by G4RMT » Sun Apr 23, 2017 9:22 pm
Coax just extends whatever you have on the end. If you are unsure if it's working - can I check how you have connected the bit of wire? I assume you selected the Hi-Z inputs and connected the wire to the red press terminal? The black terminal can for the moment be left unconnected, or attached to something local and earthed - maybe a copper radiator pipe, near the valve if unpainted? Stretch the cable out, and if upstairs, chuck the end out of the winter. On the lower HF bands, connected like this you should pick up all sorts of noisy interference. whack the RF gain up and the noise should go up. If you hear the noise, the receiver is working. If there is silence, then remove the wire from the red socket on the rear, stick it into the coax connector and jam it in with a cocktail/match stick. Make sure the switch is changed to coax and then try it again. If at this point you still have silence - then all is pretty bad.
My guess is that you will hear all sorts of interference, especially if you have TVs, monitors and computers turned on. If you can hear them, then your only problem is an aerial that is too near these things, and not in the clear enough to enable proper reception. Tuning between 3.5 and around 10MHz at any time of the day produces something - as you tune.
Any use?