Watch out, Baofeng; there’s a new kid on the cheap handy talkie market, and judging by this hardware and firmware upgrade to the Quansheng UV-K5, the radio’s hackability is going to keep amateur radio operators busy for quite a while.
Like the ubiquitous Baofeng line of cheap transceivers, the Quansheng UV-K5 is designed to be a dual-band portable for hams to use on the 2-meter VHF and 70-centimeter UHF bands. While certainly a useful capability, these bands are usually quite range-limited, and generally require fixed repeaters to cover a decent geographic area. For long-range comms you want to be on the high-frequency (HF) bands, and you want modulations other than the FM-only offered by most of the cheap HT radios.
Luckily, there’s a fix for both problems, as [Paul (OM0ET)] outlines in the video below. It’s a two-step process that starts with installing a hardware kit to replace the radio’s stock receiver chip with the much more capable Si4732. The kit includes the chip mounted on a small PCB, a new RF choke, and a bunch of nearly invisible capacitors. The mods are straightforward but would certainly benefit from the help of a microscope, and perhaps a little hot air rework. Once the hardware is installed and the new firmware flashed, you have an HT that can receive signals down to the 20-meter band, with AM and SSB modulations, and a completely redesigned display with all kinds of goodies.
It’s important to note that this is a receive-only modification — you won’t be transmitting on the HF bands with this thing. However, it appears that the firmware allows you to switch back and forth between HF receive and VHF/UHF transceive, so the radio’s stock functionality is still there if you need it. But at $30 for the radio and $12 for the kit, who cares? Having a portable HF receiver could be pretty handy in some situations. This looks like yet another fun hack for this radio; we’ve seen a few recently, including a firmware-only band expansion and even a Trojan that adds a waterfall display and a game of Pong.
[embedded content]
Thanks to [KC] for the tip.
- SEO Powered Content & PR Distribution. Get Amplified Today.
- PlatoData.Network Vertical Generative Ai. Empower Yourself. Access Here.
- PlatoAiStream. Web3 Intelligence. Knowledge Amplified. Access Here.
- PlatoESG. Carbon, CleanTech, Energy, Environment, Solar, Waste Management. Access Here.
- PlatoHealth. Biotech and Clinical Trials Intelligence. Access Here.
- Source: https://hackaday.com/2024/03/22/open-ht-surgery-gives-cheap-transceiver-all-band-capabilities/
- :is
- 800
- a
- Adds
- AIR
- All
- allows
- am
- amateur
- an
- and
- Another
- appears
- ARE
- AREA
- AS
- At
- back
- BAND
- BE
- below
- benefit
- between
- both
- Bunch
- busy
- but
- by
- CAN
- capabilities
- capability
- capable
- certainly
- cheap
- chip
- completely
- content
- could
- cover
- designed
- Display
- down
- embedded
- Even
- few
- Fix
- fixed
- For
- forth
- from
- full
- fun
- functionality
- game
- generally
- geographic
- gives
- going
- goodies
- hack
- handy
- Hardware
- Have
- having
- help
- High-Frequency
- HOT
- However
- HT
- HTTPS
- if
- important
- in
- includes
- Including
- installed
- installing
- invisible
- IT
- Keep
- Kid
- kinds
- kit
- like
- Line
- little
- LOOKS
- Market
- Microscope
- module
- more
- most
- much
- nearly
- Need
- New
- new chip
- note
- of
- offered
- on
- once
- open
- operators
- Other
- out
- outlines
- Paul
- pcb
- perhaps
- plato
- Plato Data Intelligence
- PlatoData
- portable
- pretty
- problems
- process
- quite
- Radio
- receive
- recently
- replace
- require
- seen
- signals
- situations
- small
- So
- some
- starts
- Still
- stock
- straightforward
- Surgery
- Switch
- than
- that
- The
- There.
- These
- thing
- this
- tip
- to
- Trojan
- ubiquitous
- upgrade
- use
- useful
- usually
- Video
- want
- while
- WHO
- with
- would
- yet
- you
- youtube
- zephyrnet