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SGC HF SSB User Manual

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  • Page 2 SGC emerge as a cutting edge player in the expanding world of HF-SSB. Actually, SGC was the first company to perfect and mass produce solid-state HF SSB radios, more than 20 years ago. Today, our focus is an ever higher level of HF SSB refinement and performance. All focused on creating HF SSB voice and...

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    HF TRANSCEIVER SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES .....................30 MODES....................................30 TRANSMITTER/RECEIVER BANDS AND FREQUENCY RANGE................30 POWER OUTPUT................................30 FREQUENCY STABILITY AND CRYSTAL OVEN......................31 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 4 POWER SUPPLIES................................42 CABLING.....................................42 AC (MAINS) POWER SUPPLIES ............................44 TRANSFORMER-RECTIFIER POWER SUPPLIES ......................44 MOBILE POWER SUPPLIES .............................45 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 5 CHAPTER 4 INSTALLATION ..............................71 INSTALLATION .................................72 TRANSCEIVER ...................................72 RUNNING POWER CABLES.............................73 CONNECTING AND CONNECTOR TYPES ........................74 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 6 RADIO TEST PROCEDURE...............................92 COUPLER TEST PROCEDURE ............................93 INSTRUMENTS...................................93 WATTMETER ..................................93 SWR METER ..................................93 FIELD STRENGTH METER...............................94 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 7 SIMPLE DESIGN OF FRONT-PANEL CONTROLS ......................120 BIG-POWER/SMALL PACKAGE............................120 TESTED FOR HIGH QUALITY ............................120 SG-2000 FEATURES AND BENEFITS..........................121 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 8 GLOSSARY & GENARAL ELECTRONIC AND HF SSB ABBREVIATIONS .143 SGC IDEAS AND OPPORTUNITIES) ..........................148 WARRANTY ..................................149 SGC QUOTATION REQUEST FORM..........................150 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 9: Users Of Long-Range Radio Equipment

    CHAPTER 1 USERS OF LONG-RANGE RADIO EQUIPMENT HF-SSB HIGH FREQUENCY SINGLE SIDEBAND The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 10: What Is Ssb

    These two modulating (audio) sidebands are located on either side of the carrier signal--one just above, the The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 11: Ssb's High Efficiency

    2.5 kW of audio power on that signal. This means that each of the two sidebands will have only 1.25 kW of power. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 12: Hf Signal Characteristics

    These waves travel through the air in a manner that is somewhat similar to waves in a pond. Each radio wave has a peak and a valley. The length of each radio wave is (not surprisingly) known as the wavelength. Radio waves The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 13 Again, the signal will be refracted by the ionosphere and return to the earth. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 14: Propagation

    (LUF). However, the LUF has nothing to do with whether or not The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 15 Generally, the frequencies above 10000 kHz dramatically improve during the peak years of the sunspot cycle, and the frequencies below 10000 kHz are much less affected. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 16: Hf Interference

    With selective The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 17: Signal Paths

    Germany. Because the signals were generally a bit better in the West and Midwest, we can assume that he heard the Pacific Ocean-to-Western North America route, rather than the one that passed through Asia and Europe. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 18: Operating Necessities

    HF transceivers vary greatly in type, power, construction, frequency ranges, operating modes, features, etc., so you must be sure that you purchase a model that best suits your requirements. SGC transceivers and antennas are covered further in this user guide.

  • Page 19: Information Sources

    Handbook features hundreds of pages of frequency listings, addresses, transmitter sites for AM, HF/shortwave, and television broadcast stations around the world. For more information, write to: WRTH, BPI Communications, 1515 The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 20 A and K indexes are very low (0-10 for the A and 0-3 for the K), the propagation should be better. The last of the The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 21: Operating Modes

    For the most part, the only AM two-way stations currently on the air are nostalgic amateurs who love the broadcast-quality audio from this mode. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 22: Ssb (Single Sideband)

    This process will continue until the entire message is sent. Technically, The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 23: Video

    That means that the screen is updated at a much slower pace than regular TV. As a result, SSTV is much more useful to transmit still images than moving images. Like the other forms of amateur The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 24: Hf Ssb Vs. Vhf/Uhf Radio Communication Systems

    Although the signals in the regions above 30 MHz can sometimes skip hundreds of miles, this sort of propagation is very irregular and cannot be relied upon. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 25: Coverage

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 26: Repeaters Required On Vhf/Uhf

    Your communications are of crucial importance, and a UHF/VHF system is only as strong as the weakest link. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 27: No Repeaters With Hf Ssb

    A correct code will turn on the transmitter and allow the repeater to relay the signals. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 28: Power

    Regardless, for any portable or mobile HF installation (marine, commercial, amateur, etc.), SGC always recommends that a separate battery (or several) be devoted to the radio system. This works to your advantage in several ways. If the radio needs more power, a second battery is in An 80 AH gel cell reserve.

