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longview posted:Also worth noting that old FM ham radios are often only designed for 25 kHz channels (or wider), instead of 12.5 kHz (I assume the US has also transitioned to narrow channels). Nahhh, public service etc was mandated to narrowband, then hams gobbled up all the surplus 25khz gear.
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Sep 23, 2019 22:24
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Yeah from what I notice all the repeaters and common simplex channels are 25khz while the cops and stuff are 12.5
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Sep 23, 2019 23:21
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Sep 24, 2019 01:02
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i opened my modded lnb to see if i had inserted the external osc. signal in the correct F-connector and it was filled with water. oops. :P
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Sep 24, 2019 05:14
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ahahaha what the gently caress
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Sep 24, 2019 07:29
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something something cq for my bunghole contest
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Sep 24, 2019 08:26
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are you boys a-whackin it in my ham shed
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Sep 24, 2019 21:32
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Sep 24, 2019 21:39
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so are they whackers for knocking lights out at the gas station, or are they whackers for the uhhhhhh other reference
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Sep 25, 2019 02:54
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Pimblor posted:so are they whackers for knocking lights out at the gas station, or are they whackers for the uhhhhhh other reference "Whackers" are rentacops at best or pure imitators that deck out old crown vics and explorers with a shitload of antennas/radios + light bars + "public service"-like decals It's the derogatory term for wanna-be cops who use ham radio as an excuse to attempt to assert power under the guise of any number of minor hobby-related activities that they don't often typically actually partake in (ARES, storm chasing, "emcomms!" etc etc etc)
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Sep 25, 2019 02:59
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Sniep posted:It's the derogatory term for wanna-be cops who use ham radio as an excuse to attempt to assert power under the guise of any number of minor hobby-related activities that they don't often typically actually partake in (ARES, storm chasing, "emcomms!" etc etc etc) The local skywarn net has 5 hours of check-ins and maybe 6 people at any meeting. also we have no weather of note.
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Sep 25, 2019 03:35
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Pimblor posted:so are they whackers for knocking lights out at the gas station, or are they whackers for the uhhhhhh other reference Read through some of Hamsexy, you'll get the idea.
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Sep 25, 2019 05:12
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There's a guy on our statewide repeater network ranting about modern math education because it uses terminology that wasn't used when he was a kid, so it's discriminatory against grandparents trying to help their grandkids with their homework. The term he's upset about is "algorithm" (he initially confused it with logarithm). "My generation put a man on the moon without any of this crap, what has this generation done? NOTHING" "I've never used either of those words in my life. What's wrong with calling them equations"  I wish I could say that this sort of thing is the exception in my short time playing with radio but sadly most of what I hear that's not a formal net is cranky old guys. It's such a weird combination of a cool technical hobby paired with people who just see it as a way to broadcast their petty frustrations to an echo chamber and it sounds weird but it's kind of a downer.
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Sep 26, 2019 01:02
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d0s posted:There's a guy on our statewide repeater network ranting about modern math education because it uses terminology that wasn't used when he was a kid, so it's discriminatory against grandparents trying to help their grandkids with their homework. The term he's upset about is "algorithm" (he initially confused it with logarithm). You could point out to him that he's being hells of dumb and that the term algorithm predates his birth. Or do the ham thing and bitch online. The great thing is, if you call him out on being an idiot, he'll go post his own butthurt on QRZ and maybe one of us will find it and read it.
