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AR8000 operating manual

110

Coaxial cables

When constructing dipole aerials or connecting VHF aerials 50 OHM coaxial
cable should be used.  For shortwave or short runs of VHF URM43, URM76
or RG58U is ideal,  for longer runs of VHF-UHF feeder it may be worth
considering a heavier URM67 or RG213 (or better!).

ATU & preselectors

Aerial tuning units (ATU) may improve the shortwave section of a wide
range receiver by rejecting unwanted signals and only allowing a specific band
of frequencies through.  These ATUs are normally constructed in small boxes
with about 3 controls on the front. The disadvantage is the need to constantly
retune the ATU when changing frequency. An ATU of this nature is “passive”,
this means that no power is required to operate the ATU and no extra
circuit-noise is introduced into the receiver.

Loop Aerials

Short wave desktop loop aerials have the advantage of small
size (such as the AOR LA320).  They too have tuning controls
to reject unwanted signals.  As the loop is within easy reach of
the operator it can be rotated to provide directivity.  They can
be particularly useful for DX’ing the lower bands.

Generally speaking they offer excellent portability but cannot compare on the
higher bands with a well sighted long wire aerial.

Active aerials

Active aerials are normally quite compact (AOR WA7000)
and combine a wide coverage aerial (30 kHz - 2 GHz) with
a preamplifier mounted within the aerial its-self.  They
require power to enable them to operate.  Not all designs
allow you to switch the preamplifier off although some have
a gain control.

As with loop aerials they tend to provide good results on the lower bands when
compared to poorly sighted short’ish wire aerials.  Overload can be a problem
on the busy 7 and 9 MHz bands.  If you have a small garden space,  an active
aerial may be worth considering.

Discone

For wide coverage in the VHF-UHF bands a compromise has
to be met and the most popular aerial is a discone (AOR
DA3000). Their appearance is like a large spider or umbrella
without the covering material, the better models have about 16
elements.

Содержание AR8000

Страница 1: ...repair Although carefully designed this receiver like all receivers suffers from a degree of internal noises known as spurii They are a product of the receiver s circuitry and do not represent a fault...

Страница 2: ...EL 12 5 1 Aerial antenna input 12 5 2 Earphone connection 13 5 3 DIAL tuning control selector 13 5 4 Squelch control 13 5 5 Power On Off volume control 14 FRONT PANEL 15 5 6 Liquid Crystal Display LCD...

Страница 3: ...of banks 57 9 1 When the password is first used 57 9 2 Password access to banks 58 9 3 Disabling password protection 58 9 4 If you forget your password 59 10 SCANNING 59 10 1 Outline introduction to...

Страница 4: ...al search 93 14 7 Deleting all pass frequencies from a bank 94 15 Auto store 95 15 1 Auto store in newuser status 95 15 2 Auto store in expert status 97 16 Power save 97 16 1 Changing power save param...

Страница 5: ...rage of 500kHz to 1900MHz without gaps in the range actual acceptable frequency input from 100kHz Step size is programmable in multiples of 50Hz for smooth tuning The all mode reception provides AM US...

Страница 6: ...ope When entering data into the receiver such as frequency the AR8000 display provides helpful text prompts to ease operation Band Scope In VFO mode the AR8000 can check adjacent channels for activity...

Страница 7: ...000 will search and scan at a very respectable and fast maximum speed of approximately 30 increments per second In addition there are 20 programmable search banks 10 of these banks are preprogrammed d...

Страница 8: ...tions 4 1 Location Do not use or leave the receiver in direct sunlight especially the LCD It is best to avoid locations where excessive heat humidity dust and vibration are expected Always treat the r...

Страница 9: ...0 The second has two bared wires ready for connection to a standard 3 pin mains plug A 3 Ampere fuse should be used in the plug and the cable is colour coded as follows Brown Live Blue Neutral The AR8...

Страница 10: ...he NiCads in a flat condition Although you may charge the NiCads in order to top up their capacity if you have only used the set for an hour or two the NiCads should be cycled at least once per month...

