Driving Arbitrarily Spaced Verticals on 160 Meters

This time of year most of my activity is on 6 meters. It is the peak of sporadic E season, and that means DX and fun times. That is not my sole activity, and there are multiple projects to be worked on. One that is suited to the summer weather while I wait for the DX paths to open on 6 meters is computer modelling of antennas. It is an activity that is easy to fit in anytime since all it requires is a computer.

One of my challenges is to improve my 160 meter signal, and that involves gain over a single vertical such as my current antenna: a shunt-fed 40 meter tower. There are several possibilities open to me and a few I've previously discussed for the blog. These have largely involved parasitic arrays of various types. They can be simple to home brew and are friendly to experimentation, which I like.

Ground loss is higher for a parasitic array than a driven array because they are close spaced, resulting in a low radiation resistance, and therefore greater loss for an equivalent radial system. Consider my 80 meter vertical yagi and how it compares to the 4-square. It takes less space but is less directive and tends toward inefficiency due to ground loss. But I had lots of fun experimenting with it, and will continue to do so as I strive for higher efficiency.

My two big towers constantly tempt me to try something similar on 160. The 60 meter separation works well for a 3-element yagi, by shunt feeding the towers to tune them as parasitic elements and a wire driven element hung from a rope catenary between the towers. The towers are big enough that they already affect any 160 meter antenna in the vicinity so it makes sense to put them to use.

Unfortunately there are several difficulties with this antenna:

• The radials have to be removed during the summer during haying season. An efficient radial system for a 3-element 160 meter yagi involves a lot of wire, and that means a lot of work to lay them down each fall and to roll them up again in the spring.
• A yagi has just 2 switchable directions, which are roughly northeast and southwest. Those are the most important ones, so it is tempting despite the limitation. The yagi would need an omni-directional mode by using the driven element alone.

I have therefore started to consider driven arrays. The 60 meter distance between the towers is pretty good for that, although not ideal. My challenge is to design a directive array using the two arbitrarily spaced towers in a driven array that is superior to the vertical yagi option. If it can be made to work well there are several advantages over a yagi:

• The higher radiation resistance and one less element (2 vs. 3) allows equal efficiency with significantly fewer radials.
• Impedance matching and direction switching can be done at one location, not at each tower.
• Gain can be had in 4 directions rather than just two. Omni-directional is also possible.

With that introduction let's dive into the two types of 2-element driven arrays. I will then explore what is possible with my towers, with both shunt-fed and not at an ideal separation as a driven array.

The are two important parameters in a 2-element driven array: separation (D) and relative phase. The latter can be achieved in a variety of ways, the simplest of which is adjusting the lengths of coax from the common source (La - Lb). Since the feed point impedance is unlikely to be 50 Ω, a matching network (N) may be required. 

Elaborate power division isn't necessary in a 2-element array. D is sufficiently large to minimize mutual impedance between elements so that driving the elements in parallel works very well. The minimum D would be ¼λ, which is also the typical element spacing in a 4-square antenna.

Extensive detail about the design of driven arrays can be found in ON4UN's Low-Band DXing, and if these antennas intrigue you, that is where you'll learn all you need. My discussion is narrowly focussed on my particular needs, to best exploit my towers. As we'll see, compromises are necessary when you don't build the driven array from scratch.

End-fire and broadside arrays

2-element driven arrays of these two types. An ideal end-fire is unidirectional to either the left or right per the diagram above; that is, on an extended line between the verticals. In my case, these are roughly northeast and southwest, the two directions of greatest utility for my primary interest: contests.

In ideal end-fire array D is ¼λ and La - Lb = ±90° (left or right). D can be smaller with appropriate choice of La and Lb, however driving the array is more challenging due to increased mutual impedance and the criticality of dimensions. D should not be too much larger or the array will sprout unwanted side lobes.

In an ideal broadside array D is ½λ and La = Lb. The pattern is bidirectional. There are similar concerns regarding smaller and larger values for D, but usually of greater negative impact since, in addition to side lobes, arbitrary choices for D tend to circularize the pattern. However, there will still be gain.

The azimuth plots above show ideal 2-element end-fire and broadside array over perfect ground. The broadside array has more gain since the lobes are narrower, despite there being two of them. At right you can see the sprouting of unwanted lobes for an end-fire with a D of ¾λ and a broadside with a D of 1λ. At other large values of D the arrays are not really end-fire or broadside due to those large side lobes.

For proper operation, D for the end-fire and broadside arrays should be odd multiples of ¼λ and ½λ, respectively. However, there will be additional lobes for multiples greater than 1. Intermediate values of D can be compensated for by adjusting the phasing with suitably calculated values for La and Lb. We'll come to this later since it is the focus of this article.

The gain is around 3 to 4 db better than a vertical, over perfect ground; the gain difference is smaller over real ground. Decreasing D for the end-fire configuration can add up to 1 db of gain over the expected 3 db due to mutual coupling, which lowers the radiation resistance and therefore the field intensity due to the higher current. Of course ground loss will increase over real ground and a radial system, so in practice less of that additional gain can be realized.

Geometry of the end-fire array requires adjustment of the phase and spacing to optimize gain and F/B for a specific elevation angle. The reason is that as the elevation angle increases the effective value of D decreases. Rather than go into detail I'll again refer you to ON4UN's book, where this and more is described in detail. 

It matters since gain of a ground-mounted ¼λ vertical at 0° elevation is always very poor due to the phase reversal at grazing angles over real ground. It is therefore worthwhile to optimize the antenna for a higher elevation angle, typically 20° for DX performance on 160 meters.

The 3D plot at right is for an end-fire array optimized for cancellation at 0° elevation over perfect ground. You can see how F/.B decreases as the angle increases. The same is true off the sides of the broadside array.

Arbitrary D: Gain or directivity

Although quite simple, a 2-element driven array competes well in gain versus more elaborate parasitic and multi-element driven arrays such as 4-squares. What you give up is directivity. There is only so much that can be accomplished with 2 elements. For those like me with a set of directional receive antennas, that is not a problem. My priority in a transmit antenna is gain.

The ideal element spacings for end-fire and broadside arrays optimize both gain and directivity. Since D is ¼λ for end-fire and ½λ for broadside it is not possible to optimize a 2-element driven array for both. However, we can do pretty well with a non-optimal D. 

I am fortunate that my two big tower are 60 meters apart, since that is approximately ⅜λ, or midway between the two optimums. For those with verticals with lesser or greater D, the techniques I will discuss are applicable, although the results may not always be as good.

With a non-optimal D we can optimize gain or directivity, but not both. The plot at right illustrates this for the end-fire (unidirectional, cardioid pattern) by varying the feed point phase shift from 60° through 130° (90° is the primary pattern).

Ground is EZNEC medium, using MININEC ground to simulate a fairly poor radial system with an equivalent resistance of 10Ω. The radial system may be better than this, but this affects efficiency and feed point impedance, and not the antenna pattern.

The larger D requires a phase shift greater than 90° for maximum gain and a smaller phase shift for maximum F/B. This is at an elevation angle of 22° for medium ground. Notice that the "ideal" 90° phase shift is not suitable for medium ground and a D of 60 meters.

For real ground the peak of the main lobe is always substantially above the horizon so it makes good sense to phase the elements so that peak gain occurs above the horizon. In this case, 22°. Targetting a lower elevation angle should only be attempted with taller verticals or better ground, otherwise performance will suffer.

Notice that among this range of element phase differences the gain varies by 2 db and the F/B variation is profound. As expected for the non-optimal spacing the gain is poor when F/B is excellent and vice versa. One curiosity is that for the high F/B cases the main lobe is "two-headed", with twin gain peaks ±40° off the main axis. 

As the phase difference is further reduced the pattern gradually transforms into that of a broadside array. Again, this is what we expect and want. The next plot with smaller phase shifts shows our options for the broadside configuration of the array.

Broadside gain is barely affected with a phase difference of up to 30°. The side nulls are greatly softened with the non-optimal spacing, with little to distinguish them. There is no compelling reason to use anything other than in-phase (0°) feeds for broadside.

Gain is substantially lower than a broadside array with an optimal D of ½λ. It is lowered enough that th 1 db gain difference that favoured the broadside configuration for ideally spaced verticals now favours the end-fire array by about the same amount. Radiation that is "wasted" off the sides is not available to contribute to gain in the broadside directions.

For reference, the 22° elevation angle gain for a single, omni-directional vertical is almost exactly 1 dbi. Thus, for our D of 60 meters the broadside gain is 2.2 db (bidirectional) and the end-fire gain is 3.3 db. Although this may not seem like a lot, on 160 meters it will provide a substantial competitive edge. It is especially attractive due to its simplicity in comparison to a K3LR 3-element wire yagi, like my 80 meter array (about 4 dbi gain) and a 4-square (about 5 dbi gain). Radial requirements for similar efficiency are lower than for either of those larger and more complex antennas.

Feeding the array

To simplify the model, I directly specified the element phasing with sources for each of the two verticals. This is easy to do in EZNEC as follows:

For a real antenna the verticals are connected to a common feed point by coax. Coax has loss that is low enough at 1.8 MHz that it can be ignored. However, coax has another important effect that cannot be ignored since the mutual impedance between the two verticals changes the 50 Ω feed point impedance of each vertical. The complex impedance at the feed point varies with the length of the coax.

