Re: [Elecraft] KAT 500 Antenna Selection Problems

[Richard Ferch]

I am using a KAT500 with an IC-7610, switching among three antennas. I have
similar problems, as follows:

On each band, I use only one of the antennas; on several bands there is
only one antenna with a reasonable match within the KAT500's capability. I
am relying on the KAT500's frequency sensing to switch antennas and tuner
settings, with the KAT500 in Manual mode.

When I switch between bands that use the same antenna, there seems to be no
problem. The KAT500 detects the new band with one or two transmitted dits
and switches tuner settings to match the remembered setting for the new
frequency.

When changing bands that involve an antenna change, to switch antennas I
have to transmit at least briefly, even if I only want to receive on the
new band. However, when I switch between bands that use different antennas,
some combinations do not seem to work, i.e. the KAT500 does not change
antennas or tuner settings when the transmitter transmits on the new band.
My workaround is to make two band changes in rapid succession. In some
cases I have to switch to another intermediary band that uses the same
antenna as the first band and transmit a dit or two on that band to cause
the KAT500 to switch to the intermediary band, followed by another switch
to the desired second band, while in other cases switching to an
intermediary band that uses the same antenna as the second band works,
followed by a second switch to the intended band.

What appears to me to be happening is that when the match between the
previous tuner settings and the new antenna on the new band is very poor,
the KAT500's frequency-sensing circuit sometimes seems to be unable to
determine the new frequency, and it doesn't switch antennas. Using a
different band as an intermediary, one where the match is not quite as bad,
appears to allow the KAT500 to detect the frequency correctly and make the
switch.

A better solution than my two band change workaround would be to write some
software to read UDP radio info messages from rig control software (in my
case, either N1MM+ or DXLab Suite Commander) and issue BN commands to the
KAT500 through its serial port connection. Regardless of whether the band
change was initiated from the software or from the radio's front panel,
this ought to cause the KAT500 to change antennas and tuner settings
without requiring any transmitting. I haven't tried this yet.

 73,
Rich VE3KI

W2ECK wrote:

In the KAT 500 Utility – Configuration- Antennas- Band- 17M;

 I have Antenna 3 checked as Enabled and Antenna 3 as Preferred. No other
antennas are selected for 17 m. This configuration has been  applied and
saved. Setup is Flex 6600, KAT500, KPA500 & win 10 pc.

The problem I am having is: with radio on 17 M, when I run a "tune"
sequence, the KAT does not switch to Ant 3, in fact it will not let me
manually switch to ant 3. I occasionally have the same issue with the tuner
not switching on other bands, to the selected antenna as set up in the
utility.

Any suggestions on what may be causing this ?


73 Paul

w2eck
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Re: [Elecraft] WSJTX ON A MAC

[Richard Ferch]

ERR PTT often means that CONFIG:PTT-KEY in the K3 is set to RTS-something
(or DTR-something), and something in the computer is activating RTS (or
DTR) at the time the radio is powered up.

If this is the cause, a simple solution for this is to set CONFIG:PTT-KEY
to OFF-OFF (or OFF-DTR if you want to use DTR for CW keying), and in your
radio control software (WSJT-X and any other programs you use for radio
control) use CAT for PTT control.

73,
Rich VE3KI

AD1G wrote:
> ...  I have receive and Tx ok but I also have  ERR PTT displayed. ...
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Re: [Elecraft] Use of "delay" in K3 CAT Command Strings

[Richard Ferch]

First, you need to remember that the programmer's manual for the elecraft
radios does not tell you anything about the syntax of N1MM+ macro commands.
For that you need to consult the N1MM+ documentation.

Second, the ; at the end of each command is not punctuation, it is an
integral and necessary part of each radio command.

The commas in the description in the programmer's manual, on the other
hand, are just punctuation for the reader, to separate the actions the
reader must take. They are not part of the command sequence, and they are
not part of the N1MM+ command syntax either.

One thing you might try would be to use the \ separator in your N1MM+ macro
commands after the first SWTn; command, as in
{CAT1ASC MN032;SWT12;\MP005;SWT14;}
According to the N1MM+ documentation, that will cause the two groups of
radio commands before and after the \ to be sent to the radio in separate
polls, which might be enough separation in time to resolve the issue (no
guarantees, but the fact that it often works without a delay suggests that
you won't need much).

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Using KIO3B for digital and AFSK RTTY

[Richard Ferch]

W0VTT wrote:

"You can also do radio control through the same USB port, but if you want
to do both at the same time you need a port sharing program like LP Bridge."

The second half of this sentence is incorrect. You can do radio control on
the USB port at the same time as you are using the USB audio codec in the
radio without the need for any port sharing program. The USB audio codec is
functionally independent of the COM port.

The need for a port sharing program like LP Bridge arises only when you are
using the same COM port from more than one program at a time. In contrast,
unlike the COM port which cannot be shared between programs, you can use
the audio codec from multiple programs simultaneously (e.g. multiple RTTY
decoders decoding the same audio signal in parallel).

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S Line in not working.

[Richard Ferch]

A potential explanation: the LINE IN level may have defaulted to zero.

The LINE IN level is adjusted using the MIC gain control, but only when MIC
SEL is set to LINE. So, you need to set MIC SEL to LINE (which turns
MIC+LIN off), adjust the MIC gain control to give the desired non-zero LINE
IN level reading, then if you really want to use MIC+LIN on, set MIC SEL
back to your chosen mic setting and set MIC+LIN to ON.

For FT8, it would make more sense to set MIC+LIN to OFF and MIC SEL to
LINE. The MIC SEL and MIC+LIN settings are remembered separately in SSB and
DATA modes, so by using DATA A mode for FT8 you can avoid the need to
change settings back and forth as you change operating modes.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Systematic error in spots as heard by K3

[Richard Ferch]

k3wyc said:

> ... The spotted frequency should be the suppressed carrier frequency ...

I don't think so. Most modern CW rigs that I am aware of, including the K3,
display the actual transmitted frequency on the dial, not the SSB
suppressed carrier frequency.

That is why the spotted frequency should not depend on the choice of
sidetone if the rig is tuned to the signal correctly. If the displayed
frequency on the dial was the suppressed carrier frequency, then spotted
frequencies would depend on the sidetone, but that is fortunately not the
case with most modern radios. The microprocessor in the radio takes care of
the offset calculation.

If someone has a rig without adjustable sidetone and they prefer to listen
to a different tone than their rig's sidetone, they need to be aware that
when they listen this way they will be transmitting on a different
frequency than the signal they are receiving, and also that frequencies
they spot will be incorrect.

If spots seem to be consistently to one side or the other of your sidetone,
though, my first thought would be that there could be a frequency
calibration error in your rig. An easy way to check would be to tune to the
WWV carrier with the rig in CW mode. With the dial on exactly 10.000 MHz,
the carrier tone you hear in the receiver should be the same as your
sidetone. In SSB, on the other hand, the WWV carrier should not be audible
(it should be at 0 Hz) with the dial on exactly 10.000 MHz.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K Line: Signal loss in a QSO

[Richard Ferch]

You may or may not consider this logical, but: The description of the
transmitter gain calibration procedure in the manual does not call up any
special calibration menu. It just says transmit a carrier at exactly 5.0
watts or exactly 50 watts. Apparently the firmware uses these power level
settings as a trigger to do a gain calibration.

Not wanting to do unexpected gain calibrations while operating, I have
always set my power to 4.9 watts when I want to operate QRP, and to 49
watts if I want to operate at 50 watts.

I am fairly sure I saw a post here by one of the elecraft techs about this
not so very long ago.

73,
Rich VE3KI


N7WS wrote:

It is not in the manual, but has appeared here many times, without logical
explanation.

Wes   N7WS

On 1/16/2022 6:52 AM, j...@kk9a.com wrote:
> I have not heard this either. Is this in the manual? 5 watts would be a
> tough output to avoid if you enjoy QRP.
>
> John KK9A
>
> KE8G wrote:
>
> Hmm, I've never heard that 5 or 50 watts of power shouldn't be run.
>
> 73 de KE8G - Jim
>
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Re: [Elecraft] Rx-In/Out used for exteranl SDR Device?

[Richard Ferch]

To use the RxAnt In/Out BNC connectors in the KXV3, you need to select the
RX Ant from the front panel RX Ant switch. This means you need a jumper
between RX Ant Out and RX Ant In to feed the RX in the K3, with a tee or
splitter to feed signal to the SDR. If you do not select RX Ant, the only
signal that appears at the RX Ant Out connector is due to imperfect
isolation in the RX Ant relay.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K4 Panadaptor Display

[Richard Ferch]

This thread seems to be trying to re-invent the wheel. There are solutions
already available.

According to the K4 Programmer's manual (available from the elecraft web
site), "The K4 provides three kinds of streaming data: ..., dB/bin (for
reproducing panadapter data), ..."

This kind of dB/bin data can be used by a logging program to create a
spectrum/waterfall display integrated with the rest of the program,
supporting features such as display of call signs with multiplier.worked
before status, and jump-to-signal capabilities using keyboard hotkeys or
mouse clicks, all without looking at or touching the radio. N1MM Logger+
has had this kind of capability for nearly four years, taking advantage of
dB/bin data supplied in the radio control stream by some radios (e.g. Icom
IC-7300 and newer) or in a UDP stream from a radio or from other software
(the UDP protocol used by N1MM+ is documented at <
https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/appendices/external-udp-broadcasts/#sending-spectrum-data-to-n1mm>).
There are other logging programs with some of the same capabilities, with
no need for VNCs, HDMI capture, fancy picture-in-picture monitors, etc.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] OT: Kidde smoke detectors

[Richard Ferch]

K4HES wrote:

> So, guess I'll send these back and get some hardwired interconnected
units.

That might be the wrong thing to do. We had a number of wired
interconnected units in our house, but the one closest to the shack and
antennas started alarming every time I transmitted on 40m with more than
100 W, and because they were interconnected, the alarm was heard everywhere
in the house. I replaced that one detector with a battery-only,
non-interconnected unit and the problem went away - the non-interconnected
unit has no RFI problem, and neither does the interconnected part of the
system elsewhere in the house.

I would expect wireless interconnected units to be less of a problem than
wired ones. If one of them did have an RFI problem, it would be easy to
replace it with a no-interconnected unit at the vulnerable location to see
if that fixed the problem.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] [K3] KAT3 not functioning on 6m

[Richard Ferch]

The K3 allows split in data modes, but only provided both VFOs are already
in data mode. The K3 will not allow cross-mode split between Data and
CW/SSB.

If you are seeing "SPL N/A" when you try to enable split with VFO A in a
Data mode, what that tells me is that VFO B is in CW or SSB, not in Data
mode. When VFO B is not already in the same mode as VFO A, tap A>B twice to
transfer the VFO A mode into VFO B before pressing Split.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W4SC said:

The K3 only allows the "split" mode for SSB and/or CW  to be enabled, at
least from \
panel.  Trying to enable split in any other mode, the VFO B window flashes
"N/A".   \
You may have different indications / results if the split command is sent
via the \
CAT, and a mode other than CW or SSB is selected.
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Re: [Elecraft] Audio output routing confusion

[Richard Ferch]

You don't hear VFOs, you hear receivers.

When the subRX is off, the only receiver you can hear is the main receiver.
The main receiver's frequency is always controlled by VFO A, so with the
subRX off you are always listening on the VFO A frequency (you can press
and hold the REV button to swap VFOs temporarily and listen on the
frequency that was in VFO B instead, but as soon as you release the REV
button the VFOs are restored).

When the subRX is on, you can hear both receivers simultaneously (depending
on the L-MIX-R configuration setting). With the default A-B setting, the
main RX is in the left channel and the subRX is in the right channel. The
subRX's frequency is controlled by VFO B, except when the subRX is in
Diversity mode, at which times the subRX's frequency is the VFO A frequency
the same as the main RX.

Regardless of the state of the subRX, the transmitter's frequency is
controlled by VFO A when SPLIT is off, and by VFO B when SPLIT is on.

73,
Rich VE3KI

nr4c wrote:

I think you can only hear Main Rec VFO A or VFO B. The only way to hear VFO
A and VFO B at the same time is with KRX3 sub-receiver as VFO B.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S Keyboard macro scripts

[Richard Ferch]

This question is addressed in the online N1MM+ documentation, under
"Supported radios > Elecraft > K3 and K3S". You can go directly to the
answer by opening the "Supported radios" page on the web site, typing
Ctrl+F to open your browser's Search feature, and typing DVR into your
browser's search box.

73,
Rich VE3KI


G3XLG asked:

I would like to do similar in SSB contests using N1MM ie. from the K3S M1.M4
memory banks, rather than recording .wav files into N1MM.

Are there suitable macros available to do this?
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 doesn't work in AFSK-A mode but DATA-A does work. What's broken?

[Richard Ferch]

Like Wes, I have an original K3 which I have been using in AFSK-A for
years. I use N1MM+ with either MMTTY or 2Tone as the RTTY "engine". A few
months ago I installed the KIO3B upgrade in my K3. After I installed the
upgrade, AFSK-A RTTY worked right from the start using the USB audio codec.
I had no difficulties in getting it going.

73,
Rich VE3KI

N9OK wrote:

Jim,

Thank you very much for confirming that what I see isn't due to a broken K3.

I agree that if firmware can fix this, it would be very nice. Elecraft had
this particular feature listed in the feature set for the upgrade, IIRC,
which is a large reason I splurged on the upgrade. I didn't want any more
external interface confusion.

On to configuring for FSK and perhaps playing in BARTG a little.

73 Joe N9OK
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 w/KIO3B has confusing RTTY transmit behavior

[Richard Ferch]

Joe,

In AFSK A, the audio Mark frequency you choose in the software should match
(or at least be reasonably close to) the setting of the K3's PITCH control.
This is especially important if you have the CONFIG:AFSK TX setting set to
FIL ON (which is recommended). By any chance were you using a Mark tone in
the software that was different from the PITCH setting in the radio?

73,
Rich VE3KI


N9OK wrote:

Hi, I've recently upgraded my K3 with numerous upgrades including a KIO3
Bboard. I've successfully configured most of what I need but RTTY has been
a problem.

What I see is that I am able to transmit power in RTTY mode if my K3 is set
into *DATA A* mode. If I set my K3 to *AFSK A* mode, the radio has the
appearance of transmitting in RTTY mode but there is no power. IE, TX
illuminates, the ACL meter moves. But Monitor is silent and there is no RF
power. MIC gain is set the same for both modes. VOX is set for both (not
PTT).

The problem first showed up in DXLAB WinWarbler. However, I've confirmed
the exact same problem occurs when I am running a stand-alone MMTTY
executable.

I realize that I could use an external FSK interface. But I"m looking for
asimple setup, and the documentation I've seen indicates that I should be
able to obtain output power using *AFSK A* mode.

It appears to me that there is an audio routing issue in my K3. However,
that seems unlikely, as others would have reported the issue and it would
have been corrected. What I'm hoping is that there is a simple setup issue
that someone can direct me towards.

Any ideas would be extremely appreciated.

73, Joe N9OK
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S, VOX and WSJT-X?

[Richard Ferch]

Your first posting said that you had been using WSJt-X for a fairly long
time using the USB cable for both audio and CAT control. If the only change
you want to make is to use VOX instead of PTT, the only thing you need to
change in WSJT-X  is the PTT setting - change it from CAT to VOX.
Everything else can stay the same.

However, you also said you wanted to run multiple instances of WSJT-X.
That's a different matter, and PTT/VOX is only a small part of it. If you
try to run more than one instance of WSJT-X, only the first instance will
be able to use CAT control. Any other instances will not be able to open
the serial port used to control the radio, so they will not have CAT
control of any kind, including not only PTT control, but also frequency and
mode control.

JT9 uses CAT control not only for PTT, but also for frequency control
(split operation, and/or specific frequencies for different modes on
various bands). The instance you use for JT9 and similar modes should
probably have full CAT control. WSPR, on the other hand, does not really
need CAT control once you have tuned the transceiver to the correct
frequency for the band. So I'd suggest creating a second instance of WSJT-X
that does not have CAT control implemented at all, with PTT using VOX and
Split Operation set to None. Use that second non-CAT instance for WSPR.

