[Elecraft] Re: When do you use fast AGC?

[Darwin, Keith]

I guess I'm the oddball.  I run CW on AGC slow 90% of the time.  Turning
off AGC disables the S-meter and watching the S-meter is part of my
enjoyment of the hobby (there, I said it)!

If the signal is coming over the north pole and is fluttering rapidly,
I'll go to Fast AGC.

Using fast AGC increases the background noise as the receiver recovers
gain between the various CW elements.  Running slow AGC holds the gain
down (and therefore the background noise) between elements, letters and
possibly words.

I often use the RF gain but I leave the AGC on.  I'll back off the RF
gain so the S-meter deflects up only when the signal fades up to max.
If the signal is fluctuating from S7 to S9, I'll back the RF gain down
to where the meter stays around S8.  This is basically the same as
turning AGC off but the AGC is still there to handle unexpected strong
signals.

- Keith KD1E -
- K2 5411 -