The individual vertical impedances are not 50 Ω so their parallel impedance is not 25 Ω. It is possible to adjust the gamma matches of each shunt-fed tower (or other vertical of your choice) to be 50 Ω or some other impedance that will present an impedance at the feed point that is "easy" to work with. That is not as easy as it seems since the feed point impedance is different when the phase is changed, as it must be to support both end-fire and broadside configurations. 

Out of curiosity I played with the model and successfully achieved an excellent match for the end-fire configurations. This is only useful if you only use the array as a reversible end-fire array, with no broadside or omni-directional modes. However, it's a cumbersome process that I do not recommend. The more sensible method is a switchable impedance transformation network at the feed point.

With the elements 60 meters apart the minimum coax to each vertical is 30 meters. I happen to have two ~40 meter lengths of RG213 and two ~40 meter lengths of LDF4 available, and I will likely choose from those should I build this antenna. I would run the coax over ground in the fall and roll them up in the spring for haying season, just as I do for the radials.

The patterns of the 3 combinations of end-fire (2 directions) and broadside (bidirectional) provide good compass coverage without bothering with feeding one of the verticals as an omni-directional antenna. I will therefore proceed to design matching for just those. To use one of the verticals alone is only a 50 Ω match if the other is detuned. I prefer to avoid the additional complexity.

In the model the 40 meter lengths of RG213 are joined in parallel at the feed point. An extra length of RG213 delays the signal (negative phase) of one end-fire element. For the 3 modes -- end-fire left, end-fire right and broadside -- the phasing (delay) line is switched into the right element, into the left element, or out, respectively. A separate control cable can be used for switching or two different DC signals (+12 and -12 VDC, for example) can be placed on the feed line using Bias-T circuits at both ends.

The length of the delay line is easy to calculate. To simplify for repeated experimentation I calculated the length of RG213 for a -10° phase shift. This is 1/36 of λ, which is 163.83 meters at 1.830 MHz. Adjusting for the 0.66 velocity factor the length is almost exactly 3 meters. It is then very easy to mentally multiply by 9 to find that a -90° phasing shift is 27 meters of RG213.

The plot at right is for a -120° phase shift which, as we saw earlier, is close to maximizing gain for verticals separated by 60 meters. For these electrically tall shunt-fed towers the gain is about 3 db versus a single tower. The gain is about 2 db for the broadside configuration.

Although there were no surprises replacing ordinary λ/4 verticals with my tall shunt-fed towers, the validation is necessary so that we can proceed to inspect the impedances.

Due to the small magnitude of the mutual impedance, the parallel impedance in both end-fire and broadside is not too far from half the impedance of each shunt-fed tower alone. However, since it is far from 50 Ω it must be dealt with.

The R component of the impedance is roughly half, which itself is a concern since this is a fairly high Q antenna where the 2:1 SWR bandwidth of each vertical is about 75 kHz. In end-fire and broadside configurations the residual X is mostly negative and positive, respectively, but not large in comparison to R. A relatively small X is a hint that matching will not be difficult.

Below are the model's SWR curves for end-fire and broadside, followed by an L-network for the end-fire case that optimizes the match at 1.830 MHz.

It is interesting that the bandwidth of the driven array is better than that of a single vertical. With an L-network tuned for broadside the result is similar. I experimented with the L-network design using TLW and came up with one that is easy to switch by only needing to switch taps on the series coil and using a fixed shunt capacitor midway between 1500 pf and 1800 pf calculated for each configuration.

I will not describe the network since its design is very sensitive to the design of the verticals and the lengths of the coax from the feed point to each vertical. Using TLW or a similar tool it is not difficult to design a switchable matching network based on field measurements after the array is built. For coax which can withstand the voltage associated with the uncorrected SWR, the matching could be done in the shack with an ATU or other device. The mismatched loss of any suitable coax is very low at 1.8 MHz.

Where I go from here

Although summer is not prime top band season it is a good time to play with antenna models in air conditioned comfort. I do not know whether I will build this antenna, and it is not a high priority for this year. It is good to have several options in hand when the time does come. 

Hopefully this design will spur some readers to explore similar possibilities for a high-performance 160 meter antennas. I like its good -- but not great -- performance and its simplicity. Most hams don't have the land or the resources to put up multiple towers and recruit them for use on top band, so I consider myself fortunate. Of course I moved here several years ago to make antennas such as this possible.

Digital Operating in the Near Future (speculative)

Let's imagine a fictional scenario for the near future. It certainly doesn't exist today, may never exist as described, and yet something like it is probable.

You turn on your HF-VHF transceiver and computer, ready for some contacts using your favourite digital modes. It could be FT8, FT4, Q65 or another one yet to be invented. You point your yagi in the appropriate direction and monitoring begins. 

It's all software decoding, so all you do is select the band and channel, and digital mode(s). Even that may not be necessary with an SDR rig. To check propagation you can monitor or you can select the "ping" option and your station rattles off a series a brief transmissions on all selected bands, the software automatically collects reception data from other stations around the world. Of course this will favour the direction the yagi is pointing and the bands it supports. Alternatively, without transmitting at all, you can display a map of the same for stations near you. There is no need to add to the QRM.

Assume a fairly wide digital sub-band. This is to be expected since digital modes have become the most popular modes on HF, and the trend is likely to continue. The rig and computer software are tightly integrated, more so than today. The rig will be SDR, with all signals in the digital sub-band available all at once, possibly for more than one band at a time. Channelization due to the predominant current use of SSB modes will erode, and spectrum usage may come to resemble traditional modes, bound only by widely accepted conventions, and regulations where applicable.

Since you are effectively monitoring all digital activity on the band, and possibly more than one band, there is too much information for one operator to digest. It must be filtered. The software itself will be comfortable with decoding hundreds of signals, which is already possible with existing computer hardware capacity. It is truly impressive how easily today's processors can handle multiple concurrent FFT, digital filters and data base operations.

To limit the information deluge of wide bandwidth reception and decoding the operator needs filtering tools or features. Some already exist. These include inclusive or exclusive filtering by one or more of: region (continent, country, grid field, etc.), frequency range, call sign or prefix, signal strength, award requirements (country, grid, state/RDA, etc.), contest participants (or not) and certainly many more you can image. Custom filters will be supported. Labels (colour, flashing, etc.) are an alternative to exclusionary filters for those who want to see all stations without constantly changing the filters.

Imagine spinning a VFO knob and adjusting a bandwidth knob or software control and watching the list of decoded stations within that spectrum immediately appear on the screen. Since all signals are being decoded all the time there is no need to wait. Digital modes will be auto-detected. Indeed, you can do searches to see all the messages associated with a station, sorted by time and frequency. The data is already there due to the mass decoding performed by the software.

There will be alerting apps that allows an operator to be notified when a wanted station is heard. The alert can be local or remote, such as to a phone. This already exists, and we can expect it to improve.

Transmitting will also have supporting features, whether to CQ or to answer a particular station. The software can find a free frequency for your digital signal that is wide enough and that hasn't been used for a specified time. Time slots can be automatically selected when you set the target region or station you are calling, in accord with operating conventions. Mode will be set to that of the station being called.

Conventions may determine mapping between frequency ranges and digital modes, or you can override when necessary. Select sub-band or mode, and the other will be set accordingly.

Coexistence with non-digital modes will be easier than today. Features can be used to strictly enforce mode use by frequency. Restrictions can be loosened or overridden for contests, DXpeditions and other events when one mode is temporarily more popular and needs expanded bandwidth to fit the activity. Indeed, CW at least may be just one more mode supported by the rig and software since it is compatible with digital modes in most cases, including decoding and automated message transmission.

Although we can continue with this speculative exercise, let's end it here. The reality will eventually go much farther than I've described.

If you dislike or even despise digital modes, you may be aghast at what I've described. It isn't the amateur radio you and I grew up with. Technology makes it possible and the generational tide will bring it to fruition, no matter our personal opinions and operating tastes. It will happen, if not quite as I've described, and we need to think about it to coax the technology and operating behaviour in the most beneficial direction.

Radio will remain the foundation. There will always be a need for the RF, including transceivers, transmission lines and antennas. Of course, there will be remote operation, and it will increase from what currently exists. The better the RF components of your station the better you will do, just as for conventional modes.

Operating skills will also be needed, however some of those skills will be different. Anyone operating both digital and conventional modes will understand. There will also be lids who flout convention or never learn how to properly operate their equipment and software. QRM, DQRM and all the rest will also continue, but so will our tools to deal with them.

I love CW and I will continue to use it, probably for the rest of my ham radio career. After initial trepidation I am now also comfortable operating digital modes. Many hams I know have gone through the same evolution, and many are still standing at the threshold, not yet ready to take the next step. The novelty and potential of the technology are draws to hams, so many of whom are technophiles.

I currently limit my digital operating to VHF and 160 meters. The former due to the advantages for DXing and the fact that almost all activity is digital. Outside of contests and DXpeditions on 160 there is little CW activity, and I do like top band. In time it is likely that my digital activity will increase, since that is where everyone else can be found.

