SNR is good, but signal levels have dropped considerable on 80m and 160m. Booming signals are now like S1, and many are not even moving the S meter.
Normally I could not care less about S readings, but my primary R-2000 receiver is only so sensitive.
The MFJ-1020B is great for dealing with a significant mismatch on a highly negative-gain antenna, like with my LoG if (rarely) needed. However it is not too great with this YCCC preamp setup, and constant retuning a preselector is not my idea of fun.
I am not spending $150+ on a decent preamp for mostly casual listening, and I do not feel much like building one, so I ordered a Noolec HF preamp. I have no idea what chip it is using, but at least it supports multiple power feed options and has a RF limiter circuit. I will try it inline near the receiver, since coax loss on 80/160 is minimal. If it looks okay, I can derive 5v from the 12v bias tee of the YCCC and place it near the antenna feedpoint sometime.
If I do not like the results, I likely will be putting the 4:1 unun back at the 31' vertical feedpoint. Maybe then later deploy the YCCC as designed with a smaller vertical and just a ground rod as I have a S9v18 collecting dust. That probably will need a second preamp as well, but at least the YCCC input side will have a match and input gain much closer to what it expects.
BTW, about MW in particular, the YCCC appears to excel there. I only took a quick skim, but I could tell signal levels were improved with no perceived loss in SNR. LW looked good as well, including noting several NDBs. I would leave the setup as is if I wanted only a MW/LW solution, as no doubt the YCCC cleans up the match down there, especially compared to my usual 4:1 unun setup at such low frequencies.