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The
MFJ-1026 saved my DX
By Ralf Radermacher, Germany
from rec.radio.shortwave, March 4, 1999
Question:
Has anyone tried the MFJ-1026 or MFJ-1025 electronic noise
canceling signal enhancers? How well have they worked?
I've been using one for about a year now. Living smack in
the city centre of Cologne (abt. 1 million people) with a bazillion
of computers, neon signs, trams, sodium vapour street lighting,
processor controlled coffee grinders, washing machines and heaven
knows what else, I was just about to give up SW for good when I
came upon the MFJ-1026.
First, I'm still (or rather again) enjoying my radios, so
one could say the money has been well spent. Your own mileage may
vary.
Much depends on what antennas you're using and what you want to
use the 1026 for. Here its main use is getting rid of man-made noise,
a continuous racket which extends from deepest LF well into UHF
but is worst from about 100 kHz to 3 MHz. In this range and with
the antennas mentioned further down in various combinations, results
cover the whole palette from downright amazing to non-existant.
But generally noise at this QTH can be reduced by about 10 dB on
average which mostly makes the difference between a signal which
will get on your nerves after a few minutes or something you'll
want to listen to for hours on end. In any respect, this is a lot
more than I have been able to accomplish with anything else.
Don't expect optimum results within 10 minutes of installing
the unit. It takes some experimentation with antennas and antenna
combinations and a few days to get the feel of the controls.
On a sidenote I tried, just out of curiosity, to 'null out' strong
medium wave BC stations to reveal weaker stations on the same channels
which are usually masked by the big European powerhouses (600 kW
are common power levels, here).
One example: I was able to attenuate the BBC on 648 kHz (a sig to
load batteries with) sufficiently to get decent reception of another
station on the same channel. Don't recall which one, though, but
it was completely unnoticeable, otherwise. So, this should back
their claimed 60 dB of attenuation.
Be advised that the 102x needs a minor modification (de-soldering
two SMD chokes) to work below 1600 kHz.
Disadvantages? Slight to moderate intermod on MF after removing
the high-pass inductors to open the unit up below 1600 kHz and slight
intermod on the higher SW bands but always less of a prob than the
noise without the 1026.
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