The 'Warbler '
A simple PSK31 transceiver for 80 meters!

    This design is a "little brother" to the popular PSK-series transceiver elsewhere on this website. This transceiver design originally appeared in the NJ QRP Club's 'QRP Homebrewer' Magazine and subsequently in the March 2001 issue of QST magazine. Since its appearance in QST, almost 2000 of these kits have been shipped!

     The initial production of this kit was under the auspices of the NJ QRP club, and all proceeds benefited their activities and projects. They named it the "The Warbler" for PSK's characteristic two-tone warble sound, as well as for the club's state bird (the mosquito!).

 
    80 meters is a great band for local (200-300 mile radius) communications, and the Warbler may be the perfect narrow band, low power rig for club round table QSOs and regular fireside skeds with your friends. Despite its relative simplicity, though, it's no 'toy'- at least one enterprising ham has achieved 80M WAS using this transceiver!

SPECIFICATIONS:

Double-sided PCB 3" x 4.5", plated-thru-holes, solder masked & silkscreened for easy assembly
- 3W PEP output (can get more with careful attention not to overdrive, monitoring for acceptable IMD)
- interfaces with your computer's soundcard and serial interface
- 20 page Technical Manual for detailed Theory of Operation, Assembly Instructions, Set-up and Usage
- Special bonus section in manual: "PSK-31 & DigiPan Primer"
- All on-board parts supplied in kit (as pictured aove)
- add a computer and an 80m antenna and you'll be on the air with PSK31
- no drift, no VFO tuning, no muss, no fuss!

This transceiver uses color-burst crystals throughout to keep the cost and complexity low. It operates over a fixed 1+ Khz slice of 80M (3580-3581 Khz). This is compatible with the standard PSK31 frequency of 3580.15 Khz.

PRICE
$55 (US/Canada) / $60 elsewhere

 includes shipping (See 'Order Form')

The image below shows a portion of a QSO I had with Tom Bowman, WA3REY, while using this rig.

The mouse cursor has been clicked over Tom's signal and the "on-the-air" copy is in the upper text window. The lower window is where I typed in outgoing text. The 'yellow stuff' at the right of the panoramic display is from W1AW. They were conducting code practice at the time ( only 2 miles away from my QTH at the time) but did not interfere with the Warbler's ability to copy.

Please Note: There's no custom enclosure available for the Warbler- this was done to keep costs at a minimum for club-project purposes. The PSK-series enclosures shown elsewhere on this website use a different connector spacing and are not recommended for use with the Warbler.

   
"Instructions" -- Download the Warbler manual -- (687KB)