Tony, Essentially you have it right. It will take a break-out of either RTS or DTR interfaced by a NPN transistor and one resistor connected to the KEY Jack. I can see innovated folks making the circuit inside the jack with sm transistor and resistor and adding wye jack for connecting the paddle. External keyer not required since you can use the menu CW KEY1 and CW KEY2 to switch back to using the paddle from HAND. Instant change over to the paddle then the keyboard is not possible, but why would one do that? I use keyboard CW on eme so that I do not have to deal with sending by key (mostly I have scripts made up), but I do not operate a lot of CW on HF so maybe there is a reason to go back-n-forth rapidly.
For the keyboard CW program I run, you need both RTS (for PTT) and DTR (for keying), but that sw does not support QSK. So for me to implement computer CW I will also need a breakout to the mic-PTT line. PTT is needed for the digital sw I run, anyway. I have an old switch box that I am planning to use for I/F of the serial lines to the KX3, plus Tx audio. It already has 3.5mm mini-phone jacks and DB9 connectors for an old setup I used way back in time for I/F my FT-847. There are many after-market computer/radio I/F to accomplish this and a few are very small which would be appropriate for portable operation with the KX3 and a laptop. 73, Ed - KL7UW, WD2XSH/45 ====================================== BP40IQ 500 KHz - 10-GHz www.kl7uw.com EME: 50-1.1kw?, 144-1.4kw, 432-QRT, 1296-?, 3400-? DUBUS Magazine USA Rep [email protected] "Kits made by KL7UW" http://www.kl7uw.com/kits.htm ====================================== ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[email protected] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
