The years roll mercilessly past and as much as I would like to deny their passing has any relevance in my life, I have finally had to admit that they have taken a toll on my hearing.
For many years now the default frequency that I have set my CW sidetone to has been 750Hz. This has always been the optimum frequency that my "brain filters" manage to distinguish the required CW signal from the pileup. It has also been the frequency that I have found most comfortable to listen to, especially during Radio Contests, when I can be listening intensely for several hours at a stretch.
Last week I was operating CW in the RSGB 80 meter Club Championship Contest, a contest that I usually find quite relaxing. However after about an hour of operating I noticed a distinct feeling of ear/brain fatigue. I was finding it increasingly difficult to separate the required signal from the crowd.
Returning to normal operating several days later, I was listening to a pileup on the radio and found some signals distinctly easier to read than others. I booted up FlDigi so that I could utilise the waterfall to anylise what I was listening to. It was an interesting exercise as I found signals on my usual 750Hz were definitely "down in the noise" compared to some others. When I adjusted the same signal up in frequency it magically popped out from the crowd. I tried tuning the signal to various frequencies before settling at 950Hz. At this frequency my ears could tune in much more clearly, any higher and it became irritating to listen to.
After several days of using 950Hz as my default sidetone I can definitely say that CW has become much more pleasurable again. I can also see why, when calling a rare station in a pileup, it could be advantageous to call him slightly higher in frequency, rather than on or below it.
Perhaps time to book a hearing test!
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