[Elecraft] K3S Power Creep (again)

[Jim N7US]

I had the same problem, plus my output on 160 and 80 was low.

I just had the radio back for warranty service, and they turned it around in just a few days.  I was very pleased.

73, Jim N7US

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net <elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf Of Wes Stewart
Sent: Tuesday, March 13, 2018 16:09
To: Elecraft Reflector <Elecraft at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: [Elecraft] K3S Power Creep (again)

This is an old subject but with a new wrinkle.  Although I'm observing a drift in power on all bands (and modes) after a band or power adjustment, it's ridiculously slow on 17-meters.  It's taking 5-10 seconds to stabilize.

Any change, such as switching to another band and back again or a minor change in power starts the process over.  This is particularly annoying on RTTY AFSK A.  (Please no lectures on how Elecraft ALC is different from other radios, I've been running AFSK RTTY for 10 years with K3s.)  Using the KPA500 power graph as an expanded proxy for the K3S output power, I'm seeing a change from about 50 watts to 500 watts after an adjustment. On CW the first dit is about 100W.

I reran the power calibration and this appeared to fix it initially but the issue returned.  This was particularly annoying when I was running a digital mode and saw that I was hitting the amp harder than desired.  I tried adjusting power during the transmission and it practically dropped to zero before slowly climbing.  Getting a precise level is difficult.

Wes  N7WS