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Strange Interference

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Terry

Strange Interference

I am operating portable in the southern Puget Sound area currently. I am picking up a strange S9 interference that is very narrow but generally slowly moving down the bands and sometimes up the bands. It occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between the instances of interference. I started noticing this same pattern of interference at my home QRH in Oregon last week. I am running a KX3, KXPA100, and sometimes the PX3. It occurs with preamp on or off and with PA Mode on or off. I am wondering if it is atmospheric natural or man made interference or if something is wrong with my receiver in the KX3.

I would appreciate any help I could get.

Thanks,

Terry, N7TB

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Phil Hystad-3

Re: Strange Interference

Terry,

I am in the mid-Puget Sound area but about 15 miles due east of Puget Sound in Kirkland, WA. I can’t find any signals that you describe. Time currently is 8:48 AM (PDT).

73, phil, K7PEH

> On Jul 23, 2016, at 8:42 AM, Terry Brown <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> I am operating portable in the southern Puget Sound area currently. I am picking up a strange S9 interference that is very narrow but generally slowly moving down the bands and sometimes up the bands. It occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between the instances of interference. I started noticing this same pattern of interference at my home QRH in Oregon last week. I am running a KX3, KXPA100, and sometimes the PX3. It occurs with preamp on or off and with PA Mode on or off. I am wondering if it is atmospheric natural or man made interference or if something is wrong with my receiver in the KX3.
>
> I would appreciate any help I could get.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Terry, N7TB
>
>
>
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Jim Brown-10

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

On Sat,7/23/2016 8:42 AM, Terry Brown wrote:
> It occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between the instances of interference.

It's a switch-mode power supply, one of the most common noise sources.

http://k9yc.com/KillingReceiveNoise.pdf

73, Jim K9YC

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Mike Rhodes

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Phil Hystad-3

...hmmm. Since Phil is not hearing the interference from a few miles
away, it sounds like the source may be something you brought with you.
What all have you brought from your home QTH?

Mike / W8DN

On 7/23/2016 11:49 AM, Phil Hystad wrote:

> Terry,
>
> I am in the mid-Puget Sound area but about 15 miles due east of Puget Sound in Kirkland, WA. I can’t find any signals that you describe. Time currently is 8:48 AM (PDT).
>
> 73, phil, K7PEH
>
>
>> On Jul 23, 2016, at 8:42 AM, Terry Brown <[hidden email]> wrote:
>>
>> I am operating portable in the southern Puget Sound area currently. I am picking up a strange S9 interference that is very narrow but generally slowly moving down the bands and sometimes up the bands. It occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between the instances of interference. I started noticing this same pattern of interference at my home QRH in Oregon last week. I am running a KX3, KXPA100, and sometimes the PX3. It occurs with preamp on or off and with PA Mode on or off. I am wondering if it is atmospheric natural or man made interference or if something is wrong with my receiver in the KX3.
>>
>> I would appreciate any help I could get.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Terry, N7TB
>>
>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________________________
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Rick WA6NHC-2

Re: Strange Interference

Or is of a common thread at both locations. i.e. rather than hauling
phone chargers around, I leave them scattered in my usual places (less
to move). I do the same with similar devices (not always the stock
brand). Switching supplies are common but not all meet or exceed noise
requirements.

Rick nhc

On 7/23/2016 9:37 AM, Mike Rhodes wrote:

> ...hmmm. Since Phil is not hearing the interference from a few miles
> away, it sounds like the source may be something you brought with you.
> What all have you brought from your home QTH?
>
> Mike / W8DN
>
> On 7/23/2016 11:49 AM, Phil Hystad wrote:
>> Terry,
>>
>> I am in the mid-Puget Sound area but about 15 miles due east of Puget
>> Sound in Kirkland, WA. I can’t find any signals that you describe.
>> Time currently is 8:48 AM (PDT).
>>
>> 73, phil, K7PEH
>>
>>
>>> On Jul 23, 2016, at 8:42 AM, Terry Brown <[hidden email]> wrote:
>>>
>>> I am operating portable in the southern Puget Sound area currently.
>>> I am picking up a strange S9 interference that is very narrow but
>>> generally slowly moving down the bands and sometimes up the bands.
>>> It occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for
>>> instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between
>>> the instances of interference. I started noticing this same pattern
>>> of interference at my home QRH in Oregon last week. I am running a
>>> KX3, KXPA100, and sometimes the PX3. It occurs with preamp on or off
>>> and with PA Mode on or off. I am wondering if it is atmospheric
>>> natural or man made interference or if something is wrong with my
>>> receiver in the KX3.
>>>
>>> I would appreciate any help I could get.
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>
>>> Terry, N7TB
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ______________________________________________________________
>>> Elecraft mailing list
>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>>> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>>>
>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>>> Message delivered to [hidden email]
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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>>
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>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
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>
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Jim Brown-10

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Mike Rhodes

On Sat,7/23/2016 9:37 AM, Mike Rhodes wrote:
> it sounds like the source may be something you brought with you. What
> all have you brought from your home QTH?

Good thinking, Mike. Terry -- read my link, notice the forms that
switch-mode power supplies take, like wall warts and power supplies for
equipment. Like computers, cell phone chargers, etc.

73, Jim K9YC

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Terry

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx SS30DV Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to send it in for repair.

Very 73,

Terry
N7TB

Clay Autery

Re: Strange Interference

My unit has an issue as well... spikes/hash every 34kHz from 160m to 10m.

I think there might have been a batch slip through... because so many
people report no noise.

I am testing every one I can get and recording/reporting the serial numbers.

I documented the issue to Elecraft and Powerwerx, and both companies, as
expected of course, have been very responsive.

NICE little package... Hopefully, the issue can be solved or
sufficiently mitigated.

73,

______________________
Clay Autery, KY5G
MONTAC Enterprises
(318) 518-1389

On 7/23/2016 1:43 PM, Terry wrote:
> Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx SS30DV
> Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create
> problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to send it
> in for repair.
>
> Very 73,
>
> Terry
> N7TB

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Grant Youngman-2

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

I've found the same issues with mine. It was fine when my antennas were outdoors, tower mounted, and a good bit away from the shack.

Now that I'm reduced to using close by portable style antennas ... it's just noisy. I've tried all manner of ferrites to little avail. In the radio room I use a linear supply and portable I run on batteries. I carry the PowerWerx to handle charging duties when I'm away from home .. but not for operating.

Grant NQ5T
K3/P3, KX3/PX3

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jul 23, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Terry <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx SS30DV
> Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create
> problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to send it
> in for repair.
>
>
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Peter Pauly

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Clay Autery

I had a similar problem with a very strong noise that increased in
frequency. I wondered for weeks where it was coming from and low-and-behold
- it was the Astron SS-30 sitting on top of my ham gear. I was using it for
the 2 meter rig and other smaller stuff. I replaced it with a linear model
and all is well.

My point is, if you think you can solve this problem by buying a different
brand switching power supply, you may be disappointed.

On Sat, Jul 23, 2016 at 2:49 PM, Clay Autery <[hidden email]> wrote:

> My unit has an issue as well... spikes/hash every 34kHz from 160m to 10m.
>
> I think there might have been a batch slip through... because so many
> people report no noise.
>
> I am testing every one I can get and recording/reporting the serial
> numbers.
>
> I documented the issue to Elecraft and Powerwerx, and both companies, as
> expected of course, have been very responsive.
>
> NICE little package... Hopefully, the issue can be solved or
> sufficiently mitigated.
>
> 73,
>
> ______________________
> Clay Autery, KY5G
> MONTAC Enterprises
> (318) 518-1389
>
> On 7/23/2016 1:43 PM, Terry wrote:
> > Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx
> SS30DV
> > Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create
> > problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to
> send it
> > in for repair.
> >
> > Very 73,
> >
> > Terry
> > N7TB
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
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> Message delivered to [hidden email]
>

Charlie T, K3ICH

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

Glad you found the source.

However, last year I heard some strange "weeblie" signals that swept across
the 10 meter band. They would typically start up some point and sweep from
low to high in frequency. They were quite noticeable on the VGA/P3 or the
Flex screen. They sounded like they were being frequency modulated at a
slow, maybe 10Hz rate over about a 100 Hz span, while the whole signal took
anywhere from a split second to about 10 seconds to travel a few hundred
kilohertz. The fast ones would leave a trail of dashes, depending on the P3
sweep speed and the slow movement seemed to get a bit faster as it moved.
I'd see a couple every 10 to 20 seconds and they were definitely coming in
the antenna. The source was not local, because I could switch to an indoor
loop and they were barely readable.

I haven't looked recently since ten has not been too active. I'll park the
K3 up on ten and check the scope every so often to see if they still show
up.

I DO have a similar RFI type signal coming from my PWM solar charger, but
these weeblies are different.

73, Charlie k3ICH

-----Original Message-----
From: Elecraft [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Terry
Sent: Saturday, July 23, 2016 2:44 PM
To: [hidden email]
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Strange Interference

Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx SS30DV
Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create
problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to send it
in for repair.

Very 73,

Terry
N7TB

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Bob Nielsen-4

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Mike Rhodes

I'm on Bainbridge Island in the west-central part of Puget Sound and I'm
not hearing anything (not much in the way of signals either). Of course
it is several hours later.

Bob, N7XY

On 7/23/16 9:37 AM, Mike Rhodes wrote:

k6dgw

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

Sounds like an SMPS, it may be yours :-) I have a similar noise on 80
only. It sounds like a slight increase in the background noise as I
tune across it, but it is much more pronounced on the P3, and it drifts
slowly up and down by 20-30 KHz over time. It rises to a 2-3 KHz wide
peak, drops to near zero, rises to a lesser peak about 15 KHz higher,
drops again, and continues like that until the amplitude is near zero.
The WF shows a series of vertical, noisy, lines.

I think it's mine because when I get into a CW ragchew on 80 and have a
higher key-down average, the drift becomes more pronounced, like
something is heating up. I haven't been motivated to find it because,
while it's very pronounced on the P3, at CW bandwidths like 250 Hz, I
really don't hear it.

Weigh your wall warts. If they're not heavy, they're very likely SMPS.
The one I charge my shaver with puts out a "yuuge" amount of noise.

73,

Fred K6DGW
- Northern California Contest Club
- CU in the Cal QSO Party 1-2 Oct 2016
- www.cqp.org

On 7/23/2016 8:42 AM, Terry Brown wrote:

> I am operating portable in the southern Puget Sound area currently. I
> am picking up a strange S9 interference that is very narrow but
> generally slowly moving down the bands and sometimes up the bands. It
> occurs at any one point in time at 14.030, 14.060, 14.090 for
> instance, and occurs on all ham bands with the same spacing between
> the instances of interference. I started noticing this same pattern
> of interference at my home QRH in Oregon last week. I am running a
> KX3, KXPA100, and sometimes the PX3. It occurs with preamp on or off
> and with PA Mode on or off. I am wondering if it is atmospheric
> natural or man made interference or if something is wrong with my
> receiver in the KX3.

Alan. G4GNX

Re: Strange Interference

In reply to this post by Terry

A bit late with this one (ill health) but I had a horrible teaser with a
switcher. I was using a wall wart to power an MFJ Intellituner. It seemed OK
at first and I didn't detect any RFI on any band from it, but after a short
while I was getting a 10-20KHz wide spurious on 40 metres, and the center
frequency moved around from time to time and always seemed to cover the part
of the band that I wanted to use! I finally traced it back to the tuner,
which every time it tuned to a different band segment, used a different
internal relay array, which very slightly varied the load on the wall wart.
This in turn caused it to change its frequency. Needless to say, the wall
wart was replaced. Interference can indeed be strange.

73,

Alan. G4GNX

-----Original Message-----
From: Terry
Sent: Saturday, July 23, 2016 7:43 PM
To: [hidden email]
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Strange Interference

Thanks to all for the advice. I found the issue. It is my Powerwerx SS30DV
Switching supply. I thought this supply was a good one to not create
problems like I am having. Not sure if it is fixable or If I need to send it
in for repair.

Very 73,

Terry
N7TB

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