While 1540 KXEL is off

[radioman148]

By the way, how is the DX in Prescott?

Right now, with summer heat, the DX sucks. I've got the lesser of the receivers in Prescott, an R-75, while the TenTec and the Drake are in The Desert (Indian Wells) but during the winter, with the lack of locals and semi-local blasters, a lot of my favorite target, Mexico, can be heard as well as TPs.

What are you using for an antenna on the R75?

 

[davideduardo]

By the way, how is the DX in Prescott?

Right now, with summer heat, the DX sucks. I've got the lesser of the receivers in Prescott, an R-75, while the TenTec and the Drake are in The Desert (Indian Wells) but during the winter, with the lack of locals and semi-local blasters, a lot of my favorite target, Mexico, can be heard as well as TPs.

What are you using for an antenna on the R75?

Tiltable ferrite MOSFET loop. Phaser with an amplified vertical whip.

http://dxtools.com/ (Quantum Loop)

 

[radioman148]

By the way, how is the DX in Prescott?

Right now, with summer heat, the DX sucks. I've got the lesser of the receivers in Prescott, an R-75, while the TenTec and the Drake are in The Desert (Indian Wells) but during the winter, with the lack of locals and semi-local blasters, a lot of my favorite target, Mexico, can be heard as well as TPs.

What are you using for an antenna on the R75?

Tiltable ferrite MOSFET loop. Phaser with an amplified vertical whip.

http://dxtools.com/ (Quantum Loop)

Is it this one? http://dxtools.com/QX.htm

 

[ddsparxx]

I have this antenna also. Works well with my R75. I am now considering the DXtool's phaser some day.

 

[radioman148]

I have this antenna also. Works well with my R75. I am now considering the DXtool's phaser some day.

Is it very directional?

 

[davideduardo]

Is it this one? http://dxtools.com/QX.htm

Yes, just a bit older and with the original MOSFET. The phaser plus a vertical whip (think old-style car antenna) allows the lobe of the loop to be steered in what is essentially a cardiod type pattern. Usually a loop picks up identically on both sides of the peak position, but the vertical plus phasor enhances one side and nulls the other. I have the vertical indoors on a tripod, and can move it. Ideal would be a set of at least 4 switchable ones up on the roof, but I have limited roof space so finding mounting places is more than i want to do.

 

[ddsparxx]

I have this antenna also. Works well with my R75. I am now considering the DXtool's phaser some day.

Is it very directional?

It's a powered antenna with receives signals with directionality of figure 8 pattern like that of the ferrite bar antenna in "regular" AM radios. That is, without the phaser unit which I don't have.

 

[radioman148]

Is it this one? http://dxtools.com/QX.htm

Yes, just a bit older and with the original MOSFET. The phaser plus a vertical whip (think old-style car antenna) allows the lobe of the loop to be steered in what is essentially a cardiod type pattern. Usually a loop picks up identically on both sides of the peak position, but the vertical plus phasor enhances one side and nulls the other. I have the vertical indoors on a tripod, and can move it. Ideal would be a set of at least 4 switchable ones up on the roof, but I have limited roof space so finding mounting places is more than i want to do.

Thanks for the info.

 

[kilokat7]

I have both the Quantum Loop and Quantum Phaser from dxtools but never had much success combining the two together. It sounds like a vertical is the way to go (I haven't tried phasing against a vertical yet). Instead, I'm using the phaser with two long wires on the ground and the results are impressive. I'm just a few miles away from 850 WGVS and I can phase-null them down to almost nothing at night and have been able to pull in KOA plus a couple of others on 850. Pretty amazing considering WGVS throws me a 50 over S9 signal on the S meter! Another fun example of phasing - two nights ago I was able to phase down 780 WBBM enough to catch WTME Maine running 10kw day power for a new state heard. Phasing 620 WTMJ directly across the lake from me will bring in WKHB from Pennsylvania on a regular basis. The phaser is also useful to cancel out man made noise and I routinely use it on the lower shortwave bands for this purpose. I would highly recommend a phaser - it's such a useful tool to have around!

 

[radioman148]

I have both the Quantum Loop and Quantum Phaser from dxtools but never had much success combining the two together. It sounds like a vertical is the way to go (I haven't tried phasing against a vertical yet). Instead, I'm using the phaser with two long wires on the ground and the results are impressive. I'm just a few miles away from 850 WGVS and I can phase-null them down to almost nothing at night and have been able to pull in KOA plus a couple of others on 850. Pretty amazing considering WGVS throws me a 50 over S9 signal on the S meter! Another fun example of phasing - two nights ago I was able to phase down 780 WBBM enough to catch WTME Maine running 10kw day power for a new state heard. Phasing 620 WTMJ directly across the lake from me will bring in WKHB from Pennsylvania on a regular basis. The phaser is also useful to cancel out man made noise and I routinely use it on the lower shortwave bands for this purpose. I would highly recommend a phaser - it's such a useful tool to have around!

Thanks for the info. I will have to look into this especially with DX season upon us.

 

[Time Traveler]

Are the two stations mentioned by kilokat **authorized** for nighttime?

I know that when ZNS in Nassau was off last winter (copper thieves), AFAIK I caught two 1540's that (1) have no authorization for nights, and (2) shall be nameless.

Keep on the listen, kilokat!

cd

Were you able to hear KXEL when ZNS was off?

I may be the only person in the USA *not* to have heard KXEL from my home....I know it has a reach.

No Albany either....I haven't heard that one since 1975.

No CHIN, although I may have caught CHIN about 20 years ago w/ "Broadcast News."

Even ZNS itself has a tight pattern for 50 k, ostensibly to cover as much of the Bahamas as it can. I see that there is a CP for a fulltime 1540 around Orlando!

cd

Albany now signs off at 10:00 PM at night so you are not likely going to hear them....
I used to hear them regularly though in Cincinnati in the 1960s...

 

[Tom Wells]

For my best MW dxing I use a 1936 Philco 116-X, fed by a 1925 tuned loop with variable angle center pickup coil.
When I need even more directionality, I connect the MFJ phase cancelling noise amplifier to null out the
"vertical" "point source" component of the signal against the loop's "magnetic lines of force" component.

And yes, it is very effective. There are also ways to connect a wire antenna to the loop itself passively which
will do almost as well, but it's not as impressive as with an active gain amp for rejecting noise or an undesired
signal. The short whip on the MFJ noise cancelling amp, when used as the noise source to cancel locally generated noise,
is awesome, and allows easy copy on signals otherwise covered by noise.