HSC Homepage

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: What is HSC?
RADIO TELEGRAPHY HIGH SPEED CLUB (HSC) is a community of friends of high speed morse telegraphy. The club was founded in Germany in 1951. Take a look at legal notice or What is HSC? for more details.

Question: The German district court in Kassel has stated, that there is no subgroup "HSC" within the German Amateur Radio Club "DARC".
That's right! The HSC is no subgroup of DARC and we never claimed that. We are a so called "international association of people", but not a registered society by German law. You've probably received a letter with a statement of the German district court in Kassel enclosed , which may let you think, HSC doesn't exist. But the HSC still exits since 1951. DARC has granted us the use of their QSL and E-Mail services and a little space for HSC announcements in their club magazine CQ-DL.

Questions: I have got a letter from HSC...

A general answer if you think you received a letter from us:
It's very unlikely that this letter originated from us. Usually HSC does not send letters to its members. Please check if the sender is one of the persons listed in the Legal notice section. This answer also applies for the next three shown below.
...and have been requested to renew my HSC membership.
Once you become a member you remain it for life. Membership does not expire. For that reason you don't have to renew your membership. You also retain your membership number for life. It will never be re-issued. For detailed information take a look at the Versus "HSC e.V." / DFØHSC section.
...and have been "warned" because I've called myself a HSC member.
When you joined us, you got a membership certificate from the HSC secretary. This certificate clearly shows that you are a legal member of HSC. Any other affirmations are completely nonsense and you should ignore them! You don't have to fear any consequences. See also the Versus "HSC e.V." / DFØHSC section.
...and have been "warned", because I've planned a ham meeting and it's very likely that HSC members will join us.
You may invite any person you'd like, and also members of the HSC. You should not pay any attention to that letter. Nothing will happen. See Versus "HSC e.V." / DFØHSC.
...and have been asked to join HSC.
We don't ask anyone to join us. To become a member you must follow distinct regulations without exception. It's only up to you!

Question: What are the call signs of HSC club stations?
Our club stations are DLØHSC and DKØHSC. On special events we also use DAØHSC as a third club station. The pictures below only show three out of many more themes we've used for QSL cards. Just click on the QSL cards for more information on HSC club stations. Remember: We don't have other club stations!

Question: I've worked special DOK "HSC50" with a club station other than you mentioned on your internet web site. Is that special DOK valid for a DLD award anyway?
Special DOKs are issued only by the DX/HF section manager of DARC e.V. to distinct club stations. HSC50 is only valid if it has been given to you by one of our club stations DLØHSC, DKØHSC or DAØHSC. Please contact the German DOK manager DL1ZAX, sdok@darc.de, to get a list of the call signs with special DOKs.

Question: How do I get QSL cards from your club stations?
Well, first of all you must have run a QSO with one of our club stations or heard them if you're a SWL. All stations in our log receive a QSL card. We send them via the German QSL bureau only.

Question: Do I still need to submit 5 sponsor QSL cards to become a member of HSC?
Yes, without exception. See the Joining Us section for more details.

Question: I got a letter and it urges me to pay an entrance fee. What would you recommend me to do?
This letter didn't originate from us since we don't charge an entrance fee. Regulations for becoming a member are shown in the Joining Us section.

Question: Do you charge an annual subscription fee for membership?
No, we don't.

Question: My club magazine still hasn't arrived until today. Why?
HSC doesn't issue any kind of club magazines.

Question: How long do I retain my HSC membership number?
Your membership and your membership number are for life. If a number becomes free, it will never be re-issued.

Question: Where do I get an up-to-date HSC membership list?
Take a look at the Membership List section. There you can download a compressed file which contains two ASCII formatted membership lists (sorted by call sign and by number).

Question: I've worked a HSC member but I cannot find it in the membership list. Why?
If you cannot find a call sign in our up-to-date membership list, the station you've worked is no legal member of the HSC!