[Elecraft] Operating the Ten Tec 422B Amp QSK with a K3/K3S

[Jim Brown]

On Fri,5/27/2016 1:08 PM, Bill Braun wrote:
> Has anyone had experience using a Ten Tec 422B Centurion Amp that normally uses a Transceiver/Amp “Keying Loop” with a K3/K3S in QSK mode?

Hi Bill,

My experience with Ten Tec amps is that they work just fine without 
using the keying loop if you simply feed the AMP Key out of the K3 to 
the PTT input of the amp. I've done this quite successfully with my 
three Titan 425s (Ten Tec's original legal limit amp) and my Hercules 
II. Set the K3 for full QSK.

This doesn't keep up with fast CW at full QSK (more than about 30 wpm), 
but it's fine below that.  For higher speeds, set the K3 for 
semi-break-in. That's how I use it, both because I often run faster than 
30 wpm during contests, and because I got tired of changing vacuum 
relays in the Titan in the middle of a contest. :)

The default delay PTT setting in the K3 is fine for the amps I own. I 
don't know about the 422B, but Ten Tec amps are protected from hot 
switching, so if your amp doesn't key, simply make that delay setting a 
few msec longer. See the menu section of the manual for info on how to 
set it.

73, Jim K9YC