Triband antenna ordered

I'd noticed in the past few weeks that reception on FM 2m (and 70cm for that matter) had got worse. I have a dual band collinear, of unknown manufacturer, mounted atop a 8 foot aluminium mast on the chimney. This has been up for the best part of 15 years and is now showing it's age. I think something is corroded or the cable has been damaged in some way.

The existing dual band antenna
Yes I know it could be any old antenna
but it's the one I currently have in operation on 2m/70cm

So I have just ordered a brand new Diamond V2000 tribander, good for FM on 6m, 2m and 70cm to suit the Wouxun quadband FM tranceiver I have. As I can't hear anything on 10m with the Wouxun I'm not too bothered that the aerial is just a tribander.

I ordered a fresh 5 foot 1.5" aluminium pole, 25 metres of Messi & Paoloni Ultraflex 7 and some matching M&P PL259 plugs. Hopefully this will cure my deaf rigs - I know the problem is the existing antenna as every VHF/UHF rig I own is equally deaf.

HRD 6.2.10.377 problems solved

Well it turns out that Microsoft's Windows Firewall was the culprit on this issue. It seems that during the installation process a command is issued asking your permission to punch a hole through for the HRD Logbook module. This didn't seem to be working when a machine was attached to a domain.

I setup a test box with vanilla Windows 7 domain member, no virus scanner (as that usually causes 99% of problems) and did an install with 6.2.9.355 and imported all my settings including the license. That worked OK in test. Then when I installed 6.2.10.377 over the top is started displaying issues during the install saying certain registry keys were not present. When I got HRD finally to start it would ask me for my license key again. Then when going into HRD logbook it said I had an invalid key and would not access the internet to pulldown lotw updates.

So I flattened my main machine and rebuilt it from ground up. After Windows 7 and all its respective drivers were installed the first program I installed was Avast licensed AV software. Then I did a straight install of 6.2.10.377. Again there were issues with various registry keys not being there but I clicked past them. Then I was presented with the licensing manager screen. I entered my callsign and key and then HRD complained again about certain registry keys not being present.

I decided to just open HRD logbook module on it's own as that was always the one that complained that there wasn't a license. Bingo I saw a Windows firewall prompting to allow access to the internet for HRD Logbook. Then it became hidden behind other windows but nothing seen on the task bar! I clicked around until it became active and was then able to allow the firewall. The rules were then written into the firewall.

Here's what was trying to be written into the firewall rules

Ham Radio Deluxe 6.2.10.377 - upgrade - my experiences

When a new upgrade for any software comes out I am always slow to install it. I remember the disastrous Windows NT Service Pack 6 in the late 1990's!!
On June 1st 2015 HRD Version 6.2.10.377 was released. This release makes many changes too numerous to mention
I installed it on June 6th. Oh dear!!. To say I am not impressed is an understatement.

The installation routine came up with several errors about registry keys/files not present.

Allstar/Echolink simplex nodes

I found a local node called MB7IUK located in Ashton Under Lyne which is attached to the "UK Allstar Hub Network" - whatever that is - and had a listen.
It seems to act like a repeater but isn't a repeater.
Today I heard a station coming out of Manchester Airport and to me it just sounded like a mobile station with the associated flutter. He was talking to a station in Norfolk.
There was a few two tone noises and it appears that this is the "over" sound. I'm not sure how the station in Norfolk was accessing the node - maybe he was doing it over the internet using Echolink or connected to a node local to him and had opened a channel (again over the internet but node to node this time).

I had a look on QRZ.COM and found a note about the node that said "Please be aware you may not be able to hear the station talking to the node as this is not transmitted out of the node, only received."
So how does this work as a repeater? If I can't hear the station talking into the node how can we communicate?

Update 07/07/2015

Nick M0NCZ the owner of MB7IUK too the time to write to me to explain how the system works.


