[Boatanchors] more on the Johnson Johnson

[Grant Youngman]

I think using a DDS VFO is a fine idea.  If I still had a Viking II, or Adventurer, or DX-40 or anything similar that’s what I’d do.  I divested myself of all of my BA rigs over the last 3-4 years.  But it’s a habit that’s been hard to break :-)

Grant NQ5T


> On Oct 23, 2018, at 3:26 PM, Brian <brianpepperdine at sympatico.ca> wrote:
> 
> 
> BA purists should stop reading now.... not so very offensive words below. Namely DDS...
> Thanks to those who replied to my query about the CW note of my recent Ranger acquisition.
> 
> I did do a monitoring on a receiver that was some amount physically separated from the xmtr and the CW does not quite have the sound I got in a receiver in the room with the Johnson itself. I appreciate that there is a vintage sound to the CW and that cognoscenti will pick up on it as something not of today per se. Not all that objectionable.
> 
> I believe from peering thru the vent holes on top that the rig does have the desired keyer mod...so I might be going into that and seeing if adjusting R39 does any positive affect. And tighten any screws and bolts etc against VFO leakage and whatnot.
> 
> Following on the fact that the crystal I tested it out with (versus the internal VFO) had a somewhat more bell like tone.... I went a bit further.
> I have a DDS based VFO that is a counter and VFO built as one unit....so.... having previously used it on a rig that has no VFO at all ....
> I put it on the Ranger and get a quite nice CW note out of it. So it is the EFJ VFO that contributes I think mostly to the vintage CW sound and not the xmtr...PA etc. so much. I think.
> What is nice about the DDS VFO is that it has a SPLIT mode...so that I can run it (and not hear it on the receiver) at a frequency up from where I an listening and then use the Split VFO B on a keyline to actuate the B VFO when I xmit (there is a rcvr MUTE and an external  amp activate keyline on the T/R switch I have),
> Not purist at all, but is a nice add of technology for those out there who might shy away from the vintage CW note on a CQ or answer to a CQ. We will see as the winter season progresses. And it is a solution I can apply to other small EFJ xmtrs lacking a VFO I  would like to get on the air as well as a Heath DX 40 (and maybe bigger iron like an EFJ Viking II etc. if I ever come across them again at all and can add them to the cold basement winter solution.... HI).