If you are into serious DX then you have to be ready.
The shack is constantly up and running when I'm around. 80m starts
to open around mid afternoon for long path west coast USA around
December in Scotland and the amps need to be warm and armed. The
shack logger (Winlog32) is open to identify call prefixes at a
glance. Also running on the PC is DX
Atlas, Ionoprobe and Bandmaster all integrate and are very
powerful tools in the wings. It Ionoprobe gives you real time
updates on solar information, DXAtlas G line, long and short path
distances on an active globe with beam headings and up to date
MUF data. On 80m the DX often arrives from the east (Japan from
early evening and before sunrise in Scotland) and follows the
g line over to the west when the America s start to open up.
I work other bands also but 80 is the main passion
right now.
This is the special receiving section of the station was completed
in Jan 2005. It comprises 2 old FT-901 DM rigs. These are connected
to a system of Beverages and a K9AY loop system. The special receiving
antennas are aimed toward Japan, Australia etc to the north, east
and South and North America to the west. Also used for long path
signal detection at dusk and dawn.
The reason for running two rigs is, to make the change
from 160, 80 or 40 super fast. Wasting time retuning and spinning
dials can mean a missed rare one! (I also run separate transmitting
stations for each band) They are permanently positioned on the
DX portions of these bands. I use old rigs, these are amateur
band only sets and as such have quieter receivers when it comes
to equipment circuit noise and are less likely to have problems
with strong out of band signals which can prevent the receiver
hearing very weak in the noise DX signals. If you have never used
a 600 foot plus Beverage (300 - 900 foot long wire) or a 4 way
K9AY receiving loop system you really don't know how much you
are missing out there!
Also in the picture are a BHI neim1031 and an MFJ 784B,
the noise and QRM (Noise) killers
Above and below .. this is where you find out how mad
we really are! The bedroom has a shack also. Both the XYL (Wife)
and myself monitor HF throughout the night (DX never sleeps and
sometimes I think, neither do we) with an FT-101ZD and an FT-980..
err Teddy shouldn't have been there when the pic was taken...
the XYL is an avid 80m rag chew listener.
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