[Elecraft] clifton labs
We bought a short lo-band E-field whip with pre-amp from Clifton Labs a few months ago, and two circular antennas a few weeks ago. All are well-built and the whip has performed well; it feeds the VE7AB RBN node. The circular antennas are still being tested. Eric VA7DZ __ Eric Manning 250 386 8039 [home] 250 812 5316 [mobile] __ 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 Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
[Elecraft] K3 NR needs improvement
I'm a CW op, I'm baffled by the comments critical of the K3 NR, APF and notch filter. The NR generally removes ALL random noise, meaning that the rcvr is silent in the absence of signals. Admittedly, It does get a little upset in the presence of many strong signals, so I usually turn it off in pileups. The notch filter can be tuned manually to silence one interfering CW signal. The APF is a bit tricky, you need to use fine tuning [ 3 digits after the VFO decimal point], tune SLOWWLLY and listen for the weak signal to pop out of the noise. But pop out it does. Eric VA7DZ -- BC is a prosperous, well-regulated place featuring Socialized Medicine, bilingual highway signs and Mounties. --Neal Stephenson, American novelist -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] OT - anyone have experience with effects of, metal roofs on antenna performace?
On another angle, I have a 2-element vertical array [Christman feed, BIP-BOP] for 40m sitting on topof a [large] flat metal roof. It works FB, perhaps in part because the steel roof provides a nearly-perfect ground plane ?? Eric VA7DZ -- We have the best model of learning that 17th-century technology can provide. The universities need to embrace the Internet and collaboration or they will lose their monopoly in higher education. This is now under way big time. - Don Tapscott -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] Musings on a K4
Rich KY6R said If I stack the KPA-500 on the bottom, KAT-500 next up and K3 and put the P3 next to that stack, then it will look like one radio - hi hi. Hey, that's what I will do. 73, Rich KY6R Also, wrap the stack in black plastic wrap. But first put in a lead ingot, so it will be as heavy as the FT-5000. And use blue-tinted wrap to cover the front panel so the display will be Yaesu Blue. :-) Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] N6BT Antennas
ON a more positive note, Thomas DL2BO at Optibeam bent over backwards to satisfy this customer, who loves his Optibeam 16-3 for its mechanical, electrical and aesthetic virtue. [No, I'm not a shareholder. Our financial relationship consists of me paying him for the antenna. Period.] Eric VA7DZ -- We have the best model of learning that 17th-century technology can provide. The universities need to embrace the Internet and collaboration or they will lose their monopoly in higher education. This is now under way big time. - Don Tapscott -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Cheap Headphones
I have the CM500, paid $40 US for it. Very comfy, sounds good, fair price, my sole complaint is that the cans slide on the headpiece too easily, I have to re-adjust them every time Iput it on, the cure will be the Handyman's Secret Weapon - Duct tape! Eric VA7DZ -- We have the best model of learning that 17th-century technology can provide. The universities need to embrace the Internet and collaboration or they will lose their monopoly in higher education. This is now under way big time. - Don Tapscott -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 password...
John Fritz said: I really think it would be a good idea that once the rig is locked that a 3 or 4 digit code would be needed to un-lock. That way, if a K3 owner wants my rig unlocked, I would know about it, and be aware to re-lock it if the guest op doesn't do it. Amen! Computers have passwords, why not the K3??? Eric VA7DZ -- We have the best model of learning that 17th-century technology can provide. The universities need to embrace the Internet and collaboration or they will lose their monopoly in higher education. This is now under way big time. - Don Tapscott -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] computer - P3 - K3 communications blues
I have a Windows XP box connected to my K3 using a USB port on the box and a Prolific USB-to-Serial adapter. It all works FB, N1MM Logger and SKimmer talk to the K3 via LP Bridge and the USB/serial link perfectly, including N1MM keying the rig. THEN I hooked up my nice new P3 today. It talks to the K3 FB - it gets freq data from the K3 and sends VFO changes to the K3. Everything else I've tested on the P3 also seems to work FB. HOWEVER, the PC cannot talk to the K3 THROUGH the P3 - via either the Prolific USB/serial link - or via a purely RS-232 link using the serial port on the windows box, which I also tried. [Just in case it was a USB incompatibility issue] K3 Utility running in the Windows box polls the K3 via the link and the P3 and gets no response. Everything is set to 38,400 baud, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, no parity. The P3 is running the firmware which was installed at Elecraft, it was shipped to me a week ago. Any suggestions - please? Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Elecraft could offer small built transceivers, in addition to its kits
Chris said: Buy expensive and cry only once is a Chinese saying. John Ruskin [British poet] said: There is nothing that someone cannot make badly and sell a little cheaper, and those who consider only price are this man's Lawful Prey. 73 Eric VA7DZ QRP - When you Care Enough, to Send the Very Least -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] CW Decoding - Your Brain is best
CW is just another digital mode Yes, and Rembrandt is just another painter, Dizzy was just another trumpet player a Porsche is just another car a K3 is just another radio . . . . . Eric VA7DZ All Men are not Created Equal ... Some of US Know CW -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Elecraft Price Increase - My 2 Cents
