David:
On Aug 16, 2021, at 7:28 PM, David Gilbert <[email protected]> wrote:
Apparently not. I recently asked on this list if new K4 users could tell us
how well the K4 worked for remote operations. The only replies I got said that
Elecraft had not yet written a release version of the software for remote
operation of the K4, and as best they could tell from the responses they had
gotten from Elecraft there was no timetable for doing so. Nobody from Elecraft
bothered to answer my query, so they are probably correct.
We all know that Elecraft is facing huge challenges on all fronts in terms of
product manufacturing and digging through the orders they’ve received.
Elecraft is not alone in terms of announcing a vision and then expending the
resources ($$$, technical development, production, distribution) to make it
happen. Elecraft’s new vision is not easy to implement and will take time
(years) to fulfill what has been announced. The challenge is to provide a
roadmap and then calibrate everyone’s expectations regarding when these new
capabilities will be available to users. Like FlexRadio, Elecraft is building
a new product line (“ecosystem”) that is fundamentally changing their product
offereings and thus the user experience.
While I’m not suggesting that Elecraft’s ability to fulfill its roadmap mirrors
the customer experience at FlexRadio, making the comparison at least provides a
potential for context and recognizing that the technical and financial
challenges can be significant. In addition, events of the past 18 months has
certainly impacted Elecraft more than Flex in terms of new product releases
given what California has been going through not only with Covid-19 but fires
and power outages along with subcontractor issues, parts issues, etc.
So with these thoughts in mind, I can recite my personal experience as an
‘early adopter’ of the Flex-6000 series and the timeframes of what was promised
and when it was delivered as I can recall offhand.
1. Hamvention 2012 was when Flex announced the Flex-6700 transceiver and the
evolution into a ‘client-server’ typography between radio (server) and
connection device (PC, other user interface) as the client. What caught my eye
was the promise of remote operation via an ethernet connection that would
greatly simplify the setup and operation of a remote station. Given that my
potential operating would be 90% of the time via remote operation, this was a
big deal to me. I ordered one in August 2012 as their ‘early purchase
discount’ was expiring.
2. My Flex-6700 was delivered in November 2013 with SmarSDR v1.x that was
essentially useless for my purposes. No provision for remote operation and
only ‘basic functions.’ No promises were made as to when remote operation
would be possible.
3. In August 2014 I purchased the K3-KPA500-KAT500-K3/I0 mini with remote rig
system from Elecraft at the Huntsville Hamfest. 10 days later product was
delivered to me in Westborough, MA and I subsequently set it up at my station
in Folkston, GA over labor day weekend. I ordered the equipment because at
this point I had no idea when Flex would have developed their remote capability
and none of us were getting any younger.
Setup was simple and ‘it simply worked’. Nothing fancy versus the potential of
the Flex, but it performed as advertised. Most importantly, i had a reliable
remote station capability.
4. In May 2017 Flex announced SmartSDR v2.x with “Smartlink” that finally
provided the wide area network remote capability that I was looking for. Note
that this was FIVE YEARS after initial product announcement. By then SmartSDR
had evolved to a level of maturity where the capabilities were meeting
expectations….
5. In February 2018 Flex announced the PGXL amplifier along with an external
tuner capable of SO2R capability that would handle the output of the PGXL. The
PGXL was shown at the Orlando Hamcation but the tuner at this point was ‘vapor’
as it had not yet been designed. I ordered mine the day that Hamcation opened.
6. I received my PGXL in May 2018 following Hamvention. Neither SmartSDR nor
the Maestro were updated to accommodate the PGXL, so I was forced to use the
PGXL using the PGXL utility running on a PC in the shack when operating
remotely. More significantly, no tuner was announced so at this point I could
use the amplifier with my tribander. This meant that I was dependent upon the
Elecraft equipment for bands other than 10-15-20.
7. The amplifier was returned to Flex in December 2018 due to warranty recall
(issue with six meters).
8. I don’t remember when, but PGXL integration was incorporated into both
Maestro and the various SmartSDR iterations, making it much easier to manage
the PGXL remotely.
9. The TGXL (Tuner Genius) was announced in March 2021. I received my Tuner
Genius in June 2021, 3+ years after I ordered the PGXL and tuner package.
10. With the release of TGXL, a TGXL utility was also released providing
‘basic’ remote operability to manage the Tuner. No word as of today as to when
the TGXL will be integrated into SmartSDR or Maestro. It does integrate with
Antenna Genius if you have the SO2R version of TGXL.
In fairness to Flex, a number of cool capabilities were developed by Flex and
third parties over the past four years including SmartSDR for Mac, DogPark SDR,
SmartSDR for iOS (iPhone and iPad) and various utilities. Flex has actively
encouraged developers to use their API to create new features/capabilities for
the Flex-6xxx ‘ecosystem.'
In essence, it has taken Flex and others nine years to develop a Flex-6xxxx
‘ecosystem’ of very tremendous capability that covers the entire operator HF
experience. With transverters, this experience can be extended to VHF and
above. The system has matured to the point where the equipment “works” and
fulfills their vision of remote capability. As third parties develop new
features (including Node Red systems), the potential is endless.
I personally see Elecraft’s K4 as having similar potential. I don’t doubt for
a moment the dedication and vision that Eric and Wayne possess in their efforts
to bring the K4 ‘ecosystem’ to fruition. Hopefully, their vision will be
completed more expeditiously than Flex, but I also suspect that they’re
following a multi-year evolutionary process given their current challenges… I
also suspect that there will be the potential for third parties to develop
products that will enhance the K4 experience over time.
FWIW,
Barry Baines, WD4ASW/1
Keller, TX
(Currently in Roslindale, MA)
73,
Dave AB7E
On 8/16/2021 2:22 PM, Fred Jensen wrote:
1. I run W7RN remotely with the RemoteRig RRC-1258 setup and my K3. If I
replace my K3 with a K4, and Tom does _not_ do likewise at RN, will my remote
setup still work?
73,
Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
Sparks NV DM09dn
Washoe County
______________________________________________________________
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
Message delivered to [email protected]
