Dear Flexers, It has been a while since I gave everyone an update from FlexRadio so here goes.
First, as a sidebar, our new tag line is, "Tune in excitement!" (TM). We believe that it communicates what we hear from our customers as well as the benefit we want to deliver in all our products. FLEX-3000 Update: We just returned from the Orlando Hamcation this past weekend, where we were showing the FLEX-3000 beta production unit for the first time at a hamfest. We packed the radio and a laptop computer in a single laptop bag for carry on to our flight. By the way, the color blue won out in our poll for paint color on the FLEX-3000. Thanks to all of you who participated in the poll. We received an overwhelmingly positive response from everyone who saw the unit in Orlando. We are now completing assembly of the remaining beta units and preparing for production release and expect to begin production shipments in April or sooner, given the current plan. Before the show we did initial performance measurements on the receiver. We want to complete testing on the remaining beta units before releasing final specifications. I can say that two-tone, third order dynamic range with the preamp off will exceed 90 dB at 2 kHz spacing or even 100 Hz spacing (IMD DR3 does not degrade at close spacing as found on typical hybrid DSP transceivers, a.k.a. Firmware Defined Radios. If you would like to see where that stacks up against other radios, see the Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced column on Rob Sherwood's site at http://www.sherweng.com/table.html. Given our current backlog and order rate, it is likely we will sell out the FLEX-3000 first production run within the next few days. Note that introductory pricing of $1,499.00 for pre orders will end February 28th and will revert to the regular price of $1,599.00 for orders received thereafter. PowerSDR(TM)/Software Update: A number of customers are currently beta testing a preview release of the signed 64-bit drivers for Windows Vista. We expect that the official release will occur in about 3-4 weeks. If you would like to be added to the beta test group for the 64-bit driver, please email e...@flex-radio.com. As most of you may know by now, we are hard at work on the "new virtual radio software architecture" to achieve three primary objectives: multi-platform support (Windows, Mac, and Linux), rapid/flexible graphical user interface (GUI) development using thin-client technology, and integrated remote operation. We had hoped to preview the new architecture at the Dayton Hamvention but the job has proved to be larger than originally anticipated. However, our development team is making significant progress in prototyping the new system to prove that we can achieve our main goals. In the interim, we are in the process of giving PowerSDR a completely new look and feel for introduction in Dayton. I am confident you will like what you see. Also, there is significant work in the area of adaptive signal processing in the DSP arena that will roll out over the upcoming weeks and months. This includes major improvements in wideband image rejection, AGC, automatic noise reduction, etc. These efforts leverage for the amateur market work in process on a government contract, which is well under way. 2m/70cm Internal Transverter for FLEX-5000: We have completed the preliminary architectural design for an internal 2m/70cm Transverter that may be installed in any FLEX-5000 equipped with the B-0034 version RFIO board. It will provide simplex or full duplex transmit/receive operation with power output up to 60W on both bands. All transverter oscillators are to be locked to the 500 MHz master oscillator in the FLEX-5000, which in turn is locked to the internal 0.5ppm reference or may be connected to an external 10 MHz reference. We are targeting a first prototype unit in May to be followed by production deliveries starting in the late summer. FLEX-1500 Entry Level SDR: The FLEX-1500 is a low cost, entry level SDR targeted for highly portable operation. It operates over a single USB connection and does not require a sound card. Its receiver will offer a 48 kHz panadapter bandwidth and a tuning range from 11 kHz through 60 MHz and will transmit on amateur bands from 160-6m. Based on customer feedback, we have decided to increase power output from 1W to 5W. The unit will also be capable low power operation and external frequency reference for use as a transverter IF. We expect initial deliveries to begin by early fall. The $499.00 introductory price for pre orders will end February 28 and will be $579.00 for orders received thereafter. Note that you will not be charged for pre orders until the product ships. Final Note: It was a true pleasure to see so many FlexRadio customers in Orlando and to hear how you are enjoying their radios. Those of us who work here truly appreciate your support and feedback. 73, Gerald Gerald Youngblood, K5SDR President FlexRadio Systems 13091 Pond Springs Rd. #250 Austin, TX 78729 Phone: 512-535-4713 "Tune in excitement!" (TM) _______________________________________________ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flex-radio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flex-radio.com/