Interestingly, I have never compared Elecraft prices (K2, K3 and KX3) with competitive radios. Perhaps that is because I didn't see any genuine competitors to the K2 - a kit! plus a great little cw rig, the K3 - also a kit, plus great specs, nice size, great support, and leading DXers and contesters using it, or the KX3 - is there anything remotely close to it out there? So in my case the competition is not acting as a brake on price increases. There isn't any. So, Elecraftcan raise prices until I decide I can't afford the radio and take up stamp collecting. ( Maybe I shouldn't have said that out loud!) Eric VA7DZ -- Democracy depends on well-informed voters; absent that, it is all mud flowing down hill. --Charles Harpole -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 - panadapter or subreceiver
Subreceiver! Adding LP-PAN or a similar SDR plus Skimmer will give you a useful picture of the [small, but often big-enough] band segment, plus callsign and 599 decoding. RObert said: I have never used either a panadapter or a sub-receiver, so I'm a newbie in this area. I use CW almost exclusively, and I chase DX and enter contests [less so in the past, more in the future]. I have a small pistol station with no allusions of being a band master. Question: which of these two options might I find more useful for my station and operating preferences? -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] K3/KX3 Operating Tip: APF (audio peaking, filter) for weak-signal CW work
Graham said: How about making it possible to switch the APF on and off through a programmable function button Dick said: It should be possible using a command macro. AP0; turns CW APF off, AP1; turns CW APF off, SWH29; toggles DualPB which is APF if you have the K3 menu parameter CONFIG:DUAL PB set to APF. I say: It IS possible, I did it months ago using SWH29; and have been using it ever since. I use button M2 to turn on APF, SPLIT, and SUB, and move VFO B 1KHz above VFO A. All this is to get the K3 ready for a DX pileup. M1 undoes all of that after I leave the pileup. Eric VA7DZ -- Democracy depends on well-informed voters; absent that, it is all mud flowing down hill. --Charles Harpole -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Really old receivers
Does anyone else remember or have a Wireless Set Nr. 19? Built during WW2 for the Canadian Army Armoured Corps and our Soviet Allies [it had Russian and English markings], it was a transceiver, weighed a lot, and I cut my teeth on one. Covered ALL ham bands [between 2 and 8 Mc/s]. Most repairs could be made by dropping it on a hard surface. [Other than that, I don't have a good thing to say about the old beast. It reached truly new lows in performance, even for the 1940s.] Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] more Bass in K3 with PR-40
Rich said: intelligibility is concentrated around 1-2K Hz. Yes? I think so. If my failing memory serves, early Bell Labs work found that 300 - 3000 Hz was the minimum- width audio band which preserved intelligibility and allowed the speaker to be recognized. That became the basis of the A/D converters which in turn fed the T-series [T-1, T-2 etc] of digital transmission systems for the telephone network. On the other hand, much of this thread seems to be about speech fidelity [Does it sound Great?] as opposed to intelligibility [Can I copy it?] Eric VA7DZ -- Democracy depends on well-informed voters; absent that, it is all mud flowing down hill. --Charles Harpole -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] KX3 paddle
On 6/7/2012 6:00 PM, John_N1JM wrote: What's a paddle? It's a tool, used to correct, or discipline, phone operators, that they may come to understand the superiority of CW. Eric VA7DZ -- And when the farmer has got his house, he may not be the richer but the poorer for it, and it be the house that has got him. - Thoreau, on Home Ownership -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 SUB Rx audio to LEFT spkr??
Because CONFIG: SPKRS got set to 1! D'oh! I've changed it back to 2 and saved my configuration, like I should have done long ago... Eric VA7DZ __ Original Message Subject:K3 SUB Rx audio to LEFT spkr?? Date: Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:40:01 + From: ERIC MANNING emann...@cs.uvic.ca To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net I wonder why my SUB Rx audio is routed to the LEFT spkr, together with MAIN audio?? ON headphones, all is normal - MAIN to LEFT, SUB to RIGHT. [I have SUB AF set to BALANCE] Eric VA7DZ K3 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 SUB Rx audio to LEFT spkr??
I wonder why my SUB Rx audio is routed to the LEFT spkr, together with MAIN audio?? ON headphones, all is normal - MAIN to LEFT, SUB to RIGHT. [I have SUB AF set to BALANCE] Eric VA7DZ K3 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Contest RST reports
If you want an accurate signal report, the place to go is RBN http://www.reversebeacon.net/main.php Just Send CQ and wait for the spots to roll in. Everything else is preamble [contest 599 - for everyone] or overly polite, or a wild guess, or all of the above. Eric VA7DZ Why be upset with a 599? Because of that very same variability; it is highly unlikely that you will have exactly the same propagation to different parts of the world at the same time, so why should you accept the same report from all contacts without question? Matthew Pitts N8OHU -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3: bandswitching for IC-2KL
Does anyone have a circuit which will convert K3 band data to the analog voltage levels expected by the ICOM IC-2KL amplifier? I keep forgetting to do band changes on the amp during contests 73 Eric, VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 Menu lockout ?
Is there a way to prevent access to the Config Menus by a guest operator? [Handy for Field Day, visiting relatives etc] Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] I DID IT AGAIN!
