VHF Contest

Philip KA4KOE

I stumbled upon the 6m portion of the VHF contest this weekend whilst tuning around. Pulled out my trusty Vibroplex Paddle and started up on the CW portion. I don't understand the complaints about directly keyed CW on this rig. I'm no slouch at CW either; I can zip along at 25 wpm no problemo. The CW works well. I gave out EM91 (relatively rare grid) to a bunch of folks. I'm not normally a contest participant (other than Field Day).

I can see where operating via a network connection would cause lag issues that some have noted, but that is not a problem at my setup.

I think the Signature Series is a mature product that is continually under improvement. Rabid detractors will never be convinced otherwise.

Looking forward to my Maestro!

FEELEEP

Steve W6SDM

Phillip, I agree.  I operate routinely at 25 WPM and have never had a problem.  If it's there, I don't hear it.  I operate straight off the rig running a Bencher paddle.

I am probably missing a few dits here and there but not on my Flex.

Ken - NM9P

It just occurred to me.....When comparing CW timing and accuracy issues, it would probably be helpful for those with timing issues to report their CW setup parameters, I.e. Are they using iambic A or B? What FSK and tx delay settings are set, are they using a single antenna port, or using o e antenna for transmit and a different port for receive? Are they using the software Winkeyer, or the maestro internal Winkeyer. These parameters, in addition to which rig is involved, may help FRS sort out any additional timing issues that may remain.

Duane_AC5AA

Using both the internal keyer and CWX, running full QSK, I've NEVER had a problem with CW in my 6500. I've owned it for 2 years, starting with SSDR 1.3, I think, and it has been flawless. I typically run 25 - 35 WPM.

km9r.mike

The Flex SS line is a cw powerhouse. I use mine weekly in the thurs night NCCC cw sprints and it has been nothing but solid as a rock.