19 Jul 2015

Linears in the UK

I think the RSGB must be getting short of articles for RadCom.

Last month they reviewed a linear that cannot be legally used in the UK because of its high power. There were a couple of critical letters about this in the August RadCom. Why did the RSGB print this review at all? We, in the UK, have a power level of 400W pep on most bands and we should encourage UK amateurs to keep to this. I have rarely used more than 5-10W pep and even 100W sounds like incredibly high power! No, let us have more articles in the spirit of amateur radio. Not everyone is interested in big, overpriced radios, linears, towers and huge HF beams. Just a few watts is enough to span the globe.

Anyone can work the world with 1000W and an HF beam on a tower. You can also video conference world wide for free with Skype!

QRP is a real challenge. High power rigs, big HF beam and linears are more about egos. Personally they do little for me.
at 20:59
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3 comments:

Todd Dugdale said...

Absolutely agree, Roger. When things get to be too easy, the thrill disappears. If climbing Mt. Everest was like riding an escalator, it wouldn't be an achievement. Here in the U.S, I've heard people say that using anything less than a kilowatt is "wasting your time".

Mon Jul 20, 12:48:00 pm GMT+1
Roger G3XBM said...

Thanks Todd. Certainly there is far more satisfaction from every QSO when using low power. I have never been impressed by "wallet" amateur radio. I'm much more into real experimentation, although my poor health in the last few years has been a handicap for me.

Mon Jul 20, 01:10:00 pm GMT+1
Anonymous said...

Cannot be used legally in the UK ?
How do you make that one out ?
If I take a 10kw amp and ensure that only 400w reaches the feed point then that's fine.
And why have a large amp ?
Easy, under run it and you'll have the 400w but with far better IMD performance.

Mon Jul 20, 06:45:00 pm GMT+1

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