A Look Under the Hood Bruce Wampler - WA7EWC Icom IC-7300
A Look Under the Hood Bruce Wampler - WA7EWC
Icom IC-7300
The Icom IC-7300 is a brand new (April 2016), Direct Conversion, 100% SDR.
It is the first SDR amateur radio transceiver by one of the “major” Japanese companies.
$1,500 “entry level” Transceiver changes what “entry level” means.
160m to 6m plus full general coverage receiver
Exceptional receiver - RMDR@2K: 103dB
RF and Audio Spectrum scopes
Built-in Tuner
Built-in USB transceiver control and audio
Full remote control capability
Direct conversion SDR
Is the IC-7300 revolutionary?
YES! This changes everything.
From now on, an entry level base station transceiver will have:
Receiver with 2kHz RMDR of at least 100dB Real time Spectrum scope USB control and audio Antenna Tuner SDR / DSP Digital features: audio recording, predefined messages Highly customizable filters
2kHzRMDR Scope Tuner Price
Icom IC-7300 (sdr) 103 X X 1,500Icom IC-7100 (mobile) 84 1,100Icom IC-7600 86 X X 3,000Icom IC-7650 (speculation) 115 X X 3,000Icom IC-7851 116 X X 13,000Flex 6300 (sdr, w/ Maestro) 116 X X 3,650Flex 6700 (sdr, w/ Maestro) 116 X X 8,500Kenwood TS-590SG 94 X 1,400Kenwood TS-990S 87 X X 6,800Yaesu FT-991 75 X X 1,300Yaesu FTDX-3000 82 X X 2,700Yaesu FTDX-5000 104 X X 5,000Yaesu FTDX-9000MP 92 X X 9,000Elecraft K3S (sdr - base station) 114 +800 +650 2,650
Comparison of some currently available transceivers
Reciprocal Mixing Dynamic Range
ARRL Test Labs: “Reciprocal Mixing must be seriously considered while evaluating the overall performance of a
receiver. In fact, it is probably the most significant figure in receiver performance!” http://www.arrl.org/forum/topics/view/177
RMDR is a measure of how well the receiver blocks adjacent signals.
Why does SDR make such a difference?
Superheterodyne + DSP vs. SDR
Why does SDR make such a difference?
SuperheterodyneAnalog design for RF signal Multiple IF stages with complex filtering issues Added noise Analog filters
SDRCan be all digital (except RF pre-amps/bandpass) Current A/Ds and D/As work well, not expensive Digital domain allows use of FPGAs and/or DSPs for mod/demod and customizable “perfect” software filters
Output power: 100W (25W AM)TX Frequencies: 160m - 6m (SSB, CW, RTTY, AM, FM)Antenna Tuner: Matches up to 10:1 SWRRX Frequencies: 0.030-74.800Receiver type: RF direct sampling systemColor touch screen: 4.3” color TFT touch LCDSpectrum Scope: Real-Time FFT RF/Audio scopeBuilt-in automatic antenna tunerSD memory card slot for saving data, audio, screen shotsCooling fan systemMulti-function meterCW functions: full break-in, CW reverse, CW auto tuningCustomizable filter profilesEasy to use settings with buttons and touch screenRequires 13.8v, 22 amp DC power
Basic IC-7300 Features
IC-7300 Features: Spectrum Scope
Spectrum Scope:Large Size
Spectrum Scope:Small Size
Mystery: What is This????
RFI: Probably my heating boiler
Note: Center View vs Fixed on previous slide.
IC-7300: Audio Scope
CW Audio Spectrum
Audio Scope
LSB Audio
PSK31 Audio Signal
IC-7300: Frequency/Band Selection
Direct selection by touching Spectrum
Scope.
Band Selection by touching first
frequency diet, then selecting band.
Can also directly enter frequency.
IC-7300: Auto Antenna Tuner
Will match up to 3:1 SWR at full power Up to 10:1 SWR at reduced power Remembers up to 100 frequency matches
IC-7300: Display & Settings
Combination of physical buttons and touch screen buttons to select displays and change settings. Many options, most obvious in context. Long-press used to open settings for a button.
IC-7300: Example - setting a filter
Can set passband filters using Multi knob.
IC-7300: Observations
The Good:• Receiver Really Good• Noise Reduction Amazing• Spectrum Scope: Wow• Control Interface: A-• Mode Filters: Really work• Good reports of TX audio• USB control /audio• Antenna Tuner• Cost/feature ratio: A+
The Bad:• Only one antenna connector - no
separate RX antenna• Memo interface awful• Fixed Scope only has 3 edge settings• Built-in speaker mediocre• IP+ feature apparently not yet right• You need to have this radio!
WA7EWCWA7EWC - Complete Station
Where’s the tuner, the audio interface box, amplifier, DSP speaker, keyer, and all that other stuff? Don’t need ‘em.
Outside: Hustler 6BTV+17m Vertical with 32 radials
IC-7300: Technical Overview
FPGA Altera EP4CE55F23I7NCyclone IV E
55856 Logic elements200 MHz
DSP TI TMS320C6745 375MHz
TX D/A Intersil ISL5857IAZ High Speed D/A
12 Bit260 MSPS
RX A/D Linear LTC2208-14 14Bit130MSPS
Main CPU Renesas R7S721000VCFP 32 Bit, 1M Ram400MHz clock
Plus display CPU and audio A/Ds and D/As
IC-7300: Main Board
RF
Speaker
MicrophoneCPU
DSP FPGA
RXA/D
TXD/A
ToLCD
The End