Tower mounting preamps can get you into trouble. At low freqs, (below 432 usually) they can be avoided. Comparing a modern version DEM transverter and good modern HF radio with a Yaesu 736 is like in
Hi Bill, I am hoping to get my 3456 system back up and running for the weekend. I want to check the new antenna out. The antenna is up 4 X 112 element Blowtorches at 138 ft, but the rf box is still o
Hi Jake, My vote would be to use it. It was a pretty good antenna. It could be optimized for the low end, but really the differences are not too great. I remember seeing some computer models of the H
Hi contesters, What is going on with HSMS and WSJT in regards to ARRL contesting rules. I guess it is OK, but I remember when the league would not count a 1296 eme QSO with WB6IOM and a G station yea
Hi Dave, The genesis for my original post was the WSJT mode, which apparently, is a step up from the normal high speed meteor scatter. Essentially all of the detection is done by the computer. The op
Hi Joe, Gee, I hate to get on these reflectors with such questions, because things just seem to snowball and next thing you know, I have horns coming out of my head, and one big eye in the middle of
Hi Jon, I don't think the red squirrel would agree to help me out. I was pretty mean to him while chasing him out of the generator. I most likely hurt his feelings and ruined his self esteem. Good id
We were operating as a multi op unlimited and were on all the bands. The QTH was my home location in Maine a half mile behind my house. We did a bunch of work to the station in preparation for the w
Hi Gene, I have some experience with a Yaesu FT-847 on six meters in a multi multi operation with a big six meter antenna....The FT-847 was not up to the task in contest conditions. It was definitely
Hi again! I forgot to mention a few things about noise blankers as far as I have observed here at my QTH. I get very bad line noise that plagues me on 50, 144, and 222 MHz. I have been going round an
Hi Tom, Either position has advantages as far as I can see. At my QTH I have the luxury of choosing 50 MHz antennas at 90, 66, 42, and 18 ft, plus I have a small 5 element yagi at 30 ft with a differ
John, That is sort of a tough question to answer. I always asked myself "What do I want to do now?" Usually it was geared to improving my contest score, so a new band is the best bet, and pick a band
Hi John, I believe the best rig for VHF contesting from the standpoint of price/performance is the Elecraft K2. It is available for about $700 as a kit, and has the best dynamic range, an excellent n
Hello all, I recently received the ARRL contest survey and have been thinking about VHF contesting rules in general ever since. There has also been a hotly debated thread on the VHF Contesting reflec
Hello Brad, I would have to echo Ken Harker's comments. Both the 726 and the 736, while nice radios to use, do not have the dynamic range needed in serious contest conditions. I used a 726 for quite
Hi fellow contesters, K1WHS in FN43MJ Maine, will be beating the bushes for contacts in the Sept contest. There will be 7 or 8 operators on all the bands from 50 thru 24 GHz. (UNLIMITED MULTI) We are
Hi Frank, I was looking for you from here in snowy FN43. I heard nothing at all to the west. I figured it was wx related as that was where all the bad weather was coming from. I had 59 to 59+10 snow
Hi Jim, I am not so sure it is "hogwash". If you look at the history of just about every contest, they had their roots in developing the bands and getting more activity and better stations on those b
Hi 432 sprinters! It is fun to hear of individual results just after the sprints. I managed to get on about 45 minutes late and was happy to see that activity was pretty good. I walked the 1/2 mile t
Hi Guys, I am hearing the new WA2UMX beacon here in FN43MJ on 1296.3 (approx) at about S1 to S5 with QSB. It sounds pretty good, and is abit weaker than the 222 UMX beacon signal, but not by much. Th