# All Questions

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### How can I add amplitude modulation to this transmitter?

I recently built this circuit, and could hear a nice full quieting signal on my short-wave radio with a 7.2 megahertz crystal for the 40 meter band. What is the simplest way I could Amplitude ...
1k views

### What is generally considered “too much” power for JT-65 on HF?

Recently, I have begun experimenting with JT-65A, mostly on 20 meters. I usually run about 5 watts with that mode, since I know that JT-65 is a weak-signal mode. Is that still too much power? What is ...
16k views

### What do “QRM” and “QSB” refer to?

An answer on Basic QSO format? mentions things like "QRM" and "QSB". What do those terms mean?
2k views

### How would a time-difference-of-arrival receiver with two antennas know which side the signal is from?

An easy TDOA design by Byonics was published with the following schematic: It appears that the antennas are switched at a rate of 640Hz, which allows a 640Hz tone to be heard in the radio when the ...
996 views

### Direction finding: How to find a stuck FM transmitter on 70cm?

There's a blank carrier on a 433 MHz FM voice frequency here. How should we go on about finding the transmitter's location? Practical procedure? Could be somewhere downtown.
5k views

### How is the IF for a superhet selected?

There seem to be almost as many choices for the intermediate frequency (IF) as there are superheterodyne receivers and transceivers out there. The ones I have come across are 455 kHz, 452 kHz, 1.6 MHz ...
967 views

### Amateur radio in an EOC?

Consider a small town's emergency operations center. While there are amateur radio operators involved, they primarily work for government or public safety, and there is no active ARES participation. ...
3k views

### Share antenna between receiver and transceiver?

I recently put up a fan dipole for 80/40/20/10. I'm looking for a way to share this antenna with a receive-only SDR and my shack transceiver. Obviously I can just switch this antenna between the two ...
544 views

It is common wisdom that transmissions of any sort (perhaps unidentified, encrypted, in the FM broadcast band, etc.) are permitted if they are sufficiently low power. Where are the FCC regulations ...
6k views

### Protect rig from static charge on antenna

How can I continuously discharge static from my end-fed antenna? My Electraft K2/100's autotuner (schematics) has an SWR bridge using two 1N5711 pin diodes. These diodes get blown if any static ...
536 views

### What is the role of digital data modes in emergency communications?

Emergency operations are typically reliant on voice traffic today. Are digital data modes used at all in emergency operations, and why/ why not? Couldn't data modes be used to pass information more ...
3k views

### How does one read a ferrite datasheet?

Datasheets for ferrite materials are usually filled with incomprehensible graphs with greek letters. For example, Fair-Rite's 73 material: What's a $\mu'_s$ and a $\mu''_s$? What do these numbers ...
6k views

### Where are the baluns for VHF and higher? How can one be made?

In another question, commenters recommended that I look into adding a 1:1 balun to a dual-band dipole to eliminate the feedline as a radiator. As I understand it, a 1:1 balun also functions as a choke,...
502 views

### Is there a KML or similar file that shows all of the CQ Zones?

I'm wanting to view the CQ Zones in Google Earth, and I understand that a KML file will allow me to do so. Is there a place where I can get a KML file that shows all of the CQ Zones?
2k views

### Is is possible to operate D-Star from a software-defined radio?

What is preventing a software-defined radio from transmitting the D-Star protocol?
1k views

### Why do Amateur Radio organizations in the United States oppose the relaxation of encryption prohibitions?

I saw this question stating that it is illegal to encrypt traffic, at least in the US and UK. I also heard that there was recently an attempt to get the FCC to loosen this restriction, but a lot of ...
12k views

### What's the pinout for “Kenwood” 2.5mm TRS/3.5 mm TRS connector?

I've seen many Chinese HTs (Baofeng, Puxing, Wouxun, QuanSheng etc.) using the so-called "Kenwood connector", which has a 2.5 mm TRS connector and a 3.5 mm TRS connector. It looks something like this: ...
207 views

### How do I increase my phone intelligibility?

Listening to various operators at different times, I've sometimes noticed, especially during contests, that some operators are easier to understand than others, and it doesn't all seem to be due to ...
7k views

### How To Join Packet Radio BBS

I'm a complete newbie here, and on the Southeast Coast of the USA. I don't even own a ham radio yet. Some preppers and I got to talking about a dystopian time of Internet collapse where shortwave ...
1k views

### Are antennas circuits?

For an antenna to work, doesn’t charge have to flow through it? A current must be present. To me it indicates it must be a circuit, but how is a dipole a circuit? If they are not circuits, then how ...
670 views

### What does a SSB frequency actually indicate?

An SSB signal is an AM signal with the carrier and other sideband filtered out, if I understand correctly. As such, when specifying an SSB frequency do you specify the carrier frequency, then state ...
4k views

### What is the best time of day/Band to make a contact with Hawaii from the East Coast?

I need to get Hawaii for Worked All States, and live on the East Coast (Virginia). Furthermore, I have a poor antenna, and thus only the prime times of the day seem to really be opened for me. What ...
1k views

