Hi Frank (and Duane),
Thanks for the copy from Duane N9DG. I certainly
agree that SDRs have a lot of glitz that appeals to some,
but the simple fact remains that SDRs have not gained
popularity with top-level contesters outside the realm
of VHF (which is very different than major HF contests like
Sprints, Sweepstakes, CQ WW DX contests, IARU/WRTC,
etc). I cannot name even one major HF contester I know of
who uses one. If you can, I would like to know who it is.
The primary purpose of K1LT's system was to be able
to beam-steer his 4X2 element vertical RX array. However
there are other, less complex means of achieving the same
result. K1ZM's 160 installation at VY2ZM is somewhat
similar (3X2) but beam steering is done with classical phase
shift networks. I am reminded of the well-known SDR guy at
Dayton 2006 who was touting the benefits of beam steering
4 verticals using 4 SDRs. Unfortunately I remain less than
impressed that it took 4 SDR receivers and 4 transmitters (!)
to do what one $350 4-square phase box from Comtek or
WX0B will do much more simply. This reminds me too much
of technology overkill looking for an application!
The other benefits K1LT saw were:
1. Recognizing pileups.
2. Identifying "holes" in the band for CQ-ing, etc.
While these are worthwhile, they can also be duplicated
by any rig with a Panadapter (even a $10 Softrock with
free Rocky software). I'm happy you're impressed with the
SDR-5000 performance but Duane is correct that its BDR
performance is about 20 dB less than a K3 or Orion. In a
multi-transmitter environment, this is a huge difference which
may limit the appeal of SDRs for SO2R or Multi-Multi use.
Indeed I'll eat crow when a pure SDR wins (or even
places in the Top-10) in a major HF contest, but I don't
expect it will be anytime soon. As I said before, I'm always
impressed by **results**, rather than theories, and will very
quickly become a believer when I **see** those results.
73, Bill W4ZV
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