Thats what I do for WSPR trx if I am not usign the GPS solution 
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You can fit a Real Time Clock (RTC) module to your pi, use a GPS dongle with the pi, or even more complicated- stream the GPS data from your smartphone over to the pi! That’s what I do.
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My setup is the IC-705 with the Surface tablet mainly via the Icom remote utility so I can go completely wireless. If I find the clock is out, I carry a USB cable so I can use the GPS in the radio to sync my tablet’s clock.
The surface is in an Otterbox case to protect it from all elements, the radio doesn’t get pampered as much.
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Yes, I’ve done a lot of FT8/FT4 for SOTA. It is quite good for a popular summit because it can be a completely silent mode of operation without having to wear earbuds!
I normally use it as part of my activations but having experienced it as my primary mode of operation during 5 months at sea (necessarily so due to QRN), I rather fancy a break from it!
Any questions re FT8 for SOTA, fire away. But as others have said, there’s lots of discussions already on here to search through, plus plenty of videos, including the one that could well be the most boring view on the whole of YouTube:
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I’ve thought about FT8 for SOTA and have decided it’s not for me for the following reasons:
- too much extra delicate equipment and setup time
- many contacts would not even know you’re doing SOTA and you’re often not contacted by SOTA Chasers
- it’s boring and too much like shooting fish in a barrel.
YMMV of course!
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I have used FT8, SSTV, and the popular meteor scatter software from sota summits. Using an IC705 cable connected to a surface go - I did have one of the tiny Chinese mini laptop devices, but it died within a couple of months due to the now well documented battery issue. Also use an FT817+Signalink+surface pro, or for QRO FT857
The systems are used mainly portable rather than SOTA, but it adds another dimension to the hobby for those that want to.
73
Tim
G4YTD
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My voice QSO rate is about four times that of my ft8 QSO rate!
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My first use of FT8 for a SOTA activation was as part of the flavour Challenge. What really caught my interest was the use I made of FT8 for subsequent flavours, 6m on FT8 was great, and I managed the first 160m SOTA contacts in Canada using the mode.
Back in June 2021, before the bands were opened up, I tried FT8 on 20m and the 10 contacts I made included Japan, Dominican Republic, Hawaii, Chile and, of course, the USA.
So the digital mode has opened up new bands and new countries for me.
The equipment I am using is an HP Stream computer (which I don’t recommend) with a USB hub. Plugged into the hub are a GPS dongle for time and location, a USB soundcard and the CAT cable for the FT817 radio. The audio interface is home-brew, nothing but a couple of audio isolation transformers. I found the 5 watts output of the FT817 to be inadequate so I use a 25 watt amplifier, this feeds an MFJ 16010 tuner to an end-fed “random” wire.
Ian
VE6IXD
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Thank you for the info. What kind of GPS dongle are you using?
73s
Ingo
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this- syncs computer using received FT8 signals! So smart! Works great and you can even sync to a station off sync to work them.
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I am wrapping up a all VHF MG goal.
I have tried VHF FT8 on Summits I determined near impossible due to remoteness via VHF QRP FM/SSB.
Using my IC705 with WFView (free remote wireless software) I set it up on @8 summits running FT8 on 6m.
I would estimate I had 8 total hour of CQing FT8
My goal was to see if I was getting out. I was (according to PSKreporter) on some of those summits and of course to make QSOs
My net QSO total was “0” ! I am going to try again near winter solstice.
Now, put a 20m endfed up in a tree and you will be hitting the log QSO button with boring regularity!
If your interested in FT8 SOTA the IC705 coupled with WFView is spectacular. I being a relative new ham want to try everything out. For me, FT8 other than as a last ditch effort to secure 4 QSOs is not interesting.
**With that said, MSK144 is of interest to me and I have a goal of activating a summit with that software one day. I’ve tried a couple times from my QTH but I am going to need a much better antenna.
Erik
KE8OKM
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Seems, you rather need a much better mode. The MSK144 protocol is absolutely deaf compared to FSK441. However, FSK needs operator skills unlike MSK or FT-8 in which modes the computers complete the qso on their own. If you want to try meteor scatter, FSK is the way to go for a SOTA station.
Ahoi
Pom
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But for FSK441 you need someone to talk to. Looking at the PSK Reporter map there are currently only 2 stations in Europe listening on FSK441 on 2m but many more using MSK144. It is a similar picture on 6m.
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John, FSK is not for talking. FSK is a meteor scatter protocol.
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I understand that, I should have said “contact” instead of “talking”. But my point was it takes 2 for a QSO and I don’t think many people are using FSK441.
It’s a bit like the comment Joe Taylor has made suggesting FT4 is better than FT8 for contests as the exchange is twice as fast. This is true but almost no one is using FT4 and that would need to change to make it useful in contests.
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DXers do use FSK. It’s the only MS digimode with a reasonable S/N ratio for a SOTA station. If SOTA OPs want to succeed in MS, FSK and weak signal operating skills are needed. FSK and MSK are not made for tropo or even local contacts.
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I’m a little late coming to this thread, but on the (rather crucial) subject of accurate time for FT8, I’m surprised no-one’s mentioned using the WWV time signals to set the clock - - this my usual method even at home! (maybe you can guess I don’t use FT8 often…)
Maybe the stations, on 5, 10, and 15MHz aren’t useable in Europe/UK ?
My method does rely on the operator doing the actual syncing with the necessary accuracy, but at least on a Windows system it’s quite easy with a little practice.
Mind you, modern versions of Windows have buried the proper time settings in the Control Panel, with only a useless ‘streamlined’ version minus the seconds display accessible by right-clicking the clock… (grumble)
Just a few thoughts 
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Ooops. I omitted to say that I’ve never actually tried FT8 on a summit - so my comments might be a little irrelevant 
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Plenty of FT4 on 20M, and I find it’s often easier than FT8 as there is less QRM.
I have built a homebrew 5W Ftx/WSPR station based on a WSPR design but I haven’t used it on a SOTA activation yet
Cheers
Rick
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