Topband: Subject: Re: Why the DX doesn't always work split? Especially on the low bands

[N1BUG]

On 12/22/2012 08:18 PM, Steve Ireland wrote:
> On the 16 December, there was a nice opening into the eastern USA with
> signals to S6, but the static and general atmospheric noise was about the
> same level - a common phenomenon.  As it is summer in the southern half of
> the world, it is REALLY noisy!  I ended up asking for heaps of repeats
> mainly because of the noise.

Perhaps a comment from the other side of that same opening?

I called Steve a few times that morning but stopped because even 
with a 200 Hz filter and audio peaking it was difficult to hear when 
he came back to people through the callers. They were spread out 
some but it only takes a couple who call too long or with 
questionable/unfortunate timing to make things difficult when the DX 
is S7 and the callers are 20 to 30 over S9.

Steve had a relatively small pile (10 callers at a time?) of 
reasonably well behaved DXers. For me it was marginally OK working 
simplex but I very likely might have missed it once or twice had he 
come back to me. I heard Steve answer a few stations who did not 
copy him right away due to the other callers (I'm assuming, because 
there were others still calling and they subsequently seemed to hear 
him just fine when in the clear). That may have slowed his potential 
QSO rate somewhat but not drastically. With a few more callers or a 
couple who are particularly eager it can easily go from that to 
total chaos.

Of course there are times when there isn't enough space on the band 
for all DX with multiple callers to go split.

73,
Paul N1BUG