[VHFcontesting] Digital Modes (FT8) in January 2019 Contest

[Mark Spencer]

I'm still un decided about the digital mode issue for VHF and up contesting.  

I like the process gain that the digital modes can provide for making contacts under difficult conditions and or exploiting propagation modes such as meteor scatter on the higher bands etc and I'm hesitant to give them up.   That being said, I'm not a fan of using FT8 or other similar modes when the signal levels are high enough for traditional modes.   I'm also not a fan of cramming all the FT8 traffic on a given VHF or higher band into a single SSB audio channel and that style of operation has little appeal to me. 

At this point if I had to choose between analog or using FT8 I expect I would typically choose analog.  For the time being my approach is to only run digital modes when I am not making any headway on analog modes and to try and get other stations to move away from the 50 MHz FT8 calling channel.   

I'll be curious to see what happens with regards to digital mode operations and VHF and up contesting.    I was encouraged that I was able to detect a band opening on 50.125 with a simple whip antenna on my rover during the last contest and picked up an extra multiplier that way (:  

Although I did work out a way to  detect band openings on the FT8 calling channel while driving (thanks to some help from some other hams) waiting for my computer to verbally announce that there is a "new grid" isn't as appealing to me as listening to static on 50.125 while driving between grids.   I don't think I will ever rove again with the computer doing the work of detecting band openings on 50 MHz.  It just doesn't seem like ham radio to me (:

73

Mark S
VE7AFZ

mark at alignedsolutions.com
604 762 4099

Mark Spencer

Aligned Solutions Co.
mark at alignedsolutions.com
604 762 4099
> On Jun 19, 2019, at 2:06 PM, Sean Waite <waisean at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> One idea I was thinking about. In some of the big HF contests there are
> unofficial overlays. Other groups make a super set of the rules and people
> can compete in those categories.
> 
> For instance, the ARRL rules stay as they are. Another group starts to
> support the "No Digital Modes" Overlay and then people can apply that. Or
> whatever. Competition is the same, but people can cut out parts they don't
> like. Maybe that ends up fragmenting the contests more but a) we're not
> going to see FT8/FT4 go away for a while (I'm okay with this) and b) this
> may actually end up driving more people to be on SSB/CW, which in turn coud
> pull more people onto SSB/CW.
> 
> Sean WA1TE
> 
>> On Wed, Jun 19, 2019 at 4:59 PM Dave Miller <ve7hr at ve7hr.ca> wrote:
>> 
>> Nomex suit on
>> I think the simple solution is to make FT8 contacts worth 0.001 pts per
>> QSO.
>> Keep 6M in contest as when it opens it one of few wasy to get mults when
>> you live on BC
>> Solves all problem.
>> Nomex suit off
>> Dave
>> VE7HR
>> 
>> On Wed, Jun 19, 2019 at 8:44 AM Paul Kiesel via VHFcontesting <
>> vhfcontesting at contesting.com> wrote:
>> 
>>> I've finally come to the realization that digital is here to stay. I
>> hate
>>> that not so many SSB and CW contacts can be made now during the contests.
>>> It's not that they are superior to FT8, but that operating in the contest
>>> is a hell of a lot less fun without them.
>>> 
>>> In recent years' June contests, I've competed in the Single Op/High Power
>>> category against all others in the same category. But, I've operated
>> solely
>>> on 50 MHz because it's a challenge to beatothers who run many or all of
>> the
>>> higher bands. It used to bother me a lot that I could beat others both in
>>> number of QSOs and number of multipliers and still not win because of the
>>> points advantages given for use of bands 222 MHz and above. Now, I
>> welcome
>>> this challenge, even though I know I will not win in the category. But,
>> the
>>> guys running all the high bands during the contest know they are
>> competing
>>> against me. This makes operating on the higher bands an advantageous
>>> opportunity to my competition. The result of this is that they will make
>> as
>>> many contacts as they can on all available bands while being careful to
>> not
>>> neglect 50 MHz. Plannin