Amateur Radio Station K6JEB

CQ 160-Meter Contest, SSB

Call: K6JEB
Operator(s): K6JEB
Station: K6JEB

Class: Single Op LP
QTH: CA
Operating Time (hrs): 01:36

Summary:
Total: QSOs = 21 State/Prov = 7 Countries = 1
Total Score = 384

Club: Northern California Contest Club

Comments:

I could hear more stations than I could work on my 28′ high 82′ shortened dipole I tossed-up to try out 160m from this QTH. I have since installed a decent inverted-L about 40 feet in height.  Again, I only dabbled in this contest since we still have many many boxes that need unpacking.

For me, Top Band still holds a lot of mysteries. And the fact that most people on that band don’t have much more than wire antennas (some WAY better than others) is a bit of an equalizer.

ARRL DX Contest, CW

Call: K6JEB
Operator(s): K6JEB
Station: K6JEB

Class: SOAB(A) LP
QTH: CA
Operating Time (hrs): 7:08

Summary:
Band QSOs Mults
——————-

  160:    0     0
   80:    1     1
   40:   25     8
   20:   60    27
   15:   18    11
   10:    4     2
-------------------
Total:  108    49  Total Score = 15,729

Club: Northern California Contest Club

Comments:Pardon the late submission. Still unpacking boxes around here and finally got broadband installed.

First contest from the new QTH. In fact, first operating of any kind from there! My antenna was a quickly re-assembled Butternut HF9V that just happened to fit perfectly into a chain link fence post. I did solder a #12 piece of wire from the ground radial plate I had made to the pole and deer fence. Since we’re still unpacking boxes, my operating time was precious but sporadic.

I was very pleasantly surprised with how much better I get out from here. We even lost elevation in the move! But from here I can hear and work more stations. . . and I ‘ain’t even started to get serious’!

Being a proud owner of a Yaesu FT-857D, I have most of the must-have accessories for the rig, but I had one dark secret: I hadn’t yet put in any sort of audio filter. Oh sure, I still think I have pretty good ears. And the Digital Signal Processing on the radio does a pretty good job of taking down the noise and interference. But during contests or pile-ups, or even a busy weeknight, it can be tough to pull out a signal, especially on SSB.Probably long before I even considered buying a Yaesu, I was aware of Collins filters. You can read all kinds of reviews and look at pretty bandwidth plots but until you sit down and actually listen to how much a difference one of these can make on your radio; you most likely think you can live without one.

I shopped around and found the Collins filters from W4RT.com were getting high praise. Earlier this year I purchased an LDG Z-11Pro Ultra Plus from them and I felt quite happy to give ’em my money again.

	The filters are individually wrapped for fresher taste and to keep rotten QRM and QRN from seeping into the package. 🙂
	Removal of the FT-857D top cover is a simple matter of taking off the seven Phillips screws, per the directions in your Yaesu FT-857D manual (page 120).
	Once the rig is open, you can see the empty filter slots in the upper-left corner.
	The top cover comes off easily once you disconnect the speaker from the rig chassis.
	“Gaze into the crystal . . . filter”
	The 500Hz filter installed. The 2300Hz filter fits right next to it. The filter boards can go in only one way. If you have difficulty, take a look at the pins in relation to the holes they go into on the Collins filter.

Since I installed the filters, I’ve been enjoying much better reduction in nearby QRM. The 500Hz filter is still wide enough to not ring. And it REALLY works beautifully with the DSP as well as the IF Shift.

The 2300Hz filter makes a slight difference, at first glimpse. But you’ll hear the difference when the conditions get crowded. Also, on transmit, you can select to have transmitted audio pass through the filter, giving your voice signal a bit more ‘punch.’ (update – 20080228):  The sideband filter really makes a HUGE difference!  Now that I’ve had time to use this filter in contests and pile-ups, I can certainly say that without the audio filter, I would not have made many of the contacts I did (including huge pile-ups for VP6DX).  The filters both make use of the DSP and IF shift MUCH more effective.  I’m also noticing that when I turn on the filter, the signal I’m trying to tune-in actually ‘pops out’ and makes copying a LOT easier.  My advice to new and old FT-857D owners: BUY IT!

All in all, I have found the W4RT filters to be a much-needed improvement to my FT-857D.