Re: [Elecraft] what tripod to use?

[wb4jfi]

We used Gitzo tripods with Sachtler heads for broadcast news/ENG cameras. 
They handle a heavy load and are very stable, but do not have locking 
spreaders.  And probably way too expensive for the antennas in question. 
I've used the Buddipole tripod for both the Buddipole and the MP-1 antennas.

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: Walter Underwood

Sent: Thursday, July 30, 2020 10:46 PM
To: Elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] what tripod to use?

Not quite sure about “any” photo tripod. I once borrowed a Gitzo Series 5 
that we dubbed the “tree-pod”. This one extends to nine feet. Ain’t cheap, 
of course. :-)


https://www.gitzo.com/us-en/tripod-systematic-series-5-giant-6-sections-gt5563gsus/ 



wunder
K6WRU
Walter Underwood
CM87wj
http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog)


On Jul 30, 2020, at 7:15 PM, brianchapn...@rogers.com wrote:

The Buddipole Tripod with mast is quite substantial and will get your 
antenna up higher than any photographic tripod. In windy situations you 
will want to guy it or at least put a weight at the base.


I've done this a few times with the AX1.

For a quick mount the Buddipole bracket with the adapter is a perfect fit 
for the AX1 and may work for your Comet.


Brian VE3GMZ




Sent via BlackBerry Hub+ Inbox for Android


  Original Message


From: fra...@pwpconsult.com
Sent: July 30, 2020 8:37 p.m.
To: wd8oep2...@sbcglobal.net
Cc: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] what tripod to use?


Welcome to the list Harry

Given that your antenna isn't an Elecraft product, you are kind
of on your own. Does Comet have a tripod adapter? Elecraft has a
tripod adapter for its portable antenna, the AX1.
 Will
that adapter work for your use?

If that adapter won't work, you can build an adapter. The
standard tripod thread is 1/4" x 20. You should be able to get
some nuts of that size and glue them to the necessary bracket to
attach the adapter to your antenna. Or you can get a drill and
tap and tap it yourself. There are many other choices and ways
to proceed.

As to the tripod, a lot depends on what you intend to do. If you
are doing SOTA activations, you probably want a very light
weight tripod for backpacking. If you can stand something
heavier, there are photographic tripods in a bewildering array
of models.

I will also note that photographic light stands also have 1/4" x
20 threads and can be used as well. They aren't as useful on
uneven ground as a tripod, but they go up higher.

These things are available at a wide range of prices. Amazon and
eBay are likely to have cheap choices.

73 Bill AE6JV

On 7/30/20 at 6:04 PM, wd8oep2...@sbcglobal.net (Harry Brown) wrote:


I'm new here.

I have a kx3, and I have the Comet hfj350M telescopic antenna, which 
works from 80 down to 6 meters.


I need to put it on a tripod, and then I can get the tripod adapter from 
Elecraft.


Can someone, please tell me which tripod to get?

If possible, I'd like it to be heavy enough to withstand high
winds, because we have those kind of winds on the east coast of Michigan.

---
Bill Frantz| When an old person dies, a   | Periwinkle
(408)348-7900  | library burns. - Joe McGawon | 150
Rivermead Rd #235
www.pwpconsult.com | Irish Ethnographer   |
Peterborough, NH 03458

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Re: [Elecraft] Survey and summary: Elecraft K3/K3S panadaptersolutions

[wb4jfi]

Yes, Please and Thank You!!! to both I/Q output and mouse control.
73, Terry, N4TLF

-Original Message- 
From: Nr4c

Sent: Friday, July 27, 2018 12:40 PM
To: Wayne Burdick
Cc: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Survey and summary: Elecraft K3/K3S 
panadaptersolutions


Wayne.

In what “Time Frame” might it exist??
6 months, 12 months??  Never??

And while this question has also been raised; is there a possibility of 
mouse control with a P3?  This would be a real PLUS!


Sent from my iPhone
...nr4c. bill



On Jul 27, 2018, at 11:56 AM, Wayne Burdick  wrote:

I meant to mention that that this would require a small, easily 
retrofitted add-on module for the P3.


Anticipating the next question:  it doesn’t exist so there isn’t a waiting 
list yet  :)


Wayne



http://www.elecraft.com


On Jul 27, 2018, at 8:51 AM, Wayne Burdick  wrote:

I/Q output from the P3 is certainly possible, and we’re considering it.

Wayne,
N6KR



http://www.elecraft.com


On Jul 26, 2018, at 9:18 PM, K9FD  wrote:

My question is:   Wayne as I remember said the P3 was actually a SDR, 
so it thats
true is it not possible to have an add on board for the P3 to bring out 
the I/Q signal

for use with a computer and Skimmer software etc?




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Re: [Elecraft] "The Elecraft Story" - other tech books

[wb4jfi]

A good book about early microcomputing is "Fire In The Valley" by Paul 
Freiberger and Michael Swaine, originally published by Osborne/McGraw-Hill. 
Copyright 1984, It is pretty accurate up to that point.


I think that I still have a few issues of "The People's Computer Company" 
and all of the "Mark-8 Newsletter" that I need to scan in someday.  Along 
with a working IMSAI, and other old stuff.

73, Terry, N4TLF

-Original Message- 
From: Cady, Fred

Sent: Friday, July 27, 2018 1:02 PM
To: Alan Geller via Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "The Elecraft Story" - other tech books

If you are into reading about technology, be sure to not miss "The 
Innovators" by Walter Isaacson and "Regional Advantage" by Annalee Saxenian 
(about why Silicon Valley took off and Route 50 in MA faded.)  And although 
somewhat lightweight, all of Malcom Gladwell's books are fun reads.


Cheer and 73,

Fred


PS: And don't forget the KE7X Elecraft books :-)



From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net  on 
behalf of Art Peters 

Sent: Friday, July 27, 2018 10:11 AM
To: N4ZR; Alan Geller via Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "The Elecraft Story"

Pete,

Careful, that is darn near an antique book, but I too still reference
today, kidder did an excellent
job of capturing the ethos of that team and effort.

73 es God Bless,

Art / K0ACP

On Fri, Jul 27, 2018 at 11:23 AM, N4ZR  wrote:


Thanks, Mike - I fell prey to the old fallacy - "if I haven't seen it, it
must not exist."  That said, I'd love to see something more up-to-date. It
has always intrigued me that the KPA-1500 took so long to actually enter
the market, having seen a prototype at Dayton about 10 years (or so) ago.
And of course, we're all waiting for the K4.

I still view Tracy Kidder's "The Soul of a New Machine" as the best
example ever of close-up technological narrative.

73, Pete N4ZR
Check out the Reverse Beacon Network
at , now
spotting RTTY activity worldwide.
For spots, please use your favorite
"retail" DX cluster.

On 7/27/2018 11:02 AM, Mike Markowski wrote:


Pete,

In 2011 Wayne wrote up a nice history.  An Elecraft wikipedia page points
to it, and I put it on a web page here:

http://udel.edu/~mm/ham/elecraft/history/ 

Just ignore the graph up top.  Out of date ponderings!

Maybe Wayne & Eric can flesh it out, update where needed, and put it on
elecraft.com .  :-)

73,
Mike ab3ap

On Fri, Jul 27, 2018 at 10:52 AM, N4ZR > wrote:

It strikes me that an article, or even a book about this would be
welcome.  Or has it already been done?  If so, a reference would
be appreciated.

--
73, Pete N4ZR
Check out the Reverse Beacon Network
at , now
spotting RTTY activity worldwide.
For spots, please use your favorite
"retail" DX cluster.

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Re: [Elecraft] A/C "Soft Start" ...

[wb4jfi]

Not "soft-start", but

We have a Generac 20kW air-cooled generator at our house, that works 
wonderfully!  IIRC, anything larger is water-cooled.  Our house has two, 
200amp breaker panels.  We have three A/C units, an induction cooktop, 
ovens, dryer, and other goodies.  When I started looking for a whole-house 
generator, almost every electrical contractor/company told me that I needed 
a 37kW, water-cooled generator, which has a small car engine for a motor. 
Generac even told them to tell me that's what needed for the loading and 
wiring in my house.


I had done some research, and found that Generac sold a system that works 
with their ATS, called Nexus (or Nexys, or similar spelling).  It includes 
"smart switches" that go in series with each heavy load device, such that 
the ATS can control those switches to turn on/of various loads, depending on 
what's running at any given time.  There was only one electrical company 
here in Charleston, SC, that even knew about this system, they had just 
taken a course on it.  Needless to say, they got my business.


We've been through both summer and winter storm outages, up to about 24 
hours, and the whole system works great!  It does "stage" the air 
conditioners, depending on the load.  The cost is higher, but I did NOT want 
a water-cooled car engine running on the side of my house.


I've also switched to Rennai water heaters to get rid of constantly heating 
water for occasional use.  We do have natural gas at the house, so the 
generator runs on that.  We were going to get a gas cooktop, but during the 
kitchen remodel, we found the induction cooktop is as fast or faster than 
gas, and keeps the cooktop very clean.  We can cook stuff with a layer of 
butcher paper between the cooktop and the pan.  Highly recommended.

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: AB4IQ

Sent: Wednesday, July 18, 2018 5:20 PM
To: 'Joe Subich, W4TV' ; 'Elecraft'
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] A/C "Soft Start" ...

I have a Generac 20 KW here at the house and a 22KW Generac at the farm.  I
have Central Heat/Air in my garage and house and you never see a blink when
the compressors kick on.  There are times when both are running like at the
present time with all of the high temperatures.  Last week we had a three or
so hour outage and the 20 KW never missed a beat.  At the farm, which is all
electric we had a 5 hour outage and the 22KW never missed a beat.  They do
make devices that the water heater and air will not work at the same time or
at least partially from what I understand.  I also have a well at the farm
and we see no problems at all.

We had an Ice Storm here in W. Kentucky in 2009 and was out of power for six
or seven days.  We won't go through with that again.  HI..

Ed.. AB4IQ

-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Joe Subich, W4TV
Sent: Wednesday, July 18, 2018 1:30 PM
To: Elecraft 
Subject: [Elecraft] A/C "Soft Start" ...


A year (two?) ago there was a discussion of whole house standby generators
on this list.  One of the things mentioned was "soft start" modules for A/C
and other heavy current motor devices.

Of course, the discussion was not pertinent to me at the time - we've been
using a 6 KW portable for 10 years or more.  But now the wife has decided it
is time to get auto-start and capability to handle the A/C.  She doesn't
want to spend another weak without A/C like we've faced following both
Matthew two years ago and Irma last year and doesn't want to risk that my
back/neck won't act up and prevent me from rolling out/starting the old
portable.

Does anyone have a pointer to the A/C soft start controllers?  I know our
A/C (168 LRA) will certainly bog down even the biggest (22 KW) whole house
unit (and going to a 30 or 50 KW just to start the A/C is not economically
effective at 3 to 5 X the cost ).

--

73,

   ... Joe, W4TV

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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft] OT: Call location

[wb4jfi]

and KYW in Philly

For a while, my previous employer, Gannett, parked the callsign WUSA (for 
TV) in Minneapolis.  When they acquired WDVM (ex WTOP) TV in DC, they moves 
WUSA to there.  Minneapolis became KARE.

Terry, N4TLF (formally WB4JFI)


-Original Message- 
From: Fred C. Jensen

Sent: Saturday, July 14, 2018 1:01 PM
To: WW3S ; Ken G Kopp
Cc: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft] OT: Call location

And WOAI in San Antonio?

Skip K6DGW

WW3S  wrote:
Actually, it was the other way around.with the exception of KQV and 
KDKA, K calls were WEST of the Mississippi


Sent from my iPad


On Jul 13, 2018, at 5:58 PM, Ken G Kopp  wrote:

Trivia:. Usta be that all "K" calls on the BC band were east of the
Mississippi River.

WFAA and WBAP in Ft Worth share a common studio and transmitter and split
hours of call use.

73!

K0PP
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Re: [Elecraft] K4

[wb4jfi]

I was thinking along similar lines.  If enough hams find the smaller K3 
front panel difficult, (and are adverse to present computer-based solutions) 
maybe an external box that has LOTs of knobs, etc... that plugs into the K3 
DB9, could be made.  Using any one of several 
microcomputers/microcontrollers, such a box could be designed.  It might be 
somewhat costly, as buttons, knobs, displays, are all physical devices that 
cost $$.  But, this might give some hams the best of both worlds.  A compact 
rig when needed, but lots of buttons, knobs, displays when someone wants 
them.


I've done some limited K3/KX3 remote control with Arduinos (and wifi), I 
doubt a simple Uno would be sufficient.  But some device with more GPIO pins 
and memory could certainly interface to the K3/KX3.  Such as a Due, 
Raspberry Pi, BeagleBone Black, Teensy, or even an Arduino Mega.


Interestingly, I now have three "retro" 8080 CP/M computers that use a Due 
(or Mega) to emulate a whole Altair/IMSAI computer box.  These devices have 
enough I/O pins to support all the switches and LEDs of an original Altair 
front panel and serial I/O - without any multiplexing.  Using encoders 
instead of pots would help reduce analog I/O for a radio interface for 
example.


Is there much interest in such a device?  If so, maybe a group could discuss 
this more, and come up with some specific front panel control/display 
requirements.


Note that I am happy with my K3 as-is.  Also, several computer control 
solutions already exist, so I assume that this would be a very limited 
"market".

73, Terry, N4TLF (formally WB4JFI)


-Original Message- 
From: George Thornton

Sent: Saturday, May 19, 2018 1:49 PM
To: Martin Sole ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K4

If you are used to working large rigs with lots of buttons, I can see how 
the K3/K3s might be an adjustment.


I have found the K3 controls to be natural and appropriate.  For most of my 
operation the buttons and dials I need to use in action are right at my 
fingertips.  Once set up correctly, I find little need to venture into the 
menu system on a day to day basis.


Sure. It would be nice to have band and mode stacks.  But is it that big a 
deal, worth spending many thousands of dollars to change?


We will gain nothing in performance with a bigger rig.  Already Elecraft 
outperforms ALL of the big boxes on the market, per Sherwood Engineering.


Here is an elegant and simple solution for the K4 that will satisfy the big 
box demand.


Design a modular big front panel that simply plugs into the K3.  Design 
should be relatively easy because you don't have to change the K3s itself, 
just add a command and control interface for the larger front panel.  Can 
you use the accessory port or do you need more connections?  I don't know I 
am not an engineer.  Currently computer radio control programs work with a 
simple DB9 connection.


Then give an option of mounting the K3s in a larger box.  That would have 
the added convenience of making it easier for us klutzes to be able to get 
into the rig to make changes such as adding filters.


So, you would have options:
1. standard K3s
2. Standalone large front panel.  Put your K3s under the table and mount 
your front panel wherever.
3. K3s in a larger box with the larger front panel mounted on the front. 
You can even add options to the large box such as nicer stereo built in 
speakers, even a built in AC to DC power supply.


It will all still be the best HF radio in the world, made right here in the 
US.


-Original Message-
From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net 
[mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Martin Sole

Sent: Saturday, May 19, 2018 9:39 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K4

I'll weigh in on this a little before it gets stamped on again as being, 
unfortunately, irrelevant and pointless.


I think there is a big gaping hole in the Elecraft product line. Not in 
performance terms but more in ergonomics. A K3 has been my primary radio for 
a few years now and before that an Orion, before that a TS940,
TS830- etc etc. Performance wise there is no doubt the K3 bests them all, I 
recently built a K2 and think that's scarily good in raw performance terms 
as well. My K3 is pretty much fully kitted out and I have a P3 as well which 
is extremely useful and they're going nowhere.


From the super small super portable super capable K2 and KX3 to the small 
and portable and no less capable K3/K3S their market segments are well 
covered but KenYaeCom have surely sold enough
TS990,FT9000,IC7800/50/51 that shows well the market demand for a quality 
high end desktop sized radio. If the pictures on QRZ are anything to go by 
not everyone operates out of a shoe box with many having dedicated rooms for 
their radio hobbies. If the shoe box is your limitation then the K3 is 
undoubtedly a superb choice but where space is less restricted a bit more 

Re: [Elecraft] not bashing a product just a warning to futurepurchasers.

[wb4jfi]

While this is OT, I think it deserves a response.  I have built several 
QRP-Labs kits, and have had no problems, other than an initial short in the 
oven-based oscillator, which we were warned about in the instructions.


These are NOT HeathKit level kits, but almost nothing is anymore.  I 
recommend the QRP-Labs Ultimate 3S beacon and other stuff to anyone with 
some building experience.  The Ultimate 3S is a good value to me.


As always, YMMV, but these are not nearly as bad as the Chinese ham 
projects.

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: KC6CNN

Sent: Friday, May 05, 2017 9:02 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] not bashing a product just a warning to 
futurepurchasers.


