Topband: DX Conditions

[Steve Harrison]

On 1/23/2024 10:31 AM, Roger Kennedy wrote:
> Regarding RBN . . . are there many decent 160m receiving sites in Florida .
> . . or even in the Mid-West or West Coast?
There are over two dozen RBN setups west of our Mississississippi River, 
including VE; I don't rember seeing many in FL but then, I don't look 
for those when I'm watching the RBN. ZF9CW is a good, sensitive setup 
down in the Carib that I do look for, however. One of the more-sensitive 
out west may be W6YX, another VE6WX, both with at least two reporting 
receivers. There are several others at large contest stations such as 
ND7K who seem to report much less frequently. There are even several KH6 
stations on the RBN. BUT...
> It's just that nearly all the North American 160m RBN sites that show us
> Europeans are mainly all in the North-east . . . yet often you will have
> actual QSOs with stations further west.

You have to rember that MOST "serious" 160 ops are using low-noise 
antlers such as Bevs or Flags, when they give out those 559 or 579 
reports to you Euros. The RBN stations are invariably NOT using such 
sensitive (and directive) antlers; so of course, they're only going to 
hear what their low elevation, RBN-receiver antlers are hearing, amongst 
their local noise. Thus, it's rare that I see a west coast station 
report even a JA, let alone 9M2AX or similar, never mind in-the-noise 
European. Rember: the signal must be a dB or more out of the noise, long 
enough to copy a complete callsign at least several times, before it 
will even consider reporting you.

Steve, K0XP