/HAM/ - Amateur Radio General

[Anonymous No.1840823]

Handheld Jap edition
Old >>1824857


>New to /ham/? Read this shit!
http://www.arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio
https://www.fcc.gov/wireless/bureau-divisions/mobility-division/amateur-radio-service
>Your search engine of choice works well too!

The FAQ is now back:
https://wiki.cybsec.io/index.php/HamFAQ

>Idiot's Guide to Coax Cable
https://www.pcs-electronics.com/guide_coax.php

>Looking for frequencies to monitor near you?
http://www.radioreference.com

>Basic Rx loop fundamentals
https://www.w8ji.com/magnetic_receiving_loops.htm

>DIY SWL Mag. Loop
http://www.kr1st.com/swlloop.htm

>Small Tx Loop
http://www.kk5jy.net/magloop/

>In Depth Loop articles
http://webclass.org/k5ijb/antennas/Small-magnetic-loops.htm

>Online Practice Tests:
http://aa9pw.com/
https://hamstudy.org/
https://hamexam.org/

> Real-Time Propagation Data
http://prop.kc2g.com/

>Space Weather
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/communities/radio-communications

>WSJT-X 2.1 User Guide
https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx-doc/wsjtx-main-2.1.2.html

>FT8 operating guide
https://www.g4ifb.com/FT8_Hinson_tips_for_HF_DXers.pdf

>APRS
http://www.aprs.org/

[Anonymous No.1840835]

https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/ham-radio.htm

[Anonymous No.1840836]

>>1840823
>>Space Weather

[Anonymous No.1841009]

A question on direct digital synthesis: if you have a 10 bit DDS outputting 120 Ms/sec, and you use this to form a carrier on the HF band, will it be sufficient to low pass filter at 30 MHz to avoid harmonics?

[Anonymous No.1841021]

>>1840836
Seems to have been moved or split:
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/communities/space-weather-enthusiasts-dashboard
I guess the latter is more relevant of the two. If there is agreement, I'll update the FAQ.

[Anonymous No.1841099]

>>1841021
I prefer https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/
because it shows all I want to watch

[Anonymous No.1841138]

I just picked up the v5 5W qrplabs transceiver.
First component to install is the toroid ;_;
I've never had success with any kit with a toroid. Here is hoping I can manage not to screw this one up!

[Anonymous No.1841346]

>>1841138
detailed instructions
pity those who pity

[Anonymous No.1841430]

>>1841346
Sure, best instructions out of any kit I've ever built.
Still doesn't mean I can't mess it up :D

I'm still chugging away at it. Hopefully I can finish this in the next couple days and get on the air.

[Anonymous No.1841437]

>>1840823
Momma don't let your babies grow up to be hammers!

[Anonymous No.1841439]

Look at his ad! look at how fucking exciting it is, those police are after some criminal and you can hear it on your SW radio... oh, no you can't because the police mostly stopped transmitting below 30mhz in the 40's.

Ok but that fucking super sabre now that's some exciting shit you can hear pilots talk to each other while they shoot down commies... no, no you can't do that either the air force is on vhf frequencies in the 50's. SHIT!

OK OK those fucking drug lords, or contras or coffee farmers with grenades in columbia! Fuck yeah some action now! no, no, fucking third world revolutionaries don't have radios at that time. They certainly weren't transmitting play-by-plays of jungle battles, and it would have been in spanish so... FUCK YOU!

well that leaves a fucking ship sinking in the north fucking atlantic! fuck yeah! nope.. while they did use shortwave on boats all you would hear is the SOS calls and maybe some search and rescue. but not anything while the boats SINKING because people on sinking boats are getting off the boat as fast as they can, not chatting with your happy ass.

That kids face kinda says it all... HEY wait a minute! I can't hear any of this shit. I wasted $47.50 ($520 in todays money) on this shitty S-38 radio just to hear some boring ass mother fuckers talking about the weather and signal strength SHEEEEIIIIT!

Maybe someday they will invent a 2 meter radio and I can hear the same boring conversations over repeaters YEAH! that's the ticket!

[Anonymous No.1841442]

Here comes page 2 FUCK YEAH SCIENCE BITCHES!

AUSTRALIA, FUCKING OUTERSPACE MAN! I have the weirdest boner right now!

[Anonymous No.1841444]

Page 3!
RAM IT IN ME! I CAN HEAR YODELERS IN SWEDEN! WEATHER STATIONS
WWV! OMGZG!!~!1
I just came!

[Anonymous No.1841446]

Page 4
STATION LISTINGS FINALLY! I'ma smoke a cig!

I mean they are no good now but hey numbers!

[Anonymous No.1841449]

>>1841439
...Are you diabetic or schizophrenic?
You could hear all of those things? And so what if it was in Spanish?
The US airforce still uses HF today. So that's feasible. Drug runners still use HF today, so that's feasible. The police used 25 to 50 MHz, so, it possible, but not plausible.
You would have also heard world news, pirates and whatever else is out there on the airwaves.
If bait, I rate 8/8 got me to reply.

[Anonymous No.1841451]

>>1841444
>housewives
kek

[Anonymous No.1841453]

>>1841449
gate keep much?

[Anonymous No.1841455]

>>1841449
I've listened for hours on end at my location and around the world using internet SDR radios and NEVER in the last 30 years heard anything more exciting than the russian woodpecker.

[Anonymous No.1841457]

I for the life of me cannot get a wire to stay soldered into a so-239.
Am I just retarded? Should I crimp it too?

[Anonymous No.1841462]

>>1841457
Getting the cup tinned is the most important thing, ive had XT60 connectors with cups that just do not take solder until you get them hot as fuck. Once the cups are tinned, it takes a wire and solder easy though. No need for crimps

[Anonymous No.1841464]

>>1841457
they are plated with chinesium, brush it, file it, you may have some real metal beneath, or not.

[Anonymous No.1841473]

>>1841455
You've listened to static for 30 years without hearing anything more interesting than the woodpecker? lol

[Anonymous No.1841475]

>>1841462
>>1841464
Appreciated!

[Anonymous No.1841478]

>>1841455
>listened to webSDR for 30 years
doubt

[Anonymous No.1841485]

>>1841430
Umm, that looks like too many turns on that ferrite. See >>1841138

[Anonymous No.1841488]

>>1841485
The number of turns depends on which band you are building it for. I looked this up before hand. The others fit easily. The 40m version barely fits. And 60 and 80 require multiple layers.
Thanks though!

[Anonymous No.1841492]

>>1841138
Did you get the QCX or the new Plus version?

[Anonymous No.1841493]

>>1841492
I got the QCX v5. Not the one that just came out LOL. If I'd known, I would have waited. Because I like to mount my projects in tin boxes from the dollarstore/ thrift store.
My current plan is to build it as per instructions. Once I've tested it and it works, I'll find a way to mount it in an enclosure.

[Anonymous No.1841511]

Is JS8Call still a thing? The only youtube videos I can find on it are from a year ago when it was first announced.

[Anonymous No.1841536]

if I want an actually decent software-defined radio that I can just work with from my computer (as in, better than an RTL-SDR), complete with waterfall view and all the works
what radios am I going to be looking at?

[Anonymous No.1841538]

>>1841536
For RX or TX/RX?

[Anonymous No.1841539]

>>1841538
Depends. I don't have a license yet, but I do want to get one. If the price difference isn't too bad, I would be willing to shell out so I can future-proof.

Otherwise, just RX.

[Anonymous No.1841540]

>>1841493
Antenna is more important, enclosure can wait.
>>1841511
The trend is CW on 40m. I hear a lot of slow newbies.

[Anonymous No.1841542]

>>1841539
If it's just RX, then just get one of the SDRPlay units, they'll do HF through to 2GHz no problem and they've got good filtering. If you're going to get licenced and invest, get a pre-owned Flex. 6300 or 6400 can be had for under 2k. You could get a Hermes or something but you'll end up spending stupid amounts of money on filters and amplifiers just to bring it up to the level of the Flex.

[Anonymous No.1841545]

>>1841539
RTLSDR and your choice of free software will be as good as it gets for rx.
Then spend all your efforts on antennas, then get a license and come back

[Anonymous No.1841568]

I have to be honest, while the ARRL Antenna Book sure has a lot of information, it sure doesn't tell me what that information is good for or how to apply it

[Anonymous No.1841576]

>>1841568
>the value of the dielectric constant of the soil can vary with soil type and depth
>this can also affect the conductivity and permittivity of the soil
ok cool so how does that affect antennas
>don't worry about it :)

[Anonymous No.1841606]

>>1841576
The ARRL Antenna Book includes a copy of EZNEC. Does it use such surface properties to simulate radiation patterns?

[Anonymous No.1841617]

>>1841473
no you great gibbering smellfungus not static, but not anything interesting.

>>1841478
bugger off dorbel you know what I meant.

[Anonymous No.1841639]

>there are positions at Antarctic research bases for communications engineers and satellite engineers
>your degree is gonna be EE - Communications and Signal Processing Engineering
god I wanna work there so bad but radios confuse the shit out of me

[Anonymous No.1841644]

>>1841639
If it gives you any hope, I know a telecoms sat eng and he has a room temperature IQ.

[Anonymous No.1841663]

>>1841639
I'm actually going for communications (not as an engineer). I'm not going to dox myself with photos/ call sign. Until I actually get there. Once I do, I'm going to post pictures to make you guys jelly :) I'm dreaming of the HF contacts from the pole.

How I did it:
Worked for a 2-way communications company. I was hired as a cleaner. But I kept going in to the tech room and fixed things. They trained me up in practical field repairs and bench work.

I did a distance learning course at a college for electronics.

(Misc Work)

My current job.

The experience that got me there: Satcom, HF, VHF, UHF, working alone in foreign countries, and doing field repair work.

Read the whole ARRL handbook. Do projects at home. Learn how to translate theory in to real world results. It will take you to the next level.
The engineers can put black boxes together without knowing how they work.
The operators can push buttons.
Or be a technician, know how to put the boxes together/ how they work and how to push the buttons. You will be more valuable.