73,
Rich VE3KI

K6FOD wrote:

I was specifically wondering about entries on WSJT-X's Settings
 > Radio page:

-- At the top of the page, is anything filled in for "Rig"?

-- The lefthand side of the page has the heading "CAT Control," so is
anything entered here (serial port, baud rate, data/stop bits, DTR/RTS,
etc)?

-- On the righthand side of the page, I assume "VOX" is selected as PTT
method. What choices are selected for Mode and for Split Operation?
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Re: [Elecraft] RSP-1A as panadapter

[Richard Ferch]

I use an RSP2 as a panadapter. I can feed it either from the K3's IF Out
connector, in which case no protection is needed, or from the K3's RX Ant
Out connector, in which case it is protected by the K3's T/R switch. In
both cases there is a signal present on the SDRplay's input during
transmit, but it is at a low enough level that it is not a concern.

The connection to the RX Ant Out connector is actually a jumper from RX Ant
Out to a splitter plus jumpers from the splitter to the RX Ant In connector
and the SDR's antenna input The splitter I use is actually just a UHF tee
with UHF-to-BNC cables. The K3's RX Ant needs to be engaged to use this
path. This makes using a separate RX antenna somewhat more complicated.

73,
Rich VE3KI

WE5P wrote:

For those of you using an SDRplay as a panadapter with the K3S, what RF
protection do you use for the SDRplay?
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S/WSJT-x and N1MM issue

[Richard Ferch]

Tom,

You need to use N1MM+'s Winodw > Load WSJT/JTDX menu item to start WSJT-X.
See the checklist at <
https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/manual-windows/wsjt-x-decode-list-window/#setup-checklist
>.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] [KX2] WSJT-X Split - Rig or Fake It?

[Richard Ferch]

The long quote is not describing the difference between "Rig" and "Fake
It". It is describing the difference between "Rig" or "Fake It" (either
one) and "None". It is the difference between having some method to QSY the
radio between RX and TX (either "Rig" or "Fake It" can do that), and not
QSYing the radio between RX and TX.

The difference between "Rig" and "Fake It" is simply in how the radio is
QSYed. "Rig" uses the radio's Split capability to switch frequencies
between RX and TX. "Fake It" actually QSYs the main VFO between RX and TX.

The reason "Fake It" is suggested is due to the way WSJT-X verifies whether
the QSY has taken place. With some radios and some rig control methods,
WSJT-X takes so long to turn split on and off and verify split status that
it turns out that simply QSYing the main VFO is faster.

Try them both, and take special note of how long it takes from the
beginning of a transmit cycle until the rig actually starts transmitting.
If "Split" takes noticeably longer than "Fake It", then use "Fake It".

73,
Rich VE3KI


N4SRN wrote:

I'm using a KX2/KXPA100 at 40W on a Win10 laptop with WSJT-X 2.1.0 for FT8.
Antenna is a G5RV at 40ft with base ATU 150ft away. I've been advised
elsewhere that "Fake It" is a better choice than "Rig" for Split Mode:  "it
depends on what filter the radio has. Most are 2.4Khz (300-2700). If so you
would most likely need to be between around 600 to 2300. It also depends on
the skirts of the filter on where power will drop off and you can maybe have
harmonics. If you want to limit your transmit audio to 1500-2000 you may not
be able to find a clear place to transmit. If you have CAT control then fake
it automatically will adjust your transmit audio frequency to be in the
sweet spot of the filter."

I understand the KX2 filter is DSP Filtering‎: ‎50-4000 Hz, so am not
sure
about using "Fake It" or "Rig" and would appreciate comment. Thanks!

Bret/N4SRN
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Re: [Elecraft] ALC knob control missing on my K3

[Richard Ferch]

You didn't say so, but the "4 to 5 bars" phrase makes it sound as if you
are trying to use a digital mode. If so, what mode is the rig in? It should
be in DATA A. If you don't like the default filter setting in DATA A, use
the SHIFT/WIDTH (or HI/LO CUT) filter controls to set the filter bandwidth
where you want it (that will only affect data modes, not voice or CW modes).

Now look at the MAIN:MIC SEL setting. It should be on LINE IN. If (and only
if) MIC SEL is set to LINE IN, rotating (not pressing) the MIC gain control
should display LINE xx (where xx changes as you rotate the knob). Adjust
this control, and/or the sound card output level, to get the 4-5 bars
indication on the ALC meter. The MIC SEL setting and gain settings are
stored separately in digital vs. phone modes, so making changes while in
DATA A will have no effect on your mic gain settings for phone modes.

There is no ALC knob. Within the K3, you adjust the audio input level to
get the required reading on the ALC meter. Between the K3 and an external
amplifier, the amplifier generates the ALC signal; it's an input on the K3,
not an output, and it should only be used to protect against overdrive, not
to adjust the net output power. To adjust the power with or without an
external amplifier, use the PWR control.

73,
Rich VE3KI


KD7YZ wrote:

but then I try xmit and when I press the Mic/Speed button I see VOX and no
way to tickle the 4 to 5 bars.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3/K3s filter setting with the K3 Utility

[Richard Ferch]

Earlier I gave an example of a situation where you might choose to enable a
roofing filter at a bandwidth wider than the bandwidth marked on the
filter. I also gave a poor example of enabling a filter at a narrower
bandwidth. Here is a better one:

You use a variety of digital modes with different bandwidths, one of which
happens to be the same as or close to the bandwidth of one of your roofing
filters. You find that when that roofing filter is engaged, that particular
digital mode does not decode as well as it does with a wider filter
setting. You might find that changing the configuration to switch that
filter in at a narrower setting allows that particular mode to decode well,
without having a noticeable adverse effect on the next narrower bandwidth
mode you normally use. The likelihood of all this happening in combination
with an actual need for a tight roofing filter because of nearby very
strong signals might be quite low, but there is at least a theoretical
possibility of such a scenario. There are probably more likely situations -
just pointing out that it is not impossible that someone might want to do
this. The good thing is, the capability is there if you somehow find that
you need it.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3/K3s filter setting with the K3 Utility

[Richard Ferch]

I muffed the last part of my previous message, didn't I? Still, there are
some higher-order effects that might push someone into configuring a
roofing filter ti switch in at a slightly narrower setting than you might
at first expect.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3/K3s filter setting with the K3 Utility

[Richard Ferch]

There can be reasons to configure a roofing filter differently from its
nominal bandwidth.

For example, I have a "250 Hz" filter. According to the filter plots on the
Elecraft web site, the 6 dB bandwidth of this filter is actually closer to
375 Hz. I configured my filter to switch in at 350 Hz, which makes it much
more useful to me than it would be if I had configured it to switch in at
250 Hz.

If this filter is configured to switch in at 250 Hz in agreement with the
label, then when you set your DSP bandwidth to 300 Hz or 350 Hz, you will
be using the next wider filter in your receiver. Strong signals outside the
DSP bandwidth but inside the wider  roofing filter's bandwidth can still
have bad effects, whereas if the filter is configured to switch in at 350
Hz, you can take advantage of its ability to reduce those unwanted signals
with relatively minor impact on signals within the DSP bandwidth.

Of course, if the bandwidth of the 250 Hz filter really was 250 Hz,
configuring it to switch in at 350 Hz would render the 300 Hz and 350 Hz
settings of the DSP filter somewhat less useful, since the actual bandwidth
of the filter combination would now be close to 250 Hz regardless of what
the DSP control said.

There might be reasons to go in the other direction as well, i.e. to
configure a filter to switch in only at a narrower bandwidth than the
bandwidth marked on the filter. For example, if you had 500 Hz and 1000 Hz
filters and often used a digital mode whose bandwidth was, say, 750 Hz, you
could configure the 1000 Hz roofing filter to switch in only at 700 Hz and
below. This would give you better filtering between 500 Hz and 700 Hz than
without the 1000 Hz filter, while still permitting the 750 Hz mode signals
to pass through at DSP settings of 750 Hz and above without being
restricted by the roofing filter.

73,
Rich VE3KI


KA1J wrote:

Is there any advantage to setting the 1.8
above, say as 2. in the utility.

Or to have the 200Hz filter engaged at say
250?
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Re: [Elecraft] Sending AFSK RTTY

[Richard Ferch]

First, in Data modes, do *not* set MAIN:MIC+LIN to ON. As Joe has
explained, you need to set MAIN:MIC+LIN to OFF and MAIN:MIC SEL to LINE.

When you are using WinWarbler, all radio control functions are handled by
Commander. Commander must be running, and must be interfaced with the
radio. The RTTY sub-mode selector is on the General tab of Coimmander's
Config window (upper right quadrant). If you don't see it, Commander is not
communicating with the radio, and you need to correct that first.

Unless you are using a hardware PTT method on a separate COM port from rig
control, PTT is also handled by Commander (that is what the Xcvr Ctrl App
setting in the WinWarbler configuration means). The PTT buttons on the main
Commander window need to be working; if they don't switch the radio into
and out of transmit, you need to fix that, otherwise WinWarbler will be
unable to control PTT via Commander.

73,
Rich VE3KI


On Wed, Mar 20, 2019 at 12:12 AM Peter Dougherty  wrote:

> Hi Rich/all,
>
> Well I managed to find the thing that was really messing me up overall, but
> I'm still having massive RTTY issues.
>
> What had been happening was no AFSK tones for RTTY were getting through,
> and
> no voice files for SSB. The key (as I think you mentioned on the N1MM
> reflector) was the MENU: MIC+LIN setting on the K3s. Once I set that to ON
> I
> got voice files. But there's literally nothing I can do to get out of LSB
> voice mode when WinWarbler is in RTTY mode.
>
> Right now, on the RTTY tab, in the Modulation and Transceiver Mode section
> I
> have AFSK with the LSB button ticked. I've tried both RTTY mode and DATA-L,
> which Joe suggested. As I switch WinWarbler between CW, SSB, and RTTY, when
> I get to RTTY the radio is placed into LSB (voice) mode, not DATA-A, which
> is the desired result. There is no PTT either, the radio just stays in LSB
> receive.There is no RTTY SUB MODE setting on the General tab. I guess Dave
> removed it after your wrote the wiki; however I changed the DATA-L to RTTY.
> No change.
>
> Since the Elecraft portion of this setup has been solved (Mic+LIN), the
> rest
> is related to DX Labs, so I'm going to take this last bit of setup to their
> groups.io forum to conserve bandwidth on this reflector.
>
>  - pjd
>
> -Original Message-
> From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net 
> On
> Behalf Of Richard Ferch
> Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2019 10:27 PM
> To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Sending AFSK RTTY
>
> <http://www.dxlabsuite.com/dxlabwiki/K3PSKRTTY>.
>
> 73,
> Rich VE3KI
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>
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Re: [Elecraft] Sending AFSK RTTY

[Richard Ferch]

.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 w/RSP2 & SDR uno

[Richard Ferch]

If your K3 has the KXV3 option installed (a row of 5 BNC connectors just
above the CW and PTT keying jacks on the lower right back panel), then
there are two ways.

1) Connect the SDR to the IF Out jack and tune the SDR to the K3's IF (8215
kHz). You can receive signals in (or near) the same band as the K3.

2) Connect a jumper from the RX Ant Out jack to a splitter, one output of
the splitter to the RX Ant In jack and the other to the SDR, select the RX
Ant from the K3's front panel, and tune the SDR to a frequency on the same
band or a lower-frequency band (signals on higher-frequency bands are
attenuated by the K3's low-pass filters).

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3/0 etc remote control system

[Richard Ferch]

Dave,

I know this works with the DVK voice memories, because I have done exactly
that. However, you will not be able to program CW/digital message memories
as easily, because they have to be recorded using the K3's internal CW
keyer (from the paddle jack). You can't record them from the straight key
jack, which is the CW keying connection that the RRC uses.

There is an alternative way to program these messages using the K3 Utility,
but I don't know whether you can safely use the K3 Utility over a remote
connection for this purpose.

If you use radio control/logging software that has the capability to use
the Winkeyer in the RRC, that software probably has its own CW message
memories that you can use instead of the K3's message memories (for
example, the function key messages in N1MM+).

For similar reasons, the CW-to-Data feature (sending RTTY or PSK using a CW
paddle) is not likely to be possible using a remote connection.

73,
Rich VE3KI


N3HE wrote:

Hi, all concerned:

With much help from many sources, for which I am thankful, I now have an
operational remote control system: K3/0 to remoterig 1258 in Cincinnati OH
to 'net to remoterig 1258 to K3S to antenna in Dayton OH.

The remote system has worked fine so far. I've had a number of CW and SSB
Q's, mostly on 40M.

I tried to program the front-panel MESSAGE memories per the K3S user manual
instructions, and was unsuccessful, which got me to wondering if others have
found inoperative functions.

I look forward to any and all responses, tks.

Brgds,
Dave, N3HE
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Re: [Elecraft] {K3} Loss of audio while changing digital modes

[Richard Ferch]

Squelch? Wazzat? No, I would never knowingly turn that on. But next time
the muting happens, I will try to remember to look at the CONFIG:SQL MAIN
and SQL SUB settings to see if they have been changed somehow.

That leaves an open question: Why would tapping SUB twice, or turning the
K3's power off and back on, unmute the receiver?

73,
Rich VE3KI

Don W3FPR wrote:

That sounds like you have squelch turned on.
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Re: [Elecraft] {K3} Loss of audio while changing digital modes

[Richard Ferch]

I have seen something that might (or might not) be related. Occasionally
(not every time), at the end of an operating session using WSJT-X, when I
shut down WSJT-X the audio from my K3 in my headphones goes mute. I have
seen this once or twice when shutting down fldigi as well. It does not
happen with other programs I use.

I have found that tapping the SUB button twice (I have a subRX in my K3)
restores audio output.

I have no idea what causes this receiver muting and would be interested to
know the explanation if there is one.

73,
Rich VE3KI

AE6JV wrote:

I played in the ARRL RTTY Roundup today, using both RTTY and
FT8. When I changed from FT8 to RTTY, I had to change the
digital mode from DATA A to FSK D. (I run RUMlogNG in RTTY
contests, and it does RTTY using the CAT interface.) Whenever I
changed from DATA A to FSK D by pressing the buttons on the K3,
I lost all the audio out on both the headphones and the internal
K3S upgrade "sound card". The bypass was to change modes with
the mode switch and change back.

Any ideas?

73 Bill AE6JV
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Re: [Elecraft] K3s/0, RRC-1258 MkII, DXLabSuite Commander, WSJT-X configuration

[Richard Ferch]

Do you have a PC at the radio site? If so, the simplest way to do data
modes, and particularly WSJT-X, is to run the digital program in the
computer at the radio site and control it using remote desktop software. In
WSJT-X modes you don't need to listen to the audio, you don't need access
to the radio's front panel, and by doing the digital encoding and decoding
at the radio site you avoid any potential issues with Internet latency and
jitter. You can either run WSJT-X stand-alone controlling the radio
directly, or you can use Commander to control the radio and have WSJT-X use
Commander for rig control.

In CW and SSB you do need audio transport over the Internet as well as
front-panel control (the big tuning knob, in particular) and in CW you will
likely want a paddle at the control site as well. The RRC boxes do a great
job with all of this. You can configure the virtual serial ports in the
control-site RRC box to provide CAT control and a Winkeyer port for a copy
of N1MM+ running at the control site. In this configuration you do not need
a PC at the radio site, unless you need one for controlling other devices
(rotor, amp, antenna switches, equipment power on/off, etc.). Or, if there
is a computer at the radio site you can configure the radio-site RRC box to
provide CAT control and CW keying access to a copy of N1MM+ running at the
radio site and then control that copy of N1MM+ using remote desktop
software.

73,
Rich VE3KI



AE4ED wrote:

Before attempting to set up remote using K3s/0 and RRC-1258 MkII, I was
using DXLab Suite and WSJT-X just fine on my K3s.  I am hitting a wall when
I try to use DXLab Suite plus wSJT-X with the K3s/0 and RRC-1258 MkII.

Has anyone successfully done this?

I have seen two remote options come up during my internet search.
1) K3s/0 remote using RRC-1258 MkII w/o PC
2) K3s/0 remote using RemoteHam software apparently w/o using RRC-1258 MkII.

