My 2012 Dayton Hamvention Wrap-Up

I've had a few days to wind down after the Dayton Hamvention.  I attended on Friday and Saturday and like years past, I had a great time.  I saw some of my friends that I don't get a chance to see but once a year.  I also saw a number of new and existing products, some of which I will comment on in the following paragraphs.

The Hamvention is a big event and at times the aisles can be quite crowded.  You also have to be patient when trying to catch a glimpse of a new radio or other piece of equipment.  It can get tiring and it is impossible to see everything.  I think that I made it completely through the inside exhibits but on the other hand I probably only saw about a third of the outdoor flea market.  That does correspond to my areas of interest.  The inside exhibits tend to show the latest and greatest equipment, while the outdoor flea market (by its very nature) tends to favor the boat-anchors.  I'm not really interested in gear that is several decades old.

This year I compiled a list of the exhibitors I wanted to visit by using the listing of all exhibitors on the Hamvention website.  I initially worked by memory through the list and then later in the day I pulled the list out to see what I had missed.  As I was working through my list I was also checking out other booths along the way.  It took me until about Saturday afternoon to completely make it through my list.  My list had somewhere between 20 and 30 vendors on it.

I once again was active on the social media sites, but mainly I was active on Twitter.  Google+ just doesn't seem to have a critical mass of amateur radio operators on it yet, and applications/sites such as Facebook and Foursquare aren't really suited to sending out small blurbs of information to the masses.  This year I made sure to turn off the data features on my cellphone and my battery easily lasted all day.  I kept the data features turned on for the Samsung Galaxy Tab and that is the device I used to send and receive tweets.  Its battery status dropped to about 30% by the end of the day, but at least it didn't die on me.

Here's a rundown of some of the things that I saw or did, or perhaps did not do (but had planned).  This list somewhat mirrors my pre-Hamvention post:

• AMSAT:  I stopped by their booth on Friday morning and grabbed a printout of the satellite passes that they planned to demo out in the parking lot.  I held on to that sheet until Saturday about noontime when I went out to watch the AMSAT folks show how to track HO-68, a Chinese satellite that today only transmits a telemetry beacon.  I shot video of this and uploaded it to YouTube.  When I stopped by the booth on Friday, I marveled at the proposed size of the Fox satellite.  I didn't measure it, but it is a cube and is probably about six inches per side.
• AOSC (the All-Ohio Scanner Club):  I stopped and talked to a friend of mine.  He verified that my membership was paid up.
• Alpha Products:  although I'm not in the market for a linear amplifier or an antenna tuner at the moment, I wanted to check out their amps and I wanted to see their model 4040 antenna tuner.  I was impressed by what I saw.  This was one of the last exhibits I saw during the weekend.
• ARVN (the Amateur Radio/Video News):  I briefly talked to one of the gentlemen that produce these DVDs.  I indicated how I was looking for some of their new DVDs, but he told me that they are making a shift to distributing their videos on-line and accepting donations on their website.  I will be sure to check out their website soon.  Their videos are well-produced.
• ARRL:  I actually didn't spend a whole lot of time here.  I had my shopping list and I was able to quickly make my purchase.  I took some pictures in the area and moved on.
• Argent Data Systems and Byonics:  I literally only spent a minute or two at Argent and couldn't honestly tell you if they had anything new.  At Byonics, it did appear that they have two or three new APRS trackers.  I did not stay very long here either.  I already have a Micro-Track AIO and am pleased with it, so I don't really need a new tracker.
• Array Solutions and M2 Antennas:  I enjoy checking out the exhibits of both vendors.  In the case of M2, I was just looking at their horizontal loop antennas for 6m, 2m, and 70cm.  In the case of Array Solutions, I already own a couple of pieces of gear that they sell and I didn't see anything new that I couldn't live without.  I enjoyed looking at the one station they had set up featuring the Acom 1500 HF linear amplifier.  That amp was being driven by an Icom IC-7600 it appeared, but there was also a Icom IC-7700 at that station.
• Begali:  I already have a Begali Signature paddle and I am not in the market for a new key or paddle, but they had at least three new paddles that they were showing off.  It's nice to get to play with them just to see how smooth their action is, and at the same time I can embarrass myself with how poor my code is as it is played aloud over a keyer.
• DC Power and Radio Works:  I stopped briefly at DC Power, but I decided that I can always purchase a DC power cable from an online vendor.  Sometimes I make decisions such as this (moving on rather quickly) because trying to see things at Hamvention becomes a matter of priority.
• DX Engineering:  From the looks of their items on display they manufacture and/or sell rather solid items.  I visited DX Engineering rather late on Saturday afternoon, and I decided not to spend too much time there.  Someday I will be in the market for a nice vertical antenna and I will check them out more at that time.
• EZ Hang:  I also stopped at this booth briefly, but I decided not to purchase one of his slingshot systems for launching antennas into trees.  The only time I have the desire to launch an antenna into a tree is at Field Day and this year I plan to try out a new Buddipole antenna system.  If I ever decide to purchase one of these, I know that they are sold online.
• Feld Hell Club:  I knew that they were operating a special event station, but I didn't know whether that station was set up indoors or out.  I never saw them inside, and around mid-afternoon on Saturday I sat down, whipped out my tablet and consulted the outdoor flea market vendor list.  I was able to find them listed there.  Then it was just a matter of finding their space.  I found them without too much problem.  I spent about 15 minutes there talking, taking pictures, and shooting a video.
• Ham Radio Deluxe:  I barely stopped by this exhibit, but I have since come back from Hamvention to make sure that my copy of HRD is up-to-date on both of my computers.  I plan to learn more about the built-in Digital Master 780 component, which works with the digital mode, before next month's Field Day event.
• Icom:  I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but I did not see any new radio at their exhibit this year.  The one item that they were showing off is a kit put together for the Boy Scouts of America.  This kit consists of an Icom IC-7200 HF/6m transceiver, a power supply, and mic, and a speaker, all fitted in a Pelican case.  They refer to it as the "Amateur Radio Merit Badge Kit."
• Kenwood:  They had a large draw to their section of Hara Arena.  They were showing their new TS-990S HF/6m transceiver.  I took the obligatory pictures of it and shot a video, but I was not in the Kenwood booth more than 15 minutes the whole weekend.  The TS-990S appeared to be the only new radio they were introducing.  As far as I can tell, the TS-990S will be offered around November of 2012 and will sell for somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000.  It has a main and a sub receiver.  The sub receiver appears to be lifted from their TS-590 transceiver.  The main receiver will be a down-conversion receiver.  I'm sorry but that is about all I know.  I'm sure we will learn more in the coming months.
• Northern California DX Association:  I just stopped by here briefly.  It was late on Saturday.
• OARC (Ohio Area Repeater Council):  I stopped by here to pick up a free Ohio repeater directory.
• Palstar:  This is a booth that I spent some time at.  I was taking pictures of their new HF-AUTO-R, which is a remote control for the HF-AUTO antenna tuner.  The remote is supposed to sit on your radio desk while the autotuner itself can rest up to 1000 feet away.  The two devices communicate over a high-speed RS-232 interface.  I also made an inquiry at Palstar about my AT2K tuner.  The light bulb for the meter had burned out.  After explaning the situation, the person that I was talking to reached into a bag and grabbed a brand-new bulb.  They did not charge me for it.  I was quite surprised that they had brought some light bulbs with them.
• QRPARCI:  I stopped here for a few minutes and ended up purchasing a DVD-R loaded with 30 years of the QRP Quarterly magazine.
• RF-Space:  They did not appear to make it to Hamvention
• RigExpert:  I ended up not stopping by their booth.  I already have a AA-230 Pro antenna analyzer, so I decided I didn't need anything new from them.
• SuperAntenna:  Since I had spent some money at the Buddipole booth to expand my Buddipole Deluxe Antenna, I didn't spend any real time here.
• Telepost:  The main item that I am interested here is the LP-500 Digital Station Monitor.  There was a prototype on display but owner and president, Larry Phipps, indicated that it was not quite ready for production.  It seems to be close.  I would not mind adding this accessory to my station.
• Tokyo Hy-Power:  They had several new models of amplifiers this year, so I spent a few minutes looking at them, but they are rather pricey and frankly are not high on my priority list.  If I were getting one, it would be one designed for 2-meters.  Their amplifiers are all solid-state.
• Yaesu:  I stopped by their exhibit two or three times over the course of Friday and Saturday.  Naturally, I picked up my Yaesu ball cap like many others did.  While Yaesu had several new handhelds and a newer mobile rig, I was interested in their new FTdx-3000 HF rig and the new FT-1D HT.  I looked over the HF rig a little.  There is not a whole lot I know about it.  I guess I can say the same for the HT as well.  I know that it is a dual-band radio that supports analog and also supports digital.  It is the digital mode that I am a little bit confused about.  The modulation is specifically C4FM FDMA.  I heard some refer to that as APCO25, and some refer to it as DMR.  I'm sure I heard at least one other acronym thrown around.
• Geo-Hams Meetup:  I happen to be a geocacher as well.  Someone, presumably from the southwest Ohio region decided to organize a meetup of geocachers in the flea market area.  I stopped by for about twenty minutes until I got too warm and had to move on.  I got to meet other geocachers and discuss area geocachers.  Later I was also able to get on the Geocaching.com website and claim credit for the meetup.
• Buddipole:  I was intrigued by one of their newer products and I made a purchase.  It is a multi-section shock-corded whip antenna that has an adjustable stinger on the end and an adjustable base.  This should allow me to operate a vertical antenna on 30-meters through 10-meters, and by adding a small coil and some counterpoise wires, I should be able to operate 40-meters reliably as well.  I'm looking forward to trying it out at Field Day next month.  As I wrap up this post on May 29th, I received a note from the post office that my new whip, coil, and counterpoise kit have arrived.  They were out of stock at Hamvention.
• Winradio, Flex Radio Systems and TAPR:  There is a reason that I have lumped all of these companies together.  They all have "black box" radios of some sort.  I'm not sure whether Winradio's receivers are considered software-defined radios or not, but they are computer controlled.  I was interested in purchasing one to use for shortwave listening, and specifically some Digital Radio Mondiale.  I briefly looked at their latest radios, but I never came back a second time.  After I saw the offerings at TAPR and Flex Radio I never looked back.  The TAPR (Tucson Amateur Packet Radio) is showing some of the components of the High Performance Software Defined Radio (HPSDR), and I was really interested in their Hermes radio.  This is a digital down conversion, digital up conversion radio that is built around a field-programmable gate array (FPGA).  I think that the neatest radios were the ones on display at Flex Radio.  They were showing three radios in their FLEX-6000 line.  The FLEX-6500, FLEX-6700, and the FLEX-6700R.  That last one is a receiver, and the other two are transceivers.  All three radios sample the RF essentially right away.  They don't wait for an analog signal to get to the IF stage.  The signals stay in the digital domain until they emanate from the computer speakers.  There will be a new computer application called SmartSDR that will drive these radios.  There are several notable features including the use of Ethernet connectivity, and the use of an OCXO on the -6700 and -6700R models that offers a frequency stability of 0.02ppm.  The oscillators also have the capability to be disciplined by GPS.  The -6500 can support up to four simultaneous receivers and the -6700 and -6700R can support eight simultaneous receivers.  If SmartSDR is like PowerSDR, it supposedly can work with third-party software to decode DRM shortwave broadcasts.  I think a FLEX-6700 might be in my future.  Even though the FLEX-6000 radios won't be out until the end of 2012, I find myself wanting to understand everything there is about digital signal processing, FPGAs, and software-defined radios.  These are some technologies that I would like to stay on top of.

