Re: [Elecraft] Decoding the Serial Output from a KX3

Just a quick reminder (for Bob), the KPA500 does not listen to Auxbus traffic at all. Trying to send it Auxbus traffic thus would be fruitless. Bob’s comment about connecting the KX3 and KPA500 using the serial connection is a very good one. In fact when I was developing the KPA500's

Re: [Elecraft] Decoding the Serial Output from a KX3

Don’t use serial commands to tell the KPA to go to STBY for tune. Have your controller break the PTT line for this (with a small relay) so that the KPA immediately stops amplifying. Since you want your controller to issue commands to the KX3, you can use a regular Y cable at the KPA500, but be

Re: [Elecraft] K3s+KPA500 SSB audio distortion

How are they connected? (i.e. are you using the AuxIO cable?) Do you have ALC turned on in the K3? 73! Jack, W6FB > On Aug 1, 2018, at 7:19 AM, Michael Blake via Elecraft > wrote: > > While on the air on 3710 SSB I receive audio reports that say my transmitted > audio is somewhat muffled or

Re: [Elecraft] Preventing unexpected transmissions when using FTDI devices

Bob; This is a Windows-only issue that dates back to their use of serial mice. It is not problem on the Mac, which has no reason to toggle the serial port control signals on startup. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Aug 12, 2018, at 3:50 PM, Bob Wilson, N6TV wrote: > > Elecraft K3 MCU version 5.33

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 strange behavior

4600 KHz is the threshold for 80/60 meters. Below is 80, above 60. Your KPA is trying to decide which band it needs to be on and is switching back and forth with the modulation as it causes the frequency to change. The delay is simply the band change. It would require firmware changes to fix

Re: [Elecraft] [KX3] RS232 xcvr control when serial ports are occupied

If you are looking at creating a Y splitter (actually the best way for this setup), then be sure to only connect ground and the signal going to the magloop controller. As someone has mentioned, you do not want to have two devices driving a data signal simultaneously. At some point one will go

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 installation on side?

I know that there are feet are on the right side of the case, but if I were to place the KPA500 on its side, i think I would create a stand so that it can sit on the left side. Why? The big weight (power toroid) is on the left side, while the heat generators (the PA transistors) are on the

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 installation on side?

>> From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net >> <mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net> [elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net >> <mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net>] on behalf of Jack Brindle via >> Elecraft [elecraft@mailman.qth.net <mailto:e

Re: [Elecraft] W2 wattmeter maximum Cat5 cable length

The cable is indeed not cat-5, but rather 8 individual wires that carry power and ground one way (to the box) and analog sensor signals back. The twist action in CAT-5 does not help here at all. The things to watch for are signal loss due to resistance (shouldn’t be too bad, depending on the

Re: [Elecraft] Low Voltage Band Data Output

It won’t directly drive either. The K3/K3S outputs BCD band data. You need a decoder box to convert that into direct drive signals (high side drive) for both of the antenna switches. The Elecraft KRC2 will do the job quite well, as will quite a few other boxes. Be sure they have TTL-level

Re: [Elecraft] How to recover emails

It would help a lot to know what email platform you are talking about. Gmail? Apple mail.app? Windows Outlook? Thunderbird? Something else? Without that only generic help can be offered. At least we are pretty sure it isn’t on the K3 or KPA500… 73! Jack, W6FB > On Jul 13, 2018, at 9:44 AM,

Re: [Elecraft] ELECRAFT WATTMETER SOFTWARE w2 screen position....

I presume you are talking about the W2 Windows Utility and not the W2 itself, especially since the W2 has no video monitor or video monitor outputs. Reloading firmware would have no effect here. It is purely a Windows issue. Perhaps some Windows experts can help out? 73! Jack, W6FB > On Oct

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 as a remote-controlled tuner

The answer is yes. But then it won’t tune and the cores will overheat from excess power trying to use a now-invalid solution. You must disable the amplifier to perform a tune or anytime the ATU needs to do any switching. It determines when it needs to do that (say from a QSY where it needs to

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 as a remote-controlled tuner

The keying interrupt must be provided by the ATU in order to avoid hot switching the ATU relays when it tunes. This cannot be determined anywhere but in the ATU, thus it must provide the break. That key line break is pretty important to the life of the ATU. Jack, W6FB > On Nov 3, 2018, at

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 as a remote-controlled tuner

UV in South Florida is so strong that we used to erase EPROMS by just sitting them outside. Miami is very much subtropical, and the sun’s damage from UV and intensity is incredibly strong. It does have high humidity, which is rare in Arizona. It would be interesting to use good tools to measure

Re: [Elecraft] Subject Re: Just a thought...

