Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
The D-104 that I use is an unamplified mike. However, it's simple enough to bypass the preamp in the mike stand if you have one. I'm not sure why you would you even want to use it. No RF-related problems have been detected in SSB or AM using the Line In jack even when driving some old linears (Heath SB-200 and Johnson Thunderbolt). Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 21:17:10 -0700 Jim Barber audio...@q.com writes: I don't believe the original poster was using an amplified D-104, but a number of us have found that there can be issues using the amplified ones with Flex 5K and certain types of HF amplifiers. The culprit *appears* to be a cap that discharges into the audio line when the mic is keyed, causing a spike in the output. In the case where the HF amplifier has a lot of gain and the op is driving it with reduced power from the 5K, the spike can be very substantial. Maybe not enough to damage equipment, but certainly enough for the spike to go far over the legal limit - even though normal SSB modulation with the same mic and settings wouldn't. Two of my amps will do it . One has a pair of GU-74B tetrodes, (grid driven) and the other is a cathode-driven single 8877. I haven't tried it with my prototype YC156 - I can only imagine. No doubt someone could fiddle with the D-104 output amp cap, the leaf switches or any number of things to come up with a fix. Perhaps even swamping the output with a fairly low-value resistor might work, especially since the amp boards in the mics have far more gain than necessary to drive the mic input of the 5K. My excuse is that I haven't gotten A Round Tuit. Considering I've sold off my boat anchors and so no longer use the D-104's regularly, I may not get there. My .02, 73, N7CXI On 9/24/2012 2:40 PM, Lee Mushel wrote: Gentlemen: Pete's comments were just a bit too much for me to ignore! The Lafayette lapel mike! Wow! I hadn't thought about using my Lafayette Throat mike dating from about the same time but maybe this winter I might get around to it! It has an interesting gurgly sound. I think we all know that it is easy to pump stray RF into our 5000A's but I want to warn everyone who might want to proceed that given the great age of the D-104 (I will ignore the potential impedance problem since that is info readily available on the web---including kits) we always have to be aware that at some time in it's life someone might have rewired it and you have to be sure that the shield is not used for signal and that the shield is properly grounded to the 5000. My personal opinion is that anyone who doesn't use a D-104 and doesn't use Software Defined Radio is simply nor getting maximum enjoyment from his hobby. 73 Lee K9WRU - Original Message - From: manual...@juno.com To: wa2...@gmail.com Cc: FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz Sent: Monday, September 24, 2012 12:33 PM Subject: Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
Line in? For a mic level signal? Seems strange. How about the large impedance mismatch? On Tuesday, September 25, 2012, wrote: The D-104 that I use is an unamplified mike. However, it's simple enough to bypass the preamp in the mike stand if you have one. I'm not sure why you would you even want to use it. No RF-related problems have been detected in SSB or AM using the Line In jack even when driving some old linears (Heath SB-200 and Johnson Thunderbolt). Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 21:17:10 -0700 Jim Barber audio...@q.comjavascript:; writes: I don't believe the original poster was using an amplified D-104, but a number of us have found that there can be issues using the amplified ones with Flex 5K and certain types of HF amplifiers. The culprit *appears* to be a cap that discharges into the audio line when the mic is keyed, causing a spike in the output. In the case where the HF amplifier has a lot of gain and the op is driving it with reduced power from the 5K, the spike can be very substantial. Maybe not enough to damage equipment, but certainly enough for the spike to go far over the legal limit - even though normal SSB modulation with the same mic and settings wouldn't. Two of my amps will do it . One has a pair of GU-74B tetrodes, (grid driven) and the other is a cathode-driven single 8877. I haven't tried it with my prototype YC156 - I can only imagine. No doubt someone could fiddle with the D-104 output amp cap, the leaf switches or any number of things to come up with a fix. Perhaps even swamping the output with a fairly low-value resistor might work, especially since the amp boards in the mics have far more gain than necessary to drive the mic input of the 5K. My excuse is that I haven't gotten A Round Tuit. Considering I've sold off my boat anchors and so no longer use the D-104's regularly, I may not get there. My .02, 73, N7CXI On 9/24/2012 2:40 PM, Lee Mushel wrote: Gentlemen: Pete's comments were just a bit too much for me to ignore! The Lafayette lapel mike! Wow! I hadn't thought about using my Lafayette Throat mike dating from about the same time but maybe this winter I might get around to it! It has an interesting gurgly sound. I think we all know that it is easy to pump stray RF into our 5000A's but I want to warn everyone who might want to proceed that given the great age of the D-104 (I will ignore the potential impedance problem since that is info readily available on the web---including kits) we always have to be aware that at some time in it's life someone might have rewired it and you have to be sure that the shield is not used for signal and that the shield is properly grounded to the 5000. My personal opinion is that anyone who doesn't use a D-104 and doesn't use Software Defined Radio is simply nor getting maximum enjoyment from his hobby. 73 Lee K9WRU - Original Message - From: manual...@juno.com javascript:; To: wa2...@gmail.com javascript:; Cc: FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz javascript:; Sent: Monday, September 24, 2012 12:33 PM Subject: Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz javascript:; http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz javascript:; http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz javascript:; http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
