Ham Radio - Let's talk about band scopes and identifying signals visually

In my mind, these scopes on modern radios are one of the most useful tools. I try to explain exactly what they are showing you and how to visually identify signals on the waterfall.
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[@johng7rwf419]

Nicely explained, it's the first time I've heard some one talk effectively on the band scope and what can be ascertained from that data...

[@Ranchhand323]

💜 Kevin , this video is absolutely the most demonstrative , explanative , and informative video ever produced on this subject matter . The Amateur Radio operators of the World are very fortunate that you have chosen to be a teaching Extra , and not simply a holder of the privileges. 💜

[@albert7ii]

Well said !!! Could not agree more ! Albert EI7II

[@SkyWire88]

Howard said it all. Thanks for the neat info--if only I can remember it when I purchase a rig with these features. Thanks Kevin. 73 and keep your coolie cool. // Earle

[@BrownCoatFan]

Just passed my Technician and General tests, no callsign yet. Radio on the way. I found this very informative. So cool. Thank you!

[@stridermt2k]

Welcome to the hobby! Tech and General nice work!

[@ftlaud911]

Congrats!!! Welcome to the hobby. Build some antennas and have fun.

[@mikesimpson6757]

Great Job on the testing. I did the dame, passed my Tech and General in one sitting. I thought that was all I really needed but was so captivated what was on the bottom end of the 80 meter band that was off limits to me that I studied and got my Amateur Extra class as well. And now I am trying to work my way through learning CW. LOL

[@notionocean]

Victor Zue at MIT was well known in the speech science community for being able to read words directly from a spectrogram, just like you did with Morse Code. He even taught a class on it!

[@stridermt2k]

When I got back into the hobby about a year or so ago I bought an HF-capable SDR and jumped into building loop antennas (shortly after that I got my general and my extra) I'm pretty sure a couple of your videos helped me out too, Kevin! :) Seeing the entire band and the signals was an unexpected and welcome bit of insight into understanding so many details about bandwidth etc and how the bands are laid out. Great stuff thanks as always 73 de N2NLQ

[@tonbonthemon]

Thanks for this video! I got into shortwave radio by reading about cold war communications, and when I first saw the blue waterfall it was like I was looking at a deep sea of spy communications. Cool to know that those mysterious sounding noises/mysterious looking signals I would see are actually different modes of communication via radio, etc.

[@USXPOP]

Most excellent video. Very instructional. One could almost read the signal and not have to have audio - almost. Thanks for the explanation and taking the time to show it. Now, if I just had a radio with a scope... Keep them coming, this is an excellent use of KZbin and computers.

[@captainwyattoutdoors1636]

I am so thrilled to have found this video! Thank you! It really helps to explain to us beginners what we are seeing as well as some the theory in practice. Keep it up!!!!!

[@twohandsandaradio]

THe most comprehensive, thorough, useful explaination of the bandscope I have seen. Well done Sir!

[@hgw90026]

Brovo. This is extremely informative and greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[@ronlewis6394]

Very helpful. Just ordered a Yaesu 991a which has the bandscope/waterfall feature. I look forward to finding my first DX qso's real soon with the help of the waterfall. Have lots to learn about HF, SB, etc.

[@forgetyourlife]

If its not to late and the waterfall is what you really want to work with then the 7300 is the way to go. The 991a scope is an after thought, thus the "a"

[@johnr8944]

Kevin, Thanks for the very informative explanation of signals on band scopes. I've been thinking of requesting the same. Please stay safe!

[@waltbury]

This video was one of best explanation of the waterfall matrix on your radio

[@janhenkins]

Thanks Kevin, this was awesome! I thought I new everything about band-scopes, but I learned a ton! Please keep it up!

[@billedwards8598]

Cool! Very interesting and informative! I've had my 7300 for almost a year and just learned more in five or so minutes than in the last year! Thank you Kevin. Bill AD8EY

[@juliocesarpereira4325]

DRM, FT8, teletype, weatherfax, voice (am, ssb), music and cw. Another very useful video. Thanks a lot. 73 from PY5WHO.

[@michaelmihailovic3392]

Thank You Kevin for the lesson on these band scopes very well explained easy to follow and made me aware of capabilities of these devices.

[@ansientwun]

Many accolades below say it all. A doctorate level course on the scope. Thanks a bunch Kevin.

[@mewintle]

Fantastic! I had a hard time finding a guide to distinguishing different modes visually. This helps a lot. I’d love to see how to differentiate the other digital modes.

[@southwestdesert9086]

I enjoyed that immensely. Very useful information. Thanks for sharing.

