No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have gotten mixed reviews.

"W4PHS" wrote in message
...
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

I have been using a SP-230. A Kenwood TS-830 matching station speaker. Has
built in filters and radio 1/2 switch. The same circuit has been re-used
for various different Kenwoods under different names and cabinets. The
cabinets make all the difference and it would be really worth while for you
to sit down at different speakers and radios to compare them with your
particular ear. It's not uncommon for people to try several before finding
something comfortable.

"W4PHS" wrote in message
...
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

The speaker you mentioned will handle up to 200 W peak. That's about 2
orders of magnitude above what most transceivers put out. I'd be surprised
if you could hear much of anything through it without a good external audio
amplifier. Most speakers like that sacrifice efficiency to get wide
frequency response - they respond way beyond the frequency content of ham
radio signals, even those of the hi fi AMers. (Think broadband noise.)

There's an amplifier/speaker combination advertized in QST (I think) that
you may find meets your needs. I don't recall the name of the product or
company, but I'll try to locate it if someone else doesn't chime in.

73,
Bob AD3K

In rec.radio.amateur.equipment Bob Spooner wrote:
"W4PHS" wrote in message
...
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

The speaker you mentioned will handle up to 200 W peak. That's about 2
orders of magnitude above what most transceivers put out. I'd be surprised
if you could hear much of anything through it without a good external audio
amplifier. Most speakers like that sacrifice efficiency to get wide
frequency response - they respond way beyond the frequency content of ham
radio signals, even those of the hi fi AMers. (Think broadband noise.)

There's an amplifier/speaker combination advertized in QST (I think) that
you may find meets your needs. I don't recall the name of the product or
company, but I'll try to locate it if someone else doesn't chime in.

I think Gap makes a pretty good noise-cancelling speaker; I don't have
one, but have seen and heard it in action.

--
Mike Andrews, W5EGO

Tired old sysadmin

Have you thought of active noise cancelling headphones/headset?

There is no speaker that wil be able to come close, and the difference is
night and day.

Heil makes them. Perhaps others do as well. I have some expensive aviation
ANC headsets and Heil's compares favorably given the proce.

"W4PHS" wrote in message
...
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

With aging ears, the frequency response above 8 kHz is not considered by the
medical trade. If you have a recognized HF imparement then what are we
talking about? Above 1 or 2kHz? This is not so uncommon. There are several
tricks you can use, your ears may be impared, but not your brain. For
example, use one or more of the following:

1 - Use stereo HiFi headphones - also good for blocking out external noise
and increasing concentration. Communications headphones have a restricted
response, which is NOT what you want.

2 - Use your HiFi system graphic equalizer - works wonders with aging ears.
Can make any speaker/headphone more suited to just your ears. People are
throwing these things away at the moment.

3 - Although designed for CW use, a hi-pass filter feeding the left-hand
channel and low-pass filter feeding the right-hand channel of stereo
headphones/speakers also work wonders. It spreads the AF spectrum out as a
frequency image across the viewing area in front of you. Each CW station can
be heard in a different physical location. Cost is about $2 for the
components.

Using this technique SSB can become more understandable, since CW and other
interference is often positioned at very specific points in the stereo image
and can be more easily ignored, just like advertising plackards on the
motorway, or commercial breaks on the telly.

If you proof as to your brains ability to filter, then just try listing all
the adverts you saw on the TV last night, or saw on the motorway. You
probably saw 60+ on the TV, or 200+ if you went on a "shopping trip"
downtown, but if you can remember four of them then you are doing well.

DW

Dennis Whatley wrote:


With aging ears, the frequency response above 8 kHz is not considered by the
medical trade. If you have a recognized HF imparement then what are we
talking about? Above 1 or 2kHz? This is not so uncommon. There are several
tricks you can use, your ears may be impared, but not your brain. For
example, use one or more of the following:

1 - Use stereo HiFi headphones - also good for blocking out external noise
and increasing concentration. Communications headphones have a restricted
response, which is NOT what you want.

