oceans777
Listener
After a year running the PAR EF/SWL as a sloper in default configuration (#1 and #2 posts shorted together on the network box) with no ground at the box (I have a coax ground at the house near the receivers) I finally grounded the #2 post over the weekend.
I had great reception before but below 4-5 MHz was awful until very late night or early AM. Lots of nasty RF, spikes, crashing from the house and neighborhood across the bands, (ATT Uverse DVR boxes alone plagued 11 MHz unless unplugged.) 80 meters was just a noisy mess. 20 meters often had spurs every 20-40 kHz, didn't realize how bad it was.
I tested grounding the #1 post first ((SO-239 shield) with the jumper still connected to 1 & 2. Some improvement, better than it was. Then I grounded #2 (ground lead of the antenna side of the 9:1 transformer) with the short jumper removed - what a huge improvement for my area.
Easily picking up weak signals now on 80 meters and monitored through noon with no problem. Never been able to do that except on the Welbrook Loop and not with the reach/reception of the PAR. The entire HF SWL is dramatically quieter, all of the nasty stuff is gone and anything remaining is so much quieter through 25 MHz.
I reconnected the short jumper to 1&2 with #2 still grounded, and much of the noise came right back especially below 5 MHz. I think it was getting into the antenna on the outer of the coax. Never saw any real difference grounding receivers but I'll sure be grounding the other PAR antenna this week.
Just passing it along and hope it's useful for other PAR/LNR Precision HF SWL antenna operators.
I had great reception before but below 4-5 MHz was awful until very late night or early AM. Lots of nasty RF, spikes, crashing from the house and neighborhood across the bands, (ATT Uverse DVR boxes alone plagued 11 MHz unless unplugged.) 80 meters was just a noisy mess. 20 meters often had spurs every 20-40 kHz, didn't realize how bad it was.
I tested grounding the #1 post first ((SO-239 shield) with the jumper still connected to 1 & 2. Some improvement, better than it was. Then I grounded #2 (ground lead of the antenna side of the 9:1 transformer) with the short jumper removed - what a huge improvement for my area.
Easily picking up weak signals now on 80 meters and monitored through noon with no problem. Never been able to do that except on the Welbrook Loop and not with the reach/reception of the PAR. The entire HF SWL is dramatically quieter, all of the nasty stuff is gone and anything remaining is so much quieter through 25 MHz.
I reconnected the short jumper to 1&2 with #2 still grounded, and much of the noise came right back especially below 5 MHz. I think it was getting into the antenna on the outer of the coax. Never saw any real difference grounding receivers but I'll sure be grounding the other PAR antenna this week.
Just passing it along and hope it's useful for other PAR/LNR Precision HF SWL antenna operators.
Last edited: