The little QMX has come a long way since it was first released as a CW/digital transceiver, and I don't just mean the addition of SSB.

Far more significant to me are the very recent firmware updates that corrected two major shortcomings with the radio:

Strict DC input voltage limitations and

Common failure of the final BS170's during high SWR at full power.

These two issues prevented the QMX (and QMX+) from being a serious consideration for outdoor ops who don't use resonant antennas and don't want to take along a buck converter, LiPo battery or place "dropping diodes" in series with the DC source.

Those are a lot of things to contend with if you want to just set up and be on the air with minimal fuss.

They are no real issue at all though, if you don't mind taking the time to accommodate the radio rather than have the radio accommodate you.

Sometimes I like to savor the steps necessary to put a station on the air and don't mind taking extra time (and steps) to enjoy the process.

But for a roadtrip like the one I have planned, I want a minimal to-do list and a quick set up time - and I'm happy to say that the QMX/QMX+ now support this.

This morning's was my first activation with the 15-40m QMX. Hans built this one for me and expedited it to me a few months ago as I was trying to get permission to operate in Vietnam and Thailand. Thailand said 'Yes" but Vietnam said "No, don't even bring a radio here". So I had to leave the radio at home since VN was our first stop.

Now, with a different type of trip on the horizon, the little QMX again has become the front runner of the 4 radios I'm considering. 

I made contacts this morning on all 5 bands, using the same antenna (5m/17-ft) whip, a ZM-2 tuner and my motorcycle's battery.

I didn't shorten the whip for the higher bands; I lazily let the tuner take care of that because I wanted to use the QMX's TUNE feature, tuning the ZM2 as I watched the result on the QMX. I verified the tuning solution with a proper antenna analyzer; the two agreed on all bands, every time and the radio never shut down due to high SWR while tuning.

It still boggles my mind that this radio is the same size as a deck of cards!

.

.