Topband
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: Topband: The DXpedition FT8 quandary

To: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Re: Topband: The DXpedition FT8 quandary
From: Wes <wes_n7ws@triconet.org>
Date: Sat, 13 Apr 2019 08:00:10 -0700
List-post: <mailto:topband@contesting.com>
A ham friend, participant on many, many big DXpeditions, and a terrific CW/RTTY op, presented to our DX club a while back.  During  the presentation he asked for a show of hands of those who actually have audio on when operating digital modes.  I raised my hand, since on RTTY I feel that hearing the pileup is beneficial.  He shook his head and stated more-or-less that he loved FT-8 because he didn't have to listen to it for hours.  Draw your own conclusions of where this might be headed.  I've worked about 80 countries just fooling around with FT-8 but I don't claim them for DXCC credit, and in fact, none are new ones.

Re: financial support.  Personally, I contribute to NCDXF, INDEXA and individual expeditions I feel deserve it.  My DX club also supports NCDXF.  That said, after contributing a substantial amount to the snake oil salesman who organized a major expedition,  but made promises that he had no intention of keeping, I no longer contribute ahead of time.  If I judge an expedition to be worthy after the fact, I'll still contribute.

Wes  N7WS

On 4/12/2019 7:20 PM, Steve Ireland wrote:
G'day

FT-8 is so much less labour and operator skill-intensive than CW/SSB that it 
has a fatal attraction for DXpeditions - more people can be worked more easily 
and more quickly.

Added to this, "He who holds the gold makes the rules" and DXpeditions mostly 
hold the gold as we want to work them.

So if increasing numbers of DXpeditions are intending to use FT-8 on 160m what 
can we CW/SSB ops do about it to turn this around?

To start with, we can stop using FT-8 at all in our day-to-day 160m operation. The 
less stations there are on FT-8 on 160m the less temptation/likelihood there is of a 
DXpedition using FT-8 it - particularly if all the 160m stations with good transmit 
and receive antennas aren’t using it.

Perhaps even more important – and we come back to the gold metaphor - when you make a 
DXpedition donation – and please do so - clearly state you are interested in 160m 
CW/SSB and do not use FT-8.

Vy 73

Steve, VK6VZ

They ain't gonna work me.? I'm with you.? Did the FT-8 last summer for around 
400 Qs...that was quite enough.? If I don't make 200, 300 countries because I 
don't FT-8, so what?
KH7XS



---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus
_________________
Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband Reflector


_________________
Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband Reflector
<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>