Microphone element swan neck

[Marc Teugels]

Hi,
my radio transmission of my DG400 becomes weaker
One of the causes could be the microphone element.

Filser only sells the entire swann neck,
does anyone know the specifications of such a microphone ?

Thanks !

[Tim Newport-Peace]

X-no-archive: yes
In article >, Marc Teugels
> writes
>Hi,
>my radio transmission of my DG400 becomes weaker
>One of the causes could be the microphone element.
>
>Filser only sells the entire swann neck,
>does anyone know the specifications of such a microphone ?
>
>Thanks !
>
>
It may be that the Depth of Modulation has dropped on the radio (you
don't say what model) and that the problem does not lie in the
Microphone at all.

Either way, using a Modulation Meter (must be an AM type) should confirm
that you are looking in the right area.

Also, check that the Carrier Power is as expected (RF watt meter
required). Lower than expected Carrier Power could be a clue that the
problem is in the Radio, not the Microphone.

Tim Newport-Peace
--
"It is unwise to pay too much, but it is worse to pay too little.

When you pay too much, you lose a little money. That is all.

When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything. Because the
thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing you bought it to do.

The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting
a lot. It cannot be done.

If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is as well to add something for
the risk. And if you do that you will have enough to pay for something
better."

John Ruskin, 1819-1900.

[Tjeerd Mulder]

Normally the microphones are 600 Ohms dynamic.
I have 2 fail in our club in 5 years, so yes they do fail.
They seem to develop internal shorts, don't know why.

Regards,
Tjeerd

"Marc Teugels" > schrieb im Newsbeitrag ...
> Hi,
> my radio transmission of my DG400 becomes weaker
> One of the causes could be the microphone element.
>
> Filser only sells the entire swann neck,
> does anyone know the specifications of such a microphone ?
>
> Thanks !
>
>

[Mark James Boyd]

In article >,
Marc Teugels > wrote:
>Thanks Tim,
>it is an AR3201 Becker,
>
>what happens is this :
>during the VHF annual check, the lower freq turn out to be weak.
>My friends hear me sometimes , sometimes not.
>Distance does not seam to play a big role here, sometimes they hear
>me (123,8) from quite far off.
>Using the headset (with a small ampli) seems better than with the swan mike
>
>Marc Teugels
>
>"Tim Newport-Peace" ]> wrote in message
...
>> X-no-archive: yes
>> In article >, Marc Teugels
>> > writes
>> It may be that the Depth of Modulation has dropped on the radio (you
>> don't say what model) and that the problem does not lie in the
>> Microphone at all.
>>
>> Either way, using a Modulation Meter (must be an AM type) should confirm
>> that you are looking in the right area.
>>
>> Also, check that the Carrier Power is as expected (RF watt meter
>> required). Lower than expected Carrier Power could be a clue that the
>> problem is in the Radio, not the Microphone.
>>
>> Tim Newport-Peace
>> --
>
>

All my radio problems have always been connections.

Not having a
good connection to the ground plane of the antenna was
a problem once (it had corroded to intermittent high
resistance). This was isolated when we used a whip and
got a better signal (so it must be the antenna).
Cleaned it and scraped it up, and it worked fine.

The other connection time was the bad microphone connector.
Just loose and intermittent. Fixed by rebending the
"female" springy prong.

Finally, once had a weak spring on a handheld slide in
battery, and once had a cessna 300 unit not pushed far
enough back to make tight power connection with it's
"female" docking chassis.

Your problem sounds like a bad antenna connection (maybe
to ground plane). But hey, I'm an amateur, so this
advice is worth EXACTLY what you paid for it :)


Mark

[Marc Teugels]

Thanks Tim,
it is an AR3201 Becker,

what happens is this :
during the VHF annual check, the lower freq turn out to be weak.
My friends hear me sometimes , sometimes not.
Distance does not seam to play a big role here, sometimes they hear
me (123,8) from quite far off.
Using the headset (with a small ampli) seems better than with the swan mike

Marc Teugels

"Tim Newport-Peace" ]> wrote in message
...
> X-no-archive: yes
> In article >, Marc Teugels
> > writes
> It may be that the Depth of Modulation has dropped on the radio (you
> don't say what model) and that the problem does not lie in the
> Microphone at all.
>
> Either way, using a Modulation Meter (must be an AM type) should confirm
> that you are looking in the right area.
>
> Also, check that the Carrier Power is as expected (RF watt meter
> required). Lower than expected Carrier Power could be a clue that the
> problem is in the Radio, not the Microphone.
>
> Tim Newport-Peace
> --

[Tim Newport-Peace]

X-no-archive: yes
In article >, Marc Teugels
> writes
>Thanks Tim,
>it is an AR3201 Becker,
>
>what happens is this :
>during the VHF annual check, the lower freq turn out to be weak.
>My friends hear me sometimes , sometimes not.
>Distance does not seam to play a big role here, sometimes they hear
>me (123,8) from quite far off.

An antenna will only perform at it's best at as specific frequency
(except for some special types of composite antenna). This frequency is
determined by the length of the antenna element(s).

A fin-mounted antenna is usually a dipole.

If the elements are shorter, the optimum performance will be at a higher
frequency and if the elements are longer, the optimum performance will
be at a lower frequency.

As you report the lower frequencies to be weak, it may be that the
antenna elements are too short. Sometimes with Fin antennas this is a
physical limitation on the length the fin can accommodate.

The best way to check this is with an antenna analyser, but if you do
not have one available you can use a VSWR meter and plot a curve of SWR
against Frequency.

>Using the headset (with a small ampli) seems better than with the swan mike
>
This may be because the headset and amplifier is presenting a stronger
audio signal to the radio and the result is a better depth of
modulation.

I am not sure about the AR3201, but with the AE4201 the depth of
modulation can be set by using the Service Mode selection. However be
sure that you know what you are doing before attempting this yourself. A
modulation meter is highly to check the results of any adjustment.

Your problem could be a combination of both these factors.

Best regards.

Tim Newport-Peace

"Indecision is the Key to Flexibility."