{"id":1140,"date":"2026-07-31T16:51:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T14:51:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.i8zse.it\/en\/?page_id=1140"},"modified":"2026-08-01T07:40:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T05:40:04","slug":"pixie","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.i8zse.it\/en\/pixie\/","title":{"rendered":"Pixie"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pixie<\/em><\/h1>\n

An introduction to the world of electronics through a kit<\/em><\/h2>\n

This section of my website collects a series of pages designed to guide you, step by step<\/em>, through the construction of a small CW transceiver: the Pixie<\/strong>. It is available as an inexpensive kit, within everyone’s reach.<\/p>\n

The goal of this journey is twofold: to demonstrate in a practical way that it is possible to build radio equipment<\/em> using simple and accessible tools, but also to use the construction of this small device as the perfect opportunity to understand the fundamentals of electronics and truly understand how what we are building works. This series is based on a course I held at the ARI (Italian Amateur Radio Association) Potenza radio club in 2017.<\/p>\n

It is intended for those approaching the world of radio and electronics for the first time, and therefore no previous knowledge of electronics is required: the idea behind this journey is precisely to acquire that knowledge step by step, component by component.<\/p>\n

What is the Pixie?<\/h2>\n

The Pixie is an extremely simple CW (Morse code) transceiver, capable of operating with only two transistors. It was designed by Dave Joseph<\/strong> (WA6BOY, later W7AMX), who in 1995 published the Pixie 2<\/strong> version in the QRPp<\/em> magazine of the NorCal QRP Club, modifying an earlier design: the Micro-80<\/strong>, created by Russian radio amateur Oleg Borodin<\/strong> (RV3GM) and published in 1992 in the SPRAT<\/em> magazine of the British G-QRP Club.<\/p>\n

The basic idea of using the same transistor both as a receiver mixer and as a transmit power amplifier actually dates back to an even earlier design: the FOXX<\/strong> by George Burt (GM3OXX), described in SPRAT<\/em> in 1983. The Pixie is therefore the latest (and most essential) step in an evolution that, over the years, progressively reduced the number of components while still maintaining a functional device capable of making real contacts.<\/p>\n

Some practical features:<\/p>\n