I completely agree and it was the same revelation for me when I first
switched on my K2 on 80m sat next to a FT1k at G6MC contest station: simply
astonishing.
David
G3UNA
I've read all the posts in this thread and have to say ... I just don't
get
it. What noise?! If anything my two
Dave
I use a battery-powered Heathkit unit I bought off Ebay. Tunes 3.5-4.0Mhz
(0-500Khz). Datong made a similar one though I've not tried it.
Dave, G4CWB
Hi Dave,
You need a BC-453.
www.carc.org.uk/pdf/FavRx002.pdf
Wes
--- On Thu, 12/17/09, W5UN w...@wt.net
Dave
I am currently using my k3 succesfully on 500khz. Since arriving here last
saturday I have heard 3 signals while listening on a casual basis out to
650km
I using the amrad active antenna in the roof space, but am building a tuned
loop for 136/500khz
Dave
G4FRE (WW2R)
Message: 40
Date:
Stan,
Those who are complaining are the exceptions to the rule.
There are thousands of K3 users that are not complaining. There are a few,
very vocal complainers here.
73,
Bob W5OV
(with no complaints)
-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
If you routinely and mechanically turn RF Gain to maximum with PRE on,
thinking that's the way to get maximum sensitivity and work dx (it isn't),
your K3 is going to sound noisy with noise rushing up and down with AGC
action. The easiest solution to this dilemna is simply to turn down the
value
Well... if the noisy rx is just way too much to handle... too much to suffer
with...
I could be convinced to help you out... by paying the shipping to get it from
there to here.
Just to help you out you see. Look at all the advantages..
You would be free to find a lot less noise no
Guys,
I am not complaining but learning and the vocal complainers are helping
in this process. Let us not be too precious regarding critique as it has
already led to an improved K3! I may yet better learn how to squeeze the
maximum out of my K3. Perhaps an improved manual is needed?
Hello All,
I'm not an expert. I too feel the receiver is noisy. Yet I hesitate to say
it's noise.
What happens if you put dummy load on the radio? Does the noise go away?
Terms I don't understand are: B bandpass, C bandpass, B octave, and C octave.
Could I be hearing a tone / pitch of the
I have the same issue. It was working just fine now it isn't. Maybe the old
code was used for the new GUI.
Bill
K9YEQ
K2-#35 (2 more), KX1-#35, K3, TS2000, IC7000, etc.
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:54:22 -0800
From: gliderboy1...@yahoo.com
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject:
Hello all!
I have read the many comments upon the noisy K3 receiver with interest. I,
too, have always thought the K3 somewhat noisy, but that is in comparison to
the other receivers I have. The best sound from a modern receiver to me has
been from the Ten Tec OMNI VII. When I place the RF
I've hesitated to write because I don't have another rig to compare to my K3
and because I use a vertical antenna which is by its nature noisy. I always
have a high background noise level on all bands. I have NEVER experienced
what some have described as a dead quiet band with signals popping
The isolation between ANT 1 and 2 isn't very good on mine either. If an 80m
cw signal is S7 to S9, I can still copy him just fine (s3) when switching to
the other ANT which has nothing connected. It might be 30db or so but you
would expect much more.
Steve
N4LQ
n...@carolina.rr.com
-
Have you tried connecting a dummy load to the other ant, or even
shorting the SO239 (carefully) to see if that make a difference?
73 de M0XDF, K3 #174
--
I think computer viruses should count as life. I think it says
something about human nature that the only form of life we have
created so
Mike,
That could easily happen if you have the AGC on. That would be
especially true if you have the preamp on when it is not needed and are
running the RF Gain at its full setting. With a signal present, the AGC
is acting to keep the receiver gain low, but when the signal is no
longer
That is a real true,K3 has enough sensitivity,I have never turned on my preamp
since day one and also I use the minimum RF gain needed to pull the station at
a confortable volume.
