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27-11-2007 New DXCC, New M3's, CQWW CW, New Rig Pic.
Well in the Teesside area we have a couple of new M3's rag chewing on 2. Welcome to the two Gary's, M3VDV, M3UXJ, was a pleasure working you, all you need to do is loose the CB speak Hi ;-).
Worked a few stations during the CQWW CW contest. They were as follows;
K2NG, K1AR, N3RS, HC8N (new DXCC Galapagos Islands), RG3K. All 20mtrs CW.
KC1XX, K1LA, CN2FB all 80mtrs CW.
Also since my last update I have worked M3VDV, M3UXJ, M3RNO, 2E0JKD all on 2mtrs FM and 2E0OCE on both 2mtrs FM and 80mtrs SSB.
I have added a picture of the Trio TR-9130 to the my equipment page, click here to view page.
19-11-2007 Back on 2.
Well on Friday 16-11-07 I took delivery of a 2mtr multimode from Phil 2E0BBP, cheers mate. The radio is an old Trio TR-9130. The rig has a few small problems, in that the RF gain control is not working and it could do with aligning up on SSB. The radio is off frequency by +70Hz on USB and +10Hz on LSB. The last problem I have found is also on SSB and that is there seem to be frequency beat on the signal. A download of the service manual will help sort it out.
Up to now I have only had 1 contact on the TR-9130 and that was with my old mucker Keith 2E0JKD.
I will take a photo of the new radio ASP.
15-11-2007 Update.
Well thought it was time for an update to the site.
I have not done to much radio wise. I have finally had some contacts on 80mtrs outside of the local area, so I now know the 80mtr end fed works into Europe ok.
I have also been to London to Wembley Stadium. I watched the NFL game between the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants and I got to see a fair few sights that London has to offer while I was there.
On the radio contacts front I have worked the following since my last update;
AM5KB, LY3W, LZ26ZA on 20. F6CTT, DR1A, LN9Z, OT5A, MW5W on 80 in the CQWW SSB Contest. K2LE, IO5O, HG6N, OL7R, K9RS on 20 in the CQWW SSB Contest. M6T on 80 CQWW SSB Contest. LX2007G on 80mtrs. RD3MA and T93M both on 20mtrs. And lastly, last night on 80mtrs I worked DL0B.
As you can see I have not been overly active on the radio of late. I decided to let it take a back seat for a few weeks. In fact, I have rarely entered the shack in the past 2 weeks so I have not bothered with the internet or even the Xbox 360. I have also got in to photography a little with the addition of a new Canon EOS350D. I may be adding a Photo's page to the main home page but I am undecided as yet.
I am hoping to be back on 2mtrs shortly. I should soon have a Trio TR-9130 multi mode 2mtr radio in the shack, will keep you posted and as usual will have the normal photo added.
11-10-2007 Antenna Update.
Well today I configured the End Fed better. I added an additional pole on top of the pole holding my Delta Loop and I have now got the End Fed at full length with nothing left to over hang. I also got a T200-2 4-1 Balun from Keith and connected that straight away (Cheers Keith (2E0JKD)).
Well after messing with the Antenna for most of the day I have got to the point where it is near to being spot on. SWR in the phone portion of 80mtrs is 1.7. I have had to add a little more cable to the antenna and started to snip it to get the antenna to resonate with out the need of the ATU. I think another inch or 2 will get it down to 1.1 swr. I will be trying that on Sunday. At the moment it will do.
Reports I have had today have ranged from 59 to 59+50dB. All these have been local though, so still awaiting a report outside of Teesside.
I have added a picture of the antenna on the My Equipment page.
07-10-07 New Antenna
I decided it was time to get an antenna sorted for 80mtrs. I was recommended to use 62' 10" end fed, against ground, in an inverted V configuration, by Phil (2E0BBP). Well I cut the cable to size, I used heavy duty speaker cable. I have not managed to configure the antenna correctly yet but in it's temporary configuration it seems to be working well.
I also wound a 4 to 1 balun which once again is only temporary as the torroid I used was to small to allow 18 turns with out 1 turn having to be wound over another but, it is working for now till I get a better torroid.
04-10-2007 VooDoo Crew, New Ham across the pond.
