Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51
I seem to have missed the 4.51 release, though I got 4.50. Would someone mind forwarding it over? Matt NQ6N On May 11, 2012, at 10:37 PM, Gary Gregory garyvk...@gmail.com wrote: *Toby, Same results here. Gary * On 12 May 2012 13:55, Toby Pennington toby...@embarqmail.com wrote: I don't know what others have been experiencing using the new 4.51 firmware version, but I really think it is an improvement. I have been listening to pileups tonight on 20 meters and cannot discern any mushy weak cw signals, signals are crisp and easily readable. Maybe I need bigger pileups to get a better handle on this aspect, or certain band conditions. I run the threshold at 14 and the AGC SLP is set to 000. The Noise Blanker is improved. I was able to get rid of s7 line noise, and no distortion in the audio of the received signal. NB settings are dsp T2-4, and the IF is NAR 4. So, the noise is being eliminatd with low setting of the NB. I suppose the real test will be when I hear s9 plus line noise which I frequently get here. AF Gain is set to LO in the config menu and have plenty of nice and crisp audio. I am listening to SSB on 80 meters now and have the RF gain set to about 9:00 and AF gain about 12 oclock. Just lots of gain and audio. I think 4.51 is ready to go BETA. What do others who are using 4.51 think? Toby W4CAK __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html -- Gary VK4FD - Motorhome Mobile Elecraft Equipment K3 #679, KPA-500 #018 Living the dream!!! __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51
I have also missed the 4.51, and even the 4.50 release. The only beta file I can find on the FTP site is 4.48, but 4.48 has also been officially released. Has the FTP folder for beta releases been changed? David G4DMP In a recent message, Matt Murphy m...@nq6n.com writes I seem to have missed the 4.51 release, though I got 4.50. Would someone mind forwarding it over? Matt NQ6N -- + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + | David M Pratt, Kippax, Leeds. | | Website: http://www.g4dmp.co.uk | + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 update
Wayne, My Credit Card is taped to my monitor for this acquisition, PLEASE hurry. Thanks in advance. 73 ES CUL DE N3KHK John R. Klim II ARRL LM, AMSAT LM 10-10: 68135 30MDG: 1820 QSL: LoTW, Bureau, Direct, eQSL as a courtesy -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: Friday, May 11, 2012 8:24 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 update The KAT500 500 W+ ATU is shaping up nicely with the latest hardware and firmware. One of our engineers found that it easily and quickly matched his 23-foot flagpole antenna on 160-6 meters. A certain very popular competing ATU (which shall not be named) found a match only on 40-10 meters on the same antenna. We'll have more test results and pricing soon. Wayne N6KR __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] For Sale
Heil Gold Line Mic GM-4w/ wide and narrow elements $100.00 Heil ProSet Plus Dual Headset w/ wide and narrow elements A/B Phase Reverse – $100.00 Heil PL2T Topless Boom, w/counterweight clamp, cable hides in boom - $75.00 Heil CC1-K 6’ Mic Cable adapter for Elecraft, Kenwood transceivers. - $20.00 Heil CC1-I 6' Mic Cable adapter for Icom transceivers $20.00 Heil Desk stand for Mic, black round base, chrome stem. $10.00 Reason for selling is I have gone almost exclusively to CW, not much SSB anymore. Please contact me off list @p...@nf8j.com Paul VanOveren 5911 Snow Ave. Alto, Michigan 49302 616-690-2674 Cell K3 # 578 KPA-500 # 292 W-2 P-3 on its way. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? -- 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 and arcluster.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
See many earlier posts about the relative merits of RS-232 and USB interfaces. They have been discussed many times before. If your desktop does not have a serial input, fit one. If you use a laptop or notebook computer, get a USB to RS-232 cable. 73 de David G4DMP In a recent message, Pete Smith N4ZR n...@contesting.com writes I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? -- + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + | David M Pratt, Kippax, Leeds. | | Website: http://www.g4dmp.co.uk | + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] MCU 4.51
Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] P3 Major Problem
It appears my P3 has died after 9 months of flawless operation. Yesterday I updated the firmware to windows ver 1.12.4.26 (MCU1.16). The K3 has MCU 4.48 All worked fine for about an hour then the P3 lost everything. The P3 black screen reads: FATAL ERROR*** In: ddc_set_coef () SPAN=0 * The P3 Utility can not connect to the P3 either. It attempts to connect using different data rates but is unsuccessful. Any ideas? Dank0uif __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51
I can't really tell if there is an improvement due to the new log algorithms but I really like the extended Threshold adjustment range. I typically listen to CW on a wide filter setting and used to have my AGC at Threshold 8 and Slope 0. Now I have Threshold at 15 and thinking I should flatten the Slope at this point; currently set at 5, but I'm still playing around with it. Possibly could go even flatter. I don't use the NB enough to notice a difference. I was already quite happy with the NB action on CW. It has always worked when I needed it. Possible minor feature suggestion: I was thinking that it would be convenient to have the Threshold numbers coorespond directly to the meter S-units (i.e., a threshold adjustment range of 0 to 9). But I'm uncertain if I'd want to give up the finer granularity of the current 0-20 range for the ability to directly set the AGC point according to the s-meter. I guess I'd have to try it both ways. Anyhow, I really like the improvements. I always thought it was a major limitation to only be able to set the AGC point up to about S-4 or so. 73, Drew AF2Z On Fri, 11 May 2012 20:55:44 -0700, Toby W4CAK wrote: I don't know what others have been experiencing using the new 4.51 firmware version, but I really think it is an improvement. I have been listening to pileups tonight on 20 meters and cannot discern any mushy weak cw signals, signals are crisp and easily readable. Maybe I need bigger pileups to get a better handle on this aspect, or certain band conditions. I run the threshold at 14 and the AGC SLP is set to 000. The Noise Blanker is improved. I was able to get rid of s7 line noise, and no distortion in the audio of the received signal. NB settings are dsp T2-4, and the IF is NAR 4. So, the noise is being eliminatd with low setting of the NB. I suppose the real test will be when I hear s9 plus line noise which I frequently get here. AF Gain is set to LO in the config menu and have plenty of nice and crisp audio. I am listening to SSB on 80 meters now and have the RF gain set to about 9:00 and AF gain about 12 oclock. Just lots of gain and audio. I think 4.51 is ready to go BETA. What do others who are using 4.51 think? Toby W4CAK __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
