This inquiry is directed to both the Elecraft leadership team as well as K3/K3s owners who may have an interest in native Ethernet connectivity. In searching through the list archives, I noted that some K3 owners had previously expressed an interest in an Ethernet option - and some owners have been disappointed that the new K3s and KIO3B board does not include Ethernet connectivity.
A bit of background: for the past few months, N4CC and I have been operating a remote Internet station that's located near the FL/GA state line. Our setup includes a K3 and RemoteRig at the remote site and either a K3 or K3-mini at the control locations. Since the installation, we've experienced almost no operating trouble and any issues that have developed are managed remotely though direct and back-door network access points. Last week, I made some internal changes to the K3 and also added an external USB data interface device for RTTY. What's apparent is that cable management is getting way out of control. To gain inside access to the K3 almost requires a meditation exercise before going in. Consider that a PR6 is mounted to the back of the K3. The rear of the K3 is an absolute rat's nest of cabling. With the RemoteRig and PR6, It was bad enough before the inclusion of the external USB sound car/interface, but now it's bordering on ridiculous. Moreover, RemoteRig does not allow clean access to the K3's ACC DB-15 connector for other purposes such as FSK keying. Sure, the connector can be opened to access pins, but it requires a wiring break-out, leading to yet a further rat's nest of cabling. To help deal with the cabling issues, I am replacing the external PR6 with the new KXVB3 board. Next, a KIO3B board will be added when it's available to existing K3 owners. That should eliminate the external sound card interface and clear up much of the cabling mess, but not all of it. The Holy Grail is an Ethernet interface that includes (optional) integrated RemoteRig hardware - just one interface board [e.g., KIO3E(thernet) board] that manages K3 Ethernet connectivity with or without RemoteRig attributes. Don't need Ethernet? Then don't get the board. Since the RemoteRig hardware is mature and consumes little circuit board space and DC current, perhaps it would be worth opening up a discussion with RemoteRig's designer since Elecraft already has a close relationship with Microbit. I know rear panel real estate is a concern, so it won't be easy to add yet another connector without adversely affecting other connectivity. Thoughts? Paul, W9AC ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