Me too! I monitor the DX with the MAIN Rcvr, the pileup with the SUB Rcvr, find the right spot to call, very slick, and forget to push the SPLIT button. I get chastised by the DX Fuzz, and THEN I push the SPLIT button. Never fails! Eric VA7DZ On 15/03/11 9:00 AM, elecraft-requ...@mailman.qth.net wrote: Send Elecraft mailing list submissions to elecraft@mailman.qth.net To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to elecraft-requ...@mailman.qth.net You can reach the person managing the list at elecraft-ow...@mailman.qth.net When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than Re: Contents of Elecraft digest... Today's Topics: 1. Re: I did it again! (Doug Turnbull) 2. Re: I did it again! (Gary Gregory) 3. K3 re kdvr not playing back (Mike Rodgers) 4. Aid to Japan (AB8XA) 5. [K2 ] RF Out/DC power Issues (Eugene Balinski) 6. OT - Vertical Bug (stan levandowski) 7. Re: I did it again! (Vic K2VCO) 8. Re: I did it again! (Wayne Burdick) 9. Re: I did it again! (Paul Christensen) -- Message: 1 Date: Tue, 15 Mar 2011 09:19:55 - From: Doug Turnbullturnb...@net1.ie Subject: Re: [Elecraft] I did it again! To: 'FredJensen'k6...@foothill.net, elecraft@mailman.qth.net Message-ID:99513EC7CFC842999351CB0D0F2D07A6@DOUG1 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Fred, You are just a good operator but I sometimes do forget that I have not changed my TX over to VFO B even though VFO B has been set up 5 kHz. This is why I need the P3 to place a stick of dynamite in a private place and light it when I attempt to transmit on a DX station. Maybe a flashing or more distinct VFO B cursor indication for when it is chosen for TX would help. Flashing beats red for me as I am partially colour blind. This is not a P3 fault but an operator fault and an old man looking for extra help. God, I hate making this mistake. The radio is not at fault the operator is, mea maxima culpa. 73 Doug EI2CN -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of FredJensen Sent: 15 March 2011 08:01 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] I did it again! On 3/15/2011 5:47 AM, Vic K2VCO wrote: Maybe I'm too old to be trusted with a K3 (hey, my wife won't let me ride a motorcycle anymore either). Andrea won't let me climb my tower either ... like I actually could :-) I must be really missing some features in my K3, I'm not having any of these problems with transmitting on one frequency and listening on another. Other than some AGC settings and TX EQ settings I got from K9YC, I pretty much run it out of the box. I haven't been arrested by the DX Cops -- yet -- I seem to be able to work the DX in split mode [occasionally, I call more than I work], and my KUSB thingy works just fine with N1MM, K3 Utility, and K3_EZ. I'm beginning to wonder if I'm missing something. Maybe I need the second receiver. 73, Fred K6DGW Auburn CA __ 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 -- Message: 2 Date: Tue, 15 Mar 2011 19:44:32 +1000 From: Gary Gregorygaryvk...@gmail.com Subject: Re: [Elecraft] I did it again! To: Doug Turnbullturnb...@net1.ie Cc: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Message-ID: aanlktinnn3pqnxjp6fkg5uwizctjdghjkgvefplvu...@mail.gmail.com Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 *Hey Guys' My wife just confirmed to me...'You are not allowed to walk and chew gum at the same time' Personally, I think it's a plot..she has a call too :-( And you think you have issues? :-) 73's Gary * On 15 March 2011 19:19, Doug Turnbullturnb...@net1.ie wrote: Fred, You are just a good operator but I sometimes do forget that I have not changed my TX over to VFO B even though VFO B has been set up 5 kHz. This is why I need the P3 to place a stick of dynamite in a private place and light it when I attempt to transmit on a DX station. Maybe a flashing or more distinct VFO B cursor indication for when it is chosen for TX would help. Flashing beats red for me as I am partially colour blind. This is not a P3 fault but an operator fault and an old man looking for extra help. God, I hate making this mistake. The radio is not at fault the operator is, mea maxima culpa. 73 Doug EI2CN -Original Message-
[Elecraft] Fishing
The four stages of fishing: 1 - I caught a fish! 2 - I caught a LOT of fish! 3 - I caught a Trophy fish! 4 - Did I bait my hook? (the Zen state has been achieved) Now how do these relate analogically to amateur radio? Kevin. KD5ONS __ I'll bite -- 1. I made a QSO! 2. I got a BIG contest score! 3. I won an Award! 4. Did I turn my 1.5 KW amp on?? Or did I actually do all that with the exciter? Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] 500w K3 amp
AD4C2009 wrote: .When every single one on the bands drop their power to 100W or less,I drop mine,that is not going to happen never anymore,its too late,so design and build another amp for 1KW and I am sure you will sell way more than the actual 500W unit. The difference between 500w and a kilowatt is just 3 dB, the minimum the ear can I detect if I recall it right. The analogy with the nuclear arms race seems bang on. Eric VA7DZ K3 3620 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] KPA500 - just 500 watts?
Dick said: I like to think of DXing as the ham counterpart of fishing, and QRP as the counterpart of fly fishing. Dick, WO1I K3 911 Yes indeed, and a contest is a kind of high-speed competitive fishing with catch-and-release. And, each competitor can decide at any moment to be either a fisherman [running] or a fish [search-and-pounce] Eric Va7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] AGC story
__ 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] Parting shot
Precisely!!! I'm trying to diagnose a K2 fault at the moment. I'm largely acting as a robot directed by Don Wilhelm, thank goodness for Don Gary. I would be even more at sea, out to lunch, if I were trying to cope with a fault in the far more complex K3. I've read the K3 manual carefully [fb user manual!] and I still don't have a clue as to circuit level function, sufficient to infer fault from malfunction. [I did my PhD thesis on electronic fault diagnosis co-wrote the first book on the subject . . .] ERIC VA7DZ [PhD in EE, F.IEEE, FEIC, P.Eng., etc etc] I'd like to see a K3 service manual, or at least a comprehensive circuit description. Without some explanation, the downloaded schematics are pretty worthless to somebody trying to understand the radio. In particular, the published K3 block diagram is an exercise in obscurity. In my opinion, it's nearly impossible for someone even to follow the receive or transmit signal path. 73, Jim W8ZR -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] [K3] Need for advice was; noise reduction
Dear Joe With respect, it seems to me that the secret sauce in the K3 is largely in the FIRMWARE, which is why I carefully avoided even mentioning it, let alone asking for descriptive material on it. [ I agree that Elecraft would be nuts to publish the firmware in human-readable form, and I trust that developing same from the bit strings in ROM is too expensive to tempt the competitors to do so. Besides, competitors would have to sell K3 or K3 superset hardware to make direct use of it. I also trust that Elecraft has filed patents on the appropriate items, and will defend them vigorously.] If much of the proprietary advantage lay in the HARDWARE, would Elecraft publish a complete set of schematics? They would not. [Fault diagnosis would be done entirely by Don and Scott telling us to measure voltage X at pin Y.] As you noted, a set of schematics, plus a working K3, plus a half-decent lab, is all that a good electronics/rf engineer would need to develop the 'what' and 'how' information which I mentioned. So, the information you are worried about is already out there. Finally, Wayne Eric would, I'm sure, keep mum about any really subtle, obscure yet critical bits of design. The text would just make it easier or possible for us amateurs to understand the design, and more important, the design choices, why the K3 was designed the way it was. BTW, I think that seminars at Pacificon might be an even better way to give us this insight, as one of the Sams proposed. 