Final Changes To The Shack!

[Sonic1131]

Looks great !

 

[N1SQB]

Love the shack Manny! I have a couple comments and suggestions:

1) Consider a ground plane for the antennas. This should help, although you say your reception is fine without it. Consider a cut steel sheet to for the top of the unit with NMO hole mounts for the antennas. This way you only need a single ground for the whole antenna farm.

2) It is kind of hard to tell from the photo but I assume the radios are set on shelves and not rack-mounted. Have you tried comparing the audio of the scanner directly with it's included speaker vs. the external one? I wonder if the wood shelf makes an effective sounding board with such a tight fit. I wonder also if it would sound better with the internal speaker if the radio was hanging from the top of the within the cubby.

3) Did you install carrier activated lights on these radios? Kind of hard to tell from the photo. I have them on many of my scanners (based on your design) and will be outfitting the rest of mine soon.

4) It looks like you have a switching power supply on the lower left. Have you had any issues with hash from that? I have switching supplies on my set up and no problems have arisen but I have heard others complain about it.

5) What is that device just to the right of the mouse, left of the little portable SW radio, under the IC7000 external monitor?

6) Look at the newer sealed acid or gel batteries and an automatic transfer switch. They are OK to use inside and do not have the fume issue of car batteries. One or two of these should run your radios in RX mode for a day or two.

I will certainly be borrowing some of your design features for my shack when we move to our new home in a year or two!

Hi Rich!

Wow!, I have some writing to do now! LOL..Lets see if I can answer all the questions in order!

1). I like the groundplane idea. I thought about doing it, but got too wrapped up in the building of the desk and all the other wiring and things things associated with this crazy install.Now that it's all done, I will tackle this idea.

2). The radios ARE set on shelves. I tried the scanner audio both with and without the external speakers. The audio still seemed weak, muffled and low and I felt it was best to use external speakers. I even tried simulating a mounted position, but the audio results remained the same.The difference is more evident in the civil / mil air bands in AM mode. Either way, the cabinet was designed for the radios to be mounted. I use rubber feet on the bottom to keep the radios stable. Works really well and it's easier for me if I have to remove the radio for some reason.

3). I have NOT installed COI lights on any of these radios, YET. I've been on the fence about it mainly because of the tight space in these models. It's getting to the point where it may not be an option anymore. Once you get past 3 scanners on at one time, it tends to get hectic.

4).My Alinco DM-330MV 32Amp switching power supply is the workhorse of the shack. No noise issues, no electrical interference issues in the shack, nothing. Sometimes, I shut the radios down manually and just sit here on my PC. I forget to turn the power supply off, and because it runs so quiet I forget it's on.

5). The device you are refering to is my DSL router! LOL...

6). I've been doing some searching around for some batteries for the shack. Gel batteries look like the way to go for sure. It's on the to-do list for the shack.

Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I really do appreciate them.

73

Manny