As the transition to digital continues I will look for equipment that supports those modes with innovative and useful features. Most of the restrictions today are limitations of our rigs, forcing us into using SSB and 3 kHz channels, and 20 kHz sound card interfaces to computer software. Those limitations will disappear as SDR technology rises to dominance and the floodgates between rigs and software are thrown wide open.

My speculations about possible and probable digital features is the tip of the iceberg. Hams are inventive and we can be certain that far more interesting and sophisticated features are on the way. With a baseline of SDR rigs and computer intefaces, the features will be determined by software applications and not by the rig manufacturers. In my opinion, that is how it ought to be.

Are you horrified? Don't be. Embrace the change, learn something new and increase your enjoyment of amateur radio. The boundaries you see are self imposed. They really don't exist.

Amplifier Technology: Tube vs. Transistor

Choice of active device technology in a kilowatt class amplifier continues to be a relevant question in 2021. Be wary of those who will not allow that there is a valid choice to be made based on their merits and demerits. Rigid adherence to one technology or the other are rarely founded on the evidence. Never mistake a preference for a universal truth!

There is no absolute best when it comes to tube versus transistor technology for kilowatt class amplifiers. However, it is certainly true that tubes own the past and transistors own the future. Although we are currently well along the transition to solid state there is a strong case to be made, today, for vacuum tube technology. Since I am making a choice for today, I considered both.

This spring I sprung for a new amplifier. I've talked about it for a while yet did nothing. There was no immediate rush since it is primarily for contest work, and since there is a pandemic -- no multi-ops here -- I delayed doubling up. The Drake L7 was good enough for the interim. But with sporadic E season approaching and my lofty objectives for 6 meters this year, it was time to act.

After considering many alternatives I settled on the Acom A1500 kilowatt amplifier which covers 160 to 6 meters. It is not in any sense the "best" amplifier. It suffices that it fits well with my current and near future operating objectives. 

I will use this article to explain my decision process. Everyone's needs are different and my choice may not be your choice. When I eventually come to replace the L7 it will not be an A1500, and indeed it is likely to be a solid state amplifier. Having different types of amplifiers has its advantages. That said, over time it is almost certain that my shack will become all solid state.

This article is not a review of the A1500. Perhaps I will do one later. My purpose here is to review the pros and cons of alternatives relative to my various operating interests. I believe it is more important to understand that rather than simply going on a quest to find the best amplifier, which doesn't really exist.

Operating objectives

One of my most important applications of amplifiers is HF contests. For that I have several requirements:

• Reliable
• Rapid tune or no tune
• Tolerant of antenna mismatches
• Protection from operator errors 
• Low distortion: modulation and harmonics
  
• Ability to switch bands under software or hardware control
• Quiet

For daily DXing my requirements are a little different:

• Rapid on
• Rapid tune
• Tolerant of antenna mismatches
• Protection from operator errors
• 6 meters
  

Contests are scheduled and typically run for 12 to 48 hours. For general DXing time can be critical; that is, you want to use the amp as soon as you hear the DX or see the spot, or you risk competing with the descending horde. Leaving an amp running all the time is not too much of a problem for solid state devices. In contrast, tubes will experience gentle wear and burn electricity that will heat up the shack. That can be cozy in winter but not when the weather is hot. However, repeated power cycling can significantly reduce tube life.

That is one important difference for choosing an amplifier and device technology. What follows is my perspective of how my requirements map onto amplifier alternatives. While your interests will differ the overlap is likely to be large and therefore of potential interest.

Tubes

Transmitting tubes in the 1 kilowatt category are becoming an endangered species. They were never primarily marketed to hams and with the near 100% transition to solid state of commercial transmitters in this power category most are no longer manufactured. There still exist NOS (new old stock) tubes, if you can find them, and there are clone manufacturers that eke out a living producing a select set of discontinued tubes marketed to hams and others.

Caution about clones is understandable, although there are products that have proven to be reliable and a good match to the original. Two that are particularly important to me are Taylor and Setec. The first makes the 3-500Z clones used in my Drake L7, and the second makes the Eimac 4CX1000A clone used in my Acom A1500. Their prices are reasonable though not cheap. Manufacturing high quality products to a rigid spec entails significant cost, and deviations can quickly sink the business when unhappy customers and amplifier builders look elsewhere.

Glass envelope tubes are typically less expensive, although you'll almost always need 2 or 3 to make a kilowatt. They are physically large and kilowatt tubes like the 4-1000 are larger yet; it takes a lot of glass surface to dissipate the generated heat. Ceramic tubes are compact, with more critical air flow needs. Their small dimensions make more practical an amplifier that covers 160 through 6 meters. Tetrodes operated class AB typically have excellent distortion specs.

Well made tubes in a well built amplifier can be remarkably trouble free for a long, long time. The best tubes in a poorly designed amp, or operator abuse, can rapidly destroy the best tubes. Ground grid triodes are more tolerant of operator errors than tetrodes. It is recommended that these amps have built-in protection to prevent damage (more on this below). Vintage tube amps rarely do.

All tubes require warm up before use. Most glass envelope tubes have filaments and cathodes that are reasonably tolerant of short warm ups, although waiting a minute or two is recommended. Most ceramic envelope tubes have strict warm up requirements, typically a 3 minute minimum. This is fine for contesting but not when you need instant power to work a rare DX station.

Due to the high voltage and large output transformation ratios, it is rare for tube amps to have broadband output networks. It just isn't economical or practical.

Transistors

In the early days, transistors RF amplifiers were low power bipolar devices that required power combiners and other circuitry to put up to 8 of these devices in parallel. They were technological marvels that were rarely up to the high demands of active hams. In the decades since then the improvement of RF power transistors has been remarkable. There are now single LDMOS devices that will deliver a kilowatt of power from 160 through 6 meters.

As with any new technology, there is limited data on device lifetime. Performance is often not on par with the very best tube amplifiers. However, there are developments such as feedback between a well integrated transmitter and amplifier that deliver exceptionally reliable performance and low distortion. There is little doubt that the future of RF power amplifiers belongs to solid state.

Due to their small physical dimensions the great bugaboo of transistor amplifiers is heat. Inventing junction structures for efficient heat transport and a high frequency cutoff, while ensuring efficiency and linearity, have been challenging. Low tolerance to poor operating conditions and practices has required strict electronic protection measures. That has had implications for operating flexibility and amplifier reliability.

Progress continues apace. Increasing numbers of kilowatt class transistor amplifiers are reliable and tolerant of mismatches for an SWR of 2, and sometimes higher. The critical challenge is good design and construction since mistakes can be costly. Protection circuits are mandatory.

Mismatch tolerance

In a fantasy station every HF antenna is exactly 50 Ω at every frequency in its range. While every ham would benefit from this it is the contester that is most attracted to the ideal. Low SWR means no operating time is lost when changing band or frequency, thus (ideally) enabling a higher score by allowing time for more contacts and to catch elusive multipliers.

Real antennas are quite different. Multi-band antennas have narrow SWR bandwidths. This is also often the case with any antenna for 80 and 160 meters. For example, at right is the measured 20 meter SWR of my Hy-Gain TH7.

Even if you could achieve the ideal, weather will throw a wrench into the works. Rain, snow, ice and sometimes wind, alter antenna impedance, and in severe cases can greatly distort the pattern or make the antenna unusable. 

We simply do the best we can. Our transmitters and amplifiers need to cope with the real antennas out in the weather and their effects, predictable or not. But if your broadband amp cannot be tuned and the SWR climbs out of control at a critical moment, you are stuck.

ATU 

Adding a built-in ATU to a kilowatt amplifier typically increases the price from 30% to 60%. This or an external manual or automatic tuner may be needed for an SWR as low as 1.5 on some bands, and almost always when the SWR exceeds 2. The heat dissipation and heat density associated with high power devices demands less tolerance for impedance mismatches compared to low power equipment.

Manual tune tube amps are usually happy up to an SWR of at least 3, depending on the complex impedance at the antenna port. Since this is difficult to dynamically measure, most protection circuits keep it simple and measure either or both of the SWR and absolute reflected power, and make decisions based on that data.

There are a few tube amps that feature a built-in ATU, such as the larger version of my A1500: the Acom A2000a. ATUs are more common on modern solid state amps.

Broadband outputs or an automatic ATU would seem to be ideal for the active ham or contester to deal with our various antenna impedances. The reality is not so simple. Even if you are able to have a low SWR on all of your antennas there will be problems. Consider the following:

• Rain, ice and snow will alter the impedance of an antenna, often more than you expect
• Low bandwidth antennas -- trapped tri-band yagis and almost any low band antenna -- have high SWR at the band edges, and often over a large fraction of the bands they cover
  
• Switching among antennas on a single band -- something contesters do a lot -- will require retuning the ATU, switching the ATU in and out, or manual adjustment
  

The point is, whether you have a broadband output or an instant switched ATU, you will have to adjust tuning. It isn't a once-and-done deal. The tuning may be manual or automatic but it must be done. Choose antennas that reduce the need for tuning adjustments.

Protection

The A1500 is not my first tetrode amplifier. In 1985 I purchased a Collins 30S1 that used the Eimac 4CX1000A. As will all of these vintage amateur radio amplifiers there was no protection circuitry. You had to watch those meters and tune carefully! I was very nervous in contests since rapid tuning adjustments when switching bands and antennas was risky.

