The following is a list of QRP Radio and Accessories that you can use to assemble your own QRP setup. The radios listed here are all limited to 10 Watts output or less as a rule. In other words, there are no 100 Watt transceivers listed here. By no means is list all encompassing. If you find a radio or accessory that would be good to include in this list please email that information to the webmaster, Darrell Davis KT4WX at kt4wx@arrl.net.
QRP – Fully Assembled Radios
ICOM IC-705
Product Details: https://www.icomjapan.com/lineup/products/IC-705/.
Yaesu FT-818
Product Details: https://www.yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cmd=DisplayProducts&ProdCatID=102&encProdID=36B7B98621AF7554C9A03C8B190C5079.
Elecraft KX2 – Elecraft KX3
Elecraft KX3 Product Description: https://elecraft.com/products/kx3-all-mode-160-6-m-transceiver.
Elecraft KX2 Product Description: https://elecraft.com/products/kx2-ssb-cw-data-80-10-m-transceiver
Note: Can be purchased as a partially assembled kit (with all SMT and most soldering done) or fully assembled. Also an optional panadapter, paddle, programming/computer interface cable are available as well.
Xiegu X6200
Product Description: https://xiegu.eu/product/x6200/
The new Xiegu X6200 is an ultra-portable direct sampling SDR transceiver for HF and 6m with additional receive capability in the VHF Air band and wide FM receive in the FM broadcast band.
Xiegu X6100
Product Description: https://xiegu.eu/product/xiegu-x6100-hf-50mhz-portable-sdr-transceiver/.
Xiegu X5105
Product Description: https://xiegu.eu/product/xiegu-x5105-qrp-transceiver/.
Xiegu G90
Product Description: https://xiegu.eu/product/xiegu-g90-hf-20w-sdr-transceiver/
QRP – Radios in Kit Form
Note: Most of these radios can be purchased from the manufacturer either in kit form or fully assembled and tested. Consult the individual link pages for details.
QRP Labs – QCX+ Transceiver (CW Only)
Product Description: https://www.qrp-labs.com/qcx.html.
QCX: A feature-packed, high performance, single-band 5W CW transceiver kit, with WSPR beacon and built-in alignment/test equipment. Available for 80, 60, 40, 30, 20 or 17m bands. It has rotary encoder synthesised tuning, VFO A/B/Split, Iambic keyer, CW decoder, and more…This can be purchased in kit form or fully assembled. You select which band you wish your version to operate upon.
QRP Labs – QDX Transceiver (FSK Digital Modes)
Product Description: https://qrp-labs.com/qdx.html
QDX (QRP Labs Digital Xcvr): A feature-packed, high performance, five-band (80, 60, 40, 30 and 20m) or six high-HF band (20, 17, 15, 12, 11 and 10m) 5W Digi-modes transceiver kit, including embedded SDR receiver, 24-bit 48 ksps USB sound card, CAT control, synthesized VFO with TCXO reference. QDX transmits a SINGLE SIGNAL, it is not an SSB modulator with associated unwanted sideband and residual carrier, or intermodulation due to amplifier non-linearity. QDX outputs a pure single signal.
QDX is suitable only for single tone FSK modes, which covers the majority of digital modes in use today. This includes everything in WSJT-X, JS8Call, some fldigi modes e.g. RTTY, Olivia and more. QDX is not suitable for on/off keyed modes such as CW because it does not have click-reducing RF envelope shaping; furthermore it is not suitable for phase shift keyed modes such as PSK31 or modes involving multiple concurrent tones such as WinLink,
SoftRock RXTX Ensemble
Product Description: http://fivedash.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=7
Assembly Instructions: http://www.wb5rvz.org/ensemble_rxtx/index?projectId=14
The SoftRock RXTX Ensemble Transceiver Kit provides a 1 watt SDR transceiver that can be built for one of the following five band groups: 160 Meters, 80/40 Meters, 40/30/20 Meters, 30/20/17 Meters, 15/12/10 Meters.
Components are included for all five options and can be assembled at the builders choice. The circuit board measures 5 inches by 2.5 inches. This product is a kit. The product photo shows what it should look like once assembled. A sound card with stereo line-in connector for receive and stereo line-out connector for transmit and a computer running SDR software are required to operate this radio.
uBITx
Product Description: https://www.hfsignals.com/index.php/ubitx-v6/.
It is a compact, single board design that covers the entire HF range with a few minor trade-offs. This rig has been in regular use on forty and twenty meters for a year at VU2ESE. It satisfies for regular work, a few trips to the field as well. A key challenge for multiband transceivers has been to realize a local oscillator system with such wide range. Silicon Labs has now produced a series of well-performing oscillators that solve this challenge trivially : You connect the oscillator chip over a pair of I2C lines and it is done. The Si5351a/b/c are one such a family of parts that provides 3 programmable oscillator outputs in a small 10 pin TSSOP package. We exploit this chip to build the multiband transceiver. Having exclusively used homebrew transceivers all the time, I get very confused whenever I need to use a commercial radio. There are too many switches, modes and knobs to twirl around. The µBITX use an Arduino to simplify the front panel while retaining all the functionality in a simple menu system that works with the tuning knob and a single function button. The rig supports two VFOs, RIT, calibration, CW semi break-in, meter indicator, etc. In future, more software can be added to implement keyer, SWR display, etc
zBITX – Available potentially in February 2025
Product Description: https://www.hfsignals.com/index.php/zbitx/
The zBitx is path breaking 5 watts, 64-bit integrated SDR radio. It covers 80M to 10, on CW/SSB/AM/FreeDV/FT8/SSTV with a 480×320 touch screen. It measures just 6.5”x3”x1.5” and it can run off two LiPo batteries (battery case included in the cost).
t measures 5.5 inches x 3 inches x 1.25 inches, 250 gms/9 ounces! The zBitx is so small, you can slip it into your pocket! Yet, it is capable of 10 watts of power from two standard 18650 batteries. The touch screen provides you with an on-screen keyboard for logging and CW operation even if you don’t have a CW paddle! Use the built-in mic for SSB operation. Work the world on FT8 without a computer from your window sill with your zBitx and a length of wire
The zBitx will run every mode from CW to FT8 to FreeDV. With the built-in, N1MM style logger, macros, QSO recording and more, it is an integrated station that just works.
mcHF QRP Radio
Product Descriptions (there are several versions of this radio you can build. Version 0.4 is shown): http://www.m0nka.co.uk
This is a standalone QRP transceiver kit. One can build it either from the full kit (which now has all SMT components pre-soldered) or one can simply order the printed circuit boards, download the parts list, and purchase all their own parts and fully assemble it from scratch. This is an advanced kit and not for the novice builder but is very feature rich. There is also a dowloadable 3D printing temple if one desires to print their own enclosure.
The source code to this radio is open source and allows one to experiment with it. This transceiver can be ordered fully assembled as well.
There is a clone of this radio manufactured in China called the RS918. It is sold by several dealers online and on eBay
QRP ACCESSORY PRODUCTS
QRPworks SideKar Extreme
Product Description: https://www.qrpworks.com/sidekar-extreme.html