[Elecraft] KX3 Batttery life question..

[Steve Kavanagh]

>We were thinking along the lines of 200-500 mW for the "micro
>transverter", if it's even possible. The regular transverter option  
>could be as high as 5 W. We'll see.

Wayne
N6KR

Now that sounds interesting.  I run a bunch of microwave transverters from a 2m IF at 50-100 mW and have found no simple replacement for my old FT-290R IF radio (other than a second FT-290R), used at the low power setting.  They are nearing 30 years of age and aren't going to last forever. I don't like the use of a higher power radio turned down due to the danger of inadvertantly transmitting into the transverter at higher power, or of high power transients. Plus the FT-290R draws very little current on receive (~75 mA, no signal, no dial light) which is useful in portable operations.

I currently use them on 1296 MHz (ancient Microwave Modules transverter), 2.3/3.4/5.7/24 GHz (homebrew transverters) and 10 GHz (Kuhne/DB6NT MKU10G2 transverter), with the transverters switched by the +6.8V (through a resistor) that the FT-290R puts on the antenna connector in transmit.  Elecraft might consider making available a DC control voltage like this available on such a low power transverter (with the equivalent of the K2's 8R HOLD mode to avoid relay chatter in the transverter).

It wuld be nice to have a newer option !

73,
Steve VE3SMA