Aaaahhh... One of the resistors in your dummy load is back-to-front! I know it makes no difference whatsoever, but it's playing merry hell with my OCD! Thanks for the vid!
@TheSmokinApe6 ай бұрын
lol, I never pay attention to the orientation and people do tell me that it triggers their OCD, sorry bro
@medve239 ай бұрын
You're a great teacher! Easy to understand presentation.
@TheSmokinApe9 ай бұрын
Thank you, glad you liked the video 👍
@OmbiePants864 ай бұрын
Hey, this is really cool. Thank you for keeping this simple. I came inIo this with zero knowledge and now I think I have a pretty solid grasp. Thank you!
@TheSmokinApe4 ай бұрын
Glad to hear it was helpful OP 👍
@NineSeven84 ай бұрын
Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your knowledge, I've learned a lot from your videos and I'm always looking forward for the next one. No doubt one of the best HAM channels on YT. Regards from Portugal.
@TheSmokinApe4 ай бұрын
Hey NineSeven8. I’m glad you like the videos and thank you for the kind words 👍
@HOAHamRadio11 ай бұрын
Always appreciate TheSmokinApe classroom! Love my MFJ cross needle meter; will take it over digital every day of the week.
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching Bob. I agree, maybe because I’m old, but nothing beats analog 👍
@rlarajr20018 ай бұрын
Great help on how to read an SWR. I'm setting communications for my race car and this really helped out.
@TheSmokinApe8 ай бұрын
Glad to hear it was helpful 👍
@bill-20189 ай бұрын
A VNA is very useful, got mine last year, it takes a lot of guesswork out of adjusting aerials. You can instantly see if it's too long or too short. Far easier than just using an SWR meter and great for the price. QRP and resistive SWR meter here, tx never sees above a 2:1 SWR when tuning but still reads the true SWR. It does need taking out of circuit after. G4GHB.
@TheSmokinApe9 ай бұрын
Howdy Bill. Totally agree, the VNA has been the best investment I've made what it comes to ham radio.
@W8VHS11 ай бұрын
Thank you Sir. I know have a better understanding of the cross needle display 👍
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Howdy Vern, thanks for watching 👍
@teresiamoore944111 ай бұрын
I'm just setting up my first shack, shopping for all the goods now. Im struggling with understanding the SWR meters, this helps. Thanks.
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Hey Teresia. Glad to hear it was helpful 👍
@kenmcmullan93306 ай бұрын
Very educational, but in trying to build an antenna, I was hoping to learn if it is possible to use the cross-needle SWR meter to optimise the antenna length. Thanks.
@TheSmokinApe6 ай бұрын
You can transmit on various frequencies and then plot the results in a graph. Use the graph to trend where swr is getting better and worst then adjust the antenna as necessary 👍
@janiceemery200811 ай бұрын
Excellent video Ape, love the explanation. Thank you for sharing.
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks Janice, glad you liked it 👍
@Swamp-Fox11 ай бұрын
Man, you didn't even flinch when you hit the PTT on that BTech into a 250 ohm load LOL!
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
lol, thanks for watching SF 👍
@kevinboog957611 ай бұрын
Great job helping people understand things in the R.F. world. Only one negative comment on the dummy load. It looks to be a parallel circuit and I think i heard you say series on the audio track so I replayed it... oops. Still great information you pass along! Kevin KF0IPD
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Hey Kevin. You might be right about the oops, good catch. Glad you like the video 👍
@KK6USYHamRadioAdventures11 ай бұрын
Another informative class aPE THANKS!
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks Chuck 👍
@NickFrom122811 ай бұрын
Nice summary and demo.
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks for checking it out...
@K3JRZOnTheAir11 ай бұрын
Great video! Eventually I need to pick up one of those meters. 73!
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks man, glad you liked it 👍
@youtubeaccount93111 ай бұрын
nanovna might be the coolest piece of test equipment i've bought in a long time. Also, do you know morse code? If so how did you learn?
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
I love the Nano's. No, I do not know the code... it sounds like jibber jabber to me 🙁
@Aegieon7610 ай бұрын
Very helpful, ThanX!!!
@TheSmokinApe10 ай бұрын
Glad it was helpful!
@calvinlong12653 ай бұрын
Great video! Quick question - do you have a positive opinion of the RS-40?
@TheSmokinApe3 ай бұрын
I do, it works well for what it is. I use mine often 👍
@calvinlong12653 ай бұрын
@@TheSmokinApe Thanks!!
@FEPLabsRadio11 ай бұрын
Good job, son!
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Well thank you James 👍
@TheAntonymer6 ай бұрын
@10:46 You say that the resistors are soldered in series. Isn't that parallel, though? 4x 1k in series would be 4k, while in parallel it would be 250.
@TheSmokinApe6 ай бұрын
Do’h, good catch 👍
@TheAntonymer6 ай бұрын
@@TheSmokinApe No worries. Thank you for all your efforts bringing us information and joy. 73
@gfodale11 ай бұрын
still waiting on REDODO MPPT charge controller RFI testing. :) (please) thanks. If I can swing it, I'll order the VNA from your list this coming month. (bookmarked to return for your link.)
