Ham Radio Satellite RS-44, with the Icom Ic-9700 and Mini 70 preamp.

Welcome back!
Today I demonstrate the SHF-Elektronic Mini 70 preamp on RS-44. This little preamp paired with the radio preamp is an unbelievable combo!
As you will see in the video, with no preamps the signal is at best S2. With the SHF-Elektronic Mini 70 the signal jumps to S9, and paired with the onboard it brings the signal into the +10 range😳
The audio quality is absolutely amazing with this upgrade. If you are considering getting one, DO IT!!!
I have the Mini 2 on order and will demonstrate it in a few weeks.
Let me know what you think of the performance!
Catch you next time
73

[@CarlosManuelZabala]

Rob, your setup is awesome. It makes it look very easy. The preamp does a great job as well as your antennas and the S.A.T. Killer setup! Hope to catch you on the sat one of these days. 73 de N3CMZ (Carlos)

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Hey Carlos, thanks for watching! I appreciate the kind words! This setup really does make it super easy. The secret weapon is the CSN Technologies SAT controller. Without it everything would be manual. Those guys deserve all the credit they can get and best customer support for ANY COMPANY I have ever seen in any industry. It was a long road to get where I am, with a lot of failures along the way. But that makes it all the more enjoyable now! I hope to catch you on a pass soon, 73!!

[@tekspeditionplanet9109]

I like the looks of the Mini 70. Did you buy it in the US? If so, where?

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

It works great! Very clear signal with very little noise. I bought direct from SHF Elektronic in Germany. It was $200usd including shipping and was here in a week. I saw it advertised at a couple US stores but none had it in stock it was all back order that’s why I just went straight to the source.

[@RandsonHuang]

Nice tracking!! Which kind of program can simulate the view angle from the of satellite as on left side screen? de WJ2I /BV2DQ Ran

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Thanks for watching! That is the control interface from the CSN Technologies SAT Controller. That was the best money spent on the entire satellite system! 73,Rob

[@charlierubenstein4141]

Wow....that sounds fantastic. Major increase, and very little noise. I have considered one for 70cm but the Q5 transverters are so hot on RX, I have heard that all it would do is to swamp the front end. But it would be nice for when I use the IC-820 which isn't so sensitive. Very impressed in the RX with that preamp. 73 de Charlie

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Thanks Charlie! It is truly amazing to say the least. The combo of the Mini 70 and the onboard preamp only netted an S3 noise level on SSB which is remarkable in my book. I guarantee it would wake the IC-820/821 up and you’d probably never turn it off! I will have videos of it on FM in the coming days. Obviously the noise floor is higher on FM, but wait until you see the S9+10-20db signals!

[@doctorbills790]

Rag-chewing on a satellite. Great. DE J68HZ starting @ 17:44.

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Yeah this was a fun pass. I missed Grace (J68HZ) due to the pileup and the other station calling CQ RIGHT OVER HER...............

[@yeahitsk]

You're really got me rethinking the LEO pack with those X-quads. I've heard they're popular in Europe but seems like you don't see many US operators running them. Are you using the Wimo phasing lines for RHCP?

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Hello! I bought them because they were much more compact, easier to assemble, and pretty robustly built. They work great! Obviously I haven’t done a side by side with the M2, but I regularly get into sats as low as 1 degree. I do have both phasing harnesses for RHCP. I have an assembly video on the channel if you are interested. 73!

[@jeffwright6685]

So are you bouncing off satellite using simplex or it repeaters off satellite?

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

Hello! This is using an onboard VHF/UHF crossband repeater. I transmit a VHF LSB signal to the satellite and it converts it to a UHF USB downlink signal. The FM satellites use a VHF/UHF crossband repeater. With the sideband Linear satellites you get a certain amount of passband that multiple stations can use all at once, which is demonstrated in this video.

[@LCSRacing]

​@@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavorsthank you for the channel, so very interested in satellites. So it's going up 2m/ mode = LSB. What is the reason up and down are not both using USB. To separate further? Thanks again I subscribed 🤙

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

@@LCSRacingThanks for watching! It is lsb up and usb down to help reduce the Doppler effect. I have read it’s easier to build the transponder this way as well and makes it more efficient.

[@LCSRacing]

Anyone aware of a domestic reseller of the SHF mini 70?

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

I believe DX Engineering has them. I bought my WiMo Quads through them

[@LCSRacing]

@@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors thank you sir, hope I could forego the international shipping. Thanks again, will poke around on DX. Have a cart of stuff need to cash out anyway. 🤙

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

I know the feeling with the cart😂it never seems to end with satellite stuff.

[@LCSRacing]

​@@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors good day, ordered from Wimo Mini 70,🤙 any beta or gotchas you can share with the install on the IC-9700 (Power, etc )

[@W0CYC-HamRadioEndeavors]

No it was super simple. Basically plug and play. Mounted them up, ran the coax, turned the preamp setting on in the radio and bam done.