[Elecraft] KPA-500 / K3 firmware suggestion

[iain macdonnell - N6ML]

On Fri, Apr 8, 2011 at 2:34 AM, David Gilbert <xdavid at cis-broadband.com> wrote:
>
> All of these responses fall into the category of "it would be cool to
> watch it work" rather than "it would be useful in such-and-such
> situation because ....".
>
> I still don't get it.  Every situation that I can think of where you
> might want to adjust the power between 100 watts and 500 watts (150 watt
> contest limit, 100 watt limit on 30m, 250 watt limit on certain
> antennas, etc) is going to require 1) a decision and 2) an action (i.e.,
> turning a knob).  Whether you turn the knob up to increase the power or
> turn it down after you turn on the amp, you still have to adjust that
> little knob while watching a meter.

No, you wouldn't be watching a meter - you'd be watching the display
on the K3, and wouldn't need to be transmitting at the time (assuming
there's some prior calibration).

Another situation to consider is a remote station operation, where you
might want to specify a power level by "CAT" command rather than
turning a knob. Trying to watch a remote meter while sending different
commands to find the desired output isn't very practical.

Specific use cases aside, I agree with Byron in that it'd help give
the "K-line" the feel of a complete, integrated package, It'd be like
operating a 500W radio, rather than a 100W radio with an external
amplified tacked on.

As for re-engineering the amp before it's released ... we're just
sharing ideas. I assume Eric will let us know if that's no longer
appropriate for this forum.....

73,

    ~iain / N6ML



 The only thing I can see that would
> be gained by a "fully integrated system" might be not having to manually
> turn on the amp.
>
> Can anyone explain to me what else would be gained??  Somebody please
> give it a try.
>
> Dave   AB7E
>
>
>
> On 4/7/2011 6:51 PM, goldtr8 at charter.net wrote:
>> Hi Group,
>>
>> I also agree for a fully integrated system this would be the best way to
>> have it work.
>>
>> Since it is software defined system, give it a little time and it will
>> be there.
>>
>> Cheers
>>
>> Don
>> KD8NNU
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Apr 7, 2011 at 3:18 PM, ab2tc wrote:
>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> Why the negative reaction to this suggestion? I think it would be
>>> really
>>> useful if I could operate the K3/KPA500 combo as if it was a single
>>> transmitter with power settings from (whatever the lower K3 power is)
>>> to the
>>> full 500W and turn the KPA-500 on and off accordingly. The real
>>> context is
>>> what do I have to do to quickly switch from 100W to 500W when I
>>> realize I am
>>> not going to break through the pileup. Without this feature I would
>>> have to
>>>
>>> 1) switch the KPA-500 from standby to active
>>> 2) dial back the K3 power to whatever is appropriate for this band
>>>
>>> I am sure this can be done with a macro, but having this built in
>>> would be
>>> more than "nifty".
>>>
>>> Knut
>>>
>>>
>>> David Gilbert wrote:
>>>> Aside from it possibly being "nifty", in what real world context
>>>> would you find that to be useful?
>>>>
>>>> 73,
>>>> Dave  AB7E
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 4/7/2011 1:55 PM, Toby Deinhardt wrote:
>>>>> Hi Wayne&   the list,
>>>>>
>>>>> not sure if this has been suggested before, but it would be really
>>>>> nifty
>>>>> if when using a KPA-500 together with a K3/100 the power would be
>>>>> continuously be adjustable from milliwatts up to 500 W.
>>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> View this message in context:
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>>> Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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