View Single Post
  #16   Report Post  
Old October 30th 05, 04:29 PM
Doug Smith W9WI
 
Posts: n/a
Default BFO, CW, sideband question

Scott wrote:
Now for the $64,000 question (which will only buy about 21,000 gallons
of gas these days!)...With these modern rigs, if I want to answer
someone calling CQ on CW, how do I adjust my radio to be on exactly the
same frequency as they are calling on (to conserve spectrum for other
operators)???


Newer rigs tie the sidetone to the offset, so that if you zero-beat the
sidetone with received signals you're transmitting on the same frequency
as the other guy. In most rigs if you close the key without putting the
rig in transmit (i.e., break-in is off) you'll get a sidetone without
muting the receiver, allowing you to zero-beat the sidetone.

Older rigs often had a "SPOT" button which keyed up low-power
transmitter stages to allow you to zero-beat the transmitter against
received signals. My FT1000MP also has such a button - I'm sure the
electronics behind it are very different but its purpose and function
are the same as in the old rigs.

To be honest I don't worry about it. After 30 years of CW operating I'm
pretty good at getting it right!
--
Doug Smith W9WI
Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66
http://www.w9wi.com