First, the similarities.  The equipment required is the same as other digital modes, that is, the rig, the antenna, the computer with software, and a sound card interface.  None of that will be new to you if you’ve ever done digital before.

It is also a low-power mode, even more so than PSK31.  On the upper HF bands, you’ll often run 5W-10W or so.  On the lower bands, 5W-10W will often do the trick, but for DX you might well crank it up to 30W-40W if really needed.  Some JT65-HF users are committed to 5W max, period.  It is important not to crank up the power too much because it will make it hard or impossible for others to hear weaker signals, just like on PSK31.  In most cases, 10W will be sufficient.  This is an extremely efficient weak-signal mode.

Just like PSK31, you’ll also want to watch the ALC meter on the rig to keep from overdriving the signal.  This isn’t quite as critical on JT65-HF as it is on PSK31, but it is still important.  There should be zero ALC for these modes – if you see some, turn down the sound card volume/output until ALC readings disappear.

OK, fine, that’s the stuff you already knew.  So what’s so different about JT65-HF?

First, your favorite software doesn’t do this mode.  It’s not in FLDIGI or HRD/DM780 or MixW or anything else like that.  You need special software.  (Have no fear, it’s free!)  There are technically two choices, though in reality there’s only one good choice for the new user.  You could use WSJT v9, which is THE choice for VHF/UHF high-speed meteor scatter (HSMS), as one of its modes is JT65A (JT65-HF), but this is not the wise choice for HF because it doesn’t help with QSO procedures on HF.  What you really want to get (trust me on this) is JT65-HF.  The current version is 1.0.7, and can be found at the link listed at the end.  Installation is pretty easy, and requires only limited configuration.

Second, and the thing that is most unique about JT65-HF, are the QSO procedures.  It is not a transmit-at-will or send-whatever-you-want mode.  It is highly structured (similar to FSK441 or ISCAT on VHF) and because the maximum number of characters you can send in freeform is 13 (that’s right, thirteen).  And here you thought a 140-character tweet on Twitter was short!

The sequence of a contact depends on the computer clock being very accurate.  We’re not talking within 30 seconds here.  2 seconds off is barely acceptable.  1 second off is usually OK.  In reality, you’ll want it to be less than 0.5 seconds off.  What that means for you is that the built-in Windows clock sync probably won’t be sufficient.  You need to get good clock sync software.  The most popular one is D4 (Dimension 4);  Meinberg is the other major choice (links below).  If you’re running Win7 or Vista, look at Meinberg first, but D4 will work if you run it as Admin and in XP compatibility mode.  Either of them will keep your clock accurate to within a few hundredths of a second.

So now that your clock is good, you’re ready to decode some signals.  Start the software and tune your rig to 20m (USB dial freq 14076) or 40m (USB dial freq 7076), or pick one of the other bands, but make sure to pick a standard JT65-HF freq (1838, 3576, ~10138, 18102, 21076, 24920, 28076 kHz) and make sure it is USB.  If you’re receiving a signal, it should look something like this waterfall:

This is very similar to waterfalls for other digital modes.  Across the top is the offset in Hertz – note the 2kHz width.  From top to bottom is time, most recent on top.  The thin red lines delineate minutes.  Where you see two thin red lines close to each other means I was transmitting most of that minute.  In the current minute (at the top) there is a modestly-weak signal at nearly -500Hz, and a strong one at about +40Hz.  If you go back several minutes, you might see the very weak signal at -150Hz and another at about -730Hz.  Those very weak signals could very well have been decoded.  The “sync” tones at the left of the 175Hz signal are transmitted more than the others, so they tend to show up the best.

JT65-HF is done 60 seconds at a time.  For 48 seconds, a station will transmit, and then there are 12 seconds of silence.  Then in the next minute, the other station transmits for 48 seconds, followed by (you guessed it) 12 seconds of silence.  During those 12 seconds, the computer is very busy decoding everything it can in the 2kHz segment and displaying the results in the decode window.  Near the end of the 12 seconds, the receiving station decides if he wants to answer a CQ, or proceed to the next step of an in-progress QSO.

OK, time for the description of how a QSO works.  I’m going to call CQ, and W1AW will decide to answer me.