[@DappledJoker]

Fantastic! Thanks for the excellent breakdown on the different signals, especially the digital signals. The only radio I have with a waterfall/spectrum scope is my little Minion SDR (1" screen), and it's only 14khz wide. However, your information is very useful. I hope to have an IC-7300 soon.

[@4s6ryd]

Kevin Thank you so much. Excellent and very informative video on the subject. Gave some insight on waterfall and spectrum scope which were taken for granted earlier. After watching your video, I will be looking at them differently 73

[@JimN5QL]

Fantastic presentation Kevin! I have been watching a lot of videos on the Icom 7300 Because by the end of the month I will order one for myself. So I find this video very interesting and educational. Thanks much! 73

[@rjinnh3933]

Very intresting Kevin. You added alot to what I knew on this subject. I'm getting very serious about purchasing a 7300. You demonstrating its scope certainly adds to my interest. Real good video..... 73 OM

[@astrorad2000]

Excellent Kevin. You are a natural born teacher. It is a gift.

[@TheDickw]

Great Video - Thank you. I find the hold button on the 7300 waterfall display very useful as well.There are several websites that talk in more detail about various signals and id'ing them

[@Paddy_Roche]

Another great video, fascinating insight as always.

[@joerogers4227]

Thnaks from Chino Valley, AZ, on m6 7610 I have the filter set to 2.4 khz wide. and use the twin band pass to narrow that down a bit. This allows me to filter out nearby signals.

[@Steve-GM0HUU]

Good video Kevin thanks. First time I used a modern SDR receiver with a panfall display, I was sold. Instead of listening to the band, you can actually see the band. I think it makes for a huge improvement when operating a receiver or transceiver. At a glance, you can get an idea what's going on across a band in terms of signals and noise, spot a signal of interest further up/down when listening to another signal, see QRN rolling up/down the band before it hits you. On TX, the panfall gives an indication of the quality of transmission and allows you to set TX passband, drive level and equalisation. The list goes on. It's like sliced bread - you don't really need but you certainly miss it once you've tried it :-)

[@koldark]

OMG! I loved this video. I'm hoping to get a 7300 soon and was going to figure out to read the scope and how someone said there's FT8, there's CW, etc. Now I see it! I'm saving this video until go I get my radio then rewatch and look for the stuff. That you show here. I did similar things when looking and weather radar. It's so helpful. Thank you!

[@wh00per--]

Mike, you might try using a SDR (software defined radio) USB dongle (cheap from nooelec or more expensive from sdrplay) and your computer, before you buy a 7300. Not that I don't want you to have one.

[@koldark]

@@wh00per-- I have one, but not a great HF antenna to get those signals, just those that it comes with. I am collecting the rest of the parts I need to make an EFHW antenna. I think I'll make it the 80m version so I can play in most bands once I get a radio. I'll first hook it up to my SDR first to start playing around.

[@wh00per--]

@@koldark Kevin had a video on End Fed Half Wave (kzbin.info/www/bejne/g3y4i6Z5bqeNo7s) Mouser.com has usually cheap toroids of 43 material for the unun. For low wattage you can use those with 31mm diameter (Mouser #:623-5943001701). They still have some on stock.

[@samuel.soderberg]

This was gold! Very informative, thank you!

[@swflKVNC]

Kevin, thank you. Great scope info.

[@paulhastings3109]

You're a blessing, The last radio I had was FT 890. In getting back in the radio yen and I could never understand the waterfall now it makes more sense. I wanna put up a loop I don't know if I wanna go with 75 m or 40 height wise I get about maybe 40 ft. The rig is FTDX 1200 a proper should have got the 1300 because of the Data. I have been following you for some time where I usually don't make any comments. Thanks 73 KQ4CD

[@indridcold8433]

I am extremely thankful for the cheap, off-brand, SDR adapters that can be had for less than a tank of fuel. They make for excellent band scopes with nothing but a USB adapter, an antique television antenna on the roof, and a cheap piece of coaxial cable. The entire radio frequency spectrum is mine from 100 kilocycles to 2.4 gigacycles, in all modes. I am heavily addicted to monitoring all the bands at my disposal. It can clearly be seen what kind of signal one is looking at on the band scope. FM, AM, USB, LSB, DSB, CW, and digital signals all have a distinctive look to them. One can even make out Subaudible tones and data over analogue signals. I may have no license, but that does not stop me from enjoying the radio frequency universe at my fingertips.

[@LeopoldVDH]

Very informative thanks Kevin. Well presented

[@JohnHill-qo3hb]

Excellent Kevin, thank you.

