[Elecraft] Not All Hams are Technicians (WAS: Microphones)

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Agreed Dave! Hams are not necessarily electronics technicians or engineers.
Many simply want to operate with what they feel is the best commercial gear
their budget will allow. 

They are just as much Amateur Radio Operators as the guy who designs his own
rigs from scratch. 

We've always had that disparity among Hams. Decades ago, before
"radiosporting" was popular, those operators were largely traffic-handlers
in the days when a telephone call to a city 100 miles away was both
expensive and difficult. Hams offered an excellent way for people to pass
non-critical messages quickly and efficiently for free and usually much
faster than the post. 

You can go all the way back to the days of spark and find ready-made
equipment for those who do not want to build their own gear. They've always
been an important part of the hobby. When I got on the air, there were hams
with fully factory-built stations from time-honored manufacturers like
Hallicrafters, E.F. Johnson, Collins, National, Millen and many others.
There were microphones like the venerable D-104 and dozens of others that
plugged into the rigs for phone and keys that plugged into the rigs for CW. 

And, back in the 1950's, some homebrewers were pretty arrogant about the
'appliance operators' on the bands who couldn't read a schematic or build
their own gear. Some things never change, Hi! 

Being able to pass a test for the license and the competency and confidence
that comes from actual hand's-on experience are two entirely different
things. Those who pass the test might not wish to tackle actually putting
that information to work in their shacks. 

The challenge comes with those who have the interest and are still
developing that experience while learning. Every technician and engineer
today has passed through that period, whether they are amateurs or
professionals. A key part of Ham radio has always been for those who can to
help. It's what this reflector is all about. It's what companies like
Elecraft are all about, providing kits for those who want to build but who
lack the knowledge, time and equipment to do their own design work; kits for
fully-functional rigs to simple test equipment to help them built up their
shop. 

We might be seeing a slight shift in the membership here now that Elecraft
is providing "factory built" rigs, but that's been the case of other famous
Ham rig manufacturers like E.F. Johnson. All it means is that Elecraft is
addressing more of the Ham community with their products. 

For someone wanting an "off-the-shelf" microphone, Elecraft provides one for
their rigs. Perfect "plug 'n play". 

Ron AC7AC


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

I know that there has been lots of responses to the microphone compatibility
on this forum but let me comment on this subject on a different light.

When I first became licensed back in 1957 we were expected to, at the very
least, be able to read and interpret schematics, wire up our own rig
interconnections, and in a lot of cases build our own equipment. Now days
that is not necessarily true for quite a few of our fellow radio amateurs. 

Because of the above, it can be quite a challenge for some of us to perform
the necessary research and rewire our mike connectors for the Elecraft K2/K3
rigs.

Many of us would have no problem doing this but we can easily forget that
there are those who are dependent on getting the correct mike for the rig or
have help in changing their connector's wiring to match a rig.

Manufactures are little help as they wire their mic jacks to what pleases
them and it is their right to do so.

The bottom line is lets help those who need it and not criticize them. and
for those who need help get it here or ask a fellow ham.

73
Dave KD1NA