70 MONITORING TIMES June 2010

I ntheMayissueofMonitoringTimesIpre-sentedpartoneofmyreviewoftheFLEX-3000™SDRbyFlexRadioSystems™in

Austin,Texas.InparttwoofourMTreview,Iwilldiscusstheset-upandoperationalaspectsoftheFLEX-3000transceiver.

❖ What’s in the Box? The following items are includedwitheachFLEX-3000unitthatshipsfromFlexSys-tems: FLEX-3000 transceiver; 6-pin to 6-pinFireWire®cable(6feet);Unterminated12AWGpowercable(4feet);PL259/BNCadapter;QuickStartGuide;andaCDROMwiththeowner’smanual,quickstartguide,PowerSDR™1.18orlater,FlexRadioFireWireDriver. WhenyouorderyourFLEX-3000,ifyouplanonusingitwithalaptop,youwillprobablywanttohaveFlexSystemsshipa6-pinto4-pinFireWirecable insteadof thenormal6-pin to6-pin. The FLEX-3000 power cable is unter-minatedatoneendsothatyoucanadaptittovariousDCpowerconnectors,suchasAndersonPowerPoles,bananaplugs,screwterminalsorspadelugs.Youwillbeconnectingthetworedwirestothepositiveterminalandthetwoblackwires to the negative terminal of your powersupply.

❖ Setting Up the FLEX-3000 After youunpack thematerials from theshipping carton, you should first determinewhereintheshackyouaregoingtosetuptheFLEX-3000. Some basic considerations hereinclude:placeitnearthecomputeryouwilluse,avoidplacingitindirectsunlight;avoidblockingcoolingventsforgoodairflowandtemperaturecontrol; easy access to the back panel of the3000,andotherconsiderationssuchasantennaconnections,powersupplylocationandoperat-ingneeds. Youwill need the following to get yourFLEX-3000ontheair:

• The two cables and CD-ROM that came with your FLEX-3000.

• An HF-Antenna or dummy load.• A good RF ground.• A stabilized 13.8V DC power supply, capable

of 25A continuous duty.• A Windows® PC, with an IEEE 1394 (Firewire)

connection.• A microphone/PTT and/or CW paddles/keyer/

straight key. Prior to powering up any radio, I preferto connect allmy peripherals first to reducethe chance of a static discharge that can takeout some valuable electronics. So things likegroundingwires,microphone, key, speaker/headphone,antennas,powercablestothepowersupply,andtheFireWirecableareallconnected

prior to turning on the power supply and thetransceiver. Alsopriortopoweringupthetransceiver,youwillbeinstallingyourFireWiredevicedriv-er.Afterthatinstallationyouwillberestartingthecomputerandturningonyour3000transceiver. Afteryouhavesuccessfullyinstalledyourdevicedriver,youarethenreadytoinstallthePowerSDR software. Follow the directionscarefully,butbeforeyougetstarted,youneedtoensurethatthecurrentversionofMicrosoft.NETFramework1.1and.NET1.1ServicePack1isinstalledonyourcomputer. YoucangetmoreinformationonthisatthefollowingknowledgebaselinksontheFlexSys-temswebsite:http://kc.flex-radio.com/Knowl-edgebaseArticle50072.aspxandhttp://kc.flex-radio.com/KnowledgebaseArticle50073.aspxThisisanimportantstepasyouwon’tbeabletorunthePowerSDRsoftwareunlessyouhavethe right .NETFramework software packageinstalled. Inthefinalsteps,youwillbeconfiguringyourdevicedriver(previouslyloaded),settingupaudioparameters,andconfiguringyourWindowsaudiomixerpanel.Therearedetailedinstructionson all of this inChapter 2of theFLEX-3000ownersmanual. Ifyouhavesuccessfullyaccomplishedallofthis,youwillbereadytohittheStartbuttonon your PowerSDR software and commenceoperations.

❖ Powering up the FLEX-3000 Ifyouhavepowereduptheradioandsoft-ware,at thispointyoureyeswillprobablybeaswideopenasminewere.Lookatfigureoneandyouwillseewhy.Forsome,allthebellsandwhistlesyouseeonthePowerSDRfrontconsolemaybeabitoverwhelming. Thefrontconsole(seeFigure1)controlsthebasicfunctionsoftheradio:frequency,mode,filters,anddisplay.TohelpyougetusetothecontrolsandtheirfunctionsIrecommendthatyou hover yourmouse over any control, anditwillpresentatooltipthatwillshowabriefdescriptionofthatcontrol’sfunction. Iknowitwillbetemptingtoloadupandkeyupwithoutfurtherinstructionorguidance,butIhighlyrecommendyoudon’t.Thereisalotofcapabilityonyourcomputerscreeninfrontofyourightnow,andifyoureallywanttotakeadvantageofthatIrecommendthatyoupointyourbrowsertothislink(www.flex-radio.com/Products.aspx?topic=powersdr1x_testdrive)onthecompanywebsite.