The seller included a 4CX1500B, which is plug compatible to the 4CX1000A and is a little more tolerant of poor tuning, though not by much. From what I've seen of the specs, the Setec 4CX1000A has grid specs similar to that of the more robust 4CX1500B, but don't quote me on that.

Compact tetrodes are very sensitive to secondary emissions that can quickly degrade and ruin them. It would be foolhardy to have a modern tetrode amplifier without a full range of electronic protection. DXers and contesters must rapidly tune, change bands and frequencies, and change antennas that require adjustment of the amp. Doing so without protection can be very expensive. We all make mistakes.

Kilowatt class solid state amplifiers have their own extensive protection requirements. Here the problem is excess heat, voltage and current in the active devices and transformers due to load mismatch and faults. Without protection, failure in a kilowatt class solid state amp can happen faster than you can react to meter displays. 

In contrast, a grounded grid triode amp is far more tolerant of abuse and some protections are optional rather than must have features. The smaller set of protections on late model triode amplifiers is not necessarily evidence of poor quality.

Price

Neither tube nor transistor kilowatt amplifiers are cheap, and are similarly priced. All require a hefty power supply, expensive active devices, heat removal systems, and RF circuits and switches that can deal with high heat, voltage and current. Some amps are more economical by using several less expensive, lower power tubes or transistors. There are a few manufacturers that cut the price, and corners, by reducing protections or providing little headroom in their published capabilities. Avoid the latter unless you enjoy gambling.

Before you opt for the cheaper amp you need to question whether you are pursuing false economy. Many vintage amps are available at attractive prices. Just be sure you know what you're getting into since you will have fewer protections built in and you will likely need to service the equipment soon after acquisition. This most often involves the tubes or power supply. Worse is a failing high voltage power transformer. They have a long though limited lifetime and are expensive to replace, if you can find one.

As mentioned earlier, if you need or want a built in ATU you should expect to pay a hefty premium. An external high power ATU can be purchased at a lower price, but it may not integrate well and will therefore require manual band selection. Alternatively, you can forego the ATU by making your antennas as broadband as possible, at the risk of not being able to use the amps when an ice storm hits right during a contest or DXpedition.

Service

Getting service for amateur radio equipment is worse in Canada than in the US and Europe. All the manufacturers of transceivers, amplifiers and other pricey equipment are foreign, and domestic retailers have largely exited the service market, even for equipment under warranty. When you need service under warranty the equipment must be shipped across borders, in both directions, with all the expense, paperwork and risk that involves. Amplifiers are heavy and fragile, so shipping to a professional service centre is to be avoided if possible.

The ideal is equipment that is reliable and that is easy to repair by a knowledgable ham. These days, amp manufacturers don't particularly like hams who open their equipment, let alone replace the tubes, and will void warranties when it is done. Tube equipment, especially vintage tube amplifiers, are easier to work on simply because their size is larger and you can get in there to inspect, test and replace components more easily than in tightly packed solid state gear. Unfortunately that temptation to dive in has led to many regrets, so never underestimate the size of the problem, or your abilities.

Changing the transistors in a amplifier has risks beyond the mechanical and electrical skills required. For example, heat sink compounds are almost all toxic and require expert handling to avoid health risks. Broadband matching networks are a black art for most hams and they would not (or should not) attempt to repair or rebuild them.

Power supplies are easier. Many hams can repair these when the need is parts replacement. Care is required when working on high voltage supplies (tube amps) and high current supplies (transistor amps). When in doubt, seek a professional.

There is a false meme that says the more expensive a product the less you need to worry about pricey repairs. The underlying assumption is that you are buying peace of mind for the higher price. This is as untrue of amplifiers as it is for appliances, vehicles, entertainment equipment and other products. The truth is that lifetime service cost tends to track the purchase price. Parts are more expensive and service rates are charged at a premium for premium products. Of course, cheap, poorly built equipment will fail sooner and require more frequent repair or replacement, but these repairs are typically less costly, and you may be able to do it yourself.

Station automation

An amplifier that matches the transceiver looks very pretty on the operating desk. That is true whether it is an SB220 paired with an SB102 or K4 paired with a KPA1500. In my opinion, appearance is at best a secondary reason to consider a matched pair. Although the interconnection between any transceiver and amp is straight forward, the benefits of well integrated products can pay big dividends in station automation and therefore operator effectiveness.

Some of these benefits include:

• Automatic band changes, following the transceiver, or both following a software app
• Low distortion, by managing gain by negative feedback (ALC) and, now emerging, compensation for amplifier generated distortion (e.g. PureSignal)
• Software control of the ATU, antenna port, metering, etc.

Perhaps surprisingly, there are a number of modern tube amplifiers that do these things well. After all, the electronics and software control surrounding the core of the amp can be the same for both tubes and transistors. However, most of the design and product energy is directed at the latest generation of solid state amplifiers. This is not surprising since, whatever you think of tubes, they are not the future.

Obsolescence

Would you purchase an amplifier that uses obsolete tubes or transistors? What will you do if and when they need replacement? Take advantage of current suppliers of NOS components to stock up immediately. If you wait until they're needed they may well have become unobtainium. The transistors in older solid state amps are becoming hard to find, new or NOS. Not only tubes become obsolete.

It is not just these headline parts to be considered in an old amplifier. Consider meters, transformers, relays and all the rest. I have had problems locating obsolete digital ICs to repair old equipment. Looked at individually, these are reliable components. Put hundreds of reliable components into an amplifier and there will be inevitable failures among them. Know what you're getting into when you buy an old amplifier.

How my amps measure up

The 40 year old Drake L7 is a well-built product. It is pretty easy to adjust on the fly due to its grounded grid design and 3-500ZG tubes. But it's old and parts fail. So far these have included the high voltage filter, T/R relay and variable capacitors. The lack of 6 meters is not a concern for those only interested in the HF bands.

The A1500 is a well-built modern tube amplifier that makes the most of the Setec 4CX1000A tube. It also covers 6 meters, which I had to have. During contests it requires more attention than the L7 because the tetrode is more sensitive to impedance changes when I change frequency and switch among antennas. It takes only a moment to tweak the load control to compensate, and you must do it to avoid tripping the protection. Protection circuits trip more easily at the high end of the amplifier's power range.

Despite the extra attention it requires, it is nice to have an amp that will comfortably and cleanly drive my diversity of antennas. As I evolve away from tri-band and other high Q antennas it may be possible to replace or complement it with a broadband transistor amp. When that happens the L7 will likely be kept on the shelf as a spare.

My problem now with the two amplifiers is that the operating desk is crowded! What you see in the picture is messier than usual due to the parts and test equipment for the various projects I am working on. Stuff gets shoved aside or I do a proper cleaning before major contests. 

One nice feature of fully automated amplifiers is that they can be taken off the operating desk. Should  you do that, keep them readily accessible for service or replacement during a contest. Manually tuned amps must be on the operating desk. They are typically laid out horizontally due to their weight (the A1500 is almost 30 kg). The L7 is light enough to stack on the transceiver because the hefty power supply is a separate unit.

Until the band pass filters are ready I am not using both amplifiers. All should be ready for the fall contest season. I will not be revisiting the amplifier choices in my station until the antennas and station automation are significantly improved.

6 Meters and the Mode Rut

Don't be surprised to see another article about 6 meters. It is my current focus and therefore it's what I am most likely to want to talk about. Actually, the topic of this article is not solely applicable to 6 meters, as you will see. Human nature being what it is the lessons are universal.

May 19 delivered an extraordinary opening between North America and Europe. With my improved station I exceeded my best ever day working Europe. Not a simple percentage increase, but 4× more QSOs. I also worked 5 new countries, bringing ever so close to 6 meter FT8 DXCC.

It was a busy day and I enjoyed every minute. From the few emails received afterwards there are quite a few Europeans who have yet to work Canada, or North America for that matter. One thanked me for being the "big gun" that made it possible for him. I was pleased to make it happen.

Here are my mode statistics for May 19. Please note that these are all on 6 meters, and all the QSOs are with Europe:

• FT8: 202
  
• FT4: 13
  
• CW: 23
  
• SSB: 0

I did not attempt to work Europe on SSB, which explains the zero. Signals at times were so strong I could have done so despite the 10:1 SNR challenge versus CW. This is important since those numbers are a rough indicator of what could be done and not what was possible. Momentum, activity level, QSO duration and SNR all figure into the statistics. 

By momentum I mean that while the pile up is ongoing it is difficult to pull back and switch modes, abandoning all those callers, or to switch modes when the spectrogram is enticingly lit up by countless DX signals.

Momentum can be temporary or it can be a regular characteristic of our on air preferences or beliefs. Why are there so few FT4 and CW QSOs listed? The signals were not there to be worked. By running and by calling others I soon ran out of stations to work on those modes. I would go back later to work a few more, who because of their own activity or propagation shifts were not there before.

When momentum becomes a habitual feature of our operating we are in danger of living in a rut of our own making. We dig the rut, jump in, like it and stay there. Hate digital? You stay in the SSB rut. You have a small station and can't work DX on SSB, and you don't know or like CW? You operate FT8. Repetition and time dig the rut, and soon our choices become habit. In time we forget that it was a choice and we rationalize our preference as the "best" mode.