Ultimately, I want to do remote contesting using N1MM+ with the ability to
operate SSB, CW and data.  So, if anyone has information on how to
configure such a setup, that would be great as well!
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Re: [Elecraft] Funky CW from K3

[Richard Ferch]

First question: Do you have the old (original) synth board or the new
(K3S-type) KSYN3A synth(s)? The new synth board alleviates these CW
problems ("faster CW break-in and more accurate CW timing" as compared with
the original KSYN3 board).

Second question: What is the CONFIG:TX DLY set to? If it is anything above
the minimum (8 msec), that can result in "choppy" CW (shortened elements,
less accurate timing).

Third question: Do you have CONFIG:CW QRQ turned on? This improves CW
timing at high CW speeds, but it turns off automatically if RIT, XIT or
SPLIT is on. You are less likely to need CW QRQ on if you have the new
synth board installed.

This is not just hearsay; the issues with TX DLY and CW QRQ are described
in the K3 Owner's manual.

73,
Rich VE3KI

K1RX wrote:
Been having issues with the quality of the CW sending from my K3. Still
chasing down other possible fixes but recently heard that there was a
problem sending over 30 wpm with RIT on?  What is the story on this and fix?
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Re: [Elecraft] Data troubles

[Richard Ferch]

There is a narrow transmit AF filter configurable in AFSK A. If this filter
is turned on, you must keep your transmit audio frequency within the filter
bandpass, otherwise there will be nothing transmitted. Set your RTTY
software's audio frequency to match the K3's PITCH setting in AFSK A and
don't let it move around. You may need to disable AFC in the RTTY software,
and avoid the temptation to tune by clicking in the waterfall - use the
radio's tuning knob, the same as you would in FSK D.

73,
Rich VE3KI

HS0ZED wrote:

In summary, RX works fine both modes
TX works fine in DATA A
TX does not work other than trigering VOX in AFSK A.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 + SDRPlay's RSP1 as panadaptor

[Richard Ferch]

Actually, Don, that is not the case. Depending on your software, you can
use the SDRplay as a panadapter using either IF or RF (RX Ant In/Out). I
use my SDRplay both ways. The software has to be told which connection you
are using in order to label frequencies correctly in the display, but they
both work and produce similar displays.

Likewise, you can use the SDRplay as a second (or third) receiver using
either feed method. Again, the SDR software has to know which connection
you are using in order to know what frequency to demodulate the audio from,
but there is software that will work either way.

One caveat with using an SDR using a separate RX antenna: you may need some
way to isolate the SDR from the antenna while you are transmitting, such as
an external TX/RX switch, or some kind of receiver protection circuit;
otherwise, the voltages induced on the receive antenna by your nearby
transmitted signal may be high enough to damage the SDR. That is not an
issue using either the RX Ant In/Out loop or the IF output from the K3; the
RX Ant loop is behind the K3's TX/RX switch (the isolation is not perfect,
but it is good enough to protect the SDR), and the IF Out level during
transmit is also too low to be a problem.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W3FPR wrote:

Your subject line indicates that you are using SDRPlay as a panadapter,
and in that case, you would want to connect it to the K3 IF OUT and tune
it to the K3 1st IF of 8.215 MHz.  The display will show you what is in
the K3 IF.

If instead you are using it as a sub-receiver, you would connect it to
the K3 RX IN and OUT, or use a separate RX antenna on SDRplay.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 Win4k3Suite Question

[Richard Ferch]

Tom, a question for you. He already has a KX3 with IQ outputs. Could he
tune the KX3 to the K3's IF at 8215 kHz, connect it to the K3's IF Out
jack, and use it as the SDR for his spectrum display with the K3?

Thanks for correcting me on the ExtIO business.

73,
Rich VE3KI


Tom wrote:

Your options are as follows:
First you need the IF output from your K3.  Win4K3 does not support an RX
antenna solution on the K3.  However, you can use another spectrum display
product like HDSDR or SDRUno synced with OmniRig to Win4K3.  You would have
to be sure that your SDR device is switched out and grounded during
transmit.

Assuming you have the IF out, only the LPPAN and the SDRPlay devices are
supported in Win4K3.  There is no support for EXT_IO drivers.
Since you already have a sound card for use with your KX3 I would suggest
the LPPAN unit.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 Win4k3Suite Question

[Richard Ferch]

The two connectors you mentioned are actually a DE-9 RS232 port, for radio
control communications with the computer, and a DE-15 ACC port, which is
generally used for communicating with other station equipment such as a
power amplifier, band switches, bandpass filters, automatic antenna tuners,
FSK (RTTY) keying interfaces, and so on. The RS232 port is certainly needed
by Win4K3Suite, but to the best of my knowledge, the ACC port is not needed
to operate with Win4K3Suite.

In order to use the RS232 port, you will need either a serial cable to a
serial port in the computer, or a USB to serial adapter (such as the KUSB -
but not the KXUSB).

You said you wanted to be able to use a spectrum scope. For that you will
need some kind of software defined radio (SDR) external to the K3. I
believe Win4K3Suite can use any SDR for which there is an ExtIO dll file
available, such as one of the SDRplay RSP devices. Whichever SDR you use,
it must be capable of operating at HF.

You did not mention whether the K3 you are looking at has the KXV3 option
installed. This has five BNC connectors on it, for IF Out, XVTR In and Out,
and RX Ant In and Out. This option is highly useful, although not 100%
necessary, for use with an SDR for a spectrum display.

If your K3 does not have the KXV3 option installed, you will need some way
to connect the SDR to an antenna, and some means to isolate that SDR from
the antenna whenever you are transmitting, such as an external
transmit/receive switch controlled by the K3.

There is more information on this in the Win4K3Suite documentation.

73,
Rich VE3KI


N7TB wrote:

I am looking to purchase a preowned K3.  I currently own a KX3 that I have
interfaced to Win4K3Suite.

The K3 that I am considering buying has the two 9 pin Din plugs in the back,
one ACC and one DATA.

I am not financially able to purchase a P3 currently and want to use the
spectrum scope on the Win4K3Suite to do that for me.

What do I need to have to be able to interface the K3 to Win4K3Suite in
order to get the spectrum scope to work.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 PA3 not working

[Richard Ferch]

Surely the first thing to check would be the CONFIG:KPA3 setting, wouldn't
it? If it is NOT INST, change it to PA NOR.

73,
Rich VE3KI

Occam again...

Chuck Jack
KE9UW

Sent from my iPhone, cjack

> On Sep 22, 2018, at 6:15 PM, Michael Blake via Elecraft 
>  \
> wrote:
> Is the resettable 2A circuit breaker worth checking first?
>
>
> Mike - K9JRI
>
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Sep 22, 2018, at 7:06 PM, Don Wilhelm  wrote:
> >
> > Grant,
> >
> > Better than calling sales, email supp...@elecraft.com and ask for an RSA 
> > number.
> > Do not send anything until you have the RSA number and shipping 
> > instructions.  \
> > Shipping without that paperwork will only confuse things in the repair 
> > process.
> > 73,
> > Don W3FPR
> >
> > > On 9/22/2018 6:53 PM, Grant Bright W5XB wrote:
> > > Many thanks Don,
> > >
> > > Good to know...the tx does ok at 12 watts, but when you turn the power up
> > > (hear the click), the power drops off to zero, and the swr disappear.
> > >
> > > I have a good Collins wattmeter, that shows the 12 watts fine...but I do
> > > have a dummy load. I'll have one tomorrow and try doing a calibration with
> > > the utility.
> > >
> > > If it is the KPA3, I hope I can pull it and send just it to Elecraft. I'll
> > > call Monday about that.
> > >
> > > Many thanks for your help.
> > >
> > > 73, Grant, W5XB
> > >
> > >
> >
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S fsk with usb

[Richard Ferch]

Brian,

My first response would be "use AFSK". My second would be "use a TinyFSK
for FSK". But in response to your question, if you really want to key FSK
directly from a USB-to-serial adapter you can use the EXTFSK plugin in
MMTTY (). This works with any
USB-to-serial adapter. There is also a 64-bit version that supports other
baud rates () at the expense
of heavier CPU requirements.

As distinct from AFSK, neither TinyFSK nor FSK keying with EXTFSK works via
the USB cable used for radio control of the K3S (or K3 with KIO3B), which
was how I interpreted the original question. They both require their own
USB port, separate from the one used with the K3S for radio control and
sound card audio.

73,
Rich VE3KI

K3KO asked:

I seem to recall that the serial port needed for FSK generally cannot
come from the run of the mill USB/RS232 converters.  They can't operate
at 45 baud/5 bit rate needed.

See: http://aa5au.com/GettingStartedOnRtty.pdf

This is old info and things may have changed.

So what does a guy who has only USB ports do other than AFSK?  I thought
that was his question.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S fsk with usb

[Richard Ferch]

To transmit FSK from N1MM+/MMTTY with a K3 or K3S, you need: (a) some kind
of serial port-based keying interface; and (b) a cable from the keying
interface to the 15-pin ACC port on the back of the K3/K3S (pin 1 is the
FSK keying input).

The serial port used for FSK keying by MMTTY must be a different serial
port from the port used by N1MM+ for radio control. The two programs cannot
share the same serial port.

The serial port interface can be a one-transistor keying circuit connected
to a true serial port, or the same kind of interface connected to a
USB-to-serial adapter with the help of the EXTFSK plugin in MMTTY, or a USB
device that incorporates both a virtual serial port and a keying circuit,
such as a commercially available keying interface (e.g. microHam,
RigExpert, ...), or a TinyFSK (either with a special plugin for MMTTY or
used directly from N1MM+).

In principle, an RTTY program could use radio control commands to key FSK
via the USB cable to the radio, but none of the RTTY modems supported by
N1MM+ (including MMTTY) use this method. It should be possible to program
CAT1ASC macros into the N1MM+ function keys to implement this approach, but
I don't know whether anyone has tried this. There are a number of people
who have used a similar approach for keying CW from N1MM+ with the KX2 and
KX3, and offhand I cannot think of a reason why it would not also work in
FSK RTTY, but I have never tried it. Just as in CW, there are likely to be
some features of N1MM+ that work with more traditional methods but that
wouldn't work using this unsupported method.

73,
Rich VE3KI


PD1RP wrote:

I want to do FSK with my K3S.
N1MM and MMTTY.
The USB cable i used it for radio control.
What kind of cable do i need for FSK or can i used the USB cable also.
Any suggestions are welcome.
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Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 Efficiency As A Function of Input Power

[Richard Ferch]

KK9A wrote:

"...if the heat generated is approximately the same with all power levels,
why do RTTY ops use lower power..."

First, the heat generated is not actually approximately the same with all
power levels. To a first crude approximation, the heat generated is made up
of two components. One component is due to such things as biasing for
linearity, and is approximately constant whenever the amp is in transmit
(it's still non-zero, but quite a bit smaller, when the amp is in standby),
and the other component is related to the actual signal being generated,
and is approximately linear with output power. At low output powers, the
first component dominates, while at higher powers the second component
becomes significant. The power consumption efficiency goes from zero at
zero power (some mains current being used but generating zero output) to a
maximum when the signal-related component is largest compared to the
constant component, i.e. at maximum power.

Second, what is dissipated is the accumulated heat energy, not power. Heat
removal processes are far slower than output power changes, so effectively
they integrate the thermal power generation over a significant time
interval. If the instantaneous power is the same in two modes, but the
duty-cycle factor for one mode is twice the duty factor for the other mode,
then the signal-related component of the energy to be dissipated in a given
time period will be twice as high for the high-duty mode. The total energy
to be dissipated will not be as much as twice as high because of the
constant component, but it will still be higher in the higher duty cycle
mode. Depending on the thermal design of the amplifier, that may or may not
be enough of an increase to require derating.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Panadapter shift when filter switched in

[Richard Ferch]

Do you have any 5-pole roofing filters? In particular, is your wide filter
a 5-pole 2.7 kHz filter or an 8-pole 2.8 kHz filter? The 5-pole filters
have an offset, which is written on the filter and which is entered into
the firmware with the CONFIG:FLx FRQ menu entry (or by using the K3
Utility). When a filter with an offset is selected, the IF changes by the
amount of the offset. For example, if you have a filter with an offset of
1.0 kHz, then when that filter is selected, the centre of the IF bandpass
is actually moved by 1 kHz relative to where it is when using a filter with
no offset. If your panadapter takes its input from the IF Out port, input
signals will move when you switch the receiver between filters whose
offsets are different from one another.

There is also a per-mode offset between SSB modes and CW, AM or FM. This is
not actually a change in IF frequency, but rather a change in the way the
radio's dial frequency is related to the receiver's bandpass. In CW, AM and
FM, the receiver's bandpass is centred on the dial frequency. In FSK D or
AFSK A, the receiver's bandpass is centred between the mark and space
tones, i.e. 85 Hz away from the dial frequency. In SSB or DATA A, the
receiver's bandpass is centred above (USB and DATA A) or below (LSB) the
dial frequency by approximately half the audio bandwidth (more accurately,
by the DSP filter Fc setting). If the panadapter uses the dial frequency to
label frequencies in the display, simply changing modes will result in a
shift in the displayed signal relative to the frequency markers.

There are a couple of other things that affect the relationship between the
IF Out signal and the frequency displayed on a panadapter. One is the
filter Shift control (or Hi-Cut and Lo-Cut controls) - when the filter Fc
is moved, so is the IF relative to the signal frequency. Another was
mentioned by Wayne in a recent post on another thread: in CW, with some
combinations of sidetone pitch (low) and DSP filter bandwidth (high), the
firmware moves the IF centre frequency to ensure that the low edge of the
audio bandpass stays away from zero. Both of these effects are usually
quite a bit smaller than the mode-to-mode or crystal filter offset
differences, but they can be seen easily enough when you zoom in the
panadapter display.

There is a radio control command specific to the K3/K3S that software and
the P3 can use in order to adjust the frequency display markings to
compensate for these offsets, but generic software like HDSDR doesn't use
that command.

73,
Rich VE3KI


VE5UO wrote:

Hi, I have a K3s with a 400hz filter.  I am using an SDRPlay (HDSDR)
connected to the IF out port.  When the 400Hz filter activated using the
xfil button or tuning the DSP), the signal on the panadapter shifts up
approximately 1.5khz.  It seems to happen on all bands/modes.
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Re: [Elecraft] Using N1MM to Key a K3 with no outboard keyer

[Richard Ferch]

This keying method is not described in detail in the N1MM+ documentation
because it is not supported by the N1MM+ development team. The reasons for
this can be found in the N1MM+ online manual (at <
http://n1mm.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Serial+Parallel+and+Sound+Card+Interfacing=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#Choosing_Your_CW_Method>);
in a nutshell, several of N1MM+'s advanced features do not work with this
keying method.

With the K3/K3S, but not the KX2 or KX3, there is another simpler method
which does not have any of the drawbacks of the CAT command method and
which does not require all of those CAT1ASC macros in your sent messages.
It is described in the N1MM+ manual at <
http://n1mm.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Supported+Radios=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#K3_and_K3S>.
Basicallly, you set the K3's CONFIG:PTT-KEY method to OFF-DTR or RTS-DTR
(depending on whether you want PTT as well as CW keying or not), and then
in the N1MM+ Configurer you configure DTR on the radio control port for CW
(and RTS for PTT if you want that as well).

Unfortunately, this method will not work with the KX2 or KX3 because their
serial port interfaces do not have DTR or RTS connections. For this reason,
the CAT1ASC macro method is used with N1MM+ by many KX2/KX3 owners, despite
its shortcomings in this context.

Note: the use of the specialized CATA1ASC macro instead of the basic
CAT1ASC macro is unnecessary. You can find the documentation for the
CAT1ASC family of macros at <
http://n1mm.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Macros=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#CATHEX_and_CATASC_Radio_Hex_Macro_Commands
>.

73,
Rich VE3KI


KN1CBR wrote:

The following may test our commitment to the idea that there is no such
thing as a \
stupid question . . . .

I finally got around to setting up my N1MM logger to key my transmitters
without \
having to use a K1EL or any other keyer -- just the KUSB cable directly
from the PC  \
into the rig.