Here is a good primer on previous versions of this conversation: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/K3-USB-port-td5753862.html#a5753984 I would rather have built-in USB, but will probably have to cope with RS-232 on hobby devices for years to come... Mike Alexander amsct...@comcast.net - Original Message - From: David Pratt da...@g4dmp.fsnet.co.uk To: Pete Smith N4ZR n...@contesting.com Cc: Elecraft List elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 8:15:02 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232 See many earlier posts about the relative merits of RS-232 and USB interfaces. They have been discussed many times before. If your desktop does not have a serial input, fit one. If you use a laptop or notebook computer, get a USB to RS-232 cable. 73 de David G4DMP In a recent message, Pete Smith N4ZR n...@contesting.com writes I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? -- + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + | David M Pratt, Kippax, Leeds. | | Website: http://www.g4dmp.co.uk | + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
One of the still-plentiful, proven, and inexpensive Edgeport boxes (USB to 4 or 8 RS-232) would seem to obselence-proof your station. 73, geo - n4ua On Sat, May 12, 2012 at 8:48 AM, John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com wrote: It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
Probably because that would put Elecraft squarely between you and the guy at Prolific or FTDI who writes the drivers. Who would get your complaint when the XG3 loses connectivity with the next service pack release of your favorite operating system? On 05/12/2012 07:04 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? -- R. Kevin Stover AC0H __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
Well said, John. Having designed automotive communications and datalogging equipment with RS-232, USB and EtherNet, I am amused by some of the things that I read in these USB vs. RS-232 threads. The days of Microsoft ruining USB on a monthly basis are long over, assuming they ever existed in the first place. And, while the cost of implementing RS-232 on a peripheral is very low, the cost of implementing high-reliability RS-232 on a current PC is actually increasing. Quality PCIe RS-232 cards, not the $35.00 paper-weights, are not cheap by any standards. I understand that the guy making band-switches in his garage won't want to pay $4,000 for a USB Consortium membership for a vendor ID, but at this level...I just don't get it... Mike Alexander - N8MSA amsct...@comcast.net - Original Message - From: John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com To: elecraft elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 8:48:46 AM Subject: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again... It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] P3 Major Problem
Idea: Follow the instructions on p23 of the Rev C P3 manual (lower left) to force a firmware load. This involves a few steps, but they're easy to follow. If that doesn't work, don't despair. If it's broke, Elecraft can fix it. Contact support. 73, matt W6NIA On Sat, 12 May 2012 06:34:37 -0600, you wrote: It appears my P3 has died after 9 months of flawless operation. Yesterday I updated the firmware to windows ver 1.12.4.26 (MCU1.16). The K3 has MCU 4.48 All worked fine for about an hour then the P3 lost everything. The P3 black screen reads: FATAL ERROR*** In: ddc_set_coef () SPAN=0 * The P3 Utility can not connect to the P3 either. It attempts to connect using different data rates but is unsuccessful. Any ideas? Dank0uif __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] P3 Major Problem
This is a P3 bug that I believe was resolved in the most recent P3 firmware version, 01.16. You should also upgrade to the most recent P3 Utility before installing P3 firmware version 01.16. Try power cycling the P3 just before attempting to connect the P3 Utility. 73 de Dick, K6KR. -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Dan Lynch Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 5:35 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] P3 Major Problem It appears my P3 has died after 9 months of flawless operation. Yesterday I updated the firmware to windows ver 1.12.4.26 (MCU1.16). The K3 has MCU 4.48 All worked fine for about an hour then the P3 lost everything. The P3 black screen reads: FATAL ERROR*** In: ddc_set_coef () SPAN=0 * The P3 Utility can not connect to the P3 either. It attempts to connect using different data rates but is unsuccessful. Any ideas? Dank0uif __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
Not exactly comparable to the XG-3, perhaps. I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. For those using old computers, USB port cards for the PCI bus are absolutely dirt cheap. 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 and arcluster.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 On 5/12/2012 8:50 AM, amsct...@comcast.net wrote: Here is a good primer on previous versions of this conversation: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/K3-USB-port-td5753862.html#a5753984 I would rather have built-in USB, but will probably have to cope with RS-232 on hobby devices for years to come... Mike Alexander amsct...@comcast.net - Original Message - From: David Prattda...@g4dmp.fsnet.co.uk To: Pete Smith N4ZRn...@contesting.com Cc: Elecraft Listelecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 8:15:02 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232 See many earlier posts about the relative merits of RS-232 and USB interfaces. They have been discussed many times before. If your desktop does not have a serial input, fit one. If you use a laptop or notebook computer, get a USB to RS-232 cable. 73 de David G4DMP In a recent message, Pete Smith N4ZRn...@contesting.com writes I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
This is another common misconception. All of the microprocessor vendors that I am aware of have built-in USB peripherals, and often have reference drivers and driver templates. Assuming that Elecraft uses MicroChip PICs, there are few reasons to add an off-package USB peripheral. MicroChip has an excellent USB section at their website that covers USB (as it relates to their microprocessors): http://www.microchip.com/stellent/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGEnodeId=1486 Mike Alexander - N8MSA amsct...@comcast.net - Original Message - From: Kevin kevin.sto...@mediacombb.net To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 9:09:45 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232 Probably because that would put Elecraft squarely between you and the guy at Prolific or FTDI who writes the drivers. Who would get your complaint when the XG3 loses connectivity with the next service pack release of your favorite operating system? On 05/12/2012 07:04 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: I have lusted after the XG-3 ever since it was released, but just noticed that it has an RS-232 port for computer connection. Why on earth not a USB port? -- R. Kevin Stover AC0H __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] KX3 order backlog
Thanks guys. I have some gear that I will sell. Once that is done, I guess I'll jump into the pool. The water feels cold only for a few minutes, metaphorically speaking. Thanks! 73 de Mike WF8O -- View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KX3-order-backlog-tp7552373p7553433.html Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] MAC Logging
I just saw on the RUMLog forum that Tom is considering adding rotor control if he gets enough requests. I have some RUMLog questions I'd like to discuss off-reflector, if anyone is willing. 73, Mike NF4L __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] MCU 4.51
