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Reviews For: MFJ-9232 QRP LOOP TUNER

Category: Antennas: HF: Verticals; Wire; Loop

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Review Summary For : MFJ-9232 QRP LOOP TUNER
	Reviews: 6	MSRP: $59.95
	Description: The MFJ-9232 Mini Loop Tuner is a small, versatile, high- efficiency device that turns any wire loop into a high- efficiency multi-band transmitting antenna system. It is designed for 50-ohm use at QRP- power input on all modes. Tiny QRPocket Loop Antenna makes portable operation truly portable and fun! No ground needed! This high-efficiency loop covers 40-10 Meters with included flexible wire loop. Handles 25 Watts. Has BNC connector for transmitter, two wing nut posts for loop wire connections, tuning/matching capacitors.
	Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Product.php?productid=MFJ-9232
# last 180 days	Avg. Rating last 180 days	Total reviews	Avg. overall rating
0	0	6	4

AE7TO	Rating:	2022-10-16
Fun way to operate QRP from hotel room or picnic table			Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This thing is the heart of my most compact travel station. I use a 5 or so foot diameter loop of 6 AWG stranded copper automotive wire, and a loop support & tripod made from wood dowels and 3D printed parts. It all breaks down to easily fit in my luggage. And with that setup I can tune the 60, 40, 30, and 20 meter bands from a hotel room or picnic table. As others have said, this thing is tricky to tune. The best approach I have found is to connect a graphical antenna analyzer and tune the dip in SWR to your operating frequency. When you find TUNE and MATCH settings for each band, write them down. Then you can quickly redial those numbers each time, and touch up the knob settings with the analyzer. I'm planning to put larger knobs on the capacitors, since the tiniest rotation can jump by tens of KHz. For a multiband setup, you can use a loop circumference just under 1/4 wavelength for the highest frequency and still tune a band or two lower (with lower radiation efficiency at those lower frequencies). My loop circumference is about 15ft, and this morning I had no trouble sending Winlink emails on the 20m and 40m bands using only 4 and 7 watts of tx power respectively (with RMS nodes 957 and 131 km away).

K2GK	Rating:	2021-01-31
A-OK			Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Revised 4 years later. Still in my "Batman Utility Belt" Remember it's for 1-25 watts. Small learning curve to tune it well. It takes a little practice with little bits of turns and best when you tune to loudest and strongest signals. After that you will love it. Best radio fun you can get for $60 bucks. And it really works as a good antenna.No counterpoise just mount it with enough wire to resonate the band you want to work and enjoy the QRP. I sit down at a table in the park with my QRP radio, attach the box and copper wire in a circular config (With PVC support) tune for highest rec signal and I'm off and running. Check the Facebook group "Ham Radio Outdoors" for their pictures and first hand use of it. Yes I'd buy another if this one broke. k2gk

AE5VM	Rating:	2019-03-11
Patience			Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had this 2 yrs ago and set it up with PVC. It is a bit tricky when tuning. I like to use different antennas when I'm portable. MP1, Endfed as well.. I would use the QRP loop antenna again

K2FI	Rating:	2017-10-21
A nice addition to your QRP toolbox			Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
The MFJ-9232 is a fun and inexpensive way to experiment with loop antennae with a couple of caveats. First, the supplied wire probably won't tune on any band as it is. That said, it's very easy to experiment with different wire lengths. I've been very successful with a 10' length of RG-8 on a PVC frame tuning 40 to 15. One length of wire may not be good for all bands so you might want to experiment with different lengths. #10 wire is fine as well, so don't be afraid to play around. One major caveat is that loops are tricky to tune. If you have problems with fine motor skills, you're going to be frustrated. Tune to each band with the left knob, and then fine tune with the right; you likely won't need to touch the left within the band unless you're doing something like the bottom end of the CW portions of the band to the top end of the SSB portions. Receive sensitivity is good. I pick up much less noise than I do on my other portable antennae. And as a loop, it's directional, so you'll want to aim it accordingly. The other caveat is that the tuner is designed for QRP power levels. You likely won't be busting through any big pileups, even if the signal sounds crystal clear. Still, those are minor. If you're a QRP enthusiast, especially if you operate portably, this is well worth having in your arsenal.

KE0NAZ	Rating:	2017-07-12
Interesting at least			Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Lets start with ; I am a new tech. KE0NAZ. I watched several videos about mag loops and thought - this could be for me. I purchased from Gigaparts and received it pretty fast from them. Packed well and no issues. I paid around 70 including shipping. I read the reviews here before I buy so I was aware the supplied antenna wire was not a good choice. So I went to Home Depot and got bare copper 10 gauge. I even got some PVC to make a frame. Construction was pretty easy , and I was confident it would be ok. I don't think the ear ball method of tuning is very good. So I used a meter. With 50 feet of coax (gasp!) my VSWR was really high on 10 meters with the recommended wire length of 4 feet (as per directions from manufacturer). Like around 6.6 to 1. After much reading I went to 6 feet of 10 gauge copper wire. Still high but a lot lower now, 3.6 to 1. Soooo.. 7 feet of 10 gauge wire. I came in around 1.36 to 1. I went to Wally World, purchased a hula hoop with no metal tape or fancy lights , and wrapped the wire around it to make a somewhat stable loop. I use a Savage 13 foot tripod and Velcro and some spare PVC pipe and I have a portable QRP loop for my FT817ND. So far Im just fishing for QSO's but it seems to work well... I would buy again just for the experience of " building " my own antenna. Never did that before. worth the 70 bucks to me anyway ... 73's..KE0NAZ..

NE8U	Rating:	2016-04-05
Amazing for such a small setup!			Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
While it comes with some small-gauge wire for the loop, everything I read (to include the MFJ-9232 manual) says to use at least 10 gauge wire. I found a 10 foot length of #8 gauge wire at the local big-box store and bought it for $6. Picked up some 3/4 inch PVC while I was there to make a frame for the wire. The heavier gauge wire makes it easier to properly shape the loop, and it should conduct better. I connected everything up and set my radio to 20 meters. Tuning the antenna isn't hard; follow the directions in the manual to "ear-ball" tune. Make small moves and listen for an increase in background noise followed by a rapid fall-off. Peak the noise. Do the same with the matching knob, going back-and-forth with the tune to peak. I checked my "ear-ball" tune with an SWR meter and was usually quite close. After some practice, "ear-balling" seems to work fine without using a meter, though the meter helps get it exact. Reception was great! I heard stations from all four corners of the Continental US, as well as Alaska, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. Transmitting wasn't bad, considering I was operating SSB QRP (5 watts). I made two contacts, one about 1000 miles away and the other over 800. All while sitting in my garage. Is it as good as a properly installed and tuned dipole or a 60 foot directional? Of course not. But I need something I can set up on my condo balcony while on vacation and have some fun, and this certainly meets my requirements. Some pointers: While the manual mentions clipping the wire to a curtain or draping over a bookcase - Don't! I could never get it to tune properly when it was up against objects like walls. Hence, the free-standing PVC frame. Moving the loop outside or even just away from the walls while inside will improve performance considerably. The tuning is fairly sharp, so you may have to re-tune as you move through the band.

Category:

Antennas: HF: Verticals; Wire; Loop

Product:

MFJ-9232 QRP LOOP TUNER

Summary:

Rating:	Time Owned:
Great! Good OK Needs Help Poor Awful!	0 - 3 Months 3 - 6 Months 6 - 12 Months More than 12 Months

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