[Elecraft] Diversity receive w/o dedicated receive antenna

[Erik Basilier]

I totally agree with Jim. Diversity receive is the only way I use the second
rx, and I never invested one cent in extra antennas for the second receiver.
For use with my horizontally polarized main antenna I just connect the
second rx to my existing vertical, which works fine even on bands that it is
not designed for. At Field Day I put up a BuddiPole vertical with no coil
and no attempt whatsoever to tune to any band, with a single wire
counterpoise of random length. If I didn't have the vertical at home, or the
BuddiPole for the field, I would just use two pieces of wire and suspend
whichever way is convenient. However, assuming the antennas are not far from
each other, it is important that they have opposite polarizations. 

 

To have the second receiver and not use it for diversity is a tragedy. After
you set the rf gain on the subreceiver to get a decent balance between the
two receivers, you will find that the second receiver often allows you to
hear a station in the second rx that is temporarily unreadable in the main
receiver due to qsb. Also, in crowded band conditions the different stations
within the receiver passband will arrive with varying polarizations, and you
can hear them spatially separated like orchestra instruments on a stereo
"sound stage". This is helpful both for ssb and cw. Sometimes it can even
help with multiple cw signals on the exact same frequency.

 

73,

Erik K7TV

 

>Your second antenna  does NOT need to be resonant to receive, either by
itself or with another in diversity mode. My receive antenna is seasonal so
I have employed antennas for other bands for receive when it is not up.
While a non resonant will not present as strong a signal, it also will not
present as strong a noise. The S/N ratio is unchanged but the human ear
seems to hear better when the noise is reduced. I typically use an antenna
for the next band (even harmonic).

 

73,

Jim W5QM