[TenTec] Re: FULL QSK? What it is

Steve N4LQ n4lq at iglou.com
Thu Nov 11 16:08:29 EST 2004 

Ok. You want to know what full QSK is? Full QSK is when you can hear 
EVERYTHING that is on your frequency INCLUDING YOURSELF. Speed is NOT a 
factor. Speed could be INFINITE and you would still hear EVERYTHING.
Now the trick is how to accomplish this. To hear everything, you would need 
a separate receiver and transmitter. The receiver must be connected to it's 
antenna at ALL times and be able to receive other signals WHILE YOU ARE 
TRANSMITTING! To avoid overloading your receiver you have three choices:
1. Invent a new kind of receiver.
2. Run very low, QRP,  power.
3. Locate the RX and TX antennas some distance apart. (Like 100 miles)!
Keep in mind the choice number 3 requires a means of compensating for delays 
in the system.
That is FULL QSK. It is FULL DUPLEX.
FULL DUPLEX (as in telephones) IS DESIRABLE WITH ANY MODE OF COMMUNICATIONS, 
not just CW.
That is the goal to strive for. Ask yourself if you would prefer a home 
telephone with anything less than this. Yes there are lots, in fact the vast 
majority, of  CW operators who do not use what little QSK ability they have. 
They claim to be bothered by background noise and at times it bothers me too 
such as during summertime conditions on 80m. When the going gets rough, I 
just turn down the RF gain a bit and things quite down nicely. I never 
induce delay or go SEMI-BKIn as they call it. I'll probably never reach the 
goal of full duplex but will do my best.
To those that haven't learned the art of conversational CW, there is always 
hope. Next time you have a qso with another station just try asking him a 
question without ending the question with BK or a long call exchange. Just 
end it with a ? and STOP and wait. See what happens. Eventually he will wake 
up and realize he needs to do something like answer the question!
In our next article we will discuss the qualities of a good QSK rig.
Hope this helps.73
Steve N4LQ
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tommy" <aldermant at alltel.net>
To: <tentec at contesting.com>
Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2004 1:43 PM
Subject: Re: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC


> What IS full QSK?
>
> Maybe when you hear between dots and your sending  at no more than 30 wpm. 
> Or is it when you hear between words when your sending at 50 wpm, Or is it 
> when you know someone is breaking you when your sending at 70 wpm? Or is 
> it all of the above?
>
> Tom - W4BQF
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <al_lorona at agilent.com>
> To: <tentec at contesting.com>
> Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2004 12:38 PM
> Subject: RE: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC
>
>
>
> Is it full QSK?
>
> Al W6LX
>
>
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: tentec-bounces at contesting.com
>> [mailto:tentec-bounces at contesting.com]On Behalf Of Steve N4LQ
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 2004 4:39 PM
>> To: tentec at contesting.com
>> Subject: Re: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC
>>
>>
>> Phil et al.
>> Just to clear up any confusion. I got home from work and checked the
>> schematic on this mod. The T voltage is being uses, derived
>> from connector
>> 61 on the control board. This is driving Q16 which has been
>> changed to a
>> 2N5554. The emitter remains grounded and the collector runs
>> directly to J7,
>> the relay output. This is what keys my amp.
>>
>> Steve N4LQ
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: <al_lorona at agilent.com>
>> To: <tentec at contesting.com>
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 2004 1:01 PM
>> Subject: RE: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi, Steve,
>>
>> I believe I know why the previous owner did that to your Omni
>> VI. (And I'm
>> assuming you care!)
>>
>> Last night I made some measurements of the TX Enable signal
>> on the back
>> panel of the Omni VI. This line goes low at the beginning of
>> a dit or a dah,
>> then the RF comes on, just as it should. There is no problem
>> at the leading
>> edge.
>>
>> The problem is at the trailing edge. The TX Enable goes high
>> again, but the
>> RF doesn't shut off immediately, so there is a period of time
>> when the QSK
>> circuit in the amp is being told to go back to receive, yet
>> there is still
>> RF flowing. This is the problem.
>>
>> What is needed is for this signal to stay low just a little
>> bit longer,
>> until the RF ends completely, then it can go high again to
>> turn the diodes
>> in the QSK unit back to receive. There is a signal that will
>> do that in the
>> Omni; it's called the relay, and that explains why your
>> previous owner used
>> this signal. This is the line that is affected by the front panel DLY.
>>
>> I think I am going to do the same as your previous owner.
>> That is, I'm going
>> to bring out a line from the relay switching transistor, Q16
>> on the control
>> board, bypass the relay, and use that as my QSK line. I don't
>> know if it
>> will work yet, but that is my next plan.
>>
>> True QSK or full QSK, whatever you want to call it, is really hard to
>> achieve with an amplifer. The way you guys speak about  QSK on the
>> reflector, you aren't happy unless you can hear the band
>> between dits at 50
>> wpm, but that just isn't possible between an Omni and a cheap
>> amp like an
>> Ameritron, even with the QSK switch. About the only advantage
>> the QSK switch
>> affords you is the elimination of the mechanical relay in the amp.
>>
>> Anyway, that's the way I see it. Thanks again for the
>> information you gave
>> me.
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Al  W6LX
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: tentec-bounces at contesting.com
>> > [mailto:tentec-bounces at contesting.com]On Behalf Of Steve N4LQ
>> > Sent: Monday, November 08, 2004 5:54 PM
>> > To: tentec at contesting.com
>> > Subject: Re: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC
>> >
>> >
>> > Al. Whatever you do, call MFJ before you hook that thing up.
>> > I didn't  and
>> > blew diodes out of a rig. My QSK was external which made it
>> even more
>> > complicated.
>> > I can tell you this....The previous owner of my 6+ bypassed
>> > the amp relay in
>> > the rig and used the txd voltage to drive a little transistor
>> > which feeds
>> > directly to the amp relay jack. This seems to provide
>> > excellent keying for
>> > my Icom PW-1 with no sign of hot switching.
>> > Steve N4LQ
>> > ----- Original Message ----- 
>> > From: <al_lorona at agilent.com>
>> > To: <tentec at contesting.com>
>> > Sent: Monday, November 08, 2004 8:01 PM
>> > Subject: [TenTec] QSK with QSK-5PC
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Would someone who has successfully connected an Omni VI to an
>> > Ameritron
>> > amplifier equipped with the internal QSK-5PC board be willing
>> > to contact me
>> > off the list? I want to know how you connected the two.
>> >
>> > I have read Jim KH7M's previous posts on this subject and
>> > they are excellent
>> > for the external unit QSK-5, but the connections to the QSK-5PC are
>> > different enough that I cannot translate the connections in my head.
>> >
>> > Interestingly, a search of the Internet yields no information
>> > whatsoever on
>> > this. I am thinking of using the TX enable input on the back
>> > of the Omni to
>> > receive a handshaking signal from the QSK-5PC, but I want to talk to
>> > somebody who has done this.
>> >
>> > Thanks.
>> >
>> > Al  W6LX
>> >
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