2 - Use your HiFi system graphic equalizer - works wonders with aging ears.
Can make any speaker/headphone more suited to just your ears. People are
throwing these things away at the moment.

3 - Although designed for CW use, a hi-pass filter feeding the left-hand
channel and low-pass filter feeding the right-hand channel of stereo
headphones/speakers also work wonders. It spreads the AF spectrum out as a
frequency image across the viewing area in front of you. Each CW station can
be heard in a different physical location. Cost is about $2 for the
components.

Using this technique SSB can become more understandable, since CW and other
interference is often positioned at very specific points in the stereo image
and can be more easily ignored, just like advertising plackards on the
motorway, or commercial breaks on the telly.

If you proof as to your brains ability to filter, then just try listing all
the adverts you saw on the TV last night, or saw on the motorway. You
probably saw 60+ on the TV, or 200+ if you went on a "shopping trip"
downtown, but if you can remember four of them then you are doing well.

DW


Killer advice. FB.

In article , "Bob Spooner" wrote:
"W4PHS" wrote in message
m...
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear
external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II
mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have
gotten mixed reviews.

The speaker you mentioned will handle up to 200 W peak. That's about 2
orders of magnitude above what most transceivers put out. I'd be surprised
if you could hear much of anything through it without a good external audio
amplifier. Most speakers like that sacrifice efficiency to get wide
frequency response - they respond way beyond the frequency content of ham
radio signals, even those of the hi fi AMers. (Think broadband noise.)

There's an amplifier/speaker combination advertized in QST (I think) that
you may find meets your needs. I don't recall the name of the product or
company, but I'll try to locate it if someone else doesn't chime in.


Why do people think big speakers need more power.
PA speakers are very efficient. It has NOTHING to do
with power in, and ALL to do with SPL with 1 watt in or sensitivity.

For a person with bad hearing, a horn type of the Peavey might improve
the sound. Probably will also do more damage. You NEVER want to use
a PA speaker for nearfield listening normally. You need
to be at least 10 feet back from the horn.

I would recommend using a nearfield monitor with a adjustable
response filtering to make the best listenable sound for bad ears.
You can also use headphones.

greg
N6GS

W4PHS wrote:
No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really clear external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse II mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that have gotten mixed reviews.

I would recommend one of the Motorola mobile external speakers from the
90's such as a Spectra or Syntor speaker.

--
Joe Leikhim K4SAT
"The RFI-EMI-GUY"©

"Use only Genuine Interocitor Parts" Tom Servo ;-P

No doubt there are 1000+ opinions on this, but what are some really
clear external speakers for use
with SSB phone signals through my Yaesu FT-897? I'm 61 years old with
high frequency hearing
impairment due to 40 years of sitting by computers, and I need all the
help I can get in
understanding voice over static.

I have seen several enthusiastic recommendations for the Peavey Impulse
II mini monitor which is
fairly small and costs about $100. Does anyone have any experience with
it?

Icom and Yaesu both make multi-hundred dollar external speakers that
have gotten mixed reviews.

I would recommend one of the Motorola mobile external speakers from the
90's such as a Spectra or Syntor speaker.


I have a few, including the Mastr2 mobile speaker and Motrac/Mocom 70 metal
speakers that are very efficient for use on portables. There are subtle
differences in the response curve due to different speaker and housing
design Kenwood also makes a smaller mobile speaker that seems to peak at the
higher end of the voice spectrum. A little shrill for me. You really need
to try different speakers to see what works best for your ear and
environment. I am currently using an RCA home theater speaker for an
external speaker in another room but another works best in the shack. It is
no use to have frequency response below 200 Hz or above 3kHz for best voice
reception. PL tones or excessive bass at the low end will interfere with
intelligibility at the low end, and at the high end you battle with noise.
The actual spectrum that is required for most reliable discernment of what
is being said is between 400-2400 Hz.

There are several hearing test web sites that ask stupid questions, but
there is one that actually uses test sounds with noise at various levels.
If you have a calibrated variable attenuator on your stereo, you can
actually plot your hearing performance in each ear. One of these days I
hope to stumble on to it again.