MB6IGK-GW operating great!

The MB6IGK Digital Fusion Gateway has been operating perfectly since it was first activated. It's currently connected by default to the UK-NET-HUB room, along with a whole bunch of other Gateways, Repeaters and individual nodes. There are eight Fusion repeaters, fourteen Gateways, and a bunch of individual user Nodes connected up.

It's not exactly buzzing with D-Star levels of activity yet, but new Repeaters, Gateways and Nodes are joining the network on a weekly basis. Hopefully, as time passes, the interconnected nodes will stabilise into something robust and used. I think a lot of people are still wondering exactly what to do with all these interconnected nodes. Some of the rooms have so many nodes connected, I think people are frightened to talk on them. The Japan room had 204 connected nodes the other night. Can you imagine what that would look like if only 10% of them were trying to talk?!

It needs an easy way for people to listen in on a "CQ" room, and then QSY to a chat room. This is easy to do if you have the control software screen open in front of you, but seriously challenging if you are operating from an actual radio display screen.

On the upside, scheduled nets would be very easy to set up and organise with this system, as each node automatically has it's own 'room' it can make use of.

Kenwood TS-570DG

Kenwood TS-570DG

Time to try a little HF from home, and maybe a bit of portable operating as well.

Yaesu SMB-201

The MB6IGK Gateway radio is set to output 1W of RF, but due to the ongoing length of the often two sided conversations being transmitted out of the Gateway, I've decided to go overboard and add the SMB-201 fan/stand to the radio.

The Yaesu SMB-201 is incredibly expensive for what it is, which is just a 12V fan built into a desk stand, but they are very well built and work really well. It's quiet in operation and keeps the radio at a MUCH cooler temperature than it was running at before.

MB6IGK connected to UK-NET-HUB room on WiRES X

The MB6IGK Gateway has been up and running (while attended) for four evenings now. No problems so far. Installation was simple, with no hardware or software issues. Probably the most technical part is assigning port forwarding on the router, and that took less than five minutes, so no complaints!

Local activity through the RF Gateway has been limited to just me, word has obviously yet to get out about it's presence. They'll come flocking once they know it's here (lol). The network activity through UK-NET-HUB is sporadic. It tends to be quiet most of the time, just like the other digital modes (D-Star, DMR, and even the older analogue Echolink network).

There are normally 20+ nodes (ND-Nodes, GW-Gateways, RPT-Repeaters) in the UK-NET-HUB Room at any one time, with occasional visits from overseas visitors. Currently, there are four repeaters in the room.

MB6IGK on air!

The NoV for MB6IGK arrived today. The Gateway is now live.

VoIP-Handset Model: VH-MD6

This looks like an interesting solution to operating on WiRES X without a radio. You just buy the HRI-200 WiRES X interface unit and this handset that emulates the radio. Plug it into your PC and you're on the WiRES X network.

VoIP-Handset Model: VH-MD6

http://www.onechipdesign.com/VoIP-Handset/VoIP-Handset.html

MB6IGK: Simplex Fusion Gateway on 434.0375MHz

The application for the Notice of Variation (NoV) on my amateur radio licence has been submitted to the RSGB coordinating committee for a simplex frequency for the Fusion Gateway.

The application is for the Gateway callsign MB6IGK, operating on 434.0375MHz, at the locator JO01GJ.

This application is for a low powered digital (only) internet gateway frequency that is only operational while I'm in attendance. Transmitter output power will be about 1W into a basic 1/4 wave UHF antenna. Due to height restrictions and terrain limitations, I'm expecting a coverage area of about 3km, This will be centered roughly on the Royal Engineers and Greenwich University campus in Gillingham. It should see coverage down to St. Mary's Island and along the riverside.

One disappointing thing though, I was informed that although Yaesu Fusion is designed as a dual mode system, allowing users to operate their radio's in analogue or digital, with the radios and Gateways just switching automatically between modes, the NoV has to be specified as either Digital or Analogue. As the Fusion Gateway system is little more than Echolink while locked in analogue mode, I've had to select a DV only Gateway.