Sofas on the Air

If you’re a regular listener, you may have noticed we’ve been - dare I say - a bit radio silent. Well, today we’re back - and Ara and I are going to catch up on all the shenanigans that kept us out of the studio! Stay tuned to hear about Ara’s newest product - the TinyGawant - along with Mark and Di’s SOTA DXpedition to Australia, Winter Field Day, and a few spoilers from Ara on upcoming product concepts!As always, the Sofa was captained by Mark KD7DTS and Ara N6ARA, with Di KO6BTM running the studio system.__PATREON__We strongly believe that in-person chats are more fun! Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews? Join our Patreon (and Discord) community!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Ara N6ARA on YouTube:⁠  @N6ARAElectronics ⁠ The N6ARA Store: https://n6ara.com/Drink tastings:- Hi Dez by Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co.- Opt Outside by Chapman Crafted Beer__CHAPTERS__0:00 Mark and Ara catch up6:43 The TinyGawant Antenna26:59 SOTA DXpedition in Australia43:48 Winter Field Day with W6TRW57:27 Ara gets a surprise!1:04:56 Ara’s Future Products?!?1:33:11 Thanks to our Patreons__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphics

Friend of the 'pod Josh KI6NAZ, from the little-known  @HamRadioCrashCourse  drops by the sofa to get nerdy... and share how he entered the SOTA-verse! This episode covers Josh's disastrous first SOTA activation and Mark's theories on the importance of balancing technical, physical, and mental skills for success. Ara shows hardware for his nearly complete "Antennode" project, which uses Raspberry Pis and LoRa to automate antenna A/B testing and provide a scientific method for evaluating antenna performance without expensive equipment. Josh dives deep into the challenges of content creation, emphasizing the need for consistency over perfection. Finally, the whole team gets passionate about building sustainable ham club club leadership, and how to empower new members to take the initiative in gettin' stuff done!As always, the Sofa was captained by Mark KD7DTS and Ara N6ARA, with Di KO6BTM running the studio system and Ormoo noshing on kibbles.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Josh KI6NAZ on YouTube:  @HamRadioCrashCourse  Ara N6ARA on YouTube:  @N6ARAElectronics  The N6ARA Store: https://n6ara.com/ Drink tasting: Elysian "Contact Haze"__CHAPTERS__0:00 Welcome & beers3:07 Josh's hot takes on AI8:30 Josh's first (failed) SOTA, and need for "Intro to SOTA" days30:27 Mark's principles of "SOTA Success" 36:07 The "Antennode" - antenna science!1:02:13 Developing ham club leaders1:17:19 Patreon questions! (YouTube... how does that work??)1:45:34 Turning the tables - Josh's questions for Ara & Mark__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphics

Ara's friend Justin K5EM drops by the sofa to share his pro tips on how friendly radio events (including SOTA!) can build community both locally, and around the world. As always, this episode was captained by Mark KD7DTS and Ara N6ARA, with Di KO6BTM running the studio system.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun! https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Sake - Kunoichi by Moon BloomSupercon: https://hackaday.io/superconference/Salmon Run QSO Party: https://salmonrun.wwdxc.org/Palau DX: https://www.qrz.com/db/T88WASOTAMAT: https://sotamat.com/Non-Ormoo SOTACAT: https://store.invertedlabs.com/product/sotacat/__Chapters__0:00 Intros8:00 Mark's SOTA Goat activation19:50 Justin's ham journey42:51 DXpedition in Palau1:09:01 Salmon Run QSO Party1:30:51 SOTACAT1:42:12 Thanks to our Patreon supporters__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsNote: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Tim N7KOM returns to the Sofa to share his Oregon campout experience, drop some cool geology knowledge, and take a speed-round of Patreon questions! Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Nikka - From the BarrelTim's Etsy Page: https://www.etsy.com/shop/N7KOMPortableRadioTim's Dank Meme Page: https://www.instagram.com/n7kom_mtntop/K6ARK's W7O First Activation Video: https://youtu.be/p5zHlpZ3jbQ?si=eoqnDGwMAMP3tkqJLearn about Pseudotachylytes: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191814113000436/pdfft?md5=2cfbe5aed237c265df9b7ed67a158d81&pid=1-s2.0-S0191814113000436-main.pdf__Chapters__0:00 Intros... and Tim's wedding!2:56 Whiskey tasting & catching up11:23 Tim's W7O Experience17:44 Dank Memes - HOW?19:55 SOTA Royale 43:14 Patreon Questions - Pseudotachylytes??58:17 Speed Round!1:05:23 Thanks to our supporters__Thanks & Acknowledgements__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsThanks to our Patreon supporters for making this show possible!Note: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Mark & Ara catch up on the Sofa, answer a few questions, and get some Ormoo prints on their laptops.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Drink tasting: Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey__Chapters__0:00 Mark & Ara catch up2:31 Beverage Tasting7:00 Patreon Questions41:03 NT6E Activation!49:19 Ara's Antenode Update59:15 Contests (and a viral microwave video)01:18:00 Wrap up, & thanks to our Patreon supporters!__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - outro musicDi KO6BTM - intro/outro graphicsNote: Amazon links, if any, are affiliate links

