We are fortunate to have seven repeaters,a beacon and link systems in Sheffield to choose from;
- GB3KEU for Microwaves (NOTE THIS IS A BEACON …NOT A REPEATER!)
- GB3TT - ATV Repeater on 23cms.
- GB3US - IRLP Node 5150 –on 70cms
- GB7SF for D-Star
- Echolink Ireland Servers via M0KSP-L
- IRLP Node 5100,Simplex on 2m at 145.212.50 (G4CUI)
- IRLP Node 5120,Simplex on 70cms (M1ERS)
- IRLP Node 5852,Simplex on 6m (2E0TWS)
GB3KEU –Microwave Beacon
A new 6cm microwave beacon,GB3KEU,is up and running from the Sheffield Amateur Radio Club location at Meadowhead,Sheffield. We “threw the big switch”at 11.15GMT Sunday 6 April.
The beacon is now on air. Please listen for it and give me a frequency check on the zero beat carrier.
- Callsign:GB3KEU (In memory of Tim Leighfield,G3KEU,a keen 6cm op and now SK)
- Frequency:Nominally 5760.925MHz
- Antenna:Slotted wave guide. Omni.
- Power out:25W erp
- Keying:FSK,nominally 400Hz shift.
- Line up:G8ACE OCXO->DB6NT 5.7 beacon module ->DB6NT PA (at reduced o/p)
We all owe a debt of gratitude to Peter,G3LRP (nr Wakefield) for his extremely generous donation of both DB67NT modules to this project. He’s been waiting a very long time to hear this beacon! Many thanks also to the Telford club,G3ZME very kindly donated (via G3UKV) a beautifully made slotted waveguide antenna. At present the beacon is mounted on a short mast,projecting just above the roof of the club shack. Reports to:G3PHO
GB3TT ATV Repeater
This is Sheffield’s only microwave Fast Scan TV repeater for the city and is located with GB7SF repeater in Firth Park.
- Output 1310.000MHz
- Input 2388.000MHz
GB3US
This is Sheffield’s most commonly used local 70cm repeater for the city and is located on the University of Sheffield’s Metallurgy Building in the City Centre.
- Output 433.000MHz
- Input 434.600MHz.
- CTCSS Tone 103.5
- IRLP Node:5150
History
GB3US was one of the first 70cm repeaters in UK and became operational on Friday the 13th of January,1978,from the University’s Hicks Building (Mathematics and Physics),which is about a quarter of a mile west of its present location. The equipment was an old Pye F450T UHF Base Station (mid 60′s vintage),originally destined for the icy wastes of Antarctica and,perhaps surprisingly,it is still going strong some 25+ years later. The same holds true for the aerial,which is a J-Beam colinear (Rx) over a J-Beam 4 dipole stack (Tx),kindly donated by the company. The first control logic was the prototype of the GB3US Mk1 (RadCom,Jan 1980 and Jan 1982) followed a couple of years later by the microprocessor Mk2 version (RadCom Oct/Nov 1983),both of which designs are used extensively by other UK repeaters. In July 2001,after a few years of experimental linking to The Internet by some local stations,GB3US ecame the first repeater in UK to operate 24/7 on the IRLP system,as node 5150.
GB7SF –D-Star Repeater System
Steve M1ERS and a team of Sheffield radio amateurs have set up a D-STAR repeater system here in Sheffield. This is one of the pioneer systems of this kind in the UK –another first for Sheffield.
Instructions explaining how to use the new repeater,details of the coverage areas,working frequencies and operating guidelines are available at the GB7SF website.
The D-STAR system is similar to a conventional repeater with IRLP/Echolink capabilities. The difference is that D-STAR uses a digitally modulated signal to and from a user’s radio whereas with IRLP/Echolink this is only digital within the computer system. D-STAR repeaters rebroadcast locally,in-band or cross-band or to far and away,depending on how you have configured your radio.
D-STAR also supports 1200 bps data on the digital voice channel,so you can send data from your D-STAR radio as well. Our 1.2 GHz high-speed data repeater will provide a 128kb TCP/IP data connection,bringing all your favourite internet applications such as email and web browsing to your rig and computer station.
Wherever you are,if you can access the repeater,you can also access the internet. Steve is installing a 2m,70cms and 23cms D-Star repeater at his home QTH high in the north of the city,so we should get a good coverage within the Sheffield area and beyond.
Echolink Ireland Servers via M0KSP-L
Karl M0KSP operates a simplex link in Sheffield on 430.075 with a 71.9MHz CTCSS and which is enabled on Echolink. The node number for this link is 4139 and the link is enabled each day from around 12:00 noon to around 23:00hrs each evening.
This is a very busy link and quite interesting with discussion being heard most of the day and night with the odd ocassional quiet. A quick cq call can soon liven the conversation! If the M0KSP-L is shut down,yo ucan always boot up yoru computer,run Echolink and go to the Ireland Conference.
The Ireland Echolink Conference is now one of the biggest conferences capable of handling up to 6000 links and repeaters. The IRELAND Conference server Node number 2605 system is permanently connected to EI2IPG and EI0IPG. Most of the gateways in Ireland have chosen to permanently connect to the Ireland conference server. There are many links from all over the world who also have a permanently connected gateway to the server. All PC Users Links,Repeater and Conferences are very welcome
Computer Used –Soprano Quad Core Running @ 11Gz With 8GB Memory / Windows Xp64 BiT
Internet Used –Tiscali Business Conection @ 8 Mega BiTs
Antenna Used –Diamond X-300 Omnidirectional
Radio Used –Yaesu FT8900
Echolink Interface Used –G3VFP MK III
M0KSP-L Node Number 4139 –A Picture Of The M0KSP-L Software Running
The Time Out Is Set For (4) Mins,Also The EchoLink ID Is Given Out Every 15 Mins
IRLP Node 5100 –2 metres –G4CUI
Greg Cook G4CUI is the Repeater Keeper for this IRLP node,which is based in Fulwood,Sheffield,and reported to be the UK’s first IRLP node in 2001. This is set at the frequency 145.21250 and uses a CTCSS tone of 71.9
IRLP Node 5120 –70cms –M1ERS
This link has been provided by the repeater keeper Steve M1ERS in Sheffield for over 10 years and can be accessed via 434.475 simplex. The repeater is situated in Firth Park,Sheffield,some 650 metres above sea level.
IRLP stands for the Internet Radio Linking Project. The aim of this project is to link radio systems separated by long distance without the use of expensive leased lines,satellites,or controllers. The IRLP uses Voice-Over-IP software and the power of the Internet to link your radio site to the world. The system uses its own custom interface board and software suite which makes interfacing your radio system to the world simple and cost effective.
The IRLP runs a large network of dedicated servers and nodes to offer the very best in voice communications. The heart of the IRLP is its Amateur Radio network which reaches hundreds of towns and cities across the World,linking them all with a full dynamic range,telephone quality sound. Due to many poorly factory adjusted radios these days,not all radios and nodes you will hear through Live365 will exhibit the excellent audio quality that IRLP is capable of. However,due to the digital nature of IRLP linking,a properly adjusted node and user radio will have the identical audio quality to that of a local user.
IRLP Node 5852 –6 metres –2E0TWS
This link is owned and maintained by Trevor M0TWS,and is the UK’s first 6 metre link and is situated in Grimesthorpe area of Sheffield. The frequency is 51.930 Mhz using a Node CTCSS (Hz)/DCS of 71.9. there is no offset frequency.