[Elecraft] New (to me) K2 needs help

[Don Wilhelm]

John,

The K2 ** IS ** capable of hearing better than all but the most expensive
receivers, but some have not been properly aligned - yours may be one of
those.

It is highly likely that the major problem is the variable bandpass filter
and BFO alignment.  If the filter passband is not properly positioned (by
adjusting the BFO frequency), the receiver performance will not be at its
peak.

Look on the Builder's resource page of the Elecraft website for information
and methods for aligning both the CW and SSB filters.  Tom Hammond N0SS has
documented good procedures for using Spectrogram to help in viewing the
passband - if you have ears with perfect pitch, you can do it by ear, but
for those without this musical gift, I highly recommend Spectrogram and a
wideband noise generator to do the job.  Spectrogram 5.0 will do the task
fine and is the last free level - the more recent versions can be used, but
they shut down after 10 minutes operation unless you register them.
Elecraft has recently provided a broadband noise generator (N-GEN) that can
be used, but if you want to do it 'on the cheap', some folks have suggested
putting a short 'antenna' wire near a flourescent bulb to find lots of
wideband noise.

You can also find information (with links) in the K2 Dial Calibration
article (Step 3 deals with the filter alignment) on my webpage
www.qsl.net/w3fpr.

73,
Don W3FPR

----- Original Message -----

> I got a K2 in trade some weeks ago, and while it's in great shape,
> its nowhere near as sensitive as my Drake TR7, for example. It seems
> down on sensitivity on all bands. I have the radios on a common
> antenna and can switch back and forth rapidly...and clearly there's an
issue.
>