I click on the Call CQ button and Enable TX.  At the 00 second mark (of either the even or odd minute, depending on which I chose), I will send CQ N0RQ EM13 .  (This is what is generated by the program, and as you’ll see, both grids and a signal report are exchanged.)  My xmit will last for 48 seconds, and in the following minute, I’ll wait to see if I get a response.
W1AW sees my signal, decodes it, and decides to answer, so he’ll double-click the decoded line which will make the software start sending at the 00 second mark of the next minute.  He will send N0RQ W1AW FN31 .  When I see that and decode it, I’ll proceed to the next step (either by double-clicking on that decoded line, or by clicking on the Answer Caller button), which will make me send W1AW N0RQ -06 . “06” is the signal strength in dB, automatically filled in by the program, and will range from -01 (extremely strong) to -25 or so (extremely weak).  After that, W1AW will send N0RQ W1AW R-13 , meaning “roger, your signal is” -13 or whatever.  My response to that is W1AW N0RQ RRR , and then he’ll send N0RQ W1AW 73 (or some freeform “73”-type text), and the final step is for me to send W1AW N0RQ 73 (or perhaps something like TU HQ! 73 or 5W DIPOLE 73).

To see it a bit more clearly, it would look like this:

CQ N0RQ EM13                                 (I CQ)

N0RQ W1AW FN31         (he answers with his grid)

W1AW N0RQ -06                             (I send signal report)

N0RQ W1AW R-13           (he sends Roger and my signal report)

W1AW N0RQ RRR                            (I acknowledge receipt of his report)

N0RQ W1AW 73               (he sends a standard or freeform 73)

10W DIPOLE 73                                 (I send a freeform or standard 73 – contact is over)

Key note: only proceed to the next step if you heard that the other station proceeded to his next step – otherwise, repeat the step you’re on until you hear him proceed.  The buttons in the JT65-HF software show the natural progress of a contact – the first row of buttons if you’re doing the CQ, and the second row of buttons if you’re answering a CQ.

That’s it in a nutshell.  When you actually see the JT65-HF screen and watch a couple of QSOs, it will make a lot more sense.  As you can see, a single contact takes 7 minutes or more.

JT65-HF is so labeled because it sends 65 tones spread out over 175Hz. The “JT” part comes from the original creator of this type of mode, Joe Taylor, K1JT, the 1993 winner of the Nobel Prize in physics, and the author of the excellent HSMS and EME software known as WSJT.

JT65-HF is written by W6CQZ, and is an extremely efficient weak-signal mode – it is possible to decode signals you simply cannot hear in audio and can even barely see on the waterfall display.  You’ll probably love it or hate it – if you’re a ragchewer, you might hate it – but many of us have found it to be addictively fun!  Even with my modest remote station in the central US and low power, I’ve worked guys all over Europe and in other countries as well.

For logging, the mode in your log should say JT65 (though technically, the mode is JT65A).  A good majority of JT65-HF users are LOTW participants, making QSLing easy.  The software has a built-in logging function, which creates a standard .adif file, which can easily be imported into your favorite logging software.

Before concluding, it is certainly worth mentioning a very useful add-on product called JT-Alert by VK3AMA.  It is distinct from JT65-HF, but works closely with it.  It looks at the decodes made by JT65-HF and then displays info and makes sounds when it detects things like CQ, or your callsign being sent by someone (such as an answer to your CQ), or a wanted state.  It can also detect that you’ve worked someone before on the band you’re on and optionally ignore any alert that may have been generated.  It is a helpful tool that is worth installing.

Here are those links I promised:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/jt65-hf/files/  download the latest software and .pdf setup/operations doc

http://www.hamclubs.info/JT-Utilities/   JT-Alert add-on software with visual and audio alerts

http://hamspots.net/wsjt/  “cluster”-type spots for JT65-HF and other digital modes

http://groups.google.com/group/jt65-hf  JT65-HF group discussions (on Google groups)

http://www.thinkman.com/dimension4/index.htm  D4 time sync

http://www.meinberg.de/english/sw/ntp.htm  Meinberg time sync

Although I’ve gone into a modest level of detail with this article, there are setup options and some operating procedures that were not covered.  I highly suggest reading the excellent setup manual/documentation.  The JT65-HF group discussions are also very useful, with a great set of friendly and helpful folks participating.

