[Kenwood] Yes! - Kenwood SM-220 Station Monitor is a great way to go!

[peter markavage]

On Sat, 12 Mar 2005 21:37:32 -0500 "WD8ARZ" <wd8arz at ix.netcom.com>
writes:
> Conrad, once you use a SM-220 with the Panadapter installed, you are 
> in for 
> a new enjoyable way of linking up to the 'ether'. Not even covering 
> the 
> other aspects of the SM-220 scope, but focusing on panadapter 
> spectrum view 
> only, makes the ownership of this grand piece of equipment a 
> fortunate 
> experience. Keep in mind that the IF connection point in the first 
> IF must 
> be wide and not limited by a front end roofing filter, or the 
> panadapter 
> feature is useless.
> 
> For those that can integrate what they see on the display, tune on 
> their 
> radio, and hear with their ears, the world of exploring radio gets 
> changed 
> forever. It is difficult to do with out this added dimension to our 
> 
> enjoyable hobby that explores what is out there, once you have 
> opened the 
> door and stepped through it with this visual add on. It becomes 
> special to 
> find that elusive special signal, to feel connected to world that we 
> explore 
> with our minds through our senses, not just hearing, but also now 
> with our 
> eyes.
> 
> Adding this visual mode to the tuning listening experience, is a 
> added 
> dimension that gives much more to the exploration of the radio 
> spectrum. It 
> can help absorb you into 'being out there' from your arm chair. How? 
> Simply 
> by expanding the bandwidth of the information that is going on 
> around the 
> area you are tuning, you will find much that is going on that is 
> simply not 
> detectable from the narrow slice of the spectrum you tune through.
> 
> Much of the utility stations, military broadcasts, and even laid 
> back 
> conversations with lots of pauses, are easily tuned through with 
> even 
> knowing the frequency is active. However with the spectrum display, 
> you see 
> signals pop up above and below the slice you are on, or tuning 
> through. You 
> instantly know which way to tune, and how far, to catch those elusive 
> 
> signals. Even if they are quiet when you tune to that general spot, 
> you now 
> are on a quest and will get them on a future transmission. By having 
> the 
> graticule in place, you can actually adjust the span of the display 
> to allow 
> calibration of the marks to represent frequency units. By noting 
> where the 
> signal was that popped up, you can actually add or subtract that 
> amount to 
> your display, and tune so close to the actual frequency, that you 
> only have 
> to do a fine tune on the next transmission to captured that signal.
> 
> The finding of active transmissions improved significantly with this 
> visual 
> aid. It is a must have for tuning the shortwave spectrum with the 
> multitude 
> of signals and modes to discover.
> 
> With practice, you will recognize the mode type of a signal, you 
> will see 
> sweepers moving up and down the band. You can actually see where the 
> tuner 
> upper moving around the dial found a spot to roost and is calling 
> cq.
> 
> On wide mode, you can see the condition of the band. By seeing how 
> much 
> energy is above the base line for the whole spectrum, it provides a 
> good 
> indication of propagation condition. You can see how tight an 
> antenna is by 
> the decreasing signal strength around the listening sweet spot. Of 
> course 
> you can see how wide a signal is, and if it is related to the 
> splatter your 
> hearing ........ gosh, once you get absorbed into the panadapter 
> display 
> experience, it becomes so natural to relate what you see to what you 
> hear, 
> or will hear by tuning with the added information you now have about 
> what is 
> going on around the frequency of interest. Your situational 
> awareness goes 
> way way up!!! ... and with that, your enjoyment of a great hobby.
> 
> For the ham bands, it is a god send to see where the open spots are 
> for a 
> qsy, to look for transmissions of interesting to discover, to see 
> those 
> sudden meteor scatter signals pop on, and then fade out ..... I 
> could go on 
> and on.
> 
> The experience that is had with a spectrum scope is only limited by 
> the user 
> ..... approach it with a open find and find your own relationship 
> with this 
> feature, and I bet you will not want to let it go!
> 
> 73 from Bill - WD8ARZ
> P.S. - If your favorite modern rig wont let you use the SM-220 due 
> to a 
> front end roofing filter, then dig out the old back up rig. Put the 
> 
> panadpater scope on it to do the exploring discovery and frequency 
> finding.... then use your better rig to listen in that supports all 
> the 
> filters and modes of interest. Once tuned in on the better rig, go 
> look for 
> another signal on the old rig SM-220 combo ..... hi hi   Makes for a 
> great 
> multi tasking duo that is hard to beat Here, a FT-1000MP and a 
> IC-720 with 
> the SM-220 accomplish this very well.
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Conrad & Kathi Nasatka" <konco at comcast.net>
> To: "kenwood" <kenwood at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Friday, March 11, 2005 8:55 AM
> Subject: [Kenwood] Kenwood SM-220 Station Monitor
> 
> 
> Good day to all Kenwood aficionados:
> I am trying to find or get in touch with someone that has a Kenwood 
> SM-220 
> station monitor with the BS-8 display option.  I presently have one 
> without 
> the BS-8 Pan Display Option.  However, I would like to speak to 
> someone who 
> has one and uses all the functions that the SM-220 has.  For 
> Instance, there 
> are 3 connection cables necessary to make them functioning according 
> to the 
> manual.  There is a specific graticule necessary when you put the 
> BS-8 
> option into operation.  I have tried to locate one on eBay but just 
> missed 
> one that had everything.  If I could speak to someone that weigh in 
> on the 
> specific benefits I would be most appreciative.  As I said I own one 
> and did 
> so specifically to monitor my signal when I had the Kenwood TL-922A 
> in line 
> to provide me with some idea of linearity.  I would appreciate it 
> very much 
> because I am missing something, sorry!
> Regards
> 73
> Conrad
> WB3DQD
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