I know that Elecraft does not want people bashing other companies products
and I in no way want to bash them. I do however want to warn other kit
builder and kit lovers to please use caution when ordering any kit from
QRP-LABS. First it ships from Japan, second the products are so poorly made
that the part leads bend when holding the part up by the end of the lead.
The design was difficult and instructions are very crude.
They are Cheap in price lol but also cheap in quality .

Thanks hope this helps someone save their money.

Gerald KC6CNN





-
KC6CNN - Gerald
K1 # 0014
K3 # 6294
KX3 # 757
--
View this message in context: 
http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/not-bashing-a-product-just-a-warning-to-future-purchasers-tp7630349.html

Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 Utility with Windows 10

[wb4jfi]

I have a Surface Pro 3, and a Surface Pro 4, no problems with drivers here 
either.  I did have some driver issues with the SP3 under Ubuntu Linux, but 
I just reformatted it to give to my wife.  Next step is to figure out how to 
get Linux working on the SP4.  But, that's not your problem...!!!

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: Bill Johnson

Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2016 9:04 PM
To: 'Ken Arck' ; 'Rick Braun' ; 'Elecraft'
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Utility with Windows 10

I have a surface pro 3 and surface book and neither have issues to which you
refer.

73,
Bill
K9YEQ

-Original Message-
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Ken
Arck
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2016 5:57 PM
To: Rick Braun ; Elecraft 
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Utility with Windows 10

My Surface Pro sucks with driver compatibility issues so perhaps that is
your proble.

My "ham" computer runs Win 10, 64 bit and no problems at all connecting to
the K3s with anything

Ken



At 03:43 PM 12/18/2016, Rick Braun wrote:

I downloaded the latest K3 utility onto my Surface Pro 4 with Windows
10.  My K3 is serial 2869, with RS232 to USB adapter cable.  I
downloaded the driver indicated on the Elecraft site.  Problem: I
cannot, for the life of me, get the radio to connect to the computer.
Could this be a 32 bit versus 64 bit compatibility issue?  Any ideas or
suggestions?  By the way, the KX3 utility works fine on this computer.
Iâ?Tm baffled and ready to kick the cat.

Sent from Mail for
Windows 10

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Re: [Elecraft] Sherwood's receiver performance table updated

[wb4jfi]

While I don't disagree with the possibility of your first paragraph Joe, 
your third one doesn't make a lot of sense to me.


Firstly, the K3/K3S (without the second receiver) cannot be on more than ONE 
amateur band at a time.  So, why create an artificial "test" that the 
typical K3 can't even do?  I believe that most K3/K3S out there don't have 
the second receiver.  Plus, the K3/K3S cannot listen to three (or more) 
bands at once, which the 6500 and 6700 can.


Secondly, I wonder how good the K3/K3S would be if you also pulled their 
front-end filtering?


I'm still very much an Elecraft fan with both a K3 and a KX3, so I'm not 
disparaging the Elecraft equipment at all.  I LOVE THEM!  I just want apples 
vs apples, please.


BTW, I have an AM station within a couple of miles - directly line-of-sight 
down the river, and I don't see this alleged problem at all.  But, I'm only 
using dipoles, a Steppir vertical, or a 50-ohm resistor for antennas. Hi Hi. 
I do see this problem with several 8- or 12-bit SDR designs without 
high-pass filtering, but with a filter, it goes away.  14-bit ADCs aren't 
showing this problem here, even without the HPF.

73, Terry, N4TLF




-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV

Sent: Monday, April 25, 2016 5:30 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Sherwood's receiver performance table updated


On 4/25/2016 4:44 PM, Dave Hachadorian wrote:

It's interesting that the 7300's ranking in the table is because of its
94 dB Dynamic Range at 2 KHz spacing.  But the footnotes indicate that
this dynamic range is with AP+ turned ON.  With AP+ ON, minimum
detectable signal is degraded by 11 dB.


That's true of *every* direct sampling SDR in the list.  That's the
"dirty little secret" of direct sampling SDRs ... in order to maintain
that "pristine" IMD DR the "total signal level" or instantaneous peak
voltage at the ADC must stay below the clipping/overflow level.

Look at the ARRL review of the Flex 6700 and 6300 ... compare their
MDS with the preamps on and preamps off, then look at the IMD DR
with the preamps on and off (where the data is available).  Even for
the Flex, MDS is degraded by 10 to 15 dB in order to maintain the full
dynamic range (not much different than the 7300).

Direct sampling disciples will claim the MDS reduction is not a problem
but try running one of their radios within a couple miles of an AM
station with "slice receivers" on more than one amateur band (so the
preselector/bandpass filters are bypassed).

73,

  ... Joe, W4TV



With AP+ OFF, as generally recommended in the footnotes, 2 KHz dynamic
range is only 81 dB, which would place the 7300 considerably lower in
the table, but still pretty good.

Dave Hachadorian, K6LL
Yuma, AZ


-Original Message- From: Joe Subich, W4TV
Sent: Monday, April 25, 2016 11:55 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Sherwood's receiver performance table updated


Very interesting ... pretty good performance from the IC-7300 for an
"entry level radio."  On the other hand, the IC-9100 should be better
than "mid pack" given it's recent design and price - it's even *worse*
(both IMD and LO Noise) that that paragon of "high performance," the
IC-706mkIIg!

73,

   ... Joe, W4TV

On 4/25/2016 10:55 AM, Wayne Burdick wrote:

Rob has added the IC-7851, IC-7300, and IC-9100 to his table:

http://www.sherweng.com/table.html

73,
Wayne
N6KR


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Re: [Elecraft] 10 MHz external reference

[wb4jfi]

The Ublox GPS units (like the Neo-6 and NEO-7) are not great for this 
application.  Their master oscillators are an oddball frequency (as far as 
freq standards go, IIRC 48MHz?).  That doesn't divide evenly to 10MHz, so 
there is some jitter component at 10MHz output.  Not what you want for a 
reference signal.


I've used a used commercial-grade GPSDO that I found used, and an HP3801A 
from ebay, both less than $100.


I've also purchased rubidium-based units, Efratom LPRO-101 from ebay for 
about $75 each.


There are several other GPS-based thingies that aren't "disciplined" for 
pretty good prices.  The older Trimble units are usually good.  Hams Summers 
of QRPLabs.com sells a QLG1 for about $23 that seems to be usable - I think. 
I've got one for my QRP Labs beacon.  You might want to look at the specs 
for the SKM1 GPS module on his board.


There are many designs for GPS disciplined oscillators, and many inexpensive 
GPS receivers out there.  Make sure their 10MHz output is stable.  However, 
if you want "portability", or your shack can't easily see the sky, you might 
want to check out the various rubidium oscillators instead.  I'm sure you 
can find a TON more info on the timenuts forum.


Also be careful with the 10MHz reference signal distribution, it can play 
havoc with the 30 Meters band (and 10MHz WWV), especially it it's a ratty 
square wave.

73, Terry, N4TLF



-Original Message- 
From: Kevin Cozens

Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2016 5:51 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] 10 MHz external reference

Am 09.03.2016 um 18:37 schrieb Gary Smith:

What external 10-MHz reference signal source might I find get that is
not terribly expensive that will do the proper job and allow me to
get this working?


You can look for a GPS disciplined oscillator (GPSDO), an FE-5680 Rubidium
based oscillator, or look for some of the lesser expensive GPS receiver
modules that have 10MHz outputs.

A GPSDO can be expensive but there are some more affordable ones if you look
around. FE-5680's used to be available around $100US (or less if you got
lucky). Lately the prices seem to have gone up for these devices, and they
tend to be power hungry. There are some GPS receiver modules that have GPS
receiver blocks on them made by companies such as Ublox. Take a look for GPS
receiver devices that are meant to be used as part of a flight control
system for radio controlled aircraft (or what some people call drones).

--
Cheers!

Kevin.

http://www.ve3syb.ca/   |"Nerds make the shiny things that distract
Owner of Elecraft K2 #2172  | the mouth-breathers, and that's why we're
| powerful!"
#include  | --Chris Hardwick
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Re: [Elecraft] Whole house surge protector at the main breaker?

[WB4JFI]

I have two 200 amp panels, and each has a Sycom surge protector.  I also have a 
Generac 18kW ( or 20kW?) whole house (with Nexys smart load control) generator, 
and companion ATS with its own protection.

Keep in mind other services, such as phone, Internet, cable, etc...  Mine is 
bundled, with a limited surge protector on the outside.  Unless you have fiber, 
your cable provider can be very twitchy about you providing your own surge 
protection.

Also, if you have underground sprinklers, or AC/DC to outside lights, that's 
another source of induced problems.
73, Terry, N4TLF

Sent from tfox iPad

> On Jan 6, 2016, at 5:12 PM, "kg9hfr...@gmail.com"  wrote:
> 
> OK, I am curious, what are you guys using for the whole house surge protector 
> at the main breaker?
> Frank KG9H
> 
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Re: [Elecraft] Whole house surge protector at the main breaker?

[WB4JFI]

Sorry for the double-post, but I still use smaller UPS on all electronics, i.e. 
Computers, TVs, etc.  at least six UPS from 350w to 1.5kW.  Haven't lost 
anything since moving into the house, in Charleston, SC.
73, Terry, N4TLF

Sent from tfox iPad

> On Jan 6, 2016, at 6:11 PM, WB4JFI <wb4...@knology.net> wrote:
> 
> I have two 200 amp panels, and each has a Sycom surge protector.  I also have 
> a Generac 18kW ( or 20kW?) whole house (with Nexys smart load control) 
> generator, and companion ATS with its own protection.
> 
> Keep in mind other services, such as phone, Internet, cable, etc...  Mine is 
> bundled, with a limited surge protector on the outside.  Unless you have 
> fiber, your cable provider can be very twitchy about you providing your own 
> surge protection.
> 
> Also, if you have underground sprinklers, or AC/DC to outside lights, that's 
> another source of induced problems.
> 73, Terry, N4TLF
> 
> Sent from tfox iPad
> 
>> On Jan 6, 2016, at 5:12 PM, "kg9hfr...@gmail.com" <kg9hfr...@gmail.com> 
>> wrote:
>> 
>> OK, I am curious, what are you guys using for the whole house surge 
>> protector at the main breaker?
>> Frank KG9H
>> 
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Re: [Elecraft] suggested PC??? Real RS-232 ports

[WB4JFI]

Original serial and parallel ports on the original IBM backplane were I/O port 
mapped, not memory mapped.  There were discrepancies between port numbers 
between the true IBM I/O port numbers and "clones".  Ports 3F8 and 2F8 for COM1 
and 2, 3E8 and 2E8 for COM3 and 4.   On a true original IBM, the first parallel 
port was 3BC, while most clones used 378 for the first parallel port.  Note 
that these are input/output mapped, NOT memory mapped.

I'm not sure that PCI and PCIe serial and parallel port devices are truly I/O 
mapped (probably not), or memory mapped, but in either case, they are not true 
serial or parallel hardware devices, but something that emulates them.  PCIe is 
itself a high-speed serial interface, so there must be some interpretation.

Of course, even the older ISA cards ended up using ASIC devices to emulate 
serial and parallel ports, but that was hardware based.
73, Terry, N4TLF

Sent from tfox iPad

> On Jan 5, 2016, at 5:54 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:
> 
> 
>> On 1/5/2016 5:32 PM, Doug Person via Elecraft wrote:
>> A 4-port card is NOT a native RS-232 port. PCI is just another bus
>> add on.
> 
> *Absolutely incorrect*.  A USB to serial converter *of any kind* -
> other than the Edgeport products - can not do 45.45, 50, 75 or 100
> baud RTTY.  All of the multi-port RS-232 PCI and PCIe cards handle
> that task with no problem (although Windows will set 45.45 baud to
> 45 baud because the API is integer based).
> 
> PCI and PCIe based serial and parallel port cards are true memory
> addressed ports like motherboard or (obsolete) ISA bus ports - not
> USB devices that suffer from latency and driver buffer issues.
> 
> 73,
> 
>  ... Joe, W4TV
> 
> 
>> On 1/5/2016 5:32 PM, Doug Person via Elecraft wrote:
>> A 4-port card is NOT a native RS-232 port. PCI is just another bus add
>> on.  There no difference between running 1 or 4 USB to RS-232
>> converters.  You can buy a 4 port FTDI converter that runs off a single
>> USB port from Amazon that will run everything you could ever want.  I
>> run 80's vintage lab equipment off them and they don't know the difference.
>> 
>> Also, don't get Windows 7 or 8.  Windows 10 is the only choice for
>> Windows.  7 and 8 are obsolete and support will get lighter and lighter
>> and then vanish completely.
>> 
>> Doug -- K0DXV
>> 
>>> On 1/5/2016 12:24 PM, Cliff Frescura wrote:
>>> I agree with N1MGO,
>>> 
>>> I've come full circle on this one and am in the process of removing
>>> all of
>>> the USB/RS-232 converters in my setup and reinstalling a 4 port card
>>> that I
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Re: [Elecraft] SDR Processing from KX3 in Python

[wb4jfi]

Check out the Tiny Python Panadaptor (April 2014 QST).  There is also a Tiny 
Python Panadaptor Yahoo group.  It runs a panadaptor (and waterfall) in 
Python on either a Raspberry Pi or Beaglebone Black with a KX3.  It does I/Q 
processing from whatever small sound card in Linux.  It can also do rig 
control if you can figure out how to do that on the BBB.  Pi is easier.


I'm not sure why the Elecraft would be any different than any other 
sound-card based I/Q processing - such as a Softrock.  I do realize that the 
rtl-sdr is quite different as far as inputting samples, however.  What 
platform are you using?  Windows, Linux, Apple?

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: a45wg

Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2015 11:12 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] SDR Processing from KX3 in Python

Hi,
   Is anyone doing any SDR I/Q processing using Python with the KX3 ?

   I am trying to get some traction with this - but finding little info in 
terms of Elecraft - plenty in the rtl-sdr however


   Thanks for the valuable info contained here

 Tim - A45WG
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Re: [Elecraft] SDR Processing from KX3 in Python

[wb4jfi]

Thanks for the info Bob.  Did you implement rig control with the BBB/TPP and 
KX3?  If so, could we chat off the reflector, as I've had a hard time 
getting rig control to work with the BBB, due to serial port issues.  Not a 
problem with the Pi/BBB, but the BBB seems to be more difficult, especially 
if you don't want to use the debug serial port.


I seem to be out of funds at the moment, and already have the BBB/TPP, so a 
PX3 will have to wait.

Thanks & 73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: Bob N3MNT

Sent: Thursday, December 17, 2015 4:44 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] SDR Processing from KX3 in Python

I implemented the BBB tiny python Panadapter. It was straight forward and
worked very well.. I used it until the PX3 was available,  The PX3 is so
well integrated in the KX3 system that spending more time on the python
version did not make sense.



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Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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Re: [Elecraft] OT USB Scope Question

[knology wb4jfi]

Hey Jim,
One thing to remember with any digital scope is that you need to watch out 
for digital sampling artifacts such as aliasing of signals in question. 
There was a ham I knew that kept complaining that his AD9850 DDS module was 
operating on two different frequencies, sometimes at one frequency and 
sometimes at the other.  I could not convince him that this was a result of 
aliasing WITHIN THE SCOPE itself.  He bought additional DDS modules, 
surprise!  They did exactly the same thing.  Then, he bought an old analog 
scope and no longer saw these problems.


I do have and use a USB scope "in the field", but I am careful to understand 
what that scope is telling me.  I also have a couple of analog scopes, one 
on the bench, and one portable.  I can verify questionable results with 
them.

73, Terry, N4TLF


-Original Message- 
From: James Bennett

Sent: Tuesday, September 29, 2015 5:31 PM
To: Elecraft Reflector Reflector
Subject: [Elecraft] OT USB Scope Question

A bit off-thread, but sort of related - wondering if folks on this reflector 
have any experience with USB oscilloscopes. I'm considering adding an 
o'scope to my test bench, and came across an Australian company called 
Bitscope.com. They have several models and appear quite affordable. The nice 
thing is they work on Windows, Linux, Mac OSX, and Raspberry Pi.


I'm a bit limited not only on funds, but room for additional equipment, so 
one of those big analog models is out of the question.


Anyone using a Bitscope unit or any other USB scope here on this reflector?

Jim Bennett / W6JHB
Folsom, CA
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Re: [Elecraft] Lines crisper on P3 since KSYN3A upgrade?

[wb4jfi]

I have collected a few of them with plans to use them in undetermined 
projects.  Before you toss them, I would be willing to pay postage to have 
them sent to me.  If I eventually can't use them, or if one blows out for 
someone, I can always forward one of the boards to them.


It does appear to be difficult to program the boards, but I am persistent, 
even if not smart!