Well I am new a fully fledged member of the WZ5Q VooDoo Crew. I was added to the ranks yesterday. You can see my listing here.
Congratulations to Jerri across the big pond for gaining her ticket. She has the call KI6LTP, look forward to working you sometime.
Keith (2E0JKD) has now got himself a IC-756proIII and sounds great on it. Congratulations on the new rig Keith.
30-09-2007 Audio
Well had a great ragchew with Phil (2E0BBP) last night on 20mtrs regarding audio, Phil did a few recordings of my audio, and I have to say I am impressed by the 870 and outboard kit. It sounds fantastic. I have added one of the recordings to the ESSB Page. I have also added a pic of the audio kit on that page. Cheers Phil.
Today I had 1 contact with TM7RWC.
22-09-2007 Ham Spirit, New DXCC.
Ham Spirit is alive and well. On 16-09-2007 I place an ad for an original TS-870s Manual in the wanted section on Junksale. Within 1 hour I had received an email from Ian 2E0IMT offering me a Nifty Mini Manual for the 870. I replied asking how much he would want, he replied with "nothing, you can have it." I sent him my address and 2 days later the manual was here. I cannot thank Ian enough. Another Example is Keith 2E0JKD, he came round today with an earth spike for me. The earth spike is to be used on an end fed 80mtr antenna. Cheers Keith.
Have not done much radio wise but, I had a rare rare rare one today. I worked OJ0B pm 30mtrs CW. Market Reef is extremely rare. We exchanged 599 reports.
I was a bit fed up today. 1st weekend I have had for a while and come 1200zulu a contest started. I hate contests, They really know how to spoil a good weekend. I work all week and it's rare I get a full weekend off. When I do a contest spoils it. OK I don't hate all contests, I like the RSGB, ARRL, CQWW and a few others.
Had a good ragchew last night with Phil 2E0BBP, Ronnie M3RNO and Nathan 2E0NCH. I got some good advice regarding my audio off Phil, who said it sounds great on 6kHz bandwidth. Nathan also said it was because of the great sounding audio that he stopped on the frequency. Ronnie wasn't to keen as he said I didn't have as much bass as before.
16-09-2007 Booming
Well had a night on the beer last night, so haven't been in the mood to play much radio today due to the recovery process. Any way had my 1st contact since sorting the 870 Drive issue. Contact was with EW8AM and he advised I was BOOMING at 59++. So think the audio is all ok now.
Today I also hooked up the 870 to the PC for HRD rig control.
I added some new pics of the shack and rig into the My Equipment page. Will be adding others ASAP.
14-09-2007 870 drive, speakers.
Well got the power out of the 870 done today, the audio kit drives it fine now. Also today I got some new Edirol Speakers, MA-10D's. I used to use MA-10's ages ago, they are fantastic.
13-09-2007 870 drive
Well I sussed out why I don't seem to be getting a lot of drive from the 870. The output power has been decreased for some reason. So I will look in to turning it back up to the correct level.
12-09-2007 Not much chance today.
Well had a course today for work which made me a little late home. I had something to eat and watched England beat Russia 3-0 in the World Cup Qualifier. Just after the game I had a play with my audio but, I still don't seem to be able to drive the 870 properly.
I have some new shack photo's but, I cannot find my Camera USB cable to get the photo's onto my PC. I am off work tomorrow so hope to have a better play with audio and hopefully find the USB cable.
11-09-2007 More Audio
Well had another Audio report tonight from Keith (2E0JKD), he advised hat it all sounds good but seems to be lacking some thing. This maybe due to a few things. I am now TXing at a wider bandwidth than normal so it may take a while for people to adjust to the new sound. Also as I am slightly wider now on TX it could be the RX station is limited on what it is hearing due to limitations of the radio in use on RX.
Having said that though, my settings may not be and probably are not correct. I will tinker some more on Thursday when I am off work.
Cheers to all who have issued reports
10-09-2007 Audio Reports
Well had three Audio reports tonight using the rack and the 870.
1st, report from Phil (2E0BBP) said the audio was nice but lacked drive. More experimenting
2nd's report from Colm 2E0OCE was muffled. More experimenting.
3rd report from Paul (G0OPH) was that the audio was nice and bassy and that people tuning through would stop and listen.
Went to bed happy.
