A good place to experiment with weak signals and high noise is around
7.040mhz during daytime hours. Those QRP signals provide a real opportunity
check the effectiveness of your noise reduction features, agc settings and
filter bandwidth. I've found the filter bandwidth has a huge effect on the
ability to copy cw in noise. I've been doing a lot of A/B test between the
Orion and PRO2. About the time I think I know which one does best, along
comes a signal that changes my opinion. It's madding! Specifications have
nothing to do with it either. BDR and MDS are out the window. There are no
strong local signals to give problems and the noise level is far above the
MDS. Sometimes I'll peak up a weak signal on one rig but I can't decipher
the code, tune it in with the other rig and although it sounds noisier, I
can copy it. What would you call this measurement? Throughput? What we need
is a generator that generates random atmospheric type noise and modulates it
with cw then a computer program that analyzes the throughput and produces an
error percentage much like is done in the data transmission business.
Steve
N4LQ
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don" <kd6hq@sonic.net>
To: <tentec@contesting.com>
Sent: Saturday, May 15, 2004 10:56 PM
Subject: [TenTec] Practicing with the Orion
After reading through the manual today and paying particular attention to
"Weak Signal DX Reception, Contest Operation and the Orion" section it
occurred to me that I don't know what a 3db above the noise signal threshold
sounds like. I know what I consider to be a weak signal but if you want to
sit down and just practice using the filter settings it would be nice to
have a reliable signal to use. So my question is does anyone know of a
(relatively) inexpensive signal generator (schematic) so that I could
purchase/build one? OR perhaps someone knows of another way to do this?
Thanks
Don kd6hq
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