73, Terry, N4TLF (formally WB4JFI)


-Original Message- 
From: Barry

Sent: Saturday, September 05, 2015 2:27 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] Lines crisper on P3 since KSYN3A upgrade?

Installed the 2 KSYN3A boards yesterday.  Very straight-forward and I didn't
even drop a lock washer  :-)  Kudos to Elecraft!

Anyway, using the K3 and P3 on 20m today and the lines for the CW sigs seems
thinner/crisper.  Is there something to this or am I imagining it?  I
haven't had the radio on much the last 3-4 months with summer doldrums
condx.

Also, has anyone come up with a use for the old SYN boards?  I hate to just
toss them in the garbage, but I don't want to save them, either, if they no
longer have any use.

Barry W2UP



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View this message in context: 
http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/Lines-crisper-on-P3-since-KSYN3A-upgrade-tp7607092.html

Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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Re: [Elecraft] TS-990

[wb4jfi]

My goodness!
So,  now a Flex is nothing more than an expensive sound card?

I wonder what happens when the K3 CPU goes squirrely, or the FP LCD has an 
issue.  Or a software upload/upgrade causes the K3 to brick itself?  Or a FP 
switch/button/control goes bad?  I've seen these issues on the reflectors 
before, and just as bad as a computer problem.  Maybe worse, as the K3 
hardware is not necessarily off-the-shelf, and software source not 
available.  Elecraft does a GREAT job to offset these problems, but shipping 
stuff across the country takes longer than going to the local Best 
Buy/Staples/local computer store.


Hey Joe, you still watching NTSC television as well?  Or is that black and 
white KoolAid still in control?


I've got a K3/P3/SVGA, a KX3, a Flex 6700, an SDR-1000, an openHPSDR rig, an 
SDR-IQ, an SDR Cube, a HiQSDR, an STM32SDR, and several SoftRocks.  And an 
FT-817.  I like them ALL!


My main rig is the K3, it works really, really well.  I LOVE IT!  The KX3 
sees portable operation.  The Flex allows me to see multiple bands at once, 
and/or more of one band than the K3/P3 does.  The Flex 6x00 is also becoming 
a much more integrated digital radio, thanks to keeping ALL the demod 
sampling as digital, as it interfaces with FLDIGI, etc... programs.  The K3 
must still use analog audio interfacing, unless you use the internal 
decoder/encoder.  Couldn't one argue therefore that the K3 is only an analog 
radio, based on this one weaklink?  I am certainly NOT doing that, but it's 
as ridiculous as saying the Flex is NOT a radio.


The Flex 6x00 series actually uses the newerSmartSDR software, that source 
is not publicly available.  The older PowerSDR did have its source code 
available.  Can you get the source code for the K3 or KX3?  Not that I'd 
ever want Elecraft to do that!  NO  But, that's another point that Flex 
had.


With the new synth, Elecraft just proved that their already wonderful radio 
CAN BE significantly improved.  Congrats to them!  Good Job!  I love seeing 
an improvement like that, regardless of the platform.  Elecraft is paying 
attention to both its hardware AND software/firmware.


I SEE NO REASON TO TRASH ONE TYPE OF RIG FOR ANOTHER.  Those that disparage 
one brand over another are likely insecure with their prior purchase 
decisions.  Over the last two decades or so, it was Yaesu vs Kenwood vs 
Icom.  At least now it's one SDR versus another.  YES, the K3 IS generally 
considered an SDR, even by the original K3 software engineer.


How about giving this product bashing a rest fellows?  Implying a Flex is 
not a radio is just going too far.  It shows personal bias and 
thick-headedness to the extreme.


And BTW, there's this new thing called Cable TV, and some future stuff 
called streaming video that may impact OTA TV.  I'm keeping an eye on 
these new technologies as well, even though I've spent over 30 years as a 
broadcast TV engineer - and corporate engineering director, responsible for 
only 23 OTA TV stations throughout the country (including during the DTV 
transition).  Before I saw the handwriting and retired.

73, Terry, WB4JFI (now N4TLF)


-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV

Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 10:18 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] TS-990



Flex makes a radio,


Correction - Flex makes a complex analog to digital and digital
to analog converter.  The ADC/DAC is *not a radio* without all
the external computer hardware/software to control the ADC/DAC,
process the digital data and handle conversion back to audio for
the user.  The computer hardware comes from any number of vendors
and much of the software (PowerSDR) has been public domain.

73,

  ... Joe, W4TV


On 2015-03-10 9:50 AM, Harry Yingst via Elecraft wrote:
I've had a Flex-1500, the Flex may be nice for some, but being tied to a 
PC is a huge shortcoming. It's so much easier (and quicker) to just grab a 
knob instead of having to use a mouse and keyboard.


As for performance, The K3 is the First radio I would ever consider rating 
a 10.
The real beauty of the K3 is the Company behind it; Flex makes a radio, 
Elecraft makes a Product Line. Being able to have all the various pieces 
work seamlessly is very slick.








   From: Kevin Stover kevin.sto...@mediacombb.net
  To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
  Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 9:04 AM
  Subject: Re: [Elecraft] TS-990

The plain and simple fact is that if you have a Flex you are dependent
on the computer you are running.
Computer breaks, and of course they do, your off the air. SIMPLE.
I read the minimum requirements to run the 6000 series. Half of the PC's
in use by Hams won't cut it.

Minimum, Windows Vista SP2, Dual Core 64 bit processor, Video card 256
MB memory, Direct X 10 or higher ,Net 4.0 or higher. Those are minimums.
You can probably run SmartSDR with that but if it's like most software
it will run like crap on it's minimum requirements.

SDR's like the K3 aren't

Re: [Elecraft] TS-990

[wb4jfi]

(Sorry Eric, I did not see your closing of this topic because I was typing 
my response)


-Original Message- 
From: wb4...@knology.net

Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 7:52 PM
To: Joe Subich, W4TV ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] TS-990

My goodness!
So,  now a Flex is nothing more than an expensive sound card?

I wonder what happens when the K3 CPU goes squirrely, or the FP LCD has an
issue.  Or a software upload/upgrade causes the K3 to brick itself?  Or a FP
switch/button/control goes bad?  I've seen these issues on the reflectors
before, and just as bad as a computer problem.  Maybe worse, as the K3
hardware is not necessarily off-the-shelf, and software source not
available.  Elecraft does a GREAT job to offset these problems, but shipping
stuff across the country takes longer than going to the local Best
Buy/Staples/local computer store.

Hey Joe, you still watching NTSC television as well?  Or is that black and
white KoolAid still in control?

I've got a K3/P3/SVGA, a KX3, a Flex 6700, an SDR-1000, an openHPSDR rig, an
SDR-IQ, an SDR Cube, a HiQSDR, an STM32SDR, and several SoftRocks.  And an
FT-817.  I like them ALL!

My main rig is the K3, it works really, really well.  I LOVE IT!  The KX3
sees portable operation.  The Flex allows me to see multiple bands at once,
and/or more of one band than the K3/P3 does.  The Flex 6x00 is also becoming
a much more integrated digital radio, thanks to keeping ALL the demod
sampling as digital, as it interfaces with FLDIGI, etc... programs.  The K3
must still use analog audio interfacing, unless you use the internal
decoder/encoder.  Couldn't one argue therefore that the K3 is only an analog
radio, based on this one weaklink?  I am certainly NOT doing that, but it's
as ridiculous as saying the Flex is NOT a radio.

The Flex 6x00 series actually uses the newerSmartSDR software, that source
is not publicly available.  The older PowerSDR did have its source code
available.  Can you get the source code for the K3 or KX3?  Not that I'd
ever want Elecraft to do that!  NO  But, that's another point that Flex
had.

With the new synth, Elecraft just proved that their already wonderful radio
CAN BE significantly improved.  Congrats to them!  Good Job!  I love seeing
an improvement like that, regardless of the platform.  Elecraft is paying
attention to both its hardware AND software/firmware.

I SEE NO REASON TO TRASH ONE TYPE OF RIG FOR ANOTHER.  Those that disparage
one brand over another are likely insecure with their prior purchase
decisions.  Over the last two decades or so, it was Yaesu vs Kenwood vs
Icom.  At least now it's one SDR versus another.  YES, the K3 IS generally
considered an SDR, even by the original K3 software engineer.

How about giving this product bashing a rest fellows?  Implying a Flex is
not a radio is just going too far.  It shows personal bias and
thick-headedness to the extreme.

And BTW, there's this new thing called Cable TV, and some future stuff
called streaming video that may impact OTA TV.  I'm keeping an eye on
these new technologies as well, even though I've spent over 30 years as a
broadcast TV engineer - and corporate engineering director, responsible for
only 23 OTA TV stations throughout the country (including during the DTV
transition).  Before I saw the handwriting and retired.
73, Terry, WB4JFI (now N4TLF)


-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV

Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 10:18 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] TS-990



Flex makes a radio,


Correction - Flex makes a complex analog to digital and digital
to analog converter.  The ADC/DAC is *not a radio* without all
the external computer hardware/software to control the ADC/DAC,
process the digital data and handle conversion back to audio for
the user.  The computer hardware comes from any number of vendors
and much of the software (PowerSDR) has been public domain.

73,

  ... Joe, W4TV


On 2015-03-10 9:50 AM, Harry Yingst via Elecraft wrote:
I've had a Flex-1500, the Flex may be nice for some, but being tied to a 
PC is a huge shortcoming. It's so much easier (and quicker) to just grab a 
knob instead of having to use a mouse and keyboard.


As for performance, The K3 is the First radio I would ever consider rating 
a 10.
The real beauty of the K3 is the Company behind it; Flex makes a radio, 
Elecraft makes a Product Line. Being able to have all the various pieces 
work seamlessly is very slick.








   From: Kevin Stover kevin.sto...@mediacombb.net
  To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
  Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 9:04 AM
  Subject: Re: [Elecraft] TS-990

The plain and simple fact is that if you have a Flex you are dependent
on the computer you are running.
Computer breaks, and of course they do, your off the air. SIMPLE.
I read the minimum requirements to run the 6000 series. Half of the PC's
in use by Hams won't cut it.

Minimum, Windows Vista SP2, Dual Core 64 bit processor, Video card 256
MB memory

Re: [Elecraft] Old KSYN3 cards

[wb4jfi]

It might be worth repurposing for other projects.  I'd be interested in 
getting a couple for experimenting with, maybe for shipping costs plus a few 
dollars to make it worthwhile.  But, I LOVE to play with DDS-based stuff, so 
that's just me!

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Kenneth Christiansen

Sent: Monday, February 23, 2015 8:12 PM
To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] Old KSYN3 cards

Hi to the group

I received my new KSYN3AUPG card and it works fine. I was going to send 
Elecraft my old card and sent them an E-Mail to find out where to send it. 
Howard from Elecraft sent me an E-Mail saying they can not send a used card 
out with a new order so they would just have to junk my card if I sent it 
in. That indicates we should all junk our cards locally and save the 
shipping costs.


Ken W0CZ  w...@i29.net

Sent from my iPad
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 Piglet

[wb4jfi]

Hello Cary,
If I understand your question, you are trying to physically connect the 
Piglet to the iPad.  That's not the way it works.


The Piglet connects to your K3 via the RS232 connector, that way it can 
control the K3 via the standard K3 control interface.


The Piglet connects to the iPad via wifi.  There are a couple of different 
ways to do that.  You can either connect both the iPad and the Piglet to 
your wifi router (called infrastructure mode if I remember), or you can 
connect the iPad directly to the Piglet, also via wifi.


There are complete details on how to set either of these up on the pignology 
web site.


This works very nicely.
73, Happy New Year, and good luck!
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: H. Cary

Sent: Saturday, December 27, 2014 10:25 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] K3  Piglet

Santa brought me an iPadAir for Xmas and I'd like to sync it w/ a Piglet 
(Pignology product) for CW and digital modes as shown in Sept. 2013 CQ 
article and to use w/ HamLog.
The Piglet has an RS-232 male connector and my IPad has a lightening 
connector at the iPad w/ a USB connector at the other end. Surely there must 
be an adapter plug to connect these two varieties (USB/RS-232) but my 
on-line search hasn't found one.


Has anyone on the reflector successfully put together a similar setup and 
could point me in the right direction?


73  Happy New Year,
Cary, K4TM

Sent from Clovelly Cottage, home of amateur radio station K4TM and the most 
creative Sue Cary, with my iPhone 6 in Lynchburg VA - a great place to live, 
work, play, and retire!

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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft KX3 IQ out and spectral display pograms

[wb4jfi]

I would check the splitter cable, or use another one.  I have had numerous 
times when the audio cable was not up to snuff (in different ways), and the 
results are I/Q imbalance issues.  I've even had Y adaptors from Radio Shack 
that were completely miswired.  You would think that simple cables could be 
relied upon, but I've seen otherwise.

Good luck.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Chris Tate - N6WM

Sent: Saturday, December 20, 2014 2:13 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft KX3 IQ out and spectral display pograms

Greetings and happy holidays Elecraft enthusiasts.

I have been putting together a portable contest/dx station using a 
KX3/KXPA100 combo.  What a wonderful little setup.  As part of my testing 
process, I have setup a laptop computer for rig control.  This works great 
in alot of respects,  Cat control.. no problem.  Keying cw from the 
computer.. no problem.  I have run into a tiny issue, regarding the IQ out 
and how it integrates with computer based spectral display applications and 
I am hoping the fine brain trust of audio experts can help me out.



I have a creative EM 0204, and I have split out the IQ stereo into 2 
channels using a 1/8 stereo to mono a/b splitter, and subsequently feed IQ 
to the EM 0204 into the L/R mono ports.  I am having some issues that I have 
not run into.. for instance when I used to do this using an N8LP pan with my 
K3.  (I have done sufficient testing with other computers, sound cards to be 
aware this is not limited to just this equipment).  here is what my 
observations are:


CW Skimmer.  Seems to work.. but the IQ balance seems to fall out of sync 
after being dialed in.  in other words from time to time multiple traces of 
signals appear.  this after adjusting with a fixed carrier on WWV to remove 
the traces.  Its almost as if there is an IQ instability of some kind and I 
was curious what others have found.


PAN displays, NAP3, etc.:  there seems to be a rather large artifact that 
tracks with the center frequency making use of the pan display rather 
impractical...maybe 20-30 Kc's or more.I assume this issue is resolved 
to make the PX3 display an accurate spectral representation,  and so am 
wondering if there must be a setting or something I have adjusted 
incorrectly.


I also ran into an audio artifact where I could hear computer rfi through 
the headphones with the IQ cable plugged in..   I was able to mitigate this 
using a ground loop isolation cable..  keeping in mind I want to keep this 
setup portable and useable in remote locations.


IF anyone who may have resolved some of these IQ out issues could chime in 
and assist it would be greatly appreciated.  I am trying to make this setup 
as capable and portable as possible.


thanks in advance and look forward to your responses.

Chris
N6WM



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Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

[wb4jfi]

We also have a Generac generator, and ATS.  I believe it's about 20kW, the 
largest they sell that is NOT water cooled.  I didn't want a car engine...


Our house has two 200A panels inside, and being in South Carolina (hot, 
muggy), we have three air conditioning units, including  mini-split for the 
ham shack, plus all electric kitchen (induction cooktop), and other 
high-current things.  I tried several electricians, all of whom wanted to 
install 30+kW, water-cooled generators, which I could not afford.


We finally found an electrician (as part of a kitchen remodel) that was 
smarter than the average one, and he was familiar with the Generac Nexus 
(sp) line of Smart Switches.  These are add-ons to the ATS that manage 
generator loading by cutting back heavy loads if the generator gets bogged 
down.  They add a switch to each identified load, and the ATS controls how 
those switches get managed.


We've had the generator run a few times, and I've seen the ATS cutting back 
the load at least once.  I'm usually home during outages, so I can manually 
trip breakers to manage the load myself, but it's nice to see that the 
system works even if we aren't home.


So far, I've been really happy with this setup.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Philip Carter

Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 8:00 AM
To: John Scott ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

I would also recommend that.  Very little trouble.



On Thursday, July 24, 2014 6:30 AM, John Scott sco...@sandycove-ns.ca 
wrote:




We are considering the installation of a generator here for times when,
for one reason or another, commercial power is unavailable.Our
electrician has recommended a Generac generator.

I would welcome comments from this august and knowledgeable group about
these generators regarding reliability and RFI emissions or, preferably
the lack of RFI!

Please reply off list to sco...@sandycove-ns.ca

73 TIA

John, VE1JS
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Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

[wb4jfi]

Talk about burying the lede...  I have not heard any RFI from the generator 
(it is running it's weekly test right now!) whenever I have used the rigs 
while it is running.  My worst RFI offender is actually the Electrolux 
clothes dryer.  I do a lot of listening  playing with SDRs (including K3 
and KX3), but have mostly wire antennas.

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: wb4...@knology.net

Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 8:36 AM
To: Philip Carter ; John Scott ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

We also have a Generac generator, and ATS.  I believe it's about 20kW, the
largest they sell that is NOT water cooled.  I didn't want a car engine...

Our house has two 200A panels inside, and being in South Carolina (hot,
muggy), we have three air conditioning units, including  mini-split for the
ham shack, plus all electric kitchen (induction cooktop), and other
high-current things.  I tried several electricians, all of whom wanted to
install 30+kW, water-cooled generators, which I could not afford.

We finally found an electrician (as part of a kitchen remodel) that was
smarter than the average one, and he was familiar with the Generac Nexus
(sp) line of Smart Switches.  These are add-ons to the ATS that manage
generator loading by cutting back heavy loads if the generator gets bogged
down.  They add a switch to each identified load, and the ATS controls how
those switches get managed.

We've had the generator run a few times, and I've seen the ATS cutting back
the load at least once.  I'm usually home during outages, so I can manually
trip breakers to manage the load myself, but it's nice to see that the
system works even if we aren't home.

So far, I've been really happy with this setup.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Philip Carter

Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 8:00 AM
To: John Scott ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

I would also recommend that.  Very little trouble.



On Thursday, July 24, 2014 6:30 AM, John Scott sco...@sandycove-ns.ca
wrote:



We are considering the installation of a generator here for times when,
for one reason or another, commercial power is unavailable.Our
electrician has recommended a Generac generator.

I would welcome comments from this august and knowledgeable group about
these generators regarding reliability and RFI emissions or, preferably
the lack of RFI!

Please reply off list to sco...@sandycove-ns.ca

73 TIA

John, VE1JS
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Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

[wb4jfi]

Mine too.  Unless Charleston has another earthquake, I should be okay.
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Earl

Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2014 9:18 PM
To: K8JHR ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT GENERAC generators

My 20 KW whole house Generac runs on natural gas.

Earl N5ZM..


On 7/24/2014 7:40 PM, K8JHR wrote:

How much fuel do all you guys with whole house generators keep on hand?

How much fuel does one need to, say, go for 10 days?  Does everyone have 
that on hand?


What next, if you run out of fuel...


[--Note - not an argument, a serious question.  I know lots of guys with 
generators, but I bet they have only one or two days of fuel on hand. What 
does it really take?  Does one need a submarine-size tank, like we see in 
rural areas, to go the distance? ]


-- K8JHR 

On 7/24/2014 5:22 PM, Edward R Cole wrote:


We chose to add a generator to our home after a cheaply built foreign
model was unable to supply even enough power for



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-
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Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 3986/7915 - Release Date: 07/24/14




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Re: [Elecraft] iMic with iSDR on iPad4

[wb4jfi]

I have the KX3, iMic, USB lightning adaptor, and iPad Air.  They all work 
together fine.  I have used the iMic and adaptors starting with the original 
iPad, iPad2, iPad3, and now Air, it has worked on all of them.  I have been 
using them for a few years now, including with the old 30-pin adaptors.  I 
used them this last weekend during some software testing.


Maybe your lightning USB adaptor or iMic is bad?  Do you have someone 
locally to test with?


We've also been working with Digital Confections to allow tuning the KX3 via 
the iPad with the Piglet/Pigtail devices.

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Nr4c

Sent: Tuesday, July 01, 2014 10:09 PM
To: Jenn Hughes
Cc: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] iMic with iSDR on iPad4

I think it worked up thru iPad-3. Not sure but it works with wife's 2.

Sent from my iPhone
...nr4c. bill



On Jul 1, 2014, at 10:02 PM, Jenn Hughes 73.n...@gmail.com wrote:

Bought a KX3 in June

Trying to use the iSDR app on an iPad 4 to get portable panadapter
functionality.

Bought a Lighting to USB Camera adapter (Apple Brand) at Best Buy

Bought a Griffin iMic on Amazon because I couldn't find it at Best Buy or
Frys.

Plugged in to iPad 4. After a few second get a message stating This
accessory is not supported by this iPad

Tried a flash drive with the USB adapter and got same message. Don't have
any other Apple accessories.

Tested the iMic on a Windows computer and it is functional.
Is this combo working for anybody reading this list? Are there other
components that will work?

Is there a way to search the archives?

Tried Google with site:mailman.qth.net
Read Mailman HowTo and FAQ

NS3O de Jennifer in Dixon, CA
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Re: [Elecraft] K3 case

[wb4jfi]

I use two of these HF cases.  One hold the K3 and mic, the other holds the 
P3, Powerwerx power supply, the cables, and manuals.  This will be the 
fourth field day that they come out of the shack in this configuration. 
(Don't forget to remove the little metal thing that holds the removable 
pallate)


I don't think they would be strong enough for shipping around the world, but 
for carrying the rig around and preventing scratches or other damage, they 
work fine.

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Richard

Sent: Tuesday, June 10, 2014 9:41 PM
To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] K3 case

Dick,
 I use a case from Harbor Freight: Item #69315
They are about 20-$25 depending on whether you have a 20 or 25% coupon or 
not.

Comes with adjustable dividers and removable inside lid storage.
I use a foam sheet between the lid and radio.
It fits my K3 nicely, leaves room for the mike and power cable.
I use the cases for other radio stuff, organized by default.

 Rich KC8HMJ
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Re: [Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age

[wb4jfi]

I still have a working IMSAI 8800 with three SA-800 drives and an H19 
terminal.  I can boot CP/M and run Wordstar, several Basics, a Pascal and a 
C compiler.  Plus, most of the CP/M-UG and SIG/M-UG disks.  I also have an 
Altair 8800 and an Altair 8800 Turnkey (no front panel), along with 
several other S-100 cards.  The Altair ran one of the first bulletin boards 
in the country (Ward Christensen CBBS) for AMRAD.  I also have my first 
5-slot IBM PC, and many versions of DOS.


The Commodore 64 also had a Z80 card, which allowed you to run CP/M.

How about a nice game of chess?
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Kevin Cozens

Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 2:19 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age

Someone wrote:

Desktop computers did not come into being until the advent of the IBM
PC in the 1980s.


(Among?) The first desktop computers were the S-100 bus based machines.
First, the Altair 8800 announced on the cover of Popular Electronics
magazine in January 1976, and its later popular variant the IMSAI 8080. They
were in boxes along the size of 17 rack mount sized boxes with
high-amperage power supplies.

Other early desktop computers that came along not long after were the Apple
I and II lines, and the Commodore computers such as their PET.

Josh W6XU wrote:
Maybe he's remembering running DR-DOS on the Apple II? Required a Z80 
card.


PC-DOS/MS-DOS/DR-DOS were all for the IBM PC and compatible computers. The
plug-in card for the Apple II and later computers that had the Z-80 CPU on
it was so that you could run CP/M. I have one for my pair of Apple 
computers.


The plug-in card and floppy disk system used with the Apple II could be
thought of as the K2 of its day. It may seem quaint today but the disk
system was a marvel of engineering in its simplicity and elegance.

--
Cheers!

Kevin.

http://www.ve3syb.ca/   |Nerds make the shiny things that distract
Owner of Elecraft K2 #2172  | the mouth-breathers, and that's why we're
| powerful!
#include disclaimer/favourite | --Chris Hardwick
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Re: [Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age

[wb4jfi]

And Metrovision (in the Washington DC area), the first licensed ATV 
repeater, had a Mark-8 (an 8008) at the repeater site in 1974.  We could 
program it remotely using keyboards (in raw octal machine language), and the 
results came back via a character generator on the video downlink.

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Lewis Phelps

Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 4:59 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net List
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Computers in the Stone Age


Someone wrote:
Desktop computers did not come into being until the advent of the IBM PC 
in the 1980s.


Nah.  Heathkit H89 came out in 1979.  “All-in-One” desktop computer. Z-80 
processor. CP/M OS addressed 64 KB and used 39 kb of that total. two 5” 
floppy drives (dual sided 800k) as an option. Later, somebody came up with a 
card that plugged into the 5” drive slot and gave 128K of silicon hard 
drive. Now THAT was advanced for its era. Booting from that was faster than 
lightning, for its time.


And do not forget the Ohio Scientific Instruments OSI Challenger 4P….

Lew




Lew Phelps N6LEW
Pasadena, CA DM04wd
Elecraft K3-10
Yaesu FT-7800
l...@n6lew.us
www.n6lew.us

Sent from my Mac Pro 256-Array Supercomputer (9.42 teraflops)




On May 28, 2014, at 11:19 AM, Kevin Cozens ke...@ve3syb.ca wrote:


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Re: [Elecraft] SDR software for KX3?

[WB4JFI]

Barry:
I don't have the EMU0202, so I can't say about the 8kHz shift.  I do not need 
to add the 8kHz shift on any of my SDR operations, however.

Regarding the sample rate versus bandwidth, when using 48ks/s, you are actually 
getting TWO samples at that rate, one of I and one of Q.  They each count, so 
you can end up with a total of 48kHz bandwidth being displayed (plus and minus 
24kHz from center frequency).  That is, if you have both I and Q working 
properly.  That's how you get 48kHz displayed with a 48ks/s sample rate.

From what I recall (I'm out of town right now), the KX3 I/Q bandwidth is not 
much more than 48k or so anyway, so sampling at 96k or higher probably won't 
buy you much.  But you certainly could try it.  Remember that not only do you 
have to deal with the KX3 I/Q output bandwidth, but some sound cards roll off 
much beyond 48kHz, even if they sample at 96k or 192k. YMMV

73, Terry, WB4JFI
Sent from tfox iPad

 On Oct 12, 2013, at 9:32 PM, k3...@comcast.net wrote:
 
 Tom, 
 I, too, am running the EMU0202. first thing you need to do is shft the 
 receiver 8KHz. That makes the appearance a bit better. I also notice 
 extraneous garbage on the display. It doesn't seem to interfere with the 
 overall operation, so I live with it. 
 
 Let me suggest that you not exceed 96 KHz sample bandwidth and then use the 
 zoom feature to look at less than the sample rate. I haven't thought it 
 through, but I was taught that you need to sample 2X the bandwidth. How we 
 are able to use a bandwidth equal to the sample rate is something I really 
 need to think about. But, I suspect that is contributing to some of the 
 garbage on the screen. And, Elecraft suggests that you should stay at 48 KHz 
 due to internal flatness of the radio's response, anyway. 
 
 73, 
 Barry 
 K3NDM 
 
 
 - Original Message -
 
 From: Tom tom...@videotron.ca 
 To: Barry LaZar k3...@comcast.net, elecraft@mailman.qth.net 
 Sent: Saturday, October 12, 2013 7:27:48 PM 
 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] SDR software for KX3? 
 
 Hi 
 Well I just bought a new outboard sound card and removed all previous cards. 
 I'm now running an emu2020 and I can adjust the levels between the channels. 
 I can minimize the images but as soon as you move up or down a while the 
 images are back. I also have lots of spurious peaks making it impossible to 
 distinguish between cw and spurs. There is no adjustment in software for the 
 inputs but I can adjust the levels on the outside. The images look nowhere 
 like what you see on YouTube. 
 Getting pretty frustrated here 
 Tom 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Original message  
 From: Barry LaZar k3...@comcast.net 
 Date: 12/10/2013 17:28 (GMT-05:00) 
 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net 
 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] SDR software for KX3? 
 
 
 Guys, 
 The one that really works well is NaP3. It was originally set up 
 for the K3, but the latest iteration does a great job on the KX3. I've 
 been running with the software for about a year or so, and I now don't 
 know how function without it. 
 
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Re: [Elecraft] SDR software for KX3?

[WB4JFI]

Hello Tom.

I have had success with using several SDR software programs (and sound cards) 
with my KX3.  It shouldn't be that hard.  I've used Rocky, hDSDR, a few 
variants of PowersDR, SDRsharp, and a few others, on various Windows and Apple 
(iPad, iPhone) computers.

Most programs have internal adjustments for phase and gain differences, so you 
don't need to adjust those with External mixer controls.  Try Rocky first, it's 
probably the easiest to set up and use.  It can also automatically adjust for 
your sound card and rig differences.

If you are having so many problems, be sure to check your cables.  I have had a 
couple of commercially made cables that were defective, with partial shorts 
between the various connections.  I had trouble with I/Q balancing until I 
found they were bad.

Good luck.  73, Terry, WB4JFI
Sent from tfox iPad

 On Oct 12, 2013, at 7:27 PM, Tom tom...@videotron.ca wrote:
 
 Hi
 Well I just bought a new outboard sound card and removed all previous cards. 
 I'm now running an emu2020 and I can adjust the levels between the channels. 
 I can minimize the images but as soon as you move up or down a while the 
 images are back. I also have lots of spurious peaks making it impossible to 
 distinguish between cw and spurs. There is no adjustment in software for the 
 inputs but I can adjust the levels on the outside. The images look nowhere 
 like what you see on YouTube.
 Getting pretty frustrated here
 Tom
 
 
 
 
 
  Original message 
 From: Barry LaZar k3...@comcast.net 
 Date: 12/10/2013  17:28  (GMT-05:00) 
 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net 
 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] SDR software for KX3? 
 
 Guys,
  The one that really works well is NaP3. It was originally set up 
 for the K3, but the latest iteration does a great job on the KX3. I've 
 been running with the software for about a year or so, and I now don't 
 know how function without it.
 
 
 73,
 Barry
 K3NDM
 
 On 10/12/2013 5:04 PM, Jerry Flanders wrote:
 I saw the same thing with several of the programs I tried, but finally 
 one worked OK without those images.
 
 It is: PowerSDR/IF Stage V1.19.3.5
 
 SETUP IF:
 
 RIG CONNECTION - rig type K3 (NOTE - K3, NOT KX3)( also get your com 
 port and baud rate from the kx3 utility)
 
 IF FREQUENCIES global offset -5700  lo center (don't know what this 
 is) 8215000 LSB 650  USB -800
 
 This should get you started.
 
 GL de Jerry W4UK
 
 At 04:35 PM 10/12/2013, Tom wrote:
 Hi
 Has anyone tried to hook up their kx3 via the IQ output to SDR software?
 I have so far tried three different programs, hdsdr, sdr-radio, and 
 SDR sharp, and they are all the same. I get images that run in 
 different directions as I tune. I tried everything to get get rid of 
 them to no avail.
 I also tried three different sound boards and different cables. No 
 difference at all. Anybody have ideas?
 Thanks, Tom va2fsq
 
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Re: [Elecraft] Will the K2 and KX3 work with the P3?

[wb4jfi]

Wouldn't a Softrock Ensemble II receiver for less than $80, feeding a 
soundcard, and some free SDR software, be a much cheaper but effective 
answer?


The K2 appears to have a 4.9152MHz IF, so using an Ensemble II, with it's 
Si570 tuned to 4.9152MHz, should work fine.  Then, you feed the Ensemble II 
I/Q outputs to either an internal sound card if stereo, or inexpensive USB 
sound card (like an iMic?) if not.  Rocky, PowerSDR-IF, SDR#, or other SDR 
software will provide the spectrum display.  If an iPad or iPhone, use iSDR.


I'm not sure if Tony Parks has a rock-bound Softrock that is close enough to 
the 4.9MHz IF of the K2.  If so, that's an even cheaper answer.


I would definitely put a buffer stage like the Clifton Labs mentioned 
earlier, in the rig.  Not only does it buffer the IF output of the K2, it 
also prevents interference getting back into the K2 from the Ensemble or 
Flex 1500 LO.  QSD-based receivers are known for generating RF signals on 
the carrier frequency BACK OUT the antenna port.


Seems like using a Flex 1500 just to provide a QSD-based demod/display is a 
little like towing a Hummer behind your Suburban in case the Suburban breaks 
down.  And if you ever accidentally transmit on the Flex 1500 back into the 
K2 - uh-oh.  Having a spare rig could be handy though.

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Michael Babineau

Sent: Thursday, August 29, 2013 10:22 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Will the K2 and KX3 work with the P3?

Bruce et al :

Using N4PYs RCP  (or maybe even DDUTIL) it is possible to slave a Flex-1500 
off
of a K2, or other radio, to use it as a Pan Adaptor. So for about the price 
of just a
Pan Adaptor (P3 or LP-Pan) you can actually get a Pan Adaptor (Flex-1500) 
that can also
be used as a transceiver. I guess that it depends on what you are looking 
for, but if you can live without the
K2s full break-in on CW, the Flex-1500 just by itself makes a pretty 
formidable little radio.


The point I was trying to make is that given the base price of the K2, how 
many people
are going to want to almost double the price by adding a P3 as Pan-Adaptor? 
I guess that it depends
on how tricked-out your K2 is. If you already have DSP, KPA100 then maybe 
it makes some sense.
I am not saying it is wrong to do so, it is just that there a lots of other 
Pan Adaptor options, some lower
cost and others similar cost but offering more flexibility.  It really comes 
down to wants, needs and the users budget.