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Sep 26, 2019 01:16
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Pham Nuwen posted:You could point out to him that he's being hells of dumb and that the term algorithm predates his birth. I had the mic in my hand and would have done it if it was a random local repeater but this was on SARNET and I didn't want to start drama there to be broadcasted to the entire state, making my call known everywhere as the guy who had the audacity to question Correct Boomer Opinions. After this dude finished his rant others chimed in with some form of "preach it brother", it wouldn't have gone down well at all and I'd like to be able to operate without people (however lovely) having a negative reaction to my call. On the other hand it's probably this kind of reasoning that maintains the status quo  E: I was totally expecting ham radio to be full of socially stunted old people, but when people talked about "greybeards" I thought they meant it in the "kinda interesting old engineer who may be weird but has a ton of knowledge" way. Most of the guys I've come across just seem to be... not that at all. Very little technical interest or curiosity and their primary hobby seems to be the (depressing) conversation itself rather than the technology. Maybe it's a thing particular to my area which is the old people capital of the world, maybe Baofengs became a fad in some retirement villages or something and got a bunch of "normies" hooked in d0s fucked around with this message at 01:51 on Sep 26, 2019 |
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Sep 26, 2019 01:38
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Repeaters are also the easiest possible thing to get on. Nobody's getting on repeaters because it's a fascinating technical challenge that requires detailed propagation knowledge... it's just a straightforward way to talk to your buds and bitch about old man problems. It's what you do if you don't have the space and money to get on 75m.
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Sep 26, 2019 02:00
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Maybe it's just my area but there's no FM repeater nuttiness; that would require repeater activity! I had to go digital for contacts, HF and local.
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Sep 26, 2019 02:10
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Pham Nuwen posted:Repeaters are also the easiest possible thing to get on. Nobody's getting on repeaters because it's a fascinating technical challenge that requires detailed propagation knowledge... it's just a straightforward way to talk to your buds and bitch about old man problems. It's what you do if you don't have the space and money to get on 75m. Yeah, truth. It was just weird from my point of view as a newcomer, like I've never heard anyone in my life casually talk about getting on a repeater to shoot the poo poo. I always just figured any part of amateur radio in 2019 was full of nerds, and didn't consider that parts of it would be used by a subset of old people people in a kind of utilitarian way because to my 30something brain there are way simpler ways to shoot the poo poo than even something as simple as getting licensed and programming repeaters into a radio. To get off what I'm starting to realize is a super dead horse topic, I ordered a TNC-X DIY kit to play with packet and APRS. I like how tons of stuff in ham radio has a build it yourself option for way cheaper. The fully built thing is $150 from MFJ, but I got the kit with only a serial port for $50. And commercial TNCs are like $200. Are there any transceiver kits people like? Not talking like elecraft big money stuff but something more toylike and cheap to fool around with
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Sep 26, 2019 02:40
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d0s posted:There's a guy on our statewide repeater network ranting about modern math education because it uses terminology that wasn't used when he was a kid, so it's discriminatory against grandparents trying to help their grandkids with their homework. The term he's upset about is "algorithm" (he initially confused it with logarithm). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIKGV2cTgqA
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Sep 26, 2019 02:55
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Sniep posted:"Whackers" are rentacops at best or pure imitators that deck out old crown vics and explorers with a shitload of antennas/radios + light bars + "public service"-like decals nmfree posted:Read through some of Hamsexy, you'll get the idea. Who needs to read hamsexy, just go to your local small town hamfest, better than the county fair.
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Sep 26, 2019 12:06
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All the nerds into radio seem to either be playing with SDR receivers and things like satellite transmissions, or they're playing with packet radio and other automated systems. Then you don't need to talk to anyone  Like my latest radio project was to build a fancy new ADS-B receiver with an old GSM-R duplex filter as a pre-selector and the whole thing sits in a waterproof box next to the antenna with the Pi powered via PoE. Also added a second dongle and bandpass to use RTL_TCP for streaming air band. No scary talking to people involved there.
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Sep 26, 2019 15:16
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Pimblor posted:Who needs to read hamsexy, just go to your local small town hamfest, better than the county fair. I got my toroid and upgraded my garbage random wire antenna with a proper 9:1 unun with a counterpoise and everything. I'm really confused after hanging it up this morning. I'm on 20m and hearing a guy in Kansas talking to guys in Quebec and Alabama and Connecticut then someone in Florida. I can only hear him but I can hear him STRONG. I can also hear a guy in Georgia talking to someone in Florida. According to HAM Universe I should only be hearing people from 20-75 miles or "up to a few hundred miles". Are there HF repeaters or something that I am unaware of, or is it possible to hear people a thousand miles away on 20m?