Hmmm. Age of the transceiver maybe? Newer equipment would have a weight and power supply advantage over the older transistorized or tube-type rigs! 73! Jack, W6FB > On Nov 15, 2018, at 5:15 PM, n...@zianet.com wrote: > > James Bennett via Elecraft writes: > >> How about extra bonus points

Re: [Elecraft] WSJT-X Disabling TX INHIBIT on K3S

Andy; Are you saying that you have to send the radio a serial command to engage and disengage the inhibit property? I don’t see how that is really useful for SO2R where you need pretty much instant switching, but then I doubt that is its use on the Kenwood. That leads to the question of how

Re: [Elecraft] Killed the KPA500 :)

Mike; If you haven’t done so already, please call the customer support guys down in Watsonville. They should be able to help you with the situation. They may ask for a fault log from your KPA500 - if so please provide it. I will try to quickly turn around the analysis that I do each time one

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 - Not Going To Full Power

Did you hear any clicks from the KPA when this was happening? Did the FAULT LED blink? It sounds like the amplifier is experiencing an issue that requires it to start to protect itself. It does this by switching in a 3db pad, which cuts the output power in half. If it sees no further issues

Re: [Elecraft] 500Hz Filter Offset Question

This has to do with the synthesizer boards. I believe the answer is that you don’t need to match them with the new synthesizers. You may need to still enter the offsets, however. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Jan 14, 2019, at 2:30 PM, Rich wrote: > > I just received my 500hz filters from Elecraft.

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 AC power

Yes. The current draw when running at 220V will be half that needed for 110V, which means the heat losses in the power cord and wall wiring will be cut by about one-fourth. This also means the voltage drop on the power cord and wall wiring will be much less at 220V. So, there is a pretty good

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 AC power

James; There would be no difference in the heat generated inside the KPA500 since the KPA’s transformer is delivering the same voltage and current in either case. The entire difference would be voltage drop on the power line and KPA’s power cord due to the higher current at 110V. The losses

Re: [Elecraft] [KAT500] Odd KAT500 Behavior

It seems that the KAT may not be getting fresh band info - if it did you would be hearing relays being set before the K3 transmitted. The KPA500 is listening to the same Band signals as the KAT (but not the Auxbus data), so I would turn on the KPA500, leave it in standby, and watch the display

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 issues

Need to have recent firmware in both the KAT500 and KPA500 also. The KPA500 for this was updated shortly after the KAT500 was created. In any case, the latest firmware for both devices is strongly recommended. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Nov 29, 2018, at 6:48 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Randy, > >

Re: [Elecraft] External AMP

No. There is no power source in the ACC connector from the K3. Your use of the 12V connector is the right solution. Jack, W6FB > On Nov 30, 2018, at 7:02 AM, Raymond wrote: > > I am using my ancient Heathkit SB 230 (original tube) with my K3s. Is there a > way to get 12 volts out of acc

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 investigation results (WAS KPA-1500 issues)

Randy; The resolution of the frequency being reported from the K3 to the KAT500 is 8 KHz. This probably does a better job explaining why the relays switch every 8 KHz than bin size. I would bet that once in a while you will find two adjacent frequency segments that fall in the same bin, and no

Re: [Elecraft] Problematic precipitate

The FT8 Roundup starts later today. If you wish to participate in it, you must use the v2.0.0-rc4 or 5 software. The older code simply won’t work for the contest operation. Think of it as an opportunity to collect more grid squares. Also, you can certainly have both applications installed side

Re: [Elecraft] TX Delay

What’s the lowest it can go? The KPA500 switches incredibly fast since there are no relays to switch. It is a true QSK amplifier. Try it at the standard setting for the IC-7610 and see if there are any issues. I bet there won’t be. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Nov 25, 2018, at 2:19 PM, Macy monkeys

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 with Icom 7600 accessory cable

Let’s take a step back and make sure the KAT500 and KPA500 work properly with RF sensing for a tune. Unplug the mini-phone plug from the KAT500. This will leave the KAT powered from the 7600, but requesting a tune from the 7600 won’t cause the KAT to respond. Next key the radio and make sure