AD4C
For a refined ham it is compulsory to own a k3
--- On Fri, 12/18/09, Barry N1EU barry.n...@gmail.com wrote:
Bill W4ZV wrote:
Ralph Parker wrote:
I'm used to leaving the RF gain wide open on the MkV, leaving the audio
gain pretty much alone, and maybe switching between SLOW and FAST
occasionally. I don't seem to have any trouble hearing the weak ones
under
the strong ones.
Now I have to
I've heard a number of beacons on 600m. YWA, in Petawawa Ontario is
usually pretty strong here, 500 miles away. Plus lots of NAVTEX
stations on 518 KHz-- typically clean copy of New Orleans, 1200 miles
away.
I'm using my main transmit antenna, a 100 ft wire. The ATU is in LCSet
mode, the
YES Don speaks the truth. Your K3 thinks you WANT it to amplify the
heck out of everything in search of the weakest of signals and it is
dutifully trying to do that.
Back down the value of AGC THR in the menu, turn down RF Gain, turn up your
AF Gain and turn off your preamp on 160-20M.
Bill W4ZV wrote:
4. Now adjust the RF GAIN knob counterclockwise until the antenna noise
on the meter just stops flickering on the meter. This will be familiar to
OTs since this is the way we set RF GAIN many years ago on analog radios.
Someone just questioned this step. I didn't
I will like to help to this very insteresting discussion about noisy K3 but I
need some one who volunteer a website where I could up load about 80MB of MP3
files that I have saved when recording SSB and CW stations in
pileups,dx,ragchewing,with and without the antenna,with and
Hi Don:
First I tried actually removing the antenna at the SO239 connector in case
it was an issue of isolation suggested by N4LQ. This provided some minor
reduction in background noise. So obviously some of the noise is coming in
on the antenna.
Following your suggestion I tuned in a S5
I am using a Heil Pro Set Quiet Phone and find that I have to
crank the AF gain almost full open to get a satifactory audio level.
Has anyone else found this and what to do?
Jay
--
View this message in context:
http://n2.nabble.com/K3-AF-gain-level-tp4187028p4187028.html
Sent from the
Back down the value of AGC THR in the menu, turn down RF Gain, turn up
your
AF Gain and turn off your preamp on 160-20M.
Adding to that...AGC SLP has a profound effect on the AGC compression ratio.
Higher settings make all signals sound relatively the same. A few posts
back, I recall
The K3 has a lot of overall gain. This is necessary to provide
sufficient speaker output in operating locations with high ambient
noise levels.
But you can adjust the amount of gain, and shape it, to meet your needs.
If you feel that the noise level of your K3's receiver is excessive,
Hi Jay:
First set CONFIG: AF GAIN to HI. But if that is not sufficient you can plug
your headphones into the rear speaker jack. Be sure to set your CONFIG:
SPKRS to 2.
Or there is a code you can send through the K3 Utility to increase headphone
level. Use the Command Tester tab. This change
It seems as I move the value of AGC SLP down the noise gets louder. Does that
sound right?
John N1JM
P.B. Christensen wrote:
Back down the value of AGC THR in the menu, turn down RF Gain, turn up
your
AF Gain and turn off your preamp on 160-20M.
Adding to that...AGC SLP has a profound
Nice summary Bill. Will you please share the AGC setting that you most
typically use?
Thanks,
Dan - W4TQ
...
Hello all!
I have read the many comments upon the noisy K3 receiver with interest. I,
too, have always thought the K3 somewhat noisy, but
That result indicates you have too much RF/IF Gain. You need to apply the
remedies previously discussed.
73,
Barry N1EU
N1JM wrote:
It seems as I move the value of AGC SLP down the noise gets louder. Does
that sound right?
John N1JM
P.B. Christensen wrote:
Back down the value of
I went back to factory defaults and set AF gain to low as suggested by
Wayne. Seems better but I will try other combinations. Thanks.
