Re: [Elecraft] Why K3's are on most DXpeditions
Another data point from the all-K3 FD station W1LY (2A RI). The 3 Yagi antennas in the photo (link below) were all on the 20m band simultaneously for at least 4 hours at the beginning of FD. 1 station was on 20 CW, and 2 stations were on 20 SSB. All running 100 Watts. Another K3 was used in the VHF station, and 2 other K3's were on standby as spares. Picture here: http://w1sye.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/FD-2015-Panorama-Resized.jpg 73, John WA1ABI __ 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 Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] OT: Solar Panel Tests with K1 and A123 Battery
The connectors on the Powerfilm solar products are Delphi Weatherpack connectors. They are inexpensive and readily available. One source: http://www.hipoparts.com/weather-pack-2-pin-sealed-wiring-connector-kit/ The link above is for a complete male and female connector pair. The same place sells the individual piece parts, and the pin extractor tool (handy to have.) I have no connection to the above company; Weatherpack connectors are available from other sources as well. 73, john WA1ABI Eric WD6DBM said PowerFilm sells a daisy-chain cable for hooking two panels together. It is expensive, but it does use their water-resistant connectors. __ 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] Let's Try This Again -- was [K3] ... A 750 Hz, 8-Pole ... Filter?
As another data point in this discussion... I operate 100% CW with my K3, which is equipped with 200, 500, 1000, and 2.7KHz filters. During FD 2010 I made 400+ CW QSO's during my two 4 hour operating shifts. The great majority of that operating time was spent with the DSP bandwidth at 600-700 Hz (and the 1KHz crystal filter.) Only once, when digging out a weak one, did I narrow the bandwidth tight enough to engage the 200Hz crystal filter. FD may not be the ultimate contest environment test, but it's busy. Calling stations are often pretty far off zero beat in FD, so one needs a fairly wide bandwidth to hear many of them. The 1KHz crystal filter combined with the K3 DSP did a swimmingly good job this year and in FD's 09 and 08. Would a 750 Hz crystal filter be better? Perhaps, but I'm quite happy with what I have now. 73, john WA1ABI __ 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] Compression and noise - was W2IHY 8 band equalizer and EQ Plus
And do remember, more compression brings up background noise between words by the amount of the compression value. Hence with 10 dB of compression, a background noise level that would normally produce and output of 1 watt will then sound like 10 watts of noise. 73 Bob, K4TAX Bob's comment above is right on the money and is well worth re-reading. Professional announcers use proper mic technique *and* they work in sound booths or acoustically inert studios. Sports announcers who must work in noisy environments use headsets with high quality noise-canceling mics inches from their lips, followed by processors far more sophisticated than any used by hams. A tip to the phone contest fellows: prepare your CQ loops in a quiet room well in advance of the event. I am always astounded at the poor quality of the CQ loops in contests - many from the well known big gun stations who should know better. I wonder about the impact on the Q-rate when the listeners (especially those whose native language is other than English) have difficulty understanding the CQ loop. 73, john WA1ABI __ 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] FW: K3: machined concentric knobs from Mouser
I went this route a couple months ago on my K3. The Alco knobs do look spiffy, although they protrude slightly further out from the front panel. After a while I went back to the factory knobs on the inner shafts. Why? Because the stock knobs are far more comfortable on the fingers. I'm a CW op, and I frequently adjust both the AF and RF gain controls. I don't have the 2nd receiver (yet) thus there is no need for me to adjust the outer knobs (yet) so I left the spiffy but uncomfortable knobs on the outer shafts. Moral of the story: It is mighty hard to improve upon the K3. 73, john WA1ABI -Original Message- From: elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net]on Behalf Of Brett Howard Sent: Wednesday, July 29, 2009 9:29 PM To: James Sarte Cc: ac...@aol.com; elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3: machined concentric knobs from Mouser The word is inexpensive... not cheap! Those look really nice! I was just sitting here wondering if there was a knob that would fit over the shift, width, speed, and pwr knobs. I'm not so sure I'd want to mess w/ them too much though as I'd not want the spacing between them to get too terribly much smaller. They work well as they are... But that does look quite good... ~Brett On Wed, 2009-07-29 at 21:09 -0400, James Sarte wrote: Here are two pictures. I left the bottom RF knob off to give you an idea of how well the larger concentric knob slides onto the encoder shaft. It's perfect; no looseness or wiggling. http://jamespaulsarte.com/temp/ham/knob1.jpg http://jamespaulsarte.com/temp/ham/knob2.jpg James K2QI __ 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 Sidetone volume
Carl said: .. sidetone volume. I require several volume settings depending on which speaker or headphones I'm using and by the time I realize that I have it wrong I'm in the middle of a QSO and can't change it without drowning out either myself or the other station. 73 thanks for listening Carl WS7L K3 #486 Yes! I want very much to be able to adjust the sidetone volume without actually creating sidetone. I hate to wake the rest of the household trying to turn down the sidetone volume that I was trying to turn down to avoid waking the rest of the household. 73, john WA1ABI K3 #795 ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] K3 vs. Rohde and Schwartz
Interesting indeed. The comparison they quote is the IMD dynamic range at 5 KHz spacing, which the RS wins. But take a look at the 2 KHz spacing - the K3 trounces the RS. 73, john WA1ABI K3 #795 -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of John Klewer Sent: Saturday, September 20, 2008 11:43 AM To: 'Elecraft' Subject: [Elecraft] K3 vs. Rohde and Schwartz Interesting to note that in QST magazine's review of a super whizbang, thermonuclear commercial transceiver from Rohde and Schwartz in the October issue of QST, the receiver they referenced its intermod performance to is...the K3. NICE! John, N6AX K3 567 ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] SB-221 for K3 need some help.
