[Elecraft] K3 drift

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

> The 1PPM TCXO of the K3 is supposed to support the ability to be
calibrated
> over a range of temperatures so it doesn't need the rig to be on all the
> time to improve stability. Unfortunately, unless I missed it in one of the
> updates, the firmware support for this is still "on the list".
> 
> Just as some folks obsess over receiver performance specs, others like to
> feel that their frequency readout is "spot on". As with many things in
this
> hobby, whether or not it is really necessary to know your frequency to
that
> level of accuracy is irrelevant. :)
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The 1 PPM TCXO provides 1 PPM stability now with no further firmware
support. What's pending is a firmware program that takes the temp vs. freq
data that came with your 1 PPM TCXO and uses it to compensate for
temperature changes to make the TCXO stability *better* than 1 ppm. 

As for the accuracy fetish, I suspect that's more of a side-effect of
digital displays, especially when they are viewed by people who do not have
the ability to tell what is relevant and what isn't. 

We've had several "dust-ups" here from people convinced their DMM was
defective because it read 1.005 ohms when connected across a 1k 1% resistor.


It's easy to get into it even knowing the absurdity of it all. Long ago I
replaced my digital watch with a conventional dial watch because it bugged
me to see it say 4:03:32 when all I cared about was that it was a "about 4
o'clock". I think the final straw for me was when I discovered myself
checking it against WWV to see if it had gained or lost a second since
yesterday.

Ron AC7AC