February 15, 2025

This Week in Amateur Radio

North America's Premiere Amateur Radio News Magazine

American Radio Relay League

Via the ARRL: Approaches to Tackle Noise Problems Vary, Remedies Elusive

RF noise is a frequent discussion topic among radio amateurs. A proliferation of electronics has cluttered and complicated the noise environment; it’s not just power lines anymore. Unless isolated from civilization, most hams experience RF interference (RFI) — sometimes without even realizing it, although spectrum scopes on modern transceivers make RF noise much more apparent. Various approaches to address the apparently worsening noise floor have been taken around the world, some addressing lax regulation.

“We all want to enhance our ability to copy the weak ones by increasing our signal-to-noise ratio,” Alan Higbie, K0AV, said in his March/April NCJ article, “Tracking RFI with an SDR One Source at a Time.” He suggests practical methods for individual radio amateurs to improve their own noise environment. “We can do that by reducing the noise on each band that we operate. Lowering the noise floor increases the relative signal strength of weak signals. Those in typical residential environments find that locating and eliminating RFI sources is a never-ending process. It is much like weeding a garden.”

Read more – via American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources http://www.arrl.org/news/view/approaches-to-tackle-noise-problems-vary-remedies-elusive