73 Eric VA7DZ The On 07/12/10 9:54 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: While we're on the topic, I would really like to have a text describing the design of the K3, an aid in understanding what the components do, the design choices and why they were made, WHY modules were designed the way that they were, and HOW they work at the component or group of components level. This is absurd! Much of what you are asking for falls in the category of trade secrets. Why certain design decisions were made and how specific circuits work are often key items of competitive advantage. A competent RF designer may be able to reverse engineer the circuit board or schematic and get a reasonable idea of how something works and maybe guess the reason for key design choices but why should Wayne give away his secrets? Nikon doesn't provide schematics, circuit descriptions and design process summaries with its digital cameras. Even if that information would somehow be useful to the user, it would never be released as Panasonic or Canon or Olympus or Sony could easily use that information to their competitive advantage. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 12/8/2010 12:15 AM, eric manning wrote: While we're on the topic, I would really like to have a text describing the design of the K3, an aid in understanding what the components do, the design choices and why they were made, WHY modules were designed the way that they were, and HOW they work at the component or group of components level. Something more detailed than the very sketchy how it works piece in the Owner's manual, but less detailed than the schematics - a document which I could read while staring at the schematics, which would help me understand why the circuits were designed the way they were and how they work. Yes, it would likely be at least 100 pages, but . . . Bring It On! [ G W Bush] Elliot Organick wrote a similar piece [ a book] about the Multics Operating System [the Mother of Unix, in a way] and it was very valuable. Eric Va7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] dangling preposition:
__ 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
Re: [Elecraft] [K3] Need for advice was; noise reduction
While we're on the topic, I would really like to have a text describing the design of the K3, an aid in understanding what the components do, the design choices and why they were made, WHY modules were designed the way that they were, and HOW they work at the component or group of components level. Something more detailed than the very sketchy how it works piece in the Owner's manual, but less detailed than the schematics - a document which I could read while staring at the schematics, which would help me understand why the circuits were designed the way they were and how they work. Yes, it would likely be at least 100 pages, but . . . Bring It On! [ G W Bush] Elliot Organick wrote a similar piece [ a book] about the Multics Operating System [the Mother of Unix, in a way] and it was very valuable. Eric Va7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] K3 Need for advice was; (More Thorough Documentation)
Samuel E-F said: Buy a radio, attend a quarterly held two or three day class presented by the designers on advanced topics? OK, maybe it's a four-hour class. :) Crazy Huh? Not crazy at all! Could also be held at Pacificon etc as one part of a K3 operators get-together. [Which I'd very much like to attend, BTW.] Why is essential; what and how are not enough. Eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] YAESU KEY CLIX
RIght on. I make a point in contests of never calling or answering an op with key clicks, or chirp, or a modulated cw carrier. [There's usually somebody else to work on hf!] 73 Eric VA7DZ Only if someone thinks that annoying everyone around them is the route to success... 73, Ken Alexander VE3HLS Wouldn't having bad key clicks be an advantage in a contest? Steve N4LQ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Yaesu Key clix
Blue LEDs? Hernia from lifting 50 Kg? The satisfaction of helping Japan to drive another nail into the coffin of American manufacturing? Eric VA7DZ Good grief! I hope you got something for all those extra bucks! Dave W7AQK -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Elecraft sales -- commissions!
Eric You've convinced me! When is the stock offering - so I can buy some Elecraft Shares? [I've been selling Elecraft radios for free and I'd like to cash in, to get paid for it. Owning the stock would do the trick. Please? ] Eric Manning VA7DZ Eric Swartz said: We are well past working from our basements.:-) A few data points: 1. Since shipping our first K2 from Aptos in January of 1999, Elecraft has grown into a healthy multi-million dollar high-tech company with a broad product line. We have -zero- debt, own all of our inventory, and have a healthy, and very stable, balance sheet. We build our products here in California, just outside of Silicon Valley. We are structured to be here for a long time, and certainly longer than most hams keep a particular rig. We want Elecraft to outlast both of us. 3. How did we do that? Elecraft designs great, high value, products that are fun to use. And our products, like the K3, continue to improve and get new features even -after- you buy them. We run a stable and tight financial ship - carefully trading off an internally financed growth rate versus risk and cash needs. We work hard. We hire great people who continually amaze us with their intelligence, creativity and work ethic. Our customer support team is one of the best. And we enjoy our work. 4. We also carefully listen to, and interact with, our customers daily. We are focused on being the most responsive, and fun, ham radio company to buy from - period. 5. Wayne and I are both healthy guys - a very long way from retirement. We are having a great time bulding and running Elecraft, and plan to do so for some time. But we are not the only people who continue to make Elecraft successful. 6. Our well staffed engineering design team is diverse and strong. I'd wager that it is as large as, or larger, than many HF rig design teams at our competitors. We are well past two guys doing all of the design in our basement labs. Our engineering, support, manufacturing and management people are top notch, with a lot of depth. We have a great team and plan to keep building it for the long haul. 7. We haven't been a 'QRP Only Company' for some time. Yes, in 1999 we first targeted at the QRP market since it was tightly focused, easily marketed to, and was our fastest path to a first product. Its still a great market, too. But we always planned to also offer 100W high-performance rigs, both kit and factory assembled, to compete against the best HF rigs from other QRO manufacturers. That's the major part of the market. I think you can agree we have more than succeeded in that area with the K2 and now the K3. The majority of our rigs go out the door at 100W. We are continually designing a diverse product line, ranging from QRP to QRO. The KPA500, now going into field test, is definitely -not- QRP;-) But stay tuned for more QRP offerings too! 9. Most important, we have incredibly enthusiastic and supportive customers. You make it fun for us! By telling your friends about Elecraft, the K3, and our other products, you keep us in business every day. You are our best salespeople. The more you enthusiastically tell your friends about our products, in person and on the air, the more new products we can design and sell. In today's economic environment, more than ever, this is incredibly important to us. Please - keep up the great work. We really appreciate it! 73, Eric WA6HHQ www.elecraft.com -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] Cords and connectors are evil
__ 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] Cords and connectors are evil
Guy said: Is there some way to move FORWARD in our love/hate relationship with cords? Talk about old and dust covered analog. Listen to us, talking about solving ergonometric problems with patch panels. Quaint, and a part of me thinks that's really neat. Rest of me thinks that's really retro. Worse, cords cables have CONNECTORS on the end of them. Electronic systems consist of cheap, reliable chips on cheap, reliable cards, interconnected by EXPENSIVE, UNRELIABLE, FLAKY cables and connectors. The fewer of them, the better, I say. Eric VA7DZ K3 3620 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Fwd: cw skimmer with LP PAN and the K3 - making it work right
