You can now help support WorldwideDX when you shop on Amazon at no additional cost to you! Simply follow this Shop on Amazon link first and a portion of any purchase is sent to WorldwideDX to help with site costs.
The Feb 2025 Radioddity Giveaway Results are In! Click Here to see who won!

Reply to thread

Message

I redid the test this morning, there was a change or two in the setup overall but not much.

Starting out I have my RCI2950 connected to a three foot piece of RG-8X. That is connected to a tuner, which is connected to the SWR meter with another three foot piece of RG-8X. During the test I tested the load while it was both directly connected to the meter, and connected to the meter through a five foot piece of RG-8X. I also used an SO-239 connector with wires hanging off the center and outer conductor for a high reactance test.

Before the test I checked my meter with the two test loads and the test antenna, using the knob on the radio to control power output I used the power levels of 2 watts (all of the way down), 5 watts (about the middle), and 10 watts (all the way up). The meter read consistently with both test loads through the power range tested giving the expected results.

During the tests I varied the output power of the radio between 5 and 10 watts (dead key with the microphone gain and the gain knob on the microphone itself turned all of the way down). I only used the 100 and 450 ohm test loads and the quick antenna I set up for the high reactance testing for these tests.

I used a frequency that presented R of 127 and X of -110 and an SWR of near 4.5:1 as read from an analyzer plugged directly into the antenna.

The SWR, after readjusting the forward control when there was a change, always went back to where it was before I adjusted the antenna tuner. This is with both test loads and the high reactive test antenna, and using 5 and 10 watts of drive. Adding a five foot length of coax between the meter and the test loads/test antenna also had no perceptible effect.

My conclusion from this testing is that the SWR meter can only give you accurate readings of the antenna system after the meter in the system. Where the readings did initially change with a change in the system before the SWR meter, they returned to their original readings when the forward control was reset to the set point on the meter.

So while an SWR meter can signal that a change, such as tuning the output of an amplifier, or antenna tuner, or perhaps a coax went bad, has taken place before it in the system, all it can tell you is a change happened. Further, the change that an SWR meter will detect in the system is limited to the amount of power that makes it to the SWR meter to begin with. As I said above, if you re-adjust the forward control on the SWR meter, the readings go right back to what they were before the change.

So, now I have three questions...

Is there anything I can test further with this setup?

Are there any potential errors that I may have made in the testing?

Is there anything else I can do to make this testing either more accurate or, perhaps, more complete?

The DB

<blockquote data-quote="The DB" data-source="post: 436400" data-attributes="member: 21346">I redid the test this morning, there was a change or two in the setup overall but not much.Starting out I have my RCI2950 connected to a three foot piece of RG-8X.&nbsp; That is connected to a tuner, which is connected to the SWR meter with another three foot piece of RG-8X.&nbsp; During the test I tested the load while it was both directly connected to the meter, and connected to the meter through a five foot piece of RG-8X.&nbsp; I also used an SO-239 connector with wires hanging off the center and outer conductor for a high reactance test.Before the test I checked my meter with the two test loads and the test antenna, using the knob on the radio to control power output I used the power levels of 2 watts (all of the way down), 5 watts (about the middle), and 10 watts (all the way up).&nbsp; The meter read consistently with both test loads through the power range tested giving the expected results.During the tests I varied the output power of the radio between 5 and 10 watts (dead key with the microphone gain and the gain knob on the microphone itself turned all of the way down).&nbsp; I only used the 100 and 450 ohm test loads and the quick antenna I set up for the high reactance testing for these tests.I used a frequency that presented R of 127 and X of -110 and an SWR of near 4.5:1 as read from an analyzer plugged directly into the antenna.The SWR, after readjusting the forward control when there was a change, always went back to where it was before I adjusted the antenna tuner.&nbsp; This is with both test loads and the high reactive test antenna, and using 5 and 10 watts of drive.&nbsp; Adding a five foot length of coax between the meter and the test loads/test antenna also had no perceptible effect.My conclusion from this testing is that the SWR meter can only give you accurate readings of the antenna system after the meter in the system.&nbsp; Where the readings did initially change with a change in the system before the SWR meter, they returned to their original readings when the forward control was reset to the set point on the meter.So while an SWR meter can signal that a change, such as tuning the output of an amplifier, or antenna tuner, or perhaps a coax went bad, has taken place before it in the system, all it can tell you is a change happened.&nbsp; Further, the change that an SWR meter will detect in the system is limited to the amount of power that makes it to the SWR meter to begin with.&nbsp; As I said above, if you re-adjust the forward control on the SWR meter, the readings go right back to what they were before the change.So, now I have three questions...Is there anything I can test further with this setup?Are there any potential errors that I may have made in the testing?Is there anything else I can do to make this testing either more accurate or, perhaps, more complete?<a href="http://hittman.us" target="_blank">The DB</a></blockquote>

[QUOTE="The DB, post: 436400, member: 21346"] I redid the test this morning, there was a change or two in the setup overall but not much. Starting out I have my RCI2950 connected to a three foot piece of RG-8X. That is connected to a tuner, which is connected to the SWR meter with another three foot piece of RG-8X. During the test I tested the load while it was both directly connected to the meter, and connected to the meter through a five foot piece of RG-8X. I also used an SO-239 connector with wires hanging off the center and outer conductor for a high reactance test. Before the test I checked my meter with the two test loads and the test antenna, using the knob on the radio to control power output I used the power levels of 2 watts (all of the way down), 5 watts (about the middle), and 10 watts (all the way up). The meter read consistently with both test loads through the power range tested giving the expected results. During the tests I varied the output power of the radio between 5 and 10 watts (dead key with the microphone gain and the gain knob on the microphone itself turned all of the way down). I only used the 100 and 450 ohm test loads and the quick antenna I set up for the high reactance testing for these tests. I used a frequency that presented R of 127 and X of -110 and an SWR of near 4.5:1 as read from an analyzer plugged directly into the antenna. The SWR, after readjusting the forward control when there was a change, always went back to where it was before I adjusted the antenna tuner. This is with both test loads and the high reactive test antenna, and using 5 and 10 watts of drive. Adding a five foot length of coax between the meter and the test loads/test antenna also had no perceptible effect. My conclusion from this testing is that the SWR meter can only give you accurate readings of the antenna system after the meter in the system. Where the readings did initially change with a change in the system before the SWR meter, they returned to their original readings when the forward control was reset to the set point on the meter. So while an SWR meter can signal that a change, such as tuning the output of an amplifier, or antenna tuner, or perhaps a coax went bad, has taken place before it in the system, all it can tell you is a change happened. Further, the change that an SWR meter will detect in the system is limited to the amount of power that makes it to the SWR meter to begin with. As I said above, if you re-adjust the forward control on the SWR meter, the readings go right back to what they were before the change. So, now I have three questions... Is there anything I can test further with this setup? Are there any potential errors that I may have made in the testing? Is there anything else I can do to make this testing either more accurate or, perhaps, more complete? [URL="http://hittman.us"][COLOR="Black"]The DB[/COLOR][/URL] [/QUOTE]

Top Bottom