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Author Topic: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor  (Read 730 times)

K7JQ

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IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« on: June 22, 2021, 11:17:04 AM »

Is anyone using this combination in a fixed home location? Is the CLR better than the dsp NR in the 7300, and if so is the difference worth it? Thanks for any input.

Bob K7JQ
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VE3WI

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #1 on: June 23, 2021, 11:43:49 AM »

I had the CLRdsp & used it with an IC-706 before I bought the 7300.  It gives me a better speaker than the 7300, that also works with headphones plugged in.  The 7300 NR is pretty good on its own.   80m can be especially noisy & I will have the RF gain down as low as possible, NR on, and usually a little CLRdsp filtering as well.  Too much and you get "a bunch of turkeys gobbling in the background".  It's a quality unit IMHO.

Now if you want to hear real NR, find someone with an ANAN running Thetis and get them to demo their NR!

GL
Dave, VE3WI

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K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #2 on: June 23, 2021, 12:46:06 PM »

Thanks, Dave. Years ago, I used the original Am-Com Clear speech dsp speaker in the mobile with an IC-706MkIIG, and it did an excellent job. Then they went out of business, Heil Sound marketed the same unit, discontinued it, and West Mountain now sells it...basically the same circuit. Just not sure if it's that much difference over the 7300 NR.
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K6BRN

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #3 on: June 23, 2021, 09:14:17 PM »

Bob:

The West Mountain Radio CLRdsp unit works VERY well with and improves the noise reduction performance of the IC-7300, FT-991, FTDX-1200, -3000 and many other radios.  I have and use three of the desktop boxes and have one speaker unit (at 3 different QTHs).

The latest desktop units have continuously variable noise reduction levels, tone and volume controls whereas the older units are missing tone control and have only a few selectable noise reduction levels.

One thing to beware of is that the CLRdsp speaker output uses a bridged amplifier where both + and - lines are above ground potential - NEITHER CAN BE GROUNDED OR AN INTERNAL FUSE WILL BLOW.

This is not a problem if a single speaker is connected and neither speaker terminal is connected to ground.  But it IS a problem if a single speaker, such as a Yaesu SP-2000 is used and shared between two radios because the ground from one radio may be connected to the "-" terminal of both speakers.

This problem can be solved by inserting a 5 mFd capacitor in series with both + and - lines from the CLRdsp.

Brian - K6BRN
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K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #4 on: June 24, 2021, 07:35:03 AM »

Bob:

The West Mountain Radio CLRdsp unit works VERY well with and improves the noise reduction performance of the IC-7300, FT-991, FTDX-1200, -3000 and many other radios.  I have and use three of the desktop boxes and have one speaker unit (at 3 different QTHs).

The latest desktop units have continuously variable noise reduction levels, tone and volume controls whereas the older units are missing tone control and have only a few selectable noise reduction levels.

One thing to beware of is that the CLRdsp speaker output uses a bridged amplifier where both + and - lines are above ground potential - NEITHER CAN BE GROUNDED OR AN INTERNAL FUSE WILL BLOW.

This is not a problem if a single speaker is connected and neither speaker terminal is connected to ground.  But it IS a problem if a single speaker, such as a Yaesu SP-2000 is used and shared between two radios because the ground from one radio may be connected to the "-" terminal of both speakers.

This problem can be solved by inserting a 5 mFd capacitor in series with both + and - lines from the CLRdsp.

Brian - K6BRN

Thanks Brian for your valuable info! I'd be looking for one in the classifieds, as they're pretty expensive new. I've seen the different model "improvements" (tone, volume, continuously variable DSP). I'm wondering if West Mountain also made significant improvements to the actual DSP circuit as well. At the right price, I could live with just the one with an on/off toggle switch and stepped DSP control (OFF-LOW-MED-HIGH-MAX). The volume control seems redundant in addition to the radio's, and one review said the tone control didn't do much to improve anything.

73,  Bob K7JQ
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K6BRN

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #5 on: June 24, 2021, 11:42:09 PM »

Bob (K7JQ):

The NR algorithms seem pretty much the same between newer and older versions of the CLRdsp, with the exception of level adjustability and tone control.  The NR has a "slow attack, slow release" adaptation time which seems to allow it to work well in tandem with a rigs own NR.

Regarding the utility of the CLRdsp tone control - I find it quite useful but not essential. Two of my units have it, the others do not.  But this is all a matter of individual hearing characteristics and preferences.

Regarding cost - yes - these units are quite pricy.  But I've yet to find any other NR system that can match them and they make even my old Kenwood TS-440SAT, with it's very noisy and fatiguing receiver, much easier to listen to.

The CLRdsp volume control is ESSENTIAL, BTW, as the radio volume control adjusts the audio signal level into the CLRdsp, and correctly setting this level is critical to best operation.  So actual USER volume is controlled via the CLRdsp unit itself, which has a strong audio amplifier - much better than found on most radios.  The radio audio level into the CLRdsp should be set just below the clipping level of the CLRdsp, which is indicated by an LED on the CLRdsp unit, then user volume is set via the CLRdsp volume control.

Brian - K6BRN
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K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #6 on: June 25, 2021, 09:24:16 AM »

Thanks again, Brian. I always value your insight. Seems like I should look for the latest version for best performance. There have been a lot of them in the classifieds, old and new versions, for a wide range of asking prices. Many explain they are selling them after they buy a newer radio with improved DSP technology built-in.   