FLEX-3000™ SDR Transceiver Review, Part 2The future of radio in your shack today

By Larry Van Horn, N5FPWMonitoring Times Review Editor

Final Rating: 4-3/4 out of 5

June 2010 MONITORING TIMES 71

Iwon’tgointodetailontheoperationoftheFLEX-3000usingthePowerSDRsoftware,since thatwould be outside the scopeof thisreview.TheAdobe PDF owner’smanual isextremelywellwrittenandillustrated,andhasdetailed explanations of all the controls andmenusthatareavailableonthePowerSDRfrontconsole.Nomatterwhatleveloftechnicalexper-tiseyouhave,theowner’smanualcanprovideyouwithsimplifiedordetailedinformationontheoperationsandcontrolsofthistransceiver. AsIhavementionedpreviously,thisisahighlycapabletransceiver.Asanoperatoryouhavenearlycompletecontrolovereveryaspectoftransmitandreceiveoperationswiththisunit.To truly appreciate this fact, browse throughthe various tabs andmenus in the setup andoperatingformswithinthePowerSDRsoftwarepackage.You really need to become familiarwith thesemenuoptionsprior to transmittingwiththeFLEX-3000. Forinstance,someoftheoptionsyoucancontrolusingthesoftwareoperatingformsin-clude:memorychannels,recordingandplaybackofpost-processedaudio,a threeand ten-bandequalizer,Transvertersetupform,CWmemoryandkeyboardcontrol,anaudiomixercontrol,andvoltage/temperatureinformation.Irepeat:You have a lot of capabilitywith this radio/softwarecontrolpackage.

❖ On Air Operations with the FLEX-3000

Onceyouhaveconfiguredtheset-upandoperationsforms,youarereadytoputtheFLEX-

3000on theair foroperation.Youwill findabasicset-upofthecontrolsforvarioustransmit/receivemodesinChapterSixoftheoperationsmanual. Thecomputeraidedtuning(CAT)control

commandsofPowerSDRarebasedonthoseoftheKenwoodTS2000andhavebeenexpandedto cover PowerSDR’smany unique features.Additionally,PowerSDRcanprovideavirtualCOMport connection to third party software

TABLE 1: FLEX-3000 MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONSReceiver Frequency Range: ................ 10 kHz – 60 MHz (operating – requires external, customer provided

filters below 1.8 MHz to eliminate images); 160m – 6m (specified amateur bands only)

Transmitter Frequency Range: ............ 160m – 6m (specified amateur bands only) and MARS/CAP capableEmission Modes: ............................... A1A (CW), A3E (AM), J3E (LSB, USB), F3E (FM), F1B (RTTY), F1D

(PACKET), F2D (PACKET)Frequency Steps: ............................... 1 Hz minimumAntenna Impedance: ......................... 50 Ohms, unbalanced; 17 - 150 Ohms, unbalanced (with tuner on);

and Max SWR 3.0:1 (with tuner on).Audio In/Out: ................................... 10dBV nominal (consumer level), input impedance: 5k Ohms/Output

impedance 600 Ohms.Recommended Headphones: ............. 40mW, 16 Ohms, (higher impedance headphones will also work)Power Consumption: ......................... 1.5A receive (typical) and 25A (transmit maximum @ 100 watts)Supply Voltage: ................................ 13.8 VDC ± 10%Dimensions: (WxHxD): ...................... 12.3” x 1.8” x 12.3” (31.1cm x 4.4cm x 31.1cm)

Receiver Circuit Type: ........................Direct conversion, low IFIntermediate Frequency: .................... Software selectable from DC to 20 kHzMDS: ............................................... 14 MHZ Receive gain – 1.3/0.3 μV; MDS: -123 dBm/-133 dBm in 500

