[Elecraft] P3 v SubRX

[Randy Farmer]

I would agree that the P3 should probably take priority over the 
Subreceiver for a new buy, mostly due to the many different things it 
can do for you. But... my experience this weekend trying to work E30FB 
on 20 CW sure made me glad I had the Sub. I would never have worked them 
using just the scope.

Problem is, it seems the way people try to work DX these days makes it 
virtually impossible to depend on a visual cue to know who's being 
worked by the DX if there's a pileup of any size at all. E30FB had the 
pile spread out for better than 20 kHz, and the scope showed a constant 
morass of signals all across the entire span. Aside from the obliviots 
who continually send their call whether the DX is listening or not, 
there are many who apparently see nothing wrong with coming back or 
continuing to call when the DX operator replies to a call that obviously 
isn't theirs. Every time E30FB would answer a complete call there were 
dozens of perfectly timed signals that jumped up all across the extent 
of the pileup. Luckily, using the second receiver I managed to stumble 
on to one that turned out to actually be the guy he was working. A 
minute or two of careful listening around that frequency revealed the 
operator's tuning pattern, and after just a couple of calls I was in the 
log too.

If you really want to work rare DX these days you're going to NEED the 
second receiver. This isn't due to any problems with the capabilities of 
the P3 -- it's the result of operating practices that continue to 
deteriorate. You'll need all the tools you can get and all the cunning 
you can muster to work DX through the Doofus curtain these days.

73...
Randy, W8FN