Meet the Team

K3LR

Tim Duffy

Tim is our Chief Executive Officer. Licensed in 1972, he is very active on the HF bands. K3LR enjoys hosting multi multi DX radio contest events. Tim likes to help bring new people into the hobby by mentoring them in the fun of amateur radio. Tim is president of his local ham club, the Mercer County Amateur Radio Club. He is active in RACES, ACS and ARES. Tim is a member of the CQ Contest Hall of Fame and was on Team USA for the World Radio Team Championship (WRTC) five times. Tim is the founder and chairman of Contest University (CTU). He is chairman of the World Wide Radio Operators Foundation (WWROF). Tim is a graduate of the Pennsylvania State University.

Tim is the recipient of the 2015 Amateur of the Year Award presented by the Dayton Hamvention® Awards Committee and the 2016 YASME Excellence Award. During Hamvention® 2024, Tim was inducted into the CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame because of his lifetime achievements that far transcend his contesting accomplishments.

W3JL

Cory Gibson

Cory is our Senior Engineering and Production Manager. Licensed in 2012, and upgraded to Extra in 2013, it was an interest in emergency communications that first got Cory into Amateur Radio. Cory quickly fell in love with the technical side of the hobby. As an electrical Engineer from Grove City College, he can be found modeling antennas and circuits, or designing PCB’s into the late hours of the night. Cory loves learning new things and helping newer hams understand the why of things. Cory is a life member of the ARRL and vice-president of the Mercer County Amateur Radio club.

Watch Cory Gibson, W3JL DX Engineering Manufacturing Manager - Manufacturers Showcase

KF8AAA

Steve Ocheltree

Steve is the DX Engineering Production Manager. With over 20 years of experience in distribution and manufacturing leadership, Steve Ocheltree brings a wealth of knowledge, energy, and dedication to his role as Production Manager. He began his career at the Order Fulfillment Center at Summit Racing, where he spent 14 years building a strong foundation in operational excellence.

Since joining DX Engineering in September 2023, Steve has embraced both the team and the amateur radio hobby - earning his Technician license in January 2024. He has an interest in Parks on the Air (POTA) and emergency communications, and he’s excited to explore all the hobby has to offer.

Steve is passionate about the creativity, quality, and performance behind the products we manufacture. He thrives in an environment where teamwork and passion fuel innovation, and he’s proud to be part of a team that shares those same values. When he's not at work, you'll likely find Steve enjoying the great outdoors and discovering new ways to connect with the amateur radio community.

N3RA

Scott Jones

Scott is our Sales Manager. He is very active on 160m through 6m using CW, SSB, RTTY and FT8 using the call N3RA. Scott was first licensed in 1977 at the age of 15 and received the call WB3KKX. He was active for many years as a single-op (using WB3KKX and WR3G) and at various Multi-op contest stations. He operated multi-op in the 1992 CQWW CW from zone 2 as VE2CSI and was a referee during the 1996 World Radio Team Championship (WRTC) in San Francisco. Scott has been active in Skywarn and helped provide emergency communications during the Tornado outbreak of 1985 in Ohio. He is a life member of the ARRL and founding member of the North Coast Contesters (NCC). These days, you can find N3RA chasing DX, Contesting, chasing awards and trying everything else this fantastic hobby offers.

Watch Scott Jones, N3RA Join Tim, K3LR for Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K8KSU

Melanie Hardman

Melanie is our Customer Support & Supply Chain Team Leader. She is responsible for bringing in new products, maintaining current vendor relationships, customer support relations and analyzing our inventory and customer data. She is also responsible for the layout of our showroom, the DX Engineering catalog, advertising, promotions and many other items. She upgraded to General class in 2015, you can frequently find K8KSU on the DX Engineering Employee's Radio Club two meter repeater and the Ham Nation chatroom as well as at most Hamfests that DX Engineering attends. She also enjoys being on HF during Field Day with her local club PCARS. Melanie is also member of the YLRL.

KE8GSK

Maria York

Maria is our DX Engineering Customer Service Specialist, she handles returns, shipping issues, and many other customer order issues that may arise. Maria also handles many of our purchasing duties and works with DX Engineering vendors to keep products on our shelves ready to go when ordered. In 2017, Maria received her Technician License and enjoys getting on the radio to make contacts.