I'm sorry that this post was so long.  To many of you it was probably quite boring.  I'll try to keep future posts shorter.

73,
Ned
N8OIF

Looking Forward to the 2012 Dayton Hamvention

It's been a little while since I've published anything to this blog, but I just wanted to talk about the Dayton Hamvention a little bit.  In less than 12 hours, I'll be heading over to Dayton, Ohio with a friend and fellow amateur radio operator to enjoy the show.  I plan on being there for most of the show on Friday and Saturday, but I won't make it over on Sunday.  The Sunday portion of the show comes to a close by 1:00pm making it not worth the 90 mile drive from Columbus.

This will be the third year that I will be using several social media tools.  I feel that the social media websites add a dimension to the show and help to increase my awareness of what's there.  Don't get me wrong:  I walk all over the Hara Arena complex, and I also walk around a fair portion of the flea market.  However, it is still possible to miss things.  Sometime in 2009, I started using the Twitter website in a general way, but it was at the 2010 Dayton Hamvention that I began to use Twitter to connect to other hams and anyone else who was interested.  I enjoyed posting pictures and tweeting the little details about various interesting items.  I remember a few people (presumably those that could not make it to the show) to check on specifications or prices.  I did so willingly, because it added to my knowledge of the particular equipment.  Last year was more of the same as I continued to use Twitter to post and to respond to requests.  This year I plan to ramp up the use of Twitter, but I also plan to use Google+ (a tool I was not using last year).  I will also use Foursquare and Facebook to a small degree.  Foursquare will be used to announce my presence at the show as that is what it is designed for, and I will use Facebook to see what some of my other amateur radio friends are saying.  As I indicated, I will ramping up my use of social media in general at the Hamvention.  This should be possible in part due to the fact that I have added a Samsung Galaxy Tab (a Verizon 3G tablet) to my arsenal.  I will be easier to type out my tweets, and it will be a spare device to my 3G cellphone.  Last year, I was struggling with the battery life on my Droid X and it was about halfway through the first day that I figured out how to temporarily turn off the data features.  Of course, while it saves the battery, it makes it more of a hassle to post things or see what is up on the web sites, since I have to turn on data each time.  This year, I should be able to keep the cellphone in its "data off" configuration, while I use the tablet for most data purposes.

Here are some of the exhibitors that I plan on checking out this year and the reason or reasons why:

• AMSAT:  Each year they demonstrate the making of a contact through the amateur satellites.  In year's past they have used AO-51 and VO-52, but AO-51 (Echo) no longer functions, so I'm not sure what they will demo

• AOSC:  I'll be stopping by to say hello to Tom Swisher (WA8PYR), a friend of mine 

• Alpha Radio Products/RF Concepts:  I'll stop by to check out their linear amplifiers

• ARVN:  Over the years, the Amateur Radio/Video News has shot video during the Hamvention and others events and subsequently sold the videos on DVD.  I'm planning to stop by to see what they are shooting and what they are selling

• ARRL:  I'll mainly be stopping by the American Radio Relay League area to purchase a Field Day T-shirt, and a pin, but also to purchase a couple of desktop edition repeater directories.  I'll probably visit this area for a while and check out their various displays, including the Volunteer Examiner area.

• Argent Data Systems and Byonics:  If I'm not mistaken, these companies sell APRS trackers and other gadgets.  I want to see what new things they have to offer

• Array Solutions, M² Antennas, Ten-Tec, and Elecraft:  I'll stop at these exhibits for a general overview to see what is new

• Begali:  I know that Begali has introduced at least two new keys/paddles in the past year.  I want to check them out

• Buddipole:  I'm pretty well set for Buddipole equipment, but I'm still interested in how I can make 6-meter and 2-meter beams

• DC Power LLC and Radio Works Inc:  If I am not wrong, both of these companies sell DC power accessories.  I will need to install an Icom mobile in my 2011 Ford Escape.  If a new Icom power cord is not long enough, I may need to run a longer cable and at a larger gauge

• DX Engineering:  At some point, I may decide to set up an outdoor vertical antenna that can work 80m through 10m.  I know that they sell a number of vertical antennas

• EZ Hang:  I believe that this is the company that sells slingshot systems for launching wire antennas into trees.  Field Day is coming up soon.

• Feld Hell Club:  I'm still trying to figure out where they will be located, but I've exchanged tweets with someone who says they will be operating a special event station.  I've operated the Feld Hell mode a couple of times, so it should be an interesting demonstration

• Flexradio Systems:  I'll admit that their new advertisement has enticed me.  Apparently they have a new radio to debut

• Ham Radio Deluxe/W4PC Software:  Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) was recently sold to W4PC Software.  Since HRD is my digital-mode application of choice, I plan to stop by and possibly learn a few things.