09-09-2007 New Rig
Well good to his word Ray (2E0RDO) came to my house at around 11am and had a look at the IC-7000. It only took him a few minutes to make his mind up that he was willing to do a deal for his 870. Ray left and said he would return with the 870 a little later in the afternoon.
Once again true to his word Ray was here at about 3pm with the 870 and the deal was done.
The 870 I got off Ray is pristine, it doesn't even have a finger mark on it. Cheers Ray, it was an absolute pleasure.
Later in the evening I wired the Audio Rack and data interface. By the time I had finished doing that though I had to go to bed.
08-09-2007 FT-1000MP
While at work I had a phone call from Keith (2E0JKD) advising me that some one on Junksale was wanting to swap an FT-1000MP for an IC-7000. Unfortunately as I was at work I could do nothing about it till I got home. By the time I got home I called the guy and he had already sorted a deal. Oh well back to the Drawing Board.
I emailed Ray (2E0RDO) regarding his 870 and he replied saying he is still considering a deal with his 870 for my 7000 but, would like to see and look at the 7K 1st. No problem, so it was arranged for Ray to come round on 09-09-2007
07-09-2007 Rally.
Well went to the Leicester Rally today with Phill (2E0BBP). I took my IC-7000 and MFJ Tuner just in case I spotted a radio I could do a deal on. I only saw 2 870's on the Bring n Buy. I could have had one but it wasn't in good condition, Well not to the standard I require. The other was near mint but I could not get hold of the person selling it.
As for the Rally... Well got there about 9am as the roads where free flowing all the way there. Just after we arrived the Formula Renault cars started a practice session and the noise outside was very loud. After 30 mins of this noise I had had enough of it. Got into the Rally about 9.40am. Thankfully the noise was quieter.
The Rally was really disappointing if you were trying to buy components for homebrew purposes. Some of the emporiums had some good bargains though. I met Lee from Lamco and also met Jimbob and Melvyn of JBT Traiding.
The big 3 had stands, Kenwood had very little and in fact I only glanced at it. Yaesu had the FT-2000, FT-9000DX and FT-450 on display. The FT-2000 looked a great bit of kit and one I would consider. If I had a gripe regarding the FT-2000 it would be the knobs, they felt cheap and some felt a little loose and un-precise. The FT-9000DX was a cracking looking bit of kit but, on closure inspection was way to cluttered. The FT-450, well to be honest the least said about the way that looks the better.
On to Icom, WoW, they know how to build radios at Icom, the IC-7800 was a fantastic looking radio. The knobs and buttons felt real quality and they felt precise and smooth. To be honest I looked at the IC-7700 and the IC-756 Pro III as well as the good old IC-7000. They all had great build quality and out of all the manufacturers at the Rally, the Icom range looked the best. Unfortunately how any of them worked I cannot say as they all had small portable antenna's or none at all.
Overall the rally wasn't great. As is the norm with most rally's now, way to many stalls are computer orientated. I would say about 40% of the rally was radio. Another major issue with this rally was how expensive the catering was. A van outside the exhibition centre was trying to charge £3.30 for a beacon and egg butty, £1.30 for a tea and £1.80 for a coffee.
Phil and I left the rally just after 2pm, I bought a Logbook, a single torroid and a Waters & Stanton catalogue, that's it. The journey home was a stop start one for a while but, we got back around 5.30pm.
06-09-2007 781, Data, Vindaloo, 870???
Well on Sunday, 02-09-07, I was at Keith's (2E0JKD). While there I had a go of the fantastic Icom IC-781, wow, what a rig, it just made me long for another base HF rig even more. I sorted his Data intefarce so he is now back on PSK etc. I also had a Vindaloo while there and it was very nice, although my stomach didn't agree and for a couple of days it felt a bit fragile.
I also managed to sort my own Data Interface issue. Turned out the drivers for my PC COM ports had corrupted, re-installed and all ok.
Well having little luck in getting an 870 or similar for my ESSB. I have even decided to try and sell my IC-7000 in order to get the funds for the fair few I have seen for sale. For some reason no ones seem interested in a swap. There is an 870 local to me, just hoping to get the cash or persuade him to swap, (come on Ray, you know you want too!!!).