Personally I looked at this option myself (I love my K2) and decided that 
the P3 or LP-Pan options
didn't compute dollar-wise for me  and if I really wanted SDR, buying a 
Flex-1500 to go along with my

K2 works out better for me.  (Selling my K2 isn't an option).

So my comment regarding the original post is, before adding support for the 
K2/P3 to an existing
control program, the author (Tom VA2FSQ) might want to assess whether this 
is something that users are
really going to want to do frequently enough to justify the time and effort 
for the new software development.
Given that the WIN4K3 software is targeted specifically at Elecraft 
products, then maybe the answer
is that the K2/P3 combination should be supported anyway, just for WIN4K3 
product completeness.

It is possible to make a P3 work with a K2.

Cheers

Michael VE3WMB


From: Bruce Beford bruce.bef...@myfairpoint.net
Date: August 28, 2013 7:50:38 PM EDT
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Will the K2 and KX3 work with the P3?




Yes, but it would -still- be a Flex-1500, not a K2 with panadapter...
Bruce, N1RX



To get back to the original question, I am not sure how many people would
want to add a P3 to a K2 ? For the price of the P3 (or even an LP-Pan) you
could pick up a new Flex-1500.

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Re: [Elecraft] Will the K2 and KX3 work with the P3?

[wb4jfi]

I'm not sure what you are trying to accomplish here with the KX3, pardon if 
I mis-interpret.


Using a P3 requires that two issues be resolved: 1) control and, 2) RF 
signal input.


P3 control is via the serial RS232 connection, and can be figured out.

However, the P3 wants to a single RF signal at its IF input.  It then goes 
through a typical DDC-based SDR approach, including an FFT, to display the 
spectrum.  The P3 works with the 8.215MHz IF output of the K3 (or many other 
RF-frequency range, IF signals).  The KX3 does NOT have a single  RF/IF 
output at the proper frequency.   Instead, it has an I/Q output pair at 
audio frequencies (0Hz-approx 48kHz or so) from the internal QSD.  You would 
need to upconvert that I/Q pair back to a single RF signal in order to feed 
it to the P3.  That's a lot of work, with much simpler solutions available.


I don't know much about the K2.  Looking at the manual, internally, it has 
an 4.9152MHz IF, but I don't think that's available on a connector, or if 
the drive level is buffered and adequate.  If so, you could use a P3 with a 
K2 I suppose.  The IF would need to be tapped BEFORE the crystal filtering. 
I do NOT see an IF output connector, and only one transistor buffer between 
the mixer and the crystal filters.


The KX3 I/Q output is set up to feed into a typical computer sound card 
(stereo, line-in) and a Softrock SDR-type program, which is easier than 
trying to jerry-rig a P3.  You can potentially use a CAT interface with the 
KX3 to query the current frequency, for SDR software display.  I have NOT 
one this directly, so I don't know what SDR software support that.

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Tom

Sent: Tuesday, August 27, 2013 11:35 PM
To: Elecraft
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Will the K2 and KX3 work with the P3?

I have determined that I can emulate the firmware and provide full 
functionality via serial commands.

Now, would there be an interest for P3 usage on a kx3 or k2?
Tom

Sent from my iPhone

On 2013-08-27, at 10:33 PM, Tom tom...@videotron.ca wrote:


Hi
I know that the P3 requires a serial connection to the K3 and the 
appropriate firmware and that this does not exist for the K2 and Kx3.
However, will it display the spectrum? And if it does, can one emulate the 
serial commands via the P3 serial port?
I am wondering if this could be an option in my software Win4K3 Suite if I 
provide a K2 and KX3 version.

Thanks, Tom
Va2fsq.com

Sent from my iPhone

snip

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Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

[wb4jfi]

In order to limit off-topic posts, I responded directly to Fred.

One salient point is that my K3's S-meter does NOT show linear/accurate 
readings above about S9 +25.  It hits S9+60 at about -30dBm, which should 
read only about S9+40.  This could throw off the assumed dynamic range of 
102dB.  However, Dr. Mitola's suggestion that HF needs about 130dB of 
dynamic range is still a good target, albeit tough for ANY radio without RF 
filtering (analog OR SDR).


I provided several other comments, but I don’t think a manufacturer's 
reflector is the proper forum to continue the discussion.  I'm not hiding 
anything, as I think Elecraft makes at least two of the best radios on the 
market (K3/P3  KX3), and I'm not planning to part with either of mine.

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Fred Jensen

Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2013 7:50 PM
To: Elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

On 8/19/2013 10:28 PM, wb4...@knology.net wrote:

Warning:  rather long reply follows.
If you don't care, or have your mind made up, please skip this email.
Fred asked for some education, so here goes...  I'm not an expert, but
these are my personal ramblings from what I think that I have learned.
If you don't agree, and the moderator doesn’t like this discussion here,
maybe we can find another place to discuss?  Or directly?


Hi Terry, thanks for the reply.  I'm thinking I'm not the only one
seeking the education so I'll reply to the list.  If that's
inappropriate, I'll take it off-list.  I'm also not going to quote your
reply, those interested already have it.

So far, I've learned that 32-bit ADC's have apparently not become as
ubiquitous as I had surmised.  I have looked at the I'net SDR at Twente
University in the Netherlands, and I understand the concept and the
desirability of digitizing directly from the entire HF spectrum for it.
 That cool receiver wouldn't work for everyone if it didn't.  I
understand DSP also, or at least most of the math behind it.

I want to focus my questions on a communications receiver and its
performance however, because that's what I'm certain I don't fully
understand.  In this focus, I'm attempting to receive a single fairly
narrow-band HF signal in the presence of noise and other signals close
by.  Let's say a 2KHz BW signal just for discussion.

Let's say I'm digitizing at the antenna connector everything up to
30MHz.  We know that I have to sample at a rate at least twice the
highest frequency being sampled so I'll stipulate that we're sampling at
120MHz, [4x 30MHz] and that there exists some sort of low-pass filter
with a cutoff frequency of 30MHz, zero attenuation below, and 1,000dB
above in front of the ADC [trying to get rid of discussion noise here]

My K3 reads S9 with 50uV into the 50ohm connector which is 5e-11 watts,
or -73dBm.  I have a KBPF3 [or whatever it's called] and I can find
non-ham signals in the .5-30MHz range that will put the S-meter at or
close to full-scale [60 over S9].  For the sake of discussion, let's
assume the S-meter is accurate and the strongest signal I can find is 60
over S9 or -13dBm.  Were the LORAN-C station at Middletown CA still
operating, it would easily exceed anything I can find at HF, on my
service monitor it generally ran around -10dBm at night with my flagpole
as the antenna.

I'll assume that the 2KHz BW signal I want to hear is S2, or 42dB below
S9 or -115dBm which I don't think is unreasonable.  I would calculate
then that the digitizing mechanism directly at the antenna connector
needs to have a minimum dynamic range of 102dBm or a voltage ratio of
125,893 [rounding up].  2^18 gives me +/-131,072 steps so an 18-bit ADC
should work. Right so far?

In my K3, the .5-30MHz spectrum is filtered by the L-C BP filters prior
to the first mixer, significantly reducing the effect of far but very
strong signals on the mixer.  The 8MHz 1st IF is then filtered again by,
in my case, a 2.7KHz xtal filter, so when this all gets to the ADC, it's
3KHz wide or so.

And thus my first question [slightly rephrased]:

Ignoring the display possibilities of digitizing at the antenna
connector, and concentrating on a communications receiver attempting to
receive a 2KHz BW signal, what are the performance advantages of moving
the A-D conversion to the antenna connector?

It seems like it should make sense to sample right at the antenna, if
you can digitize at an adequate rate and precision, but I just can't
make it work in my mind that subjecting the ADC to the full spectrum is
good if I'm a single-op and all I'm interested in is the new mult.

Follow-up question [watched too much 'West Wing' I guess]:

Is all this full-SDR based on getting conversion and DSP processing
rates high enough that it doesn't matter how far strong signals removed
from the desired signal?  There is inevitable distortion that arises in
the analog amplifiers, filters, and mixers, sufficiently long
word-lengths in the DSP stages could

Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

[wb4jfi]

Agreed.  Since Fred's original questions referenced the use of an S-meter to 
measure weak versus strong signals, I was simply trying to frame part of my 
answer to match his reference, and show how errors could creep into that 
methodology.

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Scott Manthe

Sent: Wednesday, August 21, 2013 7:53 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

Since when does the S-meter have anything to do with dynamic range? My
old Kenwood TS-2000 had a pretty tight S-meter, but that didn't help
its, um, pedestrian (to be kind) dynamic range numbers.

73,
Scott, N9AA

snip 


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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Demo at hamfests - antenna hint

[wb4jfi]

Coming from a broadcast television/news background, I have used a LOT of 
gaffers tape, most often made by Permacel, now Shurtape.  It is NOT cheap, 
but does not leave any residue, as long as you don't leave it in place for a 
long time.  The P-665 Professional Grade 2-inch width gaffers tape is the 
most familiar to me, in gray or black.


If used sparingly, one roll should last quite a while.  It usually costs 
between $15 and $20 per roll, and should be available at most tape, 
broadcast, or film places.  BH, 47th Street, Markertek are a few places. 
NEVER use duct tape or duck tape, especially on any cabling that you 
want to use ever again.  You need kerosene or gasoline to remove that sticky 
mess!  Blue/green painters tape has almost sticking value, when stepped on 
or other pressure is applied to the cable.  Gaffers tape is designed to hold 
strong, but not leave a nasty residue.  If left on something for a few 
months or more, the adhesive DOES stay attached to whatever it's put on, 
however.


I just used some gaffers tape last night, to temporarily hold a coax line up 
along a doorway to prevent tripping on it on the floor.  Putting it on 
cement, carpeting, even walls, seems to be OK for short periods.  Unless the 
wall has cheap paint on it!

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Jim Sheldon

Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2013 5:39 PM
To: Elecraft Mailing List
Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft Demo at hamfests - antenna hint

Having done demos of my Elecraft equipment at a number of hamfests in the 
KS/Oklahoma area over the last couple of years, I try to get table space 
near an exit or other outside access so I can set up a vertical antenna 
external to the building.  Live, on-air demo's work lots better than just 
having the equipment sitting there with the lights on, especially if the 
antenna can be placed outside the building for good reception.


The major problem we usually run into is safely running the coax from your 
table out to the antenna.  In the past we usually routed it along a wall, 
and any where that people had to cross it, we first tried duct tape, but 
that turned out to be difficult to remove without damaging something or 
leaving a sticky residue.  Next came the blue painter's masking tape. 
This worked great when time came for removal, but didn't stick to floors or 
wall surfaces well enough to either support or keep the cable from loosening 
and becoming a trip hazard.


At the Kansas State ARRL Convention this past weekend, we were in a really 
nice venue with the tables just inside the entrance to the flea market area. 
This gave reasonably close access to the main entry doors to the building, 
one of which was off to the side and allow cable access but not be used for 
normal in/out traffic.  There was a nice grassy area about 20 feet out and 
clear of the concrete walkway with an aluminum bleacher being stored up 
against the building so it wasn't necessary to tape down the cables after 
getting out of the door.


The major problem was running coax from the table to the door in the first 
place.  Since the lobby area we had to string the coax through had an 8 
foot, gridded acoustical tile ceiling, I got the bright idea to use some 
nylon mason's twine I had and make up a bunch of sling loops over the grid 
members and under the tiles.  Ran the coax up the steel door jamb from the 
flea market room, taped it down with painter's tape, ran it through the 
loops hung from the ceiling grid well above the heads of anyone walking 
under it and over the top of the one door marked do not use except in 
emergency.  Outside, it was then easy to rout it along the building wall 
out of the way and connect up the antennas.


This won't work for every situation but it's something to consider if a 
dropped ceiling presents itself.  If you get a chance to scope out the venue 
before hand, you could even take some aluminum strap (available at hardware 
stores) and bend yourself some strips with a big hook on one end and a small 
straight flat on the other that could be slipped under a ceiling tile 
without having to lift the tiles up to tie a string loop over the grid. 
Keeps the coax up out of the way where the foot traffic can't trip over it.


Jim - W0EB
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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Demo at hamfests - antenna hint

[wb4jfi]

For more permanent wiring, I have used shower curtain hooks, stapled in 
place at the small end.  You can open the shower curtain hooks, lay the 
cables in place, then close them back up.  We used to wire edit booths with 
them.  Makes wire access very simple.

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Walter Underwood

Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2013 5:59 PM
To: Elecraft Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft Demo at hamfests - antenna hint

For smaller cable, I have used large paper clips bent open.  --wunder, K6WRU

On Aug 20, 2013, at 2:50 PM, Bill Brooks wrote:


Jim,

Wire coat hangers are perfect for this purpose and are in good supply.
Us Hams are nothing if not field expedient, yes?

Bill, KE5OG

On Tuesday, August 20, 2013, Jim Sheldon wrote:


Having done demos of my Elecraft equipment at a number of hamfests in the
KS/Oklahoma area over the last couple of years, I try to get table space
near an exit or other outside access so I can set up a vertical antenna
external to the building.  Live, on-air demo's work lots better than just
having the equipment sitting there with the lights on, especially if the
antenna can be placed outside the building for good reception.

The major problem we usually run into is safely running the coax from 
your

table out to the antenna.  In the past we usually routed it along a wall,
and any where that people had to cross it, we first tried duct tape, but
that turned out to be difficult to remove without damaging something or
leaving a sticky residue.  Next came the blue painter's masking tape.
This worked great when time came for removal, but didn't stick to floors
or wall surfaces well enough to either support or keep the cable from
loosening and becoming a trip hazard.

At the Kansas State ARRL Convention this past weekend, we were in a 
really

nice venue with the tables just inside the entrance to the flea market
area.  This gave reasonably close access to the main entry doors to the
building, one of which was off to the side and allow cable access but not
be used for normal in/out traffic.  There was a nice grassy area about 20
feet out and clear of the concrete walkway with an aluminum bleacher 
being

stored up against the building so it wasn't necessary to tape down the
cables after getting out of the door.

The major problem was running coax from the table to the door in the 
first

place.  Since the lobby area we had to string the coax through had an 8
foot, gridded acoustical tile ceiling, I got the bright idea to use some
nylon mason's twine I had and make up a bunch of sling loops over the
grid members and under the tiles.  Ran the coax up the steel door jamb 
from
the flea market room, taped it down with painter's tape, ran it through 
the

loops hung from the ceiling grid well above the heads of anyone walking
under it and over the top of the one door marked do not use except in
emergency.  Outside, it was then easy to rout it along the building wall
out of the way and connect up the antennas.

This won't work for every situation but it's something to consider if a
dropped ceiling presents itself.  If you get a chance to scope out the
venue before hand, you could even take some aluminum strap (available at
hardware stores) and bend yourself some strips with a big hook on one end
and a small straight flat on the other that could be slipped under a
ceiling tile without having to lift the tiles up to tie a string loop 
over

the grid.  Keeps the coax up out of the way where the foot traffic can't
trip over it.

Jim - W0EB
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--
Walter Underwood
wun...@wunderwood.org



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Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

[wb4jfi]

 is involved, you are taking your chances.  Hi Hi.  Sometimes 
knobs are just plain easier to use.


Yes, there has been a lot of discussion about whether or not the K3 is an 
SDR.  I personally believe that it is, because a significant part of the 
SIGNAL PROCESSING is done in an executing software program, and that program 
can be changed.  Not as easily as loading a new EXE in Windows, but it can 
be.  Even though the RF front-end follows a traditional analog superhet 
receiver design up to the second IF.  In my mind, there's no question that 
the KX3 is an SDR.  It is similar in very basic layout as an SDR Cube, 
Softrock/host computer, etc, in that it uses QSD/QSE mixers, an Si570, and 
a dsPIC back-end that is fully reconfigurable.


I remember others here, including the author of much of the DSP code for the 
K3 and KX3 has previously stated that they also believe both rigs are SDRs. 
BTW, the Elecraft P3 IS A DDC RECEIVER, with a 14-bit ADC, sampling at about 
60Ms/s, and feeding an ASIC DDC chip, then a dsPIC chip for FFT and other 
DSP work.  Yes, it samples the 8.215MHz IF from the K3, but as Elecraft 
states, it can be used on other radios as well.  It does take advantage of 
the K3's RF front end, including preamps, filtering, etc.  I would NOT hook 
an antenna directly to it!


Spectrum analyzers are nice if you can afford one - many people can't.  I 
have both a homebrew W7ZOI one, and a commercial unit.  They usually don't 
have the sensitivity to look at typical weak HF signals, and they aren’t 
usually designed to demodulate anything, or at least not CW or SSB. 
Panadaptors/spectrum displays are really coming to the forefront of SDRs. 
In fact, I would argue the opposite of your comment.  Some hams are using 
SDRs, or at least hardware originally designed as an SDR, for many bench 
applications.  Spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, antenna analyzers, etc 
can be based on some of the better SDR hardware.  HPSDR Hermes, HiQSDR, even 
Softrocks, have all been used in those applications.


I'm not a digitalist, nor am I an analogist.  I have several radios: RTL 
dongles/upconverter, K3/P3, KX3, SDR-Cube, tons of Softrocks, SDR-IQ, Flex 
1000, SDR-Widget, SDR2GO, HiQSDR, HPSDR boardset, Flex 6500.  I know I 
forgot a couple.  I bought each for a reason, and don't disparage any of 
them.  I did finally sell my Icom IC-720a, a workhorse for over 20 years. 
Except for the clack-clacking!


I've just given talks on SDRs to two local Charleston, SC ham radio clubs 
within the last week (one tonight).  I've been asked whether someone should 
buy a K3 or a Flex 6x00.  To be honest, I told them if they wanted a radio 
to use and rely on in the next year or so, get a K3, or possibly a KX3. 
In about a year, the Flex 6000-series MAY be mature enough to change that 
advice.  As Jerry Pournelle used to say in Byte Magazine:  RSN (Real Soon 
Now).


I want to see more than just tiny little slices at a time.  For contests, I 
want to not only see how the present band looks, but hopefully multiple 
bands, so I can see how propagation is moving.  No, I'm not a very active 
contester, that's just one example.  I LOVE the K3/P3, and have used them on 
CW for Field day the last three years.  The Flex (any Flex) just isn't ready 
for that.


I'm not an EE, just someone who has played with leading-edge amateur radio 
for 45+ years.  I was involved in the first licensed ATV repeater (WR4AAG), 
packet radio development, spread spectrum, a little LF, and now SDR.  I know 
how to burn my fingers with an iron.


In summary: learn about Direct Digital Conversion (Digital Down Conversion) 
(DDC - whatever), look it up.  Read about it.  Don't stick you head in the 
sand, or you too may be carrying around one of those ancient Motorola 2M FM 
rigs with tubes in a Yaesu/Kenwood/Wouxun world.  There are definitely 
pitfalls to DDC/DUC radios.  But, there are several reasons why every cell 
phone has an SDR inside.


Sorry for the length.  To each his/her own.
73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Fred Jensen

Sent: Monday, August 19, 2013 3:33 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 and whats next from Elecraft

I could use some education here please:

What is the advantage of sampling directly off the antenna?  I'm
surmising that's what is meant by real SDR vs hybrid SDR.  I don't
know if 32-bit ADC's existed when the K3 was being designed, but
Elecraft settled on the hybrid superhet analog 1st IF/digital 2nd IF for
at least one reason and probably many.

The dynamic range of signal amplitudes at my coax connector across the 0
to 30MHz spectrum has got to be huge, even after LORAN-C shut down.  Is
there really any benefit to having that broad a spectrum with that large
an amplitude range in the number soup?

If you want to observe that spectrum, wouldn't it be better to use a
spectrum analyzer and save your communications receiver to be optimized
to deal with the tiny little slices we want

Re: [Elecraft] Antennas in the attic

[wb4jfi]

I've had two meter and UHF antennas in the attic without issues.  I also 
have two perpendicular 40M and two perpendicular 20M dipoles in the attic of 
my house.  Up to a year ago, all was fine with my K3 running 100W, either 
band.  Now, if I transmit as low as 20W on one of the 40M dipoles, it 
instantly sets off the fire/smoke detectors in my home security system. 
These fire/smoke detectors are probably 15 or more years old, the whole 
security system is wired.  Most of the wiring IS in the attic, so no big 
surprise.  The 40M dipoles do get our really well, even in the attic.


Since the fire/smoke detectors are being triggered, they set off the whole 
alarm, including calling the monitoring service, whether the alarm system is 
set (enabled) or not.  The SWR on the primary offending 40M dipole has a 
very low SWR, less than 1.2:1 at 7.23MHz.


I'm now researching chokes and bypass caps, and maybe rewiring the smoke 
detectors with shielded cables.  The security system hasn't a clue


So, getting out is not the only issue
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Mike WA8BXN

Sent: Tuesday, August 13, 2013 2:57 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Antennas in the attic




Remember things are different on VHF/UHF bands. Its often FM which reduces
noise problems to some extent, and the wavelengths are shorter and get out
between conductors a lot better than HF.



73 - Mike WA8BXN

---Original Message--- 




From: Phil Kane

Date: 8/13/2013 2:40:41 PM

To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net

Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Antennas in the attic



On 8/13/2013 9:56 AM, Edward R Cole wrote:




So this suggests that VHF and UHF ham antennas can also work in attics.




For several years I used a 2-m mag-mount antenna upside-down on the

ductwork in the plenum area above my office - 3rd floor of a 6-story

building. Had no problem reaching repeaters 30+ miles away. Radio is

magic G



73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane

Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402




From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest


Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon
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Re: [Elecraft] [K3] Audio circuit distortion

[wb4jfi]

I use oxygen-depleted speaker wire for all my wire antennas.  It's the 
reason why I can work stations that others can't even hear.  Occasionally, 
those stations are even using RF, but most of the time I can directly hear 
the key clicks from their key disturbing the overly-oxygenated air at the 
key gap.  I DO have problems when a ham is using an electronic keyer, and 
must rely on receiving the actual RF signal in those cases.


What, you call me an air-head?  My brain has been oxygen-depleted for years, 
and I LIKE IT!

73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Wes (N7WS)

Sent: Tuesday, July 23, 2013 4:52 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [K3] Audio circuit distortion

Are you one of those guys who can hear the difference in speaker wire?

I had a guy working for me who was a musician and audiophile who claimed he
could tell the difference.  I referred him to Bob Pease.


On 7/23/2013 1:22 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote:

  Don Putnick don.n...@earthlink.net wrote:

I watched the presentation again. Yes, Rob said the K3 was fixed in 2008. 
He also said the fix wasn't as good as he'd like. It didn't compete with 
the 0.3% distortion of the Icom 756 Pro III. So if you look at the 
distortion products at 44:20, would the average amateur (like me) be able 
to hear that?

Short answer: No.

I have excellent hearing (I'm an acoustic guitarist and pianist in my 
spare time), and after we made all the updates to the K3, I burned quite 
a bit of lab time trying to hear what Rob was talking about.  I tried 
*really* hard, as did my staff. We couldn't hear it. Rob is superhuman :)


True, it would be possible to reclaim a bit of extra AF headroom by using 
an AF amp that's heavily biased (class A). But 99% of operators would not 
benefit, the radio would draw an extra 200-300 mA with no signal in 
receive mode, and the chip(s) would need fairly extensive heat sinking. 
Doesn't seem like a good tradeoff.


(Disclaimer: I'm biased towards energy efficiency and portability.)

Wayne
N6KR



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Re: [Elecraft] [QRP-L] DDS module

[wb4jfi]

I'm in Charleston, SC, and my computers are shut down right now, due to 
thunderstorms and possible tornadoes.  Yesterday, we had a 7-hour power 
outage after a similar set of storms.  Thanks to a house generator, we had 
air conditioning, but I haven't turned any computers back on, other than 
this portable unit.  For that reason, I can't get to my information on these 
devices right now.


If you do an ebay search for AD9850, you will find MANY people selling these 
modules.  Within that group, there are some that have the schematic posted. 
Look at the pictures of each module, then look at the details of the devices 
on sale that match yours.  You can also find a few that have Arduino 
sketches, the same sketch will work for either type of module.  I have it on 
another computer here, but am concerned about posting it, regarding any 
possible copyright issues.


There are two types of there modules, I have a few of each type, along with 
a similar module that had an AD9851 instead.  The type you have has a 
smaller oscillator and very small pot, the other version has a larger 
oscillator, and a much larger pot.  Both types appear to have low-pass 
filters designed for the higher-frequency AD9851, as the LPF parts values 
are the same as the one on the AD9851 boards.


If I remember correctly, on your module, there is a discrepancy between the 
pin numbers/signals on the schematic and the board itself, on the upper two 
pins of the two-row connector.  I will provide more info as I can get to it.


A few years ago, I drove the AD9850 and many other DDS chips/modules using a 
PIC 18F2455.  This code was originally written by Tom, and was available on 
the DDS Controller Yahoo group, for QSD/DDS board by Dave, WB6DHW.  I went 
crazy and added support for many other DDS chips.


More recently, I've played with these modules driven by an Arduino.  There 
are a few web sites that have some basic Arduino skteches to drive these 
cheap DDS boards.


These modules are pretty easy to drive.  You need three signals, plus 
optionally a reset line.  The AD9850 can be programmed either by a series of 
eight-bit bytes in parallel fashion, or more often with a 40-bit serial 
bitstream (IIRC).  You drop the chip select (FQ_UD?), and set the data bit, 
then toggle up  down the clock bit.  Do that 40 times for the 40 data bits, 
then bring the chip select back up.  To set the AD9850 to serial mode, you 
also need to set a couple of pins to VCC or ground.  I sort of remember D7 
being one of them, but I can't remember the exact details right now.


Hope that helps some.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Brian Pepperdine

Sent: Thursday, June 27, 2013 2:52 PM
To: n...@juno.com ; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [QRP-L] DDS module

Bill Meara is playing with one and relating his experiences on Soldersmoke, 
his blog.

He has a few postings regarding it.
http://soldersmoke.blogspot.ca/search?q=dds


To: qr...@mailman.qth.net
Date: Thu, 27 Jun 2013 13:06:34 -0500
From: n...@juno.com
Subject: [QRP-L] DDS module

When ordering some parts from an offshore vendor, I decided, on a whim,
to add one of the little $5 AD9850 DDS modules to the cart.
Arrived today, looks fine, but, as I fully expected would be the case, no
documentation accompanied it.

It was item 330840407981 from chipworld

I wonder if someone on the list has been playing with this same module
and has deciphered it.
The good news is that the labelling on the board more or less matches the
pinout in the 9850 data sheet.

It measures 42 mm x 30 mm, has a single row 7-pin header on one end, and
a dual row 14 pin header on the other.
There's a 125 MHz oscillator can on board.
The only ID-like marking is 19026AP4-24 (might be 19826AP4-24) right
above the 9850 chip.

I can send a hi-res image if you think you may have some insight.

Otherwise, we'll take the datasheet and start tracing  :^))

A receiver project is in the plans, and this is an excuse to write some
PIC code to control the DDS.

73,
Jim, N5IB

1 Odd spice that FIGHTS diabetes
Can this unusual #34;super spice#34; control your blood sugar and fight 
diabetes#63

http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/51cc7f506839b7f507defst01vuc
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Re: [Elecraft] Power Supplies for K3

[WB4JFI]

I have used one of the Powerwerx supplies with a K3 for a couple of years now.  
It works great, with very little problems.  When I got mine, they still had a 
switch set to 220VAC, and the output was low until you changed it to 120VAC.  
Instructions were included regarding that.  Mine also had some sort of 
non-conductive finish on the binding posts in the back, which I had to remove 
with sandpaper.

I doubt that you will have these problems, however.  This will be the third 
field day that a local club uses my K3 and Powerwerx supply for the CW 
position.  MUCH better than the monster Astron.

Sent from tfox iPad

On Jun 11, 2013, at 9:31 PM, Gerald Manthey kc6...@gmail.com wrote:

 I second the powerworxs
 On Jun 11, 2013 8:28 PM, Anthony Scandurra K4QE k...@att.net wrote:
 
 powerwerx.com model SS-30DV.  Quiet, no RF hash, small, and light.  I
 have had it for just over a year now, and it has been on one DXpedition.
 
 73, Tony K4QE
 
 
 
 From: Peter Chamalian w...@arrl.net
 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
 Sent: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 9:18 PM
 Subject: [Elecraft] Power Supplies for K3
 
 
 I have a big Astron 50A power supply to run my K3, P3 and other small
 items.
 Problem is this big brute generates a ton of heat.  I'm considering a
 replacement - perhaps a switching supply and would be interested in knowing
 what others are using successfully.  I'm not looking for cheap, I'm looking
 for good, rock solid and no noise or other crud that might otherwise
 impact my K3.
 
 
 
 Thanks!
 
 
 
 
 
 Pete, W1RM
 
 
 
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Re: [Elecraft] How many Windows users are using Windows 98 SE?

[wb4jfi]

I still have a working IMSAI computer with 3 SA800 disk drives and an H19 
terminal.  Plus in storage an Altair 8800 an Altrair 8800b turnkey, an extra 
H19 terminal, and a bunch of S100 boards.  And a Xerox-820 in a homebrew 
portable case, just like an Osborne, which I used to us as a 'satellite 
simulator when working with AX.25 and AO-27 command stuff.  I have most of 
the old CP/M and SIG/U user group disks as well.  I dumped the Diablo 620(?) 
printer when I moved

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Grant Youngman

Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2013 6:17 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net List
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] How many Windows users are using Windows 98 SE?

if we're going back that far, is anyone out there still running CP/M or 
Phimon, or using switches to toggle in machine code one byte at a time?  Or 
worrying about the behavior of thunks in Algol and side effects of call by 
name, or perhaps whether all of the filaments in the tubes in the 64-bit 
accumulator are ok?


:DGrant NQ5T


On May 28, 2013, at 5:05 PM, Bill Blomgren billb...@nc.rr.com wrote:

In the commercial world, 98 went by the wayside back when MS dropped 
support for it... which was somewhere in the 2000's as I remember.  (I 
never supported 98.. I was only in the server world there.)


Considering the age of the computers that -can- run 98 these days, they 
are .. well... OLD.  I have 1 down in Charlotte that I didn't bump to XP 
only because I had a film scanner from Polaroid (4000 pixels per inch) 
that did an incredible job.. but had software that ONLY ran on 98.  4 
weeks after I bought that puppy ($1500 then) - Polaroid went belly up.  So 
there have been NO updates for the drivers and guts of the scanning 
software.  sigh


But I don't know anyone still running 98 or ME at this point.  None.  LOTS 
of people on Linux, Mac, and Windows XP and 7.  A few running Vista.. I 
don't know of anyone running 8 at this point. (Uptake has been 1/2 the 
dismal Vista uptake, which tells you something...)


Moving up to the next generation of Compiler would be a good thing in my 
eyes, but a lot of software doesn't need 64 bit versions.. (I suspect your 
utilities probably are some of those...) - the WOW layer handles thunking 
nicely so that 32 bit applications will run happily on 64 bit OS's.. 
Compile for 32 bit in all cases because the last version that had 16 bit 
support was XP as I remember.


- Original Message - From: Dick Dievendorff die...@comcast.net
To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2013 5:23 PM
Subject: [Elecraft] How many Windows users are using Windows 98 SE?


I've been building the various Elecraft utilities (K3 Utility, KX3 
Utility,
P3 Utility, KPA Utility, XG3 Utility, K144XV Utility and XG3 Utility) 
with a
2005-era compiler, because that's the most recent version of the 
Microsoft

Visual Studio C++ compiler that generates executables that will run on
Windows 98 SE.


I'd like to move to a more modern compiler, but the resulting code they
generate will run only on Windows XP and later.  That is, Windows XP,
Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8.



Would you be inconvenienced by this change?  I'm hoping there aren't 
many.




Please let me know if you need the Windows versions of the Elecraft
Utilities to run on Windows OS prior to Windows XP, and what OS you have.



Thanks  73 de Dick, K6KR



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Re: [Elecraft] A KX3 Curiosity Question about ACC2 and RXIQ

[wb4jfi]

My guess would be that with different size connectors, it is harder to plug 
the wrong thing into the wrong place.  This makes it less likely that you 
will plug an ACC1 cable into the ACC2 jack by mistake, and less likely that 
you would plug headphones into the RXIQ jack, for example.

73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Phil Hystad

Sent: Monday, March 18, 2013 12:19 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net List
Subject: [Elecraft] A KX3 Curiosity Question about ACC2 and RXIQ

On my KX3 the ACC2 and the RXIQ connectors are 2.5 mm rather than a more 
common 3.5 mm.  So, does anyone know why these are 2.5 mm rather than 3.5 
mm.  I understand that they are smaller but looking at the KX3 and how and 
where they are located I do not see that smaller is required for the design.


Is there a good engineering design reason behind this decision?  I have no 
complaints but rather lots of curiosity.


73, phil, K7PEH

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Re: [Elecraft] Wait For The K4 Direct RF Sampled SDR?

[wb4jfi]

I love my K3/P3/SVGA and my KX3 as well.  I do want to mention that the new 
Flex 6000 series uses a 16-bit A/D, with over 245Ms/s sample clock, much 
better than 100Ms/s.  Processing gain is real, and should help the 16-bit 
range somewhat, but 16-bits is not really 16-bits in the real world.  Throw 
away at least 1/2 bit, and maybe more.