Go forth and have fun on JT65-HF!

73, Dave NØRQ

http://www.powerlinenoise.com/n0rq/

I’m not going to focus on the theory of it or even the history of it (it’s been around since 1953), but will instead discuss the practical implementation in your shack.  Theory and history can be found at some of the links I’ve listed at the end of the article.

You’ll need an HF rig with SSB or RTTY capability, a computer with RTTY software, and a sound card interface or TNC device.  The interface is what sits between the rig and the computer.  Note that different interfaces will do RTTY differently.  There are two ways to transmit and receive RTTY: 1) AFSK, or audio frequency shift keying, is done in LSB mode, and 2) FSK, or frequency shift keying, is done in RTTY mode.  Either works fine.  What are they?

If your rig doesn’t have a RTTY mode, or in the interface doesn’t support FSK RTTY, then you’ll need to do AFSK RTTY.  The main disadvantage is that you won’t be able to take advantage of nice RTTY filtering (on receive) that some radios have.  For AFSK, you’ll generally use LSB on all HF bands, but that really depends on your software.  If you get the LSB/USB selection mixed up, you’ll be “reversed” and uncopyable.  With AFSK, your RTTY signal will go out like voice audio, except that it will be RTTY tones.

If both the rig and the interface have FSK capability, this is usually the better way to go.  You’ll need to set it up for FSK keying (different manufacturers do it differently), and there can be quite a few different cables to plug in – at least it is that way with my Icom and RigBlaster Pro.  It is more complicated to set up than PSK31.  But once set up, you’ll be in business.  The best advice is to read and follow the instructions in the manuals of the radio and the interface.  (Really – this is one instance where you actually should read the manual first!)

You’ll also need RTTY software, and you’ll be glad to know that it is free and there are several options, though the most popular one is called MMTTY.  There are others you can try as well.

Here are a few things to remember when operating RTTY:

1. It is not usually a low-power mode like PSK31.  Most guys run a full 100w, if not more.
2. Make sure you can decode a good RTTY signal before you start to transmit.
3. Look for signals where RTTY is used – see the frequency list below.

Here is a screen shot of MMTTY.  In the upper-right corner is the signal received (both spectral and waterfall).  You’ll see two peaks, which are the “mark” and the “space”.  The two thin vertical yellow lines are there to help you tune in the signal – the mark and the space should line up with those lines.

There are lots of buttons to play with, including macros which are often used as shortcuts to typing common stuff over and over again.  The green bar is the strength of the signal received.

The big window with text in it is the received text window.  In this case, it shows RJ3AA calling CQ NA (North America), with ON3OP answering him (maybe he missed the “NA” part), and the Russian graciously answering him.  At my station, the RJ3 was very strong and the ON3 was quite weak (on 20m).

The smaller white box at the bottom is the typing area for what is going to be transmitted.  Yes, you can type in advance while receiving, so that when the other guy is done, you’ve done some of the typing ahead.  The TX and TXOFF buttons flip between XMIT and RCV.

There are lots of options to set up in MMTTY, and it can be tricky.  The best advice is to read the AA5AU link below for detailed instructions.

The common frequencies (in MHz) are shown below.  Again, your rig must be in RTTY (FSK) or LSB (AFSK) mode!

• 160m – RTTY is rare, though if there, probably 1.800 to 1.820
• 80m – 3.580 to 3.600, sometimes 3.590 for DX
• 60m – (unknown, probably non-existent)
• 40m – 7.080 to 7.100, sometimes 7.040 for DX
• 30m – 10.130 to 10.136, but can vary
• 20m – 14.080 to 14.098
• 17m – 18.100 to 18.105, but can vary (try to stay away from 18.102 JT65 area)
• 15m – 21.080 to 21.100
• 12m – 24.920 to 24.925
• 10m – 28.080 to 28.100
• 6m – RTTY is rare, essentially non-existent

The “calling” frequency is generally the lowest freq in the range or just above it (i.e. 14.080);  in other words, most RTTY activity is in the lower portion of the ranges given above.  There is more RTTY activity on 20m than on any other band, so 14.080 to .085 is a good place to start.

