For the experimenter who doesn’t want to build his or her own receiver from scratch, there are several sources that will provide completely built receivers or receivers in kit form.Building a kit is a great way for you to learn about the workings of a Natural Radio receiver, plus have the satisfaction of monitoring on a receiver that you built yourself.
INSPIRE VLF-3 Receiver The INSPIRE VLF-3 is the third version of the popular receiver used by students and others to observe Natural Radio and other Low Frequency emissions. This receiver is very flexible in setup and has the controls and enhancements necessary to make recordings that can be properly logged for further study. The VLF-3 is available in kit form only.
Order INSPIRE VLF-3 Radio Receiver Kit (theinspireproject.org)
LF Engineering L-600S H-Field Loop Receiving System The LF Engineering L-600S H-Field Loop Receiving System is probably the only readily available manufactured Loop Receiver. This type of receiver uses a loop antenna instead of a probe and responds to the magnetic portion of the Natural Radio signal. This type of receiver should perform better in locations that have a lot of trees or other obstructions that decrease the sensitivity of an E-Field receiver.Loop antennas are also directional which may help nulling out hum and other interfering signals. I have an earlier version of this receiver which performs well.
https://www.lfengineering.com/products.cfm#ELF%20Antennas
Kits & Boards Available
Here are some sources for project boards and kits.
INSPIRE
The INSPIRE project sells their VLF-3 receiver kits for $120. If you are interested, the website address is:
or contact them at: Info@TheINSPIREProject.org
Far Circuits
Another source for boards of interest to the VLF and Natural Radio experimenter is Far Circuits. Far Circuits has produced circuit boards over the years for many construction projects appearing in QST, 73, and other electronics publications.
The listing on the website for each project board includes the magazine and issue where the article was published, but there is really no other description of the project other than the title. Therefore, it might take a little research to find out the details of the project. You can order reprints of the article
with the board for an additional $1.50.
It’s worth spending some time looking through the listings, as having a circuit board makes construction a homebrew project much easier. Looking at this list is also an easy way to find a reference for project you may have read about a few years ago, but can’t remember where you saw it. Here are some of the projects I found that might appeal to Natural Radio Experimenters:
- VLF SPACE SHUTTLE RECEIVER
- JOE CARR VLF RECEIVER
- GYRATOR RECEIVER
- A SIMPLE 10MHZ WWV RECEIVER BY MCKEAN
- REMOTE TUNED ACTIVE ANTENNA/CORNELL (2 BD SET)
- CORNELL WIDE BAND RECEIVER AMPLIFIER
- CORNELL REGEN RECEIVER PREAMP
- AAVSO VLF RECEIVER PREAMP BY CARR
- AAVSO RECEIVER BY CARR
There are also some audio amplifier boards that could be used as the headphone amp for a Natural Radio Receiver. If you are considering building a beacon transmitter, there are projects for automatic keyers and oscillators.
Check out the website at https://farcircuits.net or contact them at:
Far Circuits
18N640 Field Court
Dundee, Illinois 60118
(847) 347-2432 Phone
mail@farcircuits.net
Page created by Mark Karney