[Anonymous No.1841666]

>>1841663
with an actual communications engineering (and signal processing engineering) degree, do you think that will be a leg-up in getting there?

I won't have much work experience being a fresh grad, but I'm trying to work with as much radio stuff as possible rn. I don't like the ARRL handbooks so much (I'm the guy bitching about them in >>1841568 >>1841576 after all) but by god I'll read them if it means I can get to the research bases down there when I graduate

[Anonymous No.1841689]

>>1841666
Absolutely it would!

I would look in to TDRS-F1, GOES & Iridium satellite constellation, and Orbcomm Satellites and see how they work.
You want to know the ins and outs.

Find out who has/ is working down there. Track down all the researchers and .mil bases. Call them up. Ask questions, try and find somebody who did something similar or how to get referred to someone similar.

Get in shape.
There is limited medical services. Start running at least 5km everyday.

[Anonymous No.1841690]

>>1840823
Do you know of any good CB amplifiers? I want one that can get ideally get about 300 miles. The radio I have is a Cobra 29 WX NW ST.

[Anonymous No.1841736]

>>1841138
>>1841430
I built the thing. I'm in the tuning stage. I hooked it in to a radio tester from work.
I was curious about how well it rejects a signal on the opposite sideband.

S9+10dB Loud, Not clear, Might be overloading the front end.
S9 I might confuse it with the real signal.
S8 I can hear it, but it's very weak.
S7 Lost in the noise

[Anonymous No.1842686]

>>1841690
You're still pushing the impossible unless you want 300 miles on a rare chance.

[Anonymous No.1842825]

>>1841493
>Not the one that just came out LOL
I thought the plus version was just announced, not that you could buy it.

[Anonymous No.1842845]

>>1842686
I really meant I need as much range as I can get. I just said 300 miles because It seems like the max distance if everything is perfect. But of course, it's rarely perfect.

[Anonymous No.1842863]

>>1842845
do you have actual high quality cable and a good antenna? fix that first, then add more power.

[Anonymous No.1842885]

>>1842845
Typically with CB you get line of sight.
After 50 watts you won't see much improvement.
Like the other anon said, have a good antenna/ coax/ connector. That's the cheapest and best way to have a good signal!
Is it mounted on a truck/ car/ boat/ house? Placement of a CB antenna is more critical than a VHF/UHF ham antenna because of the required groundplane/ counterpoise.

Those long distance shots are done when there is a very specific ionospheric condition. That's when you want to have the full kilowatt :D.
Not saying you should do any amplification because that's illegal. If you go over 100watts, make sure you have a CB bandpass filter before your antenna. This is to help keep legislative bodies off you.

I have been writing this assuming you're North American.

If you are European, get a cb capable of SSB. SSB is used there.

If you are in Australia or some other countries, it is possible that CB is in the UHF band of frequencies. It is even more critical that you use high quality coax and as short a run as possible. Anything over 50 watts probably won't help you.

[Anonymous No.1842947]

So, is a Barrett a good radio? 1840296
Not much info out there.

[Anonymous No.1842950]

>>1842863
>>1842885
I don't have an antenna or cable yet, and it's going in my SUV. And I'm an American. Honestly, they don't care enough to enforce CB regulations. Unless you're being a nuisance. They're not gonna go after me for using an amplifier. We even have things called the Superbowl channels, 6 and 11 if I'm not mistaken. Where people broadcast in the tens or hundreds of kilowatts, just because they can. This website is anonymous anyway, we can talk about breaking FCC regulations as much as we want. So, do you have any specific recommendations for equipment and setup? Currently, all I have is just the AM only CB.

[Anonymous No.1842963]

>>1840823
Sup guys. I'm a newfag. Me and my relatives got some baofend radios as an emergency communication method. I got 42-inch antennas for the radios but they don't help much. I assume it's because we are in a city and there are plenty of tall buildings interfering.
Is there any type of antenna that can be bought or built to communicate in a city full of tall building on a distance 3-4 miles?

[Anonymous No.1842964]

>>1842950
Make and model of your SUV or similar SUV that isn't yours. I ask so I can google up an image and I can start making some recommendations tailored for your vehicle.

[Anonymous No.1842968]

>>1842963
>Is there any type of antenna that can be bought or built to communicate in a city full of tall building on a distance 3-4 miles?
Nope, that's why emergency services, etc, use repeaters.

[Anonymous No.1842969]

>>1842963
Build a yagi. Use an SWR meter to check if your antenna is good to go. If you don't have an SWR meter buy one, make one, or go to your local ham radio club and borrow one (one of the benefits of being licensed).
With tall buildings in the way you might not be able to get a direct shot. Try UHF and bouncing it off another building to get around the obstacle.

It's not the size of the antenna that matters. It's how you shoot your comms.

You could also build a J-pole (as something to try)

[Anonymous No.1842971]

>>1842947
Are you just using it for ham use? It's pretty overkill if so, you can get better rigs if your budget is 2k. I suspect you also need some kind of programming software for the more advanced features so I'd check if you can get ahold of that before you buy it.

[Anonymous No.1842973]

>>1842845
>I just said 300 miles
What tower h would you need to see the horizon at a distance d of 300 mi?
d≈sqrt(2Rh) d^2=2Rh h=d^2/2R
d=483e3 m (300 mi)
R=6.378e6 m (earth radius)
h=18.3 km (~11.4 mi)
Don't forget to notify the FAA.

[Anonymous No.1842977]

>>1842964
2002 Ford Explorer. I was thinking about putting it on the driver's side fender. Opposite to the antenna for the car's AM/FM radio.

[Anonymous No.1842981]

>>1842973
Maybe it could bounce off the ionosphere or whatever the proper term is for that, when conditions are ideal.

[Anonymous No.1842993]

>>1841488
Phew. Glad to hear that. It would have sucked to have to fix that.

[Anonymous No.1842998]

>>1841488
waste of a great get

[Anonymous No.1843008]

I got a whole box of vietnam era radios today in a surplus store. Most of them are ACR RT-10's which are obviously not usable since they are exclusively tuned to 243Mhz, an emergency search and rescue frequency. However, there were also 2 PRT-4 and PRR-9 sets in there. Is there a special name for the telescoping antennae on pic related? The one on the right is missing its antenna and I'd like to replace it if possible before reselling it (replacement will be disclosed). I tried googling "PRT-4 antenna" and found no surplus parts for sale. Are the threads common between all radio antennae?

[Anonymous No.1843024]

>>1842977
Polite sage. Give me a day or so. I'm going on a bender. I'll either answer you black out drunk or in a couple days.

[Anonymous No.1843033]

>>1843024
Alright then.

[Anonymous No.1843257]

>>1842971
>Are you just using it for ham use?
I am looking for something suited for mobile ham use on HF bands, yes. For Eur 2200 it is supposed to have all options installed.
What other rigs do you recommend within that budget?

[Anonymous No.1843292]

>>1843257
>it is supposed to have all options installed
Oy vey, consumer hypnosis. If you read the available documentation you can easily see that this modern boat anchor is NOT made for ham radio use. You want no ALE, frequency hopping, channelized operation, selcall, fax transmission etc. but you pay for it. The custom mobile atu antenna alone will blow up your budget, almost. You need no silly 'manpack adaptor' for a mobile radio.

[Anonymous No.1843302]

>>1843292
>Oy vey, consumer hypnosis.
Hardly, and that is why I ask here.
>If you read the available documentation you can easily see that this modern boat anchor is NOT made for ham radio use.
I read the sellers spec sheet and he said the radio had the ham option installed. As for "boat anchor" status this one is portable and not suited for mooring a supertanker. I did have a look at a snazzy R-390 but resisted.
>You want no ALE,
Why not? HFLink details ham use of ALE.
>frequency hopping,
As a mil spark that has an interest to me.
>channelized operation, selcall, fax transmission etc. but you pay for it.
Sure. An Elecraft isn't cheap either and is not suited for field use.
>The custom mobile atu antenna alone will blow up your budget, almost.
isn't it included? And why should it be expensive?
>You need no silly 'manpack adaptor' for a mobile radio.
I was thinking of SOTA. There are quite a few mountains where I live.

[Anonymous No.1843339]

>>1843302
Ok, your choice. The only active SOTA hiker I know uses the X5105 and maybe a KX2 next (southern) summer.

[Anonymous No.1843354]

>>1842981
>when conditions are ideal
Currently they are not, maybe in five years. Until then you can expect some short-lived sporadic-E events but no stable conditions. AM is a bit outdated, most ops use SSB now for DX connections.

[Anonymous No.1843385]

>>1843354
I thought 40 m was holding out.

[Anonymous No.1843399]

>>1843354
If I was out buying a CB, I would have got one with AM, SSB, and FM capability. I already have the AM only one, so I was just going to hook it up anyway.

[Anonymous No.1843400]

>>1843385
Yes, still regular openings from NA to east pacific (VK,ZL,FK..) before sunrise (after sunset in the east).

[Anonymous No.1843429]

stupid question. Is shortwave AM or FM? (~10-12MHz)

[Anonymous No.1843435]

>>1843429
AM

[Anonymous No.1843436]

>>1843429
AM (amplitude modulation) and FM (frequency modulation) are like "formats". They're different ways of broadcasting. That's why they sound different.

[Anonymous No.1843439]

>>1843429
And I forgot to say here >>1843436 that the AM band was called "standard broadcast" back in the day. It still used amplitude modulation.

[Anonymous No.1843530]

>>1843429
>Is shortwave AM or FM?
Neither. A wave length is not a method of modulation.

[Anonymous No.1843607]

is my yaesu vx 8drs waterproof comprimised if i am using a diamond antenna (srh940)

[Anonymous No.1843625]

Just seen that the tranny SignalsEverywhere posted this on his discord. Any places where stuff like this can be discussed openly? I guess here, but any discord servers? Interested in looking into this stuff.

[Anonymous No.1843655]

>>1843302
>SOTA
>Is this mil larp radio good, guise?

[Anonymous No.1843657]

>>1843625
Why don't you stop trying to listen in on people's phone calls, asshole.

[Anonymous No.1843681]

>>1843657
Not him, but the NSA is always doing it. And you can't deny that back in the day, the random cordless phone interception thing could be pretty hilarious.

[Anonymous No.1843685]

>>1843681
>But that guy is doing it!!!

[Anonymous No.1843691]

>>1843685
I never said it was a good thing.

[Anonymous No.1843696]

>>1843681
I'm not old enough to have lived through it, but didn't the old analog wireless phones sometimes connect to another random phone, and someone could just pick up their phone and listen, but they couldn't talk to them even if they tried.

[Anonymous No.1843701]

>>1843696
Honestly, I don't know exactly what happened. I always had a corded landline. I just heard people say that for some reason they would hear other people on their phone.

[Anonymous No.1843731]

>>1843696
>pic related
>>1843701
You must be one of those idiots, that answers product questions, on amazon that doesn't know his ass from a hole in the wall.

[Anonymous No.1843788]

>>1843731
I could say to you "ok boomer", but even I, a 19 year old, thinks that's retarded. I mean please, don't all you baby boomers remember having to deal with older folks talking bad about you're entire generation, as if you're all the same, as well? There were baby boomer hippies, why does everyone forget that?

[Anonymous No.1843809]

>>1843777

[Anonymous No.1844028]

Looking at using the LimeSDR mini. 10 MHz to 3 GHz, why would I ever bother using a dedicated transceiver on any of these bands? (Power output maybe? Just looking for reasons why)

[Anonymous No.1844036]

>>1844028
>any of these bands
10 MHz is the top of HF, you'll miss a lot of trafic
>why would I ever bother using a dedicated transceiver
power, antenna tuning. You an get a FT-900 or a FT-450 for about the same price for HF with a mic and add a chinese fuckery for VHF / UHF.
If you want to go mainly outside HAM bands, go for the SDR

[Anonymous No.1844143]

>>1843655
If you think SOTA is mil or larp you need to get more out.

[Anonymous No.1844188]

>>1840823
What is a good baby's first receiver for a broke anon?

[Anonymous No.1844197]

>>1844143
>Barrett 2050
>125 watt HF transceiver
>MSRP: $6000
>Hauling mil grade radios up a mountain for SOTA isn't larping
Right on! I hope you aren't thinking about doing anything short of a HALO jump to get there.

[Anonymous No.1844229]

>>1844188
sdr

[Anonymous No.1844230]

>>1844197
>>125 watt HF transceiver
Plain civilian radios can normally deliver from 1 W to 1000 W, so 125 W is nothing remarkable.
>>MSRP: $6000
The offer is a lot lower.
>>Hauling mil grade radios up a mountain for SOTA isn't larping
Are you fat? Walking around the mountains with a large backpack is the norm around here.
>Right on! I hope you aren't thinking about doing anything short of a HALO jump to get there.
So air drop is the only way you can reach a mountain? I would imagine it would be Apollo style with 3 parachutes. I prefer walking.

[Anonymous No.1844290]

Is there a way for an anon like me to have a 2 way radio without a license? Heard you can use Baofengs without one, is it true? Where is a good resource to find what frequencies are legal where I live (everything I find online is conflicting / confusing). Thanks

[Anonymous No.1844296]

>>1844290
It's called CB. But then again, they probably aren't going to come after you for using a ham radio without a license. Unless you're being a nuisance.

[Anonymous No.1844299]

>>1844290
And where do you live?

[Anonymous No.1844300]

>>1844290
>Is there a way for an anon like me to have a 2 way radio without a license?

Yes, Pic related. Or get a CB

>Heard you can use Baofengs without one, is it true? Where is a good resource to find what frequencies are legal where I live

No, and there are none if you're in the US. You're limited to radios with a channel selector not a VFO.

Get a Tech license. The test is incredibly easy.

I don't understand the perception people have about a ham license being so inaccessible.

That's just a myth boomers spread so they can jerk themselves off and feel special about achieving practically nothing.

[Anonymous No.1844327]

Hey friends I just got my tech liscense and don't really know where to start. Is the ARRL operating manual a good springboard?

[LilLeto No.1844337]

>>1844327
Me, I'd probably hit up YouTube.
Ham Radio Crash Course is a good channel, and there's a ton more.

[Anonymous No.1844422]

Anyone able to hear what's happening in Atlanta police, zone 6? sorry, don't want to bring pol into this but it's interesting.

[Sixty Side Bitches No.1844455]

>I not recommend you use telescopic antenna, if transmitter power more than 10W, it easily cause transmitter damage
>range transmission depend on environment used, it not absolute range, open areas are best,
Is Corona correct?

[Anonymous No.1844484]

>>1844422
>don’t mean to intrude
Cuckhold

[Anonymous No.1844512]

>>1844422
https://www.broadcastify.com/listen/mid/23

[Anonymous No.1844603]

>>1844300
>myth
I think this is a reputation that remains from the days when Morse code was required.

[Anonymous No.1844637]

>>1844422
>zone 6?
now all zones?
#itshappening

[Anonymous No.1844997]

>>1844637
it's been a slow motion SHTF for years, radio traffic is very slow for such a big city.

[Anonymous No.1845121]

>>1844455
Is a telescopic antenna really that bad?
I just want to use all frequencies

[Anonymous No.1845234]

>>1845121
You get best effect for tuned antennas, adapted to the specific frequency you operate at. One antenna to cover it all is not realistic.

[Anonymous No.1845267]

>>1845234
It is still possible, no?
If so, how would it be affected?

[Anonymous No.1845285]

>>1840823
literally what is the point of ham radio

[Anonymous No.1845291]

>>1845285
Communication.

[Anonymous No.1845313]

>>1844300
>I don't understand the perception people have about a ham license being so inaccessible.
i think it's just that people are scared of having to actually understand technology beyond "push button; receive tacticool larp 'revolution' like a ubisoft game"

see also: people crying about how they can't use encryption as if anyone gives a shit or the FCC will send black ops guys to murder them in their sleep for trying

>>1844603
morse code is very easy.

[Anonymous No.1845319]

are USB SDR dongles a meme? they look like a meme but i need to be sure. is there any reason to get one over a proper Barrett/Harris set?

all this SDR! SDR SDR! memery is reminding me of 3d printer woo and the types of people who think four-winds shotguns are "liberating". the actual overlap seems pretty big too. you know the type, it's looking like technology latched on to because it easily fulfills some kind of anti-government fantasy and not because it is actually useful or a decent replacement or anything

and woo aside, what's the bands you can use on those things? isn't it only between 1 and 3 ghz or something? is the quality good or is it like those 8$ "capture cards" that can only record 240i at 27fps?

and on another note, why don't people repurpose computers' network cards the same way this paricular chink tv tuner has been?

between the community of mallninjas, poorly documented specs, chink costs, and insistence on "SDR" as a feature even though every radio made since 1979 is technically an SDR, there's a lot for me to not trust

bluepill me on the rtl sdr

>>1845285
shitposting

[Anonymous No.1845335]

>>1845319
Assuming you're talking RTL sticks like your picture, just be aware they're receive only.
>what's the bands you can use on those things? isn't it only between 1 and 3 ghz or something?
24MHz to 1766 MHz usually, 1MHz to 1766MHz if it's has the direct sampling mod.
>is the quality good or is it like those 8$ "capture cards" that can only record 240i at 27fps?
Quality of reception depends mostly on your antenna, it's an 8-bit ADC but that's fine for general use.
>why don't people repurpose computers' network cards the same way this paricular chink tv tuner has been?
Network cards don't provide raw I/Q output. Other chips do get repurposed though, the Hermes SDR transceiver uses the AD9866 usually found in cable modems.

[Anonymous No.1845337]

>>1845319
Assuming you're talking RTL sticks like your picture, just be aware they're receive only.
>what's the bands you can use on those things? isn't it only between 1 and 3 ghz or something?
24MHz to 1766 MHz usually, 1MHz to 1766MHz if has the direct sampling mod.
>is the quality good or is it like those 8$ "capture cards" that can only record 240i at 27fps?
Quality of reception depends mostly on your antenna, it's an 8-bit ADC but that's fine for general use.
>why don't people repurpose computers' network cards the same way this paricular chink tv tuner has been?
Network cards don't provide raw I/Q output. Other chips do get repurposed though, the Hermes SDR transceiver uses the AD9866 usually found in cable modems.
In short it's a general purpose receiver for $25, that's why people buy them.

[Anonymous No.1845343]

>>1845337
>Assuming you're talking RTL sticks like your picture, just be aware they're receive only.
A HA i knew there was a catch, no one until this point has told me as such and was always acting like it's a replacement for a cheapo baofeng for active shitposting over the air

>24MHz to 1766 MHz usually,
im not super familiar with non military bands, is there much activity there? i know that at work i cant tune higher than 24 or 30 iirc

>>1845337
>Network cards don't provide raw I/Q output.
https://github.com/seemoo-lab/mobisys2018_nexmon_software_defined_radio

just as the meme dongle is just a tv tuner with hacked firmware, it is feasible to hack network card/dongle firmware to provide raw output

>In short it's a general purpose receiver for $25,
but at that rate why not just use one of the many online resources for listening to whatever band/scanner in a browser or through an internet radio link in winamp or whatever?

[Anonymous No.1845347]

>>1845343
>im not super familiar with non military bands, is there much activity there? i know that at work i cant tune higher than 24 or 30 iirc
Plenty if you're into amateur radio or if you're eavesdropping business radio. I leave one dongle doing APRS RX on the 2M band, two decoding trunked NXDN on 453MHz and 8 modded into a coherent receiver setup for radio astronomy with GNURadio.
>just as the meme dongle is just a tv tuner with hacked firmware,
It's not hacked firmware, the RTL2832U has two modes, one with MPEG out for DVB-T and one with raw I/Q out intended for DAB decoding in software. RTL-SDR sticks are just using that raw I/Q output.
>but at that rate why not just use one of the many online resources for listening to whatever band/scanner in a browser or through an internet radio link in winamp or whatever?
Probably because there's nothing nearby them being shared and they want to hear locally, the only online receivers within 250 miles of me personally are ADS-B feeds.

