[Elecraft] KAT100 - Early Impressions

[Lyle Johnson]

Hello Again!

I have a few more observations to add to my earlier report....

9) The KAT100 appears to match a much wider range of impedances than the
internal tuner in my Kenwood TS-850SAT.  I base this on the fact that the
Kenwood tuner can't match my tri-band beam on many bands, while the KAT100
can.

10) The KAT100 is much faster than the Kenwood tuner.

11) The KAT100 is noisier than the KAT2 and much noisier than the Kenwood
tuner.  The LDG RT-11 may or may not be quieter than the KAT100.  Since the
RT-11 designed to be located remotely, relay noise is less of an issue.

12) Once the KAT100 has found a match, it remembers the settings for each
band, with separate memory for each of the two selectable antenna positions
(ANT1 and ANT2).

If you have two antennas, even if the matches are quite different, the
KAT100 will retrieve its settings based on the band and the selected antenna
as long as each antenna is connected to a different ANTENNA connector on the
rear of the KAT100. Obviously, if you use an external antenna selector, it
can't know which one you've selected...

If you then toggle between the antennas, the KAT100 instantly selects the
last matching settings for that combination.

13) As long as you haven't changed the antenna connected to ANT1 or ANT2,
you can switch bands and be matched as quickly as the K2 changes bands. The
KAT100 immediately loads the previous settings for that band and antenna
selection.  Unless your antenna is highly reactive in the band you've
selected, you may be able to QSY a fair amount without the need for
retuning.

This goes a long way towards minimizing the relay noise issue.  Once you've
walked the tuner through all the bands you typically use, and in particular
the segment of each band where you prefer to operate, the KAT100 will simply
recall its settings, and there will be no tuning noise.

You can tell if you need to re-tune, because the SWR LEDs will show
increasing when you transmit SWR as you move from the matched frequency.
You then must manually force a retune (press and hold the TUNE button on the
K2 front panel).

73,

Lyle KK7P