[RTTY] RTTY DX'ing tutorial

[G3YYD]

My normal practice for calling DX is to send my callsign twice after the
TU/UP then pause and start sending the call once pause and so on until I
hear him work someone hopefully me if not then wait for the TU/UP before
starting the cycle again.

The reason for the initial 2 callsign is it give a chance for the DX to tune
me in if I have worked out where he is listening next. Then the single calls
are to ensure maximum chance to correctly character sync and for me to be to
listen for the DX reply and not missing it because I am transmitting.

73 David G3YYD

-----Original Message-----
From: RTTY [mailto:rtty-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Larry
Sent: 10 April 2016 19:13
To: rtty at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [RTTY] RTTY DX'ing tutorial

Running from XV the spectrum would look like a DC scope trace with ripple at
the top. Pulling signals out is difficult. As noted, it is often easier to
pick out signals at the edge of the pile.

Watching a pan adapter for FT4 and VK0 you could often see the number of
pips was almost the same when they called a station as when they said "TU
FT4JA UP".  That's sad. You would think people would realize that it only
slows down things and could potentially make the difference as to whether
the get a QSO or not.

73, Larry W6NWS

On 4/10/2016 2:32 PM, Jeff AC0C wrote:
> Alex,
>
> Unless you know you have a monster signal at the DX location, you may 
> want to try at the edges of the pileup, especially if you notice the 
> guy moving around quite a lot in the pileup.
>
> The pileup on the DX end can sound like a undifferentiated smear of 
> signals with virtually no decent decodes.  That naturally pushes the
> ops toward the end of the pile where he can pick out some signals.   
> Also, in some of the DXpeditions the RTTY ops are not very fluent with 
> the mode and there is even more of a tendency to work the edges.
>
> 73/jeff/ac0c
> www.ac0c.com
> alpha-charlie-zero-charlie
>
> -----Original Message----- From: Alex, VE3NEA
> Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2016 1:19 PM
> To: rtty at contesting.com
> Subject: [RTTY] RTTY DX'ing tutorial (was: VK0EK RTTY Update)
>
> I started chasing DX using RTTY three months ago, after 35 years of 
> DX'ing CW only. Trying to learn the new mode, I searched the Internet 
> for RTTY tutorials, and I found quite a few, but all of them either 
> explained how to set up MMTTY, the software that I do not use, or how 
> to operate in the contests. The only presentation on RTTY DX'ing I 
> could find just told me that I needed two macros, my callsign and "599 
> TU" - something that I had already figured out myself. How to crack 
> the pileups, how to find the DX listening frequency, how to choose the 
> right time to send your call - none of this was covered in the 
> publications that I could find. I know that many of the subscribers to 
> this list are experienced RTTY DX'ers, even though it is a contesting 
> list, some are even on the Honor Roll - perhaps you guys could share 
> your RTTY DX'ing techniques with those of us who are just making their 
> first steps in this area.
>
> Having no RTTY-specific skills, I tried to use my CW techniques to 
> crack the RTTY pileups, and this worked, to some extent, but I quickly 
> discovered that there are some important differences between the two 
> modes that needed to be addressed. For examnple, in CW I use QSK to 
> know when the DX station starts transmitting, so I can abort my own 
> transmission and listen. Since there is no QSK in RTTY, those who send 
> their call 4 or 5 times, have no idea if the DX has already answered 
> someone or is still listening for a new call. They just keep calling, 
> often on top of the station being worked. My solution to that is to 
> ensure that my own messages are shorter than anything the DX might 
> send.
> Since the DX usually sends something like <call> 599 <call>, I figured 
> I should send my own call no more than 2 times, then I will catch at 
> least the end of the DX transmission and know in what stage the 
> current QSO is.
>
> There is another difference between CW and RTTY. When I find the DX 
> listening frequency in CW, I tune my TX about 100 Hz higher or lower, 
> since I know several others will be calling precisely on that 
> frequency and will interfere with each other. This often works in CW, 
> but not in RTTY: the RTTY decoders do not pick up the signals that are 
> 100 Hz off, so I have to either call on that exact frequency or tune a 
> few hundred Hz away, hoping that the DX will do the same.
>
> One technique that rarely worked for me in CW but worked much better 
> in RTTY is tailgating. If the DX operates simplex, quite often several 
> stations start calling him on the same frequency, resulting in no copy 
> at all. I wait until they finish calling, then, without any pause, 
> send my call once. On more than one occasion I added a new one to the 
> log using this trick.
>
> What works for you, and what doesn't? What extra hardware or software 
> does one need to be competitive in the RTTY pileups?
> Please share your experience.
>
> 73 Alex VE3NEA
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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