Not a critical purchase, but one of my 7300's is hooked up to an antenna close to the house, with a substantial amount of locally generated noise. This unit could help abate some of the noise better than the 7300's NR. The other 7300 is into an antenna far away from anything, with virtually no local noise. The two radios are used simultaneously in SO2R contesting. I believe I could use the LINE INPUT after my headphone splitter to reduce noise in both ears, when one radio is in the right earpiece, and the other radio in the left earpiece. The manual says there is a jumper inside to change to stereo headphones.

73,  Bob K7JQ
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KK4GMU

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #7 on: December 23, 2021, 02:09:06 PM »

The volume control seems redundant in addition to the radio's, and one review said the tone control didn't do much to improve anything.

73,  Bob K7JQ
From the reviews I've read, the volume control IS useful and not redundant because the DSP reduces the volume a bit and the built in audio amp allows you to equalize the volume with the pass-through, unprocessed audio volume.

Also, a YouTube review demonstrated the usefulness of the tone control which did brighten the signal and in some instances made it clearer.
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IC-7100, RSPdx, AT-D878UVII-Plus HT, TGIF Spot

K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #8 on: December 23, 2021, 03:22:45 PM »

The volume control seems redundant in addition to the radio's, and one review said the tone control didn't do much to improve anything.

73,  Bob K7JQ
From the reviews I've read, the volume control IS useful and not redundant because the DSP reduces the volume a bit and the built in audio amp allows you to equalize the volume with the pass-through, unprocessed audio volume.

Also, a YouTube review demonstrated the usefulness of the tone control which did brighten the signal and in some instances made it clearer.

You are correct! Since my above comments, I found a great deal on and purchased two CLRdsp units for both of my IC-7300's. Both the tone and volume controls are extremely effective with their performance. The CLRdsp is better than the NR in the 7300. At increased levels of NR, the noise is 80-90% abated with no muffling to the audio. Voices and CW are still clean and clear. In some instances, combining the CLRdsp with a low setting on the 7300 NR...around #3...it's even more effective. A wise purchase for me!

Bob K7JQ
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W4KVW

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #9 on: December 23, 2021, 08:15:51 PM »

I don't own a 7300 but I own an ICOM 7600,ICOM 746,ICOM 910H,ICOM 821H & ICOM 7000 & I use a ClearSpeech with each of them & it makes all of them much better.I use the speaker with the 7000 & a Base Unit with all of the others & I refuse to operate without them on SSB or AM.They are great units & I have no doubt they will make the 7300 better as well.  ;D 8)

Clayton
W4KVW
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N8FVJ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #10 on: December 26, 2021, 05:24:42 AM »

I used the CLR on an IC-7600. It is better than the IC-7600 built-in audio noise reduction, but not by a lot.
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K1FBI

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #11 on: December 26, 2021, 05:41:20 AM »

Has anyone tried running a CLRdsp into another CLRdsp and “double processing” it?

I wonder if the two different algorithms on lighter settings would work better?
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K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #12 on: December 26, 2021, 06:31:10 AM »

I used the CLR on an IC-7600. It is better than the IC-7600 built-in audio noise reduction, but not by a lot.

To me, the NR in my IC-7300 is a lot better than my previous IC-7600. But still, increasing the NR level above #5 (in the 7300), further decreasing the noise, the volume decreases and voices become more muffled. But the “watery” sounding artifacts are not as noticeable as they were in the 7600.

The main difference in adding the CLRdsp to the 7300 is that you can increase its DSP level control to as much as 3 o’clock, removing 90% or more of the noise, and the voice is still crystal clear (no watery artifacts), and maybe only a minuscule loss of volume. After 3 o’clock, the voice is still clear, but you start getting a small amount of “chirping” artifacts in the background. Still not really objectionable…to me ;).

I’ve also used the 7300’s NR at no more than level #3 in addition to having the CLRdsp in-line at around the 11 o’clock DSP level, with a little different result in certain situations. The CLR Tone control is effective when some of the received station’s audio has a lot of bass, or muddy sounding. Like the ESSB guys trying to sound like a commercial FM station. My preference is listening to sharper “communications” contest type audio.

I find the investment in the CLR DSP to be worthwhile. YMMV.

Bob K7JQ
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K7JQ

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #13 on: December 26, 2021, 06:44:23 AM »

Has anyone tried running a CLRdsp into another CLRdsp and “double processing” it?

I wonder if the two different algorithms on lighter settings would work better?

I have two CLRdsp units for my two 7300’s and can try what you suggest. But the units have the same algorithms. As I stated in my previous post, I cascaded the CLRdsp with the NR in the 7300 (different algorithms), both at lighter settings with decent results. It seems to reduce the time frame “whoosh” of the noise abatement adaptation when changing from transmit to receive.

Bob K7JQ
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K1FBI

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Re: IC-7300 and West Mountain CLRdsp NR processor
« Reply #14 on: December 26, 2021, 07:52:50 AM »

Has anyone tried running a CLRdsp into another CLRdsp and “double processing” it?

I wonder if the two different algorithms on lighter settings would work better?

I have two CLRdsp units for my two 7300’s and can try what you suggest. But the units have the same algorithms. As I stated in my previous post, I cascaded the CLRdsp with the NR in the 7300 (different algorithms), both at lighter settings with decent results. It seems to reduce the time frame “whoosh” of the noise abatement adaptation when changing from transmit to receive.

Bob K7JQ

Great, let me know how it works. I realize the algorithms are the same. I was thinking that once speaker 1 processed it, speaker 2 would choose an algorithm with a different attack pattern.

I could be wrong in my assumption of how the units work.
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