"The reason you are not able to hear some stations at times is that these stations are talking “into” MB7IUK in that it is receiving there signal then sending it to the UK Allstar hub.

This is distinguished by a Der dah tone (means local traffic to the node – it is receiving)

The normal courtesy tone “Sqerch” (short Motorola sounding control tone) means this is traffic coming from the UK ALLSTAR HUB (therefore MB7IUK transmits it out).

So if you have a local user going “Into” MB7IUK on 145.2875 then you would be receiving him direct just like MB7IUK is.

I hope this makes sense?"

Squerch sound
UKALLSTAR HUB > MB7IUK> 145.2875MHz> G8YPH


Der dah sound
UKALLSTAR HUB  <MB7IUK <145.2875MHz <Local RF User into MB7IUK (could be G8YPH)

Thanks to Nick for explaining my queries about how it works. Now it's a pity I don't currently have a Dstar rig to investigate this system more. I'll have to try out MB7IUK on regular FM myself and see what it can do.

FOr more information about Allstar and to participate goto this link for a look.

PSK-63 working higher up the audio frequency waterfall

I noticed that when working on the 15m PSK frequency (21.070 MHz) trying to make a contact with a contest station on PSK-63 my station could not be heard. The waterfall showed this station at around 2300 Hz.
After checking out my ALC levels it was noticed that the ALC meter reading was considerably down at the low end despite the audio drive level being high. I went into the Transmit section of DM780 (the  Ham Radio Deluxe module dedicated to audio/digital modes) and turned up the volume.
My station still could not contact the caller.

So I changed the radio frequency to 21.07150 MHz and tuned up again. This time the caller was at around 1KHz on the waterfall so was right in the sweet spot of my rigs audio range. The Transmit drive was reduced back to 30% and I sent out a reply to his CQ.

Rig retuned lowering the apparent waterfall frequency
to around 1000 Hz

BANG - got him straight away with the ALC two points less than the FT-450 colon symbol.

The moral? - Try to work stations at around 750 to 1500 Hz on the waterfall, re-tuning the rig if necessary, and you will put out a better PSK signal especially on higher bandwidth digimodes.

Wouxun KG-UV950P review - Part 9 - The S Meter

Hmm. The rig has a LCD display and part of it is the S meter. I don't know what it is supposed to represent as your guess is as good as mine.
Sometimes the meter can show 9 divisions which, presumably, represents a signal of S9. There isn't any +10 +20 db symbol as there are on many other rigs.
In practice you can see all 9 divisions lit up and hear masses of noise as well as the other station.

Other times you can see all 9 divisions lit up and there be absolutely no noise. Then you can get a 5 division light which is a perfectly readable signal with no noise and then another same reading which is barely discernible.

There is no consistency to it.





The squelch control is no better working in 9 steps. I've found that it is best to set it at maximum 9 to avoid it opening every few seconds when set at 1.

All in all the S meter is a waste of space and the squelch control could do with better calibration,

6m openings

Over the past couple of days there have been interesting openings on 6m in the 50.100 to 50.200 MHz SSB segment of the band. At the present time there are many European continental stations that are workable from my QTH in north west England. When using Google Earth in conjunction with the Ham Radio Deluxe logbook module I can see most of the stations I can hear are on the same geographical heading of around 310 degrees.

4 x 6m stations worked in around 10 minutes
all lying on the same direction

These stations varied in signal strength from 53 to 59 and sounded like they were in the same room. I did hear a couple of local stations in Manchester which were a few miles away but in the noise. I think they may have been using vertically polarized antennae whereas mine is horizontal. Therefore on direct path I would appear many decibels down to them. However the continental stations would be being worked on the skywave and polarization didn't appear to be much of an issue to them.

The 6m band is quite fascinating. Sometimes there appears to be nothing and then it can be loaded with many stations.
Soon after writing this the band went quiet again. All in the space of an hour!
My advice is keep your eye on the DX cluster in whatever area of the world you live in for advanced warnings.