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Recommended Mini QCX mini Speaker?
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Mitch W2MSK
I'm looking for a suggestion for an inexpensive mini speaker for the QCX mini (AGC). This may have been covered many times before so bare with me. Radio Shack has made a very small, inexpensive (not really at $30) speaker amplifier model 2771008 in the past and now available on Amazon but out of stock on the current RS webstore.. Has anyone used this with success? Any other cheap speaker options? I do not prefer Bluetooth options, just a simple 3.5mm stereo plug/cord connection to the QCX mini audio out jack, if appropriate. Thanks Mitch, w2msk
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Speakers with amplifiers and batteries but without Bluetooth are getting scarce. But many Bluetooth speakers also have a 3.5mm jack, so you can use them as wired speakers with the QCX if you wish. On most of them, plugging in a 3.5mm cable switches over to a wired connection and turns off Bluetooth. I use one that Creative Labs sold a few years ago (now discontinued) but there is nothing particularly special about it; other similar speakers should work equally well. On Tue, Mar 1, 2022 at 10:55 PM Mitch <w2msk@...> wrote: I'm looking for a suggestion for an inexpensive mini speaker for the QCX mini (AGC). This may have been covered many times before so bare with me. Radio Shack has made a very small, inexpensive (not really at $30) speaker amplifier model 2771008 in the past and now available on Amazon but out of stock on the current RS webstore.. Has anyone used this with success? Any other cheap speaker options? I do not prefer Bluetooth options, just a simple 3.5mm stereo plug/cord connection to the QCX mini audio out jack, if appropriate. Thanks Mitch, w2msk |
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It would be so nice to have an integrated speaker in the QCX mini case. I presume audio quality is not a driver for CW operations, even some distortion from a very small speaker could be accepted... and there are very very small e.g. in cell phones...
Personally I'd prefer a slightly less miniaturized but complete rig (e.g. speaker and battery included, maybe even a touch key) than a supercompact one requiring some external stuffs to operate as the QCX mini is... |
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Dave VE3GSO
If you want all that stuff integrated into the case then you want a QCX+, which has enough internal room for a decent sized speaker, battery, battery charger circuit, automatic antenna tuner, etc.
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Yes, you would have to do the metal work for the speaker grill, build the LM386 amp, house the batteries, and all that, but Hans has done 95% of the work for you. Dave On Mar 2, 2022, at 01:22, tmmlrd <leo.tommasi@...> wrote:
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jjpurdum
You can always roll your own case and stuff whatever you deem desirable into it. Jack, W8TEE
On Wednesday, March 2, 2022, 01:22:14 AM EST, tmmlrd <leo.tommasi@...> wrote:
It would be so nice to have an integrated speaker in the QCX mini case. I presume audio quality is not a driver for CW operations, even some distortion from a very small speaker could be accepted... and there are very very small e.g. in cell phones... Personally I'd prefer a slightly less miniaturized but complete rig (e.g. speaker and battery included, maybe even a touch key) than a supercompact one requiring some external stuffs to operate as the QCX mini is... |
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Larry VE7EA
I purchased a small speaker on eBay/Amazon (~$10) then added to it a small amplifier module from eBay (~$10) that runs off 12VDC. Both very inexpensive, yet great sound in the end.
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If you want a direct, unpowered connection, the speaker needs to be around 64 ohms. The QCX-mini and QCX-plus cannot drive a standard 4 or 8 ohm speaker. Fortunately, there are 64 ohm headphones and headphone drivers available. I found mine on Ebay by searching for "64 ohm speaker" or "64 ohm driver". You should be able to find
Here is an accessory box I made for mobile use of the QCX-mini which contains a battery and 64-ohm speaker. The sound quality is quite decent and fairly loud considering its size. Definitely good enough for CW. -- 73, Dan - W6AZI |
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richlim11
Nice work, Dan, I'm gonna copy your design and make one this weekend! Rich KQ9L |
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jjpurdum
Nice! Jack, W8TEE
On Wednesday, March 2, 2022, 10:13:27 AM EST, Dan W6AZI <biscuit@...> wrote:
If you want a direct, unpowered connection, the speaker needs to be around 64 ohms. The QCX-mini and QCX-plus cannot drive a standard 4 or 8 ohm speaker. Fortunately, there are 64 ohm headphones and headphone drivers available. I found mine on Ebay by searching for "64 ohm speaker" or "64 ohm driver". You should be able to find Here is an accessory box I made for mobile use of the QCX-mini which contains a battery and 64-ohm speaker. The sound quality is quite decent and fairly loud considering its size. Definitely good enough for CW. -- 73, Dan - W6AZI |
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On Wed, Mar 2, 2022 at 07:09 AM, jjpurdum wrote:
You can always roll your own case and stuff whatever you deem desirable into it.This is where 3d printing comes into its own. I hadn't thought about this but now I have a new project... speaker, batteries, and key all integrated into a case with the QCX-Mini. I have an ampifier from adafruit, a few small speakers, some brass stock for key making, a 4-series li-ion charger, and 18650 cells. All I need now is the time. Thanks for the idea. |
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Mike - N5AQM
I bought several(sub $10) Bluetooth battery powered speakers with a wired audio input. They work and sound great with the Mini. I was shocked at how much similar units have gone up in price(2.5x).
One of them had a battery failure so I pulled the battery out and just power it via USB. Looking at the charge circuit and measuring charge voltages, it was over charging the battery and basically cooked the battery at around 4.8v! :O |
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Glad to help. Here's the speaker I use at home on my bench. It includes the same 64 ohm speaker (aka "headphone driver") as above, but no battery. I found the container at Michael's. It had a clear round insert with the same diameter as the speaker. I cut the plastic part out and hot-glued the speaker in to the lid. Due to the fairly large cavity size of the container, it sounds surprisingly good.
-- 73, Dan - W6AZI |
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Al Holt
The AYL speaker recommendation was poster here a while ago. I purchased one from Amazon and it works as advertised. It has a short ~5" pigtail cable with miniplug, and comes with an extension. Battery powered with USB jumper for recharging.
--Al WD4AH |
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richlim11
I may be the odd ball here, but I bought that speaker and returned it. I did not like how it sounded, there was almost like some digital processing of the CW sidetone that was very annoying to me. I have resorted to using a plain old communications type speaker which you can get on Amazon for like $15.
Rich |
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Same here Al .... just different brand marking with bluetooth also for $20 at Walgreens =) On Wed, Mar 2, 2022 at 10:04 AM Al Holt <grovekid2@...> wrote: The AYL speaker recommendation was poster here a while ago. I purchased one from Amazon and it works as advertised. It has a short ~5" pigtail cable with miniplug, and comes with an extension. Battery powered with USB jumper for recharging. --
73's Pat N5VMO |
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Brian Salcedo
Ordered this speaker too, and it seems to have a noticeable lag
that takes some getting used to. It also sounds pretty harsh with
side tone and loud signals. I do not recommend. On 3/2/22 10:17, N5VMO Pat wrote:
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w2eck
I had a similar experience with this speaker, didn't like the sound or the design. would not recommend it.
73 Paul w2eck |
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Mitch W2MSK
Thank you all for responding. I tried a Radio Shack clip on mini speaker, UNAMPLIFIED and the QCX mini was not powerful enough to drive it...very low audio out. Is this correct, I need an amplified speaker? Mitch, w2msk
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It does not need to be amplified if the speaker impedance is around 64 ohms. The "standard" speaker impedances are 4 ohms and 8 ohms, both of which will produce a very low audio level.
-- 73, Dan - W6AZI |
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Mitch W2MSK
Thanks!
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