[@davidmauldin6615]

Well done on your video Kevin!

[@mikegingerich5184]

This was super informative. Thank you.

[@michaelschieder2521]

Kevin, thank's a lot. For me as a newcomer to SDR, these explainations are extremly helpful! 👌For example how can I determine a probable type of modulation? A perfect answered question... I stop viewing at 5:09 because I go to bed soon today, but I will come back to continue!💤

[@sinanuluvar9174]

Very informative video Kevin. Thank you.

[@CodeMasseur]

At 24:31 Thumbs up for the Greatest American Hero theme song! :-) Loved watching that as a kid!

[@seanperault646]

Very nicely explained.

[@machoneboard]

This is an excellent video. Thank you.

[@klrscout]

Man, if I have a Linux/radio question, Kevin has an answer, likely already in the back-catalog.

[@davidsradioroom9678]

Wow, that was a really cool video! Thanks!

[@zazugee]

thanks, enjoying your videos from sahara desert

[@JA-fy1bn]

Very useful video. Thanks!

[@Steve-GM0HUU]

Maybe worth adding that, if you have a receiver/transceiver without a waterfall, one option may be to attach a relatively inexpensive SDR receiver "dongle" to a USB port on your PC. The SDR receiver antenna connection then goes to your receiver IF (You may not even have to open up you receiver/transceiver to do this if it already has an "IF out" on the back). This allows you to view a waterfall display on your PC - which can be considerably larger than the one one on modern transceivers.

[@seanclowry9820]

Thank you! Now I know how to identify RF Waterfall signals.

[@James_Bowie]

👍 Excellent presentation. I hope the splatterer gets to see this, too. (And on the subject of splatterers, it would be a hoot to look the signals on 11 meters.)

[@stridermt2k]

I have done so and it's not as bad as you would imagine. It may be different in other areas, but when I tuned there I saw some pretty regular-looking AM signals.

[@James_Bowie]

@@stridermt2k I'm thinking about some of those multi-kilowatt cowboys on Channel 6 (aka the superbowl).

[@Greatlefty300]

Great job Kevin ! Thank you...

[@rtgideon]

Great information here on the Spectrum Scope Kevin, this will help a lot of new hams in the hobby of ham radio! Randy. KN6BZG

[@joeredd3867]

I enjoyed it. I learned a mode I was not sure what it was. The wide 256 channel. I worked with the 16 channel TTY in 1964 US Army. CX. Fascinating. //... Joe

[@frankhixon]

I've been a ham and SWL for fifty years and use the RSP-1A for SWL now. I knew all this and you really did a great job of making it easy to see. Frank....KF5BI

[@ericmoeller3634]

That spectrum scope that is on the sdr apps that's what made me want to get a sdr dongle and also the absurd amount of bands the receiver can receive

[@BarefootBeekeeper]

Excellent explanation, thanks Kevin!

[@kln8128]

Very well done..thank you

[@timstanton6431]

Well done Kevin.

[@kevina876]

Love the intro!!!

[@FStewartIII]

Thank you very much for this

[@carln6ckv8]

Thanks for the video If you see a horizontal line across the whole scope display you have seen a lighting strike.

[@alaricsnellpym]

This is a helpful video. It's a bit spammy making a comment just saying that - I'd clicked "Like" already - but KZbin rewards videos that get lots of comments, so I'm doing this for Kevin's income and so that this video gets recommended to more people who'll benefit from it!

[@kishor_VU2MZT]

GREAT INFO ,THANKS

[@bartweiss9663]

Great video……thanks.

[@jharding32]

Very interesting!

[@mikesimpson6757]

Great video. How about a video on detecting and eliminating RF signals in your home?

[@joerogers4227]

The orginal band width of telepone circuits were from 300 Hz to 3000 Hz. Set before the days of hi-fi.

[@jps99]

very interesting!

[@saulbro]

FYI: 21min+ in, it's "Digital Radio Mondiale"(last word is French). Mondale is former Minnesota Senator and VP candidate,

[@NamasenITN]

Excellent intuitive explanation of time and frequency domains! Too bad you did not explain the (Fast) Fourier Transform too. It would have been an excellent explanation.

[@glenmartin2437]

Thank you, I learned a few things. N0QFT

[@loctite222ms]

I would have liked to see more of the various digital signals.

[@steveoshaughnessy3736]

Very informative Kevin. But, come on man, that AM signal at 19:45 in the video, 10MHz, was WWV, the time station.

[@user-sw7oh9oy6f]

Hi Kevin ~ love your Vids ..Ive been learning this week !! all thanks to you and a few others . .Question .. If I take the Dipole 1/4 wave legs and coil them around something, the legs are now alot shorter but are they electrically correct and still work for their resonant length ?

