In Terrassa, a city nestled just inland from Barcelona and known for its industrial past and modern innovation, the local amateur radio section pulses with technical ambition and digital clarity. At the helm is José A. Soler Amat (EA3HMJ) — a radio tinkerer with the soul of an engineer and the patience of a DX hunter.
Soler first earned his license in 1979 as EC3AW and transitioned to a full Class A operator in 1981. After a brief pause, he returned to the airwaves in 2011 with a vengeance — and a shed full of gear. His setup, detailed on his website ea3hmj.net, resembles more a laboratory than a shack: IC-7600, FT-857, FT-817ND, IC-910H, and an EXPERT 1K-FA amplifier are just the surface layer.
What truly distinguishes EA3HMJ — and by extension the Terrassa section — is their embrace of the frontiers of amateur radio. Microwaves (10 GHz and 24 GHz), LEO satellite operations, and a carefully tuned forest of Yagis and dipoles for HF to UHF are their playground. Terrassa is not just holding the line on legacy modes — it is quietly pushing into spectrum bands most hobbyists ignore.
While the section maintains the usual community spirit — QSL via bureau, direct, LoTW, and eQSL — the focus here leans toward experimentation. José speaks of “cacharreando” (tinkering) with a grin, reminding visitors that amateur radio remains, at its best, a hands-on hobby of problem solvers and perpetual students.
In a time when plug-and-play devices and remote-controlled SDRs dominate the conversation, the Terrassa section offers a reminder: the future of ham radio lies not just in digital convenience, but in mastering the invisible, by trial, error, and a soldering iron.
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