Ruts are not only for modes. Far too many will not stray from 50.313 MHz. The 50.323 MHz intercontinental window is there for the taking. When the QRM is fierce on 313 it makes sense for the little pistols to try 323 so that their signals are not buried under others. The likelihood of success is higher on 323. However, most don't QSY, or they won't QSY. Humans are curious creatures.

I made a point of moving around during the opening. To me there was a price to sitting on 313: I might miss a new country. Let's say I'm having a good run on 313. While I'm doing that I worry that there might be a new country on 323, FT4 or CW. I tried not to deny any callers so I would delay moving until I had no callers. It doesn't take long to check the activity elsewhere and to call CQ a few times. There were a few pleasant surprises by doing so.

Since there is less activity outside the primary FT8 watering hole I was never away for long. I doubt I missed anything on 313 due to my frequent QSYs and mode changes. From the paucity of activity on FT4 in particular, and 323 to a lesser degree, too few are moving around. Why is it that so many find it easy to spin the VFO on HF and few will do the same on 6 meters? From the many recognizable call signs I know that they, like me, are active on both digital and traditional modes and know the value of a VFO.

FT8 is slow. It is so slow I can do other things while running a pile up. At least one ham I know has operated 6 meter FT8 while putting in a serious effort in an HF contest! Above is a picture of me working FT8 on 6 meters while adjusting my almost-complete switchable BPF (band pass filters) for HF contests. Being fleet of foot I have successfully operated FT8 while cooking meals, answering email, and doing a variety of tasks. You don't have time to do that on CW, SSB or FT4.

That's another thing that amazes me: why don't more use FT4? It's twice the speed of FT8 and only a little less sensitive. FT4 is fast enough that it almost feels like running stations on CW. So why don't more try it? During big 6 meter openings I can repeatedly call CQ on 50.318 MHz and have not one reply. Why not? It's those ruts we allow ourselves to fall into.

Can our tendency to fall into ruts be changed? Should it be changed? If hams are comfortable sitting full time on 50.313 MHz operating FT8, who am I to suggest they do otherwise? All I can do is point out the advantages of FT4 and jumping among the channels to improve the chance of success. 

For me, one forceful fact is the rapid QSB of sporadic E. I hate it when I fail to complete an FT8 QSO with a needed DX station because the opening is shorter than the time needed to complete the contact. By halving QSO duration with FT4 the 3 db sensitivity difference is near irrelevant. Compared to QSB of 10, 20 or more db it is clear that time is of the essence.

It is easy to QSY to 318: click FT4 in WSJT-X and there I am. I do so periodically in the hope that others will do the same. So far I've had few takers. Give it a try and we'll both have one more station to work. What was an amazing 200 Europe QSOs in the big opening could have been 300 or more using the much faster FT4. 

Typical FT4 activity level on 6 meters

Had there not been enough stations to make that possible (there were!) there would have been more time to monitor and react quickly when a rare one appeared. Instead I was more often locked into a slow FT8 QSO. It would have been rude to call some one else midstream. FT4 would allow me to both run the pile up and react quickly to call the rare ones between QSOs.

I'll end the article here. It seems a little curmudgeonly to complain when activity on the magic band is higher than ever. Now that sporadic E season is well underway there are signals to be found any time of day. Mostly these are tiny bursts of propagation -- whether by meteor reflection or E-layer scatter -- that are not workable on FT8 or FT4. Nevertheless it is comforting to see so many watching, waiting and calling.

Between openings I am keeping busy with various projects that I will be talking about in the coming months. One you can see in the picture above. You can also expect more 6 meter articles, inevitably.

Off air, I am waiting for local outlets to reopen from the latest lock down to order aluminum for antennas, doing tower maintenance and dragging my winter projects into the spring season. I might operate in the upcoming CQ WPX CW contest, and I've delayed rolling up the radials of my 160 meter antenna just in case I do get on. 

The warm weather is also drawing me outside to partake in non-ham activities. That is, when 6 meters isn't open and keeping me busy in the shack.

Troubleshooting Reversible Beverages

When I closed off the article on my latest reversible Beverage antenna it was working in one direction and not the other. It is now working. The problem was nothing profound and I had every confidence that I would find the fault and fix it. Beverages are really very simple antennas. Reversible Beverages, although they may seem magical, are uncomplicated as well.

The two challenges I face fixing Beverages are the tiny transformers and the trekking. Working with fine gauge coated wire and tiny (and abrasive) ferrite cores is a test of patience. Although I have more patience now than when I younger it is never enough for these confounding creatures. I get less frustrated soldering and de-soldering SMD components!

Following best practices on building Beverage transformers never seems to be enough. I get intermittent shorts, broken wires, confused windings and when I go to test them with an analyzer or VNA I am never quite sure that I understand what I'm seeing. The latter is especially true with tapped (balanced) transformers that are used on 2-wire Beverages. It is perhaps no surprise that most hams who build Beverages prefer to buy rather than build these transformers.

The trekking is due to the location and length of these antennas. From my house, the far end of this Beverage is perhaps 400 meters away. It is by no stretch a technical hike. However the fields and bush are bug infested, full of hazards that will catch the unwary, and are either wet or snow covered. Tools have to be carried in. Multiple trips to diagnose and repair the antennas are tedious. 

Offense is the best defense

Diligence during the design and construction of a Beverage will avoid many problems down the road, and many treks into the bush to correct mistakes. I test each component, each circuit, the antenna itself and I double check. Problems still arise despite that effort, though perhaps less than otherwise. Trusting to luck or believing that ignorance is bliss are poor strategies.

Diligence includes but is not limited to the following:

• Clear all brush and trees that could fall onto or grow into the antenna
• Follow best practices when winding transformers, then test and test them again
• Measure impedance transformation and balance of transformers
  
• Check RF and DC paths through the switching electronics
• Test head end switching and transformers with a dummy load, and do it again at the antenna
• Test continuity of the antenna wire(s), ground connections and coax

Problems can and still do occur, though hopefully fewer than the "hope and pray" style of construction practice.

Understand what you're building

It is very worthwhile to understand how Beverages of all types work. Without that understanding it can be quite difficult to interpret what you hear and what you measure. For that I will refer to the article where I described how reversible Beverages work, in a manner that I hoped would be helpful to those unfamiliar with these antennas. For reading convenience, the diagram I used and that I will refer to, is replicated below.

There are characteristics of reversible Beverages to keep in mind. Each direction must have a load. That load is either a dummy load (resistor) in the head end electronics or the receiver. Without the load the Beverage is bidirectional. The Beverage wires operate in both common mode -- as an antenna -- and in differential mode -- as a transmission line. The only difference in this respect between a coax and open wire Beverage is that in common mode there is just one wire: the outside of the coax shield. The inside of the shield is part of the transmission line.

Centre tapped transformers are used to combine and separate common mode and differential mode signals on open wire reversible Beverages. Read the above linked article to see how. Understanding is key to testing and repairing these antennas. 

I am also reproducing from that article the annotated diagram copied from ON4UN's Low-Band DXing book. It will come in handy for the following discussion about transformers and testing.

Transformers

I don't enjoy winding Beverage transformers. The BN73-202 binocular ferrite cores are tiny (½" square), the holes are tinier (⅛") and fine enamel wire is fragile and hard to work with. 

After they're built they need to be tested, and they must be securely mounted in boxes or on PCBs to avoid stress and breakage. Clumsy handling can damage them. It is helpful to use long leads so that they can survive trimming when damage does occur. At low frequencies an extra centimeter (or inch) is inconsequential.

Mistakes are difficult to correct, and usually involve building a new one from scratch. The ferrite cores are robust and usually can be reused. In any case, they're inexpensive

On the left are a pair of Beverage transformers. The one with the enamel wire is the reflection transformer (T3) responsible for the malfunctioning east-west reversible Beverage. The secondary winding is tapped to pull off the common mode signal travelling from left to right (in the diagram above). 

This is not the first time I've had a faulty reflection transformer. Despite following good construction practices failure is not uncommon in my personal experience. Assuming I'm not a worse builder than others it is a task everyone should approach with care.

Too much tension when pulling the winding tight can cut through the teflon liners and abrade the enamel coating. Conductor contact with the core can result in poor performance or a short. But if you don't make the windings tight it will be difficult to fit the many turns in the holes despite the fine wire being employed. 

I did discover a short that was intermittent, which only occurred when one of the leads was under tension. I redid that winding and testing went well. Yet in the field it didn't work. The symptoms were different, as measured by an antenna analyzer, but still faulty.

I rebuilt the transformer from scratch. Plastic insulated wire is far less prone to shorts, and that is my preference. The problem is that it is thicker and few turns can be accommodated. The transformer on the left has 8 turns (2 + 6, for a 9:1 impedance transformation) of Cat5 wire (AWG 25). The one in the picture comes from my first Beverage.

Those 8 turns of insulated wire are about the best I can fit into these cores. During construction I have to tamp down the wires with a narrow jeweller's screwdriver to get that many turns. I doubt I could get 10 turns with my best efforts. Unfortunately the reflection transformer requires 11 turns (6 + 5).