  • Page 29: Cost

    Base Stations Available Portable Unit Available Repeater Required Tower Required High Elevation Desirable Repeater Building Needed The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 30 As you can see in this type of installation, HF SSB has a tremendous cost advantage over VHF/UHF alternatives, where long distances (over 12 miles) are involved. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 31: Hf Transceiver Specifications And Features

    CHAPTER 2 HF TRANSCEIVER SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 32: Hf Transceiver Specifications And Features

    The power output is the number of watts that the transmitting portion of the transceiver will send into an antenna. This figure differs considerably from the input power or the PEP power ratings of a transmitter. Typically, The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 33: Frequency Stability And Crystal Oven

    HF spectrum or when communicating over very long distances. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 34: Selectivity

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (206) 746-6310 Fax: (206) 746-6384...

  • Page 35: Duty Cycle

    SWR between the transmitter output and the antenna, and the voltages or current levels at various locations in the transmitter. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 36: Memories

    For example, the receiver will activate during "dots" and "dashes" of a Morse code transmission or between the words of an SSB transmission. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 37: Sidetone

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 38: Dsp In Hf Communications

    DSP processes the sound digitally. To do this, all of the sound from the receiver is converted into numbers, or bits. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 39: Speaker/Headphone/Record Outputs

    Presently, most DSP units for radio are stand-alone accessory boxes. Several companies, such as SGC, are pioneering the use of built-in DSP in transceivers. Presently, SGC has two ADSP (automatic digital signal processing) heads available for the SG-2000 and is developing proprietary technology trademarked ADSP™...

  • Page 40: Audio I/O Ports

    With the PTT transmitter function, you can push a button on the microphone and turn on the transmitter until you let go or unhook the switch. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 41: Vox (Voice Activated Transmitter)

    The squelch function is a headache preventer; it turns off the audio of the receiver until a signal with sufficient strength turns the audio on. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 42: Split-Frequency Operation

    Computer control could be important if the transceiver is part of a complicated communications network. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 43: Remote Control

    With the general-coverage receive feature, you can listen from (typically) 1600 to 30000 kHz (1.6 to 30 MHz) on a ham-bands only transceiver. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 44: Channel Operation

    This loss occurs because wire is not a perfect conductor of electricity. The longer the distance between a power supply and a radio, the greater the voltage drop will be. SGC does not recommend placing a power supply more than 25 feet from a radio. Keep the Power Supply...
  • Page 45 #6. At 2 feet, we recommend #8, but we use #6 because it's more in line with our practice of building tremendous margins into all SGC products. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 46: Ac (Mains) Power Supplies

    For load conditions. this reason, SGC recommends the PS-50 regulated power supply if high current demands (such as those encountered in operation of a transceiver) are expected.

  • Page 47: Mobile Power Supplies

    First, HF requires quite a bit of power when transmitting. Although you can use a single battery to power both the vehicle and the radio, SGC recommends that you install an additional battery in all cases where this is practical.

  • Page 48: Solar-Powered Chargers

    In amateur radio applications, modified bicycle battery chargers were a somewhat common novelty during the early years of consumer solar panels, in the mid to late 1970's. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 49: Hf Antennas, Feedlines And Grounds

    CHAPTER 3 HF ANTENNAS, FEEDLINES AND GROUNDS The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 50: Hf Antennas, Feedlines & Grounds

    Mobile operations require antennas that can be mounted on a moving vehicle. This rules out wire antennas. Mobile antennas are typically derivations of the whip vertical antennas, although some others have been used, depending on the vehicle used and the circumstances. SGC makes a full line of mobile high performance antennas, such as the SG-303.