Страница 11: ...l there will be a greater chance of signal overload and breakthrough While this will not damage the receiver in average use it may degrade the receive performance due to the effects of signal mixing V...

Страница 12: ...y offers a small level of gain with the advantage of selectivity similar to an ATU For further information please refer to sections 22 23 of this manual regarding aerial and earth systems 5 Controls a...

Страница 13: ...ce Rotate the control clockwise until the background noise just disappears threshold this is the most sensitive setting of the control In practice the control is usually rotated a little further clock...

Страница 14: ...y be displayed by holding the 0 key while switching the receiver On until the sign on welcome message has ended To remove the test pattern simply switch the receiver Off On The dot matrix display prov...

Страница 15: ...AR8000 operating manual 15...

Страница 16: ...active busy frequency press FUNC 2VFO to transfer the busy frequency to the active top VFO and revert to VFO mode SCAN M R scan memory recall key When pressed the first time initiates memory recall t...

Страница 17: ...e of the LCD indicates whether the active VFO squelch is open using the legend S to the right is the signal strength presented as a vertical bar graph The stronger the signal then the larger the graph...

Страница 18: ...ct menu options under certain circumstances The key may also be used to backspace delete incorrect frequency entry during the input sequence via the numeric keypad It may also be using in conjunction...

Страница 19: ...een activated If the sequence FUNC then hold 4 for more than one second is keyed the SET PRI CH set priority channel sub menu is activated The priority channel may be chosen which bank number with sam...

Страница 20: ...tivated to check for adjacent channel occupancy This bar graph spectrum display uses the whole eleven horizontal positions of the third line of the LCD five channels either side of the centre frequenc...

Страница 21: ...Y appears on the LCD If EXPERT status has not been selected then a smaller number of options are available Note The RS232C REMOTE control optional interface CU 8232 and lead will be required to connec...

Страница 22: ...banks frequency pass data etc will be lost LOCAL CONF LOCAL REMOTE Configuration new user expert While the AR8000 is under computer control via the remote RS232C connector pressing the LOCAL key temp...

Страница 23: ...the moment it is operated In Search mode When the search process stops on an unwanted busy channel noise etc press the PASS key to register the frequency as a PASS lock out frequency Any subsequent se...

Страница 24: ...d hold the ENT key to add the currently displayed frequency into memory through a small menu While in SEARCH mode and stopped on a busy channel press the ENT key to cancel search and remain on the cur...

Страница 25: ...AR8000 operating manual 25...

Страница 26: ...second timer will count from the last key press this eliminates any requirement to rush data input The five second illumination may be cancelled by pressing LAMP a second time It is possible to switch...

Страница 27: ...TLY TO THE MAINS SUPPLY The DC socket is used to charge the internal NiCad batteries using the charger provided The receiver may also be connected to an external 12V DC supply for powering away from h...

Страница 28: ...and motor switching 5 15 BATTERY compartment Inside the battery compartment is a cradle designed to accept 4 x UM 3 AA size batteries Carefully note the polarity of the cells which way around they fit...

Страница 29: ...AR8000 operating manual 29...

Страница 30: ...emory backup Should the NiCad or dry batteries if in use cells become completely exhausted the last stored memory channel or last VFO data may be lost CURSOR The CURSOR may apparently go to sleep at t...

Страница 31: ...ed from the factory Two parameters NEWUSER EXPERT and FUNC 2ndF greatly affect the way in which the AR8000 microprocessor operates so careful setting is required This procedure may be skipped should y...

Страница 32: ...WUSER new user and EXPERT The default as shipped from the factory is NEWUSER NEWUSER In NEWUSER mode some facilities are not available or have been simplified The AR8000 assumes defaults where some de...

Страница 33: ...FO is generally referred to as manual mode Press the 2VFO key so the A appears on the left hand side of the second line of LCD This indicates that VFO A is the active VFO This condition is referred to...

Страница 34: ...put press CLEAR before completing the input sequence with ENT If an attempt is made to enter an out of range or invalid frequency such as 1929 MHz or 0 09 MHz the second line of the LCD momentarily di...