I went with a hybrid design: the 6 turn winding with a centre tap made from Cat5 insulated wire and the 5 turn winding with the same small gauge enamel wire. Rather than teflon inserts I used the insulated wire winding as the protective bed for the enamel wire. I carefully tamped the insulated wire down, making sure the turns covered the inner hemispheres of the holes. The enamel wire was carefully placed on top of the other wires so that it never touched the abrasive ferrite -- ferrite is a hard ceramic.

This construction method worked out well. After testing it was reinstalled and the Beverage worked as it should in both directions.

Test before deployment

The head end with T1, T2 and the reversible electronics is quite simple to build. Testing can be tricky. You need the following:

• A way to inject 12 VDC into the connector and block the DC from reaching the RF analyzer
• Ohmmeter
• Several resistors
• Antenna analyzer or VNA -- the VNWA3 from SDR-Kits is great for plotting and measuring insertion loss

In the picture I am testing the failed reflection transformer. A small breadboard from an Arduino kit comes in handy. You must be careful not to bend or break the fine wire when inserting the winding tails. I use needle nose pliers close to the wire ends to push them in. You want no more than ⅛" of wire between the pliers and the bread board to avoid wire damage. Do it a bit at a time until the wire makes firm contact.

For transformers with a low turns ratio, use resistors not too distant from 50 Ω for best accuracy. Analyzers and VNAs become increasingly inaccurate as the impedance deviates far from 50 Ω, whether lower or higher. Since the reflection transformer has a near unity 5:6 ratio I used a 75 Ω resistor on the 6 turn winding, which is near to 50 Ω on the 5 turn winding.

For high ratio transformers such as 9:1 connect the VNA to the low impedance winding and a suitable resistor on the high impedance winding. A 470 Ω works well in this instance, or 680 Ω if you are aiming for 75 Ω on the low impedance winding.

Insertion loss measurements with a VNA (S21) are more accurate with low ratio transformers. For high transformation ratio one VNA port will have to measure either a very high or very low impedance. Insertion loss is not critical for receive antennas and most of the time I don't bother measuring it. A single port antenna analyzer is therefore suitable.

For balanced transformers it is a good idea to do two further tests. Test each half of the tapped winding to check that the impedance transformations are identical. They won't be exactly identical but they should be very close. It is also a good idea to test for balance by connecting the VNA to the non-tapped winding and tying the centre tap on the second winding to one side of the first winding. When balance is good there will be almost no difference in the measured impedance.

The test works because the centre tap is "neutral". This is similar to a power transformer where the centre tap of the secondary can be grounded. Had I been more careful I would have noticed that this test failed: the impedance dropped to nearly 1 Ω. But I was in a hurry and thought that I'd accidentally shorted the wires during the test. Instead it was an internal short in the transformer, one that did not appear when measuring the transformation ratio, other than a somewhat higher X value than I expected.

I always sweep transformers from 1 to 10 MHz to uncover any anomalies. If you use long leads expect an increasing X value at the higher frequencies.

The head end is tested in a similar fashion, except that we must be careful to understand the common and differential modes that coexist on the two wires of the Beverage. We will use resistors to represent the antenna modes.

The diagram from ON4UN's book shows coax to both directional ports. The switched head ends I built have one coax port, for the selected direction, and the other port is connected to a 75 Ω resistor. Both directions need a 75 Ω load (resistor or coax + receiver) or the Beverage will be bidirectional, just as happens in a simple unidirectional Beverage.

I test the head end switching before T1 and T2 are installed. After the transformers are installed both ports are shorted to ground at DC and the switching cannot be tested with an ohmmeter. After the transformers are installed they are tested separately for continuity, and only then are T1 and T2 connected (see the earlier diagram).

You'll have to inject 12 VDC, as mentioned earlier, to test the non-default mode. In this antenna the west direction is more likely to be used so I made that the default mode (reverse, or differential mode) and east is the powered mode (normal, or common mode). The DPDT reed relays allow either direction to be wired as the default. I stuck temporary labels to the relays so I wouldn't make mistakes

Testing the differential mode (reverse direction) is quite easy. Place a resistor (red in the diagram) across the wire terminals of approximately 670 Ω (I used 470 Ω and 220 Ω resistors in series) and measure the impedance at the coax port across the frequency range of interest. The SWR should be a flat line close to 1.5, up to at least 10 MHz. At higher frequencies the sloppy internal wiring will exhibit an increasing inductive reactance and the SWR will rise.

Testing the common mode (normal direction) is less easy. I've never bothered. In principle you need to tie together the Beverage wire terminals -- there is no easy access to the centre tap of T2 -- put the resistor (as above, but green) between the wire terminals and the ground terminal. Since there is no effective antenna ground in the workshop setting it is most expedient to tie together coax and earth grounds. Well, that should work, I think. 

I prefer to do the common mode test in the field on the actual antenna. So let's do that.

In the field with an antenna analyzer

A VNA is inconvenient in the field so I rely on my Rig Expert AA54. It requires no computer, it has large keys you can punch wearing gloves and the plastic body withstands abuse. A single port analyzer is perfectly adequate for the following tests.

All tests are done from the head end. Since Beverage antennas are so long that can require walking back and forth a few times to diagnose and resolve problems. That trekking is inadvisable for my situation because the bush grows thick and the ticks and flies are everywhere and the uneven ground is a hazard because you can't see it through the high vegetation. I assigned a high priority to repairing the misbehaving antenna so that it would be complete before the work became hazardous. It was that or wait for September or October.

We need to test both common mode (normal) and differential mode (reverse). These are east and west, respectively, for this antenna. In common mode both wires are in phase with the primary antenna current. The wires are tied together and terminated in the normal fashion with a resistor to ground on the other side of the transformer primary winding. The resistor for the test is the analyzer, on the transformer secondary winding.

Since the nominal impedance is over 600 Ω, it is a little high for accurate measurement with the antenna analyzer. I am using a 9:1 transformer to bring it down to about 75 Ω, which is an SWR of 1.5 on a 50 Ω analyzer. The container with the transformer and UHF connector was saved from an earlier Beverage project and conveniently saved for future use.

If you look closely at the left panel you can see the SWR plot oscillating around the 1.5 line. The oscillations are large because the far end is not terminated (wires shorted in this case, and no reflection transformer) making the Beverage bidirectional. Impedance oscillations are greater in bidirectional mode than in unidirectional mode for any Beverage. The test is successful.

For the differential mode test the open wire is a transmission line bringing the west common mode signal back to the head end via the reflection transformer. The SWR plot should look similar to that for the previous test since the common mode signal is not terminated at the analyzer, which again makes the antenna bidirectional during the test. For the two failed reflection transformer trials, in one case the impedance was very low and in the other it was too high.

It's amusing that this latest Beverage was completed right before the close of the 160 meter season. Although there is activity through our summer, it is a poor time for DX. For me the deadline is more concrete since the growing hay requires that the radials be rolled up in the next week or two. The short vertical will suffice until fall.

The growing hay is contrasted by the above picture taken the morning of May 1. Yes, snow in May. This is normal and the vegetation is well adapted to our climate. The flowers shake it off and continue their spring growth spurt. So does the rhubarb patch at the tower base. Rhubarb muffins were baking in the over soon after the May snowfall departed.

Soon the bush will soon be too wet and overgrown to traverse except for an emergency repair. I don't anticipate the need. With the new Beverage I have 6 receive directions, and it is very nice to have. They continue to be useful on 80 and 40 meters during the summer months when I am largely absent from top band.

With this article I am officially transitioning to summer mode. That means towers and high band antennas. Since summer is also a time to plan it is quite likely there will be an article or two about low band antennas.

Sporadic E Season Begins

Seven weeks before the 2021 peak of sporadic E propagation in the northern hemisphere the 6 meter band is hopping. There is lots of activity and DX contacts are in the log. Although nothing exotic what I have worked and heard wets the appetite. I see many others hungering for the DX as well. I know that I'm ready.

The DX I've worked so far is in the Caribbean, Central America and one in Europe. I have heard more, including several of the European big guns, the west coast (California), and north and central South America. Stations not far to the south have had more luck linking sporadic E to TEP to work South America. I'm a little too far north for those openings. Our time will come.

What is clear this early in the season is that the FT8 activity level on 6 meters is greater than I've seen before. There are many signals even when there is no sporadic E in evidence. These are paths of less than 1000 km, typically tropospheric and perhaps some E-layer scatter. There are lots of CQ'ers hoping to get lucky.

With so much excited anticipation of DX propagation there is little excuse to not work DX on 6 meters this year. As many old hands on the magic band have noted, FT8 has uncovered the existence of sporadic E propagation and TEP linkages that had previously gone unnoticed. The ability to monitor all activity without tedious dial spinning or monitoring beacons, data collection by PSK Reporter and the continuous CQ'ing by enthusiasts have highlighted numerous instances of unexpected propagation. This includes single decodes of distant stations, propagation at unusual times of day, polar paths and extremely long path DX. The latter includes VK/ZL and central Asia from here in eastern North America.

Despite my initial reticence to abandon CW and SSB on 6, I am now a believer. The reason is a simple one: FT8 delivers the goods. It isn't just "youngsters" like me who've gone digital. Octogenarians of my acquaintance have learned the digital modes and are having a blast on HF and on 6 meters as well. Old dogs can learn new tricks, and so can you.