It will be very interesting to see what a Flex 6000 series finally does in 
various receive parameters, especially dynamic range.  They claim to handle 
a very large dynamic range, even without the various RF filters.


I can't wait to see the Sherwood report on the 6000 series.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Barry LaZar

Sent: Wednesday, March 13, 2013 10:13 AM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Wait For The K4 Direct RF Sampled SDR?

I'm sort of curious about what Flex is doing with their new radio. The
heart of it has to be a very good A/D converter, but the best thing I'm
aware of is an Analog Devices 16 bit, 100 Msp/s one that ain't exactly
cheap. To approach the dynamic range in the KX3 and the K3, 16 bits may
be a might short.

I, too, believe that direct sampling and high dynamic range is still a
bit off particularly if you want to be able to afford one. I like the
magic of my KX3 when used with NaP3 and a 24 bit, ASIO compliant sound
card. As a practical matter, it serves for the 95% situations. those
last five will include a lightning storm over my house or someone like
W3LPL moving next door.

73,
Barry
K3NDM


On 3/13/2013 9:49 AM, Wayne Burdick wrote:

No need to speculate. There is no such project underway at Elecraft.

Direct RF-sampling receivers, for all their technology, still lag well 
behind the K3 in blocking dynamic range, and probably will continue to for 
years to come. We're quite happy with our superhet architecture. Also, any 
advancement we make to the K3 will be retrofittable to existing K3s, so 
your investment is safe.


73,
Wayne
N6KR


On Mar 12, 2013, at 8:04 PM, Bob Schumacher wrote:

Given the advances in direct RF sampled SDRs (currently available QS1R, 
soon to be released Flex-6000, etc.), Elecraft must be quietly working on 
on an RF sampled K4 SDR. Maybe we will see an anouncement in May at 
Dayton? I am wondering if I should take the leap with the Flex or wait 
for Elecraft? I suspect that Elecraft will provide a higher value 
solution. Any speculation on this point by Elecraft fans?


Thanks,

W9DBR
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Re: [Elecraft] [KX3] Portable Antenna question

[wb4jfi]

Hey Lyle!

Thanks for the shout-out!  I continue to be VERY impressed with the Elecraft 
equipment, along with your contributions to them.  I now have a K3/P3/SVGA, 
and a KX3.  A friend here in Charleston and I are playing with some 
interfacing to these rigs.  Being retired brings more time to play, but less 
funds to go hog wild!  Or, should that be Ham wild?

73,
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Lyle

Sent: Saturday, March 09, 2013 2:19 PM
To: Lynn W. Taylor, WB6UUT
Cc: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [KX3] Portable Antenna question

Hello Lynn!

Welcome aboard!

73,

Lyle

PS: For those who don't know him, Lynn is another of the early packet radio 
pioneers that seem to be joining the Elecraft family, and whom I've known 
since 1982 or so.  Terry WB4JFI is another.



My new KX3 is due to arrive on Monday -- with the KXAT3 tuner.


73 -- Lynn, WB6UUT

P.S. Hi Lyle

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Re: [Elecraft] iSDR app and KX3 not working

[wb4jfi]

Hello there, I might be able to help a little.

I assume that you have the KX3 analog I/Q outputs connected to the Griffin 
iMic IN jack, the iMic plugged into the Apple USB camera adaptor, which 
then plugs into the iPad connector?


By new generation iPad, do you really mean the iPad 2, or iPad 3, or Mini? I 
see you mention both an iPad 2 and a new generation iPad, they aren't the 
same.


I have been using the iMic and Apple adaptor for well over a year, including 
with an original iPad, iPad 2, and iPad 3.  However, I do not have a KX3 
(yet).  I'm using my setup mostly with Softrocks, but the KX3 generates 
analog I/Q signals similar to the Softrock, and I've heard others use that 
combination OK.


The first thing that I would check is that you are connected properly to the 
KX3 analog I/Q outputs.  That would be my guess if you are loading iSDR 
properly, and everything else seems OK.  Also, can you see the demo or 
prerecorded spectrum in iSDR?


You will not have control over the KX3 from iSDR, as in tuning the KX3, etc. 
A friend and I have been working on a way to add that for a while now, using 
an Arduino and ethernet to connect to the KX3 and send CAT commands from the 
iSDR.  I've been stuck trying to get a wifi version running, but wifi on the 
Arduino is a pain, and I've been having house work done that has unfocused 
me for two months now.  Charles is aware of our work.


73, Terry, WB4JFI
wb4...@knology.net

-Original Message- 
From: GDR

Sent: Saturday, December 29, 2012 5:48 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] iSDR app and KX3 not working

I am in need of advice. I have the newer iPad 2 and am having no luck 
getting it to work with the KX3 using the iSDR app. I am using the Griffin 
external sound card and basically doing what the uTube video I Googled is 
doing but all I am seeing is noise, no stations and the iPad has no control 
of the KX3. Seems that the KX3 and the iPad are not talking to one another. 
My first question is, has anyone used the new generation iPad successfully 
with iSDR? Any tricks to get it to work? Thanks for reading.




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Re: [Elecraft] OT: Smart Tweezers

[wb4jfi]

I have had one of these for a while now.  Getting the wrong parts from 
Digikey one time pushed me over the edge to get them.  Highly recommended, 
but not cheap.
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Ken G Kopp
Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2012 5:44 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] OT: Smart Tweezers

This is really slick.  Not cheapbut if you work with micro 
components,
it might be worth it.

http://www.smarttweezers.com/Smart_Tweezers_LCR_Meter.htm

73! Ken - K0PP
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Re: [Elecraft] USB Sound Adapter

[wb4jfi]

Weird.  The ebay item write-up says mono-mic input at one point, but it also 
talks about two ADCs.  Which is it?

Thanks for the info, please keep us informed.
73, Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Clint
Sent: Thursday, August 23, 2012 3:45 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [Elecraft] USB Sound Adapter

I found an adaptor based on the VIA Envy VT1620A . ( 
http://www.via.com.tw/en/products/audio/usb/vt1620a/index.jsp )

It is on eBay for $14.00! : 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/plug-into-USB-Stereo-Sound-Adapter-Easily-Fix-Upgrade-Computer-Sound-System-/310401470794?_trksid=p5197.m1992_trkparms=aid%3D111000%26algo%3DREC.CURRENT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D14%26meid%3D1535698449564030522%26pid%3D100015%26prg%3D1006%26rk%3D1%26

Now lets see if it works. Should get a chance to try next week. Grandkids 
first, then home and play with K3...

Clint
KI6SSN
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Re: [Elecraft] USB sound dongle

[wb4jfi]

Joseph Mitola (father of SDR, he coined the term SDR I believe) suggests 
that 130dB of dynamic range is required to properly cover signals at HF (see 
his seminal book Software Radio Architecture).  That is hard to get with a 
sound card (you need 22-bits of VALID data), but you can get better than 
90dB with a GOOD sound card and careful attention to signal and GROUND 
paths.

One of the reasons I love DDC-based receivers is that while you can 
get/afford at best 16-bit ADC chips (with not quite a 90dB true dynamic 
range, and not the theoretical 96dB), you do get the advantage of processing 
gain from decimation.  This is REAL gain, not some magic performed inside 
the chip by a monkey.  The common shortcut is that you can estimate a 
processing gain of 6dB for every factor of four in the decrease of 
input/output signal sample rate, if memory serves me.  That's the equivalent 
of another bit in the ADC for every 1/4 frequency decimation.

As Barry mentions, direct-sampling and decimation works.  It's used in cell 
phones and lots of other radios these days.  It's hard to balance all the 
gains/losses, bit growth, etc, inside the frequency downconverter, CIC, 
shaping FIR, final FIR, etc inside a Direct Digital Converter (DDC) 
receiver.  But, when it's right, it's a beautiful thing.  Look at the 
Perseus, openHPSDR (Mercury and Hermes), HiQSDR, SDR-IQ (SDR-14) and its 
brothers, Charleston SDR, AFEDRI-Net, etc.  I've played quite a bit with 
most of these, including some redesign work on the Charleston SDR (with a 
12-bit ADC), and the increase in dynamic range from decimation is provable. 
But, they can still get overloaded just like any other rig.  Putting 
filter-banks before the ADC to prevent ADC overload is still a good thing. 
Using faster ADCs helps as well, as the decimation can be increased.

With the analog I/Q output of the KX3, you don't need quite as much dynamic 
range (I don't think) because you can let the rig's AGC and other processing 
help slide the receiver's dynamic range around a bit.  Lyle or others can 
say if this is correct or not.  That may be Joe's point, that the actual I/Q 
level range from the KX3 is mitigated by the rig's processing.  The RF 
signal at that point MUST be limited to prevent overload of the ADC in the 
KX3 that converts the analog IF signals for further DSP, therefore that 
limiting also takes care of managing the analog I/Q signals.
73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Barry LaZar
Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2012 9:23 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] USB sound dongle

Years and years ago, I was involved in an area that had to do with
propagation and circuit path analysis. I was in a room full of academics
when the hot discussion began. The issue was what is the instantaneous
dynamic range of the environment. There were two schools of thought. One
said that the environment had a dynamic range of 120db and the other
said 144db. What is missed by outsiders to this is the question for what
period of time? As path reliability is quoted as a probability, time
matters. As it turns out all of these folk were fighting over a period
represented by less than 5%. And, most of the published environmental
data is for the median, 50% of the time.

There was a study that someone wrote and published a number of years ago
in QST that stated 80db was all you need as a ham. And, the author gave
his reasons. I think it should be a bit more, but we could start another
thread on that issue.

I have done direct down conversion SDRs using 16 bit 100MHz A/Ds.
However, you really don't get 100MHz bandwidth as Nyguist says you need
to sample at least 2X the bandwidth of interest. And adding a little
practicality to that, you really don't get 1/2 the bandwidth either as
you would like some over-sampling. If you want to play with this, Analog
Devices makes the A/D that I used. However they ain't cheap.

I can assure  you that direct sampling works. There are some real tricks
involved known to the DSP engineers, of which I am not one. But, it
works and works well.

To account for what you are concerned with, what you really want is an
inverse taper of receiver gain, less gain at the bottom and more at the
top. By doing this, environmental noise will less likely overwhelm your
A/D, yet total system noise figure can be maintained such that you will
always be externally noise limited. And secondarily, Don't use too much
gain up front. Distribute the gain along the receiver chain to keep
dynamic range. This latter point is how you get quiet, high dynamic
range, sensitive receivers.

Spending more than say $150 for a really good sound card probably
doesn't make a whole lot of sense when using a KX3. But, I admit I do
like the idea of the capability to mess with the thing as I do. If
you're saner than I, use the sound card in you computer. It will work
quite well when using the line out. You just miss the fun of an
additional play toy.


73,
Barry
K3NDM

Re: [Elecraft] odds and ends...

[WB4JFI]

Mr Nyquist would be happily surprised at that.  With IQ samples at 48kS/s 
each, you get a maximum of 48kHz, or one-half the total bandwidth.  Not 48k+48k.

So, with a 48k sample rate, you will get plus and minus 24k from center.

Sent from tfox iPad

On Aug 19, 2012, at 4:33 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV li...@subich.com wrote:

 
 The sound card's maximum sampling rate will determine how wide your
 panadapter display can be (in kHz); for example, a sound card capable
 of sampling at 48 kHz can display slightly less than 48 kHz of
 spectrum. If you want a wider display, you will have to ensure that
 your sound card can sample at higher rates.
 
 A sound card capable of 48 KHz sample rate can display slightly less
 than 96 KHz.  With I/Q inputs and 48 KHz sampling you get +/- 48 KHz.
 
 73,
 
... Joe, W4TV
 
 On 8/19/2012 4:20 PM, Richard Ferch wrote:
 Jeff,
 
 In addition to the cable, you will also need to be sure that your
 laptop's sound card accepts stereo input. Panadapter software requires
 stereo input (I and Q channels). Some laptop input jacks will only
 accept mono signals, even though the laptop's sound card itself is
 stereo. My newest laptop, for example, has a TRRS jack for the sound
 card with a single input line, two stereo output lines, and ground.
 I have no way to get stereo input into this sound card. An older laptop
 I have has separate input and output jacks, but while the output jack is
 stereo, the input jack is mono. If your laptop is like either of these,
 your only recourse may be to get an external USB sound card with stereo
 inputs.
 
 The sound card's maximum sampling rate will determine how wide your
 panadapter display can be (in kHz); for example, a sound card capable of
 sampling at 48 kHz can display slightly less than 48 kHz of spectrum. If
 you want a wider display, you will have to ensure that your sound card
 can sample at higher rates.
 
 Note that if you need to use an external (e.g. USB) sound card, it may
 or may not have 3.5mm inputs. For example, I have one with dual RCA
 phono jacks for its line inputs. With one of these cards, you would need
 to go from 2.5mm stereo for the KX3's RX I/Q jack to two separate RCA
 phono plugs for the sound card's input.
 
 I don't know whether Radio Shack has the specific cable you would need,
 but I am sure that they have cables and adapters that could be combined
 to achieve the desired result.
 
 73,
 Rich VE3KI
 
 
 WW6L wrote:
 
 Per the manual Iit looks like I would need one of these
 
 A cable with a 2.5 mm (3/32) plug on one end and
 a plug that matches your sound card input on the
 other end (typically 3.5 mm [1/8] stereo) is
 required.
 
 If I want to see a panadapter display on my laptop.
 
 Where do I get it?
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Re: [Elecraft] odds and ends...

[WB4JFI]

Reputable companies also sell oxygen-depleted cables to audiophiles.

You can't cheat mother nature, no matter how hard you try.  I don't doubt that 
they can display whatever they want, but as to actual, significant data 
displayed thereon, that's a different matter.

A single channel of adc samples at 48ks/s can only display VALID unique 
frequency data up to 24 kHz before the spectrum folds over.  Since both I and 
Q can be used, they effectively double the sample rate, as if you were sampling 
at 96k.  Not exactly correct, but close enough.

Nyquist -who is still valid in the real world - theory says that you can only 
recover signals whose freq is up to one-half the sample rate.  Again, I am 
generalizing, but close enough.  So, one-half of 96k is 48k, not 96k.  
Factoring not involved.  48k total bandwidth before the spectrum folds over.  
Doesn't matter what the display says.  Try it on Rocky, Powersdr, hdsdr, 
winrad, etc.

I'm not saying that Joe or Larry are doing anything wrong, just that if your 
sound card (or DDC or other device) is providing I/Q samples at 48ks/s per I/Q 
pair, th best you can get is a total of 48k of valid, unique, and correct 
spectrum data points.  That usually results in plus and minus 24khz being 
displayed around center frequency.  

To say that you can display 96k of unique, correct spectrum data from a 48ks/s 
rate I/Q pair is, well, not accurate (wrong).  It's like depleting too much 
oxygen from your speaker cables.  You end up with a hollow sound, like taking 
the oxygen away left too much room for the electrons to bounce around in.  If 
you like fuzzy bass, that's ok.

But, I've been wrong before.
Sent from tfox iPad

On Aug 19, 2012, at 9:54 PM, Don Wilhelm w3...@embarqmail.com wrote:

 I don't know the advertized numbers, but Mr. Nyquist aside, there is a reason 
 that two independent experts with panadapter displays (Joe Subich W4TV and 
 Larry Phipps K8LP of LP-Pan fame) state that a soundcard with a 48 kHz rate 
 will produce a 96 kHz span on the pan display.
 
 I do not doubt Nyquist, but I think the treatment of the numbers are a bit 
 different (factor of 2)  Could it be due to the two channels? I really don't 
 know the answers and do not have the energy to investigate such things 
 anymore, I just choose to trust the experts who deal with this I/Q stuff on a 
 daily basis.  I guess my scientific curiosity has declined with advancing 
 years - it is no longer enjoyable to argue on the basis of observations vs. 
 theory to sort out the differences - that was fun mind games many years 
 ago. but today it is no longer a challenge.
 
 73,
 Don W3FPR
 
 On 8/19/2012 5:45 PM, WB4JFI wrote:
 Mr Nyquist would be happily surprised at that.  With IQ samples at 48kS/s 
 each, you get a maximum of 48kHz, or one-half the total bandwidth.  Not 
 48k+48k.
 
 So, with a 48k sample rate, you will get plus and minus 24k from center.
 
 Sent from tfox iPad
 
 On Aug 19, 2012, at 4:33 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV li...@subich.com wrote:
 
 The sound card's maximum sampling rate will determine how wide your
 panadapter display can be (in kHz); for example, a sound card capable
 of sampling at 48 kHz can display slightly less than 48 kHz of
 spectrum. If you want a wider display, you will have to ensure that
 your sound card can sample at higher rates.
 A sound card capable of 48 KHz sample rate can display slightly less
 than 96 KHz.  With I/Q inputs and 48 KHz sampling you get +/- 48 KHz.
 
