Volume 1 Issue 1 KC6GAG editor JANUARY 1995

ATN / KC6GAG FAX LINE -- 714-961-0310 -- email to jpawluk@portal.com

ATN Yearly Meeting

It's that time of year again for our annual meeting. On February 11, 1995 Saturday at 1:00 PM at 250 Turner Ave. Ontario Ca. (Guasti Village Area). It's in the television center for Caritsa Telecommunications located behind the Catholic Church, next to the 130 ft. tower. The phone number at Guasti is 909-983-5113 if you get lost. Please RSVP so Mike WA6SVT and crew can make preparations. Mike's number is 909-338-6887 or BOX 1594, Crestline, Ca. 92325.

Your Comments Will Make ATN News Work

Hello my name is Robert KC6GAG. With the help of the user base and members of ATN, we can have a great news letter for all. Please send me your views and news, upcoming events, photos, and stories of all kinds. I'm sure we can make room for all.

Special Announcement

Mike Collis WA6SVT is engaged, oh my does this mean no more trips to the mountain tops in the middle of the night? Mike met his fiancee Natasha while on vacation to Europe this summer. Natasha has a daughter Victoria that just turned 3 years old this month. Mike will have a new life style to get used to soon. Congratulations Mike and Natasha.

Happy New Year

The new year has started with many new additions and changes to the Santiago repeater. Santiago Peak has a new controller, thanks to Geoff (KB7BY) and a new VSB modulator for superior pictures, thanks to Mike (KC6CCC). The 2441 MHz FM input is up and working, thanks to Jim (KC6TFV). Mike KC6CCC has built up a 10.4 GHz receiver for a third input to Santiago. Thank you Mike. The 10 GHz input should be installed by the time this letter is sent out. Polarization will be horizontal on 10 GHz and at a distance of 25 miles from the repeater we recommend a +50 dBM ERP (100 watts) for a good picture. A two foot dish and 50 milliwatts will give this power at 10 GHz. We purchased a three monitor system from Mark NU6X to allow the service crew to have three separate color monitors to use during service. Again thanks to all for your hard work.

Mike WA6SVT

Riverside ATV Demo a Big Hit!

Members of the Riverside amateur radio club became "stars" during their November meeting as an ATV demonstration was held on November 10, 1994.

"I didn't think we would be able to transmit an ATV signal" says Roland Hoffman - KC6JPG, who conducted the demo, "The site was located on the 3rd floor of the Harris Department Store in downtown Riverside, with "NO OUTSIDE WINDOWS, AND NO OUTSIDE DOORS!" After setting up the equipment & rotating the antenna array (aiming between the rebar of the building) the club was able to monitor the WA6SVT - Santiago Peak Repeater with a P-4 (near perfect) picture. After a test transmission was made, reports from the ATV'ers indicated that the picture had a bit of noise but receiving in FULL COLOR ( even though the monitors were showing a B/W picture during our transmissions). Dave - KA6DPS in Nuevo awed the crowd that night by displaying unique special effects using his Video Toaster. Various members of the club had the opportunity to ask questions directly to the ATV'ers on the Santiago Peak System and actually WATCHED their responses.

The members of the Riverside Club thoroughly enjoyed the presentation. Some members enjoyed it so much, they've already have purchased their downconverters & currently monitoring the Santiago Peak repeater (while they save their money in order to buy or build their transmitters).

Thanks to all of the ATV'ers for your participation & support that night for introducing prospective ATV'ers (and ATN members) to Amateur Television.

SPECIAL THANKS

Donations for Blue Ridge Amp.

STEVE AA6SN, MIKE WA6SVT, TONY K6LKH, RANDY N6MNV, DICK WB6LGL, AL KF6YM, MOODY WQ6I, JOHN KC6YVS, GREG N6TDZ, GARY WB6VVV, REED WA6BFK, RON KC6KDO, JIM KC6TFV

Donations for Oat Mt. preamp.

STAN KC6NNO, WARREN W6YGP

Donations and or equipment for Blue Ridge Turnaround.

KEN K6IIS, JOHN KB6MMF, JOHN KC6YVS, DAVE KA6DPS, JIM KC6TFV

Donations for Santiago Monitors.

DAVE WB8TMP, REED WB6BFK, MAC KA6UUS, DAVE KA6DPS

Donation for Santiago Peak (4 input video board so we can show all 4 video inputs at once).

BARRY KC6OXK

Donations of equipment and Tech. advice.

SAM K6VLM, MIKE KC6CCC, JIM KC6TFV

Hello From San Diego

The Palomar ATV repeater went on the air in May of 1994. First, we went on the air with a 919.25 AM TV input and 146.43 (PL 79.7) intercom. We've added a 2417 studio transmit link from just North of Mission Valley and a 915 FM TV input on the studio transmit link.

NASA C band shuttle video is retransmitted along with 1253 from Santiago Peak. We are presently collecting equipment to add 426.25 and 434 AM TV inputs as well as our 33 cm input to Santiago Peak on 2.4 GHz. This should be accomplished by late Spring of 1995.

The Palomar site is located 160 feet down the South face of Bouchard Hill on Palomar Mountain, which shields us to the North and allows us to have the same output as Wilson.

Looking forward to seeing you all in person at the ATN gathering in February.