[Anonymous No.1845352]

>>1845347
>business radio
whats business radio
real question
it calls to mind an image of taxi dispatch and foodora drivers with walkie talkies, but afaik now they all use phone apps over 3/4/5g

[Anonymous No.1845356]

>>1845352
>>1845352
>whats business radio
Here it's mostly security, sometimes there's a DMR trunk for the local govt roadworks which is good to know which roads are going to be closed off before they're signposted. I'm >>1845347 though and I pretty much just use the NXDN setup which is the cities CCTV dispatch, every shop, bar and restaurant has a handheld so they can talk to CCTV and the police. It's pretty lulz, I run some Python that tallys up DMR IDs and dump .wavs of high traffic calls to a page on my LAN. Highlights include vegans protesting inside McDonalds showing slaughter clips to people causing some ESL Slav McMonkey behind the counter to scream down the radio like it was Vietnam.

[Anonymous No.1845369]

>>1845356
what kind of 1984 shithole do you live in that somehow everyone has a radio to talk straight to police dispatch but people can't call 911 or a non-emergency number and taxis, food drivers, etc. aren't using an app over mobile data?

[Anonymous No.1845372]

>>1845369
>straight to police dispatch
It's not, it's to a non-police CCTV control center, police are just part of the network. Non-emergency numbers are slow and centrally managed requiring a dispatcher in a totally different part of the country to contact regional police, who then have to try and find the closest unit, whereas a radio you just hit PTT and go "Hi can I have a unit please" and the pair of police walking patrol two streets over head there immediately while a CCTV operator points out shit in motion if needs be, ie, shoplifters running.
Also drivers don't have them, just physically premised businesses in the city center.
>1984 shithole
Close enough, it's near London.

[Anonymous No.1845376]

>>1845372
>all that CCTV
>L O N D O N
shoulda figured

>Non-emergency numbers are slow
well thats kinda the point, it's for shit like "someone has dumped his trash on my property" not "I am currently being stabbed, right now, send help"

[Anonymous No.1845379]

>>1845376
>well thats kinda the point, it's for shit like "someone has dumped his trash on my property" not "I am currently being stabbed, right now, send help"
There's an inbetween though, like someone grabbing clothes off a rack and running out the door or drunks having a fight in the street.

[Anonymous No.1845383]

>>1845379
>someone grabbing clothes off a rack
in real cunts local security can handle this. citizen's arrest and all that. even have it in canada

>or drunks having a fight in the street.
thats 911 territory

[Anonymous No.1845582]

Can a two-channel full-duplex SDR talk to itself?

[Anonymous No.1845652]

>>1845582
Yes, a SillyDumbRadio can do that as any other duplex loop configuration can. Initially it doesn't know what to talk about but when you supply 'shit' it will repeat that ad infinitum if the loop gain is right.

[overworkedradiotechgivemesleep(...) No.1845686]

>>1841666
I work at a 2 way radio shop right now, it's decent pay. The work is interesting and I learn new things everyday. The safety violations never end, the piss poor management is ruining the company from the inside out. Techs get shitty tools and shitty equipment. Did 4 years a trade school for electronics, radio company hired me right away meh pay. I started working as a bench tech, 3 years later I'm a field tech. I surpassed all the guys working there for 15 years and I'm in line to be the Master Technician. My advice is to apply as an installer and work your way up. I went from bench tech, to installer, to road tech, and soon head Tech. Well worth the hard work, that and it's gonna look kick ass on a college application or a resume at the 5 year mark.

[Anonymous No.1845776]

>>1845686
andrew?

[Anonymous No.1845850]

Any TV pirates here?

[Anonymous No.1845852]

>>1845313
>morse code is very easy.
For some. Far from everyone can learn it and it will take time.

[Anonymous No.1845864]

>>1845267
>It is still possible,

>discone

[Anonymous No.1845873]

>>1844300
>Perception
I've discovered a lot of people fear tests, being graded, and the idea of failing ... so much so they talk themselves out of trying or work themselves into a panic attack

[Anonymous No.1845876]

>>1844327
Why'd you get it and what do you want? I was in your shoes a year ago.

[Anonymous No.1845928]

>>1842947
I like the Barrett M82A1 for long distance contacts.

[Anonymous No.1845952]

>>1845267
Antennas that cover a band, an octave or three can be done. Any wider than that will not be workable.

[Anonymous No.1846093]

>>1841690
There’s literally no amount of power that will get you out 300 miles across the ground on the CB band. 80 meter NVIS is much better for that purpose.

[Anonymous No.1846126]

>>1846093
It could bounce off the ionosphere. I know it's unlikely to get that much range, I just threw out a random number. I really should have said I need as much range as I can get.

But I have heard someone say they talked to someone in Brazil from America using a CB. I forget what they call it when it bounces off the ionosphere. Skip, maybe?

[Anonymous No.1846155]

>>1846126
Sporadic E?

[Anonymous No.1846580]

>>1845850
Sup FCC

[Anonymous No.1846604]

>>1846580
free CHAZ TV is free

[Anonymous No.1846620]

>>1846126
The skip zone is the zone of silence under the first hop of the irregular skywave. The red path is rarely available during the solar minimum.

[Anonymous No.1846722]

>>1846126
They talk about it because it's very rare. I've made a 5,000 mile FT8 QSL on 10M.
I ran around the house with my arms in the air, then masturbated to the thought of how awesome I am.
That was a 45 second window. Once. With 50 watts. Using digital.

[Anonymous No.1846726]

>>1846620
Doesn't it happen all the time to an extent? I know the following example is of different frequencies, but on my SW radio, I could regularly receive transmissions from very far away. Like the time signal from CHU Canada in Ottawa, or broadcasts from Cuba, and one time I remember getting one from Aruba. And I live in Chicago. And the antenna was just the telescopic antenna on the radio. And it wasn't even outside. The radio I was using was a Zenith Transoceanic Royal 7000

[Anonymous No.1846746]

>>1846726
Perhaps meteor scatter.

[Anonymous No.1846770]

>>1846726
>Doesn't it happen all the time to an extent?
Sure, but not on 27 MHz (the context). My favourite is the 9 MHz band (31 m) after sunset. I can hear All India Radio or even the Voice of Vietnam from a distance of 8500 km with a similar size radio (Redsun RP2000) and its built in ~1m telescopic antenna. short-wave.info is a great resource for what and when.

[Anonymous No.1846778]

>>1846726
Just in case..
Service Manual for Zenith "Transoceanic"
http://bama.edebris.com/manuals/zenith/d7000/

[Anonymous No.1846794]

>>1846778
I think mine is just the 7000 model, not D7000. It's been a few years since I last used it. But I have the correct service manual PDF downloaded somewhere. I downloaded it last time I was using it.

[Anonymous No.1846796]

>>1846770
Yeah, I know it's less common on 11 meters, but it's not like there always has to be a direct path between the transmitter and receiver. So there is some sort of reflection happening.

[Anonymous No.1846799]

>>1846770
I heard of short-wave.info from a webSDR in Enschede, Netherlands.

http://websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901

You should bookmark this, if you haven't already.

It's pretty cool to be able to listen to that half of the world with that. I've even been able to hear Voice of Korea, from North Korea.

[Anonymous No.1846829]

>>1846799
>bookmark this
Yes, k3fef.com for NA and utwente for EU.
websdr.org has the complete list.

[Anonymous No.1846936]

>>1846799
The utwente receiver is incredibly good. After dark I listened to NKorea and Vietnam on 31m for a while (both more than 8000 km away) and the combination of a slightly reduced band width, AMsync mode plus noise reduction is amazing.

[Anonymous No.1846939]

>>1841439
I'm in it for the RF electronics, personally.

[LilLeto No.1847015]

>>1841439
>>1841442
>>1841444
>>1841446
OK... the S-38 came out in the late 1940s. A little research yields tales of folk buying them used in the 1950s for between $15 and $20. So, for your claim to have bought one for $47.50 to be legit, it would have to have been boguht new, and one would have to conclude you were born in the late 1930s...generously allowing an early start in radio at age 10. But it would probably indicate you were much older, putting your age at.... about 90 years old.

~or~, you have some angst about shortwave listening and amateur radio operations and are having a larp.

I'm going to guess an older relative...probably a grandfather... was an avid radio hobbyist and somehow you feel that this prevented some attainment of happiness on your part. Did he stay home to use is radio gear when you wanted to go to some movie or something?

Let it out, anon. We're here for you.

[Anonymous No.1847040]

Line of sight is bullshit because the world is flat. The fucking reptilians are keeping us down

[Anonymous No.1847539]

Is VE7KFM dead?

[Anonymous No.1847586]

>>1847015
>for your claim to have bought one for $47.50 to be legit,
I'm not claiming anything, that's the price of a new on in the late 40's.

>about 90 years old.
not even close and the post was not about me personally but ham radio in general and the false promise of excitement in those ads.

>I'm going to guess an older relative...probably a grandfather...
sorry all my grand fathers died before I was born. no one in my family owned a ham radio till I did.

though I did a bit of ham radio listening in my electronics class in the 80's. slow scan tv was all over the place. the russian woodpecker was interfering on many freqs. there were radio broadcasts that weren't psychotic preachers.etc. but there was never anything even remotely like those ads promised.

[Mrcrummy No.1848293]

QC QC

What do you guys think of this mounting point for my 10m 1/4wave whip?
Do you think it'll work ok??

