Re: [Elecraft] K3 synthesizer problem
Has he done a cold reset? It really sounds like there is no antenna attached in that band segment. Has he tried simply removing the antenna/dummy load connection and see if the results are the same? If so, then clearly the antenna choice needs to be examined. I'd be willing to bet his K3 has an antenna tuner. 73 de Brian/K3KO On 2/9/2012 9:14 PM, David Gilbert wrote: You've never said whether or not you can receive OK in those band segments. If so, I doubt that the synth board would be the problem. Dave AB7E On 2/9/2012 5:07 PM, Tom Kramer wrote: I am a new person in this group and I will admit that I have not looked at many of the hundreds of previous posts so I will apologize in advance for being a bit lazy if this topic has been dealt with before. I have a home assembled K3 SN 4210 that has developed a most annoying problem. I have exchanged a number of emails with Gary Surrency about this with basically no conclusion and an apparent lack of desire to solve it. I discovered that when attempting to transmit between 24,910.0 and 24,930.0 the swr bar graph shows a pulsating full scale reading and the dial reads SWR between 9:1 and 12:1, and power output of maybe 20 watts. Outside this range SWR is normal and power output is full 100 watts. This can be into a resonant antenna or dummy load. I have done the synthesizer calibration preceded of course by the ADC ref calibration multiple times. I sent Gary a list of all the parameters outputted by these tests and he says all look to be in the normal range. I have since discovered that the same problem appears between 28,500 and 29,000 Khz as well. I am trying to keep this somewhat short so I didn't supply every detail of the testing. Have other people experienced this and what if any solution did you find? Gary suggests a new synthesizer board @ $200+ but no at this point there is no guarantee that will fix the problem. I have made arrangements to test this with another K3 next week, but curious if this problem is something new. Tom NQ7R Casa Grande, AZ __ 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 - No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 10.0.1424 / Virus Database: 2112/4799 - Release Date: 02/09/12 __ 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 synthesizer problem NQ7R
Try re-tuning the KAT3 auto tuner, or bypassing it. Try tightening the 3 LPA screws on the bottom (the ones with lock washers). Keith On 2/9/2012 4:07 PM, Tom Kramer wrote: I am a new person in this group and I will admit that I have not looked at many of the hundreds of previous posts so I will apologize in advance for being a bit lazy if this topic has been dealt with before. I have a home assembled K3 SN 4210 that has developed a most annoying problem. I have exchanged a number of emails with Gary Surrency about this with basically no conclusion and an apparent lack of desire to solve it. I discovered that when attempting to transmit between 24,910.0 and 24,930.0 the swr bar graph shows a pulsating full scale reading and the dial reads SWR between 9:1 and 12:1, and power output of maybe 20 watts. Outside this range SWR is normal and power output is full 100 watts. This can be into a resonant antenna or dummy load. I have done the synthesizer calibration preceded of course by the ADC ref calibration multiple times. I sent Gary a list of all the parameters outputted by these tests and he says all look to be in the normal range. I have since discovered that the same problem appears between 28,500 and 29,000 Khz as well. I am trying to keep this somewhat short so I didn't supply every detail of the testing. Have other people experienced this and what if any solution did you find? Gary suggests a new synthesizer board @ $200+ but no at this point there is no guarantee that will fix the problem. I have made arrangements to test this with another K3 next week, but curious if this problem is something new. Tom NQ7R Casa Grande, AZ __ 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 synthesizer problem
NQ7R and all, Tom, that does sound like a very odd problem. I Don't remember seeing it discussed previously here. However, your suggestion that Gary Surrency may be lacking in interest to solve it doesn't sound like Gary at all! He has been around the Elecraft scene, almost from inception, and has always been very responsive, and he is very good at identifying problem resolutions! My guess is that he may simply have run out of ideas without being able to get hands on. Not every problem can be solved by email. It also appears that the two of you have exchanged several emails, and that doesn't sound like someone who is not trying to be helpful. I suppose if you have another K3 around, and could substitute one synthesizer board for another that way, you could probably determine whether or not Gary's suggestion is correct. He's probably suggesting that to avoid your having to send the rig to Elecraft for service, but that really may be your best option due to the uncertainty. Maybe you could just send them your synthesizer board and they could test it somehow. That might be even easier, from a shipping standpoint. However, maybe that's not a practical approach for whatever reason. Anyway, I know rig problems are depressing, and I sympathize with your frustration. There's a tendency to feel abused, since everyone else's rig seems to be working fine, but yours isn't! Unfortunately, bad things can happen to good people! However, I sincerely believe you are in better hands with Elecraft than you would be with just about any other manufacturer. When rig problems develop, and you can't fix them yourself, you have to bite the bullet somewhat. You just have to work with them to determine the most expeditious way of resolving the problem. By the way, if I had to guess, I'd bet Gary is probably close to right in his suggestion, but since he can't be positive, he obviously can't give you any guarantees. Unless some other option comes to mind, I'd probably just send the rig in and be done with it. Besides, there is usually the additional benefit of them possibly identifying other anomalies, which they could then deal with without necessitating another trip back and forth. Kind of like getting a 20,000 mile service on your car! Dave W7AQK __ 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 synthesizer problem
I am a new person in this group and I will admit that I have not looked at many of the hundreds of previous posts so I will apologize in advance for being a bit lazy if this topic has been dealt with before. I have a home assembled K3 SN 4210 that has developed a most annoying problem. I have exchanged a number of emails with Gary Surrency about this with basically no conclusion and an apparent lack of desire to solve it. I discovered that when attempting to transmit between 24,910.0 and 24,930.0 the swr bar graph shows a pulsating full scale reading and the dial reads SWR between 9:1 and 12:1, and power output of maybe 20 watts. Outside this range SWR is normal and power output is full 100 watts. This can be into a resonant antenna or dummy load. I have done the synthesizer calibration preceded of course by the ADC ref calibration multiple times. I sent Gary a list of all the parameters outputted by these tests and he says all look to be in the normal range. I have since discovered that the same problem appears between 28,500 and 29,000 Khz as well. I am trying to keep this somewhat short so I didn't supply every detail of the testing. Have other people experienced this and what if any solution did you find? Gary suggests a new synthesizer board @ $200+ but no at this point there is no guarantee that will fix the problem. I have made arrangements to test this with another K3 next week, but curious if this problem is something new. Tom NQ7R Casa Grande, AZ __ 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 synthesizer problem
On 2/9/2012 4:07 PM, Tom Kramer wrote: I have exchanged a number of emails with Gary Surrency about this with basically no conclusion and an apparent lack of desire to solve it. That would be a first for this group. I discovered that when attempting to transmit between 24,910.0 and 24,930.0 the swr bar graph shows a pulsating full scale reading and the dial reads SWR between 9:1 and 12:1, and power output of maybe 20 watts. Do you have the K3 ATU? If you're getting 20W with that SWR, you must have the 100W PA, true? With an antenna connected, what do you hear on RX as you tune into one of these regions? Why do you think it's a synthesizer problem? Do you have any method [another receiver] to check the freq of your TX signal as you cross into one of the high SWR regions? If it happened across an entire band, I'd suspect you maybe inadvertently selected ANT2 on that band and elephant-brain K3 remembered it. I'd suspect that because that's what I did, and got a phone call from Wayne -- first thing he asked me to check. If you have the ATU and it is in AUTO, it may have remembered a setting for that band segment that is wildly wrong. Others will no doubt speak up here. 73, Fred K6DGW - Northern California Contest Club - CU in the 2012 Cal QSO Party 6-7 Oct 2012 - www.cqp.org __ 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 synthesizer problem
You've never said whether or not you can receive OK in those band segments. If so, I doubt that the synth board would be the problem. Dave AB7E On 2/9/2012 5:07 PM, Tom Kramer wrote: I am a new person in this group and I will admit that I have not looked at many of the hundreds of previous posts so I will apologize in advance for being a bit lazy if this topic has been dealt with before. I have a home assembled K3 SN 4210 that has developed a most annoying problem. I have exchanged a number of emails with Gary Surrency about this with basically no conclusion and an apparent lack of desire to solve it. I discovered that when attempting to transmit between 24,910.0 and 24,930.0 the swr bar graph shows a pulsating full scale reading and the dial reads SWR between 9:1 and 12:1, and power output of maybe 20 watts. Outside this range SWR is normal and power output is full 100 watts. This can be into a resonant antenna or dummy load. I have done the synthesizer calibration preceded of course by the ADC ref calibration multiple times. I sent Gary a list of all the parameters outputted by these tests and he says all look to be in the normal range. I have since discovered that the same problem appears between 28,500 and 29,000 Khz as well. I am trying to keep this somewhat short so I didn't supply every detail of the testing. Have other people experienced this and what if any solution did you find? Gary suggests a new synthesizer board @ $200+ but no at this point there is no guarantee that will fix the problem. I have made arrangements to test this with another K3 next week, but curious if this problem is something new. Tom NQ7R Casa Grande, AZ __ 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
