Studio 'A' @ WB4IUY/AC4QD

These are pictures of the primary operating position and station equipment here. Most of it has many years of use, but is still good gear. I'm able to work about anything I can hear, and usually cut through most DX pileups without much trouble. The pic on the right is fairly current (2014)...if you click on the following links, you'll see older pics. I only wish I had taken pics of my various station setups since 1974...   2008   1996

The main table was built for me back around 1992 by a good friend and ham, Glen Speight KD4BSP. He built this on the spot, from a sheet of 3/4" plywood, some 2x4's, and a sheet of formica covering. It is very sturdy and has been in service in my hamshack ever since! The upper shelving is your typical wall-mounted type from the local Home Depot. Glen is a professional interior trim carpenter, and this hamshack table looks better than anything I could have bought...not to mention that it was custom built to meet my needs.

Studio A Webcam

This is a psudo live video feed from Studio A, when I put it on the air from time to time. It's not always on, but check back and watch for it, as I do let it run quite a lot. It's a low bitrate feed with no audio, so it's easy on my internet service. it essentially snaps a pic every 30 seconds and updates my webpage automagically.

You can also click the links below the video window and see some of my other cam feeds as extracted from some of my security cams around the property.

Most of these cams are the little cheapie internet chat cams that can be bought for under $20.

ICOM IC-756

This is one of the older IC-756's, not a "Pro" model. I bought this rig back in 1996, and it has been a great rig. It's one of the 756's that had the display problem that Icom doesn't support nor can provide repairs for. I was able to locate a replacement front panel from another ham who was parting out a rig that had been struck by lighting, so the display is good as new again. Otherwise, I've been very happy with this rig. I was able to locate an AM filter (I work AM on some of the HF bands) for the receiver, and have modified the processor and low pass filter to add 60m operation. It's very stable, has great RX sensitivity and selectivity, and is a dream to operate. I use Ham Radio Deluxe to operate it remotely, and use a BuxComm Rascal to interface the audio chain to the shack computer. For AM operation, I built an external power control that connects to the ALC input, and this greatly reduces the heat generated on AM while allowing the transmitter to 'upward modulate' and sound much cleaner as a result. You can see this mod HERE.

- Mod to clean up AM TX
- 1st display replacement and basic 60m mods
- Part 2 of 60m mods
- CIV repairs
- W2ENY AM Fiilter
- Operating AM
- ATU repairs
- Aftermarket Display Transplant

Controlling the ICOM IC-756

I use a free and VERY powerful software package to control my IC-756 called Ham Radio Deluxe. It will control most functions of the radio, adds MANY features that the radio didn't come with like favorites, remote connectivity, the ability to work many of the popular digital modes found on the bands, and much more. They have an awesome user support network and discussion forum powered by actual users of the software. I wish I'd switched to this many years ago!

Buxcomm Rascal Interface

I've said this before, but I'll say it again... the best $50 I've _EVER_ spent on my shack was when I bought a Rascal Soundcard/Rig Interface from Buxcomm. I had never even heard PSK31 or other digital modes of that sort... When the Rascal came in the mail to me, I had it opened, installed, and making my first contact on the air in less than 30 minutes. It was a beautifully simple plug and play operation, and came with all cables and software needed to get it up in running in just minutes. You can find it on Buxcomm Communications' website at http://www.buxcomm.com/. It doesn't get any easier or less expensive to get on the digital modes than this! I've also made a mod to the Rascal for keyed CW, so I wouldn't have to change cables when I operated in CW (not MCW) mode. I've posted info and a drawing about this on the site, and you can see it by clicking HERE.

Buxcomm Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- Lightning Damage to the Buxcomm

For the Rascal CW Mod, click HERE. For the Rascal Remote Operation, click HERE.

Yaesu FT-901DE

I bought this old rig back around 1992, in need of much TLC. It had been owned by a CB'er who changed crystals in the 10m band to 11m, turned every slug in the radio with metallic tools and cracked them, and otherwise butchered the radio. I bought it for nearly nothing, and took it on as a project radio. it was a fun job, and I was able to totally restore it to it's original operations and performance. It is a permanent fixture in my shack, and I use it frequenctly on 20m RTTY and 75/40m phone operations. You can see it in this pic with a JPS NIR-10 DSP audio filter. I modified the audio path to include a pair of pigtails to plug into the JPS NIR-10 DSP unit, so the audio to the external speaker and headphone jacks would be processed.

I acquired a FV-101DM remote VFO that was a good cosmetic match for the FT-901. This is not a plug-amd-play accessory for the FT-901, but I did develop a modification to interface it to the 901. You can see the detailed instructions for this mod on my website HERE.

FT-901 Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- FT-901 Back On The Air!!
- Fitting the 101 VFO to the 901...