The high impedance crystal cartridge of the D-104, if it is in reasonably decent electrical condition, can drive the Line In (5K impedance) input. Frequency response can be further tailored in the PowerSDR Equalizer form. For the mike settings, I started with the default D-104 settings and then diddled with them. Further tweaking, mostly done in the AM mode, was done in actual contact with several stations. My goal: does it work and does it sound decent. It met both of my goals. I have four D-104 heads. Three of them, which were made in the 50's and early 60's, all seem to work well with this setup. The 4th head, which came on an Astatic amplified mike stand built in the late 70's, did not, from on the air reports, sound as good as the other three. Don't know if they made manufacturing changes to the cartridge by then or if the cartridge crystal salts were just dying away(or whatever these salts do when they are not working properly). Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com On Tue, 25 Sep 2012 09:50:44 -0400 Bob Kay wa2...@gmail.com writes: Line in? For a mic level signal? Seems strange. How about the large impedance mismatch? On Tuesday, September 25, 2012, wrote: The D-104 that I use is an unamplified mike. However, it's simple enough to bypass the preamp in the mike stand if you have one. I'm not sure why you would you even want to use it. No RF-related problems have been detected in SSB or AM using the Line In jack even when driving some old linears (Heath SB-200 and Johnson Thunderbolt). Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 21:17:10 -0700 Jim Barber audio...@q.com writes: I don't believe the original poster was using an amplified D-104, but a number of us have found that there can be issues using the amplified ones with Flex 5K and certain types of HF amplifiers. The culprit *appears* to be a cap that discharges into the audio line when the mic is keyed, causing a spike in the output. In the case where the HF amplifier has a lot of gain and the op is driving it with reduced power from the 5K, the spike can be very substantial. Maybe not enough to damage equipment, but certainly enough for the spike to go far over the legal limit - even though normal SSB modulation with the same mic and settings wouldn't. Two of my amps will do it . One has a pair of GU-74B tetrodes, (grid driven) and the other is a cathode-driven single 8877. I haven't tried it with my prototype YC156 - I can only imagine. No doubt someone could fiddle with the D-104 output amp cap, the leaf switches or any number of things to come up with a fix. Perhaps even swamping the output with a fairly low-value resistor might work, especially since the amp boards in the mics have far more gain than necessary to drive the mic input of the 5K. My excuse is that I haven't gotten A Round Tuit. Considering I've sold off my boat anchors and so no longer use the D-104's regularly, I may not get there. My .02, 73, N7CXI On 9/24/2012 2:40 PM, Lee Mushel wrote: Gentlemen: Pete's comments were just a bit too much for me to ignore! The Lafayette lapel mike! Wow! I hadn't thought about using my Lafayette Throat mike dating from about the same time but maybe this winter I might get around to it! It has an interesting gurgly sound. I think we all know that it is easy to pump stray RF into our 5000A's but I want to warn everyone who might want to proceed that given the great age of the D-104 (I will ignore the potential impedance problem since that is info readily available on the web---including kits) we always have to be aware that at some time in it's life someone might have rewired it and you have to be sure that the shield is not used for signal and that the shield is properly grounded to the 5000. My personal opinion is that anyone who doesn't use a D-104 and doesn't use Software Defined Radio is simply nor getting maximum enjoyment from his hobby. 73 Lee K9WRU - Original Message - From: manual...@juno.com To: wa2...@gmail.com Cc: FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz Sent: Monday, September 24, 2012 12:33 PM Subject: Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