__ 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] Skimmer - audio IF offset value for K3 ???
I'm running LP PAN, the E-Mu 1212 soundcard and cw skimmer with my K3. After much dicking around, I found that audio IF offset of +4405 Hz puts the waterfall traces at the right places on the frequency scale on 14 MHz. However, I'm in error by about 1.5 KHz on 21 MHz. 1] Does the 14 MHz offset sound about right? 2] Is there a way to define per-band offsets for Skimmer? eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] k3 NATIVE rtty AND N1MM LOGGER
N1MM LOGGER GOES INTO RTTY MODE WHEN I select PSK D, understandably. However, it means that my cw messages don't work. Neither do the N1MM digital messages work because the K3 is expecting cw input. So, do I have to hand key all of my transmissions??? Help please ... eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] travel with a K3
Gang I must travel by airline with my K3. I would really appreciate some advice as to 1] What to pack it in [the built in handle is nice but I think I need a case to protect front and rear panels] 2] How to get through airport security? DO they expect me to switch it on? - no power supply. Remove any panels? Or do they just do the swab test for explosives - no problem. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Power supply
JOHN SAID Elecraft could design a small (RFI quiet) switching PS which would constantly recharge an appropriately sized LiFePO4 battery pack, which in turn would supply the power needed by the K3/P3 combo (i.e. 25 amps). In effect this would replace the large caps in the HPS-1a design, with the LiPo battery. Bottom line: a universal voltage uninterruptible internal PS. I agree, and more to the point -- I would buy one. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 endless menus
Don Wilhelm said: Brett, I think the K3 gets an undeserved bad rap for the menus. The main menu has only 13 items in it, and those are the items most likely to be changed during operation. ___ I agree. I was intially overwhelmed by the CONFIG menus. However, after I got my K3 tailored just the way I wanted it - took about a month elapsed time - I only change a parameter very occasionally, except for two which I assigned to the PF buttons. [QSK + and SPKRS ON ] And it is easy to do -IF- one reads the User Manual. And I appreciate being able to make a bunch of design decisions for myself, for just my radio. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Elecraft Power supply
I think I would pay $500. I have no idea if it is do-able at that price. eric VA7DZ How much would you be willing to pay? $300, $500? Willis 'Cookie' Cooke K5EWJ From: eric manning eric.mann...@engr.uvic.ca To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Tue, August 10, 2010 10:29:39 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Power supply JOHN SAID Elecraft could design a small (RFI quiet) switching PS which would constantly recharge an appropriately sized LiFePO4 battery pack, which in turn would supply the power needed by the K3/P3 combo (i.e. 25 amps). In effect this would replace the large caps in the HPS-1a design, with the LiPo battery. Bottom line: a universal voltage uninterruptible internal PS. I agree, and more to the point -- I would buy one. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Big K3
Nicholas Farrar said: But even the Queen of England could stand to refine herself a bit more. _ WHAT? To us loyal subjects of Her Majesty, that is like saying that the US Constitution is imperfect. Unthinkable. Elizabeth II has lasted a lot longer, with a a lot fewer screwups, than any other Head of State I can think of, with the possible exception of FD Roosevelt or Harry Truman. We are glad to have her. Her children, however, especially that dork Charles, are another matter... __ Anyhow, kidding aside [you have to expect some ribbing about your unlawful insurrection against your Lawful Sovereign] I agree with you on the Big K3. It is not the Little K3 vs. the Big one, Elecraft could offer both. And it is not a K4 - just a K3 with a more roomy front panel and bigger displays. Maybe the big panel could even plug into the Little K3, so we could leave the big panel at home and take the Little K3 with us on trips. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 makes K2 obsolete? - don't think so.