Umesh KK6TXI visits the Sofa to share his expertise in custom batteries for portable ham radio, including QRO SOTA and a mountaintop Field Day! We catch up (finally) with stories from the W7O and W6 SOTA campouts, and Mark waxes poetic about an activation that went oh-so-wrong.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAirSHOW NOTESDrink tastings: G4 Tequila Blanco High Proof 108, G4 Tequila ReposadoThe NR7Y Hardware Mod: https://youtu.be/zi35aTjEppQ N6ARA Electronics - the TinyPaddle, and more! https://n6ara.com/KK6TXI's Battery Field Test - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBzJ3BqniDEChapters0:00 Hi Umesh!3:36 Tequila Tasting9:02 Batteries!01:11:28 Mark's W7O Campout01:24:38 Ara's W6 Campout01:30:11 SOTA Car-tastrophe01:52:54 Thanks to our Patreon supporters!THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSUmesh KK6TXI - studio space and intro/outro musicDi KO6BTM - audio engineeringNote: Amazon links are affiliate links

Devin W6DVN visits the Sofa to share his expertise in ultralight microwave SOTA activations... including how to build the gear! Mark nerds out a bit over a Quansheng CW mod, and Ara gets into his never-ending quest to better understand the behavior of real-world antennas.Patreon: Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__Coffee choice: "Process Pairing - Colombia Black Condor" from Backyard Beans Coffee Companyhttps://backyardbeans.com/products/process-pairing-colombia-black-condorQuansheng Radio: https://amzn.to/45f4pXH (mod'able for CW)Quansheng IJV Firmware Mod: https://domox.org/home.htmlCorrection: feed horn from Rochester not Syracusehttps://rvhfg.org/wpr/w1ghz-dual-band-dish-feed/__Chapters__0:00 Hi Devin!2:01 Coffee tasting5:49 Devin loves microwaves49:15 Mark's new CW radio60:05 Ara's antenna test challenge87:39 New microphones!91:05 Thanks to our Patreon supporter!__THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - audio Elmering, and outro musicDi KO6BTM - audio engineeringNote: Amazon links are affiliate links

Mark and Ara share their Field Day experiences, along with an epic trip to the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) and hot takes on Di's new Morse Code learning video. __PATREON__Want to help us fly SOTA icons out for in-person interviews, and support our audio upgrades? We believe strongly that in-person chats are more fun!https://www.patreon.com/c/SofasOnTheAir__SHOW NOTES__HRCC Field Day Livestream video: "Field Day Live! Five stations, QRP!!!"Field Day After-action video: "You Can't Cram More Radios and Fun Into A Weekend!"Umesh's Tour video: "OVRO 2025 - 360 Tour of 40 Meter Dish!"Angelina's CW contact short: "YL Angelina's FIRST EVER Morse Code contact!" SOTA+ Morse Code video: "How to Morse Code (in 10 Minutes!)"Ara's TinyMIDI product: the perfect companion for Learning CW (and more)Book recommendation: The CW Way of Life __THANKS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS__Umesh KK6TXI - microphone loan, audio Elmering, and outro musicDi KO6BTM - audio engineeringNote: Amazon links are affiliate links

In this wide-ranging chat with Oregon SOTA guest, Tim N7KOM covers his unusual introduction to radio, the Oregon campout, preparedness for 'radio first aid', activation shenanigans while visiting LA... and tastes some delicious local brews from Far Field.

In this first-ever episode of Sofas on the Air, Mark and Ara sit down to discuss Ara's SOTA Goat day (250 QSOs on a livestream!) and Mark's ARRL Field Day plans.