Страница 35: ...pletion of entry by the ENT key Example of frequency data correction while keying 433 250 MHz Press 4 3 3 2 then assume 7 by mistake Press UP and the number 7 clears from the LCD Press 5 ENT to finali...

Страница 36: ...uning will stop when the key is released 6 8 Changing frequency using the DIAL tuning control While in VFO mode the active VFO frequency may be tuned in a similar way to a domestic receiver or other s...

Страница 37: ...ng of step size may be manually overridden so you may choose alternative settings at will or when bandplans are updated Should you wish to change the default step size press FUNC 2 The third line of t...

Страница 38: ...is currently being used A hash symbol to the left of the mode indicates the current setting The right arrow symbol indicates the new mode choice which is altered by using the DIAL control on the top p...

Страница 39: ...lso European VHF utility services sometimes operate using a 12 5 kHz channel step but the lower band edge is offset by 6 25 kHz To ensure that the AR8000 can follow most of these unusual bandplans the...

Страница 40: ...any time should you wish to select an alternative receive mode on any frequency To change the receive mode press FUNC 3 The third line of the LCD will indicate the current mode in use A hash symbol to...

Страница 41: ...tively wide frequency bandwidth employed Used only for local services such as VHF band 2 stereo received as mono on the AR8000 and UHF TV sound channels When listening in VERY strong signal locations...

Страница 42: ...for LSB By convention Radio Amateurs also use USB above 10MHz All long range shipping and oceanic air traffic as well as long range military aircraft use USB DATA modes such as RTTY SITOR PACKET FAX e...

Страница 43: ...ntre frequency The stronger the signal then the higher the bar graph The first lowest segment of each bar is displayed even if no signals are present so that band scope operation is confirmed at a gla...

Страница 44: ...49 Examples are A00 for the first channel location in memory bank A and A49 for the last memory channel in memory bank A e15 is the location of memory bank e lower case channel 15 It is possible to ad...

Страница 45: ...entification letter such as A The microprocessor will automatically select the youngest free memory location You may change the bank identifier at this time by rotating the DIAL on the top cabinet or...

Страница 46: ...sired memory channel is not immediately displayed it may be RECALLED by keying in the required location To recall memory channel A00 type 1A 0 0 there is no need to press ENT The M RE SELECT menu auto...

Страница 47: ...IAL Transfer to 2VFO To transfer to the active VFO of 2VFO mode press FUNC 2VFO The display will change to 2VFO mode with the chosen memory data being displayed in the upper active VFO position Tune u...

Страница 48: ...t option COPY MODE The UP DOWN keys or DIAL may be used to change the cursor position between selections 8 3 COPY MODE COPY MODE is used to make an exact data copy of one memory channel into another l...

Страница 49: ...to The original data will not be deleted instead you now have two identical memory locations but with different memory channel locations For example let s assume that memory channel A00 contains the f...

Страница 50: ...y location where the data will be copied At this point you may specify up to seven alphanumeric characters for the TXT text comment on line four of the LCD using the DIAL and UP DOWN keys If you do no...

Страница 51: ...ory location B31 Press FUNC 8 to access the SET EDIT CH menu Move the cursor to the left of the MOVE MODE option using the UP DOWN keys or DIAL then press ENT to access the MOVE MODE sub menu Key in t...

Страница 52: ...enu has been selected The cursor will be positioned over the memory bank identifier LETTER Use the DIAL or keypad to select the memory channel which you would like to move The third line will alternat...

Страница 53: ...locations 8 7 CHANGE MEM CHANGE MEM is the sub menu used to edit all the data contained in each memory channel on an individual basis This data comprises of FRE QUENCY TUNING STEP STEP OFFSET RECEIVE...

Страница 54: ...moves to left of the third line of the LCD awaiting the entry of the new frequency and the legend FREQ SET is displayed on the fourth line Press 1 4 5 5 ENT to set the new frequency Should you make a...

