[Hallicrafters] Re: HT-32 audio

[Mark Shaum]

 So I need ammunition.  Can anyone point me to any information on
 polishing up HT-32 audio.

 Jon, K6JEK

Jon,

I suppose it depends on what you mean by polishing up. If you have a
distortion issue, that can be addressed. But with a filter type sideband
exciter like the HT-32 series you are not going to squeeze anything
through wider than the filter bandwidth.  You can fiddle with the
carrier frequencies to shift the passband up or down a bit, you can play
with audio equalization/compression/limiting/expansion to make what does
get through the filter sound different, but you are still stuck with the
overall bandwidth limitations set by the crystal filter.

It's easy to overdrive exciters that don't have ALC.  Sometimes just
monitoring with a good scope to insure you aren't clipping on peaks is
enough to improve received reports.

Some folks like to play with wideband SSB (4-5 khz bandpass) with some
of the newer rigs that have the capability for generating wideband SSB.
If this is your goal, you have a few options.  Find or make a wider
bandwidth filter to install in the HT32.  Or bypass the filter
completely  and use DSB.  The audio chain would then be the limiting
factor, but nearby QSO's would likely gripe about your occupying twice
the spectrum space.   Or buy an HT-37 and figure out how to shoehorn it
into the HT-32 case.  Darn near everybody I chat with prefers the sound
of my HT-37 when compared to most of the other vintage rigs.  My CE 100V
came close, and it's a phasing rig like the 37.  I need to finish its
restoration one of these days.

73! - Mark K9TR