Could be a bit better. But that was my 1st full time WAE CW contest ))
I've started a bit slow because of bad conditions and luck of strategy. I've never was running this contest full time before. So I made few tactical mistakes. Hope to fix them next year. Always was trying to keep at least minimal rate. But sometimes that was impossible. I've found using dual band CQ very effective in situation when there were not nigher conditions nor stations )) In my limited SO2R that was possible only in 2 band combination 80m-40m or 20m-40m. That gave me a boost to increase over 25-30 QSO/h even in completely dead bands ))
Lost one good hour on Saturday afternoon about 5pm EST. My N1MM+ slowed down a lot while sending CW. The CW keying latency was constantly increasing from 1 second and more. that became very annoying and really slowed down a rate. I've taken one hour break to investigate the issue and found that write operation to the N1MM log database file was the reason due a huge database size. I kept there all the old contests since May. I've found how to delete old contests and to do database de-fragmentation in the N1MM+ manual. Got my log back to fast operation after that. But lost few dozen good QSOs ))) Anyway now I'm an expert in the N1MM DB de-fragmentation )))
Can't wait until other logs be published especially Gilles', VE2EW and Noel's, VE2FWW ))
Great thanks for the spots to a cluster to VE2FK and VE2TTA ))
73!
Victor
Post edited by: va2wdq, at: 2015/08/09 20:34
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VE2TZT
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/09 21:59WAE CW 2015
Callsign : VA2EW
Cat : LOW POWER ALL BANDS
QSO: 1122 mults 406 QTC: 1121 score : 910.658 Time on 36h
My first ever entry in LP category...
Now that I have installed last week my 3 elements SteppIR on the side of the tower at the 3rd level with a rotor (the DB42 being at the 4th level), it was a 9 months delay project, I have a full S02R capability: I can work simultaneously any band on any radio with a descent antenna. That is perfect to work LP where traffic is slower and it is possible to take advantage of S&Ping while running on the other radio. The propagation was terrible especially the first day where 15m was closed.
Anyway, I was impressed to be able to run permanently with my 100W even if less stations are coming back that with HP and if I had to often change my frequency because of an idiot alligator was starting. I missed few mults that I called, so the only mults missed were those which did not called me. Even on 80m I got some mults calling CQ with 100W (of course on the 4sq). I was able to notice the difference between LP and HP mainly when guys answering my CQ were often asking me for repeat for my serial (especially the second day...) while I had no problem to copy them. That's a point that most of the participants have just a fixed dipole or a vertical which is not very good for RX while on my side I have directivity.
On the joke side, opening the QTC window of WINTEST to send my 10 records, my finger touched the ENTER key and ''catastrophe'' WINTEST had considered the QTC as sent so, the QTC window got closed and impossible to get the info back... So I had to stop the contest, generate the cabrilo, print the piece of listing to get the info about the 10 QTC's and keep it on my side until the guy call me again. 4 hours later the guy called me on an other band and I sent him its QTC by hand... after that I just had to modify the time and frequency by hand in the final cabrillo... well though WINTEST...
Congrats Victor, Nice results considering the conditions especially huge mults number.
73 de Gilles VA2EW
Post edited by: ve2tzt, at: 2015/08/09 22:03
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VE2FU
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/09 22:02Contest : Worked All Europe DX-Contest Callsign : VE2FU Mode : CW Category : Single Operator (SO) Overlay : --- Band(s) : All bands (A Class : High Power (HP) (400W) Zone/State/... :
Good scores Claude !, Victor ! Was that SO2V with your TS-830 ?!
Well I started the contest and figured with those condx, I would not do more than 250 qso and quit there. Saturday morning was terrible. I was hearing more state side station than Europe at one time. I think early afternoon I closed all equipement and left !
Sunday was more like it with late opening to europe but lot of noise here.
At leat I had fun with the software WINTEST still is the one to use. European contest = Wintest , I will use N1MM only for RTTY. For CW N1MM needs a lot more work where Wintest shines (and they came second with ESM but know how to make it work). Victor Keep N1MM ...it helps us
TIME: 25.04 HEURES..... LA NUIT JE zzzzzzzzzzz au lieu d'appeler CQ CQ!!!!!