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 with Icom 7600 accessory cable

Yeah, but we really want to get the problem solved so you can enjoy your KPA500 and KAT500 as much as we enjoy ours. That connection list will be most helpful in this effort. My thinking on the ground issue is that the power-plug ground is completing a circuit that should not exist and thus

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 with Icom 7600 accessory cable

Great! Thanks for the detail. Table 2 on page 8 of the KAT500 manual should have given you the exact connections you needed to make for the Molex to KAT500 cable. Note that the plug o the KAt500 end is stereo with tip, ring and sleeve. Please recheck these connections to make sure that pin 4 of

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 with Icom 7600 accessory cable

The folks in Watsonville are taking a well deserved rest, but some of us are still around. This sounds a lot like a grounding issue in your setup with ground being completed through the wall power ground pin. Tell me exactly all of the cables/connections going to the KPA500 (and from where).

Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft KX3 Utility error on Mac OS X High Sierra

Chris; The FTDI drivers are now maintained by Apple (since Mac OS X 10.9), so there is no need for installing the ones from FTDI. In fact you probably should uninstall them to allow the Apple drivers to do their job. But this isn’t an I/O issue. This looks like there is a corrupt file the

Re: [Elecraft] Trying to use KPA-1500 on 160

Pete; You should set your K3 so that it automatically adjusts power when the KPA1500 goes into OPER mode. To do this, go into the Config menu, the PWR SET entry, and set it to PER-BAND as described on page 63 of the K3S Operating Manual, rev A1. At this point you can switch the KPA into OPER

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 Assembly Help

Ah, but you came to the right place to get an Elecraft answer! Use the two thick ones on the bottom plus one of the thin ones, then use a thin one on top. They are meant to reduce vibration, and thus hum when transmitting. Enjoy your KPA500, and if you have more questions, just ask! 73, Jack

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 - Sanity Check Please

You may be right on the KPA. This sounds like a TR issue. Call tech support on Monday and discuss it with them. In the mean time, I may be able to help further the diagnosis - use the KPA Utility to gather a fault log and send it to me. I have tools that will parse the info and let me know of

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500/KPA500 - Sanity Check Please

Kevin; Why do you think there is a problem with the KPA500? I haven’t seen anything so far that explains that. In addition to the protections the KAT500 provides, the KPA500 has its own set of protections that keep it going or place it into a safe state. The KPA can take a lot of abuse before

Re: [Elecraft] Macintosh version of Elecraft KX3 Utility

gt; >>> 2019/03/29 0:17、Don Wilhelm のメール: >>> >>> My understanding is that a 64 bit version of the Mac and Linux Utilities is >>> "in the making". >>> But for now, you will have to put up with the messages from Apple that the >>>

Re: [Elecraft] Macintosh version of Elecraft KX3 Utility

Guys; Realize that Mac versions of the utilities are important to us “insiders” also. This is something that will be addressed in due time. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Mar 27, 2019, at 2:28 PM, Grant Youngman wrote: > > It’s kind of the way things go. I’d like to be able to run some 8-bit Z-80 >

Re: [Elecraft] Using KAP1500 with non Elecraft exciters

Richard; What do you mean by “things go into default”? The KPA500/KAT500 combo should play very well with the 7610. exactly what are you seeing? Jack Brindle, W6FB Elecraft Engineering > On Mar 2, 2019, at 7:30 AM, Richard Lawn wrote: > > I'm considering replacing my KPA500/KAT500 with the

Re: [Elecraft] Connect KPA-500, TS-480 and MicroKeyer II

The KPA500 does NOT have a pass-through mode. It DOES have a serial port dedicated to communicating with Kenwood radios to extract the operating frequency. It can just monitor the serial link or it can also poll for the needed data. You will need to provide a Y cable that connects the signal

Re: [Elecraft] K3/100 Voltage Drop when transmitting

Be sure to use a DVM external to the K3 to measure the voltage at the K3. The input protection diode in the K3 will cause some drop (1/4 to 1/2 volt perhaps). What this means is that the K3 meter will always show less voltage than is really present at the transceiver supply input. 73! Jack,

Re: [Elecraft] I'm a new Father of a KPA1500!

