KE0BBI.NET
The shack, the gear, the bands & the frequencies
The KE0BBI shack is a dedicated corner of the house in Lorain, Ohio, set up for comfortable HF operating and digital modes work. The station is built around an Icom IC-7300 as the primary HF rig — a fantastic SDR-based transceiver with a built-in waterfall that makes band monitoring a pleasure. For VHF/UHF local work I keep a Kenwood TM-V71A dual-band mobile on the desk for repeater and APRS use.
The antenna system is a G5RV Jr. for general HF use, fed with 450-ohm ladder line into a balanced tuner, which lets me cover 80 through 10m with reasonable efficiency. For 20m I also have a 3-element Yagi up at 35 feet pointed northeast — it makes a noticeable difference on European DX. The entire antenna farm sits on a city lot on the south shore of Lake Erie, with a clear shot north toward Canada and over the water toward Europe on the long path.
| Band | Freq Range | Modes | My Activity | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80m | 3.5–4.0 MHz | SSBFT8 | Good for regional contacts, best after dark | |
| 40m | 7.0–7.3 MHz | SSBFT8CW | My go-to evening band, great DX at night | |
| 20m ★ | 14.0–14.35 MHz | SSBFT8CW | Favorite band — DX almost daily, Yagi helps a lot | |
| 15m | 21.0–21.45 MHz | SSBFT8 | Opens well during Solar Cycle 25 peak | |
| 10m | 28.0–29.7 MHz | SSBFMFT8 | Wide open to Europe most mornings right now | |
| 2m | 144–148 MHz | FMSSB | Local repeater nets, APRS, satellite work | |
| 70cm | 420–450 MHz | FM | Local FM and occasional satellite passes |