After hours of frustrating failure, by lucky accident I came across a post
on the \
Internet that gave examples for programming the Fn keys, using N1MM to key
a KX3.  \
Each command line contains the string CATA1ASC before the command KY.
Without the \
CATA1ASC, hitting the Fn key does nothing.  With it, and with the standard
KY \
programming command, it works -- on the KX3 at least.  My K3 is at my other
QTH so I \
haven't tried this on that rig yet, but here's my question -- what is the
CATA1ASC \
for?  I did a word search in both the KX3 and the N1MM manuals, and in the
KX3 \
Programmer's Guide, and I could find no mention of the CATA1ASC string.
Had I not \
found the examples on the Internet accidentally I would still be trying to
make this \
work with no success.

So can someone help me understand what it's about and why I didn't see it
in any of \
the manuals?  Is it something in Windows 10?

Thanks,

Ted, KN1CBR
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Re: [Elecraft] P3 *remote* panadapter

[Richard Ferch]

The P3 is not the only possibility. There are ways to use an SDR at the
radio site and relay the spectrum information to a display at the control
site. Some of these ways have the advantage of being integrated with the
radio control software (e.g. the N1MM+ spectrum display window).

73,
Rich VE3KI



G3UNA wrote:

Am I correct in thinking that the P3 is the only way to obtain a *remote*
panadapter with the K3S?  ie this cannot be done with some other sdr
combination as has been suggested for home operation?
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Re: [Elecraft] K3s USB sound card problem

[Richard Ferch]

If checking and if necessary correcting the output sound device selection
in MMTTY doesn't solve the problem, here are a few other things to look at:

The Windows sound card level setting on the USB audio codec (playback side)
The K3S's MAIN:MIC SEL setting while in AFSK A (it should be LINE IN)
The K3S's Mic gain setting while in AFSK A
The K3S's MAIN:VOX GN setting while in AFSK A (if you get an indication on
the ALC meter but it doesn't trigger PTT)

73,
Rich VE3KI


WB5TUF wrote:

Make sure that you have the K3 sound card selected as the output sound
device in \
MMTTY.
 Original message From: Mike Dodd  Date:
7/21/18  \
09:13  (GMT-06:00) To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3s USB
sound \
card problem  I'm trying to get my K3s with built-in USB sound card working
with \
MMTTY  in data mode AFSK A. I had this set up and working FB in the past,
but
now I can't transmit.
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Re: [Elecraft] FT8 using internal USB sound on the K3S

[Richard Ferch]

You mean that in WSJT-X's Settings window under the Audio tab, it won't let
you select the K3S's USB Audio Codec for input or output? That's not how I
read your message, but if that is the case, then you may have fallen victim
to a recent Windows 10 "improvement".

In the Windows 10 Settings window, choose Privacy. Then on the left side,
choose Microphone. A setting called "Let apps use my microphone" should
appear. Turn this to On. If this is the problem, turning this option to On
should permit WSJT-X to get access to the sound card again.

73,
Rich VE3KI


On Mon, Jun 25, 2018 at 11:27 AM, Jim Sheldon  wrote:

> Nope, it's in DATA A.  WSJT-X's CAT control works fine with the K3S,
> setting frequency and DATA mode to DATA A (I forgot to mention that,
> sorry).  The problem has NO relation to the filter controls or any of the
> other stuff.
>
> Thanks Rich, but I already have WSJT-X set up the way you suggest except I
> never touch the equalizations.  I've found in the past that it only
> distorts the signal.
>
> The problem as I have stated twice now is WSJT-X can't open the audio
> device.  Windows 10's device manager reports it is working properly.  CAT
> via the same USB connection works properly, reads the K3S frequency, sets
> the mode to DATA A as it should, test CAT and test PTT work as they
> should.  Just no audio input from the K3S.  I have NOT tried TX audio to
> the K3S and won't until I get the audio input working in receive first.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jim - W0EB
>
> -- Original Message --
> From: "Richard Ferch" 
> To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
> Sent: 6/25/2018 10:16:11 AM
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] FT8 using internal USB sound on the K3S
>
> It sounds as though you are putting the rig into USB mode. I believe you
>> would be better off putting the rig into DATA A. Set the rig's mode to
>> DATA
>> and the data submode to DATA A. With the rig in DATA A, adjust the K3's
>> filter controls to put the Lo-Cut at around 0.20 and the Hi-Cut around
>> 2.8.
>> With the rig in DATA A mode, set MIC SEL to LIN (this will not affect your
>> microphone setting for voice modes). MIC+LIN will be N/A. Adjust the MIC
>> gain control to somewhere above zero, e.g. LIN 5 or so.
>>
>> In the WSJT-X Settings window under the Radio tab, if you are not using
>> some other radio control software such as the DXLab Suite Commander, then
>> set the CAT control port to the COM port number that Windows has assigned
>> to the K3S's USB serial port. Set the Mode in WSJT-X to either None or
>> Data/Pkt - not to USB. For PTT, I prefer to set WSJT-X's PTT method to VOX
>> and turn VOX on in the K3, or you can use PTT via CAT. Under Split
>> Operation, choose either Split or Fake It.
>>
>> In the WSJT-X Settings window under the Sound tab, select the K3S's USB
>> Audio Codec as the soundcard device for both input and output.
>>
>> Right-click on the Windows speaker icon in the Windows system tray and
>> select Playback devices, then select the USB Audio Codec (in the K3S) and
>> click on the Properties button. Select the Level tab and adjust the level
>> slider so it is in the middle of the range.
>>
>> While receiving in WSJT-X with WSJT-X's Monitor function on, adjust the
>> K3S's LIN OUT level so that band noise alone is enough to bring the level
>> indicator on the left side of the WSJT-X window to about 30 dB or so. When
>> receiving actual signals, the level thermometer should not turn red; if it
>> does, reduce the K3S's LIN OUT level. In the Wide Graph window, you may
>> need to adjust the waterfall and spectrum gain and zero controls to get a
>> good looking spectrum and waterfall. I don't check Flatten - if you do,
>> make sure that the Wide Graph window does not display any frequencies
>> outside the K3S's filter bandpass.
>>
>> Now transmitting into a dummy load or a dead band at low power or in TX
>> Test mode, put WSJT-X into transmit and adjust the Windows level slider
>> and/or the K3's MIC gain control to get 4-5 bars on the K3's ALC meter.
>> Once this is adjusted correctly, you should no longer need to adjust
>> either
>> of these controls. Use the K3's PWR control to adjust the output power. Do
>> not try to control the output power by changing the audio level. Leave the
>> Pwr slider on the right side of the WSJT-X window at the top of its range
>> and don't change it.
>>
>> 73,
>> Rich VE3KI
>>
>>
>> W0EB wrote:
>>
>> For some reason I can't get WSJT-X to pull the input sound or send output
>> sound to the K3S through the USB port. I know I have some K3S parameter(s)
>>

Re: [Elecraft] FT8 using internal USB sound on the K3S

[Richard Ferch]

It sounds as though you are putting the rig into USB mode. I believe you
would be better off putting the rig into DATA A. Set the rig's mode to DATA
and the data submode to DATA A. With the rig in DATA A, adjust the K3's
filter controls to put the Lo-Cut at around 0.20 and the Hi-Cut around 2.8.
With the rig in DATA A mode, set MIC SEL to LIN (this will not affect your
microphone setting for voice modes). MIC+LIN will be N/A. Adjust the MIC
gain control to somewhere above zero, e.g. LIN 5 or so.

In the WSJT-X Settings window under the Radio tab, if you are not using
some other radio control software such as the DXLab Suite Commander, then
set the CAT control port to the COM port number that Windows has assigned
to the K3S's USB serial port. Set the Mode in WSJT-X to either None or
Data/Pkt - not to USB. For PTT, I prefer to set WSJT-X's PTT method to VOX
and turn VOX on in the K3, or you can use PTT via CAT. Under Split
Operation, choose either Split or Fake It.

In the WSJT-X Settings window under the Sound tab, select the K3S's USB
Audio Codec as the soundcard device for both input and output.

Right-click on the Windows speaker icon in the Windows system tray and
select Playback devices, then select the USB Audio Codec (in the K3S) and
click on the Properties button. Select the Level tab and adjust the level
slider so it is in the middle of the range.

While receiving in WSJT-X with WSJT-X's Monitor function on, adjust the
K3S's LIN OUT level so that band noise alone is enough to bring the level
indicator on the left side of the WSJT-X window to about 30 dB or so. When
receiving actual signals, the level thermometer should not turn red; if it
does, reduce the K3S's LIN OUT level. In the Wide Graph window, you may
need to adjust the waterfall and spectrum gain and zero controls to get a
good looking spectrum and waterfall. I don't check Flatten - if you do,
make sure that the Wide Graph window does not display any frequencies
outside the K3S's filter bandpass.

Now transmitting into a dummy load or a dead band at low power or in TX
Test mode, put WSJT-X into transmit and adjust the Windows level slider
and/or the K3's MIC gain control to get 4-5 bars on the K3's ALC meter.
Once this is adjusted correctly, you should no longer need to adjust either
of these controls. Use the K3's PWR control to adjust the output power. Do
not try to control the output power by changing the audio level. Leave the
Pwr slider on the right side of the WSJT-X window at the top of its range
and don't change it.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W0EB wrote:

For some reason I can't get WSJT-X to pull the input sound or send output
sound to the K3S through the USB port. I know I have some K3S parameter(s)
set wrong, but so far I haven't been able to figure out which ones or how
to change them.

I had this working before so not sure what I did to change it.

Feel like a total dummy, but at 76, I do forget some things - LOL

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Jim Sheldon, W0EB

Windows 10 PRO 64bit -I have the USB CODEC in the K3S configured as sound
in and out in device manager and nothing plugged in to the rear of the K3S
other than external speakers in the speaker jack - nothing to MIC or LINE
In or LINE Out.

Menu Settings:
MIC SEL is FP.L
MIC + LIN ON

CONFIG Settings:
KIO3B nor
LIN OUT nor 010
MIC BTN OFF
L --MIX -- R  A  B
RS232  USB
SPKRS  2
SPKR+PH  YES
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Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 tuning procedure ?

[Richard Ferch]

FWIW, I have had a KAT500 for a few years now. I never use the KAT500's
Auto setting. Once the KAT500's memories are set up, the Manual setting
does everything I need.

First, with the KPA500 in Standby (or turned off), for every band/antenna
combination I use, I trained the KAT500 across the band. I did this by
tuning to a frequency near the bottom of the band, tapping the KAT500's
Tune button and then pressing the K3's Tune button (a long press, since
Tune is a "hold" function) and left the K3's Tune signal running until the
KAT500 found the best match, then turned the K3's Tune back off. Tune up 20
kHz and press the Tune buttons first on the KAT500 and then on the K3 until
the KAT500 finds a match. Keep doing this until the band is covered. Repeat
for all other band/antenna combinations. On 10 meters, you only have to do
this every 100 kHz instead of every 20 kHz, and on 6m, only every 200 kHz.
On 160m, the settings to be remembered are every 10 kHz.

Once this set-and-forget once-only training step was completed, I just
leave the KAT500 in Manual mode all the time. As I tune the K3 around, the
KAT500 reads the frequency from the K3 and automatically selects the
antenna for that band and the settings I trained it with for that frequency
and antenna. You can hear the relays in the KAT500 click as you move from
one band to another, or from one frequency memory segment to another one as
the remembered tuner settings change. As long as the impedance presented by
your antenna's feedline to the tuner does not change from what it was when
you trained the tuner, the remembered memory settings will work fine.

Sometimes, e.g. when it rains or snows, the SWR with the original setting
starts to get higher. Perhaps this is the kind of situation where the Auto
setting would touch the settings up automatically, but I heartily dislike
having the tuner suddenly spring into action mid-QSO. Instead, I wait for a
quiet moment, put the KPA500 in standby, put the KAT500 in Tune mode and
use the K3's Tune button again in order to find the best match for the
current conditions. As soon as the KAT500 finds a match, I put the KPA500
back into operate and carry on. Usually when this happens, the abnormal
tuner settings are only needed for a few hours, and as the humidity returns
to normal I redo the training procedure once more to bring the KAT500's
memory for that particular frequency/antenna combination back to normal.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Re K3 Audio

[Richard Ferch]

I suspect that what you most likely need is for Line In to be used during
digital mode operation (with the microphone muted), and the microphone to
be used during voice mode operation.

The audio input settings for voice modes and digital modes are stored
independently, so this is easy. With the radio in SSB, you set MIC SEL to
wherever your microphone is plugged in, with the appropriate bias and level
settings. With the radio in DATA A or AFSK A mode, set MIC SEL to LINE IN
and adjust the Mic gain control to get the required 4-5 bars of ALC meter
reading in digital modes.

The only reason you might need MIC+LIN to be set to ON is if you were using
the computer sound card as a digital voice keyer in voice modes, in which
case you might want both microphone and line in to be active while
operating in voice modes. In this case, set MIC+LIN to ON with the radio in
SSB, and OFF with the radio in DATA A or AFSK A.

In both cases, you will only need to set this up once; the settings are
remembered independently in the two modes from then on.

73,
Rich VE3KI

W7HSG wrote:

Does any one know the command for both Mike in Front Panel and Line in rear
panel?

I need both at the same time,  Mike for voice and Line in for digital.
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Re: [Elecraft] Who's On First?

[Richard Ferch]

That wasn't me, but...the optimum order is computer, then K3, then WSJT-X.

The reasons: Well, obviously the computer has to come before the software.
The process of starting up the computer causes various signal lines on the
serial port used for radio control to be toggled briefly, which can cause
annoying behaviour at the radio, so it is easier (although not essential)
to have the computer already running when you start the radio. The WSJT-X
software expects rig control to be working when it starts, otherwise it
annoyingly prompts you to reconfigure, and the software won't actually
start operating properly until the radio is turned on, so it is best to
have the radio turned on before you start the software.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] k3S usb software silenced sidetone and no rf out

[Richard Ferch]

You said:

> Can it be that N1MM+ software changed this parameter in the K3S config?

No, it cannot.

You need to set the N1MM+ configuration for the radio control port and the
CONFIG:PTT-KEY menu item in the radio to match one another.

For example, if CONFIG:PTT-KEY is set to OFF-RTS, then in N1MM+ you must
configure DTR to Always Off and RTS to CW.

Or, if you have configured DTR to CW and RTS to Always Off in N1MM+, then
you must set CONFIG:PTT-KEY to OFF-DTR.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] RTTY issue (OT?)

[Richard Ferch]

I'm not sure why you are using DATA A instead of AFSK A, but ...

If you don't want MMTTY to transmit on a different frequency from your
receive frequency, turn NET on - in AFSK, that will force the TX to follow
the RX. Also, you should tell MMTTY that your preferred frequency is 1275
Hz. To do this, set your HAM default to 1275.

A general rule for AFSK is: while S, turn NET on and AFC off; while
CQing, turn NET off and either turn AFC on or leave AFC off and use RIT
instead for off-frequency callers. Some software will switch the NET and
AfC settings for you automatically between run and S modes.

If you do use AFSK A instead of DATA A, you will have to change the K3's
PITCH setting to 1275-170 from the default 2125-170.

73,
Rich VE3KI


HS0ZED wrote:

> MMTTY is working fine in DATA A (AFSK) receive is no problem and
> transmit too provided I use 2125Hz.
>
> I would prefer to use 1275Hz but when switching to transmit MMTTY keeps
> jumping to 2125Hz. How to stop that?
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Re: [Elecraft] Antenna switching question

[Richard Ferch]

The KAT500 remembers its settings for each band/port combination. You can
connect several antennas to a given port through external switches, but if
two of those antennas are ever used on the same band, there is a danger
that the KAT500's settings that work with one of the antennas will be wrong
for the other antenna that you use on the same band/port combination,
requiring the KAT500 to retune every time you switch between those
antennas. To avoid this situation, you should try to make sure to the
extent possible that on any band where you use more than one antenna, those
antennas are connected to different ports on the KAT500.

Since you have three different antennas that are used on 20 and 15, you
should try to ensure that those three antennas are connected to separate
ports on the KAT500. That means that the LPDA, the vertical and the dipole
should all be on separate ports. In your case, once you have done that the
only antennas you have left are single-band antennas that you do not use on
any band that is shared with any other antenna, so you can put them on
whichever port you want.

If you are likely to be switching back and forth between two antennas
because their bands are often open at the same time, it might be best to
separate those antennas to minimize the number of times you need to operate
a manual antenna switch. That suggests putting the 160m inverted L on the
same port as the LPDA, to minimize the amount of switching back and forth
between 160 and 80/75 (where you use the other two antennas). The 6m
antenna can go anywhere; wherever you are least often likely to have to
switch back and forth, e.g. on the same port as the dipole.