Tout n 'est pas encore pret ...apres un retour ...faut tout recommencer...mais en plus petit... j'ai appris a savoir se contenter...avec ce que l'on a....les petites tours.....les petites antennes......et les petits résultats....I was there just for fun, that's all Noel
Post edited by: ve2ryy, at: 2015/08/10 19:31
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VE2RYY
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/11 10:47Hello Victor Congrats for your score... Can you, please, give me a short description of your antenna system...on each band if possible?? and where are you located?? Thanks NOel
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VA2TTA
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/12 14:55Salut Gilles,
What was that " ... alligator"? someone with key clicks?
73! Vlad VA2TTA
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va2wdq
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/12 17:47Bonsoir Noel,
Here is what I have today at my contest position near Drummondville:
2 x TS-590S
PA: Alpha 89, AL-1200
ANT: 80m Top loaded vertical 16.5m high 40m 2 x Phased Verticals 20-10 Steppir DB-11 ( 2 el on 20m, 3el 17m-6m) at 36' tower RX ANT: BEV 70m to EU ( I will recover full 260 meters before the winter season)
Logger: N1MM+
Gilles,
Congratulations with your full SO2R! Honestly I was thinking that my set up is OK since I've found on RBN that I was just 3 dB behind you during WAE. But I have realized now that you were using 100 watts and me 1500 !
BTW the modern radios like K3 or TS-590S don't really need BPF in case of LP if antennas are at least in few meters from each other. They already have some BPF inside.
73!
Victor
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ve2ebk
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/12 20:49What was that " ... alligator"? someone with key clicks?
Hi Vlad
Old expression in ham radio, like an alligator, big mouth, small ears. In others words, big signal but he don't copy
73 de Dany VE2EBK
Post edited by: ve2ebk, at: 2015/08/12 20:52
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VE2TZT
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/12 21:49Hey Victor,
You are a lot pessimistic. I just had a quick look at the RBN network comparison tool on the 8th of August day and all the nods that I have tested (DF4UE,DF7GB,G0KTN,HA1PX,OE6TZE,GW8IZR) are saying the same thing: on average : on 15m you are 8 to 10 dB over me, on 20m you are 7 to 10 dB, on 80m (GW8IZR) you was 12 to 20dB. The only exception is 40m were yes I am constantly 3dB over you.
That's normal, 1500W to 100W is a 12 dB power ratio so the difference is produced by the antennas gain difference according to the take off angle itself linked to the current propagation conditions.
On the particular 40m case my 3 elements at 22m is far more efficient than a vertical with high ground losses.
By the way only the GW8IZR site gives data on 80m but I find them very bad for my 4 square in comparison to your vertical. Theoretically I should be only 6 to 7 dB behind you.
Just to end, If I had been 3 dB ahead of you on every bands I would have been a very bad operator to work only 1100 Q's...
Conclusion : I have to check my 4 SQ and you have to find a better solution for your 40m... (I'm sure a simple dipole at 20m should be better)
73's
Gilles VA2EW
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VE2RYY
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/13 07:23Thanks Victor for infos...By the way, how many radials do you have Under each vertical... Are they spaced 1/4 w or 1/2w??? Are they Broadside or endfire to Europe???? Have you compared this array with another antenna, for instance, a dipole at 70 ft?? or any other antennas?? sounds interesting...
NOel
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va2wdq
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Re:WAE CW 2015 - 2015/08/15 11:43Noel,
I don't have a good radial systems since both verticals are kind of temporary testing antennas. The big one - top loaded 16.5m high with 2 x 11m sloping wires on top has about 20 radials, 8 are about 20m, others are random length. The 40m system consists of 2 10m high verticals with 10v distance between them. Each has just 4 1/4 wave length radials. I use Array solution phasing box to get about 3 db gain and F/B about 16-18 dB. It's stands in a bad low part of my property and has a main tower nearby in about 10m. I'm going to relocate it to a better place this season. One more thing about the setup it's in a wooden area. So it's OK during winter season but looks like there are some additional losses in summer time.
Gilles,
Sure. I meant exactly 40m which is my current worse setup. I always last in a waiting line for DX after all local big guns. I have one Force Delta 2L yagi already. But I need to erect the second tower 76' Trylon Titan . Still don't have enough time because of my everyday work.
CU in the CCO BBQ!
73!
Victor
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