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Reviews For: Small Wonder Labs SW+ Series

Category: QRP Radios (5 watts or less)

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Review Summary For : Small Wonder Labs SW+ Series
Reviews: 63MSRP: 90.00
Description:
2-watt monoband superhet CW rig with varactor diode VFO
Product is not in production
More Info: http://smallwonderlabs.com/swl_swp.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00634.8
AE5KM Rating: 2009-01-15
Good kit to build, good manuals and works well Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I built this over the Christmas holidays and I've been tweaking it some. It was quite easy to build, it worked basically the first time. The instructions are good, and the results are good. I've even souped it up a little.

You can see what I did at http://mysite.verizon.net/tcminyard/SW40_work.html

Only one small problem, I'm getting a whistle at some frequencies. Not sure why, but it may not be happy about the wide tuning range I modified it to have.
K4ALE Rating: 2008-07-06
Another happy builder/user Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I just finished building this rig, had my first QSO with a great report, and wanted to add my comments. Mine is the 40m version: SW+40. I also get 3 watts out with no "rasp" on the CW tone, as monitored on my other rigs.

I have built a number of QRP rigs, and with the exception of the Elecraft KX-1, which is really in a different class, this is the best receiver. For a few more dollars over many of the other options, and little, if any, extra work, this mono-band rig is certainly worth the effort. I am NOT a technician, and so for those who aren't this is easily within reach. Take your time, and do the soldering carefully, as you must for any project. A little care will result in a rig, like mine, which worked first time.

I also strongly recommend the Small Wonder Labs enclosure, unless you are already a wiz at making your own--it bridges the gap between a good PCB and a completed project, when you really want it!

Look at the modifications on the Internet, but unless you are an advanced tinkerer, you won't need them. The details are quite nice: a hot and very tight receiver--the crystal filter really works very well, even on the crowded part of 40m; 3 watts is all you need for most QRP from a good antenna; the VXO tuning is quite effective, with the T-R switching and muting functions very effective; it has a small bit of sent signal in the rcvr, so side tone is heard while transmitting, and, alignment is easy without fancy gear, if you follow the instructions and be patient.

I took my time, watched movies while I worked over Fourth of July weekend, and did it all in a little over a day, including alignment.

As noted, in my experience, there are few rigs in this price range which will please you as much. The wait for the kit only adds to the pleasure. Go for it!
VK4JAZ Rating: 2008-05-18
The best kit by far! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
What a great little rig (with big performance). I am not a newcomer to kit building and think this is the best kit I have ever built and operated. What a marvelous receiver too. I operate mine at 3W and receive great sig reports. It never ceases to amaze me how good this rig is; I can almost hear the jaws dropping at the other end when I mention I am on only 3W. Thanks Dave for another great rig to add to my line-up.
PA3FUN Rating: 2008-04-27
Lots of FUN! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The SW+ can obviously not be compared to modern rigs like FT-950, IC-756 Pro III and alikes.
But when it comes to fun building your own radio and making qso's with it, the SW+-line from Smallwonderlabs is difficult to beat.
Excellent kit, superb PCB and very clear and understandable building instructions.
The fact that the SW+ line does not contain smd-parts makes it even more attractive for both the newby and those who have to get used to wearing glasses when building a kit ;).
To Dave: congratulations for a good job well done. Keep up the good work!
WA6OUW Rating: 2008-03-19
A real performer Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Kit Builders solder and assembly service has built two SW-40's and one SW-20 over the last 5 years. They have been used during portable operations with a Gel Cell and in the shack at home on a beam. The one thing that everyone seems to overlook is that the majority of all young radio operators start out with a piece of older used gear because it's affordable. When you can get on the air with a new piece of equipment for under one hundred dollars that performs this well, it changes all the rules for the beginner.
GM0ELP Rating: 2008-01-02
Small Marvel Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Like:
Support from Yahoo group and Dave himself
PCB quality and layout
Clear instructions
Sensitive RX
No TX drift
Value for money
Elmer 101

Would like:
RIT (as standard)
AGC (manual gain control provided)
Volume control (preset volume means you need vol control on headphones)

I was supplied with 1 wrong part, but with the help of the support group I managed to identify the problem quickly.

Had great fun building it and learnt a few things along the way. The result is a capable 80m QRP CW TRX with QSK. Thanks to Dave and SWL for this small marvel.
VE7AJJ Rating: 2007-03-30
Fun QRP Rig Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Earlier this month I built the SW 40+, cw transceiver. Following the advise of others that posted on here I took my time and double checked each step. That patience approach was rewarded by the rig working from the first go. As mention else where, it covers about 35 khz when built as is but I wanted more band coverage so added a capacitor (to the underside of the board for ease of change) and wound up with 70 khz of tuning range. With a big knob, it is no trick to lock onto a signal.

The little receiver easily competes with my Kenwood or Yaesu, anything I can hear on them, I can hear with this rig.

