Building a New Preamp Box

After having had some trouble with our preamps on Azores 2018 we decided to build a completely new preamp setup for the EA9 activity. Basis are two Tohtsu CZX-3500 coaxial relays. They have an isolation of 65 dB on 2 m and can transfer sufficient power.

We are grateful to Wimo WiMo Antennen & Elektronik GmbH for selling them to us at a fair discount and herwith supporting our activities.

X-Team QRV from EA9 Ceuta (IM75HV)

Since we now received final confirmation from our location owner we can officially communicate that the X-Team will be QRV from EA9 Ceuta next March. We will use the same QTH as Zdenek OK1DFC in 2017, IM75HV. We will run as EA9LZ both on 2 m and 70 cm but with focus on 2 m because Zdenek might have worked all 70 cm stations needing EA9 during his stay.

Please stay tuned for further updates about exact dates. We will do all plane/car/ferry bookings the next days and then inform about the exact dates of activity.


For info about the QTH please have a look at  OK1DFC's website

X-Team Plans For 2019

We are already busy planning our next DXpedition. The dates will be between March 14th and 21st, 2019. We are currently discussing locations in the DXCC we chose for our activity. It is still quite early but what we can say now is that it is within terrestrial reach from Central Europe but yet wanted on EME.

Stay tuned!

QSL Sending Starts

QSL sending will start next week so everybody could expect his card by mid of July.

QSL Routes

QSLs for QSOs with us are via DF2ZC, address as in qrz.com

We prefer direct QSLing, via Club it might take >>  one year.

Please enclose 3 US-$ for postage and handling, as well as a return envelope or an address sticker. PLEASE NO IRCs...we do not get them exchanged for postage!

You can however make things easier by just sending us 3 US-$ via paypal to our donations account (see right at top) with call sign and QSO data in remarks. You do not need to send a QSL by post then.

Sponsors will receive their QSL automatically as soon as the cards are available.

Log 29 March 2018

144 MHz

21 Complete QSOs:

DK5YA, F5GHP, UY0LL, OK1NI, DG0KW, SM2A, YO9HP, G4CKB, F8DO, DK5SO, OZ1LPR, GW4ZHI, G4URT, DD0NM, F6BEG, DK9WI, PG2M, DL2FCN, WA1NPZ, OH6UW, AE3T.

Called but not complete:

PA1GYS, OK1TEH, PE1LWT, DL8SCQ, YU1EV.

End of DXpediton.

Log 28 March 2018

144 MHz

34 Complete QSOs:

US7GY, IK4ADE, ES5PC, ON4KHG, SK5AA, SM0NKZ, F5AQX, HS0ZIL, OE5KE, YO3DMU, DL9LBH, DL1RNW, RZ3BA/1, OH2BNH, SP8NR, YL2OK, YL2GC, YL2FZ, OK1RD, OH3AWW, SM5CUI, DF9UX, DL7APV, UA4AQL, SP2FH, YO4GJH, DL1VPL, DL8II, DF7AP, IK1FJI, K9MRI, G4RGK, DL6BF, NH6Y.

Called but not complete:

OK1NI, YU1EV, UA4LCF, DD0NM, W7JW, KL7UW, KG7P, W2DBL.

If you find a typo or if you believe you have a QSO and you are not in log please contact us via email xteamdxp@gmail.com as we are not perfect. Please send screenshot or copy of all.txt then and we will investigate.

What a change now working with a preamp again! Now it was finally fun sitting in the BBQ shelter and freezing (last night was rather cold and windy) and working one station after the other, now with decent signals strengths. Thomas DL1VPL with his single 12 elements and 750 watts out peaked at -22 here, amazing. Conds were twisted most times: We called hpol and received vpol or vice versa.

Every day when the moon was above us the conds changed and we did not copy much anymore. Therefore around midnight we decided to go for a short sleep and return at 4Z for US west coast and Oceania moon rise. We copied Ed KL7UW very well for half an hour but due to his noise situation he couldn't copy us long enough for a QSO: so sad. NH6Y was easily worked as soon as he had copy from us. W2DBL and KG7P were also copied but not completed. At these low elevations the noise rapidly increased so no further stations could be seen in the FFT display. That is particularly disappointing as we knew FK8CP and ZL3NW were anxiously awaiting their moon rise and their small chance to work us. After 0525Z the moon was the blocked by the neighbour'shouse...so that was it for this pass.

