The m0xpd wallet has been dusted off - to the extent that I actually invested in a genuine Arduino (!!!)
Nothing against the penny-pinching WotduinoTM - but I need to be able to show true compatibility for some "public appearances" in the future and there's nothing more convincing than hearing the tune played on a genuine Stradivarius fiddle.
As opening application for the kosher Arduino, I rustled up a VFO system - much in the style of the excellent pa0klt VFO I got from Jan at SDR-Kits a few years back.
I took another of my Arduino DDS shields (this time made up with a socket for the DDS module, as I wanted to be able to plug different units in for testing). Then I took my code for driving the DDS module and mixed in some rotary encoder interfacing and some calls to the Arduino LiquidCrystal library to drive a 16*4 LCD.
Here's the finished result...
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Like my Arduino QRP rig, the VFO currently jumps the gaps between the amateur bands - although there's nothing to stop me having a continuously-variable frequency, with no inter-band gaps if I choose. That's the beauty of this approach - it is flexible and entirely configurable. Something other VFOs can't match.
It's also inexpensive - even if you insist on buying a pukka Arduino, you still might get change from £25.
Cheap chips!
...-.- de m0xpd
Nothing against the penny-pinching WotduinoTM - but I need to be able to show true compatibility for some "public appearances" in the future and there's nothing more convincing than hearing the tune played on a genuine Stradivarius fiddle.
As opening application for the kosher Arduino, I rustled up a VFO system - much in the style of the excellent pa0klt VFO I got from Jan at SDR-Kits a few years back.
I took another of my Arduino DDS shields (this time made up with a socket for the DDS module, as I wanted to be able to plug different units in for testing). Then I took my code for driving the DDS module and mixed in some rotary encoder interfacing and some calls to the Arduino LiquidCrystal library to drive a 16*4 LCD.
Here's the finished result...
Like my Arduino QRP rig, the VFO currently jumps the gaps between the amateur bands - although there's nothing to stop me having a continuously-variable frequency, with no inter-band gaps if I choose. That's the beauty of this approach - it is flexible and entirely configurable. Something other VFOs can't match.
It's also inexpensive - even if you insist on buying a pukka Arduino, you still might get change from £25.
Cheap chips!
...-.- de m0xpd