LNR Precision (www.LNRPrecision.com) recently released the first production batch of their new Mountain Topper 5-Band QRP radio.
The MTR-5B is THE new pocket-sized QRP radio to have. Highly Recommended!
As soon as I took it out of the box and hooked it up, my first contact was CN8KD in Morocco on 30m. I take that as as good omen for all of the fun I will have with this amazing little rig.
In this video, I show you the improvements over the (still awesome) MTR-3B radio. I then hook it up to an antenna and take it for a spin, letting you see the new four-line LCD display and some of the many cool features.
Hi, I want to buy a MTR5B or MTR4B Mountain Topper, but what is the receive frequency range for these fun radios?
I have been in contact with LNR Precision and European supplyer Kanga Products, and sherched the intire Internet – nowbody is able to answer me, can you?
Is it continius from ??mhz to ??mhz, or is it locked to the specific choosen transmit band?
Thanks for a fantastic website and informative videos!
Best regards from Norway
73
LA3XNA
Hello. With the Mountain Topper radios, you have to switch bands manually. It is not continuous tuning from 3.5MHz to 21MHz (for example). Also, you cannot switch the radio to listen to USB or LSB and you cannot open the 500Hz filter to hear a phone signal with a wider filter width. It is CW only and covers the entire CW portion of each of its bands.
If you’d like to listen to USB/LSB on signals outside the CW portion of the bands, the Elecraft KX1 is the radio to look for.
Thanks,
Cliff
I order one — should be here in a few days. What type of pwr supply are you using with it or are you just using batteries at this time ? Very good video
fred/ka4rur
I’m still just using a battery pack that holds 8 AA batteries – and I’m using 1.2v NiMH batteries. When fully charged, my battery pack is putting out about 11.5 volts but it settles down to about 10.5 volts after a while. The batteries I have are POWEREX 2700 mAh AA’s. They last a long time with this radio. – Cliff
Hello Cliff
Missing my qrpschool fix and look forward to your next vid.
I recently got an MTR5B and love it. Put a 20 dB pad inline and worked a qrpp sprint at 40mW. Ton of fun, but I did notice the cw sidetone was hot.
I’ll try the inline volume control but wish they included a way to adjust sidetone volume.
Making contacts at 40mW is pretty awesome, Nate!
I do wish there was a way to set AF Gain, RF Gain, and sidetone volume.
The inline thumbwheel volume control is a reasonable way to work around the limitations.
I recently bought a YouKits HB-1B Mk III and have been having fun with that little rig. I should make a video about that one… $299 for a 4 band CW rig with internal Lithium Ion battery.
I’m way behind on making videos! I’ve shot several videos of me working portable only to have them sitting on memory cards waiting to be edited.. 🙁
I’ll get back to it soon, I promise. Thanks for the encouragement.
Cliff
Cliff
I received my inline volume control for use with the MTR5B and it made all the difference.
After a long time of sitting on my Sotabeams linked-dipole, I finally hooked it up to the MTR5B and made contacts at 5 watts and antenna height of 16 ft on 40 m.
That combination, along with the AA battery pack, is just so compact and light weight. Sweet, golden, enjoyable and simplicity are the words that come to mind.
I thought about the You-Kits radio (and kx2) but ultimately decided on the LNR radio. Hard to go wrong either way seemingly.
Thanks for the wealth of information in your vids.
Maybe stupid question as theres little info out there.
Ive seen tuner somewhere in it is that an ATU or band petentionameter?
I just bought a used one and Im trying to figure out the best antenna setup, easiest eflw with a tuner or several monobanders….
Help!
Axel. 2E0DIG
The MTR-5B doesn’t include a tuner, internally. If you use a resonant antenna, with naturally low SWR, you can avoid having to use a tuner. I use a SOTABEAMS multi-band (“linked”) dipole. This antenna has several segments of wire that you can clip together to form multiple bands with a single antenna. And, this is a resonant antenna so I leave my Elecraft T1 tuner at home. LNR Precision also makes some popular end-fed antennas that are resonant. Have fun! – Cliff
thx cliff….btw what size is the power jack so I can order a couple?
thx again