Hi Richard, The "Dance" referred to the posted conversations about AGC, not changing settings while operating the K3. The only time I monkey with DSP and the AGC is when I'm testing something out. And before all the testing the last couple of weeks, I had not changed the AGC settings in over a year. Likewise I had not changed where PRE/ATT are set per band since that's been available. I never need to touch AGC or DSP config settings in a contest. I change the RF gain occasionally as a band opens and closes, but not really that much.
I am well acquainted with MP's. I would agree with you on the MP's AGC, to a point. The MP's audio was smooth. I still own an MP and use it from time to time (as I do a 75A3 and a Yaesu FT101ZD). I have used maybe ten different MP's over the last decade, but it has been forever replaced as the prime rig by the K3. At NY4A when we gather for the multi/op DX contest operations, for a decade we brought in extra MP's to go with Howie's MP's. My MP was the first one we used out there. We did all the key-click mods, did the AGC mod where the MP's fast AGC was TOO fast on CW and mushed the CW in pileups (sound familiar?). In the K3 that's a setting and a choice. There have been 10 different operators out at the DX wars at NY4A over the decade, all serious contest guys, with wins in ARRL and CQ DX and WPX. Among them they owned 9 MP's. Two MP owners (3 MP's) are no longer active on the bands. The other six MPs are replaced with K3's. Among the 8 operators still active there are 7 K3's, an eighth K3 that we hope will be built for the ARRL DX CW, and one op is waiting for a budget opportunity to replace his Pro III with a ninth K3 for the diversity on 160. One of the ops replaced his Kenwood main rig with an Orion II which he prefers over the K3 but now only brings to NY4A as a backup in case we blow up a position. We have used his Orion at a run position several times but most of the ops originally found it hard to get used to, and the menu RF gain was a never-ending source of confusion the first time anyone used it. Those of us who have learned the Orion have no qualms about using it. Yet six of the seven ops who used both a K3 and an Orion bought K3's. One thing that NOBODY misses from the MP days is the extra layer of crud at the bottom of every band added by its RF/IF string. K3 complaints have been dealt with by mods and firmware changes. Howie is happy with his two fairly early K3's and has to be goaded into updating his firmware so that we're all at the same level and don't lose features we've gotten used to. 73, Guy. On Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 8:11 PM, <r...@aol.com> wrote: > Guy- > > It would appear that some K-3 owners really enjoy dancing around wasting > time and energy "dancing the AGC up and down" ... and forever fooling with > DSP adjustments... but there are some of us who do not enjoy that at all! > For me, there are MUCH better uses of time when running during a contest > than fooling around dancing with the AGC & DSP settings. Further, dancing > with the AGC & DSP simply isn't neccessary in a well engineered modern day > radio. Therefore, "dancing with the AGC should be optional for those who > enjoy doing so. > > 73, > Richard > > > It may be a dance, but hopefully careful intelligent musing over the matter > is convincing people that they should get the ambient well down in the > analog-to-digital converter (ADC) operating range. If they do, a -99 threshold > is a -109 threshold, and further backing off RF gain can make it a -119 or > -129 threshold as far as the ADC is concerned, and headroom is being used > for what headroom should be used for. > > Maybe the variable gain by band in the MP (with a menu override) was > really a better strategy for a default. This same issue dogged Orion > owners, and by the chatter a lot of them never understood either. REPLY: > INDEED IT WAS! BUT THE FACT IS WHETHER THE VARIABLE GAIN WAS SET ON OR OFF > THE MP'S AGC WAS A JOY TO USE AND LISTEN TO. > > 73, Guy. > ______________________________________________________________ > 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: 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:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