Страница 55: ...cy the UP arrow key will act as backspace edit to correct frequency input ATTENUATOR SETTING The highlight flashing cursor moves to the third line of the LCD with the legend ATT shown to the left indi...

Страница 56: ...B C etc The UP DOWN keys may also be used to select the memory channel Alternatively you may enter the memory channel in full via the numeric keypad For instance to recall memory channel A23 press 1A...

Страница 57: ...ss the main SELECT DEL by keying FUNC 9 Use the UP DOWN or DIAL until the cursor is to the left of the MEMO DATA option then press ENT The top line of the LCD will display MEMO DATA the second line wi...

Страница 58: ...activate the password using the following sequence assuming the example of 1234 has been used for the password To access the password menu key in the sequence FUNC The display indicates that a passwor...

Страница 59: ...each memory channel which contains data in numeric order and monitors for activity When an active memory channel is located when a signal is found and the squelch is open the receiver will temporaril...

Страница 60: ...tions of all five parameters 10 3 Starting to SCAN considerations It is presumed that you have already stored your favourite and commonly used frequencies into the memory banks as per section 7 of thi...

Страница 61: ...or differences in squelch characteristic on some frequencies and modes To help provide the best operation of SCAN additional facilities have been provided when in EXPERT status Should you listen to n...

Страница 62: ...10 5 Selecting a single memory bank to scan The memory bank which is currently being scanned will be displayed on the left of the third line of the LCD for example B and channel number will be changi...

Страница 63: ...s possible to de select and re select memory banks for scanning through the SET M SCAN menu To access the menu first ensure the receiver is in SCAN mode SCAN on the top left of the LCD if it is not in...

Страница 64: ...otate the DIAL to force the SCAN process to resume in the direction selected However should the receiver continually stop on the same channel you may wish to PASS lockout the channel so that it will b...

Страница 65: ...when in memory recall mode toggles the status of the displayed memory channel scan pass lockout p PASS The receiver will monitor whatever memory channel is displayed in M RE mode when manually select...

Страница 66: ...e LCD then press FUNC SCAN Press the DOWN key three times only one press is required if bank link is OFF to select the first of the five options Continue using the DOWN key until the required option i...

Страница 67: ...is determined When the AUDIO scan is ON the scan will only stop on active channels which have modulation such as voice present The AR8000 will not remain on unmodulated channels such as blank carrier...

Страница 68: ...r use the DIAL to change the value or key in a one digit number through the numeric keypad 0 is accepted as 0 OFF and 4 as level 4 To accept the changes to LEVEL scan press ENT to return to SCAN mode...

Страница 69: ...and ready for use over and over again There are three ways in which memory channels may be tagged for SELECT SCAN 1 SELECT SCAN channels may be tagged while in SCAN MODE and stopped on an active chann...

Страница 70: ...while in memory recall mode by first selecting the desired memory channel then press FUNC PASS Press SCAN to place the receiver into memory recall mode M R The legend M RE appears on the top left of t...

Страница 71: ...RECALL modes channels are tagged when they are added to the list and a lower case s signifies the tag In the EDIT menu there is no tag The fact that the channel appears in the LIST indicates that it I...

Страница 72: ...ta already stored You may change the bank identifier via the keypad for example for bank C press 3C A two digit memory channel may then be entered via the keypad for example channel 33 press 3 3 If a...

Страница 73: ...ing all SELECT SCAN channels in one go It is often convenient to delete ALL the SELECT SCAN channels in a single operation This makes the list ready for a fresh start perhaps using a totally different...

Страница 74: ...es cannot simultaneously be monitored by the receiver The priority mode is automatically suspended during entry of frequencies via the keypad this prevents the receiver from changing frequency while y...

Страница 75: ...digit number via the keypad Next press the DOWN key to move to the third line of the LCD to the right of the legend A00 This is the memory channel used to copy data to the priority facility Either rot...

Страница 76: ...ecall is simple and efficient Continuously active or busy frequencies such as amateur band repeaters may be PASSED skipped and active frequencies stored to memory There is even an AUTO STORE facility...

