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[K0UA]

Yes, and there is still activity every day on 15 meters. Mostly TEP, so we hear mostly south americans, sometimes canary islands, and southern europe.  YOU HAVE TO GET ON FT8 if you want to work DX on 15 meters during zero sunspot times. FORGET SSB, put away the microphone, and in some cases you can shove the key aside as well. FT8 is about 10 dB better than CW.  Sometimes CW will get thru, and sometimes not.  In today's sunspot sunspot level, one cannot say, "well I just work phone" or "I just work cw".  That ain't gonna cut it. ONE needs to be flexible and work phone when you can, CW when you can't, and when you can't work CW, you can work digital.

You gotta learn to roll with with ya got.  And what ya got isn't much propagation.

[N9FB]

Worked XR0YD today on 15 meters.

K0UA   XR0YD   2018-03-08 23:53:15   15M   FT8   21.07637

that is awesome, but imo FT8 isnt really pertinent here.  It is kind of like comparing amplified to acoustic music or to looking for something very far away with really good binoculars verses the naked eye --
clearly the original post is about traditional mode 15m ham radio contacts, not new-fangled modes that make DX contacts like fish in a barrel ...
(if you cant tell i have yet to do digital modes and so they're sour grapes)

[K0UA]

Worked XR0YD today on 15 meters.

K0UA   XR0YD   2018-03-08 23:53:15   15M   FT8   21.07637

that is awesome, but imo FT8 isnt really pertinent here.  It is kind of like comparing amplified to acoustic music or to looking for something very far away with really good binoculars verses the naked eye --
clearly the original post is about traditional mode 15m ham radio contacts, not new-fangled modes that make DX contacts like fish in a barrel ...
(if you cant tell i have yet to do digital modes and so they're sour grapes)

Yeah.  I got the picture.  And this isn't the first time I have heard it.  But I gotta tell ya, you still have to work hard and have strategy, patience, and a good signal, better than your fellow man to work really juicy DX on any band.  I have heard this "shooting fish in a barrel Bravo Sierra for some time now and it ain't so. But that is OK.

When the time comes for you to get on FT8, I will still be here to help you get set up, and help you understand how to operate it, and give you tips and tricks to succeed where others wont.  And I will do that even though you peed on my DX contact, on FT8, because that is the kind of guy I am.

If and when you want help, shoot me an email, and we can exchange phone numbers, and I can help you over the phone, and for the best experience, load teamviewer 13 before hand so I can do a screen share session with you. 

If you don't believe me just ask the dozens of guys I have helped in the digital forum.  I helped a fellow just last night troubleshoot his install and sat there and worked several stations with him operating and me supervising via teamviewer13.  Think about it.  I will be here if and when you need me.   73  James K0UA

[N9FB]

thanks for the generous offer, i may take you up on it and sooner than you might think.
please note however that i did not pee on your FT8 DX contact.  the person who started this thread asked why he isnt hearing anyone on 15 meters these days.  clearly that means he isnt asking about FT8, but rather about more traditional modes that a few years ago were keeping the band quite active.  turns out he is a CW man, so my only point -- other than congratulating you on your contact -- was that it is apples and oranges to compare FT8 contacts with SSB or even CW ones.   and i also admitted i had some sour grape bias going on.

since we have hijacked the thread and that probably isnt any kind of crime, let me add that yesterday i located a digital interface at a price i can afford so i will be looking to figure out RTTY and FT8 for DXing.  unfortunately right now the waterfall stuff i have seen only leaves me confused, but morse code once sounded crazy to me too . 

[K0UA]

thanks for the generous offer, i may take you up on it and sooner than you might think.
please note however that i did not pee on your FT8 DX contact.  the person who started this thread asked why he isnt hearing anyone on 15 meters these days.  clearly that means he isnt asking about FT8, but rather about more traditional modes that a few years ago were keeping the band quite active.  turns out he is a CW man, so my only point -- other than congratulating you on your contact -- was that it is apples and oranges to compare FT8 contacts with SSB or even CW ones.   and i also admitted i had some sour grape bias going on.

since we have hijacked the thread and that probably isnt any kind of crime, let me add that yesterday i located a digital interface at a price i can afford so i will be looking to figure out RTTY and FT8 for DXing.  unfortunately right now the waterfall stuff i have seen only leaves me confused, but morse code once sounded crazy to me too . 

lets get together, I I am sure we can get you going.  Download N1MM+, for you contesting and logging needs (including RTTY and CW contesting), download FLdigi  for all other digital  modes and for the "engine" for N1MM+)  . and finally download WSJT-x for your ft8 and other modes.  download teamviewer 13 so we can screen share, and lets exchange phone numbers and we will get you going. It is a whole new world, you might as well jump in with both feet, and sink or swim   I am about 12 or 13 years older than you, and if I can do it, YOU can do it.

[N9FB]

thanks for the encouragement. the interface cable i purchased should arrive early net week.  i will email you with any questions, thanks! 

[WB0CJB]

I worked ZD7BG on CD with a KX3 into a wire thrown into a nearby bush. This was during an outing to a local park on the QRPTTF weekend.

WB0CJB

[N9FB]

Worked XR0YD today on 15 meters.