Ronnie; Congratulations. Now before you put it on the air, be sure to upgrade it to the latest firmware. A lot has changed since May 2018, and we have made a lot of improvements. In fact the latest release is an important one for your amp. Also, make sure the K3 has the latest firmware so that

Re: [Elecraft] TX Gain Calibration Fails on 6 meters

How are you doing the calibration - manual or computer? If computer, PC or Mac? Make sure you have the latest K3 Utility to do this. Recent versions of the K3 Utility had an issue with handling responses from the K3/K3S that caused calibration to fail. I believe they were fixed on the Windows

Re: [Elecraft] Mic Noise

That could be. USB and computer connections are notorious for causing problems if they are not shielded or connected properly. By unplugging and replugging the USB cable you just may have seated it properly and fixed things. Play with the radio for a while, on the air, and let us know if it

Re: [Elecraft] And what’s the latest firmware for the hat?

Guys, of course there is firmware in the hat! What do you think keeps the bill stiff? Just a testament to how good our firmware engineers are (starting with the head guy, Wayne) - no update is needed in this product! Now perhaps we might return to helping W5SUM enjoy his new acquisition of a

Re: [Elecraft] Connect KPA-500, TS-480 and MicroKeyer II

ansceiver PTT Out (Amp Key, Key Line, etc.) should be routed >>> to the "PTT In" jack on the microHAM interface and KPA-500 "Key Line" >>> taken from the PA PTT jack of the microHAM interface. If both a >>> KAT500 and KPA-500 are in use, the "Key Li

Re: [Elecraft] Nasty spurs on RX with new KPA500

Gary; By now I am sure you have checked all the ribbon cable connections and are sure they are plugged in properly. This sounds like a problem that needs to be addressed by the tech support guys. Be sure to give them a call on Monday. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Mar 9, 2019, at 9:14 AM, Gary NC3Z

Re: [Elecraft] ALC control of W6PQL amp from my K3

As an example of how we feel about ALC with the K3 and KPA500, neither of my custom-made AUX-IO cables has the ALC pin (pin 15) connected. It is just not needed. If the KPA500 needs to protect itself, it will. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Mar 9, 2019, at 10:23 AM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > I would

Re: [Elecraft] Connect KPA-500, TS-480 and MicroKeyer II

; On 2019-03-06 10:36 PM, Jack Brindle via Elecraft wrote: > > The KPA500 does NOT have a pass-through mode. > > Jack, thanks for the "official" information (although it is > a shame there is no "pass through" mode). > > As it stands, any Kenwood user

Re: [Elecraft] Connect KPA-500, TS-480 and MicroKeyer II

In fact that is exactly what the KPA500 is looking for. When SERPOLL = ON, it sends “IF;FA;FB;” to the XCVR port. From the response information it determines the Kenwood transceiver’s frequency whether it comes from VFOA, VFOB or one of the memory settings. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Mar 7, 2019,

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 no transmit question...

This sounds like there is no RF going into the KPA500. When the KPA500 is in STBY mode and he transmits, do the KPA500 indicators show the proper power level to match what he thinks the K3 is outputting? He might insert a wattmeter between the K3 and KPA500 to make sure that power is going into

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-500 with Portable Generator

While it isn’t troubled by investors, it also rather likes inverters… Sorry, I got spell-corrected… 73! Jack, W6FB > On Mar 7, 2019, at 7:30 PM, Jack Brindle via Elecraft > wrote: > > The KPA500 does quite well with generators, especially the Honda family. > These days it i

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-500 with Portable Generator

The KPA500 does quite well with generators, especially the Honda family. These days it is the amplifier of choice for many DXpeditions who’s only power is provided by generators. Since the KPA500 has a linear supply, it is not troubled as much by modified sine wave generators and investors as

Re: [Elecraft] How to get a pgm like MSHV or WSJTx to read the K3 Sub-Rx QRG ?

It appears that you are looking in the radio to solve the problem you state. That is the wrong place. It is the computer software that has to ask the right question. The CAT interface for Elecraft radios is published and maintained by Elecraft. It is available at the Elecraft web site for

Re: [Elecraft] KIO2 RS-232 to USB?

