Messages

961

Equipment / Re: Gear prices

« on: June 17, 2019, 0353 UTC »

I've actually got an early 1990's Sony ICF-SW100S. Super travel radio for sure! Unfortunately, the ribbon cables broke on mine, twice! I bought and self replaced cables in 1998, and sand papered the clamshell edges by rounding them. Unfortunately, the new cables didn't last, and by 2005, they severed, again. Now, I'm trying to figure if I wanna' another go of it, just to have the cables fail, yet again? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Too bad... Certainly not the best HF portables I've got, or had, but it had its uses. I even DX'ed, and DF'ed FM pirate stations with it.

962

Amateur Radio / Re: 2M SSB

« on: June 17, 2019, 0344 UTC »

Anyone into a 2M SSB revival? I've just read, and even posted, about the weirdness on the posts about 75M crazies. Thus far, (Knock-knock, on this wooden table.), everyone that I've worked and QSO'ed with up there has been fantastic. Let's keep it that way! Oh, and no lightning crashes, until they are under 100 miles from ya. That in itself is keeping me off the lower HF bands now, lightning crashes.

963

Amateur Radio / Re: 3840 khz Bootlegger Net & Jammers (LSB) 05:30 UTC

« on: June 17, 2019, 0338 UTC »

This is another reason I like 2M and 432 SSB. You just didn't hear the nasties, like you are on 75 - 80M, 40M, and even 20M. Oh, and for decades 10M has had its come and goes with weirdness, albeit it seems better up there, lately. Thus far, 17M, 12M, 6M, and 60M, seem pretty tranquil. And, I hope that it stays that way. Hey... There's always 222MHz to get back to. 222.100MHz SSB transverters anyone?

964

Amateur Radio / Re: ARRL June VHF Contest this weekend, 6/8 - 6/10/2019.

« on: June 15, 2019, 2325 UTC »

Oh yeah??? Well, you have another chance this September,    http://www.arrl.org/september-vhf
I've worked that one too, several times. Propagation usually is Temp Inversions and Aurora.    Sporadic "E" is pretty much non-existent then.   

965

General Radio Discussion / Re: Decades of Universal Music Group treasures burned in 2008

« on: June 12, 2019, 1851 UTC »

This also emphasizes my, "Never use a Cloud!", policy for personal storage of any info / media. And, I too like solid, tangible, media storage. As far as all that Universal tunage gone forever? One of two things will now happen, (1.) Have any past media from Universal become more valuable. And, or (2.) Raise the prices of any media, past and present. 

966

General Radio Discussion / Re: LED public street lighting...

« on: June 09, 2019, 1731 UTC »

What I hate is when those sodium vapor lights start going band and wipe out HF, lower VHF, and even seen noise into the UHF TV band, from them. I had an APT, that had one at the complex, for a couple of years going bad. DX'ing at night was damned near impossible with S+40/9 BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

967

General Radio Discussion / Re: THE GUARDIAN on the demise of rural radio in USA

« on: June 08, 2019, 2043 UTC »

I agree with several things in that article. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm, was that dude that commented from Syracuse UNI, whom started at a Hornell, NY station, from the now gone WHHO? Yeah, that Telecomm Act of 1996 pretty much ruined radio for those of whom give a damn about it. Yes, you have the limited LPFM, with no ad revenues allowed, period. And, Part #15 AM radio is expanding via radio hobbyists, doing radio their own way. But, commercial, local, radio in most small towns are in trouble, especially AM stations. Many of them don't have a live person at all running them, or even anymore than a closest, or shelf, space for the entire station. Sad article, but we're just going to hear more of this.   

968

Amateur Radio / ARRL June VHF Contest this weekend, 6/8 - 6/10/2019.

« on: June 05, 2019, 2106 UTC »

 If we can ever get a weekend break in T-storms, there's the VHF, on up, Contests this weekend,   http://www.arrl.org/june-vhf
          Even if you don't have CW / SSB capabilities, check the following simplex FM FREQ's of 52.525MHz, 52.540MHz, 146.550MHz, 146.580MHz, the 147MHz simplex FREQ's, 223.500MHz, 446.000MHz, 446.050MHz, and 446.100MHz. The exchange here is mainly for the grid square and if you have other bands to work points from. And, any licensed amateur worked is a point to any serious contester. Good practice for Field Day. Now, wish these T-storms away!

969

General Radio Discussion / Re: That '70s gadget, the CB, hangs on! Chicago Tribune article.