Well off to Leicester tomorrow with Phil (2E0BBP), I am going to take the 7K there with the hope an 870 appears and I can sort a swap. All this hassle for nice audio. Wouldn't care but, my audio already sounds great but, I want even better.
Forgot to mention, I raised the Delta loop so it is all level now, no longer sloping. Conditions haven't been good so don't if it's better or worse.
Will update again tomorrow regarding the Rally.
31-08-2007 Dead Links
Well today I decided to remove the dead links on the Links page. I will be adding more links to this page soon.
While we are on the subject of dead things. How bad have the bands been today? Well grave yard comes to mind. Been very little to be heard all day.
30-08-2007 Japan, WZ5Q,
Well yesterday 29-08-07, I was scanning around 20mtrs when I heard a strong 59 station, I listened a bit until I heard his call, JA7AKH. I could not believe it, I had never heard Japan so strong. He finished his QSO and called QRZ, to my surprise he didn't even have a pile up. I listened again while he had another QSO and when he called QRZ again I called. No reply from him but he was not replying to any one else either. I waited a bit and called again. All I heard then was "Victor Oscar, go ahead." Straight in. I advised him of my call and my name and gave him a 59 report, he replied with a 57 report for me. Thankfully I have this QSO recorded and as soon as I can I will post it on my Soundbites page.
Also yesterday I had some great advice from one of the Hi-Fi SSB audio Guru's WZ5Q, to a few questions I had posted on his forum. The information he gave me proved to be great advice as some further reports justified.
Today I had a good ole rag chew with Phil (2E0BBP) and we where later joined by Keith (2E0JKD). Phil loved the sound from the audio, and I dare say is starting to think about some more external audio processing equipment. Phil later came to my QTH with some great 10 foot poles for me. Cheers Phil, hope to get them up tomorrow. I am going to be running my Delta loop to this pole and also an 80mtr dipole fed against ground as soon as I get a good earth spike. I will also be installing my 2/70 Co-Linear and my HB9CV 6mtr Beam with rotator.
Looking forward to some reports.
27-08-2007 At last an UPDATE!
Firstly, let me start by apologizing to all that visit regularly for the lack of up dates. I had a Hard Disk failure on my PC and I lost almost everything. I have since managed to get the important things back like my photo's but, I lost a hell of a lot, including my electronic log.
I also got given a new PC and I have also had problems with that crashing. All is cured now (Touch Wood) so the updates will be starting again.
Well the 1st thing I would like to mention is the passing of Bill Salerno, W2ONV (One Nice Voice) on the 12th of August 2007. I never spoke to Bill but I listened to him regularly as he was a joy to be heard. He always sounded fantastic and his signal was always strong. He never had a bad word to say to anyone and was always very helpful to those who asked advice. 14.178 will never be the same. 6 days before Bill passed away a friend of mine passed away also. Paul (The Brick) Deberick, Paul was not a radio guy but, was a top lad and a good all round guy. RIP to you both.
I have got a little further into Enhanced Audio. By getting hold of a Behringer EX3200, more on this in the SSB Audio page.
I have also acquired a 80MTR antenna, thanks to Keith (2E0JKD). I have not had time to put the antenna up yet but should do this week, time allowing. Keith also loaned me his Behringer MDX2200 and EX3200 to have a play around with. More once again on the SSB Audio Page. Thanks again Keith.
All being well, I am going to the Leicester Rally on the 7th of September with Phil (2E0BBP). I am not going to purchase any thing but, I have never been to the Leicester Rally before, so when I was offered the chance to go I jumped at it. Cheers Phil.
My FT-990 group is going from strength to strength and now has 105 members. I am also now on the look out for a TS-870, TS-950 FT-1000MP with DSP-100 or a IC-756Pro series Radio. I am wanting to swap my IC-7000 with MFJ-941E Tuner and TH-3 3 element tri-band beam for one of these radio's as they are more suited to ESSB Audio.
Well thats it for now, I would normally list who I have spoken to Since the last update, but as I lost my electronic Log I just Don't know.
08-06-2007 Madeleine McCann, Contacts
The other day I received an
email regarding missing Madeleine McCann.
This email stated that "the story is only being covered in Britain, Eire and
Portugal. We don't believe that she is in Portugal anymore and need to get her
picture and the story across Europe as quickly as possible. Suggestions are
welcome."
