Skip, Is this done with all-mode rigs are is it audio over FM? Leigh/WA5ZNU On Sat, 3 Feb 2007 12:38 pm, Skip wrote:
> > Here in South Carolina, we are running a PSK63 net on 2-meters, > Leigh, We are all using multimode rigs such as the IC-746, IC-706MKII, FT897, etc, using SSB and modulating with DominoEX 11 or PSK63. The point-to-point range is reliably over 100 miles, and one station that checks in regularly from 200 miles distant, lives on a 200 foot hill, and uses an 18 element beam on a 50 foot tower. The typical station is running 25 watts or less. Those outside of a 50 mile radius generally use 10 to 13 element beams. As Net Control, I simply retransmit all incoming text at 100 wpm, so all stations point their antennas at Net Control and I cut and paste what they have typed (at around 20 wpm) and retransmit at 100 wpm so nobody ever gets left out due to distance or location. Most stations within 30 miles can copy the other stations anyway. We started out over a year ago using audio over FM, but the point-to-point range was only about 30 miles. Of course, there was no problem with multipath reflection interference or frequency drift, but QSB was more of a problem. PSK63 is much better except for handling multipath, and multipath destroys PSK31 copy much more often than on PSK63, so we are hoping for almost error-free copy using Domino. We'll know better over the next few weeks. Yesterday, at the local hamfest, I gave out a handfull of live CD's with Puppy Linux and fldigi on them for members to use for our tests on the 257 net. Some of us also already use Multipsk or Murray's Domino program, but I have customized fldigi to make it easier to use for inexperienced operators. If anyone reading this is within 150 miles of Charleston, SC or FM02, we meet at 8 PM on Wednesday and 9 PM on Sunday on 144.257, USB, around 1000 Hz tone frequency (144.258 MHz true RF frequency, in either PSK63 or Domino, so try to checkin with whichever mode you see on the waterfall. Our net is an informal ragchew net and usually goes on about an hour. It is very relaxing and a lot of fun! Antenna polarization is horizontal, or course, as is the convention for SSB or the low end of 2m. 73, Skip KH6TY