Next moon rise is 1845Z today 29th. We will work until local midnight and the break down the station because we leave home tomorrow morning. CR2EME is tx 1st on 144,114 MHz and rx +/-500 Hz.

Please use W7GJ aka Lance procedure when calling us. It helps to avoid time sending OOO to stations that call us but do not copy us. And of course you should only call with OOO when you do copy us or clearly have our sync in the FFT display. Lance procedure is explained here or at the right side at 

"How To Maximize Chances Working Us".

Some clarifications about the W7GJ Procedure:

- Call us with OOO only when you have copy or clearly see our sync.

- If you do not see our sync anymore you must go back to calling with both call signs only.

By this method we can see who has copy at the moment and who maybe has just lost copy. And we do not waste time calling a station that does not currently see us. Some stations have very well used this method (DL1VPL for example) and by that incresed their chance of a QSO.

Log 27 March 2018

432 MHz

20 Complete QSOs:

HB9Q, OZ4MM, DK3WG, UA3PTW, DL7APV, DL6SH, OK1KIR, JA6AHB, YL2GD, OH2DG, UT6UG, NC1I, UT5DL, I1NDP, UX5UL, G4RGK, DL9KR (559 in CW!), ES5PC, DK0SF, LZ1DX.

Called but not complete:

DL8FBD, OZ6OL, W5LUA.

If you find a typo or if you believe you have a QSO and you are not in log please contact us via email xteamdxp@gmail.com as we are not perfect. Please send screenshot or copy of all.txt then and we will investigate.

We are very happy with the 70 cm results given we had only 2 x 17 ele DK7ZB yagis and some 150-200 watts out. Most of the time however the polarisation received was orthogonal to our hpol antennas: We were well copied but saw an empty FFT display only. At one point we decided that one of us - DH7FB lost the draw - had to act as human switch for hpol/vpol. In the 10 seconds between tx stop and rx start he manually turned one of the yagis to vpol and vice versa at the end of the rx period. Sigs popped out of the noise then! With this method we worked at least 2/3 of all our QSOs  though we had some 3 dB less rx as the other yagi remained in hpol then. Sadly, the 10 seconds were too short to turn both yagis. We will find a solution for this for our next activity.

Some words about the amp we used: We were always looking for a small sspa giving some 200 - 300 watts out on 70 cm. Apparently there was nothing on the market. Luckily Zdenek OK1DFC approached us offering to build a sspa of that kind for us. And so he did. It is a very professional looking small amp (still naked without box, we had no time before departure to build a case) and delivering 250 watts max, also having an LNA integrated. It was placed directly below the antenna (luckily no rain on Azores). For next time we will replace the input attenuator for a smaller one so that we can drive the amp to full output. Zdenek himself hat to travel to the UK for his job which came at short notice. Too bad he could not work us but luckily he had worked Azores before. So at least he did not miss out. Anyway, without his ham spirit all those 70 cm QSOs would not have been possible. Thank you, Zdenek!

The big CW signal from DL9KR was amazing. It peaked 559 (on the single vpol yagi). Upon return home we will upload it here or to our dedicated web site.

Next moon rise is 1740Z today 28th. We will work again on 2 m. CR2EME is tx 1st on 144,114 MHz and rx +/-500 Hz. We managed to repair one of the LNAs. Hopefully it will stand the stress...

Please use W7GJ aka Lance procedure when calling us. It helps to avoid time sending OOO to stations that call us but do not copy us. And of course you should only call with OOO when you do copy us or clearly have our sync in the FFT display. Lance procedure is explained here or at the right side at 

"How To Maximize Chances Working Us".

LNA repaired

Update: 
We have once more checked the relays of the LNA and once more tried to clean them with a piece of paper. Now it looks like it is working again permanently, no outages anymore. So next moon pass on 2 m (28 and/or 29) we should be fully QRV with LNA - and hopefully start having fun.