This got me thinking! As some one who communicates world wide what could I and
my fellow Hams do?
What I suggest is that we, as Radio Amateurs make a reference to the official
website to help find Madeleine.
http://www.findmadeleine.com/
All it takes is to mention the site during a QSO or put the site on QSL's,
eQSL's, on your QRZ profile or homepage. This way the message gets around World
Wide and not just Europe. Together we could all make this terrible event public
through out the world.
As a father I know I would want as many people aware of the issue with the hope
that, maybe, just maybe some one may spot her who wasn't previously aware.
So lets do what we can.
http://www.findmadeleine.com/
I have also sent the above to eHam and QRZ, still awaiting a response or for them to include it on their site.
Well contacts since my last update are as follows.
M3XKR,HA3UU, M3RNO, 2E0FJP, AO5KB, AO5GL, CO8LY, 2E0JKD, 2E0OCE and OY/PA3BAG.
24-05-2007 Contacts, Junksale
Well I am pleased to say that the Junksale website is finally back up and running, well done Chris.
Had the following contacts since my last update.
12-05-2007: RN6B6, WX3B.
13-05-2007: H2EURO, 9H1SP.
14-05-2007: W2GB/30, WU1ITU.
20-05-2007: LY4A.
Today: SV9CVY.
11-05-2007 New DXCC
Well at long last I have been a bit more active on the radio than at any other time this year. I might add though that I am still not as active as I would like.
Since my last update I have had contacts with the following, all on 20mtrs SSB;
07-05-2007: LY4A, IU8SF, R7M, 2E0JKD, M3RNO, 2E0NCH, IV3OWC.
08-05-2007: RP3QWK, IR1ALP both VE day Special Events
10-05-2007 OX/NA1SA a new DXCC and EN62EN.
Today: T94KC, 9A/IZ4HVM on EU-110
04-05-07 New Piece of Audio Kit.
Not much to report radio wise, haven't done much operating as I have been pre-occupied on the Xbox 360 and the family.
I have only had 2 contacts, LY3W and 2E0OCE since my last update.
I have also added a Behringer Multicom Pro-XL MDX4600 to my collection of audio kit. See SSB Audio page. Had a quick report from 2E0OCE and all is good, the reason I got the MDX4600 is to gate out unwanted noise. The MDX4600 does that with ease.
I am now on Skype, so if any one wishes to talk to me on Skype just search for Andymuza.
17-04-07 HRD Rig Control, Junksale and Contacts.
Well I ordered a CI-V control cable for my IC-7000 via G4ZLP on eBay. I received the cable on Friday the 13th of April. The cable is well mad and the cost is peanuts compared to Icoms own CI-V interface. I connected the cable to my PC com port and to the CI-V socket on the radio and turned the radio on. I then started HRD and selected the correct Radio and ran with the default settings.
I was very impressed by the default rig control features. I delved a little deeper and discovered all the other things you could do with HRD. I must say, I wish I had gotten a cable ages ago. I no longer have to troll through menu's on the radio, I just use HRD which usually means 1 click of the mouse or move a slider to turn a function on or off, or make an adjust. I no longer need a separate log, HRD has a built in log which will get the information needed at the press of a button. I no longer have the need to look up calls via QRZ, HRD does that for you at the press of a button. I no longer need to open a separate web page for DX spots, HRD has it's own, and lastly, I no longer need to look at maps, HRD will pin point stations that have been spotted using Google Earth. I will do a review of HRD and it's features in the near future.
Junksale. What has happened to the Junksale web site. Well basically Junksale is a victim of it's own success. The site has become that popular that the domain can no longer support the amount of traffic that is visiting.
In the mean time try using my Notice Board until the great Junksale site re-appears. SPREAD THE WORD.
Here is the official word from Chris G0TOO.
