Elecraft

K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

Classic

List

Threaded

17 messages Options

W6ODJ

K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

Folks,

I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that
the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one
big issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver
changes the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met
the sending ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on
AM!!), you have no real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really
is. One can only guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable
tuning is.

One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should
buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical
instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at
the start of the net and all the listeners could blow their little
pitch pipes while listening to net control. They would all then
adjust their receiver tunings until the pitches matched. Like a
shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of course, this might violate the FCC
rule against music on ham radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was
near a pure sine wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control
would be just an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net
control's suppressed carrier.)

A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push
another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their
speakers along with the received signal from net control. Then the
receiving operators adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches
coincide. For the tone challenged among us, the receiver tuning could
even be automated, much like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.

This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it
on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the
K2 was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and
pleased to find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I
was hearing on the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until
they did match. Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice
reception.

Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could
even do it in firmware?

73,

Oliver Johns W6ODJ
_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: [hidden email]
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

W6NEK

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

Hi Oliver,
How about the NET meets on a specific frequency and everyone tunes to that
specific frequency.

That will work too,
Frank - W6NEK

----- Original Message -----
From: "O. Johns" <[hidden email]>
To: <[hidden email]>
Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 4:41 PM
Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

> Folks,
>
> I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that the
> K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one big
> issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver changes
> the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met the sending
> ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on AM!!), you have no
> real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really is. One can only
> guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable tuning is.
>
> One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should buy
> a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical instruments.
> Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at the start of the
> net and all the listeners could blow their little pitch pipes while
> listening to net control. They would all then adjust their receiver
> tunings until the pitches matched. Like a shortwave orchestra tuning up.
> (Of course, this might violate the FCC rule against music on ham radio,
> but maybe not if the pitch pipe was near a pure sine wave. Then the
> signal transmitted by net control would be just an ordinary CW signal,
> but at 440 Hz from the net control's suppressed carrier.)
>
> A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
> microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
> transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push another
> button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their speakers along
> with the received signal from net control. Then the receiving operators
> adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches coincide. For the tone
> challenged among us, the receiver tuning could even be automated, much
> like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
>
> This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
> K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it on
> headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the K2
> was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and pleased to
> find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I was hearing on
> the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until they did match.
> Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice reception.
>
> Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could even
> do it in firmware?
>
> 73,
> Oliver Johns W6ODJ

_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: [hidden email]
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

W6ODJ

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

Jim,

Does conjure up a picture, doesn't it? Of course, only net control
would transmit. The others would just blow and listen. And, of
course, actual pitch pipes are not the way to go. Too spectrally
impure.

73,

Oliver W6ODJ

On 14 Aug 2008, at 5:14 PM, Jim Cox wrote:

> Would love to hear a bunch of hams with pitch pipes. I think we
> have enough qrm as it is. Thanks goodness I stay away from nets.
> Jim K4JAF
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "O. Johns" <[hidden email]>
> To: "Jim Cox" <[hidden email]>
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 7:00 PM
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB
>
>
>> Nope. Not kidding. Not at all.
>>
>> 73,
>> W6ODJ
>>
>> On 14 Aug 2008, at 4:54 PM, Jim Cox wrote:
>>
>>> I think your a bit ahead of Aprils Fools day! You must be kidding
>>> OM
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "O. Johns"
>>> <[hidden email]>
>>> To: <[hidden email]>
>>> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:41 PM
>>> Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB
>>>
>>>
>>>> Folks,
>>>> I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector
>>>> that the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB
>>>> doesn't solve one big issue with voice transmission: PITCH.
>>>> Tuning the SSB receiver changes the overall pitch of the
>>>> received voice. Unless you have met the sending ham or at least
>>>> talked to him/her on the phone (or on AM!!), you have no real
>>>> idea how high- or low- pitched the voice really is. One can only
>>>> guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable tuning is.
>>>> One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone
>>>> should buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune
>>>> musical instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his
>>>> pitch pipe at the start of the net and all the listeners could
>>>> blow their little pitch pipes while listening to net control.
>>>> They would all then adjust their receiver tunings until the
>>>> pitches matched. Like a shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of
>>>> course, this might violate the FCC rule against music on ham
>>>> radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was near a pure sine
>>>> wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control would be just
>>>> an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net control's
>>>> suppressed carrier.)
>>>> A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into
>>>> the microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button
>>>> while transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net
>>>> members push another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz
>>>> tone in their speakers along with the received signal from net
>>>> control. Then the receiving operators adjust their receiver
>>>> tuning until the pitches coincide. For the tone challenged
>>>> among us, the receiver tuning could even be automated, much like
>>>> the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
>>>> This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters
>>>> on my K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was
>>>> listening to it on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D
>>>> across the room. Since the K2 was on a dummy load, I tried
>>>> whistling and was surprised and pleased to find that the PITCH
>>>> of my whistle didn't match the one I was hearing on the phones.
>>>> But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until they did match.
>>>> Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice reception.
>>>> Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3
>>>> could even do it in firmware?
>>>> 73,
>>>> Oliver Johns W6ODJ
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Elecraft mailing list
>>>> Post to: [hidden email]
>>>> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
>>>> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
>>>> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
>>>> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
>>>
>
>

