[CQ-Contest] Sending the other guy's call - AGAIN!!

[Julius Fazekas]

Amen to that Tree!

If in doubt, send both calls... But I always find it helpful in extremely congested situations if the replying station leads off with my call, versus theirs. No questions then...

There were several instances while S&Ping I had three stations think I was calling them, sending the station I was going to log call first hopefully eliminated anyone getting a NIL.

It would be of benefit if somehow this message could be spread to non-contesters who play in events like this better too... Maybe notes in the DX columns and awards forums?

73,
Julius

Julius Fazekas
N2WN

Tennessee Contest Group
TnQP http://www.tnqp.org/

Elecraft K2/100 #4455
Elecraft K3/100 #366


--- On Wed, 1/28/09, Tree <tree at kkn.net> wrote:

> From: Tree <tree at kkn.net>
> Subject: [CQ-Contest] Sending the other guy's call - AGAIN!!
> To: cq-contest at contesting.com
> Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2009, 9:54 AM
> The CQ 160 contest is one that will go down in history. 
> Many records
> were broken.  However, along with that went really bad QRM
> as the narrow
> spectrum available to places like Europe and Japan were
> packed full of
> big signals.  
> 
> This situation really requires some improved operating
> techniques to 
> make as sure as possible that real QSOs are being made and
> logged.
> 
> Most of these have been mentioned before, but are worth
> repeating.
> 
> 1. Learn how to QNZ!!  QNZ is a old CW traffic term that
> really should
> have a "real" Q signal.  It means to zero beat
> your signal to mine.  
> The term zero beat can be best understood if you listen to
> two carries,
> slightly off frequency, in the AM mode of a receiver.  As
> the two
> signals approach the same frequency, you will hear a beat
> tone that
> represents the difference between the signals.  When the
> signals are
> on the same frequency, there is "zero beat".  
> 
> When the band is crowded - most people have to crank in
> narrow filters
> in order to hear weak signals calling them.  I was running
> at 250 or 
> 300 Hz bandwidth many times.  This means I can
> "hear" signals that are
> only 125 or 150 Hertz withing my transmitted signal. 
> Furthurmore, the
> guys next to me are listening to signals that might be only
> 200 Hz from
> my signal.  If you call me 200 hertz off (as perhaps one or
> two percent
> of the people who call do) - I might not hear you.  And if
> I did, the
> guy on the next frequency might think you are working him
> instead of me.
> 
> This results in a certain number of "not-in-log"
> situations every contest.
> 
> I always kind of laugh to myself when someone calls me way
> off frequency.
> I can only hear this when they are pretty loud - but what
> it means is
> that when they call a DX station - there is NO WAY they are
> going to be
> heard.  If you are having a hard time having people come
> back to you, it
> might just mean that you need to turn off your RIT.  I had
> one station 
> calling a DX station who was up about 300 Hz right in the
> middle of my
> passband.  He wasn't ever going to work that DX station
> and he was just
> making a bunch of QRM for me.  This was not a good
> situation for anyone.
> 
> 2. I have ranted about this before - but there were times
> that I was not
> sure a QSO had occurred because the guy who called me never
> bothered to 
> send my call.  I have two QSOs that I initially took out of
> my log because
> I was not 100 percent sure I was the one being worked.  
> 
> Imagine the following situation.  I am happily CQing and
> working USA 
> stations, and out of the blue - a DX station sends his call
> just after
> I finish a CQ.  Normally, I would expect that this station
> is calling 
> some loud zone 15/16 station that I can't hear - and I
> ignore it.  But
> let's say I just decide that maybe this guy is calling
> me...  so - I get
> brave - and send the call back to the guy and then I hear
> an exchange
> come back with the right timing.  Did I just have a QSO? 
> Furthurmore,
> if I ask something like "call?" - I often get
> nothing in return.  Normally,
> I will erase these "QSOs" from my log.  Had the
> station just sent my 
> call once - then I would have known for sure I was the one
> being heard.
> 
> I know it takes some time - but if you don't do in
> cases where the QSO
> isn't a "slam dunk" - you are risking a
> not-in-log.  I ended up putting
> these two QSOs back in my log because they were at the
> start of a run
> of DX stations - so I had more confidence that I had
> control of the 
> frequency.  
> 
> Sometimes in this situation, the station calling me bothers
> to send THEIR
> callsign - when I sent it perfectly.  This really confuses
> me even more
> and makes me more likely to think they were talking to
> someone else.  
> 
> 3. Move up the band if you can!!  Lots of people reported
> having good 
> results up the band.  
> 
> 73 Tree N6TR
> tree at kkn.net
> _______________________________________________
> CQ-Contest mailing list
> CQ-Contest at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest