From k2qmf at juno.com Sun Dec 1 10:17:33 2019 From: k2qmf at juno.com (Salvatore Ted K2QMF) Date: Sun, 01 Dec 2019 10:17:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Ken, By Multi TX I mean M/2 or M/M contest station! Many Thanks for your input.. 73, Ted? K2QMF On 11/30/2019 6:51:20 PM, Ken K6MR wrote: Not sure what you mean by ?multi TX contest environment?, but I use mine in a SO2R setup.? Two K3s into the single KPA1500.? Works just fine. It?s in the closet and I hardly ever touch it.? It just keeps making watts. ? Ken K6MR ? From: Salvatore Ted K2QMF [mailto:k2qmf at juno.com] Sent: Saturday, November 30, 2019 14:47 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft at mailman.qth.net] Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 ? Hello to all. I just ordered a new KPA1500 and can't wait to receive it. Was just wondering if anyone on here has used the 1500? in a multi TX contest environment?? If so, how did it perform?? Many Thanks for any info one this beautiful amp.. 73, Ted? K2QMF ____________________________________________________________ Urologist Is Shocked That This Has "Fixed" ED Med Journal http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5de2f12d52a65712c24f7st02vuc [http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5de2f12d52a65712c24f7st02vuc] ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft [http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft] Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm [http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm] Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net [mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net [http://www.qsl.net] Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html [http://www.qsl.net/donate.html] Message delivered to k6mr at outlook.com ? ____________________________________________________________ Drink 1 Cup Before Bed, Watch Your Belly Fat Melt Like Crazy mayserve-magestor.com http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5de3d98eaa12f598d5687st02vuc From n1nk at cox.net Sun Dec 1 11:23:12 2019 From: n1nk at cox.net (Jim Spears) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 11:23:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] FS: K3/100 with reduced pricing Message-ID: <015001d5a863$a1c3cc90$e54b65b0$@cox.net> FS: K3/100 s/n 64xx. Kit built by myself. Never out of non-smoking, no pet shack. No problems at all. Ever. Configuration: KPA3, KAT100, DVR3, KRX3 (sub-RX), KSYN3 (original, not upgrade A version), KXV3B (upgrade) and KIO3B (upgrade), KTCX03 (upgrade), K3EXREF (upgrade). Main RX filters: 2.8 KHz/400 Hz; sub RX filters: 2.7 KHz/500 Hz. Photos on request, will meet on air on request. Now asking $1600 shipped stateside. Jim/N1NK From elanzl at sbcglobal.net Sun Dec 1 12:23:32 2019 From: elanzl at sbcglobal.net (Eric Lanzl) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 17:23:32 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB Net 11-24-2019 References: <2132178960.1594990.1575221012251.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <2132178960.1594990.1575221012251@mail.yahoo.com> Here is the log for the Elecraft SSB Net for Nov. 24, 2019 Elecraft SSB Net 11-24-2019 WB9JNZ???????? Eric?????? IL?????????????? K3????????? ?4017???Net Control K8NU/7????????? Carl????? OH/WA???? TS2000? N9SRA?????????? Steve??? IL??????? ?????? KENWOOD TS 480 WA5DSS??????? Bill?????? TX???????????? K3S??????? 10835 K6FW? ???????????Frank??? CA??????????? K3S??????? 11672??? K7BRR?????????? Bill????????? AZ??????????? K3S??????? 10939 W7QHD???????? Kurt???????? AZ??????????? K2/100???? 1538 W7OL??????????? Alan???????? OR?????????? FT3000 K05V???????????? Jim?????????? NM?????????K2/100????? 7225??Relay station WM6P?????????? Steve?????? GA?????????? K3S???????? 11452 N4NRW????????? Roger? ?? SC??? ??????? K3??????????? 1318?? Relay station K6VWE?????????? Stan??????? MI???????????? K3???????????? 650 NC0JW ????????? Jim ???? ????CO ??????????KX3 ?????????1356 W1NGA????????? AL??????? ?? CO?? ???????? K3?????????? ?? 5765 AE1E?????????????? Ken??????? NM?????????? K3S????????? 11611 Eric WB9JNZ From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 1 13:09:08 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 13:09:08 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <1523384784.47094013.1575138363707.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> References: <1523384784.47094013.1575138363707.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Message-ID: Jim, How were you observing the power increase? There is a big difference in how your situation can be analyzed depending on whether the power increase is noted by the K3 display or whether with an external wattmeter. I am not saying that you have no problem, but that the area to look can be different depending on how you observe the power increase. 73, Don W3FPR On 11/30/2019 1:26 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote: > Fired up my K3 the last couple of mornings and noticed this. As the autotuner was searching for a solution the power output was slowing rising. Not so unusual right . But, after the tuner made a match the K3 was reading about 40w of output. I went into tune mode again (key down), the antenna was matched 1:1 but the output was slowly coming up so I let it continue. A slow climb to full output after about a minute or so was achieved. I have eliminated the tuner as the problem by using it on another transceiver. I'm thinking it may be a heat related issue somewhere, my guess is it's possibly on the PA board and possibly a solder problem, but then again it could be that same issue anywhere in the drive chain. If I don't transmit for a period of time it will repeat but not as bad as from a cold start. No other abnormal behavior has been noted. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance. Serial # 3378 From oldmanshu at icloud.com Sun Dec 1 15:14:49 2019 From: oldmanshu at icloud.com (Joseph Shuman) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 15:14:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 Utility & Linux Message-ID: <0051029F-28EE-4017-9295-971151BFEE7D@icloud.com> I run Linux Mint 19.2 (Tina) and have installed the Linux KX2 utility. I have successfully created a rule so that the KX2 is recognized on /dev/ttyUSB0 by the OS. The program, however, will not open the port so it does not ?see? the radio as connected. I have tried several online suggested solutions to no success. Any advice? (I have been successful in getting Windows NetLogger to run under WINE, if any Linux user is interested!) Keeping Watch- shu Joe Shuman, KE8KJZ From elanzl at sbcglobal.net Sun Dec 1 15:24:53 2019 From: elanzl at sbcglobal.net (Eric Lanzl) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 20:24:53 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB Net for Dec. 1, 2019 References: <1135047378.1670375.1575231893833.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1135047378.1670375.1575231893833@mail.yahoo.com> Here is the log of stations checking in to the SSB net. Thank you again to the relay stations who always help with stations that are not heard in the Midwest. Thank you all for checking in and joining the net. The net meets on Sundays at 1800Z on a frequency of 14.303.5. Everyone is welcome to join the net. Eric WB9JNZ Elecraft SSB Net 12-1-2019 WB9JNZ???????? Eric????? ????IL???????????K3????????? ? 4017??? Net Control N4NRW????????? Roger? ?? SC??? ??????? K3??????????? 1318?? Relay station AE1E?????????????? Ken? ??????NM?????????? K3S??????? 11611 NC0JW ????????? Jim ???? ????CO ?????????KX3 ??????? ? 1356 WM6P ??????????? Steve ??????GA ?????????K3S ???????11453 K6VWE?????????? Stan????? ???MI??? ???????K3????????? ??? 650 W1NGA????????? AL??????? ? ??CO? ???????K3??????????? 5765 K6FW? ???????????Frank?? ????CA?????????K3S??????? 11672? W4DML????????? Doug??????? TN????????? K3????????? ??? 6433 KC1ACL???????? Steve?????? NM????????? KX3????? ? ?? 10677 W1PGP???????? Preston???? WY????????IC7300 K05V???????????? Jim?????????? NM?????????K2/100????? ?7225???Relay station N7BDL???????? ?Terry? ???????AZ???? ?????K3S?????????? 10373 KF7ZN????????? Ron??????? ??? UT?????????K3S?????????? 10832 N6PGQ???????? Bob??????????? CA???????? K3?????????????? 5891 K1NW????????? ?Brian??????????RI ?????????K3???? ?????? ?? 4974??Relay station ZL1PWD????? Peter???????? ??NZ?????????K3???????????? ? ? 139 NOMPM?????? Mike??????? ????IA??????????KX3????????? ?? 8820 K7BRR???????? Bill????????????? AZ???? ?????K3S???????? ? 10939 K6SBA???????? David????????? CA????????? K3?????????????? ? 565 VE3GWN???? Mike??????????? ON???????? signal too weak to copy K7JG??????????? John????? ?????WA????????KX3?????????? ? 3519 VE6MIK??????? Mike????? ?????AB?????????KX2?????????? ? 3496 N9SRA???????? Steve????????? IL?????????? ICOM 7600 From ockmrzr at gmail.com Sun Dec 1 15:31:34 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 13:31:34 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/K3s Roofing Filters In-Reply-To: <098a01d5a65a$5b20ee90$1162cbb0$@gmail.com> References: <05ba01d5a610$fff19e50$ffd4daf0$@gmail.com> <098a01d5a65a$5b20ee90$1162cbb0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <21e501d5a886$533ae3b0$f9b0ab10$@gmail.com> I still have the below for sale. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From: ockmrzr at gmail.com > Sent: 28 November, 2019 10:27 To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: K3/K3s Roofing Filters K3/K3s Users, I recently purchased a used K3, the previous owner was a Phone guy, I am not. I removed all the roofing filters he had installed and installed ones that suite my operating habits. I now have several roofing filters that I won't use; they are for sale. 1x KFL3A-6K, 6kHz AM Filter - SOLD 1x KFL3A-2.8, 2.8 kHz Roofing Filter - SOLD 2x KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter 2x KFL3A-500, 500 Hz CW/DATA Roofing Filter If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email direct at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From rccutter at gmail.com Sun Dec 1 17:22:00 2019 From: rccutter at gmail.com (Richard Cutter) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 17:22:00 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] FS: RemoteRig RRC-1258 MkII Pair Message-ID: <577CE6F4-B089-40E6-ACB1-2C04250E2D69@gmail.com> From Estate, RRC-1258 MkII Pair. Jumpers set for Kenwood radio. SN: 2637 and 2663. Include power supplies and microphone cable. They indicate power and appear to be in good shape but I cannot guarantee operation. $150.00. Rick WA3MKT Sent from my iPad From rccutter at gmail.com Sun Dec 1 17:41:44 2019 From: rccutter at gmail.com (Richard Cutter) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 17:41:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] SOLD: RemoteRig RRC-1258 pair Message-ID: <12BC76D2-5E4B-478F-9332-7D9CAC11B270@gmail.com> RRC-1258 Sold. Rick WA3MKT Sent from my iPad From w6png at yahoo.com Sun Dec 1 17:43:09 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 14:43:09 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] FS: RemoteRig RRC-1258 MkII Pair In-Reply-To: <577CE6F4-B089-40E6-ACB1-2C04250E2D69@gmail.com> References: <577CE6F4-B089-40E6-ACB1-2C04250E2D69@gmail.com> Message-ID: Any cables included? I?m interested in them either way. Paul > On Dec 1, 2019, at 2:37 PM, Richard Cutter wrote: > > ?From Estate, RRC-1258 MkII Pair. Jumpers set for Kenwood radio. SN: 2637 and 2663. Include power supplies and microphone cable. They indicate power and appear to be in good shape but I cannot guarantee operation. $150.00. Rick WA3MKT > > > > Sent from my iPad > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From w6png at yahoo.com Sun Dec 1 17:43:09 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 14:43:09 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] FS: RemoteRig RRC-1258 MkII Pair In-Reply-To: <577CE6F4-B089-40E6-ACB1-2C04250E2D69@gmail.com> References: <577CE6F4-B089-40E6-ACB1-2C04250E2D69@gmail.com> Message-ID: Any cables included? I?m interested in them either way. Paul > On Dec 1, 2019, at 2:37 PM, Richard Cutter wrote: > > ?From Estate, RRC-1258 MkII Pair. Jumpers set for Kenwood radio. SN: 2637 and 2663. Include power supplies and microphone cable. They indicate power and appear to be in good shape but I cannot guarantee operation. $150.00. Rick WA3MKT > > > > Sent from my iPad > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From kennedyjp at cableone.net Sun Dec 1 18:46:00 2019 From: kennedyjp at cableone.net (Jim Kennedy) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 18:46:00 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: References: <1523384784.47094013.1575138363707.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Message-ID: <1636347036.49439220.1575243960432.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Hi Don, I have checked it with both my Bird 43 and Daiwa CN801. Both with the same results. Now with the K3 warmed up there is no problem. I will have to wait for another cold start since I didn't even bother to see if the power meter in the K3 was tracking with the other two. I'll post again when on a cold start if the K3 tracks the same. Tnx es 73's Jim W7OUU ----- Original Message ----- From: "Don Wilhelm" To: "Jim Kennedy" , "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 11:09:08 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Jim, How were you observing the power increase? There is a big difference in how your situation can be analyzed depending on whether the power increase is noted by the K3 display or whether with an external wattmeter. I am not saying that you have no problem, but that the area to look can be different depending on how you observe the power increase. 73, Don W3FPR On 11/30/2019 1:26 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote: > Fired up my K3 the last couple of mornings and noticed this. As the autotuner was searching for a solution the power output was slowing rising. Not so unusual right . But, after the tuner made a match the K3 was reading about 40w of output. I went into tune mode again (key down), the antenna was matched 1:1 but the output was slowly coming up so I let it continue. A slow climb to full output after about a minute or so was achieved. I have eliminated the tuner as the problem by using it on another transceiver. I'm thinking it may be a heat related issue somewhere, my guess is it's possibly on the PA board and possibly a solder problem, but then again it could be that same issue anywhere in the drive chain. If I don't transmit for a period of time it will repeat but not as bad as from a cold start. No other abnormal behavior has been noted. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance. Serial # 3378 From kevinr at coho.net Sun Dec 1 21:14:07 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 18:14:07 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report Message-ID: Good Evening, ?? As I expected QSB was slow and moderate while the bands were quiet.? Forty meters was quite productive.? When I first called CQ I heard a howl for a few seconds and then a few letters at the tail end.? So I worked them and called again.? And again.? And again.? The second net took over thirty minutes.? I may have the right time and frequency for a few weeks. ?? When I got done with the first net I walked out the front door only to startle a red tailed hawk.? The recent thinning has given them a chance to glide in.? The other birds are adapting to the new environment too.? I took a quick hike after I brought in wood to check for deer and elk.? Two inches of new snow should have shown me more than a few squirrel and mouse paths.? But they act as if my land is filled with cattle crossing grates.? I can't blame them.? Until the last loads are taken to the chipper it will remain hard to walk through some areas. ? On 14050.5 kHz at 2200z: W0CZ - Ken - ND K4TO - Dave - KY K6XK - Roy - IA K4JPN - Steve - GA ? On 7047.5 kHz at 0000z: K4TO - Dave - KY K0DTJ - Brian - CA KG7V - Marv - WA W5RG - Bob - FL W0CZ - Ken - ND W6JHB - Jim - CA K6PJV - Dale - CA K0JFJ/7 - Nicolaos - AZ ??? Until next week stay well, ??????? Kevin.? KD5ONS - You?re not the type of guy who gets all mushy, but that will change this week when they leave you out in the sun. - From rask1553 at bellsouth.net Sun Dec 1 21:45:03 2019 From: rask1553 at bellsouth.net (Michael Raskin) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 21:45:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Radio Cover for KPA500 References: <20118540D42C4C09BE7EC2E7A7AAF0E2.ref@DESKTOPFSUHCE9> Message-ID: <20118540D42C4C09BE7EC2E7A7AAF0E2@DESKTOPFSUHCE9> For sale is a lovely black radio cover for the KPA500 for $25 shipped CONUS. I take PayPal. Mike W4UM From rask1553 at bellsouth.net Sun Dec 1 21:51:41 2019 From: rask1553 at bellsouth.net (Michael Raskin) Date: Sun, 1 Dec 2019 21:51:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Radio Cover for the KPA500 References: Message-ID: For sale is a lovely black radio cover for the KPA500 for $25 shipped CONUS. I take PayPal. Ask for photo at w4um (at) arrl.net Mike W4UM From pa0pje at xs4all.nl Mon Dec 2 03:58:49 2019 From: pa0pje at xs4all.nl (Peter Eijlander (PA0PJE)) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 09:58:49 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 Utility & Linux In-Reply-To: <0051029F-28EE-4017-9295-971151BFEE7D@icloud.com> References: <0051029F-28EE-4017-9295-971151BFEE7D@icloud.com> Message-ID: 73, Peter (PA0PJE) Hi Joe, Did you add yourself in the group "dialout"? Control Center > Users and Groups > 'your user name' > Manage groups > Scroll to dialout, select it and click 'properties' then tick the box in front of your username. Click ok, enter your admin password, log off and back on again. Then try the connection again. Hoipe this works for you, it did for me! Good luck. 73 Peter PA0PJE Op 01-12-2019 om 21:14 schreef Joseph Shuman via Elecraft: > I run Linux Mint 19.2 (Tina) and have installed the Linux KX2 utility. I have successfully created a rule so that the KX2 is recognized on /dev/ttyUSB0 by the OS. The program, however, will not open the port so it does not ?see? the radio as connected. I have tried several online suggested solutions to no success. Any advice? > > (I have been successful in getting Windows NetLogger to run under WINE, if any Linux user is interested!) > > Keeping Watch- > shu > > Joe Shuman, KE8KJZ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to pa0pje at xs4all.nl > From g0ruz at g0ruz.com Mon Dec 2 08:19:17 2019 From: g0ruz at g0ruz.com (Conrad PA5Y) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 13:19:17 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KRX3A sensitivity In-Reply-To: References: <0051029F-28EE-4017-9295-971151BFEE7D@icloud.com>, Message-ID: Hello all. I have a dual diversity Xpol EME system for 2m and a dual coherent transverter. I am trying to calculate if I have enough gain available in the transverter to split the output 4 ways with a loss of approximately 6dB. The K3S has an MDS of -138dBm in a 500Hz bandwidth which is approximately 9dB noise figure with preamp 1 switched on. Does the KRX3A have a an independent preamp1? I know that the preamp2 is a shared resource. What about preamp1? Many thanks in advance. Conrad PA5Y From cx7tt at 4email.net Mon Dec 2 11:23:36 2019 From: cx7tt at 4email.net (cx7tt at 4email.net) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 11:23:36 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox Message-ID: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Hola, Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select "Tune", it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio codex for both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device manager for correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for Data/stop/handshake. Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on WSJT-x website. Suggestions? 73 Tom HP1XT From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 2 12:16:26 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 12:16:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Message-ID: Check SPKR level on the computer. Also check PWR slider on WSJT-X. Check Audio tab on WSJT, F2 Menu, Audio tab to see that both Transmit and Tune boxes are checked. This remembers the settings per band. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net wrote: > > Hola, > > Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select "Tune", > it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. > > Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio codex for > both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, > using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device manager for > correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for Data/stop/handshake. > > Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as > before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. > Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. > > Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on > WSJT-x website. > > Suggestions? > 73 > Tom > HP1XT > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 2 13:23:50 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 13:23:50 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Message-ID: Add to my earlier. You may need to adjust levels as previous version and this one will be different. Also suggest you use CAT control and not VOX as CAT is not affected by audio levels. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net wrote: > > Hola, > > Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select "Tune", > it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. > > Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio codex for > both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, > using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device manager for > correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for Data/stop/handshake. > > Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as > before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. > Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. > > Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on > WSJT-x website. > > Suggestions? > 73 > Tom > HP1XT > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From jim at rhodesend.net Mon Dec 2 14:24:09 2019 From: jim at rhodesend.net (Jim Rhodes) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 13:24:09 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Message-ID: And make sure that your operating system has not changed your sound device settings. Win 10 is bad about that (ask me how I know!) On Mon, Dec 2, 2019 at 12:24 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > Add to my earlier. You may need to adjust levels as previous version and > this one will be different. > > Also suggest you use CAT control and not VOX as CAT is not affected by > audio levels. > > 73 > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > > > On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net wrote: > > > > Hola, > > > > Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select "Tune", > > it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. > > > > Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio codex for > > both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, > > using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device manager for > > correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for > Data/stop/handshake. > > > > Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as > > before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. > > Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. > > > > Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on > > WSJT-x website. > > > > Suggestions? > > 73 > > Tom > > HP1XT > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 2 15:15:59 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 15:15:59 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Message-ID: As I recall in the current version or maybe it was the previous version, there was a change which affects the way it handles TX audio level. I wouldn't at all be surprised that update a version does changes audio level. I believe it is a bug fix to prevent audio distortion due to excessive gain and thus distortion in the computer. I don't use VOX for transmit but prefer CAT for transmit as it is not affected by audio level or VOX hang time. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 2, 2019, at 2:24 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > > And make sure that your operating system has not changed your sound device settings. Win 10 is bad about that (ask me how I know!) > >> On Mon, Dec 2, 2019 at 12:24 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> Add to my earlier. You may need to adjust levels as previous version and this one will be different. >> >> Also suggest you use CAT control and not VOX as CAT is not affected by audio levels. >> >> 73 >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >> > On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net wrote: >> > >> > Hola, >> > >> > Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select "Tune", >> > it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. >> > >> > Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio codex for >> > both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, >> > using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device manager for >> > correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for Data/stop/handshake. >> > >> > Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as >> > before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. >> > Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. >> > >> > Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on >> > WSJT-x website. >> > >> > Suggestions? >> > 73 >> > Tom >> > HP1XT >> > >> > ______________________________________________________________ >> > Elecraft mailing list >> > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> > >> > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com From kennedyjp at cableone.net Mon Dec 2 15:29:43 2019 From: kennedyjp at cableone.net (Jim Kennedy) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 15:29:43 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <1636347036.49439220.1575243960432.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> References: <1523384784.47094013.1575138363707.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> <1636347036.49439220.1575243960432.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Message-ID: <590012271.51347619.1575318583884.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Hi again Don, this morning on a cold start the K3 power indicator tracked with the Bird watt meter. Technically competent and not one to give up easily I continued to trouble shoot almost to the verge of paralysis analysis. I put the K3 on the bench and lashed it up as it were in the station including Tigertronics USB digital interface. Fired it up and again had low power slowly climbing operating in FT8 using the tune tab in the WSJT program to key the rig. Hmmm better check SSB,FM,CW,AM modes. What the "H" I got full output on the Bird 43 !!! Back to TX Data mode. Hit the tune tab in FT8 and power coming up slowly again ?? Something wrong in the TX DATA mode ?? Well as it turns out, somehow the TX audio setting on the Tigertroncis USB interface got reduced and it was a simple matter of not enough transmit audio in TX Data mode. Turned up TX audio on the Tigertronics USB interface less than one division and "voila" full power output. I'm still a little puzzled about the symptoms but for now my K3 is back in operation. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and help. This is a great group of hams. Excuse me while I go wipe the egg off my face. Jeesh ! Jim W7OUU ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Kennedy" To: "donwilh" Cc: "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 4:46:00 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Hi Don, I have checked it with both my Bird 43 and Daiwa CN801. Both with the same results. Now with the K3 warmed up there is no problem. I will have to wait for another cold start since I didn't even bother to see if the power meter in the K3 was tracking with the other two. I'll post again when on a cold start if the K3 tracks the same. Tnx es 73's Jim W7OUU ----- Original Message ----- From: "Don Wilhelm" To: "Jim Kennedy" , "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 11:09:08 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Jim, How were you observing the power increase? There is a big difference in how your situation can be analyzed depending on whether the power increase is noted by the K3 display or whether with an external wattmeter. I am not saying that you have no problem, but that the area to look can be different depending on how you observe the power increase. 73, Don W3FPR On 11/30/2019 1:26 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote: > Fired up my K3 the last couple of mornings and noticed this. As the autotuner was searching for a solution the power output was slowing rising. Not so unusual right . But, after the tuner made a match the K3 was reading about 40w of output. I went into tune mode again (key down), the antenna was matched 1:1 but the output was slowly coming up so I let it continue. A slow climb to full output after about a minute or so was achieved. I have eliminated the tuner as the problem by using it on another transceiver. I'm thinking it may be a heat related issue somewhere, my guess is it's possibly on the PA board and possibly a solder problem, but then again it could be that same issue anywhere in the drive chain. If I don't transmit for a period of time it will repeat but not as bad as from a cold start. No other abnormal behavior has been noted. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance. Serial # 3378 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kennedyjp at cableone.net From donovanf at starpower.net Mon Dec 2 15:57:40 2019 From: donovanf at starpower.net (donovanf at starpower.net) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 15:57:40 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <590012271.51347619.1575318583884.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Message-ID: <1678390076.10532692.1575320260217.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Hi Jim, The symptom you observed is exactly how the K3 normally operates when the audio level is too low. The correct way to set up your audio level to: - place the K3 in TX TEST mode - click the TUNE button on the WSJT-X main screen - adjust the audio level to display four bars with the fifth bar flickering on the ALC display. The K3 COMP display should read zero. - click the WSJT-X TUNE button once more - place the K3 in TX NORMAL mode - set the K3 PWR control for desired output power. - NEVER use the WSJT-X power slider or the K3 MIC control to adjust the output power. Use them only to maintain four bars with the fifth bar flickering on the K3 ALC display Good luck! 73 Frank W3LPL ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Kennedy" To: "donwilh" Cc: "elecraft" Sent: Monday, December 2, 2019 8:29:43 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Hi again Don, this morning on a cold start the K3 power indicator tracked with the Bird watt meter. Technically competent and not one to give up easily I continued to trouble shoot almost to the verge of paralysis analysis. I put the K3 on the bench and lashed it up as it were in the station including Tigertronics USB digital interface. Fired it up and again had low power slowly climbing operating in FT8 using the tune tab in the WSJT program to key the rig. Hmmm better check SSB,FM,CW,AM modes. What the "H" I got full output on the Bird 43 !!! Back to TX Data mode. Hit the tune tab in FT8 and power coming up slowly again ?? Something wrong in the TX DATA mode ?? Well as it turns out, somehow the TX audio setting on the Tigertroncis USB interface got reduced and it was a simple matter of not enough transmit audio in TX Data mode. Turned up TX audio on the Tigertronics USB interface less than one division and "voila" full power output. I'm still a little puzzled about the symp toms but for now my K3 is back in operation. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and help. This is a great group of hams. Excuse me while I go wipe the egg off my face. Jeesh ! Jim W7OUU ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Kennedy" To: "donwilh" Cc: "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 4:46:00 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Hi Don, I have checked it with both my Bird 43 and Daiwa CN801. Both with the same results. Now with the K3 warmed up there is no problem. I will have to wait for another cold start since I didn't even bother to see if the power meter in the K3 was tracking with the other two. I'll post again when on a cold start if the K3 tracks the same. Tnx es 73's Jim W7OUU ----- Original Message ----- From: "Don Wilhelm" To: "Jim Kennedy" , "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 11:09:08 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Jim, How were you observing the power increase? There is a big difference in how your situation can be analyzed depending on whether the power increase is noted by the K3 display or whether with an external wattmeter. I am not saying that you have no problem, but that the area to look can be different depending on how you observe the power increase. 73, Don W3FPR On 11/30/2019 1:26 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote: > Fired up my K3 the last couple of mornings and noticed this. As the autotuner was searching for a solution the power output was slowing rising. Not so unusual right . But, after the tuner made a match the K3 was reading about 40w of output. I went into tune mode again (key down), the antenna was matched 1:1 but the output was slowly coming up so I let it continue. A slow climb to full output after about a minute or so was achieved. I have eliminated the tuner as the problem by using it on another transceiver. I'm thinking it may be a heat related issue somewhere, my guess is it's possibly on the PA board and possibly a solder problem, but then again it could be that same issue anywhere in the drive chain. If I don't transmit for a period of time it will repeat but not as bad as from a cold start. No other abnormal behavior has been noted. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance. Serial # 3378 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kennedyjp at cableone.net ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 2 16:09:10 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 16:09:10 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <590012271.51347619.1575318583884.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> References: <1523384784.47094013.1575138363707.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> <1636347036.49439220.1575243960432.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> <590012271.51347619.1575318583884.JavaMail.zimbra@cableone.net> Message-ID: Jim, With audio data modes (even if you are using SSB instead of DATA A), you must have 4 bars solid on the ALC meter with the 5th bar flashing - that is the NO ALC point for the K3/K3S/KX3/KX2. If you do not have sufficient audio, the K3 will "power hunt" trying to bring the power up to the power that was requested. Sorry that I did not observe that you were using a data mode, or I would have pointed to that first. If your audio level is 'touchy', then likely one or more of the audio controls is at an extreme (not near mid-position).? Refer to the article on my website www.w3fpr.com to see how to set the audio to your best advantage. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/2/2019 3:29 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote: > Hi again Don, this morning on a cold start the K3 power indicator tracked with the Bird watt meter. Technically competent and not one to give up easily I continued to trouble shoot almost to the verge of paralysis analysis. I put the K3 on the bench and lashed it up as it were in the station including Tigertronics USB digital interface. Fired it up and again had low power slowly climbing operating in FT8 using the tune tab in the WSJT program to key the rig. Hmmm better check SSB,FM,CW,AM modes. What the "H" I got full output on the Bird 43 !!! Back to TX Data mode. Hit the tune tab in FT8 and power coming up slowly again ?? Something wrong in the TX DATA mode ?? Well as it turns out, somehow the TX audio setting on the Tigertroncis USB interface got reduced and it was a simple matter of not enough transmit audio in TX Data mode. Turned up TX audio on the Tigertronics USB interface less than one division and "voila" full power output. I'm still a little puzzled about the symptoms but for now my K3 is back in operation. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and help. This is a great group of hams. Excuse me while I go wipe the egg off my face. Jeesh ! > > From kennedyjp at cableone.net Mon Dec 2 16:12:11 2019 From: kennedyjp at cableone.net (kennedyjp) Date: Mon, 02 Dec 2019 14:12:11 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <1678390076.10532692.1575320260217.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: <74.D4.25079.C2E75ED5@smtp02.lapis.bos.sync.lan> Thanks Frank, I will do as you suggested.??JimW7OUU?Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S9+, an AT&T 5G Evolution capable smartphone -------- Original message --------From: donovanf at starpower.net Date: 12/2/19 13:57 (GMT-07:00) To: elecraft Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Hi Jim,The symptom you observed is exactly how the K3 normally operateswhen the audio level is too low.The correct way to set up your audio level to:- place the K3 in TX TEST mode- click the TUNE button on the WSJT-X main screen- adjust the audio level to display four bars with the fifth bar flickering? on the ALC display.? ?The K3 COMP display should read zero.- click the WSJT-X TUNE button once more- place the K3 in TX NORMAL mode- set the K3 PWR control for desired output power.- NEVER use the?WSJT-X?power slider or the K3 MIC control to? ?adjust the output power.? Use them only to maintain four barswith the fifth bar flickering on the K3 ALC displayGood luck!73FrankW3LPL?From: "Jim Kennedy" To: "donwilh" Cc: "elecraft" Sent: Monday, December 2, 2019 8:29:43 PMSubject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal BehaviorHi again Don, this morning on a cold start the K3 power indicator tracked with the Bird watt meter. Technically competent and not one to give up easily I continued to trouble shoot almost to the verge of paralysis analysis. I put the K3 on the bench and lashed it up as it were in the station including Tigertronics USB digital interface. Fired it up and again had low power slowly climbing operating in FT8 using the tune tab in the WSJT program to key the rig. Hmmm better check SSB,FM,CW,AM modes. What the "H" I got full output on the Bird 43 !!! Back to TX Data mode. Hit the tune tab in FT8 and power coming up slowly again ?? Something wrong in the TX DATA mode ?? Well as it turns out, somehow the TX audio setting on the Tigertroncis USB interface got reduced and it was a simple matter of not enough transmit audio in TX Data mode. Turned up TX audio on the Tigertronics USB interface less than one division and "voila" full power output. I'm still a little puzzled about the symp?toms but for now my K3 is back in operation. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and help. This is a great group of hams. ?Excuse me while I go wipe the egg off my face. Jeesh !JimW7OUU ? ----- Original Message -----From: "Jim Kennedy" To: "donwilh" Cc: "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 4:46:00 PMSubject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal BehaviorHi Don, I have checked it with both my Bird 43 and Daiwa CN801. Both with the same results. Now with the K3 warmed up there is no problem. I will have to wait for another cold start since I didn't even bother to see if the power meter in the K3 was tracking with the other two. I'll post again when on a cold start if the K3 tracks the same.Tnx es 73'sJimW7OUU----- Original Message -----From: "Don Wilhelm" To: "Jim Kennedy" , "elecraft" Sent: Sunday, December 1, 2019 11:09:08 AMSubject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal BehaviorJim,How were you observing the power increase? ?There is a big difference in how your situation can be analyzed depending on whether the power increase is noted by the K3 display or whether with an external wattmeter.I am not saying that you have no problem, but that the area to look can be different depending on how you observe the power increase.73,Don W3FPROn 11/30/2019 1:26 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote:> Fired up my K3 the last couple of mornings and noticed this. As the autotuner was searching for a solution the power output was slowing rising. Not so unusual right . But, after the tuner made a match the K3 was reading about 40w of output. I went into tune mode again (key down), the antenna was matched 1:1 but the output was slowly coming up so I let it continue. A slow climb to full output after about a minute or so was achieved. I have eliminated the tuner as the problem by using it on another transceiver. I'm thinking it may be a heat related issue somewhere, my guess is it's possibly on the PA board and possibly a solder problem, but then again it could be that same issue anywhere in the drive chain. If I don't transmit for a period of time it will repeat but not as bad as from a cold start. No other abnormal behavior has been noted. Any ideas ? Thanks in advance. Serial # 3378______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.netThis list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to kennedyjp at cableone.net______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.netThis list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From kennedyjp at cableone.net Mon Dec 2 16:19:18 2019 From: kennedyjp at cableone.net (kennedyjp) Date: Mon, 02 Dec 2019 14:19:18 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <0B.66.25079.7DF75ED5@smtp02.lapis.bos.sync.lan> Thanks Don. I will look at that info also. Essentially I assume it's the same as Frank just posted. You guys are awesome. You would think after 65 years of haming I would get this stuff figured out?LOL. Gettin' old ain't for sissies? hi !Thank again guysJim?W7OUU?Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S9+, an AT&T 5G Evolution capable smartphone -------- Original message --------From: Don Wilhelm Date: 12/2/19 14:09 (GMT-07:00) To: Jim Kennedy Cc: elecraft Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior Jim,With audio data modes (even if you are using SSB instead of DATA A), you must have 4 bars solid on the ALC meter with the 5th bar flashing - that is the NO ALC point for the K3/K3S/KX3/KX2.If you do not have sufficient audio, the K3 will "power hunt" trying to bring the power up to the power that was requested.Sorry that I did not observe that you were using a data mode, or I would have pointed to that first.If your audio level is 'touchy', then likely one or more of the audio controls is at an extreme (not near mid-position).? Refer to the article on my website www.w3fpr.com to see how to set the audio to your best advantage.73,Don W3FPROn 12/2/2019 3:29 PM, Jim Kennedy wrote:> Hi again Don, this morning on a cold start the K3 power indicator tracked with the Bird watt meter. Technically competent and not one to give up easily I continued to trouble shoot almost to the verge of paralysis analysis. I put the K3 on the bench and lashed it up as it were in the station including Tigertronics USB digital interface. Fired it up and again had low power slowly climbing operating in FT8 using the tune tab in the WSJT program to key the rig. Hmmm better check SSB,FM,CW,AM modes. What the "H" I got full output on the Bird 43 !!! Back to TX Data mode. Hit the tune tab in FT8 and power coming up slowly again ?? Something wrong in the TX DATA mode ?? Well as it turns out, somehow the TX audio setting on the Tigertroncis USB interface got reduced and it was a simple matter of not enough transmit audio in TX Data mode. Turned up TX audio on the Tigertronics USB interface less than one division and "voila" full power output. I'm still a little puzzled about the symptoms but for now my K3 is back in operation. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and help. This is a great group of hams.? Excuse me while I go wipe the egg off my face. Jeesh !>> From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 2 17:17:55 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 17:17:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Abnormal Behavior In-Reply-To: <0B.66.25079.7DF75ED5@smtp02.lapis.bos.sync.lan> References: <0B.66.25079.7DF75ED5@smtp02.lapis.bos.sync.lan> Message-ID: Jim, Yes, the net result is the same as what Frank posted. My article goes a bit further into explaining that there are multiple audio level controls, and that none of them should be near the lower or upper extremes (because the adjustment gets "touchy"). Just how many audio level controls there are depends on the software application and the drivers for the soundcard.? Some soundcards (interface boxes) have a rotary control. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/2/2019 4:19 PM, kennedyjp wrote: > Thanks Don. I will look at that info also. Essentially I assume it's > the same as Frank just posted. You guys are awesome. You would think > after 65 years of haming I would get this stuff figured out > ?LOL. Gettin' old ain't for sissies? hi ! > > From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 3 00:51:28 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Mon, 02 Dec 2019 20:51:28 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] KRX3A sensitivity Message-ID: <201912030553.xB35rFI6012454@mail41c28.carrierzone.com> Conrad, Assuming this is for 2m-eme, I would guess you have two preamps before the transverter which are adding gain and setting the system NF. If the preamp gain is approx 25 dB or higher, it will likely set the system NF as it has enough gain to overcome the NF of the transverter and K3S. I have a dual receive transverter that provides 28-MHz to both main and sub receivers in my K3. I tap the 1st IF of both receivers in the K3 to provide output to two coherent SDR that provide two IQ outputs to a four port soundcard and drives MAP65. My preamps provide 0.26 dB NF which has a MDS of -146.3 dBm with 500-Hz bw. The combination of the 0.8 dBNF transverter with 17-dB gain, and K3 only add 0.2 to the NF and lower MDS to -146.2 dBm. adding 6-dB loss after the transverter only raises NF to 0.30 dB. This is using 12 dBNF for the K3; lowering to 9-dB lowers system NF to 0.28 dB On 2m this is insignificant due sky noise and man-made noise having more effect on actual MDS. I used Tsky=250K in above calculations which is probably not achievable in today's RF environment. If I use Tsky=1000K, MDS drops to 141.2 dBm. 73, Ed - KL7UW Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2019 13:19:17 +0000 From: Conrad PA5Y To: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" Subject: [Elecraft] KRX3A sensitivity Hello all. I have a dual diversity Xpol EME system for 2m and a dual coherent transverter. I am trying to calculate if I have enough gain available in the transverter to split the output 4 ways with a loss of approximately 6dB. The K3S has an MDS of -138dBm in a 500Hz bandwidth which is approximately 9dB noise figure with preamp 1 switched on. Does the KRX3A have a an independent preamp1? I know that the preamp2 is a shared resource. What about preamp1? Many thanks in advance. Conrad PA5Y 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From alan at muldawer.com Tue Dec 3 03:10:48 2019 From: alan at muldawer.com (N3ALN) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 01:10:48 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] HI CUR error Message-ID: <1575360648699-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I have a K3 and on 6 meters on FT8 at 100W I get a HI CUR error and I have run the K3 utility at re-calibrate the transmitter at 5W and 50W. What else should I do? thanks Alan N3ALN -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From marsip at telia.com Tue Dec 3 03:22:34 2019 From: marsip at telia.com (Markku Siipola) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 09:22:34 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 power problem with FT8 Message-ID: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> I have started to use my K2 for FT8, with the KIO2 digital interface and the SSB-module. My sound card is connected to the hear phone and microfon connections. Software WSJT-X, JTAlert and DXLab commander. On 80m and 40m all is ok, but not on the higher bands. For example on 20 m, the power is reduce very much for certain LF frequences. I tested this by using the TUNE function in WSJT-X and changing the TX frequence. LF??? Power 400??? 7 500??? 3 600??? 3 700??? 4 800??? 7 900??? 7 1000??? 7 1100??? 7 1200??? 7 1300??? 4 1400??? 2 1500??? 1 <--- 1600??? 1 <--- 1700??? 2 1800??? 3 1900??? 5 2000??? 7 The same problem is also on the remaining high bands What can be wrong? 73 de SM5FLM From alan at muldawer.com Tue Dec 3 04:14:39 2019 From: alan at muldawer.com (N3ALN) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 02:14:39 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] HI CUR error Message-ID: <1575364479946-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I have a K3 and on 6 meters on FT8 at 100W I get a HI CUR error and I have run the K3 utility at re-calibrate the transmitter at 5W and 50W. What else should I do? thanks Alan N3ALN -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From alan at muldawer.com Tue Dec 3 04:18:54 2019 From: alan at muldawer.com (N3ALN) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 02:18:54 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] HI CUR error on 6M Message-ID: <1575364734646-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I have a K3 and on 6 meters on FT8 at 100W I get a HI CUR error and not at 95W or less and I have run the K3 utility at re-calibrate the transmitter at 5W and 50W. What else should I do? thanks Alan N3ALN -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From cx7tt at 4email.net Tue Dec 3 09:41:32 2019 From: cx7tt at 4email.net (cx7tt at 4email.net) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 09:41:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> Message-ID: <7c1b2a16-2f9c-6401-bb80-228088b83e01@4email.net> Hola Bob and Jim, I checked all settings, I had not clicked on "Tune". Computer sound settings were all good. Mic and spkr USB both on Audio codex. Changed from Vox to CAT as per Bob's advice. Still nothing until I changed the 'power slider' in WSJT-x to 100% vs 50. Then got 8 bars....changed to about 70% and got five bars with fifth flickering, although sometimes all five would momentarily blink off for less than one sec, then come back. Also discovered that had to make adjustments to power slider in software whenever I changed bands. K3s Mic gain set at 39,up from original 30 to get proper ALC. Strange, all of this due to update to v 2.1.2. Tnx for all the suggestions, at least back in operation. 73 Tom HP1XT On 2/12/2019 2:24 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > And make sure that your operating system has not changed your sound > device settings. Win 10 is bad about that (ask me how I know!) > > On Mon, Dec 2, 2019 at 12:24 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX > wrote: > > Add to my earlier.? You may need to adjust levels as previous > version and this one will be different. > > Also suggest you use CAT control and not VOX as CAT is not affected > by audio levels. > > 73 > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > > > On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net > wrote: > > > > Hola, > > > > Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select > "Tune", > > it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. > > > > Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio > codex for > > both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, > > using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device > manager for > > correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for > Data/stop/handshake. > > > > Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as > > before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. > > Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. > > > > Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on > > WSJT-x website. > > > > Suggestions? > > 73 > > Tom > > HP1XT > > > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 3 10:20:28 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 10:20:28 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: <7c1b2a16-2f9c-6401-bb80-228088b83e01@4email.net> References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> <7c1b2a16-2f9c-6401-bb80-228088b83e01@4email.net> Message-ID: <2C0BD7E6-9ACC-4292-B22F-06727EF1BA1A@blomand.net> There were known changes in the version up to resolve a bug in a previous version. If the WSJT Tune frequency is 1500 Hz, there is a beating between 1500 and the refresh rate of the ALC displayed value. Simply move the TX audio frequency up or down to eliminate this. Makes for MUCH easier adjustment of audio levels. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 3, 2019, at 9:41 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net wrote: > > Hola Bob and Jim, > > I checked all settings, I had not clicked on "Tune". > Computer sound settings were all good. Mic and spkr USB both on Audio codex. > Changed from Vox to CAT as per Bob's advice. > > Still nothing until I changed the 'power slider' in WSJT-x to 100% vs > 50. Then got 8 bars....changed to about 70% and got five bars with fifth > flickering, although sometimes all five would momentarily blink off for > less than one sec, then come back. > > Also discovered that had to make adjustments to power slider in software > whenever I changed bands. K3s Mic gain set at 39,up from original 30 to > get proper ALC. > > Strange, all of this due to update to v 2.1.2. > > Tnx for all the suggestions, at least back in operation. > > 73 > Tom > HP1XT > >> On 2/12/2019 2:24 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: >> And make sure that your operating system has not changed your sound >> device settings. Win 10 is bad about that (ask me how I know!) >> >> On Mon, Dec 2, 2019 at 12:24 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX > > wrote: >> >> Add to my earlier. You may need to adjust levels as previous >> version and this one will be different. >> >> Also suggest you use CAT control and not VOX as CAT is not affected >> by audio levels. >> >> 73 >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On Dec 2, 2019, at 11:23 AM, cx7tt at 4email.net >> wrote: >>> >>> Hola, >>> >>> Problem with keying the VOX on the K3s with new install. Select >> "Tune", >>> it turns red but xmtr does not key VOX. >>> >>> Never had this problem with v 2.0.0. Double checked USB audio >> codex for >>> both speaker and microphone. Parameters checked for Radio tab, K3s, >>> using usb from KIO3 to computer, com4 (doublechecked Device >> manager for >>> correct port), VOX tab checked, 38400 and 8-1-none for >> Data/stop/handshake. >>> >>> Line in selected at 30 on K3s along with Vox gain at 30 (same as >>> before). K3s mode selected for TX data and Data A menu selected. >>> Received and decode FT8 no problem, still no xmit with VOX. >>> >>> Do not see where I can go back to v2.0.0 as it no longer appears on >>> WSJT-x website. >>> >>> Suggestions? >>> 73 >>> Tom >>> HP1XT >>> >> > From dbthompson at me.com Tue Dec 3 11:00:21 2019 From: dbthompson at me.com (David Thompson) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 08:00:21 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: <2C0BD7E6-9ACC-4292-B22F-06727EF1BA1A@blomand.net> References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> <7c1b2a16-2f9c-6401-bb80-228088b83e01@4email.net> <2C0BD7E6-9ACC-4292-B22F-06727EF1BA1A@blomand.net> Message-ID: > On Dec 3, 2019, at 07:20, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > If the WSJT Tune frequency is 1500 Hz, there is a beating between 1500 and the refresh rate of the ALC displayed value. Simply move the TX audio frequency up or down to eliminate this. Makes for MUCH easier adjustment of audio levels. Bob, I?m filing this away for safe keeping! That?s a bit of a gem in my book. Thanks and 73 de AG7TX... David Thompson, AG7TX Jack of All Trades Master of None dbthompson at me.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 3 11:23:44 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 11:23:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3s WSJT-x V2.1.2 no vox In-Reply-To: References: <86ef8425-3190-4f62-1039-b7ffc8e6e808@fastmail.net> <7c1b2a16-2f9c-6401-bb80-228088b83e01@4email.net> <2C0BD7E6-9ACC-4292-B22F-06727EF1BA1A@blomand.net> Message-ID: Glad to share what I've learned. Thank you. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 3, 2019, at 11:00 AM, David Thompson wrote: > > >> On Dec 3, 2019, at 07:20, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> >> If the WSJT Tune frequency is 1500 Hz, there is a beating between 1500 and the refresh rate of the ALC displayed value. Simply move the TX audio frequency up or down to eliminate this. Makes for MUCH easier adjustment of audio levels. > > > Bob, > > I?m filing this away for safe keeping! That?s a bit of a gem in my book. > > Thanks and 73 de AG7TX... > > David Thompson, AG7TX > Jack of All Trades > Master of None > dbthompson at me.com > > > > From w7dxx at w7dxx.com Tue Dec 3 11:38:54 2019 From: w7dxx at w7dxx.com (Keith Lamonica) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 09:38:54 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 CW Problem Message-ID: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> Am I just missing a setting.? With my K3 CW is fine up to about 23wpm.? Any higher speed results in just spacing change e.g. I have n1mm cw working fine ?.? keyboard on software sends qrq fine ? n1mm sends qrq fine ? paddle is stuck at about 20wpm ? if I jack up the speed it increases the character speed bust adds a space so speed does not do up and it sounds like crap? anything I can do? John k9dx -- Keith E. Lamonica keith at lamonica.com www.w7dxx.com C6ADX - - YI9DXX - - Z88Z From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 3 13:04:28 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 13:04:28 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 CW Problem In-Reply-To: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> References: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> Message-ID: Sounds as though the paddle contacts need cleaning as well as the connector on the rear. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 3, 2019, at 11:38 AM, Keith Lamonica wrote: > > Am I just missing a setting. With my K3 CW is fine up to about 23wpm. Any higher speed results in just spacing change > > e.g. > > I have n1mm cw working fine ?.? keyboard on software sends qrq fine ? n1mm sends qrq fine ? paddle is stuck at about 20wpm ? if I jack up the speed it increases the character speed bust adds a space so speed does not do up and it sounds like crap? anything I can do? > John k9dx > > -- > Keith E. Lamonica > keith at lamonica.com > www.w7dxx.com > C6ADX - - YI9DXX - - Z88Z > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From w7dxx at w7dxx.com Tue Dec 3 15:15:33 2019 From: w7dxx at w7dxx.com (Keith Lamonica) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 13:15:33 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 CW Problem In-Reply-To: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> References: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> Message-ID: <2c4ad9d3-5639-ec9e-89bd-b8589bec514d@lamonica.com> It turns out this did not solve my problem after all. On 12/3/2019 9:38 AM, Keith Lamonica wrote: > Am I just missing a setting.? With my K3 CW is fine up to about 23wpm. > Any higher speed results in just spacing change > > e.g. > > I have n1mm cw working fine ?.? keyboard on software sends qrq fine ? > n1mm sends qrq fine ? paddle is stuck at about 20wpm ? if I jack up > the speed it increases the character speed bust adds a space so speed > does not do up and it sounds like crap? anything I can do? > John k9dx > -- Keith E. Lamonica keith at lamonica.com www.w7dxx.com C6ADX - - YI9DXX - - Z88Z From k2vco.vic at gmail.com Tue Dec 3 15:33:59 2019 From: k2vco.vic at gmail.com (Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 22:33:59 +0200 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 CW Problem In-Reply-To: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> References: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> Message-ID: Do you have CONFIG:TX DELAY set higher than 8 or 10? 73, Victor, 4X6GP Rehovot, Israel Formerly K2VCO CWops no. 5 http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/ On 03/12/2019 18:38, Keith Lamonica wrote: > Am I just missing a setting.? With my K3 CW is fine up to about 23wpm. > Any higher speed results in just spacing change > > e.g. > > I have n1mm cw working fine ?.? keyboard on software sends qrq fine ? > n1mm sends qrq fine ? paddle is stuck at about 20wpm ? if I jack up > the speed it increases the character speed bust adds a space so speed > does not do up and it sounds like crap? anything I can do? > John k9dx > From gt-i at gmx.net Tue Dec 3 15:46:33 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 21:46:33 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 power problem with FT8 In-Reply-To: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> References: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> Message-ID: <78823ee0-7db0-2344-e566-dcb6ae43624c@gmx.net> Make sure you have no equalizing in the audio output somewhere (that is important for any transceiver, btw). Also check the SSBA and SSBC options in the menu, maybe the selected compression ratio is not ideal for FT8.? See KSB2 manual regarding "PowerControl and ALC". You could test this with one of the many function generators available as an app on your smartphone. This does not explain the band dependency, though. Maybe 80/40 are tuned good enough to easily achieve the power levels, while the upper bands are a bit more fragile to produce full output, if not tuned 100% correctly. 73/55 Gernot DF5RF Am 03.12.2019 um 09:22 schrieb Markku Siipola: > I have started to use my K2 for FT8, with the KIO2 digital interface > and the SSB-module. My sound card is connected to the hear phone and > microfon connections. Software WSJT-X, JTAlert and DXLab commander. > > On 80m and 40m all is ok, but not on the higher bands. For example on > 20 m, the power is reduce very much for certain LF frequences. I > tested this by using the TUNE function in WSJT-X and changing the TX > frequence. > > LF??? Power > > 400??? 7 > 500??? 3 > 600??? 3 > 700??? 4 > 800??? 7 > 900??? 7 > 1000??? 7 > 1100??? 7 > 1200??? 7 > 1300??? 4 > 1400??? 2 > 1500??? 1 <--- > 1600??? 1 <--- > 1700??? 2 > 1800??? 3 > 1900??? 5 > 2000??? 7 > > The same problem is also on the remaining high bands > > What can be wrong? > > 73 de SM5FLM > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 3 16:02:11 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 16:02:11 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 CW Problem In-Reply-To: References: <6c3a06b1-c7db-d3da-8be0-7d977e47d809@lamonica.com> Message-ID: Victor's point is a good one.? Thus the question are you working full QSK or semi-QSK??? If the? TX Delay is long,? default is about 8 ms as I recall,? it will put in the required space for the correct timing to key an external amplifier.? This can occur between every CW element in QSK mode.??? Also there is a Menu value for higher speed CW as opposed to what us old slow folks use. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/3/2019 3:33 PM, Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP wrote: > Do you have CONFIG:TX DELAY set higher than 8 or 10? > > 73, > Victor, 4X6GP > Rehovot, Israel > Formerly K2VCO > CWops no. 5 > http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/ > > On 03/12/2019 18:38, Keith Lamonica wrote: >> Am I just missing a setting.? With my K3 CW is fine up to about >> 23wpm. Any higher speed results in just spacing change In >> >> e.g. >> >> I have n1mm cw working fine ?.? keyboard on software sends qrq fine ? >> n1mm sends qrq fine ? paddle is stuck at about 20wpm ? if I jack up >> the speed it increases the character speed bust adds a space so speed >> does not do up and it sounds like crap? anything I can do? >> John k9dx >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From ockmrzr at gmail.com Tue Dec 3 16:19:08 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 14:19:08 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts For Sale Message-ID: <340801d5aa1f$4d37fa80$e7a7ef80$@gmail.com> I recently purchased a used K3 and decided to upgrade it. I now have a few spare parts I would like to sell. 2x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 2x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter 2x - KFL3A-500, 500 Hz CW/DATA Roofing Filter If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From donwilh at embarqmail.com Tue Dec 3 17:32:02 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 17:32:02 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 power problem with FT8 In-Reply-To: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> References: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> Message-ID: <028fb556-5916-5b0a-b8f9-64853f2ae040@embarqmail.com> How old is this K2? Those K2s with Serial Numbers below 2560 have the original IF crystals. You will achieve a flatter passband if the crystals on the KSB2 board (and the RF Board) are replaced with the upgrades crystals. If your KSB2 card is older, check the resistors on that board against the newer schematic to be certain the PSK mod has been added to that option board. Make certain the filter alignment is done correctly and that the OP1 filter is selected for the FL1 filter. Do a complete filter alignment using a visual aid like an audio spectrum analyzer like Spectrogram running on your computer and a broadband noise source (like the Elecraft N-Gen) connected to the K2 antenna. You can find Spectrogram on my website www.w3fpr.com - scroll down on the home page to near the end. Don't overlook the possibility that your soundcard may not be producing a flat response. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/3/2019 3:22 AM, Markku Siipola wrote: > I have started to use my K2 for FT8, with the KIO2 digital interface and > the SSB-module. My sound card is connected to the hear phone and > microfon connections. Software WSJT-X, JTAlert and DXLab commander. > > On 80m and 40m all is ok, but not on the higher bands. For example on 20 > m, the power is reduce very much for certain LF frequences. I tested > this by using the TUNE function in WSJT-X and changing the TX frequence. > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Tue Dec 3 17:59:54 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 17:59:54 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 power problem with FT8 In-Reply-To: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> References: <28acf51c-6d55-cde9-bf4c-9731dabec900@telia.com> Message-ID: I should add that you should drive the K2 audio sufficiently, then adjust the power knob for the desired power output. Attempting to use the audio level to adjust the power output will result in "Power Hunting" and could be the cause of some of your problems. The proper audio level for the K2 can be determined by watching the ALC indication on the LED bargraph.? Set the DISPLAY to indicate ALC, then --- Increase the audio until you have the rightmost bar flashing, and then reduce the audio until it just goes out. The K2 gain may be different for each band due to changing gain in the RF Chain with frequency.? So you may have to adjust the audio level for each band. If you are using SSB mode, make certain that SSBC is set to 1-1 to assure no compression.? You can turn the RTTY filter set on and align that filter set.? The SSBC setting is independent of that used for SSB so you can leave your SSB compression setting in place. 73, Don W3FPR ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How old is this K2? Those K2s with Serial Numbers below 2560 have the original IF crystals. You will achieve a flatter passband if the crystals on the KSB2 board (and the RF Board) are replaced with the upgrades crystals. If your KSB2 card is older, check the resistors on that board against the newer schematic to be certain the PSK mod has been added to that option board. Make certain the filter alignment is done correctly and that the OP1 filter is selected for the FL1 filter. Do a complete filter alignment using a visual aid like an audio spectrum analyzer like Spectrogram running on your computer and a broadband noise source (like the Elecraft N-Gen) connected to the K2 antenna. You can find Spectrogram on my website www.w3fpr.com - scroll down on the home page to near the end. Don't overlook the possibility that your soundcard may not be producing a flat response. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/3/2019 3:22 AM, Markku Siipola wrote: > I have started to use my K2 for FT8, with the KIO2 digital interface > and the SSB-module. My sound card is connected to the hear phone and > microfon connections. Software WSJT-X, JTAlert and DXLab commander. > > On 80m and 40m all is ok, but not on the higher bands. For example on > 20 m, the power is reduce very much for certain LF frequences. I > tested this by using the TUNE function in WSJT-X and changing the TX > frequence. > From hk3j.dx at gmail.com Tue Dec 3 18:00:51 2019 From: hk3j.dx at gmail.com (German Duran) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 18:00:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] =?utf-8?q?For_sale=C3=91_K3s_and_Panadapter_P3?= Message-ID: I have my K3s S/N 10972 and Panadapter P3 for sale because I want to buy the Elecraft K4. Recently in september 2019 has been calibrated and updated at the factory by Elecraft Tech Service (Doug). Non smoking environment. This K3s is fully loaded (except no 2M) and contains the following: Elecraft K3s SN# 10972 100W upgrade for K3s factory installed Installed in radio: KAT3A, E850323 Standard 5 ppm Oscillator. KDVR3 Filters 1.8k, 2.1k, 250, 400 and 2.8k. Subreceiver KRX3A-F K3s 2nd RX factory installed. KFL3A-2.8_2.7SWAP-F 2.8 for 2.7 KHz swap, factory installed. KFL3A-2.1K-IR-F 2.1 KHz 8 pole roofing filter, factory installed. KFL3A-1.8K-IR-F 1.8 KHz 8 pole roofing filter factory installed. KFL3A-250-IR-F K3s 250, 8 pole Filter. Factory installed KFL3C-200-F 200 Hz, 6-pole roofing filter (CW/Data), installed. 5 filters in receiver and 5 filters in subreceiver. Price U. S. $ 3.000 I also sell my Panadapter P3. Very good condition If you buy me the K3s, the Panadapter P3 at US $ 500. K3s plus Panadapter $ 3,500 plus shipping Pictures upon request. Germ?n HK3J From johna at arnoldassoc.com Wed Dec 4 00:33:12 2019 From: johna at arnoldassoc.com (John Arnold) Date: Tue, 3 Dec 2019 21:33:12 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] WTB: K60XV kit for my K2 Message-ID: <0FA86DCA-4D1D-401F-ADCD-FDF5EC0CEF87@arnoldassoc.com> Hi agn, I?m looking for an unbuilt K60XV kit for my K2. I had one reply but no further contact. 73, John WA6YSY in W Washington state Sent from my iPhone From hms4 at lehigh.edu Wed Dec 4 10:24:41 2019 From: hms4 at lehigh.edu (Howard Sherer) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 10:24:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] How to connect to KAT & KPA with the remote programs Message-ID: I can connect OK using the KPA-500, & KAT-500 remote programs using the host mode. If I would like to use the connect mode, how do I determine the TCP server port, and host /IP of my KPA & KAT devices? Howard AE3T From jstoneback at yahoo.com Wed Dec 4 10:49:27 2019 From: jstoneback at yahoo.com (Jim Stoneback) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 10:49:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Banner Question References: Message-ID: Just got a K3/100 (used). Previous owner?s banner plays on power up. I?ve looked through the owners manual and I can?t find how to change it. Can someone give me a pointer on setting the banner? 73, Jim K4AXF From AB1DD at comcast.net Wed Dec 4 10:56:27 2019 From: AB1DD at comcast.net (AB1DD) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 10:56:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Banner Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3aa6dae3-5a28-d9cc-2bda-1f17496a91b6@comcast.net> It's in the K3 utility, configuration tab, 5 down, edit power on banner. -- 73, Carl AB1DD Resistance is futile. (don't know about reactance, though) From dick at elecraft.com Wed Dec 4 11:12:31 2019 From: dick at elecraft.com (Dick Dievendorff) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 08:12:31 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Banner Question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3A2E35E6-264D-46E9-A908-F9699BA555D1@elecraft.com> As I am sure you?ll hear from others, it?s a K3 Utility configuration function. The K3 Utility is free software on our web site. Follow the ?support? link to software for the K-Line. The same K3 Utility is used for K3 and K3S. Banner is on the Configuration tab. 73 de Dick, K6KR > On Dec 4, 2019, at 07:51, Jim Stoneback via Elecraft wrote > > ?Just got a K3/100 (used). Previous owner?s banner plays on power up. I?ve looked through the owners manual and I can?t find how to change it. > > Can someone give me a pointer on setting the banner? > > 73, > > Jim K4AXF > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dick at elecraft.com From kzerocx at gmail.com Wed Dec 4 15:33:32 2019 From: kzerocx at gmail.com (Gary Peterson) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 13:33:32 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration Message-ID: Last February, I purchased a factory assembled K3S including a 1 ppm TCXO. The transceiver is serial number 11803 and the firmware was updated on May 5th of this year. Last July, I noticed that many of the signals on 50.125 MHz sounded as if they were a bit off frequency as they were higher pitched. This led me to believe that the reference oscillator may have drifted, possibly due to crystal aging. Subsequently, I used method 2 and WWV, as described on page 53 of the Elecraft K3S manual. The REF CAL frequency was lowered from 49.999.996 to 49.379.448. That seemed to make the signals on the 6 meter calling frequency sound like they should. A few days ago, I caught a six meter opening and signals on 50.125 sounded higher pitched again. I repeated the reference oscillator calibration again, using method 2. Now, the REF CAL frequency is set to 49.379.110. I have not had the opportunity to hear any six meter signals, since I changed the reference oscillator. I am wondering if the REF CAL frequency change that I have seen in less than a year is normal, or whether I have a TCXO problem. Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance for any time taken to reply. Gary, K0CX Rapid City, SD From n1rj at roadrunner.com Wed Dec 4 15:52:22 2019 From: n1rj at roadrunner.com (Roger D Johnson) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 15:52:22 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K-POD for sale Message-ID: <5aef13ec-895f-ef2a-cefb-ed7bf28fae91@roadrunner.com> Like new. I thought I would use it more but, with my operating style, it just sits there. $200 Plus shipping. 73, Roger N1RJ From hk3j.dx at gmail.com Wed Dec 4 16:03:44 2019 From: hk3j.dx at gmail.com (German Duran) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 16:03:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Test Message-ID: Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. Germ?n Dur?n. From w6png at yahoo.com Wed Dec 4 16:14:52 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 13:14:52 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9D90F141-14DD-46D1-A3A5-C89A83E3C37A@yahoo.com> Received loud and clear! Paul w6png www.nomadic.blog > On Dec 4, 2019, at 1:03 PM, German Duran wrote: > > Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If > you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure > if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. > Germ?n Dur?n. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From w6png at yahoo.com Wed Dec 4 16:14:52 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 13:14:52 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9D90F141-14DD-46D1-A3A5-C89A83E3C37A@yahoo.com> Received loud and clear! Paul w6png www.nomadic.blog > On Dec 4, 2019, at 1:03 PM, German Duran wrote: > > Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If > you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure > if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. > Germ?n Dur?n. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Wed Dec 4 16:11:17 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 14:11:17 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Received OK in Montana ... 73 Rose - N7HKW On Wed, Dec 4, 2019, 14:08 German Duran wrote: > Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If > you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure > if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. > Germ?n Dur?n. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com From brian at elecraft.com Wed Dec 4 17:06:10 2019 From: brian at elecraft.com (Brian Broggie) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 14:06:10 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: You're 5x9 in California! ;) Brian Broggie K4 Program Manager, Elecraft, Inc. Address Watsonville, CA Phone (831) 763-4211 <(831) 763-4211> Mobile (831) 601-6983 <(831) 601-6983> Email brian at elecraft.com Website www.elecraft.com On Wed, Dec 4, 2019 at 1:10 PM German Duran wrote: > Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If > you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure > if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. > Germ?n Dur?n. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to brian at elecraft.com From donovanf at starpower.net Wed Dec 4 17:21:18 2019 From: donovanf at starpower.net (donovanf at starpower.net) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 17:21:18 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <581917409.12279959.1575498078842.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Wall to wall and treetop tall On Wed, Dec 4, 2019 at 1:10 PM German Duran wrote: Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. Germ?n Dur?n. From n1rj at roadrunner.com Wed Dec 4 17:29:55 2019 From: n1rj at roadrunner.com (Roger D Johnson) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 17:29:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K-POD is sold Message-ID: Thanks and Merry Christmas to all who replied. 73, Roger From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Wed Dec 4 17:50:13 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 15:50:13 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Your first number is bogus, but generally speaking if your other numbers are correct, that does seem excessive.? That said, crystals do age and some of this depends on power on/off cycles.? I'm now to the point of leaving my K3S powered continuously. I recently ran some drift tests and found that it takes about 25 minutes for my reference to settle to a point limited by measurement jitter.? There is an initial positive increase of a few Hz at power up (at room temperature) then a non-linear decrease of about 25 Hz. (Direct measurement of the synthesizer output with a FA-2 counter by BG7TBL, with a Bodnar GPSDO reference) Wes? N7WS On 12/4/2019 1:33 PM, Gary Peterson wrote: > Last February, I purchased a factory assembled K3S including a 1 ppm TCXO. The transceiver is serial number 11803 and the firmware was updated on May 5th of this year. > > Last July, I noticed that many of the signals on 50.125 MHz sounded as if they were a bit off frequency as they were higher pitched. This led me to believe that the reference oscillator may have drifted, possibly due to crystal aging. > > Subsequently, I used method 2 and WWV, as described on page 53 of the Elecraft K3S manual. The REF CAL frequency was lowered from 49.999.996 to 49.379.448. That seemed to make the signals on the 6 meter calling frequency sound like they should. > > A few days ago, I caught a six meter opening and signals on 50.125 sounded higher pitched again. I repeated the reference oscillator calibration again, using method 2. Now, the REF CAL frequency is set to 49.379.110. I have not had the opportunity to hear any six meter signals, since I changed the reference oscillator. > > I am wondering if the REF CAL frequency change that I have seen in less than a year is normal, or whether I have a TCXO problem. > > Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance for any time taken to reply. > > Gary, K0CX > Rapid City, SD From hk3j.dx at gmail.com Wed Dec 4 23:14:57 2019 From: hk3j.dx at gmail.com (German Duran) Date: Wed, 4 Dec 2019 23:14:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Test In-Reply-To: <581917409.12279959.1575498078842.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> References: <581917409.12279959.1575498078842.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: Thank you! El mi?., 4 dic. 2019, 5:21 p.m., escribi?: > Wall to wall and treetop tall > > > On Wed, Dec 4, 2019 at 1:10 PM German Duran wrote: > > Dejar friends: I want to ask one of the members of this list a favor. If > you can tell me if this message was published in this list. I am not sure > if the messages I send to the list are published. Thank you very much. > Germ?n Dur?n. > > > From k2qmf at juno.com Thu Dec 5 11:59:00 2019 From: k2qmf at juno.com (Salvatore Ted K2QMF) Date: Thu, 05 Dec 2019 11:59:00 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Drive Question? Message-ID: Hello All, Just received my KPA1500!!? Wow what a great Amplifier... One Question- 160, 80, and 40 seem to require much less drive than 20, 15, and 10!!! That means I have to readjust drive when changing bands! Kind of a bummer!!? Is there any way around this??? I am driving the amp with a Yaesu FTdx 5000.. Many Thanks for any info. 73, Ted? K2QMF ____________________________________________________________ Forget Viagra: This Pill "Destroys" ED Without Prescription! Med Journal http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5de937552cdc53754516bst02duc From k4to.dave at gmail.com Thu Dec 5 12:05:02 2019 From: k4to.dave at gmail.com (Dave Sublette) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 12:05:02 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Drive Question? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Yaesu?? Well there is your problem. An Elecraft rig plugged into the 1500 would follow you around like a good dog, turning the drive power up and down as necessary. Seriously, I know nothing about Yaesu, but in the menu system, is there a way of setting the output on each band such that the rig will remember it? then all you would have to do is turn up the power when you wanted to run barefoot. 73, Dave, K4TO On Thu, Dec 5, 2019 at 11:59 AM Salvatore Ted K2QMF wrote: > Hello All, > Just received my KPA1500!! Wow what a great Amplifier... > One Question- 160, 80, and 40 seem to require much less drive than 20, 15, > and 10!!! > That means I have to readjust drive when changing bands! > Kind of a bummer!! Is there any way around this??? > I am driving the amp with a Yaesu FTdx 5000.. > Many Thanks for any info. > 73, > Ted K2QMF > > ____________________________________________________________ > Forget Viagra: This Pill "Destroys" ED Without Prescription! > Med Journal > http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5de937552cdc53754516bst02duc > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k4to at arrl.net From brianstevens1 at btinternet.com Thu Dec 5 15:03:01 2019 From: brianstevens1 at btinternet.com (brianstevens1 at btinternet.com) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 20:03:01 +0000 (GMT) Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 Power output calibration Message-ID: <6b491914.c72.16ed7a89aec.Webtop.55@btinternet.com> I've calibrated my kx3 to a new kxpa100 successfully on all bands except 10Mhz, where TX Gain still shows the factory calibration value ALC a1.9. I've retried several times and can't get it to show a value ALC t X.X, any suggestions why this may be please? The output at the amp seems to agree with the power setting on the kx3 (as far as I can tell from the led's). kx3 s/no 6738 firmware 2.90 installed kxpa100 s/no 2814 Regards Brian G0WZX From ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca Thu Dec 5 17:09:55 2019 From: ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca (Mike Smith VE9AA) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 18:09:55 -0400 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward Message-ID: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> If I was to purchase a new (barebones) K3S today, what are the chances the 2nd receiver module, filters, 2m module and whatever else are going to be available a year from now (when I can afford more) ? Thanks ! Mike VE9AA Mike, Coreen & Corey Keswick Ridge, NB From donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 5 17:22:30 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 17:22:30 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> Message-ID: <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> Mike, The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. The 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it off monthly. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/5/2019 5:09 PM, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote: > If I was to purchase a new (barebones) K3S today, what are the chances the > 2nd receiver module, filters, 2m module and whatever else are going to be > available a year from now (when I can afford more) ? From ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca Thu Dec 5 18:08:28 2019 From: ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca (Mike Smith VE9AA) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 19:08:28 -0400 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <002501d5abc0$e834c2a0$b89e47e0$@nbnet.nb.ca> Thanks Don. I am sitting on the fence what course of action to take. I'd really like to find a K3 (non S) in Canada, but there are not too many around. Barring that, a K3 in the USA from someone I know (ie: trust). Also difficult, but not impossible. I don't really need an "S" nor a K4, as 90% of what I do is just contest for fun. I have a pair of IC-7410's in my SO2R setup and an older but loaded K3 which I only use as a travel/expedition type rig, but tossing around the idea of making the main setup a "pair of K3's" (plural, not "S",. hi) Thanks for the info/advice. Always appreciate your no nonsense words and great work. 73 de Mike VE9AA Mike, Coreen & Corey Keswick Ridge, NB -----Original Message----- From: Don Wilhelm [mailto:donwilh at embarqmail.com] Sent: December 5, 2019 6:23 PM To: Mike Smith VE9AA; Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward Mike, The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. The 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it off monthly. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/5/2019 5:09 PM, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote: > If I was to purchase a new (barebones) K3S today, what are the chances the > 2nd receiver module, filters, 2m module and whatever else are going to be > available a year from now (when I can afford more) ? From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Thu Dec 5 20:39:22 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 17:39:22 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <495b102f-6c53-e4ea-6e24-59f9e43fed58@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/5/2019 2:22 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it off > monthly. > BAD idea -- interest on credit cards are VERY high! Better idea -- grab a used one from one of the many folks who will be selling one (or two) to buy a K4 (or two). I would feel reasonably confident buying from a regular member of this reflector -- it's a pretty small world. 73, Jim K9YC From randyn1kwf at gmail.com Thu Dec 5 20:55:58 2019 From: randyn1kwf at gmail.com (Randy Lake) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 20:55:58 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <495b102f-6c53-e4ea-6e24-59f9e43fed58@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> <495b102f-6c53-e4ea-6e24-59f9e43fed58@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: Use PayPal credit. Gives you a few months. On Thu, Dec 5, 2019 at 8:39 PM Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/5/2019 2:22 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it off > > monthly. > > > > BAD idea -- interest on credit cards are VERY high! > > Better idea -- grab a used one from one of the many folks who will be > selling one (or two) to buy a K4 (or two). I would feel reasonably > confident buying from a regular member of this reflector -- it's a > pretty small world. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to randyn1kwf at gmail.com > -- Randy Lake N1KWF 73 Gunn Rd. Keene,NH From byron at n6nul.org Thu Dec 5 20:58:29 2019 From: byron at n6nul.org (Byron Servies) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 17:58:29 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: I expected this, and in preparation received an RA number to have my own K3 and P3 packed out this month while parts are available. Still, I find it sad. The value proposition from Elecraft has been easy to justify: buy a base model radio and then add options as necessary or possible. With the arrival of the K4, the K3-line is seemingly being abandoned. It is 10-ish years old, but still great. Of course, I understand. Elecraft is a small company and it is not practical to keep all the parts available forever. But unlike the K1, KX1, and some K2 options, where components became unavailable, the K3 transition feels different somehow. Ah, well. The times they are a changin'. 73, Byron N6NUL On Thu, Dec 5, 2019 at 2:23 PM Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Mike, > > The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. > The 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building > no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. From rmcgraw at blomand.net Thu Dec 5 21:49:14 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 20:49:14 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> <495b102f-6c53-e4ea-6e24-59f9e43fed58@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: There are several credit card companies that initially have 0% interest for usually 12 months on a new card.? And then some have 0% interest on balance transfers up to 15 months.?? I roll money around using these methods and NEVER pay any credit card interest.?? One just has to be alert to the DEALS and play by their rules. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/5/2019 7:55 PM, Randy Lake wrote: > Use PayPal credit. Gives you a few months. > > From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Thu Dec 5 23:21:46 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 21:21:46 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <09453ca2-9ab9-3183-c0c5-c784d2b847fd@cis-broadband.com> Same here.? One of the huge selling points for Elecraft has always been the after-sale service and longevity of the product.? I was happy to upgrade my K3 to the new synths, but now I find out that if, for example, my 2nd receiver goes full belly up some time in the near future I probably won't be able to get a replacement. ... and by Elecraft choice rather than by component obsolescence. ?? That kind of changes the story for me.? The K3 line itself is far from being obsolete performance-wise. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/5/2019 6:58 PM, Byron Servies wrote: > I expected this, and in preparation received an RA number to have my > own K3 and P3 packed out this month while parts are available. Still, > I find it sad. > > The value proposition from Elecraft has been easy to justify: buy a > base model radio and then add options as necessary or possible. With > the arrival of the K4, the K3-line is seemingly being abandoned. It is > 10-ish years old, but still great. > > Of course, I understand. Elecraft is a small company and it is not > practical to keep all the parts available forever. But unlike the K1, > KX1, and some K2 options, where components became unavailable, the K3 > transition feels different somehow. > > Ah, well. The times they are a changin'. > > 73, Byron N6NUL > > On Thu, Dec 5, 2019 at 2:23 PM Don Wilhelm wrote: >> Mike, >> >> The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. >> The 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building >> no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to xdavid at cis-broadband.com > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 5 23:34:03 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2019 23:34:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <09453ca2-9ab9-3183-c0c5-c784d2b847fd@cis-broadband.com> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> <09453ca2-9ab9-3183-c0c5-c784d2b847fd@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: Dave, While you may not be able to obtain new option modules, you can be assured that Elecraft support and repair service for the K3/K3S will continue for a long time to come. The K2 has been around for over 20 years and is still sold supported (and repaired by Elecraft). While the KX1 and K1 have been discontinued, they will be serviced by Elecraft until the parts supply has been exhausted. I expect the same for the K3. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/5/2019 11:21 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > Same here.? One of the huge selling points for Elecraft has always been > the after-sale service and longevity of the product.? I was happy to > upgrade my K3 to the new synths, but now I find out that if, for > example, my 2nd receiver goes full belly up some time in the near future > I probably won't be able to get a replacement. ... and by Elecraft > choice rather than by component obsolescence. ?? That kind of changes > the story for me.? The K3 line itself is far from being obsolete > performance-wise. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E From k2vco.vic at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 04:05:29 2019 From: k2vco.vic at gmail.com (Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 11:05:29 +0200 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <002501d5abc0$e834c2a0$b89e47e0$@nbnet.nb.ca> References: <001901d5abb8$ba892560$2f9b7020$@nbnet.nb.ca> <1691bb50-5265-f048-096c-85518aaac07e@embarqmail.com> <002501d5abc0$e834c2a0$b89e47e0$@nbnet.nb.ca> Message-ID: <504dbdf8-9490-25f7-9405-3358247e8642@gmail.com> Mike, There is one K3S option that you should definitely add to a K3 if you like CW: the updated synthesizer (2 of them if you have the subreceiver). It makes a great deal of difference if you send CW at more than about 30 wpm. There is a QRQ mode that helps, but it has downsides. Of course the improved receiver IMD and phase noise performance is also helpful if you are a contester. 73, Victor, 4X6GP Rehovot, Israel Formerly K2VCO CWops no. 5 http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/ On 06/12/2019 1:08, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote: > Thanks Don. I am sitting on the fence what course of action to take. > I'd really like to find a K3 (non S) in Canada, but there are not too > many around. Barring that, a K3 in the USA from someone I know (ie: > trust). Also difficult, but not impossible. > > I don't really need an "S" nor a K4, as 90% of what I do is just > contest for fun. I have a pair of IC-7410's in my SO2R setup and an > older but loaded K3 which I only use as a travel/expedition type rig, > but tossing around the idea of making the main setup a "pair of K3's" > (plural, not "S",. hi) > > Thanks for the info/advice. Always appreciate your no nonsense words > and great work. > > 73 de Mike VE9AA > > Mike, Coreen & Corey Keswick Ridge, NB > > -----Original Message----- From: Don Wilhelm > [mailto:donwilh at embarqmail.com] Sent: December 5, 2019 6:23 PM To: > Mike Smith VE9AA; Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] > K3S accessories availability, moving forward > > Mike, > > The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. The > 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building > no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. > > You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it > off monthly. > > 73, Don W3FPR > > On 12/5/2019 5:09 PM, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote: >> If I was to purchase a new (barebones) K3S today, what are the >> chances the 2nd receiver module, filters, 2m module and whatever >> else are going to be available a year from now (when I can afford >> more) ? > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list Home: > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: > http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: > mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this > email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > k2vco.vic at gmail.com > From wf3t at fastmail.com Fri Dec 6 06:58:17 2019 From: wf3t at fastmail.com (Steven G. Steltzer) Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2019 06:58:17 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] QRQ + and the K4 question Message-ID: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> Will the K4 do away with the annoyance of the RIT/XIT turning off QRQ+ mode? Thanks, Steve, WF3T From jstoneback at yahoo.com Fri Dec 6 08:22:56 2019 From: jstoneback at yahoo.com (jstoneback) Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2019 08:22:56 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Message-ID: Thanks for the K3 Utility info.?Does anyone have a 500 Hz filter to spare?73,Jim K4AXF?K3 #4936Sent from my Boost Mobile Phone. From infomet at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 6 09:12:18 2019 From: infomet at embarqmail.com (Wilson Lamb) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 09:12:18 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] Replaced Module Value Message-ID: <216843683.9136524.1575641538081.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> I bought a used K3 (works fine) with updated synth and transverter interface. I was politely told that the interface module was worth the cost of postage. Are the original synths worth anything? Wilson W4BOH From n6kr at elecraft.com Fri Dec 6 10:13:32 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 07:13:32 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] QRQ + and the K4 question In-Reply-To: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> References: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> Message-ID: As an SDR, the K4 has no need to shift an oscillator between RX and TX mode. So there?s no need for ?QRQ mode.? Wayne N6KR ---- elecraft.com > On Dec 6, 2019, at 3:58 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: > > Will the K4 do away with the annoyance of the RIT/XIT turning off QRQ+ mode? > > Thanks, > Steve, WF3T > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com From john at kk9a.com Fri Dec 6 10:31:15 2019 From: john at kk9a.com (john at kk9a.com) Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2019 09:31:15 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward Message-ID: <20191206093115.Horde.MqXP3cH1qvDlHxemzcMhhJO@www11.qth.com> The K3S and accessories becoming obsolete seems to be uncharastic of Elecraft. I own three K3s's, one is pretty stock however I am not ready to add options to it now. I thought that all of my K3s's would be upgradable as technology improved or when I wanted to add more features, just as was done with the original K3. The K2 was never obsoleted so I certainly did not expect that to happen with the current K3S transceiver. I think it's a poor financial plan to borrow money for accessories that you may want in the future. John KK9A Don Wilhelm donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 5 17:22:30 EST 2019 Mike, The filters definitely, they are the same ones used in the K4. The 2nd RX and 2m option may or may not be available. They are building no more, so whenever stock is depleted, they will be gone. You might want to consider putting them on a credit card and pay it off monthly. 73, Don W3FPR From mikekopacki at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 10:45:25 2019 From: mikekopacki at gmail.com (NJMike) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 08:45:25 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter Message-ID: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I want to connect my Windows 10 tablet to my K2. I have the KIO2 module installed and I have built the K2 serial cable. I have read the relevant material on the Elecraft website about avoiding the Prolific chipset. The USB port on my tablet is 3.0. My question is this - can I use any version of USB (1.1, 2.0, 3.0) to serial adapter to connect the tablet to the K2 cable or is one better than the others? Thanks, Mike -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From c-hawley at illinois.edu Fri Dec 6 10:47:48 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:47:48 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Replaced Module Value In-Reply-To: <216843683.9136524.1575641538081.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> References: <216843683.9136524.1575641538081.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: Of course it varies. I think right now, the value of the earlier modules in the K3 are not worth much, but if someone needs an item to restore function to a K3 and the cupboard is bare at Elecraft, then the value goes up. I would just hang on to them if someone doesn't have a good reason to need one for postage. Chuck Hawley c-hawley at illinois.edu Amateur Radio, KE9UW aka Jack, BMW Motorcycles ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Wilson Lamb Sent: Friday, December 6, 2019 8:12 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] Replaced Module Value I bought a used K3 (works fine) with updated synth and transverter interface. I was politely told that the interface module was worth the cost of postage. Are the original synths worth anything? Wilson W4BOH ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From radiok4ia at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 11:13:15 2019 From: radiok4ia at gmail.com (Buck) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 11:13:15 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter In-Reply-To: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <94131f66-1c20-daf9-5eac-3dc4e81a441d@Gmail.com> There were many counterfeit chips so the patent holders put code in their drivers to disable the counterfeits. The USB version (1, 2 or 3) does not matter. You want to get a genuine converter. Best way to guarantee that is to buy your converter cable from a reputable source. Elecraft sells one. So does MFJ. I am sure there are others. Just don't get some cheap knock-off from the Internet. Buck, k4ia Honor Roll 8BDXCC EasyWayHamBooks.com On 12/6/2019 10:45 AM, NJMike wrote: > I want to connect my Windows 10 tablet to my K2. I have the KIO2 module > installed and I have built the K2 serial cable. I have read the relevant > material on the Elecraft website about avoiding the Prolific chipset. The > USB port on my tablet is 3.0. My question is this - can I use any version > of USB (1.1, 2.0, 3.0) to serial adapter to connect the tablet to the K2 > cable or is one better than the others? > > Thanks, > Mike > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to radiok4ia at gmail.com > From jvandrey at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 11:38:33 2019 From: jvandrey at gmail.com (Jobst Vandrey) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 11:38:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna Message-ID: I have been trying to come up with a antenna for use in an apartment with only limited success. I have now set up the Elecraft AX-1 antenna and it seems to play well with my K3 indoors with the antenna placed in a window supported by a folding camera tripod. One caveat is that there seems to be significant feedline RF so a 1:1 isolation transformer near the antenna feed point is an absolute requirement. Without the transformer, even 1 watt transmissions caused various nasty computer gremlins when using digital modes. My apartment no longer needs to be a maze of wires and switches - many thanks to Elecraft for this excellent product. Jobst AC0LP From donwilh at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 6 11:40:49 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 11:40:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter In-Reply-To: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: Mike, One of the potential problems is that the K2 works at 4800 baud, which by current standards is slow. The problem is that some USB to serial adapters do not like to run at that slow speed. I have tested the Elecraft KUSB with my K2, and I also can state the my 4 port Edgeport USB to serial converter works well. I have also used a Keyspan adapter. If you can arrange a "return if it does not work" arrangement with the place where you buy it, that would be beneficial. You can use a USB 1.1 or 2.0 or 3.0 adapter. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/6/2019 10:45 AM, NJMike wrote: > I want to connect my Windows 10 tablet to my K2. I have the KIO2 module > installed and I have built the K2 serial cable. I have read the relevant > material on the Elecraft website about avoiding the Prolific chipset. The > USB port on my tablet is 3.0. My question is this - can I use any version > of USB (1.1, 2.0, 3.0) to serial adapter to connect the tablet to the K2 > cable or is one better than the others? > > Thanks, > Mike > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > From k9ma at sdellington.us Fri Dec 6 12:47:08 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 11:47:08 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] QRQ + and the K4 question In-Reply-To: References: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> Message-ID: <39dcbf07-f13c-d8b1-2451-d728d57cea29@sdellington.us> A related question: Will the latency and turn-around time of the K4 be fast enough for true QSK operation? The K3 can only hear between words above about 10 wpm, and QRQ mode doesn't help much. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/6/2019 09:13, Wayne Burdick wrote: > As an SDR, the K4 has no need to shift an oscillator between RX and TX mode. So there?s no need for ?QRQ mode.? > > Wayne > N6KR > > ---- > elecraft.com > >> On Dec 6, 2019, at 3:58 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: >> >> Will the K4 do away with the annoyance of the RIT/XIT turning off QRQ+ mode? >> >> Thanks, >> Steve, WF3T >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From k2asp at kanafi.org Fri Dec 6 13:17:25 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 10:17:25 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter In-Reply-To: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: On 12/6/2019 7:45 AM, NJMike wrote: > My question is this - can I use any version of USB (1.1, 2.0, 3.0) to > serial adapter to connect the tablet to the K2 cable or is one better > than the others? My experience with "mix and match" USB ports and devices caused a bit of problems. My external backup drive is in a USB-3 housing, and I connected it to one of my Dell tower's USB-3 port with a USB-3-rated cable. I experienced quite a number of failures to recognize the drive at backup time. After replacing both the drive disk and housing, the results were the same. When I moved the cable to one of the computer's USB-2 port, the problem went away. The upshot of all this is, to paraphrase an otherwise forgettable MIT professor of many decades ago "this USB not the same as that USB - I only did that to con-fuse you". I'll let Don and the rest of the experts here give more accurate answers. 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From n6kr at elecraft.com Fri Dec 6 13:26:43 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 10:26:43 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] QRQ + and the K4 question In-Reply-To: <39dcbf07-f13c-d8b1-2451-d728d57cea29@sdellington.us> References: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> <39dcbf07-f13c-d8b1-2451-d728d57cea29@sdellington.us> Message-ID: > On Dec 6, 2019, at 9:47 AM, K9MA wrote: > > A related question: Will the latency and turn-around time of the K4 be fast enough for true QSK operation? Yes. Since the K4's signal processing for CW is primarily in the time domain, it has a distinct advantage over those that batch-process signals using FFTs and IFFTs (frequency domain). > The K3 can only hear between words above about 10 wpm, and QRQ mode doesn't help much. This depends on how the K3 is configured. There are two QSK settings (see CONFIG:CW WGHT menu entry), and with one of them, along with proper adjustment of AGC, it's possible to hear between dots at well over 20 WPM. The new synthesizer (KSYN3A) also improved QSK times. 73, Wayne N6KR > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > > On 12/6/2019 09:13, Wayne Burdick wrote: >> As an SDR, the K4 has no need to shift an oscillator between RX and TX mode. So there?s no need for ?QRQ mode.? >> >> Wayne >> N6KR >> >> ---- >> elecraft.com >> >>> On Dec 6, 2019, at 3:58 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: >>> >>> Will the K4 do away with the annoyance of the RIT/XIT turning off QRQ+ mode? >>> >>> Thanks, >>> Steve, WF3T >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us > > > -- > Scott K9MA > > k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com From sbralr at cox.net Fri Dec 6 13:36:45 2019 From: sbralr at cox.net (Steve & Anne Ray) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 13:36:45 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] USB to Serial Adapters Message-ID: <000201d5ac64$1da3aa70$58eaff50$@cox.net> While I have not had any problems with the USB to Serial Adapter with my K2, I did have problems with the USB ports on another computer, not my ham station computer. I had a printer, mouse, scanner and keyboard on USB from the computer, this computer did not have a USB to Serial Adapter. Everything worked fine except the scanner. When I disconnected the printer, the scanner worked fine. I bought a powered splitter for USB and solved the problem allowing all the devices to work correctly. 73, Steve K4JPN From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Fri Dec 6 14:00:10 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2019 10:00:10 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward Message-ID: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Don explained it well; Elecraft support appears to continue for the K3, K3S. Obtaining new options apparently has a shorter life-span. If I were shelling out new dollars at this point I would get the K4 vs K3S so seems a logical shift in emphasis. I am happy with my circa-2010 K3, KX3, KXPA100. At my point in life, long-term investments seem illogical. Though if money were no issue I'd pick up a K4 and KPA500...and maybe a sports car with obligatory blonde accessory - haha But as someone else pointed out, I did upgrade my k3 with two synth boards and the gen purpose bw filter (to use 630m). BTW the old synth boards are on the "dusty shelf" (in plastic bags) and available free to anyone paying for shipping. 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Fri Dec 6 14:24:19 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2019 10:24:19 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration Message-ID: <201912061924.xB6JOQB4019315@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> To add a little to what Wes said: The K3 TCXO rest freq is 49,380 KHz. It is a temperature corrected oscillator so will still drift with radio warm up but less than a non-compensated oscillator. So best to calibrate after at least 30-minutes warmup. If you have the 100w model K3, there will be some temperature drift when transmitting (varies with mode and frequency band). I have the EXREF installed with the TCXO-03 and that holds my 50-MHz signal within 3 Hz. But if you check the TCXO frequency (CONFIG: REF CAL) you will see the frequency drift. Mine seems to top out at about 49.380.090 and then hold within a few .001. The EXREF takes the need for periodic re-calibration away. But your 10-MHz reference needs to be very accurate/stable. I use a surplus OCXO that needs re-calib about every 4-6 months (usually only 1-Hz drift). My OCXO runs 24/7 to avoid warm up drift. Hope that helps. 73, Ed - KL7UW From: "Gary Peterson" To: Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Last February, I purchased a factory assembled K3S including a 1 ppm TCXO. The transceiver is serial number 11803 and the firmware was updated on May 5th of this year. Last July, I noticed that many of the signals on 50.125 MHz sounded as if they were a bit off frequency as they were higher pitched. This led me to believe that the reference oscillator may have drifted, possibly due to crystal aging. Subsequently, I used method 2 and WWV, as described on page 53 of the Elecraft K3S manual. The REF CAL frequency was lowered from 49.999.996 to 49.379.448. That seemed to make the signals on the 6 meter calling frequency sound like they should. A few days ago, I caught a six meter opening and signals on 50.125 sounded higher pitched again. I repeated the reference oscillator calibration again, using method 2. Now, the REF CAL frequency is set to 49.379.110. I have not had the opportunity to hear any six meter signals, since I changed the reference oscillator. I am wondering if the REF CAL frequency change that I have seen in less than a year is normal, or whether I have a TCXO problem. Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance for any time taken to reply. Gary, K0CX Rapid City, SD 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From jstengrevics at comcast.net Fri Dec 6 14:32:46 2019 From: jstengrevics at comcast.net (John Stengrevics) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 14:32:46 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration In-Reply-To: <201912061924.xB6JOQB4019315@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912061924.xB6JOQB4019315@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <95D30B0C-4FCB-4380-9683-8F0BC3053F7B@comcast.net> Gary, I had the same problem. After 3 years, I had to replace the TCXO which had clearly become defective. I still need to recalibrate periodically. I don?t operate HF, so hearing WWV is sometimes difficult. A good way to calibrate is to have a local, who is dead-on calibrated, send CQ on FT8. You can adjust the ref cal to get it right. 73, John WA1EAZ > On Dec 6, 2019, at 2:24 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: > > To add a little to what Wes said: > > The K3 TCXO rest freq is 49,380 KHz. It is a temperature corrected oscillator so will still drift with radio warm up but less than a non-compensated oscillator. So best to calibrate after at least 30-minutes warmup. If you have the 100w model K3, there will be some temperature drift when transmitting (varies with mode and frequency band). > > I have the EXREF installed with the TCXO-03 and that holds my 50-MHz signal within 3 Hz. But if you check the TCXO frequency (CONFIG: REF CAL) you will see the frequency drift. Mine seems to top out at about 49.380.090 and then hold within a few .001. > > The EXREF takes the need for periodic re-calibration away. But your 10-MHz reference needs to be very accurate/stable. I use a surplus OCXO that needs re-calib about every 4-6 months (usually only 1-Hz drift). My OCXO runs 24/7 to avoid warm up drift. > > Hope that helps. > > 73, Ed - KL7UW > > From: "Gary Peterson" > To: > Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Last February, I purchased a factory assembled K3S including a 1 ppm TCXO. The transceiver is serial number 11803 and the firmware was updated on May 5th of this year. > > Last July, I noticed that many of the signals on 50.125 MHz sounded as if they were a bit off frequency as they were higher pitched. This led me to believe that the reference oscillator may have drifted, possibly due to crystal aging. > > Subsequently, I used method 2 and WWV, as described on page 53 of the Elecraft K3S manual. The REF CAL frequency was lowered from 49.999.996 to 49.379.448. That seemed to make the signals on the 6 meter calling frequency sound like they should. > > A few days ago, I caught a six meter opening and signals on 50.125 sounded higher pitched again. I repeated the reference oscillator calibration again, using method 2. Now, the REF CAL frequency is set to 49.379.110. I have not had the opportunity to hear any six meter signals, since I changed the reference oscillator. > > I am wondering if the REF CAL frequency change that I have seen in less than a year is normal, or whether I have a TCXO problem. > > Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance for any time taken to reply. > > Gary, K0CX > Rapid City, SD > > > 73, Ed - KL7UW > http://www.kl7uw.com > Dubus-NA Business mail: > dubususa at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net From ockmrzr at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 14:53:56 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 12:53:56 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts For Sale In-Reply-To: <340801d5aa1f$4d37fa80$e7a7ef80$@gmail.com> References: <340801d5aa1f$4d37fa80$e7a7ef80$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <495501d5ac6e$e5d773a0$b1865ae0$@gmail.com> I recently purchased a used K3 and decided to upgrade it. I now have a few spare parts I would like to sell. 2x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KFL3A-500, 500 Hz CW/DATA Roofing Filter 2x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From glcazzola at alice.it Fri Dec 6 15:01:45 2019 From: glcazzola at alice.it (IK4EWX) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 13:01:45 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] HI CUR error on 6M In-Reply-To: <1575364734646-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575364734646-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <1575662505840-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Have you tried to insert the K3 ATU and see if it solved? Ian IK4EWX -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From shull2805 at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 15:27:03 2019 From: shull2805 at gmail.com (Steve Hull) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:27:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I wonder what would happen if you moved the 1:1 choke to the other end of your feedline (closer to your K3)? -Steve On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 11:41 AM Jobst Vandrey wrote: > I have been trying to come up with a antenna for use in an apartment with > only limited success. I have now set up the Elecraft AX-1 antenna and it > seems to play well with my K3 indoors with the antenna placed in a window > supported by a folding camera tripod. > > One caveat is that there seems to be significant feedline RF so a 1:1 > isolation transformer near the antenna feed point is an absolute > requirement. Without the transformer, even 1 watt transmissions caused > various nasty computer gremlins when using digital modes. > > My apartment no longer needs to be a maze of wires and switches - many > thanks to Elecraft for this excellent product. > > Jobst > AC0LP > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 6 15:31:24 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 14:31:24 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: Ed explained it quite well.?? I would add that when a product is discontinued usually the options, being also considered as product, will go away as well.?? This does not imply that repair parts are discontinued.?? It is often confusing to users when a product is not longer available that service parts of the same items are available.? Usually one has a product model number and the other has a service part number. After a product is obsoleted, where I previously worked, we planned service parts supports for some 7 or so years.? There is no legal requirement for a company to do this with consumer type products. ? Often we missed the projection and ran out early.? In some cases it was the customers that ordered an excessive number of service parts {so they could have spares} and this drew down the projected service parts inventory.??? And then too, the accountants came around asking what is all of this on the shelves for the last 5 years with no usage??? Get rid of the inventory as it is costing the company money.???? The customer looses either way. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/6/2019 1:00 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: > Don explained it well; Elecraft support appears to continue for the > K3, K3S.? Obtaining new options apparently has a shorter life-span. > > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 6 15:45:44 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 14:45:44 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1031b85a-5c34-a616-717a-aafd28d7f518@blomand.net> In most applications there should be 2 RF chokes.? The first RF choke should be at the antenna feed point, and a 2nd RF choke at the radio.? I find that Jim, K9YC has done excellent work in this regard.?? This is a case where many hams and balun companies only go at the problem "half baked".??? Thus if one is using a balun at the top side, one needs to be used at the bottom side as well.? In this case the word "balun" is implying a 1:1 RF choke. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/6/2019 2:27 PM, Steve Hull wrote: > I wonder what would happen if you moved the 1:1 choke to the other end of > your feedline (closer to your K3)? > > -Steve > > From k9ma at sdellington.us Fri Dec 6 16:07:59 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:07:59 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] QRQ + and the K4 question In-Reply-To: References: <8a7d1184-e881-497b-9352-ca0dc47801ba@www.fastmail.com> <39dcbf07-f13c-d8b1-2451-d728d57cea29@sdellington.us> Message-ID: With AGC-F set to 200, "new" QSK, tnd the new synthesizers, I can just barely hear between the dots at 24 wpm. (non-QRQ mode). That's the only thing a miss about my old FT-1000D. No one misses the key clicks. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/6/2019 12:26, Wayne Burdick wrote: >> The K3 can only hear between words above about 10 wpm, and QRQ mode doesn't help much. > This depends on how the K3 is configured. There are two QSK settings (see CONFIG:CW WGHT menu entry), and with one of them, along with proper adjustment of AGC, it's possible to hear between dots at well over 20 WPM. The new synthesizer (KSYN3A) also improved QSK times. -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From jvandrey at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 16:16:17 2019 From: jvandrey at gmail.com (Jobst Vandrey) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 16:16:17 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Sorry - I don't have very short jumpers available right now for that test - the actual setup has 2 feet of coax between the antenna and the isolation transformer followed by 4 feet of coax to the K3 connector. This configuration works fine when testing in FT8 mode at 20 watts on 20 meters and also on 40 meters (when using the AEX1 extender). Jobst AC0LP On Fri, Dec 6, 2019 at 3:27 PM Steve Hull wrote: > I wonder what would happen if you moved the 1:1 choke to the other end of > your feedline (closer to your K3)? > > -Steve > > On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 11:41 AM Jobst Vandrey wrote: > >> I have been trying to come up with a antenna for use in an apartment with >> only limited success. I have now set up the Elecraft AX-1 antenna and it >> seems to play well with my K3 indoors with the antenna placed in a window >> supported by a folding camera tripod. >> >> One caveat is that there seems to be significant feedline RF so a 1:1 >> isolation transformer near the antenna feed point is an absolute >> requirement. Without the transformer, even 1 watt transmissions caused >> various nasty computer gremlins when using digital modes. >> >> My apartment no longer needs to be a maze of wires and switches - many >> thanks to Elecraft for this excellent product. >> >> Jobst >> AC0LP >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com >> > From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Fri Dec 6 16:20:19 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 13:20:19 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Of course there is considerable feedline RF -- the feedline is acting as a counterpoise, carrying return current from the antenna. The problem is that the AX-1 is intended for use hand-portable rigs like the KX3 running battery power CW/SSB. Your attempted use of it as a fixed antenna and with an attached computer is an un-natural act. :) The solution to your problem has multiple components. First, add wires to the coax shield at the antenna to act as a counterpoise. Second, add a SERIOUS common mode choke at the feedpoint to keep RF off the coax. http://k9yc.com/2018Cookbook.pdf Third, carefully bond together the chassis of every piece of equipment in the shack that is interconnected. http://k9yc.com/GroundingAndAudio.pdf An even better solution is to use one or more antenna better suited to your setup. A quarter-wave wire connected to the center conductor and another connected to the shield makes a fine antenna; if your K3 has the tuner, an antenna cut for 30M will work on 20 and 40; one cut for 20 will work on 30 and 17. A choke is needed at the feedpoint (where those two wires are connected). All the wiring in your station acts as a receiving antenna for the equipment, so when your transmitting antenna is close to that wiring, it WILL act as a receiving antenna and dump it into your equipment. The solution to that is 1) bonding, as noted above AND 2) ferrite chokes on that wiring in you station. For those chokes, follow the recommendations on pages 9-10 of this applications note. http://k9yc.com/KillingReceiveNoise.pdf Finally, if you don't already own them, buy a copy of the ARRL Handbook and the ARRL Antenna Book and study the relevant sections on antennas. Both are updated every 2-4 years, but the changes are a small fraction of the content, so a used copy is plenty good enough. Ask around your local ham club -- it's very likely you'll find a ham willing to sell one. 73, Jim K9YC On 12/6/2019 12:27 PM, Steve Hull wrote: > I wonder what would happen if you moved the 1:1 choke to the other end of > your feedline (closer to your K3)? > > -Steve > > On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 11:41 AM Jobst Vandrey wrote: > >> I have been trying to come up with a antenna for use in an apartment with >> only limited success. I have now set up the Elecraft AX-1 antenna and it >> seems to play well with my K3 indoors with the antenna placed in a window >> supported by a folding camera tripod. >> >> One caveat is that there seems to be significant feedline RF so a 1:1 >> isolation transformer near the antenna feed point is an absolute >> requirement. Without the transformer, even 1 watt transmissions caused >> various nasty computer gremlins when using digital modes. >> >> My apartment no longer needs to be a maze of wires and switches - many >> thanks to Elecraft for this excellent product. >> >> Jobst >> AC0LP >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jim at audiosystemsgroup.com > From neilz at techie.com Fri Dec 6 16:34:37 2019 From: neilz at techie.com (Neil Zampella) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 16:34:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter In-Reply-To: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575647125193-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <808cf56d-5456-f1dd-171b-54605de3827c@techie.com> I purchased a serial to USB adapter from Amazon that had the FTDI chipset, and have had no problems with CAT control to the rig. I've added a link to Amazon for that adapter, its only $12 but it works well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BUZ0K68/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 On 12/6/2019 10:45 AM, NJMike wrote: > I want to connect my Windows 10 tablet to my K2. I have the KIO2 module > installed and I have built the K2 serial cable. I have read the relevant > material on the Elecraft website about avoiding the Prolific chipset. The > USB port on my tablet is 3.0. My question is this - can I use any version > of USB (1.1, 2.0, 3.0) to serial adapter to connect the tablet to the K2 > cable or is one better than the others? > > Thanks, > Mike > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > From Lyn at LNAINC.com Fri Dec 6 16:54:12 2019 From: Lyn at LNAINC.com (Lyn Norstad) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:54:12 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <040001d5ac7f$b23bb860$16b32920$@LNAINC.com> With only 6 feet of coax between the rig and the antenna, you've probably done about all you can do. Proximity is your main problem now. I'd look at the possibility of getting your antenna outside, even if you need to disguise it somehow. Lyn W?LEN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Jobst Vandrey Sent: Friday, December 06, 2019 3:16 PM To: Steve Hull Cc: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] AX-1 whip antenna Sorry - I don't have very short jumpers available right now for that test - the actual setup has 2 feet of coax between the antenna and the isolation transformer followed by 4 feet of coax to the K3 connector. This configuration works fine when testing in FT8 mode at 20 watts on 20 meters and also on 40 meters (when using the AEX1 extender). Jobst AC0LP On Fri, Dec 6, 2019 at 3:27 PM Steve Hull wrote: > I wonder what would happen if you moved the 1:1 choke to the other end of > your feedline (closer to your K3)? > > -Steve > > On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 11:41 AM Jobst Vandrey wrote: > >> I have been trying to come up with a antenna for use in an apartment with >> only limited success. I have now set up the Elecraft AX-1 antenna and it >> seems to play well with my K3 indoors with the antenna placed in a window >> supported by a folding camera tripod. >> >> One caveat is that there seems to be significant feedline RF so a 1:1 >> isolation transformer near the antenna feed point is an absolute >> requirement. Without the transformer, even 1 watt transmissions caused >> various nasty computer gremlins when using digital modes. >> >> My apartment no longer needs to be a maze of wires and switches - many >> thanks to Elecraft for this excellent product. >> >> Jobst >> AC0LP >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to lyn at lnainc.com From dick at elecraft.com Fri Dec 6 18:32:27 2019 From: dick at elecraft.com (Dick Dievendorff) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:32:27 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 firmware 2.38 is now available Message-ID: <005501d5ac8d$6bef2aa0$43cd7fe0$@elecraft.com> We've updated the "production" firmware for KPA1500 to version 02.38. To get this version: Start the KPA1500 Utility. Choose the "Firmware" tab. Click "Copy New Files from Elecraft". This should bring the new firmware and release notes onto your PC's disk. View the Release notes with the KPA1500 Utility Help - KPA1500 Firmware Release notes menu item. Then click "Send Firmware to KPA1500" to actually send firmware in the amplifier. Changes in 02.38 are also described on our web site: Elecraft.com, and work your way thru "Support", "Firmware/Software", "Amplifier Firmware and Software", KPA1500. 73 de Dick, K6KR From n6kr at elecraft.com Fri Dec 6 18:58:12 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:58:12 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 Message-ID: A morning break in the rain today in the Bay Area allowed me to sneak out for some field operation with the KX2. While using every weapon in the KX2's arsenal, I thought about how to best convey just how feature-dense this radio is. To appreciate it, you really need to hold the rig in your hand and try it out. Since that's not always an option for a potential user, the next best thing might be to create an engineering metric. Granted, "features per cubic inch" (feature density) isn't exactly science, but it is useful for comparing portable transceivers, where both size and versatility really matter. Here's one possible formula: F_in = ( bands + modes + internal_options + other_significant_features ) / in^3 Fuzzy? Well...yeah. Nonetheless, here's what happens if we apply this to our legacy 4-band K1 transceiver and the KX2. ***** K1: bands: 4 (owner's choice of HF bands) modes: 1 (CW) options: 3 (battery, ATU, noise blanker) other: 3 (keyer, CW messages, variable-BW xtal filter) F = ( 4 + 1 + 3 + 3 ) / 64 in^3 = 0.17 features per cubic inch KX2: bands: 9 (80, 60, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12, 10 m) modes: 5 (CW, SSB, AM, FM, DATA) options: 5 (mic, battery, ATU, paddle, real-time clock, 100 W amp) other: 35 (keyer, CW messages, int. mic, DVR, speech compression, VOX, IF DSP (SDR), switchable preamp, switchable attenuator, audio peaking filter (APF, for CW), RTTY decode/encode, PSK31 decode/encode, CW/data auto-tune, fully adjustable AGC slope/threshold/decay, RF gain & AF limiter, dual watch, variable-passband filters, passband shift, noise blanking, noise reduction, audio effects, RX/TX EQ, dual VFOs, split, wide-range RIT/XIT, cross-mode (SSB/CW), CW/data logging, 4 user-programmable functions, Amp-hour tracking, scanning, freq. memories, direct frequency entry, full remote control interface, freq. up/down buttons (on mic), measurement of PWR/SWR/ALC/CMP/supply voltage/supply current, adjustable carrier-operated relay) F = ( 9 + 5 + 5 + 36 ) / 26 = 2.1 features per cubic inch ***** By this metric, the KX2 packs about 12 times as much "punch" as a K1. (As a principal designer of both radios, I have to admit this is a bit alarming. In 2001 we felt the K1 was pretty much state of the art for small CW rigs.) Of course, holding the KX2 in your hand, then actually putting it on the air, provides a much more satisfying comparison. Calculation of feature density of the KX3 is left as an exercise for the reader :) 73, Wayne N6KR From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Fri Dec 6 18:59:21 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 15:59:21 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 firmware 2.38 is now available In-Reply-To: <005501d5ac8d$6bef2aa0$43cd7fe0$@elecraft.com> References: <005501d5ac8d$6bef2aa0$43cd7fe0$@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <78cf5f16-0a4c-8904-ebd8-41eb385c61fd@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/6/2019 3:32 PM, Dick Dievendorff wrote: > Changes in 02.38 are also described on our web site: Elecraft.com, and work > your way thru "Support", "Firmware/Software", "Amplifier Firmware and > Software", KPA1500. Geez, couldn't have just posted the link? https://elecraft.com/pages/firmware-software 73, Jim K9YC From c-hawley at illinois.edu Fri Dec 6 20:04:29 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 01:04:29 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: References: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com>, Message-ID: <4D2C56CA-17FA-4D85-8DD9-C26B9A162CCB@illinois.edu> BMW Motorcycles keeps many parts for more than 50 years. I once ordered a set of springs for a 1960 BMW and BMW parts in Germany sent one and ordered the second one from an outside vendor...which means they had it made. There's more value to supplying parts for obsolete products than what the accounts see. Jack BMW Motorcycles Chuck KE9UW c-hawley at illinois.edu Sent from my iPad > On Dec 6, 2019, at 2:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > Ed explained it quite well. I would add that when a product is discontinued usually the options, being also considered as product, will go away as well. This does not imply that repair parts are discontinued. It is often confusing to users when a product is not longer available that service parts of the same items are available. Usually one has a product model number and the other has a service part number. > > After a product is obsoleted, where I previously worked, we planned service parts supports for some 7 or so years. There is no legal requirement for a company to do this with consumer type products. Often we missed the projection and ran out early. In some cases it was the customers that ordered an excessive number of service parts {so they could have spares} and this drew down the projected service parts inventory. And then too, the accountants came around asking what is all of this on the shelves for the last 5 years with no usage? Get rid of the inventory as it is costing the company money. The customer looses either way. > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > > >> On 12/6/2019 1:00 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: >> Don explained it well; Elecraft support appears to continue for the K3, K3S. Obtaining new options apparently has a shorter life-span. >> >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 21:00:48 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 20:00:48 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <4D2C56CA-17FA-4D85-8DD9-C26B9A162CCB@illinois.edu> References: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> <4D2C56CA-17FA-4D85-8DD9-C26B9A162CCB@illinois.edu> Message-ID: I don't know how long accessories will be available. I had not gotten around to the sub-receiver, but I ordered one over the weekend and it came today. Glad.... On Fri, Dec 6, 2019 at 7:06 PM hawley, charles j jr wrote: > BMW Motorcycles keeps many parts for more than 50 years. I once ordered a > set of springs for a 1960 BMW and BMW parts in Germany sent one and ordered > the second one from an outside vendor...which means they had it made. > There's more value to supplying parts for obsolete products than what the > accounts see. > > Jack BMW Motorcycles > Chuck KE9UW > c-hawley at illinois.edu > > Sent from my iPad > > > On Dec 6, 2019, at 2:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX > wrote: > > > > Ed explained it quite well. I would add that when a product is > discontinued usually the options, being also considered as product, will go > away as well. This does not imply that repair parts are discontinued. > It is often confusing to users when a product is not longer available that > service parts of the same items are available. Usually one has a product > model number and the other has a service part number. > > > > After a product is obsoleted, where I previously worked, we planned > service parts supports for some 7 or so years. There is no legal > requirement for a company to do this with consumer type products. Often > we missed the projection and ran out early. In some cases it was the > customers that ordered an excessive number of service parts {so they could > have spares} and this drew down the projected service parts inventory. > And then too, the accountants came around asking what is all of this on the > shelves for the last 5 years with no usage? Get rid of the inventory as > it is costing the company money. The customer looses either way. > > > > 73 > > > > Bob, K4TAX > > > > > >> On 12/6/2019 1:00 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: > >> Don explained it well; Elecraft support appears to continue for the K3, > K3S. Obtaining new options apparently has a shorter life-span. > >> > >> > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com > -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From a.durbin at msn.com Fri Dec 6 21:01:11 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 02:01:11 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 firmware 2.38 is now available Message-ID: "Geez, couldn't have just posted the link?" Well that's not any better because Elecraft seems to have used a page structure that does not change the URL. Navigate to the page of interest and copy the URL but that URL takes you to the parent page. Not a very clever design. The update details are: 02.38 12/2/2019 * Bug fix: fan speed was reduced too quickly during cool-down * Switch to STBY if BAND CHANGE->STBY is enabled and the frequency (from XCVR or TX count) is below the amp's frequency range * Reduce reflected power fault events when band or ATU settings change * Reduce turn-off delay when XCVR KEY is used * Wait longer after band change to inform K3 that KPA1500 has switched to STBY when BANDCHANGE->STBY is YES * Skip ATU HiSWR retune if the current bin contains only the ATU setting that matches the ATU relays * Added ^DA command to display current ATU frequency, relay settings, and bypass SWR. Get with ^DA; response is like ^DA10128 AN1 Side TX 280 nH (L05) 571 pF (C36) SWR Bypass 4.0; * Add Tech Mode FAN SPEED DWELL menu item and ^DW command to set the time fans stay at a given speed after crossing a cool-down temperature threshold. * Add Tech Mode BOOT BLOCK VERSION menu item and ^BV command to display the boot block firmware version.. ^BV; response is like ^BV01.06;" Andy, k3wyc From donwilh at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 6 21:03:16 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 21:03:16 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S accessories availability, moving forward In-Reply-To: <4D2C56CA-17FA-4D85-8DD9-C26B9A162CCB@illinois.edu> References: <201912061900.xB6J0CG7017626@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> <4D2C56CA-17FA-4D85-8DD9-C26B9A162CCB@illinois.edu> Message-ID: Parts are different from options (assemblies). Parts from Elecraft will continue to be available as long as the parts are not obsolete, but the options will not after the stock is exhausted. The options are assemblies of parts. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/6/2019 8:04 PM, hawley, charles j jr wrote: > BMW Motorcycles keeps many parts for more than 50 years. I once ordered a set of springs for a 1960 BMW and BMW parts in Germany sent one and ordered the second one from an outside vendor...which means they had it made. > There's more value to supplying parts for obsolete products than what the accounts see. > > Jack BMW Motorcycles > Chuck KE9UW > c-hawley at illinois.edu > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 6, 2019, at 2:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> >> Ed explained it quite well. I would add that when a product is discontinued usually the options, being also considered as product, will go away as well. This does not imply that repair parts are discontinued. It is often confusing to users when a product is not longer available that service parts of the same items are available. Usually one has a product model number and the other has a service part number. >> >> After a product is obsoleted, where I previously worked, we planned service parts supports for some 7 or so years. There is no legal requirement for a company to do this with consumer type products. Often we missed the projection and ran out early. In some cases it was the customers that ordered an excessive number of service parts {so they could have spares} and this drew down the projected service parts inventory. And then too, the accountants came around asking what is all of this on the shelves for the last 5 years with no usage? Get rid of the inventory as it is costing the company money. The customer looses either way. >> >> 73 >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >>> On 12/6/2019 1:00 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: >>> Don explained it well; Elecraft support appears to continue for the K3, K3S. Obtaining new options apparently has a shorter life-span. >>> From weaverwf at usermail.com Fri Dec 6 21:19:41 2019 From: weaverwf at usermail.com (Bill Weaver) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 21:19:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 Message-ID: Will a K3S key an Alpha 86 direct without an intermediate relay? I'm trying to set up my system quickly for the ARRL 160 and hoping to get a quick answer. Thanks and 73, Bill WE5P From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 6 22:16:29 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 21:16:29 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <65b46345-4a68-fa01-6345-3ed1f58e6b7d@blomand.net> What are the keying requirements of the Alpha??? The values of voltage and current should be in the Alpha manual.? Then are those requirements in the range as defined on page 28 of the Tentec Omni VII manual, paragraph IMPORTANT NOTICE.??? From this information you should be able to determine YES or NO. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/6/2019 8:19 PM, Bill Weaver wrote: > > > Will a K3S key an Alpha 86 direct without an intermediate relay? I'm trying to set up my system quickly for the ARRL 160 and hoping to get a quick answer. > > > > Thanks and 73, > > Bill WE5P > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From k2vco.vic at gmail.com Fri Dec 6 22:45:03 2019 From: k2vco.vic at gmail.com (Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 05:45:03 +0200 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 6 23:08:54 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 22:08:54 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> References: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> Message-ID: <6E1FA810-FE01-4567-BB99-D1D7DC54A4FB@blomand.net> Sorry Vic, I had a different manufacturer manual in front of me trying to assist another ham with his radio and amp connection. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 6, 2019, at 9:45 PM, Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP wrote: > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From vetterestorer at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 00:28:25 2019 From: vetterestorer at gmail.com (DC) Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2019 21:28:25 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: <6E1FA810-FE01-4567-BB99-D1D7DC54A4FB@blomand.net> References: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> <6E1FA810-FE01-4567-BB99-D1D7DC54A4FB@blomand.net> Message-ID: <7e338790-e91b-6807-10a6-dc6977e069f9@gmail.com> I have used a K3 with an Alpha 76, 78 and 77DX. On 12/6/2019 8:08 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > Sorry Vic, I had a different manufacturer manual in front of me trying to assist another ham with his radio and amp connection. > > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 6, 2019, at 9:45 PM, Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP wrote: >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to vetterestorer at gmail.com From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Sat Dec 7 03:30:19 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 00:30:19 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: On 12/6/2019 6:19 PM, Bill Weaver wrote: > Will a K3S key an Alpha 86 direct without an intermediate relay? Yes. A look at the Alpha schematic shows that the key input is buffered. 73, Jim K9YC From roger at mulzer.de Sat Dec 7 03:31:36 2019 From: roger at mulzer.de (Roger) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 09:31:36 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: <7e338790-e91b-6807-10a6-dc6977e069f9@gmail.com> References: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> <6E1FA810-FE01-4567-BB99-D1D7DC54A4FB@blomand.net> <7e338790-e91b-6807-10a6-dc6977e069f9@gmail.com> Message-ID: <000901d5acd8$bd7e1d90$387a58b0$@mulzer.de> No problem with the ALPHA amplifiers - the switching voltage is approx. 24 V @ 350 mA. The K3S MOSFET switch will switch up to 200 V (absolute MAX.!) and several amperes................. But to make sure connect a voltmeter to the PTT socket on the amp and measure the voltage then switch to current measurement and switch the amplifier to TX with the multimeter. If both readings (voltage and current) are within limits then you are absolutely safe! 73 Roger, DL5RBW -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of DC Sent: Saturday, December 07, 2019 6:28 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 I have used a K3 with an Alpha 76, 78 and 77DX. On 12/6/2019 8:08 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > Sorry Vic, I had a different manufacturer manual in front of me trying to assist another ham with his radio and amp connection. > > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 6, 2019, at 9:45 PM, Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP wrote: >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> rmcgraw at blomand.net >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > vetterestorer at gmail.com ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to roger at mulzer.de From mike at ve3yf.com Sat Dec 7 06:56:52 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 11:56:52 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <81ce754d-729f-aa20-8116-33239020375b@ve3yf.com> Yes Bill I used to drive a Alpha 86 with my K3S. Same as my 91B, just a cable between the rig and the amp and no buffer etc required. -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From a.durbin at msn.com Sat Dec 7 09:27:31 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 14:27:31 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer Message-ID: Popular wisdom is that KAT500 should be trained for all frequencies in a band and then operated in manual mode. This is what I do at my station but I find the training process to be a bit tedious and I'm considering automating the training process. My idea is that, within the current band, the rig TX frequency will be set in sequence to the center of each KAT500 frequency "bin" . At each bin center auto tune will be initiated at low power. If the result is below a preset SWR threshold the next "bin" will be selected and the steps repeated. If the auto tune does not result in an SWR below threshold then the sequence will be paused to allow a manual tune attempt. All the required hardware interfaces are already implemented in my Arduino controller and the code requirements don't seem to be too complex. Has anyone attempted this auto training idea before and, if so, what problems were experienced? Andy, k3wyc From c-hawley at illinois.edu Sat Dec 7 09:57:12 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 14:57:12 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 In-Reply-To: <000901d5acd8$bd7e1d90$387a58b0$@mulzer.de> References: <84326aa1-5398-2bee-57e6-0b76c3450459@gmail.com> <6E1FA810-FE01-4567-BB99-D1D7DC54A4FB@blomand.net> <7e338790-e91b-6807-10a6-dc6977e069f9@gmail.com>, <000901d5acd8$bd7e1d90$387a58b0$@mulzer.de> Message-ID: The Alpha 86 has a 10K resistor on the input of a cmos nand gate. So pulling that to ground is simple...and well within the K3s 200 V/5 A specs. Chuck Jack Hawley KE9UW Sent from my iPhone, cjack > On Dec 7, 2019, at 2:32 AM, Roger wrote: > > > No problem with the ALPHA amplifiers - the switching voltage is approx. 24 V > @ 350 mA. The K3S MOSFET switch will switch up to 200 V (absolute MAX.!) and > several amperes................. > > But to make sure connect a voltmeter to the PTT socket on the amp and > measure the voltage then switch to current measurement and switch the > amplifier to TX with the multimeter. If both readings (voltage and current) > are within limits then you are absolutely safe! > > 73 Roger, DL5RBW > > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of DC > Sent: Saturday, December 07, 2019 6:28 AM > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3S driving an Alpha 86 > > I have used a K3 with an Alpha 76, 78 and 77DX. > >> On 12/6/2019 8:08 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> Sorry Vic, I had a different manufacturer manual in front of me trying to > assist another ham with his radio and amp connection. >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On Dec 6, 2019, at 9:45 PM, Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP > wrote: >>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >>> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >>> rmcgraw at blomand.net >>> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email >> list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> vetterestorer at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to roger at mulzer.de > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Sat Dec 7 10:20:36 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 15:20:36 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] QSK question on KX3 Message-ID: <3b875b84861a4cf9a3f4f02ecbc5f6c5@uwaterloo.ca> Since getting my hands on the used KX3 and ancilliaries that came with it, I've been spending my spare time going thru the manuals and finding the various menu items hands on the rig. I've updated the firmware in the KX3 and PX3 but haven't done anything yet with the amp. One thing I notice is when I set the delay to zero and key the rig with VOX ptt set so there is no RF everything seems smooth. When I actually run RF into a 50 ohm load I notice the RX doesn't recover very gracefully between DIT's (running 20wpm or more) and I hear a really distracting audio disturbance on the speaker. I thought it might be from pushing the little speaker too hard and had audio gain way up because no antenna was connected so I tried again with phones and audio gain down around 20 and it is still there. AGC is off. Preamp on/off doesn't really make any difference. Filter settings make no difference. If I set delay to 005 ms it is gone but then I can only hear between letters and words which is not full QSK. I can live with this, but before I bought this rig people I talked to told me the Elecraft rigs have really great QSK and I was expecting to run with zero delay. Is what I am hearing a sign something isn't right with this rig or do others get a similar experience? Have I missed something in setting up for full breakin? Joe ve3vxo From cbjesseeNH at comcast.net Sat Dec 7 11:13:45 2019 From: cbjesseeNH at comcast.net (MaverickNH) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 09:13:45 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/P3/KPS500/KAT500 Restart Woes Message-ID: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Our downstairs, including my shack, was being remodeled and I just put my system back together. The good news: 1. K3S runs and I can RX FT8 on WSJT-X 2.1.2 - CAT works fine 2. Remote ATU works when I hit TUNE on the K3S - SWR read goes to 1.0 (I have a Directional Coupler/Panadapter TX Sensor 1.8-5.4MHz 2KW installed too). 3. KAT500 works The stuff to work on: 1. P3 does not power on by front Power Button push 2. KPA500 does not power on by front ON button push 3. WSJT-X Tune or TX and I hear signal emitting from my PC monitor (which has an integrated speaker, I guess) - USB Audio Codec selected for both Input and Output in WSJT-X Audio settings The power-on issues I cannot figure - cables look OK but maybe not...or a K3S setting? WSJT-X sound output issues - maybe Win10 updates and WSJT-X changes to sort? Bret/N4SRN -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From ockmrzr at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 11:21:29 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 09:21:29 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts For Sale In-Reply-To: <495501d5ac6e$e5d773a0$b1865ae0$@gmail.com> References: <340801d5aa1f$4d37fa80$e7a7ef80$@gmail.com> <495501d5ac6e$e5d773a0$b1865ae0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <4df301d5ad1a$627027d0$27507770$@gmail.com> Still have a couple items left. I have a few spare parts I would like to sell. 2x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From rwnewbould at comcast.net Sat Dec 7 11:30:47 2019 From: rwnewbould at comcast.net (Rich) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 11:30:47 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/P3/KPS500/KAT500 Restart Woes In-Reply-To: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <1dbc21ee-05d9-2dfe-d44b-a7e78d10490b@comcast.net> I am not sure if you are trying to power up the P3 with the K3 off, but ........ If you have the P3 powered from the K3 and have the internal jumper set to power on with K3.? Then the P3 will only come on when you power up the K3. Just a thought. Rich On 12/7/2019 11:13 AM, MaverickNH wrote: > Our downstairs, including my shack, was being remodeled and I just put my > system back together. > > The good news: > 1. K3S runs and I can RX FT8 on WSJT-X 2.1.2 - CAT works fine > 2. Remote ATU works when I hit TUNE on the K3S - SWR read goes to 1.0 (I > have a Directional Coupler/Panadapter TX Sensor 1.8-5.4MHz 2KW installed > too). > 3. KAT500 works > > The stuff to work on: > 1. P3 does not power on by front Power Button push > 2. KPA500 does not power on by front ON button push > 3. WSJT-X Tune or TX and I hear signal emitting from my PC monitor (which > has an integrated speaker, I guess) - USB Audio Codec selected for both > Input and Output in WSJT-X Audio settings > > The power-on issues I cannot figure - cables look OK but maybe not...or a > K3S setting? > WSJT-X sound output issues - maybe Win10 updates and WSJT-X changes to sort? > > Bret/N4SRN > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rwnewbould at comcast.net > From cbjesseeNH at comcast.net Sat Dec 7 11:36:34 2019 From: cbjesseeNH at comcast.net (MaverickNH) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 09:36:34 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/P3/KPS500/KAT500 Restart Woes In-Reply-To: <1dbc21ee-05d9-2dfe-d44b-a7e78d10490b@comcast.net> References: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <1dbc21ee-05d9-2dfe-d44b-a7e78d10490b@comcast.net> Message-ID: <1575736594401-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I think that's it! Thanks Bret/N4SRN -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From ja-pierce at verizon.net Sat Dec 7 12:07:42 2019 From: ja-pierce at verizon.net (John Pierce) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 12:07:42 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Where did the KX3 Go References: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$.ref@verizon.net> Message-ID: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$@verizon.net> Havent seen any post for the KX3 for some time. Does that mean that they have gone elsewhere? AD2F From n6kr at elecraft.com Sat Dec 7 12:18:51 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 09:18:51 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Where did the KX3 Go In-Reply-To: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$@verizon.net> References: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$.ref@verizon.net> <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: KX3s are going strong, John. Let me know if you have any questions. 73, Wayne N6KR ---- elecraft.com > On Dec 7, 2019, at 9:07 AM, John Pierce via Elecraft wrote: > > Havent seen any post for the KX3 for some time. Does that mean that they > have gone elsewhere? > > > > AD2F > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com From ockmrzr at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 12:19:22 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 10:19:22 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts For Sale In-Reply-To: <4df301d5ad1a$627027d0$27507770$@gmail.com> References: <340801d5aa1f$4d37fa80$e7a7ef80$@gmail.com> <495501d5ac6e$e5d773a0$b1865ae0$@gmail.com> <4df301d5ad1a$627027d0$27507770$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <4ea901d5ad22$7857f020$6907d060$@gmail.com> I have a few parts that were removed from upgrade of my K3's. 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 7 12:22:29 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 12:22:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Where did the KX3 Go In-Reply-To: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$@verizon.net> References: <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$.ref@verizon.net> <00b501d5ad20$d6c19ff0$8444dfd0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: <3a5cec4f-b1e9-f547-87b8-e2f698b39a82@embarqmail.com> John, KX3 questions are certainly welcome here, but there is also the non-Elecraft list at Elecraft-KX at groups.io that provides a lot of information about the KX3/KX2/KX1. You can subscribe to that list using https://groups.io/g/Elecraft-KX/ Go to that page and scroll to the bottom (read the rules first). 73, Don W3FPR On 12/7/2019 12:07 PM, John Pierce via Elecraft wrote: > Havent seen any post for the KX3 for some time. Does that mean that they > have gone elsewhere? > > > > AD2F > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > From billamader at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 12:23:38 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 10:23:38 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1575739418396-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I have not Andy, but I have, and often use, used K3_EZ for the K3 internal tuner to measure/graph VSWR across an entire band. I suggest this capability belongs in the KAT500 and KPA1500 firmware, if it can fit. I have enough tedium in my life. Automating this training is a valid need. Accomplishing it without an external device would be very welcome! If it must be external due to insufficient firmware memory availability, so be it. I know how to spell Arduino and hope to know more eventually. I hope you will share what you are able to accomplish regarding this tedious task. 73, Bill, K8TE -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From k4zrj at icloud.com Sat Dec 7 12:29:48 2019 From: k4zrj at icloud.com (Charles Johnson) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 12:29:48 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] For sale: KXPA100 w/ auto tuner Message-ID: <57828701-8ED8-4645-A5B2-05326F493C1F@icloud.com> For sale: KXPA100 with internal auto tuner s/n 2309 includes all cables (KXPACBL KX3 cable set, KXSER serial cable, DC power cable, keying cable), manuals and original items. Comes from a non-smoking environment. Works and looks like new. Pictures available. Sold as is, but guaranteed to be fully functional. Paypal friends and family preferred. $850 shipped to USA addresses only. If interested, email me directly at k4zrj at icloud.com. 73, Charles, K4ZRJ From ockmrzr at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 12:45:52 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 10:45:52 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RS232 CW FSK PTT Interface Message-ID: <4f0801d5ad26$2bcd6060$83682120$@gmail.com> Recently upgraded my K3 and no longer need the W3YY RS232 CW/FSK/PTT interface. This is an excellent product but I no longer need due to upgrades. Wire and tested, photos available upon request. https://w3yy.com/fsk.htm If you are interested in purchasing, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for more details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From Lyn at LNAINC.com Sat Dec 7 13:00:43 2019 From: Lyn at LNAINC.com (Lyn Norstad) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 12:00:43 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 firmware 2.38 is now available In-Reply-To: <005501d5ac8d$6bef2aa0$43cd7fe0$@elecraft.com> References: <005501d5ac8d$6bef2aa0$43cd7fe0$@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <00ac01d5ad28$3f1426c0$bd3c7440$@LNAINC.com> Dick - Is any work being done on an updated Utility for the KPA500? Thanks. 73 Lyn, W?LEN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Dick Dievendorff Sent: Friday, December 06, 2019 5:32 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 firmware 2.38 is now available We've updated the "production" firmware for KPA1500 to version 02.38. To get this version: Start the KPA1500 Utility. Choose the "Firmware" tab. Click "Copy New Files from Elecraft". This should bring the new firmware and release notes onto your PC's disk. View the Release notes with the KPA1500 Utility Help - KPA1500 Firmware Release notes menu item. Then click "Send Firmware to KPA1500" to actually send firmware in the amplifier. Changes in 02.38 are also described on our web site: Elecraft.com, and work your way thru "Support", "Firmware/Software", "Amplifier Firmware and Software", KPA1500. 73 de Dick, K6KR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to lyn at lnainc.com From k4zrj at icloud.com Sat Dec 7 14:04:51 2019 From: k4zrj at icloud.com (Charles Johnson) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 14:04:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KXPA100 is sold Message-ID: <72733CF0-0862-49E3-83F7-EC89403F887C@icloud.com> The KXPA100 I listed earlier today has been sold. From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 14:09:09 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 14:09:09 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - WSJT-X help In-Reply-To: <5998d547-507b-28b4-ce1b-9c7142328a51@embarqmail.com> References: <005d01d59a1a$7fdcc660$7f965320$.ref@verizon.net> <005d01d59a1a$7fdcc660$7f965320$@verizon.net> <5998d547-507b-28b4-ce1b-9c7142328a51@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: YES, on my KX3.. I have seen (when I change modes, often) that I have zero ALC (not 4/5 bars).? IF I turn the mike gain up, still zero.? AT THIS POINT, I turn the mike gain to zero and start turning it up.? The mike gain was too high and starting over works...? FT8 is working again.? I also run wsjt-x with 20db att so that I have "range" with the mike gain.? OR what ever it might be with the K3... 73, steve WB3LGC On 11/13/19 7:39 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > Tony, > > Soundcard problem or K3 problem.? This is most commonly a problem with > audio into the K3. > > How many bars illuminate on the ALC meter?? It should be 4 with the > 5th bar flashing.? If not, look at the audio levels. > > See the article on my website www.w3fpr.com > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 11/13/2019 7:04 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: >> Scratching my head. I was making Q's on FT8 with my K3 and WSJT-X, >> v2.0.1 >> when I no longer would get power out. >> >> WSJT is keying the K3 (Red transmit light is on) but no power out. >> The K3 >> keys fine with power out in CW or other modes is fine. WSJT is >> talking to >> the K3. WSJT shows the correct frequency, it is decoding and when I >> go into >> Settings > Radio and hit Test CAT it goes green. When I hit TUNE on >> WSJT it >> turns to red and the red TX light on the K3 comes on. But no power out. >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com . > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 7 15:20:00 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 14:20:00 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/P3/KPS500/KAT500 Restart Woes In-Reply-To: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575735225439-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <0b1e7a63-746c-d1ac-cd8c-a8bbfdbecea0@blomand.net> Are you powering the P3 from the K3S?? May have blown an internal fuse in the K3S 12V aux feed. KPA500 does not power on.? Is the switch on the back ON? Yes, recent WSJT-X update did change some of the TX audio level values.? You will need to check the SPKR value on your computer, about 30% is good to start, set the PWR slider on WSJT-X to 1/3 from top for both TUNE and Transmit.? Check to see that DATA A mode is selected on the radio and the Line Gain {set by the MIC knob} is about 30 or so. All three audio control points must be correct for things to work correctly.? If any value is near minimum or near maximum then there are adjustments through the 3 points which need to be made. Those three points are: SPKR level on the computer PWR setting slider in WSJT-X Line Gain on the K3S. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/7/2019 10:13 AM, MaverickNH wrote: > Our downstairs, including my shack, was being remodeled and I just put my > system back together. > > The good news: > 1. K3S runs and I can RX FT8 on WSJT-X 2.1.2 - CAT works fine > 2. Remote ATU works when I hit TUNE on the K3S - SWR read goes to 1.0 (I > have a Directional Coupler/Panadapter TX Sensor 1.8-5.4MHz 2KW installed > too). > 3. KAT500 works > > The stuff to work on: > 1. P3 does not power on by front Power Button push > 2. KPA500 does not power on by front ON button push > 3. WSJT-X Tune or TX and I hear signal emitting from my PC monitor (which > has an integrated speaker, I guess) - USB Audio Codec selected for both > Input and Output in WSJT-X Audio settings > > The power-on issues I cannot figure - cables look OK but maybe not...or a > K3S setting? > WSJT-X sound output issues - maybe Win10 updates and WSJT-X changes to sort? > > Bret/N4SRN > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 7 15:27:08 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 15:27:08 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - WSJT-X help In-Reply-To: References: <005d01d59a1a$7fdcc660$7f965320$.ref@verizon.net> <005d01d59a1a$7fdcc660$7f965320$@verizon.net> <5998d547-507b-28b4-ce1b-9c7142328a51@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: Steve, The KX3 has a built-in protection against audio overload. If there is too much audio, it shuts down the audio chain. Take a look at your mic gain setting on the KX3 - it is best set to mid-range. The resolution between steps is much greater at the low end and high end of the mic gain, and you may have difficulty setting for the proper number of ALC bars (in other words, the gain control is "touchy"). At mid-range, the steps are smaller and proper adjustment is easier. So if you have the mic gain set to a low level, work with the computer soundcard audio levels and the WSJT-X Power slider (misnamed because it is really an audio level control) to get them near a mid-position and allow the KX3 mic gain control will have a better range. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/7/2019 2:09 PM, stephen shearer wrote: > YES, on my KX3.. I have seen (when I change modes, often) that I have > zero ALC (not 4/5 bars).? IF I turn the mike gain up, still zero.? AT > THIS POINT, I turn the mike gain to zero and start turning it up.? The > mike gain was too high and starting over works... From yo3gjc at yahoo.com Sat Dec 7 15:44:49 2019 From: yo3gjc at yahoo.com (VE3GNO Daniel) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 20:44:49 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] For Sale K3 line References: <1736660505.6748614.1575751489985.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1736660505.6748614.1575751489985@mail.yahoo.com> For sale K3 line, prefer personal delivery around DC/VA/NC/SC/GA or shipping CONUS? Config:? 1)??????K3/100-K _K3 100W Transceiver(with 2x New synthesizer?KSYN3A -$600 value for both RXs), all upgrades up to date K3S level (less USB), Kit Qty 1? ? ? ?value of? $2,574.95?????????? 2)??????KAT3A_KAT3A 100W ATU, Kit Qty 1? value of? ?$399.95 3)??????2x matched ?KFL3B-FM-IR_13 kHz (FM/AM) filter for K3/K3S? ? ? value of? ? ? ? ?$299.90 4)??????2x matched KFL3A-1.8k-IR_1.8K Filter 8 poles for the K3/K3S (SSB)? ? ? ? ? value of? ? ? ? ? $299.90 5)??????2x matched KFL3C-400_400 Hz Filter 8 pole ?for the K3/K3S (CW/DATA)? ? value of? ? $339.90 6)??????2x matched KFL3A-250-IR_250 Hz Filter 8 poles for the K3/K3S (CW/DATA)? ?value of? ? ? ?$339.90????????????? 7)??????KRX3A-K_High Performance Subreceiver, Kit? ? ? ?value of? ? ? ? ?$699.95?????????????? ????????????? 8)??????2x KBPF3A_KBPF3A General Coverage RX Band-pass Filters, Kit? ? value of? ? ? $399.90?????????????? 9)??????KDVR3_KDVR3 Digital Voice Recorder, Kit? ? ? ? ? value of? ? ? ? ? $169.95 10)???K144XV-K_144-148 MHz 10 W Internal Module, Kit? ? ? ?value of? ? ? ?$389.95 11)???K144RFLK_K144XV Reference Lock Board, Kit? value of $99.95 12)???P3-K_P3 Panadapter, Kit? ? ? ? ? ? value of? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? $749.95 13)???P3SVGA_P3SVGA P3 Video/FFT Adapter, Kit? ? value of? ?$289.95 Total value?$7,054.10? will sell for $4500 or best offer vy 73 de VE3GNO/YO3GJC DanielCary NC From randyh at greywolfstudios.com Sat Dec 7 16:21:36 2019 From: randyh at greywolfstudios.com (Randy Heise) Date: Sat, 07 Dec 2019 13:21:36 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] USB version for USB to serial adapter (Neil Zampella) Message-ID: Neil, I believe you can use USB1 or USB2 cables on a USB3 box but your transfer rate will fall to the lowest number USB device in the line. I know that is the case with 3 to 2 so I?m assuming it to be the case with 1. Besides, the KIO2 is only talking at 48oo baud.That said, the FTDI Chip set seems to be the key to everything working. The biggest thing is to remember to plug the FTDI cable into KIO2 CABLE and not directly to the KIO2. Doing that will cause the K2 to do some very interesting calisthenics and could damage the KIO2! Experience talking and luckily got away with no damage. Randy, NB7E > From kt4an2 at yahoo.com Sat Dec 7 19:41:19 2019 From: kt4an2 at yahoo.com (Michael Pendergast) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 19:41:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Best digital interface to use with K3? References: <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107@yahoo.com> I am just setting my station up and running again after relocating. I lost my older digital interface in the move. Can I get some suggestions for the best digital interface for digital modes to use with my K3? I?d like to hear from people who?ve used different interfaces with the K3 and how they performed. Thanks for your help in advance. Mike kt4an From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 7 20:11:25 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 20:11:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Best digital interface to use with K3? In-Reply-To: <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107@yahoo.com> References: <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107.ref@yahoo.com> <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <3b1365d8-8e5d-6dad-2b12-98469c5dfc9b@embarqmail.com> Mike, Keep it to "KISS mode" --- You only need an external soundcard - the K3 has isolation transformers built into the Line In and Line Out circuits. That means that you do not need any complex interface box to provide that isolation. The soundcard audio levels will be in the computer soundcard controls rather than knobs on the interface. The use of an external soundcard rather than the computer internal sound will prevent the OS noises from being transmitted (make sure the external soundcard is NOT the default system soundcard). You will need connection between the computer and K3 for RS-232 (same one that you use for K3 Utility will be fine). Set the application software to use PTT via CAT command and all will work fine. For digital modes, you do not need an expensive soundcard, most any but the very most inexpensive will do - plan on $30 or less. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/7/2019 7:41 PM, Michael Pendergast via Elecraft wrote: > I am just setting my station up and running again after relocating. I lost my older digital interface in the move. Can I get some suggestions for the best digital interface for digital modes to use with my K3? I?d like to hear from people who?ve used different interfaces with the K3 and how they performed. Thanks for your help in advance. From kzerocx at gmail.com Sat Dec 7 20:13:53 2019 From: kzerocx at gmail.com (Gary Peterson) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 18:13:53 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] TCXO drift and calibration Message-ID: You were very correct about my first number being bogus. I misinterpreted my notes. I should have been more careful, before posting. These are the correct REF CAL numbers As it came from Elecraft, it was set to 49.379.766 July 10 of this year, I changed it to 49.379.448 On November 30, I changed it to 49.379.110 Each calibration was done after the radio had been on for a couple of hours. I'm guessing that the TCXO drift is due to crystal aging and the amount of change will diminish with radio on time. Thanks to all who took the time to respond. Gary, K0CX ?Your first number is bogus, but generally speaking if your other numbers are correct, that does seem excessive.? That said, crystals do age and some of this depends on power on/off cycles... I recently ran some drift tests and found that it takes about 25 minutes for my reference to settle to a point limited by measurement jitter... Wes N7WS? From kevinr at coho.net Sat Dec 7 21:54:39 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 18:54:39 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement Message-ID: <241525f7-609c-4562-5a4e-aa9cc24daa53@coho.net> Good Evening, ? It will have taken the loggers a little less than a month to thin my twenty acres.? The cutting and skidding is over, only the loading and trucking remains.? I am starting to see more elk sign all around the house.? Once the slash settles into the soil there will be many more paths for them to follow. ?? However, I was about to replace one of my antennas when I found the tree I had used for its eastern facing leg was gone.? In fact many of the limbs of the remaining trees were gone too.? I moved the leg to a new point of the compass and tied it off.? Now to move another leg of my main antenna to near north.? That should shift my strongest lobe a little more to the southeast. ?? The sun remains inactive but the 160 meter band is anything but.? I scanned it about an hour ago and found it filled with strong signals.? A little noise and a little QSB but copy into MS, CT, MA, ME, and places west was possible.? The signals from EWA were quite loud. Please join us tomorrow on: 14050 kHz at 2200z Sunday? (2 PM PST Sunday) ?7047 kHz at 0000z Monday? (4 PM PST Sunday) 73, ?? Kevin. KD5ONS - You?re a remarkably clear-eyed and kindly person, ?? which doesn?t make it any easier for the stars to tell you about your future. From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Sat Dec 7 22:25:06 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Sat, 7 Dec 2019 19:25:06 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Best digital interface to use with K3? In-Reply-To: <3b1365d8-8e5d-6dad-2b12-98469c5dfc9b@embarqmail.com> References: <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107.ref@yahoo.com> <802ACFD3-3405-4D79-85D9-8770D3D9A107@yahoo.com> <3b1365d8-8e5d-6dad-2b12-98469c5dfc9b@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: On 12/7/2019 5:11 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > For digital modes, you do not need an expensive soundcard, most any but > the very most inexpensive will do - plan on $30 or less. Not quite -- some are better than others. Here's my report from several years ago. http://k9yc.com/USB_Interfaces.pdf Most of the discontinued units can be found used on ebay. What you DON'T need is more than 48 kHz or 16 bits. 73, Jim K9YC From len at ka7ftp.com Sun Dec 8 15:03:10 2019 From: len at ka7ftp.com (len at ka7ftp.com) Date: Sun, 8 Dec 2019 13:03:10 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 Message-ID: <045501d5ae02$84203ad0$8c60b070$@ka7ftp.com> Hi Wayne, I for one am impressed and LOVE my KX2, and KX3. When I was a kid I would take my Globe Patrol on a few family road trips. The Globe Patrol was a regen receiver that I built from a kit. The functionality was not dense at all, and I had to take a few more accessories to use it. At that time I loved thrown up a wire and listening to SW radio stations. My KX2 fits in a little zippered case smaller than the Globe Patrol, and contains everything I need to both transmit and receive. The receiver quality is out of this world! Thanks for your genius, and all the others at Elecraft who made a little boys dream come true! 73 Len KA7FTP -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: Friday, December 06, 2019 4:58 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Cc: KX3 at groups.io Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 A morning break in the rain today in the Bay Area allowed me to sneak out for some field operation with the KX2. While using every weapon in the KX2's arsenal, I thought about how to best convey just how feature-dense this radio is. To appreciate it, you really need to hold the rig in your hand and try it out. Since that's not always an option for a potential user, the next best thing might be to create an engineering metric. Granted, "features per cubic inch" (feature density) isn't exactly science, but it is useful for comparing portable transceivers, where both size and versatility really matter. Here's one possible formula: F_in = ( bands + modes + internal_options + other_significant_features ) / in^3 Fuzzy? Well...yeah. Nonetheless, here's what happens if we apply this to our legacy 4-band K1 transceiver and the KX2. ***** K1: bands: 4 (owner's choice of HF bands) modes: 1 (CW) options: 3 (battery, ATU, noise blanker) other: 3 (keyer, CW messages, variable-BW xtal filter) F = ( 4 + 1 + 3 + 3 ) / 64 in^3 = 0.17 features per cubic inch KX2: bands: 9 (80, 60, 40, 30, 20, 17, 15, 12, 10 m) modes: 5 (CW, SSB, AM, FM, DATA) options: 5 (mic, battery, ATU, paddle, real-time clock, 100 W amp) other: 35 (keyer, CW messages, int. mic, DVR, speech compression, VOX, IF DSP (SDR), switchable preamp, switchable attenuator, audio peaking filter (APF, for CW), RTTY decode/encode, PSK31 decode/encode, CW/data auto-tune, fully adjustable AGC slope/threshold/decay, RF gain & AF limiter, dual watch, variable-passband filters, passband shift, noise blanking, noise reduction, audio effects, RX/TX EQ, dual VFOs, split, wide-range RIT/XIT, cross-mode (SSB/CW), CW/data logging, 4 user-programmable functions, Amp-hour tracking, scanning, freq. memories, direct frequency entry, full remote control interface, freq. up/down buttons (on mic), measurement of PWR/SWR/ALC/CMP/supply voltage/supply current, adjustable carrier-operated relay) F = ( 9 + 5 + 5 + 36 ) / 26 = 2.1 features per cubic inch ***** By this metric, the KX2 packs about 12 times as much "punch" as a K1. (As a principal designer of both radios, I have to admit this is a bit alarming. In 2001 we felt the K1 was pretty much state of the art for small CW rigs.) Of course, holding the KX2 in your hand, then actually putting it on the air, provides a much more satisfying comparison. Calculation of feature density of the KX3 is left as an exercise for the reader :) 73, Wayne N6KR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to len at ka7ftp.com From kevinr at coho.net Sun Dec 8 22:59:31 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 8 Dec 2019 19:59:31 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report Message-ID: Good Evening, ?? On Friday I had a little time to check out the new landscape and re-place the antennas.? One leg of my primary antenna moved in direction but not elevation.? The other antenna had been broken during the logging operation but I did not have time to solder it.? About six feet of the eighty foot leg had snapped off so I connected the insulated wire with a square knot and hung it up out of the way. ?? Last night I listened to 160 meter CW and found the broken antenna tuned better than did the intact, but longer, antenna. The longer antenna has legs of 135 feet (if I remember correctly) at 140 & 310 degrees.? The shorter, broken, antenna's legs are at 0 & 50 degrees.? When I started the first net I had forgotten I was turned to the second antenna.? Ken told me it is the loudest he has heard me.? The center of the antenna is about thirty feet above the lower level of ground.? It is on a tree raised on a fifteen foot berm of soil.? While it is an inverted V the legs are laid down quite a bit.? Each end is about fifteen feet off the ground but at even lower elevation. ?? Switching between the two antennas I found the larger one worked OK to most directions while the inverted - slanted - V worked like a beam into ND and IN.? With fewer trees in the way I can keep experimenting with antenna orientations.? I want to move larger antenna's legs to 0 & 160 degrees with the center at 80 feet above the ground.? 0 & 180 degrees may be possible. ? On 14050.5 kHz at 2200z: W0CZ - Ken - ND K0JFJ - Nick - TX K4JPN - Steve - GA K0DTJ - Brian - CA W5RG - Bob - FL AB9V - Mike - IN ? On 7047.5 kHz at 0000z: W6JHB - Jim - CA K0DTJ - Brian - CA K4TO - Dave - KY K6XK - Roy - IA W0CZ - Ken - ND ?? Both nets lasted for over twenty minutes until I could no longer find new QNIs.? The solar doldrums are not that bad; if you would have been on 160 meters last night you would have found many operators, from many locations, with a variety of fists and speed.? I fell asleep listening to them :) ?? Until next week 73, ????? Kevin.? KD5ONS - Trees have long thoughts, long-breathing and restful, just as they have longer lives than ours. They are wiser than we are, as long as we do not listen to them. But when we have learned how to listen to trees, then the brevity and the quickness and the childlike hastiness of our thoughts achieve an incomparable joy. Whoever has learned how to listen to trees no longer wants to be a tree. He wants to be nothing except what he is. That is home. That is happiness. ?? Hermann Hesse, 1920 From gbconsulting54 at gmail.com Sun Dec 8 23:42:42 2019 From: gbconsulting54 at gmail.com (Greg Best) Date: Sun, 08 Dec 2019 22:42:42 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM Message-ID: I operated the 160 contest this weekend and I had several unexplainable consistent events. My K3 randomly engages the RIT and adjusts a plus offset of about 25-75 Hz. This was noticed about 15 times or so during the contest and nothing was consistent about it. The plus offset did not appear to be exactly the same each time but I was more focused on turning the RIT off than noticing whether the offset was exactly the same. Has anyone experience this before?73?s Greg N9GB From weaverwf at usermail.com Mon Dec 9 06:41:38 2019 From: weaverwf at usermail.com (Bill Weaver) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 06:41:38 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <59f3e233-bd67-400b-b55d-7ad314c9b5c2@localhost> Are you using N1MM? I had the same thing happen for about a 10 minute period during the contest and clicked a few fields on N1MM related to RIT and it stopped. I meant to go back after the contest and learn about N1MM control of the RIT but my poor memory took over and I forgot about it! Thanks for reminding me. I've found that the worst thing about having a bad memory is that you forget that you have a bad memory and don't make notes! :-) 73, Bill WE5P > > On Dec 8, 2019 at 23:46, Greg Best wrote: > > > I operated the 160 contest this weekend and I had several unexplainable consistent events. My K3 randomly engages the RIT and adjusts a plus offset of about 25-75 Hz. This was noticed about 15 times or so during the contest and nothing was consistent about it. The plus offset did not appear to be exactly the same each time but I was more focused on turning the RIT off than noticing whether the offset was exactly the same. Has anyone experience this before?73?s Greg N9GB ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to weaverwf at usermail.com > From ke8g.jim at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 06:46:39 2019 From: ke8g.jim at gmail.com (KE8G) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 06:46:39 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM In-Reply-To: <59f3e233-bd67-400b-b55d-7ad314c9b5c2@localhost> References: <59f3e233-bd67-400b-b55d-7ad314c9b5c2@localhost> Message-ID: Hi Greg, Yes, we experienced this during field day with KK5W. At first we thought there was a problem with one of the 9 K3 rigs, so we swapped it out. It happened again with the replacement rig. It was finally diagnosed to be RFI that was causing the problem. I am willing to bet you are experiencing the same problem. 73 de Jim - KE8G On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 6:43 AM Bill Weaver wrote: > > > Are you using N1MM? I had the same thing happen for about a 10 minute > period during the contest and clicked a few fields on N1MM related to RIT > and it stopped. I meant to go back after the contest and learn about N1MM > control of the RIT but my poor memory took over and I forgot about it! > Thanks for reminding me. I've found that the worst thing about having a bad > memory is that you forget that you have a bad memory and don't make notes! > :-) > > > > 73, > > Bill WE5P > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Dec 8, 2019 at 23:46, Greg Best wrote: > > > > > > I operated the 160 contest this weekend and I had several unexplainable > consistent events. My K3 randomly engages the RIT and adjusts a plus offset > of about 25-75 Hz. This was noticed about 15 times or so during the contest > and nothing was consistent about it. The plus offset did not appear to be > exactly the same each time but I was more focused on turning the RIT off > than noticing whether the offset was exactly the same. Has anyone > experience this before?73?s Greg N9GB > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft > mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: > http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > weaverwf at usermail.com > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com From ockmrzr at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 07:09:47 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 05:09:47 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] More K3 Parts For Sale Message-ID: <5ab901d5ae89$8d819510$a884bf30$@gmail.com> I have a few left over parts for sale that were removed as part of the upgrade of my two K3's. 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 2x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter If you are interested in purchasing any or all, please email me directly at n7ty at arrl.net for details. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From hhoyt at mebtel.net Mon Dec 9 08:10:16 2019 From: hhoyt at mebtel.net (Howard Hoyt) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 08:10:16 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Where did the KX3 Go Message-ID: <7acf0d30-d199-9b36-ac7f-16c4266fe5b3@mebtel.net> Hi John, There are over 5600 of us Elecraft KX-series users over at Elecraft-KX at groups.io including you.? Your membership in the old Yahoo group has been transferred automatically. See you there! Howie / WA4PSC From gbconsulting54 at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 08:46:17 2019 From: gbconsulting54 at gmail.com (greg best) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 07:46:17 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I am glad to hear I am not going crazy. I was using N1MM when this happened. Twice during the contest N1MM froze and I had to shut it down and restart. I had loaded the latest version of the program a day before the contest. I will look to see if any settings need changing. Thanks for the note abt RFI as the amp sets next to the K3. Greg Best Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 9, 2019, at 5:46 AM, KE8G wrote: > > ? > Hi Greg, > Yes, we experienced this during field day with KK5W. At first we thought there was a problem with one of the 9 K3 rigs, so we swapped it out. It happened again with the replacement rig. It was finally diagnosed to be RFI that was causing the problem. I am willing to bet you are experiencing the same problem. > > 73 de Jim - KE8G > >> On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 6:43 AM Bill Weaver wrote: >> >> >> Are you using N1MM? I had the same thing happen for about a 10 minute period during the contest and clicked a few fields on N1MM related to RIT and it stopped. I meant to go back after the contest and learn about N1MM control of the RIT but my poor memory took over and I forgot about it! Thanks for reminding me. I've found that the worst thing about having a bad memory is that you forget that you have a bad memory and don't make notes! :-) >> >> >> >> 73, >> >> Bill WE5P >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > >> > On Dec 8, 2019 at 23:46, Greg Best wrote: >> > >> > >> > I operated the 160 contest this weekend and I had several unexplainable consistent events. My K3 randomly engages the RIT and adjusts a plus offset of about 25-75 Hz. This was noticed about 15 times or so during the contest and nothing was consistent about it. The plus offset did not appear to be exactly the same each time but I was more focused on turning the RIT off than noticing whether the offset was exactly the same. Has anyone experience this before?73?s Greg N9GB ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to weaverwf at usermail.com >> > >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 9 09:06:10 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 08:06:10 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <65caab94-615b-d960-9e93-a56ca7f2d5cb@blomand.net> I speculate two issues, RFI usually due to CMC. ? For 160M one should employ a good common mode choke on the feedline at the antenna feed point and another at the radio.??? See the research of K9YC on this topic. ?? Secondly, a logging program issue. N1NM has been documented to occasionally have this issue.?? And it may be the first issue, CMC, causing an issue with the computer. FYI - I despise all logging programs as I find them more of a PITA than efficient use. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/8/2019 10:42 PM, Greg Best wrote: > I operated the 160 contest this weekend and I had several unexplainable > consistent events. My K3 randomly engages the RIT and adjusts a plus > offset of about 25-75 Hz. This was noticed about 15 times or so during the > contest and nothing was consistent about it. The plus offset did not appear > to be exactly the same each time but I was more focused on turning the RIT > off than noticing whether the offset was exactly the same. Has anyone > experience this before?73?s > > Greg > N9GB > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From n8sbe at arrl.net Mon Dec 9 12:13:14 2019 From: n8sbe at arrl.net (Dave New, N8SBE) Date: Mon, 09 Dec 2019 10:13:14 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 Message-ID: <20191209101314.1fa1e31b6b6b329ecc65be958babcc1f.e5ff2b6a93.wbe@email09.godaddy.com> From no9e at arrl.net Mon Dec 9 12:32:53 2019 From: no9e at arrl.net (Ignacy) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 10:32:53 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> This is a QRP radio that likes traveling. Mine has even been on a small boat ride in Adriatic sea... Or working DX SSB in a contest big time (with 9A1A antennas). If only a USB charge can be added. I am afraid that the radio will survive only so many case openings... Ignacy, NO9E -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From ardrhi at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 12:55:19 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 12:55:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: Use a USB-C PD power bank, and a USB-C power sink, and you can power the KX2 handily. I can power my KX3 that way, and most of my other QRP rigs as well. The sink I use is the PD Buddy Sink found on Tindie. It handshakes with the PD power bank and provides 12v at 2-3A (depending on the bank). I have a RAVPower bank with roughly 27Ah (probably rated at 5v, but that's ok) that works fine with this. It'll also take input power from a mains power supply used to fast-charge such a bank, or that might be used to power a Chromebook or other laptop. That gives me a VERY small and packable mains and mains-free power solution for all of my radios. I could even set it for 9v for the radios that use THAT. There are other brands of power sinks out there. I ordered two of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07T2858G6/ but they haven't arrived yet, so I haven't tested them. The Buddy Sink is programmed by connecting it to a computer via USB-C, then accessed with a terminal program. The ones I haven't received yet have a preset group of output power profiles you can toggle through by pressing a button on the board. There are others as well, but I haven't tried any others yet either. This isn't a massively unique approach. I'm sure there are other, cheaper, and probably more specific power solutions, but this has the benefit of being a multi-tasker. With it, I can charge my Chromebook, my phone, my external speaker, AND run my radios. I can charge the bank with a power supply that weighs ounces and fits in the palm of my hand rather than a brick the size and weight of, well, a BRICK. I even found 3d printable cases for the PD Buddy Sink that will accomodate either a direct wire output or a PowerPole connector, so I can attach interchangeable power cables. 73, Gwen, NG3P On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 12:33 PM Ignacy wrote: > This is a QRP radio that likes traveling. Mine has even been on a small > boat > ride in Adriatic sea... Or working DX SSB in a contest big time (with 9A1A > antennas). > > If only a USB charge can be added. I am afraid that the radio will survive > only so many case openings... > > Ignacy, NO9E > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > -- -+-+-+-+- Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time http://quarktime.net From no9e at arrl.net Mon Dec 9 13:58:13 2019 From: no9e at arrl.net (Ignacy Misztal) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 13:58:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: Thank you for the suggestion. Here is something similar: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V3L4YF3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Wonder whether they are RF quiet? My thinking with KX2 that I take it with me,without anything external, use portable, and then at home charge via USB overnight without pulling the internal battery. Just like the cell phone. Ignacy, NO9E On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 12:55 PM Gwen Patton wrote: > Use a USB-C PD power bank, and a USB-C power sink, and you can power the > KX2 handily. I can power my KX3 that way, and most of my other QRP rigs as > well. The sink I use is the PD Buddy Sink found on Tindie. It handshakes > with the PD power bank and provides 12v at 2-3A (depending on the bank). I > have a RAVPower bank with roughly 27Ah (probably rated at 5v, but that's > ok) that works fine with this. It'll also take input power from a mains > power supply used to fast-charge such a bank, or that might be used to > power a Chromebook or other laptop. That gives me a VERY small and packable > mains and mains-free power solution for all of my radios. I could even set > it for 9v for the radios that use THAT. > > There are other brands of power sinks out there. I ordered two of these: > https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07T2858G6/ but they haven't arrived > yet, so I haven't tested them. The Buddy Sink is programmed by connecting > it to a computer via USB-C, then accessed with a terminal program. The ones > I haven't received yet have a preset group of output power profiles you can > toggle through by pressing a button on the board. There are others as well, > but I haven't tried any others yet either. > > This isn't a massively unique approach. I'm sure there are other, cheaper, > and probably more specific power solutions, but this has the benefit of > being a multi-tasker. With it, I can charge my Chromebook, my phone, my > external speaker, AND run my radios. I can charge the bank with a power > supply that weighs ounces and fits in the palm of my hand rather than a > brick the size and weight of, well, a BRICK. I even found 3d printable > cases for the PD Buddy Sink that will accomodate either a direct wire > output or a PowerPole connector, so I can attach interchangeable power > cables. > > 73, > Gwen, NG3P > > > On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 12:33 PM Ignacy wrote: > >> This is a QRP radio that likes traveling. Mine has even been on a small >> boat >> ride in Adriatic sea... Or working DX SSB in a contest big time (with 9A1A >> antennas). >> >> If only a USB charge can be added. I am afraid that the radio will survive >> only so many case openings... >> >> Ignacy, NO9E >> >> >> >> -- >> Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com >> > > > -- > > -+-+-+-+- > Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time > http://quarktime.net > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 9 14:09:47 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 14:09:47 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> The KX2 battery will NOT charge from the external power jack - the lithium battery must be removed for charging. Unless handled with a heavy hand, the bottom of the KX2 will withstand many, many removals and installs. If you are concerned about removing the bottom of the KX2, you can always use the Lithium battery externally, just plug it into the power jack - no internal battery required. The KX3 internal batteries can be charged from the power jack if you have the KXBC3 option installed. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/9/2019 1:58 PM, Ignacy Misztal wrote: > Thank you for the suggestion. Here is something similar: > https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V3L4YF3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 > > Wonder whether they are RF quiet? > > My thinking with KX2 that I take it with me,without anything external, use > portable, and then at home charge via USB overnight without pulling the > internal battery. Just like the cell phone. > > Ignacy, NO9E > From k6dgw at foothill.net Mon Dec 9 14:36:10 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 11:36:10 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <73f76ac4-e35b-6874-f08b-e8f1e0f62089@foothill.net> Having had an external LiPoly R/C battery burst into flames while plugged into my KX1, I don't think I'd ever put Lithium inside my radio.? I know there are a bunch of lithium chemistries, some less volatile than others, but watching the little package "sparken und fizzen" on our gravel driveway convinced me I'd done the right thing with keeping it external.? YMMV. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/9/2019 11:09 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > If you are concerned about removing the bottom of the KX2, you can > always use the Lithium battery externally, just plug it into the power > jack - no internal battery required. > > The KX3 internal batteries can be charged from the power jack if you > have the KXBC3 option installed. > > 73, > Don W3FPR From no9e at arrl.net Mon Dec 9 14:42:09 2019 From: no9e at arrl.net (Ignacy Misztal) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 14:42:09 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: It will not charge now. It would be GREATLY convenient if it could. In simplest case, allow charging from DC input if input voltage is <=12.6V and charge current is < 2A. Not sure what is the reason not to allow it. Perhaps concerns about counterfeit batteries without a chip, and possibility of fire. I have external batteries but the beauty of KX2 is that the battery is inside. Ignacy, NO9E On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 2:09 PM Don Wilhelm wrote: > The KX2 battery will NOT charge from the external power jack - the > lithium battery must be removed for charging. Unless handled with a > heavy hand, the bottom of the KX2 will withstand many, many removals and > installs. > If you are concerned about removing the bottom of the KX2, you can > always use the Lithium battery externally, just plug it into the power > jack - no internal battery required. > > The KX3 internal batteries can be charged from the power jack if you > have the KXBC3 option installed. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/9/2019 1:58 PM, Ignacy Misztal wrote: > > Thank you for the suggestion. Here is something similar: > > > https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V3L4YF3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 > > > > Wonder whether they are RF quiet? > > > > My thinking with KX2 that I take it with me,without anything external, > use > > portable, and then at home charge via USB overnight without pulling the > > internal battery. Just like the cell phone. > > > > Ignacy, NO9E > > > From huntinhmb at coastside.net Mon Dec 9 14:45:55 2019 From: huntinhmb at coastside.net (Brian Hunt) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 11:45:55 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <29532076-30D7-4208-9577-4B59F8CF8038@coastside.net> I got 25 or so removal/installs out of the KX2 battery before one of the power leads broke off where it entered the battery pack. I figured it was a manufacturing defect where the wire fatigued without support of the insulation. I replaced it with a 12v/5v 6 Ah lithium pack for about half of the cost of the internal pack. It gives me 4-6 hours of use at 10 watts. Not as convenient as the internal pack but it works for how I use my KX2. 73, Brian, K0DTJ "Unless handled with a heavy hand, the bottom of the KX2 will withstand many, many removals and installs." > From tim.n9puz at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 14:53:34 2019 From: tim.n9puz at gmail.com (Tim N9PUZ) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 13:53:34 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: <29532076-30D7-4208-9577-4B59F8CF8038@coastside.net> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> <29532076-30D7-4208-9577-4B59F8CF8038@coastside.net> Message-ID: I find that I rarely use the internal KX2 battery unless I know I only have a short time to operate. For longer outings I use a larger external pack or I bring along my spare internal size packs but just plug them into the external connector. Even at 12W the KX-2 sips power. Great piece of kit. Tim N9PUZ On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 1:47 PM Brian Hunt wrote: > I got 25 or so removal/installs out of the KX2 battery before one of the > power leads broke off where it entered the battery pack. I figured it was a > manufacturing defect where the wire fatigued without support of the > insulation. > > I replaced it with a 12v/5v 6 Ah lithium pack for about half of the cost > of the internal pack. It gives me 4-6 hours of use at 10 watts. Not as > convenient as the internal pack but it works for how I use my KX2. > > 73, > Brian, K0DTJ > > "Unless handled with a heavy hand, the bottom of the KX2 will withstand > many, many removals and installs." > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to tim.n9puz at gmail.com > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 9 15:09:13 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 15:09:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Feature density of portable transceivers: K1 vs. KX2 In-Reply-To: References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <63e04d0d-b4d2-ce1c-66ae-8a92db892b0f@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <40663c78-5f11-a8b9-8980-743abb18eebc@embarqmail.com> I believe there was concern about charging a Lithium based battery inside the radio. Would you want to bet your KX2's life on the risk of a battery fire? I know the arguments about cellphones and laptops, but some of those were catching fire at the time the KX2 was designed and the decision was made. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/9/2019 2:42 PM, Ignacy Misztal wrote: > It will not charge now. It would be GREATLY convenient?if it could. > In simplest case, allow charging from DC input?if input voltage is > <=12.6V and charge current is < 2A. > Not sure what is the reason not to allow?it. Perhaps concerns about > counterfeit?batteries?without a chip, and possibility of fire. > > I have external batteries?but the?beauty?of KX2 is that the battery is > inside. > > From ai4ns.mike at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 15:34:46 2019 From: ai4ns.mike at gmail.com (Mike Short) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 14:34:46 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 TCXO Module needed In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I need a K3 TCXO module for my K3. Either type is fine with me. Mike AI4NS From n3wm at yahoo.com Mon Dec 9 16:34:57 2019 From: n3wm at yahoo.com (Bill Mellema) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 21:34:57 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] KX1 Transceiver Package - Going to Sell References: <434965410.11043874.1575927297505.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <434965410.11043874.1575927297505@mail.yahoo.com> Gentlemen, I will be putting my KX1 on the market and want to get an idea for a fair price. The rig is excellent condition with the following:: KX1 - Ships Standard With 40 & 20 Meters KXB3080 (30 & 80 Meters) KAT1 Automatic Antenna TunerKXPD1 PaddleOriginal ManualInternal Battery Tray I would appreciate any inputs...also if your interested I have pictures available. Thanks in advance... Bill N3WM From ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca Mon Dec 9 17:23:07 2019 From: ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca (Mike Smith VE9AA) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 18:23:07 -0400 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM Message-ID: <000901d5aedf$3c4013b0$b4c03b10$@nbnet.nb.ca> Never saw my post appear so am sending it again sans screenshot-Mike VE9AA Mike, Coreen & Corey Keswick Ridge, NB From: Mike Smith VE9AA [mailto:ve9aa at nbnet.nb.ca] Sent: December 9, 2019 5:55 PM To: 'Elecraft at mailman.qth.net' Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 RIT & OFFSET ENGAGES AT RANDOM If you were using N1MM+ and were assisted, it's a feature not a "problem". It's so if you are assisted and clicking on spots, all callers are not zero beat on the same frequency. I can tell you that being on the sharp end of a pileup more than once, it's horrible to get half dozen or whatever callers all at S1 and all zerobeat. If you don't like it, uncheck it. https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/manual-windows/telnet-window/?hilite=%27random%27 ".Randomize incoming spot frequencies." Automatically adds or subtracts a small amount from the received spot frequency, so as to improve your chances of breaking a "packet pileup" when you click on a spot.." I don't know if a screenshot is allowed, but if so, this is the box you want to uncheck.(randomize incoming spot frequencies) It's in the Telnet filters tab. Ve9AA Mike, Coreen & Corey Keswick Ridge, NB From cavilljp at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 18:07:29 2019 From: cavilljp at gmail.com (John Cavill) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 12:07:29 +1300 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 Battery In-Reply-To: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575912773860-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <90d12f44-5374-bdaf-b5c6-611228088024@gmail.com> Because Elecraft would not ship the KX2 battery to New Zealand I made my own internal battery packs using 3 * Panasonic 3.4AH 18650 batteries and a 3 cell small charging/protection PCB I purchased from Aliexpress. Charge voltage is 12.6V with current limiting to 1.6 amps. I placed polycarbonate barriers over the terminals then wrapped with wide electrical tape. They fit inside the radio nicely. One of these packs runs the radio for hours. I used the KX2 in the middle of winter in a valley in the middle of the Southern Alps a 6 months ago to radio for a rescue chopper to collect an injured tramper instead of triggering beacons we each had. Fantastic radio, hear lots of stations in the bush just have trouble some times with the low transmitter power output for stations I am working. We were 24Km (2 full days walk) and two rugid mountain passes from the nearest road access so just had the one battery pack that time. The antenna I take is a 80m windom I have made using Kevlar 1mm wire with 55m (180 feet) 1.7mm dyneema throw line rope to string across trees etc plus a small 4:1 balun and 10m of RG316 coax. Total weight is under 700grams (1.5 pounds) including bag.? I protect the radio by placing in this water proof/crush proof case https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32667943461.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4dyx9ScD 73s ZL3TDY On 10/12/2019 6:32 AM, Ignacy wrote: > This is a QRP radio that likes traveling. Mine has even been on a small boat > ride in Adriatic sea... Or working DX SSB in a contest big time (with 9A1A > antennas). > > If only a USB charge can be added. I am afraid that the radio will survive > only so many case openings... > > Ignacy, NO9E > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to cavilljp at gmail.com From rosen.bruce at gmail.com Mon Dec 9 18:14:09 2019 From: rosen.bruce at gmail.com (K1FFX) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 16:14:09 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] K2 Speaker audio died In-Reply-To: References: <1575078065113-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <1575933249528-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Hi, Don - Your suggestion was, as always, right on the money. I got the replacement part from Elecraft today and I did the repair this afternoon. Your detailed instructions at WY3A's website were very helpful. And once again, your suggestion, which I've seen in other places here on the Elecraft forum, to destroy the part and then easily pull the remaining pins or leads out, followed by the toothpick method for cleaning the holes, got the job done handily. In any case, audio is back ... this was an easy fix and I appreciate your support. Best - Bruce K1FFX ----- Bruce Rosen K1FFX K2/100 6982 KSB2 KAT100-1 KAF2 KIO2 -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 9 18:24:49 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 18:24:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] K2 Speaker audio died In-Reply-To: <1575933249528-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1575078065113-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <1575933249528-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: Bruce, I am happy to learn that you had good success. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/9/2019 6:14 PM, K1FFX wrote: > Hi, Don - > > Your suggestion was, as always, right on the money. I got the replacement > part from Elecraft today and I did the repair this afternoon. Your detailed > instructions at WY3A's website were very helpful. And once again, your > suggestion, which I've seen in other places here on the Elecraft forum, to > destroy the part and then easily pull the remaining pins or leads out, > followed by the toothpick method for cleaning the holes, got the job done > handily. > > In any case, audio is back ... this was an easy fix and I appreciate your > support. > > Best - > > Bruce K1FFX > > > > > ----- > Bruce Rosen > K1FFX > K2/100 6982 KSB2 KAT100-1 KAF2 KIO2 > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > From gliderboy1955 at yahoo.com Mon Dec 9 20:19:09 2019 From: gliderboy1955 at yahoo.com (eric norris) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 01:19:09 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 Report References: <281997710.11161048.1575940749217.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <281997710.11161048.1575940749217@mail.yahoo.com> Dear Gang: I finally got a chance to try out my AX1 for picnic table ops in a Sunnyvale, CA park.? On day 1, I worked a guy in Phoenix from my KX3 on 20m--after 2 CQ calls.? Day 2, I got skunked.? Yesterday, with 20m packed with contest signals, I put on the 40m coil and immediately worked a guy in Albuquerque on 30m.? Thirty meters on that tiny antenna?? Unbelevable.? All CW with 15 watts, from a rather poor-looking location deep in the dark heart of suburbia. 73 Eric WD6DBM Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android From ve2pid at videotron.ca Mon Dec 9 21:15:18 2019 From: ve2pid at videotron.ca (VE2PID) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 21:15:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 Report Message-ID: <8da04dc3-f255-30d4-592e-3bb6c1960cf9@videotron.ca> Hi folks ... Today I made my 100th QSO using the AXE1. So far (40 and 20 meters combined) and with 5 or 10 Watts (KX2-KX3-AXE1-AX1), the average distance of contacts is 1581 km with a maximum of 5635 km. Very nice antenna for portable operations. ... 73, de Pierre VE2PID From ve2pid at videotron.ca Mon Dec 9 21:30:24 2019 From: ve2pid at videotron.ca (VE2PID) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 21:30:24 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Report Message-ID: <6ec5ea0e-92de-5516-20b1-130235d64624@videotron.ca> Hi folks ... Today I made my 100th QSO using the AXE1. So far (40 and 20 meters combined) and with 5 or 10 Watts (KX2-KX3-AXE1-AX1), the average distance of contacts is 1581 km with a maximum of 5635 km. Very nice antenna for portable operations. ... 73, de Pierre VE2PID From va3mw at portcredit.net Mon Dec 9 22:07:06 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 22:07:06 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Report In-Reply-To: <6ec5ea0e-92de-5516-20b1-130235d64624@videotron.ca> References: <6ec5ea0e-92de-5516-20b1-130235d64624@videotron.ca> Message-ID: Pierre That is impressive! Especially from the Great White North! Mike va3mw On Mon, Dec 9, 2019 at 9:46 PM VE2PID wrote: > Hi folks ... Today I made my 100th QSO using the AXE1. So far (40 and 20 > meters combined) and with 5 or 10 Watts (KX2-KX3-AXE1-AX1), the average > distance of contacts is 1581 km with a maximum of 5635 km. Very nice > antenna for portable operations. ... > 73, de Pierre VE2PID > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net > From wunder at wunderwood.org Mon Dec 9 22:51:46 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 19:51:46 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Report In-Reply-To: <6ec5ea0e-92de-5516-20b1-130235d64624@videotron.ca> References: <6ec5ea0e-92de-5516-20b1-130235d64624@videotron.ca> Message-ID: <3BB007BB-8074-4A3E-B4A6-32C58BF345D3@wunderwood.org> Which mode? wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > On Dec 9, 2019, at 6:30 PM, VE2PID wrote: > > Hi folks ... Today I made my 100th QSO using the AXE1. So far (40 and 20 meters combined) and with 5 or 10 Watts (KX2-KX3-AXE1-AX1), the average distance of contacts is 1581 km with a maximum of 5635 km. Very nice antenna for portable operations. ... > 73, de Pierre VE2PID > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From ve2pid at videotron.ca Mon Dec 9 23:04:14 2019 From: ve2pid at videotron.ca (VE2PID) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 23:04:14 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Reports Message-ID: ... Forgot to mention that all my QSOs with the AXE1-AX1 (100 so far) were done in the CW mode. ... 73, de VE2PID Pierre From nk9g at icloud.com Tue Dec 10 00:21:34 2019 From: nk9g at icloud.com (Rick McGaver) Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2019 22:21:34 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Reports In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <4B40DAF1-2628-4A54-AFCB-1C6251659C7C@icloud.com> Pierre, Congratulations, well done. So much for low activity. Get-On-The-Air! NK 9G Sent from my iPad > On Dec 9, 2019, at 9:04 PM, VE2PID wrote: > > ... Forgot to mention that all my QSOs with the AXE1-AX1 (100 so far) were done in the CW mode. > > ... 73, de VE2PID Pierre > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nk9g at icloud.com From n6kr at elecraft.com Tue Dec 10 09:20:17 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 06:20:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft's "About Us" page revised Message-ID: <4513E23B-8E3B-4221-A599-F1C50B06B81F@elecraft.com> FYI: We've updated the "About Us" page on our web site. You can get to the link by scrolling to the bottom of any page. No new revelations ... just a refined summary of who we are and how we got here (with a little help from our friends, of course). 73, Wayne, N6KR Eric, WA6HHQ From n6kr at elecraft.com Tue Dec 10 09:46:09 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 06:46:09 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Message-ID: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. 73, Wayne N6KR From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Tue Dec 10 10:12:39 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:12:39 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? Joe ve3vxo ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Wayne Burdick Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM To: Elecraft Reflector Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. 73, Wayne N6KR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca From beruberu at focusnature.ch Tue Dec 10 10:15:25 2019 From: beruberu at focusnature.ch (beruberu at focusnature.ch) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 16:15:25 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] AX1 (and AXE1) Reports Message-ID: <14dvueldomvbrbr9p07th30vnie1g20tum@4ax.com> Hello to all of you, I made on 22.8.19 a qso with 15 w ssb on 14mc with this little antenna. It was with ZY40ZT in Brasil, and I was in portable near of Geneva (Switzerland) 8500km. Not bad for this little antenna. my rig was KX3. I just receive the qsl card yesterday... 73 from Switzerland HB9GUR From n6kr at elecraft.com Tue Dec 10 10:17:16 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 07:17:16 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: Hi Joe, I'd just google each company's coverage maps. Wayne N6KR > On Dec 10, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > Joe ve3vxo > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Wayne Burdick > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > To: Elecraft Reflector > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca From jim at rhodesend.net Tue Dec 10 10:47:05 2019 From: jim at rhodesend.net (Jim Rhodes) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 09:47:05 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: When I was growing up in Minnesota there was an area of a nearby town that would blank the signal of whatever radio station you were listening to on the car radio as you were driving through, AM or FM. Not an industrial area either. Never did figure that one out. Always meant to go back and see if I could map it better and maybe find out what was causing it. Would like to have talked to folks living near there. On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 9:19 AM Wayne Burdick wrote: > Hi Joe, > > I'd just google each company's coverage maps. > > Wayne > N6KR > > > > On Dec 10, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > > > > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire > to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this > bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem > though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing > when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > > > Joe ve3vxo > > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > on behalf of Wayne Burdick > > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > > To: Elecraft Reflector > > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the > country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones > (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, > or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in > contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may > be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level > ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers > might be the only ones around with comms. > > > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black > holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs > are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. > Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and > chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new > meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a > radio in your vehicle at all times. > > > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > > > 73, > > Wayne > > N6KR > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > From mike.flowers at gmail.com Tue Dec 10 10:51:16 2019 From: mike.flowers at gmail.com (Mike Flowers) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 07:51:16 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: <023f01d5af71$a856e550$f904aff0$@gmail.com> Was that town in the Iron Range? And if so, could all the iron ore deposits play a role? - 73 and good DX de Mike, K6MKF, NCDXC Secretary > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of Jim Rhodes > Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 07:47 > To: Wayne Burdick > Cc: Elecraft Reflector ; Elecraft-KX at groups.io > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > When I was growing up in Minnesota there was an area of a nearby town that > would blank the signal of whatever radio station you were listening to on the car > radio as you were driving through, AM or FM. Not an industrial area either. > Never did figure that one out. Always meant to go back and see if I could map it > better and maybe find out what was causing it. Would like to have talked to folks > living near there. > > On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 9:19 AM Wayne Burdick wrote: > > > Hi Joe, > > > > I'd just google each company's coverage maps. > > > > Wayne > > N6KR > > > > > > > On Dec 10, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > > > > > > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my > > > desire > > to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by > > this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One > > problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way > > of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > > > > > Joe ve3vxo > > > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > > > > > on behalf of Wayne Burdick > > > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > > > To: Elecraft Reflector > > > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > > > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > > > > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the > > country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones > > (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > > > > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat > > > phone, > > or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > > > > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, > > > in > > contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This > > may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer > > level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, > > those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. > > > > > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network > > > black > > holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly > > inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square > miles. > > Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > > > > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and > > chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has > > new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by > > keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. > > > > > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > > > > > 73, > > > Wayne > > > N6KR > > > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > > Elecraft mailing list > > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this > > > email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > > jstreet at uwaterloo.ca > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > jimk0xu at gmail.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com From dale at ldeo.columbia.edu Tue Dec 10 10:38:13 2019 From: dale at ldeo.columbia.edu (Dale Chayes) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 10:38:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: <7622721F-55D8-40F9-8A1D-2BA8523B8812@ldeo.columbia.edu> > On Dec 10, 2019, at 10:17 , Wayne Burdick wrote: > > Hi Joe, > > I'd just google each company's coverage maps. The AT&T 4G map for my state (Massachusetts) is some kind of wishful thinking at best. https://www.att.com/maps/wireless-coverage.html There are lots of holes even within the relatively metro area inside I-495. I would be very happy to find a source of actual (ground level) coverage. -Dale KB1ZKD > > Wayne > N6KR > > >> On Dec 10, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: >> >> DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? >> >> Joe ve3vxo >> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Wayne Burdick >> Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM >> To: Elecraft Reflector >> Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io >> Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air >> >> Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. >> >> In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. >> >> DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. >> >> Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. >> >> I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. >> >> In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. >> >> 73, >> Wayne >> N6KR >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dale at ldeo.columbia.edu From frantz at pwpconsult.com Tue Dec 10 10:57:53 2019 From: frantz at pwpconsult.com (Bill Frantz) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 10:57:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> Message-ID: We discovered that Newfoundland and Labrador are dead zones for our US cell phones, because our US carrier didn't pair with a Canadian company that covered those areas. They only pair with Rodgers. In addition, for the trans-Labrador highway, there is no coverage for anyone. Interestingly, if you drive the trans-Labrador highway, you can borrow a satellite phone for emergency use. It comes programmed to only call one number, the RCMP. You borrow it up at one end of the highway and return it at the other. They were out of phones when we started, but the ICOM 706 and Little Tarheel antenna in the car gave us access to 80M and up, and a warm fuzzy feeling. My KX3 or my wife's KX2 give the same feeling when on foot in the DZOTAs. 73 Bill AE6JV On 12/10/19 at 9:46 AM, n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) wrote: >Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of >the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of >Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. >In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, >sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | I like the farmers' market | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | because I can get fruits and | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | vegetables without stickers. | Los Gatos, CA 95032 From Lyn at LNAINC.com Tue Dec 10 14:24:17 2019 From: Lyn at LNAINC.com (Lyn Norstad) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 13:24:17 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <023f01d5af71$a856e550$f904aff0$@gmail.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <023f01d5af71$a856e550$f904aff0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <013b01d5af8f$6ad3b0a0$407b11e0$@LNAINC.com> Jim - I too, as a former Minnesota resident (born, raised, first licensed) would be curious as to what town you're referring to At one time I had a job that required me to travel to nearly every town and every school building in the state, so I may just need something to jog my aging memory. 73 Lyn, W?LEN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Mike Flowers Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 9:51 AM To: 'Elecraft Refl' Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Was that town in the Iron Range? And if so, could all the iron ore deposits play a role? - 73 and good DX de Mike, K6MKF, NCDXC Secretary > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of Jim Rhodes > Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 07:47 > To: Wayne Burdick > Cc: Elecraft Reflector ; Elecraft-KX at groups.io > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > When I was growing up in Minnesota there was an area of a nearby town that > would blank the signal of whatever radio station you were listening to on the car > radio as you were driving through, AM or FM. Not an industrial area either. > Never did figure that one out. Always meant to go back and see if I could map it > better and maybe find out what was causing it. Would like to have talked to folks > living near there. > > On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 9:19 AM Wayne Burdick wrote: > > > Hi Joe, > > > > I'd just google each company's coverage maps. > > > > Wayne > > N6KR > > > > > > > On Dec 10, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > > > > > > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my > > > desire > > to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by > > this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One > > problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way > > of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > > > > > Joe ve3vxo > > > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > > > > > on behalf of Wayne Burdick > > > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > > > To: Elecraft Reflector > > > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > > > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > > > > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the > > country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones > > (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > > > > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat > > > phone, > > or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > > > > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, > > > in > > contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This > > may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer > > level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, > > those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. > > > > > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network > > > black > > holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly > > inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square > miles. > > Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > > > > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and > > chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has > > new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by > > keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. > > > > > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > > > > > 73, > > > Wayne > > > N6KR > > > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > > Elecraft mailing list > > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this > > > email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > > jstreet at uwaterloo.ca > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > jimk0xu at gmail.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to lyn at lnainc.com From kevinr at coho.net Tue Dec 10 15:31:38 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 12:31:38 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net errata and antenna changes Message-ID: Good Afternoon, ?? Today was a good day to work on antennas.? Steady rain, dense fog, and light winds.? When I first raised this antenna I had few choices for where each leg could go.? After the recent thinning my options are much greater.? So I moved the leg which was at 300 degrees to point at 10 degrees.? The leg which is now at 140 degrees would be better at 190 degrees but that will take some work with a chainsaw.? Chainsaws and muddy footing don't mix so I will wait for a drier day.? While there is a tall cedar right where I want it there are three young hemlocks in the way.? If I take out the middle one all will be well. I woke up yesterday with AZ on my mind.? During breakfast I decoded that cryptic thought.? Someone had told me QTH AZ but I did not remember putting that state in my report.? After checking it and actually reading my notes I found the problem. K0JFJ - Nick - TX???? ? should read? ? ? K0JFJ - Nick - AZ Sorry Nick, though depending on where you live in Texas it can be like living in Arizona.? But then there are many places which are not similar.? There is no comparison between Flagstaff, AZ and Houston, TX; each has its unique features. Hopefully the new antenna placement will aim farther south than did the previous arrangement.? I put a T-square on a map of the US and used that to determine where to place each leg.? If I had a true dipole over 1/2 wavelength above the ground the main lobe would point at North Carolina.? But each leg's end is not as high as is the center.? The interior angle is around 150 degrees so the antenna is not quite an inverted V but the propagation pattern should be wider than a true dipole.? I found when I dropped the ends of a shorter antenna stations to my north and south were stronger.? Next Sunday I get to test it on both 20 and 40 meters. ?? Until then 73, ? ? ? Kevin.? KD5ONS - From kd4iz at frawg.org Tue Dec 10 15:32:03 2019 From: kd4iz at frawg.org (kd4iz at frawg.org) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:32:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <018601d5af98$e2f5b160$a8e11420$@frawg.org> Love this idea Wayne! Thanks for the [poke]... This "event" fills a fun nee. It is not just for those "flat landers" who are close enough to get to the large DZs, but also to those of us living back east who live in those little pockets of territory that is not served by cell service. 5G??? Who are they trying to fool? Would be happy with 3G some days. Jack - KD4IZ -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 09:46 To: Elecraft Reflector Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. 73, Wayne N6KR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kd4iz at frawg.org From charles at k5ua.com Tue Dec 10 18:03:52 2019 From: charles at k5ua.com (charles at k5ua.com) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 17:03:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation Message-ID: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes just 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies. Does anyone have information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the xcvr for frequency? Thanks, K5UA From k6dgw at foothill.net Tue Dec 10 18:17:08 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:17:08 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> and most of Nevada too. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/10/2019 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > > Joe ve3vxo > > ________________________________ > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Wayne Burdick > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > To: Elecraft Reflector > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers might be the only ones around with comms. > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a radio in your vehicle at all times. > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > From k6dgw at foothill.net Tue Dec 10 18:26:34 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:26:34 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c@foothill.net> It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He].? It is governed by the well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, however you can give it away.? It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual affinity for each other.? For reasons still unknown, it tends to accumulate in the upper midwest.? Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/10/2019 7:47 AM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > When I was growing up in Minnesota there was an area of a nearby town that > would blank the signal of whatever radio station you were listening to on > the car radio as you were driving through, AM or FM. Not an industrial area > either. Never did figure that one out. Always meant to go back and see if I > could map it better and maybe find out what was causing it. Would like to > have talked to folks living near there. > > From wk6i.jeff at gmail.com Tue Dec 10 18:27:34 2019 From: wk6i.jeff at gmail.com (Jeff Stai) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:27:34 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> Message-ID: And most of the SIERRA Nevada too! 73 jeff wk6i On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 3:18 PM Fred Jensen wrote: > and most of Nevada too. > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > > On 12/10/2019 7:12 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > > DZOTA so....most of Canada then. This jives perfectly with my desire > to go hike where nobody else wants to go. I might just get bitten by this > bug along with a few thousand mosquitoes and blackflies. One problem > though, I've never owned a cell phone. I need some other way of knowing > when I'm in a dead zone. Any suggestions? > > > > > > Joe ve3vxo > > > > ________________________________ > > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > on behalf of Wayne Burdick > > Sent: December 10, 2019 9:46:09 AM > > To: Elecraft Reflector > > Cc: Elecraft-KX at groups.io > > Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > > > > Have you seen those cell-phone company maps showing how much of the > country they cover? Inevitably, they reveal a patchwork of Dead Zones > (DZs): places where coverage is not just bad...it's non-existent. > > > > In such inhospitable realms, your choices are smoke signals, sat phone, > or ham radio. This smacks of an opportunity. Hence DZOTA. > > > > DZOTA places are often DeZerted. In fact, they are often in dezerts, in > contrast to many of the conspicuous high places typical of SOTA. This may > be a benefit to outdoor radio enthusiasts who, when hiking, prefer level > ground or even a gentle downward slope. And in an emergency, those hikers > might be the only ones around with comms. > > > > Where are the most notorious DZs? I have a few tiny cell network black > holes in my urban neighborhood, thanks to AT&T. But the truly inspiring DZs > are far from civilization, covering tens or hundreds of square miles. > Typically, they're also far from sources of noise. > > > > I have no illusions that DZOTA sites will be officially tracked and > chased anytime soon. Still, the "NO SIGNAL" icon on my phone now has new > meaning. It's a bug you, too, can change to a feature just by keeping a > radio in your vehicle at all times. > > > > In my case, it's the spare KX2 and AX1 under the driver's seat. > > > > 73, > > Wayne > > N6KR > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wk6i.jeff at gmail.com > -- Jeff Stai ~ WK6I ~ wk6i.jeff at gmail.com RTTY op at W7RN Twisted Oak Winery ~ http://www.twistedoak.com/ From dick at elecraft.com Tue Dec 10 18:31:31 2019 From: dick at elecraft.com (Dick Dievendorff) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:31:31 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> Message-ID: <001101d5afb1$f4395d50$dcac17f0$@elecraft.com> On 160 and 80 meters, the KPA1500 ATU has 10 kHz "step size" between "bins". Consider tuning at 3505, 3515, 3525, 3535, 3545.... thru 3995. There's a table on page 52 of the KPA1500 owner's manual that lists the suggested tuning frequencies on all bands. 73 de Dick, K6KR -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of charles at k5ua.com Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 15:04 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes just 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies. Does anyone have information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the xcvr for frequency? Thanks, K5UA ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to dick at elecraft.com From donwilh at embarqmail.com Tue Dec 10 18:34:19 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 18:34:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> Message-ID: <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> I have a Dead Zone inside my house. I live in a stucco clad house with the stucco laid on wire mesh - it is an effective Faraday shield. We do not have good cell phone reception inside the house - that is why I do not have a smartphone, just a simple flip phone to use when away from home. I do get 2 to 3 bars if I venture outside, but No Service to maybe 1 bar when inside. So my question is -- Do I qualify for NZOTA when using my KX2 indoors at home with my outside antennas, or do I have to use an indoor antenna as well? 73, Don W3FPR From weaverwf at usermail.com Tue Dec 10 18:55:09 2019 From: weaverwf at usermail.com (Bill Weaver) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 18:55:09 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> Message-ID: Don, A lot of the smartphones offer wifi calling. You just have to be in range of your router :-). 73, Bill WE5P > > On Dec 10, 2019 at 18:34, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > > I have a Dead Zone inside my house. I live in a stucco clad house with the stucco laid on wire mesh - it is an effective Faraday shield. We do not have good cell phone reception inside the house - that is why I do not have a smartphone, just a simple flip phone to use when away from home. I do get 2 to 3 bars if I venture outside, but No Service to maybe 1 bar when inside. So my question is -- Do I qualify for NZOTA when using my KX2 indoors at home with my outside antennas, or do I have to use an indoor antenna as well? 73, Don W3FPR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to weaverwf at usermail.com > From k9ma at sdellington.us Tue Dec 10 18:56:02 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 17:56:02 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> Message-ID: <4b473c9b-0fc7-9ed2-cf19-e87560d69b59@sdellington.us> I understand that the ATU uses 10 kHz segments on 80, which was at some point changed from 20 kHz. That means the center points are 3505, 3515, etc. There is some hysteresis when tuning, but I'm not sure that consistently explains where it switches. It also won't switch until you stop tuning for 1/2 second, or so. Another factor is that the ATU only measure frequency to, I think, 8 kHz. The net result may be that sometimes it's not in the frequency segment you think it should be in. Unless you have a very narrow band antenna, it shouldn't make much difference. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/10/2019 17:03, charles at k5ua.com wrote: > After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at > 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected > that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of > L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, > 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes just > 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies.? Does anyone have > information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the > xcvr for frequency? > > Thanks, K5UA > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Tue Dec 10 19:19:17 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 16:19:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <1dda9cf4-ecbb-e642-bbaa-2a0dfe3cb907@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/10/2019 3:34 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > I have a Dead Zone inside my house. > I live in a stucco clad house with the stucco laid on wire mesh - it is > an effective Faraday shield.? We do not have good cell phone reception > inside the house Thanks to the "tin-hat brigade, we have an even worse situation here in the Santa Cruz Mountains -- no cell coverage at all. For years, this kept me from a smart phone, but I now know this was a very bad decision. Many reasons why, but mainly that they work for internet access on WiFi, they function as a pretty nice "ad hoc" camera, while on the road (and waiting in a doctor's office) I have access to news outlets of my choice via my cell data plan or the office's guest WiFi. We buy our cell service from Page Plus Cellular, a third party company reselling Verizon service at monthly Pay As You Go rates for the amount of data that we need. For us, 2GB/month is more than we're likely to need except when traveling, at a cost of about $30/phone/month. Accounts are flexible, so it's no big thing to buy more data in months we might be traveling. The Motorola phones we bought about three years ago cost us about $350 each. 73, Jim K9YC From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Tue Dec 10 19:54:41 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 19:54:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <1dda9cf4-ecbb-e642-bbaa-2a0dfe3cb907@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> <1dda9cf4-ecbb-e642-bbaa-2a0dfe3cb907@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <329d93b7-b349-6973-cb1f-6a300c4d4b24@gmail.com> Don't forget the east coast "National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ)"...? I have a star party (https://www.ahsp.org/, on my list of things to do) and I checked on the use of HF radio in the zone.? Unless I was looking at the wrong place, you can use radio in the zone unless you are at the telescopes or UHF/microwave. I only found a reference to a "permit" for fixed ham station like repeaters.? Can you say East Coast Dead Zone...? is there going to be a DZSOTA ?? 73, steve WB3LGC On 12/10/19 7:19 PM, Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/10/2019 3:34 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: >> I have a Dead Zone inside my house. >> I live in a stucco clad house with the stucco laid on wire mesh - it >> is an effective Faraday shield.? We do not have good cell phone >> reception inside the house > > Thanks to the "tin-hat brigade, we have an even worse situation here > in the Santa Cruz Mountains -- no cell coverage at all. For years, > this kept me from a smart phone, but I now know this was a very bad > decision. Many reasons why, but mainly that they work for internet > access on WiFi, they function as a pretty nice "ad hoc" camera, while > on the road (and waiting in a doctor's office) I have access to news > outlets of my choice via my cell data plan or the office's guest WiFi. > > We buy our cell service from Page Plus Cellular, a third party company > reselling Verizon service at monthly Pay As You Go rates for the > amount of data that we need. For us, 2GB/month is more than we're > likely to need except when traveling, at a cost of about > $30/phone/month. Accounts are flexible, so it's no big thing to buy > more data in months we might be traveling. The Motorola phones we > bought about three years ago cost us about $350 each. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From paul at paulbaldock.com Tue Dec 10 20:31:34 2019 From: paul at paulbaldock.com (Paul Baldock) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 17:31:34 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> Message-ID: <5df046f8.1c69fb81.404b5.18a1@mx.google.com> At 03:03 PM 12/10/2019, charles at k5ua.com wrote: > Does anyone have information on how the ATU is supposed to work > when it is polling the xcvr for frequency? If you are polling the transceiver and have fairly recent version of firmware, the ATU will change frequency at the boundary of the segment, with no hysteresis. Twiddle your VFO knob in standby and you will here the relays clicking right at the edges. - Paul KW7Y From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Tue Dec 10 20:52:06 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 18:52:06 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <1dda9cf4-ecbb-e642-bbaa-2a0dfe3cb907@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> <3ea19234-83ed-019d-8194-ef1ff857a076@embarqmail.com> <1dda9cf4-ecbb-e642-bbaa-2a0dfe3cb907@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: I built our house with ICFs (insulated concrete forms) and put rebar in every cell (12 inch on center), and every stick of rebar in the walls ties to the rebar in the footings.? Together with the stucco mesh, I live in a really good Faraday shielded enclosure and had crappy cell phone coverage until I set my Moto G6 Play ($200 a couple of years ago) smartphone to WiFi priority.? It works fine inside the house now, and T-Mobile has an unlimited usage (including unlimited data) $50 per month plan for seniors. 73, Dave? AB7E On 12/10/2019 5:19 PM, Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/10/2019 3:34 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: >> I have a Dead Zone inside my house. >> I live in a stucco clad house with the stucco laid on wire mesh - it >> is an effective Faraday shield.? We do not have good cell phone >> reception inside the house > > Thanks to the "tin-hat brigade, we have an even worse situation here > in the Santa Cruz Mountains -- no cell coverage at all. For years, > this kept me from a smart phone, but I now know this was a very bad > decision. Many reasons why, but mainly that they work for internet > access on WiFi, they function as a pretty nice "ad hoc" camera, while > on the road (and waiting in a doctor's office) I have access to news > outlets of my choice via my cell data plan or the office's guest WiFi. > > We buy our cell service from Page Plus Cellular, a third party company > reselling Verizon service at monthly Pay As You Go rates for the > amount of data that we need. For us, 2GB/month is more than we're > likely to need except when traveling, at a cost of about > $30/phone/month. Accounts are flexible, so it's no big thing to buy > more data in months we might be traveling. The Motorola phones we > bought about three years ago cost us about $350 each. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to xdavid at cis-broadband.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 10 21:07:52 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 20:07:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <4b473c9b-0fc7-9ed2-cf19-e87560d69b59@sdellington.us> References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> <4b473c9b-0fc7-9ed2-cf19-e87560d69b59@sdellington.us> Message-ID: The ATU uses 10 kHz segments below 3 MHz.? And then 20 kHz segments 3 MHz through 26 MHz.?? And 100 kHz segments from 38 MHz through 30 MHz.?? And 200 kHz segments 38 MHz through 60 MHz. The understanding regarding 80M would then be the segments are 20 kHz wide and not 10 kHz wide. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/10/2019 5:56 PM, K9MA wrote: > I understand that the ATU uses 10 kHz segments on 80, which was at > some point changed from 20 kHz. That means the center points are 3505, > 3515, etc. There is some hysteresis when tuning, but I'm not sure that > consistently explains where it switches. It also won't switch until > you stop tuning for 1/2 second, or so. > > Another factor is that the ATU only measure frequency to, I think, 8 > kHz. The net result may be that sometimes it's not in the frequency > segment you think it should be in. Unless you have a very narrow band > antenna, it shouldn't make much difference. > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > > > On 12/10/2019 17:03, charles at k5ua.com wrote: >> After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at >> 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected >> that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of >> L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, >> 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes >> just 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies.? Does anyone have >> information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the >> xcvr for frequency? >> >> Thanks, K5UA >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us > > From ktalbott at gamewood.net Tue Dec 10 21:11:06 2019 From: ktalbott at gamewood.net (ktalbott at gamewood.net) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 21:11:06 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Message-ID: <00b801d5afc8$40164920$c042db60$@gamewood.net> House is 4 feet underground, reinforced concrete, passive solar, South side glass. TG for cellular over WIFI! All other RF via coax only. Ken ke4rg From alorona at sbcglobal.net Tue Dec 10 21:12:55 2019 From: alorona at sbcglobal.net (Al Lorona) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 02:12:55 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call References: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646@mail.yahoo.com> I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone call. It's still morning over there. Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. Me: How about a co-founder? BRC: No... Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. Yeah? BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we don't even *know* who the CTO is. Me:? Excuse me? BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go on the radios, though. Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier experts? BRC: Not really. Me: AGC gurus? BRC: Not that I know of. Me: Anybody who solders? BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best solderer. Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? BRC: Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made up. Good-bye and thank you! BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. Al? W6LX From Webrider at nc.rr.com Tue Dec 10 21:40:16 2019 From: Webrider at nc.rr.com (Webrider at nc.rr.com) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 21:40:16 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? Message-ID: <7E83A17A-0EAD-437C-BA89-2F99B05779C9@nc.rr.com> This is a stupid question, I am sure. I have a loaded K2, and wanted to add more, so I?ve been trying to figure out what an XV Transverter (144) is for. I have looked on Elecrafts site for a good description of what I can do with an XV Transverter, but have not found it. I have looked for info in the List Archives, in YouTube, and the XV Transverter manuals. Please respond with information on the use of these. Santa might have to order me one, if I can figure out what I would do with it. Thank you and 73, Steve - KI4EZL From markmusick at sbcglobal.net Tue Dec 10 21:48:00 2019 From: markmusick at sbcglobal.net (markmusick at sbcglobal.net) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 02:48:00 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> <4b473c9b-0fc7-9ed2-cf19-e87560d69b59@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <00df01d5afcd$6831ac60$38950520$@sbcglobal.net> >From page 24 of the KPA1500 manual: Re-tuning to maintain a low SWR is normally required over a narrower frequency range on the lower frequencies. Band segments are: ? Below 4.8 MHz the segments are 10 kHz wide. ? From 4.8 MHz through 26 MHz the segments are 20 kHz wide. ? From 26 MHz to 38 MHz the segments are 100 kHz wide. ? Above 38 MHz the segments are 200 kHz wide. Mark, WB9CIF -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Wednesday, December 11, 2019 02:08 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation The ATU uses 10 kHz segments below 3 MHz. And then 20 kHz segments 3 MHz through 26 MHz. And 100 kHz segments from 38 MHz through 30 MHz. And 200 kHz segments 38 MHz through 60 MHz. The understanding regarding 80M would then be the segments are 20 kHz wide and not 10 kHz wide. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/10/2019 5:56 PM, K9MA wrote: > I understand that the ATU uses 10 kHz segments on 80, which was at > some point changed from 20 kHz. That means the center points are 3505, > 3515, etc. There is some hysteresis when tuning, but I'm not sure that > consistently explains where it switches. It also won't switch until > you stop tuning for 1/2 second, or so. > > Another factor is that the ATU only measure frequency to, I think, 8 > kHz. The net result may be that sometimes it's not in the frequency > segment you think it should be in. Unless you have a very narrow band > antenna, it shouldn't make much difference. > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > > > On 12/10/2019 17:03, charles at k5ua.com wrote: >> After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at >> 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected >> that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of >> L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, >> 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes >> just 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies. Does anyone have >> information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the >> xcvr for frequency? >> >> Thanks, K5UA >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to markmusick at sbcglobal.net From dave.w0zf at gmail.com Tue Dec 10 21:53:06 2019 From: dave.w0zf at gmail.com (Dave Fugleberg) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 20:53:06 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: <7E83A17A-0EAD-437C-BA89-2F99B05779C9@nc.rr.com> References: <7E83A17A-0EAD-437C-BA89-2F99B05779C9@nc.rr.com> Message-ID: Steve - I have the XV144, XV222, and XV432 in my shack on a K3. Basically, a transverter allows you to use your radio on a band that's not already built in to the radio. For example, the XV144 lets you use your HF radio on the 144MHz (2 meter) band. The transverter converts the received 2m signal into a signal on the 10M band so your K2 can receive it. On transmit, it converts a low-level 10m signal to a 2m signal, amplifies it, and sends it to the antenna. The XV transverters are great if you want to do SSB and CW on the VHF and UHF bands. Does that help? On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 8:41 PM Webrider at nc.rr.com wrote: > This is a stupid question, I am sure. > I have a loaded K2, and wanted to add more, so I?ve been trying to figure > out what an XV Transverter (144) is for. I have looked on Elecrafts site > for a good description of what I can do with an XV Transverter, but have > not found it. I have looked for info in the List Archives, in YouTube, and > the XV Transverter manuals. Please respond with information on the use of > these. Santa might have to order me one, if I can figure out what I would > do with it. > > Thank you and 73, > Steve - KI4EZL > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dave.w0zf at gmail.com From n6jpa.1 at gmail.com Tue Dec 10 21:49:17 2019 From: n6jpa.1 at gmail.com (Keith N6JPA) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 18:49:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: <7E83A17A-0EAD-437C-BA89-2F99B05779C9@nc.rr.com> References: <7E83A17A-0EAD-437C-BA89-2F99B05779C9@nc.rr.com> Message-ID: <47ded52a-56f7-127e-75ee-b602818705b0@gmail.com> A XV 144 transverter is a radio device that can transmit and receive on 144 MHz using 28 MHz on your radio. On 12/10/2019 6:40 PM, Webrider at nc.rr.com wrote: > This is a stupid question, I am sure. > I have a loaded K2, and wanted to add more, so I?ve been trying to figure out what an XV Transverter (144) is for. I have looked on Elecrafts site for a good description of what I can do with an XV Transverter, but have not found it. I have looked for info in the List Archives, in YouTube, and the XV Transverter manuals. Please respond with information on the use of these. Santa might have to order me one, if I can figure out what I would do with it. > > Thank you and 73, > Steve - KI4EZL > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6jpa.1 at gmail.com From markmusick at sbcglobal.net Tue Dec 10 21:56:13 2019 From: markmusick at sbcglobal.net (markmusick at sbcglobal.net) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 02:56:13 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: References: <20a9b5b55a370c2e0eb1d063f9d039e0@k5ua.com> <4b473c9b-0fc7-9ed2-cf19-e87560d69b59@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <00e701d5afce$8e35c530$aaa14f90$@sbcglobal.net> Everyone, The following is from page 24 of the KPA1500 manual dated February 12, 2019. This is the latest I have. Is there a later one that differs from this on the ATU segments? Re-tuning to maintain a low SWR is normally required over a narrower frequency range on the lower frequencies. Band segments are: ? Below 4.8 MHz the segments are 10 kHz wide. ? From 4.8 MHz through 26 MHz the segments are 20 kHz wide. ? From 26 MHz to 38 MHz the segments are 100 kHz wide. ? Above 38 MHz the segments are 200 kHz wide. 73, Mark, WB9CIF -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Wednesday, December 11, 2019 02:08 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation The ATU uses 10 kHz segments below 3 MHz. And then 20 kHz segments 3 MHz through 26 MHz. And 100 kHz segments from 38 MHz through 30 MHz. And 200 kHz segments 38 MHz through 60 MHz. The understanding regarding 80M would then be the segments are 20 kHz wide and not 10 kHz wide. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/10/2019 5:56 PM, K9MA wrote: > I understand that the ATU uses 10 kHz segments on 80, which was at > some point changed from 20 kHz. That means the center points are 3505, > 3515, etc. There is some hysteresis when tuning, but I'm not sure that > consistently explains where it switches. It also won't switch until > you stop tuning for 1/2 second, or so. > > Another factor is that the ATU only measure frequency to, I think, 8 > kHz. The net result may be that sometimes it's not in the frequency > segment you think it should be in. Unless you have a very narrow band > antenna, it shouldn't make much difference. > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > > > On 12/10/2019 17:03, charles at k5ua.com wrote: >> After saving my KPA-1500 ATU impedance matching parameters on 80M at >> 20 Kc intervals (3.510, 3.530, 3.550, 3.570, etc, etc), I expected >> that the KPA-1500 ATU would automatically switch to the next set of >> L/C values at the midpoint of the 20 Kc segments (like 3.520, 3.540, >> 3.560, etc, etc), but I find that it switches randomly, sometimes >> just 2 Kc away from the main tuning frequencies. Does anyone have >> information on how the ATU is supposed to work when it is polling the >> xcvr for frequency? >> >> Thanks, K5UA >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to markmusick at sbcglobal.net From frantz at pwpconsult.com Tue Dec 10 22:04:53 2019 From: frantz at pwpconsult.com (Bill Frantz) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 22:04:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: Message-ID: They also work well with 2M FM repeaters if you have an FM capable base radio. (I'm not sure the K2 qualifies. FM works well with my K3.) Ed, KL7UW may want to step in an discuss EME and other VHF/UHF/SHF DXing. 73 Bill AE6JV On 12/10/19 at 9:53 PM, dave.w0zf at gmail.com (Dave Fugleberg) wrote: >The XV transverters are great if you want to do SSB and CW on the VHF and >UHF bands. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | The first thing you need when | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | using a perimeter defense is a | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | perimeter. | Los Gatos, CA 95032 From Webrider at nc.rr.com Tue Dec 10 22:24:33 2019 From: Webrider at nc.rr.com (Webrider at nc.rr.com) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 22:24:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Super information. All together, these replies have answered my questions. I also now know that it could talk to the local repeater if I used the correct radio with it. Thanks folks & 73, Steve - KI4EZL From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 10 23:32:39 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 19:32:39 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Message-ID: <201912110432.xBB4WgRQ020470@mail40c28.carrierzone.com> Of course Alaska doesn't count as most companies don't consider Alaska as part of the USA (eg free shipping except AK/HI). Back in 2012, I worked for Wallmart and we had many angry cell phone customers who bought phones in the lower-48 and were assured they worked in AK. They were given Verizon (which had just started service in Anchorage & no where else in AK). They have expanded service, now. But do not expect cell service off the road system (75% of AK). On our trips driving out the Alaska Hwy thru Canada we had no service anywhere in the Yukon or northern parts of BC or AB. Only got service when we were within 200-miles of the US border (using Rogers cell service that apparently partnered with AT&T). Fortunately we had our KX3 + KXPA100 in the mobile (no worries), plus in the Yukon there is linked repeaters on 146.52 covering most of the hwy. 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 10 23:36:36 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 19:36:36 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Message-ID: <201912110436.xBB4actP018647@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Actually fruit cake makes a great dummy load ... eat it and you turn into a dummy! ----------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:26:34 -0800 From: Fred Jensen To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air Message-ID: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c at foothill.net> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He].? It is governed by the well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, however you can give it away.? It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual affinity for each other.? For reasons still unknown, it tends to accumulate in the upper midwest.? Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From ae8jg.gould at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 00:39:53 2019 From: ae8jg.gould at gmail.com (Joshua Gould) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 00:39:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [KX3] What comes with the KX3 kit? Message-ID: Greetings, I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on a KX3 in the next week or so, and was going to order the kit. (This isn't the first KX3 I've owned, I'm coming home as it were) The first one I'd purchased I had assembled at the factory before it shipping out. This one, I'll build. I know that I will receive all of the standard accessories in the box, as well as an owners manual. What about an assembly manual? (And if memory serves me correctly, the KXUSB comes with the radio as well, right?) Thanks, 72, Joshua Gould AE8JG EM89mo NAQCC # 7704 OMISS # 9948 4sqrp # 990 FP # 3579 From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Wed Dec 11 02:14:23 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 23:14:23 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <381f024a-2d15-a2c9-0d3d-9d1225c13262@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/10/2019 7:24 PM, Webrider at nc.rr.com wrote: > I also now know that it could talk to the local repeater if I used the correct radio with it. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. With decent FM talkies and mobile rigs common and inexpensive, the only good reason for using a transverter on an Elecraft HF rig is for experimentation. 73, Jim K9YC From ardrhi at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 06:59:10 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 06:59:10 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <201912110436.xBB4actP018647@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912110436.xBB4actP018647@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: ??? We never eat fruitcake because it has rum, And one little slice puts a man on the bum. Oh, can you imagine the pitiful plight Of a man eating fruitcake until he gets tight? ??? --Song of the Temperance Union 73, Gwen, NG3P On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 11:37 PM Edward R Cole wrote: > Actually fruit cake makes a great dummy load ... eat it and you turn > into a dummy! > > ----------------------------------------- > Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:26:34 -0800 > From: Fred Jensen > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > Message-ID: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c at foothill.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake > [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along > with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He].? It is governed by the > well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, > however you can give it away.? It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual > affinity for each other.? For reasons still unknown, it tends to > accumulate in the upper midwest.? Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic > radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > > > 73, Ed - KL7UW > http://www.kl7uw.com > Dubus-NA Business mail: > dubususa at gmail.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > -- -+-+-+-+- Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time http://quarktime.net From a.durbin at msn.com Wed Dec 11 07:32:58 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 12:32:58 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation Message-ID: "If you are polling the transceiver and have fairly recent version of firmware, the ATU will change frequency at the boundary of the segment, with no hysteresis. Twiddle your VFO knob in standby and you will here the relays clicking right at the edges." An explanation of how the tuner follows VFO frequency is probably incomplete without understanding how RF detected frequency can override the VFO frequency. Someone familiar with KPA1500 may provide the details. I'm only familiar with KAT500 and I don't find the same tailoring parameters (FCCS and FCMD) in the KPA1500 programming reference. Andy, k3wyc From kg9hfrank at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 08:25:51 2019 From: kg9hfrank at gmail.com (Frank Krozel) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 07:25:51 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/100/2 filters for sale Message-ID: <6C776D71-74E1-4FFD-9547-61029EB9C984@gmail.com> I have two that are pretty much identical. K3/100W/Auto-tuner/2 optional filters Receiver 1: 2.7/500/200 Receiver 2: 2.7/500/200 SN 4xxx Receiver 1: 2.7/500/250 Receiver 2: 2.7 SN7xxx Power cords, manuals on each included. Both look the same, no issues. $2,100 for either, off line response please. -73- Frank KG9H kg9hfrank at gmail.com From donwilh at embarqmail.com Wed Dec 11 08:06:56 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 08:06:56 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] [KX3] What comes with the KX3 kit? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Joshua, An Assembly Manual is shipped with every kit. You also will get the Owners Manual. Yes, the KXUSB is shipped with the radio. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/11/2019 12:39 AM, Joshua Gould wrote: > Greetings, > > I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on a KX3 in the next week or so, and > was going to order the kit. (This isn't the first KX3 I've owned, I'm > coming home as it were) The first one I'd purchased I had assembled at the > factory before it shipping out. This one, I'll build. > > I know that I will receive all of the standard accessories in the box, as > well as an owners manual. What about an assembly manual? > > (And if memory serves me correctly, the KXUSB comes with the radio as well, > right?) > From k2qmf at juno.com Wed Dec 11 10:04:14 2019 From: k2qmf at juno.com (Salvatore Ted K2QMF) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 10:04:14 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Help!! Message-ID: Hello All, Received my new KPA1500 a few days ago! I love the Amp but I have an issue maybe someone can help with!! The KPA1500 does NOT?play well with other rigs!! I am driving it with a Yaesu FTdx5000!? There is a very big difference in drive levels for different Bands!! For instance?on 160 the drive is 20 watts.? On 20 the drive is 45 Watts!! If I change bands I could overdrive the amp to a fault!! I did not have this problem with my Acom 2000! Any help would be much appreciated! Maybe some way to retune the amps input circuit?? Many Thanks in advance... 73, Ted? K2QMF ____________________________________________________________ Urologist Tells Men To "Fix" Their ED With This New Trick! Med Journal http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5df1056fc420a56e4f72st02vuc From w5rg at yahoo.com Wed Dec 11 11:00:59 2019 From: w5rg at yahoo.com (Bob Gibson) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 16:00:59 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Help!! In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <945614793.7884633.1576080059393@mail.yahoo.com> Maybe retune the amps input circuit?? ?Will the 5000 not set the per band output? ?? 73s Bob W5RG On Wednesday, December 11, 2019, 9:12:35 AM CST, Salvatore Ted K2QMF wrote: Hello All, Received my new KPA1500 a few days ago! I love the Amp but I have an issue maybe someone can help with!! The KPA1500 does NOT?play well with other rigs!! I am driving it with a Yaesu FTdx5000!? There is a very big difference in drive levels for different Bands!! For instance?on 160 the drive is 20 watts.? On 20 the drive is 45 Watts!! If I change bands I could overdrive the amp to a fault!! I did not have this problem with my Acom 2000! Any help would be much appreciated! Maybe some way to retune the amps input circuit?? Many Thanks in advance... 73, Ted? K2QMF ____________________________________________________________ Urologist Tells Men To "Fix" Their ED With This New Trick! Med Journal http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5df1056fc420a56e4f72st02vuc ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to w5rg at yahoo.com From va3mw at portcredit.net Wed Dec 11 11:02:44 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 11:02:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Help!! In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <47600AA0-53FF-43B7-A8C8-6E979115AADE@portcredit.net> Hi Ted It is very difficult to design an amp that does what you ask. Yes, my ACOM wasn?t bad, but it still have some variance if I went from 160M to 6M. Every amp I have owned has required different drive on each band. I have worked that into my procedure that every time I change bands I confirm drive levels to be sure. There are some solutions that works well with other radios if you want this fully automated. The Flex world of radios has some excellent auto drive tools (DDUTIL). Sorry, I don?t know if there is something that would work for your radio.l Sorry it isn?t what you expected. What caused you to change from your ACOM 2000? It sounds like it was a perfect match for you. Mike va3mw > On Dec 11, 2019, at 10:06 AM, Salvatore Ted K2QMF wrote: > > ?Hello All, > Received my new KPA1500 a few days ago! > I love the Amp but I have an issue maybe someone can help with!! > The KPA1500 does NOT play well with other rigs!! > I am driving it with a Yaesu FTdx5000! There is a very big difference in drive levels for different Bands!! For instance on 160 the drive is 20 watts. On 20 the drive is 45 Watts!! If I change bands I could overdrive the amp to a fault!! > I did not have this problem with my Acom 2000! > Any help would be much appreciated! > Maybe some way to retune the amps input circuit?? > Many Thanks in advance... > 73, > Ted K2QMF > ____________________________________________________________ > Urologist Tells Men To "Fix" Their ED With This New Trick! > Med Journal > http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/5df1056fc420a56e4f72st02vuc > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net From M0XDF at Alphadene.co.uk Wed Dec 11 11:08:56 2019 From: M0XDF at Alphadene.co.uk (David Ferrington, M0XDF) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 16:08:56 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: <381f024a-2d15-a2c9-0d3d-9d1225c13262@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <381f024a-2d15-a2c9-0d3d-9d1225c13262@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <4A410208-FE21-4457-BBD0-43983FCE9D1B@Alphadene.co.uk> Not true Jim, a XV144 & 432 + a modified XV50 (to 70) lets me use the K3 for those bands and it?s a darn site better than a number of other commercial rigs on those bands. Plus with limited shack space, it?s all in one rig. 73 de David, M0XDF (K3 #174, P3 #108) -- Not all those that wander are lost. -J.R.R. Tolkien, novelist and philologist (1892-1973) > On 11 Dec 2019, at 07:14, Jim Brown wrote: > > On 12/10/2019 7:24 PM, Webrider at nc.rr.com wrote: >> I also now know that it could talk to the local repeater if I used the correct radio with it. > > Just because you can doesn't mean you should. With decent FM talkies and mobile rigs common and inexpensive, the only good reason for using a transverter on an Elecraft HF rig is for experimentation. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to m0xdf at alphadene.co.uk From drussel at wbsnet.org Wed Dec 11 12:24:44 2019 From: drussel at wbsnet.org (drussel at wbsnet.org) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 11:24:44 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 order number Message-ID: <817f9753794715379d3a48de2e54821d.squirrel@mail.wbsnet.org> In late August or September I placed and paid for a K4. Could you please supply me with my shipping sequence number. I am anxious to see how it stacks up against my IC 7851. BTW I love my KPA 1500 which is replacing my Alpha 9500. Gary Drussel K0BAJ From charles at k5ua.com Wed Dec 11 12:34:41 2019 From: charles at k5ua.com (charles at k5ua.com) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 11:34:41 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation Message-ID: <24dfee4050d58ce15fc653fc59aaedea@k5ua.com> I should have checked for a new manual since the manual that came with my KPA-1500 has 20 Kc bins which I see are now 10 Kc bins. In addition, the tuning frequencies have been changed to 10 Kc increments. I think that is why I was getting unexplained results from the tuner as I tuned across the band. I will "re-teach" the KPA-1500 using these new parameters. Just to make sure, however, does everyone agree the current concept is the first bin on 80m would be 10 Kc wide (3.500 to 3.510) and the correct tune-up frequency to "teach" the KPA-1500 for that bin would be 3.505 Kc ? Secondly, the KPA-1500 would proceed to the next "taught" tuning parameters (at 3.515) when the xcvr frequency would cross into the next bin slightly higher than 3.510 ? Would appreciate all interest parties to agree or disagree with this scenario. Thanks for all the comments, I'm glad Electraft made the bin size smaller because feedpoint impedances can change rapidly on 80M. Thanks, K5UA From rfman at bellsouth.net Wed Dec 11 12:52:47 2019 From: rfman at bellsouth.net (H.R. Freeman) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 12:52:47 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] FS: Elecraft K1 References: <37a9e2e8-0435-8736-1eb1-2ede154c8f73.ref@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <37a9e2e8-0435-8736-1eb1-2ede154c8f73@bellsouth.net> For Sale: Elecraft K1-4 (SN01552). Radio has 4 bands (40/30/20/15). Also includes the ATU, NB, manuals and power chord. The radio is in good shape and 100 % working. Pictures available on request. $425 shipped priority mail to US Only Thanks Harry NK9R From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Wed Dec 11 13:07:20 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 18:07:20 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646@mail.yahoo.com> References: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646.ref@mail.yahoo.com>, <839821312.6632502.1576030375646@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: I just read the newsletter too. Sounds like a great company to work for! ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Al Lorona Sent: December 10, 2019 9:12 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone call. It's still morning over there. SNIP.... BRC: Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made up. Good-bye and thank you! BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. Al W6LX From rmcgraw at blomand.net Wed Dec 11 13:10:41 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 12:10:41 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <24dfee4050d58ce15fc653fc59aaedea@k5ua.com> References: <24dfee4050d58ce15fc653fc59aaedea@k5ua.com> Message-ID: Yes I got caught with using reference to an older manual on this topic. my oops Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 11, 2019, at 11:50 AM, charles at k5ua.com wrote: > > ?I should have checked for a new manual since the manual that came with my KPA-1500 has 20 Kc bins which I see are now 10 Kc bins. In addition, the tuning frequencies have been changed to 10 Kc increments. I think that is why I was getting unexplained results from the tuner as I tuned across the band. I will "re-teach" the KPA-1500 using these new parameters. > > Just to make sure, however, does everyone agree the current concept is the first bin on 80m would be 10 Kc wide (3.500 to 3.510) and the correct tune-up frequency to "teach" the KPA-1500 for that bin would be 3.505 Kc ? > > Secondly, the KPA-1500 would proceed to the next "taught" tuning parameters (at 3.515) when the xcvr frequency would cross into the next bin slightly higher than 3.510 ? > > Would appreciate all interest parties to agree or disagree with this scenario. > > Thanks for all the comments, I'm glad Electraft made the bin size smaller because feedpoint impedances can change rapidly on 80M. > > Thanks, K5UA > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Wed Dec 11 13:11:23 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 10:11:23 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] XV Transverter: what can it do? In-Reply-To: <4A410208-FE21-4457-BBD0-43983FCE9D1B@Alphadene.co.uk> References: <381f024a-2d15-a2c9-0d3d-9d1225c13262@audiosystemsgroup.com> <4A410208-FE21-4457-BBD0-43983FCE9D1B@Alphadene.co.uk> Message-ID: On 12/11/2019 8:08 AM, David Ferrington, M0XDF wrote: > Not true Jim, a XV144 & 432 + a modified XV50 (to 70) lets me use the K3 > for those bands and it?s a darn site better than a number of other > commercial rigs on those bands. > Plus with limited shack space, it?s all in one rig. But it's NOT one rig, it's four, counting those three transverters, and the combined cost of the 2M and 432 transverters is greater than the cost of a fine FM rig, which includes all of the PL tones, memories, and other functions useful for repeater operation. From where I sit, those transverters are great for modes other than FM on these bands. I own an XV144, and that's how I've used it. I use Kenwood FM rigs (mobile, base, and talkie) for this mode on VHF and UHF. 73, Jim K9YC From gkidder at ilstu.edu Wed Dec 11 13:15:43 2019 From: gkidder at ilstu.edu (Kidder, George) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 18:15:43 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: References: <201912110436.xBB4actP018647@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <3bea66ff-f1f6-6b0a-71f6-3b0b6f0c2f6f@ilstu.edu> "The man who eats fruitcake is a total disgrace, Stretched out in the gutter with crumbs on his face 'Away Away with rum', by gum Is the song of the Temperance Union." George On 12/11/2019 6:59 AM, Gwen Patton wrote: > [This message came from an external source. If suspicious, report to abuse at ilstu.edu] > > ??? We never eat fruitcake because it has rum, > And one little slice puts a man on the bum. > Oh, can you imagine the pitiful plight > Of a man eating fruitcake until he gets tight? ??? > > --Song of the Temperance Union > > 73, > Gwen, NG3P > > > > On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 11:37 PM Edward R Cole wrote: > >> Actually fruit cake makes a great dummy load ... eat it and you turn >> into a dummy! >> >> ----------------------------------------- >> Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:26:34 -0800 >> From: Fred Jensen >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air >> Message-ID: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c at foothill.net> >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed >> >> It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake >> [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along >> with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He].? It is governed by the >> well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, >> however you can give it away.? It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual >> affinity for each other.? For reasons still unknown, it tends to >> accumulate in the upper midwest.? Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic >> radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. >> >> 73, >> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW >> Sparks NV DM09dn >> Washoe County >> >> >> 73, Ed - KL7UW >> http://www.kl7uw.com >> Dubus-NA Business mail: >> dubususa at gmail.com >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com >> > > -- > > -+-+-+-+- > Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time > http://quarktime.net > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gkidder at ilstu.edu From ardrhi at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 13:35:03 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 13:35:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <3bea66ff-f1f6-6b0a-71f6-3b0b6f0c2f6f@ilstu.edu> References: <201912110436.xBB4actP018647@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <3bea66ff-f1f6-6b0a-71f6-3b0b6f0c2f6f@ilstu.edu> Message-ID: Those are actually from the stanza: "We never eat cookies, for cookies have yeast, And one little bite turns a man to a beast, Oh, can you imagine a greater disgrace, Than a man in the gutter with crumbs on his face." On Wed, Dec 11, 2019, 1:16 PM Kidder, George wrote: > "The man who eats fruitcake is a total disgrace, > Stretched out in the gutter with crumbs on his face > 'Away Away with rum', by gum > Is the song of the Temperance Union." > > George > > On 12/11/2019 6:59 AM, Gwen Patton wrote: > > [This message came from an external source. If suspicious, report to > abuse at ilstu.edu] > > > > ??? We never eat fruitcake because it has rum, > > And one little slice puts a man on the bum. > > Oh, can you imagine the pitiful plight > > Of a man eating fruitcake until he gets tight? ??? > > > > --Song of the Temperance Union > > > > 73, > > Gwen, NG3P > > > > > > > > On Tue, Dec 10, 2019 at 11:37 PM Edward R Cole > wrote: > > > >> Actually fruit cake makes a great dummy load ... eat it and you turn > >> into a dummy! > >> > >> ----------------------------------------- > >> Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2019 15:26:34 -0800 > >> From: Fred Jensen > >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air > >> Message-ID: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c at foothill.net> > >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > >> > >> It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake > >> [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along > >> with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He].? It is governed by the > >> well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, > >> however you can give it away.? It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual > >> affinity for each other.? For reasons still unknown, it tends to > >> accumulate in the upper midwest.? Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic > >> radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. > >> > >> 73, > >> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > >> Sparks NV DM09dn > >> Washoe County > >> > >> > >> 73, Ed - KL7UW > >> http://www.kl7uw.com > >> Dubus-NA Business mail: > >> dubususa at gmail.com > >> > >> ______________________________________________________________ > >> Elecraft mailing list > >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >> > >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > >> Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > >> > > > > -- > > > > -+-+-+-+- > > Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time > > http://quarktime.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to gkidder at ilstu.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com From fgstcf at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 13:46:31 2019 From: fgstcf at gmail.com (Fred Soop) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 12:46:31 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call Message-ID: I didn't actually make a call but after meeting Elecraft at Hamvention, my reaction was similar. Did not actually meet the top brass but one of their salespeople was able to tell me more about sorting out my antenna situation than many others combined. 73 Fred AC9RQ >>> I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone call. It's still morning over there. Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. Me: How about a co-founder? BRC: No... Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. Yeah? BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we don't even *know* who the CTO is. Me:? Excuse me? BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go on the radios, though. Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier experts? BRC: Not really. Me: AGC gurus? BRC: Not that I know of. Me: Anybody who solders? BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best solderer. Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? BRC: Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made up. Good-bye and thank you! BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. Al? W6LX <<< From k9ma at sdellington.us Wed Dec 11 13:46:36 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 12:46:36 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: <24dfee4050d58ce15fc653fc59aaedea@k5ua.com> References: <24dfee4050d58ce15fc653fc59aaedea@k5ua.com> Message-ID: One thing that may confuse things is that the frequency counter has only 8 kHz (?) resolution, and it takes priority over data from the radio. I'm unsure about this, as my KPA1500 doesn't often seem to change ATU setting when start transmitting. It is possible, though, that the low resolution counter thinks the frequency is in an adjacent bin. If it were up to me, I would not allow the counter to have priority unless the frequency difference is at least several bin's worth. That way, transmission wouldn't be needlessly interrupted because of the low counter resolution, but the amp would still be protected against erroneous data from the radio. But Dick probably has more important things to worry about. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/11/2019 11:34, charles at k5ua.com wrote: > I should have checked for a new manual since the manual that came with > my KPA-1500 has 20 Kc bins which I see are now 10 Kc bins.? In > addition, the tuning frequencies have been changed to 10 Kc > increments.? I think that is why I was getting unexplained results > from the tuner as I tuned across the band.? I will "re-teach" the > KPA-1500 using these new parameters. > > Just to make sure, however, does everyone agree the current concept is > the first bin on 80m would be 10 Kc wide (3.500 to 3.510) and the > correct tune-up frequency to "teach" the KPA-1500 for that bin would > be 3.505 Kc ? > > Secondly, the KPA-1500 would proceed to the next "taught" tuning > parameters (at 3.515) when the xcvr frequency would cross into the > next bin slightly higher than 3.510 ? > > Would appreciate all interest parties to agree or disagree with this > scenario. > > Thanks for all the comments, I'm glad Electraft made the bin size > smaller because feedpoint impedances can change rapidly on 80M. > > Thanks, K5UA > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From va3mw at portcredit.net Wed Dec 11 13:50:55 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 13:50:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Fortunately, there are a lot of Ham Radio companies that you can actually reach out to to the developers and who are active hams. It isn't limited to just this one. Mike va3mw On Wed, Dec 11, 2019 at 1:47 PM Fred Soop wrote: > > I didn't actually make a call but after meeting Elecraft at Hamvention, my > reaction was similar. Did not actually meet the top brass but one of their > salespeople was able to tell me more about sorting out my antenna situation > than many others combined. > > 73 > Fred AC9RQ > > >>> > I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone > call. It's still morning over there. > > Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? > Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. > BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. > Me: How about a co-founder? > BRC: No... > Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and > you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and > play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, > maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a > station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with > me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. > Yeah? > BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we > don't even *know* who the CTO is. > Me:? Excuse me? > BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't > actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. > Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of > engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. > BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he > doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under > him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go > on the radios, though. > Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how > to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier > experts? > BRC: Not really. > Me: AGC gurus? > BRC: Not that I know of. > Me: Anybody who solders? > BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best > solderer. > Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? > BRC: > Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made > up. Good-bye and thank you! > BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. > > Al? W6LX > <<< > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net > From n6kr at elecraft.com Wed Dec 11 13:58:55 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 10:58:55 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] eHam review category changes for AX1, AXE1 Message-ID: <7B377BD9-1687-431C-AAD6-ED3093895187@elecraft.com> We discovered yesterday that the photo of the AX1 on eHam was so fuzzy that it was unrecognizable as a material object, must less a whip antenna. That's been fixed (https://www.eham.net/reviews/view-product?id=14042). A review category for the AXE1 was also just added (https://www.eham.net/reviews/view-product?id=14464). 73, Wayne N6KR From barrylazar2 at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 14:18:20 2019 From: barrylazar2 at gmail.com (Barry) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 19:18:20 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Mike, Actually, that really hasn't been my experience except Elecraft and Tentec which is no longer in business. I remember a call to Elecraft around 2100L EST when I ran into trouble when building my K2. The tech answered the phone and we spent about an hour trouble shooting a test that wasn't right. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, BUT the tech was the designer, Wayne. My experience with Elecraft has been over the top, but dealing directly with the developer has been something else. 73, Barry K3NDM ------ Original Message ------ From: "Michael Walker" To: "Fred Soop" Cc: "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" Sent: 12/11/2019 1:50:55 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call >Fortunately, there are a lot of Ham Radio companies that you can >actually reach out to to the developers and who are active hams. > >It isn't limited to just this one. > >Mike va3mw > > >On Wed, Dec 11, 2019 at 1:47 PM Fred Soop wrote: > >> >> I didn't actually make a call but after meeting Elecraft at Hamvention, my >> reaction was similar. Did not actually meet the top brass but one of their >> salespeople was able to tell me more about sorting out my antenna situation >> than many others combined. >> >> 73 >> Fred AC9RQ >> >> >>> >> I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone >> call. It's still morning over there. >> >> Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? >> Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. >> BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. >> Me: How about a co-founder? >> BRC: No... >> Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and >> you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and >> play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, >> maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a >> station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with >> me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. >> Yeah? >> BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we >> don't even *know* who the CTO is. >> Me:? Excuse me? >> BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't >> actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. >> Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of >> engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. >> BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he >> doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under >> him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go >> on the radios, though. >> Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how >> to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier >> experts? >> BRC: Not really. >> Me: AGC gurus? >> BRC: Not that I know of. >> Me: Anybody who solders? >> BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best >> solderer. >> Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? >> BRC: >> Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made >> up. Good-bye and thank you! >> BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. >> >> Al? W6LX >> <<< >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net >> >______________________________________________________________ >Elecraft mailing list >Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >Message delivered to barrylazar2 at gmail.com From va3mw at portcredit.net Wed Dec 11 14:39:57 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 14:39:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <73CE5B35-112E-412D-8E2C-6607956A6D48@portcredit.net> Keep in mind, what you experienced does not scale in business. Image if 50% of Elecraft?s customers wanted to call today and talk to Wayne or Eric. That would not allow him to be working on the K4 or other new special stuff. This is why they all have staff. :) Mike va3mw > On Dec 11, 2019, at 2:18 PM, Barry wrote: > > ?Mike, > > Actually, that really hasn't been my experience except Elecraft and Tentec which is no longer in business. I remember a call to Elecraft around 2100L EST when I ran into trouble when building my K2. The tech answered the phone and we spent about an hour trouble shooting a test that wasn't right. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, BUT the tech was the designer, Wayne. My experience with Elecraft has been over the top, but dealing directly with the developer has been something else. > > 73, > Barry > K3NDM > > ------ Original Message ------ > From: "Michael Walker" > To: "Fred Soop" > Cc: "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Sent: 12/11/2019 1:50:55 PM > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call > >> Fortunately, there are a lot of Ham Radio companies that you can >> actually reach out to to the developers and who are active hams. >> >> It isn't limited to just this one. >> >> Mike va3mw >> >> >>> On Wed, Dec 11, 2019 at 1:47 PM Fred Soop wrote: >>> >>> >>> I didn't actually make a call but after meeting Elecraft at Hamvention, my >>> reaction was similar. Did not actually meet the top brass but one of their >>> salespeople was able to tell me more about sorting out my antenna situation >>> than many others combined. >>> >>> 73 >>> Fred AC9RQ >>> >>> >>> >>> I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone >>> call. It's still morning over there. >>> >>> Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? >>> Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. >>> BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. >>> Me: How about a co-founder? >>> BRC: No... >>> Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and >>> you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and >>> play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, >>> maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a >>> station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with >>> me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. >>> Yeah? >>> BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we >>> don't even *know* who the CTO is. >>> Me:? Excuse me? >>> BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't >>> actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. >>> Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of >>> engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. >>> BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he >>> doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under >>> him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go >>> on the radios, though. >>> Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how >>> to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier >>> experts? >>> BRC: Not really. >>> Me: AGC gurus? >>> BRC: Not that I know of. >>> Me: Anybody who solders? >>> BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best >>> solderer. >>> Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? >>> BRC: >>> Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made >>> up. Good-bye and thank you! >>> BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. >>> >>> Al? W6LX >>> <<< >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net >>> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to barrylazar2 at gmail.com > From k6dgw at foothill.net Wed Dec 11 14:41:19 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 11:41:19 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 - Monochrome panadapter? Message-ID: <9acc8ce2-45db-cecb-e127-15d27a3df228@foothill.net> Does anyone know if the K4 panadapter will have a monochrome option for the waterfall as the P3 does? 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County From a.durbin at msn.com Wed Dec 11 14:54:04 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 19:54:04 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: "If it were up to me, I would not allow the counter to have priority unless the frequency difference is at least several bin's worth. That way, transmission wouldn't be needlessly interrupted because of the low counter resolution, but the amp would still be protected against erroneous data from the radio" The same issue exists for the KAT500 and I have proposed that, when CAT tuning is present, that RF frequency override should be based on a time magnitude monitor. That would mean small differences between RF and CAT frequency would have to exist for a long time before RF took priority and that a large difference would result in immediate correction of a gross VAT frequency error. The constants time and magnitude would be adjustable by the user. I got so annoyed with RF freq taking priority that I have defeated RF tuning for my KAT500. Andy, k3wyc ________________________________ From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Wed Dec 11 15:05:43 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:05:43 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: References: , Message-ID: <3cfdf53d69fb484d97b055d8f7f78d37@uwaterloo.ca> My own recent experience has been a good example. Am I an Elecraft customer? Yes but the only thing I bought directly from the company was a T1 tuner which is not a big ticket item. Actually with that I had a question during the build I sent to tech support. I wanted to know about the design choices because it didn't make a lot of sense to me that a device like that be designed to match pretty low impedances like a short vertical, in any case I wanted to use it for tuning end fed half waves so I wanted to replace the capacitors with smaller values to optimize that intended use. Next thing I know I am emailing with the designer. That surprised me. Recently Wayne again was helping me with sorting out the audio artifacts I was having on my KX3. I have a KX3, PX3 and 100 watt amp now but I didn't buy any of that stuff directly from Elecraft, but that didn't matter in terms of the support I got from the company. That kind of customer support is the sort of thing that sticks in memory. I am just re-entering this hobby after a couple of decades away and I have no idea at this point if I may one day decide to buy a rig in the class of the K4 but if I ever find myself considering an option like that one day, my experiences with this company will certainly inform my decision making process. Joe ve3vxo ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Barry Sent: December 11, 2019 2:18 PM To: Michael Walker; Fred Soop Cc: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call Mike, Actually, that really hasn't been my experience except Elecraft and Tentec which is no longer in business. I remember a call to Elecraft around 2100L EST when I ran into trouble when building my K2. The tech answered the phone and we spent about an hour trouble shooting a test that wasn't right. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, BUT the tech was the designer, Wayne. My experience with Elecraft has been over the top, but dealing directly with the developer has been something else. 73, Barry K3NDM From nr4c at widomaker.com Wed Dec 11 15:13:27 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 15:13:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 order number In-Reply-To: <817f9753794715379d3a48de2e54821d.squirrel@mail.wbsnet.org> References: <817f9753794715379d3a48de2e54821d.squirrel@mail.wbsnet.org> Message-ID: <89686EE0-05C0-4BD6-A0D0-9ADD3A3257C4@widomaker.com> Good luck on this request. No one else has a clue about this. The web site still says ?January 2020?. That could mean one out the door on Jan 31, 2020. I ordered in mid May. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 11, 2019, at 12:26 PM, drussel at wbsnet.org wrote: > > ?In late August or September I placed and paid for a K4. Could you please > supply me with my shipping sequence number. I am anxious to see how it > stacks up against my IC 7851. BTW I love my KPA 1500 which is replacing > my Alpha 9500. > > Gary Drussel K0BAJ > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From barrylazar2 at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 15:43:39 2019 From: barrylazar2 at gmail.com (Barry) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:43:39 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: <73CE5B35-112E-412D-8E2C-6607956A6D48@portcredit.net> References: <73CE5B35-112E-412D-8E2C-6607956A6D48@portcredit.net> Message-ID: Mike, I was surprised to find who I was speaking to, but I do agree with you that it wouldn't be overly productive for Wayne. But, on the other hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do what he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with the toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad there is someone in the company like him. 73, Barry K3NDM ------ Original Message ------ From: "Michael Walker" To: "Barry" Cc: "Fred Soop" ; "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" Sent: 12/11/2019 2:39:57 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call >Keep in mind, what you experienced does not scale in business. > >Image if 50% of Elecraft?s customers wanted to call today and talk to Wayne or Eric. That would not allow him to be working on the K4 or other new special stuff. > >This is why they all have staff. :) > >Mike va3mw > >> On Dec 11, 2019, at 2:18 PM, Barry wrote: >> >> ?Mike, >> >> Actually, that really hasn't been my experience except Elecraft and Tentec which is no longer in business. I remember a call to Elecraft around 2100L EST when I ran into trouble when building my K2. The tech answered the phone and we spent about an hour trouble shooting a test that wasn't right. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, BUT the tech was the designer, Wayne. My experience with Elecraft has been over the top, but dealing directly with the developer has been something else. >> >> 73, >> Barry >> K3NDM >> >> ------ Original Message ------ >> From: "Michael Walker" >> To: "Fred Soop" >> Cc: "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" >> Sent: 12/11/2019 1:50:55 PM >> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call >> >>> Fortunately, there are a lot of Ham Radio companies that you can >>> actually reach out to to the developers and who are active hams. >>> >>> It isn't limited to just this one. >>> >>> Mike va3mw >>> >>> >>>> On Wed, Dec 11, 2019 at 1:47 PM Fred Soop wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> I didn't actually make a call but after meeting Elecraft at Hamvention, my >>>> reaction was similar. Did not actually meet the top brass but one of their >>>> salespeople was able to tell me more about sorting out my antenna situation >>>> than many others combined. >>>> >>>> 73 >>>> Fred AC9RQ >>>> >>>> >>> >>>> I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone >>>> call. It's still morning over there. >>>> >>>> Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? >>>> Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. >>>> BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. >>>> Me: How about a co-founder? >>>> BRC: No... >>>> Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and >>>> you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and >>>> play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, >>>> maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a >>>> station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with >>>> me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. >>>> Yeah? >>>> BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we >>>> don't even *know* who the CTO is. >>>> Me:? Excuse me? >>>> BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't >>>> actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. >>>> Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of >>>> engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. >>>> BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he >>>> doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under >>>> him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go >>>> on the radios, though. >>>> Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how >>>> to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier >>>> experts? >>>> BRC: Not really. >>>> Me: AGC gurus? >>>> BRC: Not that I know of. >>>> Me: Anybody who solders? >>>> BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best >>>> solderer. >>>> Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? >>>> BRC: >>>> Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made >>>> up. Good-bye and thank you! >>>> BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. >>>> >>>> Al? W6LX >>>> <<< >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net >>>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to barrylazar2 at gmail.com >> From Lyn at LNAINC.com Wed Dec 11 15:43:48 2019 From: Lyn at LNAINC.com (Lyn Norstad) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 14:43:48 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c@foothill.net> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca> <5960967f-f037-32e2-26d4-6b316d85334c@foothill.net> Message-ID: <03e901d5b063$b0f82140$12e863c0$@LNAINC.com> Impossible. Growing up in Minnesota, it was customary to reveal - at an appropriate age - not only the truth about Santa Claus (I won't go into that right now), but the fact that there is, was, and forever will be only one (1) fruitcake in existence. It just gets passed around every year. Uff Dah! 73 Lyn, W?LEN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Fred Jensen Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2019 5:27 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air It's caused by the excess of fruitcake in MN. All the fruitcake [chemical symbol Fc] in the universe was created at the Big Bang, along with a lot of hydrogen [H] and some Helium [He]. It is governed by the well-known Conservation of Fruitcake law ... you cannot destroy it, however you can give it away. It and aluminum foil [Rw] have a mutual affinity for each other. For reasons still unknown, it tends to accumulate in the upper midwest. Fruitcake absorbs electromagnetic radiation very well and is probably the cause of your dead zone. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/10/2019 7:47 AM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > When I was growing up in Minnesota there was an area of a nearby town that > would blank the signal of whatever radio station you were listening to on > the car radio as you were driving through, AM or FM. Not an industrial area > either. Never did figure that one out. Always meant to go back and see if I > could map it better and maybe find out what was causing it. Would like to > have talked to folks living near there. > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to lyn at lnainc.com From rbardsley at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 16:00:35 2019 From: rbardsley at gmail.com (Ryan Scott Bardsley) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 16:00:35 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Waterfall question from a new waterfall guy Message-ID: <1BE64ED0-025F-4003-BFDE-6607AFD27DDE@gmail.com> Hello, I am a very very new KX3 and PX3 owner and have been using this as my portable kit when I travel to NYC. I spend most of my life traveling in hotels, so I can't say I have really reached out to the world yet, but it certainly makes the stay a bit more fun. The KX3 and PX3 combo has been wonderful to bring on the train, setup at the hotel, and fiddle around with after work. I have a na?ve question about the waterfall. What exactly are the vertical lines that seem to follow the VFO as I tune around? Are they the resonant frequencies of the KX3? I am running both units on a battery, so I can't imagine it is noise from a wall wart. But I seem to see the same thing when operating at home. On the PX3, I see the green freq/bandwidth bar move when I rotate the VFO on the KX3. But the vertical traces seem to follow along with that. Being very new to this functionality... what exactly am I seeing? I made a short video here: https://youtu.be/v3iwWgsIDok Many thanks, and I love the chatter about how great a company Elecraft it. I have not had a single issue with my radio and am really happy with my purchase. 73 Ryan N1CDX ? Ryan Bardsley Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts Unites States of America Grid square: FN42on ITU zone: 8? CQ zone: 5 WGS84: 42.579234, -70.771966 e-mail: n1cdx at arrl.net mobile: 617-461-8390 From backhoeken at yahoo.com Wed Dec 11 16:28:59 2019 From: backhoeken at yahoo.com (Ken B) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 21:28:59 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: <3cfdf53d69fb484d97b055d8f7f78d37@uwaterloo.ca> References: <3cfdf53d69fb484d97b055d8f7f78d37@uwaterloo.ca> Message-ID: <1575403062.6923094.1576099739902@mail.yahoo.com> A personal account? I did up front pay for a K4 based on the customer service, quality, and a recommendation of N1MGO.? ?This type of attention to detail and service is unheard of these days? Ken. WB8PKK Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android On Wed, Dec 11, 2019 at 3:09 PM, Joseph Street wrote: My own recent experience has been a good example.? Am I an Elecraft customer?? Yes but the only thing I bought directly from the company was a T1 tuner which is not a big ticket item.? Actually with that I had a question during the build I sent to tech support.? I wanted to know about the design choices because it didn't make a lot of sense to me that a device like that be designed to match pretty low impedances like a short vertical, in any case I wanted to use it for tuning end fed half waves so I wanted to replace the capacitors with smaller values to optimize that intended use.? Next thing I know I am emailing with the designer.? That surprised me.? Recently Wayne again was helping me with sorting out the audio artifacts I was having on my KX3.? I have a KX3, PX3 and 100 watt amp now but I didn't buy any of that stuff directly from Elecraft, but that didn't matter in terms of the support I got from the company.? That kind of customer support is the sort of thing that stic ks in memory.? I am just re-entering this hobby after a couple of decades away and I have no idea at this point if I may one day decide to buy a rig in the class of the K4 but if I ever find myself considering an option like that one day, my experiences with this company will certainly inform my decision making process. Joe ve3vxo ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Barry Sent: December 11, 2019 2:18 PM To: Michael Walker; Fred Soop Cc: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] The Phone Call Mike, ? ? Actually, that really hasn't been my experience except Elecraft and Tentec which is no longer in business. I remember a call to Elecraft around 2100L EST when I ran into trouble when building my K2. The tech answered the phone and we spent about an hour trouble shooting a test that wasn't right. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, BUT the tech was the designer, Wayne. My experience with Elecraft has been over the top, but dealing directly with the developer has been something else. 73, Barry K3NDM ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to backhoeken at yahoo.com From eric at elecraft.com Wed Dec 11 16:38:48 2019 From: eric at elecraft.com (Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 13:38:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call In-Reply-To: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646@mail.yahoo.com> References: <839821312.6632502.1576030375646.ref@mail.yahoo.com> <839821312.6632502.1576030375646@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <8a68983f-5fdf-81eb-fc13-168bb145772f@elecraft.com> Hi Al, You almost gave me a heart attack this morning.? When I first started reading your email below I mistakenly thought you were referring to Elecraft as the company you called. Fortunately my heart rate and blood pressure dropped back to normal by the time I got to the end :-) No need for more coffee today! 73, Eric /elecraft.com/ On 12/10/2019 6:12 PM, Al Lorona wrote: > I just read the Elecraft December Newsletter, so I made a quick phone call. It's still morning over there. > > Big Radio Company: How may I direct your call? > Me: Yes, hello, I'd like to speak to your CTO. > BRC: Oh, I'm sorry sir, but I can't do that. > Me: How about a co-founder? > BRC: No... > Me: Why not? I'm about to buy a new radio, and it's down to Elecraft and you guys, and Elecraft says I can go hang out with one of the big wigs and play radio, so I'm calling you to see if you'll match that offer. You know, maybe I can come over and hang out in your ham station -- you do have a station, don't you?-- and your big wig can come out and have a soda with me, and we can trade stories and shoot the breeze and then call CQ on 20. Yeah? > BRC: No, sir, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth... we don't even *know* who the CTO is. > Me:? Excuse me? > BRC: We see important-looking people pass by all the time, but we don't actually know which one is the CTO. We're a big conglomerate now. > Me: Well, maybe you can find someone under him, like the VP of engineering. I'd like to meet him. Or her. > BRC: Oh, no. That's not possible. . You see, he doesn't actually design any of our products. He has a team working under him, and they do all the work. He does select the knobs that go on the radios, though. > Me: The chief knob-picker, eh? Gee, I was hoping for someone who knows how to match impedance, or optimize a sigmoid response. Got any amplifier experts? > BRC: Not really. > Me: AGC gurus? > BRC: Not that I know of. > Me: Anybody who solders? > BRC: Oh, yes! You could have lunch with Maria. She's our absolute best solderer. > Me: Can she dig a signal out of the noise? Does she like hiking? > BRC: > Me: Never mind. You know, I'm glad I called you. I think my mind is made up. Good-bye and thank you! > BRC: Good day, sir, and thank you for calling. > > > Al? W6LX > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to eric.swartz at elecraft.com From elanzl at sbcglobal.net Wed Dec 11 20:20:19 2019 From: elanzl at sbcglobal.net (Eric Lanzl) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 01:20:19 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] SSB Net 12-8-2019 References: <1637373969.7138139.1576113619347.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1637373969.7138139.1576113619347@mail.yahoo.com> Here is the list of stations that checked in to the Net on Sunday 12-8. Again thank you to the relay stations as the propagation was good then bad and good again. Also, a question for the members of the net and others. We were wondering if there might be an interest in having a 40 meter frequency in addition to our 14.303.5 frequency. We can have the 40 meter net after the 20m net or split the time 1/2 hour on 20,1/2 hour for the 40 meter net. Another option is to hold the 40 meter net at a different time. I would welcome your input on this idea. Also, any suggestions for a frequency for the net. It should be in the general portion of the band to give all stations a chance to check in. Eric WB9JNZ Elecraft SSB Net 12-8-2019 WB9JNZ???????? Eric????????? IL??????????? K3????????? ????4017???Net Control KC1ACL???????? Steven ?? ? NM? ????? ??KX3?????????10677 QRP N9SRA?????????? Steve??? ????IL??? ???????ICOM 7600 NC0JW ????????? Jim ???? ??? CO ?????????KX3 ???????? ? 1356? ??Relaystation N6PGQ??????? ?? Bob????????CA??????? ???K3????????????? 5891 K8NU/4?????????? Carl??? ??? ?OH/FL????TS 590 N7BDL????????? ? Terry??????AZ????????? ?K3S?????? ? ?10373 K0JFJ????????????? Nick??? ?? AZ ????????K3S??????? ??? 11830 W7QHD????? ?????Kurt?????? AZ??????? ??K2/100????? ?? 1538 K6VWE???????? ? Stan?????? MI??????????K3??????????? ? ?? 650 WM6P?????????? ? Steve????? GA?????????? K3S????????? 11452??? Relay station K1NW?????????? ???Brian??????RI??????? ????K3????????????4974?? ?Relaystation N4NRW??????? ? ? Roger ? ?? SC ?????? ???K3????????? ???1318????Relay station W4DML??????? ? ?? Doug?????TN???????? ?K3?????????? ? ?6433 KF7ZN????????? ? ? Ron???????? UT ??????? ?K3S?????? ? ? 10832 KM4DK???????????? Dirk??? ???? KY???????? KX3????????? ?? 3643 ZL1PWD????? ???? Peter??????? NZ????????? K3????????? ?? ?? 139 K05V??????????? ???? Jim?????????NM? ???????K2/100??? ?? ? 7225? ??Relaystation K6SB? ????????????? David???????CA???????? K3????????? ??????565 K0RDP?????????? ?? Ralph? ????? ND???????? ? AI6KU ??????????????Bob????? ??? CA????????KX3?????????? ?10068 From ks4aa at winning.org Wed Dec 11 20:34:49 2019 From: ks4aa at winning.org (WIN KS4AA) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 01:34:49 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Start-up message Message-ID: I haven't seen any instructions on how to change the startup message. I just bought a used K3/0 and would like to change the call to mine. HELP. Eddie KS4AA (1st post) From ghyoungman at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 20:43:37 2019 From: ghyoungman at gmail.com (Grant Youngman) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:43:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Start-up message In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <243897B6-F0AC-489E-836B-19E0264E2561@gmail.com> Use the K3 Utility ?. Grant NQ5T > On Dec 11, 2019, at 8:34 PM, WIN KS4AA wrote: > > I haven't seen any instructions on how to change the startup message. I just bought a used K3/0 and would like to change the call to mine. HELP. > Eddie KS4AA (1st post) > From scott.manthe at gmail.com Wed Dec 11 20:49:29 2019 From: scott.manthe at gmail.com (Scott Manthe) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:49:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Start-up message In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2014da63-2ce1-6a94-3060-da4cdbfa897e@gmail.com> It's in the utility software. 73, Scott N9AA On 12/11/19 8:34 PM, WIN KS4AA wrote: > I haven't seen any instructions on how to change the startup message. > I just bought a used K3/0 and would like to change the call to mine. > HELP. > Eddie KS4AA (1st post) > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to scott.manthe at gmail.com From nr4c at widomaker.com Wed Dec 11 20:52:33 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:52:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Start-up message In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Use K3 Utility. Under Configuration tab. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 11, 2019, at 8:37 PM, WIN KS4AA wrote: > > ?I haven't seen any instructions on how to change the startup message. I just bought a used K3/0 and would like to change the call to mine. HELP. > Eddie KS4AA (1st post) > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From charles at k5ua.com Wed Dec 11 21:51:46 2019 From: charles at k5ua.com (charles at k5ua.com) Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2019 20:51:46 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-1500 ATU operation Message-ID: Thanks to Dick for the detailed explanation of the tuner. I didn't know about the 8 Kc resolution limitation of the tuner. Even with plus or minus 8 Kc I should still be with a segment or two of the actual frequency, so I should be lower than 1.5:1 SWR. Thanks everyone. Charles K5UA From w7tr at outlook.com Thu Dec 12 01:49:57 2019 From: w7tr at outlook.com (Todd KH2TJ) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 06:49:57 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] DZOTA: Dead Zones On The Air In-Reply-To: <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> References: <2A348EFA-EFEA-4421-9827-61523E1BADF4@elecraft.com> <11e2616f1aa1423a989d57bed6a2a38c@uwaterloo.ca>, <93cb5a51-9b3d-0bd9-44ad-0ff7ed0b7b0e@foothill.net> Message-ID: Well, thanks to the burners, most of Gerlach has cell coverage, free wifi, 2m and 440M repeaters - linked to IRLP, and they have even installed their own cell tower out near the Trego Hot Springs for cell coverage out in the Black Rock. It's funny to zip by the hot springs on a 70MPH locomotive and see a cell tower out in the "middle of BFE"! ? And, they didn't have to disguise it as one of those off colored green looking pine trees - like up near W7RN - to get it "approved"...But I always have the little KX2 with me - just can't use it "locomotive mobile" anymore ;-( 73, Todd KH2TJ ________________________________ and most of Nevada too. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County From gliderboy1955 at yahoo.com Thu Dec 12 06:36:36 2019 From: gliderboy1955 at yahoo.com (eric norris) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 11:36:36 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] PZOT: Profuse Zones on the Air References: <1977853669.12501091.1576150596513.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1977853669.12501091.1576150596513@mail.yahoo.com> At my QTH, Public Transit is swinging from antenna to antenna like Tarzan, and you can power your house by turning off AGC in FT8 and plugging your speaker output into the nearest wall outlet.?? 73 Eric WD6DBM Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android From mgold at pathcom.com Thu Dec 12 10:21:33 2019 From: mgold at pathcom.com (Mike Goldstein) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 10:21:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Phone Call Message-ID: Ken, I have had a similar experience, but it was almost ten years ago! I was trying to figure out how to do something with my (then) new K3, around the Xmas period, and put in an email query to Elecraft support. I didn't expect to hear back from them for a few days, because it was very close to the Xmas/New Year period, and the world shuts down (well, most of the important part!). Amazing! Not only did I have a reply within a day from Support, but I seem to recall a followup email from Wayne, that made my Xmas Day ...twixt the two of them, they solved my problem, and very much impressed me with the kind of support they offer. I'm still waiting on a query I put into Kenwood about five years ago, regarding my (then new) TS590, and from Icom after writing an extensive letter last year, about my IC7610. Wayne, you were just a tad late in announcing the K4, and I now love my IC7610. Quite recently, I queried Elecraft about mods to the same K3, while resources are still available, and had a comprehensive reply within a day. 73, Mike VE3GFN From gt-i at gmx.net Thu Dec 12 14:30:30 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 20:30:30 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV Message-ID: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> Hi, I just bought a used K144XV. My K3 side plate does not have the 3 holes for the holding screws. Does anybody has the layout of these holes available, so at least I could drill them by myself? I guess have no other choices. Thanks, 73 Gernot DF5RF From gt-i at gmx.net Thu Dec 12 16:05:01 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 22:05:01 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV In-Reply-To: References: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> Message-ID: <511b14ad-f9e5-5765-eab4-31ff44d8b7f5@gmx.net> Hi Jim, yes, perfect! That's a brilliant Idea! Looking forward to your scan, 73 Gernot, DF5RF Am 12.12.2019 um 20:58 schrieb Jim Rhodes: > I happen to have the side panel off of my K3 right now. Would it help > if I scanned it into a jpeg file and sent it to you? > > > On Thu, Dec 12, 2019 at 1:44 PM > > wrote: > > Hi, > I just bought a used K144XV. My K3 side plate does not have the 3 > holes > for the holding screws. > Does anybody has the layout of these holes available, so at least I > could drill them by myself? I guess have no other choices. > Thanks, > 73 Gernot DF5RF > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > > > > -- > Jim K0XU > jim at rhodesend.net From gt-i at gmx.net Thu Dec 12 16:09:21 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 22:09:21 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV In-Reply-To: <000201d5b128$b2b32230$18196690$@elecraft.com> References: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> <000201d5b128$b2b32230$18196690$@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <46074dab-00ff-515f-b819-9a66f13d107b@gmx.net> My serial is 3376, second owner. It seems the first owner made some interesting mods to it. For example, the backplate BNC-hole for the 2m-Antenna is filled with an external fuse for the KPA3. Does not seem to be the standard... Thanks for the info, Dick. 73 Gernot DF5RF Am 12.12.2019 um 21:14 schrieb Dick Dievendorff: > Wow! Even my K3 S/N 00018 and it has screw holes on the side for mounting a > K144XV. > > If you don't have a K144XV installed, the screw holes are filled with 6-32 > pan head screws and a nut, so they won't be empty holes... > > 73 de Dick, K6KR > > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On > Behalf Of gt-i at gmx.net > Sent: Thursday, December 12, 2019 11:31 > To: Elecraft Reflector > Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV > > Hi, > I just bought a used K144XV. My K3 side plate does not have the 3 holes for > the holding screws. > Does anybody has the layout of these holes available, so at least I could > drill them by myself? I guess have no other choices. > Thanks, > 73 Gernot DF5RF > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to dick at elecraft.com > > From nr4c at widomaker.com Thu Dec 12 16:48:49 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 16:48:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV In-Reply-To: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> References: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> Message-ID: Have you contacted Dlecraft? They may give you directions on where to drill. Or they may send /sell you a side panel. Give ?em a call. Now, they?re still open in CA. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 12, 2019, at 2:45 PM, gt-i at gmx.net wrote: > > ?Hi, > I just bought a used K144XV. My K3 side plate does not have the 3 holes > for the holding screws. > Does anybody has the layout of these holes available, so at least I > could drill them by myself? I guess have no other choices. > Thanks, > 73 Gernot DF5RF > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From gt-i at gmx.net Thu Dec 12 16:51:56 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 22:51:56 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Waterfall question from a new waterfall guy In-Reply-To: <1BE64ED0-025F-4003-BFDE-6607AFD27DDE@gmail.com> References: <1BE64ED0-025F-4003-BFDE-6607AFD27DDE@gmail.com> Message-ID: <73780607-daad-8930-4791-8dfecc32d1d5@gmx.net> Ryan, The traces I can see are signals of other stations. The KX3 (as any other SDR) has a limited bandwidth to display, so it will shift the display window while your are tunining out of your displayed frequency window. So, if the traces you refere to depend on the tuning speed of your VFO movements, we might talking about the same thing. You may want to tweak your display a bit: change your vertical scale a bit higher to see the signals starting from the noise floor up to their peaks. Happy waterfalling! 73 Gernot DF5RF Am 11.12.2019 um 22:00 schrieb Ryan Scott Bardsley: > Hello, > > I am a very very new KX3 and PX3 owner and have been using this as my portable kit when I travel to NYC. I spend most of my life traveling in hotels, so I can't say I have really reached out to the world yet, but it certainly makes the stay a bit more fun. The KX3 and PX3 combo has been wonderful to bring on the train, setup at the hotel, and fiddle around with after work. > > I have a na?ve question about the waterfall. What exactly are the vertical lines that seem to follow the VFO as I tune around? Are they the resonant frequencies of the KX3? I am running both units on a battery, so I can't imagine it is noise from a wall wart. But I seem to see the same thing when operating at home. On the PX3, I see the green freq/bandwidth bar move when I rotate the VFO on the KX3. But the vertical traces seem to follow along with that. > > Being very new to this functionality... what exactly am I seeing? > > I made a short video here: https://youtu.be/v3iwWgsIDok > > Many thanks, and I love the chatter about how great a company Elecraft it. I have not had a single issue with my radio and am really happy with my purchase. > > 73 > > Ryan > > > > > N1CDX ? Ryan Bardsley > Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts > Unites States of America > > Grid square: FN42on > ITU zone: 8? CQ zone: 5 > WGS84: 42.579234, -70.771966 > > e-mail: n1cdx at arrl.net > mobile: 617-461-8390 > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net From ockmrzr at gmail.com Thu Dec 12 17:39:29 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 15:39:29 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] [CADXA] K3 Parts For Sale In-Reply-To: <15DF0CFE7190E350.29160@groups.io> References: <15DF0CFE7190E350.29160@groups.io> Message-ID: <120801d5b13d$0521f2d0$0f65d870$@gmail.com> I recently upgraded of my two K3's. As such, I have a few left over parts for sale. Perhaps some of you own a K3; maybe you're interested in having some spares on hand. 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter If interested, let me know via direct email. "Let's Make a Deal" 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From k9ma at sdellington.us Thu Dec 12 17:43:46 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 16:43:46 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts Message-ID: I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? 73, Scott K9MA -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From n9dix at outlook.com Thu Dec 12 20:02:05 2019 From: n9dix at outlook.com (Jim Jones) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 01:02:05 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Wish List Message-ID: Okay, I'm a 2nd owner of a KX3 and I'm still reading and trying To figure out all the commands and menu options. Yikes. Anyway, I run a lot of digital, mainly on Mars circuits. What I'm finding Is that I have to swap plugs for the mic and speaker each time I Have to go to voice and then back again for digital. What would Be nice to add to a wish list is to put a 6-pin mini-din connector On the KX3. This would have a pin for Mic input, Ground, Key line, And a line out audio level fixed level. This would allow the end user to take his computer/KX3/Signalink Out into the field and run digital fairly easy. This is just a Wish for something in the future. By the way, great rig. 73 Jim Jim Jones - N9DIX Waverly, TN From ockmrzr at gmail.com Thu Dec 12 20:45:28 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 18:45:28 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <134801d5b157$001a6aa0$004f3fe0$@gmail.com> I recently upgraded of my two K3's. As such, I have a few left over parts for sale. 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KFL3A-1.8, 1.8 kHz Roofing Filter If interested, let me know via direct email. "Let's Make a Deal" 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of K9MA Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? 73, Scott K9MA -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to ockmrzr at gmail.com From rich at wc3t.us Thu Dec 12 21:27:28 2019 From: rich at wc3t.us (rich hurd WC3T) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 21:27:28 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wish List In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I have thought of 3D printing a ?manifold? that would have connectors that plugged into the side panel of the KX3 and allowed something similar for a quick disconnect. Frankly, however, this idea hasn?t gotten past the stars-in-the-eyes stage and also frankly it wasn?t that hard to use a wye cord for my MARS ops. On Thu, Dec 12, 2019 at 20:02 Jim Jones wrote: > Okay, I'm a 2nd owner of a KX3 and I'm still reading and trying > To figure out all the commands and menu options. Yikes. Anyway, > I run a lot of digital, mainly on Mars circuits. What I'm finding > Is that I have to swap plugs for the mic and speaker each time I > Have to go to voice and then back again for digital. What would > Be nice to add to a wish list is to put a 6-pin mini-din connector > On the KX3. This would have a pin for Mic input, Ground, Key line, > And a line out audio level fixed level. > > This would allow the end user to take his computer/KX3/Signalink > Out into the field and run digital fairly easy. This is just a > Wish for something in the future. By the way, great rig. > 73 > Jim > > Jim Jones - N9DIX > Waverly, TN > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rich at wc3t.us > -- 72, Rich Hurd / WC3T / DMR: 3142737 Northampton County RACES, EPA-ARRL Public Information Officer for Scouting Latitude: 40.761621 Longitude: -75.288988 (40?45.68' N 75?17.33' W) Grid: *FN20is* From noswals at gmail.com Thu Dec 12 21:53:46 2019 From: noswals at gmail.com (Craig Slawson) Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2019 19:53:46 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] FOR SALE - KX3 - As New Message-ID: <68EF684B-5BC4-4594-B7B1-80B7094446B9@gmail.com> I have for sale an 'as-new' KX3. I purchased it in early October this year before I had achieved my license - as a result, I have never transmitted on this radio. The reason I?m selling it is because a good friend of mine knows the family of a Silent Key who has a K3 that I can purchase for a ?song?. Likely I?d never take the KX3 out of the shack anyway so a K3 will siut my needs better... This is my original order from Elecraft: SS30DV_SS30DV Compact Switching Power Supply1$119.95 MH3_ MH3 Hand Microphone (KX-LINE)1$69.95 KX3-PCKT_Accessory Cable Kit for KX31$24.95 KX3-F_KX3 160-6M Transceiver, Factory Assembled1$1099.95 KXAT3-F_20 Watt Internal Automatic Antenna Tuner (Factory Installed) KXBC3-F_Internal NiMH Charger / Real-Time Clock (Factory Installed) KXFL3-F_KX3 Dual-Passband Roofing Filter (Factory Installed) As one would expect, everything is in MINT/PERFECT condition. I?ll also include a kit I purchased from Amazon ($79.00) for the KX3 which includes: aftermarket black CNC machined aluminum side plates (with handles) and heat sink, clear protective cover and canvas bag for radio. These items are uninstalled. I have about $1800.00 invested - I?ll let it all go for $1500.00 (or reasonable offer) and include CONUS shipping. Any questions, please call, text or email. Pictures available upon request. Best, Craig / KJ7KKD Great Falls, MT kj7kkd at gmail.com 661-221-1616 From gs at oaft.com Fri Dec 13 05:38:41 2019 From: gs at oaft.com (GS) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 11:38:41 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Keep up your GOOD work Message-ID: Never had a problem with Your Products I am using!? ( K1,? K3 and spares? ) experienced quick response when asking for spares. Hints came quickly. Even firmware issues were solved quickly? -? THANK YOU?? and have nice holidays Gerd? OE3GSA? 73 From ockmrzr at gmail.com Fri Dec 13 08:38:27 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 06:38:27 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts For Sale Message-ID: <00f401d5b1ba$9b637e80$d22a7b80$@gmail.com> I recently upgraded of my two K3's. As such, I have a few left over parts for sale. Perhaps some of you own a K3; maybe you're interested in having some spares on hand. 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface If interested, let me know via direct email. "Let's Make a Deal" 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty _._,_._,_ _____ Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#8) | Reply To Group | Reply To Sender | Mute This Topic | New Topic Your Subscription | Contact Group Owner | Unsubscribe [ockmrzr at gmail.com] _._,_._,_ From jstoneback at yahoo.com Fri Dec 13 08:58:59 2019 From: jstoneback at yahoo.com (Jim Stoneback) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 08:58:59 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> Is there any way to expand the (receive) DSP maximum bandwidth beyond 5kHz in AM mode? I have the 13 kHz roofing filter installed. 73, Jim K4AXF K3 #4936 From lists at subich.com Fri Dec 13 09:19:08 2019 From: lists at subich.com (Joe Subich, W4TV) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 09:19:08 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> On 2019-12-13 8:58 AM, Jim Stoneback via Elecraft wrote: > Is there any way to expand the (receive) DSP maximum bandwidth beyond 5kHz in AM mode? No. It would be ineffective since the audio chain has a 4500 Hz "brickwall" (sharp cutoff) lowpass filter limiting the audio response (to remove DAC artifacts/aliasing). > I have the 13 kHz roofing filter installed. Remember, the DSP display is audio. 5 KHz represents 10 Hz at RF (IF). 73, ... Joe, W4TV From ve3iql at gmail.com Fri Dec 13 09:39:12 2019 From: ve3iql at gmail.com (Terry Basom) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 09:39:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] T1 Message-ID: Looking for a T1 tuner.. Thanks Terry VE3IQL From nv4c.ian at gmail.com Fri Dec 13 09:46:29 2019 From: nv4c.ian at gmail.com (Ian Kahn) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 09:46:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] T1 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Terry, I have one for sale. Let's connect off-line. Ian, NV4C On Fri, Dec 13, 2019, 9:39 AM Terry Basom wrote: > Looking for a T1 tuner.. > > Thanks > Terry > VE3IQL > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nv4c.ian at gmail.com > From va3mw at portcredit.net Fri Dec 13 10:08:52 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 10:08:52 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] T1 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I have one as well that I think I can part with. Mike va3mw On Fri, Dec 13, 2019 at 9:48 AM Ian Kahn wrote: > Terry, > > I have one for sale. Let's connect off-line. > > Ian, NV4C > > On Fri, Dec 13, 2019, 9:39 AM Terry Basom wrote: > > > Looking for a T1 tuner.. > > > > Thanks > > Terry > > VE3IQL > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to nv4c.ian at gmail.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net > From w5jv at hotmail.com Fri Dec 13 11:07:46 2019 From: w5jv at hotmail.com (Doug Hensley) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 16:07:46 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts Message-ID: Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would be good to have for either the future or the future owner. Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply and they may not want to let that information out. Thank you, Doug W5JV -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of K9MA Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? 73, Scott K9MA -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us ______________________________________________________________ From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 13 12:28:32 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 11:28:32 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2B32FB77-6901-4F02-8D33-C5EE29D29AD0@blomand.net> Having been down this path with another company and having to plan for end-of-life support for products of that company, I would caution that hoarding parts, sucks up and will rapidly deplete any inventory planned. Although I understand the desire to keep your radio operational, without parts at the service location then radios can?t be repaired. Personally I would prefer to have the parts at the service location as opposed to them sitting in some unknown hams desk drawer. Those in the desk drawer won?t likely do anyone any good. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 13, 2019, at 10:24 AM, Doug Hensley wrote: > > ?Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, > please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would > be good to have for either the future or the future owner. > > Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply > and they may not want to let that information out. > > Thank you, > > Doug W5JV > > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On > Behalf Of K9MA > Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts > > I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in > the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the > main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? > > 73, > > Scott K9MA > > -- > Scott K9MA > > k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From gt-i at gmx.net Fri Dec 13 13:01:57 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 19:01:57 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Sideplate for K144XV In-Reply-To: <511b14ad-f9e5-5765-eab4-31ff44d8b7f5@gmx.net> References: <8709fbe6-3d60-2e00-adba-a9c75164d833@gmx.net> <511b14ad-f9e5-5765-eab4-31ff44d8b7f5@gmx.net> Message-ID: Jim and all, My K144XV is now alive. So thanks for your great help, also thanks to elecraft support who helped with a drawing. The old side plate also missed the blank space, which I spotted on the scans of Jim. Lucky me, the transverter was also equipped with the REFLOCK board, so I guess that was a great deal. 73 Gernot DF5RF PS: If anybody in Europe is interested in buying used Elecraft gear, I can recommend OZ6MWE (http://www.mwe.dk/index-filer/Page556.htm). I've bought there two times without any hassle and at a fair price. Am 12.12.2019 um 22:05 schrieb gt-i at gmx.net: > Hi Jim, > yes, perfect! That's a brilliant Idea! > Looking forward to your scan, > 73 Gernot, DF5RF > > Am 12.12.2019 um 20:58 schrieb Jim Rhodes: >> I happen to have the side panel off of my K3 right now. Would it help >> if I scanned it into a jpeg file and sent it to you? >> >> >> On Thu, Dec 12, 2019 at 1:44 PM > >> wrote: >> >> ??? Hi, >> ??? I just bought a used K144XV. My K3 side plate does not have the 3 >> ??? holes >> ??? for the holding screws. >> ??? Does anybody has the layout of these holes available, so at least I >> ??? could drill them by myself? I guess have no other choices. >> ??? Thanks, >> ??? 73 Gernot DF5RF >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> ??? Elecraft mailing list >> ??? Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> ??? Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> ??? Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> ??? >> >> ??? This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> ??? Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> ??? Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com >> >> >> >> -- >> Jim K0XU >> jim at rhodesend.net > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net From gt-i at gmx.net Fri Dec 13 13:09:18 2019 From: gt-i at gmx.net (gt-i at gmx.net) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 19:09:18 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts In-Reply-To: <2B32FB77-6901-4F02-8D33-C5EE29D29AD0@blomand.net> References: <2B32FB77-6901-4F02-8D33-C5EE29D29AD0@blomand.net> Message-ID: Very true. I just tried to get every important missing option and the upgrades. I'm asking myself it it makes sense to replace the front panel, as it seems to be impossible to repair or clean the soft knobs. Or am I missing something? Am 13.12.2019 um 18:28 schrieb Bob McGraw K4TAX: > Having been down this path with another company and having to plan for end-of-life support for products of that company, I would caution that hoarding parts, sucks up and will rapidly deplete any inventory planned. Although I understand the desire to keep your radio operational, without parts at the service location then radios can?t be repaired. > > Personally I would prefer to have the parts at the service location as opposed to them sitting in some unknown hams desk drawer. Those in the desk drawer won?t likely do anyone any good. > > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 13, 2019, at 10:24 AM, Doug Hensley wrote: >> >> ?Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, >> please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would >> be good to have for either the future or the future owner. >> >> Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply >> and they may not want to let that information out. >> >> Thank you, >> >> Doug W5JV >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On >> Behalf Of K9MA >> Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts >> >> I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in >> the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the >> main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? >> >> 73, >> >> Scott K9MA >> >> -- >> Scott K9MA >> >> k9ma at sdellington.us >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net From k6dgw at foothill.net Fri Dec 13 13:22:28 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 10:22:28 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> Message-ID: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> Could you explain a little more? 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/13/2019 6:19 AM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: > Remember, the DSP display is audio.? 5 KHz represents 10 Hz at > RF (IF). From c-hawley at illinois.edu Fri Dec 13 15:21:22 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 20:21:22 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts In-Reply-To: References: <2B32FB77-6901-4F02-8D33-C5EE29D29AD0@blomand.net>, Message-ID: <7FA437E7-C8A3-4C28-A2DF-5A82F873B556@illinois.edu> Generally...whatever you stock in replacement parts will never be needed. These devices know what?s on the shelf. The part that device breaks will be the least expected part. Chuck Jack Hawley KE9UW Sent from my iPhone, cjack > On Dec 13, 2019, at 12:09 PM, "gt-i at gmx.net" wrote: > > Very true. I just tried to get every important missing option and the upgrades. > I'm asking myself it it makes sense to replace the front panel, as it seems to be impossible to repair or clean the soft knobs. Or am I missing something? > >> Am 13.12.2019 um 18:28 schrieb Bob McGraw K4TAX: >> Having been down this path with another company and having to plan for end-of-life support for products of that company, I would caution that hoarding parts, sucks up and will rapidly deplete any inventory planned. Although I understand the desire to keep your radio operational, without parts at the service location then radios can?t be repaired. >> >> Personally I would prefer to have the parts at the service location as opposed to them sitting in some unknown hams desk drawer. Those in the desk drawer won?t likely do anyone any good. >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>> On Dec 13, 2019, at 10:24 AM, Doug Hensley wrote: >>> >>> ?Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, >>> please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would >>> be good to have for either the future or the future owner. >>> >>> Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply >>> and they may not want to let that information out. >>> >>> Thank you, >>> >>> Doug W5JV >>> >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On >>> Behalf Of K9MA >>> Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 >>> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts >>> >>> I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in >>> the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the >>> main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? >>> >>> 73, >>> >>> Scott K9MA >>> >>> -- >>> Scott K9MA >>> >>> k9ma at sdellington.us >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> >>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >>> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From lists at subich.com Fri Dec 13 15:30:57 2019 From: lists at subich.com (Joe Subich, W4TV) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 15:30:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> Message-ID: On 2019-12-13 1:22 PM, Fred Jensen wrote: > Could you explain a little more? What's to explain? AM is a double sideband signal - equal width either side of the carrier with each sideband carrying the same audio information but inverted in frequency. A 5 KHz *audio* bandwidth would be equivalent to a 10 Hz RF (IF) bandwidth. In fact, the K3/K3S processes DSP at both "IF" (right after the analog to digital conversion) and again at "AF" (just before the digital to analog conversion). For AM, the IF bandwidth is twice the AF bandwidth ... for SYNC AM, LSB, USB, CW, DATA the IF bandwidth and AF bandwidth are essentially the same. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 2019-12-13 1:22 PM, Fred Jensen wrote: > Could you explain a little more? > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > > On 12/13/2019 6:19 AM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: >> Remember, the DSP display is audio.? 5 KHz represents 10 Hz at >> RF (IF). > From kk7p4dsp at gmail.com Fri Dec 13 15:33:26 2019 From: kk7p4dsp at gmail.com (Lyle Johnson) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 13:33:26 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> References: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> Message-ID: <9612AF70-1CD8-4F71-883C-40D26640DC7E@gmail.com> Fred, The audio CODECs in the K3 have a 12 kHz sample rate. This puts the maximum audio bandwidth at 6 kHz. Practical limits of DSP filtering in the context of the K3 implementation limit audio to 4.5 kHz or so. Aliasing around the 12 kHz sample rate of the CODECs required that ?brick wall? low pass filter as well as additional analog filters after the audio DACs to eliminate those aliasing artifacts. 73 , Lyle KK7P (at the Grand Canyon) Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 13, 2019, at 11:24 AM, Fred Jensen wrote: > > ?Could you explain a little more? > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > >> On 12/13/2019 6:19 AM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: >> Remember, the DSP display is audio. 5 KHz represents 10 Hz at >> RF (IF). > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to kk7p4dsp at gmail.com From wunder at wunderwood.org Fri Dec 13 15:36:21 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 12:36:21 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> Message-ID: <9DEAF80D-598C-491B-9136-FC1A785934AA@wunderwood.org> > On Dec 13, 2019, at 12:30 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: > > A 5 KHz *audio* bandwidth would be equivalent to a 10 Hz RF (IF) > bandwidth. I expect you mean a 10 kHz RF bandwidth, not 10 Hz. wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) From weaverwf at usermail.com Fri Dec 13 15:50:25 2019 From: weaverwf at usermail.com (Bill Weaver) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 15:50:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> <95374c97-4e29-c1dc-968b-6f9a12f7f5c5@subich.com> <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> Message-ID: <39d1af39-aad0-4ac9-ab27-5286f44c4662@localhost> Joe, I think the confusion might come in with the typo -> A 5 KHz *audio* bandwidth would be equivalent to a 10 Hz RF (IF) Should be -> A 5 KHz *audio* bandwidth would be equivalent to a 10 KHz RF (IF) 73, Bill WE5P > > On Dec 13, 2019 at 15:31, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote: > > > On 2019-12-13 1:22 PM, Fred Jensen wrote: > Could you explain a little more? What's to explain? > From k6dgw at foothill.net Fri Dec 13 16:09:05 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 13:09:05 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <9612AF70-1CD8-4F71-883C-40D26640DC7E@gmail.com> References: <395f668c-5e26-33f3-ffe7-1f56a08b048f@foothill.net> <9612AF70-1CD8-4F71-883C-40D26640DC7E@gmail.com> Message-ID: OK, I think I read something into Joe's post that wasn't really there, that's how I thought it worked and I I think Joe was referring to the DSB BW at the 15 kHz 2nd IF.? Enjoy the GC, we stayed in a cabin maybe 50 meters from the edge ... awesome! 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/13/2019 12:33 PM, Lyle Johnson wrote: > Fred, > > The audio CODECs in the K3 have a 12 kHz sample rate. This puts the maximum audio bandwidth at 6 kHz. Practical limits of DSP filtering in the context of the K3 implementation limit audio to 4.5 kHz or so. > > Aliasing around the 12 kHz sample rate of the CODECs required that ?brick wall? low pass filter as well as additional analog filters after the audio DACs to eliminate those aliasing artifacts. > > 73 , > > Lyle KK7P (at the Grand Canyon) > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 13, 2019, at 11:24 AM, Fred Jensen wrote: >> >> ?Could you explain a little more? >> >> 73, >> Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW >> Sparks NV DM09dn >> Washoe County >> From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 13 16:17:11 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 15:17:11 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts In-Reply-To: <7FA437E7-C8A3-4C28-A2DF-5A82F873B556@illinois.edu> References: <7FA437E7-C8A3-4C28-A2DF-5A82F873B556@illinois.edu> Message-ID: <05786C23-0DCE-4534-A8D1-6C2C54640D0D@blomand.net> Good advice Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 13, 2019, at 2:35 PM, hawley, charles j jr wrote: > > ?Generally...whatever you stock in replacement parts will never be needed. These devices know what?s on the shelf. The part that device breaks will be the least expected part. > > Chuck Jack Hawley > KE9UW > > Sent from my iPhone, cjack > >> On Dec 13, 2019, at 12:09 PM, "gt-i at gmx.net" wrote: >> >> Very true. I just tried to get every important missing option and the upgrades. >> I'm asking myself it it makes sense to replace the front panel, as it seems to be impossible to repair or clean the soft knobs. Or am I missing something? >> >>>> Am 13.12.2019 um 18:28 schrieb Bob McGraw K4TAX: >>> Having been down this path with another company and having to plan for end-of-life support for products of that company, I would caution that hoarding parts, sucks up and will rapidly deplete any inventory planned. Although I understand the desire to keep your radio operational, without parts at the service location then radios can?t be repaired. >>> >>> Personally I would prefer to have the parts at the service location as opposed to them sitting in some unknown hams desk drawer. Those in the desk drawer won?t likely do anyone any good. >>> >>> Bob, K4TAX >>> >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> >>>> On Dec 13, 2019, at 10:24 AM, Doug Hensley wrote: >>>> >>>> ?Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, >>>> please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would >>>> be good to have for either the future or the future owner. >>>> >>>> Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply >>>> and they may not want to let that information out. >>>> >>>> Thank you, >>>> >>>> Doug W5JV >>>> >>>> >>>> -----Original Message----- >>>> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On >>>> Behalf Of K9MA >>>> Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 >>>> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts >>>> >>>> I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in >>>> the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the >>>> main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? >>>> >>>> 73, >>>> >>>> Scott K9MA >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Scott K9MA >>>> >>>> k9ma at sdellington.us >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >>>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From nv4c.ian at gmail.com Fri Dec 13 16:20:29 2019 From: nv4c.ian at gmail.com (Ian Kahn, NV4C) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 16:20:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Test Message-ID: <967feba4-e975-4132-4a5a-b3d959ae527a@gmail.com> Trying to get an old, no-longer-monitored email unsubscribed, and the correct one subscribed. Testing my efforts. Thanks and 73, Ian, NV4C From dave at nk7z.net Fri Dec 13 18:58:55 2019 From: dave at nk7z.net (Dave Cole) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 15:58:55 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 & K3s Parts In-Reply-To: <7FA437E7-C8A3-4C28-A2DF-5A82F873B556@illinois.edu> References: <2B32FB77-6901-4F02-8D33-C5EE29D29AD0@blomand.net> <7FA437E7-C8A3-4C28-A2DF-5A82F873B556@illinois.edu> Message-ID: <29d85043-b64f-90c5-cfcb-55f187644a3c@nk7z.net> Spoken like a true tech! :) 73, and thanks, Dave (NK7Z) https://www.nk7z.net ARRL Volunteer Examiner ARRL Technical Specialist ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources On 12/13/19 12:21 PM, hawley, charles j jr wrote: > Generally...whatever you stock in replacement parts will never be needed. These devices know what?s on the shelf. The part that device breaks will be the least expected part. > > Chuck Jack Hawley > KE9UW > > Sent from my iPhone, cjack > >> On Dec 13, 2019, at 12:09 PM, "gt-i at gmx.net" wrote: >> >> Very true. I just tried to get every important missing option and the upgrades. >> I'm asking myself it it makes sense to replace the front panel, as it seems to be impossible to repair or clean the soft knobs. Or am I missing something? >> >>> Am 13.12.2019 um 18:28 schrieb Bob McGraw K4TAX: >>> Having been down this path with another company and having to plan for end-of-life support for products of that company, I would caution that hoarding parts, sucks up and will rapidly deplete any inventory planned. Although I understand the desire to keep your radio operational, without parts at the service location then radios can?t be repaired. >>> >>> Personally I would prefer to have the parts at the service location as opposed to them sitting in some unknown hams desk drawer. Those in the desk drawer won?t likely do anyone any good. >>> >>> Bob, K4TAX >>> >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> >>>> On Dec 13, 2019, at 10:24 AM, Doug Hensley wrote: >>>> >>>> ?Scott has a great point. With radio models changing & out-dating as they do, >>>> please recommend, if you can, what K3 (and particularly what K3s)parts would >>>> be good to have for either the future or the future owner. >>>> >>>> Only Elecraft would know what parts are either failing or dwindling in supply >>>> and they may not want to let that information out. >>>> >>>> Thank you, >>>> >>>> Doug W5JV >>>> >>>> >>>> -----Original Message----- >>>> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On >>>> Behalf Of K9MA >>>> Sent: 12 December, 2019 15:44 >>>> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Parts >>>> >>>> I'm thinking it might be a good idea to stock up on K3 parts I might need in >>>> the future, when they may not be available. Two likely candidates are the >>>> main VFO encoder and the AF/RF gain pots. Any other suggestions? >>>> >>>> 73, >>>> >>>> Scott K9MA >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Scott K9MA >>>> >>>> k9ma at sdellington.us >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >>>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to gt-i at gmx.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net > From n6kr at elecraft.com Fri Dec 13 21:24:05 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 18:24:05 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide Message-ID: Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. 73, Wayne N6KR From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Fri Dec 13 23:36:31 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 21:36:31 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <416ece6d-ad9a-2401-5a56-92a4a8935c62@cis-broadband.com> This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the case, but reality bites. 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message groups and forums. 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that you don't otherwise care about. 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than for amateur radio, especially for long distances. 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in the sunspot cycle. 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much on the job. One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any opponent.? The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors versus being on the air (other than in a contest). I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? This isn't a communication or publicity problem.? In spite of the comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a Lawrence Welk concert. I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because we weren't persuasive enough. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/13/2019 7:24 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. > > Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > > While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > > Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > > What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > > Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > > To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 13 23:56:34 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Fri, 13 Dec 2019 23:56:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: DSP Bandwidth Limit In-Reply-To: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> References: <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1.ref@yahoo.com> <5BFC48FB-A23E-405B-A882-8C5A7DC750B1@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <8a419e15-7dab-2680-6d68-583090303d5b@embarqmail.com> Jim, It is important to realize that the K3 bandwith is equal to the audio bandwidth. The K3 reports the audio bandwidth. A K3 with a 6 kHz filter is limited to a maximum of 3 kHz audio because an AM signal is double sideband and the IF bandwidth for the AM signal must be twice the audio frequency of the filter. So an IF filter of 6 kHz is required to obtain an audio frequency of 3 kHz. The DSP frequency band is in the audio spectrum while the IF filter is in the RF spectrum. There is a 2:1 relationhsip in the bandwidth. For an IF bandwidth (the filter bandwidth) of 6 KHz, the expected audio bandwidth (shown by the K3S audio bandwidth) is limited to 3 kHz. Yes, the audio bandwidth displayed can go up to 4000 Hz, but little will be heard above 3000 Hz with a 6 kHz filter usd for AM. 73, Don W3FPR Fn 12/13/2019 8:58 AM, Jim Stoneback via Elecraft wrote: > Is there any way to expand the (receive) DSP maximum bandwidth beyond 5kHz in AM mode? I have the 13 kHz roofing filter installed. > > 73, > > Jim K4AXF > K3 #4936 > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 14 00:14:39 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 00:14:39 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wish List In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9088c03e-7d1e-6e9e-795d-81b13a12cb22@embarqmail.com> Jim, Yes, switching between digital and SSB modes on the KX3 is troublesome from the requirements imposed by the single Mic input jack and the single headphone (SPKR) jack. For convience in switching between Data modes and speech modes, you will have to go with the K3 which has independent per mode selections. The KX3 was not designed to have that same capability. With the KX3, some form of external switching would be required to switch from microphone input to your digital inputs. Attenuators in the PC soundcard to KX3 audio input might be requited so you do not have to contend with the differences in audio levels. Such switching was not a part of the KX3 design, and you may wnat to upgrade to a K3 for your station instead of the KX3. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/12/2019 8:02 PM, Jim Jones wrote: > Okay, I'm a 2nd owner of a KX3 and I'm still reading and trying > To figure out all the commands and menu options. Yikes. Anyway, > I run a lot of digital, mainly on Mars circuits. What I'm finding > Is that I have to swap plugs for the mic and speaker each time I > Have to go to voice and then back again for digital. What would > Be nice to add to a wish list is to put a 6-pin mini-din connector > On the KX3. This would have a pin for Mic input, Ground, Key line, > And a line out audio level fixed level. > > This would allow the end user to take his computer/KX3/Signalink > Out into the field and run digital fairly easy. This is just a > Wish for something in the future. By the way, great rig. > 73 > Jim > > Jim Jones - N9DIX > Waverly, TN > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > From Andy at rickham.net Sat Dec 14 05:00:02 2019 From: Andy at rickham.net (Andy McMullin) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 10:00:02 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Wish List In-Reply-To: <9088c03e-7d1e-6e9e-795d-81b13a12cb22@embarqmail.com> References: <9088c03e-7d1e-6e9e-795d-81b13a12cb22@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <5F0C5E2A-E79B-4A22-BCDA-D5398F98DC56@rickham.net> Hi Both, This is my issue too ? the switching of cables and volume levels when going from mic to digital and back. It?s a pain and I?ve been considering the almost unheard of move of swapping the KX3 for another make which has a separate digital input. HOWEVER, I have also been experimenting with feeding my audio into the computer rather than the rig and letting it ?forward? the sound via the soundcards into the KX3. It?s not completely there yet, but it does stop all that swapping of cables and the computer can handle the levels. You might be able to get it to work. I hope this helps, Regards Andy, G8TQH > On 14 Dec 2019, at 05:14, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Jim, > > Yes, switching between digital and SSB modes on the KX3 is troublesome from the requirements imposed by the single Mic input jack and the single headphone (SPKR) jack. > > For convience in switching between Data modes and speech modes, you will have to go with the K3 which has independent per mode selections. The KX3 was not designed to have that same capability. > With the KX3, some form of external switching would be required to switch from microphone input to your digital inputs. Attenuators in the PC soundcard to KX3 audio input might be requited so you do not have to contend with the differences in audio levels. > > Such switching was not a part of the KX3 design, and you may wnat to upgrade to a K3 for your station instead of the KX3. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/12/2019 8:02 PM, Jim Jones wrote: >> Okay, I'm a 2nd owner of a KX3 and I'm still reading and trying >> To figure out all the commands and menu options. Yikes. Anyway, >> I run a lot of digital, mainly on Mars circuits. What I'm finding >> Is that I have to swap plugs for the mic and speaker each time I >> Have to go to voice and then back again for digital. What would >> Be nice to add to a wish list is to put a 6-pin mini-din connector >> On the KX3. This would have a pin for Mic input, Ground, Key line, >> And a line out audio level fixed level. >> This would allow the end user to take his computer/KX3/Signalink >> Out into the field and run digital fairly easy. This is just a >> Wish for something in the future. By the way, great rig. >> 73 >> Jim >> Jim Jones - N9DIX >> Waverly, TN >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to andy at rickham.net From w0mu at w0mu.com Sat Dec 14 11:12:08 2019 From: w0mu at w0mu.com (W0MU Mike Fatchett) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 09:12:08 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <416ece6d-ad9a-2401-5a56-92a4a8935c62@cis-broadband.com> References: <416ece6d-ad9a-2401-5a56-92a4a8935c62@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: <989c69c6-395b-2eb6-1926-14cf6e28f1a4@w0mu.com> There are many ways to get enjoyment from Ham Radio, long distance contacts being just one of them.? I am a DXer and Contester by heart as that is what I was exposed to as a young ham.? I never got into the rag chewing.? I had a sched with my Grandfather weekly yet we still still talked just as much on the telephone.? People stay involved in hobbies that are fun.? It has gotten increasingly more difficult to find homes that allow ham activities, ie towers and outside antennas.? The entry cost can be high.? I am curious to see if Remote is going to bring in any new folks.? It is keeping older ones active that desire to move to assisted living or smaller more easily maintained homes.? Contesting could probably be bigger than it is now but there is nothing close to level playing field which you can find with online games or Esports.? The guy with the most bucks and best location is going to have a huge advantage.? We in the west can't compete with the east coast that can run EU all day long in most DX contests.? Domestic contests are different but look who consistently wins.? These are big stations. I am also involved with 3D printing as a hobby as I play table top games and I build terrain, walls, trees, miniatures.? This hobby is booming and is filled with young and old alike.? Entry is about 200 bucks and requires a bit of space on a desk.? Same mind set for many as there is a lot to learn about the printing process to setup and make good prints.? It is not a plug in and go hobby. Young people would rather binge watch shows on their phone or tv instead of actually meeting people. I think there could be a draw but what I find is many hams don't want more hams.? They want exclusivity and for some don't really want competition as someone else might win their paper or wooden plaque.??? People want the stuff and want to win and want the accolades but would prefer to do it without competition.? I know a person that is part of horse club that my XYL and daughter are part of.? She used to always win a saddle because she was the only one that would enter that class, which required you compete in 3 classes.? She got mad when the club removed that class and started giving saddles away for the individual classes.? Her comment, well I can't beat...so and so.............. so I just won't compete anymore.??? Many competitors do it only for fun and themselves and know they have little chance to win.? This is very similar to ham radio contesting where most are really just participants and not serious competitors. I am not sure how you sell Ham Radio to people today.? I have two sons and a daughter.? One son got licensed really young and did some contests and mobile activities with me but never got hooked like I did.?? People have less free time than ever and there are more options for entertainment than ever. W0MU On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, > but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth > will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the > case, but reality bites. > > 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to > freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM > quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message > groups and forums. > > 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with > today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe > not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that > you don't otherwise care about. > > 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than > for amateur radio, especially for long distances. > > 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in > the sunspot cycle. > > 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping > stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, > I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling > me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much > on the job. > > One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of > competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost > anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching > football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games > that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio > contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way > to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that > has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance > events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the > comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? > Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency > (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any > opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as > competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all > suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could > take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the > kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that > either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. > > It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few > surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even > ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take > a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors > versus being on the air (other than in a contest). > > I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he > implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring > young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same > things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? > This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the > comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty > much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply > rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few > exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young > people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood > in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. > > If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby > itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to > understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... > we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which > doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton > or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a > Lawrence Welk concert. > > I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years > from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because > we weren't persuasive enough. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E > > > On 12/13/2019 7:24 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: >> Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) >> recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise >> of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, >> mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse >> code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. >> >> Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily >> basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. >> >> While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the >> decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic >> codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, >> there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. >> >> Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? >> >> What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? >> >> Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? >> >> To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need >> empathetic, open-ended inquiry. >> >> 73, >> Wayne >> N6KR >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w0mu at w0mu.com From mike.flowers at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 11:32:48 2019 From: mike.flowers at gmail.com (Mike Flowers) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 08:32:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <989c69c6-395b-2eb6-1926-14cf6e28f1a4@w0mu.com> References: <416ece6d-ad9a-2401-5a56-92a4a8935c62@cis-broadband.com> <989c69c6-395b-2eb6-1926-14cf6e28f1a4@w0mu.com> Message-ID: <002a01d5b29c$1f53de10$5dfb9a30$@gmail.com> Hi Folks, Well, here is a young lady who has decided the Amateur Radio - and Contesting - is her hobby of choice. Violetta (Kat) Latham, KM4ATT, has been invited to speak at IDXC 2020 in Visalia, CA. Violetta lives in Greencastle, PA and is a 15-year old Amateur Extra. She?s raising funds for her trip to Visalia. Violetta has a nice QRZ.COM page at https://www.qrz.com/db/KM4ATT Violetta's image was chosen to be on the cover of the new ARRL publication Amateur Radio Contesting for Beginners. Here's a link to the image: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xyd0fqm8e484x87/KM4ATT%20Cover.docx?dl=0 I?ve known Violetta and her family for a few years, and she?s a very accomplished young Amateur. She likes contesting and being the DX in contests, too. She?s quite excited about some South American DX she?s worked recently. Violetta has established a GoFundMe page to raise money for her trip to Visalia here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-a-young-speaker-travel-to-dx-convention-2020?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=m_pd+share-sheet Here's a very direct and practical way to reach across the chronological divide. I?ve contributed, and I hope you will consider contributing as well. Thank you. - 73 and good DX de Mike, K6MKF, NCDXC Secretary > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of W0MU Mike Fatchett > Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 08:12 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide > > There are many ways to get enjoyment from Ham Radio, long distance contacts > being just one of them. I am a DXer and Contester by heart as that is what I was > exposed to as a young ham. I never got into the rag chewing. I had a sched with > my Grandfather weekly yet we still still talked just as much on the > telephone. People stay involved in hobbies that are fun. It has gotten > increasingly more difficult to find homes that allow ham activities, ie towers and > outside antennas. The entry cost can be high. I am curious to see if Remote is > going to bring in any new folks. It is keeping older ones active that desire to > move to assisted living or smaller more easily maintained homes. Contesting > could probably be bigger than it is now but there is nothing close to level playing > field which you can find with online games or Esports. The guy with the most > bucks and best location is going to have a huge advantage. We in the west can't > compete with the east coast that can run EU all day long in most DX > contests. Domestic contests are different but look who consistently wins. These > are big stations. > > I am also involved with 3D printing as a hobby as I play table top games and I > build terrain, walls, trees, miniatures. This hobby is booming and is filled with > young and old alike. Entry is about 200 bucks and requires a bit of space on a > desk. Same mind set for many as there is a lot to learn about the printing > process to setup and make good prints. It is not a plug in and go hobby. > > Young people would rather binge watch shows on their phone or tv instead of > actually meeting people. > > I think there could be a draw but what I find is many hams don't want more > hams. They want exclusivity and for some don't really want competition as > someone else might win their paper or wooden plaque. People want the stuff > and want to win and want the accolades but would prefer to do it without > competition. I know a person that is part of horse club that my XYL and daughter > are part of. She used to always win a saddle because she was the only one that > would enter that class, which required you compete in 3 classes. She got mad > when the club removed that class and started giving saddles away for the > individual classes. Her comment, well I can't beat...so and so.............. so I just > won't compete anymore. Many competitors do it only for fun and themselves > and know they have little chance to win. This is very similar to ham radio > contesting where most are really just participants and not serious competitors. > > I am not sure how you sell Ham Radio to people today. I have two sons and a > daughter. One son got licensed really young and did some contests and mobile > activities with me but never got hooked like I did. People have less free time > than ever and there are more options for entertainment than ever. > > W0MU > > On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > > > This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, > > but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth > > will ever look at amateur radio like we do. I wish that weren't the > > case, but reality bites. > > > > 1. The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to > > freely talk to faraway places. Young people today can do that with FM > > quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message > > groups and forums. > > > > 2. Communicating today is license free, and while even now with > > today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe > > not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that > > you don't otherwise care about. > > > > 3. Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than > > for amateur radio, especially for long distances. > > > > 4. Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in > > the sunspot cycle. > > > > 5. A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping > > stone to a technical career. That is hardly the case today. In fact, > > I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling > > me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much > > on the job. > > > > One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of > > competition. Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost > > anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching > > football to quilting to barbeque. Young people today have video games > > that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio > > contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way > > to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that > > has similar elements. Ham radio contests are essentially endurance > > events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the > > comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later. > > Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency > > (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any > > opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as > > competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them. I'm not at all > > suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could > > take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the > > kind of thing I'm talking about. And no, I don't know how to do that > > either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. > > > > It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few > > surviving ham radio activities with high participation. Even > > ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take > > a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors > > versus being on the air (other than in a contest). > > > > I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he > > implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring > > young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same > > things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them. > > This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the > > comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty > > much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply > > rejected it in favor of other things. There are always a few > > exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young > > people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood > > in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. > > > > If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby > > itself is going to have to adapt. That most of us seem unable to > > understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... > > we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which > > doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit. The pictures from Dayton > > or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a > > Lawrence Welk concert. > > > > I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years > > from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because > > we weren't persuasive enough. > > > > 73, > > Dave AB7E > > > > > > On 12/13/2019 7:24 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > >> Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) > >> recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise > >> of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, > >> mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse > >> code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. > >> > >> Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily > >> basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > >> > >> While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the > >> decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic > >> codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, > >> there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > >> > >> Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > >> > >> What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > >> > >> Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > >> > >> To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need > >> empathetic, open-ended inquiry. > >> > >> 73, > >> Wayne > >> N6KR > >> > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > w0mu at w0mu.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 11:49:32 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 11:49:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] amateur radio from an OT Message-ID: I started my journey by learning Morse Code in 1950 at the age of 12. I am going to be 82. I am on the air about every day. I am mostly CW. I have 370 DXCC and also have participated in Contests both from the USA and outside the USA. It was just a few years post WW II. Communism was sweeping Eastern Europe. As a teenager I was able to communicate with Communist countries. I received QSL cards from these places and still have them. I went on in life and became a professional businessman / executive/ officer in the Corporate world. I also earned a Law degree and am still an active lawyer at 81 years old. I enjoy revisiting my youth almost every time I get on the air. I have a friend who I met when we were both Novices in 1953 and we are good friends. There are others of my friends who are now SK. Now we are able to see on television these far away places that I communicated with in the 1950s. Kids do not have the perspective of being far away. Everything is here and now and now far away. There are many of my age group and statue that feel like I do. We enjoy nostalgia and Ham Radio is the means to do that. The people from the era that I got into radio and are still active feel the same way. I have not used voice transmissions in decades. CW is a subset and the folks at Elecraft do an outstanding job in providing the gear. I enjoyed building my K2 which is now 20 years old. I use it when I want to change from my K3. I also enjoy traveling with my KX3 or KX2. Their amps are fantastic too. A great hobby that I have enjoyed for 67 years. 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE From ockmrzr at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 11:53:38 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 09:53:38 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Spare K3 Parts For Sale Message-ID: <08b401d5b29f$0939e130$1bada390$@gmail.com> I still have a few items remaining from the upgraded of my two K3. If you're interested in having some spares on hand for your legacy K3 or K3s as Elecraft moves to the K4, here's your chance. 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module If interested, let me know via direct email. "Let's Make a Deal" 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty _._,_._,_ _____ Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#8) | Reply To Group | Reply To Sender | Mute This Topic | New Topic Your Subscription | Contact Group Owner | Unsubscribe [ockmrzr at gmail.com] _._,_._,_ From len at ka7ftp.com Sat Dec 14 12:00:21 2019 From: len at ka7ftp.com (len at ka7ftp.com) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 10:00:21 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide Message-ID: <00c601d5b29f$f86fac30$e94f0490$@ka7ftp.com> Hi Dave and All, I can't speak for the masses, but I can say what drew me into amateur radio. I was never drawn to ham radio to be able to talk to people in faraway places. Rather I had an early interest in science and technology. Most of us here were born in an era where technology was simple and understandable. Our technology was transparent in a sense. Our table top radios typically contained five tubes. TV's at the time were only about four to five times as complex. In my young days I was absolutely fascinated when we bought a set of wired intercom phones. My brother and I could magically talk between our bedrooms connected only by a small wire. The concepts I learned in those days were small bite size lessons. When I got my license and a used HW16 I began my lifetime journey of ham radio. My telegraph key was one that I had pulled out of a garbage pile. My antenna was around 70 feet of wire strung between the chimney of our house and a telephone pole. I built an antenna tuner using a single coil of wire and a variable capacitor. I was absolutely fascinated with CW. The signals would magically appear from nowhere and I could respond to them. When I wasn't on the radio I would pour over the HW16 manual and spend hours decoding each corner of its schematic. When I was young and ham radio "found me" there were far fewer distractions than there are today. We had real quiet time to fill with. Simple things could catch our attention. For the most part our parents never felt the need to entertain us 24 hours a day. I spent many hours at the library reading and learning the basics of science and electronics. Today the collection of books at the library are nearly useless. Simplicity allowed me to focus and understand. I would breakdown complex things and understand individual parts. That skill set has traveled with me my entire life and helped me in my professional life as well. First, no offence to Wayne and Eric, but radios today are FAR too complex for beginners. I absolutely LOVE my KX radios, but I am in a different place than a beginner. It seems that we are setting the expectations for new users based on our place in ham radio. We are expecting new users to jump into DX, contesting, and things that require high end equipment. How about giving new users a desire to understand radio and the equipment with fewer bells and whistles. Today we buy appliances, turn the key and go. I think that is fine for someone who understands what they are doing. But for a beginner is steps over the "falling in love phase". I love my Elecraft radios because I understand what it took to create them. I understand both the HW and SW engineering. I understand how easy it makes things for me. But that is secondary to why I am fascinated with radio. My fascination comes from knowing how it works and the people like Marconi that endured deafening sparks to get us here. My fascination came from the incremental steps of my "radio" education. Many hams will complain about our current sunspot cycle and say the lack of propagation discourages new users, to that I say BS. When you first learn how to drive a car you do so in small steps. You start with the family Junker, not an Indy car. You don't drive the lower 48 states, but your local neighborhood, and typically in a school parking lot. Most people average 45 to 55 mph, very few people will ever drive 150 or 200 mph. When propagation works we talk far, when it's broke we don't. That's life, and mostly physics. With ham radio we need to set expectations. This is NOT a cell phone, it will never be a cell phone. Each tool in the box has a different use. Ham radio was never intended to provide universal communications, AT&T did that already. It can however provide for a fun hobby and occasionally emergency communications. We should never approach new users and set the expectation that ham radio competes or will replace a phone, or the Internet. We all grew up with phones, and it never replaced them for us. We all grew up with phones and still enjoy ham radio. Our phones could call anyone else on the planet, just like today. (I laugh that people say the cost is "cheaper" to make calls today. Sure, we had to pay higher long distance charges. But our basic phone service was only 10$ to 20$ per month. Try adding up an 800$ smart phone and the 100$ monthly voice and data charges, your internet and cable bill. I think the telcos got the last laugh!) I think the thing that encourages me is to see the quality and quantity of DIY projects that exist today. If you don't follow the tech blogs check out hackaday. There are some seriously amazing individuals playing with technology and building really interesting things. Many of these "hackers/makers" are people like us who love radio and technology. I suspect that these people are our future if we don't run them off. And last... The real thing that drew me to ham radio was another ham, Russ Michaelson N7SM (SK 2019). Russ and I meet at the University of Utah's surplus store. Even though we had a 12 year age difference, Russ and I connected almost immediately and became lifelong friends. I was in Junior high school and Russ was beginning a family when we meet. >From Russ I learned about more about radio and electronics, and we had many adventures in the process. I never remember Russ complaining about the ionosphere. He built a magnificent basement "shack". When he built his own 100 foot tower from scratch I climbed to the top to help set up and adjust antennas. (By then I was in my 20's, no child labor involved. :) If we expect this hobby to continue into the future, we need to be the "Russ" in someone else's life. We need to pass our love of radio to the next generation. Just expecting someone to "be" interested and on their way after the exam will never happen. Propagation will always change, we need to be the constant. 73 KA7FTP Len -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of David Gilbert Sent: Friday, December 13, 2019 9:37 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth will ever look at amateur radio like we do. I wish that weren't the case, but reality bites. 1. The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to freely talk to faraway places. Young people today can do that with FM quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message groups and forums. 2. Communicating today is license free, and while even now with today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that you don't otherwise care about. 3. Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than for amateur radio, especially for long distances. 4. Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in the sunspot cycle. 5. A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping stone to a technical career. That is hardly the case today. In fact, I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much on the job. One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of competition. Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching football to quilting to barbeque. Young people today have video games that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that has similar elements. Ham radio contests are essentially endurance events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later. Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them. I'm not at all suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the kind of thing I'm talking about. And no, I don't know how to do that either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few surviving ham radio activities with high participation. Even ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors versus being on the air (other than in a contest). I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them. This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply rejected it in favor of other things. There are always a few exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby itself is going to have to adapt. That most of us seem unable to understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit. The pictures from Dayton or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a Lawrence Welk concert. I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because we weren't persuasive enough. 73, Dave AB7E On 12/13/2019 7:24 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. > > Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > > While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > > Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > > What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > > Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > > To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to len at ka7ftp.com From dhaines at bates.edu Sat Dec 14 12:00:32 2019 From: dhaines at bates.edu (David Haines) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 12:00:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Only five years ago did I get my license, even though I was interested in radio sixty years ago.? My sons, now in their early 30's have watched my radio activities with curiosity.? A few anecdotes: 1)? On a camping trip for the three of us in Adirondack Park we set up my Buddipole and KX3.? They were astounded.? One said "Wow, it's amazing what signals and people are around us all the time!" He's a successful robotics engineer who is as immersed in today's technology as much as anyone.? He can run a million-dollar robot or his house from his smartphone, but the experience of sitting at a remote campground and talking to people with 10 watts and AA batteries still intrigued him. 2)? My other son was complaining about a DZOTA on his commute and suggested we explore it.? Having no radio other that what was in his car, I tuned in 1710 KHz AM and we listened.? He drove around the area noting the changes in QRM, sometimes obviously a advertising sign, but above it all something loud going on in an area that seemed to delineate his DZOTA.? At one point we wandered into a school parking lot, thinking the QRM was coming from the school, but it didn't pan out.? He will have fun tracking it down.? His career is in cybersecurity. 3)? One son was amazed to see my QSO with? Antarctica with a KX3, KXPA100, and a simple wire dipole.? Both sons understand communications theory well enough, but have trouble grasping the reality of capturing a signal that is 24 decibels below the noise floor from such a remote place.? When I told them my .25W WSPR signal was picked up in Tasmania, they believed me, but only. When I explained to one how easy it would be to use the shortwave radio I gave him to monitor my activity on FT8, even in his apartment, maybe with an antenna connected to his rain gutter, he was intrigued but skeptical. They know there is still magic out there.? They probably could get their Technician without studying.? Will they get their licenses?? At times I have a study manual with us and ask questions, some of which are just basic common sense or stuff that is useful to everyone.? Their response is, "Are those real questions?"? They are both primed to be curious about amateur radio (one even uses SDR's in his research!) but, despite my encouragement, haven't taken any tests.? Maybe one problem is that our kids are too "tested out" from this education system and are afraid of failing once again.? Since their dad passed all the tests, they know it can be done.? Does it help to hear that if you fail a test, it doesn't go on your record?? Or to hear that you don't need a score of 100%?? We've all heard potential hams say, "Oh, but I don't think I could learn Morse code."? We need the exams, but maybe they are an artificial barrier? david KC1DNY On 12/13/2019 9:24 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. > > Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > > While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > > Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > > What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > > Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > > To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dhaines at bates.edu From edauer at law.du.edu Sat Dec 14 12:23:31 2019 From: edauer at law.du.edu (Dauer, Edward) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 17:23:31 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide Message-ID: I wonder if the chariot racers of two or three milennia ago lamented the death of their sport. I too tried to interest my grandson, now 13, in the ham radio hobby, but with no success. He just couldn't see the point. So I reflected on when I was 13 with a newly printed Novice ticket, some 62 years ago, and when I was captivated for life by the wizardry of radio electronics, ionospheric physics, the smell of solder and rosin (and of exploding caps), the excitement of doing successfully what most people can't do at all, the fascination of international communications . . . . . all of the things we now-grandpas found and still find attractive. He found it a yawn. I reflected on it some. So what? The ham radio industry will care, and those who still believe that ham radio is imperative for emergency communications will care (though let's be honest -- cellular and satellite communications have taken much of the wind out of that sail.) But if I enjoy it and you enjoy it, and we both do it, why should we fret if other people don't? If amateur radio evolves in ways that are attractive to the next generation, all to the good. And a form of natural selection may shape the evolution that way. But if ham radio as we know it today doesn't get past a generational divide, if the mutations that survive an evolutionary end point don't occur, does it really matter? Excuse the philosophy, but I have to ask the question: Is our culture really impoverished by the demise of chariot racing? Or is that sport still with us, only morphed over time into something the next generation found attractive. OK. Break time over. Back to the ten-meter contest. Curse this solar minimum! Ted, KN1CBR On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, > but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth > will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the > case, but reality bites. > > 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to > freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM > quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message > groups and forums. > > 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with > today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe > not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that > you don't otherwise care about. > > 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than > for amateur radio, especially for long distances. > > 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in > the sunspot cycle. > > 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping > stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, > I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling > me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much > on the job. > > One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of > competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost > anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching > football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games > that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio > contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way > to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that > has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance > events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the > comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? > Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency > (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any > opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as > competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all > suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could > take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the > kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that > either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. > > It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few > surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even > ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take > a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors > versus being on the air (other than in a contest). > > I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he > implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring > young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same > things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? > This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the > comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty > much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply > rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few > exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young > people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood > in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. > > If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby > itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to > understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... > we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which > doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton > or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a > Lawrence Welk concert. > > I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years > from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because > we weren't persuasive enough. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E > From n0nb at n0nb.us Sat Dec 14 14:01:36 2019 From: n0nb at n0nb.us (Nate Bargmann) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 13:01:36 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <00c601d5b29f$f86fac30$e94f0490$@ka7ftp.com> References: <00c601d5b29f$f86fac30$e94f0490$@ka7ftp.com> Message-ID: <20191214190136.pvgklew63nebetpj@n0nb.us> * On 2019 14 Dec 11:02 -0600, len at ka7ftp.com wrote: > And last... The real thing that drew me to ham radio was > another ham, Russ Michaelson N7SM (SK 2019). Russ and I meet at > the University of Utah's surplus store. Even though we had a 12 > year age difference, Russ and I connected almost immediately and > became lifelong friends. I was in Junior high school and Russ > was beginning a family when we meet. From Russ I learned about > more about radio and electronics, and we had many adventures in > the process. I never remember Russ complaining about the > ionosphere. He built a magnificent basement "shack". When he > built his own 100 foot tower from scratch I climbed to the top > to help set up and adjust antennas. (By then I was in my 20's, > no child labor involved. :) If we expect this hobby to > continue into the future, we need to be the "Russ" in someone > else's life. We need to pass our love of radio to the next > generation. Just expecting someone to "be" interested and on > their way after the exam will never happen. Propagation will > always change, we need to be the constant. I went to work for Union Pacific Railroad in 1991 as a telecom tech and there was a very distinctive voice on many voice response systems on the UPRR telephone network. I learned that was "Russ" and later got to talk with him on the phone and then a few years later he came to Wichita, KS and did a presentation for several of us techs on something (I don't recall what, now!). It was quite nice meeting him in person. I did not know he had become SK earlier this year. Thanks for sharing your experiences with Russ, Len. Rest assured, Russ' voice was heard by likely all UPRR employees at some point through the '90s and early '00s as well as customers and others calling UPRR in Omaha. For those looking for more simple kits to introduce basic radio concepts to newcomers, various QRP groups offer such kits. I know the Four State QRP Group has done so in the past. One shorthand phrase I like to use is. "Radio for radio's sake." I translate it as no matter what end goal we're trying to achieve, we're using some part of the radio spectrum to accomplish the goal. 73, Nate, N0NB -- "The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears this is true." Web: https://www.n0nb.us Projects: https://github.com/N0NB GPG fingerprint: 82D6 4F6B 0E67 CD41 F689 BBA6 FB2C 5130 D55A 8819 From rcrgs at verizon.net Sat Dec 14 14:12:15 2019 From: rcrgs at verizon.net (Robert G Strickland) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:12:15 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2d24a956-e640-4e09-33c1-83ce0a588ac6@verizon.net> I have read with interest the various postings on this thread. To pick one out, Dave AB7E's analysis is, IMHO, spot on. As times roll on, various aspects of cultural life change, also. "New technologies" of whatever form will naturally catch the general interest, while old ones will diminish to the status of niche interests for the few. Young people generally are at the leading edge of taking up the new, while old folks hold on to the trailing edge of the old for all the usual reasons. I had an MG-TD with a broken starter in my youth; I crank started it for a year. Many funny stories, lots of fun, and some skill acquisition [pull up, don't push down]. But, I don't think that those "positives" which I fondly remember would prompt many young people to adapt a crank-start car. My father was interested in many things. He taught me to make black powder, and I blew the front off the kitchen stove [long story]. He would draw one-tube radio schematics on the back of paper napkins. Interesting for me for the novelty and for my father's interest. He/we bought an AM 3-tube radio from an electronics store in Washington DC which we built together. That was fun, although I don't remember using it much. When I started in ham radio at age 16, I followed the lead of a ham friend who got me started with code, and a big time DX operator who was an engineer at the weather bureau technical labs who owned a Collins 75A-4 and had built himself a 3-el 40m yagi [came down in the first big winter storm]. I bought a Heathkit DX-20 and a used National NC-98, a total investment of under $100. The antenna was a single wire that ran under the window and out to a back yard fence [length 30ft, hgt 15ft]. I actually worked some people! I learned CW for the simple reason that it was the only mode that I could afford. I majored in EE in college and spent 10 years in that line of work. And so on... When I got back into ham radio in 1989 at the age of 49y/o, several things were different. I had money to buy decent equipment. I owned my own home which made antenna construction MUCH easier. I had an adult's sensibility about technical stuff. I found CW interesting as a "second language." "Communicating" was not the goal but rather the proof that I had successfully mastered various technical challenges. Tinkering with antennas [the quad went up and down regularly] and computer modeling of same was interesting. The QSO/communicating was not primary but, again, the proof that I had solved some antenna problem. Hunting DX and contesting became my central focus, again as proofs that I had the station set up as best as circumstances allowed and that my operating skill set was up to the challenge. My take away from all this is that unique factors in my life have prompted and supported my interest in ham radio. I don't think that "fun" has ever been the primary motivation - although I do enjoy a good run in the CQWW-CW. The learning and acquisition curve in the hobby has always matched my resources at any one time. Today, the cost and complexity of the hobby is pretty steep. Given the difficulty in getting young people involved in STEM interests and studies, the idiot-proof nature of the consumer digital world, the low value placed on hardware curiosity and tinkering [nothing is fixed, just replaced], and the cultural focus on immediate gratification, is it so surprising that ham radio is a difficult sell? All IMHO. ...robert On 12/14/2019 02:24, Wayne Burdick wrote: > Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. > > Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > > While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > > Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > > What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > > Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > > To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > -- Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY rcrgs at verizon.net.usa Syracuse, New York, USA From w1az at comcast.net Sat Dec 14 14:10:25 2019 From: w1az at comcast.net (Bernie Gardner) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 14:10:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wish List In-Reply-To: <5F0C5E2A-E79B-4A22-BCDA-D5398F98DC56@rickham.net> References: <9088c03e-7d1e-6e9e-795d-81b13a12cb22@embarqmail.com> <5F0C5E2A-E79B-4A22-BCDA-D5398F98DC56@rickham.net> Message-ID: <1ace7fed-ac3d-07b0-9644-dda0a21ccaf7@comcast.net> I made an external switch box with a double pole-double throw switch.? It seems to work well if you don't mind the extra cable clutter. Bernie, W1AZ On 12/14/2019 5:00 AM, Andy McMullin via Elecraft wrote: > Hi Both, > > This is my issue too ? the switching of cables and volume levels when going from mic to digital and back. It?s a pain and I?ve been considering the almost unheard of move of swapping the KX3 for another make which has a separate digital input. > > HOWEVER, I have also been experimenting with feeding my audio into the computer rather than the rig and letting it ?forward? the sound via the soundcards into the KX3. It?s not completely there yet, but it does stop all that swapping of cables and the computer can handle the levels. You might be able to get it to work. > > I hope this helps, > > Regards > Andy, G8TQH > > >> On 14 Dec 2019, at 05:14, Don Wilhelm wrote: >> >> Jim, >> >> Yes, switching between digital and SSB modes on the KX3 is troublesome from the requirements imposed by the single Mic input jack and the single headphone (SPKR) jack. >> >> For convience in switching between Data modes and speech modes, you will have to go with the K3 which has independent per mode selections. The KX3 was not designed to have that same capability. >> With the KX3, some form of external switching would be required to switch from microphone input to your digital inputs. Attenuators in the PC soundcard to KX3 audio input might be requited so you do not have to contend with the differences in audio levels. >> >> Such switching was not a part of the KX3 design, and you may wnat to upgrade to a K3 for your station instead of the KX3. >> >> 73, >> Don W3FPR >> >> On 12/12/2019 8:02 PM, Jim Jones wrote: >>> Okay, I'm a 2nd owner of a KX3 and I'm still reading and trying >>> To figure out all the commands and menu options. Yikes. Anyway, >>> I run a lot of digital, mainly on Mars circuits. What I'm finding >>> Is that I have to swap plugs for the mic and speaker each time I >>> Have to go to voice and then back again for digital. What would >>> Be nice to add to a wish list is to put a 6-pin mini-din connector >>> On the KX3. This would have a pin for Mic input, Ground, Key line, >>> And a line out audio level fixed level. >>> This would allow the end user to take his computer/KX3/Signalink >>> Out into the field and run digital fairly easy. This is just a >>> Wish for something in the future. By the way, great rig. >>> 73 >>> Jim >>> Jim Jones - N9DIX >>> Waverly, TN >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to andy at rickham.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w1az at comcast.net From mikekopacki at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 14:33:11 2019 From: mikekopacki at gmail.com (NJMike) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 12:33:11 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] N1MM Logger sending CW to K2 Message-ID: <1576351991960-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I am trying to setup my K2 with N1MM Logger so that I can send CW and phone from my Windows 10 tablet to the K2. I have the KIO2 cable built and just purchased the KUSB converter. I updated the driver for the converter (although I find no instructions that say this needs to be done). N1MM Logger now follows the radio band and correctly logs the contact. However, I cannot send CW from N1MM Logger to the K2. I get the following error message at the bottom of the Entry window: "Unable to send this CW because there is no CW port set in Config: " The user manual for N1MM Logger makes this comment: "N1MM Logger does not support the K2 ?virtual keying? feature using commands sent to the K2 serial port." So I am confused as to whether or not it is even possible to set this up. Has anyone been able to do this? Any help is appreciated, and thanks! Mike -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From rcrgs at verizon.net Sat Dec 14 14:49:45 2019 From: rcrgs at verizon.net (Robert G Strickland) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:49:45 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] N1MM Logger sending CW to K2 In-Reply-To: <1576351991960-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1576351991960-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <524d0f1c-e9b2-df9a-282a-a2e4a76f9340@verizon.net> Mike... I have this connection working. However, I use a microHAM CW interface between the radio and computer with its router software [sets up virtual ports and WinKey functionality] . This setup works cleanly and reliably. I'm no expert in this area, but my reading here on the list prompts me to say that a direct computer-to-radio setup for the K2 may not be possible. I'm sure others with expertise will help you out. ...robert On 12/14/2019 19:33, NJMike wrote: > I am trying to setup my K2 with N1MM Logger so that I can send CW and phone > from my Windows 10 tablet to the K2. I have the KIO2 cable built and just > purchased the KUSB converter. > > I updated the driver for the converter (although I find no instructions that > say this needs to be done). > > N1MM Logger now follows the radio band and correctly logs the contact. > However, I cannot send CW from N1MM Logger to the K2. I get the following > error message at the bottom of the Entry window: "Unable to send this CW > because there is no CW port set in Config: " > > The user manual for N1MM Logger makes this comment: "N1MM Logger does not > support the K2 ?virtual keying? feature using commands sent to the K2 serial > port." > > So I am confused as to whether or not it is even possible to set this up. > Has anyone been able to do this? Any help is appreciated, and thanks! > > Mike > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > -- Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY rcrgs at verizon.net.usa Syracuse, New York, USA From dougzzz at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 15:13:53 2019 From: dougzzz at gmail.com (Douglas Zwiebel) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 15:13:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide Message-ID: I was caught off guard by Wayne's post. What was he trying to say? Was he trying to say why the K3 is going away and now we have the K4's? Maybe. It's prettier and more likely to attract the younger crowd based on looks? Could be, but that price? Nope. I got interested in ham radio when a friend in the 7th grade got his license...or maybe it was 8th grade. I thought it was "cool" that he was talking with stations in other states that were not next door to our state (NJ). One day, my mom drove me over and I caught him working DX (Europe). Wow. That did it for me. It was like magic. And Morse code, difficult as it may have been to learn, was another aspect of the magic. After my General class came in the mail, I swore off CW. Good bye forever. I spent the first couple years working DX, building up my totals (on mostly SSB, but even AM back then. I still remember working ZD3E on 10m AM). But pretty quickly (relative term), I ran out of stuff to work. Where was all the "good" DX? On CW! So back I went...and loaded up my log with "good" DX, especially the deep Asian Soviet states. I just loved their CW tone (not clean). And one day, I happened to run into a DX contest. This was like a year's worth of DXing rolled up into 1 day (I didn't know the contest ran for 48 hours). It was heaven. And that started me on contesting. I agree with the comments that contesting is growing. It is! See, for example, https://cqww.com/stats.htm What happened in the 21st century? Nobody knows for sure, but it was big (at least for contesting). I also agree with the comment that not everybody contests for the entire contest. Hardly! See https://cqww.com/blog/operating-time-for-single-operator-entries/ This is a bit dated, but since I am the one who does this calculation, I can tell you that i continues even today. Most guy give out points...not trying to win. Most entrants (not participants, but actual entrants) only operate a total of 15 hours or less. That's like 3 hours in the morning and 4 hours in evening on Sat and Sun. Not much really. But for today's active kids, who has time to devote to contesting when they can be gaming? Most gaming is completed in short bursts of time. Same with social media. With contesting, well, you gotta wait until it's over at 2359z Sunday. And then it takes a long time to get anything close to real results. Long time = weeks to get the raw scores (which is a GIANT improvement over the old days). Now a real marketing question. Does it matter if the newbies to ham radio are teenagers? So what if the newbies are all "new retirees?" I don't know if that is true, but for me, inflow is inflow. I know lots of guys my age who wanted to be a ham when they were my age when I got my license, but didn't, but now still do and are....finally getting their ticket. AND, they have more $$ to spend than some 13 year old (like I and my friend were when we got interested). How does "age of entry" = maintenance of the population? Whatever. Enough rambling, cuz that's all I have to say. I have the next 2 weeks off from work and I'm catching up on "other" radio stuff, like this reflector. de Doug KR2Q From dave at nk7z.net Sat Dec 14 15:19:03 2019 From: dave at nk7z.net (Dave Cole) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 12:19:03 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <45603fde-0068-b575-9c4b-62784f6c1f87@nk7z.net> As an info point relating to age of new hams: I am on our VE team here in Oregon, we put through several hundred folks a year, maybe even 500 to 1000. Most people that are new to ham radio here, are between 25 and 35, with a tilt toward 40... Very narrow range. 73, and thanks, Dave (NK7Z) https://www.nk7z.net ARRL Volunteer Examiner ARRL Technical Specialist ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources On 12/14/19 12:13 PM, Douglas Zwiebel wrote: > I was caught off guard by Wayne's post. What was he trying to say? > > Was he trying to say why the K3 is going away and now we have the K4's? > Maybe. It's prettier and more likely to attract the younger crowd based on > looks? Could be, but that price? Nope. > > I got interested in ham radio when a friend in the 7th grade got his > license...or maybe it was 8th grade. I thought it was "cool" that he was > talking with stations in other states that were not next door to our state > (NJ). One day, my mom drove me over and I caught him working DX (Europe). > Wow. That did it for me. It was like magic. And Morse code, difficult as > it may have been to learn, was another aspect of the magic. > > After my General class came in the mail, I swore off CW. Good bye > forever. I spent the first couple years working DX, building up my totals > (on mostly SSB, but even AM back then. I still remember working ZD3E on > 10m AM). But pretty quickly (relative term), I ran out of stuff to work. > Where was all the "good" DX? On CW! So back I went...and loaded up my log > with "good" DX, especially the deep Asian Soviet states. I just loved > their CW tone (not clean). > > And one day, I happened to run into a DX contest. This was like a year's > worth of DXing rolled up into 1 day (I didn't know the contest ran for 48 > hours). It was heaven. And that started me on contesting. > > I agree with the comments that contesting is growing. It is! See, for > example, https://cqww.com/stats.htm > > What happened in the 21st century? Nobody knows for sure, but it was big > (at least for contesting). > > I also agree with the comment that not everybody contests for the entire > contest. Hardly! See > https://cqww.com/blog/operating-time-for-single-operator-entries/ > This is a bit dated, but since I am the one who does this calculation, I > can tell you that i continues even today. Most guy give out points...not > trying to win. > > Most entrants (not participants, but actual entrants) only operate a total > of 15 hours or less. That's like 3 hours in the morning and 4 hours in > evening on Sat and Sun. Not much really. But for today's active kids, who > has time to devote to contesting when they can be gaming? Most gaming is > completed in short bursts of time. Same with social media. With > contesting, well, you gotta wait until it's over at 2359z Sunday. And then > it takes a long time to get anything close to real results. Long time = > weeks to get the raw scores (which is a GIANT improvement over the old > days). > > Now a real marketing question. Does it matter if the newbies to ham radio > are teenagers? So what if the newbies are all "new retirees?" I don't know > if that is true, but for me, inflow is inflow. I know lots of guys my age > who wanted to be a ham when they were my age when I got my license, but > didn't, but now still do and are....finally getting their ticket. AND, > they have more $$ to spend than some 13 year old (like I and my friend were > when we got interested). How does "age of entry" = maintenance of the > population? Whatever. > > Enough rambling, cuz that's all I have to say. I have the next 2 weeks off > from work and I'm catching up on "other" radio stuff, like this reflector. > > de Doug KR2Q > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net > From g0ruz at g0ruz.com Sat Dec 14 16:17:27 2019 From: g0ruz at g0ruz.com (Conrad PA5Y) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 21:17:27 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Technical discussions vs waffle Message-ID: While these discussions are sometimes interesting they are not really specific to Elecraft radios. I have a K3S and I am looking for the occasional technical insight. Instead I read a lot of general pontification or the constant bigging up of Elecraft by sycophants. That post the other day about asking to talk to the CEO was just plain weird IMO! I will tell you this, Elecraft make PAs that have poor IMD performance. Apart from that I am fairly happy with my K3S but it is not going to engender the kind of hero worship that I see on here. This is an Elecraft forum is it not? So please discuss why the K3S has power IMD performance on 6m and why Elecraft think this is OK? They made a lot of them! I think I understand the waffle. These discussions used to be confined to 80m but now there is too much man made noise ? I am only half serious but is there not a Ham Radio waffle forum where you can wax lyrical until your hearts content? 73 Conrad PA5Y -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Douglas Zwiebel Sent: 14 December 2019 21:14 To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide I was caught off guard by Wayne's post. What was he trying to say? Was he trying to say why the K3 is going away and now we have the K4's? Maybe. It's prettier and more likely to attract the younger crowd based on looks? Could be, but that price? Nope. I got interested in ham radio when a friend in the 7th grade got his license...or maybe it was 8th grade. I thought it was "cool" that he was talking with stations in other states that were not next door to our state (NJ). One day, my mom drove me over and I caught him working DX (Europe). Wow. That did it for me. It was like magic. And Morse code, difficult as it may have been to learn, was another aspect of the magic. After my General class came in the mail, I swore off CW. Good bye forever. I spent the first couple years working DX, building up my totals (on mostly SSB, but even AM back then. I still remember working ZD3E on 10m AM). But pretty quickly (relative term), I ran out of stuff to work. Where was all the "good" DX? On CW! So back I went...and loaded up my log with "good" DX, especially the deep Asian Soviet states. I just loved their CW tone (not clean). And one day, I happened to run into a DX contest. This was like a year's worth of DXing rolled up into 1 day (I didn't know the contest ran for 48 hours). It was heaven. And that started me on contesting. I agree with the comments that contesting is growing. It is! See, for example, https://cqww.com/stats.htm What happened in the 21st century? Nobody knows for sure, but it was big (at least for contesting). I also agree with the comment that not everybody contests for the entire contest. Hardly! See https://cqww.com/blog/operating-time-for-single-operator-entries/ This is a bit dated, but since I am the one who does this calculation, I can tell you that i continues even today. Most guy give out points...not trying to win. Most entrants (not participants, but actual entrants) only operate a total of 15 hours or less. That's like 3 hours in the morning and 4 hours in evening on Sat and Sun. Not much really. But for today's active kids, who has time to devote to contesting when they can be gaming? Most gaming is completed in short bursts of time. Same with social media. With contesting, well, you gotta wait until it's over at 2359z Sunday. And then it takes a long time to get anything close to real results. Long time = weeks to get the raw scores (which is a GIANT improvement over the old days). Now a real marketing question. Does it matter if the newbies to ham radio are teenagers? So what if the newbies are all "new retirees?" I don't know if that is true, but for me, inflow is inflow. I know lots of guys my age who wanted to be a ham when they were my age when I got my license, but didn't, but now still do and are....finally getting their ticket. AND, they have more $$ to spend than some 13 year old (like I and my friend were when we got interested). How does "age of entry" = maintenance of the population? Whatever. Enough rambling, cuz that's all I have to say. I have the next 2 weeks off from work and I'm catching up on "other" radio stuff, like this reflector. de Doug KR2Q ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com From g0ruz at g0ruz.com Sat Dec 14 16:20:41 2019 From: g0ruz at g0ruz.com (Conrad PA5Y) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 21:20:41 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Technical discussions vs waffle In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Sorry about the typo I meant. So please discuss why the K3S has poor IMD performance on 6m. 73 Conrad PA5Y -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Conrad PA5Y Sent: 14 December 2019 22:17 To: Douglas Zwiebel ; Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] Technical discussions vs waffle While these discussions are sometimes interesting they are not really specific to Elecraft radios. I have a K3S and I am looking for the occasional technical insight. Instead I read a lot of general pontification or the constant bigging up of Elecraft by sycophants. That post the other day about asking to talk to the CEO was just plain weird IMO! I will tell you this, Elecraft make PAs that have poor IMD performance. Apart from that I am fairly happy with my K3S but it is not going to engender the kind of hero worship that I see on here. This is an Elecraft forum is it not? So please discuss why the K3S has power IMD performance on 6m and why Elecraft think this is OK? They made a lot of them! I think I understand the waffle. These discussions used to be confined to 80m but now there is too much man made noise ? I am only half serious but is there not a Ham Radio waffle forum where you can wax lyrical until your hearts content? 73 Conrad PA5Y -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Douglas Zwiebel Sent: 14 December 2019 21:14 To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide I was caught off guard by Wayne's post. What was he trying to say? Was he trying to say why the K3 is going away and now we have the K4's? Maybe. It's prettier and more likely to attract the younger crowd based on looks? Could be, but that price? Nope. I got interested in ham radio when a friend in the 7th grade got his license...or maybe it was 8th grade. I thought it was "cool" that he was talking with stations in other states that were not next door to our state (NJ). One day, my mom drove me over and I caught him working DX (Europe). Wow. That did it for me. It was like magic. And Morse code, difficult as it may have been to learn, was another aspect of the magic. After my General class came in the mail, I swore off CW. Good bye forever. I spent the first couple years working DX, building up my totals (on mostly SSB, but even AM back then. I still remember working ZD3E on 10m AM). But pretty quickly (relative term), I ran out of stuff to work. Where was all the "good" DX? On CW! So back I went...and loaded up my log with "good" DX, especially the deep Asian Soviet states. I just loved their CW tone (not clean). And one day, I happened to run into a DX contest. This was like a year's worth of DXing rolled up into 1 day (I didn't know the contest ran for 48 hours). It was heaven. And that started me on contesting. I agree with the comments that contesting is growing. It is! See, for example, https://cqww.com/stats.htm What happened in the 21st century? Nobody knows for sure, but it was big (at least for contesting). I also agree with the comment that not everybody contests for the entire contest. Hardly! See https://cqww.com/blog/operating-time-for-single-operator-entries/ This is a bit dated, but since I am the one who does this calculation, I can tell you that i continues even today. Most guy give out points...not trying to win. Most entrants (not participants, but actual entrants) only operate a total of 15 hours or less. That's like 3 hours in the morning and 4 hours in evening on Sat and Sun. Not much really. But for today's active kids, who has time to devote to contesting when they can be gaming? Most gaming is completed in short bursts of time. Same with social media. With contesting, well, you gotta wait until it's over at 2359z Sunday. And then it takes a long time to get anything close to real results. Long time = weeks to get the raw scores (which is a GIANT improvement over the old days). Now a real marketing question. Does it matter if the newbies to ham radio are teenagers? So what if the newbies are all "new retirees?" I don't know if that is true, but for me, inflow is inflow. I know lots of guys my age who wanted to be a ham when they were my age when I got my license, but didn't, but now still do and are....finally getting their ticket. AND, they have more $$ to spend than some 13 year old (like I and my friend were when we got interested). How does "age of entry" = maintenance of the population? Whatever. Enough rambling, cuz that's all I have to say. I have the next 2 weeks off from work and I'm catching up on "other" radio stuff, like this reflector. de Doug KR2Q ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com From k9ma at sdellington.us Sat Dec 14 16:43:52 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 15:43:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters Message-ID: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) 73, Scott K9MA -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From alex.k2bb at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 17:31:51 2019 From: alex.k2bb at gmail.com (Alex Malyava) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 17:31:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> Message-ID: I had the same issue with homemade SS amp on 6m band... the noise, flat uniform broadband white noise, was coming from no name chinese power supply. The main one ( brandname 50V/50A) was no problem, but this one ( used for service voltages and CPU ) was generating RFI and its wires were right next to the SWR bridge. The noise was getting into the receiver and raised noise floor 5-6dB. No issue on HF, but 6m suffered really bad. K2BB On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 16:45 K9MA wrote: > I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the > KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, > my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise > floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical switching > supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a cure? (Other > than using the old amp tube.) > > 73, > > Scott K9MA > > -- > Scott K9MA > > k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to alex.k2bb at gmail.com > From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Sat Dec 14 18:03:45 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 14:03:45 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide Message-ID: <201912142303.xBEN3kaB017328@mail47c28.carrierzone.com> Fascinating to read the stories how many of you got started in ham radio. I'm six years younger than Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE. As a youngster, space travel caught my interest (back when it was science fiction) and I developed an interest in science. At age 12, I happened to discover a Zenith shortwave radio at a friend's house that showed "Police" bands. We tried it out but heard nothing until tuning down to 4-mcs (Hertz was not yet in use) and found a bunch of guys talking. 1957 I built a 3-tube regen receiver and 1958 got my Novice license. My aspirations switched to electronics and I pursued an EE degree in college a few years later. Having only a Technician license "shoved" me into the VHF bands. Space tech still attracted me and I was lucky to get a job working for NASA in 1971 at Goldstone Tracking Facility. 1979 I moved to Alaska for a different lifestyle and worked 30 years as a 2-way radio tech. Ham radio lead me to my profession and has remained my interest for over 60 years. These days, I am well into doing eme on the microwaves. Not sure how ham radio attracts folks these days. But my guess a few of the STEM students are a good bet. These days building small microprocessors as part of ham radio is a obvious entry. Certainly a K3S or K4 is pretty high-end for young folks. So there is the KX2/KX3 and a plethora of SDR's to get folks going (like my 3-tube regen and DX-35 did for me). Unfortunately, Heathkit is no more but then thru-hole soldering is long gone, as well. Maybe future will see some youngsters building quantum radios?? 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From ewinginator at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 18:04:21 2019 From: ewinginator at gmail.com (Jim Ewing) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:04:21 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" Message-ID: PA5Y, The "waffling" is about how to get young people involved in ham radio, which you may or may not care about. And engendered by one of the founders of Elecraft, who has done a great deal for ham radio, both on the design and operating end. He obviously cares. Sorry you are having a bad day. Perhaps you can consult your therapist to make it all better. V/R Jim Ewing N4TMM From a.durbin at msn.com Sat Dec 14 18:27:04 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 23:27:04 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Back on Dec 7th I posted "Popular wisdom is that KAT500 should be trained for all frequencies in a band and then operated in manual mode. This is what I do at my station but I find the training process to be a bit tedious and I'm considering automating the training process." I now have a test version working. It currently has 2 functions: 1. Sweep and Autotune - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then initiate autotune and TX with autotune power. When tune complete advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. 2. Sweep and check SWR - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then TX with 5 W for 2 seconds to allow a check of LP-100A indicated SWR or complex load. Then advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. The tuning solution for first autotune pass seems to be rather poor for some bins but it improves with a second or third pass. (I understand the result depends on the power setting but there seems to be more to it than that. Auto fine tune is enabled. ) My last autotune sweep of the entire 160 m band took 1 minute 10 seconds. The check sweep took 1 minute 20 seconds. Check sweep time should be constant but the time for the autotune sweep will be quite variable. A future refinement of the check sweep may be to set an SWR threshold and log all frequencies that don't indicate better than that value. These would then be presented in sequence for manual adjustment. So, still a work in progress, but appears to have potential. And yes, there will be an option to CW ident after tuning each bin although my preference is to minimize time on frequency. Andy, k3wyc From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 14 18:39:34 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:39:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Start-up message In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Eddie, I have not seen an answer on the reflector. Just use K3 Utility and you can Edit the Power On banner easily. Are you certain you have the K3/0? - that has no transmit capability. The K3/0 is a control head for use with a remote station. If that was a typo and you meant the K3/10 or the K3/100, then you are OK and can transmit with it, no problem. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/11/2019 8:34 PM, WIN KS4AA wrote: > I haven't seen any instructions on how to change the startup message. I > just bought a used K3/0 and would like to change the call to mine. HELP. > Eddie KS4AA (1st post) > From rocketnj at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 18:48:34 2019 From: rocketnj at gmail.com (Dave) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:48:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5F98E84C-61D8-40FD-9826-2DB0FDF2B41A@gmail.com> Sounds like a nice project Andy. I just cleared tuner memories on my 1500 and tuned every 10 kHz starting at 3.505. My issue is rain or ice affects antenna tuning. A wish list item for my 1500 would be ability to export/import antenna tuner settings on demand after they are set up. That way if you need to touch up a few bins you could reload the exported tuner settings once you are back in dry weather. Dave wo2x Sent from my waxed string and tin cans. > On Dec 14, 2019, at 6:28 PM, Andy Durbin wrote: > > ?Back on Dec 7th I posted "Popular wisdom is that KAT500 should be trained for all frequencies in a band and then operated in manual mode. This is what I do at my station but I find the training process to be a bit tedious and I'm considering automating the training process." > > I now have a test version working. It currently has 2 functions: > > > 1. Sweep and Autotune - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then initiate autotune and TX with autotune power. When tune complete advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > 2. Sweep and check SWR - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then TX with 5 W for 2 seconds to allow a check of LP-100A indicated SWR or complex load. Then advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > > The tuning solution for first autotune pass seems to be rather poor for some bins but it improves with a second or third pass. (I understand the result depends on the power setting but there seems to be more to it than that. Auto fine tune is enabled. ) > > My last autotune sweep of the entire 160 m band took 1 minute 10 seconds. The check sweep took 1 minute 20 seconds. Check sweep time should be constant but the time for the autotune sweep will be quite variable. > > A future refinement of the check sweep may be to set an SWR threshold and log all frequencies that don't indicate better than that value. These would then be presented in sequence for manual adjustment. > > So, still a work in progress, but appears to have potential. And yes, there will be an option to CW ident after tuning each bin although my preference is to minimize time on frequency. > > Andy, k3wyc > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rocketnj at gmail.com From len at ka7ftp.com Sat Dec 14 18:55:23 2019 From: len at ka7ftp.com (len at ka7ftp.com) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 16:55:23 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <20191214190136.pvgklew63nebetpj@n0nb.us> References: <00c601d5b29f$f86fac30$e94f0490$@ka7ftp.com> <20191214190136.pvgklew63nebetpj@n0nb.us> Message-ID: <00d701d5b2d9$f3552ab0$d9ff8010$@ka7ftp.com> Hi Nate, Nice to meet you, a very small world indeed. https://www.omaha.com/obits/michaelson-russell-russ-stevens/article_4b36033a -a07d-543f-a1ab-43687f27a0e6.html Yes, Russ had a great voice! When I first met him he was a dj on KNAK, I believe. When he was on the air I would call him up and "win" albums. I was in my 30's when he relocated to Omaha. I was really sad to see him go. He took his tower with him when we moved. Although I don't think he ever set up a station again. When I was 15, before getting my Novice license, I went with Russ to attend WIMU at Mac's Inn. Russ had copied all of the military code course to cassette tapes and gave me a copy. I listened and practiced for many hours. At WIMU Russ had me sit down for one of the code contests. Even though I joined part way through I ended up winning! That was pretty cool for a kid just learning code and ready to take the Novice exam. The speeds went up to 25 or 30 WPM! I still have voice mails on my phone left by Russ. I will regret the day that I may have to replace my phone and can no longer hear his voice. He had a huge effect on my life. 73 len -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Nate Bargmann Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 12:02 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide * On 2019 14 Dec 11:02 -0600, len at ka7ftp.com wrote: > And last... The real thing that drew me to ham radio was > another ham, Russ Michaelson N7SM (SK 2019). Russ and I meet at > the University of Utah's surplus store. Even though we had a 12 > year age difference, Russ and I connected almost immediately and > became lifelong friends. I was in Junior high school and Russ > was beginning a family when we meet. From Russ I learned about > more about radio and electronics, and we had many adventures in > the process. I never remember Russ complaining about the > ionosphere. He built a magnificent basement "shack". When he > built his own 100 foot tower from scratch I climbed to the top > to help set up and adjust antennas. (By then I was in my 20's, > no child labor involved. :) If we expect this hobby to > continue into the future, we need to be the "Russ" in someone > else's life. We need to pass our love of radio to the next > generation. Just expecting someone to "be" interested and on > their way after the exam will never happen. Propagation will > always change, we need to be the constant. I went to work for Union Pacific Railroad in 1991 as a telecom tech and there was a very distinctive voice on many voice response systems on the UPRR telephone network. I learned that was "Russ" and later got to talk with him on the phone and then a few years later he came to Wichita, KS and did a presentation for several of us techs on something (I don't recall what, now!). It was quite nice meeting him in person. I did not know he had become SK earlier this year. Thanks for sharing your experiences with Russ, Len. Rest assured, Russ' voice was heard by likely all UPRR employees at some point through the '90s and early '00s as well as customers and others calling UPRR in Omaha. For those looking for more simple kits to introduce basic radio concepts to newcomers, various QRP groups offer such kits. I know the Four State QRP Group has done so in the past. One shorthand phrase I like to use is. "Radio for radio's sake." I translate it as no matter what end goal we're trying to achieve, we're using some part of the radio spectrum to accomplish the goal. 73, Nate, N0NB -- "The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears this is true." Web: https://www.n0nb.us Projects: https://github.com/N0NB GPG fingerprint: 82D6 4F6B 0E67 CD41 F689 BBA6 FB2C 5130 D55A 8819 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to len at ka7ftp.com From g0ruz at g0ruz.com Sat Dec 14 18:57:35 2019 From: g0ruz at g0ruz.com (Conrad PA5Y) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 23:57:35 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: If someone has an opinion contrary to yours that does not mean that the person needs therapy or that they are having a bad day. In fact I am having a rather good day, lots of long distance QSOs during the Geminids meteor shower and a few new grids as well. There is absolutely nothing wrong with discussing getting young people involved in amateur radio but why on the Elecraft forum. It is not the right place, that is all I am saying. Ask a few EME'rs whether I care or not? I help lots of people and will continue to do so. I enjoy it. What I don't do is keep quiet about the fact that these topics should not be on this forum, they are not specific to the products. That is all I am saying. You should be ashamed of therapy in such a flippant way. What if I was suffering from mental health issues? You think it is OK to use such sentiment? However that has nothing to do with Elecraft either. Back to 2m MS. 73 Conrad PA5Y -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Jim Ewing Sent: 15 December 2019 00:04 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" PA5Y, The "waffling" is about how to get young people involved in ham radio, which you may or may not care about. And engendered by one of the founders of Elecraft, who has done a great deal for ham radio, both on the design and operating end. He obviously cares. Sorry you are having a bad day. Perhaps you can consult your therapist to make it all better. V/R Jim Ewing N4TMM ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com From ardrhi at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 19:07:41 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:07:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I don't know if you noticed, but older hams are dying of old age. It behooves any ham radio gear company to assist in the process of replacing the older hams who are going silent key, with new, young hams. No more hams, no reason to make new and better ham radios. If we want Elecraft to continue, then helping figure out how to inspire youths to become hams and maybe buy Elecraft radios MIGHT just be a reasonable thing to talk about. A tad mercantile, but the "pecuniary interest" clause refers to transmissions, not reflector emails. Elecraft is perfectly able to police the topic on their own reflector. They don't need help with that. On Sat, Dec 14, 2019, 6:58 PM Conrad PA5Y wrote: > If someone has an opinion contrary to yours that does not mean that the > person needs therapy or that they are having a bad day. In fact I am having > a rather good day, lots of long distance QSOs during the Geminids meteor > shower and a few new grids as well. There is absolutely nothing wrong with > discussing getting young people involved in amateur radio but why on the > Elecraft forum. It is not the right place, that is all I am saying. Ask a > few EME'rs whether I care or not? I help lots of people and will continue > to do so. I enjoy it. What I don't do is keep quiet about the fact that > these topics should not be on this forum, they are not specific to the > products. That is all I am saying. > > You should be ashamed of therapy in such a flippant way. What if I was > suffering from mental health issues? You think it is OK to use such > sentiment? > > However that has nothing to do with Elecraft either. > > Back to 2m MS. > > 73 > > Conrad PA5Y > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of Jim Ewing > Sent: 15 December 2019 00:04 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" > > PA5Y, > > The "waffling" is about how to get young people involved in ham radio, > which you may or may not care about. And engendered by one of the founders > of Elecraft, who has done a great deal for ham radio, both on the design > and operating end. He obviously cares. > > Sorry you are having a bad day. Perhaps you can consult your therapist to > make it all better. > > V/R > Jim Ewing N4TMM > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > From g0ruz at g0ruz.com Sat Dec 14 19:25:21 2019 From: g0ruz at g0ruz.com (Conrad PA5Y) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 00:25:21 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Ok then we have contrary opinions as to what the purpose of the forum is, I stand corrected. I am, like all amateurs, concerned that the hobby is dying out but I would have thought that there were better places to discuss how to deal with it. I am not exactly young myself. I will just continue with copious use of the delete button and I should imagine that Elecraft have to do the same and therefore sometimes miss good technical questions. There are occasionally some pearls on here but I worry that some of the more technical stuff gets lost in the noise. Maybe Elecraft do need some help though, if these things are never questioned then they will assume that everybody is OK with it. I am not but I accept that wanting technical content is a minority interest these days. I will say no more on the matter. I have made my point and that is enough. Regards Conrad PA5Y -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Gwen Patton Sent: 15 December 2019 01:08 To: Elecraft Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" I don't know if you noticed, but older hams are dying of old age. It behooves any ham radio gear company to assist in the process of replacing the older hams who are going silent key, with new, young hams. No more hams, no reason to make new and better ham radios. If we want Elecraft to continue, then helping figure out how to inspire youths to become hams and maybe buy Elecraft radios MIGHT just be a reasonable thing to talk about. A tad mercantile, but the "pecuniary interest" clause refers to transmissions, not reflector emails. Elecraft is perfectly able to police the topic on their own reflector. They don't need help with that. On Sat, Dec 14, 2019, 6:58 PM Conrad PA5Y wrote: > If someone has an opinion contrary to yours that does not mean that > the person needs therapy or that they are having a bad day. In fact I > am having a rather good day, lots of long distance QSOs during the > Geminids meteor shower and a few new grids as well. There is > absolutely nothing wrong with discussing getting young people involved > in amateur radio but why on the Elecraft forum. It is not the right > place, that is all I am saying. Ask a few EME'rs whether I care or > not? I help lots of people and will continue to do so. I enjoy it. > What I don't do is keep quiet about the fact that these topics should > not be on this forum, they are not specific to the products. That is all I am saying. > > You should be ashamed of therapy in such a flippant way. What if I was > suffering from mental health issues? You think it is OK to use such > sentiment? > > However that has nothing to do with Elecraft either. > > Back to 2m MS. > > 73 > > Conrad PA5Y > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > > On Behalf Of Jim Ewing > Sent: 15 December 2019 00:04 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] "Technical discussions vs waffle" > > PA5Y, > > The "waffling" is about how to get young people involved in ham radio, > which you may or may not care about. And engendered by one of the > founders of Elecraft, who has done a great deal for ham radio, both on > the design and operating end. He obviously cares. > > Sorry you are having a bad day. Perhaps you can consult your > therapist to make it all better. > > V/R > Jim Ewing N4TMM > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > g0ruz at g0ruz.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > ardrhi at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0ruz at g0ruz.com From a.durbin at msn.com Sat Dec 14 19:26:20 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 00:26:20 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: , Message-ID: "A wish list item for my 1500 would be ability to export/import antenna tuner settings on demand after they are set up. That way if you need to touch up a few bins you could reload the exported tuner settings once you are back in dry weather. " I'd be surprised if you can't do that now. For the KAT500 I use the utility to save the configuration and it can be restored later. Each config file is assigned a unique date/time stamp and I append notes to that standard file name. I saved multiple configs while experimenting with my trainer. The config file contains all the history of the tuning solutions for each band and bin. 73, Andy, k3wyc From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 14 19:39:58 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:39:58 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I didn?t find it a challenge at all. I started on 160M and finished on 6M all in about an hour. Those values are still good some 1 year later. It is really nice to operate 160M - 6M at 500W (except 60M & 30M) and only change the frequency on my K3S. Nothing tedious about that. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 14, 2019, at 5:40 PM, Andy Durbin wrote: > > ?Back on Dec 7th I posted "Popular wisdom is that KAT500 should be trained for all frequencies in a band and then operated in manual mode. This is what I do at my station but I find the training process to be a bit tedious and I'm considering automating the training process." > > I now have a test version working. It currently has 2 functions: > > > 1. Sweep and Autotune - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then initiate autotune and TX with autotune power. When tune complete advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > 2. Sweep and check SWR - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then TX with 5 W for 2 seconds to allow a check of LP-100A indicated SWR or complex load. Then advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > > The tuning solution for first autotune pass seems to be rather poor for some bins but it improves with a second or third pass. (I understand the result depends on the power setting but there seems to be more to it than that. Auto fine tune is enabled. ) > > My last autotune sweep of the entire 160 m band took 1 minute 10 seconds. The check sweep took 1 minute 20 seconds. Check sweep time should be constant but the time for the autotune sweep will be quite variable. > > A future refinement of the check sweep may be to set an SWR threshold and log all frequencies that don't indicate better than that value. These would then be presented in sequence for manual adjustment. > > So, still a work in progress, but appears to have potential. And yes, there will be an option to CW ident after tuning each bin although my preference is to minimize time on frequency. > > Andy, k3wyc > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From rocketnj at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 19:53:00 2019 From: rocketnj at gmail.com (Dave) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:53:00 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Never thought of that. Thanks for the smack in the head reminder :-) Dave wo2x Sent from my waxed string and tin cans. > On Dec 14, 2019, at 7:29 PM, Andy Durbin wrote: > > ?"A wish list item for my 1500 would be ability to export/import antenna tuner settings on demand after they are set up. That way if you need to touch up a few bins you could reload the exported tuner settings once you are back in dry weather. " > > > I'd be surprised if you can't do that now. For the KAT500 I use the utility to save the configuration and it can be restored later. Each config file is assigned a unique date/time stamp and I append notes to that standard file name. I saved multiple configs while experimenting with my trainer. > > The config file contains all the history of the tuning solutions for each band and bin. > > 73, > Andy, k3wyc > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rocketnj at gmail.com From n6jpa.1 at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 20:29:04 2019 From: n6jpa.1 at gmail.com (Keith N6JPA) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 17:29:04 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output Message-ID: I have just purchased a signal link USB device. The problem I am having is that every windows sound is going through the signallink USB to my radio. How do I not let windows sound go through the signal link USB to my radio transmitter? TIA Keith N6JPA From andy.moorwood at moorcom.com Sat Dec 14 20:35:38 2019 From: andy.moorwood at moorcom.com (andy.moorwood at moorcom.com) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 17:35:38 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> Question: Can amateur radio reach across the digital divide ? My answer: It could Follow up Question: Do you think it will ? My answer: No, not with current products and modes of use Why do I say this ? My 20 year old wants a turntable for Christmas. Why on earth does he want one when he can download any song he wants from his apple music account ? Answer: People of his generation are moving beyond mere utility (listening to any song anywhere anytime), they now want a musical experience, playing a vinyl record - could be one of mine - with all the "atmosphere" (hiss and scratches) to experience the music as it was "made". Could this experiential notion morph to a communications form? Communications utility is being able to contact your friends at anytime from anywhere, instantly, AKA the ubiquitous smartphone. A communications experience could be one where the path / mode is dynamic and not guaranteed to succeed (applies to VHF linked repeater systems and HF). So why won't this happen ? We (amateur radio hobbyists and industry) don't follow the usage paradigms they are used to and frankly expect, built around their smartphones. The turn tables I'm looking at have RCA jacks to connect to an amplifier but they also have Bluetooth to connect to your phone and speakers, and of course "there's an App for that" on the smartphone. People of this generation are not going to configure virtual COM ports so their apps can access a radio. Neither will they work through windows "wizard" configuration screens. Apple and the other developers have made set up effortlessly work and offer digital assistants to help you on your way. For example, below is a conversation from a possible radio future. Jon, Ham Radio Operator: "Hey Siri what repeaters are near me and can I link to Helen in Scotland ?" Siri: " Yes Jon there are several repeaters nearby but the best way to contact Helen is via Amsat, one will be over horizon in 15 minutes, shall I let Helen know you want to contact her ? conditions are favorable" Jon: " Yes Siri, let her know, I'll get the antenna ready" Sounds like science fiction ?- no this is technically feasible today - question is will some entity make the investments to make it happen ? Best Regards Andy K3CAQ -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: Friday, December 13, 2019 6:24 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of antennas to harness action at a distance. Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, open-ended inquiry. 73, Wayne N6KR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to andy.moorwood at moorcom.com From radio at disseminator.net Sat Dec 14 20:39:06 2019 From: radio at disseminator.net (Dave Erickson) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:39:06 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: On 12/14/2019 7:29 PM, Keith N6JPA wrote: > I have just purchased a signal link USB device. The problem I am > having is that every windows sound is going through the signallink USB > to my radio. How do I not let windows sound go through the signal link > USB to my radio transmitter? TIA > > > Keith N6JPA Keith, Right click on the speaker icon in the bottom right area of your screen and choose "open sound settings". Near the top change the default output from your Signal Link back to your main sound card. That should do it. You may have to reset the output settings of the programs you are using to send to your radio to use the Signal link specifically. Hope that helps. -- Dave Erickson - k0dom From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 14 20:45:44 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 20:45:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Keith, You need to change the default soundcard back to the internal soundcard (or anything other than the Signal Link soundcard). It is not unusual for Windows to assign the latest installed soundcard to be the default. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/14/2019 8:29 PM, Keith N6JPA wrote: > I have just purchased a signal link USB device. The problem I am having > is that every windows sound is going through the signallink USB to my > radio. How do I not let windows sound go through the signal link USB to > my radio transmitter? TIA > > > Keith N6JPA > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com From k9ztv at socket.net Sat Dec 14 21:13:08 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (KENT TRIMBLE) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 20:13:08 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> Everything is renewable. Nearly every Catholic church in Christendom has a widow's quilting circle.? Now they are welcoming male millennials who are attending sewing? classes and spending weekends at quilt shows. Go figure. Amateur Radio will never die as long as it offers so many niches where the scientific interests of lay-people can find a home. 73, Kent? K9ZTV From jimk0xu at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 21:13:11 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 20:13:11 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: And if you have similar problems later check there first. Especially if there has been a Windoze upgrade. Ask me how I know. Jim Rhodes K0XU On Sat, Dec 14, 2019, 19:46 Don Wilhelm wrote: > Keith, > > You need to change the default soundcard back to the internal soundcard > (or anything other than the Signal Link soundcard). > > It is not unusual for Windows to assign the latest installed soundcard > to be the default. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/14/2019 8:29 PM, Keith N6JPA wrote: > > I have just purchased a signal link USB device. The problem I am having > > is that every windows sound is going through the signallink USB to my > > radio. How do I not let windows sound go through the signal link USB to > > my radio transmitter? TIA > > > > > > Keith N6JPA > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 14 21:28:10 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 20:28:10 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> References: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> Message-ID: <09275AC4-DE03-4DEA-9725-CAD7137F4107@blomand.net> I agree as I have seen the social changes over the past 60+ years. As a youth, I was attracted to ham radio. I didn?t have the internet or a cell phone or video games. But we did have B & W TV. Today it my feeling those getting into ham radio will not be the youth of today, but will be those retired and looking to continue their professional associations. Plus they can somewhat afford to invest the money that we youth didn?t have 60 years ago. And today?s youth won?t have the available financial resources. They have a family to raise, a house to buy, a vehicle to pay for and an internet and cell phone bill each month, along with a few credit cards and student loans. Today?s new hams will be the youth of several years back. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 14, 2019, at 8:25 PM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > > ?Everything is renewable. > > Nearly every Catholic church in Christendom has a widow's quilting circle. Now they are welcoming male millennials who are attending sewing classes and spending weekends at quilt shows. > > Go figure. > > Amateur Radio will never die as long as it offers so many niches where the scientific interests of lay-people can find a home. > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From kevinr at coho.net Sat Dec 14 21:37:54 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:37:54 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement Message-ID: <0aa9d358-7445-728b-4a9d-d0d3b627982c@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? The loggers are done, I need to set my alarm clock again. Once the torrential rains of winter have flattened out the ruts it will be fun to hike the forest again.? I expect by mid-summer some of the undergrowth will have come back.? I was startled by a grouse this morning so she is inspecting the new areas too.? More elk tracks leading to new trails.? Once they figure things out there will be a number of hard packed trails I can follow. ? I was able to drop the two hemlock trees blocking the southern leg of my doublet.? When I came inside and checked the bands I heard an AK station working an AZ station.? Very good copy so I left it on and made lunch.? A long rag chew about antennas and rigs and such.? Next I heard a station from Costa Rica.? I kept scanning and found MN, MI, NE, FL, TX, AL, AZ, WI, and OK.? I think that antenna is working on twenty as I had expected it would.? On forty meters AK, BC, AZ, CA, WY, IA, KY, UT, and FL. Working there too.? Now to test it with tomorrow's nets.? I left the second antenna right where it was so I'll keep A/B testing for a while.? But antenna work is never done. Please join us tomorrow on: 14050 kHz at 2200z Sunday? (2 PM PST Sunday) ?7047 kHz at 0000z Monday? (4 PM PST Sunday) 73, ?? Kevin. KD5ONS - As time and technology have changed I wonder about the future. Such as the conundrum of which is the proper listening order of the White Album? Vinyl - ?? Album 1 side 1 ?? Album 2 side 1 flip stack or vinyl nurturist? ?? Album 1 side 2 ?? Album 2 side 2 Cassette - ?? Tape 1 side 1 ?? Tape 1 side 2 ?? Tape 2 side 1 ?? Tape 2 side 2 CD -? ( I don?t have the White Album on CD) ?? Album 1 ?? ?? Album 2 ?? MP3 - ?? Alphabetic order of song titles (very strange, just doesn?t feel right) ?? Some arcane numeric order of song titles ?? or one of the above orderings? And you wonder what we think about in the forests of Oregon ;) - From eric.csuf at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 21:46:47 2019 From: eric.csuf at gmail.com (EricJ) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:46:47 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> Message-ID: We're missing the point here somehow. Siri's answer should have been "The best way to contact Helen is to pick up your phone and call her." Anything else is pretty much a waste of time and resources just to talk to Helen. Seriously, there's a sizable investment in specialized equipment to make contact via AMSAT or whatever. The contact is set up for them. Then Jon and Helen wait to be told when the link is ready. If that's worth doing and will attract young people, then just shoot me. It sounds terminally boring. Making that investment in specialized equipment can't be justified as utilitarian communication because it's expensive and inefficient. If the point is to contact your friends any time you want to, they are already doing that with a half a dozen reliable instant technologies all accessible from the same smartphone. I don't get where ham radio comes in to solve a problem they have already solved. Certainly not with a system that requires waiting 15 minutes for a satellite to get in position, and a Cupertino Robot to set up the call. I don't have the answer to attracting young people to a rapidly changing hobby in an even more rapidly changing world. The aspects of the hobby that attracted many of us was the sheer magic of radio itself. We weren't attracted to it because it let us contact our friends. Even then we had the telephone for that. We were attracted to the magic. Nine times out of ten, the communication part was "599 OM PSE QSL". I always heard how DX contacts would allow me to learn about other cultures. Actually, it did. After exchanging signal reports, I'd look up their city with an atlas or encyclopedia. But I learned zip on the air. A few California Kilowatts could hog a DX station, and chit chat for a few minutes, and did because they could. But the rest of us never got beyond the basic exchange and fought like hell for that. But it was magic so it didn't matter that it wasn't all that practical. The magic that attracted us is gone. Maybe there's new magic to be found, but it's different magic that most of us with 30-70 years in the hobby won't understand...and probably won't like. We are the wrong people to even be considering answers but anyone expecting to make a living from the hobby will have to find that new magic. It ain't instant communication and it ain't the ham radio equivalent of retro turntables. Eric KE6US ex-K1DCK, WA6YCF, WB2PVW On 12/14/2019 5:35 PM, andy.moorwood at moorcom.com wrote: > Question: Can amateur radio reach across the digital divide ? > My answer: It could > Follow up Question: Do you think it will ? > My answer: No, not with current products and modes of use > > Why do I say this ? > My 20 year old wants a turntable for Christmas. Why on earth does he want > one when he can download any song he wants from his apple music account ? > Answer: People of his generation are moving beyond mere utility (listening > to any song anywhere anytime), they now want a musical experience, playing a > vinyl record - could be one of mine - with all the "atmosphere" (hiss and > scratches) to experience the music as it was "made". > > Could this experiential notion morph to a communications form? > Communications utility is being able to contact your friends at anytime from > anywhere, instantly, AKA the ubiquitous smartphone. A communications > experience could be one where the path / mode is dynamic and not guaranteed > to succeed (applies to VHF linked repeater systems and HF). > > So why won't this happen ? We (amateur radio hobbyists and industry) don't > follow the usage paradigms they are used to and frankly expect, built around > their smartphones. > > The turn tables I'm looking at have RCA jacks to connect to an amplifier but > they also have Bluetooth to connect to your phone and speakers, and of > course "there's an App for that" on the smartphone. > > People of this generation are not going to configure virtual COM ports so > their apps can access a radio. Neither will they work through windows > "wizard" configuration screens. Apple and the other developers have made > set up effortlessly work and offer digital assistants to help you on your > way. For example, below is a conversation from a possible radio future. > > Jon, Ham Radio Operator: "Hey Siri what repeaters are near me and can I link > to Helen in Scotland ?" > Siri: " Yes Jon there are several repeaters nearby but the best way to > contact Helen is via Amsat, one will be over horizon in 15 minutes, shall I > let Helen know you want to contact her ? conditions are favorable" > Jon: " Yes Siri, let her know, I'll get the antenna ready" > > Sounds like science fiction ?- no this is technically feasible today - > question is will some entity make the investments to make it happen ? > > Best Regards > Andy > K3CAQ > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On > Behalf Of Wayne Burdick > Sent: Friday, December 13, 2019 6:24 PM > To: Elecraft Reflector > Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide > > Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall > their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with > faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric > equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of > antennas to harness action at a distance. > > Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily > basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. > > While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, > their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for > half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a > dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. > > Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? > > What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? > > Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? > > To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, > open-ended inquiry. > > 73, > Wayne > N6KR > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to andy.moorwood at moorcom.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to eric.csuf at gmail.com > From macymonkeys at charter.net Sat Dec 14 21:54:43 2019 From: macymonkeys at charter.net (Macy monkeys) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 18:54:43 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> Message-ID: <4B0AD1DA-69FA-4C79-9A9C-7BA1FE6AE7DA@charter.net> We only have 12 years left; why worry? :) John K7FD > On Dec 14, 2019, at 6:46 PM, EricJ wrote: > > We're missing the point here somehow. Siri's answer should have been "The best way to contact Helen is to pick up your phone and call her." > > Anything else is pretty much a waste of time and resources just to talk to Helen. Seriously, there's a sizable investment in specialized equipment to make contact via AMSAT or whatever. The contact is set up for them. Then Jon and Helen wait to be told when the link is ready. If that's worth doing and will attract young people, then just shoot me. It sounds terminally boring. > > Making that investment in specialized equipment can't be justified as utilitarian communication because it's expensive and inefficient. If the point is to contact your friends any time you want to, they are already doing that with a half a dozen reliable instant technologies all accessible from the same smartphone. I don't get where ham radio comes in to solve a problem they have already solved. Certainly not with a system that requires waiting 15 minutes for a satellite to get in position, and a Cupertino Robot to set up the call. > > I don't have the answer to attracting young people to a rapidly changing hobby in an even more rapidly changing world. The aspects of the hobby that attracted many of us was the sheer magic of radio itself. We weren't attracted to it because it let us contact our friends. Even then we had the telephone for that. We were attracted to the magic. Nine times out of ten, the communication part was "599 OM PSE QSL". > > I always heard how DX contacts would allow me to learn about other cultures. Actually, it did. After exchanging signal reports, I'd look up their city with an atlas or encyclopedia. But I learned zip on the air. A few California Kilowatts could hog a DX station, and chit chat for a few minutes, and did because they could. But the rest of us never got beyond the basic exchange and fought like hell for that. But it was magic so it didn't matter that it wasn't all that practical. > > The magic that attracted us is gone. Maybe there's new magic to be found, but it's different magic that most of us with 30-70 years in the hobby won't understand...and probably won't like. We are the wrong people to even be considering answers but anyone expecting to make a living from the hobby will have to find that new magic. It ain't instant communication and it ain't the ham radio equivalent of retro turntables. > > Eric KE6US > > ex-K1DCK, WA6YCF, WB2PVW > > >> On 12/14/2019 5:35 PM, andy.moorwood at moorcom.com wrote: >> Question: Can amateur radio reach across the digital divide ? >> My answer: It could >> Follow up Question: Do you think it will ? >> My answer: No, not with current products and modes of use >> >> Why do I say this ? >> My 20 year old wants a turntable for Christmas. Why on earth does he want >> one when he can download any song he wants from his apple music account ? >> Answer: People of his generation are moving beyond mere utility (listening >> to any song anywhere anytime), they now want a musical experience, playing a >> vinyl record - could be one of mine - with all the "atmosphere" (hiss and >> scratches) to experience the music as it was "made". >> >> Could this experiential notion morph to a communications form? >> Communications utility is being able to contact your friends at anytime from >> anywhere, instantly, AKA the ubiquitous smartphone. A communications >> experience could be one where the path / mode is dynamic and not guaranteed >> to succeed (applies to VHF linked repeater systems and HF). >> >> So why won't this happen ? We (amateur radio hobbyists and industry) don't >> follow the usage paradigms they are used to and frankly expect, built around >> their smartphones. >> >> The turn tables I'm looking at have RCA jacks to connect to an amplifier but >> they also have Bluetooth to connect to your phone and speakers, and of >> course "there's an App for that" on the smartphone. >> >> People of this generation are not going to configure virtual COM ports so >> their apps can access a radio. Neither will they work through windows >> "wizard" configuration screens. Apple and the other developers have made >> set up effortlessly work and offer digital assistants to help you on your >> way. For example, below is a conversation from a possible radio future. >> >> Jon, Ham Radio Operator: "Hey Siri what repeaters are near me and can I link >> to Helen in Scotland ?" >> Siri: " Yes Jon there are several repeaters nearby but the best way to >> contact Helen is via Amsat, one will be over horizon in 15 minutes, shall I >> let Helen know you want to contact her ? conditions are favorable" >> Jon: " Yes Siri, let her know, I'll get the antenna ready" >> >> Sounds like science fiction ?- no this is technically feasible today - >> question is will some entity make the investments to make it happen ? >> >> Best Regards >> Andy >> K3CAQ >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On >> Behalf Of Wayne Burdick >> Sent: Friday, December 13, 2019 6:24 PM >> To: Elecraft Reflector >> Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide >> >> Hams of a certain age, including yours truly (first licensed in 1971) recall >> their excitement on joining the hobby: there was the promise of contact with >> faraway places, collection of vivid QSL cards, mastery of esoteric >> equipment, synchrony with the rhythms of Morse code, and the crafting of >> antennas to harness action at a distance. >> >> Most of us still feel that spark, occasionally--some on a daily >> basis--experiencing the wonder all over again. >> >> While the accoutrements and equipage of youth have evolved over the decades, >> their DNA has not. Somewhere, nestled between the genetic codes for >> half-pipe snowboarding, Instagram, Juul, and ambient house, there's a >> dormant sequence for the Radio Art waiting to be stirred. >> >> Is there a Battle Royale for ham radio? A tactical RPG? >> >> What is our sorcerer's stone? Our rap? >> >> Will Gen-Z or Gen-Alpha tickle the ionosphere, and if so...why? >> >> To hand our batons across the chronological divide, we'll need empathetic, >> open-ended inquiry. >> >> 73, >> Wayne >> N6KR >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message >> delivered to andy.moorwood at moorcom.com >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to eric.csuf at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to macymonkeys at charter.net From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Sat Dec 14 21:54:48 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:54:48 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> Message-ID: <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> Completely true ... all of it. 73, Dave? AB7E On 12/14/2019 7:46 PM, EricJ wrote: > We're missing the point here somehow. Siri's answer should have been > "The best way to contact Helen is to pick up your phone and call her." > > Anything else is pretty much a waste of time and resources just to > talk to Helen. Seriously, there's a sizable investment in specialized > equipment to make contact via AMSAT or whatever. The contact is set up > for them. Then Jon and Helen wait to be told when the link is ready. > If that's worth doing and will attract young people, then just shoot > me. It sounds terminally boring. > > Making that investment in specialized equipment can't be justified as > utilitarian communication because it's expensive and inefficient. If > the point is to contact your friends any time you want to, they are > already doing that with a half a dozen reliable instant technologies > all accessible from the same smartphone. I don't get where ham radio > comes in to solve a problem they have already solved. Certainly not > with a system that requires waiting 15 minutes for a satellite to get > in position, and a Cupertino Robot to set up the call. > > I don't have the answer to attracting young people to a rapidly > changing hobby in an even more rapidly changing world. The aspects of > the hobby that attracted many of us was the sheer magic of radio > itself. We weren't attracted to it because it let us contact our > friends. Even then we had the telephone for that. We were attracted to > the magic. Nine times out of ten, the communication part was "599 OM > PSE QSL". > > I always heard how DX contacts would allow me to learn about other > cultures. Actually, it did. After exchanging signal reports, I'd look > up their city with an atlas or encyclopedia. But I learned zip on the > air. A few California Kilowatts could hog a DX station, and chit chat > for a few minutes, and did because they could. But the rest of us > never got beyond the basic exchange and fought like hell for that. But > it was magic so it didn't matter that it wasn't all that practical. > > The magic that attracted us is gone. Maybe there's new magic to be > found, but it's different magic that most of us with 30-70 years in > the hobby won't understand...and probably won't like. We are the wrong > people to even be considering answers but anyone expecting to make a > living from the hobby will have to find that new magic. It ain't > instant communication and it ain't the ham radio equivalent of retro > turntables. > > Eric KE6US > > ex-K1DCK, WA6YCF, WB2PVW > From n4zr at comcast.net Sat Dec 14 22:03:36 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 22:03:36 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> Message-ID: I just tried that with my KPA-1500, Scott, and could not hear any change.? Another one of those RFI gremlins! 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: > I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the > KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it > on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban > noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical > switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a > cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) > > 73, > > Scott K9MA > From k9ma at sdellington.us Sat Dec 14 22:11:52 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 21:11:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <7e62ce0d-cd3b-45df-22c3-9d1bc3f147fe@sdellington.us> Hi Pete, It did help to put a couple ferrites on the PS control cable. It's now barely perceptible, but that's with an urban noise level. It's definitely coming in via the antenna, something over 100 ft away. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/14/2019 21:03, N4ZR wrote: > I just tried that with my KPA-1500, Scott, and could not hear any > change.? Another one of those RFI gremlins! > > 73, Pete N4ZR > Check out the Reverse Beacon Network > at , now > spotting RTTY activity worldwide. > For spots, please use your favorite > "retail" DX cluster. > > On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the >> KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it >> on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an >> urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not >> typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and >> found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) >> >> 73, >> >> Scott K9MA >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Sat Dec 14 22:26:31 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 20:26:31 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> References: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> Message-ID: I believe that to be likely as well, depending what effect the changing demographics have upon frequency allocations.? But we will probably be much fewer in number ... the people in the pictures from Dayton look a year older each and every year and that can't go on forever. As I said before, maybe somebody will come up with some truly new approaches for ham radio and that will make a difference, but it's rather telling that the majority of the posts in this thread reminisce about what intrigued us about ham radio 40 or 60 years ago instead of what we might do to change it for the future.? The inertia is quite considerable. The number of people who look to ham radio to experiment technically is going to be pretty small ... there are many more relevant technologies today that will actually lead to an actual job.? The number of people who will look to ham radio purely to communicate is trivial ... there are far cheaper and more reliable means to do so. I guess there will always be a need to have a backup way to communicate if/when the apocalypse happens, but that's going to be really niche. I'm not even convinced that we need to figure out how to save the hobby.? It's the nature of the world that things run their course and they either adapt to remain useful and/or desirable or they die ... or at least diminish to the level of novelty.?? I don't see why ham radio should be any different. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/14/2019 7:13 PM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > Everything is renewable. > > Amateur Radio will never die as long as it offers so many niches where > the scientific interests of lay-people can find a home. > > 73, > > Kent? K9ZTV > From n3eta at coastside.net Sat Dec 14 22:34:17 2019 From: n3eta at coastside.net (Ron Genovesi) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 19:34:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: <5D35D137-D074-4E1C-B5D9-641C49E6F14A@coastside.net> OK Folks I?ve stayed on this Mailing list for tech info. While I got rid of my K3S I still have my KPA-1500. But you people have just become way too strange for me. (And to do that you have to take a giant step over what anyone considers normal ) I?ll get my info from the website. I?m out of here and off this Mailing list. Ron Genovesi n3eta at coastside.net > On Dec 14, 2019, at 6:54 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > > > Completely true ... all of it. > > 73, > Dave AB7E > > > > On 12/14/2019 7:46 PM, EricJ wrote: >> We're missing the point here somehow. Siri's answer should have been "The best way to contact Helen is to pick up your phone and call her." >> >> Anything else is pretty much a waste of time and resources just to talk to Helen. Seriously, there's a sizable investment in specialized equipment to make contact via AMSAT or whatever. The contact is set up for them. Then Jon and Helen wait to be told when the link is ready. If that's worth doing and will attract young people, then just shoot me. It sounds terminally boring. >> >> Making that investment in specialized equipment can't be justified as utilitarian communication because it's expensive and inefficient. If the point is to contact your friends any time you want to, they are already doing that with a half a dozen reliable instant technologies all accessible from the same smartphone. I don't get where ham radio comes in to solve a problem they have already solved. Certainly not with a system that requires waiting 15 minutes for a satellite to get in position, and a Cupertino Robot to set up the call. >> >> I don't have the answer to attracting young people to a rapidly changing hobby in an even more rapidly changing world. The aspects of the hobby that attracted many of us was the sheer magic of radio itself. We weren't attracted to it because it let us contact our friends. Even then we had the telephone for that. We were attracted to the magic. Nine times out of ten, the communication part was "599 OM PSE QSL". >> >> I always heard how DX contacts would allow me to learn about other cultures. Actually, it did. After exchanging signal reports, I'd look up their city with an atlas or encyclopedia. But I learned zip on the air. A few California Kilowatts could hog a DX station, and chit chat for a few minutes, and did because they could. But the rest of us never got beyond the basic exchange and fought like hell for that. But it was magic so it didn't matter that it wasn't all that practical. >> >> The magic that attracted us is gone. Maybe there's new magic to be found, but it's different magic that most of us with 30-70 years in the hobby won't understand...and probably won't like. We are the wrong people to even be considering answers but anyone expecting to make a living from the hobby will have to find that new magic. It ain't instant communication and it ain't the ham radio equivalent of retro turntables. >> >> Eric KE6US >> >> ex-K1DCK, WA6YCF, WB2PVW >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n3eta at coastside.net From k8mn at frontiernet.net Sat Dec 14 22:50:21 2019 From: k8mn at frontiernet.net (k8mn) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 22:50:21 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: <20191215035025.26C761C0EA@filter03.roch.ny.frontiernet.net> When I first became a radio amateur, there were something like 25,000 to 300,000 hams in the U.S. alone. There are more than 700,000 now. I'm optimistic. A cellular telephone isn't amateur radio.Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone. null From dean.k2ww at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 22:58:57 2019 From: dean.k2ww at gmail.com (Dean L) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 22:58:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... Message-ID: >>>>>>>>>>>snipped hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do what he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with the toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad there is someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true legend. 73 Dean K2WW Show quoted text From pvandyke1953 at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 23:44:55 2019 From: pvandyke1953 at gmail.com (Paul Van Dyke) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 22:44:55 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 10:44 PM Paul Van Dyke wrote: > As I sit on the road I watch the mail about Wayne... Then you have to > think of the quiet one .. Eric - WA6HHQ, who also is the other intense one. > Those lead the team to create the goodies ... Wait .. they are the CEO's, > and they keep track of the list and the pulse of Amateur Radio. > And have a personal life .. read the list ... and make sure they cover any > issues.. > > And what was the last time any other leaders kept track of their company > this close.. > > Paul- KB9AVO > > On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 9:59 PM Dean L wrote: > >> >>>>>>>>>>>snipped >> hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do what >> he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with the >> toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad there is >> someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< >> >> >> I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering >> emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true >> legend. >> 73 >> Dean K2WW >> Show quoted text >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to pvandyke1953 at gmail.com >> > From pvandyke1953 at gmail.com Sat Dec 14 23:44:42 2019 From: pvandyke1953 at gmail.com (Paul Van Dyke) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 22:44:42 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: As I sit on the road I watch the mail about Wayne... Then you have to think of the quiet one .. Eric - WA6HHQ, who also is the other intense one. Those lead the team to create the goodies ... Wait .. they are the CEO's, and they keep track of the list and the pulse of Amateur Radio. And have a personal life .. read the list ... and make sure they cover any issues.. And what was the last time any other leaders kept track of their company this close.. Paul- KB9AVO On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 9:59 PM Dean L wrote: > >>>>>>>>>>>snipped > hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do what > he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with the > toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad there is > someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< > > > I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering > emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true > legend. > 73 > Dean K2WW > Show quoted text > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to pvandyke1953 at gmail.com > From jboehner01 at yahoo.com Sun Dec 15 00:01:12 2019 From: jboehner01 at yahoo.com (James F. Boehner MD) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 00:01:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... References: <005b01d5b304$acd6d860$06848920$.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <005b01d5b304$acd6d860$06848920$@yahoo.com> Ahhh, what is the quote from Mark Twain? "Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life." Thanks to Eric, Wayne, and all of the good people at Elecraft! '73 de JIM N2ZZ -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Dean L Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 10:59 PM To: Elecraft Mail List Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... >>>>>>>>>>>snipped hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do what he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with the toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad there is someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true legend. 73 Dean K2WW Show quoted text ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to jboehner01 at yahoo.com From buddy at brannan.name Sun Dec 15 00:06:44 2019 From: buddy at brannan.name (Buddy Brannan) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 00:06:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> References: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> Message-ID: <87EAF6B1-BA13-4E4B-9999-F041540FC128@brannan.name> Agree with Kent. Amateur radio is already enough on its own, because it?s so varied. There?s no need to make it what it is not in order to attract those who don?t see its value. Communication is merely one aspect. Certainly it?s a fun aspect, but it?s only one. Big deal. Worldwide communication. We?ve been doing that for ages now. Worldwide communication without infrastructure? Now there?s something to talk about, but again, you have to see the value. Experimental modes? Want to learn about how stuff works? I think that targeting makers is absolutely a natural extension and a reasonable audience. Amateurs have always been makers, after all, repurposing and reusing and building what is needed. To us, it?s the most natural thing in the world?now that it?s mainstream, yes, let?s capitalize on it. But there really is no need to change what we are, or what our service is, or repackage it. Amateur radio really is enough on its own. Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA Email: buddy at brannan.name Mobile: (814) 431-0962 > On Dec 14, 2019, at 9:13 PM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > > Everything is renewable. > > Nearly every Catholic church in Christendom has a widow's quilting circle. Now they are welcoming male millennials who are attending sewing classes and spending weekends at quilt shows. > > Go figure. > > Amateur Radio will never die as long as it offers so many niches where the scientific interests of lay-people can find a home. > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to buddy at brannan.name From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Sun Dec 15 01:54:39 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2019 21:54:39 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Bob, Already see this in recent hams joining our local ham club. Most are 40-60, in their later working years or recently retired, kids have left home and time & money available for pursuit of hobbies. My finances did no turn around until age 50 to enable serious ham radio purchases. I was 54 when I built my first eme station. OK enough reminiscing. Note to Wayne & Eric that an inexpensive entry level transceiver might find market with newcomers on tight budgets (eg the K1, etc.); something other than a VHF HT. KX2/KX3 are still a bit much for the college student or newly graduated worker. 73, Ed - KL7UW Today it my feeling those getting into ham radio will not be the youth of today, but will be those retired and looking to continue their professional associations. Plus they can somewhat afford to invest the money that we youth didn?t have 60 years ago. And today?s youth won?t have the available financial resources. They have a family to raise, a house to buy, a vehicle to pay for and an internet and cell phone bill each month, along with a few credit cards and student loans. Today?s new hams will be the youth of several years back. 73 Bob, K4TAX 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From dougzzz at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 02:52:33 2019 From: dougzzz at gmail.com (Douglas Zwiebel) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 02:52:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output Message-ID: Try these too: https://ccm.net/faq/43906-turn-off-system-sounds-in-windows-10 https://www.simplehelp.net/2018/03/19/how-to-disable-the-windows-10-system-sounds/ I also have a Signal Link, a K3 and Win10 and that is what I did (turned off system sounds). de Doug KR2Q From kb1tcd at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 07:49:41 2019 From: kb1tcd at gmail.com (JP Douglas) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 07:49:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Voice net time and freq Message-ID: <08BF397C-CB10-4C65-A4C0-66D61516AD7E@gmail.com> Could someone please remind me days, time and freq for Elecraft voice nets? Thanks! Merry Christmas! 73 de Jose Douglas KB1TCD Bristol, ME Sent from my iPad From kb1tcd at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 09:04:18 2019 From: kb1tcd at gmail.com (JP Douglas) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 09:04:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <20191215035025.26C761C0EA@filter03.roch.ny.frontiernet.net> References: <20191215035025.26C761C0EA@filter03.roch.ny.frontiernet.net> Message-ID: <5ff5f448-22f0-7c0d-f119-933ba2c549d9@gmail.com> How about, I refuse to have a cell phone! Imagine that, I can get away without everybody trying to find me and the government can't track me down. If my YL, KB1TCG, really wants to find me when I'm out? she can cruise 20 or 40m and find me... YL has a burner phone in case of emergencies w/daughters and grandson or else she wouldn't have one either. We refuse to play their games. I go to private schools and do hands on ham radio demos (voice & digi) to get youngsters interested as public schools only do as they are told.? We had a Prep Fair in town last Oct and did live Winlink Peer 2 Peer on 20m, Electaft KX3 in our Hambulance in the car park and Kenwood TS-480 at the event. My youngest daughter, 31 and grandson, 7 are studying for their license. Ham Radio lives on! Merry Christmas everyone 73 de Jose Douglas KB1TCD, Bristol ME On 12/14/2019 10:50 PM, k8mn wrote: > When I first became a radio amateur, there were something like 25,000 to 300,000 hams in the U.S. alone. There are more than 700,000 now. I'm optimistic. A cellular telephone isn't amateur radio.Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone. > null > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to kb1tcd at gmail.com From billamader at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 09:21:05 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 07:21:05 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1576419665709-0.post@n2.nabble.com> While pertinent, the solutions offered disregarded the symptom: "Windows Sounds". In Windows 10, hit the Windows key, type "Windows Sounds". That should take offer to take you to the Sound Control Panel. Select the tab named "Sounds". Select the Sound Scheme "No Sounds" That stops the Windows Sounds, not selecting the sound device. 73, Bill, K8TE -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From kd4iz at frawg.org Sun Dec 15 09:43:19 2019 From: kd4iz at frawg.org (kd4iz at frawg.org) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 09:43:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <015c01d5b356$00e8bdf0$02ba39d0$@frawg.org> Bob, My experience has been the same as yours. Extremely easy to do manually and stable. Jack - kd4iz -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 19:40 To: Andy Durbin Cc: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer I didn?t find it a challenge at all. I started on 160M and finished on 6M all in about an hour. Those values are still good some 1 year later. It is really nice to operate 160M - 6M at 500W (except 60M & 30M) and only change the frequency on my K3S. Nothing tedious about that. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 14, 2019, at 5:40 PM, Andy Durbin wrote: > > ?Back on Dec 7th I posted "Popular wisdom is that KAT500 should be trained for all frequencies in a band and then operated in manual mode. This is what I do at my station but I find the training process to be a bit tedious and I'm considering automating the training process." > > I now have a test version working. It currently has 2 functions: > > > 1. Sweep and Autotune - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then initiate autotune and TX with autotune power. When tune complete advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > 2. Sweep and check SWR - Set TX frequency and KAT frequency to center of first bin of current band. When frequencies are verified then TX with 5 W for 2 seconds to allow a check of LP-100A indicated SWR or complex load. Then advance to next bin center frequency and repeat. > > The tuning solution for first autotune pass seems to be rather poor > for some bins but it improves with a second or third pass. (I > understand the result depends on the power setting but there seems to > be more to it than that. Auto fine tune is enabled. ) > > My last autotune sweep of the entire 160 m band took 1 minute 10 seconds. The check sweep took 1 minute 20 seconds. Check sweep time should be constant but the time for the autotune sweep will be quite variable. > > A future refinement of the check sweep may be to set an SWR threshold and log all frequencies that don't indicate better than that value. These would then be presented in sequence for manual adjustment. > > So, still a work in progress, but appears to have potential. And yes, there will be an option to CW ident after tuning each bin although my preference is to minimize time on frequency. > > Andy, k3wyc > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > rmcgraw at blomand.net > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kd4iz at frawg.org From oldmanshu at icloud.com Sun Dec 15 09:52:17 2019 From: oldmanshu at icloud.com (Joseph Shuman) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 09:52:17 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: <24DD0F23-2AFA-4DA1-B3DD-BA132F9AD968@icloud.com> ?Today?s new hams will be the youth of several years back.? As am I! Started at 14, finally licensed at 60. My parents thought it was a bad idea, I got off track as life went on and finally came back to radio. Too many distractions for kids today that don?t require study. However long it took, glad to be here now. Keeping Watch - shu Joe Shuman, KE8KJZ From jimk0xu at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 10:14:40 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 09:14:40 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: <1576419665709-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1576419665709-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: That is the "scorched earth" solution. Most of us have more than 1 sound device on our systems and use them for different things. I prefer to leave the system sounds where they belong and keep the other sounds where they belong. And Win 10 makes it simple to do, but does sometimes rearrange things on upgrades. But if you know how to access those settings it only takes a few seconds to straighten them out. On Sun, Dec 15, 2019, 08:21 K8TE wrote: > While pertinent, the solutions offered disregarded the symptom: "Windows > Sounds". In Windows 10, hit the Windows key, type "Windows Sounds". That > should take offer to take you to the Sound Control Panel. Select the tab > named "Sounds". Select the Sound Scheme "No Sounds" That stops the > Windows > Sounds, not selecting the sound device. > > 73, Bill, K8TE > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > Jim Rhodes K0XU From vicd at uwaterloo.ca Sun Dec 15 10:25:38 2019 From: vicd at uwaterloo.ca (Vic DiCiccio VE3YT) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 08:25:38 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1576423538225-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I agree with Wayne that we need to be empathetic to reach out to people to interest them in ham radio. Many of the posts here make points some very good points. In general, I think we are not doing as much as some of our old mentors did for us when we started in the hobby, and we are a little rigid about insisting newbies should follow the established and proper path. I've been working with a group of nine new hams and three old timers at our local club since September, teaching them Morse code. (One is my XYL, a university professor who started a program in user experience design -- but not a stem person -- who got interested in the crossover between the maker world, robotics in schools and ham radio at Dayton a couple of years ago.) Granted, this CW group are already all hams, so they are "bought in" to the hobby, but as a group they weren't getting on HF in the way we think of ham radio. One newbie was a life-long SWL, so he was predisposed to HF. One old timer was a VHF guy, and the other two do HF digital. Two are women, including my wife. I had a plan to get them interested in HF and specifically contesting. They got their licenses in late April and I gave a talk about contesting and being radio active in general. I set up two stations for them at Field Day and sat beside each of them, helping them make their first Qs on phone. Five of them got pretty serious sitting at my K3s. One of the others brought his microBitX arduino-based rig and had a frustrating time, but stayed positive. Right after FD, two of the newbies bought Icom 7300s. At FD, I talked about a Morse course, with elements of getting started in ham radio thrown in, to start in the Fall. They all watched me make some Morse FD contacts, more easily than voice, and they all agreed to come to the course. To prepare, I became a Canadian examiner with Morse credentials, so I could administer Morse tests to endorse their licences at the end of the course if they wanted it. In the course, I've mostly followed the CWOps approach of introducing the letters and using 18 or 20 wpm Farnsworthed down to 3 wpm then 5 wpm and now about 10 wpm. I've made half-hour mp3s on my web site. I've sent in class. I told them they would teach themselves code, using some of the amazing tools now available on websites, such as RUFz, LCWO, Morse Runner, etc., and the class was there to help. One of the old timers, a software engineer, wrote a training program that introduces letters in our class order, and sends them to you and you type them. It keeps track of the ones you know, don't know, and know slowly, and it changes the probability of letters and spacing between them as a result. What I didn't expect is the sense of community among the students in the class. They are very much become friends, kind of a sub group of new people within the local club. They send emails about their progress to the group, for example when they work some DX on SSB. They're all putting up antennas, getting gear, etc. This friendliness has really paid off now that they're starting to send Morse to each other because they're so mutually positive about getting each other past shyness. Many of them are starting with paddles -- two of them made their own. I've given some of them old straight keys I've collected for this purpose, and they've put them on bases. The microBITx guy worked really hard on his CW practising, and I could tell he was getting frustrated with his rig, so I loaned him an old K2 I haven't been using "for a year or two, until he figures out what rig he wants". I steered him towards SKCC and he's made some SKCC QSOs and has an SKCC number. One of the women borrowed an old Henry Radio Tempo One from someone (and early Yaesu rig without keyer or sidetone), so I lent her one of those Bencher paddles with MFJ keyer attached so she can have a shot at CW with this rig. A few of us are probably going to build QRP Labs QCX 5 watt transceivers together. Two of the students now have KX3s they got used and are excited about portable operation. Two people have dropped out and will return for the next course, but they're staying on the email list and talking. Two others almost dropped out because they stopped practising for a couple of weeks, and the others cajoled them back!! I keep sending them encouraging emails and introducing new topics. They're all very interested in the history of ham radio, and a few of them see Morse as a connection to telegraph communications and early wireless telegraphy via radio. One has a grandfather who was a telegrapher. We've compared the sound of continental "railway" Morse to International CW Morse. Etc. etc. I'm so happy about all this. I expected to have about two students make it to where they made CW Qs on the air. It's going to be much higher than that, and I might even create a few new CW contesters. We'll see what happens with the Rookie Roundup. What have I learned? Let the group and individuals set the direction and have a bunch of control in reaction to an array of opportunities you show them. Expect them to change their minds a lot. Get ready to do a lot of work -- I couldn't have done this if I wasn't mostly retired. Show them the myriad activities in ham radio in a way where you give them enough orientation that they can read on their own. Help them over learning humps. Solve all the equipment problems you can by giving and loaning them stuff. (Remember how our elmers did that for us?) I'm in the midst of sending them emails every day for the 12 days of Christmas, which is really just a thinly veiled way of getting them excited about all the aspects of becoming active, from getting ham licence plates, QRZ pages, and LOTW set up to participating in on air activities. I think we'll soon create a little net that starts with SSB, then they all send CW, and go back to SSB, on a weeknight when we don't have class. it's been gratifying working with this group, and they are all so energetic and are having fun. it really seems like a case of getting back what you put in. So, go forth and make some amateur radio magic, one or a few people at a time! Best 73 Vic VE3YT -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From a.durbin at msn.com Sun Dec 15 10:31:24 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 15:31:24 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: , , Message-ID: "Extremely easy to do manually and stable." It is only because my 160 and 80 m OCFD is being modified frequently that I decided to develop the auto trainer. It takes multiple actions to tune a single bin and there are 20 bins for 160 m. If a multi-step task needs to be done infrequently the effort required to automate it is not justified. Do that task several times a week and the effort is easily justified. Actions to auto tune at current frequency: 1. Inhibit the key line and wait for confirmation of inhibit 2. Initiate KAT500 auto tune (FT;) 3. Set Kenwood to TX Tune and set auto tune power 4. Wait for KAT500 FT response which indicates tune is complete 5. Set Kenwood TX Tune power back to 5 w then command RX 6. Wait for confirmation that TX has stopped 7. Enable the key line Since that sequence had already been assigned to a single button push it was not too difficult to repeat it for each bin in the current band. Andy, k3wyc From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Sun Dec 15 11:45:43 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 07:45:43 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: <201912151645.xBFGjj0V017912@mail47c28.carrierzone.com> Mentors for ham radio: Well, I had only one who was a young music teacher in a nearby town who taught a ham class in the evening. I got my father to drive to them and the teacher lent me one of the paper tape CW practise machines to study CW. He then gave me my Novice and Tech license exams. There was a ham club in that town. held at the local TV shop. Mostly 30-50 year olds that largely ignored me, making me feel unwanted in their "little club". I stopped going after 2-3 times. I did find a WWII surplus VHF AM radio for $15 which a ham at another TV shop (we moved 30 miles) modified to 2m for me. Owner of that shop sold me a 35-foot TV tower for $35 and I built two 8-element yagis for 2m to put on the tower. I hung out at that shop a lot and talked with them. Mostly, I was self-motivated and read books from ARRL that were in the local library. I only had a $2 allowance per month so it took me half a year to save up to buy my 3-tube receiver kit ($19.95). I never thought about needing a solder iron but my dad surprised me with a Wen solder gun for my birthday (about $5). Later, after passing my Novice, he surprised me again buying me a DX-35, which my teacher-mentor was selling (so he could buy a DX-100). I did get a job working as a bagger at a local grocery. Mostly, I worked on my dad's farm so had little time for a job in HS (for making any money). Many years later in CA, I joined a ham club specializing in mw and one of them became my new boss at Goldstone (and my prof. mentor). He is now sk. Most, if not all, are now sk. I figure (hope) to be around for two more sun-spot maxima. My first was in 1958. Mention was made of "Maker conventions". Obvious that there is interest in making stuff so there is an opportunity to introduce ham radio. A younger ham and I are embarking on holding training sessions (workshops) on ham radio topics this year. First one was about APRS, we will do digital modes, antenna building, and hold a antenna measurement session. Other topics are VHF propagation, meteor scatter, eme, and mw. Just a start. My hats off to you who mentor! 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From josh at voodoolab.com Sun Dec 15 13:44:37 2019 From: josh at voodoolab.com (Josh Fiden) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 10:44:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <85F376C5-1303-4092-AD70-C7A0235AD5FA@voodoolab.com> The quiet one? Hi 73! Josh W6XU Sent from my mobile device > On Dec 14, 2019, at 8:44 PM, Paul Van Dyke wrote: > > the quiet one .. Eric - WA6HHQ From ki5io at outlook.com Sun Dec 15 13:52:58 2019 From: ki5io at outlook.com (Nolan Kienitz) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 11:52:58 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Relay noise? In-Reply-To: References: <99F081B2E8D3483C99AB44961F0BD76D@Steve> <1260412841902-4143403.post@n2.nabble.com> <232E918299214AC3858E7F34B08C7890@Steve> <000701ca795b$38367bc0$a8a37340$@net> Message-ID: <1576435978524-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Talk about dredging up some history ... from 2009??!! I've read through this thread and a few others and have not found upon any solid answers that was posed by the OP. My K3 (S/N: 9013, Assembled: 05/10/15) started having the very faint key clicks late yesterday afternoon. As noted in the thread they seem to come from the top, right-rear of the K3. I've not yet taken the cover off and put a "tube" to my ear to narrow down source. When I first turned on my K3 today I did not hear the clicks, but after I was in the mist of a QSO they became 'hearable'. Still very faint. Rig is basic with 100w feeding a dipole. No sub-receiver. No receive antenna in use. If anyone has any thoughts about the very soft 'relay click' when operating CW I'd appreciate the input. BTW - same response with my single-lever paddle or straight key. Same response if I'm feeding my dipole or a dummy load on Ant-2. Do NOT hear the 'relay click' when it TEST mode. ----- 73 - Nolan Kienitz, KI5IO -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From carl at n8vz.com Sun Dec 15 14:11:56 2019 From: carl at n8vz.com (carl at n8vz.com) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 14:11:56 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <007301d5b37b$84db94f0$8e92bed0$@n8vz.com> Let me add that both Wayne and Eric are men of great integrity, and have developed a "corporate culture" that places honesty as a key component. I had a situation a few years ago that demonstrates this. I had a piece of Elecraft gear that was having serious problems but was out of warranty. It had a long track record of problems going back several years. This is a very convoluted and unusual history that I will refrain from going into. I wanted to send the unit back in and have it fixed and asked that it be treated as a warranty repair. I emailed Wayne and Eric directly (something you can't do at most other ham radio companies), and in a long email related the very long and sordid history of this piece of equipment, with proper documentation. They agreed to my request. I sent the equipment back to the mother ship. Now, comes the truly amazing part of the story, when the tech examined the equipment he noted not a bad part, but two "missing parts." This was a factory assembled unit! Now, how many companies would admit that they had shipped a unit with "missing parts." They might report that in an internal memo, but in a message to the customer? I was impressed! Once these missing parts were installed (two resistors, if I remember correctly), the unit has worked flawless since. Last year at Dayton I personally commended Wayne for how this was handled. He just kind of shrugged it off as "no big deal." Well, it was a big deal to me, and made me an Elecraft customer for life! 73, Carl N8VZ P.S. I should add that I'm sure that it's a very rare occurrence that Elecraft ships gear with "missing parts," but it's reassuring that when it happens, they'll admit to it, and make it right! -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Paul Van Dyke Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 11:45 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... As I sit on the road I watch the mail about Wayne... Then you have to think of the quiet one .. Eric - WA6HHQ, who also is the other intense one. Those lead the team to create the goodies ... Wait .. they are the CEO's, and they keep track of the list and the pulse of Amateur Radio. And have a personal life .. read the list ... and make sure they cover any issues.. And what was the last time any other leaders kept track of their company this close.. Paul- KB9AVO On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 9:59 PM Dean L wrote: > >>>>>>>>>>>snipped > hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do > what he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with > the toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad > there is someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< > > > I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering > emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true > legend. > 73 > Dean K2WW > Show quoted text > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > pvandyke1953 at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to n8vz at qth.com From n8vz at qth.com Sun Dec 15 14:15:14 2019 From: n8vz at qth.com (n8vz at qth.com) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 14:15:14 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <007501d5b37b$fb2f7b80$f18e7280$@qth.com> Let me add that both Wayne and Eric are men of great integrity, and have developed a "corporate culture" that places honesty as a key component. I had a situation a few years ago that demonstrates this. I had a piece of Elecraft gear that was having serious problems but was out of warranty. It had a long track record of problems going back several years. This is a very convoluted and unusual history that I will refrain from going into. I wanted to send the unit back in and have it fixed and asked that it be treated as a warranty repair. I emailed Wayne and Eric directly (something you can't do at most other ham radio companies), and in a long email related the very long and sordid history of this piece of equipment, with proper documentation. They agreed to my request. I sent the equipment back to the mother ship. Now, comes the truly amazing part of the story, when the tech examined the equipment he noted not a bad part, but two "missing parts." This was a factory assembled unit! Now, how many companies would admit that they had shipped a unit with "missing parts." They might report that in an internal memo, but in a message to the customer? I was impressed! Once these missing parts were installed (two resistors, if I remember correctly), the unit has worked flawless since. Last year at Dayton I personally commended Wayne for how this was handled. He just kind of shrugged it off as "no big deal." Well, it was a big deal to me, and made me an Elecraft customer for life! 73, Carl N8VZ P.S. I should add that I'm sure that it's a very rare occurrence that Elecraft ships gear with "missing parts," but it's reassuring that when it happens, they'll admit to it, and make it right! -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Paul Van Dyke Sent: Saturday, December 14, 2019 11:45 PM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Wayne and his company... As I sit on the road I watch the mail about Wayne... Then you have to think of the quiet one .. Eric - WA6HHQ, who also is the other intense one. Those lead the team to create the goodies ... Wait .. they are the CEO's, and they keep track of the list and the pulse of Amateur Radio. And have a personal life .. read the list ... and make sure they cover any issues.. And what was the last time any other leaders kept track of their company this close.. Paul- KB9AVO On Sat, Dec 14, 2019 at 9:59 PM Dean L wrote: > >>>>>>>>>>>snipped > hand in his case, I suspect he doesn't sleep. With his having to do > what he does for Elecraft, I wonder how he has the time to play with > the toys, test out his developments, etc. However, I am really glad > there is someone in the company like him.<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< > > > I often wonder how this man does all his duties, (including answering > emails) and have any time for sleep, family, non ham stuff.... A true > legend. > 73 > Dean K2WW > Show quoted text > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > pvandyke1953 at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to n8vz at qth.com From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Sun Dec 15 14:22:14 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 12:22:14 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: <70db480a-db20-8231-f2b8-685853b78e60@cis-broadband.com> By the way, and more directly related to Elecraft and Wayne's original post, not too long ago I proposed that Elecraft might consider building a smallish, portable, dedicated FT8/4 radio. Something with a screen and using the core engine of WSJT-X but with a much better user interface, a better logger, and the ability to actually say something (i.e., more than four message lines).? It got almost zero traction here, and none from Elecraft, but I still think it wouldn't be a bad idea.? Think of it as the HF equivalent of texting. 73, Dave ? AB7E From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Sun Dec 15 14:35:47 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 12:35:47 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Relay noise? In-Reply-To: <1576435978524-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <99F081B2E8D3483C99AB44961F0BD76D@Steve> <1260412841902-4143403.post@n2.nabble.com> <232E918299214AC3858E7F34B08C7890@S teve> <000701ca795b$38367bc0$a8a37340$@net> <1576435978524-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <525334a7-8ab0-4857-dbee-e2d6e0506fd7@triconet.org> http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KPA500-clicking-td7596512.html Read carefully to avoid the "you don't know what you're talking about" comments. Wes? N7WS On 12/15/2019 11:52 AM, Nolan Kienitz wrote: > Talk about dredging up some history ... from 2009??!! > > I've read through this thread and a few others and have not found upon any > solid answers that was posed by the OP. > > My K3 (S/N: 9013, Assembled: 05/10/15) started having the very faint key > clicks late yesterday afternoon. As noted in the thread they seem to come > from the top, right-rear of the K3. I've not yet taken the cover off and > put a "tube" to my ear to narrow down source. > > When I first turned on my K3 today I did not hear the clicks, but after I > was in the mist of a QSO they became 'hearable'. Still very faint. > > Rig is basic with 100w feeding a dipole. No sub-receiver. No receive antenna > in use. > > If anyone has any thoughts about the very soft 'relay click' when operating > CW I'd appreciate the input. > > BTW - same response with my single-lever paddle or straight key. Same > response if I'm feeding my dipole or a dummy load on Ant-2. Do NOT hear the > 'relay click' when it TEST mode. > > > > > ----- > 73 - Nolan Kienitz, KI5IO From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sun Dec 15 15:04:02 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 14:04:02 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <41ece1c7-8b4c-8ad2-124b-1d59e5c66194@blomand.net> If adjustments are required several times a week for the 160M antenna, I would then question the electrical stability of the 160M antenna.? In otherwords, why and what is changing? I see very little change in mine, wet, dry, ice, or snow. Usually I find it to be 1:3:1 or less across the band, any frequency and at any season. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/15/2019 9:31 AM, Andy Durbin wrote: > "Extremely easy to do manually and stable." > > It is only because my 160 and 80 m OCFD is being modified frequently that I decided to develop the auto trainer. It takes multiple actions to tune a single bin and there are 20 bins for 160 m. If a multi-step task needs to be done infrequently the effort required to automate it is not justified. Do that task several times a week and the effort is easily justified. > > Actions to auto tune at current frequency: > > 1. Inhibit the key line and wait for confirmation of inhibit > 2. Initiate KAT500 auto tune (FT;) > 3. Set Kenwood to TX Tune and set auto tune power > 4. Wait for KAT500 FT response which indicates tune is complete > 5. Set Kenwood TX Tune power back to 5 w then command RX > 6. Wait for confirmation that TX has stopped > 7. Enable the key line > > Since that sequence had already been assigned to a single button push it was not too difficult to repeat it for each bin in the current band. > > Andy, k3wyc > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From kevinr at coho.net Sun Dec 15 15:40:05 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 12:40:05 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] For the next generation Message-ID: <7932245d-8f60-73bb-dc32-7142e57f9475@coho.net> When I started reading radio control hobbyist magazines in the late '50s an amateur radio license was required to fly the planes or control the boats.? We now live in a more digital age.? RC transmitters and receivers have been commoditized and there are many wireless protocols.? Hobbyists still want to tinker and control things.? Why not link the amateur radio world with the modern digital world?? Create a single board system with a 2m, 6m, or 10m transceiver on it.? Add a medium horsepower microcontroller and a number of busses. Control and I/O busses: - Direct pin control with (replaceable) buffers. - WiFi access with plug in unit (license issue avoided) - Bluetooth access with plug in unit (licensing issue avoided) - other busses I don't recall (SPI, SCI, TWI, ?) 10 meters requires a longer antenna but simpler RF circuitry.? 2m uses a shorter antenna but the RF unit is more complex and probably more expensive.? 6m fits somewhere in between. So what you have is a single board amateur radio interface to direct, WiFi, and Bluetooth controller board.? Use it as a single unit or create a web or mesh of them for data collection or broadcast.? Being able to send text via amateur radio to WiFi is a bonus.? But being able to control remote devices is cool too. If you design this as an open ended single board solution you can allow the community to define how to use it. Lots of add on units could be imagined.? Many snippets of code could be accrued and filed for future reference. ??? Kevin.? KD5ONS - From billamader at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 16:11:14 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 14:11:14 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] [K2] N1MM Logger sending CW to K2 In-Reply-To: <524d0f1c-e9b2-df9a-282a-a2e4a76f9340@verizon.net> References: <1576351991960-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <524d0f1c-e9b2-df9a-282a-a2e4a76f9340@verizon.net> Message-ID: <1576444274542-0.post@n2.nabble.com> There is no need for an expensive interface just to do CW Mike. The following link explains the process along with a warning about not doing so if it doesn't make sense to you: https://elecraft.mailman.qth.narkive.com/OwSJDzZd/how-do-you-get-n1mm-to-send-cw-to-the-k2 I will use the link's method to key my K2, once I finish (and start) building it. Or, you could use another USB to RS-232 converter, transistor, and resistor, and plug for the K2 Key jack. I prefer fewer, not more, cables. 73, Bill, K8TE -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From ki5io at outlook.com Sun Dec 15 17:35:44 2019 From: ki5io at outlook.com (Nolan Kienitz) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 15:35:44 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3: Relay noise? In-Reply-To: <525334a7-8ab0-4857-dbee-e2d6e0506fd7@triconet.org> References: <99F081B2E8D3483C99AB44961F0BD76D@Steve> <1260412841902-4143403.post@n2.nabble.com> <232E918299214AC3858E7F34B08C7890@Steve> <000701ca795b$38367bc0$a8a37340$@net> <1576435978524-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <525334a7-8ab0-4857-dbee-e2d6e0506fd7@triconet.org> Message-ID: <1576449344621-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Wes, Tnx very much. ----- 73 - Nolan Kienitz, KI5IO -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From n6jpa.1 at gmail.com Sun Dec 15 17:47:22 2019 From: n6jpa.1 at gmail.com (Keith N6JPA) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 14:47:22 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] OT: SIGNAL LINK & Windows 10 audio output In-Reply-To: <1576419665709-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1576419665709-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <84f92813-b6a2-6ecf-4340-23adea2c1c34@gmail.com> Thanks for the useful information. I was able to stop the windows sounds on the USB signallink device. Keith N6JPA On 12/15/2019 6:21 AM, K8TE wrote: > While pertinent, the solutions offered disregarded the symptom: "Windows > Sounds". In Windows 10, hit the Windows key, type "Windows Sounds". That > should take offer to take you to the Sound Control Panel. Select the tab > named "Sounds". Select the Sound Scheme "No Sounds" That stops the Windows > Sounds, not selecting the sound device. > > 73, Bill, K8TE > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6jpa.1 at gmail.com From a.durbin at msn.com Sun Dec 15 18:07:31 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 23:07:31 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 auto trainer In-Reply-To: References: , , , Message-ID: "I would then question the electrical stability of the 160M antenna.? In other words, why and what is changing?" I change it.? Changes include the total length, feed point position, and the feed point?matching L and C values. It's an experimental antenna. One would not expect to make many DX contacts on 160 m with an OCFD strung from a back yard block wall at 5 feet above ground. I enjoy the results that contradict that assumption. Those unexpected results include E5-N, VP6D, and UA0. Andy, k3wyc From frantz at pwpconsult.com Sun Dec 15 18:52:13 2019 From: frantz at pwpconsult.com (Bill Frantz) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 18:52:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <989c69c6-395b-2eb6-1926-14cf6e28f1a4@w0mu.com> Message-ID: My son has a general license. He uses it mostly as part of his search and rescue team. Really he doesn't have time to play radio with a high-tension job, a wife, and a 6 year old. Our club has some interesting new members: Two women in their early 40s, newly licensed at the extra level. They ran our digital operation at field day all night. We might see more of them, but they are trying to get a high-tech startup off the ground. A father/daughter combo. The daughter is barely a teenager if at all but has a license. So does the father. I see a lot of older people getting licenses as part of their interest in community service. The take home observation is that people today don't have much free time. There is tremendous contention for what free time there is. Getting on the air needs to pop to the top of the list before we have a new, active ham. Any radio designed to attract new people to ham radio should recognize that getting a higher level license is a challange which will only be met by someone already motivated. The tech level license doesn't help attract people to what most of us consider ham radio -- HF. Learning CW requires a lot of motivation, and the only non-CW available in HF is 10M SSB -- Not the best band a the bottom of a sunspot cycle. Some of the ARRL suggestions for opening some HF to tech digital operation would go a long way toward solving these problems. But in the current environment, to come out with a radio that supports 10M but only does FM, is something only a company not thinking about the US licensing structure could do. (And yes, I have a specific radio company in mind.) As a side note, I became interested in operating, as compared with building equipment, because I discovered that PSK31 was a lot like the computer chat systems I had used. They were already comfortable, so the only barriers were the radio problems, which I had a good background in solving. (I have since branched out into CW and voice, but digital is still my home territory.) 73 Bill AE6JV, who hasn't been on the air since moving into a retirement home. On 12/14/19 at 11:12 AM, w0mu at w0mu.com (W0MU Mike Fatchett) wrote: >I am not sure how you sell Ham Radio to people today.? I have >two sons and a daughter.? One son got licensed really young >and did some contests and mobile activities with me but never >got hooked like I did.?? People have less free time than ever >and there are more options for entertainment than ever. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | Concurrency is hard. 12 out | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | 10 programmers get it wrong. | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | - Jeff Frantz | Los Gatos, CA 95032 From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Sun Dec 15 19:16:23 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 17:16:23 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Bill, if you want to get in at least some ham radio action you might consider using TeamViewer (free for private use) to link up with a friend who trusts you and is willing to let you tap into his station to operate FT8 via the internet.? QST had a recent article on it and it's pretty simple to set up.? I have a friend who is stuck in a condo and he has used my station several times to make contacts all over the world that way. It's not the same as chatting with some interesting DX, but it's not a whole lot different than what passes for most DX contacts.? You could even operate one of the FT8/4 contests that way without being at much of a disadvantage. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/15/2019 4:52 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > > 73 Bill AE6JV, who hasn't been on the air since moving into a > retirement home. > From raysills3 at verizon.net Sun Dec 15 21:02:56 2019 From: raysills3 at verizon.net (Raymond Sills) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 02:02:56 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <695002574.8991982.1576461776452@mail.yahoo.com> Another option to consider with "retirement home" operating is what I've been doing: I use a KX3 feeding an AlexLoop (small magnetic loop) set up in our bedroom to check into a local 10 meter net. ?Works quite well.The same setup also had me working a DX station in Moldova... during a RTTY contest. ? I used the KX3's built in RTTY feature for that QSO. ?Oh... and I was running 3 watts on 40 meters. ?And that was with the AlexLoop set up in our sun room. ? So... it can be done. 73 de RayK2ULRKX3 #211 -----Original Message----- From: David Gilbert To: Bill Frantz ; elecraft Sent: Sun, Dec 15, 2019 7:17 pm Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home Bill, if you want to get in at least some ham radio action you might consider using TeamViewer (free for private use) to link up with a friend who trusts you and is willing to let you tap into his station to operate FT8 via the internet.? QST had a recent article on it and it's pretty simple to set up.? I have a friend who is stuck in a condo and he has used my station several times to make contacts all over the world that way. It's not the same as chatting with some interesting DX, but it's not a whole lot different than what passes for most DX contacts.? You could even operate one of the FT8/4 contests that way without being at much of a disadvantage. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/15/2019 4:52 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > > 73 Bill AE6JV, who hasn't been on the air since moving into a > retirement home. > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to raysills3 at verizon.net From kevinr at coho.net Sun Dec 15 22:32:26 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 19:32:26 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report Message-ID: <62762373-8b9e-381f-83cf-aa1057aa60ce@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? I found that my antenna work has not been done in vain.? I was surprised at the cutoff between antennas though.? ND, MI, & IN were stronger on my lower antenna while IA and GA were much better on the higher one.? I will adjust the second antenna and see how that works next week. ?? The only snow I heard about was from Fargo where Ken got to use his snow blower five times last week.? Other stations reported mild winter weather.? Here it is snowing but it melts about a thousand feet above me.? The break in the rain was nice, a little rare sunlight felt good. ? On 14050.5 kHz at 2200z: W0CZ - Ken - ND NO8V - John - MI K6XK - Roy - IA K4JPN - Steve - GA AB9V - Mike - IN ? On 7047.5 kHz at 0000z: K6PJV - Dale - CA K0DTJ - Brian - CA KG7V - Marv - WA W0CZ - Ken - ND K0JFJ - Nick - AZ ?? Next week's nets fall only a few days before Christmas so I expect some of you will be on the road.? It is past time to wish you all well over these holidays.? Don't eat too much, don't shovel too hard. ??? 73, ??????? Kevin.? KD5ONS - From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 10:48:22 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 09:48:22 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver Message-ID: I put it off for years getting the Sub-Receiver for my K3. With the change to K4, I got a sub-receiver before they become unavailable. The sub-receiver comes with the KSYN3A synthesizer board --- so it occurs to me to change that board into the primary receiver and use the older one with the sub-receiver. That may make it easier to change out later. I am really so impressed with the K3 receiver after about 6 years that the new synthesizer always seemed pointless -- but now I have one anyway. -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From ghyoungman at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 10:51:05 2019 From: ghyoungman at gmail.com (Grant Youngman) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 10:51:05 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <21CA0767-7F03-4D7D-9BCD-7513D4F12BEB@gmail.com> The two synthesizers must be the same. You will actually need to replace your older synth with another KSYN3A. Grant NQ5T > On Dec 16, 2019, at 10:48 AM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > > I put it off for years getting the Sub-Receiver for my K3. > With the change to K4, I got a sub-receiver before they become unavailable. > > The sub-receiver comes with the KSYN3A synthesizer board --- so it occurs > to me to change that board into the primary receiver and use the older one > with the sub-receiver. That may make it easier to change out later. > > I am really so impressed with the K3 receiver after about 6 years that the > new synthesizer always seemed pointless -- but now I have one anyway. > > -- From scott.manthe at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 10:54:18 2019 From: scott.manthe at gmail.com (Scott Manthe) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 10:54:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Both receivers have to use the new synthesizer board. You can't install them in the way you've described, unfortunately. 73, Scott N9AA On 12/16/19 10:48 AM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > I put it off for years getting the Sub-Receiver for my K3. > With the change to K4, I got a sub-receiver before they become unavailable. > > The sub-receiver comes with the KSYN3A synthesizer board --- so it occurs > to me to change that board into the primary receiver and use the older one > with the sub-receiver. That may make it easier to change out later. > > I am really so impressed with the K3 receiver after about 6 years that the > new synthesizer always seemed pointless -- but now I have one anyway. > From pincon at erols.com Sun Dec 15 07:50:43 2019 From: pincon at erols.com (Charlie T) Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2019 07:50:43 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> Note to Wayne & Eric that an inexpensive entry level transceiver might find market with newcomers on tight budgets (eg the K1, etc.); something other than a VHF HT. KX2/KX3 are still a bit much for the college student or newly graduated worker. 73, Ed - KL7UW That's probably what the current non "S" version of the K3 will evolve into. Maybe even the K3s too with the introduction of the K4. 73, Charlie k3ICH From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 11:32:05 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 10:32:05 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Thanks everybody. The sub-receiver came with the new board, but with all your good advice I just ordered the KSYN3A board and will come soon. Only one downside: It is a rainy day here in Middle Tennessee ---- it was a perfect day to stay inside and get this done. 73 to all ... On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 9:56 AM Scott Manthe wrote: > Both receivers have to use the new synthesizer board. You can't install > them in the way you've described, unfortunately. > > 73, > Scott N9AA > > On 12/16/19 10:48 AM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > > I put it off for years getting the Sub-Receiver for my K3. > > With the change to K4, I got a sub-receiver before they become > unavailable. > > > > The sub-receiver comes with the KSYN3A synthesizer board --- so it occurs > > to me to change that board into the primary receiver and use the older > one > > with the sub-receiver. That may make it easier to change out later. > > > > I am really so impressed with the K3 receiver after about 6 years that > the > > new synthesizer always seemed pointless -- but now I have one anyway. > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com > -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From mpridesti at yahoo.com Mon Dec 16 11:42:55 2019 From: mpridesti at yahoo.com (Mpridesti) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:42:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Odd K3 behavior on CW References: <1A6E22EB-F446-49C5-96F2-1F054EA00010.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1A6E22EB-F446-49C5-96F2-1F054EA00010@yahoo.com> Over the weekend, I noticed a few characters would ?disappear ? while sending. By that I mean, part of a CW transmission would not got out even though I hear the full character in the monitor but no output power. What is this a sign of? Am about to return to factory for encoder switch replacement and a full tune up. Now something new! Regards, Mark, K1RX From n4zr at comcast.net Mon Dec 16 11:57:38 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:57:38 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <695002574.8991982.1576461776452@mail.yahoo.com> References: <695002574.8991982.1576461776452@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <3ce4e76f-ac09-9d16-704d-e3b18e9e7ce7@comcast.net> A spectacular example of how to do this right has been set by PVRCers at the Collington Continuing-Care retirement community in Prince George's County MD.? See the QRZ lookup for K3CCR.? These 5 guys have demonstrated what can be done, and they're doing it most every weekend. 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. On 12/15/2019 9:02 PM, Raymond Sills via Elecraft wrote: > Another option to consider with "retirement home" operating is what I've been doing: > I use a KX3 feeding an AlexLoop (small magnetic loop) set up in our bedroom to check into a local 10 meter net. ?Works quite well.The same setup also had me working a DX station in Moldova... during a RTTY contest. ? I used the KX3's built in RTTY feature for that QSO. ?Oh... and I was running 3 watts on 40 meters. ?And that was with the AlexLoop set up in our sun room. > So... it can be done. > 73 de RayK2ULRKX3 #211 > > > -----Original Message----- > From: David Gilbert > To: Bill Frantz ; elecraft > Sent: Sun, Dec 15, 2019 7:17 pm > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home > > > Bill, if you want to get in at least some ham radio action you might > consider using TeamViewer (free for private use) to link up with a > friend who trusts you and is willing to let you tap into his station to > operate FT8 via the internet.? QST had a recent article on it and it's > pretty simple to set up.? I have a friend who is stuck in a condo and he > has used my station several times to make contacts all over the world > that way. > > It's not the same as chatting with some interesting DX, but it's not a > whole lot different than what passes for most DX contacts.? You could > even operate one of the FT8/4 contests that way without being at much of > a disadvantage. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E > > > On 12/15/2019 4:52 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: >> 73 Bill AE6JV, who hasn't been on the air since moving into a >> retirement home. >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to raysills3 at verizon.net > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n4zr at comcast.net From infomet at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 16 12:50:57 2019 From: infomet at embarqmail.com (Wilson Lamb) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 12:50:57 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver Message-ID: <1464914087.15607397.1576518657180.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> It seems the OP has it covered, but, if one isn't ready to spend on the new synth, one can get an old synth for next to nothing and run with two old ones. The upgrade isn't a big deal for most ops. WL From k7ffn at frdmftr.net Mon Dec 16 12:53:24 2019 From: k7ffn at frdmftr.net (k7ffn frdmftr.net) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:53:24 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Excellent Elecraft service! Message-ID: I purchased a KX3 "Shack-in-a-Pack" a year ago, and after making one contact QRP at 5-watts, I set it aside in its carrying case while I took care of other commitments. Last week, barely three weeks before the end of the warranty period, I brought it out and started working with it, studying the manuals, and figuring out how to use it. I immediately discovered that transmitting into a 50-Ohm dummy load and pressing ATU TUNE returned an SWR of 25.4:1. Discussions with 'Rob,' Elecraft technician, were not productive; i.e., the results that should have been obtained weren't there. Eventually I discovered that while it said I was transmitting at 5-watts, the RF indicator was reading el zippo. Rob sent me a Repair Service Authorization (RSA) and I returned it to Elecraft for repair. It took two days to get there and one day later I received notification that the KXAT3 board had failed, had now been replaced, the unit calibrated, and all is copacetic! I am writing this to crow about the wonderful service offered by Elecraft, especially approaching the Christmas season! (My only complaint is the $57 it took to ship it and insure it for $1400, but that is not their fault.) I am very happy with Elecraft and I am looking forward to doing some serious QRP work when it gets back. 73. --Don Cline, K7FFN K7ffn at frdmftr.net From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Mon Dec 16 13:10:32 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:10:32 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <3ce4e76f-ac09-9d16-704d-e3b18e9e7ce7@comcast.net> References: <695002574.8991982.1576461776452@mail.yahoo.com> <3ce4e76f-ac09-9d16-704d-e3b18e9e7ce7@comcast.net> Message-ID: <94be851a-adb0-75d6-0f8f-2cb65fcc54a8@cis-broadband.com> That's impressive, but Collington is a full blown retirement community, like Sun City here in Arizona.? It's not even close to being practical to do anything similar for the typical retirement home.? On the other hand, a small laptop with a TeamViewer link to a distant club station running FT8 would put anyone anywhere on the air ... with the added benefit that FT8/4 doesn't require good hearing or manual dexterity. JS8, an offshoot of FT8,? is even a bit more of a conversational mode.? I've never used it and it doesn't have anything close to the acceptance that some people have touted it to have, but PSK Reporter does show it being moderately popular. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/16/2019 9:57 AM, N4ZR wrote: > A spectacular example of how to do this right has been set by PVRCers > at the Collington Continuing-Care retirement community in Prince > George's County MD.? See the QRZ lookup for K3CCR.? These 5 guys have > demonstrated what can be done, and they're doing it most every weekend. > > 73, Pete N4ZR > Check out the Reverse Beacon Network > at , now > spotting RTTY activity worldwide. > For spots, please use your favorite > "retail" DX cluster. From lee.buller at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 13:19:48 2019 From: lee.buller at gmail.com (Leroy Buller) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 12:19:48 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> Message-ID: This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the same issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. Saving for a K4 Lee On Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 10:03 AM Charlie T wrote: > > Note to Wayne & Eric that an inexpensive entry level transceiver might find > market with newcomers on tight budgets (eg the K1, etc.); something other > than a VHF HT. KX2/KX3 are still a bit much for the college student or > newly graduated worker. > > 73, Ed - KL7UW > > > That's probably what the current non "S" version of the K3 will evolve > into. > Maybe even the K3s too with the introduction of the K4. > > 73, Charlie k3ICH > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to lee.buller at gmail.com > From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Mon Dec 16 13:51:07 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 10:51:07 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> Message-ID: <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/16/2019 10:19 AM, Leroy Buller wrote: > This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 > watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the same > issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. Elecraft is not a mass market, low cost radio company. They operate in a different niche. Entry level at Elecraft starts with KX2, KX3, or with a K3/K3s bought used. When I got back on the air in 2003, I bought used TS850 and IC746. 73, Jim K9YC From k6sdw.usa at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 14:03:54 2019 From: k6sdw.usa at gmail.com (Eddy Avila) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:03:54 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] FT8 question Message-ID: Happy Holidays All! I'm using FT8 into my KX3 in Data A mode but getting almost no contacts, On the waterfall, I see a lot activity on 40m and 20m. I've followed the advice from the KX3 manual for levels, but I still get very few connections, like I'm not being heard. I also run k1jt WSPR mode and that seems to work well, I get consistent results on the bands that are open. Currently I have the KX3 set to 10w output into a 23' long endfed dipole 20' in the air. I live in an RV Park which has very very restricted antenna restrictions! One complaint from a neighbor about any RFI would cause the manager to tell me to take the antenna down. A couple of years ago I ran FT8 on my ICOM 746pro at 5 to 10 watts max output and had very good results. So, my question am I doing something wrong? Any suggestions would be appreciated? tnx and 73 Ed ~ k6sdw From rick.nk7i at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 14:28:48 2019 From: rick.nk7i at gmail.com (Rick Bates, NK7I) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:28:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Excellent Elecraft service! In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <8d5767ea-e3e6-f102-2732-28557d698be4@gmail.com> If there is a next time, one can ask for a shipping label from Elecraft.? But wait a few days for the response; when I returned from shipping the PA deck from the KPA1500 ($170 insured), I got the label in the email.? Oh well. It was out of warranty (but unused until the shack is completed; very soon now). I always, always ask for discounts or similar; the worst possible answer is 'no', which costs me nothing yet sometimes provides a nice savings. 73 es Merry Christmas, Rick NK7I On 12/16/2019 9:53 AM, k7ffn frdmftr.net wrote: > I purchased a KX3 "Shack-in-a-Pack" a year ago, and after making one contact QRP at 5-watts, I set it aside in its carrying case while I took care of other commitments. Last week, barely three weeks before the end of the warranty period, I brought it out and started working with it, studying the manuals, and figuring out how to use it. I immediately discovered that transmitting into a 50-Ohm dummy load and pressing ATU TUNE returned an SWR of 25.4:1. Discussions with 'Rob,' Elecraft technician, were not productive; i.e., the results that should have been obtained weren't there. Eventually I discovered that while it said I was transmitting at 5-watts, the RF indicator was reading el zippo. Rob sent me a Repair Service Authorization (RSA) and I returned it to Elecraft for repair. It took two days to get there and one day later I received notification that the KXAT3 board had failed, had now been replaced, the unit calibrated, and all is copacetic! I am writing this to cr > ow about the wonderful service offered by Elecraft, especially approaching the Christmas season! (My only complaint is the $57 it took to ship it and insure it for $1400, but that is not their fault.) I am very happy with Elecraft and I am looking forward to doing some serious QRP work when it gets back. > > 73. > --Don Cline, K7FFN > K7ffn at frdmftr.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rick.nk7i at gmail.com From ockmrzr at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 14:29:03 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 12:29:03 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: <1464914087.15607397.1576518657180.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> References: <1464914087.15607397.1576518657180.JavaMail.zimbra@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <1ad701d5b447$13b98260$3b2c8720$@gmail.com> I have 4 of the old style KSYN3 synthesizer module if anyone is interested. Priced to sell! I also have: 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface Email me off-line if interested. 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wilson Lamb Sent: 16 December, 2019 10:51 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver It seems the OP has it covered, but, if one isn't ready to spend on the new synth, one can get an old synth for next to nothing and run with two old ones. The upgrade isn't a big deal for most ops. WL ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to ockmrzr at gmail.com From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Mon Dec 16 14:34:35 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 11:34:35 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] FT8 question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: On 12/16/2019 11:03 AM, Eddy Avila wrote: > So, my question am I doing something wrong? Any suggestions would be > appreciated? What are you doing to sync your computer's clock? Do you decode signals? Look at the DT values -- they should be between -0.4 and +0.4 sec. Do you have the latest WSJT-X software? Changes to the FT8 protocol were made a year or so ago, and the old software no longer works for FT8. The current version is 2.1.2 Are you sure that Windoze audio is set correctly for the sound input and output device you're using? Windoze tends to trash audio setups when it does updates. 73, Jim K9YC From jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com Mon Dec 16 14:54:35 2019 From: jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com (jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 13:54:35 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby Message-ID: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> A few quick thoughts on this subject. Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are Intersolar and interstellar space. Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the ocean. I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information consumers! What do you think? 73 John N5CQ From jim at jtmiller.com Mon Dec 16 14:58:27 2019 From: jim at jtmiller.com (Jim Miller) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 14:58:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] FT8 question In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Also note if you have a lot of other things running your CPU utilization may get too high to do decoding. I find that Chrome browser will shut down decoding until it is closed and decoding promptly then resumes. Use the Task manager to watch a few cycles and sort on CPU utilization to see what the big contributors are. Jim ab3cv On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 2:36 PM Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/16/2019 11:03 AM, Eddy Avila wrote: > > So, my question am I doing something wrong? Any suggestions would be > > appreciated? > > What are you doing to sync your computer's clock? Do you decode > signals? Look at the DT values -- they should be between -0.4 and +0.4 > sec. Do you have the latest WSJT-X software? Changes to the FT8 > protocol were made a year or so ago, and the old software no longer > works for FT8. The current version is 2.1.2 > > Are you sure that Windoze audio is set correctly for the sound input and > output device you're using? Windoze tends to trash audio setups when it > does updates. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jim at jtmiller.com > From mikekopacki at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 15:05:03 2019 From: mikekopacki at gmail.com (NJMike) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 13:05:03 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] New user - can't see my posts Message-ID: <1576526703723-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I posted a topic in the K2 section and received replies via email. However, the post does not show in the K2 section...but it must be visible somewhere since I received replies. I am new to this forum so please tell me what I am doing wrong! Thanks, Mike -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Mon Dec 16 15:14:27 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 13:14:27 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> Message-ID: <36e25f67-6e7c-29c8-36a5-48a08a4fa2cc@cis-broadband.com> Since you asked ... I'm not trying to be negative for the sake of being negative, but I think the young people interested in those things are going to immediately be drawn to hardware and software considerably more sophisticated than amateur radio.? What you're expecting is the equivalent of people interested in neurosurgery to want to learn how to build a microscope.? I agree that those will be interesting fields of study, but I don't think it will work the way you postulated.? I'd bet that a microwave internet link to a base station on the moon would get much more use than anything related to ham radio. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/16/2019 12:54 PM, jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com wrote: > A few quick thoughts on this subject. > > Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to > fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. > > Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to > get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, > electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are > Intersolar and interstellar space. > > Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer > jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study > programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. > > A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be > ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a > transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should > underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" > to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, > physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be > portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the > ocean. > > I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high > ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, > and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information > consumers! > > What do you think? > > 73 John N5CQ From n6kr at elecraft.com Mon Dec 16 15:44:04 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 12:44:04 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: <36e25f67-6e7c-29c8-36a5-48a08a4fa2cc@cis-broadband.com> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <36e25f67-6e7c-29c8-36a5-48a08a4fa2cc@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: <2939C407-81EB-410B-9FA9-AC9C4F358DEA@elecraft.com> And yet, dabbling in a different part of the electromagnetic spectrum -- with simple optical telescopes -- never gets old. Wayne > On Dec 16, 2019, at 12:14 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > > Since you asked ... > > I'm not trying to be negative for the sake of being negative, but I think the young people interested in those things are going to immediately be drawn to hardware and software considerably more sophisticated than amateur radio. What you're expecting is the equivalent of people interested in neurosurgery to want to learn how to build a microscope. I agree that those will be interesting fields of study, but I don't think it will work the way you postulated. I'd bet that a microwave internet link to a base station on the moon would get much more use than anything related to ham radio. > > 73, > Dave AB7E > > > > On 12/16/2019 12:54 PM, jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com wrote: >> A few quick thoughts on this subject. >> >> Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to >> fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. >> >> Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to >> get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, >> electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are >> Intersolar and interstellar space. >> >> Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer >> jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study >> programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. >> >> A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be >> ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a >> transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should >> underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" >> to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, >> physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be >> portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the >> ocean. >> >> I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high >> ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, >> and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information >> consumers! >> >> What do you think? >> >> 73 John N5CQ > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com From kd4iz at frawg.org Mon Dec 16 16:07:13 2019 From: kd4iz at frawg.org (kd4iz at frawg.org) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:07:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> Message-ID: <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> This discussion reminds me of how the parable, The Blind Men and an Elephant, fits our sacred hobby to a "T": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_men_and_an_elephant We are all "right" in a narrow sense but we are all "wrong" because our view points are so skewed by our perception of truth. We are each just "bloviating" when we hold forth on the subject. Have any of us ever tried to poll younger non-related and non-ham persons in a structured way? Probably not. Do we really understand: What "they" know/don't know about technical hobbies? What "they" know about amateur radio? Why it might be interesting or uninteresting to "them"? I don't think so. I have tried (unscientifically) to ask these questions of younger folk I interact with professionally without identifying myself as being "an older geek". I can't begin to categorize the answers because they are so varied. Introspectively, what I do see is one generation of an old civic (mostly men's) club in a panic because we perceive we are all dying off and there will be no one to "carry on". Our cohort is blind (well, maybe just really myopic) and are incapable of clearly seeing the whole truth... amateur radio is a very diverse but extremely niche hobby, it does not belong to a single interest group - not techies, talkies, first responders, contesters, physicists, space frontiersmen, or preppers. An awfully large group of people look at "us" as odd or funny old dudes... The media has never helped us much... Herman Munster? Come on. Mike Baxter? Really??? Ham radio is just a TV prop and usually used to poke fun at certain attitudes. OTOH the actual high value stuff we occasionally do is all too often relegated to 11pm local news as "filler" if it is reported at all. Who failed? Not even worth pointing fingers... we did. Embrace it, have fun with the hobby, chill, let the marketing departments at "IKY" and "China-Inc" figure out the sales pitch. We geeks will still be here in the future and some will be hams... and we'll line up for the latest widgets. Let's move on. 73 All, "Weird Uncle Jack" KD4IZ Jack Spitznagel FM19oo From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 16 16:08:16 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:08:16 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] New user - can't see my posts In-Reply-To: <1576526703723-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1576526703723-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <83203dab-ee0d-ec91-29e2-04485b5e559b@embarqmail.com> Mike, Gmail is "doing you a favor" by not showing you the posts that you have sent. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/16/2019 3:05 PM, NJMike wrote: > I posted a topic in the K2 section and received replies via email. However, > the post does not show in the K2 section...but it must be visible somewhere > since I received replies. > > I am new to this forum so please tell me what I am doing wrong! > From k3wjv at yahoo.com Mon Dec 16 16:07:38 2019 From: k3wjv at yahoo.com (Bill Stravinsky) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 21:07:38 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 display on 28mhz References: <2031046437.9428425.1576530458897.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <2031046437.9428425.1576530458897@mail.yahoo.com> In the recent 10 mtr contest over the weekend, after just a couple transmissions the display goes berserk and then just displays "28 MH with PWR under that".Then when transmitting the PWR will read anywhere from 1 to 4 digits of the power.? It will stay that way until the amp gets switched off then when turning it backon it will do the same thing after a transmission or two. I thought I saw this reported at one time and wonder if there are any explanations of this behavior?? It works fine its just the display missing its normal readoutof everything to the right of what is showing. BillK3WJV From kt4an2 at yahoo.com Mon Dec 16 16:14:34 2019 From: kt4an2 at yahoo.com (Michael Pendergast) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:14:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Low transmit power on K3 for all bands References: Message-ID: I?m having a problem with tx power in my K3. Every band has a maximum power out of 12 watts except 6 meters at 8 watts. I?m not sure if I have changed something inadvertently, made changes accidentally while try to configure digital software, or if I am in need of a repair. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Mike Pendergast Kt4an Mike Pendergast From k9ztv at socket.net Mon Dec 16 16:20:51 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (K9ZTV) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:20:51 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> Message-ID: Went to the barber shop this morning. Wide assortment of hunting, fishing, and gun magazines in the rack, along with a few copies of ?Scouting? and ?Boys Life.? Picked those two and sat down for a leisurely read. Hadn?t seen one in sixty years. A real treat. Proceeded to peruse every page of both periodicals. Enjoyed it immensely. And then I didn?t. Flipped through the pages a second time just to be sure. Not one sentence about amateur radio. Not one ad, not one picture, not one story. Peewee Harris was still there. Had a full page. Scouts who saved lives were still there. Covered two pages. Lots of ink about backpacking, crime safety, tenting, geocaching, campouts, evironmentalism, relationship building, dog care and other worthy endeavors. Zero ads for radios, signalling, SWLing, kit-building, satellite tracking, Morse Code, or electronic communications of any kind. At the very minimum, I would have thought the $1000 I give the League every year might be capable of placing an ARRL logo and web address in those two youth journals ... for the mildly curious ... but nothing. I got a decent haircut, though. 73, Kent K9ZTV > On Dec 16, 2019, at 1:54 PM, wrote: > > A few quick thoughts on this subject. > > Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to > fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. > > Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to > get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, > electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are > Intersolar and interstellar space. > > Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer > jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study > programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. > > A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be > ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a > transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should > underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" > to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, > physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be > portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the > ocean. > > I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high > ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, > and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information > consumers! > > What do you think? > > 73 John N5CQ > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ztv at socket.net > From cyaffey at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 16:24:50 2019 From: cyaffey at gmail.com (Carl Yaffey) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:24:50 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> Message-ID: <6BA0C3A6-E502-4A71-ABE6-E4F995497CBC@gmail.com> I drop off old QSTs at various places. > On Dec 16, 2019, at 4:20 PM, K9ZTV wrote: > > Went to the barber shop this morning. Wide assortment of hunting, fishing, and gun magazines in the rack, along with a few copies of ?Scouting? and ?Boys Life.? > > Picked those two and sat down for a leisurely read. Hadn?t seen one in sixty years. A real treat. Proceeded to peruse every page of both periodicals. Enjoyed it immensely. And then I didn?t. Flipped through the pages a second time just to be sure. > > Not one sentence about amateur radio. Not one ad, not one picture, not one story. Peewee Harris was still there. Had a full page. Scouts who saved lives were still there. Covered two pages. Lots of ink about backpacking, crime safety, tenting, geocaching, campouts, evironmentalism, relationship building, dog care and other worthy endeavors. Zero ads for radios, signalling, SWLing, kit-building, satellite tracking, Morse Code, or electronic communications of any kind. > > At the very minimum, I would have thought the $1000 I give the League every year might be capable of placing an ARRL logo and web address in those two youth journals ... for the mildly curious ... but nothing. > > I got a decent haircut, though. > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > > > >> On Dec 16, 2019, at 1:54 PM, wrote: >> >> A few quick thoughts on this subject. >> >> Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to >> fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. >> >> Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to >> get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, >> electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are >> Intersolar and interstellar space. >> >> Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer >> jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study >> programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. >> >> A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be >> ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a >> transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should >> underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" >> to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, >> physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be >> portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the >> ocean. >> >> I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high >> ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, >> and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information >> consumers! >> >> What do you think? >> >> 73 John N5CQ >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to k9ztv at socket.net >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to cyaffey at gmail.com Carl Yaffey K8NU cyaffey at gmail.com 614 268 6353, Columbus OH http://www.carl-yaffey.com http://www.grassahol.com http://www.bluesswing.com Https://www.columbusfolkmusicsociety.org http://www.timbrewolves.carl-yaffey.com http://www.columbusshotokankarate.com From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 16:42:52 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:42:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine hobby/avocation. A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on other modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/16/2019 10:19 AM, Leroy Buller wrote: > > This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 > > watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the > same > > issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. > > Elecraft is not a mass market, low cost radio company. They operate in a > different niche. Entry level at Elecraft starts with KX2, KX3, or with a > K3/K3s bought used. When I got back on the air in 2003, I bought used > TS850 and IC746. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com > -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 16:44:08 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:44:08 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: More... Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept VHF to displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so > many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine > hobby/avocation. > A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on other > modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. > I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so > handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. > > On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown > wrote: > >> On 12/16/2019 10:19 AM, Leroy Buller wrote: >> > This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 >> > watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the >> same >> > issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. >> >> Elecraft is not a mass market, low cost radio company. They operate in a >> different niche. Entry level at Elecraft starts with KX2, KX3, or with a >> K3/K3s bought used. When I got back on the air in 2003, I bought used >> TS850 and IC746. >> >> 73, Jim K9YC >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com >> > > > -- > 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW > > and thinking about operating CW: > "Do today what others won't, > so you can do tomorrow what others can't." > -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From w2pa at arrl.net Mon Dec 16 17:16:01 2019 From: w2pa at arrl.net (Chris Codella, W2PA) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:16:01 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> Scott, I noticed the same thing this last weekend, having not been on 10 much since getting the amp. But I found the noise to be quite variable. It doesn't always occur. When it does, it appears suddenly, out of the blue while operating. Sometimes I could make it go away by turning off the power, waiting a while, then restarting. I also got it to stop a couple of times by sending a single "dit" while in operate mode. Quite strange. I'm trying to get more data but it does seem to be an intermittent thing and hard to replicate. This noise didn't affect any band below 10m but appeared very broad-banded above, using an SDR receiver. 73, Chris, W2PA On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: > I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the > KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it > on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban > noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical > switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a > cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) > > 73, > > Scott K9MA > From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 17:22:20 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:22:20 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> Message-ID: Kent, you didn't find the "correct" issue of Scouting, as JOTA is advertised every year as is K2BSA at the National Jamboree every four years.? See: https://www.scouting.org/jota/ 73, steve WB3LGC On 12/16/19 4:20 PM, K9ZTV wrote: > Went to the barber shop this morning. Wide assortment of hunting, fishing, and gun magazines in the rack, along with a few copies of ?Scouting? and ?Boys Life.? > > Picked those two and sat down for a leisurely read. Hadn?t seen one in sixty years. A real treat. Proceeded to peruse every page of both periodicals. Enjoyed it immensely. And then I didn?t. Flipped through the pages a second time just to be sure. > > Not one sentence about amateur radio. Not one ad, not one picture, not one story. Peewee Harris was still there. Had a full page. Scouts who saved lives were still there. Covered two pages. Lots of ink about backpacking, crime safety, tenting, geocaching, campouts, evironmentalism, relationship building, dog care and other worthy endeavors. Zero ads for radios, signalling, SWLing, kit-building, satellite tracking, Morse Code, or electronic communications of any kind. > > At the very minimum, I would have thought the $1000 I give the League every year might be capable of placing an ARRL logo and web address in those two youth journals ... for the mildly curious ... but nothing. > > I got a decent haircut, though. > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > > > >> On Dec 16, 2019, at 1:54 PM, wrote: >> >> A few quick thoughts on this subject. >> >> Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to >> fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. >> >> Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to >> get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, >> electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are >> Intersolar and interstellar space. >> >> Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer >> jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study >> programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. >> >> A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be >> ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a >> transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should >> underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" >> to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, >> physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be >> portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the >> ocean. >> >> I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high >> ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, >> and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information >> consumers! >> >> What do you think? >> >> 73 John N5CQ >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to k9ztv at socket.net >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From djt at his.com Mon Dec 16 17:40:28 2019 From: djt at his.com (Dietmar Tietz) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:40:28 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <985145145.4525866.1576536028721.JavaMail.zimbra@his.com> There is such more sophisticated HT: Kenwood TH-D74. In addition to FM VHF/UHF modes, it does have SSB and CW, D-star, etc for that frequency range. Plus, it also functions as a receiver for the HF bands, including SSB and CW. Contrary to local amateur radio club members' advice, I did not buy a Chinese model for $50, because I also wanted to explore HF and got myself a PK-Loop for that. Even though I have been shortwave listening for over 40 years, it was only recently that I heard about ARRL and the licensing program. And I heard it from a German radio amateur friend. Never was I made aware of ham radio activities on the SWLING, the definitive website for shortwave listening. DXing seems to be a well-kept secret. Dietmar KC3OFB ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ted Edwards W3TB" To: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Cc: "Elecraft Reflector" Sent: Monday, December 16, 2019 4:42:52 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine hobby/avocation. A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on other modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/16/2019 10:19 AM, Leroy Buller wrote: > > This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 > > watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the > same > > issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. > > Elecraft is not a mass market, low cost radio company. They operate in a > different niche. Entry level at Elecraft starts with KX2, KX3, or with a > K3/K3s bought used. When I got back on the air in 2003, I bought used > TS850 and IC746. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com > -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to djt at his.com From phystad at mac.com Mon Dec 16 18:01:59 2019 From: phystad at mac.com (Phil Hystad) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:01:59 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> Message-ID: Back in 1960 I bought my transmitter, an Eico 720 Kit for $79.95. My receiver at that time was a Knight-Kit R100. The US inflation calculator says that $79.95 in 1960 is equal to about $695 today. This was a transmitter only and the only mode was CW and it was crystal controlled (no VFO). If you add in an almost equal amount for a receiver than today?s KX2 or even for that matter, a KX3 is a real bargain. That Eico 720 transmitter in 1960 was a nice rig but it was low end of the transmitter totem-pole. A few years after that I upgraded my receiver to a Hammarlund HQ-170AC which was considered one of the great receivers for its day. However, it is no where close to be as good as the receiver on a KX3. That HQ-170AC was ~$329 (in 1965) and at today?s price would be equal to a ~$2700 purchase! Rigs today, even the best ones, are cheap in comparison. 73, phil, K7PEH > On Dec 16, 2019, at 10:19 AM, Leroy Buller wrote: > > This is a concern of mine for Elecraft. A low cost entry rig with 100 > watts. Very hard to compete with I Y K for this market. Flex has the same > issue but maybe the old man rich market is big enough for all players. > > Saving for a K4 > > Lee > > On Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 10:03 AM Charlie T wrote: > >> >> Note to Wayne & Eric that an inexpensive entry level transceiver might find >> market with newcomers on tight budgets (eg the K1, etc.); something other >> than a VHF HT. KX2/KX3 are still a bit much for the college student or >> newly graduated worker. >> >> 73, Ed - KL7UW >> >> >> That's probably what the current non "S" version of the K3 will evolve >> into. >> Maybe even the K3s too with the introduction of the K4. >> >> 73, Charlie k3ICH >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to lee.buller at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to phystad at mac.com From dl2mdu at darc.de Mon Dec 16 18:07:16 2019 From: dl2mdu at darc.de (Christian Friess) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 00:07:16 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Low transmit power on K3 for all bands In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Looks like you running the low power amp only. Check the CONFIG menue entry KPA3 amplifier module: set the KPA3 menu entry to PA NOR. See menu entry listings for information on other settings. 73 Chris, DL2MDU Am 16.12.2019 um 22:14 schrieb Michael Pendergast via Elecraft: > I?m having a problem with tx power in my K3. Every band has a maximum power out of 12 watts except 6 meters at 8 watts. I?m not sure if I have changed something inadvertently, made changes accidentally while try to configure digital software, or if I am in need of a repair. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. > > Mike Pendergast > Kt4an > > Mike Pendergast > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dl2mdu at darc.de From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Mon Dec 16 18:10:30 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 16:10:30 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: <2939C407-81EB-410B-9FA9-AC9C4F358DEA@elecraft.com> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <36e25f67-6e7c-29c8-36a5-48a08a4fa2cc@cis-broadband.com> <2939C407-81EB-410B-9FA9-AC9C4F358DEA@elecraft.com> Message-ID: Neither would ham radio if you could talk to hundreds or thousands of other planets or stars, and couldn't do so any other way.? As best I know, a telescope is still the only way to observe one. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/16/2019 1:44 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > And yet, dabbling in a different part of the electromagnetic spectrum -- with simple optical telescopes -- never gets old. > > Wayne > > >> On Dec 16, 2019, at 12:14 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >> >> >> Since you asked ... >> >> I'm not trying to be negative for the sake of being negative, but I think the young people interested in those things are going to immediately be drawn to hardware and software considerably more sophisticated than amateur radio. What you're expecting is the equivalent of people interested in neurosurgery to want to learn how to build a microscope. I agree that those will be interesting fields of study, but I don't think it will work the way you postulated. I'd bet that a microwave internet link to a base station on the moon would get much more use than anything related to ham radio. >> >> 73, >> Dave AB7E >> >> >> >> On 12/16/2019 12:54 PM, jlangdon1 at austin.rr.com wrote: >>> A few quick thoughts on this subject. >>> >>> Space exploration, colonization, and physics are the best "hooks" I see to >>> fish for the young people that are best prospects as future hams. >>> >>> Amateur radio is the best way to "touch" the world beyond the earth and to >>> get a "hands on" understanding of solar physics, electronic equipment, >>> electromagnetic fields, solar weather, and the harsh environments that are >>> Intersolar and interstellar space. >>> >>> Early involvement should come with hands on experiments, internships, summer >>> jobs, resume builders for college applications, and university work/study >>> programs in the communications, computer technology and defense industries. >>> >>> A sequenced set of building block project kits (Elecraft style would be >>> ideal) that introduce basic principles and result in a receiver, a >>> transmitter, and an antenna could provide a gateway, and present hams should >>> underwrite making these available at a low cost and with available "Elmers" >>> to help. This equipment could be used for radio astronomy, communications, >>> physics experiments, meteorology, and contesting. Contesting should be >>> portrayed as glamorous "yacht racing in space" and much cooler than on the >>> ocean. >>> >>> I believe we are at a second "Sputnik" point in the quest for the high >>> ground, and this is the time to grow more modern technologists, explorers, >>> and entrepreneurs and fewer snowflake philosophers and low information >>> consumers! >>> >>> What do you think? >>> >>> 73 John N5CQ >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com > From rick.nk7i at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 18:31:37 2019 From: rick.nk7i at gmail.com (Rick Bates, NK7I) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 15:31:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] The Future of Our Hobby In-Reply-To: References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <36e25f67-6e7c-29c8-36a5-48a08a4fa2cc@cis-broadband.com> <2939C407-81EB-410B-9FA9-AC9C4F358DEA@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <473c116e-c1e9-cd00-aa1f-a88c38b488f9@gmail.com> An SWL QSL card would certainly be popular too if you could figure out how to send the report! :-P Merry Christmas all, Rick NK7I On 12/16/2019 3:10 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > Neither would ham radio if you could talk to hundreds or thousands of > other planets or stars, and couldn't do so any other way.? As best I > know, a telescope is still the only way to observe one. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E > > > > On 12/16/2019 1:44 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: >> And yet, dabbling in a different part of the electromagnetic spectrum >> -- with simple optical telescopes -- never gets old. >> >> Wayne From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 16 18:49:09 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:49:09 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> References: <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> Message-ID: I suggest one check the 240V wiring to confirm all connections are tight and solid all the way from the main breaker panel to the outlet for the amp. This includes L1, L2, Neut, and Ground. Also I would make sure there is a solid ground between the PS cabinet and amp cabinet. Also , since recent issues are reported as new for 10M, make sure the station ground ( if one is used) is not near 1/4 wavelength on 10M. That?s about 8? or so. 73 Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 16, 2019, at 4:28 PM, Chris Codella, W2PA wrote: > > ?Scott, > > I noticed the same thing this last weekend, having not been on 10 much since getting the amp. But I found the noise to be quite variable. It doesn't always occur. When it does, it appears suddenly, out of the blue while operating. > > Sometimes I could make it go away by turning off the power, waiting a while, then restarting. I also got it to stop a couple of times by sending a single "dit" while in operate mode. Quite strange. I'm trying to get more data but it does seem to be an intermittent thing and hard to replicate. > > This noise didn't affect any band below 10m but appeared very broad-banded above, using an SDR receiver. > > 73, > Chris, W2PA > >> On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) >> >> 73, >> >> Scott K9MA >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From nr4c at widomaker.com Mon Dec 16 19:44:40 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 19:44:40 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: <1ad701d5b447$13b98260$3b2c8720$@gmail.com> References: <1ad701d5b447$13b98260$3b2c8720$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <912E9130-4760-4C7C-8B50-6A5D4F00992A@widomaker.com> Will an old synth work in a K3S? Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 16, 2019, at 2:32 PM, ockmrzr at gmail.com wrote: > > ?I have 4 of the old style KSYN3 synthesizer module if anyone is interested. > Priced to sell! > > I also have: > 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface > 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface > > Email me off-line if interested. > > 73 de Bruce, N7TY > Yuma, AZ > www.qsl.net/n7ty > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On > Behalf Of Wilson Lamb > Sent: 16 December, 2019 10:51 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver > > It seems the OP has it covered, but, if one isn't ready to spend on the new > synth, one can get an old synth for next to nothing and run with two old > ones. > The upgrade isn't a big deal for most ops. > WL > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to ockmrzr at gmail.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From ghyoungman at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 20:29:41 2019 From: ghyoungman at gmail.com (Grant Youngman) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 20:29:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: <912E9130-4760-4C7C-8B50-6A5D4F00992A@widomaker.com> References: <1ad701d5b447$13b98260$3b2c8720$@gmail.com> <912E9130-4760-4C7C-8B50-6A5D4F00992A@widomaker.com> Message-ID: Yes ? > On Dec 16, 2019, at 7:44 PM, Nr4c wrote: > > Will an old synth work in a K3S? > > Sent from my iPhone > ...nr4c. bill > > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 16 20:46:34 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 20:46:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Ted, The new synthesizers give the K3/K3S a vast improvement in transmit phase noise, as well as improving the receive noise floor performance by several dB. Both synthesizers must be the same. I would highly recommend getting another KSYN3A board to use in your main receiver to match the one supplied with your KX3A. If you anticipate using Diversity mode, it is a necessity. If the filters in your KRX3 do not match the ones in your main RF board, then the new synthesizers are a MUST - the new synthesizers can work in diversity mode with unmatched filters, but the old ones cannot. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/16/2019 10:48 AM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > I put it off for years getting the Sub-Receiver for my K3. > With the change to K4, I got a sub-receiver before they become unavailable. > > The sub-receiver comes with the KSYN3A synthesizer board --- so it occurs > to me to change that board into the primary receiver and use the older one > with the sub-receiver. That may make it easier to change out later. > > I am really so impressed with the K3 receiver after about 6 years that the > new synthesizer always seemed pointless -- but now I have one anyway. > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Mon Dec 16 21:37:42 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 21:37:42 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: Ted and all, I do not think restricting the choices to VHF and UHF gear is going to "save the hobby". There are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today. There are a few inexpensive CW only kits available from QRPme.com, but those are quite limited and are CW only. Oh to have the Dave Benson SWL series back. Those were good kits which could put the new ham on the air with a good receiver, but again CW only. I do not see any equivalent today. The QRPme kits are interesting, but being CW only, they are limited to those willing to learn CW. Even a 'knock-off' of the K1 is CW only. For potentially new hams, we hams need to have something that is viable for HF and not expensive. Remember the high schooler and the recent college graduate who does not a lot of extra money. I do not see many choices for them other than the inexpensive VHF/UHF FM transceivers, which work fine with repeaters, but do nothing for the HF spectrum. I built my first transmitter of salvaged TV parts at a very, very low cost, but that was back in the late 1950's when such parts were available many for the asking at the local TV repair shop. A used HF transceiver may the only current logical choice. Elecraft has championed the high performance, high end market, and has done well at it, but that performance comes at a price. Few beginners in ham radio can afford a K3S let alone a KX2, so for beginners, they are "left in the lurch" with choices mainly in the used gear market. Nostalgia for 'what was' is interesting, but does nothing for the newcomers to HF with limited funds. Even the era of cheap surplus military gear is gone. I used to buy Command set transmitters and receivers for $5 each at the surplus store, and you could salvage parts from them to build transmitters and receivers, but those rigs are collectors items today and are expensive. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/16/2019 4:44 PM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > More... > Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept VHF to > displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. > > On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > >> Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so >> many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine >> hobby/avocation. >> A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on other >> modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. >> I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so >> handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. >> >> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown >> wrote: >> From eric.csuf at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 22:04:00 2019 From: eric.csuf at gmail.com (EricJ) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 19:04:00 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <4ea0988a-a4da-a760-e9bc-56728a71d1c3@gmail.com> The QRP Labs QCX certainly meet that criteria. Single band (80, 60, 40, 30, 20, 17, pick one), LCD and controls included. Dual Si5351 VFO, keyer, 5 watts, CAT, cw decoder, thru-hole, not to mention built in test equipment for alignment and troubleshooting....$49. Add solder and enclosure just like the SW+ series. QSX coming (some day) with SSB and digital modes built in. There are a few others. Dave Benson designed a new 4w SSB? rig called the Phaser. Single band, SSB, not DSB. For digital modes. You can duckduckgo it. It's a tech hobby. Tech is always going to be relatively expensive for a newcomer who is starting with nothing. Expensive in equipment and expensive in time with a relatively steep initial learning curve. Nothing there has changed. It's always been a sacrifice to many. Eric KE6US On 12/16/2019 6:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > Ted and all, > > I do not think restricting the choices to VHF and UHF gear is going to > "save the hobby". > > There are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today.? There are > a few inexpensive CW only kits available from QRPme.com, but those are > quite limited and are CW only.? Oh to have the Dave Benson SWL series > back.? Those were good kits which could put the new ham on the air > with a good receiver, but again CW only.? I do not see any equivalent > today. > > The QRPme kits are interesting, but being CW only, they are limited to > those willing to learn CW.? Even a 'knock-off' of the K1 is CW only. > > For potentially new hams, we hams need to have something that is > viable for HF and not expensive.? Remember the high schooler and the > recent college graduate who does not a lot of extra money.? I do not > see many choices for them other than the inexpensive VHF/UHF FM > transceivers, which work fine with repeaters, but do nothing for the > HF spectrum. > I built my first transmitter of salvaged TV parts at a very, very low > cost, but that was back in the late 1950's when such parts were > available many for the asking at the local TV repair shop. > > A used HF transceiver may the only current logical choice. > > Elecraft has championed the high performance, high end market, and has > done well at it, but that performance comes at a price.? Few beginners > in ham radio can afford a K3S let alone a KX2, so for beginners, they > are "left in the lurch" with choices mainly in the used gear market. > > Nostalgia for 'what was' is interesting, but does nothing for the > newcomers to HF with limited funds.? Even the era of cheap surplus > military gear is gone.? I used to buy Command set transmitters and > receivers for $5 each at the surplus store, and you could salvage > parts from them to build transmitters and receivers, but those rigs > are collectors items today and are expensive. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > > On 12/16/2019 4:44 PM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: >> More... >> Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept >> VHF to >> displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. >> >> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB >> wrote: >> >>> Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so >>> many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine >>> hobby/avocation. >>> A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on >>> other >>> modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. >>> I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so >>> handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands.? CW, >>> too. >>> >>> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown >>> wrote: >>> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to eric.csuf at gmail.com From kf5wdj at att.net Mon Dec 16 22:43:37 2019 From: kf5wdj at att.net (J David Overton) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 21:43:37 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Midland Amateur Radio Club's Elecraft K4 Raffle References: <2229db14f61d46f198799a022abb4448@kf5wdj.com> Message-ID: <7345838D-0A39-4554-A00E-FD5B5A32A6A1@att.net> The Midland Amateur Radio Club in Midland, Texas will raffle a Elecraft K4 during the St Patrick?s Day Hamfest on March 21, 2020. The winner will have the radio shipped directly from Elecraft giving them the opportunity to upgrade from the basic model. The raffle will include a hand microphone. The cost of a ticket is $20.00 and a maximum of 400 tickets will be sold. This would be a great Christmas present for the ?Ham Who Has Everything? or that radio friend you just can?t decide on the just right present. Please go to the website http://www.hamfest.w5qgg,org to purchase tickets and register for the hamfest. MARC ? Midland Amateur Radio Club J David Overton KF5WDJ President 2019 ? 2020 Midland, Texas Email: kf5wdj at att.net From johnae5x at gmail.com Mon Dec 16 23:18:11 2019 From: johnae5x at gmail.com (John Harper) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 22:18:11 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: 10-80m CW and phone for $150: http://www.hfsignals.com/ From buddy at brannan.name Tue Dec 17 00:15:48 2019 From: buddy at brannan.name (Buddy Brannan) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 00:15:48 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> An interesting little rig to follow is the UBitx at http://www.hfsignals.com/ $199 gets you a 3-30 MHz SSB/cw rig. Sure, no cw filter, and I?m sure the receiver ain?t no KX3 or even K2, but it?s hackable and pretty darned interesting for $200, or even as little as $150. Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA Email: buddy at brannan.name Mobile: (814) 431-0962 > On Dec 16, 2019, at 9:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Ted and all, > > I do not think restricting the choices to VHF and UHF gear is going to "save the hobby". > > There are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today. There are a few inexpensive CW only kits available from QRPme.com, but those are quite limited and are CW only. Oh to have the Dave Benson SWL series back. Those were good kits which could put the new ham on the air with a good receiver, but again CW only. I do not see any equivalent today. > > The QRPme kits are interesting, but being CW only, they are limited to those willing to learn CW. Even a 'knock-off' of the K1 is CW only. > > For potentially new hams, we hams need to have something that is viable for HF and not expensive. Remember the high schooler and the recent college graduate who does not a lot of extra money. I do not see many choices for them other than the inexpensive VHF/UHF FM transceivers, which work fine with repeaters, but do nothing for the HF spectrum. > I built my first transmitter of salvaged TV parts at a very, very low cost, but that was back in the late 1950's when such parts were available many for the asking at the local TV repair shop. > > A used HF transceiver may the only current logical choice. > > Elecraft has championed the high performance, high end market, and has done well at it, but that performance comes at a price. Few beginners in ham radio can afford a K3S let alone a KX2, so for beginners, they are "left in the lurch" with choices mainly in the used gear market. > > Nostalgia for 'what was' is interesting, but does nothing for the newcomers to HF with limited funds. Even the era of cheap surplus military gear is gone. I used to buy Command set transmitters and receivers for $5 each at the surplus store, and you could salvage parts from them to build transmitters and receivers, but those rigs are collectors items today and are expensive. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > > On 12/16/2019 4:44 PM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: >> More... >> Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept VHF to >> displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. >> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: >>> Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so >>> many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine >>> hobby/avocation. >>> A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on other >>> modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. >>> I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so >>> handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. >>> >>> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown >>> wrote: >>> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to buddy at brannan.name From rick at tavan.com Tue Dec 17 01:21:46 2019 From: rick at tavan.com (Rick Tavan) Date: Mon, 16 Dec 2019 22:21:46 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] WBN: Restartable Server Operation for Elecraft Remote Apps Message-ID: It would be nice if KPA500 Remote, KAT500 Remote, and KPA1500 Remote could be set up to operate as *automatically restartable servers*. I don't think they can do this today, but if I'm wrong, someone please enlighten me! Here's the scenario: These apps all have Host Remote capability. When enabled, they listen for connection from a client-side instance of the same app. But it takes two or three mouse clicks to set this up AFTER launching the server-side programs. If the server computer on which they run suffers a power failure, it can reboot automatically when power is restored (not all computers will do this, but many can). However, it's necessary to restart the app manually, tell it to start hosting, and, at least for KPA1500, turn the amp back off since the app turns it on during its initialization process. It would be nice if they had a setting that means "Automatically go into remote hosting mode and turn OFF the device (or don't turn it on) upon startup." Then, unattended power failures would be largely transparent to the control-side user. 73, /Rick N6XI -- -- Rick Tavan Truckee and Saratoga, CA From wf3t at fastmail.com Tue Dec 17 03:38:13 2019 From: wf3t at fastmail.com (Steven G. Steltzer) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 03:38:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <772e365b-04cb-481e-9e15-f323a29ead79@www.fastmail.com> CW ops have another option for retirement homes / severe HOA restrictions . Search iCW on the web. 73, Steve , WF3T From wf3t at fastmail.com Tue Dec 17 03:45:38 2019 From: wf3t at fastmail.com (Steven G. Steltzer) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 03:45:38 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home Message-ID: CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. 73, Steve, WF3T From kh at kh-translation.dk Tue Dec 17 04:49:54 2019 From: kh at kh-translation.dk (Kjeld Holm) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:49:54 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home Message-ID: In restricted areas I have had good results with a short vertical dipole for 10-20M like http://mojero.wixsite.com/twantenna/products Vy 73 de OZ1CCM, Kjeld From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:11:49 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:11:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <23A32FF3-3711-429A-92E3-965A982CD856@yahoo.com> Goes to show the old maxim: GET ON THE AIR is still true. There is always someone listening and hoping for a contact. Dead bands? NOT! Just weaker signals. It always amazes me that when the bands seem dead there are always signals on the digital frequencies. I am not knocking the digital modes (I have recently crossed over and used FT8..... boring for me but that JS8Call looks a little better) but if each of those pursuing the digital modes would put out the same signal on CW or even SSB they would be heard and probably make a contact. Leave a receiver in the background on using the beacon frequency of your band of interest...... DON?T look at the poor band conditions indicators. They are too discouraging. Just my opinion. Hope to hear you all on from Florida while we are there avoiding the snow. Am packing my building stuff so I can finally get my three QCX?s built this winter. Thank you Hans and QRP Labs. David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 4:52 AM, Kjeld Holm wrote: > > ?In restricted areas I have had good results with a short vertical dipole for 10-20M like > http://mojero.wixsite.com/twantenna/products > > > > Vy 73 de OZ1CCM, Kjeld > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:11:49 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:11:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <23A32FF3-3711-429A-92E3-965A982CD856@yahoo.com> Goes to show the old maxim: GET ON THE AIR is still true. There is always someone listening and hoping for a contact. Dead bands? NOT! Just weaker signals. It always amazes me that when the bands seem dead there are always signals on the digital frequencies. I am not knocking the digital modes (I have recently crossed over and used FT8..... boring for me but that JS8Call looks a little better) but if each of those pursuing the digital modes would put out the same signal on CW or even SSB they would be heard and probably make a contact. Leave a receiver in the background on using the beacon frequency of your band of interest...... DON?T look at the poor band conditions indicators. They are too discouraging. Just my opinion. Hope to hear you all on from Florida while we are there avoiding the snow. Am packing my building stuff so I can finally get my three QCX?s built this winter. Thank you Hans and QRP Labs. David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 4:52 AM, Kjeld Holm wrote: > > ?In restricted areas I have had good results with a short vertical dipole for 10-20M like > http://mojero.wixsite.com/twantenna/products > > > > Vy 73 de OZ1CCM, Kjeld > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:23:27 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:23:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <4B83D18B-2BFC-4B1E-83B7-BCD607BFEEE5@yahoo.com> Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: > > ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. > > 73, > Steve, WF3T > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:23:27 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:23:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <4B83D18B-2BFC-4B1E-83B7-BCD607BFEEE5@yahoo.com> Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: > > ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. > > 73, > Steve, WF3T > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com From ww3s at zoominternet.net Tue Dec 17 05:27:41 2019 From: ww3s at zoominternet.net (WW3S) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:27:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <4B83D18B-2BFC-4B1E-83B7-BCD607BFEEE5@yahoo.com> References: <4B83D18B-2BFC-4B1E-83B7-BCD607BFEEE5@yahoo.com> Message-ID: I feel your pain ! (Speaking from experience) The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! Sent from my iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft wrote: > > ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! > > David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: >> >> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. >> >> 73, >> Steve, WF3T >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:49:45 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:49:45 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Ha! That's a good one. And so true. David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: > > ?I feel your pain ! > (Speaking from experience) > > The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... > The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft wrote: >> >> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! >> >> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >> >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: >>> >>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. >>> >>> 73, >>> Steve, WF3T >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net > From djwilcox01 at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 05:49:45 2019 From: djwilcox01 at yahoo.com (David Wilcox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 05:49:45 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Ha! That's a good one. And so true. David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: > > ?I feel your pain ! > (Speaking from experience) > > The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... > The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft wrote: >> >> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! >> >> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >> >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: >>> >>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. >>> >>> 73, >>> Steve, WF3T >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net > From ke8g.jim at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 09:20:26 2019 From: ke8g.jim at gmail.com (KE8G) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:20:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Yes, my wife is also a retired nurse and every time I go to the doctor's office and he tells me I need to do "something", she is shacking her head in the affirmative and I know I will not be a happy camper! Example... cardiologist says no luncheon meats, I LOVE luncheon meats, but haven't had any for the last 10 years!! 73 de Jim - KE8G On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 5:51 AM David Wilcox via Elecraft < elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: > Ha! That's a good one. And so true. > > David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > > > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: > > > > ?I feel your pain ! > > (Speaking from experience) > > > > The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... > > The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! > > > > Sent from my iPad > > > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft < > elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: > >> > >> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to > recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living home > we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area > are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to if > and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the > facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she is > a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can be > a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might > recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! > >> > >> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > >> > >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer > wrote: > >>> > >>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely > restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. > >>> > >>> 73, > >>> Steve, WF3T > >>> ______________________________________________________________ > >>> Elecraft mailing list > >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >>> > >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > >>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com > >> > >> ______________________________________________________________ > >> Elecraft mailing list > >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >> > >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > >> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com From fnassar62 at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 09:54:26 2019 From: fnassar62 at gmail.com (Fred Nassar) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:54:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: With all due respect, I disagree with the statement "there are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today." I was licensed at 14 and remember my first HF rig was an used HT-44 and DX-160. I used that pair for six years and learned a lot about how to optimize my set up until I had enough money to purchase my buddy's FT-101E for $400 (1981). After college I was able to buy new gear using a TS 570 and 590S many years and now using a flex 6400. With the advent of the IC7300 and other SDRs the used market has been disrupted. Decent used HF rigs can be had for $300-$500 (cheaper than a new smart phone). Even a new 7300 or 590sg are within reach for the new ham. Both very good rigs offering many to most of the advance features that top of the line rigs offer. I think the movement to SDRs will continue to offer very affordable albeit maybe not new and not "state of the art", but very much usable and capable to make QSOs and more importantly having fun. I think what Elecraft does is unique and there is value in that. They bring a high level of customer service and stay very close to the customer. They almost seem like one of us hi hi...While the big three may offer more tiers, they do so at the cost of other things some hams find important. Elecraft has been around over 20 years and now launching what appear to be a very successful K4. I think they are doing just fine with their business model. 73, Fred KE4Q owner of a KX3 and maybe a K4 someday On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 9:39 PM Don Wilhelm wrote: > Ted and all, > > I do not think restricting the choices to VHF and UHF gear is going to > "save the hobby". > > There are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today. There are a > few inexpensive CW only kits available from QRPme.com, but those are > quite limited and are CW only. Oh to have the Dave Benson SWL series > back. Those were good kits which could put the new ham on the air with > a good receiver, but again CW only. I do not see any equivalent today. > > The QRPme kits are interesting, but being CW only, they are limited to > those willing to learn CW. Even a 'knock-off' of the K1 is CW only. > > For potentially new hams, we hams need to have something that is viable > for HF and not expensive. Remember the high schooler and the recent > college graduate who does not a lot of extra money. I do not see many > choices for them other than the inexpensive VHF/UHF FM transceivers, > which work fine with repeaters, but do nothing for the HF spectrum. > I built my first transmitter of salvaged TV parts at a very, very low > cost, but that was back in the late 1950's when such parts were > available many for the asking at the local TV repair shop. > > A used HF transceiver may the only current logical choice. > > Elecraft has championed the high performance, high end market, and has > done well at it, but that performance comes at a price. Few beginners > in ham radio can afford a K3S let alone a KX2, so for beginners, they > are "left in the lurch" with choices mainly in the used gear market. > > Nostalgia for 'what was' is interesting, but does nothing for the > newcomers to HF with limited funds. Even the era of cheap surplus > military gear is gone. I used to buy Command set transmitters and > receivers for $5 each at the surplus store, and you could salvage parts > from them to build transmitters and receivers, but those rigs are > collectors items today and are expensive. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > > On 12/16/2019 4:44 PM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: > > More... > > Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept VHF > to > > displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. > > > > On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB > wrote: > > > >> Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so > >> many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine > >> hobby/avocation. > >> A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on > other > >> modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. > >> I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so > >> handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. > >> > >> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown > >> wrote: > >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to fnassar62 at gmail.com > From n0nb at n0nb.us Tue Dec 17 09:57:17 2019 From: n0nb at n0nb.us (Nate Bargmann) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 08:57:17 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> Message-ID: <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> * On 2019 16 Dec 23:18 -0600, Buddy Brannan wrote: > An interesting little rig to follow is the UBitx at > http://www.hfsignals.com/ > > $199 gets you a 3-30 MHz SSB/cw rig. Sure, no cw filter, and I?m sure > the receiver ain?t no KX3 or even K2, but it?s hackable and pretty > darned interesting for $200, or even as little as $150. I suspect it's the hackability aspect that makes this a popular option among some operators. I think this is the "hook" a lot of techie oriented prospective hams are looking for. 73, Nate, N0NB -- "The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears this is true." Web: https://www.n0nb.us Projects: https://github.com/N0NB GPG fingerprint: 82D6 4F6B 0E67 CD41 F689 BBA6 FB2C 5130 D55A 8819 From va3mw at portcredit.net Tue Dec 17 09:45:51 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:45:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: She is correct on luncheon meats. Big Mac, Any Egg and Meat sandwich and most prepared foods have about 900mg of Sodium and I bet your dailing limit is about 1500mg (for Canadians, that means all Tim's breakfast sandwiches). Don't forget hotdogs and sausages are off the list too. They use a lot of Brine. As my wife and I did the Sodium research the Big Mac was about the 'best' of the worst. No more pizza or just about any Mall food. Eggs are great! Your own safe way out is to prepare your own with plain meets like Turkey, etc. Welcome to getting old-er. :) Mike On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 9:21 AM KE8G wrote: > Yes, my wife is also a retired nurse and every time I go to the doctor's > office and he tells me I need to do "something", she is shacking her head > in the affirmative and I know I will not be a happy camper! Example... > cardiologist says no luncheon meats, I LOVE luncheon meats, but haven't had > any for the last 10 years!! > > 73 de Jim - KE8G > > On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 5:51 AM David Wilcox via Elecraft < > elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: > > > Ha! That's a good one. And so true. > > > > David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > > > > > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: > > > > > > ?I feel your pain ! > > > (Speaking from experience) > > > > > > The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... > > > The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! > > > > > > Sent from my iPad > > > > > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft < > > elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: > > >> > > >> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to > > recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living > home > > we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area > > are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to > if > > and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the > > facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she > is > > a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can > be > > a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might > > recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! > > >> > > >> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad > > >> > > >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer > > wrote: > > >>> > > >>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely > > restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. > > >>> > > >>> 73, > > >>> Steve, WF3T > > >>> ______________________________________________________________ > > >>> Elecraft mailing list > > >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > >>> > > >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > >>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com > > >> > > >> ______________________________________________________________ > > >> Elecraft mailing list > > >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > >> > > >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > >> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net From bpehrson at kth.se Tue Dec 17 10:24:40 2019 From: bpehrson at kth.se (Bjorn Pehrson) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 16:24:40 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> Message-ID: <4c1574e0-2eee-2562-95cd-0346adb5e640@kth.se> Sorry abt that ,my bad, wrong recipient... On 2019-12-17 16:22, Bjorn Pehrson wrote: > hm, verkar vara sv?rt tt hitta genomskinlig Sikaflex trots att sika > s?ger att det ska finnas i alla byggvarubutiker. Jag har svart och det > finns vit att k?pa. Har f?rs?kt googla runt. > > K?nner du till n?got speciellt m?rke och var man kan k?pa det? > From bpehrson at kth.se Tue Dec 17 10:22:42 2019 From: bpehrson at kth.se (Bjorn Pehrson) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 16:22:42 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> Message-ID: hm, verkar vara sv?rt tt hitta genomskinlig Sikaflex trots att sika s?ger att det ska finnas i alla byggvarubutiker. Jag har svart och det finns vit att k?pa. Har f?rs?kt googla runt. K?nner du till n?got speciellt m?rke och var man kan k?pa det? On 2019-12-17 15:57, Nate Bargmann wrote: > * On 2019 16 Dec 23:18 -0600, Buddy Brannan wrote: >> An interesting little rig to follow is the UBitx at >> http://www.hfsignals.com/ >> >> $199 gets you a 3-30 MHz SSB/cw rig. Sure, no cw filter, and I?m sure >> the receiver ain?t no KX3 or even K2, but it?s hackable and pretty >> darned interesting for $200, or even as little as $150. > I suspect it's the hackability aspect that makes this a popular option > among some operators. I think this is the "hook" a lot of techie > oriented prospective hams are looking for. > > 73, Nate, N0NB > From w3tb.ted at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 10:38:30 2019 From: w3tb.ted at gmail.com (Ted Edwards W3TB) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:38:30 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <4c1574e0-2eee-2562-95cd-0346adb5e640@kth.se> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> <4c1574e0-2eee-2562-95cd-0346adb5e640@kth.se> Message-ID: I am not talking about "restricting" but rather making available what is not available for those hams. It would do the Technicians a lot of good to discover other mode availabilities within their current licenses and help to move them ahead beyond HTs and repeaters. On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 9:26 AM Bjorn Pehrson wrote: > Sorry abt that ,my bad, wrong recipient... > > On 2019-12-17 16:22, Bjorn Pehrson wrote: > > hm, verkar vara sv?rt tt hitta genomskinlig Sikaflex trots att sika > > s?ger att det ska finnas i alla byggvarubutiker. Jag har svart och det > > finns vit att k?pa. Har f?rs?kt googla runt. > > > > K?nner du till n?got speciellt m?rke och var man kan k?pa det? > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w3tb.ted at gmail.com -- 73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and G?PWW and thinking about operating CW: "Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't." From ww3s at zoominternet.net Tue Dec 17 10:41:31 2019 From: ww3s at zoominternet.net (Jamie WW3S) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:41:31 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: all you health nuts will be surprised to find you die from nothing someday..... as for me, I hope I'm shot in the back by a jealous husband as I'm crawling out some blondes bedroom window..... ------ Original Message ------ From: "Michael Walker" To: "KE8G" Cc: "Steven G. Steltzer" ; "Elecraft" Sent: 12/17/2019 9:45:51 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home >She is correct on luncheon meats. > >Big Mac, Any Egg and Meat sandwich and most prepared foods have about 900mg >of Sodium and I bet your dailing limit is about 1500mg (for Canadians, that >means all Tim's breakfast sandwiches). Don't forget hotdogs and sausages >are off the list too. They use a lot of Brine. As my wife and I did the >Sodium research the Big Mac was about the 'best' of the worst. No more >pizza or just about any Mall food. > >Eggs are great! > >Your own safe way out is to prepare your own with plain meets like Turkey, >etc. Welcome to getting old-er. :) > >Mike > > >On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 9:21 AM KE8G wrote: > >> Yes, my wife is also a retired nurse and every time I go to the doctor's >> office and he tells me I need to do "something", she is shacking her head >> in the affirmative and I know I will not be a happy camper! Example... >> cardiologist says no luncheon meats, I LOVE luncheon meats, but haven't had >> any for the last 10 years!! >> >> 73 de Jim - KE8G >> >> On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 5:51 AM David Wilcox via Elecraft < >>elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: >> >> > Ha! That's a good one. And so true. >> > >> > David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >> > >> > > On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: >> > > >> > > ?I feel your pain ! >> > > (Speaking from experience) >> > > >> > > The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... >> > > The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! >> > > >> > > Sent from my iPad >> > > >> > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft < >> > elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: >> > >> >> > >> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to >> > recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living >> home >> > we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area >> > are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to >> if >> > and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the >> > facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she >> is >> > a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can >> be >> > a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might >> > recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! >> > >> >> > >> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >> > >> >> > >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer >> > wrote: >> > >>> >> > >>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely >> > restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. >> > >>> >> > >>> 73, >> > >>> Steve, WF3T >> > >>> ______________________________________________________________ >> > >>> Elecraft mailing list >> > >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> > >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> > >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> > >>> >> > >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> > >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> > >>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com >> > >> >> > >> ______________________________________________________________ >> > >> Elecraft mailing list >> > >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> > >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> > >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> > >> >> > >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> > >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> > >> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net >> > > >> > >> > ______________________________________________________________ >> > Elecraft mailing list >> > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> > >> > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> > Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net >______________________________________________________________ >Elecraft mailing list >Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net From gwj at wb9jps.com Tue Dec 17 10:42:02 2019 From: gwj at wb9jps.com (Gary Johnson) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 07:42:02 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] WBN: Restartable Server Operation for Elecraft In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3C6A457A-4FBB-4226-8C86-329B0A24FE00@wb9jps.com> Here?s a partial solution which was mentioned some time ago: Create a .bat file that calls the utility. Here are the ones I use that launch the KPA500 and KAT500 apps and assign a baud rate, port number, and timeout. I don?t know if other parameters are possible. And I don?t know how to keep the amp from turning on at launch. To run a batch file at startup, put a shortcut to it in your Startup folder. rem Run the KPA500 remote control server, with parameters cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Elecraft\KPA500 Remote\ start /MIN KPA500-Remote.exe COM2 38400 4626 500 rem Run the KAT500 remote control server, with parameters cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Elecraft\KAT500 Remote\ start /MIN KAT500-Remote.exe COM2 38400 4627 500 -Gary NA6O > > It would be nice if KPA500 Remote, KAT500 Remote, and KPA1500 Remote could > be set up to operate as *automatically restartable servers*. I don't think > they can do this today, but if I'm wrong, someone please enlighten me! > > Here's the scenario: These apps all have Host Remote capability. When > enabled, they listen for connection from a client-side instance of the same > app. But it takes two or three mouse clicks to set this up AFTER launching > the server-side programs. If the server computer on which they run suffers > a power failure, it can reboot automatically when power is restored (not > all computers will do this, but many can). However, it's necessary to > restart the app manually, tell it to start hosting, and, at least for > KPA1500, turn the amp back off since the app turns it on during its > initialization process. It would be nice if they had a setting that means > "Automatically go into remote hosting mode and turn OFF the device (or > don't turn it on) upon startup." Then, unattended power failures would be > largely transparent to the control-side user. > > 73, > > /Rick N6XI > From tommy58 at hvc.rr.com Tue Dec 17 12:05:33 2019 From: tommy58 at hvc.rr.com (Tommy) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 12:05:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <4c1574e0-2eee-2562-95cd-0346adb5e640@kth.se> References: <201912150654.xBF6sfKx029753@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> <001601d5b346$476212f0$d62638d0$@erols.com> <9bb86ff0-ef93-55f1-e134-9a2e34dcd30d@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1A4AC46E-2F2B-41AC-876F-ACE5DF4C900D@brannan.name> <20191217145717.546eg4ndkbfcieiv@n0nb.us> <4c1574e0-2eee-2562-95cd-0346adb5e640@kth.se> Message-ID: ?LOL! No problem, for a second there I thought I had a tumor! And I agree with Fred's last post. Although I'd never pay $500 or more for a "smart" phone. 73 de Tom - KB2SMS On 12/17/19 10:24 AM, Bjorn Pehrson wrote: > Sorry abt that ,my bad, wrong recipient... > > On 2019-12-17 16:22, Bjorn Pehrson wrote: >> hm, verkar vara sv?rt tt hitta genomskinlig Sikaflex trots att sika >> s?ger att det ska finnas i alla byggvarubutiker. Jag har svart och >> det finns vit att k?pa. Har f?rs?kt googla runt. >> >> K?nner du till n?got speciellt m?rke och var man kan k?pa det? From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 17 12:07:55 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:07:55 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5DC51D48-3E63-49FF-9D93-B695B3180BFD@blomand.net> We can die with a happy stomach or die with a unhappy stomach. Life is simply too short to be unhappy for any reason. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 17, 2019, at 9:20 AM, Michael Walker wrote: > > ?She is correct on luncheon meats. > > Big Mac, Any Egg and Meat sandwich and most prepared foods have about 900mg > of Sodium and I bet your dailing limit is about 1500mg (for Canadians, that > means all Tim's breakfast sandwiches). Don't forget hotdogs and sausages > are off the list too. They use a lot of Brine. As my wife and I did the > Sodium research the Big Mac was about the 'best' of the worst. No more > pizza or just about any Mall food. > > Eggs are great! > > Your own safe way out is to prepare your own with plain meets like Turkey, > etc. Welcome to getting old-er. :) > > Mike > > >> On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 9:21 AM KE8G wrote: >> >> Yes, my wife is also a retired nurse and every time I go to the doctor's >> office and he tells me I need to do "something", she is shacking her head >> in the affirmative and I know I will not be a happy camper! Example... >> cardiologist says no luncheon meats, I LOVE luncheon meats, but haven't had >> any for the last 10 years!! >> >> 73 de Jim - KE8G >> >> On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 5:51 AM David Wilcox via Elecraft < >> elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: >> >>> Ha! That's a good one. And so true. >>> >>> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >>> >>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:27 AM, WW3S wrote: >>>> >>>> ?I feel your pain ! >>>> (Speaking from experience) >>>> >>>> The good thing about my wife is she is a nurse as well..... >>>> The bad thing about my wife is.....she is a nurse ! >>>> >>>> Sent from my iPad >>>> >>>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 5:25 AM, David Wilcox via Elecraft < >>> elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote: >>>>> >>>>> ?Whenever one of our radio club seniors has to enter a nursing home to >>> recover from some issue or permanently moves into an assisted living >> home >>> we try to set up a ham station in that hams room. The homes in our area >>> are very understanding. I already have chosen the place I want to go to >> if >>> and when the time comes. They have a woods with tall trees behind the >>> facility. My wife and I built our retirement home barrier free and she >> is >>> a younger nurse so I hope to be able to play radio at home. But she can >> be >>> a tyrant making me do all the things a doctor or rehab specialist might >>> recommend. I guess there are trade offs in every situation. Hi! >>>>> >>>>> David J. Wilcox K8WPE?s iPad >>>>> >>>>>>> On Dec 17, 2019, at 3:47 AM, Steven G. Steltzer >>> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>> ?CW ops have another option for retirement homes or severely >>> restricted HOA's . Search iCW on the web. >>>>>> >>>>>> 73, >>>>>> Steve, WF3T >>>>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>>>> >>>>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>>>> Message delivered to djwilcox01 at yahoo.com >>>>> >>>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>>> >>>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>>> Message delivered to ww3s at zoominternet.net >>>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to ke8g.jim at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 17 12:15:57 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:15:57 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <6F54E40E-6FD8-43A7-9720-E115A4853188@blomand.net> One of my ventures into ham radio was the purchase of a complete Heathkit station. While the original SB-104 left a lot to be desired, the fact that Heath offered financing for the complete purchase. Don?t recall the details but I made monthly payments until it was paid in full. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 17, 2019, at 9:08 AM, Fred Nassar wrote: > > ?With all due respect, I disagree with the statement "there are few > inexpensive ventures into HF available today." I was licensed at 14 and > remember my first HF rig was an used HT-44 and DX-160. I used that pair for > six years and learned a lot about how to optimize my set up until I had > enough money to purchase my buddy's FT-101E for $400 (1981). After college > I was able to buy new gear using a TS 570 and 590S many years and now > using a flex 6400. With the advent of the IC7300 and other SDRs the used > market has been disrupted. Decent used HF rigs can be had for $300-$500 > (cheaper than a new smart phone). Even a new 7300 or 590sg are within > reach for the new ham. Both very good rigs offering many to most of the > advance features that top of the line rigs offer. I think the movement to > SDRs will continue to offer very affordable albeit maybe not new and not > "state of the art", but very much usable and capable to make QSOs and more > importantly having fun. > > I think what Elecraft does is unique and there is value in that. They bring > a high level of customer service and stay very close to the customer. They > almost seem like one of us hi hi...While the big three may offer more > tiers, they do so at the cost of other things some hams find important. > Elecraft has been around over 20 years and now launching what appear to be > a very successful K4. I think they are doing just fine with their business > model. > > 73, > Fred > KE4Q > owner of a KX3 and maybe a K4 someday > >> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 9:39 PM Don Wilhelm wrote: >> >> Ted and all, >> >> I do not think restricting the choices to VHF and UHF gear is going to >> "save the hobby". >> >> There are few inexpensive ventures into HF available today. There are a >> few inexpensive CW only kits available from QRPme.com, but those are >> quite limited and are CW only. Oh to have the Dave Benson SWL series >> back. Those were good kits which could put the new ham on the air with >> a good receiver, but again CW only. I do not see any equivalent today. >> >> The QRPme kits are interesting, but being CW only, they are limited to >> those willing to learn CW. Even a 'knock-off' of the K1 is CW only. >> >> For potentially new hams, we hams need to have something that is viable >> for HF and not expensive. Remember the high schooler and the recent >> college graduate who does not a lot of extra money. I do not see many >> choices for them other than the inexpensive VHF/UHF FM transceivers, >> which work fine with repeaters, but do nothing for the HF spectrum. >> I built my first transmitter of salvaged TV parts at a very, very low >> cost, but that was back in the late 1950's when such parts were >> available many for the asking at the local TV repair shop. >> >> A used HF transceiver may the only current logical choice. >> >> Elecraft has championed the high performance, high end market, and has >> done well at it, but that performance comes at a price. Few beginners >> in ham radio can afford a K3S let alone a KX2, so for beginners, they >> are "left in the lurch" with choices mainly in the used gear market. >> >> Nostalgia for 'what was' is interesting, but does nothing for the >> newcomers to HF with limited funds. Even the era of cheap surplus >> military gear is gone. I used to buy Command set transmitters and >> receivers for $5 each at the surplus store, and you could salvage parts >> from them to build transmitters and receivers, but those rigs are >> collectors items today and are expensive. >> >> 73, >> Don W3FPR >> >> >>> On 12/16/2019 4:44 PM, Ted Edwards W3TB wrote: >>> More... >>> Although it has not happened, I have long expected June VHF and Sept VHF >> to >>> displace Field Day and then get more of those many new Techs active. >>> >>> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 3:42 PM Ted Edwards W3TB >> wrote: >>> >>>> Yet, here is another product idea that is driven by my concern that so >>>> many new Techs get an HT and don't develop further into our fine >>>> hobby/avocation. >>>> A Transceiver more significant than a Chinese cheapie for getting on >> other >>>> modes in the VHF and/or UHF bands. >>>> I do wish there were a quality-yet-simple radio for 6m/2m would be so >>>> handy to them to discover SSB and Digital work on those bands. CW, too. >>>> >>>> On Mon, Dec 16, 2019 at 12:52 PM Jim Brown >>>> wrote: >>>> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to fnassar62 at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From k9ztv at socket.net Tue Dec 17 12:35:24 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (KENT TRIMBLE) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:35:24 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> Message-ID: We might take a page from Cadillac. Somewhere in the early 2000s their ads began using models and actors exclusively in the 20-40 age range.? No more gray-haired executives. Jack makes good points. Why do they call you "weird," by the way? 73, Kent? K9ZTV On 12/16/2019 3:07 PM, kd4iz at frawg.org wrote: > Have any of us ever tried to poll younger non-related and non-ham persons in > a structured way? Probably not ... > > Introspectively, what I do see is one generation of an old civic (mostly > men's) club in a panic because we perceive we are all dying off and there > will be no one to "carry on". An awfully large group of people look at "us" as odd or funny old dudes... > The media has never helped us much. Ham radio is just a TV prop and usually used to poke fun at > certain attitudes. OTOH the actual high value stuff we occasionally do is > all too often relegated to 11pm local news as "filler" if it is reported at > all. Who failed? Not even worth pointing fingers... we did. > > Embrace it, have fun with the hobby, chill, let the marketing departments at > "IKY" and "China-Inc" figure out the sales pitch. We geeks will still be > here in the future and some will be hams... and we'll line up for the latest > widgets. Let's move on. > > 73 All, > "Weird Uncle Jack" > KD4IZ > Jack Spitznagel > FM19oo > > From mcquiggi at sfu.ca Tue Dec 17 12:40:37 2019 From: mcquiggi at sfu.ca (Kevin McQuiggin (SFU)) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:40:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> Message-ID: The RSGB has an excellent ham radio overview video. The target audience is people under about 30. Everyone in the video is under ~25. It presents the hobby in young peoples' terms using their terms and points of reference. It covers public service, HF, V/UHF, contesting, satellites, lnternet connectivity, fox hunting, building stuff. The best video I?ve seen to describe ham radio in modern terms to non- 50 or 60 year olds. I will try to find the link. 73, Kevin Sent from my iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 09:35, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > > We might take a page from Cadillac. > > Somewhere in the early 2000s their ads began using models and actors exclusively in the 20-40 age range. No more gray-haired executives. > > Jack makes good points. > > Why do they call you "weird," by the way? > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > > > > >> On 12/16/2019 3:07 PM, kd4iz at frawg.org wrote: >> Have any of us ever tried to poll younger non-related and non-ham persons in >> a structured way? Probably not ... >> >> Introspectively, what I do see is one generation of an old civic (mostly >> men's) club in a panic because we perceive we are all dying off and there >> will be no one to "carry on". An awfully large group of people look at "us" as odd or funny old dudes... >> The media has never helped us much. Ham radio is just a TV prop and usually used to poke fun at >> certain attitudes. OTOH the actual high value stuff we occasionally do is >> all too often relegated to 11pm local news as "filler" if it is reported at >> all. Who failed? Not even worth pointing fingers... we did. >> >> Embrace it, have fun with the hobby, chill, let the marketing departments at >> "IKY" and "China-Inc" figure out the sales pitch. We geeks will still be >> here in the future and some will be hams... and we'll line up for the latest >> widgets. Let's move on. >> >> 73 All, >> "Weird Uncle Jack" >> KD4IZ >> Jack Spitznagel >> FM19oo >> >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to mcquiggi at sfu.ca From mcquiggi at sfu.ca Tue Dec 17 12:45:06 2019 From: mcquiggi at sfu.ca (Kevin McQuiggin (SFU)) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 09:45:06 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> Message-ID: <2ED11118-42B2-409A-95CC-D49F7E07DF8E@sfu.ca> https://youtu.be/8x6x_6mDVlQ ?Amateur Radio - A 21st Century Hobby? produced by the RSGB Sent from my iPad > On Dec 17, 2019, at 09:40, Kevin McQuiggin (SFU) wrote: > > The RSGB has an excellent ham radio overview video. The target audience is people under about 30. Everyone in the video is under ~25. It presents the hobby in young peoples' terms using their terms and points of reference. It covers public service, HF, V/UHF, contesting, satellites, lnternet connectivity, fox hunting, building stuff. The best video I?ve seen to describe ham radio in modern terms to non- 50 or 60 year olds. > > I will try to find the link. > > 73, > > Kevin > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 09:35, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: >> >> We might take a page from Cadillac. >> >> Somewhere in the early 2000s their ads began using models and actors exclusively in the 20-40 age range. No more gray-haired executives. >> >> Jack makes good points. >> >> Why do they call you "weird," by the way? >> >> 73, >> >> Kent K9ZTV >> >> >> >> >>> On 12/16/2019 3:07 PM, kd4iz at frawg.org wrote: >>> Have any of us ever tried to poll younger non-related and non-ham persons in >>> a structured way? Probably not ... >>> >>> Introspectively, what I do see is one generation of an old civic (mostly >>> men's) club in a panic because we perceive we are all dying off and there >>> will be no one to "carry on". An awfully large group of people look at "us" as odd or funny old dudes... >>> The media has never helped us much. Ham radio is just a TV prop and usually used to poke fun at >>> certain attitudes. OTOH the actual high value stuff we occasionally do is >>> all too often relegated to 11pm local news as "filler" if it is reported at >>> all. Who failed? Not even worth pointing fingers... we did. >>> >>> Embrace it, have fun with the hobby, chill, let the marketing departments at >>> "IKY" and "China-Inc" figure out the sales pitch. We geeks will still be >>> here in the future and some will be hams... and we'll line up for the latest >>> widgets. Let's move on. >>> >>> 73 All, >>> "Weird Uncle Jack" >>> KD4IZ >>> Jack Spitznagel >>> FM19oo >>> >>> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to mcquiggi at sfu.ca > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to mcquiggi at sfu.ca From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 17 12:46:53 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 08:46:53 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Installing a Sub Receiver Message-ID: <201912171746.xBHHkvGQ027017@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> I have two of the old synth boards for the K3. Available for FREE plus $7.90 for small USPS Priority Mail box 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 17 12:55:41 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 08:55:41 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: <201912171755.xBHHtjhm005828@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Quoting myself: "an inexpensive entry level transceiver might find market with newcomers on tight budgets (eg the K1, etc.); something other than a VHF HT", the $150 ten-watt HF transceiver based on SDR is what I was thinking of: Today's "Heathkit Lunchbox"! From: John Harper To: Elecraft list Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" 10-80m CW and phone for $150: http://www.hfsignals.com/ 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 13:07:36 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:07:36 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <2ED11118-42B2-409A-95CC-D49F7E07DF8E@sfu.ca> References: <00cf01d5b44a$a481b080$ed851180$@austin.rr.com> <026b01d5b454$cab3a100$601ae300$@frawg.org> <2ED11118-42B2-409A-95CC-D49F7E07DF8E@sfu.ca> Message-ID: <31e598cc-ae02-80b7-a303-c0cfc69e0ade@gmail.com> A VERY good video.? I use it with Scouts as my intro into JOTA (Jamboree on the Air) for the past few years.? Professionally done.? If is fast paced it does SHOW youth doing RADIO and it keeps the interest as it is only six minutes long....?? a very very good video. 73, steve WB3LGC On 12/17/19 12:45 PM, Kevin McQuiggin (SFU) wrote: > https://youtu.be/8x6x_6mDVlQ ?Amateur Radio - A 21st Century Hobby? produced by the RSGB > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 09:40, Kevin McQuiggin (SFU) wrote: >> >> The RSGB has an excellent ham radio overview video. The target audience is people under about 30. Everyone in the video is under ~25. It presents the hobby in young peoples' terms using their terms and points of reference. It covers public service, HF, V/UHF, contesting, satellites, lnternet connectivity, fox hunting, building stuff. The best video I?ve seen to describe ham radio in modern terms to non- 50 or 60 year olds. >> >> I will try to find the link. >> >> 73, >> >> Kevin >> From wglevy at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 13:41:53 2019 From: wglevy at gmail.com (William Levy) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:41:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home Message-ID: A laptop, an iPad or iPhone will allow you to ham all you want. Let other folks worry about the antennas and maintenance. www.remotehamradio.com I live in an apartment in NYC and I have huge towers with stacked antennas, 160mm 4 squares, 80 meter 4 squares located on the East Coast and the West Coast. Are you renting the space in your retirement home? Why not rent your radio too! This is such a simple solution I don't know why everyone isn't doing it. From rick at tavan.com Tue Dec 17 14:04:02 2019 From: rick at tavan.com (Rick Tavan) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:04:02 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] WBN: Restartable Server Operation for Elecraft In-Reply-To: <3C6A457A-4FBB-4226-8C86-329B0A24FE00@wb9jps.com> References: <3C6A457A-4FBB-4226-8C86-329B0A24FE00@wb9jps.com> Message-ID: Thanks, Gary. Yes, I know how to automatically start an app when the computer powers up. And KPAxxx Remote remembers the communication parameters that you illustrate anyway. The problem is pushing the various soft buttons after the app starts up, most notably Start Hosting Remote and Power (off). I think the best solution would be two tweaks to the UI: 1) an Auto-Start Hosting Remote checkbox and 2) a Leave Amp Power Off after Startup checkbox. (They would be separately useful although I would use both together.) Alternatively, they could add such parameters to the command line. (I didn't know there were any command line parameters. I don't find them in the KPA1500 Rev. B1 Owners Manual or the .rtf file associated with KPA1500 Remote.) Unfortunately, these programs are considered ?unsupported, contributed utilities." But I've seen them change recently, so someone is maintaining them. /Rick N6XI On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 7:42 AM Gary Johnson wrote: > Here?s a partial solution which was mentioned some time ago: Create a .bat > file that calls the utility. Here are the ones I use that launch the KPA500 > and KAT500 apps and assign a baud rate, port number, and timeout. I don?t > know if other parameters are possible. And I don?t know how to keep the amp > from turning on at launch. To run a batch file at startup, put a shortcut > to it in your Startup folder. > > rem Run the KPA500 remote control server, with parameters > cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Elecraft\KPA500 Remote\ > start /MIN KPA500-Remote.exe COM2 38400 4626 500 > > rem Run the KAT500 remote control server, with parameters > cd C:\Program Files (x86)\Elecraft\KAT500 Remote\ > start /MIN KAT500-Remote.exe COM2 38400 4627 500 > > -Gary NA6O > > > > > It would be nice if KPA500 Remote, KAT500 Remote, and KPA1500 Remote > could > > be set up to operate as *automatically restartable servers*. I don't > think > > they can do this today, but if I'm wrong, someone please enlighten me! > > > > Here's the scenario: These apps all have Host Remote capability. When > > enabled, they listen for connection from a client-side instance of the > same > > app. But it takes two or three mouse clicks to set this up AFTER > launching > > the server-side programs. If the server computer on which they run > suffers > > a power failure, it can reboot automatically when power is restored (not > > all computers will do this, but many can). However, it's necessary to > > restart the app manually, tell it to start hosting, and, at least for > > KPA1500, turn the amp back off since the app turns it on during its > > initialization process. It would be nice if they had a setting that means > > "Automatically go into remote hosting mode and turn OFF the device (or > > don't turn it on) upon startup." Then, unattended power failures would be > > largely transparent to the control-side user. > > > > 73, > > > > /Rick N6XI > > > > -- -- Rick Tavan Truckee and Saratoga, CA From k9ma at sdellington.us Tue Dec 17 14:07:19 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:07:19 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> Message-ID: <879ecca4-e26c-753b-50d4-f996281e25bb@sdellington.us> Chris, In my case, the noise is present any time the KPA1500 is turn on. Its effect depends only on the direction my beam is pointed, as both my noise level and the amplifier noise vary with direction. In the worst case, I'm seeing about a 5 dB increase from my high urban noise floor. I think the effect would be far more dramatic in a quiet location. (My antenna is about 100 feet from the amplifier, which is in the basement.) 73, Scott K9MA On 12/16/2019 16:16, Chris Codella, W2PA wrote: > Scott, > > I noticed the same thing this last weekend, having not been on 10 much > since getting the amp.? But I found the noise to be quite variable.? > It doesn't always occur.? When it does, it appears suddenly, out of > the blue while operating. > > Sometimes I could make it go away by turning off the power, waiting a > while, then restarting.? I also got it to stop a couple of times by > sending a single "dit" while in operate mode.? Quite strange. I'm > trying to get more data but it does seem to be an intermittent thing > and hard to replicate. > > This noise didn't affect any band below 10m but appeared very > broad-banded above, using an SDR receiver. > > 73, > Chris, W2PA > > On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the >> KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it >> on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an >> urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not >> typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and >> found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) >> >> 73, >> >> Scott K9MA >> > -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Tue Dec 17 14:09:51 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 12:09:51 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <80eb42bd-8e90-cd7e-4802-61a0b8171773@triconet.org> I hope you're joking.? If not, why not give up the ham ticket too and just stick to the iPhone? Wes? N7WS On 12/17/2019 11:41 AM, William Levy wrote: > A laptop, an iPad or iPhone will allow you to ham all you want. > Let other folks worry about the antennas and maintenance. > > www.remotehamradio.com > > I live in an apartment in NYC and I have huge towers with stacked antennas, > 160mm 4 squares, 80 meter 4 squares located on the East Coast and the West > Coast. > > Are you renting the space in your retirement home? Why not rent your radio > too! > > This is such a simple solution I don't know why everyone isn't doing it. From na5n at zianet.com Tue Dec 17 14:15:06 2019 From: na5n at zianet.com (na5n at zianet.com) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 12:15:06 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <20191217191506.87360.qmail@modulo.zianet.com> About 20 years ago, I used to QSO a fella near Seattle in a nursing home on 40M. He'd call CQ 2300-2400 my local time. He was using an SGC 2020 when they first came out, but forget what he was using as an antenna. He had Parkinson's disease and was nearly blind and deaf and could no longer watch the news on TV. So much of our QSO was filling him in on the day's news. Kinda fun for me, actually. CW was about all he had left to communicate. There were times he had a small audience of nurses watching us "talk." He was an old maritime radio op and in spite of his Parkinson's, worked his old bug at 25 wpm like a pro. I looked forward to our 15-20 minute QSOs 2-3 times a week, realizing CW and ham radio was his only life line to the world. So kudos to the nursing home that accommodated his ham radio. Sadly, one day his CQs stopped. 72, Paul NA5N From shull2805 at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 14:22:01 2019 From: shull2805 at gmail.com (shull2805 at gmail.com) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 14:22:01 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> What's next? Rent-a-girlfriend? Oh, wait... they already have that. Come to think of it, you make a good point about lower maintenance ? -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of William Levy Sent: Tuesday, December 17, 2019 1:42 PM To: Elecraft Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home A laptop, an iPad or iPhone will allow you to ham all you want. Let other folks worry about the antennas and maintenance. www.remotehamradio.com I live in an apartment in NYC and I have huge towers with stacked antennas, 160mm 4 squares, 80 meter 4 squares located on the East Coast and the West Coast. Are you renting the space in your retirement home? Why not rent your radio too! This is such a simple solution I don't know why everyone isn't doing it. ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com From k4zrj at icloud.com Tue Dec 17 14:24:13 2019 From: k4zrj at icloud.com (Charles Johnson) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 14:24:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <879ecca4-e26c-753b-50d4-f996281e25bb@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> <879ecca4-e26c-753b-50d4-f996281e25bb@sdellington.us> Message-ID: I see no difference whatsoever on 10M with the KPA1500 powered on or off, or with the TH7DX tribander pointed at the station or pointed at some other azimuth. My resting noise level on 10M is approx -125 dBM on the P3. The tower is about 60 feet from the station. 73, Charles, K4ZRJ > On Dec 17, 2019, at 14:07, K9MA wrote: > > Chris, > > In my case, the noise is present any time the KPA1500 is turn on. Its effect depends only on the direction my beam is pointed, as both my noise level and the amplifier noise vary with direction. In the worst case, I'm seeing about a 5 dB increase from my high urban noise floor. I think the effect would be far more dramatic in a quiet location. (My antenna is about 100 feet from the amplifier, which is in the basement.) > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > On 12/16/2019 16:16, Chris Codella, W2PA wrote: >> Scott, >> >> I noticed the same thing this last weekend, having not been on 10 much since getting the amp. But I found the noise to be quite variable. It doesn't always occur. When it does, it appears suddenly, out of the blue while operating. >> >> Sometimes I could make it go away by turning off the power, waiting a while, then restarting. I also got it to stop a couple of times by sending a single "dit" while in operate mode. Quite strange. I'm trying to get more data but it does seem to be an intermittent thing and hard to replicate. >> >> This noise didn't affect any band below 10m but appeared very broad-banded above, using an SDR receiver. >> >> 73, >> Chris, W2PA >> >> On 12/14/2019 4:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >>> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) >>> >>> 73, >>> >>> Scott K9MA >>> >> > > -- > Scott K9MA > > k9ma at sdellington.us > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k4zrj at icloud.com From backhoeken at yahoo.com Tue Dec 17 14:32:51 2019 From: backhoeken at yahoo.com (Ken B) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 19:32:51 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Dear Santa In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> I have been really really good this year, you can even ask the smart one of the family.? ?Will there be a K4 gift under the tree Thanks sad looking puppy dog eyes?Ken.? WB8PKK From gordon.lapoint at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 14:41:30 2019 From: gordon.lapoint at gmail.com (Gordon LaPoint) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 14:41:30 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Dear Santa In-Reply-To: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> References: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: Me too! Gordon - N1MGO On 12/17/2019 14:32 PM, Ken B via Elecraft wrote: > I have been really really good this year, you can even ask the smart one of the family.? ?Will there be a K4 gift under the tree > Thanks sad looking puppy dog eyes?Ken.? WB8PKK > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gordon.lapoint at gmail.com From eric at elecraft.com Tue Dec 17 14:44:05 2019 From: eric at elecraft.com (Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:44:05 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> Hi Scott, We have seen this in rare cases on a few 1500s. It appears to be caused by the ground connection between the rear RF INPUT SO-239 flange and the chassis. Very slightly loosening (not too far!) and then firmly re-tightening all four screws on this SO-239 connector will insure a good ground connection between this connector and the rear panel. (There are lock washers between the nuts and the SO-239 inside.) If the screws are loosened too far, you may have to remove the bottom cover of the amp to hold the interior nuts in place while you re-tighten the four screws.? (Make sure the 50V power and control cables are disconnected when you remove any covers on the amp.) 73, Eric /elecraft.com/ On 12/14/2019 1:43 PM, K9MA wrote: > I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the KPA1500 for > over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, my noise floor on > 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise floor.) It's pretty > flat over much of the band, not typical switching supply noise. Has anyone > else experienced this and found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) > > 73, > > Scott K9MA > From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Tue Dec 17 14:48:13 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:48:13 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <879ecca4-e26c-753b-50d4-f996281e25bb@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <5DF80221.6090100@arrl.net> <879ecca4-e26c-753b-50d4-f996281e25bb@sdellington.us> Message-ID: On 12/17/2019 11:07 AM, K9MA wrote: > > In my case, the noise is present any time the KPA1500 is turn on. Its > effect depends only on the direction my beam is pointed, as both my > noise level and the amplifier noise vary with direction. In the worst > case, I'm seeing about a 5 dB increase from my high urban noise floor. I > think the effect would be far more dramatic in a quiet location. (My > antenna is about 100 feet from the amplifier, which is in the basement.) Scott, Your result suggests a problem with bonding in your station. Study this tutorial, http://k9yc.com/GroundingAndAudio.pdf and/or N0AX's recent ARRL book on the topic, to which I contributed extensively. 73, Jim K9YC From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Tue Dec 17 15:07:57 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 12:07:57 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <66aed384-b991-dfd0-e099-49f3f98a698f@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/17/2019 11:44 AM, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote: > We have seen this in rare cases on a few 1500s. It appears to be caused > by the ground connection between the rear RF INPUT SO-239 flange and the > chassis. Or, if the station is not properly bonded. Or coax with a poor shield connection to a connector. 73, Jim K9YC From va3mw at portcredit.net Tue Dec 17 15:16:34 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:16:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <66aed384-b991-dfd0-e099-49f3f98a698f@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> <66aed384-b991-dfd0-e099-49f3f98a698f@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: Hi Jim How many slides are in that deck? Mike On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 3:08 PM Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/17/2019 11:44 AM, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote: > > We have seen this in rare cases on a few 1500s. It appears to be caused > > by the ground connection between the rear RF INPUT SO-239 flange and the > > chassis. > > Or, if the station is not properly bonded. Or coax with a poor shield > connection to a connector. > > 73, Jim K9YC > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net > From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Tue Dec 17 15:31:22 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 12:31:22 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> <66aed384-b991-dfd0-e099-49f3f98a698f@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <7256f928-1e7d-9dbf-09cf-fe139e96915d@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/17/2019 12:16 PM, Michael Walker wrote: > How many slides are in that deck? Lots. It's a pdf for a talk that runs about 90 minutes. Lots of detail on the slides. 73, Jim From wchandler36 at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 15:44:06 2019 From: wchandler36 at gmail.com (Wayne Chandler) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:44:06 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor Message-ID: I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. I use Linux and CQRLOG.? I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions.? I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using Linux only.? No Windows or Wine.? Any recommendations? Thanks, Wayne ? -- Wayne Chandler K7TZH 0xB92CF68F From k9ma at sdellington.us Tue Dec 17 16:04:32 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:04:32 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <58833e51-70bc-95df-21ab-40bf1ddda7fc@sdellington.us> Hi Eric, I was able to tighten those screws a little, but it made no difference. Adding ferrites to the control cable near the PS helped slightly, suggesting that that is the source. The RF is definitely being received by the antenna, about 100 feet away: its strength depends on the antenna direction, and it is at least 7 dB weaker with a dummy load. I have submitted a request to tech support. 73, Scott K9MA On 12/17/2019 13:44, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote: > Hi Scott, > > We have seen this in rare cases on a few 1500s. It appears to be > caused by the ground connection between the rear RF INPUT SO-239 > flange and the chassis. > > Very slightly loosening (not too far!) and then firmly re-tightening > all four screws on this SO-239 connector will insure a good ground > connection between this connector and the rear panel. (There are lock > washers between the nuts and the SO-239 inside.) > > If the screws are loosened too far, you may have to remove the bottom > cover of the amp to hold the interior nuts in place while you > re-tighten the four screws.? (Make sure the 50V power and control > cables are disconnected when you remove any covers on the amp.) > > 73, > Eric > /elecraft.com/ > > On 12/14/2019 1:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the >> KPA1500 for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it >> on, my noise floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an >> urban noise floor.) It's pretty flat over much of the band, not >> typical switching supply noise. Has anyone else experienced this and >> found a cure? (Other than using the old amp tube.) >> >> 73, >> >> Scott K9MA >> > -- Scott K9MA k9ma at sdellington.us From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 17 16:06:19 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:06:19 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <201912171755.xBHHtjhm005828@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912171755.xBHHtjhm005828@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <600e207f-9e01-5ea2-7cd8-33cf553a197f@blomand.net> As I recall BAOFENG has basically accomplished that with a $29.95 VHF/UHF 8 watt radio.?? The kids in the neighborhood love them. And the parents can summon the kids using my repeater. License??????? What's that??? It is like CB, no license required.?? Just ask one of them and you'll find out the real story.? Plus it is way less expensive than a cell phone and there is no monthly fee. Asking, do we want more of that "quality" on the air, specially on HF?? ? And for those that say "mine works great",? have you looked at the output on a spectrum analyzer???? I doubt it.??? Oh but it is approved by the FCC.?? NO, the paperwork was approved as submitted.? The FCC does not test radios.??? As I recall, ARRL checked one of those at Dayton a couple years back.??? Nope, didn't pass the tests. Many of the JA's are bad enough as it is?? Key clicks, spurious sigs, and broad band transmitter noise abound.??? But it seems we only want better receivers for which to hear the crap being transmitted.?? If it is in the receiver passband, we will hear it. Rob Sherwood nailed it in the recent QST article on transmitter purity.?? We must demand better, otherwise, it won't get better. Some of those old relics found on the air today, and a few new ones too, should be put in a bucket of water 3 times and taken out twice. I'm just waiting in the sidelines for the appearance of a 160M - 6M HF radio, ~100 watts targeted at way under $500.??? I think my 10" reflector telescope may be the only way to enjoy some part of the spectrum in the future. 73 Bob, K4TAX From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 17 16:15:40 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:15:40 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> References: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: I am in no way in favor of renting, leasing or using a remote station, for any purpose, other than use by and that of the primary owner. As we say in the country, "if one can't run with the big dogs, then best stay under the porch".??? Renting a station of that magnitude does not make one a big dog. 73 Bob, K4TAX From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 17 16:20:14 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:20:14 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Dear Santa In-Reply-To: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> References: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <88fc18ab-8ac6-d0e6-b433-dafacaa9a6d1@blomand.net> I commented to my wife some years ago, "my radio is old, my computer is old, and my car is old.? Wonder what I'll get for Christmas?".?? She responded:? "yes and they are going to get older too!"??? End of that discussion. Well my Elecraft K Line sure looks nice and is is an outstanding performance package.??? If Santa doesn't put one under your tree, guess you've then been a bad boy. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/17/2019 1:32 PM, Ken B via Elecraft wrote: > I have been really really good this year, you can even ask the smart one of the family.? ?Will there be a K4 gift under the tree > Thanks sad looking puppy dog eyes?Ken.? WB8PKK From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Tue Dec 17 16:26:35 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 14:26:35 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1cde9e49-e1e7-a69b-9c22-64a2929a0fee@cis-broadband.com> I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume your post was tongue-in-cheek, but for one thing you have to schedule a station amid competition from other hams wanting to do it.? For another, the cost isn't trivial if you plan to do it on a regular basis or use one of the bigger stations.? The example you cite costs about $1 per minute. I think RHR is a fine idea for contests and one-off activities, but it hardly makes sense for general access to the bands. And THAT's why everyone isn't doing it ... Dave?? AB7E On 12/17/2019 11:41 AM, William Levy wrote: > A laptop, an iPad or iPhone will allow you to ham all you want. > Let other folks worry about the antennas and maintenance. > > www.remotehamradio.com > > I live in an apartment in NYC and I have huge towers with stacked antennas, > 160mm 4 squares, 80 meter 4 squares located on the East Coast and the West > Coast. > > Are you renting the space in your retirement home? Why not rent your radio > too! > > This is such a simple solution I don't know why everyone isn't doing it. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to xdavid at cis-broadband.com > From eric at elecraft.com Tue Dec 17 16:33:29 2019 From: eric at elecraft.com (Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:33:29 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 RFI on 10 Meters In-Reply-To: <58833e51-70bc-95df-21ab-40bf1ddda7fc@sdellington.us> References: <3ede36cd-3a04-8de3-1470-ed494c7523c9@sdellington.us> <46641ef6-45d9-89b4-8e1c-d57ec64b1732@elecraft.com> <58833e51-70bc-95df-21ab-40bf1ddda7fc@sdellington.us> Message-ID: <58e1554a-df69-019b-ec7d-22c7c942bd5e@elecraft.com> Scott - what is your 1500 s/n? Eric /elecraft.com/ On 12/17/2019 1:04 PM, K9MA wrote: > Hi Eric, > > I was able to tighten those screws a little, but it made no difference. Adding > ferrites to the control cable near the PS helped slightly, suggesting that > that is the source. The RF is definitely being received by the antenna, about > 100 feet away: its strength depends on the antenna direction, and it is at > least 7 dB weaker with a dummy load. > > I have submitted a request to tech support. > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > > > On 12/17/2019 13:44, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote: >> Hi Scott, >> >> We have seen this in rare cases on a few 1500s. It appears to be caused by >> the ground connection between the rear RF INPUT SO-239 flange and the chassis. >> >> Very slightly loosening (not too far!) and then firmly re-tightening all four >> screws on this SO-239 connector will insure a good ground connection between >> this connector and the rear panel. (There are lock washers between the nuts >> and the SO-239 inside.) >> >> If the screws are loosened too far, you may have to remove the bottom cover >> of the amp to hold the interior nuts in place while you re-tighten the four >> screws.? (Make sure the 50V power and control cables are disconnected when >> you remove any covers on the amp.) >> >> 73, >> Eric >> /elecraft.com/ >> >> On 12/14/2019 1:43 PM, K9MA wrote: >>> I guess it just shows how little I've been on 10, but I've had the KPA1500 >>> for over a year now, and I just noticed that when I turn it on, my noise >>> floor on 10 goes up about 3 dB. (And that's from an urban noise floor.) It's >>> pretty flat over much of the band, not typical switching supply noise. Has >>> anyone else experienced this and found a cure? (Other than using the old amp >>> tube.) >>> >>> 73, >>> >>> Scott K9MA >>> >> > > -- > Scott K9MA > > k9ma at sdellington.us From wunder at wunderwood.org Tue Dec 17 16:34:17 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:34:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: You might see if you can get the Chirp support for the K3 and KX3 started. It has been stalled for seven years. https://chirp.danplanet.com/issues/248 I think Wizkers can load and save memories, though I haven?t tried it. http://www.wizkers.io/wizkersradio If you want to do some Python programming, you could start with one of these apps. http://forum.wizkers.io/t/swr-sweep-with-wizkers-and-kx3/43 https://github.com/ulthiel/KX3tools wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > On Dec 17, 2019, at 12:44 PM, Wayne Chandler wrote: > > I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. > > I use Linux and CQRLOG. I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions. > I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using > Linux only. No Windows or Wine. Any recommendations? > > Thanks, > > Wayne > -- > Wayne Chandler > K7TZH > 0xB92CF68F > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From scott.small at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 16:36:42 2019 From: scott.small at gmail.com (Tox) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 13:36:42 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Dear Santa In-Reply-To: <88fc18ab-8ac6-d0e6-b433-dafacaa9a6d1@blomand.net> References: <1787213120.463180.1576611171448@mail.yahoo.com> <88fc18ab-8ac6-d0e6-b433-dafacaa9a6d1@blomand.net> Message-ID: I asked in email, and earliest would be January.....after I get back into the office :) On Tue, Dec 17, 2019, 1:20 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > I commented to my wife some years ago, "my radio is old, my computer is > old, and my car is old. Wonder what I'll get for Christmas?". She > responded: "yes and they are going to get older too!" End of that > discussion. > > Well my Elecraft K Line sure looks nice and is is an outstanding > performance package. If Santa doesn't put one under your tree, guess > you've then been a bad boy. > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > > > On 12/17/2019 1:32 PM, Ken B via Elecraft wrote: > > I have been really really good this year, you can even ask the smart one > of the family. Will there be a K4 gift under the tree > > Thanks sad looking puppy dog eyes Ken. WB8PKK > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to scott.small at gmail.com From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Tue Dec 17 17:30:38 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 15:30:38 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: That's a pretty simplistic attitude, and probably a hypocritical one as well.? Have you never rented a camper, or a cabin, or a car, or a specialized tool?? I doubt it you own everything you've ever used. More to the point, have you never guest operated at somebody else's station, or do you frown upon those that do? Building a station is fine for those with the resources to do so, but I'd posit that having the skills to operate one is at least as relevant to the spirit of ham radio. Dave?? AB7E On 12/17/2019 2:15 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > I am in no way in favor of renting, leasing or using a remote station, > for any purpose, other than use by and that of the primary owner. > > As we say in the country, "if one can't run with the big dogs, then > best stay under the porch".??? Renting a station of that magnitude > does not make one a big dog. > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX From rick at tavan.com Tue Dec 17 17:31:36 2019 From: rick at tavan.com (Rick Tavan) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 14:31:36 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? Message-ID: Can someone remind me why K3 Utility can't connect to a remote K3 via a microBit RemoteRig Controller pair even though N1MM and Logger32 connect just fine? /Rick N6XI -- Rick Tavan Truckee and Saratoga, CA From va3mw at portcredit.net Tue Dec 17 17:46:34 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 17:46:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: Since I have done a lot of remote operating (just to get my HF station away from the noise). And, it is my station, my station only and I built it from scratch. I have advised those of you getting on in years that the technology now exists go get 3 or 4 of you on the same project, while you can and build your own remote. You just need a quiet site with internet. Since you are retired by this point, you might need a hobby for your hobby. :) Mike va3mw On Tue, Dec 17, 2019 at 5:31 PM David Gilbert wrote: > > That's a pretty simplistic attitude, and probably a hypocritical one as > well. Have you never rented a camper, or a cabin, or a car, or a > specialized tool? I doubt it you own everything you've ever used. More > to the point, have you never guest operated at somebody else's station, > or do you frown upon those that do? > > Building a station is fine for those with the resources to do so, but > I'd posit that having the skills to operate one is at least as relevant > to the spirit of ham radio. > > Dave AB7E > > > > On 12/17/2019 2:15 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > I am in no way in favor of renting, leasing or using a remote station, > > for any purpose, other than use by and that of the primary owner. > > > > As we say in the country, "if one can't run with the big dogs, then > > best stay under the porch". Renting a station of that magnitude > > does not make one a big dog. > > > > 73 > > > > Bob, K4TAX > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net From billamader at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 18:12:25 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 16:12:25 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] THE FUTURE OF OUR HOBBY In-Reply-To: <201912171755.xBHHtjhm005828@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> References: <3a93cd5d-cf90-a049-d8f3-e6d61a19a5dc@socket.net> <201912171755.xBHHtjhm005828@mail42c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <1576624345915-0.post@n2.nabble.com> And for you "new" hams, $150 today was worth $35.02 in 1970. I did a presentation that included what is available today and what was available 20 years ago along with real Dollar comparisons. Most (old--you define that) hams rarely consider inflation in their assumptions, much less what "young" people spend on hobbies. Worse yet, most hams (those who have been licensed less than 10 years) have no idea about the demographics of those licensed under 10 years. The ARRL paid big bucks to study this and our slowly declining membership. If you pay attention to Howard Mickel's columns, QST's content, and even the ARRL web site, you can see the difference. Informed members know ARRL will publish a new magazine beginning next month. It's directed to the less than 10 years-licensed hams who are ill-served by most ham radio clubs today. Effective and more wide-spread mentoring, more welcoming clubs, and related approaches that get the under 10 years-licensed hams engaged in the hobby (on-the-air, especially on HF) is what's needed. For most of us, the biggest challenge we face related to our hobby's future is easy to find. It's reflected in the mirrors in front of us. If I have insulted you because you're meeting the needs of the under 10 years-licensed cohorts, great! That means you are among the few who are helping others and not yourselves. Although, I get great enjoyment out of sharing the joy of this hobby with others, regardless of age, time in the hobby, and experience. Our (Duke City Hamfest in Albuquerque) approach to this challenge was to launch HF University nearly four years ago. Intended for the new General or Tech, the majority of participants have been Extra Class licensees, many of whom have had little HF experience. The only thing that tires them, especially those who return each year, is my Elecraft Kool-Aid. Sorry, but I can't help that. Good DX, Good Luck in the Contest, Merry Christmas, etc. 73, Bill Mader, K8TE W6H NM Coordinator, Route 66 On-the-Air 4-13 Sep 2020 ARRL New Mexico Section Manager ARRL - The national association for Amateur Radio? Duke City Hamfest BoD Vice-Chairman?www.dukecityhamfest.org?18-20 Sep 2020 Secretary and Past President, Albuquerque DX Association? -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From a.durbin at msn.com Tue Dec 17 19:09:03 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 00:09:03 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 - Tune on QSY Message-ID: I've had my KAT500 for about 18 months and I thought I had come to know it quite well. Today I found something that surprised me. The KAT500 utility has 2 "Memory Recall on Tune" options, one for MAN mode and one for Auto mode. My understanding was that, if these options were not enabled, the KAT500 would not use RF frequency count or CAT TX frequency to change the tuning solution if the frequency was changed within band. For MAN mode, with memory recall tune not checked, it appears that the KAT500 does still select tuning solutions as appropriate for the frequency received over CAT. It does not change solutions if CAT frequency is not available and RF frequency is changed. The utility "Tune on QSY" page says: "Enable or disable memory recall tune on transmit frequency changes with the check boxes below." However, the help file says: "The tuner continuously monitors the transmit frequency. Beginning with firmware version 1.20, the tuner performs quick "memory recall" tunes as the transmit frequency changes within the current band, recalling the memory closest to the current transmit frequency. If you prefer that the tuner not attempt to change settings for "in-band QSY" based on the transmit frequency count, uncheck the "Memory Recall Tune on QSY in Mode MAN" checkbox." So it seems to be doing exactly what it says in the help file and there is no option to inhibit tuning changes if a new frequency is received over CAT. I'm not suggesting any of this is a problem but it did surprise me. Andy, k3wyc From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Tue Dec 17 19:58:27 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 16:58:27 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: <002101d5b50f$42541040$c6fc30c0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <005ecd56-8c9c-1aa9-4b4a-ecc2d9595769@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/17/2019 2:30 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > Building a station is fine for those with the resources to do so, but > I'd posit that having the skills to operate one is at least as relevant > to the spirit of ham radio. Yep. And those of us with big stations have had lots of help from other hams in building and maintaining them. 73, Jim K9YC From paul.wyse at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 20:14:12 2019 From: paul.wyse at gmail.com (Paul Wyse) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 20:14:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Subject: Re: Operating from a retirement home Message-ID: I have been following this thread and thought I would add my personal experience. My wife and I moved into a new manufactured home in a retirement home in Bradenton, FL in Sept. 2018. I had no clue as how or if I was ever going to get on the air again. My Grandpa use to tell me that nothing beats a try but a failure. So what if I would put a little RF into the rain 40 ft long rain gutter on the south side of the house. In mid Nov I connected my feedline to the down spout . I feed it with a Balun designs 1171 ATU current Balun. The K3 with the KAT3 automatic tuner matched to a 1.3/1 or less on all bands 160 through 6 meters. I have made qso's on all the bands using SSB, CW, RTTY and FT8 resulting in 1300+ Q's this past year.logging 130 countries on 5 continents and 28 zones. Best DX was TO19A on Reunion at 9727 miles. I have casually played in several contests, including CQ 160 with 50 Q and RTTY RU with 100 plus. Don't ask me how this antenna works or why, but this experiment as brought me some of the greatest satisfaction of my 65 year ham career and I did it myself and it did not cost me anything. Everything was left over from many projects of the past. 73, Paul, W4PFM From no9e at arrl.net Tue Dec 17 22:20:17 2019 From: no9e at arrl.net (Ignacy) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 20:20:17 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <70db480a-db20-8231-f2b8-685853b78e60@cis-broadband.com> References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> <70db480a-db20-8231-f2b8-685853b78e60@cis-broadband.com> Message-ID: <1576639217207-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I go to club meetings in US. Almost no young people. I went to a SM club. Young people. I went to a RL3 club. Young people. I went to a 9A club. Mention of many young people. Young people want camaraderie and joint activities. With clubs that own buildings, everyone can come, be on the radio, talk, eat and drink. Also participate in communal activities of setting up antennas and celebrating the succces of it. Being alone in an HOA restricted apartment with signals barely heard because of compromised antenna and high RFI is hardly stimulating. Ignacy, NO9E -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From no9e at arrl.net Tue Dec 17 22:23:27 2019 From: no9e at arrl.net (Ignacy) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 20:23:27 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Subject: Re: Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1576639407885-0.post@n2.nabble.com> You are lucky that RFI is low to a degree that you can still make contacts. I have seen towers in HOA locations in FL so apparently not all of them are strict. Ignacy, NO9E -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From dj0qn at gmx.de Tue Dec 17 23:03:21 2019 From: dj0qn at gmx.de (Mitch Wolfson DJ0QN / K7DX) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 23:03:21 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <6f7836ee-9e0e-d985-2b37-a0916b084ab6@gmx.de> Rick, This is a bug in the K3 Utility that you and I reported to Dick to fix in February 2018. I am not sure where he is in getting this taken care of. 73, Mitch K7DX / DJ0QN -- Mitch Wolfson K7DX / DJ0QN 10285 Boca Cir, Naples, FL 34109 Skype: mitchwo USA: Home:+1-239-221-9600 - Mobile:+1-424-288-9171 Germany: Home:+49 89 32152700 - Mobile/WhatsApp:+49 172 8374436 On 17.12.2019 17:31, Rick Tavan wrote: > Can someone remind me why K3 Utility can't connect to a remote K3 via a > microBit RemoteRig Controller pair even though N1MM and Logger32 connect > just fine? > > /Rick N6XI > > -- > > Rick Tavan > Truckee and Saratoga, CA > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dj0qn at arrl.net From ae8jg.gould at gmail.com Tue Dec 17 23:17:05 2019 From: ae8jg.gould at gmail.com (Joshua Gould) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 23:17:05 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Transmitter Gain Calibration in the Linux version of the KX3Util Message-ID: I tried to run the TX Gain Calibration through the KX3Util and it opened a splash screen, and then abruptly closed with no other information. I would say that this is probably a bug, but don't know who to report it to... I did run the calibration manually and backed up my config file. 72, Joshua Gould AE8JG EM89mo KX3 # 11234 NAQCC # 7704 OMISS # 9948 4sqrp # 990 FP # 3579 From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 17 23:56:06 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 19:56:06 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home Message-ID: <201912180456.xBI4u8P4002521@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> First off, I question the legality of renting a ham station for profit (which this example seems to be). But it seems to be done for renting stations in exotic (rare DX) locations with no heart attack by hamdom. Treated as vacation rentals. But owning your own remote located station using internet control from our room in assisted living seems a viable alternative. Many of these senior facilities ban use of RF devices due to RFI concerns with pace maker users or medical equipment. Maybe one could use a 5w HT. External antennas are problem-some. My concept was installing my ham station in a "toy hauler" trailer with crank-up tower that could be moved and located in a convenient location. Also, handy as emmcom station. Also, some ham groups form a kind of club to jointly own a "super station" which members share. Such a group in Switzerland own a 45-foot dish which they share using for eme. But organized as not-for-profit. I do expect any contest/award operations to claim the physical transmitter location (instead of the remote operator's qth). 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Wed Dec 18 01:51:48 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 23:51:48 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <201912180456.xBI4u8P4002521@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912180456.xBI4u8P4002521@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: <7a9d68b3-74a5-5a2c-4584-2f6c7e877130@cis-broadband.com> The legality of renting a station has been hashed over many times, and I think it's pretty clear that the FCC doesn't see any difference between somebody renting their house that happens to have a station in it than they do for somebody renting a remotely operated station.? The FCC specifies that a control operator needs to be present at all times, but that control point can be from a remote location as well .. ala VHF/UHF mountaintop repeaters.? In any case outfits like RHR require that anyone using their stations have a legitimate ham radio license, which makes them the approved control operator. In other words, the owner of the station is renting his gear ... he's not selling the "communication" itself that is specified in the FCC rules.? RHR has been operating on a large scale for quite some time and almost for sure would have come into view of the FCC long ago. And yes, every contest or award program I'm aware of requires that the operation claim the location of the gear, not the operator. 73, Dave? AB7E On 12/17/2019 9:56 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: > First off, I question the legality of renting a ham station for profit > (which this example seems to be).? But it seems to be done for renting > stations in exotic (rare DX) locations with no heart attack by > hamdom.? Treated as vacation rentals. > > But owning your own remote located station using internet control from > our room in assisted living seems a viable alternative. > > Many of these senior facilities ban use of RF devices due to RFI > concerns with pace maker users or medical equipment.? Maybe one could > use a 5w HT.? External antennas are? problem-some.? My concept was > installing my ham station in a "toy hauler" trailer with crank-up > tower that could be moved and located in a convenient location.? Also, > handy as emmcom station. > > Also, some ham groups form a kind of club to jointly own a "super > station" which members share.? Such a group in Switzerland own a > 45-foot dish which they share using for eme.? But organized as > not-for-profit. > > I do expect any contest/award operations to claim the physical > transmitter location (instead of the remote operator's qth). > > 73, Ed - KL7UW > ? http://www.kl7uw.com > Dubus-NA Business mail: > ? dubususa at gmail.com From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Wed Dec 18 02:12:21 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Tue, 17 Dec 2019 23:12:21 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching across the chronological divide In-Reply-To: <1576639217207-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <0e4e01d5b2e7$f4e62290$deb267b0$@moorcom.com> <110051df-cbd4-740f-7005-6b0f801cf4dd@cis-broadband.com> <70db480a-db20-8231-f2b8-685853b78e60@cis-broadband.com> <1576639217207-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <239ebd7e-e4d9-2d1b-31cc-bcdc52a63292@audiosystemsgroup.com> I think this is a very important observation, Ignacy! Remembering my own beginnings in ham radio, the local club that welcomed me, taught me CW, electronics and radio concepts, and even how to operate, met in a dedicated club room that was downstairs from a member's TV repair shop (this was in 1954). Upstairs was his very impressive rack mounted amp with a pair of 813's that glowed bright. That dedicated physical space was more important than we may have realized at the time! Fast forward to today, and much of the camaraderie in our contesting club relates to participation in multi-ops at a handful of big stations, and in county expeditions for CQP. The most recent young person I remember was a very bright YL who got active in both our local club and NCCC (big contesting club) during her jr and sr HS years, then disappeared into the EE program at Univ of Cal Santa Cruz. That was five years ago. 73, Jim K9YC On 12/17/2019 7:20 PM, Ignacy wrote: > I went to a SM club. Young people. I went to a RL3 club. Young people. I > went to a 9A club. Mention of many young people. > > Young people want camaraderie and joint activities. With clubs that own > buildings, everyone can come, be on the radio, talk, eat and drink. Also > participate in communal activities of setting up antennas and celebrating > the succces of it. From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 18 08:37:50 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 13:37:50 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack Message-ID: <9f933d7d-18d3-418d-9449-741825529e9b@ve3yf.com> Well I think that the KPA1500 has been out long enough that it is time to bite the bullet and order one. Also ordered a K4D so big changes are in store here, enough to keep the old mind active. Merry Christmas to everyone.... -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From gordon.lapoint at gmail.com Wed Dec 18 11:44:44 2019 From: gordon.lapoint at gmail.com (Gordon LaPoint) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 11:44:44 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <9f933d7d-18d3-418d-9449-741825529e9b@ve3yf.com> References: <9f933d7d-18d3-418d-9449-741825529e9b@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: <7c13ec9e-e921-dfdf-ac53-ed0d94cd6581@gmail.com> Also upgrading the shack, ordered a K4, have a KPA/KAT500 for the K3, may order a second KPA/KAT500.? I will not be ordering a 1500, 500 is enough for what I want.? I have one remote setup now, hope to be moving it to a new location with lots less noise.? I will start with my TS-590SG at the remote for now, but either the K3 or the K4 will end up there later next year. Sure hope the K4 is shipped in January! Gordon - N1MGO On 12/18/2019 8:37 AM, Mike VE3YF wrote: > Well I think that the KPA1500 has been out long enough that it is time > to bite the bullet and order one. Also ordered a K4D so big changes > are in store here, enough to keep the old mind active. > > Merry Christmas to everyone.... > From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 18 12:39:45 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 17:39:45 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <7c13ec9e-e921-dfdf-ac53-ed0d94cd6581@gmail.com> References: <7c13ec9e-e921-dfdf-ac53-ed0d94cd6581@gmail.com> Message-ID: Hi Gordon: I have the same here (K-Line K3S/P3/KAT500/KPA500) as a backup or maybe time to sell that system off. Not remote here, but have played with using the KPA500 remote software but it keeps failing, looking for something (Driver) that isn't present. KAT500 remote works fine though. One of the cold winter spells I will get the KPA500 working with the KPA500 remote software. I am going to check out Node Red or Red Node software one of those cold days as well. -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From k2asp at kanafi.org Wed Dec 18 14:06:54 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 11:06:54 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: <20191217191506.87360.qmail@modulo.zianet.com> References: <20191217191506.87360.qmail@modulo.zianet.com> Message-ID: On 12/17/2019 11:15 AM, na5n at zianet.com wrote: > I looked forward to our 15-20 minute QSOs 2-3 times a week, realizing CW > and ham radio was his only life line to the world.? So kudos to the > nursing home that accommodated his ham radio. > > Sadly, one day his CQs stopped. A revered member of our Golden Gate Telephone Pioneers Radio Club was in his final hours and his last contact was holding his wife's hand and squeezing "73 es 88" just before he slipped off SK. That was may years ago and we still miss him. 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From wchandler36 at gmail.com Wed Dec 18 15:00:00 2019 From: wchandler36 at gmail.com (Wayne Chandler) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 13:00:00 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <03329936-df87-c9dc-718a-a2fbde623939@gmail.com> OK, homework it is. On 12/17/19 14:34, Walter Underwood wrote: > You might see if you can get the Chirp support for the K3 and KX3 started. It has been stalled for seven years. > > https://chirp.danplanet.com/issues/248 > > I think Wizkers can load and save memories, though I haven?t tried it. > > http://www.wizkers.io/wizkersradio > > If you want to do some Python programming, you could start with one of these apps. > > http://forum.wizkers.io/t/swr-sweep-with-wizkers-and-kx3/43 > https://github.com/ulthiel/KX3tools > > wunder > K6WRU > Walter Underwood > CM87wj > http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > >> On Dec 17, 2019, at 12:44 PM, Wayne Chandler wrote: >> >> I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. >> >> I use Linux and CQRLOG. I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions. >> I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using >> Linux only. No Windows or Wine. Any recommendations? >> >> Thanks, >> >> Wayne >> -- >> Wayne Chandler >> K7TZH >> 0xB92CF68F >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wchandler36 at gmail.com -- Wayne Chandler K7TZH 0xB92CF68F From scott.small at gmail.com Wed Dec 18 15:28:10 2019 From: scott.small at gmail.com (Tox) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 12:28:10 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home In-Reply-To: References: <20191217191506.87360.qmail@modulo.zianet.com> Message-ID: >holding his wife's hand and squeezing "73 es 88" just before he slipped off SK oh, that puts a tear in the eye... Scott AD6YT From biggsbigbear at mail.com Wed Dec 18 18:07:49 2019 From: biggsbigbear at mail.com (tony rowland) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 00:07:49 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Remote ham.com Message-ID: From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Wed Dec 18 18:12:05 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Wed, 18 Dec 2019 15:12:05 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Remote ham.com In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <7d839471-edfc-3f9c-f05a-f5f9555d029d@audiosystemsgroup.com> Blank email. 73, Jim K9YC On 12/18/2019 3:07 PM, tony rowland wrote: > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jim at audiosystemsgroup.com > From tfricke at web.de Thu Dec 19 03:25:10 2019 From: tfricke at web.de (Thorsten Fricke) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:25:10 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <98f437e1-436b-1d49-cf1e-96b21545635b@web.de> Hi Wayne, Am 17.12.19 um 21:44 schrieb Wayne Chandler: > I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. > > I use Linux and CQRLOG.? I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions. > I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using > Linux only.? No Windows or Wine.? Any recommendations? Can't this be done with the KX3 Utility from Elecraft directly? At least for my KX2 there is a native Linux version available for download. As I realized yesterday, even for 64bit. > Thanks, > > Wayne Kind regards and 73 Thorsten, DH4FT From n4zr at comcast.net Thu Dec 19 09:34:25 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:34:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 Message-ID: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Coming up to my one-year anniversary with this amp, and feel the need to applaud.? Thanks to great support from Eric, Dick and Bob, my K3/KPA-1500 combination now feels like a single, 1500-watt transceiver.? It is just so darned simple to operate, and trouble-free.? When you have compromise antennas like I do these days, it is a real pleasure to run trouble-free 1.5 KW - life's way too short for less. -- 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. From dick.w7zr at gmail.com Thu Dec 19 09:43:57 2019 From: dick.w7zr at gmail.com (Richard Zalewski) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 07:43:57 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 In-Reply-To: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> References: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Message-ID: Amen. Richard *W7ZR* ex:5C5Z, CN2ZR, K2JSP, W6SBZ, W7KXR, K9ZIJ, W9KNF, W0KDF, W0MQU, J68ZR, KC6ZR, PJ4/W7ZR, KH2,W7ZR, KH6/W7ZR, V31ZR, VK4AAZ, XE2DV *Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer* On Thu, Dec 19, 2019 at 7:37 AM N4ZR wrote: > Coming up to my one-year anniversary with this amp, and feel the need to > applaud. Thanks to great support from Eric, Dick and Bob, my > K3/KPA-1500 combination now feels like a single, 1500-watt transceiver. > It is just so darned simple to operate, and trouble-free. When you have > compromise antennas like I do these days, it is a real pleasure to run > trouble-free 1.5 KW - life's way too short for less. > > -- > > 73, Pete N4ZR > Check out the Reverse Beacon Network > at , now > spotting RTTY activity worldwide. > For spots, please use your favorite > "retail" DX cluster. > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dick.w7zr at gmail.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Thu Dec 19 10:40:02 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:40:02 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 In-Reply-To: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> References: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Message-ID: Bravo to that.??? Although I do not have a KPA1500, I do have a KPA500, KAT500, P3, and K3S.?? With three antennas connected to the KAT500 I easily work 160M through 6M as though I have a 500 watt transceiver and a broadband antenna system.?? Yes, it is a trouble free system and one that is a delight to own and operate. Thank you Wayne, Eric and the Elecraft staff. 73 Bob, K4TAX From bill at wjschmidt.com Thu Dec 19 11:17:23 2019 From: bill at wjschmidt.com (Dr. William J. Schmidt) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 10:17:23 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 In-Reply-To: References: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Message-ID: <01ab01d5b687$cca5dd40$65f197c0$@wjschmidt.com> Yeah. Mine is in the shop for xmas. Dr. William J. Schmidt - K9HZ J68HZ 8P6HK ZF2HZ PJ4/K9HZ VP5/K9HZ PJ2/K9HZ email: bill at wjschmidt.com -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Thursday, December 19, 2019 9:40 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 Bravo to that. Although I do not have a KPA1500, I do have a KPA500, KAT500, P3, and K3S. With three antennas connected to the KAT500 I easily work 160M through 6M as though I have a 500 watt transceiver and a broadband antenna system. Yes, it is a trouble free system and one that is a delight to own and operate. Thank you Wayne, Eric and the Elecraft staff. 73 Bob, K4TAX ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to bill at wjschmidt.com From dave at w8fgu.com Thu Dec 19 11:24:26 2019 From: dave at w8fgu.com (Dave Van Wallaghen) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 16:24:26 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Fixed Audio Output Board Message-ID: Hello all, Over the past few months, I have received numerous requests from my K2 customers to provide a fixed level audio output (independent of the AF gain control) for using the K2 with the various digital modes. I took the design set forth by Don Wilhelm, W3FPR and Tom Hammond, N0SS (SK) and put together kits with a couple of my adaptations. This is a full kit with everything needed to build and install the Fixed Audio Output Board complete with wire and speaker cable to connect the board to your K2. An RCA jack is provided to mount to the rear panel of the K2 for the audio output. Having a fixed level audio output makes using the K2 for digital mode operations much more convenient in that audio levels can be set once at the soundcard input and eliminates the tweaking of the AF Gain control to get the correct level each time used. It also allows the user to monitor the K2 audio during operation. Full details about the kits and ordering are available on my website: https://www.w8fgu.com/k2_fixedaudio.html For those not interested in a full kit version, the total bill of materials with vendors is listed in my installation instructions pdf file. I ordered enough parts to make up 25 kits. I have about 20 left. If I receive more interest than the 20 I have left, I will certainly order more inventory. 73, Dave, W8FGU From lboekeloo at gmail.com Thu Dec 19 12:01:55 2019 From: lboekeloo at gmail.com (Larry Boekeloo) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 12:01:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Audio Message-ID: I have a K3, serial #5278, that's had an receive audio issue for almost as long as I've owned it. When I turn the AF gain nearly or completely counter clockwise, the audio goes to full volume. The only way to fix the problem, is to quickly turn the AF gain back up and down a few times. Many times, I'll want to turn the audio all the way to answer the phone or talk to someone in the shack, and the audio goes to full volume. Many times, if I reload the DSP software, the issue goes away for a few months. I have the latest software loaded. Anyone else have this problem? Maybe the AF gain pot needs to be replaced? Thanks. Larry, KN8N Kalamazoo, Michigan From gdt at lexort.com Thu Dec 19 12:39:23 2019 From: gdt at lexort.com (Greg Troxel) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 12:39:23 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor In-Reply-To: <98f437e1-436b-1d49-cf1e-96b21545635b@web.de> (Thorsten Fricke's message of "Thu, 19 Dec 2019 09:25:10 +0100") References: <98f437e1-436b-1d49-cf1e-96b21545635b@web.de> Message-ID: Thorsten Fricke writes: > Am 17.12.19 um 21:44 schrieb Wayne Chandler: >> I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. >> >> I use Linux and CQRLOG.? I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions. >> I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using >> Linux only.? No Windows or Wine.? Any recommendations? > > Can't this be done with the KX3 Utility from Elecraft directly? At least > for my KX2 there is a native Linux version available for download. As I > realized yesterday, even for 64bit. Last I knew, the KX3 Utility at least on Mac did not support editing memories, and I assumed the Linux version didn't either. It also seems that there is no specification of the memory access protocol used by the memory editor, although it seems highly likely to be straightforward. I would be nice for Elecraft to publish that, so it could end up in e.g. chirp. https://github.com/ik5pvx/k3mem 73 de n1dam From kd4iz at frawg.org Thu Dec 19 12:58:19 2019 From: kd4iz at frawg.org (kd4iz at frawg.org) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 12:58:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 In-Reply-To: References: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Message-ID: <021301d5b695$e64ac5e0$b2e051a0$@frawg.org> And I will second Bob's comment about the KPA500/KAT500. In line with the "plays well with others" marketing theme about all of the Elecraft amps, it is a seamless and stellar performer with some of the ICOM radios. I use it with both the 7300 and 7100 here. ICOM's use of a "different" ATU interface language is not a help, but is also not a hinderance if you understand those differences. My antenna system has similar capabilities to what he describes. In my dreams... would be great to own a K4, but that will not happen unless I win the lottery... So I couldn't be more pleased with my used KPA500/KAT500 combo as I have been using them. KD4IZ Jack Spitznagel FM19oo -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Thursday, December 19, 2019 10:40 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 Bravo to that. Although I do not have a KPA1500, I do have a KPA500, KAT500, P3, and K3S. With three antennas connected to the KAT500 I easily work 160M through 6M as though I have a 500 watt transceiver and a broadband antenna system. Yes, it is a trouble free system and one that is a delight to own and operate. Thank you Wayne, Eric and the Elecraft staff. 73 Bob, K4TAX ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kd4iz at frawg.org From kd1na363 at gmail.com Thu Dec 19 13:03:04 2019 From: kd1na363 at gmail.com (David Robertson) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 13:03:04 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Battery Message-ID: There is a battery in the K3. It is a coin cell for keeping memory alive. If the battery gets low the K3 might indicate a low battery. 73 Dave KD1NA PS Happy holidays everyone! From: Don Wilhelm To: Mpridesti , "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" < Elecraft at mailman.qth.net> Cc: Bcc: Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2019 23:41:44 -0500 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Battery Low K3 I assume you mean the KX3. The K3 has no internal battery. If you have Ni-MH batteries, they need recharging. If you are using Alkaline batteries, they need to be replaced. I assume you have set the menu BAT MIN for the type of battery you are using. See the KX3 manual page 36 of the manual. Set BAT MIN for the type batteries used. The default of 10 volts is good for external Lead Acid batteries. All other types require a different setting. 73, Don W3FPR From wunder at wunderwood.org Thu Dec 19 13:15:57 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 10:15:57 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Linux KX3 memory editor In-Reply-To: References: <98f437e1-436b-1d49-cf1e-96b21545635b@web.de> Message-ID: <5D062222-78F8-43E2-A4EA-1DFDAD892329@wunderwood.org> There is an Elecraft Memory Editor for K3, K3S, KX2, and KX3. It is Windows-only. https://elecraft.com/pages/elecraft-frequency-memory-editor-software DL2RUM wrote a Mac-only memory editor. https://dl2rum.de/rumsoft/Elecraft.html I?ve heard that the Elecraft command language is based on the Kenwood commands, so a program for Kenwood radios might work. The commands are documented in the programming manuals. https://elecraft.com/pages/programmers-reference-manuals wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > On Dec 19, 2019, at 9:39 AM, Greg Troxel wrote: > > Thorsten Fricke writes: > >> Am 17.12.19 um 21:44 schrieb Wayne Chandler: >>> I recently bought KX3 shack in a pack, very happy I did. >>> >>> I use Linux and CQRLOG. I don't use Windows or Wine, no exceptions. >>> I'm looking for software to read, edit, save frequency memories using >>> Linux only. No Windows or Wine. Any recommendations? >> >> Can't this be done with the KX3 Utility from Elecraft directly? At least >> for my KX2 there is a native Linux version available for download. As I >> realized yesterday, even for 64bit. > > Last I knew, the KX3 Utility at least on Mac did not support editing > memories, and I assumed the Linux version didn't either. > > It also seems that there is no specification of the memory access > protocol used by the memory editor, although it seems highly likely to > be straightforward. I would be nice for Elecraft to publish that, so > it could end up in e.g. chirp. > > https://github.com/ik5pvx/k3mem > > > > 73 de n1dam > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 19 13:18:37 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 13:18:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Battery In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2ae74d23-cda1-85ff-539e-fc721fe7255d@embarqmail.com> David and all, The battery in the K3 is ONLY for keeping the Real Time Clock alive, and will last a very long time. The memory does not need a battery. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/19/2019 1:03 PM, David Robertson wrote: > There is a battery in the K3. It is a coin cell for keeping memory alive. > If the battery gets low the K3 might indicate a low battery. > From keith at elecraft.com Thu Dec 19 13:42:50 2019 From: keith at elecraft.com (Keith Trinity WE6R) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 10:42:50 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Audio In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <833bc307-525e-69ea-5ff0-773870deeaf9@elecraft.com> Do a switch test, (Config menu, "SW TEST") you should get a smooth sweep of numbers, about 002 thr 236. If erratic in spots, then the Pot could have been knocked in. Pull Front Panel and look at the back of it, there are some tabs that hold it together and sometimes you can bend them tight and fix. Look at the board going inside the pot from where the wires are soldered, could be cracked. Also look to see that the extension wires coming up from the board to Pot are soldered good. If all looks good, try tuner cleaner. Otherwise replace; E520015 If the test numbers are _always_ good and smooth, then save your config, EE INIT (parameter initialization) and see if that fixed it. If it fixed it, then load a known-good saved config file. If EE INIT did not fix then you can re-load the file you just saved and look for anything else, like cracked traces or something touching those lines. Keith WE6R From nr4c at widomaker.com Thu Dec 19 14:36:58 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 14:36:58 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Battery In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: The K3 DOES INDEED have an internal battery. It is a coin cell and is for the clock. All memories are stored in non-volital memory. And there is no way to tell if the battery is on its way out other than clock not keeping good time. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 19, 2019, at 1:05 PM, David Robertson wrote: > > ?There is a battery in the K3. It is a coin cell for keeping memory alive. > If the battery gets low the K3 might indicate a low battery. > > 73 > Dave KD1NA > > PS Happy holidays everyone! > > From: Don Wilhelm > To: Mpridesti , "Elecraft at mailman.qth.net" < > Elecraft at mailman.qth.net> > Cc: > Bcc: > Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2019 23:41:44 -0500 > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Battery Low K3 > I assume you mean the KX3. The K3 has no internal battery. > > If you have Ni-MH batteries, they need recharging. If you are using > Alkaline batteries, they need to be replaced. I assume you have set the > menu BAT MIN for the type of battery you are using. See the KX3 manual > page 36 of the manual. > > Set BAT MIN for the type batteries used. The default of 10 volts is > good for external Lead Acid batteries. All other types require a > different setting. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From rick.nk7i at gmail.com Thu Dec 19 15:52:42 2019 From: rick.nk7i at gmail.com (Rick Bates, NK7I) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 12:52:42 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Audio In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2a23e145-8e29-6590-4cf5-5bfac94236ec@gmail.com> My K3 has the same issue.? It is a hardware issue since software control of the volume (HRD) does not cause any problems. I've not taken the front panel off to see if the pots can be 'treated' with Deoxit yet. 73 es Merry Christmas, Rick NK7I On 12/19/2019 9:01 AM, Larry Boekeloo wrote: > I have a K3, serial #5278, that's had an receive audio issue for almost as > long as I've owned it. > > When I turn the AF gain nearly or completely counter clockwise, the audio > goes to full volume. The only way to fix the problem, is to quickly turn > the AF gain back up and down a few times. Many times, I'll want to turn > the audio all the way to answer the phone or talk to someone in the shack, > and the audio goes to full volume. > > Many times, if I reload the DSP software, the issue goes away for a few > months. I have the latest software loaded. > > Anyone else have this problem? Maybe the AF gain pot needs to be replaced? > > Thanks. > > Larry, KN8N > Kalamazoo, Michigan > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rick.nk7i at gmail.com From elecraft.list at videotron.ca Thu Dec 19 17:22:58 2019 From: elecraft.list at videotron.ca (Tom) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 17:22:58 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <00b301d5b6ba$dedc75e0$9c9561a0$@videotron.ca> Hi, It's not a bug. The K3 utility uses many additional commands beyond the published API. In addition, you can load firmware through the utility. I would think that the remote rig controller relies on Ascii commands and not binary transfers. It would be quite a risk to your radio to use any product to transfer firmware or undocumented commands. If you must do this remotely, then you should have a PC at the remote site and then connect via something like TeamViwer. 73 Tom va2fsq.com -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Mitch Wolfson DJ0QN / K7DX Sent: December 17, 2019 11:03 PM To: Rick Tavan ; Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? Rick, This is a bug in the K3 Utility that you and I reported to Dick to fix in February 2018. I am not sure where he is in getting this taken care of. 73, Mitch K7DX / DJ0QN -- Mitch Wolfson K7DX / DJ0QN 10285 Boca Cir, Naples, FL 34109 Skype: mitchwo USA: Home:+1-239-221-9600 - Mobile:+1-424-288-9171 Germany: Home:+49 89 32152700 - Mobile/WhatsApp:+49 172 8374436 On 17.12.2019 17:31, Rick Tavan wrote: > Can someone remind me why K3 Utility can't connect to a remote K3 via > a microBit RemoteRig Controller pair even though N1MM and Logger32 > connect just fine? > > /Rick N6XI > > -- > > Rick Tavan > Truckee and Saratoga, CA > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > dj0qn at arrl.net ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to elecraft.list at videotron.ca From k9yeq at live.com Thu Dec 19 18:01:49 2019 From: k9yeq at live.com (Bill Johnson) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 23:01:49 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Audio In-Reply-To: <2a23e145-8e29-6590-4cf5-5bfac94236ec@gmail.com> References: <2a23e145-8e29-6590-4cf5-5bfac94236ec@gmail.com> Message-ID: You may need to upgrade the connectors. The issue can be created by inconsistent contact and corruption of the firmware. Reload and replace the connectors. 72 & 73, Bill K9YEQ FT?er for K2, KX1, KX3, KXPA100, KAT500, W2, etc. -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Rick Bates, NK7I Sent: Thursday, December 19, 2019 2:53 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Audio My K3 has the same issue.? It is a hardware issue since software control of the volume (HRD) does not cause any problems. I've not taken the front panel off to see if the pots can be 'treated' with Deoxit yet. 73 es Merry Christmas, Rick NK7I On 12/19/2019 9:01 AM, Larry Boekeloo wrote: > I have a K3, serial #5278, that's had an receive audio issue for > almost as long as I've owned it. > > When I turn the AF gain nearly or completely counter clockwise, the > audio goes to full volume. The only way to fix the problem, is to > quickly turn the AF gain back up and down a few times. Many times, > I'll want to turn the audio all the way to answer the phone or talk to > someone in the shack, and the audio goes to full volume. > > Many times, if I reload the DSP software, the issue goes away for a > few months. I have the latest software loaded. > > Anyone else have this problem? Maybe the AF gain pot needs to be replaced? > > Thanks. > > Larry, KN8N > Kalamazoo, Michigan > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > rick.nk7i at gmail.com ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to k9yeq at live.com From htodd at twofifty.com Thu Dec 19 21:07:20 2019 From: htodd at twofifty.com (Hisashi T Fujinaka) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 18:07:20 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Elecraft] Applause for KPA-1500 In-Reply-To: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> References: <12eb76ad-303d-1f44-e43c-fb3d0a3adb79@comcast.net> Message-ID: Lucky. Mine was in the shop once and now it's throwing more PS errors. Hoping that's just intermittent. On Thu, 19 Dec 2019, N4ZR wrote: > Coming up to my one-year anniversary with this amp, and feel the need to > applaud. Thanks to great support from Eric, Dick and Bob, my > K3/KPA-1500 combination now feels like a single, 1500-watt transceiver. > It is just so darned simple to operate, and trouble-free. When you have > compromise antennas like I do these days, it is a real pleasure to run > trouble-free 1.5 KW - life's way too short for less. > > -- Hisashi T Fujinaka - htodd at twofifty.com BSEE + BSChem + BAEnglish + MSCS + $2.50 = coffee From htodd at twofifty.com Thu Dec 19 21:10:08 2019 From: htodd at twofifty.com (Hisashi T Fujinaka) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 18:10:08 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? In-Reply-To: <00b301d5b6ba$dedc75e0$9c9561a0$@videotron.ca> References: <00b301d5b6ba$dedc75e0$9c9561a0$@videotron.ca> Message-ID: Sounds like outdated design to me. The K4 should have more internal horsepower so remotely sending firmware will be easier. Also not a fan of unpublished APIs. On Thu, 19 Dec 2019, Tom wrote: > Hi, > It's not a bug. The K3 utility uses many additional commands beyond the > published API. In addition, you can load firmware through the utility. > I would think that the remote rig controller relies on Ascii commands and > not binary transfers. It would be quite a risk to your radio to use any > product to transfer firmware or undocumented commands. > If you must do this remotely, then you should have a PC at the remote site > and then connect via something like TeamViwer. > 73 Tom va2fsq.com > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On > Behalf Of Mitch Wolfson DJ0QN / K7DX > Sent: December 17, 2019 11:03 PM > To: Rick Tavan ; Elecraft Reflector > > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Utility vs. RemoteRig? > > Rick, > > This is a bug in the K3 Utility that you and I reported to Dick to fix in > February 2018. I am not sure where he is in getting this taken care of. > > 73, > Mitch K7DX / DJ0QN > > -- > Mitch Wolfson K7DX / DJ0QN > 10285 Boca Cir, Naples, FL 34109 > Skype: mitchwo > USA: Home:+1-239-221-9600 - Mobile:+1-424-288-9171 > Germany: Home:+49 89 32152700 - Mobile/WhatsApp:+49 172 8374436 > > On 17.12.2019 17:31, Rick Tavan wrote: >> Can someone remind me why K3 Utility can't connect to a remote K3 via >> a microBit RemoteRig Controller pair even though N1MM and Logger32 >> connect just fine? >> >> /Rick N6XI >> >> -- >> >> Rick Tavan >> Truckee and Saratoga, CA >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email >> list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> dj0qn at arrl.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to elecraft.list at videotron.ca > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to htodd at twofifty.com > -- Hisashi T Fujinaka - htodd at twofifty.com BSEE + BSChem + BAEnglish + MSCS + $2.50 = coffee From cewmjtm at gmail.com Fri Dec 20 01:50:48 2019 From: cewmjtm at gmail.com (Jim McLaughlin) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 22:50:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft Message-ID: I am working on developing a portable rig with the heart of the project being a new DX3 w/ panadpter - Would like to buy "made in america" - I would like to minimize or avoid the concept of upgrading at a later date - I would like 2 meter capability included - The rig would be stand alone portable - DX before CW Any suggestions, do's and dont's would be appreciated. 73 AG7WV From k1whs at metrocast.net Fri Dec 20 08:17:11 2019 From: k1whs at metrocast.net (David Olean) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 13:17:11 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Audio In-Reply-To: <2a23e145-8e29-6590-4cf5-5bfac94236ec@gmail.com> References: <2a23e145-8e29-6590-4cf5-5bfac94236ec@gmail.com> Message-ID: <3e9804fe-bb6f-c01a-6ea1-b3fddc079f5c@metrocast.net> I had the same problem on a older K3 that had gotten a lot of use.? I just ordered a new pot and got things running just fine again. It sure sounded like a mechanical problem, and I did not delve any deeper. Dave K1WHS On 12/19/2019 8:52 PM, Rick Bates, NK7I wrote: > My K3 has the same issue.? It is a hardware issue since software > control of the volume (HRD) does not cause any problems. > > I've not taken the front panel off to see if the pots can be 'treated' > with Deoxit yet. > > 73 es Merry Christmas, > Rick NK7I > > > On 12/19/2019 9:01 AM, Larry Boekeloo wrote: >> I have a K3, serial #5278,? that's had an receive audio issue for >> almost as >> long as I've owned it. >> >> When I turn the AF gain nearly or completely counter clockwise, the >> audio >> goes to full volume.? The only way to fix the problem, is to quickly >> turn >> the AF gain back up and down a few times.? Many times, I'll want to turn >> the audio all the way to answer the phone or talk to someone in the >> shack, >> and the audio goes to full volume. >> >> Many times, if I reload the DSP software, the issue goes away for a few >> months.? I have the latest software loaded. >> >> Anyone else have this problem?? Maybe the AF gain pot needs to be >> replaced? >> >> Thanks. >> >> Larry, KN8N >> Kalamazoo, Michigan >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rick.nk7i at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k1whs at metrocast.net From mm0rkt at gmx.com Fri Dec 20 10:23:45 2019 From: mm0rkt at gmx.com (Bob Towers) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 15:23:45 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 no display & flashing LEDS Message-ID: This has probably been anwered already, but I haven't (yet) found the answer on the forum. I took my K2 and K3 to the radio club two weeks ago to help illustrate a talk I did on Elecraft. I didn't power either up, but afterwards I powered the K3 up when I got back to the shack and there was no display and the 4 sets of lEDs underneath the display flashed on and off until I powered it off. My K2 was unaffected by its trip to the club, by the way. Help would be much appreciated! 73 Bob MM0RKT From w2kj at bellsouth.net Fri Dec 20 10:45:21 2019 From: w2kj at bellsouth.net (Joseph Trombino, Jr) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 10:45:21 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 References: Message-ID: Howdy Gang. Has anyone picked up any intel from the Mother Ship on the K4 delivery schedule? Not much on the website lately on the subject. 73, Joe W2KJ I QRP, therefore I am From sidfrissell at gmail.com Thu Dec 19 23:28:17 2019 From: sidfrissell at gmail.com (Sid Frissell) Date: Thu, 19 Dec 2019 21:28:17 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Sure would be nice to have my new K4 before the January RTTY Roundup in January! Don't you all agree? (If you have ordered one) Message-ID: Sid, NZ7M, Montana Sent From Sid Frissell's iPad From jstoneback at yahoo.com Fri Dec 20 15:13:37 2019 From: jstoneback at yahoo.com (Jim Stoneback) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 15:13:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 FM Filter References: Message-ID: I have a KFL3B-FM filter that?s excess to my needs. Anyone interested? Jim K4AXF K3 SN4936 From jstoneback at yahoo.com Fri Dec 20 15:35:22 2019 From: jstoneback at yahoo.com (Jim Stoneback) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 15:35:22 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Re. K3 FM Filter References: <22CFB03E-859F-4256-9219-13B6217CBC4D.ref@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <22CFB03E-859F-4256-9219-13B6217CBC4D@yahoo.com> The KFL3B-FM filter has sold already. 73, Jim K4AXF K3 #4936 From nr4c at widomaker.com Fri Dec 20 17:52:12 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 17:52:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> Web site still says January 2020. One out on the 31st satisfys that. Remember the KX3? Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 20, 2019, at 10:49 AM, Joseph Trombino, Jr wrote: > > ?Howdy Gang. > > Has anyone picked up any intel from the Mother Ship on the K4 delivery schedule? > > Not much on the website lately on the subject. > > 73, Joe W2KJ > I QRP, therefore I am > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Fri Dec 20 17:55:37 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 15:55:37 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Seasons greetings! Message-ID: Ken and I want to wish you and yours the very best of the Christmas season. 73 / 88 K0PP / N7HKW From donwilh at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 20 18:31:17 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2019 18:31:17 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 no display & flashing LEDS In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <79852f60-eb66-0381-ccc7-350b6ab7fe8b@embarqmail.com> Bob, I have not seen any replies on the reflector, however I would suggest that your first attempt would be to remove the Front Panel assembly and plug it back in. If you have the tinned FP connector pins, plan on replacing them with the gold pins in the near future. The removal and replacement action will remove oxidation from the pin contact points. If you moved the K3 from a conditioned area to a cold transportation vehicle, that could cause problems especially if you have the tinned connector pins. If you have the tin plated pins, contact support at elecraft.com and ask for the replacement gold pins. If you have the gold plated pins and the remove/replace action does not fix things, you can try doing an EEINIT and then load a good saved configuration file. If that does not fix it, contact support at elecraft.com for additional assistance. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/20/2019 10:23 AM, Bob Towers wrote: > This has probably been anwered already, but I haven't (yet) found the > answer on the forum. > > I took my K2 and K3 to the radio club two weeks ago to help illustrate > a talk I did on Elecraft. I didn't power either up, but afterwards I > powered the K3 up when I got back to the shack and there was no display > and the 4 sets of lEDs underneath the display flashed on and off until > I powered it off. My K2 was unaffected by its trip to the club, by the > way. From pfizenmayer at q.com Sat Dec 21 03:35:34 2019 From: pfizenmayer at q.com (HP) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 03:35:34 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A Message-ID: <717399956.13432056.1576917334111.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> K3S using internal USB codec and W7 . I have an issue I dont understand --- N1MM /MMTTY -- RTTY --- using VOX for PTT. If I leave LIN OUT levels (about 35) and Windows levels (49 percent) then WSJT -sets up with 4 bars ALC 5th flickering - makes no difference if I run WSJT alone or run it thru N1MM running WSJT no change in settings . Then try to use AFSK A for RTTY I get no ALC bars at all - I see the RTTY diddles on the MMTTY screen - nothing I do will get any bars if I do nothng but switch to DATA A change nothing else - I get solid 7 bars and have to reduce MIC gain (LIN) to 10-11 from 35-37 to get 4 bars 5th flashing . I have the RTTY freq set 915-170 -MMTTY decodes fine in RX. What am I missing ?? Hank K7HP From jh3sif at sumaq.jp Sat Dec 21 03:56:28 2019 From: jh3sif at sumaq.jp (Keith Onishi) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 17:56:28 +0900 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A In-Reply-To: <717399956.13432056.1576917334111.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> References: <717399956.13432056.1576917334111.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> Message-ID: <9B3C0D55-6686-4146-848E-3B69DFF3DED5@sumaq.jp> When I run MMVari after running WSJT-X, I sometimes have the similar experience. So, I have to re-tune the audio property for MMVari. It seems WSJT-X sets Windows audio property to its favorite setting and never set it back to the original setting on its termination. 73 de JH3SIF, Keith > 2019/12/21 17:37?HP ????: > > ?K3S using internal USB codec and W7 . > > I have an issue I dont understand --- N1MM /MMTTY -- RTTY --- using VOX for PTT. > > If I leave LIN OUT levels (about 35) and Windows levels (49 percent) then WSJT -sets up with 4 bars ALC 5th flickering - > makes no difference if I run WSJT alone or run it thru N1MM running WSJT no change in settings . > > Then try to use AFSK A for RTTY I get no ALC bars at all - I see the RTTY diddles on the MMTTY screen - nothing I do will get any bars > if I do nothng but switch to DATA A change nothing else - I get solid 7 bars and have to reduce MIC gain (LIN) to 10-11 from 35-37 to get 4 bars 5th flashing . > > > > I have the RTTY freq set 915-170 -MMTTY decodes fine in RX. > > What am I missing ?? > > > Hank K7HP > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jh3sif at sumaq.jp From mm0rkt at gmx.com Sat Dec 21 03:57:27 2019 From: mm0rkt at gmx.com (Bob Towers) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 08:57:27 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 no display & flashing LEDS In-Reply-To: <79852f60-eb66-0381-ccc7-350b6ab7fe8b@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: Don Many thanks for your detailed advice. I'll have a go after Christmas - it's pretty hectic here right now. My K2 will keep me on the air in the meantime! 73 Bob Towers MM0RKT ? Original Message ? From: donwilh at embarqmail.com Sent: 20 December 2019 11:31 p.m. To: mm0rkt at gmx.com; elecraft at mailman.qth.net Reply to: donwilh at embarqmail.com Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 no display & flashing LEDS Bob, I have not seen any replies on the reflector, however I would suggest that your first attempt would be to remove the Front Panel assembly and plug it back in.? If you have the tinned FP connector pins, plan on replacing them with the gold pins in the near future. The removal and replacement action will remove oxidation from the pin contact points. If you moved the K3 from a conditioned area to a cold transportation vehicle, that could cause problems especially if you have the tinned connector pins. If you have the tin plated pins, contact support at elecraft.com and ask for the replacement gold pins. If you have the gold plated pins and the remove/replace action does not fix things, you can try doing an EEINIT and then load a good saved configuration file.? If that does not fix it, contact support at elecraft.com for additional assistance. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/20/2019 10:23 AM, Bob Towers wrote: > This has probably been anwered already, but I haven't (yet) found the > answer on the forum. > > I took my K2 and K3 to the radio club two weeks ago to help illustrate > a talk I did on Elecraft. I didn't power either up, but afterwards I > powered the K3 up when I got back to the shack and there was no display > and the 4 sets of lEDs underneath the display flashed on and off until > I powered it off. My K2 was unaffected by its trip to the club, by the > way. From neilz at techie.com Sat Dec 21 08:42:45 2019 From: neilz at techie.com (Neil Zampella) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 08:42:45 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Power Switch modification Message-ID: <21bb6efd-6033-bb3b-432f-daaa8e3542c1@techie.com> Just a heads up: I'm putting together another K2, and planning to build this as a base rig keeping it all low power with the battery option.???? I got to the part where I'm setting the initial parts on the RF board, then plugging in the front board, and the control board, to the RF board. Discovered a problem with the control board not fitting properly.???? Apparently the K2 Power Switch on the RF board was not properly modified at Elecraft, or was a 'like replacement'. This switch properly had the leads off the bottom of the switch, but also had six wire connector 'blades' at the top.???? These blades kept the control board from properly fitting on the RF connectors. The obvious fix is to flush cut the blades off at the bottom of each where they meet the switch case.????? I don't recall seeing a note about this in the main K2 manual, nor in the latest June 2018 errata sheet.? The fix is obvious, but you don't realize its needed until you reach the step where you're putting the three boards together. Hope this helps others before they reach that step. Neil, KN3ILZ From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 21 09:58:12 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 09:58:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Power Switch modification In-Reply-To: <21bb6efd-6033-bb3b-432f-daaa8e3542c1@techie.com> References: <21bb6efd-6033-bb3b-432f-daaa8e3542c1@techie.com> Message-ID: Neil, Yes, use that 'obvious fix' and trim the blades from the top of the switch. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/21/2019 8:42 AM, Neil Zampella wrote: > Just a heads up: > > I'm putting together another K2, and planning to build this as a base > rig keeping it all low power with the battery option.???? I got to the > part where I'm setting the initial parts on the RF board, then plugging > in the front board, and the control board, to the RF board. > > Discovered a problem with the control board not fitting properly. > Apparently the K2 Power Switch on the RF board was not properly modified > at Elecraft, or was a 'like replacement'. This switch properly had the > leads off the bottom of the switch, but also had six wire connector > 'blades' at the top.???? These blades kept the control board from > properly fitting on the RF connectors. > > The obvious fix is to flush cut the blades off at the bottom of each > where they meet the switch case.????? I don't recall seeing a note about > this in the main K2 manual, nor in the latest June 2018 errata sheet. > The fix is obvious, but you don't realize its needed until you reach the > step where you're putting the three boards together. > > Hope this helps others before they reach that step. > > Neil, KN3ILZ > From w6png at yahoo.com Sat Dec 21 12:22:10 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 09:22:10 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <68C23A8D-C067-4C17-846D-DB4D78962388@yahoo.com> Hi Jim What is a DX3? Is that the name of your concept, a typo or what? Your email sounds intriguing but I?m missing something about the nature of your project/request. Paul W6PNG/M0SNA www.nomadic.blog > On Dec 19, 2019, at 10:53 PM, Jim McLaughlin wrote: > > ?I am working on developing a portable rig with the heart of the > project being a new DX3 w/ panadpter > > - Would like to buy "made in america" > - I would like to minimize or avoid the concept of upgrading at a later > date > - I would like 2 meter capability included > - The rig would be stand alone portable > - DX before CW > > Any suggestions, do's and dont's would be appreciated. > > > > 73 > AG7WV > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From w6png at yahoo.com Sat Dec 21 12:22:10 2019 From: w6png at yahoo.com (Paul Gacek) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 09:22:10 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <68C23A8D-C067-4C17-846D-DB4D78962388@yahoo.com> Hi Jim What is a DX3? Is that the name of your concept, a typo or what? Your email sounds intriguing but I?m missing something about the nature of your project/request. Paul W6PNG/M0SNA www.nomadic.blog > On Dec 19, 2019, at 10:53 PM, Jim McLaughlin wrote: > > ?I am working on developing a portable rig with the heart of the > project being a new DX3 w/ panadpter > > - Would like to buy "made in america" > - I would like to minimize or avoid the concept of upgrading at a later > date > - I would like 2 meter capability included > - The rig would be stand alone portable > - DX before CW > > Any suggestions, do's and dont's would be appreciated. > > > > 73 > AG7WV > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Sat Dec 21 12:26:15 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 12:26:15 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> References: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> Message-ID: <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> OK, January is fine as it's only 10+ days away...? AND yes, Jan 31st is only 5+ weeks. (Joe, I bet as a kid you had no problem waiting for your gifts at Christmas or other big holidays...) what I am waiting for is the manual.? It will/should answer many of my questions. Maybe before the K4 is shipped? Like, with a LAN connection on the K4 and an internal PC (of some sort) will I be able to download updates direct to the K4? or, will I need a separate PC and use the USB port on K4 to do the admin "stuff" ? There are plenty of single board computers that would fit the need, if required. I expect to use a SBC for FT8 and JS8, as it works nice now on my KX3 w/amp (as needed). 73, steve WB3LGC? (waiting for my Christmas and my birthday "gift" = K4...?? wife approved) On 12/20/19 5:52 PM, Nr4c wrote: > Web site still says January 2020. One out on the 31st satisfys that. Remember the KX3? > > Sent from my iPhone > ...nr4c. bill > > >> On Dec 20, 2019, at 10:49 AM, Joseph Trombino, Jr wrote: >> >> ?Howdy Gang. >> >> Has anyone picked up any intel from the Mother Ship on the K4 delivery schedule? >> >> Not much on the website lately on the subject. >> >> 73, Joe W2KJ >> I QRP, therefore I am >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 21 12:55:35 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 12:55:35 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> References: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> Message-ID: <6986a47d-6e73-9337-ed70-cbee6bfc15ee@embarqmail.com> Steve, Unless the K4 is being done differently than all other Elecraft transceivers, the manual will only be available until after the completion of Field Test. One of the purposes of Field Test is to refine the manual. While the K4 does contain a processor, it is dedicated to the K4 and its functions, so don't expect anything like a PC or other general purpose computer. You will be able to download firmware updates, but I don't know if a separate PC will be required - I expect it will, so don't throw out your shack computer. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/21/2019 12:26 PM, stephen shearer wrote: > OK, January is fine as it's only 10+ days away...? AND yes, Jan 31st is > only 5+ weeks. > (Joe, I bet as a kid you had no problem waiting for your gifts at > Christmas or other big holidays...) > what I am waiting for is the manual.? It will/should answer many of my > questions. > Maybe before the K4 is shipped? > > Like, with a LAN connection on the K4 and an internal PC (of some sort) > will I be able to download updates direct to the K4? > or, will I need a separate PC and use the USB port on K4 to do the admin > "stuff" ? > There are plenty of single board computers that would fit the need, if > required. > I expect to use a SBC for FT8 and JS8, as it works nice now on my KX3 > w/amp (as needed). > From pfizenmayer at q.com Sat Dec 21 14:51:53 2019 From: pfizenmayer at q.com (HP) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 14:51:53 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A (HP) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1384843861.13710477.1576957913122.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> Ahaaaa-- I thought since I had the MMTTY demodulator set to 915 -170 and K3s set to 915-170 I was matched --- NOPE - in AFSK - in MMTTY setup I ALSO have to set "HAM DEFAULT" to 915-170 . Never mattered when I was running direct FSK. This morning after reading Mike VP8NO message I noticed that if I clicked on TX in the MMTTY window I got same deal - no ALC -nil in MON -made no difference with the AFSK FIL on or off - BUT if I left the TX on and clicked on ALIGN next to it lo and behold up popped the 7 bars - output power etc and diddles away. so just have to see if I can play games between WSJT and RTTY to get one LIN setting to work -but not a big issue. I had never tried to use AFSK on RTTY and had always used direct FSK but with the K3S I decided to get rid of my RTTY interface box . BUT lo and behold when using AFSK the MMTTY "HAM DEFAULT" has to be set to 915-170 -does not matter in direct FSK so I just never thought about that . But setting it to 915-170 away I went Thanks Mike Hank K7HP Message: 23 Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 03:35:34 -0500 (EST) From: HP To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A Message-ID: <717399956.13432056.1576917334111.JavaMail.zimbra at q.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 K3S using internal USB codec and W7 . I have an issue I dont understand --- N1MM /MMTTY -- RTTY --- using VOX for PTT. If I leave LIN OUT levels (about 35) and Windows levels (49 percent) then WSJT -sets up with 4 bars ALC 5th flickering - makes no difference if I run WSJT alone or run it thru N1MM running WSJT no change in settings . Then try to use AFSK A for RTTY I get no ALC bars at all - I see the RTTY diddles on the MMTTY screen - nothing I do will get any bars if I do nothng but switch to DATA A change nothing else - I get solid 7 bars and have to reduce MIC gain (LIN) to 10-11 from 35-37 to get 4 bars 5th flashing . I have the RTTY freq set 915-170 -MMTTY decodes fine in RX. What am I missing ?? Hank K7HP From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Sat Dec 21 15:07:52 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 15:07:52 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <6986a47d-6e73-9337-ed70-cbee6bfc15ee@embarqmail.com> References: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> <6986a47d-6e73-9337-ed70-cbee6bfc15ee@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: I agree the field testing is a very important step for both the rig and the manual. A step that should take as long as it takes... Software bugs are one thing but finding hardware issues are better found before the? product starts shipping mode. I am sure I am at the end of the shipping list, so I hope to see the manual (on line) long before I see the rig... I don't remember the kickoff of the KX3. I didn't purchase mine until ~1+ year after shipping started. I wanted to be sure all was OK... This time, why wait. I was thinking about a K3s last year but "something" put me off ordering. I am glad I waited as all the "options" are included and I can add "stuff" like the upgrade to K4D etc. Can "anyone" say Christmas 2020? I am amused by the creative financing method used by Elecraft. (smart) Where else would you find "investors" loan the operating capital at zero interest for almost a year and to have only ever seen? serial 001 of the product. You will also note the "1st Shipping Group" is still open for orders (the real capital). And "and are targeting our first deliveries for January 2020." has deliveries (plural) so, at least 2 K4's will be delivered by Jan 31st... Waiting... as long as it isn't "Christmas in July"...? on the other-hand, I might be able to convince my wife to upgrade to a K4D, by then. 73, steve WB3LGC On 12/21/19 12:55 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > Steve, > > Unless the K4 is being done differently than all other Elecraft > transceivers, the manual will only be available until after the > completion of Field Test. > One of the purposes of Field Test is to refine the manual. > > While the K4 does contain a processor, it is dedicated to the K4 and > its functions, so don't expect anything like a PC or other general > purpose computer. > You will be able to download firmware updates, but I don't know if a > separate PC will be required - I expect it will, so don't throw out > your shack computer. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/21/2019 12:26 PM, stephen shearer wrote: >> OK, January is fine as it's only 10+ days away...? AND yes, Jan 31st >> is only 5+ weeks. >> (Joe, I bet as a kid you had no problem waiting for your gifts at >> Christmas or other big holidays...) >> what I am waiting for is the manual.? It will/should answer many of >> my questions. >> Maybe before the K4 is shipped? >> >> Like, with a LAN connection on the K4 and an internal PC (of some >> sort) will I be able to download updates direct to the K4? >> or, will I need a separate PC and use the USB port on K4 to do the >> admin "stuff" ? >> There are plenty of single board computers that would fit the need, >> if required. >> I expect to use a SBC for FT8 and JS8, as it works nice now on my KX3 >> w/amp (as needed). >> From Gary at ka1j.com Sat Dec 21 15:34:31 2019 From: Gary at ka1j.com (Gary Smith) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 15:34:31 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: , <6986a47d-6e73-9337-ed70-cbee6bfc15ee@embarqmail.com>, Message-ID: <5DFE81D7.2901.8143C52@Gary.ka1j.com> I truly get the idea of wanting to know when something new like the K4 is being brought out, I'd like to know too. I always hesitate to ask because I it is probably impossible for anyone in management to make a statement other than "predicted". I'm sure they have no idea in any specific date; the testers have to present their findings, then the company has to find out if there are hard/software issues, or if the tester misunderstood something. If there is a problem then that has to be resolved before shipping. If the instructions were misunderstood then they have to find out if it is the instructions that are needing correction, or if the manual was clear but misunderstood. There's more factors but until they feel secure that they have a product that will bring praise from reviewers and the public, there really can't be a release date that is in stone. Yeah, we all already know all this, and we all want the finished product ASAP (I paid for mine long back), but I'll keep using my K3s & P3 till the K4D comes out. Odd, I don't like waiting, but I don't mind waiting either. One of those oxymoron's of life... :) Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Festivus... whatever you celebrate at this time of year, Cheers to you and those you love. 73, Gary KA1J From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Sat Dec 21 15:57:03 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 12:57:03 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A (HP) In-Reply-To: <1384843861.13710477.1576957913122.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> References: <1384843861.13710477.1576957913122.JavaMail.zimbra@q.com> Message-ID: On 12/21/2019 11:51 AM, HP wrote: > NOPE - in AFSK - in MMTTY setup I ALSO have to set "HAM DEFAULT" to 915-170 . Never mattered when I was running direct FSK. Hank, There are two .INI files in MMTTY that. if not modified, will switch you back to high tones as you change the decoding algorithms. If you use low tones, as I do, you will need to go in and modify them. Search the MMTTY directory for .INI files, then go through both of them for default tone frequencies and edit them. The second .INI file has 8-9 instances that must be changed, one for each of the decode algorithms. 73, Jim K9YC From cewmjtm at gmail.com Sat Dec 21 15:59:58 2019 From: cewmjtm at gmail.com (=?utf-8?Q?S=C3=A9amus_McLaughlin?=) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 12:59:58 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft In-Reply-To: <68C23A8D-C067-4C17-846D-DB4D78962388@yahoo.com> References: <68C23A8D-C067-4C17-846D-DB4D78962388@yahoo.com> Message-ID: <5dfe87ce.1c69fb81.b1a4b.33c5@mx.google.com> Typo ? corrected : KX3 Sent from Mail for Windows 10 From: Paul Gacek Sent: Saturday, December 21, 2019 9:22 AM To: Jim McLaughlin Cc: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft Hi Jim What is a DX3? Is that the name of your concept, a typo or what? Your email sounds intriguing but I?m missing something about the nature of your project/request. Paul W6PNG/M0SNA www.nomadic.blog > On Dec 19, 2019, at 10:53 PM, Jim McLaughlin wrote: > > ?I am working on developing a portable rig with the heart of the > project being a new DX3 w/ panadpter > > - Would like to buy "made in america" > - I would like to minimize or avoid the concept of upgrading at a later > date > - I would like 2 meter capability included > - The rig would be stand alone portable > - DX before CW > > Any suggestions, do's and dont's would be appreciated. > > > > 73 > AG7WV > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com From ny9h at arrl.net Sat Dec 21 16:01:18 2019 From: ny9h at arrl.net (Bill Steffey) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 16:01:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <5DFE81D7.2901.8143C52@Gary.ka1j.com> References: <6986a47d-6e73-9337-ed70-cbee6bfc15ee@embarqmail.com> <5DFE81D7.2901.8143C52@Gary.ka1j.com> Message-ID: why wait for the k4d ???? There is no waiting. when the K4 ships,? I understand that the K4D will be shipping also...NOT THE K4HD. life is? WAY too short, so I can add the super duper front end later. Might as well start learning the radio. Merry Christmas & happy holidays to all.... bill ny9h From scott.manthe at gmail.com Sat Dec 21 16:00:22 2019 From: scott.manthe at gmail.com (Scott Manthe) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 16:00:22 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> References: <52315DAD-9D7B-4F14-8210-2DA0AC11843E@widomaker.com> <53d0cc2f-557e-9438-aca9-7df385ae5c2a@gmail.com> Message-ID: <5be09ded-d3a7-99b7-6147-f9b397cb0319@gmail.com> A good reason for Elecraft NOT release a manual before the radio is available is that there are competing companies that would love to have a copy of the K4 manual before the radio is available. That would allow those competitors to add features or performance enhancements to their own radios before the K4's release.? Amateur radios are largely created in software these days, so what once would have required a redesign of hardware, now requires a rewrite of software. So releasing a manual before the radio is available would be a gift to Elecraft's competition. Maybe I'm paranoid, but maybe not and if Elecraft were my company, I'd keep things under wraps. 73, Scott N9AA On 12/21/19 12:26 PM, stephen shearer wrote: > OK, January is fine as it's only 10+ days away...? AND yes, Jan 31st > is only 5+ weeks. > (Joe, I bet as a kid you had no problem waiting for your gifts at > Christmas or other big holidays...) > what I am waiting for is the manual.? It will/should answer many of my > questions. > Maybe before the K4 is shipped? > > Like, with a LAN connection on the K4 and an internal PC (of some > sort) will I be able to download updates direct to the K4? > or, will I need a separate PC and use the USB port on K4 to do the > admin "stuff" ? > There are plenty of single board computers that would fit the need, if > required. > I expect to use a SBC for FT8 and JS8, as it works nice now on my KX3 > w/amp (as needed). > > 73, steve WB3LGC? (waiting for my Christmas and my birthday "gift" = > K4...?? wife approved) > From mike at ve3yf.com Sat Dec 21 17:43:54 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 22:43:54 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <7d01c30e-baba-8d6e-e7a4-22adef70f0ed@ve3yf.com> From my point of view, I have no problem with Elecraft waiting until all the bugs are out of the K4D before being delivered. I am waiting for my KPA1500 to arrive and I waited a year or 2 before taking the plunge and this time I have no problem waiting a few months for the K4 to come out. It is better to get it right the first time than to have to send the rig back for upgrades or updates when a few extra months could have solved that problem. -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From nr4c at widomaker.com Sat Dec 21 22:27:04 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 22:27:04 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S - DATA A vs AFSK A In-Reply-To: <9B3C0D55-6686-4146-848E-3B69DFF3DED5@sumaq.jp> References: <9B3C0D55-6686-4146-848E-3B69DFF3DED5@sumaq.jp> Message-ID: <951A4E3A-E395-4CC9-A66A-A04519A02552@widomaker.com> DATA A is USB data mode. AFSK A is Audio FSK and is used for RTTY which is a LSB data mode. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 21, 2019, at 3:58 AM, Keith Onishi wrote: > > ?When I run MMVari after running WSJT-X, I sometimes have the similar experience. So, I have to re-tune the audio property for MMVari. It seems WSJT-X sets Windows audio property to its favorite setting and never set it back to the original setting on its termination. > > 73 de JH3SIF, Keith > >> 2019/12/21 17:37?HP ????: >> >> ?K3S using internal USB codec and W7 . >> >> I have an issue I dont understand --- N1MM /MMTTY -- RTTY --- using VOX for PTT. >> >> If I leave LIN OUT levels (about 35) and Windows levels (49 percent) then WSJT -sets up with 4 bars ALC 5th flickering - >> makes no difference if I run WSJT alone or run it thru N1MM running WSJT no change in settings . >> >> Then try to use AFSK A for RTTY I get no ALC bars at all - I see the RTTY diddles on the MMTTY screen - nothing I do will get any bars >> if I do nothng but switch to DATA A change nothing else - I get solid 7 bars and have to reduce MIC gain (LIN) to 10-11 from 35-37 to get 4 bars 5th flashing . >> >> >> >> I have the RTTY freq set 915-170 -MMTTY decodes fine in RX. >> >> What am I missing ?? >> >> >> Hank K7HP >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to jh3sif at sumaq.jp > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From kevinr at coho.net Sat Dec 21 22:34:37 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sat, 21 Dec 2019 19:34:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement Message-ID: <8ddfb118-6578-cee9-ef53-36c7df4b59f8@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? Eighty meters has a number of folks running with straight keys and bugs.? A few interesting sounding rigs out there too.? Whoops and squeaks and chirps.? Those ops can warm their fingers over glowing tubes. ?? Today was the first dry day all week, relatively speaking. The river in the sky swerved to the right and is now hitting lower Oregon and upper California.? Snow level is about 2000 feet above me but will lower to my elevation by Wednesday.? Time to move more wood before it freezes into one solid chunk. ?? There was some solar wind this week.? The auroral oval was intense on Thursday, wider than I've seen it in quite some time. Today the solar flux is back to where it has been for many months.? With only ten more days left in the year we could reach 285 spotless days for 2019.? It is hard to tell where the bottom of the minimum is until it is well past.? Kind of like noticing an increase in day length around the solstice. Please join us tomorrow on: 14050 kHz at 2200z Sunday? (2 PM PST Sunday) ?7047 kHz at 0000z Monday? (4 PM PST Sunday) 73, ?? Kevin. KD5ONS - From tony.kaz at verizon.net Sun Dec 22 10:47:23 2019 From: tony.kaz at verizon.net (tony.kaz at verizon.net) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 10:47:23 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> Message-ID: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to feed two K3's. I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From the power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power supply to a K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's were tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to 14.30 at 100W. Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in receive and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' of 10ga wire. P3 output was now 114W. I never transmit with both K3's at the same time. Just a data point. 73 and Merry Christmas N2TK, Tony From ww2pt at hotmail.com Sun Dec 22 11:06:34 2019 From: ww2pt at hotmail.com (Paul Lannuier) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 16:06:34 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Chariot racing wasn?t about the chariots; it was about the racing. It was fundamentally no different than modern F1 racing. 73, WW2PT Sent from my iPad > On Dec 14, 2019, at 12:24 PM, Dauer, Edward wrote: > > I wonder if the chariot racers of two or three milennia ago lamented the death of their sport. > > I too tried to interest my grandson, now 13, in the ham radio hobby, but with no success. He just couldn't see the point. So I reflected on when I was 13 with a newly printed Novice ticket, some 62 years ago, and when I was captivated for life by the wizardry of radio electronics, ionospheric physics, the smell of solder and rosin (and of exploding caps), the excitement of doing successfully what most people can't do at all, the fascination of international communications . . . . . all of the things we now-grandpas found and still find attractive. > > He found it a yawn. > > I reflected on it some. So what? The ham radio industry will care, and those who still believe that ham radio is imperative for emergency communications will care (though let's be honest -- cellular and satellite communications have taken much of the wind out of that sail.) But if I enjoy it and you enjoy it, and we both do it, why should we fret if other people don't? If amateur radio evolves in ways that are attractive to the next generation, all to the good. And a form of natural selection may shape the evolution that way. But if ham radio as we know it today doesn't get past a generational divide, if the mutations that survive an evolutionary end point don't occur, does it really matter? > > Excuse the philosophy, but I have to ask the question: Is our culture really impoverished by the demise of chariot racing? Or is that sport still with us, only morphed over time into something the next generation found attractive. > > OK. Break time over. Back to the ten-meter contest. Curse this solar minimum! > > Ted, KN1CBR > > >> On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >> >> This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, >> but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth >> will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the >> case, but reality bites. >> >> 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to >> freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM >> quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message >> groups and forums. >> >> 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with >> today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe >> not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that >> you don't otherwise care about. >> >> 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than >> for amateur radio, especially for long distances. >> >> 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in >> the sunspot cycle. >> >> 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping >> stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, >> I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling >> me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much >> on the job. >> >> One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of >> competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost >> anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching >> football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games >> that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio >> contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way >> to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that >> has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance >> events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the >> comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? >> Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency >> (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any >> opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as >> competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all >> suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could >> take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the >> kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that >> either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. >> >> It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few >> surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even >> ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take >> a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors >> versus being on the air (other than in a contest). >> >> I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he >> implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring >> young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same >> things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? >> This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the >> comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty >> much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply >> rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few >> exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young >> people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood >> in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. >> >> If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby >> itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to >> understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... >> we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which >> doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton >> or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a >> Lawrence Welk concert. >> >> I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years >> from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because >> we weren't persuasive enough. >> >> 73, >> Dave?? AB7E >> > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ww2pt at hotmail.com From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 22 11:21:04 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 11:21:04 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: Tony, While those figures with the 10 gauge wire are good, they would be better if you ran the K3 power directly from the power supply rather than from the power distribution strip. Each connection will have some voltage drop, so in addition to increasing the wiring gauge, reducing the connection points will help just as much. 73 Merry Christmas, or Happy Hanukkah whichever you choose to celebrate. Don W3FPR On 12/22/2019 10:47 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: > I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to feed > two K3's. > I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From the > power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power supply to a > K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's were > tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to 14.30 at > 100W. > Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in receive > and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. > Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. > Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. > Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' of > 10ga wire. > P3 output was now 114W. From jimk0xu at gmail.com Sun Dec 22 11:25:05 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 10:25:05 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft In-Reply-To: <5dfe87ce.1c69fb81.b1a4b.33c5@mx.google.com> References: <68C23A8D-C067-4C17-846D-DB4D78962388@yahoo.com> <5dfe87ce.1c69fb81.b1a4b.33c5@mx.google.com> Message-ID: In view of the typo correction, yes, a properly equipped KX3 will meet those conditions. The PX3 panadapter is a separate device, but can be docked with external adapters. On Sat, Dec 21, 2019 at 3:00 PM S?amus McLaughlin wrote: > Typo ? corrected : KX3 > > Sent from Mail for Windows 10 > > From: Paul Gacek > Sent: Saturday, December 21, 2019 9:22 AM > To: Jim McLaughlin > Cc: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Configuration suggestions 1st Elecraft > > Hi Jim > > What is a DX3? Is that the name of your concept, a typo or what? > > Your email sounds intriguing but I?m missing something about the nature of > your project/request. > > Paul > W6PNG/M0SNA > www.nomadic.blog > > > On Dec 19, 2019, at 10:53 PM, Jim McLaughlin wrote: > > > > ?I am working on developing a portable rig with the heart of the > > project being a new DX3 w/ panadpter > > > > - Would like to buy "made in america" > > - I would like to minimize or avoid the concept of upgrading at a later > > date > > - I would like 2 meter capability included > > - The rig would be stand alone portable > > - DX before CW > > > > Any suggestions, do's and dont's would be appreciated. > > > > > > > > 73 > > AG7WV > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to w6png at yahoo.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com -- Jim K0XU jim at rhodesend.net From k3wjv at yahoo.com Sun Dec 22 12:21:48 2019 From: k3wjv at yahoo.com (Bill Stravinsky) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 17:21:48 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <760941230.2942622.1577035308649@mail.yahoo.com> When the KPA1500 came out I was one who said I should wait for it to be fully tested and out for a while before thinking about getting one.? That is why I fairly earlysent my full deposit in to get the free shipping and get on the waiting list, hi. I did the same thing on the K4 and I did good by waiting until 6 days ago before sending in my full deposit for a K4HD.? I figure I can play with the K4D for a few monthsand get real familiar with it then install the HD option when it comes out.? I will be way down on the early list but at least it will be the first group.? I plan on retiring my FT1000mpbut will use it and my K3/P3 until the K4 comes in. Merry Xmas to all (esp me, hi) BillK3WJV On Friday, December 20, 2019, 10:51:19 AM EST, Joseph Trombino, Jr wrote: Howdy Gang. Has anyone picked up any intel from the Mother Ship on the K4 delivery schedule? Not much on the website lately on the subject. ??? ??? ??? 73, Joe W2KJ ??? ??? ??? I QRP, therefore I am ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to k3wjv at yahoo.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sun Dec 22 12:44:53 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 12:44:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> Rid your station of the DC power strip.? It will cause problems. More connections in the path will be more DC voltage drip.? The radios should be connected direct to the power supply. As to the Astron SS-30M, I have 3 of those.? They are great. I did find the provided DC connections where the wires are inserted into the blocks and secured with a screw from the side would not accommodate the 4 needs for DC at my station.??? Therefore, I took two pieces of? 2" x 10-32 brass machine screw, cut off the head, filed a small flat spot on one side at the end to make it slightly D shaped.?? Inserted that end into the DC connector and tightened the set screw against the flat spot.? Then added as needed the brass nuts, flat washers and lock washers, secured finally by another brass nut.?? This in effect gives me very adequate terminal length to attach as many DC power leads with suitable ring terminals as needed.? DC resistance has therefore been minimized.???? The 10 ga wire is a good addition for radio power needs. I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. 73 Bob, K4TAX 12/22/2019 10:47 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: > I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to feed > two K3's. > I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From the > power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power supply to a > K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's were > tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to 14.30 at > 100W. > Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in receive > and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. > Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. > Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. > Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' of > 10ga wire. > P3 output was now 114W. > I never transmit with both K3's at the same time. > Just a data point. > 73 and Merry Christmas > N2TK, Tony > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From tony.kaz at verizon.net Sun Dec 22 13:45:43 2019 From: tony.kaz at verizon.net (tony.kaz at verizon.net) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 13:45:43 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: <031501d5b8f8$047fc420$0d7f4c60$@verizon.net> Hi Don, With the 10ga wire the power distribution strip is not used. There are two runs of 7' each direct from the power supply to a K3. The run is 7' because I have the power supply with the rest of my supplies, router, etc. all mounted underneath my desk to the side to keep the desktop clean. I don't hink 0.6V drop is too much to be concerned with. The amps are in the basement. In the process of adding Green Heron Everywhere wireless remotes to eliminate the manual switches too. 73 and merry Christmas N2TK, Tony -----Original Message----- From: Don Wilhelm Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2019 11:21 AM To: tony.kaz at verizon.net; elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Tony, While those figures with the 10 gauge wire are good, they would be better if you ran the K3 power directly from the power supply rather than from the power distribution strip. Each connection will have some voltage drop, so in addition to increasing the wiring gauge, reducing the connection points will help just as much. 73 Merry Christmas, or Happy Hanukkah whichever you choose to celebrate. Don W3FPR On 12/22/2019 10:47 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: > I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to > feed two K3's. > I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From > the power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power > supply to a > K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's > were tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to > 14.30 at 100W. > Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in > receive and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. > Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. > Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. > Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' > of 10ga wire. > P3 output was now 114W. From mark3575 at icloud.com Sun Dec 22 13:50:11 2019 From: mark3575 at icloud.com (Mark Wheeler) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 18:50:11 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] =?utf-8?q?Receiving_Stations_Sound_Like_Inside_a_Barre?= =?utf-8?q?l_=28WU6R/Mark_Wheeler=29?= Message-ID: <4e526e04-a0c9-4b8c-9b16-6289ce4fe3d2@me.com> I turned on the K3s today and very contact on all bands (3.5MHz, 7MHz and 14 MHz sounds like everyone is talking inside a barrel.? I figured my filters need to be adjusted, but after referring to the manual and making some filer and DSP adjustments, no improvements.? I also adjusted NB and NR settings to no avail.?? Any suggestions on what I'm doing wrong are appreciated. Thanks, Mark/WU6R From km6cq at km6cq.com Sun Dec 22 13:57:24 2019 From: km6cq at km6cq.com (Dan Baker) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 10:57:24 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 Message-ID: We can wait. None of us wish to flex our K4s back to Elecraft to have items reattached on the inside that fell off or have modifications made that could have been caught before shipped. To Wayne, Eric and the crew. Merry Christmas and happy new year. You have our blessing to wait as long as needed to ship the K4. 73, Dan KM6CQ -- Sent from my iPhone X From tony.kaz at verizon.net Sun Dec 22 13:56:33 2019 From: tony.kaz at verizon.net (tony.kaz at verizon.net) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 13:56:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> Message-ID: <03a001d5b8f9$87f9a4f0$97eceed0$@verizon.net> Bob, The power strip is gone for the K3's. Now direct connections from the PS to each K3. The power strip is good for replacing the walwarts. N2TK, Tony -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2019 12:45 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Rid your station of the DC power strip. It will cause problems. More connections in the path will be more DC voltage drip. The radios should be connected direct to the power supply. As to the Astron SS-30M, I have 3 of those. They are great. I did find the provided DC connections where the wires are inserted into the blocks and secured with a screw from the side would not accommodate the 4 needs for DC at my station. Therefore, I took two pieces of 2" x 10-32 brass machine screw, cut off the head, filed a small flat spot on one side at the end to make it slightly D shaped. Inserted that end into the DC connector and tightened the set screw against the flat spot. Then added as needed the brass nuts, flat washers and lock washers, secured finally by another brass nut. This in effect gives me very adequate terminal length to attach as many DC power leads with suitable ring terminals as needed. DC resistance has therefore been minimized. The 10 ga wire is a good addition for radio power needs. I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. 73 Bob, K4TAX 12/22/2019 10:47 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: > I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to > feed two K3's. > I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From > the power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power > supply to a > K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's > were tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to > 14.30 at 100W. > Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in > receive and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. > Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. > Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. > Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' > of 10ga wire. > P3 output was now 114W. > I never transmit with both K3's at the same time. > Just a data point. > 73 and Merry Christmas > N2TK, Tony > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > rmcgraw at blomand.net > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to tony.kaz at verizon.net From ghyoungman at gmail.com Sun Dec 22 14:04:02 2019 From: ghyoungman at gmail.com (Grant Youngman) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 14:04:02 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Personally, I hope Elecraft is giving itself a well deserved, quiet, peaceful, no-stress, Holiday break. They?re certainly going to need the rest before the inevitable onslaught after the first of the year :-) Happy Holidays, everyone ?. Grant NQ5T > On Dec 22, 2019, at 1:57 PM, Dan Baker wrote: > > We can wait. None of us wish to flex our K4s back to Elecraft to have items > reattached on the inside that fell off or have modifications made that > could have been caught before shipped. > > To Wayne, Eric and the crew. Merry Christmas and happy new year. You have > our blessing to wait as long as needed to ship the K4. > From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Sun Dec 22 14:17:21 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 10:17:21 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Message-ID: <201912221917.xBMJHNAZ026716@mail47c28.carrierzone.com> In my current station layout the rack-mounted Astron-50M is separated from the radio shelf, so I need a 15-foot run of cable. The Astron runs 14.2 vdc. I have 13.69 v at the main power strip (handles 10ga wiring). The primary dc power cable is No. 6 welding cable (more flexible than std No. 6) so I have a BUSS30 fuse at the main power strip. The Astron is capable of 50 amps if the main cable were to short (cable is rated for a over 200A for welding). I use the std power cord that came with my K3/10 and see 13.3v displayed by the K3 in transmit with 10w RF output. The K3/10 does not draw a lot of current. I drive a KXPA100 which has 5-foot Elecraft power cable (looks like No.12). I get 100w on all bands with about 5w drive (only 6m requires 8w drive for 80w output). I have not measured the voltage at the power-pole connector when in transmit but should be approx 13.5v based on current draw of 20 A. I run several high power solid-state amplifiers that draw up to 50A at 50v so paying attention to dc voltage drop in dc wiring is quite important. 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sun Dec 22 14:34:39 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 14:34:39 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <03a001d5b8f9$87f9a4f0$97eceed0$@verizon.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> <03a001d5b8f9$87f9a4f0$97eceed0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: <9407d1f4-3f45-6b9d-cabf-434efbed9533@blomand.net> I still connect all of the equipment which used walwarts to my power supply.? I made provisions to have many many DC connections, as described below,? to my supplies.? All of my DC power leads have the correct size crimp ring terminal for the application. Never use stranded wire around a screw.???? Thus many problems solved.? I know the DC distribution strips look cool with their LEDs and fuses and connectors, and are very easy to use for convenience.? But I find just like AC strips, are a source of many problems.?? I've found many of the AC strips which have a poor 3rd wire connection.?? They are a matter of convenience and not of reliable functionality. > As to the Astron SS-30M, I have 3 of those. They are great. I did find the provided DC connections where the wires are inserted into the blocks and secured with a screw from the side would not accommodate the 4 needs for DC at my station. Therefore, I took two pieces of 2" x 10-32 brass machine screw, cut off the head, filed a small flat spot on one side at the end to make it slightly D shaped. Inserted that end into the DC connector and tightened the set screw against the flat spot. Then added as needed the brass nuts, flat washers and lock washers, secured finally by another brass nut. This in effect gives me very adequate terminal length to attach as many DC power leads with suitable ring terminals as needed. DC resistance has therefore been minimized. The 10 ga wire is a good addition for radio power needs. > > I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. 73 Bob, K4TAX From c-hawley at illinois.edu Sun Dec 22 14:36:22 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 19:36:22 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net>, Message-ID: <7C6B126B-2880-421B-839B-4FC4C891CF20@illinois.edu> I used to run my K3S with an auto turn on Rigrunner which I liked very much, convenient. But the voltage drop was concerning. I go direct now to the rig. Chuck Jack Hawley KE9UW Sent from my iPhone, cjack > On Dec 22, 2019, at 10:21 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Tony, > > While those figures with the 10 gauge wire are good, they would be better if you ran the K3 power directly from the power supply rather than from the power distribution strip. > > Each connection will have some voltage drop, so in addition to increasing the wiring gauge, reducing the connection points will help just as much. > > 73 Merry Christmas, or Happy Hanukkah whichever you choose to celebrate. > Don W3FPR > >> On 12/22/2019 10:47 AM, N2TK via Elecraft wrote: >> I have been using an Astron SS-30M power supply for several years to feed >> two K3's. >> I use 12ga wire from the power supply to an MFJ-4012 power strip. From the >> power strip I use 12ga wire to each K3. Total length from power supply to a >> K3 was 8'. Each K3 is set for 100W on 30M into a dummy load. The K3's were >> tested one at a time. The power supply voltage went from 14.38 to 14.30 at >> 100W. >> Both K3's read the same on the K3's internal voltmeter - 14.1V in receive >> and 12.7V at 100W setting on the K3's. The P3 read 107W out. >> Changed the cable to 10ga wire direct from the power supply to each K3. >> Length of each is 7'. Same test. Power supply voltage was still 14.39/14.30. >> Voltage on each K3 was now 14.2v. Key down 13.6V. So, 0.6V drop in 7' of >> 10ga wire. >> P3 output was now 114W. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Sun Dec 22 14:36:49 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 11:36:49 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> Message-ID: On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: > Rid your station of the DC power strip.? It will cause problems. More > connections in the path will be more DC voltage drip.? The radios should > be connected direct to the power supply. Yes and no. My station has direct short runs from a 100Ah Bioenne LiFePO4 battery to my two K3s. The radio very close to the battery is #10; the longer run (about five ft) to the radio on the other side of the desk is two #10s in parallel. This battery is used because it's operating voltage remains well about 13VDC throughout its discharge curve (as opposed to the SLA, which is closer to 11.5VDC under load). The difference results in lower IMD. The other 12V gear (and LED strips for task lighting) runs from a 100Ah 12V SLA battery through a DC power strip. All the gear is bonded together. Both batteries are float-charged by spare Thinkpad power supplies with Genasun charge regulators. The power strips are fine for low current drain devices, but, as Bob notes, not for the radios. 73, Jim K9YC From jrichards at k8jhr.com Sun Dec 22 15:52:29 2019 From: jrichards at k8jhr.com (JR) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 15:52:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 Message-ID: <5cd5feab-5231-134e-f41e-a27c79349169@k8jhr.com> somebody said: ... a good reason for Elecraft NOT release a manual before the radio is available is that there are competing companies that would love to have a copy of the K4 manual before the radio is available. That would allow those competitors to add features or performance enhancements to their own radios before the K4's release.? ... Nonsense.? This sort of parochialism is not helpful to either Elecraft or consumers.?? First, Elecraft published a K4 product brochure months ago which clearly reveals the feature set and promised specifications.? We and the competition already know what to expect ... the only bug in the ointment is WHEN we can buy one! Second,? I highly doubt other manufacturers could possibly react as quickly as you suggest - this takes time to decide, develop, and modify production - which takes time and could never overtake K4 production.?? Third,? I highly doubt the competition is waiting to see what Elecraft does before they design their next rig -? that is no more credible than the Cadillac rep claiming the boys at Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, and others are all waiting to see what Cadillac does next so they can follow suit.? ? Besides, Fourth, the other guys have already plotted, designed and released their newest radios long ahead of the K4, and the K4 is essentially following suit.?? And this is no complaint or knock on Elecraft, either. Somebody has to be first, but at this point the other guys have all adopted essentially the same size, form factor, and basic layout, each including a roughly a 7 inch (+/-) onboard spectrum scope with options for a larger external monitor, for ... ahem ... for the same or less money.??? Again, I am NOT dissing Elecraft by saying this. That is what hams want, and Elecraft will produce its horse in the race.?? And, it is sometimes better to follow the lead, than to be the leader and go off in the wrong direction !?? Canon corporation's CEO clearly announced Canon would no longer spend the money it takes to lead the industry - it let others invent, and it will make whatever technology proves itself, and then beat the leaders at their game.??? And there is no reason to think Elecraft is not doing the same.?? The K4 will be unique-enough to carry its own freight in the marketplace - so this is no knock on it -? but, I highly doubt the other teams are standing by to see what Elecraft? puts in its user manual before they draw their own game plan. Just MY take.?? Drive on Elecraft !?? Good luck. K8JHR From turnbull at net1.ie Sun Dec 22 17:11:19 2019 From: turnbull at net1.ie (Doug Turnbull) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 22:11:19 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 rumors and Manual In-Reply-To: References: <56E87E38.9070404@audiosystemsgroup.com><56E88A0E.2050403@sonic.net><79EE3C8E-03B8-4383-AFE3-F71FA5AD72A6@n6lew.us><56E8DA03.9080705@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: Dear OMs and YLs, It is better to wait for a well written manual than one which needs work. Fred Cady had an advantage of a pre-existing manual and knowledge gained on the forum over a period of time. Elecraft does not have this luxury. Also Fred did not need to cover everything that the Elecraft manual covered but could elaborate in other areas. Well Fred was a teacher and writer so naturally he did a super job. Elecraft did a good job as well but it was good to have a second perspective. I pray that I did not step on the toes of the Elecraft technical writer who quite possibly is Wayne or Eric. It is a small company doing a wonderful job. Better the manual be a bit late than lacking. I am really anxious to see how this new radio performs. Specifications are not given or available yet. We will need to look at Sherwood Engineering test spectrum to see the whole story. Naturally, I am rooting for Elecraft. Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year to all,who work in Elecraft. 73 Doug EI2CN PS I suspect the changes in performance will be incremental. You will still work anything with a K3 that a K4 will work. Probably the user interface for the K4 will be improved and this may be quite significant to many of us. PPS It is good to see the modular approach still being used. You can start in with a relatively modest expenditure and build up over time. It seems to me that the real price of a fully loaded K4 is less than that of a fully loaded K3. This and the total box size is smaller. From ars.nc0jw at gmail.com Sun Dec 22 18:12:16 2019 From: ars.nc0jw at gmail.com (Jim White NC0JW) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 16:12:16 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB Net for Sunday December 22, 2019 Message-ID: <63DADE4F-EB71-4BA0-8261-02A762FE7173@gmail.com> Our normal net control Eric WB9JNZ is on a two week holiday vacation. With K1NW Brian?s help we were able to appease the propagation gods and collect 16 check ins. Propagation, football games, and Christmas shoplifting most likely limited our check ins this week. Thanks for the help Brian! Sunday December 23, 2019: K1NW Brian RI K3 4974 Relay station K8NU Carl OH K3S 10996 K7BRR Bill AZ K3S 10939 KS6F Guy CA K3S 10650 K6CG Richard CA K3 3697 KC1ACL Steven NM KX3 10677 N0MPM Mike IA K3S 10514 KC9FF Garry IL K2 7315 KD8CIV John MI KX3 4654 KK3AM Randy NC K2 472 K6VWE Stan MI K3 650 ZL1PWD Peter NZ K3 139 KF7ZN Ron UT K3S 10832 K6WDE Dave CA KX3 4599 W1NGA Al CO K3 5765 NC0JW Jim CO KX3 1356 Net control The Elecraft SSB Net meets on Sunday at 1800 UTC on or about 14.3035 MHz. With propagation at a low point we employ several relay stations located around the continental USA to assist with check ins. As conditions permit we take questions and comments after check ins. Make it a point to join us next week for the last net of the decade and to see what conditions materialize. 73 and Merry Christmas to all. Jim White - NC0JW ars.nc0jw at gmail.com From ve2pid at videotron.ca Sun Dec 22 18:26:30 2019 From: ve2pid at videotron.ca (VE2PID) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 18:26:30 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 output power drop Message-ID: <98c4bd8c-dc02-6fd3-a186-e227c1727a1c@videotron.ca> Hi folks .. A question about the KX2: I saw this on other posts, and also experienced it in portable operations: ''The KX2 was able to pump out a full 10 watts of power for a little over one hour, then as the voltage dropped, it reduced output to 5 watts.''. So it seems to be normal, but is it documented somewhere in the KX2 specs? (FYI, I use an external rechargeable 12V 3000mAh Lithium ion Battery Pack.) 73, de Pierre VE2PID KX2 s/n 1464. From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 22 18:53:13 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 18:53:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 output power drop In-Reply-To: <98c4bd8c-dc02-6fd3-a186-e227c1727a1c@videotron.ca> References: <98c4bd8c-dc02-6fd3-a186-e227c1727a1c@videotron.ca> Message-ID: <0a6bdb82-3b53-cea0-454c-2174e6853c44@embarqmail.com> Pierre, That may be normal behavior, the power will drop to 5 watts if either low voltage occurs or if a high PA temperature condition occurs. If you are operating digital modes, I suspect that the high PA temperature is causing the drop in power. Check the BAT MIN setting in the KX2 menu. See page 43 of the manual. The proper setting varies depending on the battery type, and the default is 10 volts. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/22/2019 6:26 PM, VE2PID wrote: > Hi folks .. A question about the KX2: I saw this on other posts, and > also experienced it in portable operations: ''The KX2 was able to pump > out a full 10 watts of power for a little over one hour, then as the > voltage dropped, it reduced output to 5 watts.''. So it seems to be > normal, but is it documented somewhere in the KX2 specs? > > (FYI, I use an external rechargeable 12V 3000mAh Lithium ion Battery Pack.) > From rcrgs at verizon.net Sun Dec 22 20:52:54 2019 From: rcrgs at verizon.net (Robert G Strickland) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 01:52:54 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. ...robert KE2WY On 12/22/2019 16:06, Paul Lannuier wrote: > Chariot racing wasn?t about the chariots; it was about the racing. It was fundamentally no different than modern F1 racing. > > 73, > WW2PT > > Sent from my iPad > >> On Dec 14, 2019, at 12:24 PM, Dauer, Edward wrote: >> >> I wonder if the chariot racers of two or three milennia ago lamented the death of their sport. >> >> I too tried to interest my grandson, now 13, in the ham radio hobby, but with no success. He just couldn't see the point. So I reflected on when I was 13 with a newly printed Novice ticket, some 62 years ago, and when I was captivated for life by the wizardry of radio electronics, ionospheric physics, the smell of solder and rosin (and of exploding caps), the excitement of doing successfully what most people can't do at all, the fascination of international communications . . . . . all of the things we now-grandpas found and still find attractive. >> >> He found it a yawn. >> >> I reflected on it some. So what? The ham radio industry will care, and those who still believe that ham radio is imperative for emergency communications will care (though let's be honest -- cellular and satellite communications have taken much of the wind out of that sail.) But if I enjoy it and you enjoy it, and we both do it, why should we fret if other people don't? If amateur radio evolves in ways that are attractive to the next generation, all to the good. And a form of natural selection may shape the evolution that way. But if ham radio as we know it today doesn't get past a generational divide, if the mutations that survive an evolutionary end point don't occur, does it really matter? >> >> Excuse the philosophy, but I have to ask the question: Is our culture really impoverished by the demise of chariot racing? Or is that sport still with us, only morphed over time into something the next generation found attractive. >> >> OK. Break time over. Back to the ten-meter contest. Curse this solar minimum! >> >> Ted, KN1CBR >> >> >>> On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >>> >>> This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, >>> but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth >>> will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the >>> case, but reality bites. >>> >>> 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to >>> freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM >>> quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message >>> groups and forums. >>> >>> 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with >>> today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe >>> not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that >>> you don't otherwise care about. >>> >>> 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than >>> for amateur radio, especially for long distances. >>> >>> 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in >>> the sunspot cycle. >>> >>> 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping >>> stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, >>> I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling >>> me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much >>> on the job. >>> >>> One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of >>> competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost >>> anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching >>> football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games >>> that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio >>> contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way >>> to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that >>> has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance >>> events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the >>> comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? >>> Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency >>> (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any >>> opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as >>> competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all >>> suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could >>> take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the >>> kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that >>> either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. >>> >>> It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few >>> surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even >>> ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take >>> a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors >>> versus being on the air (other than in a contest). >>> >>> I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he >>> implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring >>> young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same >>> things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? >>> This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the >>> comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty >>> much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply >>> rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few >>> exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young >>> people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood >>> in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. >>> >>> If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby >>> itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to >>> understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... >>> we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which >>> doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton >>> or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a >>> Lawrence Welk concert. >>> >>> I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years >>> from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because >>> we weren't persuasive enough. >>> >>> 73, >>> Dave?? AB7E >>> >> >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to ww2pt at hotmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > -- Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY rcrgs at verizon.net.usa Syracuse, New York, USA From kevinr at coho.net Sun Dec 22 21:39:42 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 18:39:42 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report Message-ID: <8de35368-c470-f9f2-5e29-a6a33327546f@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? Santa will have to search for snow in most parts of the country.? I could get some by Wednesday but it won't last long. Even Ken in Fargo, ND reports mild winter winter weather.? Steve, in Georgia, is having weather much like mine: mild, gray, and very wet.? The river in the sky is coming from near Hawaii.? Once the weather starts coming from the Gulf of Alaska I'll need a lot more wood in the house. ?? Propagation was pretty good.? Some band noise and a variety of QSB.? I switched between antennas for the best signal.? Almost everyone had some indoor project in the works.? I bought some restaurant quality pots and pans a few months ago so I am learning how to cook with them.? It is a very different experience. ? A few electronic projects were reported too as were a few antenna murmurings.? The weather needs to be just right for most of us to get out the chainsaw and test a new model.? If I build an E or F class rocket I could use it to string the leader lines to pull long antennas through the trees.? The rockets would let me aim more accurately as long as I find a windless and wet day to try it. ? On 17050.5 kHz at 2200z: W0CZ - Ken - ND K6XK - Roy - IA AB9V - Mike - IN K4JPN - Steve - GA K4TO - Dave - KY ? On 7047.5 kHz at 0000z: K4TO - Dave - KY KG7V - Marv - WA K0DTJ - Brian - CA K6PJV - Dale - CA W6JHB - Jim - CA W0CZ - Ken - ND K0JFJ - Nick - AZ ?? Until next week Merry Christmas and 73, ?????? Kevin.? KD5ONS - From n6jpa.1 at gmail.com Sun Dec 22 22:30:07 2019 From: n6jpa.1 at gmail.com (Keith N6JPA) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 19:30:07 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report In-Reply-To: <8de35368-c470-f9f2-5e29-a6a33327546f@coho.net> References: <8de35368-c470-f9f2-5e29-a6a33327546f@coho.net> Message-ID: <6f42fc92-b48c-23a9-391f-76f5b5659d76@gmail.com> You must have all been on Christmas cheer to operate her. On 12/22/2019 6:39 PM, kevinr wrote: > On 17050.5 kHz at 2200z: From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Sun Dec 22 23:17:51 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 21:17:51 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> Message-ID: I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job.? It might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people were doing that 100 years ago. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: > There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away > places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For > myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me > it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the > proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying > this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many > traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions > [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus > guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the > earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a > signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the > ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. > Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric > challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical > challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. > Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. > > ...robert KE2WY > > On 12/22/2019 16:06, Paul Lannuier wrote: >> Chariot racing wasn?t about the chariots; it was about the racing. It >> was fundamentally no different than modern F1 racing. >> >> 73, >> WW2PT >> >> Sent from my iPad >> >>> On Dec 14, 2019, at 12:24 PM, Dauer, Edward wrote: >>> >>> I wonder if the chariot racers of two or three milennia ago lamented >>> the death of their sport. >>> >>> I too tried to interest my grandson, now 13, in the ham radio hobby, >>> but with no success.? He just couldn't see the point. So I reflected >>> on when I was 13 with a newly printed Novice ticket, some 62 years >>> ago, and when I was captivated for life by the wizardry of radio >>> electronics, ionospheric physics, the smell of solder and rosin (and >>> of exploding caps), the excitement of doing successfully what most >>> people can't do at all, the fascination of international >>> communications . . . . . all of the things we now-grandpas found and >>> still find attractive. >>> >>> He found it a yawn. >>> >>> I reflected on it some.? So what?? The ham radio industry will care, >>> and those who still believe that ham radio is imperative for >>> emergency communications will care (though let's be honest -- >>> cellular and satellite communications have taken much of the wind >>> out of that sail.)? But if I enjoy it and you enjoy it, and we both >>> do it, why should we fret if other people don't?? If amateur radio >>> evolves in ways that are attractive to the next generation, all to >>> the good.? And a form of natural selection may shape the evolution >>> that way.? But if ham radio as we know it today doesn't get past a >>> generational divide, if the mutations that survive an evolutionary >>> end point don't occur, does it really matter? >>> >>> Excuse the philosophy, but I have to ask the question:? Is our >>> culture really impoverished by the demise of chariot racing? Or is >>> that sport still with us, only morphed over time into something the >>> next generation found attractive. >>> >>> OK.? Break time over.? Back to the ten-meter contest.? Curse this >>> solar minimum! >>> >>> Ted, KN1CBR >>> >>> >>>> ?? On 12/13/2019 9:36 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >>>> >>>> This of course is a discussion that isn't likely to die before we do, >>>> but I really don't think that any significant portion of today's youth >>>> will ever look at amateur radio like we do.? I wish that weren't the >>>> case, but reality bites. >>>> >>>> 1.? The major lure of amateur radio for most of us was the ability to >>>> freely talk to faraway places.? Young people today can do that with FM >>>> quality and yet often they don't ... they text or chat via message >>>> groups and forums. >>>> >>>> 2.? Communicating today is license free, and while even now with >>>> today's lesser requirements getting an amateur radio license is maybe >>>> not a roadblock it's a nuisance to have to study for something that >>>> you don't otherwise care about. >>>> >>>> 3.? Effectively communicating today is far cheaper hardware-wise than >>>> for amateur radio, especially for long distances. >>>> >>>> 4.? Communicating today is independent of time of day or position in >>>> the sunspot cycle. >>>> >>>> 5.? A basic competency in amateur radio was once considered a stepping >>>> stone to a technical career.? That is hardly the case today.? In fact, >>>> I remember one manager of a test department in another company telling >>>> me he tried to avoid hiring hams because they talked about it too much >>>> on the job. >>>> >>>> One thing I do believe has carryover appeal is the spirit of >>>> competition.? Humans in general always seem keen to compete at almost >>>> anything ... from eating hot dogs to running to vicariously watching >>>> football to quilting to barbeque.? Young people today have video games >>>> that provide a FAR richer competitive environment than any ham radio >>>> contest (I do both, by the way), and I've always thought that one way >>>> to drum up interest in ham radio is to develop a contest format that >>>> has similar elements.? Ham radio contests are essentially endurance >>>> events that involve independent action throughout the contest with the >>>> comparison occurring at the end, and often weeks or months later.? >>>> Video games require different but otherwise comparable proficiency >>>> (both mental and physical) but involve real time counter moves to any >>>> opponent. The closest we hams come to offsetting somebody we view as >>>> competition is to steal their frequency or QRM them.? I'm not at all >>>> suggesting that we do any such thing, but a contest where we could >>>> take some action that subtracted from somebody else's score is the >>>> kind of thing I'm talking about.? And no, I don't know how to do that >>>> either, but it illustrates what I'm talking about. >>>> >>>> It's not any surprise to me that contesting is one of the few >>>> surviving ham radio activities with high participation.? Even >>>> ragchewing has practically died out, and if anyone disputes that take >>>> a look at how much time you spend each week reading email reflectors >>>> versus being on the air (other than in a contest). >>>> >>>> I'm not really sure what Wayne was referring to here, and maybe he >>>> implied that same thing that I'm saying, but we aren't going to bring >>>> young folks into the hobby by trying to convince them that the same >>>> things that appealed to us 40 years ago are going to appeal to them.? >>>> This isn't a communication or publicity problem. In spite of the >>>> comments from hams I've seen over the years, most young people pretty >>>> much know the general framework of ham radio and they've simply >>>> rejected it in favor of other things.? There are always a few >>>> exceptions, of course, but I'd bet $100 that the bulk of those young >>>> people who pop up online or in QST as shining examples of young blood >>>> in the hobby are nowhere to be found two years later. >>>> >>>> If for any reason we want young folks to embrace the hobby, the hobby >>>> itself is going to have to adapt.? That most of us seem unable to >>>> understand that fact is probably another facet of the problem ... >>>> we're old and inflexible (in both appearance and in fact), which >>>> doesn't help the image of the hobby one wit.? The pictures from Dayton >>>> or any other hamfest have the same appeal as if they were taken at a >>>> Lawrence Welk concert. >>>> >>>> I guarantee that those of us who are still above ground five years >>>> from now will be having this same discussion, and it won't be because >>>> we weren't persuasive enough. >>>> >>>> 73, >>>> Dave?? AB7E >>>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to ww2pt at hotmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net >> > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 22 23:37:15 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 23:37:15 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> Message-ID: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one communications with someone who we have never met - without the need for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone new via ham radio. Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with someone new to get to know something about them personally or their location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that element being diminished. Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about ourselves and getting the same in return. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young > people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be > interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has > more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job.? It > might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people > were doing that 100 years ago. > > 73, > Dave?? AB7E > > > On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: >> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away >> places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For >> myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me >> it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the >> proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying >> this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many >> traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions >> [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus >> guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the >> earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a >> signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the >> ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. >> Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric >> challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical >> challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. >> Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. >> From pubx1 at af2z.net Sun Dec 22 23:38:47 2019 From: pubx1 at af2z.net (Drew AF2Z) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 23:38:47 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] NB/NR for K4 vs K4D Message-ID: I'm not overly anxious about the K4 initial release date because I'll be waiting for the kit version. But in choosing between a K4 and K4D I'm wondering how much performance difference there is in NB/NR for the two models. It could be significant, no? 73, Drew AF2Z From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Mon Dec 23 01:30:26 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 23:30:26 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: That's true from my perspective as well. But you and I don't count.? Wayne started this thread in the context of drawing new members into the hobby (understandably so since his business depends upon it for the long term).? If those of us already invested in this hobby aren't interested in ragchewing anymore, at least not to any significant degree as any non-contest day clearly shows, why on earth would we expect ragchewing to be the draw that brings in new members, especially considering the relative barriers (cost, space, license, HOAs, etc)?? I'll even bet that the majority of folks subscribed to this reflector spend more time each week reading it than they do ragchewing on the air. It's not like the old days, even for us. So I'll say it one more time and then I'll mercifully refrain from further posts on the topic.? Unless ham radio figures out how to evolve into something that actually has appeal for today's youngsters, we're still going to primarily be an aging (and diminishing) club of old people.? More of the same, no matter how strongly we try to convince anyone, isn't going to change anything. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/22/2019 9:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one > communications with someone who we have never met - without the need > for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone > new via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the > emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points.? Ragchewing with > someone new to get to know something about them personally or their > location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio.? So sad to see that > element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and > 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about > ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >> >> I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young >> people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be >> interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has >> more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job.? >> It might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but >> people were doing that 100 years ago. >> >> 73, >> Dave?? AB7E >> >> >> On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: >>> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away >>> places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For >>> myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For >>> me it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just >>> the proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of >>> saying this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many >>> traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern >>> versions [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, >>> bow/arrow versus guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old >>> way," because the earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern >>> solutions. Getting a signal from my radio, out into the ether, >>> bouncing it off the ionosphere, and back down on the other side is >>> still a challenge. Satellite links and the internet don't negate the >>> ionospheric challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the >>> technical challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such >>> challenges. Communicating may be the benny on the other side of >>> mastery. >>> > From xdavid at cis-broadband.com Mon Dec 23 02:56:45 2019 From: xdavid at cis-broadband.com (David Gilbert) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 00:56:45 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Receiving Stations Sound Like Inside a Barrel (WU6R/Mark Wheeler) In-Reply-To: <4e526e04-a0c9-4b8c-9b16-6289ce4fe3d2@me.com> References: <4e526e04-a0c9-4b8c-9b16-6289ce4fe3d2@me.com> Message-ID: <5b50ee68-44c4-b407-657f-25388e077797@cis-broadband.com> $10 says you have Shift moved off center. 73, Dave?? AB7E On 12/22/2019 11:50 AM, Mark Wheeler via Elecraft wrote: > I turned on the K3s today and very contact on all bands (3.5MHz, 7MHz > and 14 MHz sounds like everyone is talking inside a barrel.? I figured > my filters need to be adjusted, but after referring to the manual and > making some filer and DSP adjustments, no improvements.? I also > adjusted NB and NR settings to no avail. > > > Any suggestions on what I'm doing wrong are appreciated. > Thanks, > Mark/WU6R From wf3t at fastmail.com Mon Dec 23 04:22:11 2019 From: wf3t at fastmail.com (Steven G. Steltzer) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 04:22:11 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft's market Message-ID: <065de490-6e64-4df6-a390-ab27e0c30414@www.fastmail.com> I understand that CW ops are not the largest part of the market, but there are still a very significant number of us, especially world wide. Just tune across the bands on a major CW contest weekend. As long as Elecraft continues to make CW as important as SSB and digital modes in their design philosophy, in contrast to other manufacturers who are still using mechanical relays for T/R switching for example, they will continue to own the lion's share of that segment. Thanks Wayne, Eric, and all for the great QRQ/QSK equipment. Merry Christmas! Steve, WF3T From jstengrevics at comcast.net Mon Dec 23 08:25:32 2019 From: jstengrevics at comcast.net (John Stengrevics) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 08:25:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] NB/NR for K4 vs K4D In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: And, versus the K3S. 73, John WA1EAZ > On Dec 22, 2019, at 11:38 PM, Drew AF2Z wrote: > > I'm not overly anxious about the K4 initial release date because I'll be waiting for the kit version. But in choosing between a K4 and K4D I'm wondering how much performance difference there is in NB/NR for the two models. It could be significant, no? > > 73, > Drew > AF2Z > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net From ockmrzr at gmail.com Mon Dec 23 08:40:26 2019 From: ockmrzr at gmail.com (ockmrzr at gmail.com) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 06:40:26 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Spare K3 Parts For Sale In-Reply-To: <08b401d5b29f$0939e130$1bada390$@gmail.com> References: <08b401d5b29f$0939e130$1bada390$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <03e201d5b996$89753310$9c5f9930$@gmail.com> If anyone is looking for last minute Christmas gifts, I have some! I upgraded of my two K3's recently and have left over parts.. If you have a legacy K3, and are interested in having some spares, here's your chance. 1x - KIO3A (3 board set) I/O interface 1x - KXV3A Transverter Interface 4x - KSYN3 synthesizer module If interested, let me know via direct email. "Let's Make a Deal" 73 de Bruce, N7TY Yuma, AZ www.qsl.net/n7ty From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Mon Dec 23 09:43:13 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 07:43:13 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date Message-ID: It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information they can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 related video 'Search for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted this year' : https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the latest video by date. The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes long (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton Ltd Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there is a lot of detail in this one. For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare to the K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will be similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design approach with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet addition in the K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to underestimate the potential for some eye popping numbers when the K4HD module is introduced. (think Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced rankings). However if the specs are similar to the K3S or even a little better, it's becoming more clear to me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league in this area. You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as noise reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having access to a much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these areas as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing power and access to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the software improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up the K4 for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) in my opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with diversity receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to the capability you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider the design approach to upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long life with some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the software, but think hardware processing upgrades too. I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I have gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 isn't any better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to $6K for a new rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other station improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs like dynamic range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass etc... I think with the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning to interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are talking about two very different animals here. (with the same linage) I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm biased as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but when I look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating features that have become second nature to me, I think I would be very disappointed. If you spend some time in the competitors user groups you will understand what I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups have been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. However competition is good and it's great to have options. You can't go too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, including any of the direct sampling designs that are shipping now. So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for a new rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to emerge only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I type away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time Elecraft. Max NG7M -- M. George From k9yeq at live.com Mon Dec 23 10:12:59 2019 From: k9yeq at live.com (Bill Johnson) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 15:12:59 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> , <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: Well put. Totally agree. Bill 920-421-1172 ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Don Wilhelm Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2019 10:37:15 PM To: David Gilbert ; elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one communications with someone who we have never met - without the need for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone new via ham radio. Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with someone new to get to know something about them personally or their location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that element being diminished. Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about ourselves and getting the same in return. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young > people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be > interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has > more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job. It > might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people > were doing that 100 years ago. > > 73, > Dave AB7E > > > On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: >> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away >> places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For >> myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me >> it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the >> proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying >> this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many >> traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions >> [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus >> guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the >> earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a >> signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the >> ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. >> Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric >> challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical >> challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. >> Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. >> ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to k9yeq at live.com From phystad at mac.com Mon Dec 23 10:53:09 2019 From: phystad at mac.com (Phil Hystad) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 07:53:09 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <503ADF73-BE82-4B2C-BDF3-ED01F2038AF1@mac.com> From what I have seen, it is not just Internet and Cellular that has stolen some thunder from ham radio as an interesting hobby to pursue. It is also computer gaming. Both of my grandsons are into computer games (both in high school now) and both are involved in programming computers (some motivation from me as being a programmer for 50+ years) and they both want to pursue computer programming of games. I hope that changes but this has seriously diminished any interest in ham radio and they both have grown up known about my hobby, electronics, and such. Computer Internet gaming offers some of the same features of ham radio of meeting people all over the world that you did not know before hand. Gaming is one of the Internet based activities that creates International friendships and cross culture exchanges. Surprising, who would have thought. I admit that if I were a kid growing up with today?s technology that I probably would not be interested in ham radio. 73, phil, K7PEH > On Dec 22, 2019, at 8:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one communications with someone who we have never met - without the need for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone new via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with someone new to get to know something about them personally or their location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >> I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job. It might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people were doing that 100 years ago. >> 73, >> Dave AB7E >> On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: >>> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. >>> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to phystad at mac.com From n6kr at elecraft.com Mon Dec 23 11:02:12 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 08:02:12 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> We've been mining this thread for gems, of which there are many. Thanks to all who have contributed pragmatic observations, bold suggestions, and wistful memories. Happy holidays to all. 73, Wayne N6KR > On Dec 23, 2019, at 7:12 AM, Bill Johnson wrote: > > Well put. Totally agree. > > Bill > 920-421-1172 > > ________________________________ > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Don Wilhelm > Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2019 10:37:15 PM > To: David Gilbert ; elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide > > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one > communications with someone who we have never met - without the need for > the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone new > via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the > emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with > someone new to get to know something about them personally or their > location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that > element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and 40 > meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about > ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: >> >> I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young >> people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be >> interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has >> more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job. It >> might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people >> were doing that 100 years ago. >> >> 73, >> Dave AB7E >> >> >> On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: >>> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away >>> places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For >>> myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me >>> it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the >>> proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying >>> this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many >>> traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions >>> [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus >>> guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the >>> earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a >>> signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the >>> ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. >>> Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric >>> challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical >>> challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. >>> Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. >>> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9yeq at live.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n6kr at elecraft.com From kengkopp at gmail.com Sun Dec 22 23:43:02 2019 From: kengkopp at gmail.com (Ken G Kopp) Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2019 21:43:02 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: Well said, Don ... 73 K0PP On Sun, Dec 22, 2019, 21:37 Don Wilhelm wrote: > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one > communications with someone who we have never met - without the need for > the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone new > via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the > emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with > someone new to get to know something about them personally or their > location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that > element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and 40 > meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about > ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/22/2019 11:17 PM, David Gilbert wrote: > > > > I think we already discussed that aspect, and the point is that young > > people with a technological inclination are far more likely to be > > interested in software, or robotics, or biomedical ... stuff that has > > more relevance to advancing the world and actually leading to a job. It > > might be a challenge to bounce a signal of the ionosphere but people > > were doing that 100 years ago. > > > > 73, > > Dave AB7E > > > > > > On 12/22/2019 6:52 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: > >> There is a constant refrain about "communicating with far away > >> places." No doubt that has been one attraction of our hobby. For > >> myself, I was never particularly interested in "communicating." For me > >> it was mastery of a technical environment. Communicating was just the > >> proof that the environment had been mastered. Another way of saying > >> this -maybe- is technology versus sociology. There are many > >> traditional activities that have been replaced by more modern versions > >> [eg, horses versus cars, walking versus bicycling, bow/arrow versus > >> guns]. Yet, there is still interest in the "old way," because the > >> earlier challenges remain in spite of more modern solutions. Getting a > >> signal from my radio, out into the ether, bouncing it off the > >> ionosphere, and back down on the other side is still a challenge. > >> Satellite links and the internet don't negate the ionospheric > >> challenge. Perhaps engaging prospective hams in the technical > >> challenges of the hobby will brings in those who like such challenges. > >> Communicating may be the benny on the other side of mastery. > >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to kengkopp at gmail.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 23 11:23:23 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 11:23:23 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft's market In-Reply-To: <065de490-6e64-4df6-a390-ab27e0c30414@www.fastmail.com> References: <065de490-6e64-4df6-a390-ab27e0c30414@www.fastmail.com> Message-ID: <88B140D5-6907-47AD-A2C0-1CFC9B253D21@blomand.net> Of all the radios I?ve purchased over the years, CW performance is a key element in the decision. I?m not a DX chaser, I?m not a contest operator, nor a high speed operator. There is nothing like sending and receiving good quality CW. Granted my fist needs improvement but what skill I have I do not want it deteriorated by a poor quality radio in this regard. Elecraft and one other US brand always has measured up to my requirements for performance radios. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 23, 2019, at 4:35 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: > > ?I understand that CW ops are not the largest part of the market, but there are still a very significant number of us, especially world wide. Just tune across the bands on a major CW contest weekend. As long as Elecraft continues to make CW as important as SSB and digital modes in their design philosophy, in contrast to other manufacturers who are still using mechanical relays for T/R switching for example, they will continue to own the lion's share of that segment. > > Thanks Wayne, Eric, and all for the great QRQ/QSK equipment. > > Merry Christmas! > Steve, WF3T > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From jstengrevics at comcast.net Mon Dec 23 12:20:06 2019 From: jstengrevics at comcast.net (John Stengrevics) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 12:20:06 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and independent reviews. And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). 73, John WA1EAZ > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George wrote: > > It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information they > can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 related > video 'Search > for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted this year' > > : > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D > > Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the > videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the > latest video by date. > > The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes long > (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton Ltd > Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there is a lot > of detail in this one. > > For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare to the > K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will be > similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design approach > with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet addition in the > K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to underestimate the potential for > some eye popping numbers when the K4HD module is introduced. (think > Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced rankings). However if the specs > are similar to the K3S or even a little better, it's becoming more clear to > me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and > refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps > here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the > limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league in > this area. > > You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as noise > reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having access to a > much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my > opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these areas > as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing power and access > to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the software > improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up the K4 > for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). > You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) in my > opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with diversity > receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to the capability > you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider the design approach to > upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long life with > some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the software, > but think hardware processing upgrades too. > > I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I have > gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 isn't any > better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to $6K for a new > rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other station > improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs like dynamic > range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass etc... I think with > the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning to > interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are talking > about two very different animals here. (with the same linage) > > I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct > sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some > lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm biased > as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but when I > look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating features that > have become second nature to me, I think I would be very disappointed. If > you spend some time in the competitors user groups you will understand what > I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups have > been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. > However competition is good and it's great to have options. You can't go > too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, including any of the > direct sampling designs that are shipping now. > > So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for a new > rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. > ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to emerge > only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I type > away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time Elecraft. > > Max NG7M > > > > -- > M. George > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net From g0cut1 at virginmedia.com Mon Dec 23 10:37:03 2019 From: g0cut1 at virginmedia.com (g0cut1) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 15:37:03 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Receiving Stations Sound Like Inside a Barrel (WU6R/Mark Wheeler) Message-ID: Or turned ago off Sent from Samsung Mobile
-------- Original message --------
From: David Gilbert
Date:23/12/2019 7:56 AM (GMT+00:00)
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Receiving Stations Sound Like Inside a Barrel (WU6R/Mark Wheeler)
$10 says you have Shift moved off center. 73, Dave AB7E On 12/22/2019 11:50 AM, Mark Wheeler via Elecraft wrote: > I turned on the K3s today and very contact on all bands (3.5MHz, 7MHz > and 14 MHz sounds like everyone is talking inside a barrel. I figured > my filters need to be adjusted, but after referring to the manual and > making some filer and DSP adjustments, no improvements. I also > adjusted NB and NR settings to no avail. > > > Any suggestions on what I'm doing wrong are appreciated. > Thanks, > Mark/WU6R ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to g0cut1 at virginmedia.com From k9ztv at socket.net Mon Dec 23 13:21:35 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (KENT TRIMBLE) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 12:21:35 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> Brethren . . . Keep in mind that while the hair gets grayer, attendance at Dayton was at an all-time second high last May. According to the FCC, the number of American licensees is at an all-time high. ARRL reports membership over 170,000, also an all-time high. When those three figures start falling it will be time for pessimism.? Until then, let's talk positive, act positive, and be positive. 73, Kent? K9ZTV From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Mon Dec 23 13:36:22 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 11:36:22 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: John, that's the beauty of it all... you can play now (or rather in the near future) or you can wait and decide for yourself after all the 'glorious independent reviews come in' (grump around like the Grumpy Old K3 Grinch who stole Christmas). "When I was a young man we used a K3 or a K3S and by golly we loved it!!!!" You young whipper snappers with your new fangled K4 gizzo radios! :) Is someone making you upgrade to a K4? Twisting your arm? You totally missed the point. The K4 isn't ONLY about the receiver specs... maybe for you so you have no choice but to wait... I get it... However if that was the case, then you would have bought some other transceiver that has already exceeded some of the K3S's specs. No? The point here is that there is far more to the new platform than receiver specs alone and the potential truly leaves the exhausted K3's processing and now static capabilities in the dust (Elecraft is moving on whether you like it or not... that ship has already sailed!). Plus sensitivity is only as good as the noise floor your antenna system provides... I'm not aware of an HF antenna system that provides a ~-133dBm to -145dBm MDS noise floor. So sensitivity is all relative to your antenna system. Blocking dynamic range is far more important to me. It's time for Elecraft to move on to a platform they can build on. I'm sure many will shake their fist in the air, weep and wail and gnash their teeth, holding on to the K3s for years and years to come (a testament to K3 success), but many will be excited for what the K4 will bring and are willing to go along for the ride right from the start. You can stomp your feet and do what you like...bark at the moon and pound sand and continue to stick with the K3 until the end of times, nothing wrong with that... try to convince yourself that the creators of the K3 can't do any better. I'm in the camp that they have already done better and I want to go along for that ride. Doing better includes far more capabilities than dropping the MDS by a few dBm what will net nothing. Onward and upward I say... it's exciting to see that there is and continues to be a market to keep pushing the envelope in the HF transceiver market. Max NG7M On Mon, Dec 23, 2019 at 10:20 AM John Stengrevics wrote: > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and independent > reviews. > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from the > K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > > > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George > wrote: > > > > It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information they > > can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 related > > video 'Search > > for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted this year' > > < > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D > > > > : > > > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D > > > > Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the > > videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the > > latest video by date. > > > > The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes long > > (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton Ltd > > Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there is a > lot > > of detail in this one. > > > > For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare to > the > > K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will be > > similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design approach > > with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet addition in the > > K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to underestimate the potential for > > some eye popping numbers when the K4HD module is introduced. (think > > Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced rankings). However if the specs > > are similar to the K3S or even a little better, it's becoming more clear > to > > me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and > > refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps > > here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the > > limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league > in > > this area. > > > > You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as > noise > > reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having access to > a > > much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my > > opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these areas > > as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing power and > access > > to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the > software > > improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up the K4 > > for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). > > You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) in > my > > opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with diversity > > receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to the capability > > you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider the design approach > to > > upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long life > with > > some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the software, > > but think hardware processing upgrades too. > > > > I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I have > > gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 isn't any > > better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to $6K for a new > > rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other station > > improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs like dynamic > > range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass etc... I think > with > > the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning to > > interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are talking > > about two very different animals here. (with the same linage) > > > > I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct > > sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some > > lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm > biased > > as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but when I > > look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating features that > > have become second nature to me, I think I would be very disappointed. If > > you spend some time in the competitors user groups you will understand > what > > I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups have > > been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. > > However competition is good and it's great to have options. You can't go > > too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, including any of the > > direct sampling designs that are shipping now. > > > > So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for a > new > > rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. > > ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to > emerge > > only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I type > > away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time > Elecraft. > > > > Max NG7M > > > > > > > > -- > > M. George > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net > > -- M. George From eric_csuf at hotmail.com Mon Dec 23 13:56:22 2019 From: eric_csuf at hotmail.com (Eric J) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 18:56:22 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. Eric KE6US From k6dgw at foothill.net Mon Dec 23 14:00:16 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 11:00:16 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <5fb92b10-5b67-35e3-5a29-1c5ed2a8ec0d@foothill.net> The CWops group has a program [CW of course] called "QTX" where you keep track of and report the number of QSO's you've had each month that lasted over 20 mins.? There's also a mini-QTX category for >10 min QSO's.? When I first decided to participate, I was limited pretty much by available QSO's.? Now, I'm much more limited by available time to participate.? Tiny resurgence in the Art of the Rag Chew? Competition is a motivator for many young non-hams.? #3 grandson once came in while I was in a CW NAQP and asked me what I was doing.? I told him it was a contest, and his first response was, "Cool!? How do you win?"? They all carry the "magic of radio" in a pocket in their cargo shorts.? What you can do with a ham radio that you can't do with a cell phone or iPad may be of more interest to them that the radio itself. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/22/2019 8:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one > communications with someone who we have never met - without the need > for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone > new via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the > emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points.? Ragchewing with > someone new to get to know something about them personally or their > location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio.? So sad to see that > element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and > 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about > ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > From gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com Mon Dec 23 14:01:44 2019 From: gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com (George Thornton) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 19:01:44 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I am a happy owner of a K3 that has been partially updated to K3s standards. I am not a contester (other than at Field Day) and it is a big financial jump to go to the K4. Since my existing equipment is working so well for me, I am not likely to move to the K4 unless there is some degree of enhanced performance. -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of M. George Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 10:36 AM To: John Stengrevics Cc: Elecraft Mailer Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date John, that's the beauty of it all... you can play now (or rather in the near future) or you can wait and decide for yourself after all the 'glorious independent reviews come in' (grump around like the Grumpy Old K3 Grinch who stole Christmas). "When I was a young man we used a K3 or a K3S and by golly we loved it!!!!" You young whipper snappers with your new fangled K4 gizzo radios! :) Is someone making you upgrade to a K4? Twisting your arm? You totally missed the point. The K4 isn't ONLY about the receiver specs... maybe for you so you have no choice but to wait... I get it... However if that was the case, then you would have bought some other transceiver that has already exceeded some of the K3S's specs. No? The point here is that there is far more to the new platform than receiver specs alone and the potential truly leaves the exhausted K3's processing and now static capabilities in the dust (Elecraft is moving on whether you like it or not... that ship has already sailed!). Plus sensitivity is only as good as the noise floor your antenna system provides... I'm not aware of an HF antenna system that provides a ~-133dBm to -145dBm MDS noise floor. So sensitivity is all relative to your antenna system. Blocking dynamic range is far more important to me. It's time for Elecraft to move on to a platform they can build on. I'm sure many will shake their fist in the air, weep and wail and gnash their teeth, holding on to the K3s for years and years to come (a testament to K3 success), but many will be excited for what the K4 will bring and are willing to go along for the ride right from the start. You can stomp your feet and do what you like...bark at the moon and pound sand and continue to stick with the K3 until the end of times, nothing wrong with that... try to convince yourself that the creators of the K3 can't do any better. I'm in the camp that they have already done better and I want to go along for that ride. Doing better includes far more capabilities than dropping the MDS by a few dBm what will net nothing. Onward and upward I say... it's exciting to see that there is and continues to be a market to keep pushing the envelope in the HF transceiver market. Max NG7M On Mon, Dec 23, 2019 at 10:20 AM John Stengrevics wrote: > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and > independent reviews. > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from > the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > > > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George > wrote: > > > > It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information > > they can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 > > related video 'Search for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video > > posted this year' > > < > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEA > E%253D > > > > : > > > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEA > E%253D > > > > Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down > > the videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to > > get the latest video by date. > > > > The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes > > long (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton > > Ltd Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... > > there is a > lot > > of detail in this one. > > > > For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare > > to > the > > K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will > > be similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design > > approach with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet > > addition in the K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to > > underestimate the potential for some eye popping numbers when the > > K4HD module is introduced. (think Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow > > Spaced rankings). However if the specs are similar to the K3S or > > even a little better, it's becoming more clear > to > > me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and > > refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big > > leaps here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take > > do to the limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in > > the same league > in > > this area. > > > > You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as > noise > > reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having > > access to > a > > much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my > > opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these > > areas as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing > > power and > access > > to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the > software > > improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up > > the K4 for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). > > You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the > > lines) in > my > > opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with > > diversity receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to > > the capability you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider > > the design approach > to > > upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long > > life > with > > some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the > > software, but think hardware processing upgrades too. > > > > I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I > > have gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 > > isn't any better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to > > $6K for a new rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on > > other station improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell > > specs like dynamic range blocking with strong signals near your > > band-pass etc... I think > with > > the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning > > to interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are > > talking about two very different animals here. (with the same > > linage) > > > > I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the > > direct sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really > > seeing some lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. > > I guess I'm > biased > > as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but > > when I look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating > > features that have become second nature to me, I think I would be > > very disappointed. If you spend some time in the competitors user > > groups you will understand > what > > I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups > > have been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. > > However competition is good and it's great to have options. You > > can't go too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, > > including any of the direct sampling designs that are shipping now. > > > > So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today > > for a > new > > rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. > > ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to > emerge > > only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I > > type away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your > > time > Elecraft. > > > > Max NG7M > > > > > > > > -- > > M. George > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this > > email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > jstengrevics at comcast.net > > -- M. George ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com From jstengrevics at comcast.net Mon Dec 23 14:21:41 2019 From: jstengrevics at comcast.net (John Stengrevics) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 14:21:41 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <85CD944F-AE25-4595-BD64-659DB1DB3CF6@comcast.net> Max, Perhaps my fault for being less clear than I should have been. As I said to another person who replied to me, my interest is almost exclusively in 6 meter DX. So, what is important to me (and perhaps not to that many others) is better NB particularly on EME where I am currently limited in the size of array I can put up (currently 9 element LFA with no elevation). And, more sensitivity can only help. I am not debating at all that the new platform will have many capabilities beyond those of the K3S. But, they may be less of interest to me for my specific needs and interests. And, I applaud the Elecraft team for advancing the state of the art. 73, John WA1EAZ On Dec 23, 2019, at 1:36 PM, M. George wrote: > > John, that's the beauty of it all... you can play now (or rather in the near future) or you can wait and decide for yourself after all the ?glorious independent reviews come in' (grump around like the Grumpy Old K3 Grinch who stole Christmas). "When I was a young man we used a K3 or a K3S and by golly we loved it!!!!" You young whipper snappers with your new fangled K4 gizzo radios! :) Is someone making you upgrade to a K4? Twisting your arm? You totally missed the point. > > The K4 isn't ONLY about the receiver specs... maybe for you so you have no choice but to wait... I get it... However if that was the case, then you would have bought some other transceiver that has already exceeded some of the K3S's specs. No? The point here is that there is far more to the new platform than receiver specs alone and the potential truly leaves the exhausted K3's processing and now static capabilities in the dust (Elecraft is moving on whether you like it or not... that ship has already sailed!). Plus sensitivity is only as good as the noise floor your antenna system provides... I'm not aware of an HF antenna system that provides a ~-133dBm to -145dBm MDS noise floor. So sensitivity is all relative to your antenna system. Blocking dynamic range is far more important to me. It's time for Elecraft to move on to a platform they can build on. I'm sure many will shake their fist in the air, weep and wail and gnash their teeth, holding on to the K3s for years and years to come (a testament to K3 success), but many will be excited for what the K4 will bring and are willing to go along for the ride right from the start. > > You can stomp your feet and do what you like...bark at the moon and pound sand and continue to stick with the K3 until the end of times, nothing wrong with that... try to convince yourself that the creators of the K3 can't do any better. I'm in the camp that they have already done better and I want to go along for that ride. Doing better includes far more capabilities than dropping the MDS by a few dBm what will net nothing. Onward and upward I say... it's exciting to see that there is and continues to be a market to keep pushing the envelope in the HF transceiver market. > > Max NG7M > > On Mon, Dec 23, 2019 at 10:20 AM John Stengrevics > wrote: > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and independent reviews. > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > > > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George > wrote: > > > > It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information they > > can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 related > > video 'Search > > for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted this year' > > > > > : > > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D > > > > Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the > > videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the > > latest video by date. > > > > The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes long > > (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton Ltd > > Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there is a lot > > of detail in this one. > > > > For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare to the > > K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will be > > similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design approach > > with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet addition in the > > K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to underestimate the potential for > > some eye popping numbers when the K4HD module is introduced. (think > > Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced rankings). However if the specs > > are similar to the K3S or even a little better, it's becoming more clear to > > me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and > > refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps > > here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the > > limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league in > > this area. > > > > You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as noise > > reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having access to a > > much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my > > opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these areas > > as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing power and access > > to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the software > > improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up the K4 > > for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). > > You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) in my > > opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with diversity > > receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to the capability > > you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider the design approach to > > upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long life with > > some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the software, > > but think hardware processing upgrades too. > > > > I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I have > > gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 isn't any > > better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to $6K for a new > > rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other station > > improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs like dynamic > > range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass etc... I think with > > the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning to > > interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are talking > > about two very different animals here. (with the same linage) > > > > I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct > > sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some > > lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm biased > > as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but when I > > look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating features that > > have become second nature to me, I think I would be very disappointed. If > > you spend some time in the competitors user groups you will understand what > > I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups have > > been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. > > However competition is good and it's great to have options. You can't go > > too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, including any of the > > direct sampling designs that are shipping now. > > > > So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for a new > > rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. > > ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to emerge > > only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I type > > away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time Elecraft. > > > > Max NG7M > > > > > > > > -- > > M. George > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net > > > > -- > M. George From k2asp at kanafi.org Mon Dec 23 14:26:23 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 11:26:23 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> Message-ID: <21fde0d0-232a-c0bb-68f6-36c35c1a9184@kanafi.org> On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: > I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of > the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at the PS, or at some other point? 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From radiok4ia at gmail.com Mon Dec 23 14:59:20 2019 From: radiok4ia at gmail.com (Buck) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 14:59:20 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <21fde0d0-232a-c0bb-68f6-36c35c1a9184@kanafi.org> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$.ref@verizon.net> <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <15b4d951-8ea1-f17e-2143-0082b74d0c79@blomand.net> <21fde0d0-232a-c0bb-68f6-36c35c1a9184@kanafi.org> Message-ID: <9c4bc344-fc8a-51d2-bb92-1d3e458a2c2b@Gmail.com> The reliable place to measure the voltage at the K3x is using the supply voltage display meter in the radio. I was surprised to find mine was significantly low. I thought it was voltage drop but changing the supply cable didn't make much difference. Turns out the Astron power supply was more than a volt low and the meter on the supply had been cranked up to make it appear to be correct. I used two separate VOMs to set the power supply and then adjusted the meter to make it agree. Moral of the story: don't rely on the meter on the power supply and assume a low reading at the radio is due solely to voltage drop. Buck, k4ia Honor Roll 8BDXCC EasyWayHamBooks.com On 12/23/2019 2:26 PM, Phil Kane wrote: > On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: > >> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of >> the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. > > That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at > the PS, or at some other point? > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > > From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest > Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to radiok4ia at gmail.com > From Gary at ka1j.com Mon Dec 23 14:59:50 2019 From: Gary at ka1j.com (Gary Smith) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 14:59:50 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: , , Message-ID: <5E011CB6.18597.1241193B@Gary.ka1j.com> Ever since the 8086 XT processor where I could work 2 more MHz out of it, I have loved upgrading processors to get faster speeds. This being within the same family of processor, ones that simply drop into the existing socket & motherboard, some are much faster than others and have a more expansive architecture than their younger brother. Perhaps that will be an option for the K4 if the processor is socketed, say in 3-4 years a replacement with ever greater speed and capabilities will come out. Maybe in the case of the K4 such a processor change would be inconsequential? Time will tell. One thing for sure, I really like the options for future expansion the K4 modular system allows for. Cheers to us all. 73, Gary KA1J > John, that's the beauty of it all... you can play now (or rather in > the near future) or you can wait and decide for yourself after all the > 'glorious independent reviews come in' (grump around like the Grumpy > Old K3 Grinch who stole Christmas). "When I was a young man we used a > K3 or a K3S and by golly we loved it!!!!" You young whipper snappers > with your new fangled K4 gizzo radios! :) Is someone making you > upgrade to a K4? Twisting your arm? You totally missed the point. > > The K4 isn't ONLY about the receiver specs... maybe for you so you > have no choice but to wait... I get it... However if that was the > case, then you would have bought some other transceiver that has > already exceeded some of the K3S's specs. No? The point here is that > there is far more to the new platform than receiver specs alone and > the potential truly leaves the exhausted K3's processing and now > static capabilities in the dust (Elecraft is moving on whether you > like it or not... that ship has already sailed!). Plus sensitivity is > only as good as the noise floor your antenna system provides... I'm > not aware of an HF antenna system that provides a ~-133dBm to -145dBm > MDS noise floor. So sensitivity is all relative to your antenna > system. Blocking dynamic range is far more important to me. It's > time for Elecraft to move on to a platform they can build on. I'm > sure many will shake their fist in the air, weep and wail and gnash > their teeth, holding on to the K3s for years and years to come (a > testament to K3 success), but many will be excited for what the K4 > will bring and are willing to go along for the ride right from the > start. > > You can stomp your feet and do what you like...bark at the moon and > pound sand and continue to stick with the K3 until the end of times, > nothing wrong with that... try to convince yourself that the creators > of the K3 can't do any better. I'm in the camp that they have already > done better and I want to go along for that ride. Doing better > includes far more capabilities than dropping the MDS by a few dBm what > will net nothing. Onward and upward I say... it's exciting to see that > there is and continues to be a market to keep pushing the envelope in > the HF transceiver market. > > Max NG7M > > On Mon, Dec 23, 2019 at 10:20 AM John Stengrevics > wrote: > > > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and > > independent reviews. > > > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from > > the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > > > 73, > > > > John > > WA1EAZ > > > > > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George > > > > > wrote: > > > > > > It's not surprising that there many looking for all the > > > information they can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link > > > that lists K3 related video 'Search for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date > > > for Video posted this year' < > > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgF > > EAE%253D > > > > > > : > > > > > https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgF > > EAE%253D > > > > > > Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down > > > the videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to > > > get the latest video by date. > > > > > > The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 > > > minutes long (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & > > > Stanton Ltd Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole > > > video... there is a > > lot > > > of detail in this one. > > > > > > For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will > > > compare to > > the > > > K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will > > > be similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 > > > design approach with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and > > > superhet addition in the K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to > > > underestimate the potential for some eye popping numbers when the > > > K4HD module is introduced. (think Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow > > > Spaced rankings). However if the specs are similar to the K3S or > > > even a little better, it's becoming more clear > > to > > > me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances > > > and refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. > > > Big leaps here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never > > > take do to the limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not > > > even in the same league > > in > > > this area. > > > > > > You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far > > > as > > noise > > > reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having > > > access to > > a > > > much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just > > > my opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in > > > these areas as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the > > > processing power and > > access > > > to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the > > software > > > improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up > > > the K4 for some big performance leaps improvements are made in > > > software (IMHO). You can glean all of this from the videos > > > (reading between the lines) in > > my > > > opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with > > > diversity receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar > > > to the capability you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And > > > consider the design approach > > to > > > upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long > > > life > > with > > > some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the > > > software, but think hardware processing upgrades too. > > > > > > I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced > > > I have gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the > > > K4 isn't any better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? > > > ($4K to $6K for a new rig sure isn't chump change and could be > > > spent on other station improvements right?) As far as some of the > > > tell-tell specs like dynamic range blocking with strong signals > > > near your band-pass etc... I think > > with > > > the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is > > > beginning to interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design > > > has. We are talking about two very different animals here. (with > > > the same linage) > > > > > > I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the > > > direct sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really > > > seeing some lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's > > > rig. I guess I'm > > biased > > > as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but > > > when I look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating > > > features that have become second nature to me, I think I would be > > > very disappointed. If you spend some time in the competitors user > > > groups you will understand > > what > > > I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other > > > groups have been begging for some common CW features that never > > > seem to materialize. However competition is good and it's great to > > > have options. You can't go too wrong with any of the high end > > > rigs these days, including any of the direct sampling designs that > > > are shipping now. > > > > > > So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today > > > for a > > new > > > rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I > > > already did. ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of > > > months for the K4 to > > emerge > > > only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as > > > I type away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take > > > your time > > Elecraft. > > > > > > Max NG7M > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > > M. George > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > > Elecraft mailing list Home: > > > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: > > > http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: > > > mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > > Please help support this email list: > > > http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > > > jstengrevics at comcast.net > > > > > > -- > M. George > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to gary at ka1j.com > From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Mon Dec 23 15:11:26 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 13:11:26 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I can say that I would be looking at a TS-890 on my desk if it wasn't for the reported abysmal NB/NR performance.? I can believe the reports because as best as I can determine, Kenwood used the same processing in the '890 as they did in the TS-870.? Before Elecraft I owned an '870 and loved everything about it except for the NB/NR.? I had remarked more than once that Kenwood wasted valuable panel space by including controls for those features. Frankly, I'm not very satisfied with the K3/K3S NB performance either. (I seldom bother with NR) Twenty-one settings for hardware and 21 settings for DSP blanking are ridiculous. IMHO, of course.? If the K4 does significantly better then I'll be an optimist and buy myself one for my 79th birthday.? The bugs should be resolved by then. re: Sensitivity, this is a non-issue for any decent radio built in the last 20 years or more. Wes? N7WS On 12/23/2019 10:20 AM, John Stengrevics wrote: > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and independent reviews. > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George wrote: >> >> It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information they >> can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 related >> video 'Search >> for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted this year' >> >> : >> https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFEAE%253D >> >> Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the >> videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the >> latest video by date. >> >> The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes long >> (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton Ltd >> Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there is a lot >> of detail in this one. >> >> For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare to the >> K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs will be >> similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 design approach >> with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and superhet addition in the >> K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to underestimate the potential for >> some eye popping numbers when the K4HD module is introduced. (think >> Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow Spaced rankings). However if the specs >> are similar to the K3S or even a little better, it's becoming more clear to >> me that the K4 platform and it's future potential with advances and >> refinements in the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps >> here over the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the >> limited processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league in >> this area. >> >> You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as noise >> reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having access to a >> much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling approach. Just my >> opinion, but I suspect there will be some big improvements in these areas >> as compared to the K3/S line. The speed of the processing power and access >> to bandwidth will allow for better noise reduction etc... plus the software >> improvements over time and head room for processing power sets up the K4 >> for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). >> You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) in my >> opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with diversity >> receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to the capability >> you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider the design approach to >> upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to be setup for a long life with >> some interesting improvements down the road, not only with the software, >> but think hardware processing upgrades too. >> >> I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I have >> gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 isn't any >> better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to $6K for a new >> rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other station >> improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs like dynamic >> range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass etc... I think with >> the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, what is beginning to >> interest me is the amazing potential the K4 design has. We are talking >> about two very different animals here. (with the same linage) >> >> I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct >> sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some >> lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm biased >> as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), but when I >> look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW operating features that >> have become second nature to me, I think I would be very disappointed. If >> you spend some time in the competitors user groups you will understand what >> I'm talking about, but that's just me. Owners in these other groups have >> been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. >> However competition is good and it's great to have options. You can't go >> too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, including any of the >> direct sampling designs that are shipping now. >> >> So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for a new >> rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. >> ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to emerge >> only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my side as I type >> away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time Elecraft. >> >> Max NG7M >> From mike.flowers at gmail.com Mon Dec 23 15:38:49 2019 From: mike.flowers at gmail.com (Mike Flowers) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 12:38:49 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> References: <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> Message-ID: <04BFFAA3-D614-42E5-A7E8-A5FF3AA22967@gmail.com> As a fairly active VEC, I consistently see 15 - 20 candidates taking and passing their Tech Exams and/or upgrading their Licenses at each bi-monthly session. Many candidates are EEs or software engineers from here in Silicon Valley and other folks from all walks of life. Seeing the excitement and joy in their faces when they learn that they passed their exam is great. So from where I sit, things are looking up! -- 73 de Mike Flowers, K6MKF, NCDXC - "It's about DX!" > On Dec 23, 2019, at 10:19 AM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > > ?Brethren . . . > > Keep in mind that while the hair gets grayer, attendance at Dayton was at an all-time second high last May. > > According to the FCC, the number of American licensees is at an all-time high. > > ARRL reports membership over 170,000, also an all-time high. > > When those three figures start falling it will be time for pessimism. Until then, let's talk positive, act positive, and be positive. > > 73, > > Kent K9ZTV > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com From hb9cvq at hispeed.ch Mon Dec 23 15:42:30 2019 From: hb9cvq at hispeed.ch (hb9cvq at hispeed.ch) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 21:42:30 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <00bf01d5b9d1$7f12ce60$7d386b20$@hispeed.ch> Hi All, I use more or less happily 2 x K3S (+P3) upgraded by myself and 1x Original K3S (+P3). Serial No. are around 4000 , 7000 and 10400. Recently I added YAESU FTDX101MP, impressive! Comparing the NB and NR ( CW, SSB) in many very critical local QRM , QRN situations makes YAESU audio sound better and actions are often more effective than with K3S. In HF mobile , low bands , have not tested the YAESU yet ?. 73 Andy HB9CVQ www.qrz.com/db/hb9cvq -----Original Message---- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wes Sent: Montag, 23. Dezember 2019 21:11 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date I can say that I would be looking at a TS-890 on my desk if it wasn't for the reported abysmal NB/NR performance. I can believe the reports because as best as I can determine, Kenwood used the same processing in the '890 as they did in the TS-870. Before Elecraft I owned an '870 and loved everything about it except for the NB/NR. I had remarked more than once that Kenwood wasted valuable panel space by including controls for those features. Frankly, I'm not very satisfied with the K3/K3S NB performance either. (I seldom bother with NR) Twenty-one settings for hardware and 21 settings for DSP blanking are ridiculous. IMHO, of course. If the K4 does significantly better then I'll be an optimist and buy myself one for my 79th birthday. The bugs should be resolved by then. re: Sensitivity, this is a non-issue for any decent radio built in the last 20 years or more. Wes N7WS On 12/23/2019 10:20 AM, John Stengrevics wrote: > POTENTIALLY better NR & NB will have to wait for hard data and independent reviews. > > And, this will absolutely determine whether or not I transition from the K3S to the K4 (along with improved sensitivity). > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:43 AM, M. George wrote: >> >> It's not surprising that there many looking for all the information >> they can get on the K4 etc.. Here is a YouTube link that lists K3 >> related video 'Search for Elecraft K4 Sorted by Date for Video posted >> this year' >> > EAE%253D> >> : >> https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=elecraft+k4&sp=CAISBAgFE >> AE%253D >> >> Just use the filter option in YouTube in this case to narrow down the >> videos to the latest postings based on the search criteria to get the >> latest video by date. >> >> The first video in this list contains a lot of detail at 38 minutes >> long (Eric). (ELECRAFT K4 IN DEPTH with WA6HHQ at Waters & Stanton >> Ltd Portsmouth UK). Take the time and watch the whole video... there >> is a lot of detail in this one. >> >> For the questions that seem to persist about how the K4 will compare >> to the K3... you quickly begin to understand that the receiver specs >> will be similar to the K3S, especially once you understand the K4 >> design approach with the hyrbird direct sampling approach and >> superhet addition in the K4HD. At the same time, I'm not going to >> underestimate the potential for some eye popping numbers when the >> K4HD module is introduced. (think Third-Order Dynamic Range Narrow >> Spaced rankings). However if the specs are similar to the K3S or >> even a little better, it's becoming more clear to me that the K4 >> platform and it's future potential with advances and refinements in >> the software are where the real advantages are. Big leaps here over >> the K3S. Leaps that the K3S can simply never take do to the limited >> processing power. The K3 and K4 are not even in the same league in this area. >> >> You also begin to see the much higher potential the K4 has as far as >> noise reduction / noise blanking capability due to algorithms having >> access to a much wider bandpass with the SDR direct sampling >> approach. Just my opinion, but I suspect there will be some big >> improvements in these areas as compared to the K3/S line. The speed >> of the processing power and access to bandwidth will allow for better >> noise reduction etc... plus the software improvements over time and >> head room for processing power sets up the K4 for some big performance leaps improvements are made in software (IMHO). >> You can glean all of this from the videos (reading between the lines) >> in my opinion. i.e. Elecraft potentially adding the capability with >> diversity receive to do phase shifting to null out noise, similar to >> the capability you get with a NCC-2 box for example. And consider >> the design approach to upgrade the ADC processing... the K4 seems to >> be setup for a long life with some interesting improvements down the >> road, not only with the software, but think hardware processing upgrades too. >> >> I can't speak for anyone else, but since the K4 has been announced I >> have gone through a phase of trying to convince myself that the K4 >> isn't any better than my K3S, so why would I consider a K4? ($4K to >> $6K for a new rig sure isn't chump change and could be spent on other >> station improvements right?) As far as some of the tell-tell specs >> like dynamic range blocking with strong signals near your band-pass >> etc... I think with the K4HD, the specs will be similar, but overall, >> what is beginning to interest me is the amazing potential the K4 >> design has. We are talking about two very different animals here. >> (with the same linage) >> >> I have also spent a considerable amount of time looking at the direct >> sampling competitors and as I start to dig in, I'm really seeing some >> lacking features as they relate to a CW operator's rig. I guess I'm >> biased as a current Elecraft Fan-Boy / CW operator (I'll admit it), >> but when I look at what I would be giving up in regard to CW >> operating features that have become second nature to me, I think I >> would be very disappointed. If you spend some time in the competitors >> user groups you will understand what I'm talking about, but that's >> just me. Owners in these other groups have been begging for some common CW features that never seem to materialize. >> However competition is good and it's great to have options. You >> can't go too wrong with any of the high end rigs these days, >> including any of the direct sampling designs that are shipping now. >> >> So to end this tome of a post... if I had to place an order today for >> a new rig, it would be a an order for a K4. Wink / wink, maybe I already did. >> ;) And if I did, I'm happy to wait X number of months for the K4 to >> emerge only when it is ready for prime time. My trusty K3S at my >> side as I type away at the keyboard here will make the wait easy. Take your time Elecraft. >> >> Max NG7M >> ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to hb9cvq at hispeed.ch From mvolstad at twc.com Mon Dec 23 15:47:35 2019 From: mvolstad at twc.com (Mark Volstad) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 20:47:35 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide Message-ID: I usually begin my ham radio talks with youth groups with a question: "How many of you have a radio in your pocket?" I get a room full of blank stares. Then I ask, "How many of you have a smart phone in your pocket?" Every hand goes up. The discussion proceeds from there. Mark AI4BJ From k6dgw at foothill.net Mon Dec 23 15:47:35 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 12:47:35 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> Message-ID: It has been noted that 83.295% of people make up their own statistics.? Thus encouraged ... The 2018 ARRL Annual Report says that 2018 ended with 156,899 members, and the somewhat-difficult-to-read little graph indicates that it fell for 11 of the 12 months.? 2017 began at about 163,000 and fell to about 159,500 again in 11 of the 12 months [graph isn't well quantified].? It has been falling for a long time, and 170,000 is not an all-time high. More significant is the fraction of total licensees who are ARRL members [similar to market share for a business], a number that has been steadily dropping for some time and is somewhere in the mid-teens today.? It is heavily weighted toward older Extra class hams.? ARRL took a huge membership hit in the later 60's when its Incentive Licensing proposal was adopted by the FCC and General class licensee's lost big chunks of their spectrum.? It's been pretty much downhill ever since. The absolute number of US licensed amateurs has trended upward over the years, but the fraction of the US population who are hams bounces around 0.2% - 0.3% [it's about 0.23% right now].? I've been "in" Dayton during Hamvention several times, sadly at WPAFB working and not at Hara or Xenia, so I can't speak to attendance, but in principle, as the population rises, the absolute number of hams rises, and it's reasonable to expect attendance at large famous events to rise also. Wayne began this thread for very good reasons.? The vast majority of new hams are Technicians, most of them will remain Technicians, many will disappear, not many will ever operate an HF transceiver or dabble in EME or construction or satellites, not a lot know much about our National Organization, and fewer will find reason to join.? There is a very pronounced divide and finding ways to bridge it seems like a worthwhile endeavor.? Might also sell a few more Elecraft radios. [:=)) 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/23/2019 10:21 AM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > Brethren . . . > > Keep in mind that while the hair gets grayer, attendance at Dayton was > at an all-time second high last May. > > According to the FCC, the number of American licensees is at an > all-time high. > > ARRL reports membership over 170,000, also an all-time high. > > When those three figures start falling it will be time for pessimism.? > Until then, let's talk positive, act positive, and be positive. > > 73, > > Kent? K9ZTV From ehr at qrv.com Mon Dec 23 16:09:32 2019 From: ehr at qrv.com (E.H. Russell) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 16:09:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <5fb92b10-5b67-35e3-5a29-1c5ed2a8ec0d@foothill.net> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <5fb92b10-5b67-35e3-5a29-1c5ed2a8ec0d@foothill.net> Message-ID: <015201d5b9d5$467d5850$d37808f0$@qrv.com> My son teaches in China. We are in daily contact via WeChat. The medium is reliable and expedient, but in comparison to amateur radio the atmosphere is completely different. There is no sense of that realm of nature ? the electromagnetic spectrum ? and all of its interesting quirks, its foibles. Being on a ham band is an adventure in a magical space, a space that was completely unknown until the late nineteenth century. Once it was discovered, the exploration began. Most of us got in on it while it was filled with excitement and innovation. In addition to the technical aspect though, were the conversations with fellow hams. The comradery was like a fraternal order. We shared unique knowledge and experience. One aspect of that experience that I enjoy the most is the way conversation is enmeshed in and modulated by atmospheric and ionospheric effects. I can recall many roundtables, where the distinctness of the personalities was uniquely shaded by the transmission quality of their rigs, the radiation characteristics of their antennas, their physical locations relative to me, and of course, band conditions. This mysterious aspect of radio communications has been shed by the process of digitalization. The internet of course has its own sort of quirks. My son and I have to deal with China politics and VPN shutdowns. The equipment hums, clicks, freezes, and crashes. But these are experienced as technical problems. There is no sense of the force of nature, the invisible power of electromagnetic waves. Even in ham radio some of that sense is being lost. In our process of going digital, the immediacy of radio has been undermined by latency. Also new digital modes have been introduced that are beginning to approximate the impersonality of the internet. But to me those are not really a problem because the magic and mystery of radio is still alive. If we can find ways to communicate that message, to instill or revive that sense ? the miracle of radio and the wonder of our fraternity ? then it can be restored to its former glory. For nothing has really changed. Electromagnetic fields are all around us. It?s just that we have begun to take it for granted. So I suggest that while we work with the digital future, also to get grounded in the wonder that initially inspired us all: radio communication. Thanks, 73 Ed w2rf -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Fred Jensen Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 2:00 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide The CWops group has a program [CW of course] called "QTX" where you keep track of and report the number of QSO's you've had each month that lasted over 20 mins. There's also a mini-QTX category for >10 min QSO's. When I first decided to participate, I was limited pretty much by available QSO's. Now, I'm much more limited by available time to participate. Tiny resurgence in the Art of the Rag Chew? Competition is a motivator for many young non-hams. #3 grandson once came in while I was in a CW NAQP and asked me what I was doing. I told him it was a contest, and his first response was, "Cool! How do you win?" They all carry the "magic of radio" in a pocket in their cargo shorts. What you can do with a ham radio that you can't do with a cell phone or iPad may be of more interest to them that the radio itself. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/22/2019 8:37 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > I think we need to be focusing on the personal aspect of one on one > communications with someone who we have never met - without the need > for the internet, Facebook or any other internet app. > It is a thrill to me to be able to have a conversation with someone > new via ham radio. > > Of course, even that element is fading out in ham radio with the > emphasis on quick DX contacts or contest points. Ragchewing with > someone new to get to know something about them personally or their > location is what gives me the thrill of ham radio. So sad to see that > element being diminished. > > Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on 80 and > 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling a bit about > ourselves and getting the same in return. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to ehr at qrv.com From nr4c at widomaker.com Mon Dec 23 16:55:58 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 16:55:58 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: <5be09ded-d3a7-99b7-6147-f9b397cb0319@gmail.com> References: <5be09ded-d3a7-99b7-6147-f9b397cb0319@gmail.com> Message-ID: I?ll bet the manual will be available to download soon after the first few radios are shipped to regular customers(not field testers). Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 21, 2019, at 4:06 PM, Scott Manthe wrote: > > ?A good reason for Elecraft NOT release a manual before the radio is available is that there are competing companies that would love to have a copy of the K4 manual before the radio is available. That would allow those competitors to add features or performance enhancements to their own radios before the K4's release. Amateur radios are largely created in software these days, so what once would have required a redesign of hardware, now requires a rewrite of software. So releasing a manual before the radio is available would be a gift to Elecraft's competition. Maybe I'm paranoid, but maybe not and if Elecraft were my company, I'd keep things under wraps. > > 73, > Scott N9AA > > > >> On 12/21/19 12:26 PM, stephen shearer wrote: >> OK, January is fine as it's only 10+ days away... AND yes, Jan 31st is only 5+ weeks. >> (Joe, I bet as a kid you had no problem waiting for your gifts at Christmas or other big holidays...) >> what I am waiting for is the manual. It will/should answer many of my questions. >> Maybe before the K4 is shipped? >> >> Like, with a LAN connection on the K4 and an internal PC (of some sort) will I be able to download updates direct to the K4? >> or, will I need a separate PC and use the USB port on K4 to do the admin "stuff" ? >> There are plenty of single board computers that would fit the need, if required. >> I expect to use a SBC for FT8 and JS8, as it works nice now on my KX3 w/amp (as needed). >> >> 73, steve WB3LGC (waiting for my Christmas and my birthday "gift" = K4... wife approved) >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From nr4c at widomaker.com Mon Dec 23 16:59:04 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 16:59:04 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Latest rumors on K4 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2396AECE-A2FC-4507-B2A9-1D982751A510@widomaker.com> The only thing to learn are the new features. Seems all the old friends from the K3 are also on the K4 panel, just arranged a bit differently. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 21, 2019, at 4:04 PM, Bill Steffey wrote: > > ?why wait for the k4d ??? There is no waiting. > > when the K4 ships, I understand that the K4D will be shipping also...NOT THE K4HD. > > life is WAY too short, so I can add the super duper front end later. > > Might as well start learning the radio. > > Merry Christmas & happy holidays to all.... > > > bill ny9h > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From k9ztv at socket.net Mon Dec 23 17:44:21 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (KENT TRIMBLE) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 16:44:21 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> Message-ID: The 170,00 figure is dated January, 2016,? and is the latest available from the ARRL website. http://www.arrl.org/arrl-fact-sheet Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? 73, Kent? K9ZTV On 12/23/2019 2:47 PM, Fred Jensen wrote: > It has been noted that 83.295% of people make up their own > statistics.? Thus encouraged ... > > The 2018 ARRL Annual Report says that 2018 ended with 156,899 members, > and the somewhat-difficult-to-read little graph indicates that it fell > for 11 of the 12 months.? 2017 began at about 163,000 and fell to > about 159,500 again in 11 of the 12 months [graph isn't well > quantified].? It has been falling for a long time, and 170,000 is not > an all-time high. > From drzarkof56 at yahoo.com Mon Dec 23 18:05:08 2019 From: drzarkof56 at yahoo.com (Doug Millar) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 23:05:08 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide References: <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496@mail.yahoo.com> A few observations. ?? ??? We cannot think of the problem in passive terms. New hams will not come to us in great numbers. ??? We need to go to them. ??? We need hams to help teachers set up and run ham clubs in schools. (Collaborate)??? We need to appear at events like Maker Faire and present ham radio in a new light. Some of our local group started, "Not your dad's ham radio" at the Faire. The Dorthy Grant Elementary School in Fontana is also another good example. ???? We could specifically interface with national youth-serving agencies and start or enlarge programs. How about a Sota/QRP activity that we develop with specific local groups?? ??? What not to do-???? We had a science day a few years ago and had someone set up a field day operation. Unfortunately, he set up the radios so that he faced away from visitors and did not have a separate person to explain what was going on. No one was interested.? We have done ham radio demonstrations and information booths at dozens of fairs for years. Not a single new ham has made themselves known from those events. Obviously we were doing the wrong thing at the wrong place and probably in the wrong way.? ? ?? We have put lots of effort into outreach. We have done what seemed to be the right thing, without analyzing whether it really was the right thing. Most nonprofit groups spend huge amounts of money and time in this area with little to show for it. ???? We need to reach out to groups and form partnerships that work.? One organizational technique I am using in my area is to establish "daughter" clubs. These are smaller clubs or groups that we specifically help with equipment and expertise to help them realize their goals. There is a specific board member in our club that talks directly to a leader in the other club. It seems to work.?? ? ? Lastly, we must not sit on the sidelines deftly approving of what others are doing. We need to be part of it. If there is a program that is working, help keep it going. ????? (My EdD. research was in this area.) ? Hope the latter helps, ??? Dr. Doug Millar EdD ??? K6JEY ???? ?? From k6dgw at foothill.net Mon Dec 23 18:24:36 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 15:24:36 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> Message-ID: <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> Hmmm ... the 2018 Annual Report is on? the ARRL site and it contains membership data thru the end of that year.? At any rate, ARRL membership numbers [both total and % of ham population] have been declining for a number of years. >Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? The phrase and number were coined by one of my former bosses.? In keeping with the phrase, I think he made the number up, I could always count on him to be scrupulously consistent.? I would be extraordinarily surprised if anyone validated the number and given news from Washington DC these days, I think it may be low. [:=) 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/23/2019 2:44 PM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > The 170,00 figure is dated January, 2016,? and is the latest available > from the ARRL website. > > http://www.arrl.org/arrl-fact-sheet > > Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? > > 73, > > Kent? K9ZTV From w5rg at yahoo.com Mon Dec 23 19:36:13 2019 From: w5rg at yahoo.com (Bob Gibson) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 00:36:13 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Fw: Elecraft's market In-Reply-To: <88B140D5-6907-47AD-A2C0-1CFC9B253D21@blomand.net> References: <065de490-6e64-4df6-a390-ab27e0c30414@www.fastmail.com> <88B140D5-6907-47AD-A2C0-1CFC9B253D21@blomand.net> Message-ID: <1895067037.1951607.1577147773474@mail.yahoo.com> I also have had many radio's.. I was locked into Yaesu starting with the FT-102 and had all their models after that one until the K3 came out..I sold the first K3 and went back to a FT-9000..it just did not do the job on CW as the first K3 I had so I bought a used bare bones K3 and filled it up with all the CW options that I needed and will never have anything else. This is one of the best options..you can buy a 10 year old radio and bring it up to date yourself.. It may not be the best looking rig but it is by far the best CW rig I have ever used for me! With the P3 and two speakers it will be my last rig..? ?I hope everyone has a Merry Xmas and a safe New Year... ?? 73s Bob W5RG ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Bob McGraw K4TAX To: Steven G. Steltzer Cc: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019, 10:27:06 AM CSTSubject: Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft's market Of all the radios I?ve purchased over the years, CW performance is a key element in the decision.? I?m not a DX chaser, I?m not a contest operator, nor a high speed operator.? There is nothing like sending and receiving good quality CW.? Granted my fist needs improvement but what skill I have I do not want it deteriorated by a poor quality radio in this regard.? ? Elecraft and one other US brand always has measured up to my requirements for performance radios. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 23, 2019, at 4:35 AM, Steven G. Steltzer wrote: > > ?I understand that CW ops are not the largest part of the market, but there are still a very significant number of us, especially world wide. Just tune across the bands on a major CW contest weekend. As long as Elecraft continues to make CW as important as SSB and digital modes in their design philosophy, in contrast to other manufacturers who are still using mechanical relays for T/R switching for example, they will continue to own the lion's share of that segment. > > Thanks Wayne, Eric, and all for the great QRQ/QSK equipment. > > Merry Christmas! > Steve, WF3T > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to w5rg at yahoo.com From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 23 19:38:36 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 18:38:36 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <21fde0d0-232a-c0bb-68f6-36c35c1a9184@kanafi.org> References: <21fde0d0-232a-c0bb-68f6-36c35c1a9184@kanafi.org> Message-ID: <13E1C53D-E539-4E0C-936E-7FDE8A445610@blomand.net> I do not use a ?ground? at the station. I don?t find or see that it?s needed. My station has a 4 wire #10 service from the breaker panel to the operating position. The breakers are single 20A units. This gives me 240V for the amp and a duplex off of each leg. Thus I maintain a common neutral and common ground to the breaker panel. Grounding for lightning protection is done outside of the house and that system is bonded back to the AC Mains ground rod below the service entrance. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 23, 2019, at 1:44 PM, Phil Kane wrote: > > ?On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: > >> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of >> the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. > > That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at > the PS, or at some other point? > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > > From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest > Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From jim at w4bqp.net Mon Dec 23 19:45:27 2019 From: jim at w4bqp.net (Jim Campbell) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 19:45:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496@mail.yahoo.com> References: <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496.ref@mail.yahoo.com> <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <82d2975b-e934-ecf9-3be0-f8be1381bf86@w4bqp.net> One point that I don't believe has been addressed is Emergency Communications. As a former ARES Emergency Coordinator, it seems to me that if Emergency Communications could be presented to young people in the right way it might interest some of them. It fills a need in the community. When other communications break down, hams can usually find a way to bridge the gap and provide the necessary communications. I can remember some exercises in Spartanburg County, SC where most of the people in the EOC were gathered around the ham radio position listening to live, relevant communications that their positions weren't getting. We were providing real-time communications because communications was our only job. Many others had their primary job and communications was something that they did when they had a spare minute. Jim Campbell - W4BQP K2/100 #2268 Former Spartanburg County, SC ARES EC Former Spartanburg County, SC RACES Radio Officer From nr4c at widomaker.com Mon Dec 23 22:27:59 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 22:27:59 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] NB/NR for K4 vs K4D In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9CBFEA4C-D093-45C4-8114-E671CB7A09C5@widomaker.com> I doubt if there is any. A K4D is just a K4 with a second ADC and now has 4 receivers instead of 2. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 23, 2019, at 8:27 AM, John Stengrevics wrote: > > ?And, versus the K3S. > > 73, > > John > WA1EAZ > >> On Dec 22, 2019, at 11:38 PM, Drew AF2Z wrote: >> >> I'm not overly anxious about the K4 initial release date because I'll be waiting for the kit version. But in choosing between a K4 and K4D I'm wondering how much performance difference there is in NB/NR for the two models. It could be significant, no? >> >> 73, >> Drew >> AF2Z >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to jstengrevics at comcast.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From donovanf at starpower.net Mon Dec 23 22:59:29 2019 From: donovanf at starpower.net (donovanf at starpower.net) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 22:59:29 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Eric, If you've grown tired of the usual awards, there's the "Alphabet Sandwich" Call Letter Award. See page 4: https://ftp.unpad.ac.id/orari/orari-diklat/pemula/organisasi/internasional/REG%203/JAPAN.pdf 73 Frank W3LPL ----- Original Message ----- From: "Eric J" To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 6:56:22 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. Eric KE6US ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From rmcgraw at blomand.net Mon Dec 23 23:30:59 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 22:30:59 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <9c4bc344-fc8a-51d2-bb92-1d3e458a2c2b@Gmail.com> References: <9c4bc344-fc8a-51d2-bb92-1d3e458a2c2b@Gmail.com> Message-ID: A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it to determine if the others are accurate. There are several good brands available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it with too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration. I am confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 23, 2019, at 2:12 PM, Buck wrote: > > ?The reliable place to measure the voltage at the K3x is using the supply voltage display meter in the radio. I was surprised to find mine was significantly low. I thought it was voltage drop but changing the supply cable didn't make much difference. > > Turns out the Astron power supply was more than a volt low and the meter on the supply had been cranked up to make it appear to be correct. I used two separate VOMs to set the power supply and then adjusted the meter to make it agree. > > Moral of the story: don't rely on the meter on the power supply and assume a low reading at the radio is due solely to voltage drop. > > > > Buck, k4ia > Honor Roll > 8BDXCC > EasyWayHamBooks.com > >> On 12/23/2019 2:26 PM, Phil Kane wrote: >>> On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: >>> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of >>> the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. >> That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at >> the PS, or at some other point? >> 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane >> Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest >> Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to radiok4ia at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From sndtubes at vacuumtubes.com Tue Dec 24 01:22:14 2019 From: sndtubes at vacuumtubes.com (Michael C. Marx) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 00:22:14 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini Message-ID: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> Hi all So I have a K3/0 Mini with the remoterig setup. My station is a K3, P3, KAT500 and KPA500. I want to be able to keep it all hooked up while installing the remoterig system. Is it possible to do this? It looks like I need to disconnect the ACC CABLE going to the KPA500 along with the RS232 line so the remoterig can be used. That pretty much disables the rest of the station. Am I missing something? I sure don?t want to disconnect half of my station everytime I want to use remote. I?d sure like any pointers on hooking this all up without disabling my station every time I want togo remote. Any help is sure appreciated 73 Mike WB0SND Michael Marx www.vacuumtubes.com 636-939-9190 From gs at oaft.com Tue Dec 24 02:11:45 2019 From: gs at oaft.com (GS) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 08:11:45 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] merry XMAS Message-ID: My K1? and the K3? are still going strong? -? by far the best CW rigs? ! Have fun with all the new rigs ! Gerd? oe3gsa From kb2mjeff at att.net Tue Dec 24 08:01:11 2019 From: kb2mjeff at att.net (kb2mjeff at att.net) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 08:01:11 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini In-Reply-To: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> References: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> Message-ID: <025f01d5ba5a$3833cec0$a89b6c40$@att.net> Hi Mike. I sold my K0 setup a few months ago. It worked perfectly for years, but wanted to bring my K3 with me for the winter so I replaced it with a remote IC-7300. While up there for the summer I used to switch to remote mode when I went to the shore for the weekend, if I remember right there were three connections to change. The PTT from foot switch to the remoterig box, the audio from local speaker to remoterig box, and the serial connection to local PC to the remoterig box. This took about a minute to switch over. I f I wanted to use the AMP and tuner I had to leave a local PC on running TeamViewer. 73 Jeff kb2m -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Michael C. Marx Sent: Tuesday, December 24, 2019 1:22 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini Hi all So I have a K3/0 Mini with the remoterig setup. My station is a K3, P3, KAT500 and KPA500. I want to be able to keep it all hooked up while installing the remoterig system. Is it possible to do this? It looks like I need to disconnect the ACC CABLE going to the KPA500 along with the RS232 line so the remoterig can be used. That pretty much disables the rest of the station. Am I missing something? I sure don?t want to disconnect half of my station everytime I want to use remote. I?d sure like any pointers on hooking this all up without disabling my station every time I want togo remote. Any help is sure appreciated 73 Mike WB0SND Michael Marx www.vacuumtubes.com 636-939-9190 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kb2m at arrl.net From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Tue Dec 24 09:08:32 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 14:08:32 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <82d2975b-e934-ecf9-3be0-f8be1381bf86@w4bqp.net> References: <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496.ref@mail.yahoo.com> <1152263839.1935201.1577142308496@mail.yahoo.com>, <82d2975b-e934-ecf9-3be0-f8be1381bf86@w4bqp.net> Message-ID: <474e3054ed354c20b130eef971f65403@uwaterloo.ca> I believe this is a very important point. The modern civilization, at least in the developed world has become so dependent on the infrastructure. I'm pretty sure the younger generation has no appreciation for the extent of that and also how far reaching the impact of a breakdown of that infrastructure can be. Many of the not so young as well, I'm pretty sure. Back in '98 right after Christmas when a massive ice storm hit the north eastern US and Canada, my folks were without power for 14 days in January. Many unforseen dominoes fell. Large dairy farms had massive piles of dead cows they couldn't milk without electricity. Didn't see that one coming. They couldn't pump gas until the hand pumps came out and then they couldn't keep a ledger till the notebooks came out. Grocery stores lost a lot of food and kitchens too. No restaurants to turn to. All of this was denial until days went by and people began to realize they had to do certain things old school until the power came back. Hospitals have emergency generators but there were many small and not so small ways we fell on our faces. The cell phones had some power but the towers ran out of backup power in short order and didn't get re-fueled too quickly given the breakdown of everything else. No internet. The field day setups came out and traffic was passed. Of course there are many stories where amateur radio helped out but unless folks have some direct experience with this type of thing it is too easy to live in blissful ignorance of just how big the problem can be when critical infrastructure fails. I don't like to dwell in doom and gloom but I do think that more can be done to impress the importance of alternative technology for communication on the general public and to help people realize how much their lives can change and to what degree when the infrastructure fails. This can be an important point for keeping public perception of amateur radio as something current and important rather than just an antiquated relic of yesterday's generation. Joe ve3vxo ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Jim Campbell Sent: December 23, 2019 7:45 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide One point that I don't believe has been addressed is Emergency Communications. As a former ARES Emergency Coordinator, it seems to me that if Emergency Communications could be presented to young people in the right way it might interest some of them. It fills a need in the community. When other communications break down, hams can usually find a way to bridge the gap and provide the necessary communications. I can remember some exercises in Spartanburg County, SC where most of the people in the EOC were gathered around the ham radio position listening to live, relevant communications that their positions weren't getting. We were providing real-time communications because communications was our only job. Many others had their primary job and communications was something that they did when they had a spare minute. Jim Campbell - W4BQP K2/100 #2268 Former Spartanburg County, SC ARES EC Former Spartanburg County, SC RACES Radio Officer From jimk0xu at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 09:22:53 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 08:22:53 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini In-Reply-To: <025f01d5ba5a$3833cec0$a89b6c40$@att.net> References: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> <025f01d5ba5a$3833cec0$a89b6c40$@att.net> Message-ID: The ACC cable can be connected through a simple Y cable (I think I bought mine from Elecraft) so that the remoterig box can be left connected all the time. Or you can buy a YBox, or build your own like I did before they were available. As for the PTT, I put together a box with 6 parallel RCA jacks for PTT on one side and 6 more on the other side for KEYOUT. (I have amps for the 2 meter and 70 cm transverters.) The only other connection I need to worry about is the serial cable. I updated the i/o boards to the new one with the USB connection so that I can leave both the serial and USB cables connected at all times. So no cable switching when I want to go remote. I live in an apartment building, so my KPA500 is packed away in a box for the time being. On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 07:03 wrote: > Hi Mike. I sold my K0 setup a few months ago. It worked perfectly for > years, but wanted to bring my K3 with me for the winter so I replaced it > with a remote IC-7300. While up there for the summer I used to switch to > remote mode when I went to the shore for the weekend, if I remember right > there were three connections to change. The PTT from foot switch to the > remoterig box, the audio from local speaker to remoterig box, and the > serial connection to local PC to the remoterig box. This took about a > minute to switch over. I f I wanted to use the AMP and tuner I had to leave > a local PC on running TeamViewer. > > 73 Jeff kb2m > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of Michael C. Marx > Sent: Tuesday, December 24, 2019 1:22 AM > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini > > Hi all > > So I have a K3/0 Mini with the remoterig setup. My station is a K3, P3, > KAT500 and KPA500. I want to be able to keep it all hooked up while > installing the remoterig system. Is it possible to do this? It looks like > I need to disconnect the ACC CABLE going to the KPA500 along with the RS232 > line so the remoterig can be used. That pretty much disables the rest of > the station. Am I missing something? I sure don?t want to disconnect half > of my station everytime I want to use remote. I?d sure like any pointers > on hooking this all up without disabling my station every time I want togo > remote. Any help is sure appreciated > > 73 Mike WB0SND > > > Michael Marx > www.vacuumtubes.com > 636-939-9190 > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to kb2m at arrl.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com From cyaffey at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 09:33:32 2019 From: cyaffey at gmail.com (Carl Yaffey) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 09:33:32 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Awards Message-ID: <89B0E48B-84D2-4CFB-B307-63681F1210B2@gmail.com> I?m pretty sure I?m the ONLY ham who collects cards from stations with NU in their calls. Yeah, off topic. Sorry. Hi hi 73 Carl Yaffey K8NU cyaffey at gmail.com 614 268 6353, Columbus OH http://www.carl-yaffey.com http://www.grassahol.com http://www.bluesswing.com Https://www.columbusfolkmusicsociety.org http://www.timbrewolves.carl-yaffey.com http://www.columbusshotokankarate.com From dave at nk7z.net Tue Dec 24 09:45:30 2019 From: dave at nk7z.net (Dave Cole) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 06:45:30 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Awards In-Reply-To: <89B0E48B-84D2-4CFB-B307-63681F1210B2@gmail.com> References: <89B0E48B-84D2-4CFB-B307-63681F1210B2@gmail.com> Message-ID: I collect NK7 cards... Have three or four now. 73, and thanks, Dave (NK7Z) https://www.nk7z.net ARRL Volunteer Examiner ARRL Technical Specialist ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources On 12/24/19 6:33 AM, Carl Yaffey wrote: > I?m pretty sure I?m the ONLY ham who collects cards from stations with NU in their calls. > > Yeah, off topic. Sorry. Hi hi > > 73 > > > Carl Yaffey K8NU > cyaffey at gmail.com > 614 268 6353, Columbus OH > http://www.carl-yaffey.com > http://www.grassahol.com > http://www.bluesswing.com > Https://www.columbusfolkmusicsociety.org > http://www.timbrewolves.carl-yaffey.com > http://www.columbusshotokankarate.com > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Tue Dec 24 10:04:37 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 10:04:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini In-Reply-To: References: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> <025f01d5ba5a$3833cec0$a89b6c40$@att.net> Message-ID: All 15 pin Y cables are not the same. You need to have all 15 pins connected from end to end. VGA cables will NOT work. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/24/2019 9:22 AM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > The ACC cable can be connected through a simple Y cable (I think I bought > mine from Elecraft) so that the remoterig box can be left connected all the > time. Or you can buy a YBox, or build your own like I did before they were > available. As for the PTT, I put together a box with 6 parallel RCA jacks > for PTT on one side and 6 more on the other side for KEYOUT. (I have amps > for the 2 meter and 70 cm transverters.) The only other connection I need > to worry about is the serial cable. I updated the i/o boards to the new one > with the USB connection so that I can leave both the serial and USB cables > connected at all times. So no cable switching when I want to go remote. I > live in an apartment building, so my KPA500 is packed away in a box for the > time being. > From jh at hoffmaninv.com Tue Dec 24 10:44:53 2019 From: jh at hoffmaninv.com (W8JH) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 08:44:53 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> Message-ID: <1577202293645-0.post@n2.nabble.com> >Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? I can vouch for the 83.295% and add that it is well known that 89.774852% of people readily accept more specific statistics. ----- 73, Joe, W8JH K3s, KPA 500, KAT 500 and KX3 happy user. -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From wunder at wunderwood.org Tue Dec 24 10:49:27 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 09:49:27 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Awards In-Reply-To: <89B0E48B-84D2-4CFB-B307-63681F1210B2@gmail.com> References: <89B0E48B-84D2-4CFB-B307-63681F1210B2@gmail.com> Message-ID: <3955F53E-707A-4A1E-A031-86F46485C731@wunderwood.org> An ?NU? station, KB6NU, collects cards from stations that spell words, like x#DAD. https://www.kb6nu.com/category/qsls/ wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > On Dec 24, 2019, at 8:33 AM, Carl Yaffey wrote: > > I?m pretty sure I?m the ONLY ham who collects cards from stations with NU in their calls. > > Yeah, off topic. Sorry. Hi hi > > 73 > > > Carl Yaffey K8NU > cyaffey at gmail.com > 614 268 6353, Columbus OH > http://www.carl-yaffey.com > http://www.grassahol.com > http://www.bluesswing.com > Https://www.columbusfolkmusicsociety.org > http://www.timbrewolves.carl-yaffey.com > http://www.columbusshotokankarate.com > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From garyk9gs at wi.rr.com Tue Dec 24 12:13:38 2019 From: garyk9gs at wi.rr.com (Gary K9GS) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 11:13:38 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Awards In-Reply-To: <3955F53E-707A-4A1E-A031-86F46485C731@wunderwood.org> Message-ID: There is a local who shall go unnamed that has DXCC using paper QSL with topless pictures of YLs on them.73,Gary K9GS -------- Original message --------From: Walter Underwood Date: 12/24/19 9:49 AM (GMT-06:00) To: Bob Gibson via Elecraft Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Awards An ?NU? station, KB6NU, collects cards from stations that spell words, like x#DAD. https://www.kb6nu.com/category/qsls/wunderK6WRUWalter UnderwoodCM87wjhttp://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog)> On Dec 24, 2019, at 8:33 AM, Carl Yaffey wrote:> > I?m pretty sure I?m the ONLY ham who collects cards from stations with NU in their calls. > > Yeah, off topic. Sorry. Hi hi> > 73> > > Carl Yaffey? K8NU> cyaffey at? gmail.com > 614 268 6353, Columbus OH> http://www.carl-yaffey.com> http://www.grassahol.com> http://www.bluesswing.com> Https://www.columbusfolkmusicsociety.org> http://www.timbrewolves.carl-yaffey.com> http://www.columbusshotokankarate.com> > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________> Elecraft mailing list> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net> > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html> Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.netThis list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to garyk9gs at wi.rr.com From jimk0xu at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 12:21:06 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 11:21:06 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini In-Reply-To: References: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> <025f01d5ba5a$3833cec0$a89b6c40$@att.net> Message-ID: That's why I got mine from Elecraft. On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 9:05 AM Don Wilhelm wrote: > All 15 pin Y cables are not the same. You need to have all 15 pins > connected from end to end. VGA cables will NOT work. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/24/2019 9:22 AM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > > The ACC cable can be connected through a simple Y cable (I think I bought > > mine from Elecraft) so that the remoterig box can be left connected all > the > > time. Or you can buy a YBox, or build your own like I did before they > were > > available. As for the PTT, I put together a box with 6 parallel RCA > jacks > > for PTT on one side and 6 more on the other side for KEYOUT. (I have amps > > for the 2 meter and 70 cm transverters.) The only other connection I need > > to worry about is the serial cable. I updated the i/o boards to the new > one > > with the USB connection so that I can leave both the serial and USB > cables > > connected at all times. So no cable switching when I want to go remote. I > > live in an apartment building, so my KPA500 is packed away in a box for > the > > time being. > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > -- Jim K0XU jim at rhodesend.net From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 12:45:51 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 12:45:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> Message-ID: <024289e2-f6b8-e13a-ad85-9811ac1bce19@gmail.com> See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8x6x_6mDVlQ from the RSGB in UK. See all the YOUTH... ARRL has missed the "boat"... 73, steve WB3LGC On 12/23/19 6:24 PM, Fred Jensen wrote: > Hmmm ... the 2018 Annual Report is on? the ARRL site and it contains > membership data thru the end of that year.? At any rate, ARRL > membership numbers [both total and % of ham population] have been > declining for a number of years. > > >Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? > > The phrase and number were coined by one of my former bosses.? In > keeping with the phrase, I think he made the number up, I could always > count on him to be scrupulously consistent.? I would be > extraordinarily surprised if anyone validated the number and given > news from Washington DC these days, I think it may be low. [:=) > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > > On 12/23/2019 2:44 PM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: >> The 170,00 figure is dated January, 2016, and is the latest available >> from the ARRL website. >> >> http://www.arrl.org/arrl-fact-sheet >> >> Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? >> >> 73, >> >> Kent? K9ZTV > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From eric_csuf at hotmail.com Tue Dec 24 12:56:29 2019 From: eric_csuf at hotmail.com (Eric J) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 17:56:29 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> References: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: malwarebytes says, "Website blocked due to trojan." SO FAR, I have never had that issue come up on the air. I suppose it would be possible to pass along viruses via digital modes. Maybe THAT would make new hams feel at home. Eric KE6US On 12/23/2019 7:59 PM, donovanf at starpower.net wrote: Eric, If you've grown tired of the usual awards, there's the "Alphabet Sandwich" Call Letter Award. See page 4: https://ftp.unpad.ac.id/orari/orari-diklat/pemula/organisasi/internasional/REG%203/JAPAN.pdf 73 Frank W3LPL ________________________________ From: "Eric J" To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 6:56:22 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. Eric KE6US ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From wunder at wunderwood.org Tue Dec 24 13:06:06 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 12:06:06 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> References: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: Interesting that nobody has yet mentioned Scouting and Jamboree on the Air (JOTA). Here is an article about a troop using amateur radio to coordinate dispersed camping groups and train for em-comm. https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2019/12/24/assistant-scoutmasters-help-scouts-get-trained-to-be-amateur-radio-operators/ A troop in our area uses radios to allow groups of older youth to hike in separate groups. The fast group (always the youth, oddly) checks in every 15 minutes. If they can?t make contact, they stop until they can. With a license, they can switch from FRS/GMRS to amateur bands and hike with a bigger gap. JOTA is on the third full weekend of October every year. This year, we had over 9000 Scouts participate in the US. https://k2bsa.net/jota-usa-reports/ From running a JOTA station a couple of times, I believe that prospective hams have just as wide a range of interests as active hams. We need a shotgun approach with each pellet (metaphor falling apart here) being someone who is excited about that activity. You don?t have to be an expert?I ran the ?send your name in Morse Code? station and I?m not a CW operator?but you do need to represent how that activity could be exciting. Hands on, do everything hands on. No butts in seats for PowerPoint. Anybody ever say ?I think I?ll go home and watch a nice PowerPoint preso tonight?? Here are some photos from our JOTA station this year. I?m the guy with the white hair. Oh, that doesn?t help. White hair and beard. Note the empty log sheet in front of the KX-line. HF was pretty dead. Must do digital modes next year. https://www.flickr.com/photos/walter_underwood/albums/72157711437854946 wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood Radio Scouting Chair, Pacific Skyline Council http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) https://www.linkedin.com/in/walterunderwood/ > On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:59 PM, donovanf at starpower.net wrote: > > Eric, > > > If you've grown tired of the usual awards, there's the "Alphabet Sandwich" > Call Letter Award. See page 4: > > > https://ftp.unpad.ac.id/orari/orari-diklat/pemula/organisasi/internasional/REG%203/JAPAN.pdf > > > 73 > Frank > W3LPL > > ----- Original Message ----- > > From: "Eric J" > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 6:56:22 PM > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide > > I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. > > Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. > > Eric KE6US > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 13:32:31 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 13:32:31 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: <3c469f54-6d3a-31a9-aafc-393a25f37839@gmail.com> Walter, Someone did comment (maybe a different thread/group) about reading Scouter and Boys Life at the barber shop and noted that ARRL has NO ads about radio in the mags.? He or someone else noted that SWL mags have no ARRL ads, either... I think ARRL has "missed the boat"... ARRL has flyers for DIY, but no "push" to the youth to go along with it. Radio Merit Badge does at least provide a sample of ham radio... 73/YIS, Steve WB3LGC On 12/24/19 1:06 PM, Walter Underwood wrote: > Interesting that nobody has yet mentioned Scouting and Jamboree on the Air (JOTA). > > Here is an article about a troop using amateur radio to coordinate dispersed camping groups and train for em-comm. > > https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2019/12/24/assistant-scoutmasters-help-scouts-get-trained-to-be-amateur-radio-operators/ > > A troop in our area uses radios to allow groups of older youth to hike in separate groups. The fast group (always the youth, oddly) checks in every 15 minutes. If they can?t make contact, they stop until they can. With a license, they can switch from FRS/GMRS to amateur bands and hike with a bigger gap. > > JOTA is on the third full weekend of October every year. This year, we had over 9000 Scouts participate in the US. > > https://k2bsa.net/jota-usa-reports/ > > From running a JOTA station a couple of times, I believe that prospective hams have just as wide a range of interests as active hams. We need a shotgun approach with each pellet (metaphor falling apart here) being someone who is excited about that activity. You don?t have to be an expert?I ran the ?send your name in Morse Code? station and I?m not a CW operator?but you do need to represent how that activity could be exciting. > > Hands on, do everything hands on. No butts in seats for PowerPoint. Anybody ever say ?I think I?ll go home and watch a nice PowerPoint preso tonight?? > > Here are some photos from our JOTA station this year. I?m the guy with the white hair. Oh, that doesn?t help. White hair and beard. Note the empty log sheet in front of the KX-line. HF was pretty dead. Must do digital modes next year. > > https://www.flickr.com/photos/walter_underwood/albums/72157711437854946 > > wunder > K6WRU > Walter Underwood > Radio Scouting Chair, Pacific Skyline Council > http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > https://www.linkedin.com/in/walterunderwood/ > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:59 PM, donovanf at starpower.net wrote: >> >> Eric, >> >> >> If you've grown tired of the usual awards, there's the "Alphabet Sandwich" >> Call Letter Award. See page 4: >> >> >> https://ftp.unpad.ac.id/orari/orari-diklat/pemula/organisasi/internasional/REG%203/JAPAN.pdf >> >> >> 73 >> Frank >> W3LPL >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> >> From: "Eric J" >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 6:56:22 PM >> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide >> >> I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. >> >> Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. >> >> Eric KE6US >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From bbaines at mac.com Tue Dec 24 13:58:51 2019 From: bbaines at mac.com (Barry Baines) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 12:58:51 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3/0 Mini In-Reply-To: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> References: <87637769-C7B6-448D-8479-D4110F19A965@vacuumtubes.com> Message-ID: Mike: > On Dec 24, 2019, at 12:22 AM, Michael C. Marx wrote: > > Hi all > > So I have a K3/0 Mini with the remoterig setup. My station is a K3, P3, KAT500 and KPA500. I want to be able to keep it all hooked up while installing the remoterig system. Is it possible to do this? It looks like I need to disconnect the ACC CABLE going to the KPA500 along with the RS232 line so the remoterig can be used. That pretty much disables the rest of the station. Am I missing something? I sure don?t want to disconnect half of my station everytime I want to use remote. I?d sure like any pointers on hooking this all up without disabling my station every time I want togo remote. Any help is sure appreciated I know that others have responded to your query, but allow me to make some additional points. 1. I presume that you purchased the remoterig from Elecraft and that you have the RemoteRig cables from Elecraft to connect the remoterig not only to the K3/0-mini but the remote rig to the K3. These cables provide the critical interconnects needed for the K3/0-mini to function properly. The K3/0-mini manual does a nice job of explaining how to make the proper connections. 2. I use a y-adapter to connect the remoterig PTT cable to the PTT port of the K3 so that the PTT switch I use at the K3 will still function. There is no problem having both PTTs connected at the same time. This will allow the K3 go to into transmit by command of the remoterig or by the handswitch at the shack. 3. I use a stereo y-adapter to connect the Remoterig Audio cable to the Speaker port of the K3 so that audio will be fed to both outputs. This setup does cause my external speakers at the station to change volume when remote operating as it also provides audio to the Remoterig. In other words, the AF volume on the K3/0-mini will control both audio outputs. Since I?m not at the station when operating remote and no one is around, having the speakers active doesn?t bother anyone. If the K3 is located where audio might bother others, then either turn off the speakers (if they?re powered) or install a cutoff switch/unplug the speaker(s). 4. Keep in mind that the K3/0-mini controls what the K3 is doing as the K3/0-mini front panel is duplicating what the K3 is showing on its panel. That is, as you increase audio on the K3, it is also potentially increasing audio of speakers at the shack. If you set a parameter on the K3/0-mini, it is displaying what the K3 front panel is showing as that adjustment is made. One area to note is how microphone management is done. The Remoterig uses the rear mic connector of the K3. Thus, on the K3/0-mini, you must use the K3 Menu to set the mic source to the rear connector. If the mic connected to the K3/0-mini needs bias, you set that through the remoterig configuration. In other words, mic selection through the K3 menu has nothing to do with the mic input of the K3/0-mini itself; rather it determines the mic input used by the K3 itself. Both the 8-pin connector on the front panel of the K3/0-mini and the side Mic connector are active. Thus, mic selection using the K3/0-mini does determine whether the mic input is from the Remoterig (rear mic) or from the K3 itself (front mic). 5. Management of the KAT500 and KPA500 can be done several different ways. Clearly, basic operation of both units will work the same as before if the appropriate cable connections are installed as described in the Elecraft manuals. One can use a remote connection to a PC in the shack and use the Elecraft utilities. I prefer to manage the KPA500 with the Remoterig RC-1216H which provides a web-based display of the KPA500 front panel and is connected to the amplifier through a RS-232 connection. This allows me to manage the amplifier with any PC, Mac, iOS device, etc. I have port forwarding set up at the station so that I can access the RC-1216H directly. As the RS-232 connection is attached to the RC-1216H, I cannot use the KPA500 utility from the shack computer. However, I don?t see that as a problem. The KAT500 can be managed using the PC in the shack and then remotely connecting to the shack computer to manage the KAT500 running on the shack computer. I manage the KAT500 one of two ways. I?ve installed a serial-to-ethernet converter (Lantronics) which allows me to directly connect to the KAT500 remotely and run the KAT500 utility on the PC where I am. Or, I can have the PC in the shack connect to that same serial-to-ethernet converter and run the KAT500 software on that machine. In this instance, I use VNC Connect to access the shack computer using any PC, Mac, iOS device, etc. Sidenote: If I didn?t have the RC-1216H, I?d probably be managing the KPA500 the same way. 6. Lastly, please keep in mind that if you?re intending to remotely operate from a significant distance from the shack, it is imperative that you test everything at the shack first. Setup the K3/0-mini and the Remoterig that goes with it on the LAN hosting the shack equipment and the Remoterig attached to the K3 and ensure that it works as intended. Ensure that you know that all connections are working as intended. With regard to cables going to to/from the Remoterig (both units), label each cable end. This will also ensure that you plug the correct cable into each socket the next time you setup at your remote location. At the station, having properly labeled cables will help keep track of what is plugged in where. Over time and presuming that you intend to remote operatel extensively, you may also want to consider at some point how best to remotely manage equipment at the shack. This includes, but is not limited to remotely powering and controlling the antenna rotor, powering down and restarting equipment, remotely rebooting your modem/router/PCs, etc. In my case, I?m over 1,200 miles from my remote site. Over the years I?ve made numerous enhancements at the shack in an effort to reduce ?single point? failures and improve reliability. Given that it may be a month or more between visits to the shack, I?ve learned that most of the effort to create a remote capability is not how to make the initial connections between amateur equipment, but setting up processes to reset/reboot/power on-off a myriad of devices that help the amateur experience but also be able to do some basic ?reset? of infrastructure remotely. A hung device (such as an Antenna Genius) is best resolved by powering it down and then powering it back up. And if you?re in a lightning prone area (such as South Georgia or Florida), being able to remotely disconnect coax connections (such as using a Paradan Antenna Disconnect) or even removing power from the K3 (e.g. shutdown the power supply) and other equipment may also be desired. In my case, I have the ability to remotely to power on/off the RRC-1226MKII at the shack, the KAT500, and the Power Supply that powers the K3. Hope this helps, Barry, WD4ASW (Currently in Keller, TX) > > 73 Mike WB0SND > > > Michael Marx > www.vacuumtubes.com > 636-939-9190 > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to bbaines at mac.com From karinann at tampabay.rr.com Tue Dec 24 15:20:00 2019 From: karinann at tampabay.rr.com (Karin Johnson) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 15:20:00 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Message-ID: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, Regardless of the current draw. Karin Anne Johnson K3UU From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 15:24:40 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 13:24:40 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Message-ID: First, it would require some basic technical skill ... (;-) 73 K0PP On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 13:20 Karin Johnson wrote: > Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? > As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense > wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide > For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. > I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the > Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain > 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, > Regardless of the current draw. > > Karin Anne Johnson K3UU > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com > From jimk0xu at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 16:22:40 2019 From: jimk0xu at gmail.com (Jim Rhodes) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 15:22:40 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Message-ID: I have thought about doing that. Just requires a 2 wire hookup with small gauge wire. But I run all of my small items like the remoterig box, LP-pan box, VHF/UHF rig and so forth off of the main supply and if I have a larger than anticipated voltage drop on rig power cable the voltage on the other tings could go fairly high. The power supply is a HB thing with at least a 50 amp capacity and plenty of voltage overhead before pass transistors. (Used to run 2 HF rigs before downsizing.) On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 2:25 PM Rose wrote: > First, it would require some basic technical skill ... (;-) > > 73 > > K0PP > > On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 13:20 Karin Johnson > wrote: > > > Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? > > As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense > > wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide > > For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. > > I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the > > Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain > > 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, > > Regardless of the current draw. > > > > Karin Anne Johnson K3UU > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com > -- Jim K0XU jim at rhodesend.net From hbjr at optilink.us Tue Dec 24 16:23:26 2019 From: hbjr at optilink.us (hbjr at optilink.us) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 16:23:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Message-ID: <002e01d5baa0$615df960$2419ec20$@optilink.us> I do use voltage sensing at the rear of the radio. Astron supplies can be modified easily to do this - they already have sense wires tied to the voltage output terminals. Basically you disconnect them there and run leads (keep em short) to the radio. On transmit, my K3s drops less than 1/10 a volt. There are a few write ups floating around on how to do this. I installed a switch (make before break type) on my RS-50M so I can return to "normal" sensing. ***WARNING*** If the external sense wires are not connected to anything the crowbar circuit will fire!!! Hank K4HYJ -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Karin Johnson Sent: Tuesday, December 24, 2019 3:20 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, Regardless of the current draw. Karin Anne Johnson K3UU ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to hbjr at optilink.us From k2asp at kanafi.org Tue Dec 24 16:18:17 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 13:18:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: <395346354.5203177.1577159969884.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: <51c9ad08-41aa-0915-263c-a0c8f8c72e6e@kanafi.org> On 12/24/2019 9:56 AM, Eric J wrote: > malwarebytes says, "Website blocked due to trojan." SO FAR, I have > never had that issue come up on the air. I suppose it would be > possible to pass along viruses via digital modes. Maybe THAT would > make new hams feel at home. What, never had a carrier thrown on you or on the QSO that you were part of? Not that I encourage it... 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From k8mn at frontiernet.net Tue Dec 24 16:30:57 2019 From: k8mn at frontiernet.net (k8mn) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 16:30:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <20191224213101.17DC217979B@filter02.dlls.pa.frontiernet.net> During my embassy assignments in Guinea Bissaue, Sierra Leone and Botswana, I participated in JOTA with Cincinnati Boy Scouts through N8DL.? I even had Botswana Scouts in my shack to speak with the Cincinnati scouts.I don't ever recalling ARRL adverts in Boy's Life but plenty of stories in the magazine mentioning amateur radio and the League.? Perhaps one of you will write one.Dave K8MNSent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone. -------- Original message --------From: Walter Underwood Date: 12/24/19 13:08 (GMT-05:00) To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide Interesting that nobody has yet mentioned Scouting and Jamboree on the Air (JOTA).Here is an article about a troop using amateur radio to coordinate dispersed camping groups and train for em-comm.https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2019/12/24/assistant-scoutmasters-help-scouts-get-trained-to-be-amateur-radio-operators/A troop in our area uses radios to allow groups of older youth to hike in separate groups. The fast group (always the youth, oddly) checks in every 15 minutes. If they can?t make contact, they stop until they can. With a license, they can switch from FRS/GMRS to amateur bands and hike with a bigger gap.JOTA is on the third full weekend of October every year. This year, we had over 9000 Scouts participate in the US. https://k2bsa.net/jota-usa-reports/From running a JOTA station a couple of times, I believe that prospective hams have just as wide a range of interests as active hams. We need a shotgun approach with each pellet (metaphor falling apart here) being someone who is excited about that activity. You don?t have to be an expert?I ran the ?send your name in Morse Code? station and I?m not a CW operator?but you do need to represent how that activity could be exciting. Hands on, do everything hands on. No butts in seats for PowerPoint. Anybody ever say ?I think I?ll go home and watch a nice PowerPoint preso tonight?? Here are some photos from our JOTA station this year. I?m the guy with the white hair. Oh, that doesn?t help. White hair and beard. Note the empty log sheet in front of the KX-line. HF was pretty dead. Must do digital modes next year.https://www.flickr.com/photos/walter_underwood/albums/72157711437854946 wunderK6WRUWalter UnderwoodRadio Scouting Chair, Pacific Skyline Councilhttp://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog)https://www.linkedin.com/in/walterunderwood/> On Dec 23, 2019, at 9:59 PM, donovanf at starpower.net wrote:> > Eric, > > > If you've grown tired of the usual awards, there's the "Alphabet Sandwich" > Call Letter Award. See page 4: > > > https://ftp.unpad.ac.id/orari/orari-diklat/pemula/organisasi/internasional/REG%203/JAPAN.pdf > > > 73 > Frank > W3LPL > > ----- Original Message -----> > From: "Eric J" > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Sent: Monday, December 23, 2019 6:56:22 PM > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide > > I mean this sincerely. I'm NOT in grumpy-old-man mode, though I can do that very well. The majority of QSOs with new people are about as interesting, enduring and deep as a short chat in the checkout line at Safeway. Many aren't even that interesting. PSK ops just throw on a brag tape and walk away. It's a pleasant few minutes, but it rarely leads to anything more. It does happen, but who in their right mind would spend thousands of dollars and hours on the outside chance it does? The opportunity for superficial chit chat with strangers was NEVER on my mind at 14 when I got interested in ham radio so it's a bit much to expect teenagers today to care about that. > > Ham radio has always been chock full of quick award-qualifying or contest contacts. Worked All Continents, countries, states, provinces, counties, grids, lighthouses, summits, guys named Fred. Go back as far as you want in QST and it's full of honor rolls, contest results...and SKs. It's nothing new to this period in ham radio. But ham radio has also been full of interesting challenges too. It's never been a very homogeneous hobby. I have no predictions except things are rapidly changing and that will continue in whatever direction those entering the hobby take it. The Baofeng Techs will change it as much as us Heathkit Kids did. Change is good. > > Eric KE6US > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net > > ______________________________________________________________> Elecraft mailing list> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net> > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html> Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org ______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.netThis list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to k8mn at frontiernet.net From donwilh at embarqmail.com Tue Dec 24 17:01:35 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 17:01:35 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <002e01d5baa0$615df960$2419ec20$@optilink.us> References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> <002e01d5baa0$615df960$2419ec20$@optilink.us> Message-ID: <0e10b35a-df40-36e0-0ff6-f41348d9155f@embarqmail.com> That would be a neat thing to do, but DO NOT do that on a power supply that is connected to anything other than the rig you are sensing from. The voltage on other devices connected to the power supply will increase when you transmit on the rig to which the sense wires are connected. Use a separate power supply for accessories. If you need to use the same supply, you can adjust the voltage upward - the SS30 sold by Elecraft already has an output voltage of 14.1 volts. Still use a separate power cable to the transceiver and another cable to any distribution box that you use for accessories for best results (lowest voltage drop when transmitting). 73, Don W3FPR On 12/24/2019 4:23 PM, K4HYJ via Elecraft wrote: > I do use voltage sensing at the rear of the radio. Astron supplies can be > modified easily to do this - they already have sense wires tied to the > voltage output terminals. Basically you disconnect them there and run leads > (keep em short) to the radio. On transmit, my K3s drops less than 1/10 a > volt. > > There are a few write ups floating around on how to do this. I installed a > switch (make before break type) on my RS-50M so I can return to "normal" > sensing. ***WARNING*** If the external sense wires are not connected to > anything the crowbar circuit will fire!!! From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Tue Dec 24 17:22:33 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 13:22:33 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide Message-ID: <201912242222.xBOMMZDq026691@mail46c28.carrierzone.com> Sub-Topic: survival in emergencies. I had a good "taste"of that a few years ago when the road from Anchorage to the Kenai Peninsula (pop 60K) (where I live) was blocked by avalanches for three weeks. All store products come by truck down that 180-mile road (there is only one road). Power ties were cut but we have local generation plants plus a hydro-plant, so outage was short. My biggest emergency was feeding my twelve sled dogs; stores ran out animal feed real quick. I use to live in a small town which lost power and phones during the avalanche. Convenience store's freezers thawed out and town had a serious supply problem. National Guard flew in a standby generator for them after two weeks. Town had one gas station so ran out. One ham lived there to get the word out. Having lived ten years off the grid in that town, I had good training on surviving. I had no electric, telephone, or water. Fifteen gallons of chainsaw fuel was my annual heating bill. Lights and stove by Coleman were propane (bout three months per bottle). Freezer was a military container out in a snow bank. So about eight years ago we bought a 6500w Honda generator to power the house. We have natural gas appliances and a well so only need electricity to be independent. I keep 20 gallons of fuel for the generator which will carry us about five days. Only have one house dog so that is easier. 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From k9ma at sdellington.us Tue Dec 24 17:38:05 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 16:38:05 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <0e10b35a-df40-36e0-0ff6-f41348d9155f@embarqmail.com> References: <0e10b35a-df40-36e0-0ff6-f41348d9155f@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <64B09B60-C2C4-44B7-AC19-56733D94265B@sdellington.us> There can be stability issues with remote sensing. Also RF susceptibility. Take care! 73, Scott K9MA ---------- Scott Ellington --- via iPad > On Dec 24, 2019, at 4:03 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > ?That would be a neat thing to do, but DO NOT do that on a power supply that is connected to anything other than the rig you are sensing from. > > The voltage on other devices connected to the power supply will increase when you transmit on the rig to which the sense wires are connected. > > Use a separate power supply for accessories. > > If you need to use the same supply, you can adjust the voltage upward - the SS30 sold by Elecraft already has an output voltage of 14.1 volts. > Still use a separate power cable to the transceiver and another cable to any distribution box that you use for accessories for best results (lowest voltage drop when transmitting). > > 73, > Don W3FPR > >> On 12/24/2019 4:23 PM, K4HYJ via Elecraft wrote: >> I do use voltage sensing at the rear of the radio. Astron supplies can be >> modified easily to do this - they already have sense wires tied to the >> voltage output terminals. Basically you disconnect them there and run leads >> (keep em short) to the radio. On transmit, my K3s drops less than 1/10 a >> volt. >> There are a few write ups floating around on how to do this. I installed a >> switch (make before break type) on my RS-50M so I can return to "normal" >> sensing. ***WARNING*** If the external sense wires are not connected to >> anything the crowbar circuit will fire!!! > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us From KY5G at montac.com Tue Dec 24 18:00:54 2019 From: KY5G at montac.com (Clay Autery) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 17:00:54 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <1577202293645-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> <1577202293645-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <69d1d0be-8a3e-d411-545d-1d47002e0dec@montac.com> EXCEPT in the case of those belonging to the group having the 6% "Importance Factor". They consider themselves too important to go along with ANYTHING, to include rules, laws, et al. They require all statistics rounded to the nearest integer..... ...except during leap years when the decimal portion of all figures is merely truncated. Sorry....? it's Christmas Eve! MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of my Elecraft Friends and Family!!! ______________________ Clay Autery, KY5G (318) 518-1389 On 24-Dec-19 09:44, W8JH wrote: > > >Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? > > I can vouch for the 83.295% and add that it is well known that 89.774852% of > people readily accept more specific statistics. > > > > > ----- > 73, > > Joe, W8JH From a.durbin at msn.com Tue Dec 24 18:13:31 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 23:13:31 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 - Tune on QSY In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: December 17, 2019 I posted the following" "I've had my KAT500 for about 18 months and I thought I had come to know it quite well. Today I found something that surprised me. The KAT500 utility has 2 "Memory Recall on Tune" options, one for MAN mode and one for Auto mode. My understanding was that, if these options were not enabled, the KAT500 would not use RF frequency count or CAT TX frequency to change the tuning solution if the frequency was changed within band. For MAN mode, with memory recall tune not checked, it appears that the KAT500 does still select tuning solutions as appropriate for the frequency received over CAT. It does not change solutions if CAT frequency is not available and RF frequency is changed. The utility "Tune on QSY" page says: "Enable or disable memory recall tune on transmit frequency changes with the check boxes below." However, the help file says: "The tuner continuously monitors the transmit frequency. Beginning with firmware version 1.20, the tuner performs quick "memory recall" tunes as the transmit frequency changes within the current band, recalling the memory closest to the current transmit frequency. If you prefer that the tuner not attempt to change settings for "in-band QSY" based on the transmit frequency count, uncheck the "Memory Recall Tune on QSY in Mode MAN" checkbox." So it seems to be doing exactly what it says in the help file and there is no option to inhibit tuning changes if a new frequency is received over CAT. I'm not suggesting any of this is a problem but it did surprise me." After posting that I suggested to an owner of a TS890S, KAT500, and KPA500 that he should try disabling the QSY option as it might cure his annoying re-tunes during transmit. It did not fix the problem. After exchanging email with him I have been able to reproduce the problem and I think I understand it. Disabling the "Tune on QSY" options, as previosly reported, prevents RF count re-tune but still allows CAT frequency re-tune. It works fine if eirther one, or the other, is enabled but not when RF count and CAT can change the KAT500 frequency. With Tune on QSY disabled and FCCS and FCMD at default values the KAT500 may retune during TX. I have captured several events with my data logger and the sequence is the same each time. What happens is that, when TX starts, the KAT500 is using the most recent CAT frequency. If RF count frequency becomes different from CAT frequency then the "last observed frequency" is updated to RF count frequency. Even if this frequency is in a different "bin" than CAT frequency there is no change in tuning solution as that is inhibited by "Tune on QSY" being inactive. All ok so far. Now KAT500 sees the next CAT frequency update and, if it crosses a bin boundary from the RF count frequency, then there may be a retune. Note that CAT frequency retune is not inhibited by clearing the "Tine on QSY" options. The problem is most likely to be seen when the transmit frequency lies at the edge of a bin. My tests used the FT8 nominal frequency of 1840 and 1840/1841 is the boundary between bins 183 and 184. For the most recent test I modified my controller to be a verbose output of all KAT500 interrogation responses. Normally it only reports changed values. he is the event sequence for an FT8 TX with a TX freq of 1.841: 2019-12-24 15:23:00 F 1841; << F before TX is 1841 2019-12-24 15:23:00 C57; << Using bin 184 tuning solution 2019-12-24 15:23:00 L06; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 AN3; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 BYPN; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 SIDEA; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 0:00:11.586 New KPA_FS - ^FS00; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 VSWR 1.31; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 VFWD 0; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 VRFL 0; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 FLT0; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 AMPI0; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 MDM; 2019-12-24 15:23:00 0:00:11.721 New IF - IF00001841000 000000003121010000; < Hi, Started to do the Align/Test Pt II, and properly saw the correct frequency of 12090 +/- 30 kHz.?? Tried the next part to adjust the Reference Oscillator using my other K2 as the receiver and was able to hear the oscillator at 3999, but C22 would not adjust to a zero-beat.???? OK ... so it was close for the time being, so I figured I'd use my KX3 to verify it later.? Moved on to the range test.?? The Band- and Band+ buttons did not affect the display. Dug into the list archives, and saw a number of messages from Don to check the solder joints, alignment, and type of D16, D17, R19, and L31.??? I realized that somehow I missed installing R19.?? So I installed the resistor, then restarted the alignment.?? This time when I switched to CAL FCTR, the rig did not display the expected frequency of 12090, but? a frequency of 3560 or so, flickering between readings. ? However, when I pressed the Band- button, it changed to a steady 12084, but when the Band+ was pressed, back to the 3560 flickering. I checked the other areas as referenced by Don such as the thermistor, but did not see any issues such as solder bridges, etc.?? I really do not want to remove the thermistor board to check closer, but will if there are no resistance or voltage readings I could use to verify that its OK.???? I did verify the voltage readings as referenced by Don in another message and they were within expected. That said, I am rather limited in test equipment, with just a good digital multimeter, so I can't put things on a scope, etc.??? Any hints would be appreciated, I can say I'm very sure I did not put any of the ICs in backwards, I learned that the hard way when building my K2/100. Merry Christmas to all, and a Happy New Year. Neil, KN3ILZ From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 24 18:33:09 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 17:33:09 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Message-ID: <50478699-c13c-79f4-3bba-c3cee4b68265@blomand.net> With the Astron supplies, the 723 regulator does have provision for remote sensing.? And with a bit of work and some extra wiring and components one can have remote sensing. I would suggest NOT doing so as remote sensing become "inputs" to the 723 regulator chip and any noise or RF on the remote sensing lines can be very problematic.?? Proper filtering and time constants will be required to prevent oscillations. My suggestion is to use good quality #10 AWG wire, such as auto primary wire fitted with correct terminals on the ends.? Be sure to correctly crimp and solder as needed.?? Suggested length is something less than 10 ft.??? Also be sure to have a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of the radio to the ground on the power supply. In the end, if you desire to have remote sensing, purchase a suitable supply that provides remote sensing.?? Life will be much easier. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/24/2019 2:20 PM, Karin Johnson wrote: > Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? > As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense > wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide > For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. > I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the > Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain > 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, > Regardless of the current draw. > > Karin Anne Johnson K3UU > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From a.durbin at msn.com Tue Dec 24 18:34:34 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 23:34:34 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 - Tune on QSY Message-ID: Please ignore previous post. It was inadvertently send before editing was complete. Andy, k3wyc From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 24 18:37:42 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 17:37:42 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <31D9210CB99B4C63B0901D0F3D971221@KARINSPC> Message-ID: <3ea0ae67-c09c-670d-4eac-bc54e2f67e2e@blomand.net> Yes, but one screw-up on the remote sensing system and it will take advantage of the voltage overhead on the pass transistors and likely wipe out every piece of equipment.?????? I strongly do not advise it.?? And you make a valid point for NOT using remote sensing. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/24/2019 3:22 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: > I have thought about doing that. Just requires a 2 wire hookup with small > gauge wire. But I run all of my small items like the remoterig box, LP-pan > box, VHF/UHF rig and so forth off of the main supply and if I have a larger > than anticipated voltage drop on rig power cable the voltage on the other > tings could go fairly high. The power supply is a HB thing with at least a > 50 amp capacity and plenty of voltage overhead before pass transistors. > (Used to run 2 HF rigs before downsizing.) > > > On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 2:25 PM Rose wrote: > >> First, it would require some basic technical skill ... (;-) >> >> 73 >> >> K0PP >> >> On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 13:20 Karin Johnson >> wrote: >> >>> Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? >>> As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense >>> wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide >>> For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. >>> I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the >>> Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain >>> 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, >>> Regardless of the current draw. >>> >>> Karin Anne Johnson K3UU >>> >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com >>> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com >> > From ardrhi at gmail.com Tue Dec 24 19:29:42 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 19:29:42 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <69d1d0be-8a3e-d411-545d-1d47002e0dec@montac.com> References: <8ed6065e-c74a-e14e-134f-50fda8f8b104@verizon.net> <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> <7E970104-2799-4089-9A53-F50C3D18164E@elecraft.com> <60adb7f8-85ff-6c9f-d063-641c935554c7@socket.net> <5bffed0c-8626-b72f-b85f-365f89f08b82@foothill.net> <1577202293645-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <69d1d0be-8a3e-d411-545d-1d47002e0dec@montac.com> Message-ID: On the subject of emergency support... My local club did a documentary a bunch of years ago about how the club turned to and helped with a local flood. It was in the archives when I was Archivist, so we got it converted into a video file and posted it on YouTube (with the club's permission). Since then, it has gotten a lot of views, and is one of the ways we help promote ham radio in our area. The beginning is a more modern introduction to the documentary: https://youtu.be/xYx8VNzYwRE But I also like to call attention to Clinton B. DeSoto's book "Calling CQ", a bunch of great stories about how ham radio helped during disasters and other emergencies. I helped curate it, with the permission of his estate. You can read it at the Internet Archive, here: https://archive.org/details/CallingCq-AdventureOfShort-waveRadioOperators Then there's the 1939 "Pete Smith Specialty" short film by MGM called "Radio Hams". It's very similar to the stories in Calling CQ, and I think some of the segments were based on them. It's a little hokey, but the subject matter is good. https://youtu.be/1BPcpQMbUPE 73, Gwen, NG3P On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 6:01 PM Clay Autery wrote: > EXCEPT in the case of those belonging to the group having the 6% > "Importance Factor". > They consider themselves too important to go along with ANYTHING, to > include rules, laws, et al. > > They require all statistics rounded to the nearest integer..... > > ...except during leap years when the decimal portion of all figures is > merely truncated. > > Sorry.... it's Christmas Eve! > > MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of my Elecraft Friends and Family!!! > > ______________________ > Clay Autery, KY5G > (318) 518-1389 > > On 24-Dec-19 09:44, W8JH wrote: > > > > >Who validated your 83.295%, Fred? > > > > I can vouch for the 83.295% and add that it is well known that > 89.774852% of > > people readily accept more specific statistics. > > > > > > > > > > ----- > > 73, > > > > Joe, W8JH > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com -- -+-+-+-+- Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time http://quarktime.net From a.durbin at msn.com Tue Dec 24 20:14:02 2019 From: a.durbin at msn.com (Andy Durbin) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 01:14:02 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KAT500 - Tune on QSY Message-ID: Sorry for the inadvertent premature posting. I'll try again - After I had posted my observations on the behavior of KAT500 "Tune on QSY" option I suggested to an owner of a TS-890S, KAT500, and KPA500 that he should try disabling the QSY option as it might cure his annoying re-tunes during transmit. It did not fix the problem. After exchanging email with him I have been able to reproduce the problem and I think I understand it. Disabling the "Tune on QSY" options, as previously reported, prevents RF count re-tune but still allows CAT frequency re-tune. It works fine if either one, or the other, is enabled but not when both RF count and CAT can change the KAT500 frequency. With "Tune on QSY" not selected, and FCCS and FCMD at default values, the KAT500 may re-tune during TX. I have captured several events with my data logger and the sequence is the same each time. What happens is that, when TX starts, the KAT500 is using the most recent CAT frequency. If RF count frequency becomes different from CAT frequency then the "last observed frequency" is updated to RF count frequency. Even if this frequency is in a different "bin" than CAT frequency there is no change in tuning solution as that is inhibited by "Tune on QSY" being inactive. All ok so far. Now KAT500 sees the next CAT frequency update and, if it crosses a bin boundary from the RF count frequency, there may be a re-tune. Note that CAT frequency re-tune is not inhibited by clearing the "Tune on QSY" options. The problem is most likely to be seen when the transmit frequency lies at the edge of a bin. My tests used the FT8 nominal frequency of 1840 and 1840/1841 is the boundary between bins 183 and 184. A re-tune was seen at the start and end of every transmission when my TX freq was 1841. These re-tunes moved from bin 184 before TX, to bin 183 at start of TX, and then back to bin 184 at end of TX. The paradox is that the transition to bin 183 tuning solution is triggered by a change of frequency from bin 183 to bin 184. Bottom line is that disabling "Tune on QSY" option does not prevent RF count re-tune if CAT frequency is available to KAT500. Detailed logger data available on request. Andy, k3wyc From k9ma at sdellington.us Tue Dec 24 21:25:41 2019 From: k9ma at sdellington.us (K9MA) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 20:25:41 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <3ea0ae67-c09c-670d-4eac-bc54e2f67e2e@blomand.net> References: <3ea0ae67-c09c-670d-4eac-bc54e2f67e2e@blomand.net> Message-ID: <2386F83E-7E24-4442-9024-BFD06C3B080B@sdellington.us> Typically, there are small resistors at the power supply between the output and sense terminals to prevent the voltage from rising if a sense wire opens up. 73, Scott K9MA ---------- Scott Ellington --- via iPad > On Dec 24, 2019, at 5:39 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > ?Yes, but one screw-up on the remote sensing system and it will take advantage of the voltage overhead on the pass transistors and likely wipe out every piece of equipment. I strongly do not advise it. And you make a valid point for NOT using remote sensing. > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > >> On 12/24/2019 3:22 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: >> I have thought about doing that. Just requires a 2 wire hookup with small >> gauge wire. But I run all of my small items like the remoterig box, LP-pan >> box, VHF/UHF rig and so forth off of the main supply and if I have a larger >> than anticipated voltage drop on rig power cable the voltage on the other >> tings could go fairly high. The power supply is a HB thing with at least a >> 50 amp capacity and plenty of voltage overhead before pass transistors. >> (Used to run 2 HF rigs before downsizing.) >> >> >>> On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 2:25 PM Rose wrote: >>> >>> First, it would require some basic technical skill ... (;-) >>> >>> 73 >>> >>> K0PP >>> >>> On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 13:20 Karin Johnson >>> wrote: >>> >>>> Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? >>>> As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense >>>> wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide >>>> For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. >>>> I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the >>>> Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain >>>> 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, >>>> Regardless of the current draw. >>>> >>>> Karin Anne Johnson K3UU >>>> >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com >>>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com >>> >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us From c-hawley at illinois.edu Tue Dec 24 21:28:55 2019 From: c-hawley at illinois.edu (hawley, charles j jr) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 02:28:55 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <9c4bc344-fc8a-51d2-bb92-1d3e458a2c2b@Gmail.com>, Message-ID: I have a Fluke 87...for a couple of decades now. It does it all well. Chuck Jack Hawley KE9UW Sent from my iPhone, cjack > On Dec 23, 2019, at 10:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it to determine if the others are accurate. There are several good brands available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. > > My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it with too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration. I am confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. > > Bob, K4TAX > > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 2:12 PM, Buck wrote: >> >> ?The reliable place to measure the voltage at the K3x is using the supply voltage display meter in the radio. I was surprised to find mine was significantly low. I thought it was voltage drop but changing the supply cable didn't make much difference. >> >> Turns out the Astron power supply was more than a volt low and the meter on the supply had been cranked up to make it appear to be correct. I used two separate VOMs to set the power supply and then adjusted the meter to make it agree. >> >> Moral of the story: don't rely on the meter on the power supply and assume a low reading at the radio is due solely to voltage drop. >> >> >> >> Buck, k4ia >> Honor Roll >> 8BDXCC >> EasyWayHamBooks.com >> >>>> On 12/23/2019 2:26 PM, Phil Kane wrote: >>>> On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: >>>> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of >>>> the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. >>> That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at >>> the PS, or at some other point? >>> 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane >>> Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >>> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest >>> Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to radiok4ia at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 24 21:42:52 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 20:42:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <2386F83E-7E24-4442-9024-BFD06C3B080B@sdellington.us> References: <3ea0ae67-c09c-670d-4eac-bc54e2f67e2e@blomand.net> <2386F83E-7E24-4442-9024-BFD06C3B080B@sdellington.us> Message-ID: Yes true.?? However seeing they way some hams configure their stations, building or modifying and implementing a power supply with voltage sensing, is of serious questionable nature. Likewise, in conditions where power supplies are buried under the desk.? One needs to see the volt meter when the supply is first turned on to assure the voltage is correct. ? And that should be done before the radio is turned on. ? ? Oh I know about crowbar circuits, but if that $2.50 part fails it will likely take out a $3000 radio.?? This just isn't smart. Having worked with equipment that was supplied with 35 ft or 50 ft power cables for loads of 20A to 30A at + & - 18 volts, I understand just a wee bit about voltage sensing circuits and what makes them oscillate. Just err on the safe side.??? And for ham radio, it likely is not necessary to have or implement remote voltage sensing.? Wire and connectors are cheap.?? Use a shorter length of wire or larger gauge wire.?? There's no likely component failure with this approach. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/24/2019 8:25 PM, K9MA wrote: > Typically, there are small resistors at the power supply between the output and sense terminals to prevent the voltage from rising if a sense wire opens up. > > 73, > Scott K9MA > > ---------- > > Scott Ellington > > --- via iPad > >> On Dec 24, 2019, at 5:39 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> >> ?Yes, but one screw-up on the remote sensing system and it will take advantage of the voltage overhead on the pass transistors and likely wipe out every piece of equipment. I strongly do not advise it. And you make a valid point for NOT using remote sensing. >> >> 73 >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >>> On 12/24/2019 3:22 PM, Jim Rhodes wrote: >>> I have thought about doing that. Just requires a 2 wire hookup with small >>> gauge wire. But I run all of my small items like the remoterig box, LP-pan >>> box, VHF/UHF rig and so forth off of the main supply and if I have a larger >>> than anticipated voltage drop on rig power cable the voltage on the other >>> tings could go fairly high. The power supply is a HB thing with at least a >>> 50 amp capacity and plenty of voltage overhead before pass transistors. >>> (Used to run 2 HF rigs before downsizing.) >>> >>> >>>> On Tue, Dec 24, 2019 at 2:25 PM Rose wrote: >>>> >>>> First, it would require some basic technical skill ... (;-) >>>> >>>> 73 >>>> >>>> K0PP >>>> >>>> On Tue, Dec 24, 2019, 13:20 Karin Johnson >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Why hasn't anyone used remote sensing at the radio voltage input? >>>>> As far as I know all of the Astron supplies don't have external sense >>>>> wiring. Many so called professional grade high current supplies provide >>>>> For external connection of the voltage sense back to the regulator chip. >>>>> I've toyed with this idea a bit but haven't had the time dig in to the >>>>> Astron supply I have. If this were implemented then one could maintain >>>>> 13.8 volts or whatever you desired at the radio power supply inputs, >>>>> Regardless of the current draw. >>>>> >>>>> Karin Anne Johnson K3UU >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>>> >>>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>>> Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com >>>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to jimk0xu at gmail.com >>>> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to k9ma at sdellington.us > From k2asp at kanafi.org Tue Dec 24 22:24:56 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2019 19:24:56 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <20191224213101.17DC217979B@filter02.dlls.pa.frontiernet.net> References: <20191224213101.17DC217979B@filter02.dlls.pa.frontiernet.net> Message-ID: <732df70f-5a9e-32c4-74e6-65d318852426@kanafi.org> On 12/24/2019 1:30 PM, k8mn wrote: > During my embassy assignments in Guinea Bissaue, Sierra Leone and > Botswana, I participated in JOTA with Cincinnati Boy Scouts through > N8DL. I even had Botswana Scouts in my shack to speak with the > Cincinnati scouts.I don't ever recalling ARRL adverts in Boy's Life > but plenty of stories in the magazine mentioning amateur radio and > the League. Perhaps one of you will write one. Long time no hear, Dave! I got my interest in SWL radio and onto ham radio from a project in Boys Life in the late 1940s. It also helped that one of my father's buddies was a radio repair tech during WW-II but Harry was not a ham himself. Memories of NY's Cortlandt Street Radio Row, sadly the Ground Zero of 9/11 memory. 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From k2vco.vic at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 00:33:31 2019 From: k2vco.vic at gmail.com (Vic Rosenthal) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 07:33:31 +0200 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I have a Fluke DVM also. I gulped when I bought it some 30+ years ago, but it was a good decision. It?s like a Snap-On wrench. It just feels right and never let me down. Victor 4X6GP > On 25 Dec 2019, at 4:29, hawley, charles j jr wrote: > > ?I have a Fluke 87...for a couple of decades now. It does it all well. > > Chuck Jack Hawley > KE9UW > > Sent from my iPhone, cjack > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 10:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> >> A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it to determine if the others are accurate. There are several good brands available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. >> >> My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it with too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration. I am confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>>> On Dec 23, 2019, at 2:12 PM, Buck wrote: >>> >>> ?The reliable place to measure the voltage at the K3x is using the supply voltage display meter in the radio. I was surprised to find mine was significantly low. I thought it was voltage drop but changing the supply cable didn't make much difference. >>> >>> Turns out the Astron power supply was more than a volt low and the meter on the supply had been cranked up to make it appear to be correct. I used two separate VOMs to set the power supply and then adjusted the meter to make it agree. >>> >>> Moral of the story: don't rely on the meter on the power supply and assume a low reading at the radio is due solely to voltage drop. >>> >>> >>> >>> Buck, k4ia >>> Honor Roll >>> 8BDXCC >>> EasyWayHamBooks.com >>> >>>>> On 12/23/2019 2:26 PM, Phil Kane wrote: >>>>> On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: >>>>> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the back of >>>>> the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. >>>> That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the radio, at >>>> the PS, or at some other point? >>>> 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane >>>> Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >>>> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest >>>> Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to radiok4ia at gmail.com >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to c-hawley at illinois.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to k2vco.vic at gmail.com From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 09:02:33 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 14:02:33 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Update: The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 09:15:28 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 07:15:28 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] UPS vs FedEx In-Reply-To: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: Quite the opposite here ... I deal with multiple vendors in my business and simply won't buy from any that ships via the PTA company FedEx. 73 Rose - N7HKW Rose's Cases and Covers On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 07:03 Mike VE3YF wrote: > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > > -- > > *73 De Mike* > *VE3YF > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com > From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 09:18:21 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 14:18:21 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] UPS vs FedEx In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <18fa845e-ac33-3860-d954-f0066eafbfba@ve3yf.com> Hi Rose: As a New Years Resolution, maybe carriers can get their act together. Ha Ha Ha Merry Christmas Rose... -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Wed Dec 25 09:28:43 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 14:28:43 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> References: , <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: I feel for you Mike I recently ordered some parts from the RAM mounts company in western US for mounting my KX3 on the dash of my truck and watched the progress on UPS's website. The support staff was next to useless. I wanted to pre-pay the duties and taxes but they couldn't tell me how much that would be even after their website showed the shipment had cleared customs. Their delivery date expired and was revised no less than three times. The package entered the country at Windsor but they had to take it to Concord Ontario even though you just know the truck came down HWY401 right past the Kitchener distribution center before continuing on 80km past me in the wrong direction, after which it sat in Concord for two days. Fedex will charge me $50 brokerage on a $2.00 part from Sparkfun. I actually prefer and have had much better experiences with USPS and they have expedited and insured shipping. Thats how I got my recent KX3,PX3 and KXPAT100 combo and the shipping was flawless. With our dismal dollar buying from the US is just a painful experience no matter how you cut it. I can imagine your frustration waiting for the KPA1500. Joe ve3vxo ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Mike VE3YF Sent: December 25, 2019 9:02:33 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack Update: The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca From kilo6dko at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 11:16:37 2019 From: kilo6dko at gmail.com (Kent Olsen) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 08:16:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] UPS vs FedEx In-Reply-To: <18fa845e-ac33-3860-d954-f0066eafbfba@ve3yf.com> References: <18fa845e-ac33-3860-d954-f0066eafbfba@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: Mike I was a UPS driver for 27 years. I'm sorry you are having problems with your delivery. That being said, I have to say that it is the busiest time of the year for delivery companies. You may have a vision of your package sitting on a shelf, all by itself. That is not the case! your package is there in the customs house with 10's of thousands of other packages. The system is overwhelmed. I doubt FedX could really do any better ant this time of year. I know you are excited to get your new amp, but please have some patience. There are currently hundreds of UPS and FedX drivers on the big road (on Christmas day) trying to get things to where they need to be. Thanks 73 Kent N6WT On Wed, Dec 25, 2019 at 6:22 AM Mike VE3YF wrote: > Hi Rose: > > As a New Years Resolution, maybe carriers can get their act together. Ha > Ha Ha > > Merry Christmas Rose... > > -- > > *73 De Mike* > *VE3YF > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to kilo6dko at gmail.com > From donwilh at embarqmail.com Wed Dec 25 11:19:13 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 11:19:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Alignment & Test Part II In-Reply-To: <29dbfc4e-d193-9ae7-6b84-3f0488e160f4@techie.com> References: <29dbfc4e-d193-9ae7-6b84-3f0488e160f4@techie.com> Message-ID: <26c69902-77c2-46b0-1dcd-325ad58c565a@embarqmail.com> Neil, Your readings on the PLL range test show that Q19 is marginal. Q19 is not oscillating properly at the high end of the PLL range. The first thing to try is a small capacitor (12 to 15pF) from the source of Q19 to ground. You can easily mount the capacitor between pins 1 and 12 of U4. You can use one of the capacitors from the K2 kit and request a replacement from support at elecraft.com If that does not allow proper frequencies for the PLL Range Test, then get a replacement Q19 from parts at elecraft.com. Merry Christmas everyone. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/24/2019 6:19 PM, Neil Zampella wrote: > Hi, > > Started to do the Align/Test Pt II, and properly saw the correct > frequency of 12090 +/- 30 kHz.?? Tried the next part to adjust the > Reference Oscillator using my other K2 as the receiver and was able to > hear the oscillator at 3999, but C22 would not adjust to a > zero-beat.???? OK ... so it was close for the time being, so I figured > I'd use my KX3 to verify it later.? Moved on to the range test.?? The > Band- and Band+ buttons did not affect the display. > > Dug into the list archives, and saw a number of messages from Don to > check the solder joints, alignment, and type of D16, D17, R19, and > L31.??? I realized that somehow I missed installing R19.?? So I > installed the resistor, then restarted the alignment.?? This time when I > switched to CAL FCTR, the rig did not display the expected frequency of > 12090, but? a frequency of 3560 or so, flickering between readings. > However, when I pressed the Band- button, it changed to a steady 12084, > but when the Band+ was pressed, back to the 3560 flickering. > From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 11:20:27 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 09:20:27 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Best of holiday greetings ... Message-ID: from Rose and Ken 88 / 73 N7HKW / K0PP From rmcgraw at blomand.net Wed Dec 25 11:35:12 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 10:35:12 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: <55cdb54f-9ee8-a1b2-d986-c0cc749e5175@blomand.net> I ship more and more items via USPS Priority with added insurance as necessary.??? It is faster and less costly and more reliable than Fed-X or UPS.?? I shipped my K3S to Elecraft via USPS Priority on a Tuesday and it arrived at Elecraft on Thursday. They repaired it, updated it and sent it back by UPS Ground.?? It sat in the Distribution center in Ohio for 5 days.? Total time back to me was 11 days in transit.??? The daughter shipped a large box via UPS Ground from Orlando to us in middle TN.? It sat in Memphis for 5 days, thus was in transit for 11 days and only a week later than originally scheduled. Oh, there wasn't a K4 under my Christmas tree.?? Did you get one?? Maybe next year. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/25/2019 8:28 AM, Joseph Street wrote: > I feel for you Mike > > > I recently ordered some parts from the RAM mounts company in western US for mounting my KX3 on the dash of my truck and watched the progress on UPS's website. The support staff was next to useless. I wanted to pre-pay the duties and taxes but they couldn't tell me how much that would be even after their website showed the shipment had cleared customs. Their delivery date expired and was revised no less than three times. The package entered the country at Windsor but they had to take it to Concord Ontario even though you just know the truck came down HWY401 right past the Kitchener distribution center before continuing on 80km past me in the wrong direction, after which it sat in Concord for two days. Fedex will charge me $50 brokerage on a $2.00 part from Sparkfun. I actually prefer and have had much better experiences with USPS and they have expedited and insured shipping. Thats how I got my recent KX3,PX3 and KXPAT100 combo and the shipping was flawless. With our d > ismal dollar buying from the US is just a painful experience no matter how you cut it. I can imagine your frustration waiting for the KPA1500. > > > Joe ve3vxo > > > ________________________________ > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Mike VE3YF > Sent: December 25, 2019 9:02:33 AM > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack > > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > > -- > > *73 De Mike* > *VE3YF > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > From lists at subich.com Wed Dec 25 11:54:11 2019 From: lists at subich.com (Joe Subich, W4TV) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 11:54:11 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: Mike, > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, ... > and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. Unfortunately, other than USPS, UPS is the best of a bad lot. FedEx mess up more deliveries than they get right in my experience. I've had them try to charge *China* duties on shipments coming from Europe - simply because some clerk can't be bothered to read the commercial invoice. It is not unusual for them to charge significant processing and "advance payment" fees on import shipments for which there is no duty due, etc. I've had them hold packages for payment requiring me to drive completely across the Orlando metro area (3 hour round trip with significant tolls) only to have nothing due and the counter person simply hand me the package. 5B4AGN and I recently spent most of a week trying to sort out the import of cases for his most recent multi-band BPF group buy simply because FedEx's customs clerks did not read the commercial invoice for the shipment. Thus they were unable to properly classify the products and the country of origin - even though both were clearly stated on the invoice/packing list. FedEx may have been the best at one time, but their customer service has been circling the drain for at least two to three years. Now, with FedEx acquiring the US (and perhaps CA) end of both TNT and DHL the options for shipment from Europe to the US are being significantly reduced. 73, ... Joe, W4TV On 2019-12-25 9:02 AM, Mike VE3YF wrote: > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 11:56:47 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:56:47 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Joe: Normally I would have used USPS, I have liked them in the past, however due to the weight and cost it was not a good option. I wouldn't be so ticked off, but my package went to customs 3 times, repeated billing me of taxes and no less than 12 exceptions and this is all after the guaranteed delivery date, and by the looks of it, I might see it maybe 31 Dec, which is over a week after the promised date. They also don't allow people to pickup their packages in person, tried twice. -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 11:58:32 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:58:32 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Hi Joe: I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where they want and not much we can really do. Merry Christmas Joe. -- *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* From gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com Wed Dec 25 12:38:26 2019 From: gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com (George Thornton) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 17:38:26 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Concur. -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Vic Rosenthal Sent: Tuesday, December 24, 2019 9:34 PM To: hawley, charles j jr Cc: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop I have a Fluke DVM also. I gulped when I bought it some 30+ years ago, but it was a good decision. It?s like a Snap-On wrench. It just feels right and never let me down. Victor 4X6GP > On 25 Dec 2019, at 4:29, hawley, charles j jr wrote: > > ?I have a Fluke 87...for a couple of decades now. It does it all well. > > Chuck Jack Hawley > KE9UW > > Sent from my iPhone, cjack > >> On Dec 23, 2019, at 10:31 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> >> A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it to determine if the others are accurate. There are several good brands available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. >> >> My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it with too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration. I am confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. >> >> Bob, K4TAX >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> >>>> On Dec 23, 2019, at 2:12 PM, Buck wrote: >>> >>> ?The reliable place to measure the voltage at the K3x is using the supply voltage display meter in the radio. I was surprised to find mine was significantly low. I thought it was voltage drop but changing the supply cable didn't make much difference. >>> >>> Turns out the Astron power supply was more than a volt low and the meter on the supply had been cranked up to make it appear to be correct. I used two separate VOMs to set the power supply and then adjusted the meter to make it agree. >>> >>> Moral of the story: don't rely on the meter on the power supply and assume a low reading at the radio is due solely to voltage drop. >>> >>> >>> >>> Buck, k4ia >>> Honor Roll >>> 8BDXCC >>> EasyWayHamBooks.com >>> >>>>> On 12/23/2019 2:26 PM, Phil Kane wrote: >>>>> On 12/22/2019 9:44 AM, Bob McGraw wrote: >>>>> I also added a dedicated ground between the ground screw on the >>>>> back of the radio to the ground screw on the power supply. >>>> That's for "bonding". Where do you pick up "ground" - at the >>>> radio, at the PS, or at some other point? >>>> 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane >>>> Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >>>> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) >>>> Oregon >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: >>>> http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: >>>> http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >>>> radiok4ia at gmail.com >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >>> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >>> rmcgraw at blomand.net >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this >> email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to >> c-hawley at illinois.edu > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email > list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to > k2vco.vic at gmail.com ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to gthornton at thorntonmostullaw.com From richgilley123 at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 13:35:18 2019 From: richgilley123 at gmail.com (richard gilley) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 13:35:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS that if a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged. The why is, regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, freight is by pallet and fork lift. AD1G > On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF wrote: > > Hi Joe: > > I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where they want and not much we can really do. > > Merry Christmas Joe. > > -- > > *73 De Mike* > *VE3YF > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com From ferrisjennings at mindspring.com Wed Dec 25 13:49:04 2019 From: ferrisjennings at mindspring.com (Ferris Jennings) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 10:49:04 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] SP3 A/B Switch Problem Message-ID: <000201d5bb53$fb47bd00$f1d73700$@mindspring.com> My SP3 A/B switch has an issue. I use the supplied speaker cable from my K3S to the speaker A jack. I listen with the switch in the A position, but frequently push it in to the B position as a convenient mute. Switching back to A to listen, the sound is somewhat muted scratchy; cutting in and out as I wiggled the switch. I push the switch in and out a few times, and it returns to normal. I've switched the cable to the B port, but it's the same issue. I removed the side panel, thinking I could shoot a bit of DeoxIT into the switch, but it appears that the switch is sealed, so I canned that idea. Any suggestions on an easy fix or should I order up a new switch from Elecraft and replace it? Thanks in advance Ferris Jennings NB6T - From scott.small at gmail.com Wed Dec 25 14:01:43 2019 From: scott.small at gmail.com (Tox) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 11:01:43 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> References: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> Message-ID: Ha! I have vivid memories of a $100k rackmount computer UPS dropped (on a pallet) from high enough the computer ended up 2" shorter and had to be scrapped by the vendor. On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 10:35 AM richard gilley wrote: > When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS that if > a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged. The why is, > regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, freight is by pallet > and fork lift. > AD1G > > > On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF wrote: > > > > Hi Joe: > > > > I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where > they want and not much we can really do. > > > > Merry Christmas Joe. > > > > -- > > > > *73 De Mike* > > *VE3YF > > > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to scott.small at gmail.com > From KY5G at montac.com Wed Dec 25 14:06:29 2019 From: KY5G at montac.com (Clay Autery) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 13:06:29 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: If one can avoid it, one should NEVER use UPS to ship to Canada....? They have some bizarre relationship with the "Crown's Tax Collector"....? I remember customers having to pay a UPS processing fee of $50 on top of taxes, shipping, et al... FEDEX or USPS to the Great White North! ______________________ Clay Autery, KY5G (318) 518-1389 On 25-Dec-19 08:02, Mike VE3YF wrote: > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 15:02:57 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 20:02:57 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> References: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> Message-ID: <364a736f-439f-f878-4fd2-0b24e551bde5@ve3yf.com> Ouch. I think at one point in time that Alpha Power was shipping their amps on a Pallet to avoid damage. *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* On 25-Dec-19 18:35, richard gilley wrote: > When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS that if a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged. The why is, regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, freight is by pallet and fork lift. > AD1G > >> On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF wrote: >> >> Hi Joe: >> >> I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where they want and not much we can really do. >> >> Merry Christmas Joe. >> >> -- >> >> *73 De Mike* >> *VE3YF >> >> _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com From mike at ve3yf.com Wed Dec 25 15:04:10 2019 From: mike at ve3yf.com (Mike VE3YF) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 20:04:10 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: <628EC90E-24C1-4E50-8F67-9FBC62CB0422@gmail.com> Message-ID: I can imagine there are some real horror stories out there. I certainly hope my amp isn't one of those horror stories. *73 De Mike* *VE3YF _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* On 25-Dec-19 19:01, Tox wrote: > Ha! > > I have vivid memories of a $100k rackmount computer UPS dropped (on a > pallet) from high enough the computer ended up 2" shorter and had to > be scrapped by the vendor. > > On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 10:35 AM richard gilley > wrote: > > When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS > that if a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged.? > The why is, regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, > freight is by pallet and fork lift. > AD1G > > > On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF > wrote: > > > > Hi Joe: > > > > I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have > us where they want and not much we can really do. > > > > Merry Christmas Joe. > > > > -- > > > > *73 De Mike* > > *VE3YF > > > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to scott.small at gmail.com > > From nr4c at widomaker.com Wed Dec 25 15:19:03 2019 From: nr4c at widomaker.com (Nr4c) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 15:19:03 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Is this ?white truck? vs ?brown truck? match ever going to end? There many horror stories abound on both sides. But none really ?prove? anything. Both have their ups and downs. It?s Christmas, give it a break. Sent from my iPhone ...nr4c. bill > On Dec 25, 2019, at 2:03 PM, Tox wrote: > > ?Ha! > > I have vivid memories of a $100k rackmount computer UPS dropped (on a > pallet) from high enough the computer ended up 2" shorter and had to be > scrapped by the vendor. > >> On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 10:35 AM richard gilley >> wrote: >> >> When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS that if >> a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged. The why is, >> regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, freight is by pallet >> and fork lift. >> AD1G >> >>>> On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF wrote: >>> >>> Hi Joe: >>> >>> I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where >> they want and not much we can really do. >>> >>> Merry Christmas Joe. >>> >>> -- >>> >>> *73 De Mike* >>> *VE3YF >>> >>> _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to scott.small at gmail.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com From w0mu at w0mu.com Wed Dec 25 15:20:39 2019 From: w0mu at w0mu.com (W0MU Mike Fatchett) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 13:20:39 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: That stinks but I have had similar issues with both/all carriers.? FedEx can't reliably find our house after many called to the local station and many many complaints.? We had to get a box at a UPS store,? irony...... where we have our packages sent.? UPS will leave packages at the top of our 1/4 mile driveway along a busy street right next to a major interstate.? So yea........... I hope you get your amp soon! W0MU On 12/25/2019 7:02 AM, Mike VE3YF wrote: > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > From neilz at techie.com Wed Dec 25 15:24:29 2019 From: neilz at techie.com (Neil Zampella) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 15:24:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Alignment & Test Part II In-Reply-To: <26c69902-77c2-46b0-1dcd-325ad58c565a@embarqmail.com> References: <29dbfc4e-d193-9ae7-6b84-3f0488e160f4@techie.com> <26c69902-77c2-46b0-1dcd-325ad58c565a@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <84e531f5-2073-2ae6-adf5-0b09fa1867c9@techie.com> Don, Thanks, I'll work on that tomorrow and let you know how it goes. Merry Christmas!! Neil On 12/25/2019 11:19 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > Neil, > > Your readings on the PLL range test show that Q19 is marginal. Q19 is > not oscillating properly at the high end of the PLL range. > > The first thing to try is a small capacitor (12 to 15pF) from the > source of Q19 to ground.? You can easily mount the capacitor between > pins 1 and 12 of U4.? You can use one of the capacitors from the K2 > kit and request a replacement from support at elecraft.com > > If that does not allow proper frequencies for the PLL Range Test, then > get a replacement Q19 from parts at elecraft.com. > > Merry Christmas everyone. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/24/2019 6:19 PM, Neil Zampella wrote: >> Hi, >> >> Started to do the Align/Test Pt II, and properly saw the correct >> frequency of 12090 +/- 30 kHz.?? Tried the next part to adjust the >> Reference Oscillator using my other K2 as the receiver and was able to >> hear the oscillator at 3999, but C22 would not adjust to a >> zero-beat.???? OK ... so it was close for the time being, so I figured >> I'd use my KX3 to verify it later.? Moved on to the range test.?? The >> Band- and Band+ buttons did not affect the display. >> >> Dug into the list archives, and saw a number of messages from Don to >> check the solder joints, alignment, and type of D16, D17, R19, and >> L31.??? I realized that somehow I missed installing R19.?? So I >> installed the resistor, then restarted the alignment.?? This time when I >> switched to CAL FCTR, the rig did not display the expected frequency of >> 12090, but? a frequency of 3560 or so, flickering between readings. >> However, when I pressed the Band- button, it changed to a steady 12084, >> but when the Band+ was pressed, back to the 3560 flickering. >> > From wunder at wunderwood.org Wed Dec 25 15:30:39 2019 From: wunder at wunderwood.org (Walter Underwood) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 14:30:39 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <32A2F254-2EA0-4857-ACB9-F4FE773B92F2@wunderwood.org> I don?t see how the delivery companies are keeping up. Parcel volume doubled in four years and I expect it has been going at that rate for a decade or more. I?m not at all surprised that they have problems. This article says that carriers shipped 2,760 parcels per second in 2018 worldwide. https://www.supplychaindive.com/news/parcels-per-capita-revenue-e-commerce/564680/ wunder K6WRU Walter Underwood CM87wj http://observer.wunderwood.org/ (my blog) > On Dec 25, 2019, at 2:19 PM, Nr4c wrote: > > Is this ?white truck? vs ?brown truck? match ever going to end? There many horror stories abound on both sides. But none really ?prove? anything. Both have their ups and downs. > > It?s Christmas, give it a break. > > Sent from my iPhone > ...nr4c. bill > > >> On Dec 25, 2019, at 2:03 PM, Tox wrote: >> >> ?Ha! >> >> I have vivid memories of a $100k rackmount computer UPS dropped (on a >> pallet) from high enough the computer ended up 2" shorter and had to be >> scrapped by the vendor. >> >>> On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 10:35 AM richard gilley >>> wrote: >>> >>> When my Concept 2 rower was dropped off damaged; I was told by UPS that if >>> a heavy item is not shipped Freight it will be damaged. The why is, >>> regular shipping is handled by hand thus gets damaged, freight is by pallet >>> and fork lift. >>> AD1G >>> >>>>> On Dec 25, 2019, at 11:58, Mike VE3YF wrote: >>>> >>>> Hi Joe: >>>> >>>> I think all the courier services have gone downhill. They have us where >>> they want and not much we can really do. >>>> >>>> Merry Christmas Joe. >>>> >>>> -- >>>> >>>> *73 De Mike* >>>> *VE3YF >>>> >>>> _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* >>>> >>>> ______________________________________________________________ >>>> Elecraft mailing list >>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>>> >>>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>>> Message delivered to richgilley123 at gmail.com >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to scott.small at gmail.com >>> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to nr4c at widomaker.com > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to wunder at wunderwood.org From turnbull at net1.ie Wed Dec 25 17:19:26 2019 From: turnbull at net1.ie (Doug Turnbull) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 22:19:26 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] UPS vs FedEx In-Reply-To: References: <2307d3f5-fd1c-a4d5-21cb-566ac7d19124@ve3yf.com> Message-ID: Dear OMs and YLs, I am sorry to hear of these problems but let me tell you that my KPA1500 was delivered from California to Ireland in four days. It and all the packaging were in perfect condition. I paid the UPS man with my credit card when the delivery arrived to our door. This payment was for all the legitimate EU and Irish taxes. It was all very easy and most satisfactory. I have only good to say for UPS. I know a FedEx driver and have only good to say for them as well. So it is best to give good and bad experiences. 73 Doug EI2CN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Rose Sent: 25 December 2019 14:15 To: Mike VE3YF Cc: Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] UPS vs FedEx Quite the opposite here ... I deal with multiple vendors in my business and simply won't buy from any that ships via the PTA company FedEx. 73 Rose - N7HKW Rose's Cases and Covers On Wed, Dec 25, 2019, 07:03 Mike VE3YF wrote: > Update: > > The KPA1500 left Elecraft on 20 Dec 2019, and arrived in Mount Hope, > Ontario 21 Dec 2019, with a guaranteed delivery to me on 23 Dec 2019. > > And the KPA1500 is still in Mount Hope, Ontario, due to no fault of > Elecraft, Canada Customs, Weather and myself. > > UPS is the most useless carrier I have ever dealt with, and after > clearing customs they would not allow the KPA1500 to be picked up in > person even after taxes etc had been paid. Actually they wanted taxes > paid prior to going into Canada Customs. Just a note for Elecraft, I > will be sending a complete timetable of all the events that have > transpired, and maybe they can also get a FedEx shipping account as I > have had nothing but great success dealing with FedEx. > > UPS says I might see the package on 31 Dec 2019, heavy emphasis on might. > > The Christmas Grinch arrived at this shack. > > Hopefully everyone is having a Merry Christmas... > > -- > > *73 De Mike* > *VE3YF > > _/http://www.ve3yf.com/_* > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to turnbull at net1.ie From n7wy at rocketmail.com Wed Dec 25 18:14:44 2019 From: n7wy at rocketmail.com (Robert Rennard) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 17:14:44 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack Message-ID: FedEx ? Put a failed delivery sticker on the gate an eighth of a mile from our porch. Claimed they did so the next 2 days, but they did not. When I called they told me to pick up the item 30 miles away in another town. Asked them to deliver to our town which they agreed to do and claimed it would be at FedEx Office before Noon. I went there and the clerk laughed and told me it might be Noon in Hawaii when they got it. UPS Does not ring the intercom bell at the roadside gate, leaves the parcel in a large plastic bag which flaps in the wind to alert the poachers. If I leave the gate open, they bring the parcel onto the porch, do not ring the doorbell, and do not put the parcel in a protective bag. USPS Sent a cashiers check for $1500 by Priority Mail to get a soil characteristics report done for inspection by the county engineer before erecting a tower. The soils engineer drilled a 25 foot deep test hole, created a report, and billed me for the $1500. When asked, they said they?d never seen the check, they called USPS who said it was delivered to their office on Saturday to which they replied that the multi-tenant building was locked, They asked USPS to find out what happened and the USPS response was that the delivery carrier was no longer in their employ. DHL Shipped some electronics from San Jose to San Diego overnight. DHL claimed that the forest fire forbid them making the delivery. When I asked them how far away the fire was from the downtown recipient, they went more stupid. Good luck Bob R = n7wy From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Wed Dec 25 18:18:31 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 14:18:31 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack Message-ID: <201912252318.xBPNIYp2001863@mail40c28.carrierzone.com> This topic probably worn out. I ran a small ham radio business and used USPS to domestic and international destinations with good results (most of the time). There was one shipment to the UK that was sent to Canada, and another to Germany was fowarded by funkpost to Saudia Arabia (fortunately was returned after a week to Germany for deliver in-country). Main reason to chose USPS Priority Mail was cost. UPS/FedEX typically charge 150% what it costs with USPS. But funny thing is seeing the UPS or FedEx trucks show up to deliver the US Mail to/from our local PO. BTW overnight to AK takes 2-days; 2-day delivery is always 3-days, etc. Deliveries only make it on-time to the Anchorage Airport depot; takes another day for delivery by truck (even to Anchorage addresses). I'm no longer in-business. WA2ODO-Pete Manfre quit making preamps last July. I stopped making DEMI kits and W6PQL amp kits a couple years ago. Hope everyone is having a pleasant and joyous holiday. Maybe the K4 will arrive by Valentines?? I'm happy with my upgraded K3/10, KX3, and KXPA100. Bucket truck is scheduled to work on my 6m-eme array after the holidays (getting new rotator, digital encoder, and thrust bearing). 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From k2asp at kanafi.org Wed Dec 25 18:42:16 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Wed, 25 Dec 2019 15:42:16 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Upgrading the Shack In-Reply-To: <201912252318.xBPNIYp2001863@mail40c28.carrierzone.com> References: <201912252318.xBPNIYp2001863@mail40c28.carrierzone.com> Message-ID: On 12/25/2019 3:18 PM, Edward R Cole wrote: > Main reason to chose USPS Priority Mail was cost.? UPS/FedEX typically > charge 150% what it costs with USPS.? But funny thing is seeing the UPS > or FedEx trucks show up to deliver the US Mail to/from our local PO. FedEx will deliver to the PO loading dock directly if the recipient's address is a PO Box. UPS will not, but will deliver to the PO dock if the PO's street address is used. Many other carriers have a "partnership" with the USPS, delivering to a USPS regional mail center and then using the USPS to finish the job. 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From ac5p at sbcglobal.net Wed Dec 25 20:02:10 2019 From: ac5p at sbcglobal.net (Mike Maloney) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 01:02:10 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] KPA-500 failure References: <320367562.2293962.1577322130789.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <320367562.2293962.1577322130789@mail.yahoo.com> Anyone else have their KPA-500 crash on power ON? ? All LED's briefly flash then all dead.? Main fuses good. ? 73,? Mike AC5P From FlatHat at comcast.net Thu Dec 26 06:00:26 2019 From: FlatHat at comcast.net (Richard) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 06:00:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Somewhat Shredded Memory Message-ID: <3653C969-A8E7-457F-8569-139374C4013F@comcast.net> I mean the one in my head. I recently put my KPA500 back into service. Seems to work perfectly. However, I?m puzzled by what looks like a giant asterisk that appears in the little alphanumeric readout; I think it was when reading SWR, but I?m not sure. Can?t find a reference to this anywhere, not in the manual, not on the website, and not in the depths of Google. What am I seeing? What is it trying to tell me? Cheers for 2020! Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX From kd4iz at frawg.org Thu Dec 26 06:05:06 2019 From: kd4iz at frawg.org (kd4iz at frawg.org) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 06:05:06 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Somewhat Shredded Memory In-Reply-To: <3653C969-A8E7-457F-8569-139374C4013F@comcast.net> References: <3653C969-A8E7-457F-8569-139374C4013F@comcast.net> Message-ID: <036b01d5bbdc$567e1380$037a3a80$@frawg.org> It means you are keying up. ? KD4IZ -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Richard Sent: Thursday, December 26, 2019 06:00 To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: [Elecraft] Somewhat Shredded Memory I mean the one in my head. I recently put my KPA500 back into service. Seems to work perfectly. However, I?m puzzled by what looks like a giant asterisk that appears in the little alphanumeric readout; I think it was when reading SWR, but I?m not sure. Can?t find a reference to this anywhere, not in the manual, not on the website, and not in the depths of Google. What am I seeing? What is it trying to tell me? Cheers for 2020! Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kd4iz at frawg.org From glcazzola at alice.it Thu Dec 26 08:29:30 2019 From: glcazzola at alice.it (IK4EWX) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 06:29:30 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] SP3 A/B Switch Problem In-Reply-To: <000201d5bb53$fb47bd00$f1d73700$@mindspring.com> References: <000201d5bb53$fb47bd00$f1d73700$@mindspring.com> Message-ID: <1577366970727-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I had the same problem about one years ago. I have two SP3 loudspeakers, on on each receiver or both speakers, ore one receiver with the K3S audio effects that use both loudspeakers. The switch scratched when changing channel and it attenuated the audio signals. The italian service obtained from Elecraft USA the switch with the connected cable and we had to change it. The real problem seemed a part failure, but we had changed it after only little more than two years of use. I would like mil parts and radio with mil parts, but a Rhode Schwartz or a Cubic cost too much... Ian IK4EWX -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From neilz at techie.com Thu Dec 26 09:26:05 2019 From: neilz at techie.com (Neil Zampella) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 09:26:05 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 Alignment & Test Part II In-Reply-To: <84e531f5-2073-2ae6-adf5-0b09fa1867c9@techie.com> References: <29dbfc4e-d193-9ae7-6b84-3f0488e160f4@techie.com> <26c69902-77c2-46b0-1dcd-325ad58c565a@embarqmail.com> <84e531f5-2073-2ae6-adf5-0b09fa1867c9@techie.com> Message-ID: Don, I installed the 12pF cap as suggested didn't help, so I'm going to request a replacement Q19. Thanks, Neil, KN3ILZ On 12/25/2019 3:24 PM, Neil Zampella wrote: > Don, > > Thanks, I'll work on that tomorrow and let you know how it goes. > > Merry Christmas!! > > Neil > > On 12/25/2019 11:19 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: >> Neil, >> >> Your readings on the PLL range test show that Q19 is marginal. Q19 is >> not oscillating properly at the high end of the PLL range. >> >> The first thing to try is a small capacitor (12 to 15pF) from the >> source of Q19 to ground.? You can easily mount the capacitor between >> pins 1 and 12 of U4.? You can use one of the capacitors from the K2 >> kit and request a replacement from support at elecraft.com >> >> If that does not allow proper frequencies for the PLL Range Test, >> then get a replacement Q19 from parts at elecraft.com. >> >> Merry Christmas everyone. >> >> 73, >> Don W3FPR >> >> On 12/24/2019 6:19 PM, Neil Zampella wrote: >>> Hi, >>> >>> Started to do the Align/Test Pt II, and properly saw the correct >>> frequency of 12090 +/- 30 kHz.?? Tried the next part to adjust the >>> Reference Oscillator using my other K2 as the receiver and was able to >>> hear the oscillator at 3999, but C22 would not adjust to a >>> zero-beat.???? OK ... so it was close for the time being, so I figured >>> I'd use my KX3 to verify it later.? Moved on to the range test.?? The >>> Band- and Band+ buttons did not affect the display. >>> >>> Dug into the list archives, and saw a number of messages from Don to >>> check the solder joints, alignment, and type of D16, D17, R19, and >>> L31.??? I realized that somehow I missed installing R19.?? So I >>> installed the resistor, then restarted the alignment.?? This time >>> when I >>> switched to CAL FCTR, the rig did not display the expected frequency of >>> 12090, but? a frequency of 3560 or so, flickering between readings. >>> However, when I pressed the Band- button, it changed to a steady 12084, >>> but when the Band+ was pressed, back to the 3560 flickering. >>> >> From KG3V at ChesBayVA.com Thu Dec 26 09:39:12 2019 From: KG3V at ChesBayVA.com (Tom KG3V) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 09:39:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Using KAT-500 without BAND Information Message-ID: I am using a KAT-500 Tuner with an ICOM IC-7600. I am not providing BAND data, which is in line with recommendations for connecting this radio in the Elecraft manuals. The documents tell me that RF Frequency-sensing overrides all other information. I have two antennas enabled. ANT 1 is a vertical for 10-40 meters. ANT 2 is an 80 meter dipole. I only ENABLE ANT 2 for 80 meters and only ENABLE ANT 1 for all other Bands, in the KAT Config. If I change Bands and hit the Tune button, KAT-500 will not change to the correct antenna Instead, it tries to Tune with the wrong antenna. The second time I hit TUNE, it will go to the correct antenna. If instead, I change Bands and hit the Key, the correct antenna is selected. That is fine on CW, but not great for other Modes. Is this a bug? I don't see how this could be desirable. I think this would be especially bad if I have the KPA-500 powered-ON. I confirmed that the latest KAT-500 Firmware is installed. Am I missing something?? 73, Tom, KG3V From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 11:04:41 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 09:04:41 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Flex quote Message-ID: Who asked for a Flex 6000 series cover cost quote? 73 Rose - N7HKW 1-406-560-3738 From donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 26 11:15:51 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 11:15:51 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Using KAT-500 without BAND Information In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <67bca0af-75c1-8ff3-3638-92984325aa50@embarqmail.com> Tom, If by "hit the TUNE button", you are referring to the TUNE button on the KPA500, those results are completely understandable. Changing bands on your transceiver is not communicated to the KAT500 yet - (it will only be communicated when you provide RF to the KAT500). So the KAT500 will not switch bands and will attempt to tune on the wrong antenna initially. Once the KAT500 senses RF, it will know that the band is not correct and will switch to the proper antenna for the band in use. In your second scenerio, you are providing RF to the KAT500 first and it will behave properly, so use that sequence. You should not have any problems with the KPA500 if you have the keying cable run correctly - from the transceiver to the KAT500 and then from the KAT500 to the KPA500. The KAT500 interrupts the keying line to the KPA500 so the tuning is done only with the exciter power level. 73 and HNY, Don W3FPR On 12/26/2019 9:39 AM, Tom KG3V wrote: > I am using a KAT-500 Tuner with an ICOM IC-7600. I am not providing BAND > data, which is in line with recommendations for connecting this radio in > the Elecraft manuals. The documents tell me that RF Frequency-sensing > overrides all other information. I have two antennas enabled. ANT 1 is a > vertical for 10-40 meters. ANT 2 is an 80 meter dipole. I only ENABLE > ANT 2 for 80 meters and only ENABLE ANT 1 for all other Bands, in the > KAT Config. > > If I change Bands and hit the Tune button, KAT-500 will not change to > the correct antenna Instead, it tries to Tune with the wrong antenna. > The second time I hit TUNE, it will go to the correct antenna. If > instead, I change Bands and hit the Key, the correct antenna is > selected. That is fine on CW, but not great for other Modes. Is this a > bug? I don't see how this could be desirable. I think this would be > especially bad if I have the KPA-500 powered-ON. > From KG3V at ChesBayVA.com Thu Dec 26 11:40:37 2019 From: KG3V at ChesBayVA.com (Tom KG3V) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 11:40:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Using KAT-500 without BAND Information In-Reply-To: <67bca0af-75c1-8ff3-3638-92984325aa50@embarqmail.com> References: <67bca0af-75c1-8ff3-3638-92984325aa50@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <796f80bf-6a3b-5796-ef78-e5663952208b@ChesBayVA.com> Don, Good to hear from you. You helped me many times with K2 questions in the past. Thanks for that! Hope you are enjoying the Holiday Season. I actually meant the TUNE button on the IC-7600. You must have meant on the KAT-500, since there is not a TUNE button on the KPA-500. It does not seem to matter which TUNE button I press. I think you confirmed that it is working as expected. Still a bit annoying. As soon as the TUNE cycle starts, of course there is RF. I guess the KAT-500 is not sensing frequency DURING the TUNE event. So, any time I switch Bands, I may go through a "complete" Tune cycle with an antenna for the wrong Band. Of course, that most likely will not complete with a match. The second TUNE cycle always selects the desired antenna. I think I need to send the Band information from the IC-7600 to the KAT-500. My other option will be to use only one antenna with the KAT-500 during Contests. Is it safe to assume that if I send the Band info, this would not happen and the first TUNE cycle would be with the "correct" antenna? 73, Tom, KG3V On 12/26/2019 11:15 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > Tom, > > If by "hit the TUNE button", you are referring to the TUNE button on > the KPA500, those results are completely understandable. > > Changing bands on your transceiver is not communicated to the KAT500 > yet - (it will only be communicated when you provide RF to the KAT500). > > So the KAT500 will not switch bands and will attempt to tune on the > wrong antenna initially.? Once the KAT500 senses RF, it will know that > the band is not correct and will switch to the proper antenna for the > band in use. > > In your second scenerio, you are providing RF to the KAT500 first and > it will behave properly, so use that sequence. > > You should not have any problems with the KPA500 if you have the > keying cable run correctly - from the transceiver to the KAT500 and > then from the KAT500 to the KPA500. > The KAT500 interrupts the keying line to the KPA500 so the tuning is > done only with the exciter power level. > > 73 and HNY, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/26/2019 9:39 AM, Tom KG3V wrote: >> I am using a KAT-500 Tuner with an ICOM IC-7600. I am not providing >> BAND data, which is in line with recommendations for connecting this >> radio in the Elecraft manuals. The documents tell me that RF >> Frequency-sensing overrides all other information. I have two >> antennas enabled. ANT 1 is a vertical for 10-40 meters. ANT 2 is an >> 80 meter dipole. I only ENABLE ANT 2 for 80 meters and only ENABLE >> ANT 1 for all other Bands, in the KAT Config. >> >> If I change Bands and hit the Tune button, KAT-500 will not change to >> the correct antenna Instead, it tries to Tune with the wrong antenna. >> The second time I hit TUNE, it will go to the correct antenna. If >> instead, I change Bands and hit the Key, the correct antenna is >> selected. That is fine on CW, but not great for other Modes. Is this >> a bug? I don't see how this could be desirable. I think this would be >> especially bad if I have the KPA-500 powered-ON. >> -- Get on the Air and make some noise Ham Blog at WWW.KG3V.COM From tfricke at web.de Thu Dec 26 12:05:49 2019 From: tfricke at web.de (Thorsten Fricke) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 18:05:49 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Can I use an XV144 Transverter with my KX2? Message-ID: <1a2face7-7b02-f318-ed03-ad49435e7c1b@web.de> Merry Christmas everyone, hope you have received some nice presents ;-) Maybe a silly question, but I didn't find anything in the manual and would like to be on the safe side. I may be able to purchase a used XV144 Transverter and would be interested in using it with my KX2 (only in my shack at home). There needs to be some dip switch settings done before using the Transverter, but as the manual is only mentioning the K2 and K3, I am not sure on whether using K3 settings are appropriate or whether I need to use another setting (and which one). Thanks for any advice on this, so I can decide on whether I'll buy the XV144 or not. 73 and a happy new year Thorsten, DH4FT From donwilh at embarqmail.com Thu Dec 26 12:56:55 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 12:56:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Can I use an XV144 Transverter with my KX2? In-Reply-To: <1a2face7-7b02-f318-ed03-ad49435e7c1b@web.de> References: <1a2face7-7b02-f318-ed03-ad49435e7c1b@web.de> Message-ID: Thorsten, The XV144 will work with the KX2 - it needs only the KEYOUT signal from Ring 2 of the ACC jack (or the the RCA jack on the KX2 to KXPA100) and coax from the KX2 ANT jack. Set the XV144 up as shown for a Non-Elecraft transverter with a single coax input as shown in the XV144 Owners manual. 73 and HNY, Don W3FPR On 12/26/2019 12:05 PM, Thorsten Fricke wrote: > Merry Christmas everyone, hope you have received some nice presents ;-) > > Maybe a silly question, but I didn't find anything in the manual and > would like to be on the safe side. I may be able to purchase a used > XV144 Transverter and would be interested in using it with my KX2 (only > in my shack at home). There needs to be some dip switch settings done > before using the Transverter, but as the manual is only mentioning the > K2 and K3, I am not sure on whether using K3 settings are appropriate or > whether I need to use another setting (and which one). > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Thu Dec 26 13:18:35 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 12:18:35 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Using KAT-500 without BAND Information In-Reply-To: <796f80bf-6a3b-5796-ef78-e5663952208b@ChesBayVA.com> References: <796f80bf-6a3b-5796-ef78-e5663952208b@ChesBayVA.com> Message-ID: Check the KAT500 utility to see which antennas are authorized and for which bands. You will need to supply RF from the IC7600 in order for the KAT 500 to know what to do. If you have 2 antennas authorized for the same band that will confuse the issue. Also selecting LastUsed may be an issue where band data is not available. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 26, 2019, at 10:58 AM, Tom KG3V wrote: > > ?Don, > > Good to hear from you. You helped me many times with K2 questions in the past. Thanks for that! Hope you are enjoying the Holiday Season. > > I actually meant the TUNE button on the IC-7600. You must have meant on the KAT-500, since there is not a TUNE button on the KPA-500. It does not seem to matter which TUNE button I press. I think you confirmed that it is working as expected. Still a bit annoying. As soon as the TUNE cycle starts, of course there is RF. I guess the KAT-500 is not sensing frequency DURING the TUNE event. So, any time I switch Bands, I may go through a "complete" Tune cycle with an antenna for the wrong Band. Of course, that most likely will not complete with a match. The second TUNE cycle always selects the desired antenna. > > I think I need to send the Band information from the IC-7600 to the KAT-500. My other option will be to use only one antenna with the KAT-500 during Contests. Is it safe to assume that if I send the Band info, this would not happen and the first TUNE cycle would be with the "correct" antenna? > > 73, > > Tom, KG3V > > > >> On 12/26/2019 11:15 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: >> Tom, >> >> If by "hit the TUNE button", you are referring to the TUNE button on the KPA500, those results are completely understandable. >> >> Changing bands on your transceiver is not communicated to the KAT500 yet - (it will only be communicated when you provide RF to the KAT500). >> >> So the KAT500 will not switch bands and will attempt to tune on the wrong antenna initially. Once the KAT500 senses RF, it will know that the band is not correct and will switch to the proper antenna for the band in use. >> >> In your second scenerio, you are providing RF to the KAT500 first and it will behave properly, so use that sequence. >> >> You should not have any problems with the KPA500 if you have the keying cable run correctly - from the transceiver to the KAT500 and then from the KAT500 to the KPA500. >> The KAT500 interrupts the keying line to the KPA500 so the tuning is done only with the exciter power level. >> >> 73 and HNY, >> Don W3FPR >> >>> On 12/26/2019 9:39 AM, Tom KG3V wrote: >>> I am using a KAT-500 Tuner with an ICOM IC-7600. I am not providing BAND data, which is in line with recommendations for connecting this radio in the Elecraft manuals. The documents tell me that RF Frequency-sensing overrides all other information. I have two antennas enabled. ANT 1 is a vertical for 10-40 meters. ANT 2 is an 80 meter dipole. I only ENABLE ANT 2 for 80 meters and only ENABLE ANT 1 for all other Bands, in the KAT Config. >>> >>> If I change Bands and hit the Tune button, KAT-500 will not change to the correct antenna Instead, it tries to Tune with the wrong antenna. The second time I hit TUNE, it will go to the correct antenna. If instead, I change Bands and hit the Key, the correct antenna is selected. That is fine on CW, but not great for other Modes. Is this a bug? I don't see how this could be desirable. I think this would be especially bad if I have the KPA-500 powered-ON. >>> > -- > Get on the Air and make some noise > Ham Blog at WWW.KG3V.COM > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From tfricke at web.de Thu Dec 26 13:44:26 2019 From: tfricke at web.de (Thorsten Fricke) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 19:44:26 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] Can I use an XV144 Transverter with my KX2? In-Reply-To: References: <1a2face7-7b02-f318-ed03-ad49435e7c1b@web.de> Message-ID: <89da86a2-c7f3-7d90-651f-5a57166a6664@web.de> Thanks Don! This sounds good and I'll head for the XV144 then ;-) 73 es HNY Thorsten, DH4FT Am 26.12.19 um 18:56 schrieb Don Wilhelm: > Thorsten, > > The XV144 will work with the KX2 - it needs only the KEYOUT signal > from Ring 2 of the ACC jack (or the the RCA jack on the KX2 to > KXPA100) and coax from the KX2 ANT jack. > > Set the XV144 up as shown for a Non-Elecraft transverter with a single > coax input as shown in the XV144 Owners manual. > > 73 and HNY, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/26/2019 12:05 PM, Thorsten Fricke wrote: >> Merry Christmas everyone, hope you have received some nice presents ;-) >> >> Maybe a silly question, but I didn't find anything in the manual and >> would like to be on the safe side. I may be able to purchase a used >> XV144 Transverter and would be interested in using it with my KX2 (only >> in my shack at home). There needs to be some dip switch settings done >> before using the Transverter, but as the manual is only mentioning the >> K2 and K3, I am not sure on whether using K3 settings are appropriate or >> whether I need to use another setting (and which one). >> From frantz at pwpconsult.com Thu Dec 26 14:46:38 2019 From: frantz at pwpconsult.com (Bill Frantz) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 14:46:38 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: <915ab6e3-40a3-e577-3c55-d11f291abd47@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: One of the young people in our club -- late 20s or early 30s is my guess -- said at a meeting that he liked contesting because in a contest, he does not have to listen to old men describing their medical problems. He is now a very up and coming contester. Moral of the story, try to rag chew about fun things when talking with strangers. My own observation is that conversation with strangers is an art form. It can easily be practiced in airport waiting rooms, but perhaps the best place is the club car on a long distance train. Skill in it is valuable for a radio rag chewer. (And I miss rag chewing with PSK31. FT8 just isn't the same.) Yesterday, my 6 year old grandson was lucky enough to receive a pair of walkie-talkies. They are AM units on 49.86 MHz. I was able to receive them with my KX3 and an AT1. He has been using them quite actively since he opened them. They also have a morse code chart printed on the radio and a button to use for sending morse code. My grandson's father (KI6NVN, but not a CW op) and I described morse code to him, and I sent some things, including his name, in code. We told him we didn't expect him to learn code quickly -- he's just in kindergarten -- but we would let him hear what it sounds like. Who knows where this moment will lead. 73 Bill AE6JV On 12/22/19 at 11:37 PM, donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) wrote: >Bring ragchewing back, and I am not talking about the nets on >80 and 40 meters, it is reaching out to someone new and telling >a bit about ourselves and getting the same in return. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | Privacy is dead, get over | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | it. | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | - Scott McNealy | Los Gatos, CA 95032 From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Thu Dec 26 14:56:51 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 12:56:51 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Please don't let him learn code by sight.? I taught myself from the list in my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it)? and I've never overcome doing it the wrong way. Passed a 20 WPM Extra exam but it was a struggle.? Still my favorite mode though. Wes? N7WS On 12/26/2019 12:46 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > > > They also have a morse code chart printed on the radio and a button to use for > sending morse code. My grandson's father (KI6NVN, but not a CW op) and I > described morse code to him, and I sent some things, including his name, in > code. We told him we didn't expect him to learn code quickly -- he's just in > kindergarten -- but we would let him hear what it sounds like. Who knows where > this moment will lead. > > 73 Bill AE6JV From pincon at erols.com Mon Dec 23 21:12:43 2019 From: pincon at erols.com (Charlie T) Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 21:12:43 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: <85CD944F-AE25-4595-BD64-659DB1DB3CF6@comcast.net> References: <85CD944F-AE25-4595-BD64-659DB1DB3CF6@comcast.net> Message-ID: <00a801d5b9ff$a53f8460$efbe8d20$@erols.com> I don't understand the paradigm that the K4 is WAY more expensive than the K3s. If you outfit a K3s with everything that is included for example, in a K4D, I believe you'll find the K3s package is actually MORE expensive than the K4D. Don't forget to include: The P3, + transmit monitor, + VGA output option (more modern HDMI on the K4 ). 73, Charlie k3ICH From kengkopp at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 15:25:51 2019 From: kengkopp at gmail.com (Ken G Kopp) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 13:25:51 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning the code Message-ID: Difficulty remembering correct name ... Farnsworth method (?) ... Copy characters fast (10+ WPM) and slow down by increasing the spacing between characters while still maintaining the same character speed. -Never- count dots and dashes ... Learn letters as small "packages" of sounds. CW is the one thing in life I am good at. (:-) FWIW ... 73 K0PP From k6dgw at foothill.net Thu Dec 26 16:39:31 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 13:39:31 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <74e0ba86-aac6-8fa1-b638-ccd2ee929a7c@foothill.net> A number of years ago [probably more than comes to my mind], someone published a table of sub-allocations for 75 meters derived from its nickname, "The Medical Band," not to be confused with "Medicine Band," an 80's band from Los Angeles playing "noise pop."? All who know what noise pop sounds like please raise your hand. I don't remember the details but I know there was a sub-band reserved for diseases of the digestive tract with a sub-sub-band allocated for persistent heartburn and belching. And, yes, the art of the rag chew seems to be fading. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/26/2019 11:46 AM, Bill Frantz wrote: > One of the young people in our club -- late 20s or early 30s is my > guess -- said at a meeting that he liked contesting because in a > contest, he does not have to listen to old men describing their > medical problems. He is now a very up and coming contester. From turnbull at net1.ie Thu Dec 26 17:18:14 2019 From: turnbull at net1.ie (Doug Turnbull) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 22:18:14 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: <00a801d5b9ff$a53f8460$efbe8d20$@erols.com> References: <85CD944F-AE25-4595-BD64-659DB1DB3CF6@comcast.net> <00a801d5b9ff$a53f8460$efbe8d20$@erols.com> Message-ID: <832BECB76FCF4D02BA5CE9B54E688F1B@DougTPC> Charles is correct. Even the fully loaded K3 is more expensive than the fully loaded K4. Look at all the add ons for the K3 such as high stability oscillator and DVK then add in a full eight roofing filters when you have a second receiver. The P3 with external monitor card and before long you are touching $6000 plus. Remember the addition of the KB3 to allow out of amateur bands reception. Now take into consideration even the low inflation of recent years and I am talking K3 not K3S. The K4 is not harshly priced plus the performance is improved at least from the Graphical User Interface point of view and probably from an RF perspective as well. The total package is smaller than a K3 with P3 combination. Elecraft is not gouging but presenting to us a new opportunity with what one hopes is going to be again the top of the pile radio. You can not expect to purchase a K4D with superhet front ends for the price of an Icom 7300. The Icom is a great radio for the money but it is not in K4 territory. You can gradually build up to the ultimate K4 if this is what you seek. Again the modular approach taken by Elecraft is an advantage. It also seems that Elecraft is allowing for considerable expansion of K4 capabilities in future. Of course everyone is interested in seeing if Elecraft advances the specifications as reported by Sherwood Engineering. The user interface will be improved now will the RF performance still be improved as well. I suspect that in most cases an old Drake twins pair will work everything the K4D will work on non WARC bands but it may not be as comfortable to do so. I enjoyed the Drake twins but would not go back. Put the fully loaded K4 up against the best of the competitors and look at the prices. No I am not suggesting that our friends should not get greedy but as things stand it looks like the K4 is a pretty fair deal for one seeking the top of the line. May I also remind you that you are dealing in a radio made by people who speak English. The manuals tend to be better from our perspective. I have a Toyota Prius Plug In and boy does that manual have problems. Technical writing is not a trivial matter. This radio is going to be complex. We also have what from Elecraft what I believe is the best support in the industry. The Chief Engineers and CEOs Wayne and Eric participate in this forum. 