I have no watt meter to measure power at that level so I simply connected my meter between the power source and the rig to measure current draw and did the calculations from that. I set the power adjustment at 4.5 watts input which I expect should be giving me about 3 watts out. The meter on my MFJ tuner indicates that 3 watts might be a reasonable guess, as I don’t expect any great accuracy from it at that power level.

My eyes are not up to the small markings on the components but that was easily solved by wearing a flip-up magnifier that allowed me to check my solder joints and gave a clear view of what I was doing although I had to work more closely to the board then I was used too.

I haven’t made a great lot of contacts with it yet but I attribute that to the antenna and some lousy band conditions. I am in the process of building a ½ wave vertical and tuner just now to overcome that handicap. When you have only three watts or so you want to get as much of it in the air as you can and using a vertical with poor ground just isn’t the way to accomplish that.

Garry Ve7ajj
KG4RND Rating: 2007-03-16
Great kit building experience! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I recently purchased and built the SW40 cw transceiver. That's the first transceiver kit I have ever built. Today i made my first contact with it. 1.5 watts to lake city, Fl. I must say Dave has been extremely helpful. When i had a couple of small problems he responded promptly to my emails. When I needed potentiometers that I couldn't get locally he supplied them at cost. Excellent service. Being the first transceiver kit I have built I was nervous. But the manual was extremely detailed and following the directions i had it assembled very quickly 5-10 hrs. Alignment was a snap. Thinking about buying a SW20 now. I would definatelly recommend this kit to the first time builder. One thing, when you receive the kit you have to have access to a computer to print off the manual. A minor inconvenice for me as at the time i didn't have a computer. Other than that I have nothing to complain about. I really enjoyed the kit and the service was great.
KC9CS Rating: 2007-01-02
QRO fun with QRP!! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Yep...BIG fun with a QRP signal. I built the SW+ 20 after building a 40m Rock-Mite, thinking it to be the natural progression in kit building. It was. More parts, more capability from the rig. I built the SW+ 20m very, very methodically. Call it disciplined. Checked all the parts against the kit listing, sorted them all and placed them in egg cartons marked according to the individual values of capacitance, resistance, etc. but more so that I didn't mix anything up. I also did as the manual states and copied the parts placement diagram and checked each part placement as it was done. It also helps to copy the parts list and staple them back to back so that you can refer to it during construction. With my slow and deliberate construction the kit was completed in two evenings, call it about 6 total hours including getting the kit into a tiny cabinet I drilled and made decals for. No problems with the end result, it worked from the initial 'smoke' test flawlessly. Within minutes I had the little rig aligned for peak signal, you transmit and find the initial signal with your "big rig", then add one capacitor to place your 30-40khz band of operation, twiddle a couple of tuning capacitors to peak your output signal (again watching your signal strength on your 'big rig' receiver S-meter, or use a tiny wattmeter like I did) and peak one more tuning transformer for received signal strength, and you're on the air. It didn't take long to start making contacts and I'm sure I was grinning like a Cheshire cat. What a thrill to complete a nifty little radio like this, hear it come to life with amazing sensitivity in reception, and then pounce upon a CQ CQ call and hear your call come back! My tiny NoGaWatt wattmeter tells me I'm getting just a tiny bit over 2 watts out on this radio, plenty enough to get heard since I feed the signal into a 3 element Yagi at 60 feet. Would I purchase another from Small Wonder Labs is the question and the proof of satisfaction with my experience with the SW+ 20m version? I already have! Weeks after the 20m was complete I had the 40m version in hand and completion there was just as before, although I felt the 40m was a bit more finicky on final alignment. Still, after a bit of 'twiddling', checking the circuit, looking for solder bridges, etc. something 'clicked' and I was hearing a myriad of CW signals where I had been hearing only the big shortwave stations prior. Can't tell you what changed but perhaps in checking over the soldering with a hot iron and making certain there were no 'cold' looking solder joints, the rig was behaving great. Again, QSO's were amazingly easy. I'd highly recommend Small Wonder's SW+ Series, the kit experience is very satisfying and you'll get a nifty little rig to make contacts with. For the tiny investment in cost, the return is huge. Current pricing is $55, and when you consider the hours of fun you'll have and compare it to say...a couple of movie theater outings...well you get the idea. Not only is the entire process fun, it's a learning experience too. Do it.

KC9CS
W2GW Rating: 2006-12-28
These little QRP rigs are great! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I just finished my third SW+ transceiver, this one for 30 meters. I also have the 40 and 20 meter versions. Each one is installed in a nice black and grey TenTec aluminum box that measures about 4" by 3 1/4" by 3". To say that I enjoy building these rigs is an understatement.

If you like to operate QRP portable with a rig that you built yourself, like I do, then an SW+ is a good way to go.

The receiver's sensitivity and selectivity are certainly up to the task, as is the transmitter's 2 watts output. I don't find the 35kc coverage any handicap either. Most QRP buffs like to operate "up the band" a bit on 20 and 40 anyway. On 30, my SW+ covers from 10.100 Mhz to 10.135 Mhz._ more than enough.

John, W2GW