-K9OWO standing by for replies

[Mrcrummy No.1848297]

>>1848293
Looks like my phone auto corrects CQ to QC, how cute hehe :3c

-K9OWO on the side

[Anonymous No.1848364]

>>1848293
>What do you guys think of this mounting point for my 10m 1/4wave whip?
Terrible.
>K9OWO
>Vanity call
Gay.
>Mrcrummy
I see.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1848701]

>>1848364
>terrible
UwU what's wrong with it :(

[Anonymous No.1848724]

>>1848701
Because it's inefficient

[MrCrummyPaws No.1848727]

>>1848724
why compare a car to a truck though?
Also, this if HF not UHF, a 1/4 wave HF gets 90% of the radiator above the roof line while a 1/4 wave UHF gets 0% of the radiator above the roofline.
owo

[Anonymous No.1848732]

>>1848727
You're right a truck is even worse on the fenders.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1848734]

>>1848732
Why?

[Anonymous No.1848737]

>>1848734
Less surface metal = worse radiation.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1848741]

>>1848737
But the entire bed is right there...
it doesn't get flatter and wider than that.

[Anonymous No.1848826]

>>1848741
You are a dumb motherfucker. Also, consider talking to your doctor about one of these fine medications:
Zyprexa
Seroquel
Risperdal
Abilify
Geodon
Clozaril

[MrCrummyPaws No.1848831]

>>1848826
uwu why are you attacking me?
-K9OWO standing by

[LilLeto No.1848835]

>>1848831
>MrCrummyPaws
>uwu
>K9OWO
lulz

[Anonymous No.1849063]

what software would you recommend for sdr to identify digital signals?
it seems like everything is build around analog audio
I was thinking about something that works like an oscilloscope or logic analyzer where you can set some form of trigger to record short samples
and then are able to look at it in different time scales and decode it assuming you know which protocol it follows
But i have no experience with radio and am just getting started so maybe there's another way of doing it compared to electrical signals?

[MrCrummyPaws No.1849095]

Just bought an Anytone AT-6666
owo I hope it's worth the 220 dollars, everyone gives it rave reviews and my furfriends on SSB say it's got great audio uwu

[Anonymous No.1849105]

>>1849063
Universal Radio Hacker or SigDigger.

[Anonymous No.1849117]

>>1849105
thank you so much
those look like exactly what I am looking for

[Anonymous No.1849162]

Any good suggestions for SDR projects? Played around with openBTS and some GSM stuff but it's an absolute bitch to get running. Currently using a LimeSDR mini

[Anonymous No.1849390]

I'm looking to put a radio in my car but I cannot seem to find something that ticks all the boxes. My ideal solution is one that's minimally invasive and easy to put away. I enjoy not having my car modified inside or out, for the sake of blending in. Really don't want to look like a cop 24/7. I have a magnetic antenna that can be pulled from the trunk easily with the wire cleanly routed to the front seat area. As far as the unit itself and the handset, I really fell in love with the Midland MXT275 and how it can be hidden literally anywhere with the handset having the display and controls. The only issue is it seems to be hard-coded for GMRS and NOAA channels, some more flexibility would be nice in that regard. Are there any other units with a similar kind of setup? Cost isn't really a huge factor here.

[Anonymous No.1849455]

I'm a HF guy, but realized it wouldn't take much to add VHF/UHF to the shack.
Now I have a desire to add a radio, but don't know what or why. Maybe I just want to listen to omellete bros. I don't have much desire to talk.

[Anonymous No.1849456]

>>1849390
Ham, GMRS, CB, FRS? Goals other than not look like you have a radio? If that's your only goal, I have a solution. Don't get a radio. And car?

[Anonymous No.1849465]

>>1849456
VHF/UHF bands. Just curious if there exists something like the MXT275 that isn't totally gimped.

[Anonymous No.1849479]

>>1849465
Separation kits exist so you can put the bulky radio in the trunk or under the seat and just hide the head (that's what I told your mom). Pic related.
So you're left concealing an antenna, which is up to you. I replaced my radio antenna with a VHF antenna. I didn't use the radio and now I can't. If you had a slight /diy/ mentality, you could pull your car radio and insert your transceiver head.

[Anonymous No.1849511]

WHY IS HF HAM SO EXPENSIVE?
>>1849390
Shove a Baofeng in the glove box and stick the antenna on the roof through the window; paint the cable if you must.

[Anonymous No.1849618]

>>1849511
Currently using a baofeng but it's a real niggered up solution. The antenna is sorted perfectly, I just wish more units were able to run the display and controls on the mic.

[Anonymous No.1849636]

>>1849511
Because the equipment typically has a shit load of QC behind it. Also ham radio has never been cheaper than now. You can get baofengs for UHF/VHF, plenty of $40 chink CW rigs, plenty of <$500 chink HF, then tons of good jap HF for <$800. Not to exclude the used market too.

[Anonymous No.1849712]

>Atmospheric reflection
>Solar interference
>Wave bands
>Space radio
Is this a horrible money sink of a hobby or are all of these boomers with really expensive equipment I see on youtube like the 1% of the hobby

[Anonymous No.1849720]

>>1849712

These are people who picked up the hobby in 1960, or their dad was into it IN 1960 and died, then they couldn't sell the radio shit so they just decided to use it.

You're looking at several generations of equipment most of the time.

Keep in mind that most of the people who would go to the effort of making a video on most hobbies and DIY stuff usually have loads of equipment on top of skill with very few exceptions.

[Anonymous No.1849724]

>>1849720


It's really frustrating that this is a problem with almost every hobby.

You have people with multiple thousands of dollars invested in whatever DIY thing they are doing.

Very few things that are done with minimal equipment or show how to DIY for basic rigs.

>>1849712

If you want to absolutely shit on these people with thousands of dollars build a spark gap jammer, put it in your car, and drive around their neighborhood when they try to broadcast.

[Anonymous No.1849734]

>>1849724
You can buy an SDR for $20. It has never been cheaper nor easier to get into this hobby.

Oddly enough, controlling EM waves isn't easy. It's relatively new to human history that we even know about them, let alone have fine control on them.

I love how people thing this should be easy, as if it wasn't backed by trillions of military research.

But it's literally cheap AF to get started, you just don't know the rules yet. Like have you gotten the HAM book for a license exam? It will at least give you the begginers into to it.

If you want to use minimal equipment, you need to learn what you are doing. a DIY antenna is trying to capture EM waves. Like think of what's used to capture gravity waves right now. We're only about 113 years past from that level of technology for EM waves, the first detection of them.

Whats frustrating is you expect it to be simple when it's not. It's literally a fundamental property of our universe that you are trying to harness.

[Anonymous No.1849748]

>>1849724
Because you have to put in time and research how to DO IT YOURSELF.

Nothing worse then /k/ommandos or other people who buy baomemes ask a few questions, don't wait for a response and then lets the radio collect dust on a shelf somewhere. Not my money so I don't mind but there is only so much time you can devote to helping people on the internet. If they haven't shown an investment of either money or time they aren't likely to stick around. They are also not that interested in do it yourself communications.

There is a massive wealth of knowledge out there.

Things to check out:
https://www.qsl.net/sp9hzx/img/Ham%20Radio%20for%20Dummies.pdf (I don't recommend this, but if you are absolutely lost you can start here.)


http://sparkbangbuzz.com

https://f6glz.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/csts_book.pdf

https://www.qsl.net/n9zia/
(Also take a look at all the research links)

Or how about our aussie peter park in the land down under:
https://www.youtube.com/user/vk3ye
Also, he shows my simple receivers. The first working receiver I built was that AM slope detection receiver.
Check out the video on how he measures the frequency of a transmitter using a lecher line (Some wire and an LED!)

https://www.youtube.com/user/w2aew/

https://www.n5dux.com/ham/files/pdf/

There has never been such a wealth of information on how to get things done with minimal equipment or DIY.

If anything could be improved, it is that a lot of older literature makes it sound like you can only do it in a fancy laboratory. Very far from the truth.

[Anonymous No.1849753]

>>1849748
Oh, and if there are any /k/ommandos in this thread or anybody who is interested in communicating over the radio give the military manual ACP 125 a read.

A lot of it may not apply to you. But chapters 3 to 6 are worth the read.

https://orwg.cap.gov/media/cms/ACP125GRadioTelephoneProceduresNOV2_EFFE1A51BA783.pdf

[Anonymous No.1850055]

My tuner says tuned, but on some bands when I TX it goes to over 3 swr.
I can't find any rhyme or reason to what's going on.

[Anonymous No.1850058]

so i'm totally new to HAM and I just got a baofeng UV-5RTP and i'm really digging it.

one question though is there something similar of higher quality? Is the yaesu FT-60R a good upgrade from the uv5r and can it do the same things? anything else to consider?

[Anonymous No.1850074]

>>1850055
I don't know your skill level, but are you using an antenna tuner?

[Anonymous No.1850077]

>>1850055
I forgot here >>1850074 to say I haven't used one like that. Only analog ones. I'm probably not the guy to answer the question, and I'm a bit drunk.

[Anonymous No.1850093]

>>1850074
>>1850077
Why did you even try to answer?

[Anonymous No.1850099]

>>1850093
It looked like some kind of weird radio to me. I didn't think it was a tuner. Telling him to use a tuner was the only idea I had. Actually maybe his antenna is too short or something. Ikd how digital tuners work. Maybe his is broken.

[Anonymous No.1850100]

>>1850055
I'd check for any moisture in your coax or breaks that could lead to arcing. In my experience though weird shit like this is usually moisture ingress in the coax or connections.

[Anonymous No.1850116]

a good 2m/70cm handy under 200 dollars?

[Anonymous No.1850125]

>>1850077
Lol good to know. I've been using it with success for a couple months
>>1850100
Appreciated, that makes sense. I noticed the SWR changed when it rained a few days ago. Now things are drying out and this happens. I've seen this happen when my vert. wire frays, but that's not the case now.

[Anonymous No.1850126]

>>1850116
UV-82

[Anonymous No.1850196]

thanks local FM radio station, very cool

[Anonymous No.1850208]

>>1850196
Time to get a bandstop filter.

[Anonymous No.1850393]

is the CB band usually super dead?
I was hoping to at least hear the walkie-talkies at the local grocery store a few miles from my house

or, are the RTL-SDR just garbage at receiving that band?

[Anonymous No.1850397]

>>1850393
I'm pretty sure walkie talkies don't use the CB band. And CB is still fairly active. Just make sure your setup is good so you could receive it properly, or else you won't hear anything.

