[1000mp] Ten-Tec Orion - Initial Impressions

[Gary Ferdinand W2CS]

Earl,

This is a wonderful paper on the Orion. Thanks for taking the time to type
it all in.

When you do further tests, perhaps when you do the key click test, would you
mind assessing the keying waveform when using QSK at (for example) 40 WPM
and compare it to non-QSK?  I'm looking for any leading-dot clipping on the
TR changeover and any other similar waveform disruptions.

On a similar vein, does the Orion have the CW delay features that the MP
has?  If so, does it work as advertised?

Sounds like a great rig with only a very few issues and all are fixable.

73

Gary W2CS
Apex, NC


> -----Original Message-----
> From: 1000mp-admin@mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:1000mp-admin@mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of k6se@juno.com
> Sent: Tuesday, May 20, 2003 11:50 PM
> To: tentec@contesting.com; 1000mp@mailman.qth.net;
> topband@contesting.com
> Subject: [1000mp] Ten-Tec Orion - Initial Impressions
>
>
> I receive my new Ten-Tec Orion last Friday (16 May) and I've had enough
> time to play with it and let you know my initial impressions about the
> rig.
>
> After playing with it for a few hours, it was apparent that there were a
> few bugs in the software (v1.337) that was installed in the radio.  The
> next day I downloaded the latest software update (v1.341) from
> http://www.rfsquared.com and loaded it into the radio.  This task was
> painless and went without a hitch.  The new software cured the few bugs I
> noticed, but it also introduced a new minor bug related to one of those
> the software fixed.  I'm sure the next software update will correct that
> one.
>
> The ability of being able to upgrade this radio without pulling the cover
> and getting out the soldering iron is new to me and I like the idea.
>
> Transmitter:
>
> My Orion's transmitter puts out a bit more than 100 watts (as indicated
> on my Drake W-4 wattmeter) into a 50-ohm dummy load on all 9 bands.  The
> power output is easily adjustable in one-watt increments from 1 to 100
> watts (as read on the LCD display).  While transmitting, the SWR is
> displayed as "SWR 1.0:1" or whatever the value might be.  I used an
> MFJ-4322 power supply which is rated at 13.8VDC and 22 amps intermittent
> duty and 20 amps continuous duty.  The power supply didn't glitch when I
> checked the output power into the dummy load.
>
> On my antennas, the SWR can be much higher if I transmit far from the
> antenna's resonant frequency.  I did this out of curiosity to see if the
> Orion's power output would automatically be reduced like it is on most
> other rigs.  Transmitting with an indicated SWR of 5:1 showed that there
> was no cutback of the power output.  I ordered my Orion without the
> optional built-in antenna tuner, so this was gratifying.
>
> The PA transistors draw more current when transmitting into a high SWR
> and my 22-amp power supply would trip at full power under these
> circumstances.  I recommend using a 25-amp (or greater) power supply.
>
> SSB:
>
> I bought the optional Heil microphone that Ten-Tec sells for the Orion
> and I set the MIC Gain and TX EQ to the values recommened in the manual
> for that mike and made a few DX QSOs on SSB.  The audio sounded okay to
> me using the monitor feature the radio has and I did not solicit nor
> receive any comments about the audio.
>
> The next day a local friend who is a DXer and I got together on 10 meters
> to try to "tailor" my audio using the several different things you can
> set up in the Orion in this respect.  It seemed that no matter what I
> tried, he said the audio was "mushy and bassy".  He recorded one of my
> transmissions and when I went to his QTH and heard the playback I was
> stunned by how terrible it sounded!
>
> Disappointed, while driving back home (with thoughts of returning the
> radio and getting a refund), I remembered that I had hit the "Panic"
> button the night before (this is the RECALL button on the front panel
> which resets the radio to the factory defaults).  I then realized that I
> forgot to reset the TX EQualization back to -14dB which was recommended
> in the manual.
>
> As soon as I got home I checked that setting and is was indeed at the
> factory setting of 0 dB.  When I called my friend now on 10-meters, his
> first words were, "What did you do?  It sounds great!"  There are several
> things you can adust in the Orion's menus which affect the transmitted
> audio.  TX EQ is the most important one!
>
> From what I can hear in the built-in monitor, the audio seems to have
> plenty of punch and even moreso when the speech processor is turned on.
> The Orion uses RF compression and with the speech processor set at 3 or 4
> (it's adjustable from 1 to 9) seems about right.  The way the audio
> sounds, I would think that the radio would do quite well on SSB in
> pile-ups and under weak signal conditions.  My FT-1000MP's transmit audio
> doesn't sound anywhere near as punchy in its monitor.
>
> One thing that I noticed is that the mike gain must be set much higher on
> SSB to deive my Alpha 76CA amplifier than it does on CW.  About 50 watts
> drive is required to get about 1300 watts out on CW.  With the mike gain
> set to "45" It's adjustable from 0 to 100) as recommended in the manual
> for the Heil mike,  the amp did not put out the same power it would as