Watch DX Engineering's Tim, K3LR talk with Maria, KE8GSK - DX Engineering Customer Service

KE8TEL

Heather "Lola" Bandy

Heather (also known as Lola) is one of our Customer Support Specialists. She was with DX Engineering for several years part-time (on loan to DX Engineering from Summit Racing where she has been for about 10 years).

Heather is now a full-time member of the DX Engineering Customer Service support team. She assists customers with shipping, answering emails, missing parts, returns and other issues. She is very interested in emergency communications and enjoys working alongside the ham radio experts here at DX Engineering. All of us at DX Engineering are happy that she is part of our Team.

K8MNJ

Teri Grizer

Teri has been working here at DX Engineering for several years. Teri takes care of our DXpedition and Hamfest sponsorship programs. Early in 2015 K8MNJ upgraded to General class, and then she passed her Extra class exam only a few weeks later! Teri is active on the HF bands, enjoys DXing & contesting and is working toward her DXCC, WAZ and WAS certificates. She is a member of the ARRL and a local radio club. K8MNJ also leads the Contest University (CTU) organizing committee and many other Dayton related activities.

KB8UUZ

Tom Parkinson

"Parky" is our Technical Writer and develops all the DXE product manuals and instruction sheets. He is Amateur Extra Class, enjoys HF & 6 meter contesting with a long list of awards including WAS, WAC, WAZ, CQ-USA-CA, CQ Field Grid, WPX, VUCC for 6 meters and DXCC for 10 and 20 meters. Parky is an ARRL life member, A-1 Operator and Volunteer Examiner, 10-10 Life member, and founding member and the award winning newsletter editor for PCARS of Ohio.

KJ3X

John Miller

John primarily provides Quality Control and helps out in New Product Development/Project Coordination. He earned his Tech and General License in 2016 and Extra in 2018. He enjoys operating Backpack portable, doing Parks on the Air and helping out with the local Scouts BSA Radio programs. John is also a member of the local RACES/ACS Group. During Hamvention, you'll find John at the Four Days in May display area as well as at the main DX Engineering booth area.

KC8NMW

Mike Gruttadauria

Mike is the DX Engineering Sales Supervisor. Mike was first licensed in 1999, upgrading to General in 2000 and Extra Class in 2003. Mike worked at AES in Wickliffe, Ohio for over 10 years. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the DX Engineering team. He enjoys the HF bands, mainly 40 and 80 meter rag chewing and nets, as well as chasing DX. He plans on getting more active in contesting in the near future. He especially enjoys helping new hams choose the right equipment whether it’s their first HT, mobile set up or HF base station.

Watch Mike Gruttadauria, KC8NMW - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K8RR

Rod Ehrhart

Rod is our Lead Technical Support and Salesperson with over 20 years of experience in Amateur Radio sales and technical support. Also drawing on skills from previous jobs in broadcasting, manufacturing and retail sales, he helps write and edit copy and manage technical details for our website. Born in Wisconsin and raised in Euclid, Ohio, Rod found interest in radio and electronics at age 7 and has studied and experimented with antennas all his life. Originally licensed at age 14 in 1974 as WN8RQX, he held call sign WB8RQX for 24 years and then upgraded and held WN8R for 16 years. He enjoys CW DXing and he favors HF, VHF and 160 meter contesting, both at his own station and as part of multi-operator teams. Recent moves prompted changes to K8AAV and KS8U. After finally obtaining a 1x2 call sign, now as K8RR, Rod is enjoying the challenge of contesting and DXing with wire antennas on a 160 x 50 ft. lot in the small town of Ravenna, OH.

Watch Rod, K8RR, DX Engineering Technical Expert - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K3GP

George Proudfoot

George handles Technical Support and Phone Sales, and received his first license in 1971. George's primary Amateur Radio interests are Contesting and DXing, with emphasis on RTTY. His RTTY awards include DXCC, WAS and WAZ. He also has 6 Band Mixed DXCC.

Watch George Proudfoot, K3GP - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

KC8YST

Andy Peskie

Andy is one of our Technical Support and Salespersons. Having been involved in hobby radio and electronics for over 30 years, Andy brings a wealth of experience to our DX Engineering team. He has been serving customers in Retail Sales and Customer Service for years - both with DX Engineering and our parent company. Interested primarily in VHF/UHF operations, Andy may be found on local repeaters and occasionally chasing VHF DX.

