Tech Tips

Show-and-tell how-tos from the AE4JC YouTube channel — setup guides, working settings, and fixes for real problems that came up in the shack.

Looking for a written, step-by-step procedure rather than a video? Those live under Setup Guides — OpenHamClock, Linux, and others.

Working meteors? The bands, the timing, the tools and the honest limits are gathered on Meteor Scatter.

WSJT-X and Digital Modes

Verified Working Settings: WSJT-X, N3FJP, JTAlertV2, and GridTracker2 — a confirmed-working configuration across the whole digital logging chain, so these four programs actually talk to each other correctly.

Press the Escape Button Twice to quickly clear DX Call in WSJT-X — a quick keyboard trick for clearing a stuck DX Call field without reaching for the mouse.

WSJT-X, FT-991A, Dell Windows 11 Setup w/ Graphics & Audio Fix — getting WSJT-X working cleanly with an FT-991A on Windows 11, including a graphics and audio driver fix that was tripping things up.

All Working Settings FT-891 Quantum SDR w RF Tap — full working settings for running an FT-891 alongside a Quantum SDR panadapter through an RF tap.

Windows 11 How-To Shortcuts For Digital Ham Radio — general Windows 11 shortcuts that speed up managing multiple digital-mode program windows at once.

The basics of setting up your FT-891 for split operations — how to configure split transmit/receive on the FT-891, the basic skill for working a DX pileup.

Syncing FT-891, Quantum SDR, and Cloudlog through CloudlogCAT — wiring the FT-891 and Quantum SDR into Cloudlog for automatic logging via CloudlogCAT.

QRM and Noise Elimination

Two RF Noise Sources Found In The Shack! — tracking down two real noise sources that were raising the local noise floor, with what they turned out to be.

Radio Interference In The Shack: RCA VH226E Rotator Controller — an antenna rotator controller turned out to be a real interference source; what it sounded like and how it was identified.

AC Hum Elimination - Yaesu FT5D with SAD-25 AC Adapter — eliminating AC hum on an FT5D caused by its SAD-25 power adapter.

Station Tours and Layouts

Rain or Shine Mobile Ham Radio Station Tour, POTA DX and Local — a full tour of the mobile station used for POTA, DX, and local operating, in any weather.

HamSCI Meteor Scatter MSK144 Station Layout and Operation 08-2025 — how the meteor scatter station is laid out and operated on MSK144, recorded for the HamSCI Meteor Scatter project.

Gear Setup and Fixes

ID-52 PLUS RepeaterBook Connect Bluetooth Fix — fixing a Bluetooth pairing problem between the ID-52 PLUS and the RepeaterBook Connect app.

ATAS 1:1 SWR Tune with FT-891 Hand Mic — tuning an ATAS auto-tuning antenna to 1:1 SWR right from the FT-891’s hand mic.

APRS Thursday with Yaesu FT5D MSG TEXT — sending and reading APRS text messages on the Yaesu FT5D.

USB-C Headphones Fix for CW Practice — a written procedure, not a video: why wired USB-C headphones clip the first part of every CW transmission on a Pixel 10, and the background-tone trick that fixes it.

Connections: N2EME RXin/RXout SDR Switch, LNA, 3dB Splitter, Antenna, Power Supply, and Transceiver — exactly how the N2EME SDR switch, LNA, splitter, antenna, power, and transceiver are wired together.

Some of these fixes have real physics underneath them:

The BJT: Why a Small Base Current Commands a Large One — on SolveTheUniverse.com, my physics site — works out what actually limits a transistor’s current gain, and why gain is a misleading name for what it does.

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