Hi Jeff

Setting your expectations realistically is important. As others have said, you can make MS contacts using low power and modest antennas. The thing you need to think about is: How many contacts are you NOT making? And DO YOU CARE?

Especially if the answer to that last question is "no", then you've answered your own question. A minimal setup is enough to make a few contacts with very well-equipped stations by way of MS, and if that is your expectation level, then you'll have lots of fun.

The thing is, meteor scatter is what is called a weak-signal mode. This means that signal levels using meteor scatter are most often just a few dB above the total noise floor. This would equate to a signal of about S2, which according to the RST verbal translation is "extremely weak". :-) That's what you're working with. You will often hear people say that it's not necessary to run high power or big antennas. Well, ham radio isn't NECESSARY. The rejoinder is, therefore, not necessary for WHAT? When you're working with a signal 2 dB above the noise floor, just doubling the power at the other end will make that guy's signal come up from barely decodable to easily decodable. That's just going from 100 watts to 200 watts. Or reducing your noise floor by 3 dB by using a higher or more directional antenna will accomplish the same end.

A good way to think about this is that the MS QSO is a joint effort between you and the other station. The capabilities of your station PLUS the other guy's station must reach a certain critical level for a MS QSO to be realistically likely over the length of the path in question. Most hams who are on MS with WSJT don't have big stations; only a few do. Those are the guys you will be able to work regularly from a modest station.

The guy with the middle-of-the-road station -- say 200 watts and a 5-el 6m yagi -- will probably elude you some of the time, but you will work a few of these guys when conditions are good. The guy with the small station (like yours) will be mostly unworkable by you except under very ideal conditions, such as a strong meteor shower with lots of big, high-energy rocks.

It's all on a sliding scale that is graduated in terms of your expectations and desires. You decide what you want to be able to do, and you build your station to be able to accomplish that. Or conversely, you realistically assess the kind of station you have and adjust your expectations accordingly.