Topband: K9AY terminated loop

[Nelson Moyer]

I finished my K9AY terminated loop just in time for the contest this
weekend, and I spent some time checking its performance on 80 meters. I run
an FT707 which dosen't have 160, so that band will have to wait for a new
rig. From this early experience, it looks like the null off the back is 3-5
S units using a 560 ohm terminating resistor, but it's pretty tough to get
an accurate reading from the LED string on the FT707. I'm interested in
performance reports from other users, and I'm especially interested in the
terminating resistor values giving the best null for stateside signals on
80 meters. I tried using an 80 meter ICE preamp, and that certainly helped
copy the weaker signals, but it also bumped up the QRN and QRM. The
terminated loop isn't much quieter on recieve than my HF2V; certainly
nowhere near as quiet as my small magnetic loop. The K9AY loop is basically
performing as a vertical with modest gain in the switched direction. This
impression is confirmed on 40 meters, where the antenna looses all gain and
behaves as a vertical, regardless of switch position.  Is there anybody out
there willing to share their experience with a K9AY?

Nelson
KU0A



--
FAQ on WWW:               http://www.contesting.com/topband.html
Submissions:              topband@contesting.com
Administrative requests:  topband-REQUEST@contesting.com
Problems:                 owner-topband@contesting.com