[Elecraft] K3 audio artifacts

[Vic Rosenthal 4X6GP/K2VCO]

I know I might be beating a dead horse, but my recent experience in big, 
noisy pileups has made this problem stand out.

The t/r transitions in QSK and semi-QSK CW when there are nearby strong 
signals make a horrible racket -- enough to make me turn down the volume 
when sending, which negates the utility of QSK, of course.

Although the QSK is smooth and quiet on a quiet band, this is not the 
case when there are strong signals around. Here in 4X the EU signals can 
be super-strong, and in recent FT4TA pileups, the banging and crashing 
around my sidetone made operating sheer torture.

Yes, I am using QRQ mode (I listen to the DX on the subrx and the pileup 
on the main so as to make this possible) and New QSK. It doesn't matter.

The problem is as bad or worse in 'simplex' operation when numerous 
stations are calling a DX station on the same frequency.

I understand that this is caused by the limitations of the synthesizers. 
But I have discussed with Wayne and Lyle the possibility of changing the 
RX muting function, which would slow down the QSK but at least make it 
quiet. Fast QSK is worthless if I have to turn down the audio to protect 
my eardrums!

This would do a huge amount to increase the operating pleasure of 
serious CW operators. The feature could be optional so those who like to 
ragchew at high speed in QRM-free spots could turn it off.
-- 
73,
Vic, 4X6GP/K2VCO
Rehovot, Israel
http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/