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Reviews For: QRP Kits Inc. DC"XX"A Transceiver

Category: QRP Radios (5 watts or less)

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Review Summary For : QRP Kits Inc. DC"XX"A Transceiver
Reviews: 3MSRP: $39.00
Description:
Altoid tin sized transceiver for 20, 30, or 40 meters. Crystal controlled, and approx. 1.25 watts out
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.qrpkits.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0035
KC8SLC Rating: 2008-05-18
What a blast!!! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a cool rig!! My first contact was with a ham in Norwich, CT. He had a loop antenna and gave me a solid copy report on this 750 milliwatt xcvr here in Michigan!! The parts are small on this kit, so take your time as I did and you will not have any problem {my smoke tests were o.k.}. I'm looking at building another kit soon!! Tim.
K9EX Rating: 2008-01-02
Great Kit for All Skill Levels Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I built the DC-40A recently. It took about 5 hours and I am quite pleased with its performance. In fact, I'm always a little shocked when someone answers my CQ or call.

Mine outputs exactly 1W on 7.039. You'll need to purchase a metal enclosure - I found a nice one at Fry's. I also added a power switch and LED.

Understand that, with this kit, you are rock-bound on a single frequency and there is no volume control and no RIT control - this is true "back to basics" QRP action! There's something really cool about it and making a QSO is very rewarding. (I use high-efficiency MP3 type earphones for maximum volume.)

One of the best things about QRP Kits is their excellent assembly instructions. Go to their web site and check it out for yourself. The assembly instructions are expertly written and there are tons of diagrams. Building the kit by functional section is a great idea (not a new idea, just a great idea) and having some progress tests along the way (a la Ten-Tec) is extremely helpful.

This is a fine kit, with quality parts, at a extremely low price. Bravo, QRP Kits!
W7AQK Rating: 2007-11-12
A 1.25 watt QRP transceiver that is simple but very effective. Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
This kit comes in three versions--the DC40A for 40 meters, the DC30A for 30 meters, and the DC20A for 20 meters. The genesis of this kit was an original design (the DC40) by KD1JV, who also designed these updated versions.

I have built both the original version, the DC40, and the updated 40 meter DC40A. Considering the price, I think this is an outstanding kit, especially for the new ham or a ham who has not done much in the way of kit building. Older, more experienced hams will have fun with it too, as it works amazingly well and presents a great challenge to QRP enthusiasts.

The DC40A will produce about 1.25 watts or more. It is crystal controlled, but can be "VXO'd" with relative ease--see W5USJ's mod for the original DC40 kit on the QRP Kits Inc. website.

Building this kit is relatively straight forward and easy. There are a few toroids to wind, but that is easy too. The supplied board is very high quality, and all parts, including a keyer, are supplied. QSK is very good on this improved version, as is RX sensitivity and voltage regulation. Alignment requires no exotic equipment. You will find the building and operating instructions to be very complete and well written.

Operating crystal controlled is rather restrictive, but the supplied crystal (7040 in the case of the DC40A) puts you on a very popular QRP frequency. It's quite easy to make a minor modification which will allow you to insert different crystals, or you can try the VXO mod mentioned above. So long as you have a decent antenna, you shouldn't have any problem making contacts. I have worked over 20 states plus Japan with mine.

The rig requires approx. 12 volts for full power, but can be operated (at reduced power) with 9 or 10 volts. Current draw is modest, so a small power pack will last quite a while. I typically use a small gel cell to run mine.

Anyone wanting to try his or her hand at building a transceiver should seriously consider this kit as a starter. If you just want a QRP project, this fits that bill too. I think you will be very pleasantly surprised at how well this kit works, and the cost is truly nominal.