Be absolutely sure to use the cable as described in the K2’s KIO2 manual to connect the K2 to the USB adapter. Using a straight-through cable will cause damage to the K2. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Feb 14, 2019, at 7:08 PM, K2bew wrote: > > My computer does not have a 9 pin serial port. I have a 9

Re: [Elecraft] Looking for a way to switch an antenna input to the KAT500

TopTen has a nice A/B switch with pretty good isolation characteristics. See: https://toptendevices.com/products/ab-station-selector/ It requires a 12V signal for switching, I believe. Array Solutions also sells some devices that may be

Re: [Elecraft] high input SWR KPA500

The DC should not have done anything - the KPA blocks it at its input. But the excess power apparently did quite a bit of damage. Call the tech support guys on Monday. Good luck in PACC. Most of us contest types in this area (Northern California) are operating WPX-RTTY this weekend. 73! Jack,

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 serial interfaces

No. The transceiver port is meant to receive data from a connected Elecraft or Kenwood transceiver. It acts on data responses received from those devices. Specifically, it is looking of the following command responses from the transceiver: FA;, FB;, FR;, FT;, or IF;. The entire purpose of the

Re: [Elecraft] KEYBOARD

Several wireless Logitech keyboards have a very interesting feature - they can connect to several computers or devices, switching between them by simply tapping a key on the keyboard. As an example, I use a K780 with a Logitech Unifying receiver plugged into my P3. A second Unifying receiver is

Re: [Elecraft] Best Mac to use with KX3

WSJT-X runs just fine on my 2010 Mac mini with a core-2 duo processor. Almost every Mac that runs an Intel processor has at least a Core-2 Duo (the exception being the very first Intel iMac that used a single core Core-2 processor). I would not want to use a Mac with a sub 2 GHz processor - the

Re: [Elecraft] Latest Elecraft NEWS

My friend Don has a slightly faulty memory. The DX-60B (which I still have) was just a transmitter, no rx. It worked well with the SB-303. The HW-16 did indeed have a receiver which was definitely tunable. Both needed the HG-10 VFO to get away from being rock-bound. Perhaps it was the nerd

Re: [Elecraft] Measuring SWR (Long)

My friend Al has described some interesting things about SWR measurement here. But not all power/swr meters behave this way. In fact the Elecraft W2 meter is in this class. The designer added an ingenious little circuit to the diodes to bias them into their linear region. What the smeans is

Re: [Elecraft] K3 SignaLink & FT8 Question

This is close. As others have stated, two adapters are required. One is the Signalink (or other audio interface). The second is a serial adapter, preferably based on an FTDI chip. I believe it is the second you are really asking about. The serial adapter provides the actual control

Re: [Elecraft] Recommend a K3s foot switch

You know, I would be tempted to get a 1/4” female cord-mount jack and a cable with an RCA plug on it, shorten the end of the cable without the RCA plug (just to make a short adapter), slip on the connector housing, then solder the remaining cable to the 1/4” jack. That gives an adapter with

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 failure

Don; Does the High Voltage look about right on the display? Do you still get the asterisk on the display when you key down? Give tech support a call in the morning. They will be best equipped to help you at this point. 73, Jack, W6FB > On May 12, 2019, at 6:54 PM, Don Roberts via Elecraft >

Re: [Elecraft] KAT Problems

Paul; When you transmit on either band, does the KPA500 display an asterisk on the left side of the display? This would indicate that the KPA is being PTT. If so, Place a wattmeter in the RF path between the transceiver and the KPA500. That should give a good indication as to the power getting

Re: [Elecraft] K3/KAT500/KPA500 integration question

Andy; Here is what happens. Again, K3, KPA500 and KAT500. All are connected using AUX cables as described in the KPA500 and KAT500 manuals. KPA500 is STBY, and KPA500 NOT in any fault condition. K3 is transmitting at 100 watts, user taps the Operate button on the KPA500. The KPA500 decodes

Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 question: using the KAT500 with multiple transceivers using a coax switch

No, but it does respond to frequency changes from the K3 which may provide some strange results. If the K3 is on and you spin the big knob while using the KWM2, the KAT will respond to the K3’s QSY. If you change bands on the K3, BOTH the KAT and the KPA will also change bands. And (most

Re: [Elecraft] K3 connectivity problem

Mike; What kind of computer are you using, and which OS? That will determine the proper answer to your questions. If a MacBook or MacBook Pro with a recent version of macOS, then the serial drivers are already built in, you just need to install the K3 Utility, connect the Serial USB adapter

