Product Description

Amazon.com reviews: 'Great for the RF technician. This is a great book on wireless technology for persons starting out in RF electronics, as well as for RF technicians and ham radio operators. Carr's book explains RF capacitors, coils, transistors, receivers, propagation, antennas, mixers, amplifiers, impedance matching, filters, the Smith Chart, etc., in an easy-to-understand way' - Cotter W. Sayre, author of "The Complete RF Technician's Handbook". 'Excellent introduction to radio technology. It does an excellent job of introducing and explaining the concepts of radio frequency technology.' Build the circuits that make wireless work. If you like hands-on electronics, you'll love Joe Carr's "Secrets of RF Circuit Design". This book takes you inside wireless technology with step-by-step, illustrated directions for dozens of usable projects. Popular Electronics writer Joe Carr demonstrates RF theory as he shows you how to overcome the technical and materials challenges facing those who build real-world electronics. It is perfect for technicians, radio hobbyists, and anyone who wants to put RF theory into practice. It is ideal for learning radio frequency circuitry.It includes: design and build receiver circuits, RF bridges, amplifiers, receiver preselectors, simple spectrum analyzers, and time domain reflectometers; 7 new chapters on demodulators, circuit vectors, measuring L-C circuits, and filtering circuits against EMI; new - directional and hybrid couplers; detailed coverage of simple RF instruments, as well as UHF and microwave components; parts lists and components sources; and, complete troubleshooting guidance, too! It also contains update of the favorite RF circuit guide of thousands of electronics enthusiasts!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #337144 in Books
• Published on: 2001-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 544 pages

From the Back Cover
Amazon.com reviews:

*****Great for the RF technician This is a great book on wireless technology for persons starting out in RF electronics, as well as for RF technicians and ham radio operators. Carr’s book explains RF capacitors, coils, transistors, receivers, propagation, antennas, mixers, amplifiers, impedance matching, filters, the Smith Chart, etc., in an easy-to-understand way. ---Cotter W. Sayre, author of The Complete RF Technician’s Handbook

**** Excellent introduction to radio technology It does an excellent job of introducing and explaining the concepts of radio frequency technology.

BUILD THE CIRCUITS THAT MAKE WIRELESS WORK

If you like hands-on electronics, you’ll love Joe Carr’s Secrets of RF Circuit Design. This book takes you inside wireless technology with step-by-step, illustrated directions for dozens of usable projects. Popular Electronics writer Joe Carr demonstrates RF theory as he shows you how to overcome the technical and materials challenges facing those who build real-world electronics.

PERFECT FOR TECHNICANS, RADIO HOBBYISTS, AND ANYONE WHO WANTS TO PUT RF THEORY INTO PRACTICE
*Ideal for learning radio frequency circuitry
*Design and build receiver circuits, RF bridges, amplifiers, receiver preselectors, simple spectrum analyzers, and time domain reflectometers
*7 new chapters on demodulators, circuit vectors, measuring L-C circuits, and filtering circuits against EMI
*New: directional and hybrid couplers
*Detailed coverage of simple RF instruments, as well as UHF and microwave components
*Parts lists and components sources
*Complete troubleshooting guidance, too!

Update of the favorite RF circuit guide of thousands of electronics enthusiasts!

About the Author
Joseph J. Carr is a leading electronics author who has written scores of well-reviewed books and technical articles. An electrical engineer and experienced electronics bench technician with CET and CCE certifications, Carr is a former winner of ISCET's Technician of the Year award. Also a columnist for several prestigious publications, including Nuts ‘n’ Volts, Carr's other best-selling books include DC Power Supplies: A Technician's Guide; Practical Antenna Handbook, Second Edition; Mastering IC Electronics; and Old Time Radios!

Customer Reviews

Secrets of RF Circuit Design
"Secrets of RF Circuit Design" contains no secrets and precious little design. Commencing with some RF basics, but not a lot, the book progresses through a hotchpotch of largely redundant information referencing to obsolete devices, interspersed with occasional tiresome moralising anecdotes. Such is the unevenness that one is informed along the way that pi is a letter in the Greek alphabet but the introduction of complex numbers receives no explanation. RF essentials such as transistor cascode, Miller effect, common base etc. are barely mentioned. Likewise recent (or even past) developments in RF communication, Lecher bars, stripline, or in fact anything of consequence receive at most cursory comment. But one is guided in the repair of IF coils. How useful. How appropriate. Pity that essential note upon the solubility of thin copper wires in solder was omitted. Duh.

Many basic circuits are mentioned, though detail is simply glossed over. Almost nothing is explained to a level which is useful. The descriptions of IMPATT, TRAPITT and BARITT and other obscure devices serve only to confuse potential designers as to what they might expect to find in industry, or even what they might find in catalogues. Warning of the danger of carbon tet might be relevant, were it actually available. And so it goes, irrelevancies and misdirection.

Then there are the mistakes, factual, diagrammatic, typo and dubious opinion. Laced with so many errors the text cannot ever be taken as authoritative. I certainly didn't know that "The nautical mile is 1/360 of the Earth's circumference at the equator, more or less." This is the third edition and it is simply gross ineptitude which lets rubbish like this slip through.

With its annoying "Radio Shack" demeanour, the obtrusive, extraneous in-text references and addresses serve only to distend the already bloated text. Writing is painfully wordy, imprecise and begs severe red pen editing. Large heading font, wide margins and huge simplistic diagrams also serve to fill over five hundred pages which if decently constructed would make a book a third of the size.

...I feel cheated. It was a waste of money. Almost uniquely amongst my purchases, this book is destined for the bucket. Unmitigated dross.