 73,
 
... Joe, W4TV
 
 On 8/19/2012 4:20 PM, Richard Ferch wrote:
 Jeff,
 
 In addition to the cable, you will also need to be sure that your
 laptop's sound card accepts stereo input. Panadapter software requires
 stereo input (I and Q channels). Some laptop input jacks will only
 accept mono signals, even though the laptop's sound card itself is
 stereo. My newest laptop, for example, has a TRRS jack for the sound
 card with a single input line, two stereo output lines, and ground.
 I have no way to get stereo input into this sound card. An older laptop
 I have has separate input and output jacks, but while the output jack is
 stereo, the input jack is mono. If your laptop is like either of these,
 your only recourse may be to get an external USB sound card with stereo
 inputs.
 
 The sound card's maximum sampling rate will determine how wide your
 panadapter display can be (in kHz); for example, a sound card capable of
 sampling at 48 kHz can display slightly less than 48 kHz of spectrum. If
 you want a wider display, you will have to ensure that your sound card
 can sample at higher rates.
 
 Note that if you need to use an external (e.g. USB) sound card, it may
 or may not have 3.5mm inputs. For example, I have one with dual RCA
 phono jacks for its line inputs. With one of these cards, you would need
 to go from 2.5mm stereo for the KX3's RX I/Q jack to two separate RCA
 phono plugs for the sound card's input.
 
 I don't know whether Radio Shack has the specific cable you would need

Re: [Elecraft] Field Day

[wb4jfi]

A few friends and I operated field day from a field near Charleston, SC. 
Two of us operated the CW station inside a tent, with my K3/P3 combo, using 
a small Honda generator.   The power supply is the small PowerWerx SS-30DV. 
On Sunday, the rig got plenty hot, as it was in the sun coming from the tent 
door.  We did about 420 CW contacts on 40 and 20, K4AOC.  Except when the 
generator ran out of gas (only once), we had no problems with the K3 
shutting down, or anything else.  The various receive adjustments all came 
in handy at one time or other during the operations.  Success was declared 
at about noon, as rig and operators were all getting too hot.  The SSB 
station was inside a nice air-conditioned building.  Imagine that.  I guess 
since we were tuffing-it-out on CW, they figured we didn't need no stinkin' 
AC either

I REALLY enjoy my K3/P3!
73, Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Jim Harris
Sent: Monday, June 25, 2012 12:51 PM
To: Elecraft Email
Subject: [Elecraft] Field Day

Hi,
Took my K3 to Field Day again this year and ran mostly RTTY.  Made about 130 
Q's which is about normal for Field Day.  We operated on the dry, dusty 
and hot plains east of Colorado Springs CO.  Wondering if anyone has a good 
and thorough cleaning scheme for the K3 and P3?  They picked up a lot of 
dust and grim and I want to clean them well before installing them back into 
the shack.
BTW, add another weird malfunction to those this radio has already 
experienced.  When first powered up at the Field Day site when RIT was 
pressed the LCD brightness menu would display.  PF1 is set up for a 
different function for those thinking I was holding the button too long. 
After shutting everything down and restarting it worked fine.  This K3 has 
had some weird problems in the past with all of them confirmed.

Take pride in the USA. 73



Jim, W0EM
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Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?

[wb4jfi]

Joe, if you go to the Flex on-line store, you will see the 6500 is $3,999, 
which I reported in an earlier email.  Yes, that does NOT include the 
computer or the software fee.  Given the amount of processing done inside 
the 6000 series, except for requiring gig-e, I'm not sure that a honking 
computer is required.

BTW, you really need to research DDCs.  Previous comments about signals 
combining exponentially seems a little off.  I think the military and other 
users (including Quicksilver, HPSDR, HiQSDR, and SDR-IQ users) might be 
slightly surprised by that math.

From a K3 lover, and not necessarily a Flex lover, but in the interest of 
balance.
73
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV
Sent: Monday, May 21, 2012 1:03 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?


 Flex is releasing the new 6500 and 6700 radios. Again, mockups and not
 operational at Dayton. Price on 6500 is $3900 and 6700 around $7k

Where did you see $3900 for the Flex 6500?  I was told $5995 for the
single front end radio and $7999 for the dual front end radio.  That
doesn't include a high end computer with multiple displays and a $200
per year software license fee.

73,

... Joe, W4TV


On 5/21/2012 11:37 AM, Dave wrote:
 They had brochures on the 3000 but no radio on display. Looks like same 
 size
 and form as the Icom 7600.

 Kenwood had a mockup of the new TS-990. Back connections were covered and
 not visible. Front display was showing a photo and was not a working 
 radio.
 According to Kenwood the hardware design is just about finished but 
 firmware
 has a long way to go. They are hoping for FCC cert in August and shipping
 around November. (They didn't say what year!) Price is between $5k and 
 $10k.

 Flex is releasing the new 6500 and 6700 radios. Again, mockups and not
 operational at Dayton. Price on 6500 is $3900 and 6700 around $7k

 Dave
 wo2x


 -Original Message-
 From: Mike Rodgers
 Sent: Monday, May 21, 2012 11:25 AM
 To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
 Subject: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?

 Did anyone see or turn knobs on the proposed FTDX-3000?
 Did Kenwood have the rumored new
 Hf rig?

 Thanks
 Mike R

 Play me some fiddle, but no stinkin' violin!

 Amateur/Ham Radio KE5GBC
 HF  Echolink mobile
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Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?

[wb4jfi]

First of all, I do not use every bell and whistle on my K3, and I don't have 
every option available on my K3, even though it's nicely loaded to me.  For 
example, I do not have the second receiver.  So, I do not use my existing 
rig to it's maximum use.  Therefore, to extrapolate that I would need to 
take advantage of every morsel in the 6700 or 6500 is apples to oranges.

Your second assumption brings up a valid point, but not the intended one. 
Yes, a Mac Mini probably won't work well.  But, not due to a lack of 
horsepower.  Flex's initial software is for Windows.  Yes, I know all about 
using Parallels and the other software thing that lets you run Windows 
programs on Mac.  I have a Macbook here as well as Windows and Linux.  Macs 
are notoriously expensive for what you get.  I bet a $700-$900 (excluding 
monitor, since you priced just the Mini) Intel i5 or i7 and Windows box 
would work very nice with a Flex 6000 series.  Feel free to yell at Flex for 
not providing Mac support.

Joe, your math below assumes that every signal is at the same frequency and 
the same phase in order to just add the levels, otherwise things don't just 
add up like that.  For example, even if two signals (both +50dBm) are on the 
exact same frequency, but exactly opposite phases, they WILL CANCEL each 
other out, you will end up with NO dBm.  Nada.  Not the addition of both 
signals, as you seem to imply.  Think vector sums of AC voltages, not DC 
summing as a battery.  Granted, there may be instantaneous flashes where 
signals within the passband combine, but it's not constant like DC voltages, 
as your math implies.  Than goodness we aren't all on the same frequency and 
the same phase.

Back to the main point, the new Flex radios DO come with traditional 
filtering, if you need it.  In Europe or near an AM broadcast station, it 
may be necessary.  However, I am sure that the receiver will have 
significantly better dynamic range than the 96dB implied by a 16-bit RF A/D 
converter.  THAT's the point.  16-bits only gets you 96dB minimum to maximum 
without distortion.  If there's any more dBs found, even in the harshest 
test, there is processing gain.  And most of the DSP and SDR world seems to 
believe in processing gain due to decimation.

Once again, go do research on Digital DownConversion, decimation, SDR, 
processing gain.

And, once again, go to the Flex web site on-line store.  Don't believe me. 
In black and white (not a tee shirt), it says the 6500 is $3,999 as a 
pre-order, with a $1,200 deposit required to pre-order.  Click the button 
yourself.  You might like the rig.

I agree that $200 per year for software support is a bit steep.  BTW, I 
don't think the rig stops working if you don't pay, you just aren't entitled 
to updates.  Oh, wait.  My Macbook requires me pay for EVERY OS upgrade, 
even in-between ones.  I had to buy Snow Leopard just to have the right to 
upgrade from Leopard to Lion.  And that's on a dumb Macbook, which costs a 
lot less that a Flex 6500.  Maybe I should shut up now.

Reflector, I am done with this.  Long live my K3!  I have, and will continue 
to defend my K3 on the Flex reflector just as vigorously.  Sorry for the 
off-topic bandwidth.
73,
Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV
Sent: Monday, May 21, 2012 1:57 PM
To: wb4...@knology.net ; Elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?



 Given the amount of processing done inside the 6000 series, except
 for requiring gig-e, I'm not sure that a honking computer is
 required.

For maximum use, one will probably need a multiple display system -
or multiple computers for radio plus logger.  Not something one
can do with a $699 Mac Mini.

 BTW, you really need to research DDCs. Previous comments about
 signals combining exponentially seems a little off. I think the
 military and other users (including Quicksilver, HPSDR, HiQSDR, and
 SDR-IQ users) might be slightly surprised by that math.

Do the math with multiple S9+20 (-53 dBm) to S9+40 (-33 dBm) signals
in a 300 KHz RX passband (or even with *no* front end filter as Flex
mentions in their brochure).   The effect is two or three volts peak!
It's not simply an extra 3 dB for each additional signal.

With *measured* broadcast signals in Europe adjacent to and within
40 meters of 0 to +10 dBm on a simple dipole, that's going to be a
problem even with the (optional) bandpass filters for each amateur
band.

Yes, in reasonably quiet locations - without strong local signals -
the Flex BDR will be fine.  However, if one lives close to an AM
antenna farm or in a high concentration of active amateurs, the
out of band issue can be severe on 160/80/40.  The bandpass filters
will be necessary, out of band receive will be an issue and contests
with their high level of big signals may be a problem for everyone
with a DDC based receiver. due to ADC overload.

 Joe, if you go to the Flex on-line store, you will see the 6500 is
 $3,999, which I

Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?

[wb4jfi]

Copied directly From the Flex web site (using copy/paste not retyped):

FLEX-6500 Limited Edition Pre-Order Deposit Only - Total Introductory Price: 
$3999
Your Price: $1,200.00

The 6700 receive-only is the $5,999, and the Flex 6700 Rx/Tx is $6,000.  The 
6500 (single SCU) is $3,999.  Look at the page bottom, last item.

Or, am I looking at a different Flex Radio Systems on-line store Signature 
Series page than everyone else?
Terry, WB4JFI

-Original Message- 
From: Peter Wollan
Sent: Monday, May 21, 2012 3:31 PM
To: wb4...@knology.net
Cc: Joe Subich, W4TV ; Elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] [OT] Dayton- new hf rigs?

The prices I find on the Flex web site are $5999 and $6999.

   Peter W0LLN


On Mon, May 21, 2012 at 2:07 PM,  wb4...@knology.net wrote:

 And, once again, go to the Flex web site on-line store.  Don't believe me.
 In black and white (not a tee shirt), it says the 6500 is $3,999 as a
 pre-order, with a $1,200 deposit required to pre-order. 

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Re: [Elecraft] OT: Dayton New Equipment Show

[wb4jfi]

Joe, I'm not sure some of your suppositions are correct.

First of all, the ADC samples at a significantly higher rate than the 
incoming RF (for HF), at 245.76MHz.  Then, those samples go through 
decimation inside Digital DownConverter (DDC) in the FPGA, and the higher 
the decimation, the more the processing gain, and therefore added bits.  I 
believe the typical assumption is that you gain the equivalent of approx. 
one-half bit (3dB) of dynamic range every time you decimate (divide) the 
sample rate by two.  This is real gain, not some imaginary trick or magic. 
If you start with a 245.76MHz sample rate, and end up with 240kHz (example), 
you could achieve a processing gain of an additional five bits, or 30dB.  If 
my quick math is correct.  All without AGC or other games.

Throw away at least one A/D bit, so 15 bits(ADC) plus five bits(proc gain) 
yields 20 bits, or about 120dB of dynamic range.  I must be a little off, as 
I saw one note on the Flex reflector that they think 153dB or so of dynamic 
range.  Maybe by lowering the final sample rate some more, or not tossing 
all of one bit of the ADC.  I believe Mitola suggested that 130dB of dynamic 
range is adequate for HF, I'm not sure if that includes noise from storms, 
etc.  BTW, the new software is called SmartSDR.

I have been playing with DDC receivers for a couple of years now, and I 
firmly believe they will be the future.  I suggest that thorough research of 
DDC-based receiver design will alter your perception.  It did mine.

I love my K3/P3, and do not plan to replace it anytime soon.  It just works 
GREAT, and is a nice compact box without requiring a computer to use.  But, 
I was very tempted to by a Flex 6500.  That is, until I saw the $200 per 
year charge for the software.  Technically, very leading edge.  Marketing, 
you decide.

Hope this isn't too off-topic.
73,
Terry, WB4JFI



-Original Message- 
From: Joe Subich, W4TV
Sent: Saturday, May 19, 2012 7:29 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT: Dayton New Equipment Show


The Flex 6000/6700 is an on frequency direct digital conversion
radio - that is a 16 bit analog to digital converter operating at
the front end of the radio with no intermediate conversion/IF
and filtering stages.  In addition, all of the DSP is contained
in the radio (no more PowerSRD).  The new software for the Flex
6000/6700 (reportedly PowerRX) is essentially a glass control
panel).

A general purpose computer is required for PowerRX but communication
between the computer and transceiver is via TCP/IP which means the
computer can be anywhere.  Audio input and output will be available
both on the transceiver and from PowerRX (interesting for remote
operation scenarios).

The issue will be the severely limited dynamic range of the 16 bit
ADC.  Without effective AGC ahead of the ADC there *will* be overload
problems on crowded bands (e.g. 160/80/40) where any transceiver must
deal with many extremely strong (local) signals while maintaining
maximum sensitivity.  With AGC, the strong local signals will cause
blocking as the gain is reduced to prevent overflow of the ADC.

The new Flex design is certainly interesting but may not truly be
ready for critical real world use with the widely varying signal
levels in amateur service.

73,

... Joe, W4TV


On 5/19/2012 3:43 PM, Tony Estep wrote:
 On Sat, May 19, 2012 at 11:53 AM, Edward R. 
 Colekl...@acsalaska.netwrote:

 ...website now shows the Flex-6000/6700 newest entry into the SDR
 market

 ===
 Said to be digital from antenna connector to output. Their hardware has
 long needed updating, so perhaps this will be it. However, Flex's really
 weak link has always been their software/systems integration, so it 
 remains
 to be seen if this does anything to mitigate that.

 Tony KT0NY



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Re: [Elecraft] Harris Platinum I Channel 2 TV amplifiers for 6m

[wb4jfi]

In my last job before retirement, I helped several  of our stations buy the 
Platinum transmitters.  They are wonderfully reliable.  I don't remember 
hearing of a single module going bad, we must have had at least 15 Platinums 
by then, both low-VHF and high-VHF.  I wonder whatever happened to the 
low-VHF Platinum DTV transmitter we installed in Cleveland (channel 2 or 4, 
I can't remember which) to work through the DTV transition with their analog 
channel 3.

They take a licking, and keep on ticking!
Terry, WB4JFI


-Original Message- 
From: Lance Collister, W7GJ
Sent: Saturday, December 17, 2011 12:04 AM
To: Elecraft Mailing List
Subject: [Elecraft] Harris Platinum I Channel 2 TV amplifiers for 6m

Hello Magic Band newcomers!

There has been quite a bit of interest in these amps, since there are no 
electrical
modifications at all required to use them on 6m.  Typically, they put out a 
kw with
about 8-11 watts of drive or 1500w output with around 25w drive.  They have 
all kinds
of built-in protection circuits and are very rugged!  They make a perfect 
companion
for a 10w K3, or a new KX3!

To keep up with the demand at the low prices at which I am making these 
available, I
have arranged for an additional quantity.  So, the good news is that I still 
have
more available.  Complete details on how to hook them up are continually 
being
updated here:

http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj/HarrisAmps.htm

Complete ordering information is at the bottom of the above web page. 
Orders are
shipped in the order that payment is received.  Be prepared to work those 
rare
stations on 6m with one of these durable amps!

GL and DX on the Magic Band!  VY 73, Lance
-- 
Lance Collister, W7GJ
(ex WA3GPL, WA1JXN, WA1JXN/C6A, ZF2OC/ZF8, E51SIX, 3D2LR, 5W0GJ)
P.O. Box 73
Frenchtown, MT   59834-0073
USA
TEL: (406) 626-5728
QTH: DN27ub
URL: http://www.bigskyspaces.com/w7gj
Windows Messenger: w...@hotmail.com
Skype: lanceW7GJ
2m DXCC #11/6m DXCC #815

Interested in 6m EME?  Ask me about subscribing to the Magic Band EME
email group, or just fill in the request box at the bottom of my web
page (above)!
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