[Elecraft] E-Ham review K3

[rfenabled at gmail.com]

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> Well, I see the elecraft K3 as still a work in progress.
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Howard,

You make mention of the "old 746's"....perhaps we all should remember Icom went to the Pro, ProII then ProIII, and all manufacturers do this type of development.

Mods for Yaesu are legendary, and while I am on Yaesu, remember the FT-2000 and FTdx-9000 mods took over a year to get acknowledged and acted upon.

As other posters have commented, I believe that ALL manufacturers modify their rigs after initial sales, some advertise these mods, some are perhaps too embarrassed to advertise them so they bring out a "New Model", all in the name of "Improved Performance" and whether we (read consumers/users) see or are aware of this slight of hand approach is better left to those more qualified than this "Black Box Operator"...:-)

My K3 was factory built, I have not owned an Elecraft product before the K3 so I will not comment on their other products, suffice to say that running SSB I continually receive compliments on my audio (as I would expect from any up-market radio) and this pleases me somewhat...:-)
I take all reviews with a grain of salt as they say because all reviews I believe are somewhat objective and the independent Labs are, I believe, more likely to be critical of the "claimed specifications and on air performance" as stated by manufacturers because they believe they are providing a source of information that cannot, or is not, provided by the manufacturer.

We buy equipment to suit our individual needs and as long as we get what we expected, then the vast majority of us are happy.

There are a lot of esteemed members on this reflector and it is their drive to improve performance that Elecraft (and users) get a great deal of knowledge and ideas from and I have not found another manufacturer willing to do this, let alone answer our queries directly.

Added to the above is the fact that Elecraft and TT are US manufacturers who make fine products for the mass market and should be applauded and supported by the HAM community,failure to do this could result in a big loss to the choices we have now.

I am not connected in any way to any manufacturer although I was a Vertex Yaesu Dealer until 2007 and after severing all ties with them I ordered my K3 (S/N 679) and I have been very happy since with zero failure to date.

Your post was well thought out and we (Non US residents) also respect your right to express your opinion as we reserve that right to do the same. Choosing to agree to disagree is. Valued freedom that needs protection as others in this world have no such right.

My personal advice to you is simple, better you buy A radio now and use it rather than wait for that "perfect" radio to appear on the market because there are those far more technology oriented than I who will always find a way to improve a mass market driven company manufacturing amateur radios for a technology based "Hobby".....

73's
Gary
VK4WT/Portable 
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