Brett Howard

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

Hell many of the CW ops can't zero beat a signal and get onto frequency
when answering my CW what makes us think that SSB ops are going to be
any better about it?

On Thu, 2008-08-14 at 16:41 -0700, O. Johns wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that
> the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one
> big issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver
> changes the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met
> the sending ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on
> AM!!), you have no real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really
> is. One can only guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable
> tuning is.
>
> One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should
> buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical
> instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at
> the start of the net and all the listeners could blow their little
> pitch pipes while listening to net control. They would all then
> adjust their receiver tunings until the pitches matched. Like a
> shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of course, this might violate the FCC
> rule against music on ham radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was
> near a pure sine wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control
> would be just an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net
> control's suppressed carrier.)
>
> A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
> microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
> transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push
> another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their
> speakers along with the received signal from net control. Then the
> receiving operators adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches
> coincide. For the tone challenged among us, the receiver tuning could
> even be automated, much like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
>
> This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
> K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it
> on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the
> K2 was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and
> pleased to find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I
> was hearing on the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until
> they did match. Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice
> reception.
>
> Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could
> even do it in firmware?
>
>
> 73,
>
> Oliver Johns W6ODJ
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

Brett Howard

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6NEK

That only works if everyone has an accurately calibrated frequency
reference. Even if you have calibrated things its only as good as your
reference is to begin with.

On Thu, 2008-08-14 at 16:52 -0700, W6NEK wrote:

> Hi Oliver,
> How about the NET meets on a specific frequency and everyone tunes to that
> specific frequency.
>
> That will work too,
> Frank - W6NEK
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "O. Johns" <[hidden email]>
> To: <[hidden email]>
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 4:41 PM
> Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB
>
>
> > Folks,
> >
> > I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that the
> > K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one big
> > issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver changes
> > the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met the sending
> > ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on AM!!), you have no
> > real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really is. One can only
> > guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable tuning is.
> >
> > One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should buy
> > a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical instruments.
> > Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at the start of the
> > net and all the listeners could blow their little pitch pipes while
> > listening to net control. They would all then adjust their receiver
> > tunings until the pitches matched. Like a shortwave orchestra tuning up.
> > (Of course, this might violate the FCC rule against music on ham radio,
> > but maybe not if the pitch pipe was near a pure sine wave. Then the
> > signal transmitted by net control would be just an ordinary CW signal,
> > but at 440 Hz from the net control's suppressed carrier.)
> >
> > A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
> > microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
> > transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push another
> > button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their speakers along
> > with the received signal from net control. Then the receiving operators
> > adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches coincide. For the tone
> > challenged among us, the receiver tuning could even be automated, much
> > like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
> >
> > This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
> > K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it on
> > headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the K2
> > was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and pleased to
> > find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I was hearing on
> > the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until they did match.
> > Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice reception.
> >
> > Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could even
> > do it in firmware?
> >
> > 73,
> > Oliver Johns W6ODJ
>
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

dmb@lightstream.net

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

Hello Oliver,

Actually, the wider the bandwidth and the higher the quality of the
audio, the easier it is to tune accurately. Precise tuning of a 2.6KHz
signal is much more difficult than with a 3.6 KHz signal - where it is
pretty easy to achieve an accuracy of about 5Hz to 10Hz if your receiver
bandwidth can match or exceed the transmit bandwidth -- whether you're
familiar with the voice of the other operator or not. All ears are not
created equal though, so YMMV.

