Whether you roll your own or flash the plastic for a rig, the process has to start somewhere. Often the starting point is at the wrong end of the process. Let us define what I mean.
As hams we are often overtaken by the cosmetics. That radio is cool looking, or I want to build a cool looking radio. How many of you start out by saying I want a radio or rig that performs well? The ne plus ultra is to have both.
That plain black box with no knobs has no curb appeal -- yet perhaps it is one of the best ever performing radios. The flash is in the software!
The tangle of wires and PC boards mounted on a plank of pine can be and often is a DX machine.
The best place to start is with what often in government contracting is called a "requirements list". Let us use a real-world example: you are more than a closet POTA or SOTA guy --you are an addict! Every weekend is a planned adventure to some park or mountain top.
You scour data bases to see which parks or summits have not been activated -- one that has not been activated or only infrequently is moved to the top of your list.
It follows -- rare DX has the whole world listening for you and the same for POTA and SOTA. You make a schedule of events and if the XYL is not joining you -- you reassure her that you have only radio in focus for the time away. You are ready to go -- really, are you?
So, how did you decide what rig to use? Did your radio selection or homebrew rig consider what was required in the hardware. Things like how much does it weigh with batteries? Is everything in one box like a built-in antenna tuner or now you have to lug two boxes 2 miles straight up? How is the battery consumption?
One ham made a foray up a summit that had many radio repeater sites in close proximity. His SOTA event was cut short as his low budget Chinese box was desensitized from all of the RF floating around -- something he never thought about when he flashed his plastic.
Other concerns should be the mode. Will you do both CW and SSB or for efficiency or saving on battery consumption just CW. How about the antenna? Often simple wire antennas have a small footprint, and that smallness often results in a small number of contacts. Did you look at a pair of phased verticals to give your signal a bit of a boost. The fold down whip antennas is now looking a lot better.
Finally for a guy with FFS -- those small knobs will soon give you an acid stomach. The latest rig from Elecraft (KH1) would get a pass from me with the key and knobs mounted on the bottom -- it looks weird!
The homebrew rig presents many problems as the performance factors are not well documented as they might be with a radio that has to be type certified. Often homebrewers simply replicate already published projects and thus your mileage may vary. However, if your work is an original design then you have more control over performance.
Too much RF gain in the front end also amplifies the noise. Putting a modest amount of front-end gain with a lot of audio gain results in copying more of the weak signals. Forget those pixie style radios. Your requirements list should make clear -- 5 watts and forget 1oo milliwatts for a POTA or SOTA.
What is on your requirements list? BTW did you choke at the price point of the KH1 @$550 which is about where you can buy a XIEGU Model 6100.
73's
Pete N6QW