Yesterday I wrote NB settings are dsp T2-4 and IF NAR 4 After playing some more with this I think that a DSP setting of T2-2 may be better as far as audio distortion is concerned. It may depend on conditions, and finding the perfect setting for all conditions may be impossible. Toby W4CAK __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] Positioning of KPA 500 with K3
Just finished building KPA 500 SN 846 without a hitch. Great experience! I recall that the transformer field makes it less advisable to place the amplifier to the LEFT of the K3. Is this true? Handles would abut as well. May have to rearrange shack.So is it necessary to place the KPA 500 to the RIGHT of the P3? Bob K7VO __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. Not so ... many microprocessor controllers contain one or two built-in serial ports. It is far cheaper to adapt those TTL (or 3.3V) ports to RS-232 compatible operation (typically a single line driver) than to install a USB UART and deal with drivers for a multitude of operating systems. The low power line drivers consume less power, need fewer parts (no crystal), can be smaller than the USB UART and are likely to be more reliable. If you *want* USB interface to the XG-3 pick up one of the USB scanner programming cables - typically USB to RS_232 compatible 3.5mm stereo plug. I believe Elecraft have such a cable as the KXUSB (standard for the KX3) ... I don't know if they list it separately as a spare. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: Not exactly comparable to the XG-3, perhaps. I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. For those using old computers, USB port cards for the PCI bus are absolutely dirt cheap. 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 and arcluster.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] K3 feature request, separate monitor tx-audio levels for speakers and line-out
Recording of TX audio is possible since: MCU 2.72 / DSP 1.98, 12-9-2008 Misc. Changes: ** LINE OUT INCLUDES TX AUDIO: LINE OUT (*nor* menu setting) now includes transmit sidetone and speech/data monitor audio. The monitor audio level is the same for the speakers (headphone) as for the line-out. It would be nice if monitor tx-audio levels could be set separate of each other for recording and streaming purposes . Fixed level TX monitor line out is ok too if that makes things easier. Monitor addition for example: MON-speaker-level (front, MON as we know now) MON-line-level (somewhere in the menu, once set not often changed) This way the Monitor TX audio level for recording or streaming is independent from the operator's preference to monitor the tx-audio. Yes even I get tired of my own voice but still what a nice recording of the complete QSO. I know this feature is on the consider list but it has been a while so therefore the request to reconsider the consider list a bit :) Thanks in advance, Hugo pa4la __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K3 feature request, separate monitor tx-audio levels for speakers and line-out
Hi Hugo, It´s also good for SO2R were you turn off monitor 73, Jorge CX6VM/CW5W -Mensaje original- De: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] En nombre de pa4la Enviado el: Sábado, 12 de Mayo de 2012 11:44 a.m. Para: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Asunto: [Elecraft] K3 feature request, separate monitor tx-audio levels for speakers and line-out Recording of TX audio is possible since: MCU 2.72 / DSP 1.98, 12-9-2008 Misc. Changes: ** LINE OUT INCLUDES TX AUDIO: LINE OUT (*nor* menu setting) now includes transmit sidetone and speech/data monitor audio. The monitor audio level is the same for the speakers (headphone) as for the line-out. It would be nice if monitor tx-audio levels could be set separate of each other for recording and streaming purposes . Fixed level TX monitor line out is ok too if that makes things easier. Monitor addition for example: MON-speaker-level (front, MON as we know now) MON-line-level (somewhere in the menu, once set not often changed) This way the Monitor TX audio level for recording or streaming is independent from the operator's preference to monitor the tx-audio. Yes even I get tired of my own voice but still what a nice recording of the complete QSO. I know this feature is on the consider list but it has been a while so therefore the request to reconsider the consider list a bit :) Thanks in advance, Hugo pa4la __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
George... You're quite correct. I have one of these, currently in storage, waiting for the day when my DELL XPS 420 shuffles off the mortal coil. Fortunately, for $20 I could install a PCI board in the XPS 420 that gives me a pair of COM ports, which I also did. My Parthian comment about planning for the succession includes worries about the several other PCI and PCIx boards I have in active use, most particularly the frame grabber that allows me to 'window' my P3 operation. Thanks for bringing up the Edgeport boxes. They seem to be very well thought out. John Ragle -- W1ZI = On 5/12/2012 9:07 AM, George Dubovsky wrote: One of the still-plentiful, proven, and inexpensive Edgeport boxes (USB to 4 or 8 RS-232) would seem to obselence-proof your station. 73, geo - n4ua On Sat, May 12, 2012 at 8:48 AM, John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com mailto:tpcj1...@crocker.com wrote: It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] Positioning of KPA 500 with K3
The KPA500 transformer uses a toroid core, which reduces the external magnetic field. The P3's display is an LCD, not a CRT that might more likely be influenced by magnetic fields. Place the amplifier and P3 as you find convenient. 73 de Dick, K6KR -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Robert Sands Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 7:40 AM To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] Positioning of KPA 500 with K3 Just finished building KPA 500 SN 846 without a hitch. Great experience! I recall that the transformer field makes it less advisable to place the amplifier to the LEFT of the K3. Is this true? Handles would abut as well. May have to rearrange shack.So is it necessary to place the KPA 500 to the RIGHT of the P3? Bob K7VO __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K3; Eric, Wayne, a feature for the wish list
There is a very simple and time honored tradition that will solve your problem... Just say over when you are finished transmitting. Amateur Radio Operator N5GE ARRL Lifetime Member QCWA Lifetime Member On Fri, 11 May 2012 10:44:01 -0500, Richard Fjeld rpfj...@embarqmail.com wrote: Dave, This round-table that I was asked to place a beep consisted of three Flex users and myself. We have had our answer from Eric about this. The beep would have been optional. I'm sorry folks were negative about this, but I can see their point. I personally don't think the beep would have been more than a fly-speck in the pepper considering the language I hear and, yes, music to drown out nets, and the tuner-uppers on qso's. Then, there are the guys that are splattering several K wide. The list goes on. I'll just go and have my own little 'pity-party'. Rich, NØCE .. You mean your K3 is the only rig in your round table without an irritating roger-beep? Dave AB7E Richard Fjeld rpfj...@embarqmail.com I'd rather be learning. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] P3 Major Problem
Dan, Also check to make sure the DB9 cables have not come lose on the P3 and/or K3. Howard K6IA __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
