[Elecraft] Final Reminder: Y-BOX Sale ends tonight at Midnight Pacific Time

[Bob Wilson, N6TV]

Regular price $139 ea., New Year special price, only $129 ea. if you order
by the end of today.

For photos, see https://bit.ly/Y-BOX .

This special is for the *original* Y-BOX (only), which requires a M/F
Elecraft KPAK3AUX cable (P/N E850463, not supplied) to connect a KAT500,
KPA500, or KPA1500.

I've also started a waiting list for the *new* Y-BOX, announced below  It
has a new Key Line Interrupt connection option just for SteppIR owners, and
a new connection option to power on your KPA500 or KPA1500 via a K3 macro.
This new version can be connected directly to a KAT500, KPA500, or KPA1500
using any standard M/F cable with all 15 pins wired (but not a VGA cable);
there's no need for the custom KPAK3AUX cable (though it will work fine
too, but you won't be able to power on the KPA500 or KPA1500 with a macro
if using that cable).

Direct link to Order Form / Waiting List:  https://goo.gl/forms/
Guu6OC6NinTlasY93

Please indicate in the comments which version you want:  original or new.
Price of new version will be $139 ea. if there is sufficient demand,
otherwise $149 ea. due to board costs.  The new model will be be ready to
ship before February 1st, 2018.

Amphenol M/M cables and M/F extension cables with all 15 pins wired are
also available for purchase with your order of a Y-BOX.  Cables are not
sold separately unless you previously purchased a Y-BOX from me.

Happy New Year!

73,
Bob, N6TV

On Sat, Dec 30, 2017 at 4:59 PM, Bob Wilson, N6TV <n6tv at arrl.net> wrote:

> In honor of the New Year, all Y-BOX orders received before midnight
> Pacific Time New Years Day (by 2018-01-02 08:00 UTC) will get $10 off each
> unit, while supplies last.  This applies to the original model only, with
> all 15 pins of the K3 ACC connector wired in parallel to all five DE-15
> connectors.  I only have about a dozen of these original units left, and
> this will be the end of the production run.  However, a new version is
> being developed (see below), and I'm starting a waiting list for that now.
>
> (The Y-BOX is a 4-way passive splitter and breakout box for the 15-pin
> Elecraft K3 and K3S ACC / AUX port.  See https://bit.ly/Y-BOX .)
>
> The original Y-BOX requires a KPAK3AUX cable (P/N E850463) between the
> Y-BOX and a KAT500, KPA500, or KPA1500.  This cable has one male and one
> female (M/F) DE-15 connector, with no connection on five of the pins, as
> required by the amp.  The original Elecraft cables were bulky monitor
> cables that had five pins cut. That was much improved more recently.
>
> The NEW Y-BOX will provide the same function as the Elecraft AUX cable.
> ONE of the DE-15 connectors marked "AMP AUX" will have no connection on
> those 5 pins.  This means you can use a stock $10 M/F DE-15 cable with all
> 15 lines wired (NOT a VGA cable) between the Y-BOX and a KAT500 or KPA500,
> and you can also use the same cable between the KAT500 and the KPA500.  Of
> course you may still use the $24.95 Elecraft AUX cables on any of the DE-15
> connectors if you already have them.
>
> *Attention SteppIR owners*:
>
> The Elecraft manuals recommend using a "Key Line Interrupter" to open the
> KEY OUT line in the AUX cable (pin 10).  Then the SteppIR SDA100 controller
> with the Tuning relay option
> <https://www.steppir.com/shop/horizontal-antennas/2-element-antenna-products/tuning-relay-for-sda-100-controller/>,
> or the N8LP SteppIR Tuning Relay <http://www.telepostinc.com/STR.html> is
> placed in between the K3's KEY OUT phono connector, and the KPA500 KEY IN
> phono connector, opening the KEY line while the SteppIR is tuning, to
> prevent high power from damaging the SteppIR.
>
> The NEW Y-BOX will have a Key Line Interrupt jumper built-in, optionally
> splitting the amp KEY line (pin 10 of the AUX cable) into two RCA
> connectors labeled KEY IN and KEY OUT.  Then you can conveniently connect
> your "normally closed" SteppIR Tuning Relay to those RCA jacks.  With this
> arrangement, you just need ONE DE-15 cable between the Y-BOX and the KAT500
> / KPA500 / KPA1500, and ONE stereo phono cable from the tuning relay to the
> Y-BOX.  You no longer need to connect RCA cables from K3 KEY OUT and AMP
> KEY IN.
>
> *Attention K3-REMOTE users (K3/0-Mini and K3/0*):
>
> "But there's one more thing ..." -- Steve Jobs
>
> The NEW Y-BOX with a $10 cable can do one more thing that the stock
> Elecraft AUX cable cannot:  it provides an internal jumper connection to
> the amplifier's Pin 8 (PWR ON), a pin which has no connection in the
> Elecraft cable.  You can then use a simple K3 macro to power up the KPA500
> or KPA1500 remotely.  No PC required, no relay required.   The macro is
> described on Page 21 of the K3 Remote Owner's Manual
> <http://www.elecraft.com/manual/K3%20Remote%20Owner's%20Manual%20%20Rev%20D.pdf>.
>  It generates a pulse on DIGOUT1 (Pin 11) to power up the amp.  This will
> not work with the stock Elecraft AUX cable, but works fine with a M/F DE-15
> cable from the Y-BOX to the amp. if the internal jumper is connected.
>
> To review, *order the original Y-BOX any time before midnight PT this
> Monday* to receive the one-time $10 discount on each unit, while supplies
> last, or indicate in the notes if you prefer to be put on the waiting list
> for one of the *new* units with the dedicated connections for Elecraft
> Remote, SteppIR, KAT500 / KPA500 / KPA1500.  M/F Amphenol DE-15 cables in
> both 2.5 ft and 5 ft lengths are now available to order too, but these only
> work with the new Y-BOX, or between KAT500 and KPA500.  Cables are not sold
> separately unless you have previously purchased a Y-BOX from me.
>
> Direct link to Order Form / Waiting List:  https://goo.gl/forms/
> Guu6OC6NinTlasY93
>
> Thanks for all your support of my little project over the last year, and
> Happy New Year to all!
>
> 73,
> Bob, N6TV
> https://bit.ly/Y-BOX
>
>