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Author Topic: Ten Tec Rebel  (Read 33801 times)

W0WCA

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Ten Tec Rebel
« on: May 18, 2014, 03:07:01 AM »

I didn’t see this forum ‘till this morning and I’m glad to see it! 
My latest project was the purchase of a Ten Tec Rebel two weeks ago.  This is a bare bones but capable QRP CW rig out of the box.  I am no programmer but did manage to upload an open source program that has enhanced the radio with a nice iambic keyer and several other niceties.  In trying to get an LCD to work with the rig/software I am slowly beginning to understand the whole programming environment.  I suspect the Rebel will hold my interest for quite some time!  The price is right; try one, you’ll like it!   
And, I am not associated with Ten Tec - but I DO like their stuff!
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KG4RUL

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #1 on: May 18, 2014, 06:46:03 AM »

Very neat idea on TenTec's part!  Essentially a shield, which is the RF side of a CW transceiver, married to an Arduino UNO.

http://www.tentec.com/rebel-model-506-open-source-qrp-cw-transceiver/

Take a look at the product photos.
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AE4RV

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #2 on: May 19, 2014, 12:07:56 PM »

That is very cool!
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K4JK

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #3 on: May 20, 2014, 06:19:23 AM »

Glad to see this platform gaining interest.

I helped hack together the Rebel alliance SW and moved onto other projects but am thinking of getting back into working on it some.

If you're using the Rebel Alliance software here is a short manual Johan, PA3ANG put together.:

http://pa3ang.nl/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/RebelAllianceMod-v1.0-Manual.pdf

In it are descriptions for how the keyer works, the beacon, and the other features. It also has a description for building the bandswitching board and the morse decoder.


In related news, Ten Tec also introduced the "Patriot", which is based on the same idea as the rebel but has a sound board so it is SSB and Digital Modes capable.

It hasn't hit the street yet but I think it was demoed at Dayton.

If you have any questions about the Rebel Alliance SW or the Rebel I'll try to answer them.

Not affiliated with Tec Tec, I just like working on open source projects and find the Rebel to be an interesting platform.
« Last Edit: May 20, 2014, 06:28:25 AM by K4JK »
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MEKONGRF

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #4 on: December 08, 2014, 07:09:32 PM »

Sorry for waking up an old topic.

The Rebel - which is controlled by the Arduino microprosessor - uses 5 jumpers (open the box and change by hand) for band shift. Why did they not use PIN-diodes or small relays ? Any guesses?

Thanks.
Roy

PS I have seen Ten Tec (the company) answer in the Patriot topic, so I hope they see this post.
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RF Tinkerer. AG7CK.

N3QE

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #5 on: December 11, 2014, 04:14:06 AM »

Sorry for waking up an old topic.

The Rebel - which is controlled by the Arduino microprosessor - uses 5 jumpers (open the box and change by hand) for band shift. Why did they not use PIN-diodes or small relays ? Any guesses?

There's a long tradition of not having "deluxe" bandswitching in high-performance portable QRP rigs.

Keeping 5 small 12VDC relays on, or 5 PIN diodes biased on would've added more DC current drain traditionally something to be avoided in battery-power-market QRP rigs. Not so noticeable in a desktop rig's overall power consumption.

Latching relays exist but are substantially more bucks.

I've always been a little surprised that e.g. HW-8 went as far as having 4 bands. The "Heath mechanical construction style" did accomodate multi-pole one-of-N pushbuttons, but few (no?) modern kits are mechanically designed with such contraptions. You gotta appreciate the mechanical design effort it takes to bandswitch a 60's or 70's rig from the front panel!

Tim.
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MEKONGRF

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RE: Ten Tec Rebel
« Reply #6 on: December 11, 2014, 04:38:45 AM »

Thanks.

I know that tradition (jumpers, boards like Sierra, plug ins as in Scout?). And the K1 has latching relays ...

Anyway, I have learned that the 507 Patriot will have processor (Arduino) controlled band switch, so I will buy that one. I am not a ham - I just listen to CW and QRN (music  ;D ). Most important for me is RF tinkering. So the Patriot is a good project for me to do both HW (4-6 bands) and SW modifications on.

Roy
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RF Tinkerer. AG7CK.
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