Hi everyone out there,

Le 10/10/2020 à 02:17, Paul S. in CT a écrit :
> [...] Minor nitpik is that one should tune 1kHz low for USB as the radio ADDS 1kHz to the receiver. Likewise, the opposite occurs using LSB.

Not necessarily a bad thing. As I see it this might help keep the filter
on the actual signal. Too many receivers, when switched to SSB remain
with the AM bandwidth and decode only the wanted sideband, which adds
some background noise.

> Buttons a bit small, but have that nice indent function sadly lacking on the ATS-405. If you don't need the SSB or "Sync", I'd stick with the PL-310/380.

Yes, the PL310/380 receivers are excellent on AM, but as far as the 310
is concerned this applies only to the original version, not the
PL-310ET, which is way behind the original version. Unfortunately that
one is no longer on the market.

> PS: that soft mute question... As far as I know its an Automatic Gain Control function that amplifies the strongest 10db of signal, and reduces lower-powered signals. The problem is that the atmospherics  may cause the signal to fade. This causes the soft-mute function to go from a loud signal to a barely audible signal (aka: pumping). Fading normally produces this effect, but soft-mute makes it worse. The SYNC function is supposed to help this by supplying the carrier wave that fades. The problem with THAT is the audio is part of that faded carrier. Many of us here and in the Amateur community are of the opinion that the audio frequencies are NOT affected by the fading, just the carrier. Providing a carrier will recover the audio. Yet another 'can of worms' so to say.

OK, now I see what you mean by soft-mute. But mind you, on the PL380 it
can be deactivated relatively simply. Here's how to go about it:

1/ press VF

1/ tune the receiver to an unused SW frequency.

2/ press and hold VF

4/ when the receiver starts scanning tune down. The background noise
becomes stronger, which shows that this "soft-mute" is no longer active.

Unfortunately it becomes active again when you switch the set off, and
so you have do it all over again when you switch it on again.

It might work with other Tecsun models, I don't know. Maybe you could
try it with the PL-330. It might also improve the action of the synch
detector.

The audio frequencies are necessarily affected by the fading, which is
caused by multipath propagation. Two or more signals arrive out of phase
which causes a sort of notch that creeps through the bandwidth, just as
if you were using a notch filter. Of course this just changes the tone
of the audio and does not cause the distorion you get when the notch
reaches the carrier itself. That change of tone will be more important
if the notch is wide and go almost unnoticed if it is very narrow.

Regards,

Rémy.

Yes, that 990x is the new version. At that price and likewise for the H501 its a MAJOR dissapointment.
/MHO

1.) In the meantime, my PL-330 arrived this afternoon. Set up and running without incident. AM/SW/FM, and USB/LSB function checked... all as advertised. Noted that the 1kHz offset on AM removes the soft-mute. SSB with the 0.01kHz (10Hz) tuning increments does function on AM-BCB. Minor nitpik is that one should tune 1kHz low for USB as the radio ADDS 1kHz to the receiver. Likewise, the opposite occurs using LSB.

Buttons a bit small, but have that nice indent function sadly lacking on the ATS-405. If you don't need the SSB or "Sync", I'd stick with the PL-310/380.

2.) I don't know the why for this, but since I bought the R9012 radio, I've noticed an increase in battery life. I believe this is a combination of using the Tecsun A200 passive loop, and an improvement of my standard-use Rayovac AA alkalines. Would you belive 550+ hours continuous?

Using the loop improved life from just over 400 hrs average to 500 hours. And I think the new tub of batterries 'high energy' with date code of early 2029 improved the time more. The most recent pair of AA's could operate the radio down to 0.94V (1.88V total). All of my previous batteries would quit at 1.05V (total 2.10V).  This last pair of new batteries went 608 hours continuous.

So in closing there are some new tricks here that may influence a decision. For about US$45 one gets either a PL310/380 or a R9012 + A200 loop. For AM-BCB this looks like a coinflip, but the PL-310 really excels at SW and FM. And the R9012/loop gets one emergency radio type life from a pair of AA's. If one needs SSB theres the Tecsun PL-365 or this PL330 in the US$70-80 range.

Paul S. in CT FN31nl

PS: that soft mute question... As far as I know its an Automatic Gain Control function that amplifies the strongest 10db of signal, and reduces lower-powered signals. The problem is that the atmospherics  may cause the signal to fade. This causes the soft-mute function to go from a loud signal to a barely audible signal (aka: pumping). Fading normally produces this effect, but soft-mute makes it worse. The SYNC function is supposed to help this by supplying the carrier wave that fades. The problem with THAT is the audio is part of that faded carrier. Many of us here and in the Amateur community are of the opinion that the audio frequencies are NOT affected by the fading, just the carrier. Providing a carrier will recover the audio. Yet another 'can of worms' so to say.

The Courtesy Program Committee of the National Radio Club and International Radio Club of America are pleased to announce another DX Test. This time from KSEN 1150 kHz in Shelby, Montana, near the Canadian border. KSEN plays an oldies format with the slogan, “Good as Gold.” They’re a fixture in the Shelby area but can be difficult to log outside of Big Sky country. 

This test for distant listeners is being done with the generous support of the owners of KSEN, station management, and Chief Engineer Todd Clark. We can also thank the efforts of CPC member Paul Walker who used his connections in broadcasting to arrange yet another test. 

The test will be on late night Saturday-Early Sunday morning on November 8, 2020 starting at 12:01AM Mountain Time for one hour. This is 0700-0800 UTC so it may be tough to log in Europe. 

Test will be at the daytime power of 10,000 watts, but we are not yet certain about which antenna pattern may be available for the test. 

Todd is attempting to arrange a change to the ND pattern, but may be limited to the night pattern which favors the North and South, with nulls towards E-W. 

Test will consist of voice announcements, Morse Code ID’s, sweep tones, off-hook telephone sounders, etc. The station has a small staff, so they have asked the CPC Committee to handle reception reports and verifications. Verifications will be by e-mail only. A specially designed QSL card in Adobe PDF format will be sent to successful reports. 

The CPC prefers audio recordings in .MP3 or .WAV format. These should be e-mailed to: les@...

Put this on your calendar, and don’t miss the chance to log a great station in Northern Montana. Thanks again to CE Todd Clark and Paul Walker for this great DX Test. 

73,

Les Rayburn, N1LF

121 Mayfair Park

Maylene, AL 35114

EM63nf

NRC & IRCA Courtesy Program Committee Chairman

Member WTFDA, MWC

Perseus SDR, Elad FDM-S2 SDR, AirSpy + Discovery, SDRPlay RSP-2 Pro, Sony XDR-F1HD [XDR Guy Modified], Dennon TU-1500RD, Sangean HDT-1X, Ray Dees RDS Decoders, Korner 9.2 Antenna, FM-6 Antenna, Kitz Technologies KT-501 Pre-amps, Quantum Phaser, Wellbrook ALA1530 Loop, Wellbrook Flag, Clifton Labs Active Whip. 

“Nothing but blues and Elvis, and somebody else’s favorite song…”