[Elecraft] Digital modes - need clarification

[Julian (G4ILO)]

It doesn't help that many people work somebody with a poor signal and make
no comment on it at all. I recently waited while 2 or 3 folk worked an
Italian guy who was running an FT something or other and was claiming to be
running 100 watts. He was about 1KHz wide! They all gave him 599 reports.
When he eventually came back to me, I told him his signal was wide, he
reduced power to 25 watts and was just as readable but clean as a whistle.

You may be right that it is mainly the newbies who think they need more
power. On the whole, I feel that I'm working more people now who are using
only 20 or 25 watts, even a few using as little as 10 watts, when running a
100W transceiver. A couple of years ago everyone seemed to be running 40 or
50. I think that those who have used PSK for some time have come to realise
that all that happens if you consistently use that much power is that you
get a very warm transceiver that probably drifts noticeably during an over.

73,
--
Julian, G4ILO. (K2 #392)
Homepage: http://www.qsl.net/g4ilo



  ==== Original message ====

Sandy W5TVW wrote:

[snip]

> The second thing is "newbies" running overloaded rigs/sound cards 
> causing wide and/or
> dirty signals with many "sidebands" or numerous "spurs".  Takes away all 
> the
> advantages of the narrow mode.  In properly operated 25 watters, one 
> cane see a dozen
> stations on in a 1.5-2 khz slice of bandspace!  Amazing mode only IF 
> operated
> properly.  Lots of fun.