[Elecraft] I wonder how many folks have had buyers remorse on a K3/K3S purchase?

Tue Aug 4 09:44:48 EDT 2015

What does this have to do with the subject? Start your own thread!

73,
Tim Herrick, KQ8M
kq8m at kq8m.com

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-----Original Message-----
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Chester Alderman
Sent: Tuesday, August 04, 2015 9:05 AM
To: 'Marc Veeneman'; 'David F. Reed'
Cc: 'elecraft Reflector'
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] I wonder how many folks have had buyers remorse on a K3/K3S purchase?

Marc,

In my opinion, you have no one to blame except yourself. I doubt seriously the K3 keying program in the K3 Utility was designed, not
only to be used on the air, but certainly not for QRQ operating. I have been a QRQ operator for about 40 years, running speeds from
about 60 wpm up to around 125 wpm. I can tell you from experience that NOW the K3 will key and maintain full QSK up about 95 wpm
with both weight and spacing held constant. But, in my opinion, you MUST have an external PC program capable of sending at speeds in
excess of 50 wpm while maintaining weight and character spacing. That I am aware, everyone who operates QRQ has a PC on their desk,
but there are very few programs available that will do it correctly. N1MM Logger Plus is a contest program, but it's keying program
will run my K3 at 95 wpm and do it well.
The only other program that I have used is named YPlog, written by VE6YP but unfortunately not supported for over 15 years. YPlog
generates CW using Windows internal audio generation, primarily to eliminate the normal 'stutter' by PC I/O ports. High speed CW
requires correctly spaced and correctly weighted generation of CW and there is no one, that I know of, who can do that by hand, so a
PC is imperative.

I, also, have spent the past 40 years working with computers and just consider them as another tool to be used as I see fit. Not
wanting to use a PC anymore, in my opinion, basically eliminates you from getting into one of the most fun parts of our hobby, QRQ!
Your choice BUT putting the blame on the K3 and the K3 Utility shows you really mistook the purpose of the K3 Utility.

If you are interested I can send you the YPlog program, but you will have to build an audio full wave bridge plus a keying
transistor to key your K3 at speeds.

73,
Tom - W4BQF

-----Original Message-----
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Marc Veeneman
Sent: Monday, August 3, 2015 5:23 PM
To: David F. Reed
Cc: elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] I wonder how many folks have had buyers remorse on a K3/K3S purchase?

Maybe I can offer a counterpoint, I do regret my K3 purchase.  But I will not be selling it.

That was the summary.  Here, at great length, is the detail:

I had a KX3 with KXPA100 and liked it very much.  I'm a CW operator and hope
to join the QRQ gang some day soon.   But I spent the past 40 years working
with computers and I don't want one in my shack.  I prefer to have minimal equipment at the operating desk.  With that in mind, I
saw the pictures of the PX3 with the word Keyboard stenciled over a USB socket.  I ordered the
PX3 and separately order a folding wireless keyboard to match.  

The PX3 arrived and it changed my operating for the better.  Seeing the entire band instead of slowly tuning for CW signals adds a
whole new dimension to my hobby.  

But the Keyboard USB socket was useless and the sort-of-promise that the keyboard option would be ready by Christmas went
sort-of-unfulfilled.

Meanwhile, the K3/P3/SVGA combo has a keyboard option and my CW speed is increasing so I ordered the K3 combo.  It cost a lot more
than the KX3 had.
As soon as the gear arrived I set it up with my yet-unused wireless keyboard and commenced to play with it.  Trouble.  Letters, and
sometimes whole words went missing.  CTRL-S has to be hit every so often to force a buffer dump.
And sporadically there are pauses of several seconds when sending just stops and CTRL-S fails.  However, the buffer dump might
resume on its own.  

My phone call to Elecraft gave me bad news.  My wireless keyboard was not approved by Elecraft so there would be no support for it.
I ordered a USB keyboard, waited for its arrival, and discovered no difference.  I still had all the same problems with the wired,
approved keyboard.  Then more bad news from Elecraft: operating the keyboard without a VGA monitor is not approved.
If you recall, I wanted minimal equipment in the shack; in fact that's why I wanted the keyboard option instead of the KX3 (now K3)
Utility program for sending CW.  Now I learned that I have to have a screen on the desk as well.

I purchased a VGA monitor and tried again.  Still all the same issues.  

So Elecraft asked that I send the P3 with keyboard to them to find out what might be wrong.  I did so.  After the normal UPS transit
time, 5 days each way, and a sufficient time for Elecraft experts to examine the P3, they declared it perfect and could not explain
any of my problems.  (I pointed out that the problems worsen as typing speed increases above 50 wpm; they said "not so".)  

They did admit that there is a sporadic delay of several seconds periodically.  But that is normal with the K3/P3/SVGA keyboard
option.
(Huh?)  

No charge for the "no problem found" service by Elecraft.  But now I have a K3/P3/SVGA combo that does not do the one thing I bought
it to do.  And I have a 21" (smallest I could find) VGA screen to sell at the next ham swap meet.  It's stuffed away in a closet.

Meanwhile my KXPA100 stopped working (second time in a year) and my regular CW skeds need all 100 watts almost every day.  The
K3/100 never has a hiccup and the P3 offers some, but not all, of the PX3 benefits.  

So, yes I have buyer's remorse.   But the K3/P3, like it's KX3/PX3 cousin,
is the finest rig I've ever used.  So I continue to use it daily.

The good news is that my CW skills are still below 50 wpm so my real need for a keyboard is still a future event.

Sorry for such a long story, but I suspect some of you can sympathize.
-- 
Marc   W8SDG  

> On Aug 3, 2015, at 3:21 PM, David F. Reed <w5sv.dave at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> a counterpoint; I used to have an IC-7800; great rig... I bought a K3 
> as a second rig... started using it and to my surprise, it was 
> superior in a few ways
> 
> Since then I have added a KX3 and after using it a while, sold one of 
> the K3; it is just hard to beat a K3, and the KX3 is a close second
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