Stew Perry Topband Challenge - Spring
Call: K1LT
Operator(s): K1LT
Station: K1LT
Class: Single Op HP
QTH: EM89ps
Operating Time (hrs): 9:48
Radios: SO2R
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 474 Total Score = 2,089
Club: Mad River Radio Club
Comments:
I'm still slowly integrating my new phased array beam steering stuff
with my station. Since December I laid out and built a circuit board
that plugs into the Zedboard to provide more ports for receivers. The
Zedboard is the trade name of the Xilinx Zynq-based single board
computer I am using to run the beam steering firmware. That was a fun
project because it required the use of a hot air rework tool and
reflow soldering techniques.
I have six receivers now although only 4 are immediately useable.
After another slight revision of the receiver board layout I'll order
3 more from ExpressPCB and build them. At that point I'll be able to
move the existing short verticals to the new array controller.
Alternately, I could extend the 4 element north / south array to 6
elements, or add noise receivers. Decisions, decisions ...
December also provided the opportunity to redesign my Ethernet relay
controller board to work around the thoroughly unavailable AMIS-39101
octal high-side relay driver. That part went end of life and
disappeared about 5 years ago immediately after I chose it for my
first design. For a replacement I chose a MAX-14915 which has more
functionality and comes in a 44-pin quad flat no-lead package with 20
mil pin spacing and a bottom pad. That was challenge to solder.
Nevertheless, the reflow technique seems to work reliably. Molten
leaded solder in no-clean flux flows better than water. The long term
goal is a 4 by 6 cross-point switch for my main antennas and radios.
Last summer and fall I made a little progress at waterproofing the
feedlines for all the short verticals. There might be some payoff in
that I didn't have to go investigate bad SWR prior to the contest -
all of the short verticals seemed to be working properly.
During the CQ 160 I missed the lack of a decent full-duplex capability
because I had all of the short verticals tied up as arrays. For the
spring Stew, I decided I could live with a 2 element north / south
array and use the other 2 elements exclusively for the transmit signal
nulling mode. The problem I observed during the CQ 160 when using
magic-Tees for 2 of the verticals still occurs to a small degree, so
some more investigation is necessary. But I could get to within about
3 kHz of my transmit signal and still hear other stations.
There was a little activity 2045Z so I started early. The early start
allowed me to rediscover all of the settings that have to be changed
to put the station in SO2V mode. Someday I should make a checklist
because my memory continues to degrade. After 15 minutes I stopped
for almost an hour to finish configuring the station and to have
dinner.
I started again at 2150Z and ran on one radio while pouncing with the
other. A little software blob reads the VFO frequency from the
secondary radio and puts that frequency into the B-VFO of the main
radio, thus implementing SO2V. That with some finger memory allows
almost effortless second radio pounces while the main radio CQs when
it can. Occasionally, the software somewhere screws up, and the main
radio stays stuck in "split" mode until I push a button. When that
happens the main radio CQ starts to happen on the pounce frequency
which makes me sound like a lid to the station I just worked. That
happened only once this contest.
I has beginning to wonder where the Europeans were when I realized
that it was still daylight, although one couldn't tell through the
thick clouds. Sunset was at 2337Z and G0EFO called at 2331Z although
he didn't stick around long enough for me to catch his grid. At 2338Z
F6AGM began a run of 3 sunset Europeans with a really strong signal.
After that initial burst, the Europeans seemed to come in at a steady
rate of one every 5 - 10 minutes or so until midnight local when the
rate picked up a bit. Almost all the Europeans where from the north.
During the first half of the common EU / NA darkness period the QSB
was very rapid and thorough. I started QSOs with several stations
that I could not complete because they disappeared before I could
catch their grid. Several other EU stations duped me - I assume this
happened because they were unable to hear my acknowledgment the first
time we worked. Later in the evening the QSB went away.
Static was fairly low at the beginning of the evening and slowly built
to a moderate level by morning.
Did not work any KH6 stations this year but worked K9FD in BL11 at
0411Z. Does that make him "not a KH6" because he didn't add the
portable indicator? Hawaii was not as early as last year at 0355Z but
almost.
The tail end of European sunrise brought a lot of PA, OZ, ON and SM
and a scattering of others but relatively few G. The last European
was G3OQT in IO92 at 0630Z. Last year I worked GM3OQT in IO66 around
the same time. Are these 2 calls the same station? Googling "GM3OQT
G3OQT" does not match any documents. Maybe GM3OQT is a busted call
from last year.
After G3OQT the rate went to zero and I went to zero for 4 hours
except for when the cat puked. I felt "done" because I had already
passed last year's score and QSO count.
At 1044Z I returned to the radio after an exertion of much willpower.
>From then to sunrise was a slow trickle of 4 point or less continental
US stations. 5 minutes after sunrise VK3NX called with a lovely
signal. He gave me a 559 along with a grid so I gave him 579 because
I could hear him just fine. I never learned to look at the S-meter
for the "S" of signal reports, because then I would have to give too
many 519 reports. W4EF and XE2X helped keep the point per QSO average
up and then I stopped after 3 more points.
Other than EA8 no Africa, South America, or Asia heard. I apparently
missed VP2.
This year's average points per QSO was 4.41 compares with "good"
years
from prior December Stew's. The spring Stew seems to have taken the
"next best Stew" rank away from the October event.
DX worked: DL (8), EA8, F (5), G (5), HA (3), I (4), KH6, KL, KP2, LA,
LY (2), LZ, OH, OK (4), OM, ON (5), OZ (4), PA (6), S5 (2), SM (7), SP
(2), UR (3), VK, XE, and YL for a total of 25 entities and 71 DX QSOs.
Last year I commented on the "northern exposure" and I would make the
same observation this year, even for the whole season.
Equipment: K3S/100, P3, 8410 at 800-1000 watts, K3/100, homebrew SO2R
stuff, 2 phased array / SDR receiving systems, 12 Beverages (only 1
used for 1 QSO), 'tee' antenna 60 feet tall over 75 radials.
Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/
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