"The site is down at
the moment
Hi All
Sorry the site is down, I got the email below from UK2.net who host the junksale
after they turned the site off, they gave absolutely no warning that there was
anything wrong they just turned it off, so much for customer service. I have
emailed them and am awaiting a reply. De Chris - G0TOO
COPY OF EMAIL FROM UK2.NET
Hi Chris,
Congratulations! your website junksale.co.uk has become so busy that we can no
longer support this on your shared web hosting - although this doesn't sound too
good it means that that its so popular an upgrade is needed to your services
with us. The bandwidth is not a problem but quite simply the domain is
overloading both the MySQL database with the sheer amount of requests and the
server processor with the bulk e-mails. Once you've upgraded to a dedicated
server this will no longer be an issue as its dedicated hardware just for your
site. To help you with this we are happy to both refund the set-up fee and give
you a month of fully managed support (worth £29) in order to help you set up the
site on the server and get you up and running as quick as possible. Please see
our latest offers here http://www.uk2.net/servers/ you should be absolutely fine
with the lowest level for now, and you can always upgrade anytime if your site
takes off more. What's more is we will refund any contract time remaining on
your shared web hosting, you just need to let us know your server order details
once you have placed the order. Any problems or questions please reply to this
e-mail. Best regards, UK2 Sales Note: Sales enquiries are handled between 9:00am
and 5:00pm on weekdays only."
Lastly, I have had a few contacts since my last update. These have been with the following stations.
EC5KB, 4O6T, 4N1KW, 2E0JKD, M3RON, M0KOM, IE9/IQ9PA, T960ARA,, IK6BGJ and 4O3ZZ (CW). All 20mtrs SSB unless stated otherwise.
09-04-07 Not much to report
Well since my last update I have not done to much on the radio.
I have worked the following stations, on 18-03-07 HV0A and EC5KB again this time on Spanish Island V014. On the 01-04-07 I worked UR9IDX. On 07-04-07 I worked special event for holy week, EH7SMN. On 08/04/07 I worked ER/RW3AH.
On 08-04-07 I also had a visit from Phil 2E0BBP and got a Heil Goldline Pro Mic (PR20), Thanks for the mic Phil, it's great to have a Heil back in the shack. I contacted Phil on 2mtrs and we quickly moved to 20mtrs SSB for some audio comparisons between the Heil, the stock Icom mic and the Audio Technica PRO8HE head set. The Heil came out top but needed some EQing as it had a little to much bass. The stock mic surprised us both by sounding better than the Audio Technica which was the reverse of the Heil and needed some EQing to add some bottom end. Later on in the QSO with Phil, Colm (2E0OCE) came onto the frequency and he stated the Heil sounded the best.
I am currently considering getting an Icom IC-756Pro, I may swap the 7k for one. I am at the moment investigating which has the better RX out of the two radios. If the 756Pro sounds as good as the 7K I will go with it and swap the 7k for one.
Well that's all for now.
08-03-07 At last, the return of the 7K
Well yesterday 07-03-07 a parcel was delivered at work for my self. This was my IC-7000 which I was hoping would be now 100% the returns sheet said the Icom Engineer had tightened screws on the main board and retuned for full RF out.
Well As soon as I got home I connected the radio up to the external power meter and dummy load and ran some tests. The problem was still there, 80 watts HF, only 60 on 6mtrs and only 35 on 2.
As you can imagine I was not happy. As I had a loaned 706MKIIG here (Thanks to 2E0OCE) I connected the meter and the dummy load to that. I ran the same tests apart from 2mtrs. All was well, 100 watts HF and 6mtrs. So what the hell was causing this? I was ready for bouncing the IC-7000 off the wall, I was so annoyed and fed up.
I checked the voltage from the PSU. On the 7K,
13.95v RX 13.88v TX. The 706 13.95v RX 13.75v TX.
So I did a little more investigation. It then dawned on me that the 706MKIIG I
had on loan was a US model, where as my 7K was a UK model. The DC power cable on
UK model Icoms come with a filter on them, OPC1475R. So time for more tests.
After the filter and into the 7K the voltage on RX was 13.85, under load the
voltage dropped down to 11.99. Almost 2 volts less, but
still within the specified +-15% required as stated on the spec sheet in the
manual.
So I turned the voltage on my PSU up to 15v on RX. Under load it went down to
13.14v, but I was now getting full power out. So the problem was down to the
voltage not being high enough for the radio to give full power out. I can
remember having a similar issue with my old 706MKII while in the car. If the
engine was running full power was not a problem, but if I turned the engine off
I could not get full power. Why it didn't occur to me before now, I don't know.