K0UA   XR0YD   2018-03-08 23:53:15   15M   FT8   21.07637

oops, upon further review, i too worked Easter Island on 12 and 15m CW last month and these are already LoTW confirmed:  

    Call sign   Worked   Date/Time   Band   Mode   Freq   QSL   DXCC
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-04 20:32:00   17M   CW   18.08600       
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-07 07:40:00   40M   CW   7.02610       
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-08 15:05:00   20M   CW   14.02800       
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-09 19:23:00   15M   CW   21.02620       
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-09 19:37:00   12M   CW   24.90610       
Details   N9KX   XR0YD   2018-03-14 17:56:00   17M   SSB   18.12600       

so while our being at the bottom of solar cycle does mean 15m is going to be deader than normal, there will be times when you can still get stuff done if you're listening, especially given your [9H1FQ] proximity to Europe

 

[K0UA]

I didn't do quite as good.  But it is what it is.    The 17 and 15 are both data

Log to search:   XR0YD
46,423 QSOs logged between 2018-03-02 22:39Z and 2018-03-15 13:02Z
Callsign to check:   
K0UA

Band   CW   Phone   Data
40   1       
20   1       
17                             1
15                             1
12   1   

[K0UA]

Footnote.

N9XK, has worked some DX now on FT8 and I have answered a lot of his questions.  And I have made a new friend. So FT8 is not all bad

To the original poster, you too can join in on FT8, I see and work a lot of Malta stations.

73,  James K0UA

[N9FB]

Footnote.

N9XK, has worked some DX now on FT8 and I have answered a lot of his questions.  And I have made a new friend. So FT8 is not all bad

To the original poster, you too can join in on FT8, I see and work a lot of Malta stations.

73,  James K0UA

Thanks James K0UA for your willingness to spend time offering help and info on FT8 and using digital.  I now have JT-AlertX set up to interface my WSJT-X so that the log there gets automatically sent real time to my logging software program: AC Log (aka: N3FJP's Amateur Contact Log).  Getting that done earlier tonight makes logging so easy and let's me devote more attention to the fun FT8 QSO's

To the original poster, if you can get FT8 set up, it opens up a whole new world of prop for DX -- especially at this point in the solar cycle -- plus it is a lot more fun than i expected too  

[K0UA]

Footnote.

N9XK, has worked some DX now on FT8 and I have answered a lot of his questions.  And I have made a new friend. So FT8 is not all bad

To the original poster, you too can join in on FT8, I see and work a lot of Malta stations.

73,  James K0UA

Thanks James K0UA for your willingness to spend time offering help and info on FT8 and using digital.  I now have JT-AlertX set up to interface my WSJT-X so that the log there gets automatically sent real time to my logging software program: AC Log (aka: N3FJP's Amateur Contact Log).  Getting that done earlier tonight makes logging so easy and let's me devote more attention to the fun FT8 QSO's

To the original poster, if you can get FT8 set up, it opens up a whole new world of prop for DX -- especially at this point in the solar cycle -- plus it is a lot more fun than i expected too  

I knew you would love JTalert once you got it set up and working.

I think it is so essential for full enjoyment of the WSJT-x suite.

There is another fox and hound test this morning at 1400 thru 1600 on 14.090.  You would need to upgrade to 1.9 rc4 on your WSJT-x and select "hound" on the advanced tab of the setup.  Join in if you can, and help with the development of this vital new method that DXpeditions will be using in the near future.  You will need to read the release instructions to understand how to operate fox and hound mode. It is not like normal operation at all.  Good luck on your digital journey ... 73  James K0UA

[KC2QYM]

Nothing worth pursuing from the nothing I am hearing on phone. Same on 12 and 10. Can't speak about digital and CW.

[K0UA]

Nothing worth pursuing from the nothing I am hearing on phone. Same on 12 and 10. Can't speak about digital and CW.

See, that is the thing about listening on phone.  You only have a tiny slice in the frequency domain, and a tiny slice in the time domain. Even if you happen to be there at the right time (openings often only last seconds to minutes) and even if you have a panadaptor to see more of the frequency domain, the chances of you acquiring and working anyone are slim in these sunspot levels. You need big nice sustained openings with much stronger signals. 

You suffer from none of those problems with FT8.  You know EXACTLY what frequency the DX will appear on as you listen to the entire bandwidth where everyone appears. And you have visual confirmation of the DX callsign, its signal strength and physical location (grid square). AND if you run JTalert, you have a captured record of all of this information and when it happened AND are they on LOTW or Eqsl or not.  Even if you are out when the DX appears, you will still know when they did appear and can try again the next day of conditions are similiar.

 Yes it is hit or miss, but you can get an idea of what you missed, when, and try to develop a strategy to get them. Plus if you are in the house, you can turn up the volume and run back to the shack to get set up on the DX and maybe snag them the first time.  Yeah, it ain't guaranteed, and contrary to popular belief it is NOT like shooting fish in a barrel, but you have a somewhat better chance than waiting on 50.125 for a phone signal.  Not to mention the 20dB advantage over SSB. 

Yeah 20db. At least. So the difference between 100 watts and 10,000 watts. Think about that. Your little peanut whistle 100 watt station on SSB will perform like a 10,000 watt station on FT8.  This is only one of the reasons "modest" stations are flocking to the FT8 bandwagon in droves.

If you have no interest in chasing DX and prefer one on one ragchews, real conversations, about some topic other than signal reports and where you are, then FT8 is NOT for you. But typical "QSO's" with true DX stations are typically ur 59(9) and thank you anyway on any mode including SSB.

So, to sum up.  Plenty of DX on the upper bands, but only for people willing to change with the times and make a very very small investment in equipment and an investment in time and learning. And if you have no interest in working DX to begin with, then no problem, wait until the "spots" come back.