[Lowfer] WE2XGR/2 in Jason mode

[John Andrews]

Some notes on JASON for those not used to it:

JASON was created by Alberto DiBene, I2PHD, following work done on 
incremental frequency keying by Steve Olney, VK2ZSO. The transmitted 
frequency is varied in steps, with 16 possible values of frequency 
shift. The absolute frequency is not important; only the difference in 
frequency between successive tones. Two tone shifts are required for 
each of the 64 possible characters. Unlike the various BPSK modes, a 
linear power amplifier is not required at the transmitter.

JASON "Normal" transmits tones for 11.9 seconds, with all of the tones 
fitting into a 4 Hz bandwidth. Newer options allow 6 tone lengths in 
conjunction with three sets of tones. JASON "Fast" has tones of 1.5 
second duration, with a 32 Hz bandwidth. JASON Normal is faster than 
QRSS3, and JASON Fast is about on a par with 3 wpm CW.

To receive JASON transmissions, download the program (currently Ver. 
0.99) from I2PHD's site:
http://www.weaksignals.com
You might want to also download the tech notes available there. The 
JASON program is soundcard based, and should work on most PC's. Initial 
setup only requires that you fit the signal within the passband between 
the yellow lines at the bottom of the screen. If you know the BFO/audio 
pitch coming from your receiver, that should be sufficient. You can also 
tune to a signal of known frequency, and mouse-click on the line to 
center it on the screen. Tuning is not fussy for the Normal and Fast 
JASON modes. Albert suggests that you keep the audio level to the low 
end of the scale.

Jason's transmitter interface may be done with a sound card into an SSB 
exciter, or by commanding a synthesizer to make the appropriate 
frequency jumps.

JASON Normal 136 kHz signals from the U.K. have been received in the 
U.S., and Slow signals (95 sec per tone) from the U.S. have been 
received in EU.

I'd be happy to give free JASON advice to those with questions.

John Andrews, W1TAG