Watch Andy Peskie KC8YST - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

W8BBQ

Mark A. Ludwick, Sr.

Mark is a Senior Technical Sales and Support Representative. Mark has been licensed since 1987 and he is very active on the HF bands. He’s primarily interested in chasing DX on all modes and filling in new band slots. Mark will occasionally enter a DX contest, but not too seriously.  Mark has several notable awards including 8 Band DXCC, DXCC on Phone, CW, and RTTY. DXCC Challenge Award (2000 Medallion), Triple Play Award, All Japan District Award(JARL), ADXA Asia Award (JARL) along with WAZ, WAS, WAC, & WPX. Mark is a member of ARRL He is also a member of the Straight Key Century Club, and the Quarter Century Wireless Assn.

Watch Mark Ludwick W8BBQ joins Tim K3LR for Tuesdays with DX Engineering

N8NB

Dave Fairbanks

Dave is part of DX Engineering's Technical Support and Sales department. He has been a ham operator since the age of 13 when tubes were used instead of semiconductors. He enjoys operating all modes and all power levels. He also enjoys assembling his own QRP equipment. His favorite operating event is Field Day where he gets to share his love of the hobby with many new hams. Among his awards are: 8 band DXCC, QRP DXCC, WAZ, WAS, and the DX Challenge Award. Dave is a member of the ARRL and QRPARCI. He is also trustee and awards manager for the Mahoning Valley Amateur Radio Association.

Watch Dave Fairbanks, N8NB - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

KB8ZWT

Jeff Phillips

Jeff is a member of DX Engineering's Technical Support and Sales team. He's a retired law enforcement officer having been with the Village of Silver Lake police department in Ohio for 25 years. He first learned of amateur radio in 1980 when a high school classmate showed him his family's ham radio shack. Jeff is a General Class and is having fun at home on his HF station which includes an Icom IC-7200 and a Butternut HF-9V. He also enjoys running as a portable station on weekends while camping. Jeff a member of ARRL and two local ham radio clubs.

Watch 13 Colonies with Jeff, KB8ZWT - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

NE5TH

Tommy Hayes

Sales and Technical Support team member for DX Engineering, Tommy lives in Conroe, TX which is in the Houston area. He was a project coordinator, production supervisor as well as a QC inspector prior to joining DX Engineering. He has been a ham since 1989 getting the novice call KB5IIC at that time. He upgraded and got the call N5PJY in 1990 and upgraded again in 1997 and 2000 to Amateur Extra and then received his current call, NE5TH, in 2017.

Tommy has been actively involved in ARES/RACES and is the former Emergency Coordinator for Montgomery County ARES and is the Montgomery County Liaison for the State of Texas RACES. He has FEMA IS-100, 200, 235, 242, 799 and ICS 800 certifications. He currently enjoys operating HF, mostly on CW, using Drake, Alinco and ICOM equipment as well as VHF where he is the trustee for the 2m and 70cm W5CXO repeater. He also is a Key collector and is a member of the ARRL, SKCC, CARE, TBDXC and FISTS among others.

Watch Tuesday's with DX Engineering: Guest Tommy, NE5TH

K8DV

David Vest

David is a member of our Sales and Technical Support Team and was licensed at the age of 14. His Dad, KZ4G, was his biggest Elmer. David is very active in the local Amateur Community and on the air. He was the President of the Milford ARC for 3 years and still serves as the Chairman for the Milford Hamfest, which he has done since 2017. He is very active on the air and has 9 band WAS, WAC and DXCC, with 334 confirmed for DXCC and can be found on the air often. He is a ARRL field checker for DXCC, WAS, WAC, VUCC and the Q sorter for the 8th district QSL buro. David is currently active on 160 through 6 meters CW, SSB and digital modes and FM/C4FM Fusion on 2 meters and 70 centimeters.

Watch David Vest, K8DV on Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K5TGS

Tim "Guy" Staley

Guy is one of our Sales and Technical Support team members. Guy lives in Roanoke, Texas which is just north of Fort Worth. He has taught electronics and worked in the electronics industry for many years. He's a General class operator and has been an active ham since 1994.

Guy enjoys HF communications, particularly 20 and 40 Meters on SSB. He is also active on DSTAR, DMR and C4FM modes. He is very active with the NTS message system and is also an NCS for various Nets throughout each week. Guy is a member of several local ham radio clubs, the ARRL & RSGB. He is also very active in many public service events through ARES and RACES.