Topic by topic: Many microprocessor controllers have...built-in serial ports Correct, and usually I2C, EtherNet, SPI and a host (pun intended) of communications peripherals. But even the beefy Motorola/FreeScale SCI (similar to a UART) ports need, in almost any implementation that I am familiar with, buffer circuitry - I hope no-one is routing the uC directly to a connector. USB needs a similar buffer circuit, known as a transceiver, which provides signal-level conversion and isolation. That's it...there is no UART in the classic sense. And RS-232 serial ports are rapidly become scarce on microcontollers...just go their websites and read the datasheets. The low power line drivers consume less power, need fewer parts (no crystal), can be smaller than the USB UART and are likely to be more reliable. Again, no-one really needs free-standing USB protocol units (chips) anymore, so the crystal comment is irrelevant. Aside from peripheral power supply capability, which is optional, the signal driver power demans are actually similar, the USB using a low-voltage differential-mode signal with moderate drive currents, and RS-232 are high-voltage (5-25V), single-ended signals with low drive currents. As for reliability...there are a thousand factors to be considered, and I don't see any data anywhere to back that up. If you want USB... That's where we run into problems. Adapters are inherently less stable than well-implemented on-device peripherals. That's why people such as myself want native USB capability - conversion is not the same, despite assertions I have seen in this mail list and in other forums. I realize there will be a cost delta between RS-232 and USB, and there may not be a business case on a hobby product. I can live with that on some devices, such as the XG-3, but I am really beginning to struggle with RS-232 on transceivers and similar devices. It just doesn't make a lot of sense to me anymore, and that's coming from a person that has done embedded system design using both RS-232 and USB. I'm not knocking Elecraft, but I think that, based on today's PC market and the maturity of the alternatives, the era of RS-232 as the only choice should be drawing to a close. Mike Alexander - N8MSA amsct...@comcast.net - Original Message - From: Joe Subich, W4TV li...@subich.com To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 10:42:37 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232 On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. Not so ... many microprocessor controllers contain one or two built-in serial ports. It is far cheaper to adapt those TTL (or 3.3V) ports to RS-232 compatible operation (typically a single line driver) than to install a USB UART and deal with drivers for a multitude of operating systems. The low power line drivers consume less power, need fewer parts (no crystal), can be smaller than the USB UART and are likely to be more reliable. If you *want* USB interface to the XG-3 pick up one of the USB scanner programming cables - typically USB to RS_232 compatible 3.5mm stereo plug. I believe Elecraft have such a cable as the KXUSB (standard for the KX3) ... I don't know if they list it separately as a spare. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: Not exactly comparable to the XG-3, perhaps. I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. For those using old computers, USB port cards for the PCI bus are absolutely dirt cheap. 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 and arcluster.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
Let's end the pro/con RS-232 versus USB thread now before it takes on a life of its own ;-) As noted by others, there are many prior threads that you can search on for this discussion. The short answer for the XG3 is that it only uses a simple command set that does not require any USB specific functions. There is no operational advantage for USB versus RS-232 on the XG3. We support both RS-232 and USB on all of our products for control via our RS232 and USB cables. Many hams use legacy computers that only have RS232, so that is the lowest required denominator for comm support. Also note, we -do- have cables for the XG3 (and KX3, W2 and W1) that connect directly from their comm port to USB. The part number is KXUSB. Its not on our order form yet, but will be next week. (It is included by default with the KX3.) [Thread Closed] 73, Eric List Moderator, among other duties.. www.elecraft.com _..._ On May 12, 2012, at 7:42 AM, Joe Subich, W4TV li...@subich.com wrote: On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. Not so ... many microprocessor controllers contain one or two built-in serial ports. It is far cheaper to adapt those TTL (or 3.3V) ports to RS-232 compatible operation (typically a single line driver) than to install a USB UART and deal with drivers for a multitude of operating systems. The low power line drivers consume less power, need fewer parts (no crystal), can be smaller than the USB UART and are likely to be more reliable. If you *want* USB interface to the XG-3 pick up one of the USB scanner programming cables - typically USB to RS_232 compatible 3.5mm stereo plug. I believe Elecraft have such a cable as the KXUSB (standard for the KX3) ... I don't know if they list it separately as a spare. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 5/12/2012 9:17 AM, Pete Smith N4ZR wrote: Not exactly comparable to the XG-3, perhaps. I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. For those using old computers, USB port cards for the PCI bus are absolutely dirt cheap. 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 and arcluster.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
[thread closed] See the post I just made under a similar subject line for details. Eric List Moderator www.elecraft.com _..._ On May 12, 2012, at 7:56 AM, John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com wrote: George... You're quite correct. I have one of these, currently in storage, waiting for the day when my DELL XPS 420 shuffles off the mortal coil. Fortunately, for $20 I could install a PCI board in the XPS 420 that gives me a pair of COM ports, which I also did. My Parthian comment about planning for the succession includes worries about the several other PCI and PCIx boards I have in active use, most particularly the frame grabber that allows me to 'window' my P3 operation. Thanks for bringing up the Edgeport boxes. They seem to be very well thought out. John Ragle -- W1ZI = On 5/12/2012 9:07 AM, George Dubovsky wrote: One of the still-plentiful, proven, and inexpensive Edgeport boxes (USB to 4 or 8 RS-232) would seem to obselence-proof your station. 73, geo - n4ua On Sat, May 12, 2012 at 8:48 AM, John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com mailto:tpcj1...@crocker.com wrote: It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] XG-3 - why RS-232
The RS232 circuitry we use on the KX3, XG3, K144XV, W1, and W2 has three main benefits: (1) Current drain is near zero. (2) There's absolutely no RFI. And (3) you can use any of these devices with either a USB or RS232 port at the computer end by ordering the associated Elecraft adapter. 73, Wayne N6KR Not exactly comparable to the XG-3, perhaps. I would have thought that a USB port would have advantages so far as space and weight, maybe even power consumption, in a battery powered miniature device. For those using old computers, USB port cards for the PCI bus are absolutely dirt cheap. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again...