On 9/24/2012 1:59 PM, Bob Kay wrote: I apologize if this is a bit off topic, but I could not think of a better place to start. I noticed in the advanced transmit audio section there were preconfigured choices for several microphones. I'd like to see what my Flex 5K can do with an original D-104. I can't imagine that the Flex's audio input stage will do any justice to the extremely high impedance the D-104 offers. Has anyone used one? Can you point me to any matching circuits or audio settings that sound OK? Something similar to this should work fine: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/blogs/rjm/attachments/591d1329177386-activator-2-fet-preamp-guitars-basses-aplocalypse.png Just make sure that the load resistor on the crystal element is 10 Megohms or more for best fidelity. When loaded properly, an intact original D-104 will have the low end response of a studio microphone but with a distinct rising presence characteristic maxing out around 4 kHz. Happy experimenting, Kevin, WB4AIO. ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 13:59:49 -0400 Bob Kay wa2...@gmail.com writes: I apologize if this is a bit off topic, but I could not think of a better place to start. I noticed in the advanced transmit audio section there were preconfigured choices for several microphones. I'd like to see what my Flex 5K can do with an original D-104. I can't imagine that the Flex's audio input stage will do any justice to the extremely high impedance the D-104 offers. Has anyone used one? Can you point me to any matching circuits or audio settings that sound OK? -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
Gentlemen: Pete's comments were just a bit too much for me to ignore! The Lafayette lapel mike! Wow! I hadn't thought about using my Lafayette Throat mike dating from about the same time but maybe this winter I might get around to it! It has an interesting gurgly sound. I think we all know that it is easy to pump stray RF into our 5000A's but I want to warn everyone who might want to proceed that given the great age of the D-104 (I will ignore the potential impedance problem since that is info readily available on the web---including kits) we always have to be aware that at some time in it's life someone might have rewired it and you have to be sure that the shield is not used for signal and that the shield is properly grounded to the 5000. My personal opinion is that anyone who doesn't use a D-104 and doesn't use Software Defined Radio is simply nor getting maximum enjoyment from his hobby. 73 Lee K9WRU - Original Message - From: manual...@juno.com To: wa2...@gmail.com Cc: FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz Sent: Monday, September 24, 2012 12:33 PM Subject: Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K
I don't believe the original poster was using an amplified D-104, but a number of us have found that there can be issues using the amplified ones with Flex 5K and certain types of HF amplifiers. The culprit *appears* to be a cap that discharges into the audio line when the mic is keyed, causing a spike in the output. In the case where the HF amplifier has a lot of gain and the op is driving it with reduced power from the 5K, the spike can be very substantial. Maybe not enough to damage equipment, but certainly enough for the spike to go far over the legal limit - even though normal SSB modulation with the same mic and settings wouldn't. Two of my amps will do it . One has a pair of GU-74B tetrodes, (grid driven) and the other is a cathode-driven single 8877. I haven't tried it with my prototype YC156 - I can only imagine. No doubt someone could fiddle with the D-104 output amp cap, the leaf switches or any number of things to come up with a fix. Perhaps even swamping the output with a fairly low-value resistor might work, especially since the amp boards in the mics have far more gain than necessary to drive the mic input of the 5K. My excuse is that I haven't gotten A Round Tuit. Considering I've sold off my boat anchors and so no longer use the D-104's regularly, I may not get there. My .02, 73, N7CXI On 9/24/2012 2:40 PM, Lee Mushel wrote: Gentlemen: Pete's comments were just a bit too much for me to ignore! The Lafayette lapel mike! Wow! I hadn't thought about using my Lafayette Throat mike dating from about the same time but maybe this winter I might get around to it! It has an interesting gurgly sound. I think we all know that it is easy to pump stray RF into our 5000A's but I want to warn everyone who might want to proceed that given the great age of the D-104 (I will ignore the potential impedance problem since that is info readily available on the web---including kits) we always have to be aware that at some time in it's life someone might have rewired it and you have to be sure that the shield is not used for signal and that the shield is properly grounded to the 5000. My personal opinion is that anyone who doesn't use a D-104 and doesn't use Software Defined Radio is simply nor getting maximum enjoyment from his hobby. 73 Lee K9WRU - Original Message - From: manual...@juno.com To: wa2...@gmail.com Cc: FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz Sent: Monday, September 24, 2012 12:33 PM Subject: Re: [Flexradio] D-104 with Flex 5K When I use my D-104 with the Flex 5000, mike is connected to the Line In jack on the back panel. Then you go to the Audio Mixer Form and click on Line In RCA. You can then use the D-104 pre configured choices as a starter, and tailor the settings to your own voice characteristics. The D-104 actually works quite well with the Flex 5000. For fun and giggles, I even tried my crystal lapel microphone that I bought from Lafayette Radio in 1961, for $1.95, using the Line In jack and tailoring the audio with the internal mixer. Good audio reports, punchy audio, that helped make some DX contacts in pileups. Pete, wa2cwa http://www.manualman.com -- *Best 73 de WA2SQQ Elmwood Park, NJ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/ ___ FlexRadio Systems Mailing List FlexRadio@flex-radio.biz http://mail.flex-radio.biz/mailman/listinfo/flexradio_flex-radio.biz Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/flexradio%40flex-radio.biz/ Knowledge Base: http://kc.flexradio.com/ Homepage: http://www.flexradio.com/