Watch Portable HF Antennas - Tim Staley, K5TGS - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

KG9Z

Scotty Meyer

Scotty is a member of our Sales and Technical Support Team. First licensed in 1968 as WN8BPB. Upgraded to Tech in 1969, General in 1970, Advanced class in 1974 and Amateur Extra in 1983. He was issued his current call KG9Z from the FCC. Scotty's main passion in Amateur Radio is DXing. Currently at 349 entities in mixed mode (as of July 2020). Has earned Nine-Band DXCC, Five-Band WAC, WAZ, WAC on 6M, WAS on 160 Meters and has 49 states confirmed on 6M. He does some contesting, just to make sure everything is working. Attended I.T.T. Tech in Ft. Wayne, IN and graduated with an Associates degree in Electronic Engineering and received an FCC commercial license. He is a Life Member of the ARRL and charter member of the Society of Midwest Contesters (SMC). Scotty was a Service manager for Valcom Computers and was a certified Compaq and IBM technician. He has been riding motorcycles for over 50 years and currently has a Can Am Ryker 900 Rally.

AE8JG

Jocelyn Gould

Jocelyn is a member of our Sales and Technical Support Team. She was first licensed in 1996, upgraded to General in 2014, and Amateur Extra in 2015. She is on the HF bands using FT8 and PSK31 and on D-STAR plus DMR on VHF/UHF. Also active in ARES and RACES and has experience managing communications for large-scale events. Additionally, Jocelyn enjoys getting out of the shack from time to time and activating parks with POTA. Jocelyn previously worked for Universal Radio where she spent 5 years in Sales department. She enjoys helping new hams choose the right gear to fit their needs and budget.

KI8R

Michael Murphy

Mike is a DX Engineering Sales & Technical Support team member. Mike got his Novice license in 1980 when he was 16 and quickly upgraded to General Class and then Advanced. In the early 90's he upgraded again to Amateur Extra. Michael was always interested in radio. When he was 2 or 3, he would turn the knobs on his father's Hallicrafters SX-110 for hours. Later he was inspired to get his amateur radio license from his uncle, K0IPM. Prior to joining DX Engineering, he spent over 26 years in the data processing world. Michael is active on HF, 6 meters and dabbles with DMR, D-Star and Fusion from time to time. His current passion is CW contesting. One of the most memorable things he has done in ham radio was getting to spend 9 days on St. Lucia making over 3000 contacts, 99.8% of which were CW.

Watch Tech Talk with Michael Murphy, KI8R and Tim, K3LR - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K8FF

Wayne Smith

Wayne is one of our Sales/Technical Support persons and can be found in the retail store in Tallmadge. He was first licensed at age 14 as KN8WOT and became K8FF in 1977 when the 1X2 call signs were made available to Extra class hams. Wayne's passion has been chasing DX. He is currently in First place on the DXCC Honor Roll for mixed modes. He recently became interested in FT8 and has over 225 entities on that digital mode. Wayne is active daily on 80 thru 6 meters on CW, SSB and FT8. He is a life member of ARRL and has been a member of the Northern Ohio DX Association for over 25 years.

Watch Wayne, K8FF and Tim, K3LR -Tuesdays with DX Engineering

N8NH

Mark McMahon

Mark is one of the hams you will meet in the DX Engineering showroom in Tallmadge, OH. He was first licensed in 1983 and is currently an Amateur Extra Class operator. He spent 15 years in the 2-way communications industry. Mark enjoys DXing, HF, VHF & UHF emergency communications and storm spotting along with mentoring new hams getting started in the hobby. He plans to get more active in contesting. An ARRL Life Member, his favorite event is Field Day.

Watch Mark McMahon, N8NH - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K2GRG

Greg Jackson

Greg is one of the Sales and Technical people working out of the DX Engineering retail store in Tallmadge, Ohio. His interest in radio began with shortwave listening in the 1970s. First licensed in 2013, he upgraded to General Class that same year. He is using an OptiBeam 9 element 5-band beam and an OCF Dipole for the lower bands. Greg enjoys working DX, particularly searching for European SOTA and QRP stations. He also actively looks for any DXpeditions to get into his logbook.