TIm said Can someone tell me if the K2 users, support, and production are all still going strong? Tim, I have both and I don't think the K2 and K3 are competitors; I think that they fill different niches in the market. And, we see plenty of K2 traffic on this reflector. So I doubt if the K3's success will detract from the value of, or support for, the K2. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] New 2KW amp from the HB1A folks (YouKits)(PetrOurednik)
Tom W8JI said: If we want to see what manufacturing we have left survive I think you'd d**n well better want to see US manufacturing survive! An economy based on the financial products [aka snake oil] produced by the kids in red suspenders on Wall Street is a house of cards, a recipe for disaster. Nor can it generate enough worthwhile employment for the population. Future generations will look back on the outsourcing of US manufacturing jobs, the dismantling of a very large chunk of your economy for short-term gain, and shake their heads in amazement that the perpetrators were allowed to get away with it. And no, it is not off topic for this reflector - Elecraft provides proof by example that electronics manufacturing can be done profitably and well in the US. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] antennas for Susan
Susan Said: the antenna farm will most likely be vertical and located right at the shore line. What suggestions do you have for me to construct for antennas? I had very good luck with a Force 12 Sigma 5, a CENTRE-FED inductively loaded short half-wave vertical [i.e., a short centre-fed dipole tipped up on one end ] on the Bay of Bengal shoreline. It being a centre-fed half-wave, not an end-fed quarter-wave, I didn't have to worry about an efficient ground-plane,so no lossy radials, and on the shoreline of salt water it really got out. Very good reports with a K2 at 10w. It also fits into a gym bag. I think a Caribbean DXpedition also used similar antennas and K2s near salt water. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] My question is, Do you folks think it is really necessary to , detail-inventory the Elecraft K2 product??
I think it's a good idea. The serious screwup is not being shorted by Elecraft for a 50 cent component, it is installing the wrong component somewhere. Doing a careful identification of all the parts by inventory is a good way to avoid this. You match up each component with its descriptions by doing the inventory and filing the components accordingly [I use muffin tins, with all of the diodes in the same dish, etc. You are less likely to install a diode in a resistor's place , or the wrong value resistor, if you do that. I find that modern, tiny components are harder to identify, and thus easier to confuse, than their huge 1960s ancestors were. Doing the inventory also encourages patience, rather than the get 'er done fast approach which leads to sorrow. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] CW+ mode
Someone said: Personally I send as slow as 18wpm and as high as 35 wpm . . ., and enjoy the fast switching of the new CW+ mode. In my opinion THIS is what QSK SHOULD sound like.. I agree. I prefer CW+ to CW for use at 18-25 wpm with a paddle. CW+ is close to perfect QSK; I believe I can hear the breaker more easily while I'm transmitting and there may be less audio thumping too. I'm eagerly awaiting SPLIT with CW+ so I can always use it . [I use the SUB rcvr to hunt for the last guy worked by the DX so I find SPLIT mode handy. ] eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3: location of Rf board Rev code?
Can someone please tell me where on the K3 rf board the Revision Code [e.g. H3] is written? eric VA7DZ K3 3620, bought in Fall '09, so it should have the Rev. H3 board, HOWEVER skimmer can't detect weak signals which I can copy. And my ears aren't all that great! -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] [K3] Built in USB interface for K3
PHIL HYSTAD SAID: This is a very surprising statement. The only RS232 interfaces I see lingering around are from the ham radio community. So, do you mean the ham radio industry? Uh - oh. Here we go again ... Phil, if you look in the archive of a few weeks back you will find the whole issue hashed out at great length. I had the same reaction as yours at the outset of the last go-round, but have been educated,enlightened. Bottom line: RS -232 GOOD: one mustn't be biased against it just because it's 40 years old, unix[tm] is also 40 years old and yet is still the standard of excellence. Both are Golden Oldies. USB: BAD [in the context of data communication with complex devices, e.g. radios]. See Guy's post. -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K2AT to QRP Cover!
Don Wilhelm said: All in all, if you can read and follow the instructions correctly, and can do a good job of soldering, then you can build Elecraft kits at any age. Yes indeed. The only serious difficulty I have had in building a fully-optioned K2 and K3, was installing the K3 SUB rcvr , due to the spaghetti junction of TMP cables fouling the connectors, and also from pushing a TMP plug in a little too forcefully. I went thru 2 KRX3 boards and a lot of bad language before I got it right. An LED flashlight [Thanks, Gary!] helped a lot. A harness holding the TMPs in place and out of the way would be a great help, if feasible. A word to the wise: install your SUB AFTER you have installed everything else . Otherwise, installing that new filter or . . . is going to require you to remove and replace the SUB, yecch. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] INRAD 1.5 KHz silter
Dave said: My voice won't hold up during a SSB contest anymore, so I'm honestly tempted to spend the next CQ WW DX SSB contest just recording audio samples (both good and bad) identified by callsign. Why not? Maybe some of the offenders would clean up their act if you sent them e-mail with their splattering signal sample attached. . . If not, one could post their samples + callsigns on a webpage. Next step, one could direct the contest organizers to the webpage. In extreme cases they might even think about disqualifying the villains. At some point, the bad guys must be outed, or dissed. Otherwise, anarchy chaos on our bands, and we will all lose out. Just like Wall Street. Engineers, physicians, architects and lawyers are expected to police themselves; perhaps it's time for amateur radio to do the same. [Didn't there used to be Official Observers to do this? Didn't I get a postcard once - back in the Jurassic Period - for a 2nd harmonic radiating at 7400 Kc ? ] eric VA7DZ K3 3620 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Portable Fit: K3 versus K2
Yes, the K3 is light and rugged. On the other hand, it doesn't run on a built-in battery. I did a light-weight one-person DXpedition to Bangladesh. Mains power on St Martin's Island [on the Bay of Bengal] was a generator which ran only a few hours per day. So, the built-in battery of the K2 allowed me to operate long hours, and recharge from the generator while I was asleep. The entire rig including battery chargers, key and mike fir nicely into a small hardshell case the size of a laptop bag - cabin baggage - and the Sigma 5 centre-fed vertical [which worked fb on the beach near the salt water] went into a sports bag which went as checked baggage. I used an early Sony palmtop [netbook-like] for logging. eric VA7DZ K3 3620 K2 XXX -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] knobs
I put the knob from my defunct ICOM 740 on my K2. Very nice in every way altho it hides one of the little ^ symbols on the display. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 QSK thumps
Thanks to everyone for suggestions. Turning up the sidetone level helped. NB and power level didn't affect it at all as far as I could see. eric VA7DZ K3 3620 + ICOM 500w amp [with external ALC connected] -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] QSK THUMPS?
