SSB On the Lowe HF-150??
 

Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky


The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great; as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

And stable as a ROCK.

"Dave Holford" wrote in message
. ..
Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky
The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great; as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky

"Lucky" ) writes:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

Those are both bells and whistles, very uncommon even thirty years ago,
and only slowly moving into more common appearance, and towards lower
priced equipment.

Good SSB means good stability, good selectivity (sufficiently narrow,
and sharp skirts) and a product detector. If it's got that, then it's
good for SSB.

The other things may help under some conditions, but people have lived
without them.

Micahel


I guess you can't even compare
it to a Drake R8 huh??
Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

"Lucky" wrote in message
...

"Dave Holford" wrote in message
. ..
Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky
The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great; as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky

What does PBT or IF shift have to do with tuning SSB? These controls are
for moving the filter response across the passband, and have no effect on
fidelity other than perhaps hurting it off moved too far.

The difference between the R8 and the Lowe is that the Lowe is built
tremendously better and the Sync modes work as well if not better.

Dale W4OP

"Dale Parfitt" wrote in message
news:Lp6Kd.1957$u45.16@trnddc08...

"Lucky" wrote in message
...

"Dave Holford" wrote in message
. ..
Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky
The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great;
as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky

What does PBT or IF shift have to do with tuning SSB? These controls are
for moving the filter response across the passband, and have no effect on
fidelity other than perhaps hurting it off moved too far.

The difference between the R8 and the Lowe is that the Lowe is built
tremendously better and the Sync modes work as well if not better.

Dale W4OP



What does it have to do with it? There are many SSB stations I would have to
listen to with loads of interference if I didn't have them.
Some I wouldn't be able to continue listening to at all.

Lucky

Lucky wrote:
"Dave Holford" wrote in message
. ..

Lucky wrote:

Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great; as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave


But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky




Good question, given that the vast majority of my listening is on SSB,
including some SWBC stations with QRM on one sideband - BBC on 12095 for
example - what do PBT and IF Shift have to do with SSB performance?
If they were important surely they would be standard items in
professional receivers?

I agree that they can be useful on occasion for getting rid of some QRM,
but they are hardly a requirement for good SSB performance.

I have, among others, the HF-150, R-5000, Plessey PR155, Eddystone
EC-958: none have PBT and only the R-5000 has shift which is very seldom
needed, the filters do most of the work. My HAM rigs have both and also
are seldom required.

Regards
Dave

Lucky wrote:
"Dale Parfitt" wrote in message
news:Lp6Kd.1957$u45.16@trnddc08...

"Lucky" wrote in message
...

"Dave Holford" wrote in message
om...

Lucky wrote:

Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great;
as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky

What does PBT or IF shift have to do with tuning SSB? These controls are

for moving the filter response across the passband, and have no effect on
fidelity other than perhaps hurting it off moved too far.

The difference between the R8 and the Lowe is that the Lowe is built
tremendously better and the Sync modes work as well if not better.

Dale W4OP




What does it have to do with it? There are many SSB stations I would have to
listen to with loads of interference if I didn't have them.
Some I wouldn't be able to continue listening to at all.

Lucky


I would be tempted to think that there is something seriously wrong if
you have to use PBT and shift to be able to listen to SSB stations.
Either your receiver or local noise environment need to be looked at.

The only other option I see is that you are operating your receiver
incorrectly. I have an "older" acquaintance who has a similar problem
but insists on listening to SSB with a 16kHz filter - he needs all the
help he can get since he refuses to use the correct filter(s).

Dave

Lucky wrote:



What does it have to do with it? There are many SSB stations I would have to
listen to with loads of interference if I didn't have them.
Some I wouldn't be able to continue listening to at all.

Lucky

They're just the features you've learned to use to compensate for problems
you've faced.

On my 7030+ I've installed exceptionally good filters with very steep skirts, so
I rarely need to tweak the PBT to eliminate interference.

But the real reason I added those filters was the ones that came with the radio
were too wide or too narrow for me. The fact better filters simplified using
the radio was just a bonus.

On the Harris, I just use the sync detector and coherent AGC and it sounds
beautiful.

The HF-150 is one of those radios hardly anyone complains about - I never bought
one, but I spent a while looking for the Europa version before I ended up with
my 7030+. I wanted as much performance as I could get in the smallest possible
package, and it had to be reasonably practical to run on rechargeable
batteries.

I'm very happy with the decision I made, but if I'd found a HF-150 Europa first,
I probably would have gone for it. (and then I'd probably have tried the 7030
anyway)

"Lucky" wrote in message
...

"Dale Parfitt" wrote in message
news:Lp6Kd.1957$u45.16@trnddc08...

"Lucky" wrote in message
...

"Dave Holford" wrote in message
. ..
Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky
The SSB is excellent; the synchronous AM, all 4 options, works great;
as
do the AM and AMN.

Dave

But how can it be that good in SSB with no PBT or shift? Explain..

Lucky

What does PBT or IF shift have to do with tuning SSB? These controls
are
for moving the filter response across the passband, and have no effect
on
fidelity other than perhaps hurting it off moved too far.

The difference between the R8 and the Lowe is that the Lowe is built
tremendously better and the Sync modes work as well if not better.

Dale W4OP



What does it have to do with it? There are many SSB stations I would have
to
listen to with loads of interference if I didn't have them.
Some I wouldn't be able to continue listening to at all.

Lucky

Hi Lucky,

I build most of my receivers, including the crystal filters- the Lowe being
the exception. None have PBT but the do have excellent 8 to 12 pole crystal
filters with exceptional group delay- I have never missed PBT on them or the
Lowe. My IC756 PRO has tiwn PBT and although it is occasionally a help, I
have yet to find a station that I can copy on the PRO that I cannot copy on
the Lowe or the homebrews.
Bottom line- I'd take better crystal filters over PBT any day.
Dale W4OP

"Michael Black" wrote in message
...

"Lucky" ) writes:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

Those are both bells and whistles, very uncommon even thirty years ago,
and only slowly moving into more common appearance, and towards lower
priced equipment.

Good SSB means good stability, good selectivity (sufficiently narrow,
and sharp skirts) and a product detector. If it's got that, then it's
good for SSB.

The other things may help under some conditions, but people have lived
without them.

Micahel


I guess you can't even compare
it to a Drake R8 huh??
Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky





Ok guys thank you. I use the PBT to get the tone and any little drop of
interference to my liking. I'll reevaluate my use of it.

Lucky

Lucky wrote:

snip
Ok guys thank you. I use the PBT to get the tone and any little drop of
interference to my liking. I'll reevaluate my use of it.

Lucky



Hey, if you're happy with the results you get when using it, keep using
it.

Dale Parfitt wrote:

I build most of my receivers, including the crystal filters- the Lowe being
the exception. None have PBT but the do have excellent 8 to 12 pole crystal
filters with exceptional group delay- I have never missed PBT on them or the
Lowe. My IC756 PRO has tiwn PBT and although it is occasionally a help, I
have yet to find a station that I can copy on the PRO that I cannot copy on
the Lowe or the homebrews.
Bottom line- I'd take better crystal filters over PBT any day.
Dale W4OP

Where do you get your ceramic IF filters?


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starman wrote:
wrote:

And stable as a ROCK.

Depends on the location of the rock. :-)
What are the stability specs' for the HF-150?
Stability ............. =B1 30 Hz in 1 hour typical

"starman" wrote in message
...
Dale Parfitt wrote:

I build most of my receivers, including the crystal filters- the Lowe
being
the exception. None have PBT but the do have excellent 8 to 12 pole
crystal
filters with exceptional group delay- I have never missed PBT on them or
the
Lowe. My IC756 PRO has tiwn PBT and although it is occasionally a help,
I
have yet to find a station that I can copy on the PRO that I cannot copy
on
the Lowe or the homebrews.
Bottom line- I'd take better crystal filters over PBT any day.
Dale W4OP

Where do you get your ceramic IF filters?

I build crystal filters, not ceramic.

Dale W4OP

Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

Speaking of HF-150s, there's one on Ebay right now:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

Could be an interesting auction.

Funny thing is, I noticed a Satellit 700 up for auction as well:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...6243 261&rd=1

The bidding on the 700 is already up to a whopping (and mind boggling)
$565.00. I'll bet the Lowe goes for significantly less than this. I
really do believe that Ebay is a great marketplace for tabletop
receivers and some 'portatops', but not so good (and occasionally
terrible) for portables.

Steve

wrote in message
oups.com...

Lucky wrote:
Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

Speaking of HF-150s, there's one on Ebay right now:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

Could be an interesting auction.

Funny thing is, I noticed a Satellit 700 up for auction as well:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...6243 261&rd=1

The bidding on the 700 is already up to a whopping (and mind boggling)
$565.00. I'll bet the Lowe goes for significantly less than this. I
really do believe that Ebay is a great marketplace for tabletop
receivers and some 'portatops', but not so good (and occasionally
terrible) for portables.

Steve


That Lowe 150 went for $465 and it didn't even have a US power supply. Was
it worth that price? How much would it have been worth if you could find one
with a keypad for it too??

Thanks
Lucky

Lucky wrote:

wrote in message
oups.com...

Lucky wrote:

Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

Speaking of HF-150s, there's one on Ebay right now:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

Could be an interesting auction.

Funny thing is, I noticed a Satellit 700 up for auction as well:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...6243 261&rd=1

The bidding on the 700 is already up to a whopping (and mind boggling)
$565.00. I'll bet the Lowe goes for significantly less than this. I
really do believe that Ebay is a great marketplace for tabletop
receivers and some 'portatops', but not so good (and occasionally
terrible) for portables.

