Slovenia is European country with a population of just over 2 million, situated east of Austria and north of Italy. As they call it: ‘the land on the sunny side of the Alps’. Clean, safe, modern – a marvel of mountains, lakes, vistas and old-world charm. Ham population: 6,500. Which is per capita at least six times more than here in Australia. Not only do they love their radios, but Slovenians are hard core contesters and DX chasers that can be found on the entire radio spectrum – from low bands to microwaves; any mode, any time.

If you are planning a European tour – forget about overcrowded and overvisited capitals like Paris, Vienna and Prague – go to Slovenia. Lake Bled and Bohinj are an absolute must, so is Triglav, old Ljubljana town, and the castle Postojna Cave. The best time to visit: literally all year around.

Back to ham radio: here are a few photos received recently from my ham friends at Radio and TV Club S53M, Murska Sobota. To say that they are serious about multi-op contesting would be quite the understatement. While the club house is rather modest in size, it is fully setup to accommodate numerous operators, operating simultaneously on a number of frequencies. How many bandpass filters can you count? Or amplifiers? Attention to detail, clever engineering, serious commitment in time and monetary investment is something the S53M boys could be proud of.

Of course, I can’t help myself but to note the obvious: the two PowerGeniusXL amplifiers neatly stacked on the power rack. Should I say more?

Yes, some of us do take our hobby seriously. And why not? Ham radio is the most sophisticated technical hobby of all, that provides an invaluable opportunity to a sophisticated amateur to learn, excel, enjoy and invest.

Absolutely priceless.

PGXL Amplifier is in stock, available to Australian amateurs.

1.5KW+ 160-6m. To order, go to https://dxing.com.au/index.php/product/power-genius-xl/

Price: $9,900. Free delivery Australia wide.

The PowerGenius XL is a 100% ICAS duty cycle, 1.8-54 MHz, the only fully SO2R capable RF amplifier.

Designed with a pair of the latest NXP MRF1K50H LDMOS transistors that are each capable of 1.5 kW and run up to 2000W easily, providing plenty of headroom for lowest IMD and spurious output.

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