« on: June 05, 2019, 1938 UTC »

I've posted the same thing on The FRN, but asked if anyone remember that 'Good Times' episode where Bookman ditched a CB away from his 'ol lady. Boomer found it on Youtube!    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TBOp7XtOz4   Yep, CB is very affordable today, no monthly bill, can work anywhere that cell phone can't, and you can be almost anyone you want to on it. What's old is new again? So, ya think that Millennials will catch back on it?

970

Equipment / Re: On the Importance of Speaker Phasing

« on: June 03, 2019, 2302 UTC »

Look in the audio chain on your scanner. Both of my Uniden BC-175XL and BC-210XLT 1980's scanners had the same problem. In both cases, it was an electrolytic CAP in the near output of the scanners' audio chains. Once I'd swapped them, full audio restored. No doubt, Uniden custom made your scanner as well. If I remember right, the CAP was a DC blocker that was rated at 10VDC, instead of 16VDC, or higher, like it should be. Uniden did that also on an original RCI-2950 All-Mode 10M rig, which came to sounding very raspy to everyone in SSB. Sure enough, a whole bunch of under rated, low voltage, electrolytic CAP's in there needed replacing. I'm still using that rig as well. Amazing the corners companies cut to save $$$$$.

971

General Radio Discussion / That '70s gadget, the CB, hangs on! Chicago Tribune article.

« on: June 02, 2019, 1932 UTC »

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2008-08-25-0808230026-story.html       CB is still alive and well where I am.

972

Equipment / Re: You guys using TX pre-emphasis or RX de-emphasis, how about bandwitdths?

« on: May 25, 2019, 1736 UTC »

I'm so cheap that I use a 20 band EQ. In the 1990's, that was used in FM to keep audio FREQ's above 15kHz at bay from messing with the 19kHz pilot carrier in an FM Stereo TX. Today? A 20 band EQ is still used to do a couple of things, (1): To give AM MW audio a boast in bass, MID, and semi-high, FREQ's, (2): To act as my ye poor man's De-esser to run various Podcasts that don't use De-essing when creating Podcasts. On a wide band RX, those S's and T's sound pretty harsh from these Podcasts. Yeah, I could use the EQ in Audacity to run those through and De-ess them that way, and I have to some, but time-wise, easier to do that at the TX audio chain. A sharp cut around 9, or 10kHz, usually does the trick, while a boast from 4 - 8kHz still adds to some nice brightness. One other advantage to this? No dedicated computer for this, but old analog tech. I do computer aided, but not computer dependent.   

973

Amateur Radio / Re: QRP Contesting

« on: May 24, 2019, 1805 UTC »

Ever give the newer 60M band a try in QRP? Might not give you contest points, unless that is actually allowed, but with everyone here in the USA MAX'ed out to 100W ERP there, being being -10dB, or less, would give you a good chance to be heard. I wouldn't do it at night, this time of year with lightning crashes prevalent, but good regional coverage in daytime. And, afternoons are when I seem to hear and QSO with the most traffic on that band.  I like that band, since I'm on par power-wise, with everyone else there. That, and being channelized, I'm not going to have some douche +/-1kHz away keying on me.

974

Amateur Radio / Re: 2M SSB

« on: May 20, 2019, 1914 UTC »

I did heavily in the mid-1990's. At a hamfest, I bought a 2nd hand TS-711A 2M multi-mode rig and a modified 140W Mirage 2M repeater amp, (Modified with T/R switching and SSB delay.), then bought a Hamtronics 2M +18dB 2M RX amp. For a beam, I built my own 5 element copper and PCV beam, matched at 144.200MHz. That set-up talked all over the Northeast USA and Ontario and Quebec, Canada. I could talk anytime to the NE states and NJ from WNY. Weekly weekend mornings, there was a group up in the Canadian St Lawrence Seaway, so I shot my beam up there and had some neat QSO's. I'm trying to get back into 2M SSB again. For now, I have a TS-2000X to a homebrew 2M Delta Loop. About the only time that I hear anything around 144.200MHz is during contest times, like the January, June, and September ARRL VHF Contests and ARRL Field Days. I've had local 2M SSB QSO try-outs, but few here are set-up for 2M SSB / CW antenna-wise. Anyway, I want to do it again as well as 432.100MHz SSB again. It was fun and worked distances when HF F2 and Sporadic "E" would be dead. A decent 2M SSB station could reliably work +300 miles anytime. Open some Tropo enhancement, and the sky's the limit, literally.

975

Equipment / Re: ICOM IC R-75 external speaker

« on: May 17, 2019, 1858 UTC »

I still like rocking HF rigs with Radio Shack Nova-15's. Great voice tonal quality in all modes. Certainly sound fan-freakin'-tastic on the Kenwood rigs, and brought out the AM quality on an IC-735, (To my surprise!) Less than 1W powers these speakers nicely. https://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/13595