Objectives for 2021

At the end of sporadic E season in 2020 I stated that my DX goal this year is to surpass 100 DXCC countries on 6 meters FT8 this year, and I've since made the promised station improvements to make it possible. With 90 countries worked and 81 confirmed it would seem that this is low-hanging fruit. It isn't. 

I am at the stage where additional countries are increasingly difficult to work. They are farther away, rely on rare multi-hop opening, and many operators in those distant locales have small stations or deal with pervasive man-made QRN. The station improvements will help, especially the kilowatt amplifier. Barring disasters I fully expect to reach this milestone in the next few months.

My other objectives are closely related. I want to explore more polar path opportunities to work west, central and east Asia. Some of these can occur at odd hours so I will more often leave the station monitoring overnight for hints of polar propagation (I already monitor activity during the day when I'm busy elsewhere). The north polar region is in full daylight at the sporadic E season peak and the terminator is enticingly just out of reach from my QTH. This is one of those times I wish that I lived further north!

OH, LA and SM stations occasionally appear in our late evening, and central Asians such as UN can appear after sunrise in the very early morning (5:00 to 7:00 AM local time). If I see these signals in my overnight monitoring I will make a point of being in the shack at likely hours during the weeks bracketing the summer solstice.

Other objectives include KL7, ZL, HL, LU, CE, Middle East, Russia, TZ among other Africans, and other known active countries that I've heard but have not been able to work. It's a matter of luck and, yes, power. All are possible. There are also numerous European countries that I've been unlucky with. You would think with so much within reach that another 10 countries would be easy, but it really isn't. My stretch objective is 100 countries confirmed on LOTW, which will likely require working 20 to 25 new countries. Not everyone uses LOTW and I no longer use paper QSL cards.

Using a kilowatt

FT8 is not a low power mode. For digital, as it is for traditional modes, many times low power is sufficient and other times no amount of power is enough. Sporadic E gives few gifts and you do what you must to meet your operating objectives. My objectives are challenging enough without a power handicap.

The ACOM A1500 works very well on 6 meters. Tuning and high power behaviour are not noticably different than when used on HF. For the time being I am being cautious about the power level in case of splatter/distortion and overheating. At approximately 900 to 1000 watts of average SSB power -- our legal limit is 2250 watts PEP -- there are no problems. 

A nearby friend confirms that my signal is clean. Temperature for continuous FT8 operation is fairly high but within the amplifier's comfort zone. After several minutes the temperature plateaus during transmissions. It drops during receive periods. For FT8 and similar modes the duty cycle is a little below 50%. While similar to CW and SSB during transmission, it is closer to 25% during a QSO since half the time is spent listening. So do watch your amplifier closely if you are new to digital modes.

Not surprisingly my QRO CQs get more replies. When I call a big gun with a weak signal there is a good probability that I will be copied. Several DX stations have answered my CQs, and that's a promising indicator. Of course when conditions are good the same happens when I run 10 db less power.

Despite the QRO there are stations that give a signal report lower than the one I give them. This may be due to QRN or other problems at the other end in comparison to my typically very quiet rural QTH. The SNR calculation by WSJT-X provides relative rather than absolute signal reports so puzzling disparities are common.

I don't use the amp at all times. I will turn it on when DX is likely, spotted or heard and I need it to get through. PSK Reporter is used to monitor whether my high power CQs can open the band. Once the amp is on I tend to leave it on since tube life is negatively impacted by power cycling. 

Focussed on DX

When there is a DX opening or an opening is likely I focus almost exclusively on that. Single hop signals (within a radius of 1000 to 1500 km) are ignored other than to see what they're working so that I can predict the progression of the opening. 

This creates a dilemma when close stations call me when I am focussed on DX. At those times I almost never reply. FT8 is slow enough that I will not take 1 or 2 minutes of precious time to work them. This may seem impolite to some. It mostly seems to be stations that do not or cannot hear the DX and are eager for what contacts they can make. Some may want my grid, and there are Americans who consider Canada to be DX.

When the rate is slow I may take the time to reply, but not otherwise. However, one rule I live by is that when I make a directed CQ -- CQ DX, CQ EU, CQ SA, etc. -- and a nearby station calls my on my transmit frequency I almost never work them. It is very impolite for them to do that since if a weak DX station replies on my transmit frequency I might not be able to decode them. Most operators know that a transmit frequency is chosen because it is quiet and will reply there for the best chance of a QSO.

I wish that automatic reply on the called station frequency was not a feature of WSJT-X. It is and we must deal with those who use that feature, appropriately or otherwise. So if I call CQ EU or CQ DX and you are not in Europe or DX, respectively, and you want a QSO with me do not call on my transmit frequency. Transmit elsewhere and I may reply.

A few go so far as to stalk me. To escape their unwanted calls on my transmit frequency I QSY. They follow. I continue to ignore them. You would think after 5, 10 or more attempts to work me they'd give up. I have to wonder whether it's a deliberate tactic to punish me for not working them. My memory is good and I usually remember their calls. I am therefore more likely to ignore them in future when I am not focussed on DX.

Those using JTDX software have another way of dealing with non-DX callers. There is a feature to filter callers that are not in the target region, and there are other helpful feature. The price is that you may miss some stations that you might otherwise want to work. Since I use WSJT-X my approach is to disable the "Call 1st" feature and choose who I reply to, or no one at all. Many big guns on 6 use JTDX and I may eventually do the same.

Perpetual CQ'ers

There are some hams who seem to CQ on FT8 for hours on end. I think that's odd behaviour but they seem to like it. For my style of operating it is a nuisance since they fill the monitoring pane with their transmissions and during busy openings it adds to the QRM. Those within ground or tropo range are inescapable unless, by chance, the DX opening is in a direction that puts them in a pattern null.

The perpetual CQ'ers from last year are already active. I don't understand them and I don't think I want to! As a friend of mine is wont to say: "it takes all types!" They're present on HF and 160 as well.

Dealing with more activity

It is wonderful to see increasing activity on 6 meters. My subjective impression from activity so far is that activity will be higher than last year, and almost all of it will be on FT8. With 3 kHz of spectrum used by the vast majority there will be QRM. Due to the nature of the mode there is a strong incentive for everyone to congregate on one channel.

Alternatives include the intercontinental window at 50.323 MHz and FT4 at 50.318 MHz. I wish more DXers used the intercontinental window since that would benefit those of us focussed on long haul contacts. This has not worked too well since most hams are glued to 50.313, and since this is as true of those far afield as those in NA, the majority of DX can only be worked there.

I did work a few new ones on 50.323 MHz in 2020. This year I hope that more DXers will QSY when the QRM grows intense. My observation is that use of the intercontinental window declined in 2019 and rose in 2020. Many don't experience as much QRM on 50.313 MHz as those of us with quiet locations and good antennas and so may see the need to QSY. However, I am merely speculating.

QRM gets so bad at times that I have failed to complete DX QSOs due to a North American stations jumping on the frequency and obliterating the weaker signal that they probably aren't seeing. This was common for Pacific openings since I must contend with QRM from across North America. Local QRM is less of a problem when pointing northeast to Europe. WSJT-X is very good at decoding more than one signal at the same frequency (audio offset) but there are limits. The software can't perform magic.

I am also hoping for more FT4 activity this year. QSOs are twice as fast as FT8 and thus can put more DX in the log during the usually brief openings. I tried 50.318 MHz a few times last year during DX openings and only heard North American stations. The majority of the time FT4 works as well as FT8 since its SNR performance is nearly as good. 

Monitoring...

I am monitoring 50.313 MHz as I type these words, and all I see is a few nearby stations. DX is uncommon this early in the season but you never know. There are hams who want to tell them when DX openings are expected. It comes from an HF mindset with its more predictable daily and annual cycles. Sporadic E propagation patterns are suggestions and probabilities, and not dependable predictions.

Regular monitoring of 6 meters is required. Alert tools are available that can help but it's really requires making the effort to monitor. The unpredictability is both aggravating and a challenge.

I hope to see you on 6 meters this season. If you're not DX and I don't reply please don't be offended. It's nothing personal. There are many DX-free days when I am happy to spend an hour or more working single hop openings. Although not alone in FN24 I appear to be the best equipped, which may explain the attention while I focussed on DX.

Living Without the Internet

The appearance of articles on the blog slowed this month for a variety of reasons. Perhaps the most significant was a total internet outage. My terrestrial home internet service died due to obsolete technology, which required an upgrade rather than repair. I am too far from town to use my mobile data service. 

Living in the middle of nowhere is great for ham radio and not so much for connecting to the rest of humanity. Whether in the city or the country we've all leaned heavily on the internet during the pandemic. The recent loss of connectivity impacted my life in several ways, not least of which was amateur radio. Leaving everything else aside, I'll speak a little about the latter impacts.

Of course I could not access this account to manage the blog or check my email. Hence no articles. I did draft a couple of articles using an ordinary text editor, which allowed me to publish the most recent one less than 24 hours after being reconnected. All I had to do was copy the text over, include the pictures and embed links. It was quickly published.

Perhaps the oddest thing I worried about was this question: how will I know what's on the bands? No internet means no DX spots. I was also less aware of conditions since I couldn't check the solar and geomagnetic indices. That was when I rediscovered a feature all my rigs have. You may have come across it as well.

