Topband: FT8 vs other modes - my numbers

[Tim Shoppa]

Mike, you are buying into a myth that both supporters and detractors of FT8
perpetuate. The myth that FT8 is superior for DX'ing, to other modes.

2018 was my "year of FT8". I participated in several on-air WSJT new
feature tests including DXpedition mode testing. I spent the vast majority
of my on-air hours, outside of contests, on FT8. I CQ'd a lot on FT8 and
also chased DX on FT8.

You ask: " Productive in what way?  To work new ones? ". I specifically
checked by 2018 log statistics for new band slots. I worked 4 new band
slots on 160M in 2018 - zero on FT8. I worked 13 new ones on 80M in 2018 -
none on FT8. I worked 5 new ones on 40M in 2018 - none on FT8. And so on.

You also ask: "How many countries did you work on FT8 that you did not or
could not work on any other mode." My answer: I worked 4 ATNO's in 2018.
None did I need FT8 to confirm.

Now, I did work 13 of DXpeditions in 2018 for new digital mode DXCC credit
in 2018. If I look at these stats, 8 of them I worked on RTTY, and 5 I
worked on FT8. But the ones I worked on FT8 completely neglected RTTY -
they never did any RTTY at all or made only a handful of RTTY Q's. I'm sure
I could've completed a RTTY QSO with any of those 5 if they had made an
effort on RTTY.

No matter how I slice it or dice it, FT8 is not a superior mode. Both the
detractors and supporters of FT8 are suffering from the myth that FT8 makes
DX'ing easier. It does not. I tried hard to max out FT8 using any
quantitative measure in 2018 - just look at the number of hours I invested
- and FT8 came up short in every single measure, including the
hard-DX-oriented measures you propose.

Tim N3QE


On Sat, Feb 2, 2019 at 2:28 PM W0MU Mike Fatchett <w0mu at w0mu.com> wrote:

> FT8 was not created to be a rate mode.  It is a weak signal mode.  For
> those of us a long way from the East Coast and salt it allows us to work
> stations that we probably had very little shot of working without FT8.
>
> Productive in what way?  To work new ones?  Check!    DXing is not
> necessarily about rate, I thought that is what contests were for.
>
> How many countries did you work on FT8 that you did not  or could not
> work on any other mode.  That would be my definition of productive.
>
> Productive to me is working new ones with the least amount of time
> expended.
>
> W0MU
>
> On 2/1/2019 9:12 AM, Tim Shoppa wrote:
> > There are some untrue things being assumed here, as if they are
> advantages
> > to FT8 that make FT8 be a more productive mode for DX'ing.
> >
> > In fact FT8 is the least productive of all modes I used in 2018. And I
> was
> > on FT8 a lot in 2018. I tried hard to be productive in FT8 - measured in
> > Q's per hour, or DXCC , or any other quantitative measure. And FT8 was
> far
> > and away the least productive mode for me.
> >
> > You will note I am no stranger to digital modes - I am often in top 3 of
> CQ
> > WW RTTY in USA SO HP(A). So please take for granted that I am competent
> at
> > digital modes and my poor FT8 results are not because I'm a poor digital
> > mode operator.
> >
> > In below calculations I use "half hour off time" calculations, in
> > calculating on time for each mode. "Half hour off time" calculations are
> > super commonly done in contests.
> >
> > In 2018 I was on CW for 481 hours. I made 32610 QSO's for a rate of 68
> per
> > hour and worked 185 DXCC.
> >
> > In 2018 I was on SSB for 107 hours. I made 7344 QSO's for a rate of 69
> per
> > hour and worked 104 DXCC.
> >
> > In 2018 I was on RTTY for 250 hours. I made 13319 QSO's for a rate of 53
> > per hour and worked 117 DXCC's.
> >
> > In 2018 I was on FT8 for 376 hours. I made 6460 QSO's for a rate of 17
> per
> > hour and worked 110 DXCC's.
> >
> > BY ANY QUANTITATIVE MEASURE, FT8 was my least productive mode by far.
> >
> > I DO NOT HAVE A SUPERSTATION. In fact I just have a single wire antenna.
> > But I have worked hard on developing my operating skills in all modes in
> my
> > 40 years of being a ham.
> >
> > If I had to choose one mode in 2019 to exercise and improve my skills, it
> > would be phone. I can get on for a half hour in Tuesday night phone fray
> > with 100W and make Q's at a rate of 40-60Q's an hour (rates completely
> > unachievable with FT8). While I have greatly improved my phone skills in
> > the past couple years, I still think there's lots of room for
> improvement!
> >
> > Tim N3QE
> > _________________
> > Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband
> Reflector
> _________________
> Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband
> Reflector
>