In T41-EP [Part 1] Software Defined Transceiver I completed the main board of the T41-EP transceiver and run initial tests to verify the voltages. I also confirmed the I²C bus detects the Audio Hat and tested the on/off smart switch based on the ATtiny85.
In this post, I am going to connect and test the display, build and test the front panel board, and load the T41-EP Phoenix firmware for first time.
A few months back I was working on the KeithSDR transceiver. I got to that project a little bit late and there was not much activity going on at that time. In addition, the transceiver does not include its own RF stage and instead relies on a HobbyPCB SDR, which is no longer available.
As a result, I ended up building my unit as a receiver-only device, limited to the 20-meter band, using a QRP Labs receiver module. Although any IQ RF receiver could potentially work with this project, the T41-EP began to draw my attention, and I eventually considered my KeithSDR project complete.
Previuos posts:
In this post, I will cover the audio path of the KEITHSDR build and show the final assembly of all components inside the enclosure. After confirming the reception path, it’s time to ensure the audio signals are properly routed and amplified, then finalize the hardware setup and reception test.
Previuos posts:
In this post, I will focus on the reception side of the SDR radio. Although KEITHSDR support various transceiver modules, many are no longer available. Some alternatives could be adapted, provided they offer I/Q output and can be controlled by the Teensy microcontroller.
For my build, I chose to begin with the QRP Labs receiver module, which is already supported by KEITHSDR and I’ll figure out the transmission part later.
This is the third part in the build process for the KeithSDR transceiver. Following on from parts 1 and 2 [placeholder link to part 1] and [placeholder link to part 2], this stage focuses on integrating the core components onto the main printed circuit board (PCB). We’ll be installing sockets for the Teensy and Audio hat, mounting the display with spacers, and setting up the I2C encoders and power supply.
In KeithSDR Transceiver [Part 1]: Building the software Building the software][KeithSDR Transceiver [Part 1]: Building the software]] I have installed the Arduino IDE, Teensyduino and I have successfully compiled and upload the software of the KeithSDR receiver.
Next I am trying to test the display.
:PROPERTIES: nil:END: To test the display I decided to use a breadboard to connect the display SPI interface to the Teensy, following this schematic. Then, I connected the Teensy to the laptop and I inspect the debug messages in the serial monitor to see if the Teensy recognizes the display.
I obtained my Radio Amateur license recently but I don’t own any HF radio that I can operate at the moment. I was looking for a HF transceiver I can build myself and I came across the KeithSDR project. KeithSDR is basically a SDR transceiver built using a Teensy 4.1 as main CPU board, a RA887X display and and RF receiver or transceiver capable of providing an I/Q audio output. The project does not include details on the construction of the RF receiver/transmitter but relies on existing RF receivers or transmitters.
I decided to start this blog because I’ve accumulated a bunch of notes and documentation from my various personal projects. I regularly take notes to keep track on my projects progress and to have a handy reference for the future. My note-taking tool of choice is Emacs org-mode and I recently came across a convenient method to transform these notes into blog posts using Hugo and ox-hugo.
I am not going to enter into details on how Hugo and ox-hugo work, but in summary, Hugo serves as a framework for generating static websites. To add new content to my website I just need to export my notes to markdown with some metadata headers to indicate blog post date, author, title and other information. ox-hugo will take care of exporting the org notes to markdown and Hugo will take it from there.
I have a Home Assistant installation at home and I wanted to experiment with ESPHome to explore a variety of sensors and switches. The main reason I want to use ESPHome is to control sensors and switches that lack wireless connectivity. Microcontroller boards such as ESP8266 and ESP32 provide WiFi capabilities and a TCP/IP stack simplifying network integration. Additionaly, they offer numerous GPIO pins, I2C and UART interfaces to connect to other devices.