[TenTec] New hams (doesn't matter what generation)

[Ken Brown]

New hams have not had time to learn how to get their CW signal zero beat 
to a received one they intend to QSO. Even if the radio has a properly 
working method to know where your CW signal is going to be, such as a 
sidetone that is pure enough and accurate in frequency enough to use as 
a reference, new hams don't yet understand and know how to use it. (Yes 
I know there are some new rigs that will automatically do this. We 
started talking about a cheap beginners rig, so I'll assume the rig 
doesn't have this feature.)  When using a narrow filter some skill is 
required to get a CW signal tuned in so that it is not being attenuated 
by the filter skirts. This is not a difficult skill to learn, yet is is 
a skill that new hams have likely not mastered.

So, now we have a new ham, who has not learned the skill of getting his 
transmit signal right on the specific frequency of a CQing station he 
wants to call, and also has not learned how to quickly and easily get a 
signal right in the center of his receiver's bandpass. Is he going to 
establish and complete more QSOs with a 500 Hz filter or a wider one? I 
say the wider one.

Almost everyone can distinguish audio tones of different frequencies 
from one another, and can focus their attention on one out of many, as 
long as they are not too close in frequency and the one being focussed 
on is not too low in amplitude compared to the others. This too is a 
skill that most of us develop. Still I think most everyone has some 
innate ability to discriminate between audio notes, without intentional 
practice. Everyone has the ability to listen to a particular conversion 
in a room full of people, all involved in separate conversions, so long 
as the one they are focusing on is loud enough compared to others. And 
loud enough is not necessarily louder than the rest.

I don't care what kind of key, keyer, keyboard or other device is used, 
it is absolutely untrue that for any generation of ham a 500 Hz filter 
is necessary to receive CW. For an inexperienced ham a 500 Hz filter is 
more likely to be an impediment than an aid.

DE N6KB