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Sep 26, 2019 15:26
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CapnBry posted:I am going to hamfest, my first, on Saturday. Oh boy oh boy I am going to get all the old crusty stuff. I see the confusion, you've parsed this a bit wrong: quote:Around the world daytime communications are generally possible and when the sunspot cycle is peaking 20 can be used around the clock! Not likely to be used for short-range communications. The only way to work someone a few hundred miles away would be scatter or possibly "long path". Ground wave signals of about 50-75 miles might be all you would expect. What it's saying is that 20m is good for long range contacts during the day, and that if you end up talking to someone who's only a few hundred miles away it's probably because your signal went around the other side of the world. The bit about ground wave signals means you may also pick up people who are within line-of-sight, but that's not the primary method by which contacts are made. Sounds like your antenna is working pretty well!
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Sep 26, 2019 15:29
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Pham Nuwen posted:What it's saying is that 20m is good for long range contacts during the day, and that if you end up talking to someone who's only a few hundred miles away it's probably because your signal went around the other side of the world. The bit about ground wave signals means you may also pick up people who are within line-of-sight, but that's not the primary method by which contacts are made. Thanks for setting me straight, I just thought there was no possible way a RTLSDR operating in a direct sample mode attached to a piece of drat wire could pick up anything from more than a few dozen miles away. CapnBry fucked around with this message at 16:34 on Sep 26, 2019 |
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Sep 26, 2019 16:31
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20 meters is just kind of notorious for that. There's a big "no coverage" donut hole for a few hundred miles around you, after that the signals boom in. You seek 40 meters. It's more of an evening/morning band but has a much smaller coverage hole around you and you have a higher chance of hearing both sides of a conversation.
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Sep 27, 2019 01:21
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Jonny 290 posted:20 meters is just kind of notorious for that. There's a big "no coverage" donut hole for a few hundred miles around you, after that the signals boom in. I'm like the guy that d0s expects to find on amateur radio. Building stuff from the 3D printer and scrap bits and whatever wire I can scrape together and being just amazed at the possibilities and how ingenious people are to create antennas.  Note kickin' rad 3D printed wingnuts too, although I am a bit upset I didn't do them in different colors but not enough to actually change the spool just to print 0.1g of plastic.
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Sep 27, 2019 03:15
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Oh man, I've never wanted a 3d printer really but printing custom enclosures for projects & baluns, and various antenna wire insulators might be my killer app for it.
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Sep 27, 2019 03:18
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manero posted:Oh man, I've never wanted a 3d printer really but printing custom enclosures for projects & baluns, and various antenna wire insulators might be my killer app for it. Oh poo poo fuckin' same
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Sep 27, 2019 04:06
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Oh I am happy to have contributed something to this thread then: increased desire to buy more gear. Whenever I see 3D printers, I mostly see people posting photos of some random useless plastic knick-knack or lovely vase / pencil holder. My printer prints only functional equipment, with project enclosures being the top use. The only problem is that I spend way longer than I should iterating on the design after it is functional. Last Saturday I said "Let me just throw this together" and 3 hours later the best and most overdesigned 8mm mini T-handle socket rolled off the printer. That's right, three hours to make a cylinder with a toggle on top... but there's not another one on the planet that fits my hand exactly as well as this one. Speaking of which I realized last night that there's a huge flaw in my unun enclosure design in that the wire wrapper bits block access to the little handle on top I use to hang it from a hook on my patio. If I rotate them 90 degrees they block the wingnuts rotation. If I turn them into an X then the wires will wrap over each other and I wanted to keep them separate so I can only deploy the counterpoise when I feel like it. I might have to reimagine the whole thing into more of a kite spool shape now but then I'd need two spools and now this is spinning out of control.
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Sep 27, 2019 13:20
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CapnBry posted:Oh I am happy to have contributed something to this thread then: increased desire to buy more gear. Whenever I see 3D printers, I mostly see people posting photos of some random useless plastic knick-knack or lovely vase / pencil holder. My printer prints only functional equipment, with project enclosures being the top use. The only problem is that I spend way longer than I should iterating on the design after it is functional. Last Saturday I said "Let me just throw this together" and 3 hours later the best and most overdesigned 8mm mini T-handle socket rolled off the printer. That's right, three hours to make a cylinder with a toggle on top... but there's not another one on the planet that fits my hand exactly as well as this one. I'm glad I'm not the only one who uses a 3d printer this way. I don't understand the "hobby" of downloading knick nacks off of Thingiverse and hitting "print".
