Al Gritzmacher's Blogosphere

This post probably won’t be interesting unless you’re a Ham Radio operator, or really bored.

This is a story about two headsets – headphones with a boom microphone. Ham Radio operators use these for contesting and DXing or any time you’re using the radio while active and you don’t want to be stuck in front of a “normal” microphone. Because the microphone is mounted on the boom, it’s always near your mouth no matter how you move.

I first bought the Heil Proset many years ago for contest use. It has a special microphone that is tailored to voice frequencies and is supposed to increase intelligibility over SSB radio transmissions. It’s something that Bob Heil developed and has been one of his most successful products.

I used these all the time, preferring them to a desk microphone, but over the years, they got so they were showing their age. Continue Reading…

… is half the battle. Finally, I’m getting to near where I want to be with my Ham Radio studio.

I found a picture of my old operating desk. This is a very early shot of it. For most of the recent time, it’s been sitting turned 90 degrees from what is shown. I guess I wanted to unblock the window! The equipment changed, but mostly, that is the desk I tore apart a month ago.

But it also was piled high with stuff. Unfinished projects, papers I needed to save, magazines I wanted to keep, computer stuff, tools, and on and on. You get the mental picture, even if I don’t have one.

Now that I think about it, this photo might just be pre-computer. It’s hard to think of Ham Radio without computers anymore. Continue Reading…

My current project has been remodeling my workroom where I keep my radio equipment. I’ve mentioned it here before. The last step has been making a desk where I can use all my radio equipment ergonomically. Continue Reading…

I’ve been writing here about my 40 years of experiences in Amateur Radio from time to time. Here’s one on what I’m doing NOW. It’s not exciting. It’s not cutting edge technology. But, it’s long overdue.

I don’t have any recent photos of the “Shack.” Frankly, it was such a mess, I really didn’t want to take any. It had become a place for unfinished projects to get dumped and to actually use the radios, I’d have to excavate them to get access! But the first photo is of the same room, back about 1980 or so.

I’m cleaning out and remodeling my “shack.” That’s what we “Hams” call our place where we keep our radio equipment. It’s one of many terms that were established long ago and have taken on a life of their own, despite giving a less-then-complimentary spin on our hobby.

Similiar terms are “Elmer” – a term for a Ham who helps a newcomer get started in this hobby, presumably an older person; “Rag Chewing” – a term that means just chatting over the air; and of course the term “Ham” itself, which was coined by commercial operators as a derogatory appellation, but the amateurs took it, like Yankee Doodle, and made it their own.

Frankly, I could do without all of them. Amateur, mentor, conversation all work fine for me. Since I’ve lived here, for the last 30 years, we’ve all called my room just the “Radio Room.” It’s about the only room in the house that has never been painted or otherwise remodeled. It’s been sort of the Shoemaker’s Kids story, everything else took priority.

So, I’m finally getting around to overhauling it and I think from now on, I’m going to call it not my “Shack,” not my “Radio Room,” but from now on, my “Studio.” It sort of works in the way “Office” or “Study” would, but is more technical/radio sounding. Continue Reading…

Last night, I was looking at the web site for Heil Sound. I was sort of window shopping for a microphone, but ended up getting distracted – like I often do on the internet – and was browsing through the photos on Bob’s site.

I came across this photo, of Bob Heil with Les Paul and a shudder went down my spine. Here was an image of two men, possibly THE two men, responsible for modern sound recording technology. Each of them came up with equipment and techniques that, while not wiz-bang super-new technology, the way they applied their knowledge to a problem they saw changed the way that music recording and live sound amplification was done almost universally.

Little did I know, the next day, I’d be reading that Les Paul had died. Continue Reading…

This is another Ham Radio post, so if that bores you, tune out now.

I’ve been spending a lot of time cleaning out my “Shack” as we Hams call the room we keep our radio station in. It has been long overdue for me and I’ve accumulated 20 years and more of junk here alone. When I first moved into this house, I had a lot of Ham equipment. I’ll try to find one particular photo I have of a double layer of old Heathkit gear I had. I have less now, and more modern, but you wouldn’t know it.

My room has accumulated layer after layer of “stuff” – both radio and computer – to the point where I’m afraid someone will turn me into one of those reality TV shows where they do an intervention and force you to clean out your clutter.

My main HF (Shortwave) radio had become inoperative and the symptoms it was exhibiting called for some fairly serious surgery to it. Rather than try to fix it half-a$$ed myself, I looked for an expert and found a guy in Texas, who is supposed to be the best and most affordable Kenwood repairman there is. Better than the factory, in fact. So, I shipped the radio off. Just UPS to send it was $40. But it cost $1800 in 1994 and would cost at least $2000+ to replace it with something comparable today.

Anyway, while it is gone, and a big gaping hole in the middle of the clutter where it used to sit, I decided to clean up and make it feel wanted when it returns. It’s been a four-day job, so far, and I’m far from done. But that’s just background to the story of one piece of radiogram traffic I once received. Continue Reading…

Most people think that Ham Radio is an expensive hobby, requiring multi-thousand-dollar radios, big antennas on tall towers and high power. Well, a yacht is a great way to enjoy the seas too, but that shouldn’t stop someone who can’t afford a yacht from enjoying boating in a smaller vessel.

While catching up on my organizing, I came across three small radios that I acquired just a few years ago. Each one cost roughly $150 or less. Each one is a self-contained station, ready to go on one Ham band. They are all QRP, less than 5 watts power and only operate CW – Morse Code.

QRP operation is not the easiest way to go and may not be the best way to start out unless you really like the challenge, but after many years of experience, I can enjoy the minimalist experience of making contacts with just a few watts. They are the perfect radios to take along camping, or just to get outside for an afternoon and play radio from a picnic bench. Continue Reading…