Sorry Mark, My mistake. I apologise.

By the way, should we call you Mark or Andrew???

Agreed, Your written description is too vague.  I second the advice to visit your city building inspector for two reasons.  First, to get his/her assurance--in writing if possible--that the particular setup you want is covered under the city ordinance.  Have a plan or description of your intended tower in writing so you can cover yourself.  

Second, to make sure the tower foundation or attachment points (again, your plan or description is needed here) are going to be covered under the same ordinance.  If the setup of the tower or attachment points requires modification of any existing structures or foundations, you may have to pull a permit for that work even if you don't need one for the tower itself.  

Also, if your tower would cross your property line if it fell or if there was any questions or inquiries later about the tower, the fact you got these items in writing now would help you tremendously in any subsequent legal wrangling you may have to go through.  Good luck and 73.

Do you have a copy of the manual for the rig?  Do you have a copy of the instruction sheet for the module you are trying to install?  These are both necessary to do the job right.  Both should be available at the Icom website.

Sometimes there are factory installed jumpers that have to be removed for the module to be installed.  After all, when you buy a proprietary module for a rig, you don't un-install it, so usually the jumpers don't have to be reconnected.  Mind you, I'm not saying that is the case here, just that sometimes it happens.

Also, if you bought the rig used, the jumpers could have been put in there by the previous owner, part of a modification done by him or her.  If you can, get in touch with them and check.

Lastly, if you're not sure and can't get any answers, bring or send the rig to a shop where they can give you answers--it may cost more, but it won't cost more than the repair or replacement of the rig if you screw up!!  Good luck and 73!

The reason is simple, the authority who controls Canadian radio useage hasn't set up one yet.  Maybe those authorities are trying to keep Canada in step with the rest of the world instead of throwing Canadian hams lame excuses and 'channels' of operation like the US FCC is doing to us.

Anyway, you know government, whichever government that it may be--study the hell out of anything before even taking the first step in doing something about it.  Seems like you're no different from us in that regard!  73!

It isn't possible to do this--the modems would not be able to work together.  Data streams for DSL operate on frequencies higher than telephone conversations.  There would be no way to separate the two distinct data streams of two modems on a single twisted pair of wires--AT THE SAME TIME.

You may be able to do what you want if one modem was turned off and disconnected before the other was connected and switched on, but I suspect there would be a problem because the two modems are different--speed wise.  The telephone company computer possibly wouldn't know what to do to accomodate the changes that using the two modems at different times would cause.

If you need two modems for two separate computers, the best way to do what you need is AA4PB's suggestion--get a router and use only one modem, the high speed one.

Hi Gerrit,

What you want to do may seen alright, but in reality, it isn't.  You are taking chances with your set-up right now, and adding more weight and area for the wind to load against increases your risk of damaging whatever you have the pipe bolted to.  You could rip the lag bolts right out of the side of the house if conditions are right--and the lags could take a piece of the house with them.

For your own sake, that of your neighbors and especially anyone who may be standing under the mast area, guy the mast!!  Even non-stretchable thin rope would be OK for the guy lines.

Now, for a standoff for the second antenna, how big is it?  How much of an area (distance from the mast to the center mount point) do you need?  I needed a mount for a Radio Shack receiving (scanner) antenna with a standoof from the mast of about ten inches.  I used aluminum angle bar available at Home Depot to make a standoff bracket, and mounted it to the mast using 4 hose clamps.  The antenna and the standoff together weigh about four pounds, and even though there is a little give to the assembly, it holds the antenna well.

What I did is make a rectangle then use more angle iron to cross brace the rectangle in three places--top bar to bottom bar, bottom to top and top to bottom again.  Mine has been up over three years with no problems.  Of course you can roll your own, but aluminum angle iron is extremely easy to work with and sturdy enough to last.  Oh, yes, I used higher grade stainless steel nuts and bolts to make the connections--there hasn't been any corrosion at last check, 2 months ago.  Good luck and 73.

Jason, you said:

"Shorting the center of the antenna connector to the shield had no effect on the noise level."

At the instant you shorted the connector, did you get any extra noise, such as scratching or popping?  Or did the noise volume level drop at all--even a little bit?  If not, I suspect you have more than one problem, and that one of them may be in your rig.  

Also, I checked your location and can tell you right now you are on the edges of more than one heavy signal area--Hanscom field (military and civilian aircraft) is near you as well as several AM/FM/TV broadcast transmitters as well as other transmitters (paging and business band) that also use those same towers to serve the Boston area.  There are several more high power transmitters of the same kind just a dozen miles away.  You are on the rim of an RF soup pot!  I used to drive the 128/95 beltway a couple of years ago, and I can tell you the noise floor is very high there near the 95/93 interchange.

I suspect there are also one or more noise sources in your apartment building that are worsening the situation you find yourself in.  I think all you can do is keep trying different things to lessen the noise.  Sorry I couldn't help more, but good luck and 73!  

Pyramid is notorious for not answering tech help calls, I believe you have to get to them on a certain phone number, they don't answer e-mail requests.  Their equipment is good, but the tech help situation pushes their customers to Antron sooner or later.

If I can come up with the number, I'll post it.  Good luck!

Did you try Yaesu Factory Service?!?  Couldn't resist that!

There is more than one reason six meters is called the magic band.  Signals/activity that can be heard at one spot on the dial can disappear a little while later.  

The previous posters gave good advice, the only thing I  can add is -- don't give up!  It may take a while for you to hear something.  Sometimes band conditions are just right and you'll be able to pull in signals from miles around, then conditions change a little and the door just got slammed in your face!

Don't give up, take your time, don't give up, scan the band, don't give up.....  Get the drift?  Above all, have fun, and....don't give up!  :-)  73!

".....It's generally a Ham-myth that something improper the homeowner does will result in claim denial. They may tell you they will cancel you in the future, but as an almost universal rule insurance companies can't deny a claim based on homeowner stupidity or accidents because someone doesn't know better than to do something....."

Whoa, there--before you're misinterpreted, this isn't entirely true.  In some localities, homeowners are allowed to do their own wiring--if they know what to do.  True, it should be inspected after it is done, but how many of us have put in a new circuit and not had it inspected?  

The best rule of thumb here is this:  If the addition is considered a permanent part of the house, it better be done correctly and to code.  If it isn't and is determined to be cause of any future problem resulting in a claim, the insurance company may well deny payment.  If you don't think they can tell when work is done, think again.  Changes in the way materials are made can be traced back and age can be determined.

There again, if the work is a 'temporary' addition, say a grounding busbar on the back of a moveable bench, and not attached permanently to the building, then the insurance company has less choice in the matter.  It all depends on local ordinances, your insurance agent, and the insurance company.

Oh yes, for a ground plane, try the underside of a card table--if metal, it is almost exactly the right size!

W3LK is right, don't mess with the adjustments if you:

a: don't have an external SWR meter--and a good one, not a cheapie.
b: aren't sure what you're doing--exactly sure.

A 1.7 to 1 SWR reading on the meter on your rig indicates a good match--messing with the antenna sections to try to get it lower on 2 meters will make it higher on 440 mhz.

Any SWR reading lower than 2 to 1 is good.  Trying to make it better will most times only make it worse over all.

Sorry for the double answer, accidently hit the post button twice!