[Anonymous No.1850400]

>>1850397
looks like I'll be looking into better antennas then. I've read of people getting CB with the standard rtl-sdr telescoping antenna but I guess mine doesn't have the gumption.

I'm still reading my ARRL antenna book so I'm not entirely proficient in figuring this shit out.cI do have one of pic related and some spools of wire, would I be able to make a CB-capable antenna with one?

[Anonymous No.1850408]

>>1850393
>I was hoping to at least hear the walkie-talkies at the local grocery store a few miles from my house
Those'll likely be low power UHF, if its a big store they probably won't even make it out the building.
>>1850400
>I'm still reading my ARRL antenna book so I'm not entirely proficient in figuring this shit out.cI do have one of pic related and some spools of wire, would I be able to make a CB-capable antenna with one?
Yeah, 8 feet of wire per side should be about right for CB.

[Anonymous No.1850473]

>>1849720
>>1849724
>>1849734
>>1849748
>>1849753
>>1850058
>Reddit
>>1850074
>>1850077
>>1850099
Don't answer questions that you know nothing about, retard.

[Anonymous No.1850482]

>>1850473
t. boomer who inherited daddy's radio shack

[Anonymous No.1850494]

>>1850482
Nobody inherits their shack. They get their own shit. Most of the time someone goes SK, the kids "know what they got" or the eBay vultures descend on the widow while she's grieving.

[Anonymous No.1850502]

I don't know if my local airwaves are just extinct or if my rtl-sdr/antenna just really does suck that much.
It always just seems like it's just me and my good pals the FM Artifacts
The best I've found is my local NOAA radio station. Every other band on the band plan is silent. I've tried local police/fire/emergency bands, ham bands, military bands, coast guard, local airport, everything - and there's nothing besides encoded transmissions around the emergency response bands.

[Anonymous No.1850564]

>>1850473
leave /ham/ and don't ever come back

[Anonymous No.1850580]

>>1850473
C'mon man, cut some slack. It's not like we haven't done stupid shit while drunk.

[Anonymous No.1850581]

>>1850494
But then how did I get my great grandfather's Realistic brand (RadioShack) radio?

[Anonymous No.1850583]

>>1850502
Yeah, your antenna setup is shit. Trust me, there's still a lot of shit you can find.

[Anonymous No.1850585]

>>1850502
I forgot to say here >>1850583 that with my Zenith Royal 7000 with just the radio's own telescopic antenna, I can get a shit ton of stations. Even as far away as Aruba, and I'm in Chicago. And every radio user here has heard Brother Stair's voice before.

And what do you mean FM artifacts? Like the "FM" band you can receive in your car?

[Anonymous No.1850587]

I've seen these in military photos but I don't know what the fuck they're for

[Anonymous No.1850598]

>>1850587
antenna for geo-stationary satellites, popular for using abandoned (but still functional) mil sats in the 200..300 MHz range.

[Anonymous No.1850615]

>>1850598
Some were not entirely abandoned but had many secondary users from South America
https://www.solarix.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/260.625-US-Military-Channel-Warnings.mp3
Russians used a different sat from the constellation of five geostationary satellites for their experiments
https://www.solarix.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/262.275-Russian-Pirates.mp3

[Anonymous No.1850738]

>>1850585
"FM Artifacts" as in the omnipresent ghost of local FM stations causing imaging and overloading spikes across practically every range of frequencies. My new best friend is the giant dildo of classical music that likes to hang out in the far right of the spectrum whenever I'm completely zoomed out.
Yes, I do have an FM band stop filter (also AM). It doesn't seem to do much at all.
I'll post more details on my antenna setup in a second

[Anonymous No.1850741]

>>1850738
>>1850585
>>1850583
About the only thing I've learned about antenna setup and orientation from my ARRL antenna book so far, is the concept of linear polarization. So, I have the antenna mounted vertically, stuck outside my window.
Unfortunately since I live in a bullshit HOA community for the time being, I'm not even really supposed to have the antenna out there in the first place. I want to run a balun wire antenna using the adapter I posted earlier >>1850400 but there's nowhere to do it that wouldn't violate HOA guidelines. The nearest trees to my house are all between other buildings so they won't do me any good.
ps no dox pls

[Anonymous No.1850750]

>>1850738
>Yes, I do have an FM band stop filter (also AM). It doesn't seem to do much at all.
Strange, those should not be hard to get to work. Can you provide details on the filter? Also make sure the filter is close to the receiver so that the connection between filter and receiver does not act as an antenna. picking up the garbage again.

>>1850741
Place a loop antenna around the window frame, effective and practically invisible.

[Anonymous No.1850763]

>>1850615
>STAY OFF THE RADIO
Peak comedy

[Anonymous No.1850765]

After the discussions on the ALE above I was looking up how this works. Seems only a few radios support this and that frequencies are scanned one by one.
Why?
Now that hams have SDRs that provide panadaptors and the means to follow the entire HF band at the same time, why not track and decode each and every ALE transmission simultaneously, and just transmit on that one channel you want?

[Anonymous No.1850767]

>>1850750
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00R09WHT6
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076D354LW
these are the filters I have. Their order in the signal chain doesn't seem to make a difference, swapping them made no noticeable change.

However, I do have them connected to the antenna rather than the receiver, I overlooked that it might re-introduce noise into the antenna. I've moved the filters directly onto the receiver.

Now, I'm looking into building the loop antenna. Does it absolutely require a variable cap? I'm trying to find instructions now.

[Anonymous No.1850776]

>>1850767
>https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00R09WHT6
Should be OK; provided you really have a long antenna. On the picture it seems like a short whip.
>https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076D354LW
The feedback is pretty savage; it does not work well. Also it is not clear it stops AM.

You might have to make one yourself, it is not too hard. It is also a good idea to place these components in a shielded and grounded box, immediately before your receiver.

>However, I do have them connected to the antenna rather than the receiver, I overlooked that it might re-introduce noise into the antenna. I've moved the filters directly onto the receiver.
How did that work out?

>Now, I'm looking into building the loop antenna. Does it absolutely require a variable cap? I'm trying to find instructions now.
I think you can manage one without. You just have to go for a narrow-ish band approach and use a fixed capacitor. A narrow band approach will also help avoiding FM.

[Anonymous No.1850787]

>>1850776
Relocating the filters seems to have made absolutely no difference. Though, I think I just found the problem. I have the direct sampling direct-soldered random-wire antenna which entirely bypasses the filters. Even though I'm doing the regular quadrature sampling, I think the random-wire antenna is still feeding into the radio. I'll remove it and see if that helps.

[Anonymous No.1850795]

>>1850787
Well don't I feel like a horse's ass. Yeah that's where the FM issue was coming from.

[Anonymous No.1850801]

>>1850795
>>1850776
man I'm a fucking mess today. I linked you to the balun connector again, not the actual AM filter.
This is the AM filter: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076CVW6LC

[Anonymous No.1850843]

>>1850801
Some radios have their filters on board.

[Anonymous No.1850852]

>>1850058
yes it is a good upgrade. But consider getting something with digital capabilities like DMR if this is your only radio

[Anonymous No.1850898]

>>1850852
>DMR
Any practical experience?

[Anonymous No.1851018]

Hi, I'm dumb
So I've been trying to figure out the best UHF vehicle mount antenna. I looked around but not seeing much
the local ham autists on their repeater seem to heavily recommend a quarter wave dipole, but I'm not sure how mounting that would go, I suppose I could mount one on each side of my car? How do I connect two antennas to one HT? does it matter if its really close to the metal of the car? I dont think I have tall enough vertical glass to put it there

[MrCrummyPaws No.1851030]

>>1851018
NMO mount in the center of your roof would be best, with some good coax like lmr240 or lmr400 to the radio
I have 240 on my install because it's small diameter and easy to route

[Anonymous No.1851038]

>>1851030
>NMO
im not making a hole in the roof
i can just shove a mag mount through the sunroof or out the back hatch, would be 1.5m of thin cable vs 3m but can be thicker
not running lmr400 for 3m of cable to a uv-5r
I'm more just wondering specific antenna type, because apparently that part is the most critical piece of a setup

[Anonymous No.1851043]

I noticed 2 vias right next to the RTL820 pins 4 and 5, and using my multimeter, it would seem there's continuity between those two vias and the two through-hole pads I've circled.

Can anyone confirm or deny this before I fuck up another rtl-sdr?

[Anonymous No.1851057]

>>1851043
What exactly are you looking for confirmation? are you assuming someone has the same SDR and knows what that board is? That one of us designed it and has the board files or schematic?

[Anonymous No.1851058]

>>1851057
yes, they made billions of the same shit board, he expects someone to take theirs apart and measure it.

[Anonymous No.1851066]

It's me again, the guy with the Cobra 29 WX NW ST, who asked about amplifiers. I just bought an RM Italy KL 300P linear amp. Do you know if it's a decent amp?

Also I was planning on getting a magnetic mount or luggage rack mounted antenna. It'll be going on a 2002 Ford Explorer. Have any suggestions?

[Anonymous No.1851069]

>>1851058

well not necessarily, those pins are recommended for soldering a random-wire antenna to for direct sampling. Everything says "It's very hard to solder to pins 4 and 5 of a tiny SMD QFP IC!!!!"
so I assume if there's actual continuity between those vias/microcontroller pins and those giant plated through-holes, thus making it significantly easier to solder to pin 4/5, someone would have found it before me.

[Anonymous No.1851082]

>>1851069
just do it and see what happens then. you don't need hand-holding if you're at this stage, you need experience.

[Anonymous No.1851085]

>>1851082
I'm definitely going to, I just wanted to see if anyone else had seen/noticed/done this before in case it winds up fucking up the board or something

[Anonymous No.1851091]

>>1851043
>>1851069
>>1851085
I'm very confused, you've almost definitely posted the board for a V3, which already has the direct sampling mod enabled.

[Anonymous No.1851095]

>>1851091
It's a v3 but it still requires a direct-soldered antenna though, does it not?