73,
John N1JM
On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 8:34 AM, Barry N1EU [via Elecraft]
ml-node+4187185-2059304...@n2.nabble.com wrote:
That result indicates you have too much
G'day,
I think that 30dB isolation across a single small PCB mounted relay
is about as good as it gets. It's the same for the K2 ATU's.
Regards,
Mike VP8NO
- Original Message -
From: Steve Ellington n...@carolina.rr.com
To: K2MK k...@comcast.net; Elecraft Reflector
The more you turn RF GAIN back, the higher the S-Meter will read.
Well, that's the way it should work, but I can assure you that with my K3 with
the factory default RF Gain calibration, turning the control counterclockwise
from max would cause the S-meter to increase at first, then *decrease*
Wes,
I am a brand new (3 days) K3 owner. My RF Gain control was acting exactly
like yours. I contacted Dale at Elecraft and he walked me thru a procedure
which completely fixed the problem. Suggest you give him a call.
Jack
W4GRJ
-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
Bill has linked to and quoted Eric's paper
(http://wiki.contesting.com/index.php/Setting_receiver_gain_controls) which
quite frankly seems way too complicated to me. IMHO, a modern DSP,
microprocessor-controlled receiver should figure all of this stuff out
automatically and do it for me.
I cannot find in my paperwork the calibration data sheet described
on pg 50 of the owners manual. I opted for the 1 PPM TCXO. Could
someone describe the data sheet so I may search for it. Also in the
utility the enter TXCO data is grayed out? Thank you
R Thorpe KD6LAZ/AE
Don't get me wrong guys, but this thread reminds me more and more to the
endless split discussion...
73 de Roland, DC1RS
-
K3/100 #1243, KFL3A-2.8K, KFL3A-2.1K, KFL3A-400, KRX3, KFL3A-2.8K, KFL3A-400,
KAT3, KXV3A
--
View this message in context:
Stickey SWR Meter for SSB operation.
73,
Dick - KA5KKT
__
Elecraft mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
This list hosted by:
Wow. Sounds like as much fun as a cell phone. No thanks.
No DSP is ever going to match my preferences AND your preferences AND
everyone else's preferences. Heck, we can't even agree on what
proper AGC is, so Elecraft has given us the controls to set as we
see fit.
Different strokes for
This is out of hand.
All I have to say is,
Folks, THAT'S WHY THERE ARE MENUS!!!
Not everyone likes the same thing!!
Now tuning on my mail filter to reject anything with NOISE or noisy in
the subject!
That's all I can do, No AGC, PRE or ATT on my email.
de K2GN/Larry
K3 - S/N 3278
To answer the question of whether the K3 is too noisy - does it have
internal noise that limits its performance, I performed a simple test by
turning off the agc and comparing the unclipped audio output level with
a 50 ohm resistor connected to ANT2 and my multiband vertical dipole on
ANT1; on
For what it's worth, as a new K3 ownerI have learned a lot from this
discussion.
Jack
W4GRJ
-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Larry - K2GN
Sent: Friday, December 18, 2009 12:36 PM
To: Elecraft - K3
It is a half page or full page sheet with columns af data. See the K3
Utility Help pages on TCXO calibration for examples.
The current Beta MCU firmware dies not yet exploit this information.
There may be an MCU revision check that disables the dialog. See TCXO
help. I am away from a
Let me throw in a penny please.
Just for comparison:
FT1kMP : all controls full gain (except AF of course), antenna connected.
Then disconnect antenna and listen: nearly no audio, only the receiver
noise.
K3: do the same. Difference is that when I disconnect the antenna, the noise
coming from
Jackson Harbor Press has a little converter for 10-300kHz here:
http://home.att.net/~jacksonharbor/lfconv.htm
It can be configured for 80 meters or 30 meters and could probably be
diddled to provide coverage up to 500kHz.
Very inexpensive and works great!
