QRV · Bengaluru

VU2CPL
Manoj Ramawarrier

MK83TE · Bengaluru, Karnataka · Licenced 1993

FLEX-6600 · RGO One · IC-705 9 BDXCC DXpeditioner Remote Ops
1.5 KFA
SPE Expert Amp
9 BDXCC
Awards
VU7T · AT5P
DXpeditions
01 · About

The Operator

Located in the garden city of India, Bangalore. Licensed since 1993, I started operations in Thrissur, Kerala with a simple homebrew QRP rig following VU2VWN OM Vasanth (SK)'s circuit — the most popular design of those days.

Later graduated to SSB with the help of an old exciter originally made by VU2UCY Om Bhasi (SK). Went through different iterations of 807 tube QRO and some military surplus gear (Redifone GR 345) during the 1990s. Shifted to Bangalore in early 2003.

I travel extensively for work and mostly operate remote during free time. The shack runs a fully automated setup including remote antenna switching and lightning protection — see the Projects section for details.

DXpeditions
VU7T / VU7MS Kavaratti Is, Lakshadweep Oct 2017
AT5P Rameshwaram Is, IOTA AS-173 May 2015
ARSI Hilltop Contest MJ89KT, Kulamavu, Idukki — HF/VHF/UHF team Feb 2023
CallsignVU2CPL
GridMK83TE
LocationBengaluru, KA 562157
Licenced1993
ModesSSB · FT8 · CW
Bands160m – 6m incl. 60m
QSLLOTW · Clublog OQRS
Awards
5BDXCC 160m DXCC 30m DXCC 17m DXCC 12m DXCC
02 · Station

Equipment

Radios
FlexRadio FLEX-6600 (SDR)
RGO One
Icom IC-705
Amplifier
SPE Expert 1.5 KFA
RX Antennas (Low Band)
350 ft 2-wire reversible Beverage (N/S) — winters only
N6RK Loop
K9AY Loop
Antennas
Hex beam — 20m to 6m
Vertical — 30m
Inverted Vee — 80m & 40m
Inverted L — 160m
4 ele LFA Yagi — 6m
Band Allocation Notes
80m: 3500–3700 kHz
160m: 1800–1825 kHz
60m: QRV from Dec 2018
FT8: split needed within VU allocation
03 · Logbook

Recent Contacts

Callsign Date (UTC) Band Mode Entity
OO6A 2026-03-3115mFT8Belgium
UX2QX 2026-03-3115mFT8Ukraine
UR5TOB 2026-03-3115mFT8Ukraine
RZ3AM 2026-03-3115mFT8European Russia
IU1TKT 2026-03-3115mFT8Italy
W3UNX 2026-03-3115mFT8United States
VE2FSB 2026-03-3115mFT8Canada
DL7PIP 2026-03-3115mFT8Germany
QSL Policy: Preferred route is LOTW or direct via Clublog OQRS. No bureau (stopped March 2019 due to unreliable VU buro). For VU7MS and VU7T QSLs, use Clublog OQRS only. No IRC accepted.
04 · Projects

Automation & Node-RED

FLEX-6600 State Monitor Dashboard
Real-time Node-RED dashboard tracking all four slice receivers via FlexRadio TCP API. Dual SmartSDR client support (AetherSDR + iPad). AngularJS UI with color-coded active slice indication — amber for RX, red for TX.
Node-REDFlexRadio APIAngularJSMQTT
▶ YouTube demo
Active
Lightning Antenna Protector
Automatically disconnects antenna and radio when lightning is detected within 25 km. Dual source: Open-Meteo lightning_potential API (polled every 5 min) + AS3935 local sensor via MQTT. Leaflet/OSM map with storm overlay. 20-min auto-reconnect timer.
Node-REDOpen-MeteoTasmotaAS3935Leaflet
▶ YouTube demo
Active
Remote Shack Control
Full remote operation capability including antenna switching via Tasmota MQTT relays. Operates the FLEX-6600 via SmartSDR from anywhere. Integrated with the lightning protection system for safe unattended operation.
TasmotaMQTTSmartSDRNode-RED
Active
05 · Contact

Get in Touch

QRZ
qrz.com/db/VU2CPL
Location
Tarabanahalli, Chikkajala PO
Bengaluru, KA 562157
Logbook
Clublog · VU2CPL
Photos
hamphotos.com

For sked requests, please email via QRZ or use WhatsApp. For QSL, use LOTW or Clublog OQRS — no bureau. 73 de VU2CPL.