It works well, although it took some time to populate the band map. A better alternative was to flip on the amplifier and call CQ. Soon I was merrily making QSOs without the burden of spinning the big knob.

A more serious problem was my promise to give a Zoom presentation midweek. I could neither do the talk from home nor send the presentation out in advance. I resorted to the old sneaker net technology. I loaded several versions of the slides (PDF, PPT, etc.) onto two flash drives (for redundancy), filled a bag with A/V peripherals and drove to a friend's home with high speed internet. 

It didn't go well at first. Zoom is a resource hog and the laptop was page thrashing itself into oblivion. Due to physical distance imperatives only one of us at a time (both with masks) could hover over the computer to diagnose the problem. The rest of the time I was isolated in the room. 

We eventually gave up on using Zoom in the usual way. I connected to the conference by phone and one of the organizers flipped the slides while I spoke. That was a long 2 hours! Luckily I had emailed the presentation in advance to the organizers the moment I had an internet connection.

In case you're wondering, the presentation was about the design and build of my station. Above is an annotated panorama shot of the antenna farm that was taken this month and used in the talk. As the world's worst photographer I was lucky to snap this adequate shot. We are looking south from a point north of the 80 meter vertical yagi. I decided it was good enough that I uploaded it to QRZ.com.

I'll point you to the slides (PDF, 25 MB) with the warning that the presentation was not recorded and the slides may be cryptic on their own. I relied on maximum pictures and minimum words since that works best.

Installing the new internet service was a challenge. The installer's "tower guy" had quit and the subcontracted rigger wasn't immediately available. Hungering for connectivity I told him I'd do it myself. He agreed and drove over on Friday afternoon.

Unfortunately the small tower I bracketed to the side of the house a few years ago didn't give us enough height to reach my contracted 5 Mbps download speed. With extension pipes I had on hand I could raise the radio/antenna unit to no more than 45' (14 m). The 6 nearest towers are approximately 20 km distant, and only 2 or 3 of those had acceptable signals due to terrain and foliage.

Per Shannon, bandwidth is proportional to data rate. However as you increase bandwidth the SNR declines. Although I am a little out of date with my telecommunications technology knowledge I do recall enough about LTE to know how it dynamically trades off data rate (bandwidth) and reliable connectivity.

We needed more height. I reluctantly agreed to put the radio/antenna on the Trylon tower behind the house. The maximum height I was willing to risk was 60', a little below the rotator plate. Any higher would create a problem for operation and maintenance of the rotator and antennas above.

That worked. He patiently hunted for the best tower, with me adjusting the azimuth and (surprisingly) elevation. He got me more than 7 Mbps download speed, and about 1.5 Mbps upload speed. I will no longer have to leave home to use Zoom. With the tools and equipment he sent up the tower I completed the installation while he confirmed signal stability. He connected the surge protector to the tower ground.

The cable from the tower base to the house was buried two days later. Instead of a trench I cut a slit through the sod and pushed the cable down about 3" into the slit. That's a third cable run from the Trylon to the house. 

I fed the cable through the second hole into the house that I made for the second trench and the 6 meter transmission line. It's a very neat installation.

Worried about EMI I asked about the cable he was using. He reassured me that he used Cat6 shielded cable throughout. As of this writing I have not noticed any noise problems while receiving with the antennas on the tower. I will have to do a kilowatt test to ensure that the internet service is not disrupted by my transmissions.

I am considering the installation of two lengths of steel stock on the tower to protect the internet equipment from accidental bumps during antenna and tower work. Damage could be costly and inconvenient. The pile of ferrites I distributed along the unshielded Cat5 cable for the previous service will be reclaimed. They appear to have survived several years of UV and weather.

One remaining question is what to do with that small house-bracketed tower? I'll leave it where it is until I can come up with a plan. It would be a shame to see a perfectly good tower go unused.

Station Improvements for 6 Meters

After the 2020 sporadic E season I planned improvements to my 6 meter capabilities in 2021. Although the antenna is unchanged there are several items recently completed that should make the upcoming sporadic E season a successful one.

• Adjust the yagi
• New low loss feed line
• Power

The redesigned Cushcraft A50-6 continues to perform well. However when it was raised a few years ago the carefully adjusted gamma match did not escape unscathed. As a result the SWR at the shack end of the coax ranged between 1.5 and 1.8 over the important band segment of 50.0 to 50.5 MHz. The rig's ATU handles this well, though at a cost.

First, there is additional transmission line loss due to the mismatch. That -0.3 db is in addition to the -1.3 db matched loss of the 40+ meter run of LMR400, RG213 and some LDF5. The calculated total loss is therefore about -1.6 db. 

The ATU is not loss free. An estimated ATU loss of -0.2 to -0.5 db is as bad as the line loss due to the mismatch. HF rig ATUs tend to have high loss at 50 MHz so my estimate is within reason. Let's guess that it's -0.3 db, thus bringing the total mismatch loss to -0.6 db. The total system loss is -1.9 db. That is more than enough to hurt when conditions are marginal. The loss needs to be lower.

With the help of a friend the antenna was dropped to the ground for service. I discovered more problems than just the gamma match. Several of the hose clamps holding the boom sections were loose and allowed rotation of the tubes by hand. These were tightened. Weatherproofing of the coax connector was not the best so I upgraded that as well. Fasteners on my original A50-6 are not stainless so those required cleaning and other maintenance.

The gamma capacitor showed weathering effects. It is similar to RG213 with the shield removed but with a plastic that does not age so well. It is a known problem with the Cushcraft "Reddi-Match". After the antenna was adjusted I covered and sealed the exposed section of the capacitor with two layers of Scotch 33+ tape.

Adjusting the match was a puzzle at first. Dimensions of the elements and the gamma match are not at all according to the original A50-6 or the revised and optimized A50-6S. It's a good thing I keep this blog since I documented my redesign of the antenna. Finding those notes in my paper records is not easy.

Tuning was done at λ/2, which on 6 meters is a comfortable 3 meters (10 feet) above ground. This is more than high enough for reliable adjustment. When I last adjusted the antenna I had it closer to the ground but pointing straight up. It is easier to set it up horizontally than vertically, although both methods work well. A step ladder was all I needed to reach the elements and gamma match. I had to move away from the antenna to make each measurement since our bodies alter antenna behaviour as these shorter wavelengths.

In light of the dominance of FT8 on 6 meters I centred the SWR at 50.3 MHz. It is below 1.2 from 50.0 to 50.5 MHz, rising to 1.45 at 51 MHz. This is perfect for my operating preferences of CW, SSB and digital modes. The SWR is slightly better in the shack due the small loss of the improved transmission line (see below).

The antenna was raised with a tag line this time so that it didn't bump into the tower. The gamma match did not fall out of adjustment. With a step on the mast I placed it almost a little higher that it was before, which should further reduce the already minimal interaction with the XM240 below it.

Before winter moved in last year the main run of LMR400 was replaced by LDF5-50 Heliax. The matched line loss is improved by 0.5 db over LMR400. With negligible mismatched line loss the total loss is now calculated as -0.8 db. Therefor the total loss improvement -- matched loss, mismatched loss and ATU loss -- is 0.8 db. That's total system improvement of 1.1 db compared to before. I consider this to have been well worth the effort.

Actually, coax loss was not only calculated. I measured the new sections with a VNA to confirm insertion loss. The VNWA plot is of the 9' RG213 rotation loop. Although the coax is old it was properly stored and has the loss predicted for new RG213 (S21 calibration is off by -0.01 db). 

The impedance variation is small and not unusual. I get similar results for the LMR400 sections of the coax. In my experience, Heliax is more consistently close to 50 ohms, probably because it is hardline and less likely to exhibit small deformations. Then again, maybe I really should do that recalibration!

The final area of improvement is power. I now have an amplifier that will do 1 kilowatt on 6 meter FT8. It is the ACOM A1500. I will have more to say about this amplifier and why I chose it in a future article. Sporadic E openings on long DX paths are brief and weak. I need every advantage to improve my results. 

Now that I have over 90 DXCC countries worked on 6 meter FT8 (81 confirmed) new ones don't come easy. Over the past few seasons I have missed opportunities to work many countries because they ran QRO (I could copy them) and I did not (they could not copy me). Despite having the amplifier available, I will not operate QRO full time, but I will not hesitate to turn it on when the DX beckons. My objective is to pass 100 countries in 2021.

The new coax for the 6 meter yagi is not switched: it runs directly into the shack to one of the antenna ports on the A1500. The A1500 conveniently allows port switching when the amplifier is off. This is handy because sporadic E openings are sporadic (of course!) and I will be able to operate on HF via the second rig and amplifier while monitoring 6 meters with WSJT-X and even working stations on HF and 6 meters concurrently. No longer will I be restricted to one or the other. 

This flexibility is nice to have although I don't know if I'll actually do it. Actually, the more important reason is to avoid consuming a port on the 2×8 antenna switch. Until now I used one of the ports for 160 meters in the winter and 6 meters in the summer. That is no longer necessary and it gives me full time access to the 6 meter yagi year round. Perhaps its availability will encourage me to take advantage of winter sporadic E propagation.

All I need to do right now is wait and monitor for the start of the sporadic E DX season. Openings will become increasingly frequent during May. I hope to see you on the Magic Band.