Страница 77: ...ing the UP DOWN keys Example of manual search For example to search manually between 145 000 and 146 000 MHz key 145 000 into VFO A and 146 000 MHz into VFO B Ensure that VFO A is on the active upper...

Страница 78: ...y write mode The legend BANK is displayed on the left of the third line with a memory location to the right Either key in the desired memory location for storage via the keypad or use the DIAL the UP...

Страница 79: ...as Marine amateur band repeaters and utility services including PMR Private Mobile Radio use DUPLEX frequencies This means that either a transmission is being re broadcast on a different frequency by...

Страница 80: ...these examples the mode step and step offset are taken from the AUTO MODE bandplan data A 118 000 to 137 000 MHz CIV AIR B 225 000 to 410 000 MHz MIL AIR C 410 000 to 425 000 MHz USAF D 156 000 to 163...

Страница 81: ...will monitor the active frequency in VFO mode and may be tuned using the DIAL or UP DOWN keys To restart the MANUAL SEARCH process from the start To start the manual search from the original frequenc...

Страница 82: ...cy and force search to continue The frequency will be skipped when the bank is next searched Refer to section 14 of this manual for further information regarding SEARCH PASS 13 4 Programming and repro...

Страница 83: ...and pointing at the mode NFM Press ENT to accept the mode selection Note If AUTO is selected the STEP SET menu option will be skipped as the data will be taken from the AUTO MODE bandplan data progra...

Страница 84: ...end upper of the two limits frequency is required Press 4 3 3 6 ENT to set the new end higher frequency to 433 600 MHz Should you make a mistake while entering the new frequency the UP arrow key will...

Страница 85: ...may be LINKED and UNLINKED to effectively make larger or smaller groups of program search banks which may be searched in succession PASS may be used whereby constantly active frequencies can be skipp...

Страница 86: ...ing While in SEARCH mode press FUNC SRCH to access the SET SEARCH menu the legend SET SEARCH confirms selection The highlight cursor will be flashing on the left of the second line of the LCD to the r...

Страница 87: ...o suit your preferences and requirements The list of search defaults is shown below SEARCH TYPE NEWUSER EXPERT DELAY 2 0 seconds 0 1 9 9 seconds OFF HOLD AUDIO OFF OFF ON FREE OFF 01 99 seconds OFF LE...

Страница 88: ...aults by placing the receiver into NEWUSER mode SEARCH DELAY time The DELAY search parameter affects the time the receiver will remain on an active channel in search mode once the received signal has...

Страница 89: ...or OFF the default is OFF Rotate the DIAL to toggle the option On OFF To accept the changes to AUDIO search press ENT to return to SEARCH mode Alternatively you may move to the next option FREE SEARCH...

Страница 90: ...ess ENT to return to SEARCH mode 13 10 Deleting program search bank data It is possible to delete the programming of a search bank in two ways Of course it is also possible to simply type new program...

Страница 91: ...he direction selected However should the receiver continually stop on the same frequency you may wish to PASS lockout the annoying frequency so that it will be skipped over when the bank is next searc...

Страница 92: ...entifier is displayed B press ENT to select the bank for editing The left side of the second line of the LCD displays BANK B00 or the first pass channel in the selected bank The fifty pass channels ar...

Страница 93: ...owing Ensure the receiver is in SEARCH mode if not then press SRCH Access the FREQ PASS edit menu using the sequence FUNC PASS Select the desired search pass bank identifying letter using the DIAL UP...

Страница 94: ...pass list Remember the frequency will not be passed skipped in manual search mode but it will be passed when the specified bank is next searched using program search To return to manual search mode pr...

Страница 95: ...previously stored frequency will not be automatically stored In EXPERT status you may choose to switch the AUTO STORE facility ON OFF 15 1 Using AUTO STORE in NEWUSER status In NEWUSER status as shipp...

Страница 96: ...ce unless it is in SCAN mode in which case you should press 2VFO followed by SCAN Select the memory channel which you wish to delete by rotating the DIAL The numeric keypad may be used to change the m...

