[Elecraft] K1 quick comparison to other rigs

[Mike]

BobDobson@aol.com wrote:

> ... I expected the more expensive receivers to be at least a
> bit more sensitive...

Bob,

I too am more than happy with the performance of the K1 receiver.

However, the MDS or sensitivity metric of a receiver is probably the
*least* important characteristic of a receiver.  More important is how
the receiver performs in the presence of nearby strong signals.  Many
low-performance receivers have excellent MDS numbers.  Overall receiver
performance can suffer severely from being *overly* sensitive if the
remainder of the design is poor.  One school of thought says that if the
noise level goes up when an antenna is connected, then you've got enough
sensitivity.  (That may be a little extreme.)

Eric at Elecraft gives an outstanding presentation on receiver design
and performance at some of the events he attends.  I caught the
presentation at the Huntsville, Alabama, hamfest least year and found it
to the the most entertaining and informative hamfest forum I've ever
attended.  I wish he would publish his notes!

73,
Mike / KK5F