PSK31 Digital Mode 

Thank you for the kind words, Mark. I haven't made any new videos lately but I'm still out here, hamming it up when I get a chance. I'll make some more videos at some point. Thanks again! -Cliff

Thank you, Steve. - Cliff

Thank you! - Cliff

Thanks, John. - Cliff

Excellent, Jonathan! So glad to have helped... - Cliff

Thank you for your encouragement, Dave. The 7300 is a neat radio and I'm sure you're going to have a blast with it. - Cliff

You're right. This is an excellent alternative to CW and can be a nice change of pace for those of us who love CW. Have fun! - Cliff

Thanks, Todd. I'm glad this helped! I'll get back to making videos again one of these days. In the meantime, I'm fat and happy. Maybe we'll run into each other on the air at some point. - Cliff

Thanks for the kind words, Wade. -Cliff

Thank you, Bill. - cliff

Jorge Perez you are very kind. Thank you! -Cliff

Great, Dave! Glad to hear you're getting back into the hobby. In the past, I have gone inactive a few times. This time around (the past 10 years) I've stayed into it, probably due to my involvement with a local ARES group. The monthly meetings and weekly informal breakfasts keep me connected to other hams. -Cliff

I appreciate the kind words, Dick. 72! - Cliff

Excellent, Arnold. Connecting your FT-817 to your computer will open up a new world! - Cliff

Thanks, Vinny. Have fun! - Cliff

Excellent, Carlos!!! Congratulations on taking the time to learn Morse Code. I believe you will enjoy PSK31 if you try it. Hope to type to you in the ether someday... - Cliff

Excellent, Sam! Jump on back in... the water's fine! - Cliff

Hello, Neil. Thanks for the kind words. I am the CEO of a small (12 persons) software company. I don't have a background in education but I've always enjoyed helping people to better understand technical topics. Maybe we'll run into each other on the air someday. I hope so. Thanks again. - Cliff

Thank you, Peter! - Cliff

Tak for at have set videoen (og for legos).

@VE3ZCV - I’m using the “PSKer” app on my iPad with my TS-570S. It works really well! But I now have a Surface Pro 4 so I’m going to set up FLDigi. I’m also using an RTTY app on my Android phone for that mode, but again will start using FLDigi. 73 de Jeff, KF5KWO

Hello. No, I haven't tried amateur television. I think it's interesting and I may dabble in it at some point down the road. Thanks for the kind words. - Cliff

thanks, Pat! - Cliff

Yes, the behind the scenes setup of your radio’s/computer’s audio is the same for all digital modes. To use a mode that your current software doesn’t support, it’s just a matter of installing and configuring the software you need for your desired mode. -Cliff

Martin Salt JT-65 doesn't require any typing or setting up text macros or learning any protocols, etc... you basically just click your way through a QSO with the software automatically sending the next appropriate message. If you're wanting to get going with the least amount of work/training, I'd go with JT-65. Bear in mind that PSK31 will let you have an actual conversation with someone so you'll want to learn that soon. Have fun - Cliff

Hello, Joe. Normally, any SSB radio would work fine for digital. However, the radio must be capable of tuning down the band into the CW/Data portion of the band. You'll have to look but I think some (all?) of the MFJ radios don't tune down into that range. For example, the MFJ 9420 only transmits SSB from 14.150 to 14.350 MHz. However, the digital "watering holes" are found far below that. PSK31 on 20m is 14.070 MHz. There is a "CW Adapter" that allows you to transmit CW on the lower portion of the band but I believe you cannot transmit SSB down there, even with the adapter. - Cliff

It was that operator's preference. However, PSK31 uses "varicode" to encode the text. In this scheme, the most commonly used letters require fewer bits to transmit. Lower case letters are represented by fewer bits and are transmitted faster. In other words, if you sent a stream of 100 "a" characters, they'd be sent faster than 100 "A" characters. So, while you are certainly free to type in All Caps, it's more efficient to use lower case or mixed case. - Cliff

Digital is a different... opening up a new facet to our wonderful hobby. And it's really great for QRP since the software can decode weak signals. Have fun! - Cliff

I was using a SOTABEAMS linked dipole at about 25 feet. - Cliff

Hello, Julia. I'm sorry but I'm unaware of any iOS apps for JT65. PSK31 and RTTY are extremely similar. The software you use will almost certainly provide support for both modes. RTTY is old but still used. There are contests for RTTY stations. PSK31 is newer, more popular, and is used more for conversations. JT65 is a different animal all together. I'm going to make a video about it. In a nutshell, you don't have a conversation with JT65. Once per minute stations calling CQ will transmit for about 50 seconds. Then, your computer decodes all of the signals it has heard and shows you the conversations that are taking place. You can click on a station calling CQ and, at the top of the minute, your computer will starting transmitting your Call Sign on that station's frequency for 50 seconds. His computer decodes all the signals he's heard and, if he sees you replying to him, he can click on your entry to have his computer start sending you his signal report at the top of the next minute. There is no typing to each other like you're used to. You're just clicking and the computer is generating the appropriate next pack of data for the QSO process. The beauty of it is that you can transmit with very weak signals and still make contacts. Again, I'll make a video about it. Stay tuned! - Cliff

Thanks, Paul. Field Day CW is a trial by fire! It's wonderful but it's intense. If you're serious about it, you should consider using the N3FJP Field Day logging software and connect your computer to your radio for sending CW. If you're less serious, any setup will do. You'll hear a LOT of stations frantically calling CQ so you'll want to use a narrow audio filter in order to hear fewer signals at the same time. The good news for beginners is that you'll find a lot of strong stations "running a frequency"... sitting still, calling CQ, and letting stations find them. That's great because you can hear them giving their information multiple times to figure out what they're sending, exactly. You can then contact them and send your information without having to decode their information in real-time. Have fun... you're going to have a blast, I promise! - Cliff

Hello, Donald. I have corrected my typo, thanks. I do have a 3D printer. It's a Lulzbot Mini and it works great. The amber stand that the KX2 was sitting on in the video (@ 16:30) is a stand that I 3D printed.