73,
Rich VE3KI

WS1L wrote:

When I build the KAT500, what is the best use of the 3 ports available to
maximize it's tuning algorithm?  In other words, how can I maximize the
likelihood that a band change or QSY will result in a rapid tune due to
prior memorization, versus a somewhat longer full tune?
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Re: [Elecraft] N1MM+ & K3/K3s & Diversity

[Richard Ferch]

>From the N1MM+ documentation (Supported Radios page, K3/K3S section):

. The stereo (grave accent - ` key, at the left end of the number keys row
on many keyboards) toggles Sub on and off. It is identical to pressing the
SUB radio button. To leave SUB on all the time, select Config > Sub
Receiver Always On

..I f you have selected Diversity mode on the radio, toggling Sub off and
on via ` or Alt+F12 will turn Diversity mode off

.. Logger preserves diversity reception on the K3 unless RX Focus changes
to vfoB at which time the subRX will switch to vfoB (note that in diversity
reception mode, both receivers are using VFO A, so full SO2V functionality
is not available without leaving diversity mode)

To expand on this last point, if N1MM+ is in SO2V mode rather than SO1V,
then any time the focus moves to the VFO B Entry window (including
inadvertent mouse clicks, or pressing the Pause, backslash, Ctrl+right
arrow or Alt+F10 keys), Diversity will be turned off. This might even be
caused by RFI in some cases.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Digitized IF over IP?

[Richard Ferch]

Relaying FFT spectrum data to another computer is certainly doable.

For example, N1MM Logger+ can relay its spectrum display window to other
instances of N1MM+ over a LAN or the Internet. If you have a copy of N1MM+
running at the radio site and equipped to display a spectrum window, that
copy of N1MM+ can relay its spectrum window data to another copy of N1MM+
running somewhere else. Either copy of N1MM+ can be the one doing the
actual logging.

With a K3/K3S, at the radio site you would need an SDR such as the SDRPlay,
or an LP-PAN plus a good sound card, plus software: Win4K3Suite, or N2IC's
Waterfall Bandmap program, together with a copy of N1MM+. At the remote
control site, all you need is N1MM+. See the online documentation for N1MM+
(the Spectrum Display Window web page) for details.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Looking for some programming help with switch emulation coding

[Richard Ferch]

>From the K3S/K3/KX3/KX2 Programmer's Reference Manual, Rev. G3:

DE (Command Processing Delay; SET only; K3/K3S only)

SET format: DExxx; where xxx is 001-255, the delay value in 10-ms
increments. This is useful in switch or Kpod macros, where a delay may be
desired to allow the radio to complete a previous operation before the next
command is processed. Note: DE001 may result in a delay shorter than 10 ms,
while DE002 is guaranteed to provide a delay between 10 and 20 ms (etc.).


This was introduced in firmware version 5.60, so you may need to update
your firmware in order to be able to use it.

However, before using it you should also take note of the following, from
the N1MM+ manual's description of the CAT1ASC macro:

You can not place more than one CAT1ASC or CAT2ASC macro in a message but
the message can contain one of each macro. The exception to this rule is
when the {END} macro is used. More than one radio command can be sent to
the radio by either placing a \ character between the radio commands or by
concatenating them together. Spaces before or after the \ character are
sent to the radio. Multiple radio commands using the \ separator are broken
into individual radio commands and sent to the radio using internal command
pacing.


In other words, if you want to execute a series of radio control commands
from a single N1MM+ function key, you should place them all in a single
CAT1ASC macro. They do not need to be separated by anything other than the
; command terminator, in which case they will all be sent to the radio at
once -- or, if you place a \ between two commands within a CAT1ASC macro,
N1MM+ will send them to the radio in separate polls. I'm not sure what the
polling rate is, but note that you have some control over it - there is a
control in the radio control port setup dialog that allows you to select
slower polling rates (505 slower or 100% slower).

Perhaps some experimentation with the \ separator and/or the DEnnn; command
will let you put the first bank switching and message sending command
together into one function key message. The second bank switching command
could be more of a problem, as the required delay may depend on the length
of the message.

Note also that when you use the radio's voice keyer, N1MM+ has no way of
knowing how long the message will take. This may lead to undesirable side
effects. If any of these side effects is unacceptable, the solution will be
to use N1MM+'s own digital voice keyer instead of the DVR messages in the
radio.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 and MMTTY Settings

[Richard Ferch]

If the only thing you are seeing in the MMTTY X-Y display is a dot in the
centre, that means no audio signal is getting to MMTTY. That in turn could
have a number of explanations. First, check that the audio cable between
the rig and the sound card is connected correctly and seated properly in
the connectors. Next, check that the correct sound card is selected in
MMTTY. Windows can and does change the list of sound cards, so this is not
a set it once and forget it setting - re-check it any time something goes
wrong with the audio. If the correct sound card is selected and the
physical connections are OK, check levels. Check the K3's LIN OUT level in
the CONFIG menu. If there is a physical control on the sound card device,
make sure it is not turned all the way down. In Windows, check that the
sound card has not been disabled, and that the Windows level setting for
the receive (recording) sound card is correct/reasonable.

73,
Rich VE3KI

AD8P wrote:

I need some help. I have used my K3 and MMTTY for RTTY mode communications
 for a long time. I used MMTTY as a standalone program, I used it imbedded
in N1MM classic and I also used it imbedded in my logging program Logger
32. Life has gotten in the way of operating and as a result I haven’t
been on RTTY for several months. Well this past weekend there was an RTTY
contest on and I had a few minutes to get on so I turned the rig on and
brought up one of the programs to get on and have some fun. Well I
couldn’t make any of the three show me the XY scope. it was just a small
dot in the middle of the screen.  I could transmit OK and would decode on
the screen of the radio but I can’t seem to get it going again in MMTTY.
Is there someone using any of these three programs that could help me
discover what setting I am missing either in the software or the radio?
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Re: [Elecraft] KPA500/KAT500 & K3S 2nd Subreceiver Diversity

[Richard Ferch]

If all of your antennas are connected via the KAT500, then no, you cannot
do diversity receive that way, because there is only a single RF connection
between the K3S and the KAT500. You need to have a separate (receive only)
antenna connected directly to the subreceiver's auxiliary antenna input,
which I believe in your case is the K3S's ANT2 jack (depends on how you
have chosen to configure the subRX's aux RF input).

73,
Rich VE3KI


N4SRN wrote:

I getting to setting up my my K3S/100 with internal ATU with a
KPA500/KAT500.
I presently have antennas on the K3S ANT1 & ANT2 and use the K3S 2nd
subreceiver for diversity receive. Does that work with the antennas
connected to KTA500?
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Re: [Elecraft] KX3 generating signal

[Richard Ferch]

The KX3 is a direct-conversion transceiver, not a superhet. The behaviour
you observed is normal with any direct-conversion receiver. The local
oscillator operates directly on the signal frequency and can be heard in a
nearby receiver.

73,
Rich VE3KI

AE4RM wrote:

> Today when operating QRP, the gentleman I was at the park with wanted to
> compare receiving a CW signal. We weren't comparing rigs but antennas. He
> had a FT 817.
>
> When he tuned to the frequency I was listening to it sounded like someone
> was tuning up on frequency on his radio. I changed frequencies and the
> noise went away.  When I tuned back to where he was, it came back. We
could
> only hear it on his radio but my KX3 was definitely generating the signal.
>
> This was on 40m around 7020.
>
> What would cause this? It does not seem normal.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S - N1MM+ CW Message Transmit Decode Question

[Richard Ferch]

N1VH wrote:

> Any idea why the K3S decodes the CW message transmission using the CAT
> command, but not the MYCALL command?  I have verified that the radio is
> transmitting in both cases.  I have tried various decode threshold values
as well.

First off, when you use the CAT command the radio is not decoding
transmitted CW at all, it is simply echoing the ASCII text you sent to it
in the command.

Second, the only transmitted CW the K3/K3S can decode is keying from the
paddle input to the radio's internal CW keyer. Keying input from a straight
key, a computer or an external keyer, whether it comes into the radio on
the DTR line of the radio control port or via the CW Key jack, does not get
decoded.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] "Contester's Spectral Display" feature of N1MM software will be supported soon

[Richard Ferch]

No, you don't have to purchase Win4k3, but with a K3 or KX2 you will need
some additional hardware.

I have been using the N1MM+ spectrum display for several weeks with my K3.
The software interface I use is N2IC's Waterfall Bandmap program (<
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/waterfallbandmap/info>).

You do need external hardware with a K3 or K3S, regardless of which
software you use. I have used Waterfall Bandmap and the N1MM+ spectrum
display with three different hardware configurations: an SDR (SDRPlay RSP1
or RSP2) fed from the K3's RX ant in/out connections; the same SDR fed from
the K3's IF Out; and an LP-PAN plus dedicated sound card, fed from the K3's
IF Out. All of these require the KXV3 to be installed in the K3 (it's
already built in to the K3S).

My understanding is that Win4k3 supports the same configurations and adds
the P3/P3SVGA to the list of hardware it supports. Waterfall Bandmap does
not support the P3/P3SVGA.

Win4k3 also supports the KX3 without external hardware other than a sound
card, and the KX2 or KX3 with an SDRPlay plus an external transmit/receive
switch. I believe Waterfall Bandmap should support these two configurations
as well, but I don't know whether either of them has been tested.

Win4k3 also has many other features, and it may well be worth the purchase
price to you for those features alone - but it is not mandatory in order to
use the spectrum display in N1MM+.

73,
Rich VE3KI





N1JM wrote:

Does this mean I would have to purchase Win4k3?

73, John N1JM
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Re: [Elecraft] K3s/WSJT-X 1.80rc1 TX issue

[Richard Ferch]

Hi Serge,

The problem is in the audio path, since CAT and PTT are evidently working.

Starting from the software - make sure the correct sound card output is
selected. In view of the fact that you are able to receive and therefore
must have been able to select the correct sound card input, this is likely
not the problem.

In the Windows sound card applet, under the Playback tab, select the sound
card output you are using to send from, click on Properties, select the
Levels tab and make sure the level setting is not at zero. I can't tell you
what the setting should be, except that it should not be zero.

If you are using the K3S's internal sound card (USB Audio codec), make sure
nothing is plugged into the Line In jack on the back of the K3S. If you are
using a computer sound card, make sure the cable between the sound card's
output and the K3S's Line In jack is good.

With CONFIG:MIC SEL set to LINE IN, rotate the K3S's MIC control . You will
see LINE nnn in the bottom of the K3S's display, where nnn is the control
setting - make sure nnn is not zero.

With the the K3S in TX TEST mode, or the PWR control set to zero, or
transmitting into a dummy load, put the software in transmit mode using an
audio frequency in the middle of the bandpass (around 1500 Hz in DATA A).
Adjust the Windows sound card level setting and the K3S's MIC control to
get 4-5 bars displayed on the K3S's ALC meter.

Once you have done that, you should be good to go.

Once it is working, I would suggest that you put the K3S in Split mode and
set Split Operation in WSJT-X to Rig. This will ensure that the software
always transmits using audio between 1500 Hz and 2000 Hz, regardless of
where the received signal is in your IF bandpass.

If you find that using split results in excessive delays in starting to
transmit, the workaround is to turn the K3S's VOX on and set PTT to VOX in
WSJT-X. VOX works very well in DATA A mode (you might have to adjust the
MAIN:VOX GN setting - it should be set high enough to keep the transmitter
on reliably during your transmissions).

73,
Rich VE3KI



On 11/08/2017 15:30, Serge Bertuzzo wrote:
> Hello to the group.
>
> I am receiving no problem at all. I am however having  difficulty in
 getting
> WSJT-X to transmit. I am using a K3s.
>
> I have the K3s set up for Data A (USB) mode operation and have the
MAIN:MIC Sel
> set to LINE IN.
>
> On the WSJT software Settings under the   tab I have  selected the
K3
> under Rig, set the serial port that I normally use for CAT control (COM 5
in my
> case), I have set PTT method to CAT, the set Mode to None, and set Split
> Operation to None. Not quite sure how to change the Transmit Audio source
> setting as it is greyed out. It is presently set for Front / Mic.
>
> If I hit the TUNE button on the WSJT software my transceiver goes into
transmit
> mode but there is no output at all.
>
> Any help/guidance would be greatly appreciate. Thank you in advance.
>
> 73
>
> Serge
>
> VA3SB
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Re: [Elecraft] Trying to get on FT-8 with my KX2

[Richard Ferch]

I configure WSJT-X to use DXLab Suite's Commander for rig control.
Commander works fine through LP-Bridge.

73,
Rich VE3KI

On 7/21/2017 6:25 AM, brian wrote:
> ...
>
> I never got WSJT to work over a LPBRIDGE virtual port with the K3.  It
only
> works via a direct connect port.  WSPR has the same problem.
> So I do without the above and manually log QSO's in the logging program
> window.  With JT65 that was fine.  The higher QSO rate with FT8 makes
this
> more of a pain.
>
> The above simply reflects my experience.  I'd be happy to hear about
> workarounds others have found.
>
> 73 de Brian/K3KO
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Re: [Elecraft] Trying to get on FT-8 with my KX2

[Richard Ferch]

The SignaLink has nothing to do with rig control. All it is is a
single-channel sound card, plus an external VOX circuit to generate PTT.
You don't need the VOX circuit with elecraft rigs, their own VOX works fine
in digital modes, so all you are getting from the SignaLink is the sound
card. You can get better sound cards for less, but if you already have a
SignaLink, you can use it as your sound card.

What you need for rig control is a serial port connection to the rig's
serial control port. The KXUSB is your best bet, or if you already have a
serial port or a USB-to-serial adapter, you can use a KXSER between the
serial port and the KX2.

In WSJT-X, for PTT you can simply use VOX, which does not require rig
control, or if you have rig control working, you can have the rig control
do the PTT. Apart from that, what rig control really gives you is frequency
control. In addition to giving you instant band changes and avoiding
logging contacts on the wrong band, rig control also enables WSJT-X's Split
capability, which tunes the rig's dial frequency automatically in order to
keep the audio tones you are using between 1500 Hz and 2000 Hz. This helps
avoid transmitting spurious signals created by audio harmonics, and it
ensures that the transmitted power does not drop off towards the edges of
the receiver bandpass.

Rig control is certainly worthwhile, but it needs something separate from
the SignaLink.

73,
Rich VE3KI

KB2SMS wrote:

> Thanks for the info. I'm using a Signalink because I have one and bought
> the appropriate cable for it. My issue is with the com port apparently.
> WSJT-X won't let me select one, it just says "USB" with no other choices.
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Re: [Elecraft] Fldigi and signallink question interfaced to KX3

[Richard Ferch]

In order to send CW in CW mode, the KX3, like any other amateur radio
transceiver, needs an on-off keying input to its CW key jack. In CW mode,
amateur transceivers do not respond to audio input.

fldigi's primary method of sending CW is to produce an audio tone from a
sound card (such as your SignaLink). This cannot be used directly with a
rig in CW mode; the rig has to be in SSB. In SSB the rig's dial frequency
will be off by the sidetone frequency, as you have noticed, but the
frequency displayed and logged in fldigi should be correct if the program
is configured correctly.

There is a circuit in the fldigi documentation for converting fldigi's
"QSK" signal (an audio signal on the right channel of the sound card) to an
on-off keying signal - see <
http://www.w1hkj.com/FldigiHelp/cw_keying_page.html>. The SignaLink is a
single-channel sound card (left channel only) and does not support the
right channel, but fldigi does have a means for switching the two channels
- perhaps this could be made to work. Someone on this group may have done
this and be able to advise you whether it can be done successfully.

Another option is a K1EL Winkeyer ().
Current versions of fldigi support the Winkeyer, which provides an on-off
keying signal that transceivers like the KX3 can use in CW mode. See <
http://www.w1hkj.com/FldigiHelp/cw_winkeyer_page.html> for configuration
information on using a Winkeyer with fldigi.

