Interested in AM Operation?

If you're interested in working the AM mode on HF, you'll find lots of conversations to listen to on the AM spot page. The AM Spot page is set up to allow AM operators to find each other more easily. The link is:  http://www.amspots.com/ . You'll find routine conversations and round tables to listen to and join in on, and you can spot other AM QSOs on the AM Spots page as well. AM is an interesting mode, and you'll find folks operating everything from vintage & home brew rigs to the latest flex radios on AM. Enjoy!

Dave WB4IUY
http://www.WB4IUY.net

AM Spotting Tool Now Online!

Those of you who operate AM, there's a new spotting tool specifically for AM operations online. It's really nice, as it only shows AM sigs and info and you don't have to reconfigure your normal cluster spotting to use it. It doesn't clutter up the normal cluster with non-DX Am spots and such, and works great! Go to the following link for all the "skinny" on this cool new tool for AM operators!

http://am.w6rk.com/

W2ENY AM Filter for the IC-756

I've been looking for an AM filter for my IC-756 for many years, and just stumbled across a filter from W2ENY. I think he used to offer these, and went out of production for some number of years. He has brought a limited number of these back for sale. I emailed him, he replied almost immediately that he still had some, and I ordered one. I'm happy to have finally found one of these babies. I work AM from time to time on 160 thru 10, and usually operate one of my boatanchors due to the w-i-d-e passband on AM. His page is:

http://w2eny.com/6kc_filter/ I received the 6khz AM filter from W2ENY for my IC-756. The instructions were EASY to follow and the mod was quick and simple. I LOVE it! I've been working AM on 80, 40, and 15m with the 756 and have great selectivity on AM. I replaced the 15khz filter in the 455khz I.F., and have noticed no issues with working FM on 10m, listening to broadcast stations, etc. My 18 year old IC-756 is now perfect in my opinion, and everything is working great. This is the filter the rig should have come with from the factory, as all modes are well behaved, now.

UPDATE: 3/16/14... After using the filter for about a year, I felt the need to make another change. The instructions from W2ENY mentioned to replace the 15khz filter in the 455khz I.F. with the 6khz AM filter. I found, when operating AM on 10m, it is desirable to have access to the 15khz filter to open up 

the receiver a bit for the broadcast audio often heard on AM. Also, when working 10m FM, the 9khz filter in FM narrow is a bit too narrow for good audio and clipping would occur. I never found a need for the 9khz filter in AM or FM operation, but I constantly found the need for the 15khz filter. So, I reinstalled the 15mhz filter and installed the AM filter (6khz) in the place of the 9khz filter, and all is now well. Just my $01 worth, but it sure works out better at my QTH in this configuration. 

You can visit my website at www.WB4IUY.net for more mods for the IC-756 pre-Pro (analog) model, and lots of other ham radio stuff :-)  

AWA AM QSO Party, 2/19-20/11

I'm working the AWA AM QSO Party tonight and tomorrow. It runs from 23:00z Saturday 2/19 through 23:00z Sunday 2/20. There's more info at http://www.antiquewireless.org/pdf/2011am_rules.pdf . Switch your rig to AM and join the fun!

Dave WB4IUY
www.WB4IUY.net

AM Transmitter Rally, Feb 5-6!

For those of you who enjoy working a bit of AM with whatever rig you have, there's a fun, low key event running this weekend called the AM Transmitter Rally. It's more of a huge ragchew event, and you can learn more about it here:

http://amfone.net/Amforum/index.php?topic=26348.0

I'm been having a blast, and working lots of stations on AM from all over. Folks are running everything from homebrew, military, conventional, and the new flex radio stuff. Check it out!

Dave WB4IUY
www.WB4IUY.net

Working AM on 80 Meters

I've been doing a bit of work on 80m at night of late. There's a group of AM ops down in the area of 3.705 nightly. Lots of fun and not nearly as congested as the old AM freqs around 3.885. C'mon down and give it a try!

Dave Hockaday WB4IUY
AMA 119484
Live from my handheld...

Operating AM on Icom IC-756

I've tried using my IC-756 on AM from time to time, as I enjoy this mode on 75, 40, 20, and 10 meters. Unlike my Yaesu 901 and Heathkit equipment, the output power of my 756 Icom would drop considerably when I would modulate the transmitter with voice. In order to get decent power out, I would have to run my amp harder than I care when operating AM.