So the radio was away for 4 weeks for no reason.
I have to say I am glad my 7K is back. I tried to use the loaned 706MKIIG but
the RX was so poor I just couldn't bare to listen to it for long. The RX on the
7k is light years ahead of the 706. The 706 was constantly receiving an s5-7 of
noise, the 7k gets no noise at all.
So I am now back on the air and today is my day off from work. Would you believe
it, the bands are in poor shape. Just my Luck.
27-02-07 Still no Radio, getting fed up.
Well I have still not heard from Icom regarding my IC-7000. So today I called them and asked of the radios status. I was advised that the radio is on the bench to be looked at some time this week.
So for 3 weeks what has been happening to my radio? I find it strange that the 1st time I had to return the radio it was back to me 1 week later. The problem that I had returned the radio for this time was not there prior to the driver board issue. So Icom should really have picked it up in the 1st place before returning it to me, at the end of the day the invoice sheet advised the radio had been fully checked, obviously not.
The time the radio has been with Icom and to be told it hasn't even been looked at has left a bad taste in my mouth. I thought Icom support was 2nd to none. I also thought the 7k was 2nd to none, but my experience has been soured and I no longer want to keep this radio. When I returned the radio to Icom the 1st time I requested a replacement as I believed the manner in which the radio failed may have caused further problems. I have been proven right on this point.
I will give Icom 1 more week and if the radio is not back to me 100% I will be requesting another radio as replacement.
This may be all hot air and myself venting my frustration, I just hope Icom prove me wrong and gain my faith again.
I will keep you all posted as soon as any thing develops.
15-02-07 Still no Radio.
I have now been without the IC-7000 for another week. I am missing the radio a bit. I was off work today and I have missed listening round the bands and calling the odd station here and there.
I haven't had much else to do other than play on the Xbox 360.
Well hopefully the IC-7000 will be back tomorrow as it only took a week and a day for Icom to get it back to me last time. If I do not get it back I may ring Icom on Monday for a status report.
Well that's about all I can tell you. So till next time cheerio.
07-02-07 IC-7000 going back to Icom.
Well on Monday while I was using CW and in QSO with DK8YY/6W I noticed my external power meter was only reading up to 80 watts output.
So Last night (06-02-07) after work I checked out what the power output was from the radio into a dummy load. Well my findings where that only 80 and 30mtr bands gave full 100 watts out on CW, RTTY, and SSB peaks. 160, 40, 20, 17, 15, 12 and 10 only gave 80 watts on CW, RTTY and SSB peaks.
The 6 metre band only gave up to 60 watts on CW, RTTY and SSB peaks. 2 metres gave up to 40 watts instead of 50 and 70cms was normal 35 watts.
So today I called Icom and was put through to the service dept, I spoke to an Icom engineer who asked a few questions regarding the problem and then advised he would have the radio collected tomorrow 08-02-07 to be returned to Icom UK. Once again Icom provide a great service and I just hope it continues. Hope I am not with out the radio long. I will still not knock Icom or this product as they are providing great after sales. At the same time if I have any further problems I may have to change my point of view regarding the product.
I will once again keep the site updated regarding the situation.
05-02-07 IC-7000 review, New DXCC
Well I have finally got round to a review of the IC-7000. I have added it to my notice board.
Since my last update I have only had a few contacts with the best coming today with DK8YY/6W in Senegal. This contact was on 20mtrs CW and is a new DXCC for me. Today 20mtrs was fantastic, Plenty of DX to be had from Asia to America.
Unfortunately I couldn't make the most of my day off as it was my 2nd sons 1st birthday so I didn't mind losing out on the radio. My 1st son also had to go to the hospital to be given the all clear from an infection he had picked up last week which meant he spent 2 days in hospital and a week off school. All is now well.
I only had 1 other contact today and that was a Special Event LZ2007EU. This special event station will be on the air between 01 January 2007 and 30 April 2007 to commemorate Bulgaria’s accession to the European Union on 01.01.2007.
Other contacts since my last update have been with friends 2E0JKD, 2E0OCE and a new ham M3RNO (Ronnie) welcome to the bands. Also had contacts with HG1R (1st contact since getting the 7k back), HG3X and HG4F, all on 20mtrs SSB. The HG stations where taking part in the Hungarian contest.