Hz bandwidthSelectivity (–6/–60 dB): ......................CW: 500 Hz –6/-60 dB: 5.00/6.40........................................................ SSB: 2.4 kHz –6/-60 dB: 2.39/2.54........................................................ AM: 6.6 kHz –6/-60 dB: 6.60/6.74Image Rejection: ............................... 70 dB or better (160 - 6m amateur bands)

TransmitterPower Output: .................................. 1-100 watts PEP CW and SSB (25 watts AM carrier)Emission Modes: ............................... A1A (CWU, CWL), J3E (USB, LSB), A3E (AM), F3E (FM), DIGITALHarmonic Radiation: ......................... Better than –55 dB (160 - 10m amateur bands)........................................................ Better than –65 dB (6m amateur band)SSB Carrier Suppression: .................. At least 55 dB below peak outputUndesired Sideband Suppression: ...... At least 55 dB below peak outputAudio Response (SSB): ...................... Flat Response 10 Hz to 20 kHz, 3-band or 10-band software EQ3rd Order IMD: ................................ Better than 33 dB below PEP @14.2 MHz 100 watts PEPMicrophone Impedance: ................... 600 Ohms (200 to 10 kOhms)

72 MONITORING TIMES June 2010

Justbecauseit’satransmatchdoesn’tmeanit’sagoodtransmatch.Flimsyconstructionandsmall-gaugewiremaymeanadditionallosses,especiallyathigherpowerlevels.High-powertransmatchesareinvariablymoreefficientthanthelow-powervariety.

Efficiency Efficiencyisacommonlymisunderstoodconceptinantennasystemdesign;itissimplythepercentageof transmitter-generated signalwhich is radiated by the antenna, or receivedsignalvoltagewhichisdeliveredtothereceiver.Iftherewerenoresistiveorinsulationlosses,anyantennaandfeedlinewouldbe100%efficientwhetherornottheyareproperlymatched.

Balanced or Unbalanced? Mostelevated,horizontalantennasarefedatornearthecenter;theyaresaidtobebalanced,bothfromastandpointofsymmetryaswellasreferencetoground.

Most vertical antennas are unbalanced,oftenmakinguseofradialsystemsasanartificialground reference.There is nothing inherentlysuperioraboutoneovertheother;itismerelyaquestionofwhethertheyarebestfedbytwinlead (balanced) or coax (unbalanced).Balun(balanced-to-unbalanced) transformers,whichwewilldiscuss later, aswell as transmatchescanbeused tomatchbalanced tounbalancedcircuitelements,andtomatchimpedances. What is thepenaltyformisbalancingthefeedpoint? Itmay cause someRF current toflowonthesurfaceofthefeedline,orsomestrayradiationfromthefeedpoint,producingsomedistortion in thepattern’s symmetry,affectinggainsomewhat.

Next Month The last part of this series.Choosing anantenna tomatch the task.Howabout acces-sories?Finaltake-homepoints.

usingavirtualserialport(VSP)driversoftwarepackage.Therearetwoprogramsavailable,de-pendingonyourcomputerplatform. vCOM is a virtual communications portthat onlyworks on theWindowsXPplatformand it isa32-bitapplication.Abetter softwarechoice (and it is free) isK5FR’sVSPmanager.This null-modememulator (VSPmanager) is a64and32-bitsignedkernel-modevirtualserialportdriver forallWindowspackages.YoucancreateanunlimitednumberofvirtualCOMportpairsanduseanypairtoconnectoneCOMport-basedapplicationtoanother.Thisprogram,andinstructionsforinstallationanduse,areavailablefordownloadingathttp://k5fr.com/ddutilwiki/index.php?title=VSP_Manager. The FLEX-3000 is an excellent unit fordigitalmodeoperations,butusingasoundcardandoperatingusingaFlexRadioRadioSDRisalittledifferentfromusingatraditionalanalogtransceiver.Theradiosoftwaredirectlyinteractswiththesoundcardbaseddigitalmodeprogram,sotheprimaryconcernishowdoyougettheaudiofromPowerSDRtothedigitalmodeprogramthatisrunningonthesamecomputer. Even though there are a couple ofwaysto accomplish this, themethod that FlexRadiorecommendsistheonethatIused.Itinvolvesthepurchaseanddownloadofathird-partysoftwarepackage–theVirtualAudioCableorVAC. VACcreatesapoint-to-pointconduitorau-diobridgewhereaudiosignalsthatenterintooneendofthe“cable”comeouttheotherend.Eachendofthe“cable”lookslikeasoundcarddeviceinWindows.So, to transferaudiosignals fromPowerSDRtoadigitalmodesoundcardprogram,wedefined two (2)VAC“cables,” one for thereceivedaudioandoneforthetransmittedaudio.Therefore,allyouneedtooperatedigitalmodewithPowerSDRandanyofFlexRadioSystemssoftwaredefinedradiosistoobtainalegalcopyofVAC. VACisathird-partyapplicationandisnotprovided byFlexRadioSystems as a standardcomponent of a software defined radio.ThissoftwarepackagemustbepurchaseddirectlyfromNTONYXby the user.You can find outmoreaboutVACandhowtopurchaseitfromtheirwebsiteathttp://software.muzychenko.net/eng/vac.html. Thebottomlineisthateachthirdpartydigi-tal/logging/contestprogramhasitsownmethodofCATcontrolandselectingtheCOMportandsoundcard.YouwillneedtodiginthebooksforyoursoftwareandthePowerSDRtoputevery-thinginorderandoperatedigitalmodeswithyourFLEX-3000.FlexRadiotechsupportcanprovidesomebasicsupportinthisregard,buttheycan’tprovideguidanceoneverysoftwarepackageoutthere.Patienceandagoodunderstandingofyoursoftwarepackagewillusuallyget the jobdoneandgetyouontheairdigitally. YoucangetdetailedinformationondigitaloperationswiththeFLEX-3000ontheFlexRa-dioSystemswebsiteintheKnowledgeCenterathttp://kc.flex-radio.com/KnowledgebaseCat-egory58.aspx.

