Posted: 10/6/2013 9:35:16 AM EDT
Ok, I have a SignaLink USB hooked up, waterfalls working, And I think all is good. Except I am just totally lost. 
As I understand it, on a given frequency, you can have multiple conversations, all at different audio frequencies. So you click on one of the waterfalls coming down the page, and that is the one that is decoded. How in the (*&$^% do I figure out what mode it is? In Fldigi, I gather that you select the mode under OPMODE in the upper menu, and then you can select which variation in the bottom of the screen. But there are what, 15 different modes, and two to 10 sub-modes under each mode! Is there a band chart some where that says xxxx MHz is BPSK/31, xxxx MHz is Olvia16/500, etc? Or am I just going about it all wrong? |
|
Don't worry. You're not the only one that is confused here.
Do a web search on the topic "Digital modes" and you'll get quite a few hits. This one has examples of the waveforms and has helped me somewhat. http://hfradio.org.uk/html/digital_modes.html |
|
99% of what you are going to see is going to be one of the following most popular modes (in no particular order):
Some variant of Olivia Some variant of PSK RTTY JT65 or JT9 Study those and have fun for a while before starting to hunt down more obscure modes. If you want to try a less common mode, just turn on your TXID and start calling CQ for a while. Somebody will eventually answer in that mode. |
|
http://www.podxs070.com/frequently-asked-questions/psk31-frequencies
http://www.df4or.de/rtty/dxguide.html http://www.bandplans.com/index.php?band=All Those are the bookmarks i have for figuring out what's where. |
|
Go here this has pictures of different modes and what they sound like.
Go to 14.070 99.9% of what is in your waterfall will be PSK31 (Some call it BPSK31) every now and then you will see a PSK63 signal which looks the same (rail road tracks or ladder) only twice as wide. Usually around 14.080 you will find some RTTY which looks like two signals parallel 21.076 is a good spot to see what jt65 (wide) and jt9 (narrow) look like On Wednesday we have the ARFCOM digital net in Olivia which is really wide and slow around 14.067.5 If you are using fldigi in the upper right you will see RXID and TXID those ID what mode you are using. The Fldigi site has more about that Digital is where its at, don't let any of these old fudds tell you otherwise 
|
|
Quoted:
On Wednesday we have the ARFCOM digital net in Olivia which is really wide and slow around 14.067.5 Great post from gcw. The only thing I'd add is this time of year the Digital Net switches to 40m, 7.112 +1500. Here's a good example from last Wednesday's Digi-Net showing Vulcan94's big signal in Olivia 16/500. 
|
Don't get discouraged. It seems confusing at first, but if I can figure it out anyone can. You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly. 
Quoted:
Digital is where its at, don't let any of these old fudds tell you otherwise Yes, but just remember that, CW is the original digital. 
|
|
Thanks to everyone who responded - I was thinking this can't be that hard, but is sure is confusing at first.
Quoted:
Don't get discouraged. It seems confusing at first, but if I can figure it out anyone can. You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.
Quoted:
Don't get discouraged. It seems confusing at first, but if I can figure it out anyone can. You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly.
Nah, that's why I asked here. Funny, this side forum is quicker and easier to get good, simple, direct answers to, especially for newbies, than most, no matter what the question is. Quoted:
Quoted:
Digital is where its at, don't let any of these old fudds tell you otherwise Yes, but just remember that, CW is the original digital.
When I started looking at digital, that is exactly what I thought! |
|
Can someone point me to the thread about getting the IC 7200 working digital modes over just USB? I may have pulled the trigger the other day. Thanks Bigdaddy0004, Jupiter7200, and others - this is all your fault.
Edit: Universal Serial Bus cable, not upper side band. |
|
Quoted:
Can someone point me to the thread about getting the IC 7200 working digital modes over just USB? I may have pulled the trigger the other day. Thanks Bigdaddy0004, Jupiter7200, and others - this is all your fault. I think this was the last one...Icom IC-7200 PTT for Digital Modes Always willing to help spend someone else's money!
|
|
Quoted:
Great post from gcw. The only thing I'd add is this time of year the Digital Net switches to 40m, 7.112 +1500. Here's a good example from last Wednesday's Digi-Net showing Vulcan94's big signal in Olivia 16/500.
http://home.comcast.net/~gregbell/DM780-Screenshot-2013-10-02-212521%20Vulcan94.JPG Quoted:
Quoted:
On Wednesday we have the ARFCOM digital net in Olivia which is really wide and slow around 14.067.5 Great post from gcw. The only thing I'd add is this time of year the Digital Net switches to 40m, 7.112 +1500. Here's a good example from last Wednesday's Digi-Net showing Vulcan94's big signal in Olivia 16/500.
http://home.comcast.net/~gregbell/DM780-Screenshot-2013-10-02-212521%20Vulcan94.JPG That "big signal" just proves what they say about "Antenna, Antenna, Antenna".
Vulcan94 |
|
Quoted:
Can someone point me to the thread about getting the IC 7200 working digital modes over just USB? I may have pulled the trigger the other day. Thanks Bigdaddy0004, Jupiter7200, and others - this is all your fault. Edit: Universal Serial Bus cable, not upper side band. Great...thanks for that...It has pushed me over the edge. This has to be my first HF radio. 
|
|
Quoted:
Great...thanks for that...It has pushed me over the edge. This has to be my first HF radio. Quoted:
Quoted:
Can someone point me to the thread about getting the IC 7200 working digital modes over just USB? I may have pulled the trigger the other day. Thanks Bigdaddy0004, Jupiter7200, and others - this is all your fault. Edit: Universal Serial Bus cable, not upper side band. Great...thanks for that...It has pushed me over the edge. This has to be my first HF radio. Jupiter7200 is good at spending your money.... ask me how I know.
|
|
Ok, another question for you experts.
I am running Fldigi on a Mac with the SignaLink USB. Connected through the USB and the cable to the IC-718. I adjust the power as suggested earlier - hit the TUNE button in the upper right, and adjust the volume on the SignaLink to about 20W as shown on the radio. I adjusted it once, came back and the output was way down - as in 5W or less. I turned it up. Left for a while, returned, and it was pushing 50W. The speaker output volume doesn't seem to impact it, and I can't figure it out....do these volumes just change and you have to retune often? It doesn't seem like you would need to retune unless you hit the knobs on the SignaLink. |
|
Quoted:
Ok, another question for you experts. I am running Fldigi on a Mac with the SignaLink USB. Connected through the USB and the cable to the IC-718. I adjust the power as suggested earlier - hit the TUNE button in the upper right, and adjust the volume on the SignaLink to about 20W as shown on the radio. I adjusted it once, came back and the output was way down - as in 5W or less. I turned it up. Left for a while, returned, and it was pushing 50W. The speaker output volume doesn't seem to impact it, and I can't figure it out....do these volumes just change and you have to retune often? It doesn't seem like you would need to retune unless you hit the knobs on the SignaLink. This is often an indication of a problem with your antenna system. Something heating due to a mismatch somewhere, perhaps, or if you've got branches occasionally touching the antenna, etc. |