> Please explain why my 100W produces S9 signals in Europe.
>
> If I put on my 500W amplifier, the signal in Europe sometimes
> increases to S9+20 (no Lulu, this not a case of S-meteritis). Of
> course, more often the indicated increase is 5-8 dB.
Without knowing what the person at the other end is doing, and
how his S meter works, it is impossible to say why the change is
reported as more than the power change Tony.
Most S meters are pretty poor (most of my receivers are about 1dB
or LESS at the bottom end of the scale, and some are only 3dB
per S unit at the top). When the signal is near the level of noise or
QRM, even a 1 dB change can be very dramatic sounding to us.
Also, there can be considerable fading from moment to moment.
It's like you are trying to measure ocean depth while there are tall
swells rolling past your boat. Timing can change everything.
When those effects are filtered through a bunch of random humans
(who might want to please you with a nice report), who knows what
the reported change would be. One thing for sure, the ionosphere's
characteristics are not affected by anything close to the power
levels VOA can muster, let alone you or I. It is VERY linear, and
very much unaffected by us.
73, Tom W8JI
W8JI@contesting.com
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