No connection to Jackson Harbor other
while going through the menu adjusting the AGC setting the AF gain to low
seemed to help with the back ground noise. happy with that I went and did
the Tnx Gain calibration and got the ERR TXF..
seems that when I went through the menu screen past FL1 BW my fat fingers
bump the VFO B knob and
You're right, Larry! Maybe it's time for Lyle to end this thread? I'm sick an
tired of all this noise!
I had an FT-1000MP (very nice rig) until recently, comparing the two rigs
side by side for over a year, with a coax relay for a quick switchover. Then
I sold the FT1K and kept the K3.
Enough
I agree with Jack's remark below. I especially appreciate Bill Tippett
(W4ZV) sharing his operating tips with the group, and have printed his
recent messages (as well as the referenced info from K3NA) and
enclosed them in my K3 operating manual for future reference.
73,
Chuck NI0C
K2-10 s/n
I would be interested to know how you arrive at that conclusion.
My perception is a LOT of people have posted genuine concerns about
noisy K3 receiver.
I will add my voice to those that find the K3 noisy receiver very
disturbing.
I am a casual user I rarely diddle with settings beyond the
I believe there may be a hardware variation component to this. At least,
my main RX and my sub-RX sound like two different radios (S/N #1595).
In summary: the main RX sounds near-perfect. On the other hand, the
sub-RX has audio hiss above the DSP bandpass at high AF gain settings,
and what
Hector,
I have listened to one of your audio files, the one you send to PD2DX (who
was operating at PI4DX) last weekend. I know that my K3 just doesn't sound
like that. It's close, but not quiet there. I have tried several settings
with the help of K8OAZ pdf file on how to set the AGC. This has
If the suggestions to learn how to use the AGC and Gain settings are
vague, that's probably because there are a lot of settings (some of
which intereact with each other) and because clearly everyone has
differing ideas on what they want to hear anyway.
However, if the help you've received
I agree also, although not a new owner, and one having the noise I try
all the settings recommended and ideas, I have several other radios to
compare to and using S meters is a poor way to compare, all I can say
is my K3 has more internal gain and noise than any other radio I have,
that includes
In a previous post I described how to set up the K3. Once set up correctly,
you should seldom need to touch either RF or AF gain...
Gang: Please excuse the bandwidth - I read the Daily Web Archive (which is
NOT searchable, AFAIK), and have no access to email addresses to be able to
respond
You clearly don't understand how AGC and gain distribution in a rig work
if you really believe that automatic settings would properly cover
everything from ragchewing to contesting to weak signal DXing, all under
various types of noise. The strength of the K3 is it's adaptability to
On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 11:09 AM, Wes Stewart [via Elecraft]
ml-node+4187383-231954...@n2.nabble.comml-node%2b4187383-231954...@n2.nabble.com
wrote:
The more you turn RF GAIN back, the higher the S-Meter will read.
Well, that's the way it should work, but I can assure you that with my K3
Ralph Parker wrote:
Old buddy, old pal, please take the shortcut and send me your AGC
settings.
http://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/elecraft/2009-December/121133.html
http://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/elecraft/2009-December/121136.html
Wayne -
Could you explain the MDS test in greater detail? My AFV (AGC-S, ATT
off, no sub reciever) value bounces all over between 18 and 62, with
most values in the mid 20's. Over a 5 minute period, it doesn't
stabilize. I don't know what that means.
73, Mike NF4L
Wayne Burdick wrote:
7. If
Thanks for your vote of confidence.
Since this is a public forum, it's the holiday season and I'm feeling generous,
I'm going to give you a pass.
--- On Fri, 12/18/09, David Gilbert xda...@cis-broadband.com wrote:
You clearly don't understand how AGC and gain distribution in a rig
work if
Wes, thanks for the insight and it's interesting someone else has the same
problem (s meter behaving oddly when rf gain backed off, plus noisy rx).
