When I passed my radio amateur exam in the mid ’80s, amateur radio was a soundscape - Morse chirps, SSB chatter, distant voices dancing with fading propagation. For me, this was a window to the world and I spent several years tinkering with antennae, chasing DXs, and trying to decipher Morse code signals through the static. Then life happened and my priorities changed. Twenty-odd years passed. When I returned to the hobby, expecting the old thrill, I was stunned.
This wasn’t the hobby I left behind. It had evolved - radically
The bands sounded very quiet, almost dead - until I tuned to 14.074 MHz and heard the unmistakable chirp of FT8 reminiscent of the sound of dial-up modems of the late '90s.
It was busy, yet strangely silent.
FT8: Efficient, quiet, and controversial
FT8, a weak-signal digital mode, now dominates much of HF. You send signals in 15-second bursts, and your PC does the rest. No voices, no keys, no conversation - just data. I tried it, half reluctantly at first, but within days, I’d logged more DX than I had in years on SSB or CW. One fellow UK operator said he worked 180 countries in a week with a dipole and 50 watts. It was exhilarating, if somewhat unsettling.
Some call it progress. Others call it the death of real ham radio and boast "No-FT8" banners on their QRZ.com profile pages.
The great divide
Some seasoned operators argue that FT8 strips out the soul of amateur radio. One Spanish ham called it “a self-driving car” - automated, soulless. I get it. You can, indeed, nowadays fully automate digital operation using robots, such as FT8 Helper, and rack up QSOs completely hands free. There’s no thrill of tuning the bands, no human voice, no persistence rewarded. You click, the computer talks, and the software does everything from signal report to RR73.
But for many, especially newer or returning hams, FT8 is a saviour. Urban RF noise, limited space, and low sunspots make voice or CW rather challenging for modest stations. FT8 gives these operators - myself included - a real shot. It democratises DX-ing, allowing low-power stations with basic wire antennas to work the world. In a CW or SSB pileup, 100 watts and a vertical don’t stand a chance against a kilowatt and stacked Yagis. FT8 levels the field.
That’s not killing the hobby - it’s making it accessible.
Innovation IS the tradition
Let’s not forget that amateur radio has always been about experimentation and pushing boundaries. From building one’s own rigs and antennas to pioneering modes like RTTY and SSTV (which all sounder rather exotic to me in 1984) hams have never stood still. Digital modes like FT8 are not a betrayal of tradition - they are part of it. Embracing software-defined radios, internet-linked repeaters and weak-signal digital tools is simply the modern form of the same innovative spirit that brought us sideband, Moonbounce, and PSK31.
If anything, digital modes continue ham radio’s legacy of technical curiosity.
FT8 goes to the ends of the Earth
If you need proof that digital is no longer fringe, look no further than any major DXpedition. Whether it’s Bouvet Island, Baker Island, or a remote outpost in the Pacific, FT8 is now part of every serious operating plan - alongside CW and SSB. It maximises contact volume, penetrates weak propagation, and serves operators in challenging locations with compromise gear. DXpedition teams know the bands aren’t what they once were, and they’re adapting.
If digital wasn’t real radio, why would the world’s best operators be using it?
Coexistence, not conflict
I’ve come to see this not as a crisis, but as a crossroads. The hobby isn’t dying - it’s evolving. Old-school operators might miss the old-fashioned chase and think it's all gone too far these days. Newcomers, on the other hand, value blend of modern tech and ham radio spirit. These are not mutually exclusive. The best operators I’ve met blend both worlds. They build digital kits, then teach CW on weekends.
I'd say we need more of that.
Where we go from here?
Ham radio is what we make it. If we reduce it to mouse clicks and macros, we lose its richness. But if we embrace both old and new - voice, Morse code, digital - we preserve its depth.
So here’s where I stand: try every mode. Don’t dismiss FT8, and don’t worship it either. If you’re an SSB diehard, try decoding FT8 for a week. If you’re FT8-only, spin the dial and call CQ. Don’t just contact - connect.
After 20 years away, I found a hobby transformed. But it’s still here and it's still worth it.
The signals are out there. You just have to decide how you want to hear them.