One more thought. Most would be surprised to discover that there is a serial port on your motherboard on a lot of desktop computers. All you need do is purchase a cable with a DB-9 and a mounting for the back of the computer. I found the cable at TigerTronics for a couple of bux. 73, Rick W3BI Date: Sat, 12 May 2012 10:56:18 -0400 From: tpcj1...@crocker.com To: n4ua...@gmail.com; elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] RS232 vs USB yet again... George... You're quite correct. I have one of these, currently in storage, waiting for the day when my DELL XPS 420 shuffles off the mortal coil. Fortunately, for $20 I could install a PCI board in the XPS 420 that gives me a pair of COM ports, which I also did. My Parthian comment about planning for the succession includes worries about the several other PCI and PCIx boards I have in active use, most particularly the frame grabber that allows me to 'window' my P3 operation. Thanks for bringing up the Edgeport boxes. They seem to be very well thought out. John Ragle -- W1ZI = On 5/12/2012 9:07 AM, George Dubovsky wrote: One of the still-plentiful, proven, and inexpensive Edgeport boxes (USB to 4 or 8 RS-232) would seem to obselence-proof your station. 73, geo - n4ua On Sat, May 12, 2012 at 8:48 AM, John Ragle tpcj1...@crocker.com mailto:tpcj1...@crocker.com wrote: It is very rare that one can find a modern PC desktop that comes with 1 or more RS-232 serial ports, just as it is becoming more and more difficult to find stock desktops with expansion slots on the MoBo. Laptops, at least newer than my ancient IBM Thinkpad, are even less likely to be equipped with RS-232 ports. This puts hams in an invidious position -- either use some old clunker of a desktop that came with RS-232 equipment, or find an expansion board that will plug into the MoBo of a moderately old tower, or use a USB--RS-232 converter and go modern. Regarding the various items of Elecraft equipment, the choice between USB and RS-232 seems to have had very little to do with relative merits. It is not which one is better? but which one is more suitable? Apparently a substantial fraction of the brethren use superannuated desktops because this is a reasonable financial option. Another fraction of us use modern-day laptops, even though they promise half the performance at twice the price of a modern desktop. When the choice is between USB--RS-232 conversion and RS-232--USB conversion, the former is more readily available (the USB-RS-232 converters) than the latter. Again, this is just a marketing matter. Unfortunately, not all USB--RS-232 converters are usable; some are more equal than others (apologies to George Orwell). A lot of the previous fuming and fussing over this topic has concerned specific chip sets and manufacturers of these converters. This is where the archived to-and-fro is of most utility. At first I was also a bit put off to discover that Elecraft relied on what I thought of as antiquated hardware, but in retrospect, I have gone over to the dark side and embraced the DB-9. I have used Firewire, USB, and RS-232, and find I much prefer the latter. I am fortunate to have a desktop with expansion slots, though in a bit of a quandary planning for the succession. John Ragle -- W1ZI -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html -- Sent from my lovely old Dell XPS 420 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] Positioning of KPA 500 with K3
Arangement here from left to right: KPA500-P3-K3 I did not install the KPA500 handle and will remove the K3 handle next time I have it on the bench. I have another K3 that I take with me when I need it away from home. It has the handle installed. Amateur Radio Operator N5GE ARRL Lifetime Member QCWA Lifetime Member Farmers rotate crops to keep their land strong. Voters can keep THEIR LAND STRONG by rotating politicians at the ballot box each term. -- Otis Mukinfus -- http://www.otismukinfus.com On Sat, 12 May 2012 07:40:28 -0700, Robert Sands k7vora...@gmail.com wrote: Just finished building KPA 500 SN 846 without a hitch. Great experience! I recall that the transformer field makes it less advisable to place the amplifier to the LEFT of the K3. Is this true? Handles would abut as well. May have to rearrange shack.So is it necessary to place the KPA 500 to the RIGHT of the P3? Bob K7VO __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? If so, I missed it. The major difference I've noticed with 4.50 is that cw signals, especially the low level ones, now seem much cleaner. 73, Ted W4NZ -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 11:22 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] K3 AGC Version 4.51 signal measurements
Hi all, Like many, I haven't been able to find a decent pileup the last few days to test the version 4.51 AGC. I don't use the NR or notch function either so have concentrated on making some measurements using the XG3 as a signal generator. The figure on http://www.ke7x.com/home/miscellaneous-k3-information/agc-4-51 shows some measurements I did with the 4.51 version AGC using the XG3 as a signal generator. For each of the three signal levels from the XG3 -- -107, -73, and -33 dBm, I used the 10 dB attenuator and 10 dB preamp to get 9 different signal levels. Observations: As THR increases, the effect of SLP decreases. At THR=20, SLP is essential 15 for all values of SLP (I tested SLP=0, 7, and 15). This is the upper curve on the figure. As THR decreases, SLP begins to take effect. At THR=15, SLP values between 0 and 7 are the same while between 7 and 15 an effect is seen. At THR=8 the full range of SLP is effective. Changing SLP behavior as a function of THR has been done to protect the user's ears. 73 and cheers, Fred, KE7X The Elecraft K3: Design, Configuration, and Operation www.ke7x.com __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] Elecraft SSB net announcement
The weekly Elecraft SSB net will meet tomorrow (5/13/12) at 1800Z on 14.3035 MHz +/- QRM. I will be the net control station from Oregon. See you there. 73, Phil, NS7P __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
I too received 4.50 but not 4.51 73 Dave wo2x Sent from my iPhone On May 12, 2012, at 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant w...@comcast.net wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? If so, I missed it. The major difference I've noticed with 4.50 is that cw signals, especially the low level ones, now seem much cleaner. 73, Ted W4NZ -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 11:22 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K3 AGC Version 4.51 signal measurements
Cady, Fred wrote: Observations: As THR increases, the effect of SLP decreases.Changing SLP behavior as a function of THR has been done to protect the user's ears. Correct. Wayne N6KR __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
On 5/12/2012 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? Apparently not all (I had to request it). I've been doing some crude testing ... with 4.51 AGC THR = 15 is approximately -73 dBm/S9 (to the best of my ability to measure with the XG3 and step attenuator). With high values for AGC THR it is important to use higher values of AGC SLP otherwise a sudden very strong signal will drive the audio amp and/or headphone amp into severe distortion - particularly if the AF Gain is high. I'm finding AGC THR in the 12/13 range and SLP in the 8/10 range is very comfortable and seems to open up the K3 receiver. The only problem is that my poor antennas don't given me enough strong signals to really evaluate strong signal pile-up with off air signals at the higher thresholds. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 5/12/2012 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? If so, I missed it. The major difference I've noticed with 4.50 is that cw signals, especially the low level ones, now seem much cleaner. 73, Ted W4NZ -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 11:22 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
Same here. Lower level CW signals are much clearer and not nearly so mushy in crowded conditions. I received 4.50 but haven't received 4.51. Would like to try it out as well. 73, Charles, K4ZRJ On May 12, 2012, at 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? If so, I missed it. The major difference I've noticed with 4.50 is that cw signals, especially the low level ones, now seem much cleaner. 73, Ted W4NZ -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 11:22 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
I'm not a fan of NR, however since it's back in 4.51, I decided to try it again. I thought some of the NR settings appeared to be excessive, to the point of eliminating the signal I'm trying to listen to. But then I remembered that finding the best NR setting takes time (it's not instant). Setting NR F4-4 on CW with a relatively strong signal is amazing. At first it seems as if the audio has been turned down completely as the background noise disappears; but when the CW signal comes back, it's nice and crisp and at a good audio level. This is with AGC THR at 16 and SLP at 9. The not so good news: there is a 'thud' heard on CW mode when the AGC THR is increased starting at 15 up to 20, and then from 20 down to 15; regardless of the SLP setting. On SSB it's more of a 'swoosh' sound. This could have something to do with the receive equalizer as it doesn't occur in TX DATA mode where it is bypassed. Was it there before? 73 de Sebastian, W4AS __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51
If the adjustment allows half steps, e.g. 0, 0.5, 1, ... 8.5, 9; then you would have about as many steps and still have some vague relation to S units. Cheers - Bill, AE6JV On 5/12/12 at 5:43, drew...@verizon.net (drewko) wrote: Possible minor feature suggestion: I was thinking that it would be convenient to have the Threshold numbers coorespond directly to the meter S-units (i.e., a threshold adjustment range of 0 to 9). But I'm uncertain if I'd want to give up the finer granularity of the current 0-20 range for the ability to directly set the AGC point according to the s-meter. I guess I'd have to try it both ways. --- Bill Frantz|The nice thing about standards| Periwinkle (408)356-8506 |is there are so many to choose| 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com |from. - Andrew Tanenbaum| Los Gatos, CA 95032 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K2 -15Mtr birdies?
Ron, You asked if it is normal to hear birdies, the short answer is not always. Most superhet receivers, but certainly not all designs, will be affected by birdies. Unfortunately many if not most of the receivers designed for the amateur market use an open plan layout without shielding nor decoupling filters perhaps for reasons of cost, and that will inevitably result in birdies being heard. Unfortunately the K2 does have a birdie problem. You asked if there was something you could do about the weak birdies you found at 21028.63 kHz and 21036.20 kHz. Again my answer is yes, but I must warn you that getting rid of these and the other birdies found in the K2 is not an easy task, and requires surgery. Some years ago I got rid of the birdies in my K2/100, but it required the addition of some shielding, breaking some DC supply and control traces and inserting L-C filters, moving some bypass ground points, etc etc. Knowing the tuning rate of a birdie vs. the VFO tuning rate is useful information. One type of birdie, and there are different breeds, appears when a spurious response of the receiver (the so-called image is one of many) hears an oscillator, or a harmonic of an oscillator. The tuning rate of this type of birdie will sometimes provide a clue as to which oscillator or mix of oscillators is responsible, and which of the receiver's responses is hearing it. To cite a simple example, if the BFO frequency is 4.914 MHz, there are three possible birdies ganging up at 21.294 MHz, due to the BFO's fundamental, BFO x 3 and BFO x 9 being heard by three different spurious responses. The birdie tuning rates in this case are 1/3, 1 and 3 because the third harmonic of the LO is involved. Please do not hesitate to ask if I can help in any way. 73, Geoff LX2AO On May 11, 2012 at 04:40 +0200, Ron VE8RT wrote: I hadn't noticed this before as I don't normally operate in this part of 15 metres. As I tuned across 15 metres I noticed a couple of birdies, switching between the antenna and dummy load didn't make them go away. They're weak, at the bottom of the S meter, but I don't know if this is normal, or if there is something I could do about them. On CW mode the first is at 21028.63 KHz and the tone changes rapidly, maybe 100Hz or more for every 10Hz change on the tuning. The second one is at around 21036.20 KHz. Is this normal, and is there a fix for it? Maybe there are others on other bands that I'm not yet aware of. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
Sebastian, The AGC threshold is something the typical operator will rarely change. We didn't make any effort to eliminate switching artifacts as you change the menu parameter, though we could if it turns out to be an issue. 73, Wayne N6KR On May 12, 2012, at 11:30 AM, Sebastian, W4AS wrote: I'm not a fan of NR, however since it's back in 4.51, I decided to try it again. I thought some of the NR settings appeared to be excessive, to the point of eliminating the signal I'm trying to listen to. But then I remembered that finding the best NR setting takes time (it's not instant). Setting NR F4-4 on CW with a relatively strong signal is amazing. At first it seems as if the audio has been turned down completely as the background noise disappears; but when the CW signal comes back, it's nice and crisp and at a good audio level. This is with AGC THR at 16 and SLP at 9. The not so good news: there is a 'thud' heard on CW mode when the AGC THR is increased starting at 15 up to 20, and then from 20 down to 15; regardless of the SLP setting. On SSB it's more of a 'swoosh' sound. This could have something to do with the receive equalizer as it doesn't occur in TX DATA mode where it is bypassed. Was it there before? 73 de Sebastian, W4AS __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] 4.51 download location?
It has been a while since I downloaded a beta release. Where are the files located? -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of David Pratt Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 05:07 To: Matt Murphy Cc: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 I have also missed the 4.51, and even the 4.50 release. The only beta file I can find on the FTP site is 4.48, but 4.48 has also been officially released. Has the FTP folder for beta releases been changed? David G4DMP In a recent message, Matt Murphy m...@nq6n.com writes I seem to have missed the 4.51 release, though I got 4.50. Would someone mind forwarding it over? Matt NQ6N -- + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + | David M Pratt, Kippax, Leeds. | | Website: http://www.g4dmp.co.uk | + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] 4.51 download location?
Gregg, It was sent to the K3 Firmware Field Test group and to those others who requested it from Wayne. It is not beta material yet - You might call it an evaluation. There were some problems with the first pass of that code level 4.49, but it got changed twice and is now 4.51. If you understand what is involved in testing code of that level and want to try it, a note to Wayne will allow you to join the fun - it will come to you as a zip file. Or you can wait until it (or some subsequent number goes to beta and is posted to the website) If you don't remember, the beta firmware must be manually downloaded and saved in some folder on your computer. Then you te0ll K3 Utility where to find it. The semi-automatic get new files from Elecraft only works with released firmware, not beta. 73, Don W3FPR On 5/12/2012 4:49 PM, Gregg W6IZT wrote: It has been a while since I downloaded a beta release. Where are the files located? -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of David Pratt Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 05:07 To: Matt Murphy Cc: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 I have also missed the 4.51, and even the 4.50 release. The only beta file I can find on the FTP site is 4.48, but 4.48 has also been officially released. Has the FTP folder for beta releases been changed? David G4DMP In a recent message, Matt Murphym...@nq6n.com writes I seem to have missed the 4.51 release, though I got 4.50. Would someone mind forwarding it over? Matt NQ6N __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
Would it help the tests to engage the pre-amp? ie make things more challenging. David G3UNA On 12/05/2012 17:22, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: On 5/12/2012 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? Apparently not all (I had to request it). I've been doing some crude testing ... with 4.51 AGC THR = 15 is approximately -73 dBm/S9 (to the best of my ability to measure with the XG3 and step attenuator). With high values for AGC THR it is important to use higher values of AGC SLP otherwise a sudden very strong signal will drive the audio amp and/or headphone amp into severe distortion - particularly if the AF Gain is high. I'm finding AGC THR in the 12/13 range and SLP in the 8/10 range is very comfortable and seems to open up the K3 receiver. The only problem is that my poor antennas don't given me enough strong signals to really evaluate strong signal pile-up with off air signals at the higher thresholds. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 5/12/2012 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? If so, I missed it. The major difference I've noticed with 4.50 is that cw signals, especially the low level ones, now seem much cleaner. 73, Ted W4NZ -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett Sent: Saturday, May 12, 2012 11:22 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB I did not mean to imply that the NB had changed from 4.50 to 4.51. My comment was from 4.48 to 4.5X. I can see how you read it differently though. I have not noticed a change in the NB from .50 to .51 Mike W0MU W0MU-1 CC Cluster w0mu.net On 5/12/2012 6:30 AM, Toby Pennington wrote: Mike, you could be correct. This morning I seem to have a little distortion in the NB which I did not notice before. It's not bad, but a little is there. I may go back to 4.50 just to check it out. Toby W4CAk I just got it tonight. I have not had much chance to compare but the NB in 4.50 is much better! A curious unexpected side effect! Mike W0MU __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K2 -15Mtr birdies?