In my case I had calibrated the rf gain using an external sig gen. I asked
elecraft support about this and at Dale's suggestion I redid the
Wayne
Is the low pass filter module available separate from the entire DSP Rev C
board replacement? If so, what does it cost and how complicated is it to
install?
Buck
k4ia
K3 #101
In a message dated 12/18/2009 10:12:29 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,
n...@elecraft.com writes:
The K3
Graham Kimbell (G3TCT) wrote:
At others' suggestions, I have also experimented with AGC parameters. I
found that the rx sounded better with AGC THR=2 (the minimum), but it
could
do with being even lower. (I mean a lower number).
This is an excellent suggestion for all having the noise
Arie,
As Wayne explained, the K3 has plenty of audio gain, and yes, the audio
gain can be advanced sufficiently to hear the internal receiver noise,
and even hear it as a mild 'roaring' noise.
Gains 'all to the right' is not a good way to compare two receivers -
ideally one would have to
Don all,
I was also besieged with noise. I changed my settings which I acquired, not
sure because the memory is failing :-), and tried your minimum settings...
my GOSH, a whole new world. I will test further, but so far on a very
noisey 75, the radio quited right down. We forget about all
Graham, Wes,
If I have no input signal, my S-meter behaves as normally expected
(S-meter increases with reduced RF Gain), BUT if I am receiving an S-9
signal AND my S-meter is in ABS mode, the behavior is similar to that
which you described.
73,
Don W3FPR
Graham Kimbell (G3TCT) wrote:
Wes,
Yes, AGC can do that. At all settings the AGC will do its job, but if
the settings are agressive, when there is no strong signal, the receiver
goes to full gain and any noise becomes loud - the K3 will try to make
the noise as loud as the signal you were previously listening to.
I personally
I had this same exchange with Eric earlier today ...
1) the LPF board will be available shortly. It is in stock
and will added (along with instructions) to the web page
soon (I read that as the next day or two).
2) The DSP upgrade now being shipped is Rev D which is Rev C
(the
Bill,
My experience is the other way 'round - a low threshold makes the AGC
active on a weaker signal, and in the extreme the AGC can be activated
on antenna noise, and can mask weak signals. Used intelligently with
careful operation of the ATT and RF Gain, this would not be a problem
(your
Splendid news, why obtaining it had to be like pulling teeth I
cannot fathom. The noisy RX thread would have dried up before it
reached the present head of steam.
Regards,
Mike VP8NO
- Original Message -
From: Joe Subich, W4TV li...@subich.com
To: k...@aol.com;
Wes Stewart, N7WS, wrote on Friday December 18, 2009 at 4:43 PM:
snip
We have DXpeditions operating on some chunk of coral that are running
wireless networks between stations and uploading their logbooks in near
real-time to the Internet via satellite yet their operators are still
FWIW:
What I use on AGC varies from day to day and with varying conditions. Right
now my params are:
AGC DCY: Soft
AGC HLD: 0.73
AGC PLS: nor
AGC SLP: 014
AGC THR: 004
AGC - F: 140
AGC - S: 026
other params:
L - Mix - R: Ab b
AF LIM: 025
AF GAIN: LO
RX EQ:
1 : +3
I think the staff at Elecraft is overwhelmed with orders and business as
usual. I can understand the workload during this time of year, and I am
sure the engineering process skills will improve next year. I would bet
their growth is somewhat beyond what they had anticipated.
73,
Bill
K9YEQ
When using my new tentec 707 mic with kenwood cable ,My k3 transmits
normally,but there is no reading on the meter . any input on this. Thanks Mark
- W1VJ
Regards,
Mark W. Crossland
508 693
508 693 7888(fax)
www.crosslandlandscape.com
I concur completely.
