Jim Reid wrote:
>Setting the 259B to a precise frequency is just about NOT possible!
>Even on 40 meters, just a touch of the tuning knob, and the frequency
>deltas several kHz; and on the higher bands, it jumps 10's. At
>least mine does. Certainly no indication that there is any sort of
>reduction gear inside. My older 259 had a small variable cap
>on the other end of the tuning knob; my 259B almost certainly
>is the same from the way it behaves, hi.
Maybe we're being spoiled by these modern slow-tuning transceivers. It's
perfectly possible to set the 259 to 10kHz at 7MHz, which is closer than
almost any real antenna system could recognise. There is a slow-motion
drive built into the tuning capacitor on the 259, and presumably the
259B is the same. Frequency setting is miles better than the RF-1 - now
*that* is tricky!
>All in all, with these fast paced software changes coming out
>with new 259B's, you would almost think MFJ ought to have
>waited a few months until all the "bugs" were out, maybe,
>and the frequency synthesizer was ready to go.
It's the Dayton Effect - both the 259B and the AEA-CIA "had" to be ready
for the show, because there were hams waiting to buy them, and I guess
we all have to share some of that responsibility. But even now both
firms are still tweaking the firmware. Maybe the next hardware releases
will have a bi-directional RS-232 port for both data download *and*
uploading of the week's new firmware?
BTW, unless the synthesizer in the new AEA-CIA has been totally
redesigned, it's not DDS but similar technology to a VHF handheld,
followed by a downconverter to give an unbroken sweep across HF and up
to 54MHz.
73 from Ian G3SEK Editor, 'The VHF/UHF DX Book'
'In Practice' columnist for RadCom (RSGB)
http://www.ifwtech.demon.co.uk/g3sek
--
FAQ on WWW: http://www.contesting.com/towertalkfaq.html
Submissions: towertalk@contesting.com
Administrative requests: towertalk-REQUEST@contesting.com
Problems: owner-towertalk@contesting.com
Search: http://www.contesting.com/km9p/search.htm
|