Foundations of Amateur Radio

Foundations of Amateur Radio

Author: Onno (VK6FLAB) Language: English Episodes: 579
For anyone curious about the crackle of a distant voice emerging from the static or the thrill of making a contact across the globe using nothing but radio waves, Foundations of Amateur Radio offers a friendly, steady guide. Hosted by Onno (VK6FLAB) from Australia, this long-running podcast acts as a companion for newcomers navigating the initial, often overwhelming, steps into this vast hobby. Each episode deliberately unpacks a single facet of amateur radio, breaking down technical concepts, equipment, and operating practices into digestible pieces. You'll hear practical advice on how to get started, find your place within the global community, and discover which of the hobby's countless avenues-from building antennas to satellite communication or emergency service-might spark your passion. It’s not about dry theory; it’s about demystifying the process and sharing the genuine rewards that keep enthusiasts engaged for a lifetime. Having evolved from its earlier incarnation in 2011, this podcast builds from the ground up, week by week, creating a solid resource that grows with you. Tune in for a down-to-earth conversation that makes the airwaves feel a little more accessible and a lot more inviting.
Episodes
Building a shack: Part 8 - Will it ever end? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 3:45
Foundations of Amateur Radio Building a shack makes a number of assumptions about your situation and to make it abundantly clear, it's not the only way to enjoy the hobby of amateur radio. Visiting clubs locally and remo…
Building a shack: Part 7 - Powering your shack [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:15
Foundations of Amateur Radio On your amateur radio journey, you'll likely discover that many transceivers run on 13.8 volt DC, give or take. For example my FT-857d requires 13.8 volt plus or minus 15 percent, with a nega…
Building a shack: Part 6 - Noise [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:05
Foundations of Amateur Radio Noise la la la la la hinders if I were a rich man effective a noise annoys an oyster communication but a noisy noise annoys an oyster more. Or said differently, when you're trying to communic…
Building a shack: Part 5 - Antenna Shenanigans [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:40
Foundations of Amateur Radio Putting your station together is best described as a juggling act, since you'll discover that everything depends on everything else and the more you plan, the more you learn and the more vari…
Building a shack: Part 4 - coaxial cable alternatives [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:55
Foundations of Amateur Radio When you start the process of getting your hobby off the ground, either for the first time, or after a hiatus, you might be left with the impression that the only way to "do amateur radio" is…
Building a shack: Part 3 - the ingress of coaxial cable [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:40
Foundations of Amateur Radio One of the potentially trickier aspects of putting together your shack is connecting the radio to the antenna. On the face of it, the challenge is limited to making sure that you have mating…
Building a shack: Part 2 - How much space do you need? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:27
Foundations of Amateur Radio When you start on the journey of putting together a shack, in whatever form that eventually takes, you'll need to figure out how much space is required. Of course, no matter what you choose,…
Building a shack: Part 1 - Setting the Scene [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:21
Foundations of Amateur Radio Recently it occurred to me that I haven't been using HF in my shack for much longer than I'd care to admit. Over the years I've spoken about my shack and how it's set-up, more on that shortly…
Bald Yak 14, choices and software flexibility [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:19
Foundations of Amateur Radio Let's start with an observation, I'm a geek, have been all my life. Since my early teenage years that evolved as a predilection for computing. As you might already know, I became a radio amat…
I have a problem .. with logging. [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:45
Foundations of Amateur Radio The first step in solving any problem is recognising that there is one. In my case the name of that problem is "logging". Specifically the storage and collection of my amateur radio contact l…