### Why can't I hear myself from a second radio when bouncing off a repeater?

I am a relatively new ham, and haven't joined any club yet or participated in any nets. I have, however, hit a repeater just to know I can do it. I was told my sound was scratchy (no surprise there) ...
397 views

I stayed at a resort in the U.S. recently that is located in an unpopulated area with virtually no radio reception. To fill the gap, the resort has its own FM station that can be heard only within ...
185 views

### What skills will I learn from contesting?

I got into Amateur Radio for emergency preparation and to allow me to expand my electronics hobby. My needs are being met, but I'm wondering if I'm missing out on increasing my skills by avoiding ...
255 views

### Why do satellites receive and transmit on different bands?

Most satellites I've found transmit on VHF and receive on UHF or vice versa. Why is this? I would think there's enough space on a single band.
4k views

### What do the three-letter modulation codes (emission designators) stand for?

I've seen these weird three-letter modulation codes like J3E, A3F, A1A, F3E and so on. Someone even wrote 2K40J3E or 12K5F3E. What do these codes stand for?
378 views

### Key CW on zero crossings - zero bandwidth?

I remember being surprised to learn that a CW signal has a bandwidth (albeit small), but when I thought it over, it made sense. Essentially, we are modulating the carrier with a low frequency square ...
570 views

### Why is an exemption for music given to NASA broadcasts of manned space flight missions?

FCC 97.113 Prohibited transmissions reads: (e) No station shall retransmit programs or signals emanating from any type of radio station other than an amateur station, except propagation and ...
359 views

### What kind of antenna is that one?

Yesterday I saw the following antenna: I am very puzzled, at first glance it seems a simple dish but: The mesh is really wide (low frequency?). It is pointing to Zenith. I think that most dish ...
4k views

### Conductive boom vs non conductive boom: what's the difference on a Yagi?

I designed a Yagi antenna using 4nec2, assuming that I would use a non conductive boom. If I use an aluminum boom but I insulate the elements from the boom, can I keep the same design? How does it ...
4k views

### How do I renew my FCC amateur license?

I have a technician class license, and my license expires in March 2014. How do I renew my license? I received a notification in the mail from W5YI-VEC informing me that I could renew my license ...
746 views

### How can I participate on Echolink with my Android phone?

I want to use my Android mobile phone to send and receive over Echolink, like if I was using an amateur radio station. How can I do that? I'm a SWL and only plan to listen until I get my license, and ...
314 views

### What would propagation look like on Mars?

If we could get a few HF stations on Mars, what would the propagation look like? Thought shamelessly copied from this blog.
2k views

### Does iron ore in the ground affect my signal?

Mineral content in the ground varies from one place to another. I've visited places where the ground & waters were an orange-red shade from the high iron content; not good for trees either. This ...
906 views

### What is the highest US amateur license I can get in one sitting?

If I start with no current license, can I take all the exams in one sitting to get to Amateur Extra?
527 views

### How did hams manage to tune their antennas before VSWR meters?

In the early 20th century --back when the hobby was still new-- before VSWR meters and antenna analyzers were invented, how did radio operators know whether they were tuned for maximum power out? ...
2k views

### Why would you need a signal generator to receive early satellite transmissions?

I recently watched, on You Tube, a NOVA program about the British school masters and students who were the first to publish the news that the Soviets had started launching satellites from a new launch ...
926 views

### What does the spark-gap do in a spark-gap transmitter?

I read the Wikipedia article about spark-gap transmitters and I have to admit that I’m even more confused as to what the spark-gap actually did. The article references this simplified circuit ...
1k views

### Fastest Speed allowed for CW FM repeater ID in USA

What is the fastest legal WPM I can use for my repeater's Morse code identification? I am in the USA.
9k views

### What is a waterfall display?

High-end transceivers apparently come equipped with a water-fall display - something to do with improved spectrum visibility. This is supposed to lead to potentially higher QSO count and rate. What ...
8k views

### Is an antenna analyzer necessary for building antennas?

I'd like to try my hand at building a few antennas for VHF/UHF use. I'm going to be going approximately from established designs, but obviously the final result will require some tuning. I don't ...
3k views

### How to reduce RF in the shack when using vertical HF antenna (no radials)

What can be done to reduce RF in the shack (riding back along the coax) when using a vertical 10M antenna (without radials due to space constraints)? The antenna is an IMax-2000 at 32' elevation (20' ...
260 views

577 views

### Multiple simultaneous tunings with SDR

I just found out about WebSDR, and I was wondering how is it possible that many listeners listen and tune to different stations simultaneously. Which components/technologies allow this, and how does ...
4k views

### Why prefer LC oscillators rather than RC oscillators in RF design?

I don't recall ever seeing an RC oscillator driven RF transmitter or receiver. What prevents people from choosing RC oscillators in RF design?
1k views

### My neighbor is complaining about my transmissions, what can I do?

My neighbor has indicated that they can hear noise from their computer amplified speakers when I'm transmitting. We've done a few tests and it does appear that it's my transmitter that's causing the ...
374 views

### Does modulation affect propagation?

Does the modulation scheme, whether OOK, SSB, AM, FM, a digital mode, etc, affect the propagation of a signal?