Страница 97: ...alongside the NEWUSER option and rotate the DIAL so that the legend EXPERT is displayed Press the DOWN key one further time until the option AUTO STORE BANK J STORE ON is displayed To disable the AUTO...

Страница 98: ...is On 16 1 Changing POWER SAVE values In EXPERT status the CONFIGURATION menu is used to program the POWER SAVE parameters To access the configuration menu press FUNC LOCAL Make sure that the EXPERT...

Страница 99: ...ess reliably the process will be A compromise has to be made If you scan the extremes of the receiver s frequency coverage and experience PLL ERROR messages it may be worth increasing the value The de...

Страница 100: ...al display Press CLEAR to abort the menu and return to normal display 17 5 LEVEL WAIT FUNC 5 SWITCH ON This is the length of time for the squelch to access if the SIGNAL LEVEL is above a predetermined...

Страница 101: ...ect the DELI option This sets the DELIMITER end of line command Rotate the DIAL to select either CR LF or CR Press ENT to accept the new parameters and return to SEARCH SCAN or VFO mode whichever was...

Страница 102: ...is initiated using the SET COPY menu which is accessed by pressing FUNC 0 while in NEWUSER status Use the DIAL to select SEND MODE for the receiver which will SEND the data and RCV MODE for the receiv...

Страница 103: ...te bank by rotating the DIAL before initiating copy Press CLEAR now to suspend the copy process Should you press CLEAR while copying the receiver may become operationally unstable Press ENT to start t...

Страница 104: ...eceiver is not automatically switching Off On due to the settings of the POWER SAVE facility Refer to section 16 of this manual Signals are weak Make sure that the correct or appropriate aerial is fit...

Страница 105: ...he keypad usually produces a high pitch beep when the correct key or sequence is followed Should an inappropriate key be pressed a lower pitch BOOP will be produced It is possible to switch the beep b...

Страница 106: ...uter control and clone copy data between two AR8000 receivers is possible but this optional small interface and lead is required CR 8000 Control of a tape recorder motor On Off and low level record au...

Страница 107: ...and practice One interesting phenomena is that aerial theory and practice can be surprisingly different Keeping common sense in mind it is one of the few remaining areas for listeners to easily experi...

Страница 108: ...he aerial away from supports and building will reduce the loss of signal from the wire aerial and prevent unwanted noise from entering the aerial system Magnetic balun long wire aerials are becoming v...

Страница 109: ...ing a half wave dipole is best at 90 degrees to the direction the aerial is laying however if used at two or three times it s fundamental design frequency reception is best closer to the direction the...

Страница 110: ...ntrols to reject unwanted signals As the loop is within easy reach of the operator it can be rotated to provide directivity They can be particularly useful for DX ing the lower bands Generally speakin...

Страница 111: ...ted signals typically in the range of 75 to 175 MHz Earth systems A separate EARTH connection made to the outer braid connector of the BNC plug may improve aerial efficiency and reduce noise Suitable...

Страница 112: ...ear and sun spot activity transmissions may propagate completely around the World Radio signals are electromagnetic waves very similar to light beams As such they do not readily follow the curvature o...

Страница 113: ...the delight of Radio Amateurs who are then able to communicate for many hundreds and even thousands of kilometres on frequency bands usually capable of only local reception Occasionally a similar eff...

Страница 114: ...by Radio Amateurs and commercial users such as Oceanic Air Traffic For instance the MUF Maximum Usable Frequency is often stated for a path between two locations Choosing a frequency above the MUF wi...

Страница 115: ...30 MHz SSB 1 0uV AM 3 0uV NFM 1 5uV 30 MHz to 1 0 GHz SSB 0 25uV AM 1 0uV NFM 0 35uV WFM 1 0uV 1 0 GHz to 1 3 GHz NFM 1 0uV 1 3 GHz to 1 9 GHz NFM 3 0uV AM SSB S N 10dB NFM WFM SINAD 12dB Selectivity...

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