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Reviews For: Unified Microsystems XT-4 Keyer

Category: Keyers & CW Keyboards

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Review Summary For : Unified Microsystems XT-4 Keyer
Reviews: 6MSRP: $69.95
Description:
Palm size internal battery operated keyer with four memories
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.unifiedmicro.com/keyer.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0064.7
WB4AEG Rating: 2022-08-11
Great but could be better.. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a very well built keyer. Works great. Except for one inexpensive nice feature. No sidetone....Only 4 stars from me because of this one thing...
AJ9C Rating: 2020-01-28
Don't leave home without it Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've had the XT-4 keyer for over 20 years....the same one I purchased originally. The keyer just works and more than once saved the day when computer keying failed during a contest. Simple, rugged you can't go wrong.
N5CM Rating: 2020-01-28
Great keyer. Works well. Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought this keyer for use in portable and Field Day type operations.

The memories are easily programmed directly from the paddles; no computer is required. The message buttons are on the top so that the keyer doesn't move when a button is pressed. Keying speed can be changed quickly and easily as the situation requires. The unit is compact, light weight, and requires no external source of power.

An internal side tone would be nice, but that would make it larger and more expensive. All of my radios provide a side tone, so I switch my rigs to LSB or USB to program the keyer as needed.

This keyer meets my needs and works well.
WB7DND Rating: 2019-01-17
Nifty Keyer Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a nifty little keyer, excellent for the casual state qso party participant but less so for the dedicated contester.

The strength and weakness of this unit is its simplicity. It offers iambic B mode for dual lever paddles and it works well with single lever paddles. All the buttons are on top, so you press down to activate them. The unit won’t slide around on the desk as will units with buttons on the front. There are four memories. You record by pressing the “REC” button, then pressing the number of the memory you want to use, then inputting the message with your key. Press the “REC” button again when you are done. Simple. Even simpler to play a message. You simply press the message button. That’s it.

This is not a kit. It appears to be solidly constructed. It has a dial to control speed, which runs from about 5-45 wpm. You can change speed on the fly, even in the middle of a word (although I don’t know why anyone would want to do that). You can put your cq call in one memory. For qso parties and similar events, you can put your call in a second memory and your name and state in a third. You can practice sending into the fourth memory and play it back to hear how you actually sound. (Be prepared for a dose of humility!) A 9 volt battery runs everything. FWIW, the unit seems to generate fewer unwanted dits than does the internal keyer in my Yeasu FT 450D; the timing gate for dits seems to be a bit more forgiving.

This keyer will not do some of the sophisticated functions contesters love. You cannot adjust dit-dah weights. It will not sequentially insert serial numbers into a message. It will not allow you to insert content into the middle of a message. (However, you can put the first half of a message into one memory, key in content after that message, and then play the second half of the message in another memory.) The keyer will not support iambic mode A. I don’t use computer logging software so I can’t say for sure how or if the keyer will interact with logging software. The keyer will not directly connect to a computer.

The unit has no speaker; it is not a code practice oscillator. (My rig, and I believe most modern rigs, enable you to disable transmit and use the rig as a code practice oscillator.)

The keyer does have a beacon mode and does enable reversing which side of the paddle produces dits and which side produces dahs.

The seller, Gary, W9XT, has been prompt and helpful in responding to emails. HRO and DX Engineering sell this keyer.

I am giving this unit 5 stars. Other keyers have more features directed towards the needs of serious contesters. I would give this keyer 4 stars for those folks. However, for the rest of us, the combination of price, functions, and ease of use justify a 5 star rating.
WA5RR Rating: 2010-12-31
Reliable Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought one of these simple memory keyers while in the desert of Iraq. It is simple and well-built and still does its job over six years later. I've never had a bit of trouble. The built-in tune mode, accessed by holding down the REC button and then pressing '2' is excellent when tweaking my QRP rig's tuning.
N4GG Rating: 2006-06-01
Outstanding little keyer Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Absolutely great little pocket-sized keyer with internal 9V battery. I currently own three of these and use them for DXpeditions, contest setups, mobile CW, Field Day and for general use in the shack. The batteries seem to last forever - the keyer has auto shutoff if you forget to turn it off. Another great feature: turning it on while holding down the "1" key reverses the paddle dot and dash inputs - very useful for multi-op and guest op situations. Gary at Unified Micro is great to deal with in the unlikely event something goes wrong. As a 45-year CW guy I can't say enought nice things about this keyer.