[Elecraft] Re: KX1 Info?

[Wayne Burdick]

Hi Steve,

> 1) Estimated assembly time?

This will probably vary from 8 to 16 hours depending on your experience level.
It's an easy kit to build, but you will need a temperature-controlled soldering
station with a fine tip, and a some soldering experience is recommended.


> 2) Is an antenna tuner really necessary when output power is only 4 watts?
> Since tuners only "fool" the transceiver and don't really change the
> characteristics of the antenna, I'm curious whether the finals can be
> damaged or the output power decreased by the voltages present at this small
> power output.

The ATU helps on both transmit and receive. On transmit, a low SWR will ensure
that the final amplifier is seeing its preferred impedance, resulting in stable
operation and maximum power transfer, and it supplements the low-pass filter's
rejection of harmonic energy. On receive, the ATU will often dramatically
improve signal strength because it brings the antenna into resonance.

Beyond that, the KXAT1 is just darn cute, being the world's smallest auto-tuner 
;)  (Ask someone else, though. I may be biased!)

73,
Wayne
N6KR