• Icom:  It would not surprise me if Icom had a new radio to show off, but I'm also interested in the ID-31A, and the ID-80A.  Both of the latter radios are handie-talkies that are D-Star compatible.  Besides, I'm helping my friend, Jonnie (KD8BUP), get into D-Star

• Kenwood:  I would stop by Kenwood anyway, but they will be displaying a prototype of their new high-end TS-990S HF/6m rig, and I just have to check it out.

• Northern California DX Association:  I've been interested in the beacon project that they run.  I want to stop by their exhibit and learn more about it

• OARC:  The Ohio Area Repeater Council will probably have some new Ohio repeater directories for sale for a nominal price.  I may pick up a couple.

• Palstar:  At some point, I will probably purchase the HF-Auto tuner to replace my Palstar AT2K tuner, so I will definitely be examining this tuner closely, but I also have a question about my existing AT2K tuner.  From some reading on the web, it appears that the AT2K uses an LED for the meter's backlight.  Perhaps that is for new models, because my backlight no longer functions and I suspect it uses an incandescent bulb.  I want to find out if there is a retrofit for my tuner.

• QRPARCI:  I've operated QRP a few times, particular with the digital modes, so the aspect of low-power operating intrigues me.  I am a member of the QRP Amateur Radio Club International, so I'm planning to stop by and say hello, and see what they have to sell

• RF Space:  RF-Space manufactures several software defined receivers.  I definitely want to see what they have to offer

• RigExpert:  I have one of their antenna analyzers, but that doesn't stop me from wanted to see what else they have.

• SuperAntenna:  I've seen YouTube videos of people using this portable antenna for operating from the field.  I want to see what these antennas are alll about

• TAPR:  Mainly I will stop by the Tucson Amateur Packet Radio exhibit to renew my membership, but I will also be checking to see what projects are popular these days.  I'll admit that I haven't kept up with their work.

• Telepost:  Telepost has a station monitor (think, oscilloscope) accessory that I would really love to add to my station.  I'm not sure if it is for sale yet, but I want to check it out

• Tokyo Hi-Power:  This company manufactures a number of linear amplifiers, and I believe that they are all solid-state.  I'm interested in their VHF amplifiers 

• Winradio:  At some point, I would like to add a computer-controlled Winradio receiver to my station to listen to shortwave broadcasts, including the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) ones

• Yaesu:  Just like Kenwood, Yaesu is an exhibit that I would stop at anyway, but this year they have a new handie-talkie, the FT-1D.  It apparently is an analog and digital mode radio, but they haven't mentioned what digital mode or modes it uses.  Some have speculated that it uses APCO25.  And, just today I learned that Yaesu has a new HF/6m rig which carries the model number of FTdx-3000.  Apparently it is a radio for someone on a budget, but still offers high performance.  I'll have to see what that's about.

I hope you enjoy the Dayton Hamvention as much as I do, and I've you can't attend, I hope that you enjoy the "coverage" that I provide.

73,

Ned, N8OIF

My Icom IC-7600 HF Transceiver

About five months ago, my newlywed wife was nice enough to tell me that she did not have a problem with me purchasing my dream radio, the Icom IC-7600.  It sits alongside my Kenwood TS-2000X in my shack.  Now I know that many people own several HF rigs, but I do not see the point in that.  HF radios can be quite expensive.  I would rather concentrate on one or two radios in terms of the radios that I keep on hand.  I've owned a number of radios in the past from mobile radios, to HTs, to HF radios.  The IC-7600 is actually only my third HF radio.  The problem with having too many radios is that all of those radios need to be taken care of and used.  For example, firmware may need to be updated regularly, or the memories need tended to.  I don't have the time like I used to set up multiple radios.  I indicated that the IC-7600 is my third HF radio.  I've had the Kenwood the longest, but at one point I owned a Yaesu FT-897D.  The Yaesu was a decent radio, but I sold it to another ham when I thought she was ready to get on the air.  I am keeping the TS-2000X because I believe that some of its features complement the Icom.  Specifically, repeater operation is available as well as a satellite mode, and it operates on 2-meters, 70-cm, and 1.2 GHz, whereas the Icom does not.

I absolutely love the 7600.  Of course, it has the beautiful LCD screen and that screen contains the spectrum scope, but the screen contains a lot of other useful information.  However, the radio is much more than just the awesome LCD screen.  Shortly after acquiring the 7600, I participated in the IARU HF Championship, and made 23 contacts using the radio, including confirmed (with Logbook of the World) contacts with TM0HQ and NU1AW/5.  I felt that was pretty impressive given my limited operating time, and my rather limited antenna--an indoor Buddipole.  I only spent about two or three hours operating during the contest.  I had the radio on for a couple of hours on Saturday evening, and I had it on for about an hour on Sunday.  About half of my contacts were on 20-meters and the other half were on 40-meters.  I was operating in the search and pounce (S&P) mode, and most stations heard me on the first or second call.  I don't recall having that kind of success with my TS-2000X, but I may be comparing apples to oranges.  The bands did not seem as crowded for the IARU HF contest as they were during Field Day (which is the last contest I operated the TS-2000X in), and the pile-ups were not very deep for the IARU contest, or were completely non-existent.  I really am looking forward to using the 7600 during the next Field Day when the bands are typically very crowded.  I think it has a number of features on the receiving side that will make it easier for me or guest operators to pick out (more on this later) the individual stations.  For much of the operating that I do, however, the bands are not crowded at all.  I'm also looking forward to getting back on the digital modes after a two- or three-year hiatus.  In particular, I want to expand my operating skills to RTTY, and I think that the 7600 should be able to handle it quite well.  I would like to add that my first opportunity to operate split on the HF bands occurred shortly after I purchased the 7600.  I was tuning around the bands--probably on 40-meters--and ran into N4S.  N4S was the special event station commemorating the final flight of a space shuttle.  Although, I never got through, I was able to figure out how to program the 7600 to operate in split mode.  I got to hear first-hand the handful of stations that had not copied N4S stating that he was operating split, as they tried to call on N4S transmitting frequency.

Most likely the next time that I operate this radio during crowded band conditions will be the 2012 Field Day.  This radio will replace the TS-2000X during Field Day.  I may pack the Kenwood, but the Icom will be the primary radio that I use.  I'm looking forward to using several of its features that should really help pull stations out.  I suspect that it won't have any problem being heard.  Some of the features that I have used that will be helpful are:

• Adjustable IF digital filters:  Each mode has three filters that can be quickly selected with the Filter button.  For example, on SSB, I normally am using FIL2, which has a 2.4 kHz bandwidth.  This is a decent bandwidth that allows for an intelligible signal, but at the same time, does not allow too much noise.  My SSB filter FIL1 is currently set at 1.6 kHz, and FIL3 is 3.0 kHz.  As suspected, FIL1 is a little tight and the conversations are slightly harder to copy, but noise is lessened, and the tight filter helps keep out adjacent channel interference.  FIL3 makes for easy copy on strong signals, but with weaker signals, the wider bandwidth lets in more noise, which in turn makes the signal harder to copy.  Although I'm not a CW operator, the digital IF filters can be adjusted quite tight.  The really neat thing is that each of these three selectable filters (keep in mind that these filters are implemented with digital signal processing) can be fine-tuned.  You can adjust the roll-off of the filter skirts, the bandwidth, and the roofing filter used.  The roofing filter is in the first IF stage and is the radio's first line of defense against interference from adjacent channels.  I'm assuming that my Kenwood TS-2000X has just one roofing filter and it is probably about 15 kHz wide.  A passband that wide just lets in too much signal.  With the Icom, I can choose a 15-kHz roofing filter, or a 6-, or a 3-kHz one.  I suspect that being able to select the tighter roofing filters will greatly help during the crowded band conditions of Field Day.

