> Lee W9OY wrote:
I was over on the Elecraft site looking at the K-3 and how it's configured. I
don't have any first hand experience but this is what I was able to figure out.
There was a recent mention of how you could configure the K-3 for point and
click so I decided to see what that was all about.. To do that you need to add
a $100 dollar board to the K-3, you need to add N8LP's Lpan board for about
$225 and you need to add a $300 sound card. So to get a crappy version of what
we get for free you need to spend an extra $625 for hardware PLUS they use a
version of PSDR to run the whole kludged up mess. <
I understand what is being said here and it is very Flex 5000A biased. That's
not entirely fair since it's stated that there is no actual experience with the
K3. I have both radios so I feel that I can make some unbiased comments. First
of all, the Flex has some things that I like better than the K3. And the K3 has
things I like better than the Flex. Unfortunately, I have not had enough time
to become an expert on either - yet.
A few things that were mentioned just are not so. First, most K3s probably get
ordered with the "$100 dollar board". This board includes the RX ant jack and
xvtr interface jacks in addition to the IF output. One of the recommended sound
cards for use with LP Pan is the E-MU 0202, $100, NOT $300. The $225 for the LP
PAN box is correct.
Here's a quick, but not 100% comparison:
Flex 5000A Elecraft K3
2799 100 Watt Radio 2090
649 2nd RX 570
AM/FM 250
Gen Coverage 130
299 Ant Tuner 300
500 Hz Roofing 99
129 HRFIO Board
KXV3 Board 100
TCXO 100
DVR 100
3876 Sub Total 3799
LP PAN 225
Sound Card 100
$3876 Total $4124
They look preety much like they are in the same ballpark to me. No need to
nickle and dime here as I'm sure others could point out some things I've missed.
There's also the issue of PC power to consider. I would think that the Flex
requires a higher performance PC to run everything, rather than just the
panadaptor for the K3. That would add add a few more bucks to Flex cost.
The Flex 2nd RX is much easier to install than the one on the K3. The K3 still
has tuning knobs which I happen to prefer. ( It's just me - I find using the
mouse to tune is not what I like) I also thought, from an A/B comparison, that
the K3 was better on 6 Meter receive....without using a preamp on either. I
like the antenna selection options on the Flex a bit better - however, being
forced to only use antenna 3 for 6 meter transmit is limiting. I have both a
beam and an omni antenna on 6 and would like to be able to transmit on either
with one as ant 2 and the other as ant 3. I'd also like to be able to listen on
both antennas at the same time.
I guess the point I'm trying to make is that both radios are great. Each has
its own set of features that a given individual might prefer. It doesn't make
much sense to knock one or the other. Both radios are pretty much in the same
price range when fully decked out.
73,
Dave N8AG
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