18-01-07 At last an update, now where do I begin.
Well it's been a long time coming, 3 months to be exact but finally an update.
It all started because of a computer crash. I had to reformat my system and I am still trying to install all the software that I had. It has also been a very busy few months at work due to Christmas, but who's complaining? ERRRRRRRRR ME, it was exhausting some days. Also the radio has some stiff opposition for my time from the fantastic Xbox 360 games console.
Radio usage has been minimal and since my last update I have had contacts with OE/KL1A on 26-10-06, AB8AL, IK8HCG/IG9 and YT150YT on 27-10-06.
I was very active (for me anyway) for the CQWW SSB contest on the 28-10-06 and 29-10-06. I will list all the stations worked in the CQWW contest at the bottom of this update.
I was not active on the radio at all through out November and only had 2 contact at the beginning of December with 2E0JKD (Glad your back Keith) and 2E0OCE. Also at the beginning of December I got hold of an Audio-Technica headset mic and a Behringer UB802 mixer. I wired these straight away on to the IC-7000.
Then came the worst day of the year, 17-12-06. I intended to play radio all day. I tuned around the bands for a while and heard special event station HG1956R. I keyed the mic to call the station and my heart sank. Smoke poured out of the IC-7000 exhaust port. It didn't look like it was ever going to stop. I unplugged the rig and left it. After 1 hour I plugged her back in, RX was as good as ever, but TX was dead on all bands and all modes.
I did some investigating via the web and it all seemed to point to the driver board.
So I was going to return the radio to Radio World where it was purchased from, but it was near the end of the 1 year warranty with them so I decided to contact Icom. I called Icom on 22-12-06, and was advised to just send the radio back to them and they would repair it no problem. I advised the guy I was speaking to that I would wait till the new year to return the radio.
So on the 8-01-07 I sent the radio via next day Special Delivery. It arrived at Icom on 9-01-07. I was at work on 17-01-07 when a parcel was delivered. It was the radio, a note was attached advising what had been done. Icom had replaced Q504 on the driver board and realigned the bias setting. They had also Replaced the earth spring on the driver board. and checked TX & RX on all bands.
Apparently from what people are saying the problem is due to oscillations getting into the driver. How true this is I don't know.
I am unable to praise the staff at Icom enough over the fast and efficient manner in which I was dealt with. I always knew there was a reason I liked Icom. 2 Years Warranty, great backup service and fantastic equipment are the reasons I will always have an Icom in my shack.
Well that's me now up to date. Thanks to all who have emailed me and left comments in my guest book, all are appreciated.
I promise to update more regularly from now on.
So stations worked during CQWW SSB weekend 28/29-10-06.
28-10-06 all 20mtrs unless stated other wise.
OH7M, DL2ARD, RK2FWA, T93M, HG1A, OK7M, 9A1P, IR5T, Z35T, OH0Z, DF0HQ, IR4T, HG3M, S57AL, T70A, IU3X, HG1S, YT2T, DP6A,SV1CIB, OH0X, AA1K, S53O, IR2M, KC1XX, N1LI, K1IR, IG9R, W3LPL, K3MT, VE2IM, P40A, YU7ZZ, RN3QO, SM6U, YO4RIU, EW8MW, S58D(10), UV5U(15), RW3WWW(15), LR2F(15), 5B/AJ20(15), EA7HBP(15), YP3A(15), 9A7A(15), RV6AWM(15), UX2IO(15), UW5Q (15), US7IGF, RU1A, KB1H K1TTT, CN2ZR, 9A7A, LY7A PF0X, UY0ZG, YT1BB, W4RM, IR4B, HG6N, YZ1U, DR1A, RL3A, S59ABC, DR5Z, 9A7D, DL2YL
29-10-06
F6EXV(10), HG6N(10), IZ8DPL(15), DR5Z(15), OE2S(15), IR4X(21), S58A,OM8A, IR2A, DK1MM, IR2C, S53M, S50K, TM7Z, TM2B, OE2S, HB0/HB9AON, S53XX, CT9L, S58N, II4A, S57DX, S50A, IO4T, OZ7X, DF1IAQ, TM6M, IR4X, T96Q(40), EC2DX, DQ4W, EA1CUB.