[CQ-Contest] Can you not hear me now?

[Ria Jairam]

The world above 50MHz is well ahead of the curve when it comes to
assistance, weak signal modes and other technology. For example in some
contests you can use chat rooms and telephone to solicit contacts, a
definite no-no in HF contesting.

But there are different challenges on the UHF/SHF bands and I'm only now
getting into that.

73
Ria, N2RJ
On Thu, Jun 15, 2017 at 5:25 PM Zack Widup <w9sz.zack at gmail.com> wrote:

> I was curious about the same things. I have not yet used JT65 but I
> got very interested in it after a presentation at the VHF Weak-Signal
> Forum at Dayton this year. I have downloaded the software and want to
> play with it.
>
> Would I use it in a VHF contest? I don't know yet. So far I have
> entered most VHF contests as a Single-Op QRP Portable. I don't take a
> computer along.  I log on paper and then enter the log into the
> computer when I get home. A computer running JT65 would be something
> else to drain my battery, and I am usually trying to conserve battery
> power as much as possible.  I've been on a pretty tight budget the
> last couple years and don't want to buy another battery. But I do want
> to experiment with JT65 at home and see how I like it.
>
> 73, Zack W9SZ
>
>
> On Thu, Jun 15, 2017 at 12:15 PM, John Geiger <af5cc2 at gmail.com> wrote:
> > You bring up a good point about digital modes Tor.  From watching the DX
> > cluster, it seemed that quite a few stations probably spent most of the
> > contest on 50.276 running JT65.  Also, how do you keep from QRMing each
> > other when several stations are all on 50.276?
> >
> > 73 John AF5CC
> >
> > On Thu, Jun 15, 2017 at 2:45 PM, RT Clay <rt_clay at bellsouth.net> wrote:
> >
> >> Somewhat off-topic, but with meteor scatter (even when using MSK144),
> you
> >> usually CAN hear the other signals. The advantage of MSK144 over ear
> copy
> >> is that it can send information in very short meteor bursts that are not
> >> long enough for SSB.
> >> An equal problem on VHF seems to be that many people are going to
> digital
> >> modes by default, even when signals might be very strong. This makes
> qsos
> >> take much much longer than necessary (one transmission on JT65 for
> example
> >> takes 1 minute). I made one MSK144 qso during the contest with a station
> >> 800 miles away on 2m. He was 56-57 (via tropo) and the qso would have
> been
> >> much easier and faster on SSB. He could have probably worked many more
> >> stations by calling cq using SSB.
> >>
> >> Similarly, 50.276 is now jammed with JT65 during 6m openings. Nearly all
> >> of the qsos I have made there have been with signals strong enough for
> easy
> >> CW/SSB copy, but using JT65 forces each qso to take several minutes
> just to
> >> exchange a report and grid.
> >>
> >> Tor
> >> N4OGW
> >>
> >>     On Thursday, June 15, 2017 7:16 AM, James Cain <
> >> jamesdavidcain at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>
> >>   The latest ARRL Contest Update newsletter summarized some 3830 ARRL
> June
> >> VHF  Contest comments as follows:
> >>
> >>  "In the soapbox comments from the most recent June ARRL VHF Contest
> many
> >> stations were reporting the use of the MSK144 digital mode for making
> QSOs
> >> where a SSB or CW path did not appear to exist. MSK144 can be sent and
> >> received using the WSJT-X program by Joe Taylor, K1JT. MSK144 uses
> >> exchange  sequences as fast a five seconds to take advantage of
> propagation
> >> that might
> >>  occur due to meteor scatter."
> >>
> >>  Way back in the ancient days of radio there was a saying:
> >>
> >>  "You can't work them if you can't hear them."
> >>
> >> Maybe we need an updated saying:
> >>
> >>  "You can work them even if you can't hear them."
> >>
> >>  K1TN
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> >>
> >>
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