My old SB-220 works just fine with my K3 on CW. Yes, the SB-220's key line is 120 VDC. The kind that will make you let go real quick if you accidentally grab it. The K3 doesn't mind it. The K3's Key Out is rated for +200V at 5 Amps. The stock SB-220 won't do QSK, of course. Set the K3 to semi-breakin with a hold delay long enough to keep the amp keyed between characters, and you're good to go. FB 73, john WA1ABI I found out this week that K3 is good with Heathkit SB-220 amps, all you need to do is connect a shielded RCA cable between the units - how easy is that? !!! Are you sure? Most of those amplifiers had high voltage PTT circuits. If I recall correctly the TR relay is a 120V 3PDT unit. You may need a buffer or soft-key circuit in your amplifier to make it safe with the K3. Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] Sidetone Monitor Preference Opinions
I have to agree with Steve on this. I'm a CW operator. I would like to have the sidetone track volume, while still being able to adjust the mix ratio, preferably while working CW. After FD this year one fellow asked me an excellent question: What don't you like about the K3? I had been answering K3 questions all weekend, but I wasn't prepared for that one. The single gripe I could come up with was the sidetone volume adjustment. As Steve says, it's not a deal breaker. We both own K3's. 73, john WA1ABI I do have the K3 and know how to adjust the sidetone. I just prefer having the AF gain and sidetone track to one control. Also, I like to be able to adjust the sidetone level while sending CW which you can't do on the K3. When you push the mon button you get a constant sidetone. You cannot hear the other guy sending no can you send cw yourself while doing this. This is very weird and I have never seen a rig act like this. It's not a deal breaker Steve Ellington ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] K3 headphone level
Our FD group used a K3 and Heil ProSet this year, and we were really hoping to configure the K3 to have the speaker and headphones both active. When we tried to use the SPKR+PH configuration, we found that the speaker and headphone levels were mismatched such that when the AF gain was adjusted to get adequate headphone level, the speaker was excessively loud, to the point where the loud speaker audio was annoying to the operator wearing the headphones. - snip - ed N9EP Here's what we did for our K3 CW station at FD: The K3's Line Out was configured for =PHONES (this is a fairly new firmware feature that sends both rcv audio and sidetone to Line Out.) The Line Out fed a 20 Watt hi-fi audio amplifier which drove a big honkin' loudspeaker which sat outside the CW tent. The gain pot on the audio amp was used to control the PA volume - we played it loud during the day and were a little more conservative in the wee hours of the morning while some of the crew caught a little sleep. The effect was perfect - there are few things as satisfying as hearing your ace CW ops running pileups all over the FD grounds. 73, john WA1ABI ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] K3 Burn In
Disclaimer - the following test method is not approved or sanctioned by Elecraft. Conduct any testing at your own risk. I work in Quality Assurance in my day job (30 years and counting.) Long before FD I performed a 24 hour endurance test on my K3 to approximate worst-case FD conditions. I recorded a CQ FD message similar to the actual message we would be using at FD into one of the K3's message memories, then set the message repeat time to minimum. The K3's output power was set to 120 Watts and the rig was connected to a 50 ohm dummy load with a Bird thruline wattmeter in line. The DC input voltage was set to 13.5 volts. The test was performed at ambient room temp, about 24 degrees C. The K3 sent the continuous message loop for a 24 hour period without incident. The actual environmental conditions at our FD were a bit more severe than the test conditions above. The K3 was operated in a 4-man dome tent exposed to full sun with an outside air temp approaching 90 degrees. We didn't measure the actual temperature inside the tent, but my informal assessment was hot as hell. Of course, the transmit duty cycle in actual FD use was less demanding than the test duty cycle. I had high confidence that the K3 would be up to the task, and it was. I'm sorry to hear about your failure at FD. I have heard no other reports of FD failures, and to my knowledge the VP6DX crew had no failures during their operation earlier this year. It may be of small comfort to you, but I regard your failure as an anomaly - stuff happens. Overall, the K3 is establishing a reputation as a very reliable field rig. 73, john WA1ABI Has anyone done a burn in on their radios to test? They rate to 100W 100% duty cycle for 10 minutes. I'm sure there is quite a bit of headroom in that too. Has anyone tested to that? Do any of the Elecraft guys object to that type of testing? I had a strange failure at FD this year and worry that unless I do a burn in like that once it gets back that my normal amount of operation will take quite a while to emulate what the rig saw during field day. ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] [K3] UTILITY Improvements - XML
I would vote for XML as well. It's porky, but it's human readable, it's universal and well supported by many applications and frameworks, and one can easily edit it by hand with Notepad or Emacs or whatever. 73, john WA1ABI ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] K3 BETA Firmware Release -- MCU Revision 2.10
Me too. Wow. I had reservations about loading a Beta before FD, but I'm really glad I did. The NR is now *very* effective at reducing summer static on CW. Great job, Elecraft team. 73, john WA1ABI -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of AI1V Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2008 8:24 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 BETA Firmware Release -- MCU Revision 2.10 I usually refrain from posting here to keep from adding to the noise level, but can't resist right now. Re the new NR implementation - WOW! Great job. Rick AI1V wayne burdick wrote: K3 beta-test firmware revision 2.10 is now available. Full details appear below and in the release notes. ... 73, Wayne N6KR ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Auto-spot Was:RE: [Elecraft] K3 BETA FIRMWARE RELEASE -- MCU rev 1.94
I agree with Bob, NW8L's comments below. I've been on the air 99% CW for 41 years and I use Auto-spot. I can easily match tones to better than 10 cycles by ear, but why bother? Auto-spot is working better in 1.94 Beta and I have every confidence that it will only get better. 73, john WA1ABI -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Bob Cunnings Sent: Wednesday, May 14, 2008 10:25 AM To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 BETA FIRMWARE RELEASE -- MCU rev 1.94 I've been on the air for 25 years working 99% cw, and zero beating by ear the whole time, thank you. Your condescending comments aren't helpful in this case. I appreciated the auto-spot feature since it saves time and was very robust. *I* find that *this* cw op enjoyed using this particular zero beating gizmo, advertised as a first tier feature of the K3. Unfortunately performance regressed in the latest firmware version - but it will be restored to its former glory only if the users offer their feedback to the developers. Bob NW8L On Wed, May 14, 2008 at 5:47 AM, K3KO [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Guys, There is another way to solve the CW spot problem. It's called get on the air and work CW. You will quickly develop the skill of zero beating by ear. You will find that most CW ops don't use any zero beating gizmo. Much faster and easier to do it by ear. ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] K3 BETA FIRMWARE RELEASE -- MCU rev 1.94
The Easter egg in v1.94 Beta is more sidetone volume! Or did I miss this in the release notes? 73, john WA1ABI ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] CW Secrets of the Masters
400 Hz is my upper limit as well. Lower than 300 Hz is certainly desirable to me. I have forty plus years on CW, and no significant hearing loss. I do the between-the-headphones DSP far more effectively at 400 Hz and below. 73, john WA1ABI -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of David Cutter Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:17 PM To: Bill W4ZV; elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW Secrets of the Masters This makes perfect sense. The ears have a logarithmic response to sound pressure and to frequency. David G3UNA Another one that Fred K3ZO (many time winner of Dayton CW pileup contests) recently mentioned is using extremely low pitch for weak signals. Fred said many commercial ops he knew used somewhere in the 2-300 Hz range so he thought his favored 400 Hz was rather high! 73, Bill W4ZV ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] ESD Mats
I picked up a good quality name brand mat on Ebay for $35. It included the ground kit and a bottle of cleaning solution. The seller is Stanley Supply and Services. They have more - see Ebay item 200195839901 No connection with the seller, just a happy buyer. 73, john WA1ABI Where can one find a inexpensive ESD mat? Or what can be used as an ESD mat? Also, what about a ESD wrist attachment? Where do you find them? Also, I guess you would hook them to the station ground? Comments are welcome Lee - K0WA ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