❖ How did it perform? The reviewunit arrived just in time toput it on the air for theARRL InternationalSSB contest. Even though the FLEX-3000hasa100wattcontinuousdutytransmitter,Iespeciallyenjoyoperatingthe3000asa5wattsQRPentrantinthecontestandIknewthatthiswouldbeagood test for theFLEX-3000. Ifitperformedwellduringthisbusyhambandweekendatthelowendofthesunspotcycle,then itwouldbe awelcomeaddition to anyshackunderawidevarietyofconditions. In sum,withoneexception, IwasveryimpressedwiththeFLEX-3000undercontestconditions.The ability to implement awidevarietyoffiltercombinationsprovedinvalu-ableinpickingoutweakerstationswithsmallerpileupsthatallowedmetoworkthemusingmy5-wattpowerrequirement.TheotherpluswastheabilitytocustomizemytransmitaudiotocutthroughthepileupsandgetmyQRPsignalheard. Thefinalresultwas170stationsworkedand 108 foreignmultipliers counted on 15,20,40and80meters.Duringthepre-contestperiod,Iusedmytimetoexperimentwithawidevarietyof transmitaudiocombinationswithvariousDXCCstations.Audioandsignalreportswereexcellentineverycaseandmoststationswere quite surprised Iwas runningQRP. The only downside I foundwith theFLEX-3000waswiththeautomatictunerunit(ATU).Quitefrankly,itperformederraticallyallweekendlongwhencoupledwithmywireantennafarm.IwasconsistentlygettinghighSWRreadingsandmessagesrequiringmetobypassthetunerandusemymanualArmstrongMFJtuner. Once I realized that therewas an issuewiththeATUandIswitchedovertomyMFJantenna tuner,mycontest stationcount roseaccordingly.I am not the only person to note thisATUproblem.IthasbeenmentionedbymanyontheFlexRadionewsgroup.Accordingtocompanyofficials they have just finished a completere-writeof theATUsoftware. It is currentlyinbetatestandwillbeincludedintheirv2.0softwarereleasethatshouldbeavailablebythetimeyoureadthis.AccordingtoonecompanysourceearlytestingindicatestheproblemhasbeensolvedandtheATUoperationsarenow“amazing.” Bottomline,thisisagreatradioinreceive/transmitcapabilityforthemoney.FlexRadioSystems is a solid/dependable company andhasoneofthebesttechsupportteamsIhaveseeninalongtime.DudleyHurry,whoheadstheirtechsupport,isextremelyknowledgeableindividualandwasapleasuretoworkwith. The FlexRadio Systems FLEX-3000transceiversellsforaMSRPof$1699.00andisavailableonlineatthecompanywebsitewww.flex-radio.com. So, if you likeoperatingon the cuttingedgeoftechnology,theFLEX-3000transceiverisanaffordablesolutionthatwillletyouex-periencetheexcitementofsixmetersandHFradiolikenootherradioinitspriceclass.

All About Antennas continued from page 17