So, I was testing out my new POTA Monster setup before I took it to the field.
The audio reports I got were not great. One friendly ham was even set up to record QSOs and played back my audio. It was awful. There was an extremely loud electrical buzz in the background.
I went through and put more clip-on ferrite chokes on things (I had picked up a bag of assorted ones on Amazon. Nothing much helped. I also tried moving the head off the top of the box and turning off audio processing (PROC) on the radio. No joy. I also replaced the frayed cord I had on the mic with a different (better) one. Nope.
Nearing my wits end, I decided to try swapping the mic out. Yup, that was it. I was talking to a POTA operator and he very kindly took the time to let me swap mics back and forth. The problem went with the microphone. Phew!
So, I've swapped the hand mic. I'll tear apart the other one and see if I see anything obvious, like a short to ground or something. I've got spare microphone elements, so I could always just swap that if push comes to shove.
So, the POTA Monster is now tested and ready for the field. I hope to get out with it tomorrow night. I repaired a 20m hamstick I had laying around (corroded connection on the choke wire). I also have a new one coming in the mail tomorrow, so one way or the other, I should be good to go.
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