Thou
Thoughts on setting up a Contest Station
by
Terry Burkholder N4TB 07/2007
Setting up a station for efficient contest operation requires some though, planning and a lot of work not to mention the cost of the equipment. Ergonomics becomes a big factor when you will be sitting in front of the radio for hours at a time. Here are a few things I have found over the years that have helped not only to reduce operator fatigue but to insure the station will operate for the full contest period without failure.
First lets talk about the operator. Having a comfortable chair set at the proper height reduces fatigue. The top of the operating desk or table should be at or close to 30 inches above the floor. The chair should be adjusted so that your feet can be flat on the floor without having the chair put pressure on the back of your legs. Most of the “executive” chairs that have arm rests will not fit under a desk so you can not get close enough to the desk without lowering the chair to an uncomfortable height. I have found that s secretary chair works much better. You can get the height adjusted properly and get close enough to the computer, display, keyboard and radio(s) without stretching your arms. A trip to your local office supply store to spend some time trying chairs at a desk is an excellent way to check the chair you have or find a comfortable chair.
The location of your computer monitor and keyboard are key to the ease of operation of your station. I have found that a mini keyboard works much better for contesting. It takes up much less room on the operating table. Slide out keyboard trays under the table are popular but unless you are a touch typist and do not have to look at the keyboard they can be very tiresome for long hours of operating. My typing has progressed over the years and I can now use three or fingers but I must look at the keyboard. Therefore I want the keyboard directly in front of the monitor. With the keyboard in a tray under the desk you are constantly having to move you arm from the keyboard to the tuning knob on the radio. With the keyboard on the desk in front of the monitor and the radio just to the right or left of the keyboard arm motion is greatly reduced. The monitor should be directly in front of you . Having to sit for hours with your head cocked to one side or the other to see the monitor will make contesting a painful chore. Once you become familiar with your logging program you will find that you seldom look at the radio. If you wear bifocals, as I do, I found it very uncomfortable on my neck to have to keep tilting my head back to see the monitor. First I measured the distance from my eyes to the monitor screen when I was seated at the radio. Then I went to my local drug store and purchased a pair of full frame reading glasses I held a type written page at the same distance form my eyes as I was sitting at the monitor and selected reading glasses that brought the image in clear. This solved the problem of tilting my head back constantly to see the monitor screen through my bifocal lenses.
Next is the location of the radio. I use the paddle with my right hand so I want the radio on my left so I can use my left hand to tune the radio. Many of the newer radios have a remote tuning knob as an accessory. I strongly recommend getting one for contest operation if it is available for your radio. I have one for my Omni VI+ and it sits just to the left of my keyboard with my paddle on the right. The remote knob is connected to the second radio so I never have to tune with my right hand. Unless I want to change filters I never have to touch the second radio.
The mini keyboard with the well worn Ten Tec Remote tuning knob to the left and Schurr padle to the right. The audio switching box is behind the left corner of the keyboard.
Computer/Radio interface – All of the major contest logging programs will interface with a great number of radios. When a new radio arrives on the market most software packages are updated to support the new radio. Having your radio connected to the logging program is a must for any serious contesting. It also makes even casual operation much more enjoyable. The setup is as simple as plugging a cable into your radio and computer and then FOLLOWING directions in both your radio operators manual AND the logging software setup menu. The interface parameters between the radio and computer must be set to the “EXACT” requirements. “That's close enough” will not work! Once you have the radio/computer interface set up and working the band/mode data will used by the logging program so changing bands on the radio and forgetting to change bands in the log becomes a thing of the past. If you have difficulty in getting your radio/computer interface working there are support groups for most of the software programs that will be able to help or a local contester may be able to help you through the process.
Once you have the radio/computer interface set up and working the only time you will need to touch your radio will be for tuning, and that can be done on the keyboard also if you wish!
Contesting with a good logging program is a real pleasure compared to contesting with paper logs and dupe sheets. No more log entries on the wrong band, working dupes or forgetting to log a station. The best part is that within minutes after the end of a contest your logs are ready to be submitted to the contest sponsor. Even if you are not a serious competitor having a logging program interfaced to your radio will make any amount of time you spend on the air more enjoyable.
Radio – Any of the good quality radios should work well for contesting. Narrow filters for CW and SSB plus a good roofing filter will help. If you are working CW I find that a 500 cps filter is excellent for most operation. When you are “running” many folks will not be zero beat and if you are using a narrow filter you will miss a lot of calls. For “S&P” you can us a very narrow filter. Of all the filters on the market the best one is the one you have between your ears, learn to use it!
Antennas – Single band antennas are by far the ultimate for a contest station. However not many of us have the luxury of single band or stacked antennas for 20 through 10 meters. An antenna tuner in a contest station is a negative for rapid band switching. Moving a station to another band to pick up a multiplier can really boost your score and usually takes only a few seconds if the DX operator is willing to move. Antenna switching can also be done from your radio using a band decoder or from some of the logging programs. Automatic selection of the proper antenna can be a real advantage in a contest and well as preventing damage to equipment.
Amplifiers – The most impotent thing to prevent your amplifier from failing during a contest is to have proper ventilation. It should be placed where there are no obstructions for intake or exhaust cooling air. In addition I aways add a couple additional muffin fans to remove the hot air from the amplifier. It is also wise to reduce your power a bit so the amplifier is not running at its maximum limits. Having an amplifier that is designed from “continuous” operation is a plus. If the power supply for the amplifier is remotely located be sure it has adequate cooling also. The ideal amplifier for contesting is a “no tune” amplifier so that you do not have to worry about tuning the amp when you change bands. An alternative, for those of us who are not fortunate to have a no tune amp is to keep a small card with setting recorded for each band. The amp can be preset and only a minor tweek is required to insure the amp is properly tuned. One innovative approach is to use small strips of colored tape on the bandswitch, tune and load controls, one color for each band at the proper setting for that band. Then all you have to do is to match the colors to get the preset values.
Headphones – Most of your contesting will be done using headphones. The new noise canceling phones seem to work very well. I have a pair of Koss QZ Pro phones that eliminate fan noise and other background noises and allow you to concentrate on the received signal. The background noise can become very tiring after several hours in front of the radio. For contests using a single radio I use an old set of Telex phones that are very light and comfortable. Unfortunately they are not stereo phones and will not work when using a SO2R setup. Whatever you choose they should be light and comfortable. I also find it helpful to have several sets of headphones so you can switch during a contest to prevent headache or ear ache from the pressure of the phones.
The bottom line is to set up your equipment so it is easy to operate and you are comfortable. You do not need the most expensive radios to have fun contesting. One of the great things about contesting is that you do not have to operate the full 24 or 48 hours of the contest period to have a great time. You can compete at a level that you establish.