[Lowfer] Argo and Sound Cards

[Peter Barick]

Re: Argo and Sound Cards for LowFERing

First, Ralph's 9-18 post took me for another look at his well annotated
site, esp. that for his Part 5 LF station, WC2XRS/13, found at "166.500
KC." Boy, does that shout "nostalgia"! And fine on that 70s steel tower
reclamation, Ralph, but "6.5 inch" dia. guy line?? Shifting to metric
may be sufficient, even if it then sits on the lite side on the safety
margin.

Ralph has a good primer on use of a pc sound card in regards to Argo
usage. Importantly, he described a pre-Argo-setup diagnostic routine for
checkout. Also covered are use of Argo for signal detection and
interfacing w/ the rx, his being a SLVM, a HP 3586-C., but likely to
apply to other rxs as well. Check it out by finding it under the HP 3586
subject line at,
http://www.emachine.com/shmrg_index.htm

His home page with the above tower info is at,
http://www.emachine.com 

Further, on the Sound Card theme ... the October QST has a rundown on
same and also usage with Argo. This piece also explains the tx side for
use w/ psk31 and packet modes. It's done by the ham that did the Rig
Blaster (?) interface box.

Overall, I feel Ralph's site offers more that's applicable for LowFERs
use of Argo by way of his method of explanation and attention to
detail.

One thing I'd add to Ralph's account of sound card use is the use of
600/600 ohm audio xfmr to isolate the pc from the rx. I feel it's as
basic as a AC surge protector and lightning protection measures, for
abating noise transfer.

Peter