Log 26 March 2018

144 MHz

46 Complete QSOs:

UX0FF, G8BCG, SM5CFS, DK3WG, YL2GD, UA3PTW, ON4AOI, G4DML, RK3FG, RX8XR, SM0NKZ, ES3RF, JP3EXR, LZ4OC, DL1KDA, SM6NOC, EA8DBM, F6GRB, PA3DOL, PA3FPQ, SV6KRW, IK4WLV, G4PLZ, PA3FYC, HA8CE, DM5TI, DG5CST, SP1JNY, S55OO, SM2IZO, OE3NFC, W5ZN, W2HRO, AA4SC, LY2IJ, S56P, DK9ZY, S57M, NC2V, YO5BIN, DF9KX, UT9UR, G4YTL, YU7XL, K2ZJ, AH6LE.

Called but not complete:

SM0NKZ, DL6BF, S59A, F8DO, OH6NVQ, IK1FJI.

If you find a typo or if you believe you have a QSO and you are not in log please contact us via email xteamdxp@gmail.com as we are not perfect. Please send screenshot or copy of all.txt then and we will investigate.

Next moon rise is 1630Z today 27th. We will work 70 cm only, frequency is 432,087 MHz and CR2EME tx 1st. 

As you all know by now we have trouble with our preamps. One apparently got damaged at travel and the other one has a relay issue: Sometimes it connects sometimes it doesn't. We have opened it and carefully cleaned the relay contacts with a piece of paper but still it does not reliably connect through. When ist does it is fine. When it does not we copy nothing at all. The latter can last for quite a while. So we decided to continue without preamp. From our experience from previous DXpeditions this means we hear some 6 dB less than usual. Most signals (if we copy any) are between -25 and -31 so this is no fun at all. It is almost like in a VHF contest in the middle of night: You are calling and calling and hardly anyone answers. No, it is worse as we know there are many many callers outside which loose their patience. Often we get complaints on N0UK such as "I'm calling you for hours now". Well, what should we do? If we do not copy this particular caller we can't send a report. Whether or not that person is complaining about it in public - it doesn't help if we do not see his signal. However, the alternative would have been to stop everything and go on tourist activities instead. Hence, we are very proud that we are already approaching QSO no. 100 on 2 m. And yes, both preamps worked fine before we left home.

Current Technical Status

So far everything is working fine. The tiny Tajfun amp is working flawlessly delivering some 80% of maximum output. We do not push it to the limit to have a safety margin.

Situation on site is very good except for some pulsating noise at times - and that we can work moon rise only after 7° elevation and moon set only up to 15°. There is some blockage by a rock (CR2X contest QTH on top of it) at moon rise and neighbouring buildings at moon set. Remember, setup is in a back garden.

However, our preamp situation gives us some worries. The preamp works and stops and works and stops. Every switch-over from tx to rx is a surprise. Therefore yesterday we worked part of the moon pass without preamp (results were better than expected). This morning we opened the preamp relay and cleaned it though it was not really dirty at all let alone burned. After we put everything together it worked perfectly again. Let us keep fingers crossed.To make a bad situation worse: The spare preamp which still worked when DH7FB tested it before departure does not work at all. 

Twice yesterday we had sudden high swr which made us QRT earlier than expected. After checking cables, dipoles and connectors this morning everything is fine again.

Conditions were strange at times yesterday: Well-equipped stations like UX0FF hat great problems to be copied by us while we even worked a single yagi station with just 500 watts out. K7MAC wrote he copied us -16 or so but as soon as he sent ROs we disappeared in his rx. And we sent 5 times RRRs to him when we saw he was still sending ROs - in both polarisations. That is weird. 

Polarisations changed very often and very quickly, often from one sequence to the next. Good to have xpol available here. Yesterday we had the antennas mounted horizontal and vertical, today we will run in x configuration. We'll see if that yields better results.