Bill Smith, KB6MCU

System Updates

Oat Mountain

Oat has been back linked to Santiago Peak for a full two way link. Mark NU6X has left California and is no longer Trustee of the repeater. Dave WA6ZVE is the new Trustee and plans are to remove Loop Canyon repeater on 1277.25 Mhz. and relocate to Oat Mt. The new Oat Mt. machine will feature the ATN Multi Input Controller and a VSB modulator. This major upgrade will bring Oat Mt. into the same class of repeater as Santiago Peak, Potosi and Blue Ridge. The 919.25 Mhz. transmitter will be moved to Red Mt. south of Santa Barbara to link Oat into the Santa Barbara. The Trustee will be Mike, K6ZSR.

Santa Barbara

No new changes or report from Rod, WB9KMO. He has recently married and has been absent from the ATV scene. Congratulations Rod and Chris on your marrige.

Blue Ridge Mt.

The repeater is now linked to both Mt. Potosi and Mt. Breckenridge. A new controller, thanks to Geoff KB7BY, has been installed. A new VSB modulator was built and installed thanks to Sam K6VLM and Mike WA6SVT. Geoff is converting over a 10 Ghz. link donated by Mark WB7AJC to link Blue Ridge to Crestline and from there to Santiago via a 2417 Mhz. link being built by Jim KC6TFV. Thanks for all the hard work on the link project guys.

Higher output power is on the way to boost the signal by several dB to improve coverage. Thanks to all who contributed to the amplifier fund and to John KC6YVS and Al KF6YM for the power splitter and combiner.

Mt. Potosi (Las Vegas)

Geoff KB7BY and several of his local crew installed a remote controlled camera at the site and the view from the tower is fantastic. We were able to report two forest fires this Summer and fall due to the view from the mountain. The 913 Mhz. FM input has gone to a cardiod pattern covering the Las Vegas side of the mountain and the polarization has been changed to horizontal to greatly reduce QRM to Ft. Irwin. Full coverage is still available via the 434 Mhz. AM input.

Geoff is building a translator to cover the Boulder and Henderson City areas. It will be located on Red Mt. (NV) and have an output on 1241.25 Mhz. and a receiver linked back to Potosi.

Mt. Breckenridge

The 434 Mhz. receiver was replaced last Summer. We hoped that this would help renew interest in this repeater. We have seen some users but none have sent any donations into the ATN to help pay for the site rent. This is a wakeup call to the Bakersfield area, no donations by June 1st 1995 and the ATN will be forced to abandon the site. We have never done this before but the rent is expensive and it's not fair for the ATN to support a repeater that has no user support at all. (stay tuned)

Other Stuff

Mike WA6SVT has been busy the past few months reviewing documents and writing responces to protect our interests in the 2.4 Ghz. Bands. This involved NTIA and FCC inquiries and NPRM's. Several Amateur organizations and some individual Amateurs have written responses too. We will let everyone know the outcome as soon as we are informed.

Jim KC6TFV, Kurt N6TWB, Rob WA6JJI, Mike KC6CCC and Gary W6KVC put on a fantastic repeater interlink demonstration in September between the Mt. Diablo repeater in the East Bay area and the Santiago Peak repeater in So. Cal via a TVRO satellite link. Our affiliated ATN repeater in Atlanta Georgia run by ralph N4NEQ had a one way Video link and a two way audio link via the repeater auto-patch to our uplink site. We had a nice round table between the three groups, many thanks to all those involved.

Coming Events

ATV Demo's Slated

OK, ATV'ers, warm up your cameras and hook up your special effect generators as several ATV demonstrations are scheduled in January & February for various Amateur Radio Clubs. "I enjoy observing the reaction of other "HAMS" as they WATCH ATV for the first time." says Roland Hoffman - KC6JPG, "Demonstrations are a great way to introduce this mode to other Amateurs to see if ATV is right for them!"

Roland will conduct the ATV demonstration at the following dates & times (as of this printing):

MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1995

TRI-COUNTY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB in Pomona

Transmit time Approx. 8:00pm

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 1995

CORONA-NORCO AMATEUR RADIO CLUB in Corona

Transmit time Approx. 8:00pm

All ATV'ers are encouraged to participate as you'll be our "ON THE AIR" demonstrators.

Transmissions from the demonstration sites will be made via WA6SVT - Santiago Peak repeater. ATV'ers may utilize the NU6X - Oat Mtn. repeater on the WA6SVT - Santiago Peak system as these 2 repeaters are currently linked within each other.

So, mark your calendars, fix your antennas, and get ready to have a GREAT time as we introduce this exciting mode to new prospective ATV'ers!

73's KC6JPG

Membership Information

From

John Gibson

ATN Treasurer

To

all ATV'ers

ATN Yearly meeting will be Saturday February 11 at 1:00 PM at the same place as the last few years: 250 Turner Ave. Ontario Ca. (Guasti Village Area). It is in the television center for Caritas Telecommunications located behind the Catholic Church, next to the 130 ft. tower. Talk in on 146.43 Mhz. From the 10 Fwy go south on Haven, west on Guasti Rd, south on Turner Ave. If you don't plan to be at the meeting and would like to join the ATN and help support all the ATN repeaters send a check for $35 to me.

Membership Application

(1 Year) $35.00 ____ Renewal ____ New Member $__________

Name____________________________ Call _______________

Address__________________________ Phone______________

City_____________________________ State___ Zip_________

Make checks payable to:

John Gibson

1032 La Roda Ct.

Ontario, CA 91762