This is not a plug for ESSB, merely an observation. Besides... I'm a CW
op :-)

73, Dale
WA8SRA

O. Johns wrote:

> Folks,
>
> I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that
> the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one
> big issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver
> changes the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met
> the sending ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on
> AM!!), you have no real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really
> is. One can only guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable
> tuning is.
>
> One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should
> buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical
> instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at
> the start of the net and all the listeners could blow their little
> pitch pipes while listening to net control. They would all then
> adjust their receiver tunings until the pitches matched. Like a
> shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of course, this might violate the FCC
> rule against music on ham radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was
> near a pure sine wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control
> would be just an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net
> control's suppressed carrier.)
>
> A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
> microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
> transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push
> another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their
> speakers along with the received signal from net control. Then the
> receiving operators adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches
> coincide. For the tone challenged among us, the receiver tuning could
> even be automated, much like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
>
> This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
> K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it
> on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the
> K2 was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and
> pleased to find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I
> was hearing on the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until
> they did match. Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice
> reception.
>
> Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could
> even do it in firmware?
>
>
> 73,
>
> Oliver Johns W6ODJ
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
>

Pete Connors F5VNB

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

CONTENTS DELETED

The author has deleted this message.

hf4me

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

I didn't think is was LEGAL to transmit music, "tones" or even whistle for
that matter.

73, de Jim KG0KP

----- Original Message -----
From: "O. Johns" <[hidden email]>
To: <[hidden email]>
Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:41 PM
Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

M0XDF

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

I just knew all those people who whistle up their tuner were wrong!
--
Write the bad things that are done to you in the sand, but write the
good things that happen to you on a piece of marble. -Arabian wisdom

On 15 Aug 2008, at 13:59, Jim Miller wrote:

> I didn't think is was LEGAL to transmit music, "tones" or even
> whistle for
> that matter.

_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: [hidden email]
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

W8JI

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by hf4me

>I didn't think is was LEGAL to transmit music, "tones" or
>even whistle for
> that matter.

Tones are legal for specific purposes like adjustments.

It's easy to adjust normal SSB to proper tuning by listening
to the voice. Voices contain harmonically related
frequencies that sound odd (out of tune for harmonics) when
improperly tuned. There isn't any need for anything except
careful listening while tuning and almost anyone who isn't
totally tone deaf can adjust for perfect frequency.

I'm wondering if the artificially exaggerated bass and
treble used by some ops doesn't mask the beats normally
heard with flat speech response and make it difficult to
tune the signal.

I don't think it is a bandwidth issue per se because the
normal SSB tuning procedure is to listen for the beats in
normal real-world harmonics of the human voice (or in
music). It is just as easy for me to tune a 25 kHz BW audio
signal as a 2 kHz BW when the response is flat across either
passband. Perhaps the exaggerated unnecessary lows and highs
(I can copy some ESSB stations on AM without even using a
BFO, so the exaggerated lows act like a carrier) mask the
normal frequency relationships in voices and make the
signals more difficult to tune. It may be a self-created
problem by the introduction of severe frequency response
distortion.

73 tom

_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: [hidden email]
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

Brett Howard

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by hf4me

CW is a "tone" and its not illegal to transmit... So long as you're
within your licenses limits and in band.

~Brett (KC7OTG)

On Fri, 2008-08-15 at 07:59 -0500, Jim Miller wrote:

> I didn't think is was LEGAL to transmit music, "tones" or even whistle for
> that matter.
>
> 73, de Jim KG0KP
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "O. Johns" <[hidden email]>
> To: <[hidden email]>
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:41 PM
> Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB
>
>
> > Folks,
> >
> > I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that
> > the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one
> > big issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver
> > changes the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met
> > the sending ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on
> > AM!!), you have no real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really
> > is. One can only guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable
> > tuning is.
> >
> > One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should
> > buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical
> > instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at
> > the start of the net and all the listeners could blow their little
> > pitch pipes while listening to net control. They would all then
> > adjust their receiver tunings until the pitches matched. Like a
> > shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of course, this might violate the FCC
> > rule against music on ham radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was
> > near a pure sine wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control
> > would be just an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net
> > control's suppressed carrier.)
> >
> > A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
> > microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
> > transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push
> > another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their
> > speakers along with the received signal from net control. Then the
> > receiving operators adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches
> > coincide. For the tone challenged among us, the receiver tuning could
> > even be automated, much like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.
> >
> > This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
> > K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it
> > on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the
> > K2 was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and
> > pleased to find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I
> > was hearing on the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until
> > they did match. Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice
> > reception.
> >
> > Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could
> > even do it in firmware?
> >
> >
> > 73,
> >
> > Oliver Johns W6ODJ
> > _______________________________________________
> > Elecraft mailing list
> > Post to: [hidden email]
> > You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> > Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> >
> > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> > Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
> >
>
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

AC7AC

What's "legal" (WAS: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB)

CONTENTS DELETED

The author has deleted this message.

Brett Howard

Re: What's "legal" (WAS: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB)

I'd say that transmitting a tone to allow someone to tune up to you
would be considered a "Brief transmission necessary to make adjustments
to the station" and/or Brief transmissions necessary to establishing
two-way communications with other stations"

There is nothing that prohibits transmission of a tone to help someone
else tune up.