When my K3 switches between T R in full QSK mode, I hear audio thumps. [The tramsmitted signal is apparently clean with no clicks; I always get good signal quality reports.] Now, My K2 has no such thumps; you can't tell when the radio switches between T R by listening to the audio. The transmitted cw sidetone sounds just like any other cw signal, with no thumps or other noise. I would like my K3 to be the same. Is there anything I can do to attenuate the K3's audio thumps? eric VA7DZ K3 3620 + 500 W ICOM amp -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] [Fwd: Re: USB to serial angst]
Gang It's been a great discussion and a real eye-opener for this naive academic, who assumed that USB is properly regulated by an IEEE Standard [it is not] and that a well-engineered, standard-observant and portable USB driver exists. [It doesn't.] Thank you all for helping to set me straight! The takeaways for me: *There is presently no feasible alternative to RS 232 as an Interface. Wayne Eric made the right choice. USB is a non-starter, being FUBARd due to the lack of an enforced standard. What's more, * RS 232 is plenty good enough for the undemanding radio control or knob-substitution task. [Audio video transmission may be another matter, but that's for another time.] * There's no call to sniff at RS -232 just because it's almost a half-century old. Unix [tm] is about forty years old, and still the reliability and efficiency champ. [No, I don't want to start a controversy on that!] * Desktop PCs are better than laptops for radio control, because you can fit RS232 cards to them. And laptops may have noise problems due to sloppy construction. * There are many - way too many - radio communication protocol standards - Kenwood, K3, etc etc. We must just Get Used To It [until YaeWoodCom sees the light and imitates the K3]. eric VA7DZ K3 3620 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] USB to serial angst
The conservative spirit is alive and well. USB seen as a dangerous and radical innovation, forsooth. On 3/13/2010 5:10 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: That is completely uninformed and demonstrates a dangerous lack of knowledge about the way USB operates. Aw, shucks. Placing a USB port in the K3 would simply move the USB UART currently found in the USB to serial converter onto the KIO3 board. Correct, and would thus avoid the un-necessary and superfluous packaging and connector costs of the USB/RS232 dongle. If Elecraft were to use the prolific chipset currently in the KUSB, If my mother were a bus , I would have wheels. they would also be stuck with the Prolific drivers that are notoriously problematic with VB 6 software and would render the K3 unusable with several popular software packages. USB *** HAS NO ADVANTAGE *** over standard RS-232 ports and it *** NEVER WILL ***. Well, how about 1. speed 2. flexibillity 3. fanout 4. less prone to abuse of the control lines , violations of the standard , e.g. using them to send Morse, for shame. Other than that, and vendor support as it is current practice not an archaic legacy artifact, I can't think of any. Going to USB requires a substantial added investment by the manufacturer and a major ongoing support cost. True, depending on what you mean by substantial and major. But avoids us customers being forced to buy thousands of those stupid and crash-prone dongles. Being a customer not a vendor, I'm for that tradeoff. In addition to the software support cost, USB is a multiplexed (shared) correct system level bus. with respect, it is a low-speed peripheral level bus. Because of the system architecture data rates on the bus are [ may be, depending on the application] much higher than the serial equivalent through put. That makes USB much more susceptible to both radiated and conducted noise problems. Computer motherboards (and laptop/netbooks) that fail to properly ground the USB shield to the board's ground plane are almost guaranteed to become wideband noise generators (something that is very rare with the 8250 compatible UART). Very true, but with respect, off topic. The assertion ignores the awkward fact that all computers built in this century have USB, and not the ancient RS 232... We are stuck with that fact. And, the conversation was about USB on the K3, not on the computer... 73, ... Joe, W4TV -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of eric manning Sent: Saturday, March 13, 2010 2:08 PM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] USB to serial angst All in favour of a USB port on the K3? Then we could forget about un-necessary, expensive , flaky and crash-prone USB to serial adapters. THe serial port with its RS-232 interface is obsolete. It dates back to the 70's if not earlier and was superseded by USB. eric VA7DZ S/N 3640 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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 -- Eric G Manning,P.Eng., FIEEE, FEIC Prof Emeritus of CS ECE Univ of Victoria -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] USB to serial angst
All in favour of a USB port on the K3? Then we could forget about un-necessary, expensive , flaky and crash-prone USB to serial adapters. THe serial port with its RS-232 interface is obsolete. It dates back to the 70's if not earlier and was superseded by USB. eric VA7DZ S/N 3640 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] USB to serial angst
I was thinking it might fit onto the next mod of the I/O board... Brett Howard wrote: All one needs is a TI PCM2902 and a FTDI USB to RS232 chip and a little support analogy bits and poof you can have all that. Heck I'd even bet it could be put onto a board small enough you could fit it inside your K3 and you'd also have full support for all of the OSes you wish! ~Brett On Sat, 2010-03-13 at 11:39 -0800, Joe Planisky wrote: Great idea as long as Elecraft provide and maintain drivers that work with Win2K WinXP, Vista/32 bit Vista/64 bit Win7/32 bit Win7/64 bit Mac OS X 10.5 PPC, Mac OS X 10.5 Intel, Mac OS X 10.6, and the various versions of Linux (32 and 64 bit). I'm all for it. 73 -- Joe KB8AP On Mar 13, 2010, at 11:08 AM, eric manning wrote: All in favour of a USB port on the K3? ... eric VA7DZ __ 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 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K2 New Builder
Arrange a nice, comfortable and WELL-LIT workplace. Get one of those illuminated magnifiers on a boom and all of the recommended tools. Don't do too much at one sitting. Do NOT keep track of your time. Efficiency is the enemy of craftsmanship. Think of building as an experience to be savoured, not a race. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] the K3 is a very technical radio
