| N0AN |
Rating:      |
2007-09-29 | |
| Outstanding! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
After having two different brand new KPC-3+s spit out (receive) garbage after 3 days on 144.390, I decided to give the TNC-X a try. I ordered 3 of them, assembled and tested (based on the very favorable reviews on eham).
I changed nothing in my setup (agwpe pro)and installed two of the TNC-X units. Both have worked PERFECTLY with no receiver garbling after a week solid. Excellent reliability.
Service: Excellent in that shipping was timely, emails were responded to.
Build Quality: Very impressive, solid construction, very good soldering and neat wiring.
TNC Performance: Super! It receives everything my prior TNCs (including Paccomm Tiny2, MFJ 1270 with DCD Mod, and KPC-3+)did. As previously noted, it did not garble packets after 2 or 3 days of continuous operation like the KPC-3+'s did (and I confirmed that other stations are having similar problems in our area with the same TNC in KISS mode). Full non-squelched receive operation is a plus. No problems noted on transmit. I didn't even have to change my transmit audio level.
This TNC is being used heavily, as it runs a full-service wideN-N digi on aprs, UI-View32, and ISS software on another TNC-X.
Setup: Very easy in my case as all I did was cut a network cable in half and wired three necessary wires (Blue = Ground, Blue/White = PTT, Green/White = Tx Audio)for the Kenwood TM-271a to a pre-made stereo mini cable.(Tip = Tx Audio, Ring = PTT, Braid = Ground.) It couldn't have been easier.
Summary:
Excellent service, quality construction, very fair price (even for assembly and testing), FANTASTIC performance.
Caveat: The coaxial power jack is not one I'm used to seeing. It was different that all the other TNC's and other devices I had around the house. A power connector WAS NOT PROVIDED (it would be a good idea to provide one with assembled kits). I found Wal-Mart universal supplies that had 6 or 7 connectors and one of them did fit.
Service Over and Above the Call:
When I contacted John about the connector he noted that there is no standard for the power connector that he could adhere to, so he just picked one and that is what he uses. He said he thought about going to the one used for the FT-817, PK-232, KPC3, and a few others (they are all the same), but it would cause his existing customers problems). He then sent me (FREE), 3 of the right size plugs, which I got in two days. Now that's service!
p.s. Current draw of the TNC-X is about 30 ma, so little universal supplies will run several. I cut off the connector on my Wal-Mart special (300 ma.), and it is running 3 TNC-X's just fine.
Congratulations to John Hansen for a fine product and outstanding service at a VERY fair price. |
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| W0PM |
Rating:      |
2007-09-12 | |
| FANTASTIC Product! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| I won't go into all of the details about the quality of the circuit board, etc., since others here have already done that. What I will say is that this TNC is fantastic, especially when considering the price. It works great. The only thing that could stand improvement are the instructions....they are a bit vague in a few places. But, other than that, I can't find anything 'wrong' with it at all. Since that's the case, I still give it a 5/5. I couldn't be happier. |
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| NR1X |
Rating:      |
2007-08-18 | |
| great kit, service #1!!!! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| This is a great product, and if any problems or questions arise John Hansen is there to help!! after building the kit i hooked it up and it worked great, for a few days..then it had a problem.After hours of head scratching, I sent john an email. He returned my email immediately and took great care to assure that I was completely satisfied.. i forget the exact cost but i know that it was half that of other tncs. and would venture to guess that the others dont give the same costomer care!!!if you are new to packet and want a less expensive option, this is it.. Great kit for anyone,even a novice like my self. i recomend this product to all.. everyone should have a tnc-x.Its expandable too, digipeter board and gps interface!! for the price you cant go wrong and i didnt.. |
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| N9PUZ |
Rating:      |
2007-06-21 | |
| Outstanding Value |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I recently set up a TelPac node at my home and when I went to build up a portable station for testing found out that my 2nd TNC was dead. Based on other reviews and the available USB option I purchased the TNC-X and was not disappointed. Nice quality PCB and case. The one SMT part is pre-mounted. Everything worked the first time. I did not notice any of the ommisions noted in other reviews so it looks like the manufacturer listens to the customers and continuously improves the product. Oh, by the way, earlier mention was made of drilling holes. They are all pre-drilled now including the hole for the USB connector.
I'm using my TNC-X w/USB in conjunction with Paclink AGW and Paclink Postoffice to access my TelPac node for access to the Winlink 2000 system for e-mail. |
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| WA0TTN |
Rating:      |
2007-04-22 | |
| Where did my review go? |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I got the TNC-X kit as a Christmas kit in 2005 and wrote a glowing review right afterwards. I don't see my review here anymore, so I'm writing it again.
This is the most fun I've had in ham radio for a long time. Not only was the kit fun to build, but it worked perfectly as soon as I plugged it in. I've had this little dude in the trunk of my car for mobile packet, and am now using it for Winlink in my shack. This unit is so versatile and adaptable (with KISS-capable software such as AGW Packet Engine) that you can't go wrong.
I wish I needed more than one of these. If you're at all interested in kit building, this is a fun one. |
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| W2SRH |
Rating:      |
2007-01-26 | |
| Excellent kit |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Purchased one of these last week, and put it together over two nights (hey, it's the first kit I've built in I don't care to mention how many years :> ). The directions at one point left me thinking I'd done something horribly wrong, as I had no power to the ICs when I first turned it on, but then I realized the jumpers had to be installed first (that part was later in the instructions, but perhaps I misordered the pages). Once they were installed, everything worked perfectly. Have this running on my Mac with Xastir as a home station & Igate, and will probably be purchasing another for our club as a digi. |
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| KE2H |
Rating:     |
2006-06-09 | |
| Good TNC |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I have the version with USB and metal enclosure. It came as a kit, took one evening to build. No special equipment is necessary, just a regular soldering iron and digital multimeter. All components are through-the-hole, no surface mount parts, so building is pretty easy. Works with no problems with XASTIR on Mac OS X. I'm using it for APRS.
Pros:
- simple, inexpensive, and easy to build;
- no need to use a USB-to-RS232 adapter on computers with no COM ports;
- no external power supply is necessary when using with USB;
- good support from John W2FS.
Cons:
- no galvanic isolation between radio and computer. Not a problem for me as I'm using it with a battery-powered HT only, so there are no ground loops to worry about;
- most resistor values are multiple of 10: 1k, 10k, 100k. Why could that be a problem? Because the only difference in markings is the third color line. Ok I admit I should have paid more attention when assembling the kit, but still why not use, say, 6.8k instead of 10k?
You can tell I'm splitting hairs here, and that's the point -- the pros clearly outweigh the cons. Overall it's a very good product. |
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| KD6OJI |
Rating:      |
2005-07-05 | |
| Great Kit - Easy assembly |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I had the pleasure of meating John W2FS at the HamCom convention this year. I purchased two kits, and had them together and working in one evening. The assembly is straight forward, although the instructions are a bit vauge at times. Most experienced kit builders should have no problems. I am still working on the X-Track kits, I am having a little dificulty getting it to recognize my GPS, but it may be my fault.
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| AD5JN |
Rating:      |
2004-10-25 | |
| Outstanding product |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
This is a PIC based TNC with a USB option. Yes USB! The software sees it as a ComX port so the USB is transparent to the software. This is a great idea. No more need for those flakey USB to Serial cables. This is an easy 2.5-hour build. The TNC-X worked first time I powered it up. PCB is top quality with quality components. The USB module is easy to configure and setup. This is a very small TNC with minimal power requirement, In fact if you are using the TNC with the optional USB module the TNC get all the power from the USB computer port. You will need to cut a notch in the case for the USB option and drill three holes to mount the PCB. I recommend countersinking the holes so the screws are flush with the case. You will also need to drill two or three holes to mount the audio jacks. The only thing I changed in the build was I used a machine-tooled socket for the USB option module. I also made up a pigtail with a TNC like plug on one end and audio jacks on the other. This way all my TNC cables will work with the new TNC-X. If you want a small low power USB TNC in a small footprint, this is the one to build.
73
Ronn
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| NO5X |
Rating:      |
2004-10-23 | |
| TNC to GO |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I needed a small TNC to run Ui-view (portable aprs) on a notebook computer without a serial port. I realize that there are Serial to USB adapters available but I decided on this KIT BECAUSE of the USB Option. The TNC-X fits the bill. It was an easy build and in a short time I had my portable APRS system up and going. I did not experience any problems with the build or instructions. It was fun to assemble and setup.
Another reason I decided to build this kit is the HamHud-X kit under development that is supposed to interface with this TNC. I am looking forward to the release of that kit. Then this will be a very small package and easy to take most anywhere.
If you need a low cost TNC for APRS in KISS mode I can recommend this one.
73
John
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