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You can
write your own review of the VK5JST Aerial Analyzer.
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VK2VE
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 31, 2007 06:09
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Great little Unit
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Just finished the unit a couple of days ago after having the kit sitting here for a few months awaiting the time to put it together. It went together very well. Only minor complaint is that the spacing used on the bannana sockets was not the standard 3/4" used on almost all similar equipment. I'll probably change them for a BNC soon, anyhow. Works well and will be a great adjunct to the test gear here.
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VK3PE
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Rating: 5/5
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May 20, 2007 18:14
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exccellent
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Just finished building my Analyser. I purchased a PCB and PIC and used the junkbox etc for the rest of the parts. All went together easily although i had problems with final output level. Could not get the 3v p-p. Double checked everything and could not find problems. Finally I found that the PN2222 transistors i used had a reverse pinout to that shown in the instructions! Turned them around and no more problems. Now I need to do some serious antenna building after more than 10 years inactive on the bands.
Glenn VK3PE
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VK5HPC
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 31, 2007 20:45
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Highly recomended
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I have now built two of these analysers, one for myself & one for my AR club. Provided you have some experience in constructing electronic projects you will not have trouble, but you must take things slowly & think about what you are doing & you won't go wrong. Once built, they are easy to calibrate & set up. I modified mine with a set of 10 2400Ma/Hr NiMh
"AA" cells & external charge jack, as it tends to be heavy on the batteries. I have used it to set up & wire dipoles, OCF's, a Buddipole & my Hustler 5BTV at my QTH with excellent results. Good work, Jim !
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G8OFZ
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 4, 2007 12:18
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Great kit, Excellent value for money, fun to build!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Hi, I actually found out about the VK5JST Analyser whilst idly trawling through analyser reviews on this site.
I followed up the links and had to have one - purchased on line. It arrived at my door in the UK six days later, complete down to the last nut & bolt. It was easy to construct and measures everything that matters. Many of the commercial offerings purport to measure this & that but they are just playing with algorithms based on assumptions that may not be correct.
Jim, this is an out & out winner and fantastic value for money!
The PICAXE X28 coming fully loaded was a real bonus.
If you want an Antenna Analyser for HF and don't want to be ripped off, this is for you.
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TK5EP
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 3, 2007 03:05
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A bargain !
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Hi all, i also order this analyser in kit and i must say it is a real bargain for this price !
No parts missing, easy assembly and a fun to use.
I can only recommand it !
73, Patrick
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VK2FNET
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 4, 2007 05:06
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Great device at a good price!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Got this device via mail order.
Worked first go (actually i thought it didn't work, before i realized the brightness pot was turned down).
Almost all parts were supplied, i had to buy a few more IC sockets to sit all the ICs for a few cents which is about my only complaint.
I went with the banana plugs opposed to installing an SO-239 connector directly like another reviewer did, so i can make adapters to fit different connectors (PL-259, Type-N, BNC, etc).
I haven't owned an MFJ to compare it to, but reading the reviews regarding their build quality i am happy with my purchase.
Tuned a quad loop with it today and it was resonant first go. :)
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VK5ZG
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 18, 2006 04:45
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Hard to beat at any price
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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This would have to be one of the finest pieces of test gear that you can by for the price. For that matter, you could spend considerably more, and not get any better performance.
One thing that needs to be pointed out is that this is not a kit for the first time builder. It requires a resonable level of ability with respect to electronic assembly, and mechanical dexterity.
Compared to the MFJ 259 unit, which I have been able to compare side by side, the VK5JST analyser is more accurate, has less drift and is a lot cheaper.
To sum up, this is one of those rare products that come along every so often, that provide exceptional performance and well priced.
Not to mention that Jim, VK5JST is a great bloke too.
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VK3YAZ
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 26, 2006 00:28
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How did we manage without it !!
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Take care and the kit goes together easily. The holes in the PCB need to be drilled larger to fit some components such as the Regulator and variable capacitor. The LCD panel should be masked off and painted matt back beforehand. The LCD can be glued into the case and connected to the PCB with rainbow ribbon. Forget about using the banana plug sockets and fit a SO239 socket. Note the differences in the setup voltages given in the instructions. The extra switch position can be used for a 24-60MHz range. On this top frequency range there will some residual impedance in the circuit making the readings slightly inaccurate but it is still useful once the error is noted with a calibration resistor. The oscillator is stable and can be used a signal source but requires a steady hand on the fine tuning control.
Overall it is an extremely useful tool that can save many hours of SWR measurments. Check and record your antenna impedance over the whole HF band and you might find some extra bands available! Having the impedance recorded you can detect any degradation over time. You will quickly wonder how you managed without it.
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VK6XH
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 21, 2006 03:38
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Amazing
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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A couple of friends owned one , I used an Autek RF-1 for many years and had good results, but this is a better unit to use .
You can buy the unit assembled for $aus 200 from the Club or build it yourself.
I compared the results of my unit with the plots done of my antenna by a friend with a Rhode & Shwartz $25,000 analyser and achieved almost identical results .
I recommend it 100%
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ZL2TTM
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 15, 2006 22:56
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Brilliant
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I got this as a kit from Australia. All the bits were there and it went together easily. You can pretty much see from the picture what it does. Since the code is in pic basic and you can get the editor and downloader free, it is easy to make changes as some have done and added features. For the money it is fantastic. If you want to make one yourself you can get the pcb board only or just download the data and start yourself.
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