[Anonymous No.1851132]

>>1850564
no u
>>1850581
>Realistic radio
>inherited ham shack

[Anonymous No.1851135]

>>1851038
>I'm more just wondering specific antenna type, because apparently that part is the most critical piece of a setup
The type with a radiator, preferably resonant.

[Anonymous No.1851142]

>>1851095
It shares the SMA connection, you can attach an HF antenna there without soldering anything.

[Anonymous No.1851143]

>>1851142
god fucking damn it
thanks for letting me know, I had no idea.

[Anonymous No.1851158]

>>1851132
ham means amateur, not asshole, stop being a dick. You aren't impressing anyone.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1851220]

UwU it finally came :3c

[Anonymous No.1851336]

>>1851220
cool

[Anonymous No.1851346]

>>1851220
fuck you, i looked up your unit and went down the rabbit hole of capitalist consumption.
now i want to buy a Stryker SR-94HPC but they're not available here.

[Anonymous No.1851430]

so, let's say I want to make a big loop antenna outside between two trees in my yard.
How, then, do you get the antenna signal back inside without loss/noise? Wouldn't the wire leading from the antenna into your receiver act as a giant antenna?

[Anonymous No.1851546]

I found a local ham club. What do I get for the $25/year?

[Anonymous No.1851549]

>>1851430
>Wouldn't the wire leading from the antenna into your receiver act as a giant antenna?
You use shielded cabled, like coax.
wire with no shielding = antenna
wire with shielding = not an antenna

[Anonymous No.1851563]

>>1851546
endless free blow jobs by sticking your dick in a hole in the barrel. One night in the barrel required.

[Anonymous No.1851588]

>>1851563
$25 if they take their dentures out is an absolute bargain.

[Anonymous No.1851621]

So does anyone here actually know how to fix the Cobra 29 NW NightWatch display? Everything I find says replace the front panel, and/or get someone else to fix it. I want to check if just the driver for the lights is bad, but for some reason no one talks about it. So I don't know where it is, or how to check it.

My CB is a Cobra 29 WX NW ST.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1851625]

>>1851621
Good question, I have 2 NW 29s and the faceplate stopped working on one

[Anonymous No.1851638]

>>1851625
Yeah, apparently this is a common issue. For some reason it says the front display is AC driven. I don't know why, it seems redundant. Just like how cigarette lighter USB chargers for your car convert DC to AC, and then back to DC.

[Anonymous No.1851713]

>>1851625
FURRY

[Anonymous No.1851783]

>>1851713
AUSTRALOPITHECUS

[Anonymous No.1851788]

>>1851638
Me again. I forgot that alternators generate AC and convert it to DC. So, when you use a USB cigarette lighter plug, the electricity is going from AC to DC, and then back to AC and finally DC.

[Anonymous No.1851792]

>>1851788
And it gets even more complicated when you're using it to charge your phone while playing AC/DC from it.

[Anonymous No.1851793]

>>1851792

[Anonymous No.1851880]

>>1851788
no you fucking ciggy butt brain they only generate AC

[Anonymous No.1851947]

>>1851880
Well, I forgot exactly what goes on. All I know is the alternator generates AC, and eventually somewhere it gets converted to DC.

[Anonymous No.1851969]

>>1851638
It seems it runs an electroluminescent panel. Those tend to be short lived. I have one in a scanner I have and it has lasted because I added a switch to turn off the inverter which runs it. A buddy had the same scanner and his died after a few years of constant running.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electroluminescence

Measure the voltage going to the panel with a meter on high voltage AC range and don't get zapped.

[Anonymous No.1851984]

>>1840823
>muthefdous plpersufs fleass maflofoslus
what? your HT is not mask-compatible.

[Anonymous No.1851999]

>>1851969
I can't find where to measure it at. I don't even see anything going to or from the front panel. It's very cramped, and hot glued together. So if you could point out where exactly, I would appreciate it. I don't want to disassemble any more than I would have to.

[Anonymous No.1852018]

Looking for radios in 30-80 MHz range. Any suggestions? Needing like 10 units to larp with my friends n' gov.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1852074]

>>1848293
Got the the radios taped together with 3M VHB and gotta fab up a mount bracket to put it into my dash, uwu I'm so excited to get VHF and HF into my 4x4 :3

K9OWO standing by

[Anonymous No.1852130]

>>1851999
>So if you could point out where exactly

Can't find a diagram of that exact radio but there is info here for a similar model. Look at the exploded diagram ((Item 89) one layer behind the front plastic). That should give you an idea where to look physically for the EL panel. Pic related is what that radio has in it to drive the EL panel. Chances are yours could be similar.
That small board screwed to the side of your unit behind the channel switch looks like a possibility where this circuit may be.

[Anonymous No.1852133]

>>1852130
Oh and:
http://www.cbtricks.com/radios/cobra/25nw_st_25wx_nw_st/index.htm

>>1852018
Google:
>VHF Tactical radios
Most likely illegal for you to use.

[Anonymous No.1852144]

>>1852130
>Item 89

Make that 97.

[Anonymous No.1852241]

Enjoy the Field Day 2020 June 27-28

[Anonymous No.1852350]

>>1852133
It doesn't need to be a PRC-type radio. Just hand held and able to trx on lower band VHF. Its kind of silly to tell a officer "c-c-could we use a frequency between 68-72". Encryption is not a problem. I can work around it (just use CLR for squad communications).

[Anonymous No.1852788]

My family has inherited some Hallicrafter receivers from the 40's and 50's.
I respect their lineage and am a ham - but is there anything I can do with these besides let them take up an entire shelf so I can listen to CW or AM?

[Anonymous No.1852839]

>>1852788
well without a model number it's very difficult to answer that. depends on if they have a beat frequency oscillator so you can tune in SSB.

even with that you may have lots o trouble honing in on signals since most hams are notorious for either talking way too much or more often not long enough to give you time to find their signals then tune them in.

Whatever they are they will need a full recap and alignment.

I have an original S-38, an s-120, and an S-40a.

I recapped and aligned them and they all work great. the s-38 and s-120 are fatiguing to tune as they have no counter weight on the tuning knob.

The s-40a is much better to use for long stretches but still takes a lot of fiddling with to tune in SSB.

I fire them up occasionally. but in all reality I use an SDR to find frequencies where something is going on and then try to tune them in with the old units.

most of the time I use my SDR 1000 times easier to use, you can see signals you would not otherwise know where there and quickly tune them in.

[Anonymous No.1852843]

>>1852839
forgot pic

[Anonymous No.1852849]

>>1852839
SX-110 and perhaps a SX-43.
I'm in full agreement that an SDR or modern transceiver are 100X better functionality ... which is the pain point to the nostalgia.
These are large, expensive pieces of history which I've grown up with and am trying to find a way to incorporate back into existence without destroying.

[Anonymous No.1852857]

>>1852849
nice the sx-110 is from the early 60's and the sx-43 is from the late 40's.

both look like they would be great performers. hell they might even work as they are. My s-40a worked I got it from a flea market for $40 it just needed a new cord. I still did a full recap though.

[Anonymous No.1852861]

>>1852857
Yea, they both came from a working environment ... I had both CW and AM blasting away into external speakers today.
But the painful thing is they are ham receivers and ham traffic has moved to SSB, so these are good for ??? And they're going for $400+ a pop on ebay, so I'd hate to modify them.
I'm getting to my last resort which is begging a family member to appreciate what the original family member used them for, which is listening to DX commercial AM stations, which breaks my heart since the dials go from 0.5-30MHz.
Idk, man. Just late night ramblings. I don't have the heart to mod them or sell them or frankly keep them since they're larger than a tower computer and where would I put them? All that for AM and CW.

[Anonymous No.1852862]

>>1851880
here we see the common douchebag.

[Anonymous No.1852939]

>>1852350
get 6m handhelds and licenses. or just break the law by TXing on the armies frequencies and see what happens

[Anonymous No.1853028]

>>1852861
>and ham traffic has moved to SSB

We still have some AM nets in my country. Some home brew their transmitters, others use "boat anchor" sets and some use "rice boxes".

[Anonymous No.1853051]

>>1852861
>listening to DX commercial AM
Until now I only came across a single CQ AM on 7290 kHz. It was broadcast quality compared to the usual robotic SSB duck talk. No one answered of course.

[Anonymous No.1853110]

>>1848831
>MrCrummyPaws
>uwu
>K9OWO

Jesus christ kys

[MrCrummyPaws No.1853116]

>>1853110
weh why are you attacking me owo

-K9OWO sending 73s

[Anonymous No.1853134]

>>1853110
He's been really pouring it on, lately. I'm guessing he found a new dick to put in his ass.

[Anonymous No.1853178]

>>1853110
You're responding to bait.

[Anonymous No.1853195]

/k/ could you please leave? Or at least lurk more. You are the cancer that kills these threads.

[Anonymous No.1853209]

>>1853178
owo

[MrCrummyPaws No.1853256]

>>1853209
Based

[Anonymous No.1853266]

>>1852861
both of those should have a beat frequency oscilator, the sx-43 has a CW pitch which should work for that.

and the sx-110 also has pitch control so both should work for ssb.

[Anonymous No.1853325]

I'm looking to add a video transmitter for a remote controlled robot I'm planning on building. I'm trying to find something that can show a reasonably fast framerate, not like SSTV, and that I could decode on a computer. Has anyone here used any ATV hardware? I found some ATV transmitters on http://www.hamtv.com/ like their Videolynx ones. Or should I get one of those systems drone operators use?

[Anonymous No.1853380]

Why is my antenna a piece of shit? It used to boom into Europe. Now it just trickles ... if I'm lucky.

[Anonymous No.1853419]

I bought a $30 SDR dongle and a complete newb. I managed to find my local ATC and got it tuned in on AM.

With that said, I can't tune into the local AM stations. Simply nothing is being picked up at the 1MHz range on SDR#. I changed the antenna over to HF instead of UV and still nothing. Am I missing something or do I need some special antenna?