Regards,
Wes
--- On Fri, 12/18/09, Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy gm4...@btinternet.com wrote:
From: Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy gm4...@btinternet.com
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Noisy K3 receiver
To: Wes Stewart n...@yahoo.com
Cc: Elecraft Discussion List
I just reread my message and I don't like the meaning of the content. I
meant to say that Elecraft is having such a successful year that they may be
a bit overwhelmed. The offerings of excellent equipment and attention to
detail is excellent. I don't know how they can keep up. But keep it
Mark,
Which meter? The K3 display (what is being displayed? - SWR and RF or
CMP and ALC).
Or are you referring to an external meter of some type?
With a bit more information, perhaps we can help.
73,
Don W3FPR
mark crossland wrote:
When using my new tentec 707 mic with kenwood cable ,My k3
I'm a very happy K3 owner but was wondering if, through a software adjustment,
the audio output could be muted at turn-on and shutdown. I still jump when
that DC transient pops in the speakers from the relays clicking in and out.
Just sensitive I guess.
R Thorpe
KD6LAZ/AE
Like Windows beeps and bleeps, I guess I have gotten used to it. They
tell me that the K3 is really coming alive (or shutting down).
Each to his own opinion on this.
73,
Don W3FPR
Richard Thorpe wrote:
I'm a very happy K3 owner but was wondering if, through a software
adjustment, the audio
I have been frustrated by the lack of measurements that we can hold on to as we
discuss the noisy K3 receiver that many folks are reporting.
Help me out here: are we talking about the *amount* of noise, or the
*character* of the noise? I don't even think we've established the answer to
this.
I just reread my message and I don't like the meaning of the content. I
meant to say that Elecraft is having such a successful year that they may be
a bit overwhelmed. The offerings of excellent equipment and attention to
detail is excellent. I don't know how they can keep up. But keep it
Al,
Your points are well taken, But a few of the K3 owners that have
pro-audio instrumentation have reported that the K3 audio response is
more like 'white noise' (a flat response), as opposed to other receivers
which have a 'pink noise' audio spectrum. That says that the K3 more
faithfully
We are announcing here on the Reflector the release of W2 Firmware Rev
0.93. The Elecraft/W2 website will be updated soon.
Here are the highlights for this release:
*Rev 0.93, 18-Dec-2009*
* TWO VHF SENSOR ISSUES:* *1. No response at all in Auto mode, 2.
Occasionally a long, slow,
One can easily use a fatigueometer to quantify these complaints.
Fatigueometers are calibrated in F units.
Typically, we would connect the F meter across the receiver's AF output
along with a Popoutometer.
The P meter accurately measures the degree in which signals pop out of the
noise. A high
I don't think I've seen this firmware request before. When Wayne and
crew have nothing better to do, I'd like mode-specific monitor
levels. I work CW and digital modes mostly. I most definitely want a
good sidetone on CW, but I almost never want to hear the tones on
digital modes. Not
On the list.
tnx
Wayne
N6KR
On Dec 18, 2009, at 6:56 PM, Joe Planisky wrote:
I don't think I've seen this firmware request before. When Wayne and
crew have nothing better to do, I'd like mode-specific monitor
levels. I work CW and digital modes mostly. I most definitely want a
good
Gentlemen, I am a two year veteran of the FT2000 reflector and I am beginning
to see some of the same type of thoughts that turned that reflector into a
total mess. Most of us including me think the K3 is a fine rig and I have been
instrumental in selling 5 of them for Elecraft thus far.
We
CONFIG:SMTR PKSet it to ON and see if that does it for you.
73, Guy.
On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 12:06 PM, Edward Dickinson, III
softb...@windstream.net wrote:
Stickey SWR Meter for SSB operation.
73,
Dick - KA5KKT
__
Elecraft
But a few of the K3 owners that have pro-audio
instrumentation have reported that the K3 audio
response is more like 'white noise' (a flat response),
as opposed to other receivers which have a 'pink
noise' audio spectrum.
If that's the case, then the K3's receiver equalizer can be set up
86 matches
Mail list logo