Re: [Elecraft] Fan speed

What device is involved? There are many with fans. 73, Jack, W6FB > On May 29, 2019, at 10:17 AM, Richard Zalewski wrote: > > Is fan speed band dependent as well as temp? My fan was 0 but when I > switched to 6m it ramped up to 2 immediately. Usually anything under 45C > no fan but on 6m the

Re: [Elecraft] K3S glitching on startup

This sounds like the K3S is getting commands fed to it when perhaps it shouldn’t be. With that in mind, try: 1) Check the front panel to see if any keys are stuck. 2) Disconnect the serial port then power up the radio. 3) If the above don’t work, reset the parameters. This is described on page

Re: [Elecraft] K3s USB failure?

Make sure that BOTH DE9 connectors are firmly plugged onto the P3. I ran not this situation myself over the weekend. The serial data needs to flow through the P3 and back to the K3S where it is then used. If one of the DE9s is not properly connected you won’t have a full path and the USB will

Re: [Elecraft] K3s USB failure?

Check the pins on the RJ-45 connector on the K3S. They can be damaged if you accidentally insert something besides the RJ-45 plug. You may be able to straighten them, but if that object was metal and the K3S was powered on at the time there is probably going to be other damage. I would remove

Re: [Elecraft] RCA Connectors i.e Phono Plugs

Those are now known as “Jones” connectors. No idea why the change, but they are becoming very hard to get with demand dropping. Easy for us to work with, but they take up a lot of rear-panel space on equipment. 731 Jack, W6FB > On Apr 18, 2019, at 10:39 AM, Jim Brown wrote: > > On 4/18/2019

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 input too high

They are going to want to know what is going on with the input power. The burned resistor (twice!) is a very good indication that there is indeed too much power flowing into the KPA’s front end at times. It is quite possible for any transmitter to put out more power than spec at times,

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 input too high

Components fail for a reason, which almost always is because they have been over-stressed. Component manufacturers spend a lot of time analyzing their devices to determine their stress points, failure modes and safe usage areas. When we design equipment, we look at this information to make sure

Re: [Elecraft] K3S & K3s with newer I/O board

What are the values of the pulp resistors on the decoders, and what voltage do they pull up to? If 12V, the yes, you really need to worry about the 2.2K resistors and that 1K series. Even at 5V you may have to do so. Work the problem out on paper - simple ohms law. Then determine if the low

Re: [Elecraft] OT a bit: K3 Ant Tuner

9-07-05 1:55 PM, Jack Brindle via Elecraft wrote: > >> The external ATU takes care of the antenna matching, and should > > present a 50 ohm load to the BPF. > > This only hold true for the *single frequency* on which the external > antenna tuner is "tuned". Typic

Re: [Elecraft] OT a bit: K3 Ant Tuner

Lets step back a bit and look at the system here. The K3, with ATU, drives into the BPF, when then drives into the external ATU and finally the antenna. The external ATU takes care of the antenna matching, and should present a 50 ohm load to the BPF. The BPF, because of its design, should

Re: [Elecraft] OT a bit: K3 Ant Tuner

. As I stated earlier, I set my K3s to bypass mode for driving either my BPFs or my KPA500s. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Jul 5, 2019, at 12:56 PM, Gmail - George wrote: > > > > -Original Message- > From: Jack Brindle via Elecraft > > ... > > Now having said this

Re: [Elecraft] Cable for FSK-D

A Mortty will do a great job of conveying the ASCII data stream to Baudot, generating the FSK data you need. Then, take a look at N6TV’s Y-Box for an easy way to connect the data into the Aux IO connections. The Mortty is $18, available at: http://hamprojects.info/mortty/

Re: [Elecraft] All knobs at max ...

As was explained very carefully to us last fall before the election with that proposal, it would take a change in an international agreement for CA to go on full-time DST, so don’t hold your breath. Now, it that wasn’t true, it definitely wouldn’t be the first time the Sacramento politicians

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 fan won't shut off

That means the power is not shutting off. We bleed off the capacitor charge through the fan at front panel shutdown, which is why you hear the fan run for normally a short time. Turn off the KPA using the rear pane switch and call tech support in the morning. They need to look into this one.