Thanks Geoff, yours is the second reply I've had letting me know that there are birdies in the K2 receiver. It answers my question as to whether or not I overlooked something in the assembly or if this was a known condition. I say condition and not problem as the level and location of the birdies is unlikely to be a problem. Tomorrow I'm leaving for two weeks, we're heading to VO1 to visit our oldest son. I may re-visit this a little later and do some more research. The loudest one changes in frequency steps much greater than the steps on the dial, it may then be easier to find it's source. If its a relatively easy fix I may look into doing it and will gladly accept your offer of help. Thanks 73 Ron VE8RT On Sat, 2012-05-12 at 20:43 +0200, Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy wrote: Ron, You asked if it is normal to hear birdies, the short answer is not always. Most superhet receivers, but certainly not all designs, will be affected by birdies. Unfortunately many if not most of the receivers designed for the amateur market use an open plan layout without shielding nor decoupling filters perhaps for reasons of cost, and that will inevitably result in birdies being heard. Unfortunately the K2 does have a birdie problem. You asked if there was something you could do about the weak birdies you found at 21028.63 kHz and 21036.20 kHz. Again my answer is yes, but I must warn you that getting rid of these and the other birdies found in the K2 is not an easy task, and requires surgery. Some years ago I got rid of the birdies in my K2/100, but it required the addition of some shielding, breaking some DC supply and control traces and inserting L-C filters, moving some bypass ground points, etc etc. Knowing the tuning rate of a birdie vs. the VFO tuning rate is useful information. One type of birdie, and there are different breeds, appears when a spurious response of the receiver (the so-called image is one of many) hears an oscillator, or a harmonic of an oscillator. The tuning rate of this type of birdie will sometimes provide a clue as to which oscillator or mix of oscillators is responsible, and which of the receiver's responses is hearing it. To cite a simple example, if the BFO frequency is 4.914 MHz, there are three possible birdies ganging up at 21.294 MHz, due to the BFO's fundamental, BFO x 3 and BFO x 9 being heard by three different spurious responses. The birdie tuning rates in this case are 1/3, 1 and 3 because the third harmonic of the LO is involved. Please do not hesitate to ask if I can help in any way. 73, Geoff LX2AO On May 11, 2012 at 04:40 +0200, Ron VE8RT wrote: I hadn't noticed this before as I don't normally operate in this part of 15 metres. As I tuned across 15 metres I noticed a couple of birdies, switching between the antenna and dummy load didn't make them go away. They're weak, at the bottom of the S meter, but I don't know if this is normal, or if there is something I could do about them. On CW mode the first is at 21028.63 KHz and the tone changes rapidly, maybe 100Hz or more for every 10Hz change on the tuning. The second one is at around 21036.20 KHz. Is this normal, and is there a fix for it? Maybe there are others on other bands that I'm not yet aware of. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] MCU 4.51 NB
I fail to see any advantage to turning on the preamp when it is not needed. If you can hear the atmospheric noise without the preamp, leave it off (if the noise level increases when the antenna is attached, you have enough gain). By extension, if you can still hear the atmospheric noise with the attenuator in, leave it in - using more front end gain than is necessary for the band and antenna conditions will only reduce the dynamic range of the receiver. If you do not know what that means in terms of operating, let me put it simply - you may not hear that weak one that you would have heard if you had set the preamp and attenuator properly. Technical discussion - the band noise is S-3 with the preamp off. The K3 will start to overload on a signal that is S9+70, and will hear signals that are greater than the S-3 band noise level. Turn the preamp on, and the band noise raises to about S-5, but the K3 overloads on that signal that is now S9+70, so you can now only hear between S5 and S9+70 where before you could hear between S3 and S9+70. You have reduced the dynamic range by turning on the preamp when it was not needed. BTW - The S9+70 overload point I used was just an example off the top of my head - I do not have the overload point for the K3 at handy reference, so use that as a for instance rather than as an absolute data point. (also BTW - my overload term is technically referred to as the compression point). 73, Don W3FPR On 5/12/2012 6:56 PM, David Cutter wrote: Would it help the tests to engage the pre-amp? ie make things more challenging. David G3UNA On 12/05/2012 17:22, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: On 5/12/2012 12:17 PM, Ted Bryant wrote: Was v4.51 sent to the 4.50 testers? Apparently not all (I had to request it). I've been doing some crude testing ... with 4.51 AGC THR = 15 is approximately -73 dBm/S9 (to the best of my ability to measure with the XG3 and step attenuator). With high values for AGC THR it is important to use higher values of AGC SLP otherwise a sudden very strong signal will drive the audio amp and/or headphone amp into severe distortion - particularly if the AF Gain is high. I'm finding AGC THR in the 12/13 range and SLP in the 8/10 range is very comfortable and seems to open up the K3 receiver. The only problem is that my poor antennas don't given me enough strong signals to really evaluate strong signal pile-up with off air signals at the higher thresholds. 73, ... Joe, W4TV __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] K2 -15Mtr birdies?