CU at moonrise. 73 Frank and Bernd

Log 25 March 2018

144 MHz

56 Complete QSOs:

DK5LA, I2FAK, G4SWX, IK4PMB, JH0BBE, JR3REX, ZS6JON, JE1TNL, RX1AS, DK4RC, IK1UWL, I3MEK, HB9Q, PA9RX, DM1CG, DL1DWI, PA3CMC, DF7KF, F4DJK, SM5KWU, DG8NCO, ZS4TX, IK7EZN, F6HVK, IK6CAK, SM5DIC, RW3PX, VE1KG, SP4KM, ZS5LEE, DL8YHR, DL2HWA, LZ1DX, DK5EW, G4CDN, LZ1KU, LZ1DP, PA5Y, IW4ARD, S52LM, DL8FBD, DL9DBJ, PA2CHR, PA0JMV, NT0V, SM2BYC, UR3EE, DL5OCD, DL6SH, LZ2FO, ES6RQ, SP4K, PA5MS, EA4CYQ, KF8MY, WA3QPX.

Called but not complete:

SV6KRW, SM6NOC, PA3FYC, DL6SH, LZ2FO, K7MAC, UX0FF, G4PLZ.

If you find a typo or if you believe you have a QSO and you are not in log please contact us via email xteamdxp@gmail.com We are not perfect. Please send screenshot or copy of all.txt then and we will investigate.

Next moon rise is 1530Z in 26th 

Ready to Go

Setup is completed! Functionality has been positively checked. Now we are waiting for moon rise over the hills which should be around 1430Z, maybe even earlier.

We will CQ 1st on 144.114 and we will rx +/- 800 Hz from our tx frequency.

Setup in Progress

After a good night's sleep we feel much better than yesterday evening. So after breakfast the setup work began. At this moment we are finished with indoor setup (which in fact is outdoor work as the entire Rig will be outdoor in a barbecue shelter). Antenna work still needs a little time but it is some hours before moonrise, no worries.

At moonrise we need some minimum elevation

 The designated shack

DH7FB building the antenna (Atlantic Ocean in background)

We Are on Site at CR2EME

After a long journey we have finally arrived on site. Everything is looking good here exceptfor that we will need a minimum elevation at MR and MS. We will set up the 2 m station tomorrow morning and will be QRV at our moonrise on 25th.

18 Hours to Go

Final preparations are taking place now, suitcases being packed and put on the scale to check for weight - and adjusted with carry-on baggage and pockets of our jackets ;-)

Tomorrow at this time we should already be somewhere between Portugal mainland and the Azores. Our journey starts at about 2.30 am tomorrow for both of us as planes leave around 6 am from Berlin as well as from Frankfurt. We will both meet only in Lisbon airport around 0830Z, over a beer of course.

Equipment Tests Successful

We have just tested our SSPA which delivers a fair 800 W out and wasn't even squeezed yet. We do not intend to push the amp to the full performance but better keep a safety margin instead. The Tajfun was sitting on the shelf for roughly one year now waiting for the next activity. This will be in about three weeks...

Also our preamp is doing well (it is DF2ZC's spare mast LNA, so a bit overkill). Of course we will use less adaptors when being on the Azores ;-)

For our next activity we will arrange for a lighter version: We do not need max 3 kW full duty transfer power...and the weight which comes with these big relays. Siggi at SHF Elektronik is already busy with this project.

Equipment at CR2EME

On 144 MHz we will use our standard equipment:

• FT857
• Tajfun SSPA by VH Electronics
• 2 x 8/8 ele xpol yagis DK7ZB design
• MGF1302 mast preamp

On 432 MHz we will use:

• FT857
• 2 x 17 ele yagis DK7ZB design
• SSPA built for us by OK1DFC, ~200 W out
• LNA by HG8ET (0,4 dB nf)

We are very grateful to Zdenek OK1DFC who helped us getting hold of a SSPA for 70 cm simply by building one for us:

CR2EME QRV from HM77FT

The X-Team will soon be QRV from Azores, using the callsign CR2EME. We will be QRV from the QTH of José CU2EQ (HM77FT) who rented his holiday apartment to us and thankfully also took care of licensing.

Our flight details are
DH7FB
24 March TP0531 TXL-LIS, TP1865 LIS-PDL
30 March TP1868 PDL-LIS, TP0532 LIS-TXL

DF2ZC
24 March TP0573 FRA-LIS, TP1865 LIS-PDL
30 March TP1868 PDL-LIS, TP0572 LIS-FRA

So we should become QRV on March 25th at latest and have our final activity on March 29th.