[@loughkb]

No. Have a look at the slinky antenna.

[@tahoma6889]

I appreciate your work, Kevin. I will be hosting your videos on N0rthwestradio. Unless you object, of course.

[@loughkb]

They're public, share away. Thanks!

[@straightpride451]

Good job widdle guy!

[@pc4ad]

I own an IC-7300 of which u used the bandscope/waterfall so there wasn't really anything new for me, however, as a morning video still cool to see how someone (and you) can see those signals and identify before even tuning in. This video might be of great help for new hams / shortwave listeners (a quickly forgotten group, but that is how I got into radio) for sure. I missed out on some other signals, but they are rare(r) to come by on HF anyways, maybe for a part two :) Examples could be FM, PSK, JT65 / JT9 (if any available), maybe even WSPR. Keep up the good work, hoping to inspire you :) Just wondering about the AM signals though, you said sometimes the upper and lower lobes could be a bit different, but shouldn't they be equal? Or is this about Stereo AM which we don't have over here in europe? Best 73 from PC4AD

[@loughkb]

No, not stereo AM. I'm not entirely sure why, but often you'll see a slight difference between the side bands. Maybe the ionosphere charge is rippling with the solar wind and there's a little differences in signal bounce across frequency. Just a guess.

[@vanuitdeauto]

Hey Kevin, That could very well be the case. The same.I assume for the DRM signals which you also showed :)

[@dennisthrush2835]

Great info. Can you make another video showing the various digital modes, like ft8, psk, olivia, etc. Thanks again, Dennis Thrush, de N5DHT, 73s

[@loughkb]

Well, with this explanation of what you're seeing on the scope, you should be able to understand what they look like after reading about their modulation scheme. I believe there are wiki pages available for each mode that gives details on what they do. I've seen some wiki's in the past that also provided a snapshot of the mode on a waterfall as well.

[@jeremycole3008]

Very nice explanation. N9IZX Canton IL 73

[@bennettsjb]

Great explanation! Thank you! 73 DE KD9NBF

[@SkyWire88]

Nicely done, sir. You have a future in teaching if you so desire. Do they have or sell those scopes for older radios as an add-on feature?

[@loughkb]

There are commercial pan-adapters available, usually expensive. One cheaper option is to use one of those simple USB SDR receivers. Tap the first I.F. stage in your radio and bring it's signal out to a connector on the back. Then connect that to the SDR and tune it to your I.F. frequency. Instant pan-adapter.

[@tomsherwood4650]

You will learn to spot the frequency hogs, running an amp and lousy rig with wide shoulders that bleed over several KHz beyond what a nice sharp clean signal does. Then the guys that want to be broadcasters with SSB signals at least 4 KHz wide. Sometimes old vintage rigs are wide and sloppy too. IF you look at a properly run IC 7300 and others, the edges of the signal will be defined and steep.

[@kb3svj]

That was a very informative video. At about the 26:27 mark where you showed the one operator splattering, what could he have done on his end to narrow his signal? Is it a Mic gain issue?

[@wh00per--]

Simply speaking away from the mike will help with distortion. Or turning down the volume. The amplifier produces more power than its rated (sine wave) output when it is clipping.

[@loughkb]

Likely one of three things. Mic gain too high, compressor on or too high, or a bit of RF in the shack getting back into his audio chain. Watch your ALC meter. If it's swinging high, you're over-driving the audio.

[@kb3svj]

@@loughkb : Thanks. I was going to ask if the ALC meter could be used as one would utilize when setting up for digital modes.

[@malverninuk]

Would be nice to have description of other digital signals.

[@Jimwill01]

Unless I'm greatly mistaken these same waterfall signals can be seen on fldigi and such programs.

[@loughkb]

Yes, the audio being decoded will have the same characteristics it'll look very similar. But you're only looking at the audio pass band at that point, the scope on the radio is showing you a much broader

[@keesvanoosbree5911]

Wait, with your 7300, can you transmit through all of shortwave? I am wondering this because your TX light on your screen isn't dotted when you go out of your ham band. My 7300 does. How do you do that? 73 de W0AAE

[@forgetyourlife]

ha ha, modded.

[@1crazynordlander]

Back again. What are the sweeps you see across the band. Some go from left to right fast and others will stop and squiggle around then scoot off the band. I hope you can understand my slang.

