Greetings all, This is my first submission to the Elecraft reflector. I intend to place an order for my K3 today, but I need some help making the final decisions of which options I should purchase at this time. First, let me describe my antenna setup so the experts here can hopefully offer more specific advice.
I am presently using a 40-10m wire dipole (DX Engineering) elevated to about 32 feet, with an apex angle a little over 90 degrees (maybe 95). The ICOM-729 w/ 100W that I have been using the past month has gotten the signal out as far as Seattle (S9) and New York (S9) from my QTH in SoCal. I have heard from all over the country, parts of Canada, Alaska, and can get faint signals from Central/South America and the Caribbean. Also hear from Japan occasionally. So I expect this antenna to get even better when the sunspots start making a comeback in a few years. In the future (5-10 years) I will probably move to a QTH that allows a nice 100' tower, but until then, I have to make do with my dipole. I just passed my Extra license test and these are my goals for the next couple of years: - Work as many locations I can (SSB/CW/PSK31) - Learn CW and become proficient at 20-30 WPM (will be purchasing a K8RA P-4) - Full computer integration and rig control with a MicroHAM MicroKeyer II - Participate in contests (once I understand how that works) - Work towards some awards (WAS for starters) - Work DX (someday, when I can put up a tower or as band conditions allow with my dipole) Now that you know a bit about my setup and what I want to accomplish, here are the options I am considering: - K3/100 kit - KAT3 100W internal tuner (no plans to buy a bigger amplifier for awhile; want to be proficient with 100W first) - KDVR3 (Not sure if this overlaps with features offered by the MKII) -- How useful do people find this? - KFL3A-400 400Hz 8-pole filter for CW (I'm anticipating I'll want this for contests/noisy conditions) - KFL3A-2.1K 2.1 KHz 8-pole filter for SSB (I'm anticipating I'll want this for working faint signals during noisy conditions) - KFL3A-2.8K 2.8 kHz 8-pole filter for the majority of operating I'm going with 8-pole filters to make it easier to add the sub-receiver someday should I want that. My main question is whether these are the right filters for my needs. Would I be better off with 1.8 kHz instead of 2.1 kHz? I know it's subjective, but I'm just trying to be practical and not waste money. Now, I also need recommendations on a boom-mic/headset. I see a lot of people here use the Yamaha CM500. Is this totally plug and play or do you have to make any mods to get it working with the K3? Thanks for the forthcoming recommendations and opinions! -Jeff, W6EZY ______________________________________________________________ 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
