SSTV - Pretty Much There

I've been working with getting fldigi (for digital text) and Black Cat SSTV (for slow-scan TV) working on my desktop Mac, and things are about there now.  Below is a test transmission of the image from the previous blog post along with the original image.  Quality is poor, but that's only because of the crappy S/N ratio: I'm transmitting 2.5w from my QRP radio into a dummy load on my desktop machine, and listening to the leakage on my main HF set-up.  Not much power is getting through all that, but it's enough to confirm that things are working.  Possibly more importantly, it's not enough power to fry my main HF rig's input circuits.  That is a consideration when intercontinental-range radios are being used in adjacent rooms.

Anyway, here's a transmitted test image:

you may need to squint

and the original:

SSTV has been a long-term goal (see two posts from 2017: Getting There and Working Out the Fiddly Parts), and other than becoming proficient with the user interface, I'm pretty much there now.  It is handy though to have an FT-817nd and a dummy load on the desk while figuring out all the bells and whistles at my leisure – and not bothering anyone else while fumbling around.