QRM 2kHz Away (and I’m trying to work a Ghost Station)

#hamradio #hf #qrm #rfi #qrn

I was trying to work a Summits On The Air (SOTA) activator who was in Colorado. He was barely readable. My friend Joel calls them ghost stations. Well, a strong station was transmitting just 2kHz above the SOTA activator, creating the high-pitched, metallic, sound that I have talked about in numerous videos. In this video I show two different ways to deal with this scenario and complete the contact.

Here is a link to the video where I install the 1.8kHz roofing filter:    • Yaesu FTdx5000MP: 1.8kHz Roofing Filter In...  

Most radios on the market today are capable of what I show in this video. Yaesu just might execute it a bit better. Their DSP is quite good and the 1.8kHz physical filter I installed helps keep the interference out of the latter stages of the receiver. This is especially important when there is an SDR stage after the 1st Intermediate Frequency stage, as is the case with the FTdx101 and FTdx10. The more you can deal with in the front-end of the receiver, the better the DSP can perform. This is an area where pure SDR transceivers struggle because they lack the physical roofing filter.

Note that most of the operating techniques I show and teach on my channel can be applied to other transceivers, even other brands of transceivers. Some knobs or buttons might be labeled differently but the function is the same. I have no allegiance to Yaesu. No manufacturer makes a perfect radio. They all have strengths and they all have weaknesses. I like to point those out. Yaesu thinks that I am targeting them, but I am not. In fact, they generally have the fewest weaknesses. It’s just that I want my viewers to know the good, the bad, and the ugly, so they can make informed purchase decisions. I am able to be objective because I have no allegiance to a particular manufacturer. My work is supported by private donations, via www.PATREON.com/N4HNH.

At the end of this video, you will be able to see a listing of some of the supporters of this channel who made this video possible. These are people who have supported the channel via Patreon membership, as what I call long-haulers. Long-haulers have supported the channel on a long-term basis. There are 4 levels of Patreon membership, including S5 (Associate), S7 (Executive), S9 (VIP), and S9+ (VIP+). S9+ (VIP+) denotes an S9 (VIP) member who voluntarily chooses to give over and above the amount for S9 (VIP) membership. They help me continue to produce videos while most viewers don’t. Without their support, I cannot bring my viewers uncensored content.

I hope you enjoy this video and find it helpful. If you find my channel informative and entertaining, I hope you will consider joining my support group by clicking on: www.patreon.com/N4HNH There are 3 levels of support, including exclusive content. Visibility of premium content is determined by the level of membership you choose. The higher the membership level, the more content you have access to. VIP members are invited to participate in periodic Zoom meetings.

Most videos are visible to the Patreon team members long before they are released for public viewing. Some videos are never released for public viewing. Yearly S7 (Executive) and S9 (VIP) members have access to the menu optimizations PDFs I’ve written for the FT-891, FT-991A, FTdx5000MP, FTdx101D/MP, FTdx10, and FT-710 AESS. S7 (Executive) members who subscribe annually can receive one menu optimizations PDF while annual S9 (VIP) members can receive multiple menu optimizations documents, my FT8 configuration guide for either the FTdx10 or the FT-710 AESS, plus future updates. If I discover something new, or a future firmware update affects a function, I will update the guide(s) accordingly. Guides for future radios might also be added. The documents are copyrighted. They shall not be divulged to anyone else without written permission from Doug McAlexander, callsign N4HNH.

N4HNH Radio has a Web site where you can purchase T-shirts with some of the sayings you might hear in the videos. Some of the more prominent videos are featured there as well as a page geared toward ham radio training. Go to: https://www.n4hnhradio.com

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73, de N4HNH