Thank you. I thought I knew my KX2 really well but I just learned a couple of things that look very promising to use when trying to dig out weak signals. Much appreciated.
Great update video. These tips really changed the game for me. I can actually hear stations now... turns out it was just a skill issue, so thanks very much for that. I think the only thing (that I know of) that you didn't cover was the auto notch filter for SSB. Few questions for you though... Why would you want to off center your passband instead of adjusting the VFO? Also what's the effective difference between using the APF or minimizing the passband?
Thank you! OK, so the reason why you would want to shift your passband instead of adjusting your VFO is if you’re having an SSB QSO with someone and you have nearby QRM. Dialing the VFO slightly off frequency to escape the QRM will change your pitch on the other end so you will end up sounding like an alien or something to the other person. Shifting the passband on the other hand will help you get away from a loud neighboring station without moving your transmit frequency. You are shifting your ears away from the noise without moving your mouth. Does that make sense? It’s a weird analogy. It’s not a perfect solution though. It just kinda helps a little. The APF is a narrow EQ boost in the center of the passband so it will actually lift weak CW signals up from the noise. Tightening up your passband filter gets rid of some of the noise surrounding the signal. So when a signal is right at the noise floor, the APF will help more than a tighter passband but you can always try both. Narrowing your passband filter too much though will lead to “ringing” which will make it harder to hear the signal, so experiment. HTH AUTO-NOTCH FILTER! *shakes fist in anger* I knew I was going to miss something! Now I have to make an update to my update.
@@JoeN2DI Thank you--yes that totally makes sense. Seems like shifting the passband is pretty much the antithesis of the XIT function then. Ooooh! I completely misunderstood how the APF worked then. I was using it as a "turbo narrow passband" mode, but that was only getting that loud, ringing, not copyable signal that you mentioned. I'll give it a try with a wider passband. Thanks again!
There’s no hard and fast rule. You just want to be within the activator’s passband. Usually you can pick some random value between 30 and 100 Hz above or below the activators frequency. That should be a safe value to try.
Thank you. I thought I knew my KX2 really well but I just learned a couple of things that look very promising to use when trying to dig out weak signals. Much appreciated.
Thanks Joe - good collection of tips on my favorite POTA rig.
Thank you Alan.
Thanks Joe. I'll be watching this video several more times. Bill
Thanks Bill. Glad it was helpful.
Great update video. These tips really changed the game for me. I can actually hear stations now... turns out it was just a skill issue, so thanks very much for that. I think the only thing (that I know of) that you didn't cover was the auto notch filter for SSB. Few questions for you though... Why would you want to off center your passband instead of adjusting the VFO? Also what's the effective difference between using the APF or minimizing the passband?
Thank you! OK, so the reason why you would want to shift your passband instead of adjusting your VFO is if you’re having an SSB QSO with someone and you have nearby QRM. Dialing the VFO slightly off frequency to escape the QRM will change your pitch on the other end so you will end up sounding like an alien or something to the other person. Shifting the passband on the other hand will help you get away from a loud neighboring station without moving your transmit frequency. You are shifting your ears away from the noise without moving your mouth. Does that make sense? It’s a weird analogy. It’s not a perfect solution though. It just kinda helps a little.
The APF is a narrow EQ boost in the center of the passband so it will actually lift weak CW signals up from the noise. Tightening up your passband filter gets rid of some of the noise surrounding the signal. So when a signal is right at the noise floor, the APF will help more than a tighter passband but you can always try both. Narrowing your passband filter too much though will lead to “ringing” which will make it harder to hear the signal, so experiment. HTH
AUTO-NOTCH FILTER! *shakes fist in anger* I knew I was going to miss something! Now I have to make an update to my update.
@@JoeN2DI Thank you--yes that totally makes sense. Seems like shifting the passband is pretty much the antithesis of the XIT function then.
Ooooh! I completely misunderstood how the APF worked then. I was using it as a "turbo narrow passband" mode, but that was only getting that loud, ringing, not copyable signal that you mentioned. I'll give it a try with a wider passband. Thanks again!
Great video. Lots of good info. Sub'd and liked.
Thank you! I'm gald it was useful.
What’s a good amount for XIT?
There’s no hard and fast rule. You just want to be within the activator’s passband. Usually you can pick some random value between 30 and 100 Hz above or below the activators frequency. That should be a safe value to try.