73,
Rich VE3KI


N7TB wrote:

Will fldigi send CW correctly in cw mode on the KX3?  If so, what am I
doing wrong.
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Re: [Elecraft] Macro to switch Microphone input

[Richard Ferch]

Why not use DATA A mode for JT65? You can set the input for DATA A to LIN
IN while leaving the input for voice modes on FP.H. You can switch between
voice modes and JT65 just using the MODE button, with no need for macros or
menus.

73,
Rich VE3KI

I5NPH wrote:

...it is very important because I work JT65 and I would like to switch the
way of the audio input (LINEIN and FPH) without be forced to go to Menu.
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Re: [Elecraft] [K3S] JT65-HF Beginner

[Richard Ferch]

If you are using Line Out with a fixed gain setting to feed audio to
WSJT-X, adjusting the AF control will not do anything. What I do is leave
my RF gain control at its normal position (around 3 o'clock) and use the
slider at the lower left in the WSJT-X window to compensate for gain
variations.

73,
Rich VE3KI

W3FPR wrote:

> Bret,
>
> You may have better luck with running the RF Gain full and adjusting
> with the AF gain.  That way the RX AGC will smooth out variations in the
> signal level.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 6/2/2017 9:09 AM, MaverickNH wrote:
> > OK - on WSJT-X working well. MIC Gain adjusted to 4bbars and 5th flickering.
> > How best to adjust lower left dB  bar? I'm leaving the pointer in the middle
> > and adjusting to 30 with RF Gain knob but that seems to require constant
> > tweaks.
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Re: [Elecraft] AGC and RTTY Decoding (was [K3] AGC White Paper)

[Richard Ferch]

Aha! There's an explanation from the RTTY experts for the effects of AGC on
RTTY decoders.

Interesting that the recipes for best RTTY demodulation and for best
separation of multiple CW signals (the "mush" problem) appear to involve
similar AGC slope and threshold settings, although the reasons appear to be
different.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W0YK wrote:

Below is a thread from 7 March 2016 about AGC usage with RTTY decoders.
David Wicks, G3YYD, is the author of 2Tone and Kok Chen, W7AY, is the
author of CocoaModem.

...
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Re: [Elecraft] [K3] AGC White Paper

[Richard Ferch]

> AGC adjusts the receiver gain, compared to the audio bits, rather slowly
and DOES NOT change the "dynamic range."

Exactly. AGC changes the receiver's gain between two points in time, not
between two signals arriving at the same time.

I believe changing the AGC settings does improve the "mush" situation in
CW, but the reasoning is more subtle than a simple picture based on dynamic
range alone.

Consider a situation where there are two CW signals, one at S8 sending
mostly dits, and another weaker one at S7 sending mostly dahs. If the AGC
threshold is well above the strength of either signal (or AGC is off), you
will be able to tell when a dit from the stronger signal ends even if a
simultaneous weaker dah is continuing, because of the change in signal
level when the dit stops. In other words, you will hear the dits from the
stronger signal riding in above the lower-volume-level dahs.

Now suppose the AGC threshold is below both signals, say at S6, and the
slope of the gain curve is flat (i.e. the SLP is set to its maximum value).
For now, assume a perfectly instantaneous AGC decay time (super-fast AGC).
Then regardless of whether one signal or both is/are currently "on", the
AGC will immediately adjust the gain to clamp the signal strength to the S6
level. In other words, even after the stronger dit finishes, the weaker but
longer-lasting dah will still be at the same perceived volume, and you
won't be able to tell when the dit ended. Result: you just hear the
combination of two signals at a constant volume, i.e. "mush". If there are
only the two signals, when both are "off" the gain will increase, raising
the perceived noise level, but that's not the "mush" problem, it's the
"noisy receiver" problem. If there are a lot of signals at or above the
threshold, then the "mush" would be more or less continuous.

In the real world, the AGC time constant will affect this. If the decay
time is long enough (as in slow AGC settings as used for SSB), you might
hear the audio volume drop immediately after the end of a strong dit and
then rise during a continuing weaker dah, whereas if the decay time is very
short, you might hear the brief drop in volume only as a blip in an
otherwise constant-level sound. But at first blush I would think this would
be a secondary effect compared to the main effect of adjusting the AGC
threshold to be above or below the level of the signals.

As far as I can see, none of the above applies to RTTY, which is nominally
a constant-amplitude signal. Whether the signal is above or below the AGC
threshold, the ratio of the instantaneous mark and space signals will be
the same (unless one of them is on the skirts of the filter bandpass). Even
if there are two signals on the same frequency, the differences in relative
strengths of mark and space from the two signals would not be affected by
AGC, although the overall amplitude might be.

I don't know enough about how RTTY decoders work to guess at whether a
constant-level signal (aggressive AGC) vs. a time-varying signal level (no
or weaker AGC) would have an effect on decoding, but the same reasoning
that applies to CW "mush" does not appear to me to be relevant.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 Receiver mush

[Richard Ferch]

Actually it's not the 250 Hz roofing filter that is too narrow, it is the
250 Hz DSP filter setting. If you ignore the label on the roofing filter
and configure the K3 to switch the 250 Hz crystal filter in at the 350 Hz
DSP setting, the combination (350 Hz DSP, 250 Hz roofing filter) works fine
for those situations where there is a very strong signal right next door.
The rest of the time I prefer to operate with a 400-450 Hz DSP bandwidth
and a 500 Hz roofing filter.

73,
Rich VE3KI


N1MGO wrote:

I do lots of rtty contesting.  I have found the 400Hz filter to be
just right for rtty.  The 250 is too narrow.  I then narrow the DSP
filter to 300Hz if needed, with the 400Hz Xtal filter in front.
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Re: [Elecraft] Problem with N1MM+ and My K3 in ARRL RTTY Test

[Richard Ferch]

In the N1MM+ Configurer, under the Mode Control tab, under the right side
"Mode sent to radio", beside RTTY you should select RTTY, in order to put
the K3 into FSK D when clicking on an RTTY spot. For those who prefer to
use AFSK A, the correct selection is AFSK. For PSK and other sound card
modes using DATA A on the K3, you should select PSK in the boxes beside PSK.

Also, there is a check box in the Configurer under Mode Control called
"Always use packet spot mode". This check box is mainly there for people
who use N1MM+ outside of contests, or perhaps in some multi-mode contests.
It should not be checked in single-mode contests, nor in multi-mode
contests if you have not first set up the band plan limits in the Bandmap
window to be appropriate for the particular contest. The appropriate
sub-band limits change depending on the contest mode, and they are also
different between domestic vs. DX contests. You can limit the problems this
setting can cause to a certain extent by ensuring that the Mode Category in
the Contest Setup dialog is set correctly (e.g. do not use a multi-mode
category for a single-mode contest).

73,
Rich VE3KI


K5VIP wrote:

> Whenever I clicked on a new spot in the N1MM+ bandspread window, the mode
switched from FSK D to USB.
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Re: [Elecraft] [K3} Setting K3 and WSJT-X levels?

[Richard Ferch]

You don't want either control to be too close to either end of its range.

If the sound card level is so high that the gain control in the rig has to
be set to only 1 or 2, the granularity of the rig's control becomes a
problem (e.g. set it to 1 and get zero or one bar, set it to 2 and get six
bars, with no way to reach a setting in between). Also, some sound cards
might become non-linear at or near the top of their control ranges, and too
high an input level into the rig might also cause non-linearity introduced
at the rig end of the link before the level control.

If the sound card level is too low, the granularity issue might appear at
the sound card end, and the signal to noise ratio at the input to the radio
might become a problem. You want the audio signal at the input to the rig
to be well above the level of any hum or noise picked up anywhere along the
way, but not so high that it drives the audio circuits into non-linearity.

Ideally, then, you want the rig's Line In level control to be in a
comfortable range (say 6-10 or so) with the sound card's control somewhere
in the middle of its range.

73,
Rich VE3KI


NA6Z wrote:

I know about how to use the S-meter to set transmit audio level (4 bars).
What I've yet to find anywhere is a discussion on whether to favor the
sound card output or the mic gain. In other words, is it better to have a
lower sound card output and a higher mic gain, or vice versa, or does it
matter? And why?
73 and Happy Thanksgiving!
Don NA6Z
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Re: [Elecraft] K30/Mini Audio Level

[Richard Ferch]

I'm not sure whether or how the RemoteRig might affect this, not yet having
used it, but is the RemoteRig box connected to the remote radio using the
Line Out jack, rather than the speaker or headphone jack? If so, I believe
the way to control the volume may be by using the CONFIG:LIN OUT setting on
the K3. By default, the Line Out volume is independent of the front panel
AF level control. You can change this by tapping the 1 button while in
CONFIG:LIN OUT to make the Line Out level vary with the AF control
(CONFIG:LIN OUT=PHONES).

The simplest way to mute the speaker on the K3 is to plug headphones into
the headphone jack.

73,
Rich VE3KI


KR7RK wrote:

I've got a K30/Mini control head connected over the internet to my home QTH
K3S using RemoteRig boxes.  The audio volume from the K30/Mini is extremely
low.  Apparently the AF knob on the control unit (K30/Mini) does not
control volume, rather it's set by the remote station (K3S).  However it
seems that turning the AF Knob on the remote station has no effect, whether
it's at min or max or anything in between, the audio from the control unit
remains almost too low to hear.

Additionally, I would prefer to have the audio out at the remote station
muted so that my YL does not have to hear it blasting away when I am
remoting in from my office.  Likewise, I would prefer to have a variable
volume level at my office rather than a fixed level that can only be
changed by shutting down.

Am I missing something?  Is there a way to increase/decrease volume levels
from the control head?

Thanks for any help,
Keith KR7RK
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Re: [Elecraft] Getting higher gain from input of line in or rear panel mic on K3

[Richard Ferch]

The audio input settings (source jack, bias, mic gain, etc.) are set and
remembered independently in voice modes vs data modes.

In voice modes, set the MAIN:MIC SEL, bias and MIC gain control to wherever
you need them for your voice and microphone. Set MAIN:MIC+LIN to OFF
(unless you are using the computer as a voice keyer).

Now put the K3 into DATA A mode. Set MAIN:MIC SEL to LINE IN, make sure
MAIN:MIC+LIN is N/A or OFF, and now use the MIC gain control to set the
LINE IN level. Typical numbers for this control are often in the range
8-12, but this is in series with the sound card's own Line Out level
control in the Windows mixer, so the two control settings interact
strongly. Between the sound card control and the K3's MIC control, you
should be able to set the audio input level in JT9 or other digital modes
to the desired 4-5 bars.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W5SV wrote:

I am trying to get set up for JT9 in Data A mode; I am not getting
enough drive from the sound card to adequately drive the K3.

...

At the same time, the front mic is working fine (correct bias etc.) and
I don't want to lose this.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 - AFSK

[Richard Ferch]

If the K3 is sending a steady carrier, by far the most likely explanation
is that it is in FSK D instead of AFSK A.

The data sub-mode is remembered per-band, so perhaps it is not set
correctly on all bands.

Another cause can be a logging program - for example, if you are using
MMTTY from within N1MM+, you have to make sure that the Mode control
setting for the mode sent to the radio is AFSK, not RTTY. RTTY in the mode
control selector in N1MM+ means FSK, and it will cause the radio to be put
into FSK D every time a QSY is commanded from N1MM+. A similar phenomenon
can occur with other logging or digital mode programs.

73,
Rich VE3KI

AJ4F wrote:

The problem we are having is intermittent transmission of data.  At times
the set up works properly and then later when transmitting the K3 sends
only a steady carrier.  It appears that the computer is outputting audio
tones to the K3 when this situation occurs.  What are the potential causes
of this problem.  Any suggestions will be appreciated.
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Re: [Elecraft] TxMon and K3 (tuner bypassed) SWR missmatch

[Richard Ferch]

You are talking about SWR as if it were something real and physical that
could damage the transmitter's finals.  It's not - it's just a mathematical
construct that makes it easier to calculate various other quantities (such
as loss in the transmission line). The real physical quantities that can
damage the finals are currents and voltages.

The SWR reading on an SWR meter is back-calculated from currents and
voltages measured, for example, in an SWR bridge circuit. An analog SWR
meter is just a milliammeter with an unusual scale - the scale does the
calculation for you (like a nomograph). A digital meter does the
calculation using a formula.

The protective circuitry does not measure SWR directly - it measures
currents and voltages, and it can measure them close to the finals, not at
the end of some indeterminate length of transmission line. There is no need
for the protective circuitry to calculate an SWR from those measurements -
all it needs to know is the measured voltage at which it needs to act to
limit the voltages and currents inside the finals to safe levels.The
calculated SWR that is displayed on the front panel is there to keep the
operator happy, not because the circuitry itself needs to know it.

The SWR at which the foldback occurs in the finals actually varies with
output power. At very low output power, the SWR can be very high without
causing damage, because the currents and voltages are still low, so the
foldback circuit does not need to operate just because the SWR is high. It
only needs to operate when the voltages or currents start to threaten the
finals.

This being the case, any errors in the SWR calculation based on the
measured voltages and currents at various locations are basically
irrelevant to the issue of protection of the finals, regardless of their
origin.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Line Out properties K3

[Richard Ferch]

Hi Joe,

No, you're not crazy. The Monitor output used to be sent to Line Out, but
some time between firmware versions 5.38 and 5.50 the monitor output to
Line Out stopped working. It has been restored in beta versions 5.51 and
newer, i.e. if you download the latest beta version it should be working
again, albeit at a non-adjustable level.

73,
Rich VE3KI

KC0VKN wrote:

   After the last update I noticed that Line Out doesn't carry
sidetone.  Looking in \
the list archives, this appears to have always been the case-- has it
really?  I'm \
99% certain I was not using phones or speaker line out for this duity
in the past; I \
would have used Line Out for the fix audio level out.. but, as you can
tell, I'm \
second guessing myself...

  So, can somebody confirm that I am/not crazy?
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Re: [Elecraft] WSJT-X and K3S Tx

[Richard Ferch]

1. The U7 is not on COM3. Sound cards do not use serial ports. Perhaps COM3
is a virtual COM port created by LP-Bridge, or perhaps COM3 is the K3S's
USB serial port, and COM7 is a virtual port created by LP-Bridge that you
connect other software to. You need to get this straight for other reasons,
but it has nothing to do with the audio issues with WSJT-X

2. Your default sound devices should be set to the motherboard sound card.
That is where Windows sounds are sent, YouTube audio and other media player
stuff goes, etc., and you don't want any of that stuff going to the sound
card(s) you use for radio, much less to the sound card you use with LP-PAN.

3. In WSJT-X, in the File > Settings menu under the Audio tab, set the
Input and Output sound cards to the ones you are using for sound card modes
- most likely the USB Audio CODEC in the K3S, unless you have chosen to
bypass it and use an external sound card plugged into the Line In jack on
the K3S, which disables the K3S's internal sound card. If you are using the
U7 with LP-PAN for panadapter software, it is *not* the sound card you are
using for sound card modes, and it should *not* be connected to the K3S's
Line In jack - it should be connected directly to the LP-PAN. In that case,
WSJT-X should be set to use the USB AUDIO CODEC and there should be nothing
connected to the K3S's Line In jack.

4. The ATU on the K3S is not triggered by a transmitted signal, whether
from WSJT-X or elsewhere. It is not auto-tune in that sense; it is
auto-tuning based on frequency memories, which is what the KAT500 calls MAN
mode. It will automatically switch to the last setting used on that band
segment with that antenna output (ANT1 or ANT2). Once you have tuned the
ATU once with your antenna for a particular frequency, that should be good
enough from then on. If your antenna's SWR changes dramatically because of
weather conditions, e.g. ice on the antenna, you tune the K3S's ATU using
the ATU TUNE button on the K3S. Therefore an extra 2-second tune signal
between band hops does not do anything useful, other than give you a
2-second advance notice of the SWR.

5. When the K3S's meter is in ALC mode, it does not show the transmitted
power. You have to put it into PWR mode with the METER button. The TUNE
button switches from ALC to PWR mode automatically, but transmitting
normally does not do this.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Upgraded K3 and MMTTY

[Richard Ferch]

If you are using AFSK for RTTY and controlling PTT via a method such as rig
control or VOX, Don's advice about only one COM port applies. The only COM
port you need is for rig control, and the KIO3B simply allows you to
replace whatever you used previously with a direct USB connection to the
radio.