The filter adjustment screen on the Icom IC-7600

• Twin passband tuning (Twin PBT):  I'm still trying to understand this feature, and I don't often use it because I don't fully understand it, but I think it allows me to adjust the lower and upper skirts of the IF filter.  So in that regard it does alter the bandwidth of the filter, which may affect the intelligibility of the signal, or the amount of noise.  The main feature of the twin passband tuning is its ability to filter out an offending signal.  For example if there is an interfering signal above the desired signal, you just adjust one of the Twin PBT controls and the undesired signal is filtered out.  I suspect that I will experiment with this feature quite a bit during Field Day, or the next contest that I participate in. 



The Twin Passband Tuning control

• Noise reduction:  The noise reduction is implemented digitally and unlike the TS-2000X it is actually quite effective.  Although it is best to leave it off with strong signals, it can helpful with weaker signals.

Noise reduction and noise blanker buttons and controls

•  1/4-Speed Tuning:  I know that this feature is available in the CW mode.  It allows more precise tuning with the main knob.
• Auto Tune:  Again, I believe that this is strictly a CW feature, but with a push of the button during CW reception, the receiver zero-beats with the signal.
• Auto Notch:  I've used this before, and I normally leave it turned on.  It clamps down really quick on a carrier.  People tuning up on the band during Field Day, or other contests is quite common.
• Audio Peak Filter:  This filter is applied to the CW sidetone during reception and definitely makes hearing the Morse Code easier to hear.  I may not use some of these CW-related features that much, but guest operators at my station may.

There are plenty of other features that will help with copying stations during Field Day or another crowded-band contest.  I make every effort to understand all of the controls on a radio and maximize my use of them.  I paid quite a bit for this radio and I need to get my money's worth.  If I don't, I might as well use the TS-2000X.

The Icom IC-7600 HF/50-MHz transceiver, LDG AT-200 Pro II autotuner, and the Power Master II wattmeter

 I'll probably have more to say about this radio in the future, but I do need to get more time on the air before I write more.

73,
Ned

My Field Day Report

I was reviewing my Amateur Radio blog and realized it has been almost a year since my last post. I will have to work on improving that frequency.

Over the past weekend, I was involved with Field Day. It is an event that I look forward to every year. If you are not aware, Field Day is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL). It is a communications exercise that involves amateur radio operators in the United States and Canada. Its purpose is to test the operator's ability to set up a station and conduct communications under conditions that are perhaps less than ideal.

Typically, a given Field Day event may involve a ham radio club, an emergency operations center, or just an individual operator. I participated in Field Day with the West Central Ohio Amateur Radio Association (WCOARA). The club's callsign is WC8OH. We operated with the classification of 5A. The "5" indicates that we had (or intended to have) five simultaneous stations on the air. The "A" indicates that we were operating separate from the AC mains. In our case, we were using deep-cycle industrial size 12-volt batteries. These batteries are more than adequate to power a 100-watt station, plus accessories for the entire event. The event itself lasts for 24 hours. I'm not sure what to think about our classification of 5A. Of course, I agree that we operated on battery power, but I don't think we ever had five stations going at once. The only downside that I can think of with regards to misrepresenting our class is that it puts us in a league that we can't possibly compete with, if you look at Field Day as a contest.

Our Field Day was located in Fairborn, Ohio on or near the campus of Wright State University and just south of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. We were lucky to not have rain or storms until it was time to tear things down on Sunday afternoon. At that time, we just had a few brief rain showers that really did not impede us from tearing the equipment down. Sometimes, Field Day weekend is very comfortable and sometimes it is miserable. This year was miserable.  The temperature was certainly in the mid to upper 80's, and the humidity was high.  Dewpoints were in the 75 degree range.  It didn't take long to get sweaty.  I had brought two cases worth of Diet Pepsi to share, however, I probably drank at least a case myself over the 27 or so hours I was there.  Since I travel from Columbus to attend this Field Day, I have to find a place to sleep.  In the past, I have stayed with old friends from the area.  I have also slept in my car several times, and starting last year, I have slept in a tent.  My tent is a little over a year old.  It is classified as a three-person tent, and is quite easy to set up alone.  After I finished setting the tent up, I wondered why I had two tent pegs left.  I just assumed they were extras.  This year when I was setting up the tent, I suspected it might rain because several of us had seen lightning in the distance and had seen storms on the radar, therefore I added the rain fly.  The rain fly clips to the rest of the tent in four corners.  When I went to the tent at about 1:00am, I noticed that I was not getting hardly any airflow through the tent.  After consulting the web on Monday morning, I noticed that you are supposed to use those extra two tent pegs to secure the flaps of the rain fly to the ground at a distance from the tent.  This allows the air to flow.  I'll know that next year, and hopefully I will be much more comfortable.

Now on the radio stuff.  The primary stations that I observed at our Field Day consisted of my Kenwood TS-2000X where I mainly operated 20-meter and 15-meter phone.  Another TS-2000 at a different table was used solely for PSK31, on 20-meters, I believe.  One station was centered around an old Drake transceiver.  And the other station that I noticed used an Icom IC-706 variant of some sort.  The antenna that I used was my Buddipole Deluxe.  It was set up as a loaded dipole at was at a height of about eight feet on its tripod.  The PSK31 station initially used a Buddipole as well, but later switched to a G5RV type of antenna.  That Buddipole was converted to a 2-meter J-pole antenna for talk-in.  The Drake TR7A was strictly on 10-meter CW and used some sort of MFJ active or loaded whip antenna.  I believe that the Icom IC-706-variant also used the G5RV when it wasn't being used for PSK31, but the Icom was also used to make 2-meter and 6-meter contacts.  Beam antennas horizontally-polarized were used at a height of about 25 feet using an Army surplus type of mast.  That mast was guyed and was also lashed to our picnic shelter.  We used the N3FJP Field Day Network software for logging our contacts.  Our total number of QSOs was only about 160.  I don't know if it was the heat that was getting to us or the fact that our core group of operators was down from last year, but we just didn't operate as much.  I used the search and pounce technique for contacting stations.  Those contacts did not seem any more difficult to make this year than last.  I guess our hearts just weren't into it as much.

I have posted 98 pictures from our Field Day on my Picasa site.  I have also posted three high-definition videos from our Field Day on my YouTube site.

Now, I would like to make some random observations:

• I brought my W3NQN-type 200-watt bandpass filters to Field Day this year.  Despite mentioning that fact to the rest of the group, they did not get used.  However, this year we had very little station-to-station interference.  At one point, I was on 20-meter phone.  We also had a 20-meter PSK31 going at the time.  I would get interference but only when both the PSK31 station was transmitting, and when the 10-meter CW station was keyed down.
• A couple of weeks before Field Day, I visited my Verizon Wireless store and traded-up my USB-based "air card" with their MiFi 2200.  That device bridges Verizon's 3G network with a WiFi network that supports up to five simultaneous users.  It worked extremely well.  I did not have a copy of Field Day Network on my laptop, so the MiFi came to the rescue.  I also used it for checking the radar screens and for downloading other software.  After checking Verizon's website I also realized that I did not get anywhere near my five gigabyte quota.  The MiFi also allowed my iPod Touch to get on the Internet.
• We had somewhat of a delay in getting the Field Day logging program going.  Of course, it was no problem to actually start the program, but it was troublesome for the "client" computers to see the logging database on the "server" computer.  We used different combinations of domain names, settings on Norton Internet Security, and settings with the router before one of those combinations worked.  Field Day Network is a pretty decent program.  It does dupe checking, it interfaces with the radio and can poll the radio for frequency and mode information.  When interfaced with the rig and networked to other copies of Field Day Network, the application will let you know if two stations are on the same band and mode.
• I enjoyed using the social-networking site Twitter a few times over the weekend.  I was accessing Twitter from my laptop computer and using my Verizon MiFi 2200 3G modem.  I have approximately 200 followers, so it is neat to be able to share with them what we are up to, and to also read their tweets.
• I also enjoyed a little D-Star on Field Day weekend.  Although, D-Star contacts through a repeater or through the Internet wouldn't qualify for points in the contest, it is something that I can demonstrate to fellow ham radio operators.  This year I was using a DV Access Point Dongle along with my Icom IC-92AD handheld, and the Verizon MiFi 2200.  I made contact with WG8I using this set-up.  The DV Access Point Dongle contains the AMBE vocoder, but also contains a frequency-agile 2-meter 10mW transceiver.  This allows you to walk around with the HT on super-low power and communicate with any other D-Star user.  I played around a little with my DV Dongle as well.  The DV Dongle does not involve a radio at all, but still interfaces with the D-Star network.  I used a Logitech headset and recorded my audio as processed through the AMBE chip.  I was not pleased with the results, so I still have some work to do before I get on the air with it.
• My microHAM Micro Keyer II worked very well.  I bought it shortly after last year's Field Day.  This year I strictly used it for rig control, or more precisely, to read the frequency and mode in Field Day Network.  Before next year's event, I hope to fully utilize it and use the sound card features and do some low-band digital modes using Ham Radio Deluxe.  For those not familiar with the Micro Keyer II, it is a rig interface for control, for audio, for keying, and so on.
• I realized even more so this year that my DC-to-daylight rig, the Kenwood TS-2000, is only an average radio with regards to HF performance.  I realize that my Buddipole antenna is a seriously-compromised antenna compared to a full-length dipole for example, but if I can hear them nice and loud, then I would think they would be able to hear me.  I do realize that I have to bust pileups, but it shouldn't be that difficult.  Also, the receiver performance of the TS-2000 means that it is going to be tough to work one station right next door to another strong station.  That's why I am hoping to save up for and buy an Icom IC-7600 before next year's Field Day.  That radio has really decent specifications.
• For about a half-hour I was involved with mentoring one of the club member's grandsons.  We continued to operate on 20-meters and I would let him know what to say and at what time to say.  During that half hour we only added one contact to the log, but it was fun.
• I enjoyed the food over the weekend.  I brought ice cold Diet Pepsi, and a couple of bags of potato chips.  We had the disposal of a couple of Coleman-type stoves, and for dinner on Saturday we had a sweet-and-sour chicken stir fry, hamburgers, hot dogs, fruit, and other miscellaneous food.  On Sunday morning, we had pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon.
• I mentioned earlier that I would like to work the lower bands next year.  In order to effectively operate down there, I'm probably going to need to set aside my Buddipole, and string up a dipole as high as possible in some of the tall pine trees there.  In order to do that, I'm going to probably need a slingshot system.  That's something to buy between now and next year. 

Hopefully, you will hear from my again sooner than a year from now.

73,
Ned

Adding Another Blog

I'm adding a third blog.  There are times when the topic is not amateur radio or photography, so I've created a miscellaneous blog for those posts.  It is located at http://nedsmisc.blogspot.com/.

New Photography Blog

I have decided to create a new blog devoted to photography. I'll be able to keep my amateur radio topics separate from my photography topics. If a post happens to involve both, then I will probably post in both. I'm going to try to move my photography posts from the amateur radio blog over to here. We'll see how that goes.

Visit it at http://nedphotoblog.blogspot.com/.

Ned

New Icom Radio?

I subscribe to a number of Yahoo Groups devoted to amateur radio. A couple of evenings ago, I received two message posts: one from a group for the Icom IC-7600 and one for the Icom IC-7700. A new Yahoo Group has been created around a supposed new Icom radio that will debut in a few days at the Tokyo Hamfair. This radio apparently supports HF, VHF, UHF, and has options for a D-Star board, and a 23-cm module. At this time the radio's model number is the IC-9100. Someone on the new Yahoo Group indicated that he was told that Icom would be retiring the IC-746Pro and the IC-910H. Perhaps this radio is the replacement. I have nothing more to mention now, since details are few and far between. It wouldn't surprise me that more information will be coming in over the weekend. The Tokyo Hamfair is August 22nd and 23rd.

73,
Ned, N8OIF

Gearing Up For Field Day

As I start to write this, the American Radio Relay League's (ARRL) Field Day event is a little less than three weeks away. I always look forward to participating. This year is no different. Whether I get on the radio a little or a lot, I will enjoy the time spent with fellow amateur radio operators.

Field Day is two things. It is a demonstration of ham radio operator's abilities to set up their stations and make contacts in abnormal situations or less than ideal conditions, and is also a contest. Although those are the two main aspects of Field Day it also can serve the purpose of introducing the public to amateur radio.

For me, Field Day can also serve as an excuse to buy more equipment for my station. I haven't closely studied a calendar, but typically Field Day occurs six weeks after the Dayton Hamvention. It is around those two events where quite a bit of my amateur radio equipment purchases occur. This year there were several things that I purchased, or will purchase before Field Day arrives. For this year the main thing to purchase was a set of W3NQN bandpass filters. Based on some of my experience from last year's Field Day, I can tell you that transmissions from one station can get into another radio. One of the main station's at last year's Field Day was the 40-meter station. Rob, KB8UEY, was making contacts on his Kenwood TS-120S while Brad, W8NCI, was logging for him. I was on my Yaesu FT-897D trying to make contacts on 15-meters and I discovered that 15 and 10-meters were somewhat open. However, every time Rob keyed up on 40-meters, I wouldn't be able to copy stations on 15-meters. Hopefully the W3NQN filters will take care of that. They are rated to 200 watts, and we typically never run more than 100 watts. They also present about 0.3 dB of insertion loss, so hopefully each station that uses one (and I hope they all do) will see little if any impact to their ability to copy stations, while stations on higher bands will be able to copy their own contacts. The whole issue arises in the first place because no transmitter is perfect and specifically no stage in a radio transmitter is perfectly linear. If it were, there would be no 3rd-order, 5th-order, 7th-order and so on products created in the radio. It is these "harmonics" and general front end overload that cause the problems [note: if I am incorrect please let me know.] Another item that I plan to purchase before Field Day is the Byonics Micro-Trak All-in-One. This is an APRS tracker. It features a microcontroller functioning as a TNC, a 10-watt transmitter, and a high-sensitivity GPS receiver in a watertight Pelican case. Although someone else will likely be demonstrating a complete APRS station, I'll be able to transmit my position to the APRS network.

The other things that I am buying before Field Day mainly pertain to my sleeping arrangements. I enjoy staying at Field Day for the entire duration. That way I can stay up late, then get some sleep, and wake up early the next day, and thereby maximize the time I spend at the Field Day location. It has been several years (four, I think), since I slept in a tent. For the past two year's I have slept in a sleeping bag on the concrete floor of the picnic shelter that we use. It's not impossible to sleep that way, but it is not terribly fun either. Before that I slept in my car. That's not fun either because it is cramped, the seat doesn't fully recline, and the mercury-vapor (or high-pressure sodium) lights from the parking lot next to the shelter are bright. The last tent that I used belonged to a friend, but it is a huge family tent and definitely takes two people to set it up. I'm planning to get a smaller tent that hopefully I can set up on my own, or with just a little help.

There are always things that I can't purchase in time because I haven't saved up for them. This year I will not be able to get a new hard drive for my laptop in time to try some of the digital modes during Field Day. I will also miss the opportunity to try another radio at Field Day. I've made the decision to trade my Yaesu FT-897D for an Icom IC-7000. Of course, both radios meet the criteria for being small radios, but the IC-7000 seems like it would be better suited to the digital modes that I enjoy on HF with its IF-DSP filtering. I am also trading up on my sound card interface, but I will be making that purchase after Field Day. I have decided to buy the MicroHAM Micro Keyer II (MK2) after I saw them at the Dayton Hamvention. The MK2 acts as a complete hub for audio and CAT control. I will sell my two Tigertronics SignaLink USBs. They are great performers, but the MK2 should simplify my station somewhat, and doesn't rely on VOX circuitry to key up the radio. By next year, I should have a complete digital (and phone) station running at Field Day with the computer running the sound card modes and also performing logging. I also want to add a straight key to my station. I'm currently looking at the Vibroplex Straight Key Deluxe.

I also have a few preparations before Field Day. I try to work off of a checklist, and right now as of three weeks out, that checklist is still growing. I've spent the past couple of evenings working on the video that I shot at last year's Field Day. Yes, 49 weeks later. Basically, my delay was due to forgetting to work on them and prepare them for Youtube, but also in trying to find suitable encoding parameters for Field Day. My previous attempts resulting in terrible videos. I am now pleased with the results, and I will be sure to save my encoding parameters in a preset in Adobe Premiere Pro 2.0. I will have more to say about the videos in an upcoming post. As I have been preparing the 2008 Field Day videos, I have noticed that the white balance could be much improved. It's much easier to correct the color balance up front rather than trying to correct it in "post". I decided not to worry about it for the 2008 videos, but this year I will take my Lastolite EZYbalance foldup gray/white card over to Field Day and white-balance each scene. I also realized that I am running low on MiniDV tapes for my Sony DCR-VX2000 camcorder and will pick up some in the next three weeks. Finally, I will be taking along my pocket Olympus digital recorder or my Edirol R-09HR recorder in order to record the ARRL Bulletin. I'll have to see if there is any Field Day rule that prohibits recording, but if there is not the digital recorder will allow me to record the Bulletin, and play it back as often as necessary to achieve 100% copy. It's worth 100 points.

So, I will keep working on my checklist, and will slowly pack the items that need to go to Field Day. Of course, after that weekend has come and gone, I will post a blog entry about my experiences and lessons learned, and I will try to quickly get my photos and videos posted.

73,
Ned
N8OIF

Dayton Hamvention 2009 Debrief

Well, the Hamvention has been over for about a week. I thought that I would write a post about my impressions from this year's show. For the first time in several years, I attended all three days. Usually, I just attend Friday and Saturday. For a couple of reasons, I decided to also go Sunday. One of the reasons was that I wanted to sit in on one of the forums, the D-Star forum. The other reason was that I was asked to take a two-hour shift at the West Central Ohio Amateur Radio Association's (WCOARA) flea market space in order to help sell items. Between those two items, I knew that I had lost about a half day, so I tacked on Sunday.

I was staying at the house of a friend of a friend in the south-Dayton suburb of Kettering. My one friend and I drove from Columbus on Thursday evening to stay at her house. Staying there was quite convenient and meant that we did not have to wake up at some ridiculous hour in order to get to the show by the time it opened. We were able to wake up at a reasonable time and grab some breakfast on the way up to Trotwood to park at the old Salem Mall.

The bus rides were uneventful and were always available when we were ready. For the past several years, I have bought both the Hamvention tickets and the all-weekend bus pass. Buying the tickets, and especially the all-weekend pass, saves a little time and a little money.

This year, I arrived at Hara Arena with two purchases already in mind. I had no idea if either item would be available, but as it turned out both were. Some people might call it impulsive but I bought my first item within ten minutes of Friday's opening. I bought the new Icom ID-880H dual-band mobile radio. This radio only does one band at a time, but it also incorporates D-Star. I bought this radio at R & L Electronics right inside the main arena. I don't think it was an impulsive purchase, because I had researched this radio for about three months before making that purchase. The prices I had seen on that radio from the ham radio retailers before the show was right about $500. I paid $481, which included the 6.75% that R & L Electronics collected on behalf of the State of Ohio. My next purchase was a little while later (maybe an hour later). I've been wanting a new set of CW paddles. Now that purchase may be considered impulsive. I'm not currently a CW operator, but the Begali Signature paddle that I bought is a work of art and is a high-precision piece of equipment. I do want to learn the code because I would like to try some weak signal VHF and UHF contacts, and ultimately I would like to work the microwaves. It is also nice to have a set of paddles for those who may operate my station whether that is at home or Field Day.

With my purchases out the way, I started checking out all of the exhibits. I spend most of my time indoors looking at the commercial exhibits and I am not that interested in the flea market sales. The main things that I was interested in looking at were the new Icom IC-7600 HF/6m rig, and also looking at anything D-Star. I did those things and more. All along the way, I had my Canon EOS-5D digital SLR and was taking quite a few pictures.

I'll have more to post about the IC-7600. I spent about 15 to 20 minutes talking to one of the Icom representatives about this radio. As far as D-Star is concerned, there were a few exhibits that pertained mainly to D-Star. Icom has a booth in "Audio Alley" that seems to be mainly concentrated on their D-Star capable radios. The Dstarusers.org group had a booth along with a fully functioning UHF D-Star repeater that was also connected to the gateway. Dan Smith had his D-RATS exhibit in the main arena. D-RATS uses the digital data capabilities of D-Star radios to send files, short messages, emails and so on to another similar equipped station.

I thought that the Hamvention attendance was down a little bit. Other than the initial rush to get in the arena when the doors first opened on Friday, I thought that it was fairly easy to get around, and I was walking around with a backpack, camera bag, and a digital SLR. I also noticed that there seemed to be fewer exhibitors; not by a whole lot, as Hamvention still occupies the entire Hara Arena. I also noticed that the flea market was a little more sparse than I remember it. I haven't attended Hamvention on Sunday for quite a while, and I have noticed that in years past some people would abandon their flea market spaces on Saturday if sales weren't good. The flea market was emptying out quite well Sunday morning.

I did spend the remaining time grabbing lunch, hanging out at the WCOARA flea market space (to rest), and looking at all of the other exhibits. One of the exhibitors that I checked out was Byonics. I hadn't thought much about checking them out, but when I arrived early at Forum Room 1 for the D-Star seminar, the APRS seminar was still going on. A representative from Byonics was one of the speakers for the APRS forum. He was talking about their various tracker options. One of those trackers caught my attention: the Micro-Track All-in-One (AIO). The is a 10-watt APRS transmitter based on the TinyTrak3 platform. I do run a APRS beacon at home (N8OIF-9) using a Kenwood TM-D710A, but the Micro Track AIO would be handy for portable operations. Recently, I helped our ARES group (the Central Ohio ARES) in providing communication support for the Tour of the Scioto River Valley bicycle tour (from Columbus, Ohio to Portsmouth on Saturday, and back to Columbus on Sunday). I know that net control for that event does use APRS, and a 10-watt tracker such as the Micro-Track AIO would be beneficial. Other exhibitors that I checked out included the big three of Kenwood, Icom, and Yaesu. From what I can tell, Kenwood did not have a single new item to show. However, they had a poster that said they will be debutting a new HF rig and a new HT in 2010. I also checked out MicroHAM-USA, Buddipole, W4RT Electronics, Heil Sound, Tokyo Hy-Power, All-Ohio Scanner Club, TAPR, Amateur Radio/Video News, Radio Shack, AMSAT, West Mountain Radio, Palstar, Array Solutions, M² Antennas, NCG Company, MFJ Enterprises, Down East Microwave, and Flexradio Systems. I'll discuss those real briefly here:

• Icom: I mainly stopped by to check out the new radios; specifically the ID-880H mobile, the IC-80AD, and of course the IC-7600 HF/6m rig.
• Kenwood: didn't see anything new except the announcement that I mentioned earlier.
• Yaesu: I asked them what new items they were showing because it was not immediately apparent to me. They have three new mobiles: the FT-2900R (a 75W 2m), the FT-7900R (dual-band), and the "ultra rugged" FT-1900R 55W 2m rig. They also have a new HT: the FT-270 that they were displaying in a fish aquarium.
• Buddipole: I mainly stopped by to check on the status of some items they debutted last year, such as the mini Buddipole rotator and controller. They said they were still working on it. They were actively promoting kits that can turn your Buddipole into a short 2m or 6m beam.
• Palstar: I already own three Palstar items, but I wanted to look at their new Commander series of amplifiers.
• Flexradio Systems: these software-defined radios have advanced quite a bit lately. One radio that they sell is the complete radio and computer all in one case. They were showing the PowerSDR software, and they had a copy of CW Skimmer running. They also appear to be working on a VHF/UHF SDR.
• MFJ Enterprises: I was helping Jonnie, KD8BUP, pick out a antenna tuner for her Yaesu FT-101B HF rig.
• Heil Sound: I didn't spend much time there. I am interested in how to allow two people to each use a headset/boomset on one radio. This scenario sometimes occurs at Field Day. You want a headset for yourself and you need one for your logger.
• Down East Microwave: I briefly swung by their exhibit, but the crowd was fairly deep, so I kept walking.
• NCG Company: Jonnie also needs a new dual-band antenna for her car. The mag mount on the roof with coax going through the door has had better days. I think that the coax is bad. I was looking for a trunk-lip mount and a dual-band antenna to go with it. I was able to get a couple of ideas.
• Tokyo Hy-Power: I would like to start working weak signal VHF particularly on 2-meters. THP sells the HL-350Vdx 300W 2m amplifier that I would like to acquire within the next couple of years. I spent some time looking at that amp, and a 500W version.
  
