A brief look at the history of SR9E would be incomplete without mentioning the contribution made by the constructors who built it: Jerzy SP9MCW, Jacek SP9CSW, and Zbigniew SP92841. The repeater was initially located in a scout hut in Podzamcze near Ogrodzieniec. After many years of operation and a necessary change of location, the repeater was moved to Dąbrowa Górnicza. At that time, the repeater was maintained by Janusz SQ9DHE and Tomek SP9XLM. Over the years, the equipment became increasingly outdated, and as a result the repeater fell silent in 2015.
In March 2017, I came up with the idea of organizing a fundraiser among radio amateurs to purchase a duplexer. Wojtek SQ9DHP promoted the campaign with great commitment. After six months, the fundraiser reached a successful conclusion, enabling SR9E to acquire a new, fully functional duplexer. From that point on, I began working to bring the repeater itself back into operation. SR9E is not a factory-built repeater, but a unit constructed by hand. Its “onboard” components include a server rack-mount enclosure, a repeater control interface, an audio mixer, a controller in the form of a Raspberry Pi Linux-based microcomputer, two Motorola MC2100 radios, a power supply, and various other small components.
After assembling the repeater by hand, on September 15, 2017, Szymon SQ9SIM and I installed it and performed its initial startup. Three days later, we also carried out the necessary measurements to eliminate certain installation and configuration issues. From that point on, it can be considered that SR9E resumed operation.
And now, some information about its operation. SR9E is located in Siemianowice Śląskie, next to the TV tower. It operates in FM mode on 145.725 MHz (TX) and 145.125 MHz (RX). The repeater is accessed with a 71.9 Hz tone. The tone is also transmitted by the transmitter. The repeater operates on the Echolink network. However, since we prefer radio amateurs to use radio transceivers, connecting to SR9E is possible only through other repeaters. Connections via telephones, computers, etc. are not available. Every Monday at 21:00, announcements from the Silesian District Branch of PZK are transmitted on the repeater; you are welcome to listen.
Finally, some essential information about the repeater’s future. We will hold intensive discussions aimed at regaining the repeater’s original location, namely Podzamcze near Ogrodzieniec. The site where it was located is currently occupied by a private hotel. I will try to provide regular updates on the outcome of the discussions.
Please direct all comments concerning the operation, suggestions, opinions, and anything related to the technical and constructional aspects of repeater SR9E directly to me (SQ9NFI) at: sq9nfi@pzk.pl. You can also use the form available here.
The repeater’s legal custodian and the person responsible for formal matters is Marek SP9HTY. The repeater holds radio authorization number 234/B/F/2016, valid until December 7, 2021.
At the address below, you will find several photos of the first version of repeater SR9E from 1982.