[Elecraft] K3 for SWL?

[Dauer, Edward]

I would like to hear from anyone who uses a K3 or K3S extensively for general coverage HF / short-wave listening.

I am looking for a table-top receiver with general coverage strictly for bedroom listening, as the station downstairs already includes a K3/100 system, a KX3 system, two K2s, and a K1.  This seems to be a neglected part of the radio market.  What is available seems pretty slim and, frankly, tinny.  The Sangean ATS-909X has the best reviews but still looks like something I would have taken to the beach rather than sat in front of while transfixed with the global reach of radio.  The new ICOM IC-R8600 looks good, with a range up to 3 gigs, but it’s not available yet and the price is likely to be in the multi-kilobuck range when it is released.

So, being a loyal member of the Elecraft community, I thought about a K3S with just the basic 10 watt TX that this particular radio would never use, no sub-RX, the general coverage bandpass filter and the other accessories that would extend its range down to LF, an AM roofing filter and naught else.

Then I thought about the ongoing commentary about the K3’s audio . . . .   because . . .

I confess that what I am trying to recreate is the warm sound of a 10-tube supperhet in a large walnut cabinet with a cloth speaker grille and an amber back-lighted circular dial driven by dial cord and ganged capacitors while listening to a Radio Moscow announcer crow about Sputnik.  Or so I now fantasize about my early radio experiences in the 1950s.

I will spend some quality time with my own K3 trying this idea out, but thought I would also ask for counsel from the group.  Is there something out there I haven’t seen yet?  Is it reasonable to think about using a K3S in just this way?

Thanks for whatever thoughts anyone can offer . . .