• Radio Shack: A friend of mine works there and I knew he would be working the booth on Saturday. I stopped by and ended up buying a non-ham radio item off of him: an HD-Radio made by Accurian. I brought it home and it works out pretty well.
• W4RT Electronics: I mainly stopped by their exhibit because I knew they carried the line of LDG Electronics autotuners. I'm looking at the LDG KT-100 tuner for my Kenwood TS-2000X.
• All-Ohio Scanner Club: It was time to renew my membership so that I could keep receiving the Scannergram. In the end though, I had spent most of my cash and I opted to renew once I got back home.
• Array Solutions: This company carries quite an assortment of different ham radio gear. I am mainly interested in the W3NQN bandpass filters, and a new UHF coupler for my Powermaster wattmeter.
• AMSAT: I wanted to renew my AMSAT membership, but I decided I would take care of that back home. They were demonstrating what SuitSat2 may be like. They were saying that it will probably have a CW beacon, a voice beacon, a telemetry beacon, and a transponder. It may also have batteries and a few solar panels. A "launch" date is not know. I heard beforehand that they might be demoing a complete computer-controlled satellite station (which presumably means computer control of Doppler shift and control of az-el rotors). I did not see that demo.
• TAPR: I don't hear much out of TAPR these days. I know that they are still working on their High Performance SDR. I also thought about renewing my membership but I can do that later.
  
• Amateur Radio/Video News: This group has shot different videos and produced DVDs of the various forums, seminars, and Hamvention itself. I wanted to see what they were working on this year. Their presence was noted at that D-Star Forum and at the D-Star Friday Night Event. I just visited their website. Gary Pearce (KN4AQ) shot several seminars this year at Hamvention. He is now doing the editing, but I imagine I'll buy his D-Star DVD and his SDR DVD.
  
• M² Antennas: If I want to do VHF/UHF SSB then I will need a decent beam. This company seems to produce quality products.
  
• MicroHAM: I had heard of this company before, but had never paid much attention to them. Even this year, I initially just walked past their exhibit (I did slow down a little). On my second go-around on late Saturday or Sunday, I stopped by. They manufacture some very interesting equipment: items such as the Station Master Deluxe, the Micro Keyer II, and the Micro Keyer 2R and 2R+. After the show was over, I started looking at the pictures that I took of their equipment and decided to check their website to see what they were about. Now, I'm seriously thinking about buying the Micro Keyer II. It can be used with my Kenwood TS-2000X, and my Yaesu FT-897D. If I get an Icom IC-7600 down the road it can be used with that as well. All you need is a radio cable for each radio. Basically, the Micro Keyer II acts as a hub for voice, data, CAT control, and so on for the connected radio. It is connected to the computer with a USB cable. If I got this, I would probably sell my two Tigertronics Signalink USB's (those are great items; there's nothing wrong with them). The MK2 is just a more elegant approach.
  
• West Mountain Radio: I only stopped by briefly. I learned after the show that they were showing a new item. This item is called the PWRGuard and acts as a undervoltage/overvoltage protection device for the load that is connected to it. This might be a good addition to the shack.

For the first time this year, I attended an after-hours event. I attended the D-Star event at the Drury Inn. Although quite a bit of it was over my head (discussions of D-Star sys admin stuff), I think that I still got enough benefit out of the rest of it, that I would attend again in the future.

Now I have to wait almost another year for Hamvention to return. I'll probably attend all three days again next year, and I may even create my own Four Days in May (the actual FDIM is devoted to QRP operation). I'm thinking about attending Contest University next year. I really don't consider myself a contester, but I've heard that you can learn quite a bit at Contest University about operating techniques and station strategies.

I may have more to write about Hamvention in the not-too-distant future.

UPDATE: For those of you who attended Hamvention and picked up a program booklet: Did someone forget to include the list of exhibitors? I like to plan my visit, and it's hard to do without that. I did notice that a website was tracking inside exhibitors this year. I'll have to visit that website before next year's show.

73,
Ned
N8OIF

Mobile Radio

I'm thinking about buying a new mobile radio. I owned several mobile radios in the past. I probably started out with the Kenwood TM-741A. This radio came standard with the 2-meter and 70-cm bands. I added a 220-MHz band unit to it, because at that time I lived in Dayton, Ohio, and 220-Mhz activity was fairly common. I never installed that radio in the car, although I operated from the car with it from time to time. I was probably getting the power from the cigarette lighter jack. I had three separate glass-mount antennas on the car for 2-meters, 220-MHz, and 70-cm, plus I had a glass-mount cellular antenna on the car as well. I kept that radio for quite some time, but did not continue to use it. Then sometime after moving to Columbus in 1996, I bought a Kenwood TM-V7A. This was a dual-band radio with a bluish-colored LCD display. I had a friend help me install it. We routed the power from the battery through the firewall to the radio, which we mounted to the bottom of a slide-out ash tray, which I wasn't using anyway. Coax cables to the antennas were routed along the lower door "raceways" or whatever you want to call them. I can't remember but I suspect that the V7A had only one RF output, therefore I was probably using a duplexer to feed energy to the two separate antennas. I traded that car (a 1984 Toyota Corolla) in for a new 2003 Corolla. I have never installed a radio in that car. A half-dozen years or so ago at the Dayton Hamvention, I bought a Kenwood TM-D700A. This is a dual-band radio that features APRS operation. I had ever intention of installing it in the car, but I never got around to it. It stayed in its original box. A couple of years ago I sold it on Ebay for probably 90% of what I paid for it.

Now I currently have a Kenwood TM-D710A and an Icom IC-2820H. The D710A just like the D700A features APRS. The Icom IC-2820H is a dual-band radio and I have the DV chip installed in order to operate D-Star. I'm actually using those radios fairly regularly from the home QTH as base radios.

What I would like to do is buy the new Icom ID-880H to install in my Corolla. The ID-880H is a dual band radio but one band at a time. This radio is also D-Star ready. I don't know how much this radio will cost as it is just starting to be advertised, but I could certainly expect $550 or so. If I do decide to get this radio, I'll probably do it in two phases. In the first phase, I want to buy and install the antenna. That way I can use the antenna with my HT until I replenish my funds. The antenna that I am looking at is the Comet Antenna SBB-97 tri-band antenna. In case you are wondering why I would buy a tri-band antenna for a dual-band radio, the reason is that I am looking to the future. The SBB-97 is a 2m/70cm/23cm antenna. I've considered buying the Icom ID-1 radio. This is a $1,000 radio that is strictly 1.2GHz, but incorporates analog FM and D-Star. On the D-Star side, it has the same DV mode as other D-Star radios. DV is digital voice with low speed data. The ID-1 also has a DD mode which is a high-speed data-only mode. I initially talked myself out of this radio, saying that there is probably no one else in Columbus who operates one, and by checking out Dstarusers.org, that would appear to be correct. However, I had forgotten that I can still cross-band through the D-Star repeater and talk to those on 2-meters or 70-cm, and with the gateway, I can connect to distant D-Star repeater systems. So I will keep the option of buying the ID-1 open and buy an antenna that is appropriate. Along with the antenna, I will need a mount for it. I'm looking at Comet's trunk lip mount options. These use a short section of small-diameter coax to go past the lip of the trunk and the weather seal. Then they transition to an RG-58 type coax. As a temporary measure I can snake this coax between my fold-down rear seats to a HT that I keep in the front seat. Then I can get the ID-880H as part of the second phase. I'll likely have someone professionally install the power cable to my battery and find the way to breach the firewall. Then I will install the radio myself.

