My Model 15 took a lot of 3-in-1 oil to keep it running back in the late 1970s. I can still smell the warm oil.
I worked Antigua on 20M and that QSO started RTTY DXing for me. -- Mike Flowers, K6MKF, NCDXC - "It's about DX!" > On Mar 22, 2019, at 10:01 AM, Michael Blake via Elecraft > <[email protected]> wrote: > > My first was a model 14 strip printer. It was also in the early 70s. > > Very 73 - Mike - K9JRI > > >> On Mar 22, 2019, at 12:14 PM, Wayne Burdick <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> If you're a new owner of a K3, K3S, KX3 or KX2 -- or if, like most of us, >> you never quite made it all the way through the owner's manual -- you might >> not have tried our FSK-D mode. This is one of our favorite features. It >> gives you an amazingly simple way to dabble in amateur radio's original yet >> still actively used data mode: RTTY. As embodied in our FSK-D mode, RTTY has >> two major advantages over FT8, JT9, and similar computer-mediated >> modes...but first some background. >> >> * * * >> >> RTTY (radio teletype) has a long, colorful history. The basic encoding and >> transmission methods were invented in the 1800s, and were later used by >> wireline news services as well as for wartime comms. It has been in use by >> hams since around the end of WWII, who took advantage of surplus military >> teleprinters. For more on this, see: >> >> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioteletype#Early_amateur_radioteletype_history >> >> As a teenager in the 1970s I had a Teletype Corp Model 15. This page shows >> some examples of what this beast looked like: >> >> http://www.baudot.net/teletype/M15.htm >> >> In my shack, the Model 15 and all of its associated paraphernalia took up >> most of a workbench. It made a huge racket and consumed reams of paper, not >> to mention oil. Sadly, I never did get everything working properly and never >> made an QSO with it. Yet my fascination with RTTY continued. >> >> When we designed the K3, my interest was rekindled, and we endowed it with >> the ability to decode and encode 45-baud RTTY signals. The DSP handled >> demodulation, while the MCU assembled character bit streams. (We later added >> 75-baud RTTY as well as PSK31 and PSK63 modes.) >> >> Lyle Johnson (KK7P) and I had quite a bit of fun when we first got decode >> working. Speaking strictly for both of us, tuning around between 14.080 and >> 14.100 during an RTTY contest was like being a teenager all over again. We >> quickly added the ability to transmit in this mode using the CW keyer paddle >> and message memories. The upshot is that I finally had my first RTTY QSO, >> doing it the hard way -- writing a good chunk of the firmware that made it >> possible. >> >> Here's the importing thing: our K-Line/KX-Line implementation of RTTY makes >> it incredibly simple to use. It's nearly foolproof. The setup details vary a >> bit among the rigs, but basically you select DATA mode, then FSK-D sub-mode, >> and turn text decode on. Then just tune around in the RTTY band segments >> until you see signals start to decode. >> >> If you're a CW op, you can immediately transmit in RTTY mode by simply >> sending CW. If not, you can connect a netbook or laptop to your rig (via a >> USB port), then use the Terminal window in K3/KX3/KX2 Utility along with the >> keyboard. The Utility for each rig includes instructions for using the >> Terminal window. >> >> * * * >> >> Earlier I claimed that RTTY operation using our FSK-D mode has some >> advantages over FT8, etc. Here they are: >> >> 1. You don't necessarily need a computer. Decoded and encoded text scrolls >> across the radio's display. At your home station, this is great for simply >> tuning around casually; no need to turn on the computer or set up software >> applications. It's an even bigger advantage for field operation. With the >> KX3 or KX2, you can use RTTY (or PSK31/63) from essentially anywhere, even >> operating hand-held. During Field Day and RTTY contests, I make a point of >> taking a hike and making a few RTTY Q's pedestrian mobile (/PM). When a band >> is open, you can work the world in these modes. (For some of us, it doesn't >> get much better than this :) >> >> 2. Our FSK-D and PSK-D modes are *conversational*, with no restrictions on >> what you can send, no software delays or time synchronization, no >> predetermined frequencies, and a natural style of interaction as with CW or >> SSB. The receiver is automatically configured for a narrow passband, so you >> simply tune in a signal until you start seeing decoded text -- often a CQ -- >> then respond with the keyer paddle, or with the keyboard on your >> netbook/laptop, if applicable. >> >> As you can see, we've come a long way from the Model 15, paper, oil, noise, >> and complex terminal hardware. In addition to using the display on the rig >> itself, our panadapters can be used. Text can be displayed on our P3-SVGA >> display, as well as on the PX3. A keyboard can be connected to either the P3 >> or PX3. >> >> Next time you're listening on 20 meters, the most popular band for RTTY, >> take a quick spin above 14.080. If you hear some of those magical tones, >> turn on FSK-D mode and give this mode a try. >> >> Many DXpeditions have an RTTY station operating during some periods, so >> you'll often hear RTTY ops making DX contacts. In general, RTTY DX stations >> are quickly "spotted" when they pop up, so mini-pileups can form at any time. >> >> There are also a number of RTTY contests, in addition to stations operating >> in RTTY mode during Field Day, etc. For a calendar of events, see: >> >> https://www.rttycontesting.com/records/ >> >> If the contest exchange is simple (non-serialized), you can probably operate >> entirely using the message memories. On the KX2, CW and data-mode contacts >> can also be logged using the rig's built-in logging function, then uploaded >> to a computer when you get home. >> >> 73, >> Wayne >> N6KR >> >> >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> 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 > > ______________________________________________________________ > 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 ______________________________________________________________ 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
