As radio amateur, the basic preferences are HF traffic and homebrew. Rag chewing, hunting DX or contesting, I'm enjoy at every contact because, don't laugh, I like to have in my hand the QSL-card. Doesn't matter if it's from YO or elsewhere. The preferred modes are CW and SSB. Sometimes I use RTTY and PSK31, but not so much, because I can't feel my correspondent. In my opinion, the most important part of a radio gear is the receiver. Always I look for this because how can you have contact with somebody, if you can't hear it? Let's don't talking about QRM. There is no need just narrow IF filters, IF shift, but and attenuators, all kind of audio filters. Most of that are homebrew. Of course, there is need for a skilled operator, isn't? Usually, I'm a supporter of low power, even QRP. But, because I live in a crowd neighbourhood, at the first level of a block-flat, and I don't have too much space for my antennas, sometimes I push my output over limits; but this is happening just in the contests. Anyway, until now, I have in my log over 3,000 contacts and over 100 countries.
As you can see, from the enclosed picture, the equipment of my shack is as follows: FT 101 ZD - the main transceiver QRP CW 14 MHz - works as project FT 411 E - for local traffic and trips RTP4MF - for packet-radio SATELLIT 600 - receiver 0,15 - 26,5 MHz			Aerials: FD4 multiband dipole for 14MHz dipole slopper for 21 MHz dipole slopper for 28 MHz J-pole for 145MHz
All those aerials are at a height of 5 m up, in front of my window, excepting FD4, which is placed at 15 up from ground, between two blocks, far away of my control. When the bands are too noisy, I connect the monoband aerials. For me, is more important the resonance frequency than the SWR; this can be adjust. In spite of my crowd neighbourhood, I don't have TVI or BCI claims. Why? Because: - I'm connected at a good quality TV cable network and all indoor cables are in a good shape. - I get out of my home all malfunction TV or radio receivers. - I work especially after 10 p.m. - I use low power. Like any respectable ham, a computer help me to keep the evidence of contacts, to work in digital modes and not only that. Usually, I use the hand log because the human brain is more flexible than computer. Besides of that, I have a good historical memory - that help me more than the computer - and sometimes the interaction between rig and computer could cause some troubles, except the noise. The main computer in my shack is an AMD Duron 750 MHz, multimedia, used for Internet and digital modes. It is used, also, to edit the QSO magazine, our monthly club publication. Unfortunately, the noise is too strong to be use in contest or for DX-hunting. The second computer is a 486, 33MHz, a laptop, for logging in contest and CW training. The big trump of this is the low noise. The soft is Win95 but I use mainly DOS. This is my personal computer and nobody can get inside without serious knowledgement about DOS operating. The main soft consists of: N6TR log - the best in my opinion -, PED, RUFZ, and a little program created by YO5OOZ for CW training, HST. For this last, I don't have words to praise the author and his creation. First time I saw it on a 286, then I have a copy, and now is work fine on my computer. It strongly helps me, and maybe others. Unfortunately, is only in Romanian.