AC8OW

Troy Blair

Troy is a member of the DX Engineering Sales and Technical Support Team. Troy started out with CB as a 9 year old. Licensed as a Technician in 2016, upgraded to General Class operator in 2019 and Amateur Extra Class in 2024. He served in the Ohio National Guard as a Radio Operator and spent nearly 30 years as a Fire Fighter / Paramedic / Deputy Sheriff. Previously the Director of C2 Communications for Ohio Wing Civil Air Patrol and currently a member of the Air Force MARS (AFA5OW). Troy serves as the Huron County (Ohio) ARES Emergency Coordinator and Huron County SkyWarn Coordinator. Has memberships in both the Seneca Radio Club and Lorain County Amateur Radio Association. He is also an ARRL instructor. Troy likes Yaesu radios and is active on emergency nets. You may hear him during State QSO parties on HF. He also enjoys portable operations, NVIS, and Field Day activities.

Watch Troy Blair, AC8OW - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

N5TJ

Jeff Steinman

Jeff "TJ" is one of our Technical Support and Salespersons. An Extra Class amateur first licensed in 1978 as N0AQK. The sunspot cycle was very good then and Jeff was bitten by the DX bug. His original goal was to stay on SSB. Jeff says he had much better success working CW stations and purchased his first iambic paddle. Upgraded to Extra Class in 1981 as KR0Y and now has the vanity call N5TJ. Most of Jeff's operating over the years has been as a guest operator during contests, both domestically and internationally including several WRTC events. Jeff enjoys operating HF with an end fed long wire and chasing new grid squares on 6 meters with a Moxon. Still mostly CW except a lot of digital on 6 meters.

Watch Jeff Steinman, N5TJ will join Tim, K3LR for Tuesdays with DX Engineering

W2WJ

Alan Linder

Alan is a member of the DX Engineering Technical Support and Sales Team. He developed an early interest in Radio, and stayed with it his entire life. A long career in Commercial Radio Broadcasting was followed by Sales and support for another large Amateur Radio vendor. Still active daily, Alan is an HF operator, primarily CW, but Digital modes as well. First licensed in 1963 as WN2NWJ, in Southern New Jersey, several callsigns later became an Amateur Extra Class - W2WJ. The early shack was occupied by mostly Drake and Collins gear. Running a modern station now fed to an End Fed Wire at 40 feet. The interest and challenge of the airwaves has never faded. Alan has said he barely remembers life without an interest in radio.

Meet Alan Linder, W2WJ - DX Engineering Technical Support - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

K4RO

Kirk Pickering

Kirk, an Amateur Extra Class, is one of our Technical Support and Salespersons. He has been continuously licensed since 1976. Kirk spent his high school years assembling Heathkit radios, learning Morse code, and chatting late into the night with his Pittsburgh-area friends. Pursuing an education and career in Tennessee limited available operating time, but Kirk caught the DX bug in the mid-1980s. Suddenly, he was spending a lot more time on the radio. After discovering contests in the early 1990's Kirk had found his greatest ham radio passion. One cold winter evening in January 1993 as he was tuning across the 160 meter CW band, Kirk stumbled upon a CW contest in full bloom. He started working folks one right after another, and enjoyed the operating experience very much. All fifty states were contacted in a single operating session on the 160 meter CW band -- more than he had worked during a decade of casual operating! Kirk said “We hams are a curious breed. Lucky I am, to have found this wonderful hobby”. Kirk is a charter member of the Tennessee Contest Group, and was inducted into the CQ Contest Hall of Fame in 2023.

Kirk Pickering, K4RO - DX Engineering Technical Support - Tuesdays with DX Engineering

W6IWN

Bobby Debevec

Bobby is a member of DX Engineering's Technical Support and Sales team, based in Reno, Nevada near scenic Lake Tahoe. A dedicated amateur radio operator and outdoors enthusiast, he's completed over 100 Summits on the Air (SOTA) activations and earned 24 Parks on the Air (POTA) awards. Licensed in 2017 and upgraded to General Class in 2021, Bobby specializes in portable operations and stealth antenna solutions for HOA-restricted environments.

As a member of the Sierra Nevada Amateur Radio Society (SNARS), he enjoys mentoring new operators and sharing the hobby through field events and activations. His blend of technical skill and outdoor experience makes him a passionate advocate for amateur radio.