Frequency Alignment

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N4SRN
 

Posts: 6
Joined: 28 Mar 2023, 21:27

Frequency Alignment

Post by N4SRN »

So, I now know how important Frequency Alignment is! I was getting good spots on FT8 and JS8CALL but couldn't connect gateways on Winlink. I checked my frequency alignment via RBN and it was 200+ Hz high.

After adjusting Menu 8.3, I can connect 40m gateways 500km+ away easily with good signal quality.

Bret/N4SRN
N4SRN
 

Posts: 6
Joined: 28 Mar 2023, 21:27

Re: Frequency Alignment

Post by N4SRN »

I’ll add that I tried to do a Frequency Calibration from WSJT-X between 610 kHz and 20 MHz but could not get valid data. In this process, one RXs on frequencies with stable sources (WWV, AM Broadcast) and the deviations are collected over 30sec periods between frequency changes. Within a 30sec period, deviations were pretty tight, but as the cycle from 610 kHz to 20 MHz repeated, the center points of the deviations differed more between cycles than within cycles.

Still, for a ~$100 transceiver, it’s good enough for what I need to do.

I haven’t checked alignment on other bands since aligning on 40m, but I expect the alignment will differ for each band. Maybe enough to require alignment for Winlink on different bands.

Bret/N4SRN
VE3RRD
 

Posts: 54
Joined: 31 Dec 2021, 14:59

Re: Frequency Alignment

Post by VE3RRD »

The TCXO upgrade from N4XTL could help
https://forum.dl2man.de/viewtopic.php?p=4387#p4387
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