Ron, The K2 uses VFO frequencies above the incoming signal for bands below 15 meters, and that helps keep the birdies at bay. On 15 meters and above, the VFO is below the incoming signal which is not the greatest situation for birdies, but provides better VFO stability - read as a design decision. The major birdies are outside the ham bands, but there are a few low level birdies left inside the ham bands. As Geoff has indicated, they can be dealt with, but the solution is not trivial. 73, Don W3FPR On 5/12/2012 5:57 PM, R Thompson wrote: Thanks Geoff, yours is the second reply I've had letting me know that there are birdies in the K2 receiver. It answers my question as to whether or not I overlooked something in the assembly or if this was a known condition. I say condition and not problem as the level and location of the birdies is unlikely to be a problem. Tomorrow I'm leaving for two weeks, we're heading to VO1 to visit our oldest son. I may re-visit this a little later and do some more research. The loudest one changes in frequency steps much greater than the steps on the dial, it may then be easier to find it's source. If its a relatively easy fix I may look into doing it and will gladly accept your offer of help. Thanks 73 Ron VE8RT On Sat, 2012-05-12 at 20:43 +0200, Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy wrote: Ron, You asked if it is normal to hear birdies, the short answer is not always. Most superhet receivers, but certainly not all designs, will be affected by birdies. Unfortunately many if not most of the receivers designed for the amateur market use an open plan layout without shielding nor decoupling filters perhaps for reasons of cost, and that will inevitably result in birdies being heard. Unfortunately the K2 does have a birdie problem. You asked if there was something you could do about the weak birdies you found at 21028.63 kHz and 21036.20 kHz. Again my answer is yes, but I must warn you that getting rid of these and the other birdies found in the K2 is not an easy task, and requires surgery. Some years ago I got rid of the birdies in my K2/100, but it required the addition of some shielding, breaking some DC supply and control traces and inserting L-C filters, moving some bypass ground points, etc etc. Knowing the tuning rate of a birdie vs. the VFO tuning rate is useful information. One type of birdie, and there are different breeds, appears when a spurious response of the receiver (the so-called image is one of many) hears an oscillator, or a harmonic of an oscillator. The tuning rate of this type of birdie will sometimes provide a clue as to which oscillator or mix of oscillators is responsible, and which of the receiver's responses is hearing it. To cite a simple example, if the BFO frequency is 4.914 MHz, there are three possible birdies ganging up at 21.294 MHz, due to the BFO's fundamental, BFO x 3 and BFO x 9 being heard by three different spurious responses. The birdie tuning rates in this case are 1/3, 1 and 3 because the third harmonic of the LO is involved. Please do not hesitate to ask if I can help in any way. 73, Geoff LX2AO On May 11, 2012 at 04:40 +0200, Ron VE8RT wrote: I hadn't noticed this before as I don't normally operate in this part of 15 metres. As I tuned across 15 metres I noticed a couple of birdies, switching between the antenna and dummy load didn't make them go away. They're weak, at the bottom of the S meter, but I don't know if this is normal, or if there is something I could do about them. On CW mode the first is at 21028.63 KHz and the tone changes rapidly, maybe 100Hz or more for every 10Hz change on the tuning. The second one is at around 21036.20 KHz. Is this normal, and is there a fix for it? Maybe there are others on other bands that I'm not yet aware of. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] Hello
this is intense you should check this out http://www.four15news.net/biz/?employment=4226934 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] KX3 order backlog
Mike, I agree with Don and others - get your order in now. In the mean time, work on selling off your other gear. Then you will have a shorter wait. If you sell off your gear and then put your order in you will probably be out longer than if you order now and get on the list. Steve, KC8QVO -- View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KX3-order-backlog-tp7552373p7554275.html Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] 4.51 download location?
We will have 4.51 available as a beta version on the website later tonight. 73, Eric www.elecraft.com _..._ On May 12, 2012, at 2:29 PM, Don Wilhelm w3...@embarqmail.com wrote: Gregg, It was sent to the K3 Firmware Field Test group and to those others who requested it from Wayne. It is not beta material yet - You might call it an evaluation. There were some problems with the first pass of that code level 4.49, but it got changed twice and is now 4.51. If you understand what is involved in testing code of that level and want to try it, a note to Wayne will allow you to join the fun - it will come to you as a zip file. Or you can wait until it (or some subsequent number goes to beta and is posted to the website) If you don't remember, the beta firmware must be manually downloaded and saved in some folder on your computer. Then you te0ll K3 Utility where to find it. The semi-automatic get new files from Elecraft only works with released firmware, not beta. 73, Don W3FPR On 5/12/2012 4:49 PM, Gregg W6IZT wrote: It has been a while since I downloaded a beta release. Where are the files __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] NAQCC Sprint Wednesday night!
NAQCC Sprint Wednesday night! Our May sprint is this coming Wednesday evening local time (May 16, EST - 8:30-10:30PM, CST - 7:30-9:30PM, MST - 6:30-8:30PM, PST - 5:30-7:30PM), which translates as Thursday May 17, 0030-0230Z in all cases. I will refer you to the proper URL: http://naqcc.info/sprint201205.html There you will find all the details as to time, frequencies and other important information. Certificates: SWA (simple wire antennas) certificates by call area, VE and DX. A Certificate for top score in the GAIN antenna category. Finally there is one more award - a certificate to the highest score from a first-time participant. Prizes: A prize of a set of bug/paddle handles or a K1/K2 knob insert donated by master woodworker Gregg WB8LZG is awarded for each sprint to the winner of a random drawing among all participants. Previous winners are not eligible. This is a monthly event that caters to the CW veteran, the CW newcomer, straight key and bug fans. All are welcome to participate (this includes QRO); but you must use QRP power levels to compete for awards. If you are not already a member of NAQCC... membership is FREE! Now is your chance to join the largest QRP CW Club in the world!! We currently have 6000+ members in: All 50 States - 9 VE Provinces - 90 Countries. Just sign up on the NAQCC website (http://naqcc.info/) and you will receive a handsome certificate, with your membership number which is good for life. The April Sprint was our biggest and best one yet, with lots of activity - you do not want to miss out on this one! Come join us and have a real good time! 72/73 de Dave VA3RJ NAQCC #0004 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement
Good Evening, Propagation has been up and down lately with our active sun tossing ions our way on a very regular basis. A CME is on the way due to give our ionosphere a glancing blow. From what I have read it will hit after both nets tomorrow. It got very warm today; all the way to 71 degrees. But the hottest day of this cycle will be tomorrow when it is supposed to break 80 degrees. Just two nights ago there was a freeze with frost all over the next morning. Weather sure is odd in Oregon - if you don't like it wait fifteen minutes :) Because the sun keeps rising earlier and setting later 40 meters has no chance of working unless I move the second net closer to dusk. That makes it even later further east where 40 should be open. It's just a test folks, if it doesn't work I am open to further suggestions. Please join us tomorrow afternoon and evening. 1) Hail signs (first letter or two of the suffix of your call) 2) NCS help (as well as QSP/QNP relay help) Sunday 2200z (Sunday 3 PM PDT) 14050 kHz Monday 0200z (Sunday 7 PM PDT) 7045 kHz Stay well, Kevin. KD5ONS - __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
[Elecraft] [K3] Don't see Firmware on site
Was just looking on the Elecraft site and still don't see the beta firmware for download. I sure would like to give this a spin. Was it not supposed to go up tonight? Is there a hitch? Thanks and 73, Tim Herrick, KQ8M Charter Member North Coast Contesters k...@kq8m.com AR-Cluster V6 kq8m.no-ip.org User Ports: 23, 7373 with local skimmer, 7374 without local skimmer Server Ports: V6 3607, V4 Active 3605, V4 Passive 3606 __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Re: [Elecraft] 4.51 download location?
Must be very later tonight . -- View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/MCU-4-51-tp7552536p7554561.html Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