> compared to using my FT-1000MP as the 50-watt exciter.  Turning up the
> mike gain "cures" this.  Although the manual doesn't mention it, perhaps
> the power output reverts to peak power rather than average power when in
> the SSB mode.  The S-meter (a real meter) becomes a power output meter
> when transmitting, and indicates approximately the same on SSB as it does
> on CW.
>
> I found out that there is an internal adjustment in the Orion to
> compensate for microphones with low output (the Heil dynamic mike spec
> says "-55 dBv into 600 ohms".  Not sure how that compare with Ten-Tec's
> electret mike).  The adjustment is accessible through a smount hole in
> the bottom cover near the rear of the radio.  Someday I'll try it.
>
> The transmitted SSB bandwidth is menu-adjustable from 900 to 3900Hz.  The
> factory default is 3000Hz, which I fear might be a bit too wide.  I have
> set mine to 2700Hz, about the same as most modern rigs.  It made very
> little difference in audio quality.
>
> CW:
>
> On CW, the radio is a pleasure to operate.  It's built-in programmable
> memory keyer works well and the dit-dah weighting is easily adjustable.
> The CW waveform rise/fall time is easily adjustable from 3ms to 10ms (the
> factory default is 5ms).  I haven't set it up for the "K6SE key click
> test" yet, but I intend to and will let you know the results.
>
> Although I have never really used QSK (the Alpha 76CA can't do that), I
> did try it (barefoot) and I can say that you can hear the other guy while
> you're transmitting at any speed.  The keyer is adjustable from 10 to 60
> wpm.
>
> The sidetone audio (front panel level adjustable) sounds good.  When you
> set the pitch of the sidetone, this automatically sets it up so that when
> you tune in a signal at that same pitch, it is centered in the receiver's
> passband.  The SPOT switch is automatiically set to the same pitch as the
> sidetone.
>
> I presently have my sidetone pitch set at 410Hz.  CW signals at that
> pitch stand out and sound much louder and clearer than they do on my
> FT-1000MP (where I have the pitch set at 400Hz).  I plan to try the Orion
> with the pitch set to 310 Hz and see what it sounds like (I can hear weak
> CW signals better at the lower pitches because the higher-pitched band
> noise is then attenuated.  Also, you don't hear any of that ringing that
> narrow filter users complain about when they have their tone set to a
> higher pitch).  The sidetone/spot pitch is adjustable in 20-Hz steps from
> 310 to 1210Hz.
>
> Receiver:
>
> The more I use the receiver, the more impressed I am.  The adjustable
> noise reduction is truly amazing.  On 160m SSB with the NR turned off,
> the S-meter reads about S-8 on ambient noise.  Turning the NR on at its
> lowest setting (it's adjustable from 1 to 9) lowers the noise to about
> S-5.  At "9", the noise is S-4 (although you hear the usual DSP "thingy"
> at the high NR settings).  The FT-1000MP doesn't even come close to this.
>  My JPS NIR-12 outboard audio DSP does a good job on the MP, but does not
> appear to work nearly as well as the Orion's NR.
>
> I have a "tick-tick" noise from my neighbor's electric fence which is
> eliminated by the Orion's adjustable DSP noise blanker at its lowest
> setting (adjustable from 1 to 9), but I also notice that the NR also
> eliminates it at its lowest setting, so the NB stays off.  I haven't
> played with the hardware NB yet.
>
> On CW, the S-meter reading is about S-1 on 160m because I have the
> receiver bandwidth set to 100Hz (fully adjustable in 10Hz steps from 100
> to 6000Hz) and you can't see any difference in S-meter readings when you
> switch the NR on and off.  I have a very weak signal on 1830kHz (3rd
> harmonic from a local AM BC station on 610 kHz) that I use to "test"
> receivers on 160m.  With the NR off, the signal is barely audible.  With
> the NR on at its lowest setting, the signal appears to jump out of the
> noise.  Turning the NR to 9 (wide open) makes the signal Q5 copy (if were
> a CW signal).  This is FAR superior to my FT-1000MP and Elecraft K2
> which, up until now, have tied for first place in the "test" compared to
> a number of other modern rigs.  I'm impressed!!  None of the DSP
> "thingies" are heard at the 100Hz bandwidth when the NR is set to "9".
>
> The receiver has a RX EQ control in the menu which works identically to
> the TX EQ control.  These controls act like a bass/treble tone control
> acts like on a hi-fi audio system.  This enhances the receive audio
> output almost as much as it does for the transmitter audio.  The receiver
> really sounds great on SSB, even with BW set as narrow as 1800Hz.
>
> There are four band stacking registers for each of the nine bands covered
> by the Orion (the FT-1000MP has two).  This makes it convenient to set up
> for quick QSYing , so I set mine up for two CW frequencies and two SSB
> frequencies for most bands.  You can set the Orion's tuning step from
> very slow to very fast (7 different ranges).  Mine is set to the slowest
> rate, so punching the bandswitch button makes it easier to QSY from one
> end of the band to the other.
>
> I learned an early lesson on the Orion.  I was using the "User" memories
> to store the parameters for which I had everything set up for.  Pushing
> the "panic button" ("Recall" to factory defaults) does not wipe out what
