[Elecraft] K2 - AFSK RTTY

[Fred Jensen]

If you don't do AFSK RTTY with a K2, you won't be interested in this. 
Getting ready for WPX RTTY, it has taken me two days to solve a problem 
I don't remember ever having before ... the solution might help someone 
else.

My RTTY setup is minimalist:  Sound card line-out goes to the mic 
connector.  Headphone out goes to a splitter cable.  One side goes to 
sound card line-in.  The other side goes to my cans.  I have RTTY 
enabled in the K2 and did CAL FIL on the four filter settings.  The one 
I use the most is 400 Hz.  VOX on at 0.2, compression at 1:1  WriteLog 
with MMTTY plug-in.  I run with MARK at 1200 Hz, 2125 is on the edge of 
the filter and besides I can't hear anything that high.

PROBLEM:  K2 clicks into and out of TX periodically.  Sometimes just 
once in awhile, sometimes repetitively.  No sign of power out on the 
wattmeter or my scope, it just pulses into TX and back to RX.

REASON:  Computer is putting out inaudible low-level very short clicks 
on line-out triggering the VOX sporadically.

SOLUTION [just because it is simple doesn't also mean it was easy to 
find :-) ]:  Turn down the mic gain to 1 and adjust line-out on the 
laptop for the right input level.

The noise from the laptop appears to be related to where the switching 
power supply is, and far from the laptop seems to be best.

GL to all in the contest, less than 2 hrs to go.

73,

Fred K6DGW
- Northern California Contest Club
- CU in the 2008 Cal QSO Party  4-5 Oct 08
- www.cqp.org

"The easiest way to find something in your house that you've lost is
to buy a replacement."