[TenTec] Is the Orion Noisy?

[Grant Youngman]

> The newest narrow roofing filters became 600 and 300 Hz.
> Do you really need a 300 Hz roofing filter? Probably not, but 
> it allows a 1 kHz or 500 Hz dynamic range test.
> Personally I think 600 Hz is more than adequately narrow in 
> the real world.

Unfortunately (or some might argue, fortunately), some of the really hard
core CW contesters on this list are still using the Orion I, which we know
has an issue with the two most narrow roofing filters.  But I'd wager that
on the II, where that isn't an issue, they might take umbrage with Sherwoods
comments on that point.  Or not :-)

> Absolutely yes. S2 signals on the 7800 are less noisy, less 
> fatiguing and thus more pleasant than on the Orion II.

Presuming Sherwood's obervations are valid, the real question is WHY?  Is it
in the ear of the beholder?  Is there something different about the default
gain control parameters?  Are the Asians just better at writing DSP code?
Have some designers figured out better ways to conquer kT noise, or
eliminate ADC noise?  Do they have better unpublished algorithms? Are the
DSP processors materially different?  Are the RF front ends materially
different?  Is there something different about an "eastern" bit?  Is there
not enough memory space?  Or is there something else, more fundamental, than
who builds the DSP code at work?  Should the US designers just give up?  Are
they too stupid?  Does Sherwood own and use an Orion every day, or did he
borrow one for a while and and do some lab comparisons (I'm not knocking
Sherwood, and not inviting yet another threat of a lawsuit)?  How often and
under what variety of conditions did he make the comparison?  How does
"pleasant" relate to S/N ratio or the actual ability to copy a weak signal
close to the noise floor. (The statement as quoted, is not terribly
meaningful, IMHO).  Are US designers not sufficiently "inscrutible"?  Did
the 7800 designers  immerse their IC's in Naquida (correct spelling unknown,
ask the SG-1 guys) ;-)

All valid questions, I suppose.