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thanks! I’ll start planning the RFI test 👍
@WonderMonkeyRadio2 ай бұрын
I appreciated the video, but I'm still a bit lost. I think I'm unknowledgeable enough to have to back up a step. If I'm going to be doing 10, 15, 20 and 40 meters, how does that eliminate or include a particular meter? I'm making this up as I go but it seems that would mean I care about 7.0 - 29.7 MHz, which would mean ALL your meters would work for me, is that right? I get confused with all the options and figure as soon as I purchase something, I'll figure out that now I need to buy a different one to handle another band. Are my fears unfounded and can the meters you show do basically anything a General license can do?
@TheSmokinApe2 ай бұрын
Look at the frequency band of the meter and see if the ones you are interested in cover them.
@MrBracey197011 ай бұрын
If you could go into detail about the nano VNA’s I would be grateful,I need a SWR meter for portable HF work,but haven’t got enough cash for a rig expert so that’s the way my wallet is leading me towards a VNA 😊
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
I use them all the time, check out this playlist: kzbin.info/aero/PLm8ROkpFeqornjIRLKS0RJqSrUl_lr5lv
@paulm0hpd31910 ай бұрын
Think where there is a misunderstanding with swr is what happens to the reflected power ,where does it go ,is it all lost ,is it absorbed by the radio and potentially damage it,or does it join the forward power etc if it was talked about more i think there would be a greater understanding
@TheSmokinApe10 ай бұрын
Fair point Paul, I’ll do a more in-depth video on SWR 👍
@paulm0hpd31910 ай бұрын
@@TheSmokinApe that be great if you could
@hokefisher75423 ай бұрын
I am a radio novice with an ICOM A24 aviation handheld radio with output specs of 5W (PEP) and 1.5W (CW). I am testing VSWR for the radio w/ external antenna with a Sharman V20. Should I expect to see the forward output to be 1.5W or 5W? Thanks
@TheSmokinApe3 ай бұрын
It will depend on the mode you use...
@flobie1kenobi8 ай бұрын
Will a transceiver and antenna still work normally together if a SWR meter is hooked up to them, but not powered on? Or if you want to leave SWR permanently attached, does it also have to be powered on all the time along with the radio??
@TheSmokinApe8 ай бұрын
Yes, most people leave them inline 100% of the time.
@macgyver510811 ай бұрын
At the end there, you "forgot to ID" (you were on dummy loads of course!😁) but for the newer folks that will be doing this on a "live" antenna I would've pointed that out in your demo with a reminder to ID! "Who's kerchunking the band!?"🤪
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Thats a good tip Mac, thanks bro!
@t.c.27769 ай бұрын
is there a difference between CB and uhf/vhf SWR meters? or can all meters do both? and can they be used on 5w-10w HT radios effectively?
@TheSmokinApe9 ай бұрын
Hey TC. Some CB meters will only cover the CB frequencies and some ham meters will cover CB. What you can do is check the frequency span on the meter you want to buy to check that it covers your area of interest. On just about any meter you can handle 5w many are designed to go higher, again the best bet is to check the meter specs 👍
@temporarilyoffline11 ай бұрын
School is in!
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Until summer!
@Coyotethumper58 ай бұрын
Wonder if you have done a review on the surecom SW-102 swr and power meter I really value your opinion on ham equipment Thanks.
@TheSmokinApe8 ай бұрын
Sorry man, I haven’t
@Coyotethumper58 ай бұрын
@@TheSmokinApe ok thanks
@ARC9289 ай бұрын
Will a ASTATIC SWR meter that I bought for my CB work to check my HAM radio antenna?
@TheSmokinApe9 ай бұрын
It's going to depend on what frequencies the meter supports.
@kipnix87758 ай бұрын
Can you send the name or part numbers of the adapters used to hook up meter to the portable radio? Can I use antenna instead of dummy load?
@TheSmokinApe8 ай бұрын
You can use an antenna. THey are just coax connectors I got off amazon. SMA / PL259 and SO239
@kipnix87758 ай бұрын
@TheSmokinApe thank you sir!
@kipnix87758 ай бұрын
I have a 259 and 239. Neither will screw into the radio housing. Any idea what I am missing? I apologize for being dumb about this.
@TheSmokinApe8 ай бұрын
OH, the 705 has BNC-F you need BNC-M Sorry man
@TFuzz5811 ай бұрын
Thanks for this as I’m currently looking for a meter and am not sure if I should go analog or digital. Cheers from Moose Jaw. Tim VE5THF
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Hey Tim. It's really just a matter of preference...
@alanbrockmeier687110 ай бұрын
Well done as always! NM5SP
@TheSmokinApe10 ай бұрын
Thanks Alan 👍
@alanbrockmeier687110 ай бұрын
@@TheSmokinApe I’m
@Thump203011 ай бұрын
Sure.... show the vna but not a rig expert. 😀
@TheSmokinApe11 ай бұрын
Ain't nobody got time for the RE ...
@MikesGarageReviews8 ай бұрын
My wife told me I have insertion loss. That’s when I went to Mexico and had a Addedictome