so ive been on HF for about two years now mostly doing digital modes but lately ive been trying to get into SSB phone and im honestly a bit lost when it comes to getting good audio. my signal reports are all over the place, some guys say i sound fine others say im muffled or have too much low end. im running an IC-7300 into a Heil PR-40 through the stock settings basically and i know thats probably part of the problem but i dont really know where to start tweaking.

ive read a bunch of stuff about TX bandwidth and the parametric eq on the 7300 but every time i try to adjust something i either make it worse or i cant tell the difference at all. also not sure how much of this is mic technique vs the radio settings. i tend to sit pretty close to the mic, maybe 2-3 inches, and im in a fairly small room with hard walls if that matters. anybody gone through this kind of thing and figured out a decent baseline to work from?

the PR-40 is a large diaphragm condenser-style dynamic and it picks up a LOT of room reflections, especially in a small space with hard walls. that alone can explain the muddy reports. try hanging a moving blanket or even a thick towel behind you and see if that cleans things up before you start chasing EQ settings.

for the 7300 specifically, most people roll off below about 200-250hz pretty aggressively because low end just turns into splatter on the band and sounds boxy on the receive end. the mid presence bump around 2-3khz is where voice intelligibility lives for SSB so nudging that up a little goes a long way. TX bandwidth i usually keep around 2.8khz, some guys go wider but honestly for normal conditions its not buying you much and it can make you sound worse on crowded bands. also back off from the mic a bit, 4-6 inches is more typical for that mic, closer than that and you get proximity effect piling on the bass.

if you have a buddy nearby who can give you a live report while you tweak thats the fastest way to dial it in, much better than going by memory between qsos.

yeah what he said about the room is real, i spent like three weeks thinking my ft-991a had a bad board or something and it turned out i was just sitting next to a big window and the reflections were killing me. drove me nuts.

one thing i'd add - make sure your ALC is behaving. if the ALC meter is pegged or jumping around a lot while youre talking that usually means something is wrong in the audio chain before the final stage and it can make your audio sound compressed and gross even if your EQ is fine. speak in a normal conversational voice and watch that meter, you want it to be moving but not constantly slamming the top.