I'd like to understand more about the use of the
buttons M1 through M4, as they apply to memory recall
within a given band.
The best way for Elecraft to show off this radio's
bazillion functions is to create a meta-tagged MPEG4
video of someone (Wayne?) going through each function
of the entire rig. With such a searchable file, I
could simply click for what I wanted to see, instead
of having to watch an entire 40 minute 3 GB tutorial.
This demo video would help sell the second thousand of
these radios.
Back to the M1 - M4 buttons ... For them to be
effectively used as "band stack registers" they would
have to perform that function without a two-tap
modality; in other words, this action would best not
happen with a press-and-hold, multiple tap, or as an
'F' type process. Just looking at the rig, I can't
tell if that's how these buttons work. It seems like
they are there for voice and CW keyer functions, not
for memory recall. How does the radio know that
pressing M3 means "go to the 3rd memory for this band"
rather than "play the voice message #3" or "send the
CW message #3" ?? ... *all* of which ought to be
one-press functions. Tough to do this well with what
I see on the front panel. I'm not given to K4VUD's
acerbicity, but if you read deeper into what he's
saying, it's based on a sincere interest and rooted in
this concern.
The ultimate use scenario matrix for the K3 front
panel remains quite attractive. For example, one
generally uses band stacking registers AFTER one is
already "on" the band. As I attempt to think how the
designer was thinking, the arrival at this particular
design decision has to have been at least partly based
on this ergonometric fact. (I've talked to the guy
enough to find that he's pretty bright.)
Yes, it would be nice to just hit the 40m button to
get there and then tap it again to move between
frequencies on that band. An hour up at HRO in
Sunnyvale playing with a PROIII front panel would have
convinced me of that. But I'd gladly go through the
K3's 'other' band select mechanism(s) if I knew that
once I was there, the M1 - M4 buttons worked the way I
want them to.
Because my time with the K2 at Dayton was limited, I
was unable to self-teach on the topic. This lack of
understanding of this keypad operation is one of the
very few remaining barriers to ordering a K3 for
myself. Again, a tagged digital feature-walk-through
video would be immensely useful.
This keypad operation is more than an academic
interest to me. Since control panel ergonomics and
ultra high dynamic range mixers are my two radio
passions, the K3 could be a true pinnacle of design
reference in my own experience. I already know how
much engineering went into the BUTTONS themselves!!
You would not believe the details these guys sweated
over.
Of course, the K3 being a firmware driven animal,
whatever the operational differences between what I'd
like and what's there now, the fact that numerically
sufficient and labeled buttons exist in real-space is
all that really matters. The firmware engineer will
be able to make it do what it needs to do.
Finally, even if that fails, there's an external
control system which would allow ME to build a
MCU-equipped external keypad. This keypad would
create the band-stack register functionality that the
radio itself might lack, by sending the suitable
commands to the radio's control input. If Elecraft
doesn't make the rig work the way I want it to, which
I do NOT expect, I will simply build this external
keypad gizmo and sell copies (as kits, of course) to
others who are looking for the same thing I am. gee.
Profits from the sale of this gizmo could pay for the
radio!
73 Steve KZ1X/4
Chapel Hill
____________________________________________________________________________________
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