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Messages - secretlab

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1
The only Industry Canada certified AM transmitter I'm aware of is the Chez Radio Procaster. It's not cheap, but it's a solid design that works very well.

Likewise, Canada based Decade makes certified FM transmitters which can operate at the more generous power level enjoyed by you lucky folks north of the border.

2
Amateur Radio / Re: Consensus of average 40M noise level
« on: February 15, 2022, 0441 UTC »
Another popular regional chain here in the rural west  is C-A-L Ranch Store, with everything from equine supplies to LED utility lighting. These guys are happy to empty your wallet and fill your cart with chicken feed and noise generators.

And don't get me started about Harbor Freight!

3
HF Beacons / Re: 2097.3 kHz. "A" Beacon Returns...Again...
« on: January 10, 2022, 0709 UTC »
Even with my sloppy HPF for BCI, "A " is always 579-589 at this location. Heck, maybe its ground wave to me?

Always a nice signal.....Wish I had enough space for a half wave dipole at 160m, maybe I could rule the ether?

Zeak,

Receiver KiwiSDR
Ant(s): 80m dipole at 15m and 1m Loop
Location:  DM12

There have been several occasions when "A" was audible around mid-day here in DM34, but none yet in its current iteration. It's now generally fair to good in what the FCC used to refer to as "critical hours" in BCB engineering lingo...the 2 hours after sunrise and before sunset. Plus the expected times for MW.

4
Amateur Radio / Re: Xiegu G90
« on: December 23, 2021, 2326 UTC »
nice, hope you get it soon. Was wondering how it'd differ from the 90 so a report would be nice. I read the first batch was sent out in November?

After a fairly hair-raising experience involving a lost shipment from November, Xiegu and Radioddity stepped up and sent another X6100 which was received today. Initial impression is good. Since reviews seem mixed so far, I'll check it out and report when I know more.

5
Amateur Radio / Re: Xiegu G90
« on: December 11, 2021, 0937 UTC »
Xiegu has been working on the new product, the 6100 think it's called, so have put g90 fw updates on hold.
I thought I ordered one of the X6100 "first batch" units a while back but have so far been stuck in a continuing Twilight Zone episode with the seller (not Xiegu). If a radio turns up, I'll note it here.

6
HF Beacons / 2097.3 kHz. "A" Beacon Returns...Again...
« on: November 29, 2021, 0310 UTC »
An old favorite has returned, first noted in central Arizona, good signal with slow, deep fades over the holiday weekend. 0220 UTC 11-29-2021.


7
I worked with Delilah at KUGN in Eugene, only her second radio job, doing (among other things) production of her voicetracks for KUGN's "mellow" FM. Aside from being a stellar talent, she's a genuinely nice person. I wish her much success at KDUN.

8
Amateur Radio / Re: Xiegu G90
« on: November 06, 2021, 0429 UTC »
Indeed, my first rig was Baofeng, and I've continued to have an interest in China made equipment as a way to make a limited budget stretch farther. In general, the design, engineering and build quality of the Xiegu rigs seem fine, and I have high hopes for their X6100. Right size, right price, and feature packed. Their ATUs in particular are liked by many users, and of course Icom skipped the ATU entirely in the IC-705!

9
Amateur Radio / Re: Xiegu G90
« on: November 05, 2021, 2256 UTC »
I just bought a X6100 on pre-order. For a couple hundred more than the G90, it promises to be more like an ICOM IC-705 in operation. The caveat is: Xiegu's known for releasing buggy firmware in their new radios. While the G90 has this nicely sorted, the X6100 is an unknown. I'll keep you posted.

10
HF Beacons / Re: New whooper beacon on 4095.6
« on: December 15, 2020, 1537 UTC »
 
Quote
I think I did this once before but forgot where you were located as Maidenhead locators is not something I use. Definitely an interesting location shorthand.

Slightly OT: the ham WSPR beacons include Maidenhead locators with every transmission, along with the callsign and transmitter power in dBm. WSPR is a slightly magic protocol developed by Joe Taylor that can decode well below the noise floor, but for obvious reasons may not be suitable for pirate beacons!

11
Part 15 AM and FM Station Operation / Re: FCC vs God
« on: September 22, 2020, 0116 UTC »
That's an opportunity lost, but a good solution already exists with the Part 15 AM Rangemaster and Procaster products (plus the upcoming Parking Lot Radio should that make it to market.)

But AM is not their preference, as you might gather from Rep. Green's FM-centric letter to Ajit Pai.

Having installed a few Rangemasters and a Procaster, I called a number of local churches back in March, and found little interest in a Part 15 AM solution, as good as it is.  That was a surprise. I was later dismayed to find that local pastors prefer to hold services as usual, in spite of the risks.


12
Part 15 AM and FM Station Operation / Re: Part 15 AM and FM
« on: July 23, 2020, 2318 UTC »
Of the Part 15 AM transmitters I've used, the Procaster and Rangemaster can take as much modulation as the processing is able to provide, up to +125% or more (100% negative.) These can be as loud as the 'pros.' The TH 5.0 I have as a backup has an internal compressor of sorts, which apparently isn't defeatable, so in that case you get what you get.

I'm now using a Schlockwood SW-200 3 band processor with my Procaster, where it's really helped the fringe area. More is better here: AM peak envelope power (PEP) is 4x carrier power at 100% modulation, and cranking up the positive modulation with a suitable processor can increase PEP even more. You get more power on the air...legally.

I do recommend the Schlockwood, which can be both loud and pleasant sounding.

13
That's an interesting paper, thanks Dr. Smolinski! If they were receiving echoes at 25 dB or so below the noise floor (if I read correctly), efficient modes like WSPR might work. If you had sufficient power and/or antenna gain. :-)

14
It's an experiment that's almost certainly been done with high powered radar by now. There would be numerous applications if the sun or its magnetosphere turned out to be radio reflective. Even if that's so, the sun is an incredibly loud noise generator that would tend to drown out any reflections (just try watching your satellite dish during a solar outage). Calling Dr. Skov!

15
Group W Bench / Re: FCC Cancels W6WBJ License
« on: May 31, 2020, 1704 UTC »
Peace, brothers! Promotion of brotherhood, which is WARFA's stated goal, became the worst troll bait ever, it seems.

I really don't know much about the jammer's motives, but I have to wonder whether the fact that WARFA appears to be an all-inclusive, multi-racial net has something to do with this? In plain speak, I'm wondering if there is some sort of racism involved on the jammer's part? Does anyone know?

Crowell recorded (sang on) a couple of songs that can only be described as racist which became part of the jamming. There were racist comments made. He had some sort of run-in with Moody Law, WQ6I, of WARFA some years ago that seemed to escalate, but I don't know the specifics of it. Also with the late Art Bell, W6OBB, who was a member of WARFA.

I'm down with brotherhood, but it's a sad fact that there's no shortage of people who aren't.








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