NOTE: if you’re running AFSK (LSB), start 2.13 kHz below these listed frequencies, because the “dial” freq is off by that amount.

If you’re chasing a rare DX station, he may operate “split”, usually listening 1 to 5 kHz up.  Just use your rig’s split freq (or VFO A/B) to transmit where he is listening.  He’ll say what he is doing by transmitting something like “UP 2-4”.

One way to make a bunch of quickie contacts, after you’re set up and working, is to jump in the RTTY contests.  Links for contest info are shown below.

This is way too short of an article to even come close to covering RTTY well, but it is easy to find tons of info.  Just Google “RTTY”.  A few good sources include:

• www.aa5au.com/rtty.html – great info, includes an excellent “getting started” section
• www.nonstopsystems.com/radio/frank_radio_rtty.htm – nice RTTY overview
• www.mcwa.org/AFSKvsFSK.pdf – discussion of AFSK vs. FSK
• www.ik3qar.it/rtty/3/  – a few short comments about AFSK vs. FSK
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency-shift_keying – even more FSK vs. AFSK
• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RTTY – more than you ever wanted to know
• www.rtty.com – lots of history, old equipment, etc
• www.n2ty.org/seasons/tara_seasons.html – RTTY and PSK contests
• www.rttycontesting.com – rather self-explanatory
• mmhamsoft.amateur-radio.ca/pages/mmtty.php – where to download MMTTY

RYRYRYRYRY…    Dave NØRQ

This month, we’ll concentrate on just one of the “new” modes.  We’ll look at the most popular one (by far), because it is what generates the most interest.  It is called PSK31.  “PSK” stands for “phase shift keying”.  It is a very narrow audio signal – the “31” stands for 31 Hertz of bandwidth.  It has exceptional weak-signal performance;  the only other mode that comes close in that category is CW itself and JT65.   Although there are at least 5 “flavors” of PSK signals (BPSK31, QPSK31, BPSK63, QPSK63, and BPSK125), I’m referring in this article to the one used most often (by far), which is BSPK31, or just PSK31 for short.

I’m not going to focus on the theory of it, though, but will instead discuss the practical implementation in your shack.

You’ll need an HF rig with USB capability, a computer with PSK31 software, and a sound card interface device.  The interface is what sits between the rig and the computer’s sound card.  There are ways to build your own interface, and there are many manufacturers of them, ranging from fairly inexpensive ($30 ) to super-deluxe models (>$300).  Some of the major names are SignaLink, RigBlaster, Buxcom Rascal, Donner’s Digital Interface (I have one – very good, $40), MicroHam, and MixW RigExpert.

The software is free and there are many options.  I like Digipan (www.digipan.net), because it is simple to use and can decode not just 2 but up to 26 different signals at once.  Cool!  Ham Radio Deluxe with DM780 is very popular.  Others are PSK31 Deluxe, W1SQLPSK, MultiPSK, MixW32, WinPSKse, and the list goes on and on.  Yes, they’re free.  Read the ratings and reviews.  Download several and try them out.

Here is a short list of rules to follow when operation PSK31:

You’ll be happy to know that this is a low-power mode.  Most guys run 15 to 50 watts, some of them much less.  You shouldn’t ever need to run over 50 watts – your transmitter may not like semi-continuous duty of 50-100w xmit anyway.  25 to 30 watts is probably most common.  Don’t even think about turning the amp on.

Another important rule:  turn your speech processor off.  Modern rigs have great speech processors for SSB voice, but you do not want it for PSK31, because it will make your signal wide, annoying other hams.  On the same note, make sure your mic gain is set conservatively.  It is better to have it too low than too high.  My experience is that a reasonable mic gain on voice SSB will probably be fine for PSK31. 

Finally, make sure your rig shows zero ALC.  Having any significant amount of ALC will guarantee that your signal will splatter.

Just as an example, here is a “waterfall” display from Digipan – note the signal above the letter “C” – nice and clean.  So is the signal above “B”, though it is much weaker.  But the signal above “A” is way too wide and has harmonics on it – it is an ugly signal – too much mic gain and/or speech compressor is on, or more likely, lots of ALC.  (Note on the screen-shot:  the horizontal axis is audio frequency in Hertz, and the vertical axis is time, with ‘now’ being at the top and roughly 20 seconds ago at the bottom.)