  • Page 51: Marine

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 52: Aeronautical

    If a transmitter was sending a signal into one end of this antenna, most of the signal would be directed off of the end of the wire (away from the transmitter). The signal pattern from the end is not like an angle The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 53 (if you aim your antenna so that you can transmit to Europe, that antenna will also be best poised to receive signals from Europe). As you can see, the receiving characteristics of antennas are so The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 54 "hot" transceiver lead. Or the antennas could be left as unbalanced antennas. In this case, the ground lead from the transceiver would be connected to an excellent ground. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 55: Antenna Construction Basics

    The problems of having your antenna out of resonance are that it causes high SWR, which is covered further in one of the following sections. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 56: Antenna Types

    However, few people have the land to install antennas that cover several thousand feet in all directions. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 57: Vees And Rhombics

    These days, the inverted L has mostly been forgotten, but is one of the most efficient and highly recommended by SGC. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 58: The Quarter Wave Vertical

    CONNECTIO 4 WIRES FOR GROUNDING CONNECTED TO BASE OF RADIO ANTENNA ON NON-METAL ROOF COUPLER The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 59: The Vertical Whip

    However, the INSTALLATION dipole can be turned on its end and be The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 60: Beam And Yagi Antennas

    These antennas are very big, so they are generally used in fixed locations by broadcast and government stations that must beam a signal to a particular part of the world. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 61: Loop Antenna

    20 to 40 feet are available, but not much else. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 62: Quads

    As an example of operator creativity, I even heard of one case, where a tractor-trailer operator installed a dipole on stand-off insulators above the trailer. Marine vessels are often ideally suited for The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 63: Feedlines

    What must be matched is the impedance of any given system. The impedance is the proper operation. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 64 75 ohms. 50 to 75 ohms and make sure that the antenna is cut to the frequency of operations. The most The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 65 The safest way to choose good-quality coaxial cable is to pick a type that is made according to industrial or military specifications. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 66: Grounding Systems

    The great advantage to making your own ground system is that you know exactly what is there and generally you can isolate it from any polluted appliance or industrial grounds. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 67: Base Station Grounds

    Ground conductivity is simply the measure of how electrically conductive your soil is. Water and metals are all very conductive and salt improves conductivity. As a result, the best location (as far as a ground is The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 68: Field-Operation Grounds

    30 and 45 minutes 7M to 10M GROUND LEAD 1.5M MAX GROUND ROD (3M) BASE INSTALLATION The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384 © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 69: Mobile Grounds

    By the same token, you may attach a longwire to your existing mobile antenna. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 70: Sailboat And Powerboat Grounds

    Just attach the ground strap or a piece of copper foil (that is at least straight line. several inches wide) from the transceiver to the hull. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 71 SG – 230 COUPLER ANTENNA SG – 230 COUPLER SMALL BOAT WITH METAL FISH FISHING TOWER TOWER The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 72: Aircraft Grounds

    (where all of the radials connect to the copper ground pipe). If this connection goes, all of those buried ground radials are virtually useless. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 73: Chapter 4 Installation

    CHAPTER 4 INSTALLATION The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (206) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 74: Installation

    RADIO ANTENNA ISOLATOR COUPLER METAL POST BRACKET COUPLER CABLE GROUND RADIALS LONGER THAN ANTENNA LENGTH The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 75: Running Power Cables

    Also, the longer the power cables are, the better the chance that something could go wrong along the way (shorts, opens, etc.). SGC recommends that you use runs of less than 25 feet for your transceiver power cables; in any case, you should try to keep the cables as short as possible.

  • Page 76: Connecting And Connector Types

    SGC recommends using #6 gauge stranded Use #6 gauge stranded copper copper cable for power runs on 12-volt operation for the SG-2000. Some smaller gauges cable for power might work satisfactorily, but it's best to be safe and keep the installation as solid as runs on 12-volt possible--especially when it only involves a small additional cost for cable.