> you store in the User memories, so it's easy to restore your favorite
> setting by punching just one button (User1 or User2).
>
> After I set up the band stacking registers (which takes a bit of time for
> 36 frquencies/modes/BWs, etc.), I hit the Recall button to get back to
> the factory default settings.  I pressed User1 to restore my favorite
> settings, which it did, but I was chagrined to find that I lost all of
> the band stacking work that I had done.  I redid all of the band stacking
> again and then I stored everything (hoprfully) in User1 memory).  Then I
> did a Recall.  After the radio reset itself to the factory defaults, I
> pressed User1 to get everything back to my preferences.  The first thing
> I checked were the band stacking registers -- they were all there just
> where I had set them!!
>
> Moral of the story: Whenever you change ANYTHING, make sure you store it
> in one of the User memories before you do a factory default recall.  The
> User feature seems to be very useful.
>
> This coming weekend I plan to put the receiver to the ultimate test
> during the CQ CW WPX contest.
>
> Now, the down side:
>
> Hardware bugs:
>
> 1) There is an annoying tone from the front panel headphone jack.  My
> guess is that it's around 1500Hz.  It's more noticeable with narrower
> bandwidths (because the received noise level goes down). It's there when
> the audio gain is turned all the way down and increases as the the audio
> gain control is turned up.  There is also a very weak audio hiss
> saudible.  I use a Kenwood SP-230 speaker which the headphones plug into
> and the tone is much weaker there.  It's obvious that the output at the
> radio headphone jack is much greater than that at the external speaker
> output jack.  The SP-230 has selectable audio filters in it which
> eliminates the problem.  However, this prohibits using the Orion's
> "panoramic stereo reception" feature (which I haven't tried yet) because
> the external speaker output is monoaural.
>
> 2) There is a feature in the menu to adjust the center frequency of the
> narrow (250Hz and 500Hz) crystal filters.  The factory default setting is
> "0" (adjustable from -250 to +250 -- Hertz, I assume).  I have both
> filters (Ten-Tec - not INRAD), and both of them require the -250 setting
> on UCW and the +250 setting on LCW.  I have the UCW setting stored in
> User1 memory and the LCW stored in User2 memory so that I can choose
> either.  The down side of this is that if I want to switch from upper to
> lower CW to eliminate closeby QRM, It takes about 5 or ten seconds for
> the User recall to complete.  When it does, the signal has to be tuned in
> again because of the ~500Hz shift due to the xtal filters requiring an
> offset correction, so to speak.  The only answer to this that I see is
> that any narrow xtal filters that you use in the radio must be exactly
> centered without resorting to any "fudge" factor.
>
> Software bugs:
>
> 1) After doing any Recall (either User or Factory reset), the LCD
> contrast dims noticeably when the recall completes.  Going to the menu
> and adjusting the contrast immediately restores the LCD brightness.
>
> 2) When you go to the menu to adjust the CW sidetone pitch, as soon as
> you change it the readout goes to 5 digits (where it is normally 3
> digits, i.e., below 1000Hz).  The reason for this ids that the 3-digit
> reading jumps two character spaces to the left, and the last two digits
> of the original reading are still there and are not overwritten.  It was
> ok with software v1.337 (where the sidetone pitch and the spot pitch
> readouts differed by 10Hz, which was fixed by v1.341), but appeared when
> I loaded v1.341.  If you exit the menu and then re-enter the menu, the
> display is ok.  You can also change the sidetone pitch by adjusting the
> spot pitch (they follow each other), which is easier to do anyway (you
> don't have to enter the menu to adjust the spot pitch).
>
> 3) To do a split operation (transmit on one VFO and receive on the other)
> requires doing three things:
>
>   a) Press the A/B button to put both VFOs on the same freq.
>   b) Select one VFO for rx and the other for tx.
>   c) Adjust the tx VFO for the split offset.
>
> With the FT-1000MP, this is a one-button operation, where all you have to
> do is press the SPLIT button and it enables VFO-B as the tx VFO and puts
> it up 5 kHz from VFO-A (offset is adjustable in the MP's menu).  I
> believe that Ten-Tec can do this in the software by adding an item in the
> menu to turn on/off the capability for the A/B button to split tx/rx on
> the two VFOs and another menu item to set the amount of +/- frequency
> offset the user desires.
>
> My K2 works fine on SPLIT, but it's also not as easy to set up for split
> use as the MP is.
>
> The first 2 software "bugs" I've mentioned are minor nuisances.  The
> third one is a major nuisance (IMO).
>
> My big problem now is deciding whether to sell my MP or my Elecraft
> K2/100.  My main dislike about the K2 is its non-steep filter skirts
> (other gripes I had were taken care of wonderfully well by mods developed
> by the K2 engineers).  The steep skirts achieved with Elecraft's new
> audio DSP module may be enough make me keep the K2 and sell the MP.
>
> 73, de Earl, K6SE
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