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 fan won't shut off

The KPA runs a check on the memory contents when it starts up. If something has changed that should not, then it will ask for a fresh firmware load. Since Jerry is not seeing this, then I don’t believe there is a firmware issue. I _am_ concerned about the issue, which is why I suggest calling

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 fan won't shut off

Dinner on Andy? Your analysis is spot on. When the KPA is requested to shut down it does some housekeeping, saving various things and putting the amp into a safe condition, including setting the 60V to off. It then sets the fan for full speed operation to bleed off the 60V power and waits for

Re: [Elecraft] When Transmitting on FT8 - KPA500 has issues - KD8ZYD

Fred sent me the video, which is actually very revealing. First the change rate is very rapid, higher than I initially expected. The asterisk is on constantly, and the power off time is not long enough for power to drop to zero. But what I found very interesting is that the output power

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 PA current

Tell us a bit more about the antenna. How is it fed? Is it properly choked to eliminate RF shield current (this is current flowing on the outside of the shield. It is a bit early to remember the proper term…)? And, do you have chokes on the coax at the KAT500 or KPA500? I think we need a bit

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 Coax size requirements

Carter; Welcome to the world of higher power. The information you have received from others is very good. There is one other thing to watch for, it is something that most hams who upgrade to higher power experience. When we operate at low power, there are a lot of things we can get away with

Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 Power Output Variation

Jim; It would be interesting to see the source of the variance. You might insert the Bird between the transceiver and the KPA to see if there is any variance there. The amplifier has fixed gain - it has no ability to vary its gain during transmission other than a protective pad that is

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 STBY to OPER

Maybe to the “Not quite as good as…” category. The issue is timing. Your code has to poll to determine the KPA op state, then start all the transitions which will result in the PTT line being negated. There are a lot of delays involved here. With the K3/KPA, the button press causes the KPA to

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 STBY to OPER

Andy; It works very well. The op has to set the K3 so that the power is controller per-band. When the KPA is switched to OPmode, it sends a message to the K3. The K3 then switches to the amplifier selection for power, which the op has et specifically for the KPA. The converse is also true,

Re: [Elecraft] Sudden K3 failure

Perhaps the RxAnt is selected? Easy to do, easy to miss. Done it more times than I care to remember. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Jul 26, 2019, at 7:42 PM, Mpridesti via Elecraft > wrote: > > Sorry- did not fully see the problem > > The receiver is not working on any band not just 40. Sounds like

Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft K3S usb and USB data only cable

You would be far better off finding a USB cable with built-in ferrite to handle the small noise. The noise is most likely coming from the NUC as part of its USB polling regime, and being transmitted along the shield of the USB cable. Using the ferrite should eliminate this issue. You don’t need

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 - KAT500 stopping K3 boot

Check your cables. It may be that you are using a straight-through cable with the power pins connected between the K3 and the KPA. These two pins (pin 8 on both sides) must not be connected. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Aug 8, 2019, at 1:05 PM, w4sc wrote: > > Is there an issue with the KPA500 being

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 PA current

own wrote: > > On 8/4/2019 9:20 AM, Jack Brindle via Elecraft wrote: >> And, do you have chokes on the coax at the KAT500 or KPA500? > > I hope not -- to be effective, a choke must be that the antenna's feedpoint. > A choke on an antenna in the shack does no

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 PA current

Andy; This is the effect of not being able to obtain perfect components. It is easy to forget that the toroid cores used for the inductors vary, as do the windings and capacitors. There will be variances because of this which will be different from KPA to KPA. They are set up for best case

Re: [Elecraft] KIO3B usb com port not communicating

Do you have BOTH plugs connected to the P3? You need to use the cable that has not one, but two DE-9 connectors - this allows the data to flow from the USB interface through the P3 and then back to the K3S. Without it, I would expect exactly the behavior you describe. In fact, I experienced

Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 - Advantage of min fan speed?

All you guys had to do was ask. When going down, the hysteresis is 3 degrees. That means that each threshold is shifted down 3 degrees. The hysteresis is necessary to keep the fan speed from bouncing up and down when the temperature is at one of the switch points. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Sep 30,

Re: [Elecraft] Keyboard compatible with P3/SVGA

I can attest that yes there is indeed Mac version of Logitech Options software. And I agree that the picture-based docs are not great. The Unifying receivers must be paired on the computer to one of the three keyboard selector buttons, then removed and plugged into the back of the P3. I also

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