[Elecraft] K3 & FTDX5000 you tube

[Guy Olinger K2AV]

I remember in 1959 I was in a shop selling AM broadcast radios.  I
must have listened to 20 or 30 different models and was worried
someone was going to come and throw me out.  I finally heard a Zenith
6 tube in a bakelite case that I thought had the "best sound" I could
actually buy.  I took it to college with me and listened to the Grand
Ole Opry and country music from Nashville with it.  The tone was
extraordinary for a small radio and I loved it.

That was the last time in my life that just putting two radios on the
shelf and listening to them without further qualification was worth a
plugged nickel because I kept that radio for twenty years and never
bought another "canned" AM radio.  Comparing a K3 and a Yaesu 5000
without the lab setup work?  Not fair to either radio.  Jeeeze.  I'd
be ashamed to put that up on the internet.

73, Guy.

On Sun, Nov 21, 2010 at 7:47 PM, Don Wilhelm <w3fpr at embarqmail.com> wrote:
>  Barry,
>
> I agree.  I have a good background in engineering level testing, and one
> of the pre-requisites is to establish a level playing field for such
> comparisons.  Just plugging in two radios and listening to them with no
> other information about the similarity of the settings would be thrown
> out of any decent "test" environment.  The evaluation is entirely
> subjective unless it is supported by data substantiating the differences
> and the equalities.
>
> Take a look at the ARRL Lab test setup requirements as an example - they
> would never compare a 500 Hz bandpass to a 2.7 khz bandpass and expect
> the same results.  I do not see any information about the setup
> parameters in that video.  Yes, there were some comments by YO3GIC
> "after the fact" that "said" they were the "same", but the "if I
> remember correctly" does not speak to any recorded data.
>
> At one point, I saw the K3 HI CUT knob turned, but did not see any
> comparable adjustment on the FT, at least there was no information about
> what was being done and for what reason.
> In all cases, my ears told me that the K3 provided more intelligibility,
> and the only "advantage" of the FT was an extended bass response.  Maybe
> my ears are different than others, but I would judge the audio from the
> K3 to be more clear than the FT in this video.
>
> I wonder where the Lo Cut was set on the K3 for this video?  If bass
> response was to be the "evaluating parameter", did the K3 have the new
> DSP board installed, or was this a K3 prior to the DSP upgrade?   Too
> many questions with no answers for my blood.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 11/21/2010 7:21 PM, Barry N1EU wrote:
>> For two radios that both feature an audio passband that is SOOOO adjustable
>> in so many ways and likewise so affected by button/menu switches, it's
>> almost criminal to put up a soundclip like that and call it a comparison.
>> The obvious (duh) protocol should be to first adjust the rigs and equalize
>> the passbands as closely as possible while observing the audio spectra, use
>> similar gain/agc settings, and then finally let 'er rip.
>>
>> Arggggh, Barry N1EU
>>
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