I said it before from what I remembered of Part 97 and now after reading
it its still true.

On Fri, 2008-08-15 at 21:40 -0700, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:

> Every Amateur licensee in the USA is *required* to know Part 97 of the FCC
> rules, which sets out all the regulations we must follow.
>
> It's right here:
>
> http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Engineering_Technology/Documents/cfr/1998/47cfr97
> .pdf
>
> I cannot say strongly enough how absurd it is to look to other "authorities"
> for what's permitted or not on the Amateur bands. If it's not covered in the
> above, it's not a regulation that applies to US Amateur radio licensees.
>
> Ron AC7AC
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

AC7AC

RE: What's "legal" (WAS: K3: Voice pitch adjustment onSSB)

CONTENTS DELETED

The author has deleted this message.

Guy, K2AV

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

In reply to this post by W6ODJ

One thing I seem to be noting more and more on SSB, that operators are tuning up on the "zeros" and the rigs are good enough to put that within a few cycles. For tuning around on SSB, I've gone to the practice of setting freq display to nnnn.000, holding COARSE, setting it to 100 hz steps and tuning through the phone band. Surprising how many (most?) sound clear at some nnnn.0 that way.

A few Hz one way or another won't make much difference. Spot on net frequencies don't require transmitting any tones. Let everyone with the accuracy transmit and receive "on the zeros". Let the others zero in.

The reason this was done differently in the "old days" was that people did not have rigs that would set or stay accurately on a frequency. So everyone would do their best to zero the NCS. Both my MP and K3 come up dead on WWV every time all the time.

To listen to Yankees on WCBS radio (not always easy from NC), I set dial to 880.000 and listen up or down ESSB using 6Khz roofing filter. I can do the same thing to listen to music on Radio Moscow on 7125.000.

73, Guy

O. Johns wrote

Folks,

I read the web pages about ESSB, after seeing on the reflector that
the K3 now supports it. It struck me that even ESSB doesn't solve one
big issue with voice transmission: PITCH. Tuning the SSB receiver
changes the overall pitch of the received voice. Unless you have met
the sending ham or at least talked to him/her on the phone (or on
AM!!), you have no real idea how high- or low-pitched the voice really
is. One can only guess, and get a sort of feel for what a reasonable
tuning is.

One way to solve this may seem a joke, but it isn't. Everyone should
buy a little 440 Hz pitch pipe, the kind used to tune musical
instruments. Then, say, the net control could blow his pitch pipe at
the start of the net and all the listeners could blow their little
pitch pipes while listening to net control. They would all then
adjust their receiver tunings until the pitches matched. Like a
shortwave orchestra tuning up. (Of course, this might violate the FCC
rule against music on ham radio, but maybe not if the pitch pipe was
near a pure sine wave. Then the signal transmitted by net control
would be just an ordinary CW signal, but at 440 Hz from the net
control's suppressed carrier.)

A refinement would be to build a pure 440 Hz tone generator into the
microphone preamps of radios. Net control pushes a button while
transmitting and it goes out over the air. The net members push
another button while receiving to produce a 440 Hz tone in their
speakers along with the received signal from net control. Then the
receiving operators adjust their receiver tuning until the pitches
coincide. For the tone challenged among us, the receiver tuning could
even be automated, much like the K3 already does for sidetone on CW.

This scheme came to me when I was adjusting the audio parameters on my
K2. I had the K2 running into a dummy load, and was listening to it
on headphones plugged into a TenTec RX320D across the room. Since the
K2 was on a dummy load, I tried whistling and was surprised and
pleased to find that the PITCH of my whistle didn't match the one I
was hearing on the phones. But I could adjust the RX320D tuning until
they did match. Guarantee of zero beat and realistic pitch in voice
reception.

Doesn't seem that this would be too hard to do. Maybe the K3 could
even do it in firmware?

73,

Oliver Johns W6ODJ
_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com

AC7AC

RE: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

CONTENTS DELETED

The author has deleted this message.

Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy

Re: K3: Voice pitch adjustment on SSB

Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:

> Recently I was accused of calling CQ "off frequency" on SSB!
>
> "Off frequency"? I wasn't in QSO with anyone. That was the point of the
> CQ!
>
> It turned out the other station was tuning on the "zeros" like you
> suggest,
> and was of the opinion that everyone should do that.
>
> That's another thing I like about CW. No one thinks it's strange if I call
> CQ on 7,021.53 kHz, Hi!

------------------------------------------------------------

Also not considered to be strange to call off the "zeros" when fishing for
SSB DX in that part of your phone band below 7200 kHz!

73,
Geoff
GM4ESD

_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: [hidden email]
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com