[Anonymous No.1853426]

>>1853419
Maybe. Could be a setting in the software. I don't remember the exact setting - something with I or Q. Your local AM should be coming through.

[Anonymous No.1853458]

>>1853426
I seem to pick up signal when I hold the antenna? Did I fuck up some setting?

[Anonymous No.1853460]

>>1853458
Naw. Try those IQ and swap IQ check boxes.
Things were crickets on HF until someone here pointed out I needed those checked. Also, hope you've got the RTL-SDR. Some don't do HF

[Anonymous No.1853463]

>>1853460
Yea I got a RTL-SDR. Guess I need to learn what all these damn buttons do. Thanks anon!

[Anonymous No.1853473]

>>1853463
You're on the right track. This place, despite the degenerate anals and anal-lickers, are what got me started learning.
It's surprisingly hard to make you're way through ham radio. That's the gauntlet to get you in the club.

[Anonymous No.1853571]

>>1853473
>make you're way

[Anonymous No.1853576]

tfw you identify more with ranger gord

[Anonymous No.1853586]

>>1853380
What is that image from?

[Anonymous No.1853721]

>>1853419
ATC is at 108+ MHz, AM stations are at a few 100 kHz which means you need a much longer antenna.

[Anonymous No.1853739]

>>1853721
AirBand is 118-136 MHz and uses AM, not FM.

[Anonymous No.1853752]

>>1853739
Not him, but I have a Realistic brand radio that has an Air band, and I remember it starting at 108MHz. I could be mistaken though. The radio is over 30 years old, maybe they could have moved the band up a few MHz since it was made. Or I'm still just mistaken. I mean it has been a few years since I last used the radio.

[Anonymous No.1853754]

>>1853739
And he never said the Air band was FM.

[Anonymous No.1853771]

>>1853586
PSK and my stupid signal report

[Anonymous No.1853870]

>>1853739
What is important is the wavelength, not the modulation. The difference between 109 and 118 MHz is insignificant. The difference between 118 MHz and 500 kHz is significant.

[Anonymous No.1854019]

>>1853739
The use of AM is rare on VHF, it's almost always FM. But there's a good reason for AM in this case.

[Anonymous No.1854142]

>>1854019
They have talked about modernizing the air radio system for decades but haven't gotten anywhere. Digital modes would improve bandwidth usage, audio quality and also loudness issues.

[Anonymous No.1854181]

I'm trying to build my loop antenna but every guide seems to drop critical information that I guess is assumed but I'm a beginner retard and know nothing
I have this balun connector here >>1850400
if I'm making a loop antenna, do I essentially just connect both ends of a wire into the terminal blocks of that balun connector? I know this is basic shit but I'm very confused and nothing actually mentions how you actually connect/terminate/etc the antenna.

[Anonymous No.1854427]

>>1854142
>haven't gotten anywhere
They have, and AM is still used because it addresses the problem of 'doubling'. SSB could also work but neither FM nor digital can handle doubling (two stations on the same channel, both readable).

>>1854181
>connect both ends..?
Yes, you can experiment with different loop sizes and compare results.

[Anonymous No.1854464]

>>1854427
>nor digital can handle doubling (two stations on the same channel, both readable).
OFDM is supposed to allow for this.

[Anonymous No.1854550]

>>1854427
>Yes, you can experiment with different loop sizes and compare results.
Alright. And is the variable capacitor just spliced in in series with the wire?

[Anonymous No.1854614]

>>1841464
underrated post

[Anonymous No.1854770]

He guy's, I'm looking for information on the Phillco 665(X?). If no one know anything on that, could someone be so kind to inform me how a push pull audio out is supposed to work, because I'm pretty sure I'm missing a transformer, that's supposed to be mounted on the speaker (a H-13, probably also from Phillco).

[Anonymous No.1854938]

I made the loop antenna but it doesn't seem like the antenna responds to me moving the capacitor

[Anonymous No.1854946]

>>1854938
What kind of loop? If triangle, bybass the 1:9 baloon.

[Anonymous No.1854954]

>>1854946
square

[Anonymous No.1854973]

>>1854954
Square, full-wave? Yah, bypass the balun. You'll have a better match. If it's the full size you wont need a capacitor.

[Anonymous No.1854980]

>>1853380
How can I be this much of a colossal fuck up on FT8?
I've checked coax, USB cord, factory re-set my IC-7300, and tried different antennas.

[Anonymous No.1855011]

new when

[Anonymous No.1855027]

Hows my setup. Too lazy to figure out an hf antenna so the 7300 has been sitting

[Anonymous No.1855028]

>>1855027
>admits to being lazy
>has a fan
100% guarantee you're a fat fuck

[Anonymous No.1855029]

>>1855028
In my defense I have no AC and its 105+ out but yeah, you're not wrong.

[Anonymous No.1855031]

>>1855029
Alright, I can cut some slack for that.
I work in a cubical and all the 300+LB Karens have desk fans as if it were their lifeline.Decent setup - now put that ic-7300 to work.

[Anonymous No.1855032]

what's the next step up from the RTL-SDR that doesn't also use a realtek IC?

[Anonymous No.1855034]

>>1855031
I used to work in IT in the start of uni and know the landyachts you speak of.

thanks man. Stringing up a G5RV tomorrow after a little planning. have to pick up a telescoping pole for one end due to the lack of trees around but the whole thing should be straight 30 ft off the ground.

[Anonymous No.1855036]

>>1855034
Rock on, dude. Less planning, more playing.
That's what I've got right now. Tune what you can, fire a FT8 signal out, then watch on PSKReporter and re-evaluate.
Iron out your digital setup (software, settings) if you haven't already done so.

[Anonymous No.1855071]

>>1855036
sweet. how do you like the g5rv? I'm also looking at stringing up a homebrew dipole for 80n with some romex I scavenged. Any Hf advice? .

[Anonymous No.1855073]

>>1855034
>>1855036
sorry to intrude but what about a hamstick?

[Anonymous No.1855075]

>>1843685
That guy (nsa) is doing it. No one even cares about that. Some random guy wants to do it to further his own understanding and all of a sudden its wrong.

[Anonymous No.1855086]

>>1854980
Is your time synced?
Power output?
Confirm your radio is actually transmitting tones passed by the PC?
And type of antenna?

[Anonymous No.1855090]

What kind of p25 radio do i need to buy to listen to fire/ems/police? Im halfway handy with electronics, but i normally work on game consoles or blu ray players. Are radios a lot harder to repair than something like that though? I dont mind a gamble on broken stuff, i have pretty good luck.

[Anonymous No.1855091]

>>1855090
Get a scanner that can decode P25, the actual radios will require a bunch of proprietary software, possibly old PCs, and expensive programming cables to program. A modern scanner is much more user friendly.

[Anonymous No.1855277]

>>1854770
www.tubesandmore.com/schematics/philco-radio-television-corp/37-665
3 more pages
www.radiomuseum.org/r/philco_665.html
Electro Magnetic Dynamic LS (moving-coil with field excitation coil)

[Anonymous No.1855328]

>>1855086
Time is synced
Tried multiple computers
Tried multiple antennas
Things are dynamite for a random second throughout the day, then nothing at all all day. Starting to think it's the transceiver

[Anonymous No.1855346]

>>1850741
If you get a proper HAM license, the FCC has told many an HOA to go fuck themselves since HAM is considered and emergency service. Do so, then get the biggest ugliest mast you can.

[Anonymous No.1855350]

>>1855346
1. Federal mandates goes against the visions of the founding fathers
2. Nice to see the ARRL doing fuck all

[Anonymous No.1855357]

>>1855011
I think we can survive a full day before falling off page 10.

>>1855027
>Hows my setup
Critically lacking in Morse key.

[Anonymous No.1855376]

>>1855350
It's not a mandate, it's telling the HOAs they can't restrict it.

[Anonymous No.1855383]

why does directly tuning into strong signals on my RTL-SDR cause it to go mute? (AGC is off)

also, it sounds like there's some kind of... capacitive effect? from something when there's a strong signal. There's a very loud pure sine sound that continuously drops in pitch until it's inaudible that completely swamps the signal until it's "discharged". What the fuck is that?

[Anonymous No.1855413]

>>1855357
these things will dissapear soon. good riddance. SDR BTFOS all those things

[Anonymous No.1855422]

>>1855086
The odd part is, once in a blue moon, I tx a decent signal.
But more often than not, it's just what appears to be a spurious signal that one or two people MIGHT hear, which tells me everything is right, but everything is horribly wrong.
I'm going to go clean my radials - that's my last hope.

[Anonymous No.1855441]

>>1855439
>>1855439
>>1855439
>>1855439
>>1855439

[Anonymous No.1855532]

>>1855328
Do you own a power/swr meter, independent of the rig's, so you can verify you are indeed transmitting with power?

[Anonymous No.1855536]

>>1855383
If you have a jet engine blasting full throttle ten feet away, you aren't going to hear the guy next to you talking

[Anonymous No.1855542]

>>1855532
Good question. I do have one on my tuner and can confirm the power is going out.

I just got a +4 from one of the Colonies, but you couldn't tell in PSKReporter

[Anonymous No.1855558]

>>1855542
Is you call correct, in the software settings, and are you seeing your received stations showing on PSKReporter?

[Anonymous No.1855564]

>>1855558
Lol. It is, hence a few people showing me on PSKReporter. And I am making QSLs. But sometimes I get
>>1855422
and most often I get
>>1854980
>>1853380

[Anonymous No.1855569]

>>1855564
It may just be band conditions and propagation then.

[Anonymous No.1855643]

>>1855569
Perhaps. I've cleaned the connection points and it's make a little improvement. I may just recut all the wires

[Anonymous No.1855648]

>>1855028
I'm 125 pounds. Fans are still a necessity when it's hot. But I do cool down quicker.

[Anonymous No.1855650]

>>1855073
A slim jim.
>I'm sorry. I just had to.

[Anonymous No.1855673]

>>1855277
This is very close to it model number wise. I did do more research and it turns out philco still hosts all these files, or atleast whoever owns them now.