  • Page 77: Connecting The Remote Control

    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 JUNCTION BOX FOR ADDITIONAL CONTROL HEADS SINGLE CONTROL HEAD The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 78: Coupler

    Smartuner™ on an antenna tower and still rest at night, knowing that it is receiving the proper voltage. If the SG-230 is operating from a marine, aircraft, or mobile location, just attach the power cables to the battery of the The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 79: Connection To Rf Ground

    (area-wise) than your antenna. This will probably occur naturally with base stations, but it can often require quite a bit of work with mobile, marine, and airborne installations. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 80: Connection To Transceiver

    (a truck cab, a steel building, under a steel bridge, etc.) as possible. Otherwise, the signal from the antenna will be absorbed (to an extent) by the surrounding object and by the ground. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 81: The Coupler In A Harsh Environment

    Like most every aspect of HF communications, good operations generally require some materials, some work, and a great deal of creative technical designing. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 82: Location

    The best POOR ANTENNA LOCATION WRONG VEHICULAR POOR POOR INSTALLATION ANTENNA ANTENNA LOCATION LOCATION The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 83: Feedlines

    (as compared to the operating frequency of the antenna) run this way. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 84: Harsh Environments

    Because most antennas are located outdoors, they will be subjected to harsh weather. All solder You don't have to worry about this if you are using SGC antennas because they are built to connections should last in harsh environments. If you are building your own antennas, be sure to use strong...

  • Page 85: Man-Made Interference

    HF radio. The last form of vehicular HF interference occurs when driving; the tires roll on the pavement (both nonconductors) at high speeds and build up static electricity. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 86: Noise Remedies At The Transceiver

    As a result, although the received signals are at a lower level, the interference is also greatly reduced. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 87: Change Of Frequency

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 88: Bonding

    Automobile static buildup can also be bled-off by attaching an automotive ground strap to the car frame and having it drag along the pavement. Almost any auto parts store will have these ground straps. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 89: Shielding

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 90: Power Concepts

    SWR and through the feedline. The forward power can be measured with a wattmeter. from the antenna. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 91: Reflected Power

    To measure this voltage, you must use a field-strength meter. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 92: Frequency

    Dummy loads for typical amateur powers (under 500 watts) are relatively inexpensive and are readily available. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 93 2182 kHz). SGC recommends that you build the light-bulb dummy load with the following parts (although I have made one with an old light fixture and a makeshift version with just alligator clip leads and a light bulb):...

  • Page 94: Radio Test Procedure

    12. Key the PTT switch on the microphone and talk into the microphone. Notice that the light bulb comes on when you talk. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 95: Coupler Test Procedure

    SWR meter, it will automatically show the SWR. If the SWR meter is in a separate unit or is contained in an antenna tuner, you might need to tweak a few knobs or settings to get the accurate SWR. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 96: Field Strength Meter

    As a result, some newer receivers use a more linear system of LEDs or LCDs to show the signal rating (usually 0 to 10). The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 97: Chapter 5 Amateur Radio

    CHAPTER 5 AMATEUR RADIO The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 98: Amateur Radio

    American Radio Relay League, 225 Main St. Newington, CT 06111. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 99: Amateur Operations

    For more information on amateur radio operations, see The ARRL Operating Manual, which is a massive tome that covers most every aspect of amateur radio operations. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 100: Commercial Licensing

    No examination is required to obtain this license. This operator's permit does not authorize adjustments to the transmitter, and all tuning adjustments to any The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 101: Station Licenses

    A General Class Radiotelephone License is required to make adjustments or repairs on any equipment used in the commercial service. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 102 NOTES The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 103: Chapter 6 Marine Operations

    CHAPTER 6 MARINE OPERATIONS The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 104: Marine Operations

    Most ship-to-shore channels are set-up for duplex communications: you operate on one frequency and the shore station operates on a different frequency. Because you can only hear one side of the channel, wait to The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 105: Telephone Calls

    Further, this exchange of words is required by international radio treaty and FCC rules. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 106 When signing off, name the other boat, your boat and call sign, then "out." Enter all communications in the radio logbook. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 107: Ship-To-Ship Calls

    Give the Coast Guard time to respond, but if you hear no reply to the Mayday, Pan, or Security call, you are responsible to answer the craft. Use your own radio to relay the The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 108 45 seconds. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 109: Sgc's Vision Of Smart Products

    CHAPTER 7 SGC'S VISION OF SMART PRODUCTS The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 110: The History Of Sgc

    THE HISTORY OF SGC Let's begin with a brief history of the Company. SGC was formed about 25 years ago by Don Stoner and Pierre Goral. Both of these men brought extensive experience in design and construction of radio equipment. Don was known for his many publications in the field of ham radio and Pierre had become something of a legend in South America and the leading expert in getting top performance out of HF systems.

  • Page 111: Sgc Product Line

    THE SGC VISION OF HF SGC views that HF offers many attributes which no other system now available will ever be able to provide. HF continues to be the premier way to get radio traffic moved quickly with high information density on a reliable basis without relying on vulnerable systems such as satellites and repeaters.

  • Page 112: Marketing Plans

    SGC states that this is simply not the case. In any communications use, the receiver still needs to be sensitive, the power output clean and reliable and the stability, IF filter slopes and other specifications need to be tight. So why are other people trying to sell you three radios instead of one? SGC's philosophy is to design, manufacture and sell communications products with all markets in mind.

  • Page 113: The Export Picture

    Such philosophies as designing in a 10 conductor control cable between our radios and remote heads rather than a fiber optic cable is one example. SGC has learned that while fiber optics are an excellent material, they are not easily repairable in the middle of the desert or ocean.

  • Page 114: The Sg-2000 Hf Transceiver

    Smartuner™ and SG-303 antenna just crossed the North Atlantic on a paddle powered boat, which put Dwight Collins and I guess SGC into the record books for the longest paddle powered expedition ever. So let's turn to the radio itself: It has the largest Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) which you will find anywhere.
  • Page 115 The control heads are on their own local area network. This was done to keep things organized and to insure that we would have a platform which would meet future expansion requirements and which would provide good The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 116 You can change bands while the unit is scanning in the frequency mode by first recalling a channel (a frequency of a certain band). Cross band operation is also supported. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 117: The Sg-2000: A New Style Of Operation

    The .5 KHz step rate will give you 6 chances to hear something on each 3 KHz voice channel. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 118: Sgc Sg-2000 Powertalk Tm

    * Separate control head makes upgrade from SG-2000 to SG-2000 PowerTalk™ simple and much less expensive The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 119: Adsp Tm Noise Reduction

    Bandpass center frequency can be adjusted in 100Hz steps adjusted in 100Hz steps. With low and High filter The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 120: Sns Tm Noise Reduction

    (along with six other favorite filter settings). With a push of a button, you can immediately have the SG-2000 PowerTalk™ in your favorite filter position. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 121: Pre-Programmed Filter Settings

    The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 122: Simple Design Of Front-Panel Controls

    You get everything in a package that you can take anywhere. TESTED FOR HIGH QUALITY No other transceivers advertise their testing procedures but at SGC, we're proud of our commitment to quality assurance. So, after it has been manufactured in the United States using high-quality components, every SG-2000 is factory aligned.

  • Page 123: Sg-2000 Features And Benefits

    The front panel is fully programmable for all HF SSB and ham frequencies and can be used to program other SGC control heads. Because the head is removable from the body of the radio, more graceful installations are also possible.
  • Page 124 Special order remote heads are also available from SGC. These heads are designed for special applications, depending on the user application. For information on our GMDSS and ALE remote heads, speak with the SGC sales team. Complete telephone control of the radio is accomplished easily by phone lines and this is still another migration path which is open as user requirements change.

  • Page 125: Qms Tm (Quick Mount System)

    First is that the radio is supplied with the control head attached (with the exception of the SG-2000sp Slimpak). The cheapest way to get the head off is to order the 16 foot extension kit with a "U" bracket (SGC Part Number 04- 12).
  • Page 126 INSTALLED BUCKLE INSIDE QMS ENCLOSURE SUCTION QMS ANTENNA CUPS (4) TUNER SYSTEM FOR YOUR SSB The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 127 Also, a coupler in the trunk is more subject to vehicle noise. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 128 4 BELTS MUST BE TIGHTENED UNTIL FULL COMPRESSION OF THE SUCTION CUPS IS ACHIEVED SUCTION RELEASE The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 129: Qms Features And Benefits

    The QMS may be removed and stored in 5 minutes or less, quickly hiding the fact that there is an HF radio in the vehicle. This quick removal feature is really useful when you are operating in contested frontier areas - or if The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 130: Smartuner Tm

    But if you've ever put up such an antenna, you know that you will invariably spend hours trimming the antenna to get a good 50 ohm match. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.
  • Page 131 Realize when you look at the capabilities of the SG-230 Smartuner™ that you are really seeing one of the major building blocks of the "Smart Radios™" concept at SGC. The process of properly setting up an antenna coupler manually involves hours of trial and error to get the kind of results that this system gets instantly. As a radio professional, if someone said that they would give you a manual coupler and your job was to set it up to get better than 2 to 1 SWR from 1.8 to 30 MHz with no holes anywhere, we think you'd agree that would take hours if...
  • Page 132 (less than 50 ohms) and the loss which may be expected from the conversion next time. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 133: Sg-230 Features And Benefits

    Sight impaired amateurs give us constant compliments on the ease of use. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 134 LOOP BACKSTAY ISOLATOR ISOLATOR GROUND CONNECTION GROUND CONNECTION LOWER MAST CONNECTION TO COUPLER RF GROUND The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 135: Sg-303, Sg-103 And Sg-104 Antenna Systems

    SGC product. This is also a case of “you get what you pay for.” To begin with, the antenna is a dual element design. The inner core of the 303 is a The SG-303 is large diameter fiberglass rod.

  • Page 136: Features And Benfits

    The elements of the antenna are larger compared to what other manufacturers are using and for this reason, transmission losses are kept to a minimum. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 137: Smart Powercube Tm

    The SG-500 fits into service in fixed, mobile and marine The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 138: Smart Powercube Tm Benefits & Features

    We do a lot of things besides the products which are highlighted here: some of them are very interesting and worth knowing about from a purely awareness standpoint. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 139: Prc-2250 Mil

    SG-715 for your next expedition to the North Pole, as did the National Geographic Expedition. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 140: Sg-1000-1 Linear Amplifier

    2 weeks. The power supply will put out 28 volts at 80 amps continuously from now until you run out of electricity. The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc.

  • Page 141: Features/Benefits Of Sg-2000

    BENEFIT: Control from anywhere BENEFIT: Appearance/flexibility FEATURE Complete telephone control BENEFIT: Install remote control easily using telephone lines The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 142: Qms Features And Benefits

    FEATURE Strong Strapping/Suction cups BENEFIT: Rugged installation FEATURE Foolproof installation BENEFIT: Best signal possible The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 143: Sg-230 Features & Benefits

    Wide impedance range BENEFIT: Wide choice of antennas FEATURE Waterproof BENEFIT: Great for marine systems The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...

  • Page 144: Sg-303 Features & Benefits

    Big elements BENEFIT: Lowest loss all frequency antenna made FEATURE Matches SG-230 BENEFIT: Tunes without intervention The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 145 CHAPTER 8 GLOSSARY AND GENERAL ELECTRONIC AND HF SSB ABBREVIATIONS The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 146 AMTOR........amateur radio equivalent of SITOR with slightly different standards ATTN...........attenuator which reduces a received signal ADSP™........Adaptive Digital Signal Processing; exclusive to SGC, a DSP technology which .............processes the signal to eliminate unwanted noise and improve incoming signal AM ..........amplitude modulation, low efficiency type of radio transmission generally used .............for broadcast AM radio station bands with 100% carrier inserted...
  • Page 147 PCB ..........printed circuit board PTT..........push to talk PEP ..........peak envelope power; commonly a power output rating The SGC Building, 13737 S.E. 26th St. Bellevue, Washington 98005 USA © 1997 SGC Inc. P.O. Box 3526, 98009 Tel: (425) 746-6310 Fax: (425) 746-6384...
  • Page 148 .............times before returning to earth SYNTHESIZER ......the device that produces and controls frequencies through synthetic results SNS™..........exclusive to SGC; spectral noise subtraction; works with DSP in signal processing .............to improve incoming signals TELEX ........a commercial service involving teletypewriters connected through automatic .............exchange;...

  • Page 149: Sgc Ideas And Opportunities

    Technicians Technical Writers Marketing and Sales In addition, SGC is always searching for innovative ideas to further the market of HF communications. Please forward your comments and ideas in any of the following areas: DSP (Digital Signal Processing) Data Communications...
  • Page 150 A wide range of accessories are available. When you need HF communications, please call or fax SGC for a quotation. Our toll free telephone number in the USA is: 1-800-259-7331. Outside the USA, call (425) 746-6310 or use the convenient fax form below.

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