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#1
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city SWLing Question
I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city
there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed right on top of each other. My present situation is good with underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines? I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city environment. thanks. NEO |
#2
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city SWLing Question
On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO"
wrote: I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed right on top of each other. My present situation is good with underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines? I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city environment. thanks. NEO I have the year 2000 ARRL handbook, and chapter 28 gives some pretty good basic stuff on EMI, whether you're generating it or receiving it. The ARRL RFI Book is also available from Amazon at $18 bucks. I do okay with just the noise blanker in my rig -- there are all kinds of external devices you can get nowadays from Timewave, GAP and MFJ. Bob k5qwg |
#3
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city SWLing Question
Bob Miller wrote:
On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO" wrote: I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed right on top of each other. My present situation is good with underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines? I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city environment. You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation. Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts, and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is laid out. And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute to headaches on the SW bands. Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems, or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise minima will help. Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs. |
#4
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city SWLing Question
D Peter Maus wrote:
Bob Miller wrote: On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO" wrote: I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed right on top of each other. My present situation is good with underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines? I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city environment. You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation. Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts, and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is laid out. And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute to headaches on the SW bands. Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems, or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise minima will help. Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs. Peter, you and Bob and the other folks have given a good rundown of the exact set of issues I have to deal with here in the Bay Area. I know I have a somewhat noisy house, but the real garbage is the incredibly RFI-rich environment outside. With three local 50kW AM stations at arm's length, two of which blurt out harmonics up to 6 or 7, a passell of neighbors with trash outdoor lighting and several noisy powerlines nearby, it's a wonder anything can get through the mess. I don't use a Wellbrokk of other loop (I probably ought to try one), just a DX-Ultra (coax lead-in) strung out as best I can on a small lot, and a 60-foot plus 20-foot lead-in Inverted L terminated at a matching transformer outside, with coax lead in. I phase these two together for noise purposes with a MFJ-1026. The contraption helps in some cases, not so much in others. The nosie blanker on the radio helps some too. The single most annoying things, which none of my noise-reduction artillery can effectively handle, are the malfunctioning transformers and streetlights in the neighborhood. Once a month, I have to make a trip around on foot at night to see what is malfunctioning and where, and report it to PG&E and the County to get it fixed. It's a hassle, but it's well worth the trouble. Bruce Jensen |
#5
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city SWLing Question
bpnjensen wrote: D Peter Maus wrote: Bob Miller wrote: On 12 Dec 2006 18:06:21 -0800, "N9NEO" wrote: I am moving to Rochester NY and am planning on living right in the city there. I am wondering what the SWL will be like with the houses packed right on top of each other. My present situation is good with underground utilities. Will my next door neighbor's computer trash end up on the power lines right outside my window and destroy any chance I have to swl? Is there anything I can do to mitigate the noise beyond sticking antenna in back yard far away from power lines? I would like to hear how others fare while living in a city environment. You'll want to pay particular attention to your antenna installation. Noise WILL be higher than in the weeds, owing to a greater number and higher density of sources. You'll get crap from older TV sets, noisy monitors, dimmers and security lights (which can be the WORST), air conditioners, garage door openers, and some street lights, and corona discharges on powerline insulators. In older homes, your own wall warts, and powersupplies may contribute, because of the way older wiring is laid out. And don't overlook trash from broadcasters. In higher, local signal areas, overload, harmonics, splatter, and digital has can all contribute to headaches on the SW bands. Selection of a noise avoiding antenna, like an MTA, by RF Systems, or loop by Wellbrook, and the like, will help. Proper grounding will often help, but not always. And installation of the antenna at noise minima will help. Take care with your installation, and you can enjoy SWL and what AMDX remains, nearly as much as you can in the suburbs. Peter, you and Bob and the other folks have given a good rundown of the exact set of issues I have to deal with here in the Bay Area. I know I have a somewhat noisy house, but the real garbage is the incredibly RFI-rich environment outside. With three local 50kW AM stations at arm's length, two of which blurt out harmonics up to 6 or 7, a passell of neighbors with trash outdoor lighting and several noisy powerlines nearby, it's a wonder anything can get through the mess. I don't use a Wellbrokk of other loop (I probably ought to try one), just a DX-Ultra (coax lead-in) strung out as best I can on a small lot, and a 60-foot plus 20-foot lead-in Inverted L terminated at a matching transformer outside, with coax lead in. I phase these two together for noise purposes with a MFJ-1026. The contraption helps in some cases, not so much in others. The nosie blanker on the radio helps some too. The single most annoying things, which none of my noise-reduction artillery can effectively handle, are the malfunctioning transformers and streetlights in the neighborhood. Once a month, I have to make a trip around on foot at night to see what is malfunctioning and where, and report it to PG&E and the County to get it fixed. It's a hassle, but it's well worth the trouble. Bruce Jensen Yea, all you guys are right. I'll probably reference this thread when I get settled in Rochester. I've got 10 acres on a hilltop available to me an hour south of Rochester so I'll take a ride up to the top of the hill and see what that sounds like. I think closest house to the property is about a half mile, so should be nice and quiet. I can't commute that kind of distance so I'll just have to live with whatever noise is there - beyond Bruce's approach of evening recon and calling in grid peeps to fix their probs. 73 NEO |
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