However, if you are using FSK from MMTTY (or even if you are using AFSK but
have chosen for some reason to use MMTTY's PTT & FSK port for PTT control
from MMTTY), there is a second serial port involved, for FSK (and possibly
PTT) keying. The KIO3B's USB connection does not have anything to do with
this.

In MMTTY, the PTT & FSK Port that you configure under the TX tab in the
MMTTY Setup window is not the same serial port you use for rig control.
This is a separate serial port with keying circuit(s) for FSK (normally
connected to TxD) and PTT (either RTS or DTR) connected to the K3's ACC
connector. You do not use the serial port that is created by the driver for
the KIO3B as the PTT & FSK port in MMTTY.

MMTTY also offers some minimal rig control capabilities, using a serial
port configured using the "Radio command" button in the same area of the
setup window. This must be a different serial port from the FSK & PTT port.
If you are not doing rig control from some other application (such as
DX4Win), then you can use MMTTY's elementary rig control capabilities, and
for that you can use the serial port associated with the KIO3B's serial
adapter.

You also mentioned difficulties in opening the audio codec in the KIO3B.
This should show up in the list of sound cards under the SoundCard tab in
MMTTY. Note that if there is anything plugged into the Line In jack on the
KIO3B, the internal audio codec in the KIO3B will be disabled. It's an
either/or - either use the codec in the KIO3B, or use a separate sound
card, possibly inside the PC, connected to the K3's Line In jack.

73,
Rich VE3KI

On 8/19/2016 5:34 PM, Larry P. Greenberg wrote:
> I recently upgraded my K3 with the new K103B that provides a USB connection, \
> eliminates the need for an external PC soundcard and retains all of the 
> original \
> RS232 functionality.  I have an Edgeport USB to RS232 four port box providing 
> RS232 \
> connectivity to the K3, the amplifier, and rotator control.  It seems to be 
> working \
> as DX4Win controls the radio, the rotator, and sends CW.  I cannot get MMTTY 
> to \
> send RTTY or even execute the PTT function.  It seems like I have not set-up 
> MMTTY \
> correctly.  I am looking for someone who may be familiar with the new K3 
> Interface \
> boards (K3s functionality) and MMTTY.  My error message is Cannot Open COM3 
> (COM \
> port used to control the K3 and send CW which works fine.  I cannot select \
> additional soundcards such as CODEC from the soundcard menu under set-up.
> Larry, WA9MAG
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Re: [Elecraft] N1MM KX2 and KX3 Issues

[Richard Ferch]

Your problem is obviously with N1MM+, not with your elecraft rigs. It would
have been more appropriate to post your message to the N1MMLoggerPlus
reflector.

Be that as it may, my guess would be that you are using an inappropriate
N1MM Logger.ini (configuration) file, namely one that has been configured
for a dual-receiver K3.

In the N1MM+ Config menu, make sure the Sub Receiver Always On menu item is
not checked. It appears as if you may have this option selected; if so,
that would be what is causing Dual RX to be turned on when you change bands.

In the Configurer, make sure the SO1V radio button is selected; I suspect
you may have SO2V selected; SO2V is not really appropriate for a KX2 or
KX3. Also, make sure that the selected radio type is Elecraft KX3, not
Elecraft K3.

N1MM+ does not send ATU commands to the radio as far as I am aware. I can
only guess that your configuration is such that K3 commands for the second
receiver are being sent, and that these are having some kind of side
effects on the KX2/KX3, possibly because the second receiver's Entry window
is starting up on a different band. Using an ini file that is configured
for the correct radio in SO1V mode should resolve this.

If you wish to use N1MM+ with more than one radio (not SO2R, just different
radios at different times), you should not try to use the same ini file for
all. N1MM+ has a way to use multiple ini files for this kind of situation.
This is described in the on-line documentation at <
http://n1mmplus.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Program+Installation+and+Setup=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#Multiple_ini_Files
>.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] KX2 and N1MM F-Keys

[Richard Ferch]

"The thing kept switching from  Run mode to S  when I left the program to
browse on the web for a bit then I switched back I had to switch it back to
Run": The N1MM+ program automatically switches from Run to S whenever you
QSY by more than a user-adjustable frequency tolerance. If you
inadvertently or intentionally moved the tuning knob on the radio while you
were off doing something else, that would switch the program from Run to
S

If you want to start running on a new frequency after going off and doing
something else, simply press the F1 (CQ) key. In addition to sending your
CQ message, this automatically switches the program from S to Run mode.

"The CQ Repeat function has no pause ... The Repeat Time setting does not
do anything ...": I'm betting that you are using the CAT1ASC macro with KY
commands to send CW. This CW keying method is not supported by N1MM+. It
works, sort of, but there are several features of N1MM+ that do not work
properly, or at all, with this method. One of these is that the CQ repeat
time has to be set long enough to include the entire duration of the CQ
message plus the pause between messages, not just the desired pause time as
it would with a supported keying method. Try a really long repeat time,
then experiment with shortening it until you get a reasonable duration of
the pause between messages - but recognize that every time you change CW
speeds, you will have to adjust the repeat time as well.

"CW speed control does not work": If you are using the KY command method,
that's correct, it doesn't. That's one of the program features that do not
work with this unsupported keying method.

There is a list of shortcomings of the KY command method of CW keying from
N1MM+ in the N1MM+ documentation. Go to n1mm.com, click on Documents > 2.
Digging Deeper, then select Chapter 5.1 Serial Parallel and Sound Card
Interfacing and on that page select section 3.2 Choosing your CW Method -
or just go directly to <
http://n1mm.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Serial+Parallel+and+Sound+Card+Interfacing=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#Choosing_Your_CW_Method>.
If you can live with all of these, fine. If you want to use N1MM+ and you
cannot live without one or more of the features in the list, you will have
to do what it takes to implement one of the supported CW keying methods.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] KX2 and N1MM F-Keys

[Richard Ferch]

Fred Cady KE7X wrote:

> When using KY commands in N1MM does hitting escape stop the transmission?

No, it does not. This is only one of several limitations of this method in
N1MM+ - see <
http://n1mmplus.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Serial+Parallel+and+Sound+Card+Interfacing#Choosing_Your_CW_Method>
for a list.

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft] KX2 Evaluation Up Date

[Richard Ferch]

Jim, not quite. Bob's examples work perfectly with the K3/K3S using CW
keying on DTR (or RTS) of the radio control port, and on any radio
(including the KX2/KX3) if an external keying circuit or Winkeyer is used.
It is only when you don't have a Winkeyer or external serial port keying
circuit to use with a KX3 or KX2 that you need to use the KY command method
(BTW, there is no need to use the CATA1ASC macro instead of CAT1ASC if you
are not using SO2R).

There are several limitations to the KY command method when used with
N1MM+, as described at <
http://n1mmplus.hamdocs.com/tiki-index.php?page=Serial+Parallel+and+Sound+Card+Interfacing=N1MM+Logger+Documentation#Choosing_Your_CW_Method
>.

73,
Rich VE3KI


K9JWV wrote:

Bob - none of your examples will work with an Elecraft KX3 and/or, I believe,
a K3 or KX2...any macro for my KX3 must look like below (everything
after KY and before ;} is what you can alter, up to 24 characters including
spaces):

F1 CQ, {CATA1ASC KY CQ TEST k9jwv k9jwv test;}
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[Elecraft] [K3] Strange filter behaviour in the subRX

[Richard Ferch]

After a user reported problems with filter settings in N1MM+ in SO2V with
one VFO in CW and the other VFO in SSB, I did some investigating. I had
never tried mixed-mode dual receive before. After doing some experimenting,
first with N1MM+ and then with the radio on its own, I conclude that there
does appear to be a problem, but it seems to be in the K3 firmware, not in
N1MM+.

After some initial exploration, I ran audio spectrum analysis software on
the Line Out output of the K3 with band noise input on a dead band, default
filter settings and with no radio control software of any kind running.
With both VFOs in SSB, the noise spectrum display is similar for both VFOs
- reasonably flat (plus or minus a few dB) from 200 Hz to 2800 Hz, more or
less. If one VFO is in CW and the other VFO is in SSB (or DATA A, which
seems to behave the same way), the VFO A SSB plot looks the same as before,
but when I use the K3's A/B button to swap VFOs, the spectrum display for
VFO B in SSB looks quite different, with a more or less linear rolloff of
roughly 10 dB/kHz (not per octave, per kHz) from 700 Hz to 2700 Hz. That
is, at 1700 Hz the spectrum plot is down around 10 dB from the value at 700
Hz, and at 2700 Hz it is down around another 10 dB. The difference is
clearly audible. I can fix this by pressing the B-SET button on the K3,
which restores a flat response profile in VFO B, but when I press A/B twice
to swap the SSB and CW settings between the two VFOs twice, the rolloff
comes back when VFO B is in SSB mode.

Has anyone else seen anything like this? Is there a configuration setting
that can fix it?

73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] N1MM and KX3

[Richard Ferch]

The limit is in the KX3 firmware. According to the K3 Programmer's
Manual, the upper limit on the length of a text message that can be sent
using the KY command is 24 characters. Your original message already
comprises 24 characters after the * macros are expanded, so the added "cq "
pushed it over the limit.

73,
Rich VE3KI


K9JWV wrote:

Here is my F1 macro for CW contests:

F1 CQ, {CATA1ASCKY cq TEST * * test;}

If I enter two "cqs"   {CATA1ASCKY cq cq TEST * * test;} the message is not
sent...is that indicative of a limit on characters transferred 'tween N1MM
and the KX3?
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 DVR

[Richard Ferch]

The command syntax you used ({CAT1ASC K3_command} is unique to N1MM+. If
you want to use those SWT commands with a different program, you will have
to use the macro syntax appropriate for that program.

The command syntax in Writelog appears to be a bit more complicated - it
looks as if you first have to define key macros in the Writelog.ini file
and then call up those key macros in the function key definitions using the
%G command. See  for examples of
how to do this.

73,
Rich VE3KI

N2HMM wrote:

Has anyone ever successfully used these CAT commands with WriteLog?  I'm
trying to minimize the amount of times I have to reach for the M1 button by
using a function key on the keyboard.

*   Cat Macro strings used to play back Radio # 1 internal K3 CW/data
messages or DVR voice keyer messages

*   M1 = {CAT1ASC SWT21;}
*   M2 = {CAT1ASC SWT31;}
*   M3 = {CAT1ASC SWT35;}
*   M4 = {CAT1ASC SWT39;}
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[Elecraft] Audacity recorder with Xonar U& & NaP3

[Richard Ferch]

I am using a very similar combination (K3, LP-Pan/LP-Bridge/NaP3, Xonar U5)
and I have successfully recorded received audio with Audacity. You didn't
mention what sound card you were using for audio recording, but you cannot
use the same sound card for audio that NaP3 is using with the LP-Pan. I
have a separate sound card that I use for digital modes, fed from the K3's
Line Out jack, and that is the one I use for recording received audio in
non-digital modes. As I recall, once I had worked out which controls to use
in Audacity it worked FB.

After trying both, I ended up using QSOrder instead of Audacity, but that
was because of convenience issues, not the basic recording functionality.

73,
Rich VE3KI


W5UN wrote:

Is anyone here running their K3 with LP-Pan, NaP3, and  Xonar U7 sound
card? I am attempting to make Audacity work with this scheme, but am
unable to get it to record.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3S drops 10db with Digital Modes

[Richard Ferch]

Karel,

What is the reading on the K3S's ALC meter? In order to achieve correct
power control in audio data modes, you must set the audio input level so
that the meter reads 4-5 bars - not zero as with most other transceivers.
If the audio input is at zero bars, the K3S's microprocessor will not be
able to control the transmitter output power correctly.

Set the audio level to give you 4-5 bars on the ALC meter,and use the PWR
control to select the desired output power. Do not leave the PWR control at
full power and use the audio drive level to control output power, as is
sometimes recommended for other transceivers - that will not work with the
K3 and K3S.

73,
Rich VE3KI



ON7TA wrote:

Somebody mentioned me that my signals goes up and down about 10db when I
send out \
digital mode via pc. (psk, simpsk). ( checked it myself via  a websdr
station close \
to my QTH, so no propagation )

I already switched off TX ALC but there is no difference. Compressor is
off, tried \
low and high power, low and high output of pc sound does not change a
thing, TX EQ is \
not used, ...

When I do the same with my Flex, with the same pc and the same programs I
don't have \
this up and down issue.

I checked the USB Audio Codec sound card settings, but I don't see any
settings in \
there that could cause this issue.

Has anybody got an idea about this? It's not a real issue to work digital
modes, but \
I'm curious to know of what is causing this.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 sound recording

[Richard Ferch]

Unless I am missing something in your description, the only hardware you
need is a single stereo patch cable (one with 3.5 mm stereo plugs on both
ends) from the stereo Line Out jack on the K3 to the stereo Line In jack on
a standard 2-channel sound card. If your sound card has only a mono input,
use a different sound card (one with stereo inputs). In the Windows setup
for the sound card, make sure it is configured for two channels.

The main RX audio will be recorded in the left channel and the subRX audio
will be recorded in the right channel of the stereo recording.
Transmit monitor audio will appear in both channels. On playback through
headphones, you will hear the main RX in your left ear and the subRX in
your right ear.

For dual-RX RTTY with the identical hardware, run two separate copies of
your RTTY program(s), one copy configured to use the left channel of the
sound card (for the main RX) and the other copy configured to use the right
channel of the same sound card (for the subRX).

73,
Rich VE3KI


K7HP wrote:

I [...] have not figured a way to record the SUB rx output at same time
unless I made some sort of external circuit xfmr or resistors to feed LINE
OUT tip and ring to a single input Maybe there is something I am missing ?
This would also allow decoding RTTY from either MAIN or SUB rx . ???
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Re: [Elecraft] ERR KEY

[Richard Ferch]

Dennis,

Some questions that might perhaps throw some light on what is happening:

What method are you using for CW keying? Are you using PTT control in CW?
How is N1MM+ configured to do CW and PTT keying?

One particular area to look at:

What is CONFIG:PTT-KEY set to on the K3? In the N1MM+ configuration is the
CW/Other check box checked for the radio control port, and what are DTR and
RTS set to for that port?

73,
Rich VE3KI


From: Elecraft  on behalf of Dennis

Sent: Monday, March 28, 2016 5:54 AM
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] ERR KEY

This past weekend I experienced numerous ERR KEY messages. According to
the manual, this ERR code is returned when one "attempts to key the
transmitter or activate PTT during power on". When this would happen,
there was no power turn on, nor shorted keying lines- it was in
operation with N1MM+ in an SO2R mode.

What else would cause that error message?  If I tried to key the radio
before the PTT had been fully asserted, would I get that error?  I am
thinking that there is some connection between that error message and
some timing elements of the PTT/Keying process that I could correct.

I have another op that is getting this error in an unrelated setup. We
are both using the latest K3 firmware, 5.38.

Dennis W1UE
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Re: [Elecraft] Switching from SSB to CW on K3s

[Richard Ferch]

There are two parts to this: the correct sideband, and the correct 
frequency. On the K3/K3S, CW is on lower sideband, and CW-REV is on 
upper sideband. On bands where you use LSB for SSB, switching to CW will 
still be on the correct sideband, but on bands where you use USB for 
SSB, you will need to use CW-REV to get the sideband to match.


The other part is the frequency offset. You can tell the K3/K3S to do 
the frequency offset automatically when changing modes by using the 
CONFIG:CW WGHT menu item and tapping the 5 (AGC) button until the lower 
(VFO B) display reads VFO OFS.


73,
Rich VE3KI


W3DK wrote:


When I'm in SSB mode and I tune down to the CW frequencies, I can easily
tune in a CW signal. Then, I switch to CW mode, and the CW signal is gone
because I'm on the wrong sideband. Even if I'm on the right sideband, the CW
signal disappears.  Shouldn't I be able to switch from SSB to CW and not
lose a CW signal?  Am I doing something wrong?  Thanks, Bob - W3DK


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Re: [Elecraft] K3 5 pole vs 8 pole filters - attenuation in the passband

[Richard Ferch]

My solution for this is to configure the K3 to switch the 250 Hz roofing 
filter in at 350 Hz. A DSP filter of 250 Hz is a bit narrow, but with a 
350 Hz DSP setting and the 250 Hz roofing filter, I still get good copy.


