[Skimmertalk] The New Radio – an audio and visual approach to contesting

[José Nunes CT1BOH]

>>>>The New Radio – an audio and visual approach to contesting


There is a trend in the new SDR radios that incorporates spectrum scopes
(panadapter, waterfall, etc). This trend will change the way we operate and
will impact the way we do Contesting.

The new way of operating is:

completely eliminate the VFO knob and tune with a mouse and keyboard keys
use both ears and eyes to identify stations
have visual information of the totality of the signals on a band

"The new radio" offers the visual element, along side the audio element and
the ability to tune from one signal into the next signal without having to
listen to the empty band space in between stations.

This will have a tremendous impact in the way we Contest, and will
accelerate activity, i.e. more QSOs in the time frame of the contest,
because tuning is many orders of magnitude faster. In a way we can say that
with the "new radio" there is no more Search&Pounce but only Pounce.

>>>>Contesting with "the old radio"

Before starting a run, the operator dials the band up and down, turning the
VFO knob, in a continuous way, looking for a clear frequency. Once he finds
and holds the frequency he is able to start a Run. While on the frequency he
is only aware of a few Khz, depending on his passband filter (500Hz in a CW
contest). He has no information whatsoever of what is adjacent to his
frequency and up and down the band.

If the operator stops the Run and goes into S&P mode, he has to dial the VFO
knob in a continuous way, going from one station into the other station.
While doing this, he will listen to the bands (empty space) in between the
stations.

>>>>Contesting with "the new radio"

Before starting a Run, the operator looks at a spectrum scope that shows him
the entire band at once. He visually identifies an empty spot and with a
mouse click is taken right to the frequency of choice. Once he finds and
holds the frequency he is able to start a Run. While on the frequency he is
aware of a few Khz, depending on his passband filter (500Hz in a CW
contest), AND to the all the signals present on the band. He not only has an
audio element (the passband of the radio) but a visual element (all the
signals on the band).

If the operator stops the run and goes into "S&P" mode, he can click and go
zero beat with each signal present on the band. There is no tuning anymore,
there in no more listening to the empty band space in between each station.
The visual element of the new radio will provide the operator the
information to go directly zero beat to each signal.

Sprectrum scopes have been around for more than 20 years. Radios like ICOM
781 have sprectrum scopes that have been used by Single Operators in the Non
Assisted categories. All the ICOM PRO series and ICOM 7800 radios have
scopes, as well as Yaesu FT2000 and FT9000 (with DMU units). We can say that
these scopes are very crude, but they already provide the visual element.

>>>>Blind Skimmer

When Alex, VE3NEA released CW Skimmer I sent him an e-mail and told him that
CW Contesting would be very different in the future.

CW Skimmer attracted my attention not because of the decoding element of
call signs, but for the very powerful and fast waterfall display, with a
resolution sufficient for reading Morse Code dots and dashes visually.

Note that CQWW Rules prohibit CW decoding of call signs in the Single
Operator Non Assisted categories, but it does not prohibit scopes.

With this in mind, I contacted again Alex, VE3NEA, and asked him if he could
release a version of his waterfall display, that provide a visual
representation of the dots and dashes, with the CW decoding disabled,
therefore suitable for the Single Operator Non Assisted class. He was very
receptive and we came up with Blind Skimmer.

In "Blind Mode", no call sign list is produced, none of the waterfall dots
and dashes are annotated with the text of the call sign and the up/down
arrows of the keyboard enable the operator to move the frequency of the
radio from one signal into the next (once again Alex was very receptive to
my suggestion of implementing this very efficient way of "zero beat
tuning").

>>>>What's next?

Contesting is a technological game, and because of this an evolving game.
The new generation scopes, with enough resolution to separate one signal
from the other will indeed accelerate the way we contest and this means more
QSOs

In the end its still one guy, his ability to make QSOs and winning the
Contest

73
José Nunes
CT1BOH

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José Nunes
CONTEST CT1BOH - http://www.qsl.net/ct1boh