Re: [IRCA] Reviewing SDR DX

[Nick Hall-Patch <nhp@xxxxxxxx>]

You probably already have a feel for what the band sounds like 
normally already Les, at least on winter's evening, or around 
sunrise.   What was your technique when you used to tune around of an 
evening?   Did you bail out quickly if the band sounded 
"normal"?   And was that based on a few frequencies that were 
unstable (for want of a better word)?  If conditions were northerly, 
you might hear Canada there, but normally you wouldn't, for 
example.   And if you did, you might spend more time that evening 
looking  for other northerly signals if that's what you were interested in.

Perhaps that's the way forward with overnight recordings as well, but 
it may take a little while to determine what sounds "normal" at those 
times.   Usually, you'd check a few bellweather frequencies, and if 
they sounded unusual, you would concentrate on that recording, while 
tossing the others out.  A thought anyway.

I concentrate on overseas signals myself because they are 
self-limiting, even on the west coast.   Much of the time, conditions 
don't justify more than a cursory listen, so SDR recordings don't 
last very long.  About 60GBytes hits the bin every evening here.  But 
there have been a few very nice pieces of DX captured in the process 
this season.

best wishes,

Nick


At 17:02 11-01-14, you wrote:
> I'm curious to hear how other DX'ers tackle "data management" when 
> it comes to the use of I/Q recordings from SDR receivers. My SDR-IQ 
> allows me to record 192 KHz of bandwidth, and using HDSDR software, 
> I've started recording TOH periods overnight. I record about four 
> minutes per hour, starting at local sunset and continuing through sunrise.
>
> This provides a total of 19 MW channels to be reviewed per hour, 
> Recording for 4 minutes over a ten hour period, leaves me with 760 
> minutes of data to be reviewed daily. Some channels are nearly 
> impossible to find new ones on, so these can be reviewed quickly, 
> checking only for unusual conditions. But it's still a massive amount of data.
>
> Since starting this just a few days ago, I've already deleted days 
> of recordings, unchecked, simply because there is no practical way 
> to review it all. Perseus owners would have an even bigger issue, 
> due to the much wider bandwidth that can be recorded. The entire AM 
> band for instance!
>
> What strategies have other DX'ers found successful for managing the 
> data? I've considered recording just the sunrise/sunset periods, or 
> waiting for a night with unusual conditions to record TOH ID periods 
> only, or even simply recording for a week in mid-winter, then taking 
> my sweet time to review them during the summer.
>
>
>
>
> --
> --
> 73,
>
> Les Rayburn, N1LF
> 121 Mayfair Park
> Maylene, AL 35114
> EM63nf
>
> 6M VUCC #1712
> AMSAT #38965
> Grid Bandits #222
> Southeastern VHF Society
> Central States VHF Society Life Member
> Six Club #2484
>
> Active on 6 Meters thru 1296, 10GHz & Light
>
> _______________________________________________
> IRCA mailing list
> IRCA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> http://montreal.kotalampi.com/mailman/listinfo/irca
>
> Opinions expressed in messages on this mailing list are those of the 
> original contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of 
> the IRCA, its editors, publishing staff, or officers
>
> For more information: http://www.ircaonline.org
>
> To Post a message: irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


_______________________________________________
IRCA mailing list
IRCA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
http://montreal.kotalampi.com/mailman/listinfo/irca

Opinions expressed in messages on this mailing list are those of the original contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the IRCA, its editors, publishing staff, or officers

For more information: http://www.ircaonline.org

To Post a message: irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx