Sometimes the DXpedition is its own worst enemy. If they ask for W6 and then
relent after a couple tries to work the W6 and then works someone else
sends the message is you guys can bulldoze me so keep calling. Many of the
later DXpeditions have been much better at this and more persistent in
working the station they were calling. The problem of persisting to work
they station is that it ruins your QSO rate. Of course, all of those callers
can ruin your QSO rate as well. Another classic one is DX lectures on "don't
call while I am working a station" and then proceeds W6 59, now W4 59. The
W6 59, now the other W6 is understandable. Both of those scenarios give rise
to constant calling unfortunately.
The E30 yesterday actually worked a couple of stations that I heard almost
on his own frequency which doesn't help.
Sadly, I think it was an E30 pile, E30 called someone and he didn't respond.
E30 called again. Someone said something like "Fred send your report" and
"Fred" dutifully sent his report. Another "QSO" in the log. Years ago I had
heard that done on 2M several times.
73, Larry W6NWS
-----Original Message-----
From: W0MU Mike Fatchett
Sent: Sunday, March 15, 2015 12:48 AM
To: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Re: Topband: What IS troubling about this report....
Much of the time it is a simple mistake. I did it to the E30 tonight
and I am trying to be very careful. I changed bands and came back and
the split was cancelled. I was that Lid.
Usually a simple up up is fine but the cops have to go off on rant. Then
I hear up, I immediately look to make sure split is on and the b vfo is
in the pile.
Many people simply do no listen or are chasing DX on CW when they have
very little comprehension of CW and are lucky to send their call and be
able to understand it when called.
The new disturbing trend I have seen is that nobody listens or cares
what the DX asks for on Phone or CW. The Dx calls for the W6 and W1 N3
K4 PY2 etc all continue to call and call and call attempting to cover up
or bulldoze the station the DX wants to steal that contact. I have
watched my P3 where the station who the DX wants to work was pretty
clean and then 10 people show up on that frequency.
This was a behavior that used to be carried out generally by a country
in Europe in the 80's. Apparently it has now caught on all over. This
behavior is wrecking the rate that the DX could be going as he has to
ask for fills 2 or 3 or more times.
Mike W0MU
On 3/14/2015 9:04 PM, Tom WA2BCK wrote:
Glenn,
Your summary was wonderful and loaded with excellent advice. I often
wonder why stations persist in calling on the DX stations transmit
frequency. Surely by now, the entire ham radio community must realize that
DXpeditions operate up or down and usually do not answer calls on their
own transmit frequency. It continually amazes me how many times people
call on the DX stations transmit frequency. It is sooooo frustrating! I
don't know the appropriate solution but I would like to broadcast to the
entire ham radio community to listen when the operator says UP. Thanks
for allowing me to blow off steam!
Tom
WA2BCK
-----Original Message----- From: James Rodenkirch
Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2015 4:39 PM
To: Top Band Contesting
Subject: Topband: What IS troubling about this report....
....from one of the K1N ops is there is nothing new here.....all of his
dozen plus points is/ae SOOOOO fundamental to anyone chasing
DX.......terrible operating habits or approaches by the majority of the DX
chasers, obviously...
I did work K1N with QRP power on 80, 20 and 15 so feel fortunate to
"squeak in," so to speak...72, Jim Rodenkirch K9JWV
From
Glen W0GJ operating at K1N (as reported in the “Gray Line Report” of the
Twin
Cities ARC:
GOOD
ADVICE FROM SOMEONE WHO WAS THERE !Feedback and Lessons I learn a lot
from
every DXpedition I’ve ever been on. I’ve put together a summary of my two
weeks
of operation from Navassa. I’m sure all of my teammates will concur with
what
I’ve observed and learned. European stations complained a lot for the
“short
time” we worked Europe. QUITE THE CONTRARY!!!!
This is a MOST interesting point of discussion! If you look at the times
in our logs, we spent MORE time working Europe than working North America.
Our
Club Log statistics, however, show that North America had 58% of the
contacts,
Europe 32% and Asia 6%. WHY, then, if MORE time was spent working Europe,
was Europe
about half the number of North American contacts??? Simple answer: RATE.
Period. When you listened to us working North America, we could cruise
right
along at 300-350 Qs/hour, or more! I often saw the “rate meter” hanging
around
500-600 Qs/hour. (I heard that someone on the team was clocked at 1,200
Qs/hour….. on 160m!!!!) When working Europe, we would be extremely lucky
to see
rates of 100 Qs/hour. Euro-pean signals are as strong, if not stronger
than
North American signals, in the Caribbean. The west coast U.S. is much
harder to
work than Europe. South American signals were among the strongest! Here is
a
note I received after I returned home. It is from a well-known DXer in
Europe:
“I listened to XXX working US pile-up on 80m. Fantastic, at least 10 QSOs
per
minute, and when he turned to listen for Europe, the rate was only 10% of
that.
Same on the other bands and modes.” The problem is THROUGHPUT. Rate.
Efficiency. Cooperation. Whatever you want to call it. For the time we
spent
working Europe, we should have MORE contacts than with North America, but
that
did not happen. It COULD have happened! No one more than me would like to
have
seen the European Qs outnumber North American Qs. For the “next one,” I
have
some suggestions to help DXers, including myself, and particularly DXers
in
Europe, to be more successful.
Here
is what I see are the issues: (This applies to US hams as well for more
distant
DX operations – N8PR)1. Not listening to the DX operator. 2. LISTEN to and
LEARN the rate and rhythm of the operator. 3. LISTEN to WHERE the operator
is
listening, and to his PATTERN of moving his VFO. You MUST KNOW where he
will
listen next if you expect him to hear you! How simple is that? It is part
of
the hunt… and the fun of DXing…. and getting rewarded! 4. Learn to use
your
radio (split/simplex, etc.). 5. Do NOT jump to and call on the frequency
of the
last station worked. The DX station will NOT hear you, because the din is
total
unintelligible chaos. Move UP or DOWN from that frequency, as we on our
end were
continuously tuning up or down after each Q. So, if one jumps onto the
last-worked frequency, we will not hear you, even if you were the only one
there, as we have already tuned off that frequency. 6. TURN OFF ALL SPEECH
PROCESSORS AND COMPRESSION! Do NOT overdrive ALC. There is a night and day
difference in listening to NA/AS and EU pileups. The horrible distortion
makes
it impossible to copy many, if not most European callsigns. I don’t know
what
it is, but I would bet that mic gain and compression controls are
“firewall
forward,” all the way clockwise. There were MANY loud stations that we did
not
work, COULD NOT WORK, simply because we could NOT understand their
terribly
distorted callsign. Have you ever listened to yourself in a pileup? We
gave many
stations a “19” signal report. Very loud, but extremely unintelligible!
You
want to have IN-TELLIGABILITY, not distortion! 7. Give your call sign ONCE
and
ONLY ONCE! DO NOT KEEP CALLING! Call. Listen. Call again, if needed.
Listen.
Listen. We would tune on by those who did not stop calling. We are looking
for
RATE and getting stations into the log. You should be, too!!! 8. If the DX
station comes back with your call-sign, DO NOT REPEAT YOUR CALLSIGN, AS WE
ALREADY KNOW IT, or we would not have answered you. Many stations (in all
modes) would repeat their callsign two, three and even four times or more!
This
was so frustrating at times, that we would just move on to the next
station. We
ONLY want to hear “5NN” or “59” from you. Anything else is a total waste
of
time. Let me repeat, if we come back with YOUR call sign, DO NOT REPEAT it
back
to us! (Did I repeat myself?..... forgive me!) It CHEATS others out of a
chance
to get into the log. Only repeat your call sign if it needs correction,
and
then let us know it is a correction. Our propagation windows and time on
the
island are limited, and we need to maximize the opportunity for everyone.
SPEED
and EFFICIENCY ARE OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE! 9. LISTEN to the DX station come
back
to some-one. IF THERE IS NOTHING CLOSE TO OR RESEMBLING YOUR CALLSIGN……
SHUT
UP! SHUT UP!!!!! This needless interference slows things up, and lessens
YOUR
chance of getting into the log! We are focused on the call sign we heard
and do
not hear you, only your QRM. 10. Take some time to listen to the next
DXpedition working North America, and listen to the rate and rhythm of the
operator. It is fast, quick and efficient, and more people get into the
log!
Then listen to him work Europe. The wise operator will catch on quickly to
what
it takes to get into the log! 11. SPREAD OUT! Our highest rates (for any
continent) were working the center and far edges of the pileup, where
there was
less QRM. Weak stations were much easier to work than loud stations in the
middle of the pileup. If we say, “Listening 200 to 210,” 70% of the pileup
sits
exactly on 200 in an unintelligible din, 25% of the pileup sits on 210 and
is
almost as bad. 5% of the pileup will be spread out somewhere between 201
and
209, making them very quickly put into the log. S P R E A D O U T ! ! ! !
Dare
to be different! Dare to be heard! 12. LOUD is NOT better! MORE
AUDIO/COMPRESSION is NOT better! Finding the spot to be HEARD is the MOST
important thing you can do to get into the log. My biggest thrill (and I’m
sure
on both ends) is finding the lone weak station and getting him into the
log,
quickly. 13. LISTEN to the DX operator’s INSTRUCTIONS! As we would
constantly
tune our VFO, if we find a clear spot, we would often say, “33” (meaning
for
YOU to transmit on 14.033, 28.433, etc). A few would listen, and get into
the
log very quickly. You cannot hear these hints if you keep calling,calling,
calling, calling ……… Many times, I would say, “listening 200 to 210,” and
after
a while, would say, “listening 240 to 250.” Often 30 to 45 minutes, even
and
HOUR later, I would find MANY still calling on the original “200 to
210”….. of
course, they would never show up in our log, as I was not listening there.
LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN and LISTEN SOME MORE. The less you transmit, the
better
chance you have of get-ting into the log. You must know where I am
listening,
if you really want to get into the log. 14. LISTEN to the “good” guys who
make
it into the log. Study how they do it! It is not easy to find the “good”
guys,
as they are quick and efficient and are in the log and gone, long before
anyone
can find them. They don’t transmit much. They are listening. 15. LISTEN to
the
“bad” guys. It won’t take you long to find them. They keep calling and
calling.
They aren’t listening to find out where to transmit, or they wouldn’t be
calling. How simple is that? Being LOUD helps, but not if the DX is not
hearing
you! If you don’t want to get into the DX log, just ignore the above
suggestions, and keep calling, calling, calling….. I wish you the best of
luck.
You’ll need it.
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