JT65 versus g7kse

There are many digital modes available to us ham users and picking the right one for the right job is never going to be easy for the average ham. My favourite for free form QSO's has to be the popular PSK31. There is tremendous support for the various programmes like Fldigi, MixW and DM780, just take your pick and you'll not be without options. Other modes for weak signal work exist and the other day I tried my hand without much TX success with JT65.

I downloaded a copy of JT65-HF, filled in all the relevant bits requierd to complete a QSO and set the thing running. I was surprised to see that it didn't decode all the visible signals and I automatically assumed it was my breathless Intel Atom based PC that was to blame. Now I feel as though I'm going to have to aplogise to an inanimate object. Why? because I didn't tell it the right time, Why didn't I tell it the right time, because I didn't read all the manual, Why didn't I read all the manual, because I was in too much of a rush / numbskull. You get the idea.

It seems that the FEC on JT65 is over 300 bits whilst the available bits for the QSO is 72. The heavy FEC I assume (dangerously of course with my current reputation) that this makes it good for weak signals. As does the exact timing required to get all the computery bits into order. So the decodes weren't happening becuase Windows 7 sync is not up to the job as it states on page blah blah in the blah blah manual. Yes I should have read all of it but it was 44 pages long and I was impatient as I explained earlier. To make matters worse I spent a number of hours wondering why I couldn't hear any TX audio through the monitor. Any guesses? no. well odly enough it just started working all on its own.