[@tomsherwood4650]

One of those dang government propagation sounders. Sweep all over the HF band usually low to high to test propagation

[@wh00per--]

Now I'd mostly be seeing (not only hearing) old men's health issues with greater clarity if I had the Icom. hehehe 73, VA3LPR

[@loughkb]

I know, right?! I tune across 75/80 meters and it's one conversation after another about what maladies they're dealing with. In person too. It almost seems like beyond the age of 60, the most popular topic of conversation is what the doctor found on the last visit. Either that or ranting about politics. There's still a few good conversations out there though. They're just a bit more rare.

[@robertl.fallin7062]

@@loughkb Sort of reminds me what a old truck driver told me about cb channel 19. He said you hear phd level smarts in law, medicine, marriage, child rearing and constitution law right there without having to pay for it!

[@mwechtal]

Medical problems, that's what we call an organ recital.😉

[@1crazynordlander]

Isn't Audacity Great? Thanks for sharing! How did you get the pointer to the side of the SSB signal and not the middle of it? Also do you remember when AM stations broadcast in stereo? I had a radio that did AM stereo. I twas more enjoyable to listen to an AM stereo broadcast. It sounded better as far as I was concerned. I am guessing they split the channels right/left on either side of the AM carrier. I might be wrong...I said guessing.

[@mononcyoyo]

Kevin, can you explain me what are the dead carriers (or birdies) that are equidistant throughout HF bands, I particularly see them when I watch a 1MHz scope bandwith, when the band is closed and the noise floor is low. I see equidistant lines in the waterfall.

[@loughkb]

Some local noise source. Switching power supplies are the most common culprits. Those little wall warts that people plug in to charge their devices and run little items with often are producers of such noise. Ethernet networking can do it as well. What you can do is run your radio off a battery, go to your electrical panel and switch off all the breakers. If the noise goes away, switch the breakers on one of the time until the noise comes back then you know what circuit to look at to find the culprit.

[@sincerelyyours7538]

Thanks Kevin. I know this video is three years old but I am just now setting up my 7300 for its first QSO and have a question that I hope you can help me solve. Forgive me if I don't word it correctly. I am occasionally seeing little "sprites" in my 40 meter spectrum scope that "skip" along from low end to high end in less than a second. They make a cute little "blipping" sound as they go by and they're quick and annoying and look a lot like electronic mosquitoes that flit by so fast you can't put put your finger on them or capture them in any way. What are they, and is there a way to filter them out? Thanks, and 73

[@claudem.p.7969]

EXCELLENT. Claude VA2SOB

[@slimygreen1967]

Nice. I was wondering where the name 'panadapter' came from.

[@denelson83]

I'd say the best signal to use to demonstrate AM on a waterfall display would be that of WWV. That wasn't WMVP Chicago you were picking up on 1 MHz, was it?

[@salat]

Nice video,! But Audacity can't show the frequency domain like e.g. "baudline" - maybe have a look :)

[@danwiebe7146]

You're kind of confusing the time domain with the frequency domain, but it's still useful information. Thanks. Don't most transmission circuits filter phone to about 300Hz to 3kHz? I know telephones do. That's 2.7kHz bandwidth, not 2.3kHz bandwidth, but I think it's something like that. Can you use Audacity to lop off the low and high ends of that spectrum and re-render it in the time domain?

[@gotman4409]

Hello my fellow American. 👍👍

[@dennisthrush2835]

Is there a way to look at your own signal to verify if your signal isn't splashing?

[@wh00per--]

try using webSDR sites, where you can listen to the frequencies you transmit on. Any receiver close to your antenna will be overloaded, causing interference or even suppression of the normal received signal. A spectrum analyzer on an attenuated tap of your output might show something. Use the free/cheap options first :)

[@loughkb]

Another receiver with a dummy load on it's antenna connector could be used as a 'monitor' receiver. Just being close in proximity, it should pick up your transmitted signal very well.

[@tomsherwood4650]

7300 shows a waterfall display of your signal on the screen in transmit. If it is true to life, you can see how clean you are going out. I think you would really have to mess up to make the Icom not put out a good signal.

[@ianwalker3922]

I LOVE YOUR SHOWS KEVIN HAVE YOU DUN ANYTHING ON A MAGNETIC LOOP AS I WOULD LIKE TO SEE YOU BUILD ONE PLEASE ...........TOP SHOW MY FREIND

[@loughkb]

I have several videos on magnetic loops.

[@celticwarrior1961]

there is/was a program called " artemis" from markslab but i'm not sure if its still available that showed you what a signal looked like and gave a discription of it and in most cases a small sample of how it sounded .there were other parts in there aswell like band activity and the like all very useful kzbin.info/www/bejne/jpW2kKqwoct2edU