Mark, my experience mirrors yours. I find that I have come to depend almost
unconsciously on being able to see what is happening around my tuned
frequency. The resolution bandwidth of the Spectrum Scope is about one kHz
which gives it the merit of a fair little spectrum analyzer. It is
especially useful for setting up AM transmission and for generally
monitoring the spectrum of one's transmitted signal.
The PRO2 greatly improved the SS over the original PRO. It is now possible
to see very weak signals down to the noise level and detect their presence
both by sound and scope. By having the blue background serve as a high-water
mark, you have an ongoing history of what has "been" on the band as well.
I once had the Heathkit SB-620 and found it useless. The SS, as far as I
have been told, is far superior to the Yaesu or Kenwood panadaptors as well.
It is interesting that in the design of the PRO2, the SS is a completely
separate receiver in every respect so its characteristics can be set -
attenuation, span, etc. without regard to affecting the operation of the
main receiver(s).
The SS is something that one has to live with for awhile to really
appreciate what all it is showing you. But take it away, and I really miss
it in a hurry! <:}
73/72, George
Amateur Radio W5YR - the Yellow Rose of Texas
Fairview, TX 30 mi NE of Dallas in Collin county EM13QE
"In the 57th year and it just keeps getting better!"
<mailto:w5yr@att.net>
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark Erbaugh" <mark@microenh.com>
To: <tentec@contesting.com>
Sent: Monday, August 11, 2003 9:48 PM
Subject: Re: [TenTec] Re: Continuing Orion evaluation/Dragonball
> I have owned both the Icom 756 and 756 Pro (which I sold in anticipation
of
> the Orion). I found the spectrum display very usable in those radios.
>
> I did use it to scan a large section (the max sweep range was, I think 100
> kHz) of a band for activity. For example, last fall there was a special
> event commemerating Route 66. There were a dozen or so stations with
> different calls operating from various locations on the route. The
generally
> operated around .266. I would use the spectrum display to look for
activity
> around .266 and tune each one in to see if it was the special event and
one
> that I needed.
>
> I also used it with narrow CW filters to see activity beyond what I was
> hearing. Using the narrow filter made it easier to copy a single station,
> but I could use the spectrum display to help me tune in the next signal
> without having to go to a wider filter.
>
> I used to have a Kenwood TS940 with the SM220 with pan adapter. I did not
> find that pan adpater display very useful, but I did find the spectrum
> display on the 756 very useful.
>
> Mark
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