In the first phase, I can simply operate my HT by connecting directly to the antenna's coax. Also, when I buy the ID-880H, I can connect it directly to the coax. However, if I add the ID-1 1.2 GHz radio it looks like I might have to add not only a duplexer but a triplexer. Obviously a duplexer would be required because two radios would be involved, but I cannot find a duplexer that offers one port with 1.2GHz and the other port with 2-m and 70-cm together. I can find a triplexer that splits the signal from the antenna into three ports for 2-m, 70-cm, and 23-cm, but then I would need a duplexer to recombine the 2-m and 70-cm signals back together for the ID-880H. I'm currently only familiar with Comet Antenna's and Diamond's duplexer and triplexer offerings. If you are familiar with another commercial product, let me know.

One final note. Years ago I purchased a notch filter from PAR Electronics that is supposed to notch out 152-MHz where a lot of pager transmitters reside. I remember driving around Columbus with the Kenwood TM-V7A and getting quite a bit of intermod from pagers. Are these pager transmitters still around? I don't see many people wearing pagers these days, since they can send and receive text messages with their cellphones. Also, my last pager, a two-way Motorola pager, operated in the UHF bands if I am not mistaken.

73,
Ned

Two new Icom D-Star radios

I think that I first read about them a couple of weeks ago on someone else's blog. For the most part, information was only available on Icom's Japanese website and had to be translated to English. Now Universal Radio has pages dedicated to each one. The two new radios are the ID-80AD handie-talkie and the ID-880H mobile. I wonder if these will replace the ID-91AD, and ID-800H respectively. We will find out. I also wonder if Kenwood and Yaesu will continue to stay out of the D-Star game. Naturally, I'll be looking at their exhibits at the upcoming Dayton Hamvention.

I'm happy with my Icom IC-92AD HT and my IC-2820H mobile. I have made a few contacts through the Columbus, Ohio W8DIG 2-meter repeater. The W8DIG repeater system, however, is fairly low profile and I have difficulty hitting it from home. It's usually when I am out and about that I make contacts. I am somewhat disappointed in the D-Star network as a whole. One of the prime benefits of D-Star is the ability to interlink D-Star systems. So far, it appears that many systems are not interlinked. I believe that in order to be interlinked, it has to be registered with the Trust Server. W8DIG is not currently registered. It is possible to make a contact on the D-Star repeater and have your information show up on Dstarusers.org. The other problem that I am having is seeing my position information show up. I have the HM-175GPS speaker-mic, and I am fairly confident that I have the radio properly configured for sending the position information so that the APRS network can pick it up, but the IC-92AD is not showing up; only my TM-D710A station. Perhaps it is time to send an email to the W8DIG trustee to see what is going on and offer my assistance.

73,
Ned

Looking for a new HF rig

I'm not sure exactly why, but I am starting to get the urge to get a new HF rig. I have two radios with HF capabilities: the Kenwood TS-2000X and the Yaesu FT-897D. I never expected too much when I bought the FT-897D, but it's still a decent radio that offers HF (including general coverage receive), VHF, UHF, along with the AM and FM broadcast bands and the airband. It's also a lot easier to go portable with it than the Kenwood. I used the FT-897D at Field Day (the WC8OH, West Central Ohio Amateur Radio Association, group) and made several dozen contacts on 20, 15, and 10 meters. I thought it performed admirably. Actually, my main problem was the other transmitters getting into the front end of the 897. I plan to solve that at this year's Field Day with the purchase of W3NQN bandpass filters to put on each transmitter. Ever since I bought the TS-2000X, I have considered it my main rig, but starting last year, I started looking at other radios. I have heard several comments in the past about how great the VHF, UHF, and satellite capabilities are for the TS-2000, but those same people always stated that they believed the HF section to be only mediocre. The main radio that I started looking at last year was the Icom IC-756Pro III. From the product reviews in QST, it did seem to have better numbers in the receiver department.

I did a little bit of research on the IC-756Pro III last year, then I dropped the ball. I guess it was late last year or very early this year, I heard about Icom's upcoming IC-7600. And last week (I think it was), I learned that it had been FCC-approved and that Universal Radio was listing a price right around $4,000. That's is a good chunk of money, but doable.

My plan is to do more research on radios over the next year. However, once I set my sights on something, its too to let go. Perhaps, I will assume that I will get the IC-7600 and look for anything that might disqualify it from consideration. There are other radios out there that have similar or superior performance, but the ones for Icom that fall in that category are also even more expensive. There's Yaesu, and I'm sure that they have some great radios, but I haven't really checked them out. Kenwood, I've just about written off. It's been several years since they've released a new radio (the TS-480, I think), and that radio has similar characteristics to the TS-2000, if I am not mistaken. Ten-Tec makes fine radios, at least based on the numbers, but I do find their radios to be lacking cosmetically. There is Elecraft, also. From what I have heard, they are some of the best radios. Finally, there's Alinco, but I hardly have any familiarity with their products.

I plan to post more about my research on the Icom IC-7600. Naturally, I am looking at the receiver performance, but I also wonder if the transmitter section of the 7600 is clean. I also want to determine if it can handle high duty cycle modes such as PSK31 and RTTY at its highest power level. Normally, I turn down the power on my TS-2000 to the lowest that I think I can get away with (to still be heard on the other end), but I would like to know that I can turn up the power if necessary. I'm not that comfortable with doing that on the TS-2000. I also want to learn more the 7600's ability to do PSK31 and RTTY without the computer. My main concern there regards macros. When I'm using MixW with the TS-2000, I will use macros, but I do try to use them sparingly. I have several macros entered and ready to go, but I won't necessarily use them, unless I feel that the other station is using theirs as well. In other words, if the other station is practically going to automate the QSO, I might as well too, but if the other station wants to ragchew a little, I'll just manually type at the keyboard. Obviously, I can manually type the whole QSO at a keyboard connected to the IC-7600, but it would be nice to have the CQ macro stored, and a macro stored for answering the other station (i.e. urcall DE mycall). I've downloaded the owner's manual, and it appears that macros are supported. It doesn't call them macros, but that's what they appear to be. Anyway, there will be more research. I'll try to post regularly about what I learn about this radio.

As I wrapped up this post, I realized that I had previously mentioned looking for a new radio. At that time, I briefly mentioned the IC-7600, but I indicated that I was looking at the Icom IC-7000. I am no longer looking at that one. It's a feature packed radio, but again I would never have high expectations for it. I'll keep the FT-897D for my portable radio for now.

73,
Ned, N8OIF

Productive Test Sessions

This past weekend, I helped bring a few people into the amateur radio hobby. On Saturday, I was one of the three administering Volunteer Examiners at a test session sponsored by the Central Ohio Amateur Radio Emergency Service (COARES) group and the Ohio State University Amateur Radio Club. We had about seven or eight people show up. If I remember correctly, three people were already licensed, but the others had no amateur radio license. Everyone from that session came away with either a new license or an upgrade to their existing license. One person went from no license to a General class license. That was a pretty good session. It lasted about two-and-a-half hours.

On Sunday, I had volunteered to be a VE for an early evening session. I had also volunteered to help out with a HamCram session that led up to the exam. I had never heard the term HamCram before, but as the name suggests, it is a cram session for the test. There were two of us reading the Technician class question pool and reading the correct answer along with a brief explanation on each. Both of us were VEs, and about a half hour before the exam, our third VE arrived. There were five people attending the HamCram. One person sat in only for a refresher, as he already had his Technician class license. He stepped out during the exam, but another person took his chair during the exam to upgrade to General. So we had five people on Sunday who all came away with a new license or an upgrade. That exam was sponsored by the Columbus Institute for Contemporary Journalism (CICJ) and held at their headquarters. Two of the new amateur radio operators are associated with that group. Both exams this weekend were under the ARRL-VEC umbrella.

If you earn your General or Amateur Extra class license, I encourage you to become a Volunteer Examiner. I find it rewarding to help others obtain their licenses. These two sessions mark the seven and eighth for me. Becoming a VE is pretty straightforward. You download a VE Manual from the ARRL's website, study it as long as you need to, then take an open-book exam, and send the answers back to the ARRL along with a photocopy of your license (and maybe something else I'm forgetting). It takes them three weeks or so to review your materials and issue you your credentials. Then you just need to make yourself know to a VE team. Of course, the ARRL is not the only Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (VEC) out there. You can be accredited with more than one VEC and some have reciprocal accedidation.

73