Larry wrote:

When I tried to make recordings off the R5000 to a cassette recorder years
ago, the result was often somewhat distorted. Now I know why! I'll try out
an attenuator plug this weekend, when I'm hoping to have a chance to set
this up.

I never had a problem when using a recorder with the R5000. But, I was using
cassette recorders which had/have an AUX input.

My favourite one is the Radio Shack CTR-66 which is no longer made, but is
available on eBay from time to time.

I also like the CTR-37, also no longer made, but available on eBay.

I have several of each.

I used to do a lot of DX'ing via setting the timer on the receiver so that I
didn't have to get up at early hours in the morning. I'd simply review my tape
the next day, and if I didn't get good results I'd simply do it again.

Steve
Holland, MI
Drake R7, R8 and R8B

http://www.iserv.net/~n8kdv/dxpage.htm

Based on my experience last night, using a cassette recorder seems to be my
only workable approach.

At my previous location, the electrical noise was so bad that when I used my
laptop near the radio I didn't notice any change in the noise level. In this
quieter location, it's a totally different story.

I set things up last night. I used a patch cable with a ferrite core, as you
suggested, to connect the radio to the laptop. The arrangement worked fine
when I began my tests, using a good strong 19-meter station (probably VOA).
Things were different, though, when I tried to tune in weaker stations. I
encountered serious electrical noise.

And the noise was coming from the laptop's AC power adaptor, not from the
laptop. I powered down and disconnected the laptop, leaving the AC adaptor
plugged into the wall. The noise was just as strong as before. As soon as I
unplugged the AC adaptor from the wall, the QRM vanished. I tried using
ferrite cores at various locations on the AC adaptor cords, but none of them
made any difference at all.

I can actually use the radio-to-laptop setup if I run the laptop on its
internal batteries, but that would give me less than 90 minutes of useful
time (at least that's what my laptop's manual gives for the average time
between charges). That's not acceptable, since I'll want to spend more time
than that at the radio when reception is right.

I guess I'm back to using an old-fashioned cassette recorder for now.

--Larry