I just bought a CCrane Skywave SSB "Orphan" (i.e. returned) directly from CCrane and it is arriving today. I really liked it based on size/features now with SSB reception but wanted it right away and since it is a new model just coming out I was surprised it was out of stock new but in stock as "Orphan" already at a little discount. I plan on playing with it trying out all the features as best I can while it is still returnable...Anyway...is there any reception tests I should try to make sure it is working properly? Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks
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CCrane Skywave SSB "Orphan"
- Thread starter Shudawg
- Start date
cockpitbob
NES Member
C Crane is good stuff.
Hmmm, reception tests, that's a tricky one. So much depends on the antenna and the available signals.
AM & FM: just compare to what your car radio hears. Standing outside it should be more sensitive.
NOAA Weather. No matter where you are you should be able to hear 2 or more of the channels.
Aviation band: The short wavelengths mean line of sight propagation, so unless you are within about 5-10 miles of an airport or a plane is above your horizon you won't hear much. Go here on airnav.com and put in the city of the closest large airport and it will give you frequencies for Tower, Ground Control, etc. If you are close, you will hear the ATIS (automatic terminal information service) which is a short continuous loop with weather and other info.
The HF (short wave) bands are great because they can bounce off the ionosphere and travel around the glove. But they have moods and personalities, so just listening around the bands won't tell you much. These days, with old Sol in taking a 6 year nap (low part of the 11 year solar cycle), there's not much going on above 14MHz. Between early evening and mid morning listen below 10MHz.
Antenna, antenna, antenna, especially for short wave bands! A good antenna can make a 100X improvement in what you hear. For short wave you'll do enormously better with a long wire antenna, preferably out the window to a tree. They sell 23' wires on a reel that you just clip to the telescoping antenna. Those will make a big difference. There's nothing magic about the reels though. It's just wire, so you can make your own antenna. In general the longer and higher the better.
Hmmm, reception tests, that's a tricky one. So much depends on the antenna and the available signals.
AM & FM: just compare to what your car radio hears. Standing outside it should be more sensitive.
NOAA Weather. No matter where you are you should be able to hear 2 or more of the channels.
Aviation band: The short wavelengths mean line of sight propagation, so unless you are within about 5-10 miles of an airport or a plane is above your horizon you won't hear much. Go here on airnav.com and put in the city of the closest large airport and it will give you frequencies for Tower, Ground Control, etc. If you are close, you will hear the ATIS (automatic terminal information service) which is a short continuous loop with weather and other info.
The HF (short wave) bands are great because they can bounce off the ionosphere and travel around the glove. But they have moods and personalities, so just listening around the bands won't tell you much. These days, with old Sol in taking a 6 year nap (low part of the 11 year solar cycle), there's not much going on above 14MHz. Between early evening and mid morning listen below 10MHz.
Antenna, antenna, antenna, especially for short wave bands! A good antenna can make a 100X improvement in what you hear. For short wave you'll do enormously better with a long wire antenna, preferably out the window to a tree. They sell 23' wires on a reel that you just clip to the telescoping antenna. Those will make a big difference. There's nothing magic about the reels though. It's just wire, so you can make your own antenna. In general the longer and higher the better.
Thanks Cockpitbob! This is very helpful info. The radio came with a small reel antenna as an included accessory which I will try out for the shortwave. I'm also just south of Boston with a lot of air traffic directly overhead descending into Logan so I will give the air band a try. I'm excited to try listening to the SSB to hear real Hams! Never tried that before so that will be interesting. Plan on keeping this in my every day work backpack to listen at work and while traveling.
cockpitbob
NES Member
For the aviation traffic, on the airnav.com page look for Approach and Departure frequencies for the airport. The planes are only on tower frequency when they are close to the airport. Outside of 10-20 miles they switch to Approach or Departure. You may not hear the ground based half of the conversation, but you'll hear the planes.