Steve



That Lowe 150 went for $465 and it didn't even have a US power supply. Was
it worth that price? How much would it have been worth if you could find one
with a keypad for it too??

Thanks
Lucky




Mike Maghakian offered one here for $425 a few weeks ago - that was a
good deal.

My impression is the one on ebay closed around the middle of the range
they normally do.

"Mark S. Holden" wrote in message
...
Lucky wrote:

wrote in message
oups.com...

Lucky wrote:

Is this mainly a program listening rig?
How is the SSB on it with no PBT or shift?

I guess you can't even compare it to a Drake R8 huh??

Any opinions?

Thanks
Lucky

Speaking of HF-150s, there's one on Ebay right now:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

Could be an interesting auction.

Funny thing is, I noticed a Satellit 700 up for auction as well:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...6243 261&rd=1

The bidding on the 700 is already up to a whopping (and mind boggling)
$565.00. I'll bet the Lowe goes for significantly less than this. I
really do believe that Ebay is a great marketplace for tabletop
receivers and some 'portatops', but not so good (and occasionally
terrible) for portables.

Steve



That Lowe 150 went for $465 and it didn't even have a US power supply.
Was it worth that price? How much would it have been worth if you could
find one with a keypad for it too??

Thanks
Lucky


Mike Maghakian offered one here for $425 a few weeks ago - that was a good
deal.

My impression is the one on ebay closed around the middle of the range
they normally do.



It also depends a lot on the condition of it since the radio is not very old
but it has enought years on it where you should be careful buying. I'm sure
Mike checks his stuff out good before he sells it.

Lucky

Lucky wrote:
snip

It also depends a lot on the condition of it since the radio is not very old
but it has enought years on it where you should be careful buying. I'm sure
Mike checks his stuff out good before he sells it.

Lucky


Never bought a radio from Mike, but he does have a good reputation.

Besides condition, options will be a factor - some have backlights for the LCD,
others don't.

Two variants you don't see very often are the Marine and Europa versions. The
Europa had improved specs and a stronger front end. Not sure what the
difference was on the Marine one other than it was white.

Lucky wrote:

"Mark S. Holden" wrote in message
...
Lucky wrote:
snip

It also depends a lot on the condition of it since the radio is not very
old
but it has enought years on it where you should be careful buying. I'm
sure
Mike checks his stuff out good before he sells it.

Lucky


Never bought a radio from Mike, but he does have a good reputation.

Besides condition, options will be a factor - some have backlights for the
LCD,
others don't.

Two variants you don't see very often are the Marine and Europa versions.
The
Europa had improved specs and a stronger front end. Not sure what the
difference was on the Marine one other than it was white.

Yes but I hear the Europa model is far and few between. I would buy a little
pen light for the original 150 at night. I bet it wouldn't be hard to hook
at a good LED right over the display.

Lucky

I spent over a year looking for a Europa. The only one I found was at a dealer
in the Netherlands, but they wouldn't export to the USA.

While you could use a penlight, the back light is a convenience - less stuff to
keep track of.

"Mark S. Holden" wrote in message
...
Lucky wrote:

"Mark S. Holden" wrote in message
...
Lucky wrote:
snip

It also depends a lot on the condition of it since the radio is not
very
old
but it has enought years on it where you should be careful buying. I'm
sure
Mike checks his stuff out good before he sells it.

Lucky


Never bought a radio from Mike, but he does have a good reputation.

Besides condition, options will be a factor - some have backlights for
the
LCD,
others don't.

Two variants you don't see very often are the Marine and Europa
versions.
The
Europa had improved specs and a stronger front end. Not sure what the
difference was on the Marine one other than it was white.

Yes but I hear the Europa model is far and few between. I would buy a
little
pen light for the original 150 at night. I bet it wouldn't be hard to
hook
at a good LED right over the display.

Lucky

I spent over a year looking for a Europa. The only one I found was at a
dealer
in the Netherlands, but they wouldn't export to the USA.

While you could use a penlight, the back light is a convenience - less
stuff to
keep track of.

I'm just get a bug for a radio and end up buying it even though I have a
bunch of radios already. I got a bug for the 150 and that's it. I hear about
everyone loving it and that it's built like tank. Plus it being manufactured
in England draws my attention too.

Lucky

I was all set to buy a 150 Europa from a fellow, but just as he was
about to sell it to me, he told me his primary receiver went on the
blink and so he no longer wanted to sell. I was a little bummed about
this. At the same time, I was also concerned about the 150 Europa, as
some people reported that, in addition to its stronger front end, it
was also a bit less sensitive than the standard 150.

In any event, I ended up getting a standard 150...actually, it's not
entirely standard because it's one of the 'black case' 150s assembled
by South Midlands Communications. These were among some of the very
last 150s made. It has to take back seat to an R8B in my house, but
it's a damned impressive little receiver just the same. The build
quality is amazing and the tuning knob is wonderful...it's smooth,
gentle action will rock you to sleep!

Steve