JPS NIR-10

This is a great DSP noise reduction unit from now defunct JPS communications. I use it on my older rigs to 'modernize' them, and it does a good job of audio noise reduction.

JPS ANC-4

This is the analog noise cancellation system that was built in Raleigh NC by JPS communications. It surfaced a few years later under a host of other names. Debbie bought me one of these back in the early 90's as a gift for the shack, and it works magic on extranious noise like that from an electric fence, noisy power lines, noise from flat screen TV's, etc.

ANC-4 Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- ANC-4 Finally Repaired!

Kenwood TS-120

I acquired this rig back around 1991, and it was loaded with problems. Someone had tinkered in the balanced modulator section of the transmitter, damaging the circuit board and swapping parts with incorrect components. I obtained a manual, and started to work. I finally got it repaired, and use it as a backup HF rig now. I plan to put this rig mobile and do a bit of HF from the trunk.

Ameritron AL-82

I bought this Ameritron AL-82 amplifier from good friend and owner of Omega Electronics, Bill Edwards K4BWC (now SK) back around 1998. It has been a great addition to my shack, and has run trouble-free ever since the first day it was switched "on". It runs a pair of 3-500 tubes and handles most of the amplification chores around WB4IUY. I've run it very hard on RTTY, FM, AM, and several of the digital modes...not to mention SSB. I can't say enough good stuff about this amp! I recently did a bit of work on the amp. You can see it in the [WORKSHOP] -PROJECTS- section or by clicking HERE.

ICOM IC-211

This is my VHF SSB rig, and is of approximately 1978 vintge. It's fairly stable, and has a decent receiver. Since it only produces about 10 watts, I use it with an old 50 watt amp by Vocom to get a decent signal up the feedline. I've added an old Motorola receive preamp to the Vocom to spice up the IC-211's receive sensitivity. It works pretty good, was VERY inexpensive, and has made contacts from Canada to the Florida Keys on 2m SSB.

The early IC-211's don't have a squelch for SSB. They have a squelch, but it's only for FM operations. I made a very simple for a fairly effective squelch on my rig. Click HERE to get the info on that easy old school mod...

2M SSB Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- Repairing the IC-211 Receiver, 2015
- Repairing the IC-211 Receiver, 2018

Yaesu Memorizer

This is another oldie but goldie. I originally bought it from a local shop as a project rig...it had a bunch of problems, but was only $10, so I took it on as a project radio. After repairing it's ailments, I connected it to a TNC and set it up to run on APRS. It's been running APRS 24/7 non-stop ever since about 1995.

DC Power Supplies

No shack is complete without some serious DC power. I use a pair of supplies for this task, for additional current and redundancy in my setup. If one blows, I'm still on the air! I use an Astron 35 amp supply (1st pic), and a Pyramid 26 amp supply (2nd pic).

DC Power Supply Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- Converting Computer Power Supplies

Turning Things (newest) ...

This unit replaced my 21 year old Alliance HD-73 in 2014. This is the Hy-Gain TailTwister T-2X w/DCU-1 digital controller. It is such an awesome controller... it has RS-232 capability for remote control, braking delay with a wedge brake, programmable headings, and is a powerful beast! With over 83 ft/lbs of torque, it can handle arrays with over 20 sq/ft of wind load and over 750 ft/lbs of braking. More rotor than I could ever over load!

Turning Things (oldest) ...

When I put my tower up back in 1993, I didn't have much money for a rotator. I bought a super-cheapie rotator, thinking that I'd just use it for a short time and replace it with a nice rotator when it burned out (which I was sure it was going to do!). I WAY-overloaded the rotator with a stack of yagi antennas (Cushcraft A3S Tribander, Cushcraft 5 el 6m Yagi, a pair of 17B3 17 element 2m yagi's, and a dual band vertical on top of it all. Well, up until I pulled it out of service in 2014, it's STILL turning without problems! The rotator is an Alliance HD-73, and I could NEVER say anything bad about this beast...it's been frozen in ice storms, struck by lightning, ignored for maintenance, etc. I finally retired it in early 2014, and it still works. I'm servicing this this baby and keeping it as a backup rotator!

Rotator Related Posts on WB4IUY.BLOGSPOT.COM

- Light Duty Rotator, No Problem!
- HD-73 Parts Needed

Daiwa CN-101 Cross Needle Wattmeter

This Daiwa CN-101 Cross Needle Wattmeter is for watching my HF transmitters. All of my HF transmitters are routed through this wattmeter, as the output from the AL-82 is plumbed directly to it first, then on to a commercial low pass filter, and on to the main antenna switch. It is another 'hamfest special', and has done a good job in the shack since sometime around 1995.