When operating at 25 watts carrier from my 756, I was producing about 25 watts pep when modulated at 100% (because the power output would drop to about 8 watts!). My amp (AL-82) would run about 350 watts carrier, and would fall back to about 85 watts or so when I would speak (still about 350 watts pep).

I built the little curcuit from W8JI's page this afternoon. I now operate the rig at about 10 watts carrier, which drives the amp to about 150 watts. When modulated the amp produces about 600 watts pep, but runs very cool.

Listening to it on my Yaesu 901, it seems much cleaner, but I can't hear any difference on my Heathkit SB-301. I guess this is partly determined by the detector used in the receiver of the receiving station. The amp is much happier, though, and runs much cooler. I can run a much higher PEP with a lot less heat!

I've posted info about it on my AM Mode page at:

http://207.126.49.184/wb4iuy/radio/wb4iuy2l.htm

Lack of respect for "Windows" on different bands...

There are gentleman's agreements and suggestions by the ARRL for various "windows" to be used by certain modes or activities. These include things like the "DX Window" found on many bands, call frequencies like 50.125 on 6m, and mode windows like the PSK31 window and the AM window. Many of these "windows" have been around for decades and are well documented in practically every amateur radio publication and all across the internet.

To preface this...I collect vintage Amateur Radio gear. There are lots of people like me, who collect older amateur radio equipment, restore it, and enjoy operating it on occassion. Many of these old rigs are crystal controlled and have been locked to these frequencies for decades, especially since these frequencies were widely known as the frequencies to operate AM on. Most of these rigs operate on AM.

The "AM Windows" have been around since before I became a ham in 1974. One such example of windows are the two frequencies 3.880 & 3.885 mhz in the 75 meter band. There are only a handful of such frequencies in the entire HF portion of our allotted amateur radio spectrum. AM has a typical bandwidth of at least 6 khz, and most of the older receivers were designed to accept this bandwidth for proper reception and reproduction of transmitted audio.

I'm always amazed at the number of people who tune either just outside of the window (or right smack in the middle of the window!) and operate SSB. Their arguements are often "I don't hear the AM'ers" or "I was here first and _they_ can move". I guess either they don't understand the design of their own receiver including it's more narrow passband and ability to null carriers from the oppsite sideband, don't understand that many of the AM Vintage rigs can't move to another frequency, or they simply just don't care where the window is.

AM'ers, for the most part, stay in the windows to enjoy the company of other collectors, experimenters (many AM ops build and/or modify their own gear), and others with similar interests. There are lots of us...the numbers are quite large. There are publications, businesses, and even entire hamfests dedicated to this facet of the ham radio hobby. We don't _HAVE_ to stay in these tiny slivers of spectrum called the AM Windows, but we choose to do so out of respect for the other modes scattered across the bands (among other reasons). We can operate anywhere those of you who operate SSB can operate...but we don't. We keep to ourselves and try to minimize our interference to others by operating in these widely known and universally understood "AM Windows".

Imagine if all SSB operations were be herded into a few tiny slices of spectrum called "SSB Windows", while AM operations ran across the entire phone bands. Imagine if AM'ers decided to "take back" a fair amount of spectrum and began having AM contests, calling CQ, holding nets, etc on AM all across the phone bands with our wider signals. Now imagine if those of you who operate SSB actually behaved as most of us do and gave AM a little "elbow room" around the windows so your SSB signals (and many of them are quite wide as well!) didn't jam the few frequencies that we relegate our own selves to.

I started typing this on this Saturday morning while working (or rather, trying to) the AM Military net on 3.885. A group of hams in the southeast US constantly obliterates operations on 3.885 Am by operating on 3.888 LSB. Their lower sidebands splatter all the way down to below 3.880. One of the guys is regularly heard on a rants that he will jam AM anytime and anywhere he hears it, simply because _he_ doesn't like it. This happens all the time, and is a perfect example of what this blog is about: People who either don't know or don't care how their operations in and around the windows impacts a much larger group of people who are operating in a manner as to minimize their impact on everyone else.

Please folks...stay out of and away from (by few khz) the AM windows with your SSB signals, so AM'ers can also enjoy their favorite part this awesome hobby!