Finally, use the common frequencies.  You can deviate from this, but it is unlikely you’ll ever make a QSO unless you’re on or very close to this list (dial freq in MHz).  Note your rig must be in USB mode!

• 1.807 (US) .838 (EU) (very little activity)
• 3.580
• 7.035 (also .070 for US)
• 10.140  or .142 (or between)
• 14.070
• 18.100
• 21.070 (although the ‘official’ frequency is .080)
• 24.920
• 28.120
• 50.290

By far, most activity is on 20m, then 40m and 30m.  There is some on 17m and 80m, but not nearly as much.  Activity on the higher bands will probably increase as the number of dark blotches on Sol increase in the next few years.

One way to make a bunch of quickie contacts, after you’re set up and working, is to jump in the PSK-related contests.  The major ones are the TARA contests, which can be found at www.n2ty.org/seasons/tara_seasons.html .  They are fun and not overly competitive.  Another place to find lots of PSK31 events and contests is to look at this page: www.podxs070.com/contest-calendar .

Lots of other good PSK31 info can be found at this ARRL page.  A local ham runs www.bpsk31.com , which is also useful.

This is way too short of an article to even come close to covering PSK31 well, but it is easy to find tons of info.  Just Google “PSK31”.  You can read for days.  So read, but don’t stop there.  Go do.  It is fun!  I’ve even heard from a reputable source that there may be some PSK31 during Field Day this year.

73 for now, Dave NØRQ

Topband covers 1800-2000 kHz, but most of it goes unused.  As you can tell, this is right above the AM broadcast band.  Different countries may have somewhat different allocations for this band, so if you’re hunting DX, you’ll need to be aware of which countries can operate where.  (Contesting.com has a good 160m frequency allocation chart.)  Practically speaking, though, there are a few rules to live by.  First, the bottom part of the band is almost always CW.  In fact, it is rare to hear LSB below 1850 kHz, even though it is allowed.  LSB rag-chewing is done way up at the top part of the band.

More specifically, CW generally ranges from 1800 or 1810 up through 1840 or 1850.  Note that the “DX window” is 1830-1835, and you would be wise to try to make only DX contacts (on CW!) in that 5 kHz segment.  PSK31 is fairly rare on 160m, but when there, 1807.5 is probably where you’ll find it.

As you can guess, 160m is a noisy band.  I don’t know about the LSB ragchewers, but the CW guys at the bottom of the band who are looking for long-distances QSOs basically don’t even try in the summer.  This is a winter band.  And of course it is a nighttime band as well.  You can start in the evening just before the sun goes down, and continue until just after sunrise. Chasing “greyline” is one method of catching DX.  Like other bands, even during the “right” time of year and day, the band may be cooperative or not.  There are “openings” on occasion that really make the band hop, even allowing opportunities for guys with modest stations in Texas to make contacts into Europe.  The east coast guys do that all the time, but it is much harder here.

Topband is one place where having >100 watts really helps.  You don’t really need an amplifier to work 6m, 10m, 15m, but way down on 160m it makes a big difference.  But of course it won’t matter if your antenna is poor, and 160m antennas can be a real challenge.  They are, simply put, BIG.  A full-length dipole is ~255 feet.  And though they work, a dipole on Topband is a low dipole and will have a high angle of radiation.  Some guys use loops, or a sloper off a tower.  You can try to build a vertical, but a shortened vertical has it own challenges.  Some guys will load up a tower as the antenna.  The details of all those are outside the scope of this little article, but personally I use both a full-length dipole and a sloper.  The sloper is what is used for chasing DX.  You may also choose to have a receive-only antenna, such as a Beverage, which is directional and reduces noise significantly.

Almost all 160m contests are CW-only.  However, there is one each year for SSB, and you’ll hear all the CW guys in the lower part of the band using LSB on that one day.  It is a fun way to get on the band if you don’t do CW.  See CQ160.com for details.

Well, enough of Topband.  If your rig has the band, and if you can somehow get an antenna up, it is a challenging but fun way to try something new.  The magic of radio is very much alive on 160m!

73 for now, Dave N0RQ