the K3 . . . is a very technical radio. It certainly is. My first kit shipment arrived in November, and I've been engaged ever since in building, testing, reading, dis-assembling, asking questions, scratching my head, dicking around with optional options in the apparaently endless parameter menus, and even a little operating. I've been interested, engaged, pleased and occasionally baffled and frustrated. It's been a steep learning curve but I've now [nearly] got it set up exactly the way I want it. It is to this time what homebrew was to the Fifties, but with much less aroma of melted solder. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] FT-5000
Bob said: the K3 is on top, but it is also a very technical radio. ... I think that's a good thing, but others just want to push a button, COULD we say that the K3 is the radio for people who like to use their brains, and the KenYaeCom radios are for the appliance operators? Two completely different markets. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] DX Test
Wonderful band condx! 20 and 15 were open to Europe, Asia and S America at the same time for hour after hour and noise was very low [S0 here] I heard no DX stations request UP or DOWN so there were big pileups smack on the DX freq. I had spotty luck in the pileups [only 500w and a yagi here, not exactly a Big Gun] until I turned on the TX incremental tune - down just a few hundred Hz to get me off the pileup freq - and my luck improved. THis also left the SUB rcvr free for diversity, which helped quite a bit with QSB and picking up callers off the side of the beam. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] K3 Configuration - No mono plugs in the stereo spkr jack!
DO NOT, repeat NOT, plug a mono plug into the stereo speaker jack on the
back of your K3.
The manual says that the microprocessor firmware will switch the audio
to SPKRS 1, which it will.
However, if there are other events queued up for the cpu to process, it
may take some milliseconds, during which time
the shorted output may blow the audio amp, which is chip U1 of the DSP
board. {What is the audio output doing on the DSP board instead of the I/O
board? - but that's
another story}
You then get to replace the DSP board - like I did - which is
good fun but a fair amount of effort. And it costs the company $.
eric
VA7DZ
--
This message has been scanned for viruses and
dangerous content by MailScanner, and is
believed to be clean.
__
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] Super K3
IN 1954 I had the Walter Ashe Radio kit which comprised a 2-triode regenerative receiver [6SN7] , a 6AG7 - 6L6 rockbound transmitter on 40 and 80, and a single power supply with a 2-position switch. [That's called T-R switching!] The whole station cost aboot $50 and I really liked it. But I liked the NC-57 which I got next better, and then the HRO-5 better yet. But I had to use a BC-453 command set tuned to the IF as a back end to get enough overall gain to hear the noise. Ah, the good old days. [But I won't try to tell you it was better than the K3! NOTHING is better than the K3.] eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] For you Anti-Scopes
Further to Julian's others' comments about CW Skimmer removing the need to tune the band, a skilled part of the operating experience which is enjoyable to many [but not all!] of us: My friend is hot to write a software layer which will sit on top of CW Skimmer and which will win contests -- entirely on its own. Put another way, it is the next logical step after the PDP-7 program which did QSOs on its own, described in this thread. The amateur will just point my friend's software at a contest , hit start, and leave the shack. I know just enough about artificial intelligence and expert systems to believe that he very possibly can do it. Then what? Will we still enjoy contesting, knowing that computers will win every one? Maybe. Deep Blue - the IBM parallel processor - beat Garry Kasparov, but people still like chess. But do the Chess Masters [ the counterparts of the contest high-scorers] still like it as much as they did before Deep Blue? I haven't a clue, but somehow I doubt it. Will we outlaw it, like ARRL may or may not do with CW SKimmer? Will it make any difference? eric, feeling uneasy, and looking back wistfully to the days of Spark Gap VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
Re: [Elecraft] Kenwood's Future
One of the K2 owners has worked in communications equipment marketing for many years. He told me once that he absolutely hates the ham market segment because we are never satisfied and are extreme cheapskates. [I prefer to call it the amateur spirit of doing a lot with a little - the junkbox tradition - and continuously improving our gear - until something breaks.] Anyway, because we are such a pain in the pants, maybe Kenwood will get out of the amateur market segment. eric VA7DZ K3 3640 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Roofing filter for CW
I VOTE FOR 250 HZ. No ringing, I don't think I miss much as I tune around, and you can narrow it further with the DSP filtering. eric [ 250 Hz Forever!] VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Man hospitalized
Personally, I thought both of the little stories were great examples of American Humour and very funny. I recognized myself and some of my ham colleagues on this reflector too! Diversity problems indeed. And they are in a long and honourable amateur radio tradition -- remember Larson E Rapp and Gil cartoons in QST? eric VA7DZ K3 3620 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] considering K3
I have both the 250 and 400 Hz filters. I never use the 400 Hz filter for cw [want to buy it?] I have no trouble tuning across the band with the 250 Hz filter - the signals just pop in and out very nicely. Maybe it's due to the very steep skirts of the filters. eric VA7DZ K3 3640 -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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] Question about vertical and radial placement
If you use a center-fed vertical [like the Sigma 5 I have] you don't need radials at all. It's just a half-wave dipole stood up on end. Much better than the old-fashioned quarter-wave vertical with all its problems of ground losses. Needs to be center loaded for 40 but 33 feet is a full half-wave on 20. eric VA7DZ -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. __ 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