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Sep 27, 2019 15:09
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https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint
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Sep 27, 2019 15:36
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People on reddit are being useless turds (what’s new?) and I can’t get a decent answer to my question therequote:I recently came into a bunch of RF gear for free, and I was wondering if I can use any of it with the RTLSDR, or if its useful at all for any home setups, not just RTLSDR Anyone?
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Sep 28, 2019 02:33
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oh that was you lol The antennas are pretty useful if you want to gently caress with long range wifi/mesh stuff...the rest, not so much that upconverter would be fuckin SICK for amateur tv, if anybody still did 70cm analog TV.
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Sep 28, 2019 02:36
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I’m gonna probably go driving around tonight hunting signals with my RTL-SDR and the bipole antenna that it comes with. What’s your favorite way of scanning the whole (RTL-SDR usable) spectrum for signals? The SDR# frequency scanner never seems to work for me, but maybe I’m doing it wrong? I can scrub through the frequency’s but that takes forever.
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Sep 28, 2019 19:13
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Jim Silly-Balls posted:I’m gonna probably go driving around tonight hunting signals with my RTL-SDR and the bipole antenna that it comes with. The RTL things have to retune their center freq every, what, 2.5mhz? It’s not ever going to keep up with an actual scanner. I’ve got a chinese HackRF clone with 20mhz of receive, but that’s a pretty massive amount of data to process, and will fill your harddrive in a matter of minutes if you try to record it all. IMO you’re better off using resources like RadioReference and FCC filings to find out roughly where things you’re interested in live, then play in a smaller window.
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Sep 28, 2019 19:49
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I’ll try that thanks!
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Sep 28, 2019 19:53
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there are two approaches to signal acquisition: sdr and click through and look for traces buy a fucken ancient rear end pro-2006 or a uniden bc780 or something, set search limits and go i picked up a 'broken' $10 pro-2006 a bit ago and fixed its no audio thing with a single wire, it absolutely rips through freqs turbo style.
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Sep 29, 2019 06:53
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all the public agencies in my lame rear end county went to encrypted apco 25 for every loving channel and i sold / traded all that poo poo
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Sep 29, 2019 08:13
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Built my TNC-X and hooked it up only to find out that I'm in a kinda dead zone for APRS and Winlink, at least with my ghetto antenna setup (mobile antenna indoors on file cabinet). I can send packets but have only decoded once, from some guy a few miles south talking to a Winlink node I can't reach. I hear APRS packets occasionally on 144.390 and they trigger the TNC but never fully decode, from what I understand the signal needs to be perfect. I think this will change once I set up my outdoor antenna, a Comet GP-3 (waiting on coax+free time). Here's my  COMMS SHELF (a month ago I only had a baofeng, lmao) Gonna fill the space under it with an IC-718, eventually
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Sep 29, 2019 17:38
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Jim Silly-Balls posted:What’s your favorite way of scanning the whole (RTL-SDR usable) spectrum for signals? The SDR# frequency scanner never seems to work for me, but maybe I’m doing it wrong? Yesterday morning I set up my longer (41ft) wire and was able to get tons of 40m traffic, as far away as California and New York (from Florida) and even a guy in Dallas who said he was only 150W, clear as a bell. Today my reception is garbage and even the signals I can get fade out entirely. I also picked up some people on 80m. I didn't end up buying anything at the hamfest yesterday-- I just didn't know enough about what I was looking. Some people were nice though and willing to just chat about what they've got and why they're getting rid of whatever they had to sell, so it was an enjoyable morning. My favorite thing I heard yesterday was some guy on the 15m band who was going on about how in the 50s the US and the communists had a plan for world peace and were working toward merging and they just needed a war to get everyone on the side of peace, so they planned to sink the Lusitania together and put ads in the newspaper to tell people to not go on it and oh man my head was just spinning.
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Sep 29, 2019 18:02
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