Our events
PerthTech
A day of technical and practical presentations for amateur radio operators, from WA Amateur Radio News.
PerthTech is WA Amateur Radio News’s technical day for amateur radio operators: a full day of presentations, from the purely technical to practical stories from people’s own experience. It last ran in September 2024.
The next PerthTech
There’s no date or venue for the next PerthTech yet. We’d love to bring it back, and what it looks like will depend on who wants to present, who wants to come, and what we can afford.
PerthTech has always been paid for mostly by a big raffle, drawn on the day, alongside the ticket sales. Last time the raffle fell short of what the event cost, and the club covered the gap. We’d rather not bet the next one on raffle sales.
That’s why we’re building a PerthTech fund through WAARN Supporters: if enough listeners and clubs chip in a little each year, the next PerthTech can be booked and planned with confidence, and the raffle goes back to being a bit of fun on the day. Find out how you can help.
Want to hear first, give a talk, or help make it happen? Email perthtech@vk6.net. Tell us what you’d like to see, too: topics, workshops, or the time of year that suits you.
Photos: Caroline Trenfield (2024) and PerthTech 2022 attendees.
Past PerthTechs
PerthTech began in April 2016 as a one-day seminar in Perth, with presentations and demonstrations by amateurs skilled in particular subjects, and became a regular event. The 2020 event was cancelled.
The most recent PerthTechs, from 2022 to 2024, ran over a weekend at the Gidgegannup Recreation Club. Friday brought informal activities for early arrivals; Saturday was the main programme from 8:30 am, with the raffle and door prizes through the day, followed by a sundowner; and Sunday finished with a BBQ breakfast and show-and-tell. Caravan and camper sites on site meant people could stay for the sundowner.
2024 highlights
Saturday 21 September, about 40 people.
- Mooneer Salem K6AQ on FreeDV and machine learning: improving digital voice over HF
- Amateur radio clubs working with the SES, and the amateur radio service in times of disaster
- Working CW DX on HF, and the challenges of harmonising the 40 m band plan (Chris Chapman VK3QB)
- Measuring the permittivity of uncommon dielectrics (Dennis Brown VK6AKR)
- Image and data transmission over the air with digital SSTV (Randall Wayth VK6WR)
- New life for an old non-directional beacon (Peter Hall VK6HP)
- The presidents of the WIA and RASA, together on stage
2023 highlights
- SDR: new developments (Phil Harman VK6PH)
- NanoVNAs, TinySAs and other low-cost test gear (Glynn Davies VK6PAW)
- Designing and building a 70 cm antenna (Peter Miles VK6YSF)
- Tracking down a malfunctioning paging system interfering on the 2 m call frequency (Randall Wayth VK6WR)
- Holiday DXpeditions, big and small, and more CW operating (Chris Chapman VK3QB)