That being said, most of the time I operate RTTY with a 500 Hz roofing 
filter and the DSP filter at 400-450 Hz; I only use the 350 Hz setting 
when there is a strong signal shoulder-to-shoulder with the one I am 
trying to copy.


73,
Rich VE3KI

WK6I wrote:


For RTTY the sweet spot is 400. At 250 you might lose information your
decoders need to work. 73 jeff wk6i


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Re: [Elecraft] K3 - AFSK anamoly? No replies, try again

[Richard Ferch]

Don, as described that was NOT the opposite sideband. On the video the 
stronger signal was at 14091.883 kHz on the dial. That is the frequency 
of the mark tone; the space tone would have been at 14091.713 kHz. The 
pitch in use was 915 Hz mark, so the suppressed carrier frequency would 
be 14092.798 kHz and the center of the filter bandpass (the notch in the 
dual passband filter pattern) would be at 14091.798 kHz (1000 Hz below 
the suppressed carrier).


The second slightly weaker signal in the video was at 14091.720 kHz, 
i.e. the higher of its two tones was virtually coincident with the lower 
of the two tones from the first signal, and the second tone would be 170 
Hz lower, at 14091.650 kHz.


A true opposite sideband signal response would have been at 
14093.713/14093.883 kHz, nowhere near what was observed.


This resembles audio IMD more than an opposite sideband response. For 
example, a heavily overdriven audio signal with two overlapping 
simultaneous tones at 915 Hz and 1085 Hz might develop spurs at 745 Hz 
and/or 1255 Hz, and one of those spurs combined with one of the intended 
tones in the first signal would look a lot like the second signal in the 
video.


My next question would be, do you see something similar if the dual 
passband filter option is turned off, or only when it is turned on? I am 
wondering whether some kind of aliasing phenomenon could exist in the 
dual passband filter that might account for this.


73,
Rich VE3KI


W3FPR wrote:


For strong signals the filtering may let some of the opposite sideband
get through the filters.
What is the relative S-meter reading for the true sideband and the
opposite sideband?


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Re: [Elecraft] K3 KIO3B - FSK - stereo

[Richard Ferch]

Most media players use the default device. In addition to Windows 
sounds, you wouldn't want sound clips from your Internet browser playing 
through the radio codec, to pick an example.


Another reason might be that if the K3S or K3+KIO3B is turned off or 
disconnected from the computer, the device would disappear and Windows 
would change the default to some other (possibly unpredictable) device.


There may be yet another reason: I believe that in recent versions of 
Windows, when a device is selected as the default device, Windows 
routinely disables other inputs on that sound card or codec. If, for 
example, the microphone input were selected as the default device, I 
believe that the line input on that same card would be disabled. I don't 
know whether the KIO3B codec has multiple inputs, so I don't know 
whether this actually applies to it.


73,
Rich VE3KI


W3FPR wrote:


Ian,

The operating system plays its sounds through the default soundcard.
You really don't want to transmit those sounds on the air.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 2/15/2016 6:42 AM, Ian White wrote:

VE3KI wrote:

Also, make sure that the USB Audio Codec is not selected as the Default
Device or the Default Communications Device - these should both be set
to the motherboard sound card in your PC.

Please could you explain the reasons for that?




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Re: [Elecraft] K3 KIO3B - FSK - stereo

[Richard Ferch]

Here is something to check:

Right-click the speaker icon in the Task Bar and select Recording 
devices. In the Sound window select the USB Audio Codec and click on 
Properties. In the Properties window click on the Advanced tab and check 
the Default Format. If it is set to 1 channel, ... change it to 2 
channel, ... .


Also, make sure that the USB Audio Codec is not selected as the Default 
Device or the Default Communications Device - these should both be set 
to the motherboard sound card in your PC.


You should see main RX audio in the left channel. If the subRX is off, 
you might see a bit of leakage from the left channel in the right 
channel, but if the subRX is on you should only see subRX audio. When 
you are transmitting, if your Monitor level is non-zero you should see 
the transmitted signal in both channels.


73,
Rich VE3KI


N2TK wrote:


Trying to setup the CODEC on the KIO3B. Is it stereo that it will allow me
to do what I am presently doing for two channels?

When I select Microphone (4-USB Audio CODEC) for both MMTTY's, I get the
same signal on both MMTTY's. The second receiver has no impact.


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Re: [Elecraft] Using K3 with HRD

[Richard Ferch]

The PC speaker is connected to the PC's internal sound card. For data 
modes you said you are using the USB codec in the KIO3B, which is not 
connected to the PC speaker. Try using a speaker connected to the K3's 
SPKR output (or the internal speaker) to monitor the audio instead.


You can adjust the volume of received sounds using the AF control; it 
shouldn't have any effect on the audio level in the codec (that should 
be controlled by CONFIG:LIN OUT). You can also adjust the level of 
monitored transmitted sounds using the K3's MON control, again without 
impact on the actual transmit audio level (4-5 bars on the AGC meter, 
adjusted using the LINE IN gain control).


73,
Rich VE3KI


W4RKS wrote:


Using a K3
KIO3 B (The new board)
"Y" cable connected to P3 via the RS232/P3 connection
USB cable from the K3 USB to a Windows 7 (32) PC USB port
The P3/Config RS232 is set to "USB"

Using Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) Version 6.3.0.450
The PC shows "USB Audio Codec" for Transmit and Receive.

CAT control works. I can control the radio and the changes
show on HRD - from the HRD screen, I can change K3.

I see waterfall changes on HRD

PROBLEM: I hear NO AUDIO on the PC speaker.  (Except, in
the DM/780 program of HRD - if I select the Voice synthesizer,
I do hear that voice in the PC speaker.)

I understand the control and audio functions are done through
the USB port / cable.


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Re: [Elecraft] K3S and RTTY Contesting with N1MM+/MMTTY

[Richard Ferch]

There is some confusion evident in your post on the roles of the 
connections between the radio and the computer.


There are three separate connections needed for operation in data modes 
(possibly four in FSK).


The first of these connections is for rig control from N1MM+. On a K3, 
this is the RS232 port. On a K3S, you can use the USB connection 
instead, provided the K3S's CONFIG:RS232 is set for USB. Either way, 
this represents one serial port in the software. N1MM+ must be 
configured to use this port for rig control, and this port cannot be 
used by MMTTY when it is run from within N1MM+. This last limitation 
(inability to share a serial port between the two programs) is why the 
configuration that you use in MMTTY stand-alone does not work when you 
run MMTTY from N1MM+.


The second connection is for audio to and from MMTTY. On a K3, there are 
actually two cables for audio, one in and one out, but on a K3S, these 
can be replaced by a single USB connection to the USB codec inside the 
radio. This happens to be shared with the same USB cable that conveys 
rig control, but there are two separate and independent devices as far 
as the software is concerned - one is a serial port, the other is a 
sound card, and there is no interaction between the two in the 
application software.


This audio connection is used for receive audio, and in AFSK, for 
transmit audio. MMTTY is configured to use the radio's USB codec as its 
sound card; N1MM+ does not need to use the sound card at all in data 
modes (SSB is another story, but I won't go into that here).


The third connection is for TX/RX control, or PTT. There are several 
ways of doing this on the K3/K3S, and it can be controlled either in the 
radio, or in N1MM+, or in MMTTY - pick one.


In AFSK (or in CW), the method internal to the radio is VOX. If you use 
VOX, you do not need to, and for the sake of avoiding confusion you 
should not, configure any other method of PTT either in N1MM+ or in 
MMTTY. However, VOX does not work in FSK D. If the radio is in FSK D, 
PTT must be controlled some other way (either via radio command or via a 
hardware PTT connection).


A second method is to use software radio commands from N1MM+ over the 
radio control line to control PTT. This method can be used by MMTTY when 
it is run stand-alone, but it is not available to MMTTY when it is run 
from within N1MM+ because of the inability to share the port. If you use 
this method, you do not need either a hardware connection or VOX.


A third method is to use serial port keying, by convention usually done 
on RTS, although it is possible to use DTR. In most radios, this has to 
be a separate port from the radio control port, and it has to be through 
a keying circuit. The K3 and K3S are exceptions - you can use RTS on the 
radio control port without any keying circuitry by setting 
CONFIG:PTT-KEY to RTS-OFF (or RTS-DTR to allow CW keying on DTR). This 
must be done from N1MM+, not from MMTTY, because the radio control port 
cannot be shared between the two programs.


You can also use a different serial port for PTT control, in which case 
it would be connected through a keying circuit to either the PTT IN jack 
or to the ACC connector on the K3/K3S. Since this is a different serial 
port from the radio control port, you can choose to use it either from 
N1MM+ or from MMTTY.


The fourth possible connection (which may be shared with the third PTT 
method) is for FSK keying from MMTTY, which is applied via the ACC 
connector. This can be done from a serial port through a keying circuit, 
but it must be a different serial port from the one used for rig 
control. This is a hardware limitation, not just software. The FSK 
serial port must be configured in MMTTY, and there is normally no need 
to mention it at all in N1MM+. MMTTY can also use this same port for PTT 
control, in which case you do not need to configure a PTT method in N1MM+.


It is possible to configure a serial port used by MMTTY in N1MM+ in such 
a way that N1MM+ only uses it in CW/SSB and hands it over to MMTTY in 
data modes, but this is only necessary if you need to time-share the FSK 
port with other uses in other modes, or if you want to use FSK with the 
built-in MMVARI engine in N1MM+.


There is another way to do FSK, and that is via radio control commands 
embedded in CAT1ASC macros in N1MM+, but this method is not supported by 
the N1MM+ programming team, i.e. you are on your own if you try it.


There is no TCP/IP connection to the radio. HRD may use TCP/IP for 
intercommunication between its software modules, but the K3 or K3S has 
no Ethernet connection and no way to use TCP/IP.


Bottom line: You may use VOX in AFSK if you choose to do so, but it is 
not necessary if you have correctly configured one of the other PTT 
control methods.


73,
Rich VE3KI


KD3TB wrote:


I have a new K3S radio that uses the new  USB for Sound and Radio Control.
For RTTY contesting I use N1MM+ with the MMTTY 

Re: [Elecraft] K3S Computer Audio Question with Sub RX installed

[Richard Ferch]

Fldigi versions since 3.22.06 have the capability of decoding from 
either the left or the right channel of a sound card. You can use a 
command-line argument to tell fldigi which configuration files to use 
You would run two instances of fldigi with different configuration 
files, one configured to use the left channel of a sound card on receive 
and the other configured to use the right channel of the same sound 
card. With this kind of setup there is no need for two sound cards.


Programs like MMTTY that store their configuration information in a file 
in the program directory can also be used for dual receive. Simply set 
up two separate copies of the program in different directories, and then 
configure them to use the left and right channels of the sound card 
respectively.


For basic dual RX receive that's all you need. Rig control and transmit 
capability add complications that depend on the specific hardware and 
software you are using. Note that if you want to be able to transmit on 
the VFO B frequency, both receivers must be in the same band. This is a 
transceiver limitation - the K3/K3S will not do cross-band transmit.


73,
Rich VE3KI


AE6JV wrote:


You need a way to separately decode both the left and right
audio channels. I use cocoaModem on the Mac to decode two RTTY
signals. Usually that's the DX and the pileup. I think there are
also some windows programs which will do this dual decode. Are
there any Linux programs which will do it? I can't find out how
to do it with fldigi.

For maximum flexibility, you will need two sound cards assigned
to two separate programs.


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Re: [Elecraft] KY Command

[Richard Ferch]

On January 7, NR4C posted a function key message file for N1MM+ that 
used KY commands to send FSK RTTY without requiring any FSK keying 
interface connected to the K3/K3S AUX port. While the basic idea (<04> 
used to terminate transmissions) is good, unfortunately there is an 
error in this file.


Almost every message line in the file was terminated with a K30; 
command. These K30; commands should all be removed from the file. N1MM+ 
expects the K3/K3S to be in K31 mode, and switching it to K30 mode will 
cause some N1MM+ program features to stop working correctly.


73,
Rich VE3KI
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Re: [Elecraft] VOX / PTT combination on k3

[Richard Ferch]

Once you have enabled VOX, you are stuck with whatever delay it imposes. 
In effect, the VOX and PTT functions are in a logical OR relationship - 
if either one of them wants the rig to be in transmit, it will be in 
transmit. In your current setup you could disable computer PTT control 
entirely and you would not see any difference.


There is a way to set the VOX delay to nearly zero, and that is to 
enable QSK. With PTT and QSK enabled, your computer messages will be 
controlled by PTT (no RX between characters), but your paddle-sent CW 
will be QSK. If you are using a non-QSK amplifier, this won't work for you.


Without using QSK, you can reduce the VOX delay in the K3, but if you 
are using an external amplifier that is not capable of QSK, the 
amplifier may impose a lower limit on the VOX delay you can safely use, 
i.e. you may want to have a VOX delay long enough to prevent returning 
to RX between characters, and maybe also between words, during paddle 
input, and that VOX delay will also affect the end of computer messages.


If you have an external keyer that has a PTT output, you can wire-OR the 
keyer's PTT output with the PTT signal from the computer. When the 
computer is sending, PTT will be asserted by the computer and there will 
be no RX during messages, but no delay in the return to RX at the end of 
the messages. When you are sending from the paddle, the delay will be 
controlled by the keyer's PTT settings. If you have a non-QSK amplifier 
you will have to configure the delay in the keyer to accommodate the 
amplifier, but the delay will only apply to paddle-sent CW, not to 
computer-sent messages.


73,
Rich VE3KI


S57AW wrote:


Simple question... Is there a way to avoid VOX delay on CW mode when PTT is
used?

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Re: [Elecraft] Disappearing Line Out Audio for Sub Rx

[Richard Ferch]

I am wondering why you would want to use Diversity mode in RTTY, and how 
you would actually make use of it. Diversity mode works by feeding two 
slightly different signals into a single brain that is programmed from 
birth to cope with two such inputs (two ears) and synthesize them into a 
combined information stream, using the phase and amplitude differences 
to add information value. The RTTY decoders I am familiar with don't do 
that; they are monaural.


If you want to use two separate monaural decoders on the audio inputs 
from the two receivers, don't use diversity mode, just turn the subRX on 
and let each decoder decode its own input stream. If the two VFOs are 
not linked, each receiver would be listening to its own frequency 
(SO2V), but if you link the two VFOs (CONFIG:VFO LNK = ON), you can 
force both receivers to listen to the same frequency (presumably on 
different antennas, else what's the point?).


This is different from "diversity decoding", which uses two different 
decoding algorithms on a single audio stream so you can compare the 
results of the two algorithms and pick the one that works best under the 
current instantaneous conditions. You don't need a second receiver for 
that; you can use an arbitrary number of decoders using the same channel 
of the same sound card and get the benefits of diversity decoding even 
with a single receiver.


73,
Rich VE3KI



W1UE wrote:


When the K3 is put into Diversity and the mode is RTTY, the Line out Audio
for the Sub Rx disappears.


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Re: [Elecraft] [K3] Recent post about n1mm macros to send FSK without fancy hardware

[Richard Ferch]

In N1MM+, use the macro {CAT1ASC KY text;} to send "text". Spaces and ; 
are significant - see the N1MM+ on-line documentation and the K3/KX3 
Programmer's Manual.


You can insert N1MM substitution macros like #, * and ! as long as the 
total length of the text to be sent stays below 24 characters. I believe 
you can also insert control characters by enclosing the hex code in 
angle brackets, e.g. <0D> for a CR character, etc.


I have never tried this next, but I believe you can do something similar 
from DXLab Suite's WinWarbler by using the External Modem tab in the 
Config window and setting the Model to Xcvr Ctrl App. Commander must be 
running for this to work. There may be other configuration settings that 
are needed along with this.


WinWarbler also has a radio control macro similar to the N1MM+ {CAT1ASC} 
macro that could be used in function-key macros, namely 'KY text;> (note the ' ) - but I don't know whether you can use this in 
combination with other substitution macros, or whether you can embed 
control characters in the text.


73,
Rich VE3KI


NR4C wrote:


There was a recent post on a reflector (don’t know which one) that listed 
n1mm function key macros for sending FSK using KY commands I think.  It 
didn’t seem to require any interface other than usual serial cable.  I am 
interested in this information.

If this will work with DX Labs as well, please include that info.


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