QRP Corner

de WT9S

QRP? What the heck is that? It's the name we hams use for operation at output powers of less than 5 watts. Operating QRP can be as simple as turning the power down on a commercial rig (some require modification to do this). But a lot of QRP'ers like to build their own. Some build from kits, where parts and a printed circuit board are supplied, and some build from scratch, gathering the parts, making a PCB, or using "ugly" construction. I've built quite a few kits recently, but have yet to jump off the deep end into building from scratch.


Here's a closer look at one of the kits I've built. It's the DSW-20, from Small Wonder Labs. It's a digitally synthesized rig, with a built in keyer, audio frequency readout (via Morse code), and an output power of around 2 watts. All these snazzy features are controlled by a PIC microprocessor.