take and we have three 00:39:08.539 --> 00:39:11.159 minutes left so we're gonna have to make it a 00:39:11.159 --> 00:39:12.900 Quick one here, but if you want to try calling 00:39:12.900 --> 00:39:17.119 back now's the time eight one two net ham one 00:39:17.119 --> 00:39:21.679 eight one two six three eight four two six one 00:39:21.679 --> 00:39:26.320 and We'll see if we get that out and we also 00:39:26.320 --> 00:39:29.860 have one on Twitter here. Oh, let's go ahead 00:39:29.860 --> 00:39:35.019 and take the call So I had to had to ignore it 00:39:35.019 --> 00:39:38.699 earlier. Hi, you're on am talk live Okay, am 00:39:38.699 --> 00:39:42.800 I actually talking live right now you are Okay. 00:39:42.940 --> 00:39:46.800 Hey, my name is Jim. I call WB nine I accept 00:39:46.800 --> 00:39:51.159 and open Wisconsin. I've been in touch with back 00:39:51.159 --> 00:39:54.880 Youngwood down at flex systems and very very 00:39:54.880 --> 00:39:57.619 close to purchasing the radio looking at the 00:39:57.619 --> 00:40:04.010 6500 and the maestro However, the more people 00:40:04.010 --> 00:40:07.650 I talk to, the more confusing it gets. I'm certainly 00:40:07.650 --> 00:40:11.369 new to software -defined radios, but very excited 00:40:11.369 --> 00:40:16.349 about the technology. So, I looked at this last 00:40:16.349 --> 00:40:20.769 report, or not a report, but the write -up that 00:40:20.769 --> 00:40:23.690 was in the QFC about the Maestro, and one thing 00:40:23.690 --> 00:40:27.769 that was very, very confusing was this latency. 00:40:28.840 --> 00:40:31.500 I truly don't understand that. I think it was 00:40:31.500 --> 00:40:36.239 some numbers as high as 400 milliseconds. That's 00:40:36.239 --> 00:40:38.960 impossible. I couldn't ever use the machine. 00:40:39.500 --> 00:40:43.159 So maybe somebody can give me a quick explanation 00:40:43.159 --> 00:40:47.940 as to what is latency and how does it enter into 00:40:47.940 --> 00:40:51.559 software -defined radios? Well, first of all, 00:40:51.559 --> 00:40:54.639 that's old data because we've radically reduced 00:40:54.639 --> 00:40:57.420 the latency since they actually did the review. 00:40:58.400 --> 00:41:02.659 Latency is the time between when the signal hits 00:41:02.659 --> 00:41:05.280 the antenna port and it comes out the audio. 00:41:06.300 --> 00:41:09.940 And those numbers of 400 milliseconds are completely 00:41:09.940 --> 00:41:15.880 inaccurate at this point. We also have the ability 00:41:15.880 --> 00:41:20.280 to vary. Well, let me kind of put it this way. 00:41:20.300 --> 00:41:23.019 We have what you call brick wall filters that 00:41:23.019 --> 00:41:26.880 are digital. They're much much sharper and cleaner 00:41:26.880 --> 00:41:31.159 and low distortion than other filters But the 00:41:31.159 --> 00:41:34.679 very very large filters add some time to it. 00:41:34.940 --> 00:41:39.780 So we give you complete control over the Sharpness 00:41:39.780 --> 00:41:42.280 of the filter versus the time it takes to go 00:41:42.280 --> 00:41:46.760 through the filter. So These radios are used 00:41:46.760 --> 00:41:51.059 in de -expeditions and contesting and putting 00:41:51.059 --> 00:41:54.920 in top scores in the world, especially in the 00:41:54.920 --> 00:41:58.260 RIDDI contest that just happened. So latency 00:41:58.260 --> 00:42:02.420 is not really an issue now. I couldn't believe 00:42:02.420 --> 00:42:06.119 that when I saw that. I have some other friends 00:42:06.119 --> 00:42:10.139 here that have competitors' FDR radios, if we 00:42:10.139 --> 00:42:14.179 can say that. And of course, they didn't agree 00:42:14.179 --> 00:42:16.579 with that either, but good. Well, I'm glad to 00:42:16.579 --> 00:42:19.659 hear it. So what are the new numbers? What's 00:42:19.659 --> 00:42:22.099 the worst case with the bigger filters? We've 00:42:22.099 --> 00:42:25.380 got about 15 seconds here. I don't have them 00:42:25.380 --> 00:42:27.800 on the top of my head. We could get them for 00:42:27.800 --> 00:42:30.179 you. I just don't remember them right now. And 00:42:30.179 --> 00:42:34.579 it's adjustable. Drop me an email if you would, 00:42:34.739 --> 00:42:37.260 and we'll get that to you as well as some of 00:42:37.260 --> 00:42:39.420 the others that have asked the questions, if 00:42:39.420 --> 00:42:41.920 you would. Like I said, I've been in touch with 00:42:41.920 --> 00:42:45.400 Matt on and off regularly. If we get closer to 00:42:45.400 --> 00:42:47.619 making a purchase, I'll send him an email and 00:42:47.619 --> 00:42:50.059 we'll go from there. Appreciate it. Thank you. 00:42:50.219 --> 00:42:53.139 Nice job. All right, thank you very much. And 00:42:53.139 --> 00:42:55.900 yeah, we had another one come in on Twitter. 00:42:56.159 --> 00:42:59.500 We'll have to get that offline here because we're 00:42:59.500 --> 00:43:01.360 down to the last minute here, and I need to wrap 00:43:01.360 --> 00:43:03.340 things up. But Gerald, thank you so much for 00:43:03.340 --> 00:43:06.739 being on, and that's a wrap for this week's HamTalk 00:43:06.739 --> 00:43:08.960 Live. I'd like to thank my guest, Gerald Youngblood, 00:43:09.019 --> 00:43:12.429 K5SDR. And everyone out there in cyberspace for 00:43:12.429 --> 00:43:14.949 listening and calling in and invite you all back 00:43:14.949 --> 00:43:17.510 next Thursday night at 9 p .m. Eastern Time when 00:43:17.510 --> 00:43:21.070 Jim George in 3BB will be here to talk about 00:43:21.070 --> 00:43:25.030 his book called Contact Sport. And for a list 00:43:25.030 --> 00:43:28.090 of all of our upcoming guests, visit HamTalkLive 00:43:28.090 --> 00:43:32.329 .com. So for now, this is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, 00:43:32.489 --> 00:43:37.150 saying 7 -3, 7 -5, and may the good DX be yours. 00:44:00.799 --> 00:44:03.599 Music playing