Just seeing this, Paul. I haven't noticed any trouble with my FT-817 getting too hot but I don't tend to type for minutes at a time on-the-air. If you back off the power from 5 watts to 2.5 watts, your signal will only be down 1/2 an S-Unit to the receiving station and will run cooler. Another option is to clamp a heatsink on the back of the radio as shown in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zqtH8i7HtP0.html

Congrats on your new call, David! You will be surprised how many stations you can work with only 5 watts... with the KX3. Most people doing digital aren't transmitting more than 20 to 30 watts. The difference between 5 watts and 20 watts is only 1 S-Unit so expect success with 5 watts. As for software for your mac, I'd probably get FLDIGI for psk31 and WSJT-X for the FT8 digital mode. Honestly, those are the only 2 digital modes that have any real activity these days. Have fun, David! - Cliff

Hello, Corey. If the challenge of operating with lower-than-normal power levels AND using a compact radio in the field appeals to you, then the KX2 would be a great fist radio. If you stay in the hobby for a while, it's probably not going to be your ONLY radio - although it's good enough that it could be. Think of radios like cars. The KX2 is a small sports car. You might decide someday that you'd like a luxurious sedan as your daily driver. The sports car will still be fun on the weekends. Heck, you might even want to get a dune buggy for some off-road adventure. As for the Elecraft USB cable for audio... it doesn't work that way. The USB cable for the radio is used to update the firmware and you can also use it to control the rig with ham radio software... but no audio flows down that cable. You can get cables to connect the radio's headphone jack to your computer's line-in audio jack AND connect a cable from your computer's headphone jack to your radio's mic jack. You can do this without buying a Signalink box as shown in the video. However, the Signalink makes everything easier AND you can use the Signalink box with any radio... just buy purchasing other cable sets. Have fun! - Cliff

You can find it here: www.ebay.com/itm/WINDCAMP-Bracket-Stand-for-Yaesu-ft-817-amateur-radio-/141960013591 I got it as part of the combo, here: www.ebay.com/itm/WINDCAMP-WLB-817S-LIPO-3000mAh-battery-for-yaesu-FT-817-hatch-stand-/141936642049 Cliff

Hello, Simcha. Different digital modes (PSK31, RTTY, JT65, etc) can be found at different places in the bands. But, for 20m PSK31, just set the VFO to 14.070 MHz and leave it. Your radio is in USB mode so you've got a fairly wide pass-band to hear signals. (make sure your filters aren't closed down) I've never tuned up above 14.070 MHz to look for other PSK31 signals. Leave the VFO on 14.070 MHz and, when you click on a station in the waterfall, your computer will know the offset from the carrier and will generate audio at the correct frequency. If you want rig control software to change bands/frequencies then you'll need to use a separate USB cable or other serial port. Only the audio is transferred with the Signalink's USB cable. I hope this helps... -Cliff

Thanks again for all your help.

Thanks, Mike. The device attached to my spare tire is a bicycle carrier. The arm is folded down in the picture but it folds out and locks to hold bicycles for transport. - Cliff

Software like "CW Skimmer" will listen to incoming audio and search for call signs being heard and then report the ones they've heard to a centralized server. PSK Reporter "talks" to the server to display callsigns that were reported to the server. There are other sources for the call signs that PSK Reporter is showing in addition to those obtained via CW Skimmer. So, if you call CQ DE [Your Call Sign] or send TESTING DE [Your Call Sign], someone's computer that is listening may here you and report your call sign, frequency, and signal strength to the centralized server. If you want to be able to show signals you've heard and have those call signs reported to the centralized server, you'll need to be running software that is listening to the audio, decoding the signals, and reporting those signals to the server. The Digital Master software that is part of the Ham Radio Deluxe suite of applications does this. That is what I use for PSK-31. I sometimes use CW Skimmer when listening to CW stations. Thanks -Cliff

Thank you!

Now that I think of it, I wonder how many hams go to Bonnaroo.

Hey, Steven. I'm just using the standard Signalink USB box... same as they've made for a number of years. I've got two of them because I keep one in a go-kit for emergency communications. -Cliff

Hello, Steve. Not a stupid question. The text you type is represented digitally in the computer but it must be "modulated" into analog sound for transmission over the air waves... the same as your voice audio. On the receiving side, a radio receives the analog sound and the "demodulates" it, converting the analog audio into the digital representation of the data. The audio levels are important. If the audio being generated by the computer on the transmitting station is too "hot" going into the radio's mic jack, the audio being transmitted will be distorted, like yelling into a microphone. That could make it difficult for the receiving station to decode and will can cause "splatter" that will affect adjacent stations near the transmitting frequency. On the receiving station, if the received signal that is being fed to the station's computer is not strong enough (the audio level isn't high enough), the computer won't be able to decode any but the strongest signals. I hope this helps! - Cliff