73 Doug EI2CN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Charlie T Sent: 24 December 2019 02:13 To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date I don't understand the paradigm that the K4 is WAY more expensive than the K3s. If you outfit a K3s with everything that is included for example, in a K4D, I believe you'll find the K3s package is actually MORE expensive than the K4D. Don't forget to include: The P3, + transmit monitor, + VGA output option (more modern HDMI on the K4 ). 73, Charlie k3ICH ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to turnbull at net1.ie From keith at elecraft.com Thu Dec 26 18:24:50 2019 From: keith at elecraft.com (Keith Trinity WE6R) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 15:24:50 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> Message-ID: <2c5e77fc-9b54-3663-e581-fbe2d89c0c48@elecraft.com> Notes for all; Check the K3 config menu item "ADC REF". If at 5.00 it is probably at default. (if at 4.00 a glitch occurred, probably during FW update, and will FUBAR the internal metering. Set to 5.00 or read on). (I check this during checkout, so if it has been in for Service, it should be OK). Higher accuracy of the K3 items like the internal Volt-Meter can be had if this is set properly. With a known external meter on Pin 2 to ground of the 15 pin ACCY connector; Go into config menu ADC REF and set it. Also you can stick your probes into the Anderson connectors at the back of the radio during full power TX to see the actual voltage to the radio. (I have a digital LED meter connected with small wires to the Anderson supply wire right at the back of the radio on my K3 test bench). Keith WE6R From mike.flowers at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 18:39:58 2019 From: mike.flowers at gmail.com (Mike Flowers) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 15:39:58 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <2c5e77fc-9b54-3663-e581-fbe2d89c0c48@elecraft.com> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <2c5e77fc-9b54-3663-e581-fbe2d89c0c48@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <007901d5bc45$c9172440$5b456cc0$@gmail.com> Hi Keith, Mine reads 4.96, so should it be set to 5.0 or left alone? Thanks. - 73 and good DX de Mike, K6MKF, NCDXC Secretary > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net > On Behalf Of Keith Trinity WE6R > Sent: Thursday, December 26, 2019 15:25 > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop > > Notes for all; > Check the K3 config menu item "ADC REF". If at 5.00 it is probably at > default. > (if at 4.00 a glitch occurred, probably during FW update, and will FUBAR the > internal metering. Set to 5.00 or read on). > (I check this during checkout, so if it has been in for Service, it should be OK). > > Higher accuracy of the K3 items like the internal Volt-Meter can be had if this is > set properly. > With a known external meter on Pin 2 to ground of the 15 pin ACCY connector; > Go into config menu ADC REF and set it. > > Also you can stick your probes into the Anderson connectors at the back of the > radio during full power TX to see the actual voltage to the radio. > (I have a digital LED meter connected with small wires to the Anderson supply > wire right at the back of the radio on my K3 test bench). > Keith WE6R > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message > delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com From dbthompson at me.com Thu Dec 26 18:45:20 2019 From: dbthompson at me.com (David Thompson) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 15:45:20 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning the code In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1BFAB6F3-D938-4817-B5E0-55241DBE93F9@me.com> Hi Ken, You are correct? an excellent way to learn is the Koch method with the Farnsworth spacing. Characters are typically formed at 20wpm and then space increase to get the speed down to something copyable. That gives good sound and an adjustable pace. I?m learning now and using the Farnsworth spacing. It?s working. 73 de AG7TX David Thompson, AG7TX Jack of All Trades Master of None dbthompson at me.com > On Dec 26, 2019, at 12:25, Ken G Kopp wrote: > > Difficulty remembering correct name ... Farnsworth method (?) ... Copy > characters fast (10+ WPM) and slow down by increasing the spacing between > characters while still maintaining the same character speed. -Never- count > dots and dashes ... Learn letters as small "packages" of sounds. > > CW is the one thing in life I am good at. (:-) > > FWIW ... > > 73 > > K0PP > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dbthompson at me.com From keith at elecraft.com Thu Dec 26 18:52:37 2019 From: keith at elecraft.com (Keith Trinity WE6R) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 15:52:37 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <007901d5bc45$c9172440$5b456cc0$@gmail.com> References: <006501d5b8df$1ab931e0$502b95a0$@verizon.net> <2c5e77fc-9b54-3663-e581-fbe2d89c0c48@elecraft.com> <007901d5bc45$c9172440$5b456cc0$@gmail.com> Message-ID: I would leave it at 4.96 as that tells me it was set at some point (from 5.00 default). However, if you think the internal metering is wrong, you could double check it if you have a calibrated meter. Valid range of ADC REF setting is 4.75 to 5.25 and I typically see the correct value around 4.85 to 5.05. To experiment, I checked at 5.25 and 4.75 Set at 5.25 the internal volt meter displayed 14.2V. Set at 4.75 it showed 12.9V That is a 1.3 volt swing so it is worth setting properly. Keith WE6R On 12/26/2019 3:39 PM, Mike Flowers wrote: > Hi Keith, > > Mine reads 4.96, so should it be set to 5.0 or left alone? > > Thanks. > > - 73 and good DX de Mike, K6MKF, NCDXC Secretary > >> -----Original Message----- >> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net >> On Behalf Of Keith Trinity WE6R >> Sent: Thursday, December 26, 2019 15:25 >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop >> >> Notes for all; >> Check the K3 config menu item "ADC REF". If at 5.00 it is probably at >> default. >> (if at 4.00 a glitch occurred, probably during FW update, and will FUBAR > the >> internal metering. Set to 5.00 or read on). >> (I check this during checkout, so if it has been in for Service, it should > be OK). >> Higher accuracy of the K3 items like the internal Volt-Meter can be had if > this is >> set properly. >> With a known external meter on Pin 2 to ground of the 15 pin ACCY > connector; >> Go into config menu ADC REF and set it. >> >> Also you can stick your probes into the Anderson connectors at the back of > the >> radio during full power TX to see the actual voltage to the radio. >> (I have a digital LED meter connected with small wires to the Anderson > supply >> wire right at the back of the radio on my K3 test bench). >> Keith WE6R >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message >> delivered to mike.flowers at gmail.com > From pe1hzg at xs4all.nl Thu Dec 26 19:07:21 2019 From: pe1hzg at xs4all.nl (Geert Jan de Groot) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 01:07:21 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] SP3 A/B Switch Problem (IK4EWX) In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: > I had the same problem about one years ago. I have two SP3 loudspeakers, on > on each receiver or both speakers, ore one receiver with the K3S audio > effects that use both loudspeakers. > The switch scratched when changing channel and it attenuated the audio > signals. Keep in mind that the SP3 speaker switches only switch speaker signal. You Cannot Switch A Small-signal With A Switch. Switches need a little DC (1mA probably sufficient) to "burn clean" the contacts. I suspect that a 10K resistor from the speaker output to +12V will cause the desired 1mA to do the cleaning. Looking at the schematics, this isn't easy because R1 and R63 on the K3IO board are in the way. So, you need to add a bipolar capacitor in series, and resistors to +12V to make it happen. Don't be surprised if operating the switch will "click" a bit but 1mA is well within safe limits for the speaker. If you don't want to do through this, disconnect the K3, connect the same 10K resistor and operate the switch a few times. Elecraft isn't the only to make this design mistake - I have some Yaesu speakers that did suffer the same problem and that were remedied the same way. Since the K4 comes with a SP4 speaker that looks similar - I wonder if this design issue was addressed for the K4? 73, Geert Jan PE1HZG From kengkopp at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 16:08:49 2019 From: kengkopp at gmail.com (Ken G Kopp) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 14:08:49 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] More about copying code ... Message-ID: If one is "good" at code it's like knowing a second language. Copying in a "pileup" is like following a particular conversation in a room full of chattering people. Many do better ... are faster ... at copying using longhand, finding it's faster than printing, but this is more related to writing / printing skills that have nothing to do with code copying skill. FWIW ... Trivia: There are 50+ "Kopp" hams. 73 Ken From w5sum at comcast.net Thu Dec 26 20:39:19 2019 From: w5sum at comcast.net (w5sum at comcast.net) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 19:39:19 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Odd Happening In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: just turned on my KPA1500 to check into a Ten Ten International net, and when I put it in Operate Mode I had a Fault light, and the displayed showed that the HV ( 50V ) was only 9.6volts. I tried turning off the Amp and the Power supply several times to no avail. Finally I just unplugged the power supply for a few minutes. Plugged it back in and fired the ps and amp back up and all was normal. WHEW.. glad for that but.. WHY did it do this? thanks and God bless Ronnie W5SUM From rmcgraw at blomand.net Thu Dec 26 21:01:08 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 20:01:08 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA1500 Odd Happening In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1B2F3DDA-0353-4DCB-A135-CCD888F1036D@blomand.net> Sounds like a power glitch. I?ve seen that with my KPA500. My amp is powered from a 240v line w/neutral. As to why unplugging was necessary, I can only speculate primary leakage current or line input filter, which is in the microamp range, was a contributing factor. Bob, K4TAX Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 26, 2019, at 7:52 PM, w5sum at comcast.net wrote: > > ?just turned on my KPA1500 to check into a Ten Ten International net, and when I put it in Operate Mode I had a Fault light, and the displayed showed that the HV ( 50V ) was only 9.6volts. I tried turning off the Amp and the Power supply several times to no avail. Finally I just unplugged the power supply for a few minutes. Plugged it back in and fired the ps and amp back up and all was normal. WHEW.. glad for that but.. WHY did it do this? > > thanks and God bless > > Ronnie W5SUM > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From norrislawfirm2 at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 21:37:20 2019 From: norrislawfirm2 at gmail.com (Eric Norris) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 18:37:20 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Wes is right, learning Morse by reading it is a disaster, and will hamper him for life. It took me decades to learn why I had so much trouble--I finally ran into another ham with the same problem. 73 Eric WD6DBM On Thu, Dec 26, 2019, 11:57 AM Wes wrote: > Please don't let him learn code by sight. I taught myself from the list > in my > Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) and I've never overcome doing it the > wrong > way. Passed a 20 WPM Extra exam but it was a struggle. Still my favorite > mode > though. > > Wes N7WS > > > On 12/26/2019 12:46 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > > > > > > They also have a morse code chart printed on the radio and a button to > use for > > sending morse code. > From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Thu Dec 26 23:36:40 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Thu, 26 Dec 2019 21:36:40 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Ham Radio Workbench Podcast K4 Update Eric Swartz / Nov 5th Message-ID: I searched through the Elecraft Archives and didn't see a reference to the Ham Radio Workbench podcast where Eric gives an update on the K4 (published on 11/4). Not sure if there are any new tidbits that can't be found on the other update sources / youtube etc, but I thought I would pass this along. I believe this is the newest and latest interview with Eric as far as details on the K4. I hope it's not a duplicate post I missed... https://www.hamradioworkbench.com/podcast/elecraft-k4-update# Jump forward to about 45 minutes in to get right to the point where the interview with Eric starts. The interview is right around 60 minutes long and took place after the interview Eric did in the UK. Max NG7M -- M. George From sbralr at cox.net Fri Dec 27 07:36:36 2019 From: sbralr at cox.net (Steve & Anne Ray) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 07:36:36 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KE6D K2 Software Message-ID: <000001d5bcb2$4901e840$db05b8c0$@cox.net> I have been using Dan's excellent K2S software for my K2 with Windows 7 for a number of years. I recently upgraded my computer to Windows 10. Now when I load K2S I get the following error message. "Unable to read software logging model". The program comes up, but does not respond to any commands. I know my serial interface is good as it works with my K2 on the SKCC and NAQCC logging programs. Does anyone have a solution, so I can use Dan's excellent program. 73, Steve K4JPN From FlatHat at comcast.net Fri Dec 27 08:11:05 2019 From: FlatHat at comcast.net (Richard) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 08:11:05 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Annoying Beeps Message-ID: <1C556F8B-C6EF-4D76-968E-71B55BC396DE@comcast.net> Whenever I push a button, any button, on the KPA-500, for example, to go from STBY to OPER, I hear an audible feedback tone. Very annoying. I?ve discovered that by setting CONFIG:SW TONE to OFF, it goes away? but then so do all the other tones the radio produces, tones I DON?T want to silence. Do I have any other options? Cheers. Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX From joeolsen1946 at gmail.com Fri Dec 27 08:46:14 2019 From: joeolsen1946 at gmail.com (joeolsen1946 at gmail.com) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 05:46:14 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 Frequency Direct Entry for 1296.1 Message-ID: <5e060b2a.1c69fb81.56ded.b1a0@mx.google.com> From paule408 at yahoo.com Fri Dec 27 11:27:39 2019 From: paule408 at yahoo.com (paule408 at yahoo.com) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 16:27:39 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] K3/100 For Sale References: <1590562787.4089135.1577464059355.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1590562787.4089135.1577464059355@mail.yahoo.com> K3/100 Radio Serial #5726 is in excellent condition, This has been my main shack radio and has never been on a DXpedition.? This radio was factory assembled. This radio has visited the Elecraft factory a few times over the years for updates and improvements.?? Case of the radio is clean with only minor scratches. Screen is clean. Buttons are clean and function well. Knobs and dials are straight and spin smooth. Includes power cable, KAT100 built in tuner, KXV3A-RX antenna, IF Out and Xverter interface (for P3) owners manual, 1.8kc and KFL3A-400 kc filters and standard RS232 and ACC ports. I will include a KUSB RS323 to USB cable. Note: no second receiver. KSYN3 is original. Includes original box. Does not include hand mic.? >From non-smoking, no pet shack.? Guaranteed to be working perfectly or your money back! $1,595.00 including Shipping to the lower 48. Paypal, Cashiers Check, USPS?Money Order OK.? Thanks! Paul N6PSEpauln6pse at gmail.com From k9osccw at gmail.com Fri Dec 27 11:33:45 2019 From: k9osccw at gmail.com (Robert Brock) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 09:33:45 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 For Sale Message-ID: <1577464425050-0.post@n2.nabble.com> For Sale is my Elecraft K3 Transceiver S/N 5089. Am the original owner and the radio is in excellent condition both cosmetically and electrically. It has the current firmware upgrade K3 MCU 5.67 / DSP 2.88 / FPF 1.26, dated 1-22-2019. This radio has only been used in my heated/air conditioned home as my station radio. Original purchase and upgrades have been done by Elecraft. Radio can be seen on my QRZ.com page or photos can be sent on request. K3/100-F Transceiver Factory Assembled KAT3-F Automatic Tuning Unit KXV3A RX Ant., IF Out and Xverter Interface KFL3A-200 200 Hz. 5 pole Filter KFL3A-400 400 Hz. 8 Pole Filter KBPF3 General Coverage RX Module KDVR3 Digital Voice Recorder KSYN3A Synthesizer Upgrade (K3S upgrade) K312VMDKT-F 12VDC Current modification K3AUDPROTMDKT Upgrade for audio output protection All pins on boards upgraded by Elecraft to gold pins Original K3 Factory Manual Fred Cady KE7X Manual DC Cable with Anderson Power Poles on both ends Original cost $3,590. The radio and all accessories $1800 shipped and insured. Please contact me via email at k9osccw at gmail dot com or via telephone 763-951-2870. -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From pincon at erols.com Fri Dec 27 08:00:35 2019 From: pincon at erols.com (Charlie T) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 08:00:35 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Johnson SpeedX printed Morse Message-ID: <001f01d5bcb5$a5992fc0$f0cb8f40$@erols.com> OH, yeah.....I can see it in front of me now, a little Johnson SpeedX Morse Code chart. WORST thing I could possibly have used........YUGE plateau at 7 WPM ! Curiously, when working for Microlog ( the OLD one in Gaithersburg MD), we had a contract to make a video/keyboard automated Morse Code instruction machine for XXXXX gubmint agency. They KNEW how to teach code and just wanted to automate it. The key was that they STARTED with the hard letters FIRST, a four letter group with, if my memory serves me, PQXJ, or something like that with letters consisting of FOUR dit/dah combinations. They did NOT start with E, T, I & M. Their logic was that it prevented the student from changing their perception as a "long" character is received. for example, if a "J" is received, is it E, or A, or W, or J? I can tell you, it WORKED. My son learned the whole Morse alphabet by sound (The machine sent at 15 WPM character rate too.) in under three hours total, broken up into 10 to 15 minute sessions. Today he is KB4WVI. 73, Charlie k3ICH -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wes Sent: Thursday, December 26, 2019 2:57 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Reaching Across the Chronological Divide Please don't let him learn code by sight. I taught myself from the list in my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) and I've never overcome doing it the wrong way. Passed a 20 WPM Extra exam but it was a struggle. Still my favorite mode though. Wes N7WS From k9ztv at socket.net Fri Dec 27 12:54:55 2019 From: k9ztv at socket.net (KENT TRIMBLE) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 11:54:55 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Johnson SpeedX printed Morse In-Reply-To: <001f01d5bcb5$a5992fc0$f0cb8f40$@erols.com> References: <001f01d5bcb5$a5992fc0$f0cb8f40$@erols.com> Message-ID: <76bd4be1-f4a8-8f81-20de-a774b724c8f7@socket.net> Well, not exactly the /worst/ thing you could have used, but you're right, visualizing a chart is adding an extra step in the learning process toward aural copying. And Wes is also correct.? A whole generation or two of amateur radio operators had nothing at hand but charts printed in the Boy Scout Handbook and Signalling Merit Badge booklet.? However, no one told us it was the wrong way to go.? Those charts got many of us a Novice license in addition to Merit Badges.? Later, I studied from Ameco vinyl records which got me a 13 wpm General.? Nightly work on the National Traffic System got me a 20 wpm Extra. The bottom line is that many of those Scouts who learned by charts are today's 30 wpm and higher operators. W4RK and I have taught code classes every Saturday morning (sometimes three) for many years.? We do not allow charts in class.? What students use at home is anybody's guess.? But with today's online Morse programs there is no reason to complicate (and slow) the learning process by consulting a printed chart. 73, Kent? K9ZTV On 12/27/2019 7:00 AM, Charlie T wrote: > OH, yeah.....I can see it in front of me now, a little Johnson SpeedX Morse Code chart. > WORST thing I could possibly have used........YUGE plateau at 7 WPM ! > > 73, Charlie k3ICH > > > > > Please don't let him learn code by sight. I taught myself from the list in my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) and I've never overcome doing it the wrong way. Passed a 20 WPM Extra exam but it was a struggle. Still my favorite mode though. > > Wes N7WS > > > > From rmcgraw at blomand.net Fri Dec 27 16:37:44 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 15:37:44 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Annoying Beeps In-Reply-To: <1C556F8B-C6EF-4D76-968E-71B55BC396DE@comcast.net> References: <1C556F8B-C6EF-4D76-968E-71B55BC396DE@comcast.net> Message-ID: From the amp MENU, scroll to SPEAKER, then press EDIT,? and set to ON or OFF as you prefer.?? This will give you a beep when you switch from STBY to OPER. ? It also controls the FAULT annunciation as heard via the radio if set to ON.???? See page 19 in the KPA500 manual.? This IS NOT controlled via the radio.? You will hear a beep when any button on the KPA500 has been pressed. I certainly would not describe this as "feedback tone". 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/27/2019 7:11 AM, Richard wrote: > Whenever I push a button, any button, on the KPA-500, for example, to go from STBY to OPER, I hear an audible feedback tone. Very annoying. > > I?ve discovered that by setting CONFIG:SW TONE to OFF, it goes away? but then so do all the other tones the radio produces, tones I DON?T want to silence. > > Do I have any other options? > > Cheers. > > Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From billamader at gmail.com Fri Dec 27 16:40:44 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 14:40:44 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K4 YouTube Video List by Date In-Reply-To: <832BECB76FCF4D02BA5CE9B54E688F1B@DougTPC> References: <85CD944F-AE25-4595-BD64-659DB1DB3CF6@comcast.net> <00a801d5b9ff$a53f8460$efbe8d20$@erols.com> <832BECB76FCF4D02BA5CE9B54E688F1B@DougTPC> Message-ID: <1577482844752-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Well-written Doug and Charlie! I am always surprised by the lack of understanding in the broader amateur radio community about inflation, state of the art, and the comparative value of current radios and their predecessors. If one takes the time to research information on any radio, and can throw out the invalid/meaningless anecdotes, it is relatively easy to choose a radio based on facts and commensurate with one's "needs." Perhaps a little brand Kool-Aid could be an influence too. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 73, Bill, K8TE -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From ve3iql at gmail.com Fri Dec 27 16:41:33 2019 From: ve3iql at gmail.com (Terry Basom) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 16:41:33 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 Message-ID: I have a KX3 for sale . Please email me for details. Serial Number #10700 ve3iql at gmail.com 73 From frantz at pwpconsult.com Fri Dec 27 17:53:13 2019 From: frantz at pwpconsult.com (Bill Frantz) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 17:53:13 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: Message-ID: A simple reality test for a volt meter is to measure a fresh battery. Zinc/carbon or Alkaline should show about 1.56 volts. (I learned this test from the bias setting instructions for a Dynakit Stereo 70 amplifier. They built the amp so the test point read 1.56 volts when the bias is correctly set and suggested calibrating your meter with a battery. In that era, the zinc/carbon battery was what ran almost all of the flashlights (torches for for English speakers) in the world. 73 Bill AE6JV On 12/23/19 at 11:30 PM, rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) wrote: >A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it >to determine if the others are accurate. There are several >good brands available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse >than no DVM at all. >My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it >with too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and >calibration. I am confident when I make a measurement it is >accurate without question. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | The first thing you need when | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | using a perimeter defense is a | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | perimeter. | Los Gatos, CA 95032 From n4zr at comcast.net Fri Dec 27 18:12:24 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 18:12:24 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Key Out Jack Not Working Message-ID: <54b8026f-f620-7104-39c7-c6d2a93f1347@comcast.net> I'm trying to set things up so that I can disconnect my 160M transmit antenna whenever I'm receiving, to prevent noise coupling into my RX antenna.? My thought is to use the Key Out jack on the K3 to control DC to a relay at the base of the antenna,? floating the base of the inverted L unless PTT is asserted.? The lashup is complete, and works when I short the phono plug manually, but not when I plug it into the KEY OUT jack and energize PTT. I'm hoping it's just a menu issue, but my manual doesn't show any menu options affecting the Key Out Jack.? I have a KPA-1500, and Low Power Key Out via the ACConnector works fine for controlling the amplifier, so I assume the basic functionality is OK.? Any advice?? I'd really love to get it going for the Stew tomorrow! -- 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Fri Dec 27 20:49:23 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 18:49:23 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Johnson SpeedX printed Morse In-Reply-To: <76bd4be1-f4a8-8f81-20de-a774b724c8f7@socket.net> References: <001f01d5bcb5$a5992fc0$f0cb8f40$@erols.com> <76bd4be1-f4a8-8f81-20de-a774b724c8f7@socket.net> Message-ID: To expand a bit.? In high school (circa 1958) some kids tried to start a radio club.? The sponsor was the electronics shop teacher (interesting enough I never took any electronic courses) who I don't believe was all that interested. The school principal was also a Lt. Commander in the Naval Reserve and IIRC was in charge of the local Navy Reserve operation.? I remember that they had a couple of 100' telephone poles and an open-wire fed antenna, that I always drooled over.? Permission was arranged for our club to tape record (reel to reel) the Navy's code records.? We started listening but only met once a week, which meant that by the second week we had forgotten last week's letters, so we started over.? After about a month I had enough and broke out the Scout handbook.? I was the only one to get a license. I did meet one older kid, Luke Russell, who had an expired Novice license, other than that I was on my own. There was one ham (W7UVR-SK) about two blocks away from our house who I didn't know but I knocked on his door and asked whether he would sign off my Novice paperwork.? These guys are mentioned on my QRZ bio (https://www.qrz.com/db/N7WS) Wes? N7WS On 12/27/2019 10:54 AM, KENT TRIMBLE wrote: > Well, not exactly the /worst/ thing you could have used, but you're right, > visualizing a chart is adding an extra step in the learning process toward > aural copying. > > And Wes is also correct.? A whole generation or two of amateur radio operators > had nothing at hand but charts printed in the Boy Scout Handbook and > Signalling Merit Badge booklet.? However, no one told us it was the wrong way > to go.? Those charts got many of us a Novice license in addition to Merit > Badges.? Later, I studied from Ameco vinyl records which got me a 13 wpm > General.? Nightly work on the National Traffic System got me a 20 wpm Extra. > > The bottom line is that many of those Scouts who learned by charts are today's > 30 wpm and higher operators. > > W4RK and I have taught code classes every Saturday morning (sometimes three) > for many years.? We do not allow charts in class.? What students use at home > is anybody's guess.? But with today's online Morse programs there is no reason > to complicate (and slow) the learning process by consulting a printed chart. > > 73, > > Kent? K9ZTV > > > On 12/27/2019 7:00 AM, Charlie T wrote: >> OH, yeah.....I can see it in front of me now, a little Johnson SpeedX Morse >> Code chart. >> WORST thing I could possibly have used........YUGE plateau at 7 WPM ! >> >> 73, Charlie k3ICH >> >> >> >> >> Please don't let him learn code by sight.? I taught myself from the list in >> my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it)? and I've never overcome doing it the >> wrong way. Passed a 20 WPM Extra exam but it was a struggle.? Still my >> favorite mode though. >> >> Wes? N7WS From donwilh at embarqmail.com Fri Dec 27 21:28:45 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 21:28:45 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 Key Out Jack Not Working In-Reply-To: <54b8026f-f620-7104-39c7-c6d2a93f1347@comcast.net> References: <54b8026f-f620-7104-39c7-c6d2a93f1347@comcast.net> Message-ID: <1263f61e-2889-d274-a95e-b2fa0513b865@embarqmail.com> Pete, Check the Keyout jack with your ohmmeter. One lead to the center conductor and the other to the shell. During receive, it should read infinite resistance, and when you go to transmit, the resistance should go to near zero. Do you have anything else connected to the KEYOUT jack (an amplifier perhaps)? If so, you will have to use isolating diodes for the amp and your relay for the antenna. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/27/2019 6:12 PM, N4ZR wrote: > I'm trying to set things up so that I can disconnect my 160M transmit > antenna whenever I'm receiving, to prevent noise coupling into my RX > antenna.? My thought is to use the Key Out jack on the K3 to control DC > to a relay at the base of the antenna,? floating the base of the > inverted L unless PTT is asserted.? The lashup is complete, and works > when I short the phono plug manually, but not when I plug it into the > KEY OUT jack and energize PTT. > > I'm hoping it's just a menu issue, but my manual doesn't show any menu > options affecting the Key Out Jack.? I have a KPA-1500, and Low Power > Key Out via the ACConnector works fine for controlling the amplifier, so > I assume the basic functionality is OK.? Any advice?? I'd really love to > get it going for the Stew tomorrow! From jackbrindle at me.com Fri Dec 27 23:30:48 2019 From: jackbrindle at me.com (Jack Brindle) Date: Fri, 27 Dec 2019 20:30:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Annoying Beeps In-Reply-To: References: <1C556F8B-C6EF-4D76-968E-71B55BC396DE@comcast.net> Message-ID: <92F8783F-09D0-4B68-9200-71FE2F23654B@me.com> I have learned to trust things that Bob says, but this one didn?t agree with my memory. So I checked the source code for the KPA500 on this one. The KPA500 only emits a tone when a fault occurs. It does not emit a beep for key entry. The SPEAKER menu item enables/disables the tone for faults. The beep you may hear with the K3 is in response to commands from the KPA500 and is emitted by the K3, nor the KPA500. I don?t know if there is a way to control that beep separately from other beeps in the K3. 73! Jack, W6FB > On Dec 27, 2019, at 1:37 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > > From the amp MENU, scroll to SPEAKER, then press EDIT, and set to ON or OFF as you prefer. This will give you a beep when you switch from STBY to OPER. It also controls the FAULT annunciation as heard via the radio if set to ON. See page 19 in the KPA500 manual. This IS NOT controlled via the radio. You will hear a beep when any button on the KPA500 has been pressed. I certainly would not describe this as "feedback tone". > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > > > On 12/27/2019 7:11 AM, Richard wrote: >> Whenever I push a button, any button, on the KPA-500, for example, to go from STBY to OPER, I hear an audible feedback tone. Very annoying. >> >> I?ve discovered that by setting CONFIG:SW TONE to OFF, it goes away? but then so do all the other tones the radio produces, tones I DON?T want to silence. >> >> Do I have any other options? >> >> Cheers. >> >> Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to jackbrindle at me.com From kg9hfrank at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 09:44:36 2019 From: kg9hfrank at gmail.com (Frank Krozel) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 08:44:36 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 For Sale In-Reply-To: <1577464425050-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1577464425050-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <70D12507-6E92-4DDA-9008-3512A1D01CE8@gmail.com> Offering my extra K3 for sale. Auto-tuner Sub Receiver Filters in main receiver are 2.7kHz, 0.5kHz, 0.2kHz Filters in Sub receiver are 2.7kHz, 0.5kHz, 0.2kHz (Elecraft supplied) Config file for this specific K3 included! Manual, microphone, power cord, box $2,000 Off-line inquires please. -73- Frank KG9H kg9hfrank at gmail.com From ve3iql at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 10:10:55 2019 From: ve3iql at gmail.com (Terry Basom) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:10:55 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 For Sale Message-ID: KX3 Serial number ?10700? (December 2018) Factory assembled KXAT3 internal tuner KXBC3 Internal NIMH charger/Real time clock KXFL3 Dual Pass-Band Roofing Filter USB programming cable MH3 Hand Mike AX1 Multi band whip antenna AXB1 Whip BiPod Side KX plates and Plastic cover. Original sides in package. Factory manual and factory packaging. In pristine condition! Nonsmoking shack. Please email with any questions $1200.00 US dollars shipped within the continental USA and Canada. From n4zr at comcast.net Sat Dec 28 10:57:01 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:57:01 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem Message-ID: Thanks to everyone who responded.? I've now written to Elecraft Support, and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. -- 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sat Dec 28 10:59:46 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:59:46 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> Better precision than a battery can be found by using a precision voltage regulator. Take a look at the Precision Voltage Source on my website www.w3fpr.com. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/27/2019 5:53 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > A simple reality test for a volt meter is to measure a fresh battery. > Zinc/carbon or Alkaline should show about 1.56 volts. (I learned this > test from the bias setting instructions for a Dynakit Stereo 70 > amplifier. They built the amp so the test point read 1.56 volts when the > bias is correctly set and suggested calibrating your meter with a > battery. In that era, the zinc/carbon battery was what ran almost all of > the flashlights (torches for for English speakers) in the world. > > 73 Bill AE6JV > > On 12/23/19 at 11:30 PM, rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) wrote: > >> A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station.? Use it to >> determine if the others are accurate.? There are several good brands >> available.?? A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. >> My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77.?? After I tapped it with >> too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration.? I am >> confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Bill Frantz??????? | The first thing you need when? | Periwinkle > (408)356-8506????? | using a perimeter defense is a | 16345 Englewood Ave > www.pwpconsult.com | perimeter.???????????????????? | Los Gatos, CA 95032 > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com From donovanf at starpower.net Sat Dec 28 11:43:05 2019 From: donovanf at starpower.net (donovanf at starpower.net) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 11:43:05 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <1072502297.7820728.1577551385211.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Hi Pete, Perhaps more important: how did this unusual failure occur? Unless you can figure this out with a reasonable degree of certainty, you're radio is likely to make multiple trips for repair. One possibility is that you connected a relay to the KEY OUT connector, but the relay didn't have a snubber diode across its coil. That could cause enough of a spike to damage your radio. Another possibility is that you plugged the incorrect cable into the K3 and excess voltage on that cable damaged your radio. Good luck! 73 Frank W3LPL ----- Original Message ----- From: "N4ZR" To: "Elecraft List" Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2019 3:57:01 PM Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. -- 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From donovanf at starpower.net Sat Dec 28 12:05:39 2019 From: donovanf at starpower.net (donovanf at starpower.net) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:05:39 -0500 (EST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem In-Reply-To: <1072502297.7820728.1577551385211.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Message-ID: <1563889774.7831320.1577552739222.JavaMail.root@starpower.net> Pete, I've never had any reason to look at the KEY OUT circuit before, but it uses a very robust IRF1630 power MOSFET, rated at 200 volts and 10 amps. Very robust indeed, its no wonder I've never had a failure. Its not a surface mount device, its a TO220 package. 73 Frank W3LPL ----- Original Message ----- From: donovanf at starpower.net To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2019 4:43:05 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem Hi Pete, Perhaps more important: how did this unusual failure occur? Unless you can figure this out with a reasonable degree of certainty, you're radio is likely to make multiple trips for repair. One possibility is that you connected a relay to the KEY OUT connector, but the relay didn't have a snubber diode across its coil. That could cause enough of a spike to damage your radio. Another possibility is that you plugged the incorrect cable into the K3 and excess voltage on that cable damaged your radio. Good luck! 73 Frank W3LPL ----- Original Message ----- From: "N4ZR" To: "Elecraft List" Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2019 3:57:01 PM Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. -- 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to donovanf at starpower.net From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 12:08:29 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:08:29 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code Message-ID: Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility counts. You establish that with facts. We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone who does not know CW. A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn CW. You may disagree. I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do not write down my conversations in spoken language. Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They also have a companion text file. Check their website. It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a year. Just do it 73 Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone From rastuts at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 12:19:42 2019 From: rastuts at gmail.com (Richard Stutsman) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 09:19:42 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Johnson SpeedX printed Morse Message-ID: I too learned Morse code from a chart (dots and dashes) in the Boy Scout Manual at age 11 or so in about 1955. I had no trouble at age 14 learning it by ear at up to 30 wpm within a couple of years of on-air operating (especially CW traffic nets). In those days we didn't have audio code apps or code-sending machines (unless you had an Elmer who lent you an Instructograph). We fellow boy scouts must have somehow learned to rehearse and practice mouthing the code to each other using the standard "didahdit" protocol. I'm pretty sure that's what I was doing vocally to memorize the chart, which took me less than two days. The chart is the perfect shorthand for prompting the pattern for each character. I wouldn't want to be reading "A - didah, B - dahdididit, C - dahdidahdit, ...", etc. Give me the dots and dashes in a nice chart! If it takes you a month to learn the entire alphabet any other way, you're doing it wrong. It certainly does help to have one or more "code buddies" with whom you can practice mouthing the code at random times during each day when you're dining or walking or riding together. Maybe many adults don't have that luxury. It's important to mouth the code with the proper 1:3 ratio of dits to dahs, which means you leave off the 't' at the end of any but the last dit in a character. So when you say the letter F as "dididahdit", the correct timing is almost automatic. So you're learning the actual sound pattern for each letter that you have already memorized from the chart. It worked for me! Rick N6IET From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 12:20:52 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:20:52 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Pete, just saw your question on the PTT OUT not working for you. I had an issue with this back in 2016... I can't remember what I did, but it wasn't smart and it was my fault... Anyway, I let the smoke/metal out of the IRFI630G that is used on the PPT out. It's beefy and can take a lot of abuse, but I still managed to destroy it. Anyway, it's an easy replacement and saved me from shipping my K3 back to Elecraft. Total operator error in my situation... maybe attached 12v to the PTT out? Again, I can't remember. Here is a picture of what my damaged MOSFET looked like at the time... see the crack and leakage ;) http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=imageview&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2FIRFI630GFried.JPG And here is the Mouser part I ordered to replace it: https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Siliconix/IRFI630GPBF?qs=%2Fha2pyFaduhSYcFgYMU8ma88%2Fb96%2Fl4SGKWFSYSWEuEDdoRAAyNpCg== Here is the schematic link: https://ftp.elecraft.com/K3/Manuals%20Downloads/K3_Schematics_Jun_2010.pdf Search for IRFI630 in the PDF, you will find it straight away... and I don't remember it being tough to expose the damaged mosfet and replace it... Max NG7M On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 AM N4ZR wrote: > Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, > and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. > > -- > > 73, Pete N4ZR > Check out the Reverse Beacon Network > at , now > spotting RTTY activity worldwide. > For spots, please use your favorite > "retail" DX cluster. > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com -- M. George From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 12:21:35 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:21:35 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] ARRL CW Code practice files Message-ID: <9AF47E3B-5091-4C33-8B59-BF4BEA431BA5@gmail.com> http://www.arrl.org/code-practice-files Sent from my iPhone From va3mw at portcredit.net Sat Dec 28 12:26:27 2019 From: va3mw at portcredit.net (Michael Walker) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:26:27 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> References: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: For measuring voltage drop.. I would measure the voltage drop from the Plus lead of the Power supply to the plus lead on the back of the radio while in full load TX (FM or RTTY). It should be less than 0.1 or 0.2 of a volt. Then, do the same on the Negative Lead. You should see the same answer (assuming Negative DC doesn't find an alternative path). Those numbers should add up to the same voltage drop total. As a reminder. It only takes 1 ohm of loss in the cable/fuses to significantly impact your full power out. Mike va3mw On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 11:00 AM Don Wilhelm wrote: > Better precision than a battery can be found by using a precision > voltage regulator. Take a look at the Precision Voltage Source on my > website www.w3fpr.com. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/27/2019 5:53 PM, Bill Frantz wrote: > > A simple reality test for a volt meter is to measure a fresh battery. > > Zinc/carbon or Alkaline should show about 1.56 volts. (I learned this > > test from the bias setting instructions for a Dynakit Stereo 70 > > amplifier. They built the amp so the test point read 1.56 volts when the > > bias is correctly set and suggested calibrating your meter with a > > battery. In that era, the zinc/carbon battery was what ran almost all of > > the flashlights (torches for for English speakers) in the world. > > > > 73 Bill AE6JV > > > > On 12/23/19 at 11:30 PM, rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) wrote: > > > >> A good, known accurate DVM is an asset to any station. Use it to > >> determine if the others are accurate. There are several good brands > >> available. A DVM that is not accurate is worse than no DVM at all. > >> My choice of many years ago is my Fluke 77. After I tapped it with > >> too much voltage, I sent it to Fluke for repair and calibration. I am > >> confident when I make a measurement it is accurate without question. > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Bill Frantz | The first thing you need when | Periwinkle > > (408)356-8506 | using a perimeter defense is a | 16345 Englewood Ave > > www.pwpconsult.com | perimeter. | Los Gatos, CA > 95032 > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to donwilh at embarqmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to va3mw at portcredit.net From k9osccw at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 12:34:54 2019 From: k9osccw at gmail.com (Robert Brock) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:34:54 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] K3 For Sale In-Reply-To: <1577464425050-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1577464425050-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <1577554494043-0.post@n2.nabble.com> My K3 has been sold. Thanks to those responding. HNY. -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 28 13:06:42 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:06:42 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: References: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <34749257-c597-cba1-3c72-c539af7e1288@blomand.net> Actually 1 ohm of total resistance from a 14V source and a 20A load would be more than excessive.? More like a 0.01 ohm is 0.20 volt drop for 20 amps.?? I x R = E View it as 3 series resistors across a 14 V source.?? R-1 is the DC POS lead resistance, the radio which is a variable resistance as R-2, and? R-3 which is the DC NEG lead resistance.? Therefore, the voltage at the radio is equal to the IR drop being the sum of R-1 and R-3. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/28/2019 11:26 AM, Michael Walker wrote: > For measuring voltage drop.. I would measure the voltage drop from the Plus > lead of the Power supply to the plus lead on the back of the radio while in > full load TX (FM or RTTY). > > It should be less than 0.1 or 0.2 of a volt. > > Then, do the same on the Negative Lead. You should see the same answer > (assuming Negative DC doesn't find an alternative path). > > Those numbers should add up to the same voltage drop total. > > As a reminder. It only takes 1 ohm of loss in the cable/fuses to > significantly impact your full power out. > > Mike va3mw > > From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 14:06:25 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 14:06:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Make your own CW practice material Message-ID: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com> If you are somewhat familiar with some text convert it to CW. It will assist you in copying since you will be familiar with the text. Believe me it can help. It does for me. https://lcwo.net/text2cw Use the link above 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone From kd2fsh at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 14:13:14 2019 From: kd2fsh at gmail.com (kd2fsh) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 12:13:14 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] P3 Panadadopter Message-ID: <5e07a94c.1c69fb81.f8348.6de7@mx.google.com> If somebody can help me what are the best settings for Re Level and Scale? I just move to Arizona from New Jersey and put up an EndFed Antenna.Thank youJerryKD2FSH201-937-530673Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone From ardrhi at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 14:21:48 2019 From: ardrhi at gmail.com (Gwen Patton) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 14:21:48 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Make your own CW practice material In-Reply-To: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com> References: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com> Message-ID: I used ebook2cw to convert some of Onno's "Foundations of Amateur Radio" podcast texts to CW. He heard about my doing it on the SKCC list, and not only did he join SKCC because of it, he followed my example and converted his entire backlist of podcasts to CW so anyone can use them. They're all fairly short, just a few minutes, and are just the right sort of text for getting some good practice. But the program itself that we used is really useful. I've converted a bunch of my favorite science fiction stories to CW, using public domain copies from Project Gutenberg. H. Beam Piper is my favorite for this purpose. I've got his novel "Little Fuzzy" in my Morserino to play back in CW form, and his novella "Omnilingual" in my phone. You do have to kind of fiddle with the text to clean out the stuff the program doesn't know, and make sure the code for the double quote is in the program's lookup table, since it has a lot of dialogue. Without quotes, the dialogue is very confusing! https://fkurz.net/ham/ebook2cw.html 73, Gwen, NG3P On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 2:08 PM Jim Danehy wrote: > > If you are somewhat familiar with some text convert it to CW. It will > assist you in copying since you will be familiar with the text. Believe me > it can help. It does for me. > > https://lcwo.net/text2cw > > Use the link above > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > -- -+-+-+-+- Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time http://quarktime.net From neilz at techie.com Sat Dec 28 14:41:10 2019 From: neilz at techie.com (Neil Zampella) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 14:41:10 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KE6D K2 Software In-Reply-To: <000001d5bcb2$4901e840$db05b8c0$@cox.net> References: <000001d5bcb2$4901e840$db05b8c0$@cox.net> Message-ID: OK ... you're talking about the K2"S" software ... kinda confusing there for a sec. The program has not been updated (as far as I can tell) since 2003.??? Have you tried running the program under COMPATIBILITY MODE??? Right click on the software's icon to bring up the menu and select PROPERTIES.?? Then select the Compatibility? tab.?? On that tab you'll find a button for the "Run Compatibility Troubleshooter".??? It should fix the issue.? If after it runs, you still have the problem, try setting the compatibility manually, by clicking on the box in that tab, and selecting Windows 7. Hope this helps, Neil, KN3ILZ On 12/27/2019 7:36 AM, Steve & Anne Ray wrote: > I have been using Dan's excellent K2S software for my K2 with Windows 7 for > a number of years. I recently upgraded my computer to Windows 10. Now > when I load K2S I get the following error message. "Unable to read software > logging model". The program comes up, but does not respond to any > commands. I know my serial interface is good as it works with my K2 on the > SKCC and NAQCC logging programs. Does anyone have a solution, so I can use > Dan's excellent program. > > > > 73, > > Steve K4JPN > > From KY5G at montac.com Sat Dec 28 14:43:25 2019 From: KY5G at montac.com (Clay Autery) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 13:43:25 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] P3 Panadadopter In-Reply-To: <5e07a94c.1c69fb81.f8348.6de7@mx.google.com> References: <5e07a94c.1c69fb81.f8348.6de7@mx.google.com> Message-ID: <70c4bc4a-5eab-f9c3-5813-9a5a02a1eaac@montac.com> I find that there is no ONE RIGHT SETTING for either of those....? I set them to optimize usability based on band, conditions, et al.... Email me direct if your have more related questions.? :) 73, ______________________ Clay Autery, KY5G (318) 518-1389 On 12/28/19 13:13, kd2fsh wrote: > If somebody can help me what are the best settings for Re Level and Scale? I just move to Arizona from New Jersey and put up an EndFed Antenna.Thank youJerryKD2FSH201-937-530673Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone > From shull2805 at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 14:49:18 2019 From: shull2805 at gmail.com (shull2805 at gmail.com) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 14:49:18 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <34749257-c597-cba1-3c72-c539af7e1288@blomand.net> References: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> <34749257-c597-cba1-3c72-c539af7e1288@blomand.net> Message-ID: <002101d5bdb7$e51cea80$af56bf80$@gmail.com> At what point does a drop in input power become significant? Does a 1.0v loss translate to 10 times less output power than a 0.1v loss? -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2019 1:07 PM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop Actually 1 ohm of total resistance from a 14V source and a 20A load would be more than excessive. More like a 0.01 ohm is 0.20 volt drop for 20 amps. I x R = E View it as 3 series resistors across a 14 V source. R-1 is the DC POS lead resistance, the radio which is a variable resistance as R-2, and R-3 which is the DC NEG lead resistance. Therefore, the voltage at the radio is equal to the IR drop being the sum of R-1 and R-3. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/28/2019 11:26 AM, Michael Walker wrote: > For measuring voltage drop.. I would measure the voltage drop from the > Plus lead of the Power supply to the plus lead on the back of the > radio while in full load TX (FM or RTTY). > > It should be less than 0.1 or 0.2 of a volt. > > Then, do the same on the Negative Lead. You should see the same > answer (assuming Negative DC doesn't find an alternative path). > > Those numbers should add up to the same voltage drop total. > > As a reminder. It only takes 1 ohm of loss in the cable/fuses to > significantly impact your full power out. > > Mike va3mw > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to shull2805 at gmail.com From wm5dx at yahoo.com Sat Dec 28 15:23:06 2019 From: wm5dx at yahoo.com (Mike Streeter) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 20:23:06 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] WTB Elecraft KPA 500 Amp. References: <1440472799.4426502.1577564586902.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <1440472799.4426502.1577564586902@mail.yahoo.com> I am looking to buy an Elecraft KPA 500 amplifier. Needs to be in good condition and perfect working order. Please contact me at with info and asking price. Thanks for reading, Mike, WM5DX. From jstreet at uwaterloo.ca Sat Dec 28 15:37:07 2019 From: jstreet at uwaterloo.ca (Joseph Street) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 20:37:07 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Make your own CW practice material In-Reply-To: References: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com>, Message-ID: <340aa9b81b77415abf25bb8eefce5310@uwaterloo.ca> KY8D has already converted tons of text and sci-fi novels to .mp3 files at various speeds and some Koch method files for beginners. Very convenient for throwing on a MP3 player. The CW portion of his website is here: https://starling.us/free/morse/ I also have found the practice mode on the YACK keyer which you can compile for an ATTINY85 chip to be very useful. You hear a 5 character pseudo callsign and have to send it back on the paddles. If you get it wrong you hear 8 dits and the call is repeated. If you get it right you hear ditdahdit and a new psuedorandom call. Great for practicing head copy, memory, (important for us old farts) and working on your fist all at the same time. Best regards Joe ve3vxo http://blog.templaro.com/jackyack-rev-a/ [http://blog.templaro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/eagle_board_view-173x300.png] JackYack Rev A - Dhakajack blog.templaro.com Back in October, I mentioned an open source keyer developed for the ATTINY 45 and requiring only a few components. The source code for the controller and an example schematic were uploaded to a repository. Subsequently, I decided to try my hand at producing a PC board. Rather than try some sort of printer-based method ? Continue reading "JackYack Rev A" ________________________________ From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net on behalf of Gwen Patton Sent: December 28, 2019 2:21:48 PM To: Jim Danehy Cc: Elecraft Mailing List Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Make your own CW practice material I used ebook2cw to convert some of Onno's "Foundations of Amateur Radio" podcast texts to CW. He heard about my doing it on the SKCC list, and not only did he join SKCC because of it, he followed my example and converted his entire backlist of podcasts to CW so anyone can use them. They're all fairly short, just a few minutes, and are just the right sort of text for getting some good practice. But the program itself that we used is really useful. I've converted a bunch of my favorite science fiction stories to CW, using public domain copies from Project Gutenberg. H. Beam Piper is my favorite for this purpose. I've got his novel "Little Fuzzy" in my Morserino to play back in CW form, and his novella "Omnilingual" in my phone. You do have to kind of fiddle with the text to clean out the stuff the program doesn't know, and make sure the code for the double quote is in the program's lookup table, since it has a lot of dialogue. Without quotes, the dialogue is very confusing! https://fkurz.net/ham/ebook2cw.html 73, Gwen, NG3P On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 2:08 PM Jim Danehy wrote: > > If you are somewhat familiar with some text convert it to CW. It will > assist you in copying since you will be familiar with the text. Believe me > it can help. It does for me. > > https://lcwo.net/text2cw > > Use the link above > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ardrhi at gmail.com > -- -+-+-+-+- Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time http://quarktime.net ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to jstreet at uwaterloo.ca From eric_csuf at hotmail.com Sat Dec 28 15:53:33 2019 From: eric_csuf at hotmail.com (Eric J) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 20:53:33 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Make your own CW practice material In-Reply-To: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com> References: <2D0DF5AC-3CD0-4DA0-A6E8-C6AAA5AF745B@gmail.com> Message-ID: Unless you want to listen to it on an audio device there's no real reason to convert text. I get text files from Project Gutenberg or convert kindle ebooks into txt files with Calibre, then run them with G4FON's excellent Koch software directly. That lets me change code speed, Farnsworth spacing, tone, add QRM, QSB, etc. I've read half a dozen novels that way with complete control. http://www.g4fon.net/ It's limited to 80 wpm max, but I try to live with that. Eric KE6US On 12/28/2019 11:06 AM, Jim Danehy wrote: If you are somewhat familiar with some text convert it to CW. It will assist you in copying since you will be familiar with the text. Believe me it can help. It does for me. https://lcwo.net/text2cw Use the link above 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to eric_csuf at hotmail.com . From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 28 17:00:40 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 16:00:40 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] P3 Panadadopter In-Reply-To: <70c4bc4a-5eab-f9c3-5813-9a5a02a1eaac@montac.com> References: <5e07a94c.1c69fb81.f8348.6de7@mx.google.com> <70c4bc4a-5eab-f9c3-5813-9a5a02a1eaac@montac.com> Message-ID: <5f74549c-8410-b83c-3742-3842ae65067a@blomand.net> As a rule I set the REF LVL such that the no signal band noise is about the bottom of the display.?? Then I set the SCALE to display the strongest signals on the band at the top of the display. These will change from band to band and antenna to antenna. Otherwise, with a dummy load on the receiver and the BW at 2.7 kHz, set the REF LVL to about 120 and the SCALE to 80.???? Set the AVERAGE value to about 15.? These seem to give adequate display. Of course one can refine the values for more or less displayed details of the signals, depending on BW of the receiver. 73 Bob, K4TAX > On 12/28/19 13:13, kd2fsh wrote: >> If somebody can help me what are the best settings for Re Level and >> Scale? I just move to Arizona from New Jersey and put up an EndFed >> Antenna.Thank youJerryKD2FSH201-937-530673Sent from my Verizon, >> Samsung Galaxy smartphone >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rmcgraw at blomand.net From rmcgraw at blomand.net Sat Dec 28 17:32:12 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 16:32:12 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <002101d5bdb7$e51cea80$af56bf80$@gmail.com> References: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> <34749257-c597-cba1-3c72-c539af7e1288@blomand.net> <002101d5bdb7$e51cea80$af56bf80$@gmail.com> Message-ID: <6db6ee23-3a27-833d-dbe5-3e986d4b77ae@blomand.net> It is not quite that simple.?? Power drop is not really a factor. The operating range of the radio, from specifications,? is 11 volts minimum to 15 volts maximum. ? Thus with a 4 volt operating range, a 1 volt drop represents a 25% change.? Within this range of 11 to 15 volts the radio will attempt to deliver 100 watts by demanding the required amount of current from the power supply. Thus the three resistances in series example, as I stated earlier, with the middle one {radio} being a variable value. Therefore the resistance of the DC power cables will then cause more voltage drop to occur as the current demand increases. This has been noted to cause the transmitter IMD {Inter-Modulation Distortion} to significantly increase.?? Much has been written here regarding attaining lowest IMD while operating at near maximum rated voltage.?? A word of caution, NEVER allow the power supply to exceed 15 volts.?? It is very important to maintain minimum voltage drop with the power cables and anything else in the path.? Those power distribution strips are horrible in this regard and should NEVER be used to power the radio.? The radio should always be connected direct to the power supply terminals. No exceptions. For this and other reasons, I have my power supply set to 14.8 volts at no load.? In transmit with 100 watts output and current of 17.5 amps, the voltage indicated by the radio is 14.5 volts or 0.3 volt drop {14.8 - 14.5 = 0.3}.?? The calculated resistance of my power cables is then? E / I = R or 0.5 / 17.5 = 0.017 ohms. In conclusion, it is NOT power output that is of concern. 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/28/2019 1:49 PM, shull2805 at gmail.com wrote: > At what point does a drop in input power become significant? Does a 1.0v loss translate to 10 times less output power than a 0.1v loss? > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Bob McGraw K4TAX > Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2019 1:07 PM > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop > > Actually 1 ohm of total resistance from a 14V source and a 20A load would be more than excessive. More like a 0.01 ohm is 0.20 volt drop for 20 amps. I x R = E > > View it as 3 series resistors across a 14 V source. R-1 is the DC POS lead resistance, the radio which is a variable resistance as R-2, and > R-3 which is the DC NEG lead resistance. Therefore, the voltage at the radio is equal to the IR drop being the sum of R-1 and R-3. > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > From sbralr at cox.net Sat Dec 28 18:14:26 2019 From: sbralr at cox.net (Steve & Anne Ray) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 18:14:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KE6D K2 Software Message-ID: <000001d5bdd4$8ea6a520$abf3ef60$@cox.net> Neil, KN3ILZ Thank you for the fix for my K2S software, the Run Compatibility Troubleshooter fix did not work, however selecting the compatibility manually solved the problem. I restarted the computer after setting the compatibility to Windows 7 for this program and the KE6D, K2S software worked like a champ. 73, Steve K4JPN From kevinr at coho.net Sat Dec 28 21:42:06 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 18:42:06 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Announcement Message-ID: <2ec25f5c-7d35-b7a2-a242-685ba70c6fd2@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? It was good to see the sun again after a week of fog and rain.? It's back to fog and rain but a few hours of sun was enough.? I was surprised no one mentioned our solar Christmas present.? Two sunspots of the new cycle.? They are both gone now but they broke a month long streak of blankness.? Maybe by spring we'll see more of them more often. Please join us tomorrow on: 14050 kHz at 2200z Sunday? (2 PM PST Sunday) ?7047 kHz at 0000z Monday? (4 PM PST Sunday) 73, ?? Kevin. KD5ONS - Das Leben ist zu kurz um schlechten Wein zu trinken!? - Goethe From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 22:16:07 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 22:16:07 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds Message-ID: The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone From mcquiggi at sfu.ca Sat Dec 28 22:27:11 2019 From: mcquiggi at sfu.ca (Kevin McQuiggin) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 19:27:11 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <26DD3927-87E3-4A51-A01D-0FE716878C58@sfu.ca> It does not negate the argument, but nerve impulses are based on chemical reactions in neurons, and only travel at about 120 metres per second. > On Dec 28, 2019, at 7:16 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: > > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to mcquiggi at sfu.ca From rcrgs at verizon.net Sat Dec 28 22:43:46 2019 From: rcrgs at verizon.net (Robert G Strickland) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 03:43:46 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> Jim... I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the QRQ way. Thanks for your interesting thoughts. ...robert On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > -- Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY rcrgs at verizon.net.usa Syracuse, New York, USA From eric_csuf at hotmail.com Sat Dec 28 23:07:28 2019 From: eric_csuf at hotmail.com (Eric J) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 04:07:28 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> Message-ID: For one, trhee is a lot of rdannudcey in lngugaae. Yuor biarn tkeas advgaante of taht. You cn'at wenn you can olny wrtie dwon leettr by leettr. When you head copy words, even short phrases, your brain does a lot of the work it already knows how to do. That first sentence would take a lot of work trying to figure it out letter by letter, but most people can scan it for sense almost as fast as they can read correct text. Eric KE6UWS On 12/28/2019 7:43 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: Jim... I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the QRQ way. Thanks for your interesting thoughts. ...robert On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net From thom2 at att.net Sat Dec 28 23:25:25 2019 From: thom2 at att.net (Tom McCulloch) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:25:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the A,W,J method at 5 WPM. I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing complete words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) Thanks Tom WB2QDG K2 # 1103 (I think) On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: > Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility counts. You establish that with facts. > > We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. > > Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone who does not know CW. > > A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn CW. You may disagree. > > I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do not write down my conversations in spoken language. > > Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. > > So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. > > The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They also have a companion text file. Check their website. > > It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. > Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a year. > > Just do it > > 73 > Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to thom2 at att.net From dpbunte at gmail.com Sat Dec 28 23:45:59 2019 From: dpbunte at gmail.com (David Bunte) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:45:59 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Tom - I can't handle the higher speeds at which Jim is comfortable, but his suggestions are excellent. I think I stopped writing down stuff by the time I approached 15 wpm... except, of course Callsigns, names and QTH because I wanted those in my log... sometimes I will make other notes in the log to recall in future QSOs. By the time I got to 20 WPM I had to look for a paper and pencil if I wanted to write something down... as I put all the other stuff right into my logging program. Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than anything else. Finding someone with whom to chew the rag... not only helps code speed, I think it makes the hobby even more enjoyable. Best of luck es 73 de Dave - K9FN On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 11:26 PM Tom McCulloch wrote: > I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us. Mine was the > A,W,J method at 5 WPM. > > I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my > personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed > guys out there. At what speed would you say you start hearing complete > words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could > pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over > 20 WPM). To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) > > Thanks > > Tom WB2QDG > > K2 # 1103 (I think) > > On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: > > Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW > probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. > Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite > fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility > counts. You establish that with facts. > > > > We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That > takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to > decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of > communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. > > > > Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I > do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone > who does not know CW. > > > > A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to > converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn > CW. You may disagree. > > > > I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do > not write down my conversations in spoken language. > > > > Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can > retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would > lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. > > > > So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to > a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs > differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean > yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. > > > > The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent > over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I > recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They > also have a companion text file. Check their website. > > > > It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st > paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I > have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP > 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. > At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. > > Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I > believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach > copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some > point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from > someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a > year. > > > > Just do it > > > > 73 > > Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE > > > > Sent from my iPhone > > ______________________________________________________________ > > Elecraft mailing list > > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Message delivered to thom2 at att.net > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dpbunte at gmail.com From tombewick at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 01:16:53 2019 From: tombewick at gmail.com (K2bew) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 01:16:53 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. Thanks so much! 73, Tom Bewick, k2bew On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast > speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about > 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not > encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a > common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed > Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is > giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the > context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the > phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a > curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have > assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I > only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things > do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ > CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com From dave at nk7z.net Sun Dec 29 01:20:51 2019 From: dave at nk7z.net (Dave Cole) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 22:20:51 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <95a39645-89be-5994-c692-caeb60a21ac7@nk7z.net> Nerve impulses travel at around 200 MPH, tops, but I believe the explanation will still hold. 73, and thanks, Dave (NK7Z) https://www.nk7z.net ARRL Volunteer Examiner ARRL Technical Specialist ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources On 12/28/19 10:16 PM, K2bew wrote: > Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. > Thanks so much! > 73, > Tom Bewick, k2bew > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: > >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >> speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >> 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net > From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Sun Dec 29 02:02:53 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:02:53 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/28/2019 8:45 PM, David Bunte wrote: > Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than > anything else. CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. 73, Jim K9YC From forums at david-woolley.me.uk Sun Dec 29 07:29:28 2019 From: forums at david-woolley.me.uk (David Woolley) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 12:29:28 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <26DD3927-87E3-4A51-A01D-0FE716878C58@sfu.ca> References: <26DD3927-87E3-4A51-A01D-0FE716878C58@sfu.ca> Message-ID: <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf@david-woolley.me.uk> Neve conduction is actually a mixture of chemical and electrical mechanisms, in vertebrates. The signal travels electrically in short hops, and is then regenerated by a chemical process. Invertebrates have propagation velocities of more like 1 metre / second. -- David Woolley On 29/12/2019 03:27, Kevin McQuiggin wrote: > It does not negate the argument, but nerve impulses are based on chemical reactions in neurons, and only travel at about 120 metres per second. From w2up at comcast.net Sun Dec 29 07:55:21 2019 From: w2up at comcast.net (Barry) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 05:55:21 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf@david-woolley.me.uk> References: <26DD3927-87E3-4A51-A01D-0FE716878C58@sfu.ca> <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf@david-woolley.me.uk> Message-ID: <1577624121726-0.post@n2.nabble.com> While I agree with the OP about copying conversational QRQ, the redundancy/anticipation doesn't hold true when copying callsigns, such as in the case of running RUFZ. I don't know if the number has gone up in the last ~10 years, as that was the last time I participated in the IARU HST, but at that time, 2 guys (DJ1YFK and YT7AW) broke 200 WPM. When in my prime, I hit about 120 WPM running RUFZ. 200 sounds like a buzz saw to me. Maybe these guys have narrower gaps in their synapses? Barry W2UP (HST 2011 Bronze medal in RUFZ) -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From w2up at comcast.net Sun Dec 29 08:05:58 2019 From: w2up at comcast.net (Barry) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 06:05:58 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <1577624758507-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Jim Brown-10 wrote > CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. > > 73, Jim K9YC Yup. Like the old joke, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Practice! I also suspect age has a lot to do with it. I was licensed at 12. Upgraded at 13, but couldn't afford a SSB radio for 2-3 years, so did CW only. Found the QRQ guys (in the early 70s) at the low end of 40 CW and programs were available, I found I hit a wall at ~100 WPM, despite practice. Other than contesting, I really haven't been active for the last 5-10 years and my speed has significantly dropped. Barry W2UP -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 29 08:48:37 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:48:37 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop In-Reply-To: <6db6ee23-3a27-833d-dbe5-3e986d4b77ae@blomand.net> References: <9f201719-4109-4b4a-6df6-b8f2b0419331@embarqmail.com> <34749257-c597-cba1-3c72-c539af7e1288@blomand.net> <002101d5bdb7$e51cea80$af56bf80$@gmail.com> <6db6ee23-3a27-833d-dbe5-3e986d4b77ae@blomand.net> Message-ID: As Bob has pointed out, power drop is not the factor in the voltage to an Elecraft transceiver. No matter what the supply voltage may be, the K2/K3/K3S/KX2/KX3 will attempt to produce the output power requested by the power knob setting. Those transceivers actually measure the output power rather than the drive level as is done by many other transceivers. The problem is that the transmit IMD increases as the voltage drops, so running with a higher voltage results in a cleaner signal on the air. Of course, if you are an "all knobs right" operator, you may notice a bit of a drop in the maximum power available on some bands. Instead of 114 watts, you may get only 95 or 100 watts, but that is extreme. I recommend that you do not set the power knob above 100 watts in any case. Use the maximum setting only for testing into a dummy load. The difference between 114 watts and 100 watts is only 0.57 dB and will not be noticed on the far end of the transmission. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/28/2019 5:32 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > It is not quite that simple.?? Power drop is not really a factor. > > The operating range of the radio, from specifications,? is 11 volts > minimum to 15 volts maximum. ? Thus with a 4 volt operating range, a 1 > volt drop represents a 25% change.? Within this range of 11 to 15 volts > the radio will attempt to deliver 100 watts by demanding the required > amount of current from the power supply. Thus the three resistances in > series example, as I stated earlier, with the middle one {radio} being a > variable value. From rthorne at rthorne.net Sun Dec 29 09:09:05 2019 From: rthorne at rthorne.net (Richard Thorne) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:09:05 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit Message-ID: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a@rthorne.net> I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount a try. Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? Rich - N5ZC From paule408 at yahoo.com Sun Dec 29 09:25:09 2019 From: paule408 at yahoo.com (paule408 at yahoo.com) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:25:09 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] My K3/100 has been sold References: <165278352.4599928.1577629509339.ref@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <165278352.4599928.1577629509339@mail.yahoo.com> My K3 has been sold. Thank you for your inquiries.? Paul N6PSEpauln6pse at gmail.com From mbaileycrna at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 10:33:48 2019 From: mbaileycrna at gmail.com (Morgan Bailey) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 09:33:48 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer Message-ID: Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? From ve3iql at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 11:03:34 2019 From: ve3iql at gmail.com (Terry Basom) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:03:34 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] kx3 FOR SALE Message-ID: My KX3 has sold. 73's to all From donwilh at embarqmail.com Sun Dec 29 11:18:40 2019 From: donwilh at embarqmail.com (Don Wilhelm) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:18:40 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> Morgan, The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will need to run that on your shack computer. While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its fileserver tasks. 73, Don W3FPR On 12/29/2019 10:33 AM, Morgan Bailey wrote: > Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for > this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer > dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? From kk5f at earthlink.net Sun Dec 29 11:39:11 2019 From: kk5f at earthlink.net (Mike Morrow) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 10:39:11 -0600 (GMT-06:00) Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) Message-ID: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required.? Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy.? An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups.? The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates.? The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part.? (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups".? There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections.? Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US.? In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. It was a great era with great operators.? A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s.? He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better.? He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice.? Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill.? (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.)? Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking.? I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. Mike / KK5F From k7sss at aol.com Sun Dec 29 12:06:33 2019 From: k7sss at aol.com (k7sss at aol.com) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:06:33 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit In-Reply-To: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a@rthorne.net> References: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a@rthorne.net> Message-ID: <330811204.2966129.1577639193867@mail.yahoo.com> Hi,I found this site with a kit QRP smd parts. https://kc9on.com/product/smd-dummy-load-bnc/ 73Jim H k7sss In a message dated 12/29/2019 6:11:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, rthorne at rthorne.net writes: I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount a try. Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? Rich - N5ZC______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to k7sss at aol.com From robertkhand at hotmail.com Sun Dec 29 13:24:33 2019 From: robertkhand at hotmail.com (K0RKH) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:24:33 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise Message-ID: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> I am looking for possible causes of increased receive noise I am experiencing whenever I turn on my KPA 1500 . I have always had this issue but at first disregarded it as maybe common mode noise but have since experimented a bit by connecting a dummy load to the receiver and producing the same results. The receiver is a K3s model and I have taken several opportunities to bond all equipment and tried ferrite #33 beads in several places with no change in results. Has anyone else on this site had the same problem. The noise is the greatest on 6 and 10 meters where it would show up as more of a problem as well with a +20-db noise on 6 meters and +10-db on 10 meters. Bob K0RKH -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 13:46:23 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:46:23 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: Bob N7WY motivated me to provide a few more details on the KEY OUT mosfet/Q3/IRFI630 replacement. I took the bottom off my K3 to show the location of the IRFI630 on the bottom of the PCB. It was a little more tricky than I remembered, so you will need to access the main PCB from the top of the K3 by removing the KIO3 board and the IO board that has the IF output. I did the replacement without removing the back panel which would have been very painful. Again, I do remember being able to do this without a major disassembly. I de-soldered from the bottom of the PCB and pulled and replaced the IRFI630 from the top. It was tight, but it sure beat sending the K3 back to Elecraft and you can do a clean job if you are careful. Here are some new pictures that I just took and annotated with more details of the location of Q3 along with a snippet from the Elecraft Schematic where Q3 is located. Your mileage may vary based on your re-work skills but I wouldn't consider this a difficult replacement... medium effort at worst. When in doubt, send your radio in, but it's not rocket science: Updated Pictures: http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=album&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2F Good Luck! Max NG7M On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 10:20 AM M. George wrote: > Pete, just saw your question on the PTT OUT not working for you. I had an > issue with this back in 2016... I can't remember what I did, but it wasn't > smart and it was my fault... Anyway, I let the smoke/metal out of the IRFI630G > that is used on the PPT out. It's beefy and can take a lot of abuse, but I > still managed to destroy it. Anyway, it's an easy replacement and saved me > from shipping my K3 back to Elecraft. Total operator error in my > situation... maybe attached 12v to the PTT out? Again, I can't remember. > > Here is a picture of what my damaged MOSFET looked like at the time... see > the crack and leakage ;) > > > http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=imageview&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2FIRFI630GFried.JPG > > And here is the Mouser part I ordered to replace it: > > > https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Siliconix/IRFI630GPBF?qs=%2Fha2pyFaduhSYcFgYMU8ma88%2Fb96%2Fl4SGKWFSYSWEuEDdoRAAyNpCg== > > Here is the schematic link: > https://ftp.elecraft.com/K3/Manuals%20Downloads/K3_Schematics_Jun_2010.pdf > > Search for IRFI630 in the PDF, you will find it straight away... and I > don't remember it being tough to expose the damaged mosfet and replace > it... > > Max NG7M > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 AM N4ZR wrote: > >> Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, >> and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. >> >> -- >> >> 73, Pete N4ZR >> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network >> at , now >> spotting RTTY activity worldwide. >> For spots, please use your favorite >> "retail" DX cluster. >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com > > > > -- > M. George > -- M. George From k6dgw at foothill.net Sun Dec 29 14:56:35 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:56:35 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <74831679-64d5-7e24-593e-23b875127c6d@foothill.net> I'm fairly certain it's an individual thing. In head copy, it starts to sound like reading somewhere around 25 for me.? If I'm making record copy on a mill or keyboard at around 25-30, I'm not really aware of anything I am copying.? It seems to be a direct connection between ears and fingers, and I cannot tell you afterwards what I copied.? In my very brief 10 months as the "station kid" at a coastal marine station in the mid-50's, the Company tried to enforce an 18-20 WPM speed limit while in traffic, they believed that was the sweet spot in terms of overall throughput [circuit chatter usually ran faster]. Ted McElroy [SK] held [and may still hold] the record set in the 30's I think, at 76 WPM with text taken from a newspaper.? That he set the record is certain although some have said he may have had the chance to see the paper ahead of time.? He also won typing contests which were popular at the time.? What may be apocryphal is a rendition that the code began, he poured a cup of coffee and lit a cigarette, finally sitting down and starting to copy maybe 5 mins later, and continued typing for several minutes after the code stopped. Code groups are said to be much harder than plain text ... the 2nd Telegraph in the 50's was 20 plain text and 16 groups.? For some reason, I find groups easier and less work, no idea why.? And, after close to 70 years with Morse, I agree with Tom ... there are lots of ways to learn the code with varying efficiency for different people but they all work. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County K2 #4398 K3 #642 ex KX1 #697 On 12/28/2019 8:25 PM, Tom McCulloch wrote: > I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the > A,W,J method at 5 WPM. > > I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my > personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher > speed guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing > complete words rather than the individual letters and as a result you > could pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write > anything over 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) > > Thanks > > Tom WB2QDG > > K2 # 1103 (I think) > From k2asp at kanafi.org Sun Dec 29 17:05:32 2019 From: k2asp at kanafi.org (Phil Kane) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:05:32 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) In-Reply-To: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> References: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: On 12/29/2019 8:39 AM, Mike Morrow wrote: > But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I > personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding > outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. Check out for the schedule of operations of KPH / KFS / KSM Morse press and traffic transmissions every Saturday. 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 >From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon From ars.nc0jw at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 17:17:41 2019 From: ars.nc0jw at gmail.com (Jim White NC0JW) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:17:41 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 Message-ID: Our normal net control Eric WB9JNZ is on a two week holiday vacation and is scheduled to resume net control duties next week. 14 checks ins today with Brian's (K1NW) help as a relay station. Thanks for the help Brian! We were even able to dig Peter ZL1PWD out of the noise and get him checked in. Thanks for your patience Peter. Sunday December 29, 2019: K1NW Brian RI K3 4974 Relay station KS6F Guy CA K3S 10650 K7BRR Bill AZ K3S 10939 K8NU Carl OH K3S 10996 N7BDL Terry AZ K3S 10373 W4DML Doug TN K3 6433 KD8CIV John MI KX3 4654 W9LSE Bob WI K3 945 W2RWA Dick NY K3 2603 N6PGQ Bob CA K3 5891 W6US Jim NV K3S 11215 K4KSW Jack FL K3S 10179 ZL1PWD Peter NZ K3 139 NC0JW Jim CO KX3 1356 Net control The Elecraft SSB Net meets on Sunday at 1800 UTC on or about 14.3035 MHz. With propagation at a low point we employ several relay stations located around the continental USA to assist with check ins. As conditions permit we take questions and comments after check ins. Make it a point to join us next week for the first net of the new year and the new decade. Jim White - NC0JW ars.nc0jw at gmail.com From rocketnj at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 17:41:49 2019 From: rocketnj at gmail.com (Dave) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:41:49 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise In-Reply-To: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: My 1500 had birdies which were reduced with adding load resistor to the 50 volt supply on the amp. Still present but much lower. Dave wo2x Sent from my waxed string and tin cans. > On Dec 29, 2019, at 1:26 PM, K0RKH wrote: > > ? I am looking for possible causes of increased receive noise I > am experiencing whenever I turn on my KPA 1500 . I have always had this > issue but at first disregarded it as maybe common mode noise but have since > experimented a bit by connecting a dummy load to the receiver and producing > the same results. > The receiver is a K3s model and I have taken several > opportunities to bond all equipment and tried ferrite #33 beads in several > places with no change in results. > Has anyone else on this site had the same problem. The noise > is the greatest on 6 and 10 meters where it would show up as more of a > problem as well with a +20-db noise on 6 meters and +10-db on 10 meters. > Bob K0RKH > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rocketnj at gmail.com From jsdanehy at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 18:06:52 2019 From: jsdanehy at gmail.com (Jim Danehy) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 18:06:52 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft Digest, Vol 188, Issue 34 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <777CFDA4-EDE6-4CCE-A9AD-0C50CE3CC6BF@gmail.com> Robert Strickland Most people have had the experience of ?SELF COMPLETING? word processing. You type in several letters and up pops several choices. I will assume that you have had that experience. At some point in time I started to copy ENTIRE WORDS. They were not what many would expect. They were not 4 or 5 letter words. Some could be 10 or 12 characters in length. A word that long wound just appear in my consciousness. I would recognize the word PRIOR to the completion by the other operator. A couple of things may cause that. ANTICIPATION and also CONTEXT. probably both cause that At slow speeds words take too long to get into the anticipation mode. At 45 and above the self completion is very apparent. It can cause problems as well. You get a word that is not correct. That throws off concentration. You then get out of the rhythm. For me the context is correct probably 75% of the time. I live in Cincinnati. When somebody asks me about CINCINNATI at 45 wpm the first 4 or 5 characters are all I need before self completion of Cincinnati. That is any easy one and rarely is there a close alternative that would come into play. It does take concentration and FOCUS at least for me. There must be a TIPPING POINT (psychologist term) where the probability and consensus context improves your skill. It took me a long time to build speed. About 35 years ago 40 meters had plenty of QSOS at QRQ speeds. That no longer has the numbers that were in existence. Those ops have become SK. Sad to say. Another excellent way to increase your speed is to engage in conversations with your sending being done with a keyboard. About 40 years ago I experimented with a keyboard. Knowing in ADVANCE what the word I was going to send allowed my copying speed to get a very noticeable boost. That occurred within 30 days of steady keyboard use. Going from 35 to 40 + was what I experienced. it works I am not a psychologist or physician. So I only have EXPERIENCED rather than an analytical basis to rely upon. I get into to trouble explaining why. But I can say that the use of a keyboard for sending increases your receiving speed. That worked for me. The sound of what you copy changes slightly at higher speeds. I keep telling myself that I am building a VOCABULARY (sounds). I think that is what infants do. We are all different. But it gets easier with the VOCABULARY building and anticipation which I can only say occurs but I have no idea why. The learning curve is not LINEAR. You get bumps up. Knowing that should encourage people to be persistent. It is not always a grind. Familiarity with the CHANGE in sound, anticipation etc. have been noticed by me in my effort to copy faster. I think people become intimidated. They stop trying to soon. That has been my experience. I kept at it. Nothing is more satisfying than a QSO with a friend at high speed. These are becoming rare. That is why I take the time to share my experiences Good luck 73 Jim W9VNE / VA3VNE Sent from my iPhone > On Dec 29, 2019, at 5:21 PM, elecraft-request at mailman.qth.net wrote: > > ?Send Elecraft mailing list submissions to > elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > elecraft-request at mailman.qth.net > > You can reach the person managing the list at > elecraft-owner at mailman.qth.net > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Elecraft digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Robert G Strickland) > 2. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Eric J) > 3. Re: Learning Morse Code (Tom McCulloch) > 4. Re: Learning Morse Code (David Bunte) > 5. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (K2bew) > 6. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Dave Cole) > 7. Re: Learning Morse Code (Jim Brown) > 8. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (David Woolley) > 9. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Barry) > 10. Re: Learning Morse Code (Barry) > 11. Re: K3 - Power cable voltage drop (Don Wilhelm) > 12. 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (Richard Thorne) > 13. My K3/100 has been sold (paule408 at yahoo.com) > 14. CW skimmer (Morgan Bailey) > 15. kx3 FOR SALE (Terry Basom) > 16. Re: CW skimmer (Don Wilhelm) > 17. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Mike Morrow) > 18. Re: 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (k7sss at aol.com) > 19. KPA 1500 and receiver noise (K0RKH) > 20. Re: K3 - KEY OUT problem (M. George) > 21. Re: Learning Morse Code (Fred Jensen) > 22. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Phil Kane) > 23. Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 (Jim White NC0JW) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 03:43:46 +0000 > From: Robert G Strickland > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b at verizon.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the > QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > >> On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net >> > > -- > Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY > rcrgs at verizon.net.usa > Syracuse, New York, USA > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 04:07:28 +0000 > From: Eric J > To: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > For one, trhee is a lot of rdannudcey in lngugaae. Yuor biarn tkeas advgaante of taht. You cn'at wenn you can olny wrtie dwon leettr by leettr. > > When you head copy words, even short phrases, your brain does a lot of the work it already knows how to do. That first sentence would take a lot of work trying to figure it out letter by letter, but most people can scan it for sense almost as fast as they can read correct text. > > Eric KE6UWS > > On 12/28/2019 7:43 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > > On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:25:25 -0500 > From: Tom McCulloch > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the > A,W,J method at 5 WPM. > > I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my > personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed > guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing complete > words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could > pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over > 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) > > Thanks > > Tom WB2QDG > > K2 # 1103 (I think) > >> On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility counts. You establish that with facts. >> >> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >> >> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone who does not know CW. >> >> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn CW. You may disagree. >> >> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do not write down my conversations in spoken language. >> >> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >> >> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >> >> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They also have a companion text file. Check their website. >> >> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a year. >> >> Just do it >> >> 73 >> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:45:59 -0500 > From: David Bunte > To: Tom McCulloch > Cc: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Tom - > > I can't handle the higher speeds at which Jim is comfortable, but his > suggestions are excellent. I think I stopped writing down stuff by the time > I approached 15 wpm... except, of course Callsigns, names and QTH because I > wanted those in my log... sometimes I will make other notes in the log to > recall in future QSOs. By the time I got to 20 WPM I had to look for a > paper and pencil if I wanted to write something down... as I put all the > other stuff right into my logging program. > > Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than > anything else. Finding someone with whom to chew the rag... not only helps > code speed, I think it makes the hobby even more enjoyable. > > Best of luck es 73 de Dave - K9FN > >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 11:26 PM Tom McCulloch wrote: >> >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us. Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed >> guys out there. At what speed would you say you start hearing complete >> words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could >> pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over >> 20 WPM). To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> >>> On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >>> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW >> probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. >> Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite >> fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility >> counts. You establish that with facts. >>> >>> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That >> takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to >> decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of >> communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >>> >>> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I >> do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone >> who does not know CW. >>> >>> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to >> converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn >> CW. You may disagree. >>> >>> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do >> not write down my conversations in spoken language. >>> >>> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can >> retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would >> lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >>> >>> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to >> a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs >> differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean >> yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >>> >>> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent >> over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I >> recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They >> also have a companion text file. Check their website. >>> >>> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st >> paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I >> have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP >> 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. >> At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >>> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I >> believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach >> copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some >> point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from >> someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a >> year. >>> >>> Just do it >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dpbunte at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 01:16:53 -0500 > From: K2bew > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. > Thanks so much! > 73, > Tom Bewick, k2bew > >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: >> >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >> speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >> 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 22:20:51 -0800 > From: Dave Cole > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <95a39645-89be-5994-c692-caeb60a21ac7 at nk7z.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Nerve impulses travel at around 200 MPH, tops, but I believe the > explanation will still hold. > > 73, and thanks, > Dave (NK7Z) > https://www.nk7z.net > ARRL Volunteer Examiner > ARRL Technical Specialist > ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources > >> On 12/28/19 10:16 PM, K2bew wrote: >> Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. >> Thanks so much! >> 73, >> Tom Bewick, k2bew >> >>> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: >>> >>> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >>> speed. >>> >>> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >>> 670,616,629 mph. >>> >>> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >>> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >>> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >>> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >>> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >>> >>> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >>> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >>> >>> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >>> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >>> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >>> >>> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >>> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >>> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >>> >>> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >>> >>> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >>> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >>> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim >>> W9VNE / VA3VNE >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net >> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 7 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:02:53 -0800 > From: Jim Brown > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f at audiosystemsgroup.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > >> On 12/28/2019 8:45 PM, David Bunte wrote: >> Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than >> anything else. > > CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. > > 73, Jim K9YC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 8 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 12:29:28 +0000 > From: David Woolley > To: Kevin McQuiggin , Jim Danehy > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf at david-woolley.me.uk> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Neve conduction is actually a mixture of chemical and electrical > mechanisms, in vertebrates. The signal travels electrically in short > hops, and is then regenerated by a chemical process. Invertebrates have > propagation velocities of more like 1 metre / second. > > > -- > David Woolley > >> On 29/12/2019 03:27, Kevin McQuiggin wrote: >> It does not negate the argument, but nerve impulses are based on chemical reactions in neurons, and only travel at about 120 metres per second. > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 9 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 05:55:21 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <1577624121726-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > While I agree with the OP about copying conversational QRQ, the > redundancy/anticipation doesn't hold true when copying callsigns, such as in > the case of running RUFZ. > > I don't know if the number has gone up in the last ~10 years, as that was > the last time I participated in the IARU HST, but at that time, 2 guys > (DJ1YFK and YT7AW) broke 200 WPM. When in my prime, I hit about 120 WPM > running RUFZ. 200 sounds like a buzz saw to me. Maybe these guys have > narrower gaps in their synapses? > > Barry W2UP (HST 2011 Bronze medal in RUFZ) > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 10 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 06:05:58 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <1577624758507-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Jim Brown-10 wrote >> CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. >> >> 73, Jim K9YC > > Yup. Like the old joke, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Practice! > > I also suspect age has a lot to do with it. I was licensed at 12. Upgraded > at 13, but couldn't afford a SSB radio for 2-3 years, so did CW only. Found > the QRQ guys (in the early 70s) at the low end of 40 CW and programs were > available, I found I hit a wall at ~100 WPM, despite practice. Other than > contesting, I really haven't been active for the last 5-10 years and my > speed has significantly dropped. > > Barry W2UP > > > > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 11 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:48:37 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > As Bob has pointed out, power drop is not the factor in the voltage to > an Elecraft transceiver. > > No matter what the supply voltage may be, the K2/K3/K3S/KX2/KX3 will > attempt to produce the output power requested by the power knob setting. > Those transceivers actually measure the output power rather than the > drive level as is done by many other transceivers. > > The problem is that the transmit IMD increases as the voltage drops, so > running with a higher voltage results in a cleaner signal on the air. > > Of course, if you are an "all knobs right" operator, you may notice a > bit of a drop in the maximum power available on some bands. Instead of > 114 watts, you may get only 95 or 100 watts, but that is extreme. > I recommend that you do not set the power knob above 100 watts in any > case. Use the maximum setting only for testing into a dummy load. > > The difference between 114 watts and 100 watts is only 0.57 dB and will > not be noticed on the far end of the transmission. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > >> On 12/28/2019 5:32 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> It is not quite that simple.?? Power drop is not really a factor. >> >> The operating range of the radio, from specifications,? is 11 volts >> minimum to 15 volts maximum. ? Thus with a 4 volt operating range, a 1 >> volt drop represents a 25% change.? Within this range of 11 to 15 volts >> the radio will attempt to deliver 100 watts by demanding the required >> amount of current from the power supply. Thus the three resistances in >> series example, as I stated earlier, with the middle one {radio} being a >> variable value. > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 12 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:09:05 -0600 > From: Richard Thorne > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a at rthorne.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount > a try. > > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > > Rich - N5ZC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 13 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:25:09 +0000 (UTC) > From: "paule408 at yahoo.com" > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] My K3/100 has been sold > Message-ID: <165278352.4599928.1577629509339 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > My K3 has been sold. Thank you for your inquiries.? > > Paul N6PSEpauln6pse at gmail.com > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 14 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 09:33:48 -0600 > From: Morgan Bailey > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for > this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer > dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 15 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:03:34 -0500 > From: Terry Basom > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] kx3 FOR SALE > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > My KX3 has sold. > 73's to all > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 16 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:18:40 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: Morgan Bailey , Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf at embarqmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will > need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating > system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. > I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load > and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its > fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > >> On 12/29/2019 10:33 AM, Morgan Bailey wrote: >> Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for >> this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer >> dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 17 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 10:39:11 -0600 (GMT-06:00) > From: Mike Morrow > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > <1409933060.1371.1577637551582 at wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required.? Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy.? An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. > > In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups.? The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates.? The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: > > PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. > CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. > > Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part.? (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups".? There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections.? Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. > > The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US.? In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. > > It was a great era with great operators.? A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s.? He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better.? He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. > > It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice.? Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill.? (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.)? Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. > > But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking.? I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Mike / KK5F > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 18 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:06:33 +0000 (UTC) > From: k7sss at aol.com > To: rthorne at rthorne.net, elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <330811204.2966129.1577639193867 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Hi,I found this site with a kit QRP smd parts. https://kc9on.com/product/smd-dummy-load-bnc/ > 73Jim H k7sss > In a message dated 12/29/2019 6:11:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, rthorne at rthorne.net writes: > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount a try. > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > Rich - N5ZC______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to k7sss at aol.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 19 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:24:33 -0700 (MST) > From: K0RKH > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise > Message-ID: <1577643873678-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > I am looking for possible causes of increased receive noise I > am experiencing whenever I turn on my KPA 1500 . I have always had this > issue but at first disregarded it as maybe common mode noise but have since > experimented a bit by connecting a dummy load to the receiver and producing > the same results. > The receiver is a K3s model and I have taken several > opportunities to bond all equipment and tried ferrite #33 beads in several > places with no change in results. > Has anyone else on this site had the same problem. The noise > is the greatest on 6 and 10 meters where it would show up as more of a > problem as well with a +20-db noise on 6 meters and +10-db on 10 meters. > Bob K0RKH > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 20 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:46:23 -0700 > From: "M. George" > To: N4ZR , N7WY-BobR > Cc: Elecraft List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Bob N7WY motivated me to provide a few more details on the KEY OUT > mosfet/Q3/IRFI630 replacement. I took the bottom off my K3 to show the > location of the IRFI630 on the bottom of the PCB. It was a little more > tricky than I remembered, so you will need to access the main PCB from the > top of the K3 by removing the KIO3 board and the IO board that has the IF > output. I did the replacement without removing the back panel which would > have been very painful. Again, I do remember being able to do this without > a major disassembly. I de-soldered from the bottom of the PCB and pulled > and replaced the IRFI630 from the top. It was tight, but it sure beat > sending the K3 back to Elecraft and you can do a clean job if you are > careful. > > Here are some new pictures that I just took > > and annotated with more details of the location of Q3 along with a snippet > from the Elecraft Schematic where Q3 is located. Your mileage may vary > based on your re-work skills but I wouldn't consider this a difficult > replacement... medium effort at worst. When in doubt, send your radio in, > but it's not rocket science: > > Updated Pictures: > http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=album&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2F > > Good Luck! > > Max NG7M > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 10:20 AM M. George > wrote: > >> Pete, just saw your question on the PTT OUT not working for you. I had an >> issue with this back in 2016... I can't remember what I did, but it wasn't >> smart and it was my fault... Anyway, I let the smoke/metal out of the IRFI630G >> that is used on the PPT out. It's beefy and can take a lot of abuse, but I >> still managed to destroy it. Anyway, it's an easy replacement and saved me >> from shipping my K3 back to Elecraft. Total operator error in my >> situation... maybe attached 12v to the PTT out? Again, I can't remember. >> >> Here is a picture of what my damaged MOSFET looked like at the time... see >> the crack and leakage ;) >> >> >> http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=imageview&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2FIRFI630GFried.JPG >> >> And here is the Mouser part I ordered to replace it: >> >> >> https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Siliconix/IRFI630GPBF?qs=%2Fha2pyFaduhSYcFgYMU8ma88%2Fb96%2Fl4SGKWFSYSWEuEDdoRAAyNpCg== >> >> Here is the schematic link: >> https://ftp.elecraft.com/K3/Manuals%20Downloads/K3_Schematics_Jun_2010.pdf >> >> Search for IRFI630 in the PDF, you will find it straight away... and I >> don't remember it being tough to expose the damaged mosfet and replace >> it... >> >> Max NG7M >> >>> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 AM N4ZR wrote: >>> >>> Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, >>> and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. >>> >>> -- >>> >>> 73, Pete N4ZR >>> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network >>> at , now >>> spotting RTTY activity worldwide. >>> For spots, please use your favorite >>> "retail" DX cluster. >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com >> >> >> >> -- >> M. George >> > > > -- > M. George > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 21 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:56:35 -0800 > From: Fred Jensen > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <74831679-64d5-7e24-593e-23b875127c6d at foothill.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I'm fairly certain it's an individual thing. In head copy, it starts to > sound like reading somewhere around 25 for me.? If I'm making record > copy on a mill or keyboard at around 25-30, I'm not really aware of > anything I am copying.? It seems to be a direct connection between ears > and fingers, and I cannot tell you afterwards what I copied.? In my very > brief 10 months as the "station kid" at a coastal marine station in the > mid-50's, the Company tried to enforce an 18-20 WPM speed limit while in > traffic, they believed that was the sweet spot in terms of overall > throughput [circuit chatter usually ran faster]. > > Ted McElroy [SK] held [and may still hold] the record set in the 30's I > think, at 76 WPM with text taken from a newspaper.? That he set the > record is certain although some have said he may have had the chance to > see the paper ahead of time.? He also won typing contests which were > popular at the time.? What may be apocryphal is a rendition that the > code began, he poured a cup of coffee and lit a cigarette, finally > sitting down and starting to copy maybe 5 mins later, and continued > typing for several minutes after the code stopped. > > Code groups are said to be much harder than plain text ... the 2nd > Telegraph in the 50's was 20 plain text and 16 groups.? For some reason, > I find groups easier and less work, no idea why.? And, after close to 70 > years with Morse, I agree with Tom ... there are lots of ways to learn > the code with varying efficiency for different people but they all work. > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > K2 #4398 > K3 #642 > ex KX1 #697 > >> On 12/28/2019 8:25 PM, Tom McCulloch wrote: >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher >> speed guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing >> complete words rather than the individual letters and as a result you >> could pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write >> anything over 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 22 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:05:32 -0800 > From: Phil Kane > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 > >> On 12/29/2019 8:39 AM, Mike Morrow wrote: >> >> But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I >> personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding >> outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Check out for the schedule of operations of KPH / > KFS / KSM Morse press and traffic transmissions every Saturday. > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > >> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest > Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 23 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:17:41 -0700 > From: Jim White NC0JW > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Our normal net control Eric WB9JNZ is on a two week holiday vacation and is scheduled to resume net control duties next week. 14 checks ins today with Brian's (K1NW) help as a relay station. Thanks for the help Brian! We were even able to dig Peter ZL1PWD out of the noise and get him checked in. Thanks for your patience Peter. > > Sunday December 29, 2019: > > K1NW Brian RI K3 4974 Relay station > KS6F Guy CA K3S 10650 > K7BRR Bill AZ K3S 10939 > K8NU Carl OH K3S 10996 > N7BDL Terry AZ K3S 10373 > W4DML Doug TN K3 6433 > KD8CIV John MI KX3 4654 > W9LSE Bob WI K3 945 > W2RWA Dick NY K3 2603 > N6PGQ Bob CA K3 5891 > W6US Jim NV K3S 11215 > K4KSW Jack FL K3S 10179 > ZL1PWD Peter NZ K3 139 > NC0JW Jim CO KX3 1356 Net control > > The Elecraft SSB Net meets on Sunday at 1800 UTC on or about 14.3035 MHz. With propagation at a low point we employ several relay stations located around the continental USA to assist with check ins. As conditions permit we take questions and comments after check ins. > > Make it a point to join us next week for the first net of the new year and the new decade. > > Jim White - NC0JW > ars.nc0jw at gmail.com > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Post to: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > You must be a subscriber to post. > Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com > > End of Elecraft Digest, Vol 188, Issue 34 > ***************************************** From k6dgw at foothill.net Sun Dec 29 18:29:14 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:29:14 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) In-Reply-To: References: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: <29cc7c73-003e-6a75-6523-b7f58121bd6a@foothill.net> I don't think they use KSM any longer.? Both KPH and KFS are active and assigned to Global HFnet LLC, and I think the museum society worked out some deal for perpetual usage of the calls and working frequencies by the museum site.? At least that's what RD told me.? KSM is still active in ULS assigned to MRHS.? KPH also sends it's wheel on several HF working frequencies. Prior to starting manned operations from Pt. Reyes each Sat, they have KFS on 426 Kc [I think] for an hour or so of 25 WPM "Free Press" at 5 KW sent from the Bolinas TX site.? Excellent source of CW practice if you can hear it.? Years ago, I practiced by listening to KOK in Los Angeles which was only 10 miles or so from home and very strong. 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/29/2019 2:05 PM, Phil Kane wrote: > On 12/29/2019 8:39 AM, Mike Morrow wrote: > >> But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I >> personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding >> outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > Check out for the schedule of operations of KPH / > KFS / KSM Morse press and traffic transmissions every Saturday. > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > From billamader at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 18:53:52 2019 From: billamader at gmail.com (K8TE) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 16:53:52 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> Message-ID: <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> CW scared me to death after my traumatic experience with the FCC in Syracuse NY in 1960. I had only several weeks to practice since I had been in HK4 as an exchange student for a long Summer where I operated SSB on a friend's DX-100 and HQ-170. I passed the General, but probably with one or no characters to spare. At 14 years old, that made a lasting impression! With the advent of vanity calls, I chose to dump WA8WWM for K8TE in the mid-1970s. I also passed the 1st Class Radiotelephone in Detroit and the 2nd Class Radiotelegraph exam in Lubbock a couple years later. I though the plain text for the latter was 22 wpm and cypher groups at 18. It was a long time ago. CW for me went by the wayside until FD 2012 when I had to fill-in an empty two-hour CW slot, I the SSB Team captain. With trepidation, I started running. With about 150 calls in the log, I decided it was possible to operate CW and not achieve a higher heart beat than QSO rate. Since then, I have used LCWO.net for callsign practice. I can copy at 75% accuracy above 40 wpm now. I have a friend who listens to CW at the gym or on the road and has improved his speed significantly. I have yet to feel a desire to rag chew. But I can easily copy my callsign in DX pileups well above the infrequent 35 wpm speed. I am proof that practice matters a lot! My purpose is to encourage the synapses to transfer callsigns and exchanges from sound to the keyboard. I don't have time to rag chew in CW and rarely find time for extended SSB QSO's. Still, I really enjoy chasing DX, POTA, SOTA, Counties, contesting, etc., especially on CW where contacts (usually) are brief and to the point, to say nothing of the difference in FD (no "Please Copy", Bill, AE6JV). Happy New Year and 73, Bill, K8TE -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From k0vp at chartermi.net Sun Dec 29 20:31:23 2019 From: k0vp at chartermi.net (Kenneth Schoenlein) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 20:31:23 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft Digest, Vol 188, Issue 34 In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <3B504345-8E7E-4D05-840C-89FE441F8135@chartermi.net> Re copying CW at high speeds: While learning CW in the military you were also learning to type. Chattanooga Shoe Shine Boy and similar tunes were played while you typed to the beat. CW graduating speed was 25 wpm in 5 letter coded groups. Sometimes numbers were mixed in. And you had to keep up with the mill. (Typewriter with all upper case letters ) In the field I don?t remember speeds much past 20 wpm. Owing to this background I find it difficult to copy in my head. Not that I can?t but I find myself needing to write it down. My advice to new comers. Learn to copy in your head just write down call signs, locations and signal strength. Forget the five character groups. Oh, and do not send faster than you can receive. > Send Elecraft mailing list submissions to > elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > elecraft-request at mailman.qth.net > > You can reach the person managing the list at > elecraft-owner at mailman.qth.net > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Elecraft digest..." > > > Today's Topics:And writing down is not going to fly at higher speeds. > > 1. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Robert G Strickland) > 2. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Eric J) > 3. Re: Learning Morse Code (Tom McCulloch) > 4. Re: Learning Morse Code (David Bunte) > 5. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (K2bew) > 6. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Dave Cole) > 7. Re: Learning Morse Code (Jim Brown) > 8. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (David Woolley) > 9. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Barry) > 10. Re: Learning Morse Code (Barry) > 11. Re: K3 - Power cable voltage drop (Don Wilhelm) > 12. 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (Richard Thorne) > 13. My K3/100 has been sold (paule408 at yahoo.com) > 14. CW skimmer (Morgan Bailey) > 15. kx3 FOR SALE (Terry Basom) > 16. Re: CW skimmer (Don Wilhelm) > 17. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Mike Morrow) > 18. Re: 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (k7sss at aol.com) > 19. KPA 1500 and receiver noise (K0RKH) > 20. Re: K3 - KEY OUT problem (M. George) > 21. Re: Learning Morse Code (Fred Jensen) > 22. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Phil Kane) > 23. Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 (Jim White NC0JW) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 03:43:46 +0000 > From: Robert G Strickland > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b at verizon.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the > QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > > On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net >> > > -- > Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY > rcrgs at verizon.net.usa > Syracuse, New York, USA > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 04:07:28 +0000 > From: Eric J > To: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > For one, trhee is a lot of rdannudcey in lngugaae. Yuor biarn tkeas advgaante of taht. You cn'at wenn you can olny wrtie dwon leettr by leettr. > > When you head copy words, even short phrases, your brain does a lot of the work it already knows how to do. That first sentence would take a lot of work trying to figure it out letter by letter, but most people can scan it for sense almost as fast as they can read correct text. > > Eric KE6UWS > > On 12/28/2019 7:43 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > > On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:25:25 -0500 > From: Tom McCulloch > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the > A,W,J method at 5 WPM. > > I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my > personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed > guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing complete > words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could > pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over > 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) > > Thanks > > Tom WB2QDG > > K2 # 1103 (I think) > > On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility counts. You establish that with facts. >> >> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >> >> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone who does not know CW. >> >> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn CW. You may disagree. >> >> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do not write down my conversations in spoken language. >> >> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >> >> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >> >> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They also have a companion text file. Check their website. >> >> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a year. >> >> Just do it >> >> 73 >> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:45:59 -0500 > From: David Bunte > To: Tom McCulloch > Cc: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Tom - > > I can't handle the higher speeds at which Jim is comfortable, but his > suggestions are excellent. I think I stopped writing down stuff by the time > I approached 15 wpm... except, of course Callsigns, names and QTH because I > wanted those in my log... sometimes I will make other notes in the log to > recall in future QSOs. By the time I got to 20 WPM I had to look for a > paper and pencil if I wanted to write something down... as I put all the > other stuff right into my logging program. > > Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than > anything else. Finding someone with whom to chew the rag... not only helps > code speed, I think it makes the hobby even more enjoyable. > > Best of luck es 73 de Dave - K9FN > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 11:26 PM Tom McCulloch wrote: > >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us. Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed >> guys out there. At what speed would you say you start hearing complete >> words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could >> pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over >> 20 WPM). To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> >> On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >>> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW >> probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. >> Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite >> fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility >> counts. You establish that with facts. >>> >>> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That >> takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to >> decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of >> communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >>> >>> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I >> do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone >> who does not know CW. >>> >>> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to >> converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn >> CW. You may disagree. >>> >>> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do >> not write down my conversations in spoken language. >>> >>> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can >> retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would >> lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >>> >>> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to >> a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs >> differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean >> yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >>> >>> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent >> over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I >> recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They >> also have a companion text file. Check their website. >>> >>> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st >> paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I >> have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP >> 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. >> At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >>> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I >> believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach >> copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some >> point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from >> someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a >> year. >>> >>> Just do it >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dpbunte at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 01:16:53 -0500 > From: K2bew > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. > Thanks so much! > 73, > Tom Bewick, k2bew > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: > >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >> speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >> 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 22:20:51 -0800 > From: Dave Cole > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <95a39645-89be-5994-c692-caeb60a21ac7 at nk7z.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Nerve impulses travel at around 200 MPH, tops, but I believe the > explanation will still hold. > > 73, and thanks, > Dave (NK7Z) > https://www.nk7z.net > ARRL Volunteer Examiner > ARRL Technical Specialist > ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources > > On 12/28/19 10:16 PM, K2bew wrote: >> Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. >> Thanks so much! >> 73, >> Tom Bewick, k2bew >> >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: >> >>> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >>> speed. >>> >>> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >>> 670,616,629 mph. >>> >>> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >>> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >>> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >>> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >>> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >>> >>> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >>> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >>> >>> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >>> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >>> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >>> >>> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >>> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >>> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >>> >>> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >>> >>> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >>> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >>> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim >>> W9VNE / VA3VNE >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net >> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 7 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:02:53 -0800 > From: Jim Brown > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f at audiosystemsgroup.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > On 12/28/2019 8:45 PM, David Bunte wrote: >> Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than >> anything else. > > CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. > > 73, Jim K9YC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 8 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 12:29:28 +0000 > From: David Woolley > To: Kevin McQuiggin , Jim Danehy > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf at david-woolley.me.uk> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Neve conduction is actually a mixture of chemical and electrical > mechanisms, in vertebrates. The signal travels electrically in short > hops, and is then regenerated by a chemical process. Invertebrates have > propagation velocities of more like 1 metre / second. > > > -- > David Woolley > > On 29/12/2019 03:27, Kevin McQuiggin wrote: >> It does not negate the argument, but nerve impulses are based on chemical reactions in neurons, and only travel at about 120 metres per second. > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 9 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 05:55:21 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <1577624121726-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > While I agree with the OP about copying conversational QRQ, the > redundancy/anticipation doesn't hold true when copying callsigns, such as in > the case of running RUFZ. > > I don't know if the number has gone up in the last ~10 years, as that was > the last time I participated in the IARU HST, but at that time, 2 guys > (DJ1YFK and YT7AW) broke 200 WPM. When in my prime, I hit about 120 WPM > running RUFZ. 200 sounds like a buzz saw to me. Maybe these guys have > narrower gaps in their synapses? > > Barry W2UP (HST 2011 Bronze medal in RUFZ) > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 10 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 06:05:58 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <1577624758507-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Jim Brown-10 wrote >> CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. >> >> 73, Jim K9YC > > Yup. Like the old joke, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Practice! > > I also suspect age has a lot to do with it. I was licensed at 12. Upgraded > at 13, but couldn't afford a SSB radio for 2-3 years, so did CW only. Found > the QRQ guys (in the early 70s) at the low end of 40 CW and programs were > available, I found I hit a wall at ~100 WPM, despite practice. Other than > contesting, I really haven't been active for the last 5-10 years and my > speed has significantly dropped. > > Barry W2UP > > > > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 11 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:48:37 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > As Bob has pointed out, power drop is not the factor in the voltage to > an Elecraft transceiver. > > No matter what the supply voltage may be, the K2/K3/K3S/KX2/KX3 will > attempt to produce the output power requested by the power knob setting. > Those transceivers actually measure the output power rather than the > drive level as is done by many other transceivers. > > The problem is that the transmit IMD increases as the voltage drops, so > running with a higher voltage results in a cleaner signal on the air. > > Of course, if you are an "all knobs right" operator, you may notice a > bit of a drop in the maximum power available on some bands. Instead of > 114 watts, you may get only 95 or 100 watts, but that is extreme. > I recommend that you do not set the power knob above 100 watts in any > case. Use the maximum setting only for testing into a dummy load. > > The difference between 114 watts and 100 watts is only 0.57 dB and will > not be noticed on the far end of the transmission. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/28/2019 5:32 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> It is not quite that simple.?? Power drop is not really a factor. >> >> The operating range of the radio, from specifications,? is 11 volts >> minimum to 15 volts maximum. ? Thus with a 4 volt operating range, a 1 >> volt drop represents a 25% change.? Within this range of 11 to 15 volts >> the radio will attempt to deliver 100 watts by demanding the required >> amount of current from the power supply. Thus the three resistances in >> series example, as I stated earlier, with the middle one {radio} being a >> variable value. > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 12 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:09:05 -0600 > From: Richard Thorne > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a at rthorne.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount > a try. > > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > > Rich - N5ZC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 13 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:25:09 +0000 (UTC) > From: "paule408 at yahoo.com" > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] My K3/100 has been sold > Message-ID: <165278352.4599928.1577629509339 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > My K3 has been sold. Thank you for your inquiries.? > > Paul N6PSEpauln6pse at gmail.com > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 14 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 09:33:48 -0600 > From: Morgan Bailey > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for > this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer > dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 15 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:03:34 -0500 > From: Terry Basom > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] kx3 FOR SALE > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > My KX3 has sold. > 73's to all > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 16 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:18:40 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: Morgan Bailey , Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf at embarqmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will > need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating > system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. > I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load > and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its > fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/29/2019 10:33 AM, Morgan Bailey wrote: >> Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for >> this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer >> dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 17 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 10:39:11 -0600 (GMT-06:00) > From: Mike Morrow > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > <1409933060.1371.1577637551582 at wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required.? Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy.? An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. > > In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups.? The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates.? The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: > > PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. > CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. > > Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part.? (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups".? There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections.? Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. > > The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US.? In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. > > It was a great era with great operators.? A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s.? He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better.? He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. > > It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice.? Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill.? (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.)? Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. > > But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking.? I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Mike / KK5F > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 18 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:06:33 +0000 (UTC) > From: k7sss at aol.com > To: rthorne at rthorne.net, elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <330811204.2966129.1577639193867 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Hi,I found this site with a kit QRP smd parts. https://kc9on.com/product/smd-dummy-load-bnc/ > 73Jim H k7sss > In a message dated 12/29/2019 6:11:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, rthorne at rthorne.net writes: > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount a try. > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > Rich - N5ZC______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to k7sss at aol.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 19 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:24:33 -0700 (MST) > From: K0RKH > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise > Message-ID: <1577643873678-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > I am looking for possible causes of increased receive noise I > am experiencing whenever I turn on my KPA 1500 . I have always had this > issue but at first disregarded it as maybe common mode noise but have since > experimented a bit by connecting a dummy load to the receiver and producing > the same results. > The receiver is a K3s model and I have taken several > opportunities to bond all equipment and tried ferrite #33 beads in several > places with no change in results. > Has anyone else on this site had the same problem. The noise > is the greatest on 6 and 10 meters where it would show up as more of a > problem as well with a +20-db noise on 6 meters and +10-db on 10 meters. > Bob K0RKH > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 20 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:46:23 -0700 > From: "M. George" > To: N4ZR , N7WY-BobR > Cc: Elecraft List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Bob N7WY motivated me to provide a few more details on the KEY OUT > mosfet/Q3/IRFI630 replacement. I took the bottom off my K3 to show the > location of the IRFI630 on the bottom of the PCB. It was a little more > tricky than I remembered, so you will need to access the main PCB from the > top of the K3 by removing the KIO3 board and the IO board that has the IF > output. I did the replacement without removing the back panel which would > have been very painful. Again, I do remember being able to do this without > a major disassembly. I de-soldered from the bottom of the PCB and pulled > and replaced the IRFI630 from the top. It was tight, but it sure beat > sending the K3 back to Elecraft and you can do a clean job if you are > careful. > > Here are some new pictures that I just took > > and annotated with more details of the location of Q3 along with a snippet > from the Elecraft Schematic where Q3 is located. Your mileage may vary > based on your re-work skills but I wouldn't consider this a difficult > replacement... medium effort at worst. When in doubt, send your radio in, > but it's not rocket science: > > Updated Pictures: > http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=album&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2F > > Good Luck! > > Max NG7M > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 10:20 AM M. George > wrote: > >> Pete, just saw your question on the PTT OUT not working for you. I had an >> issue with this back in 2016... I can't remember what I did, but it wasn't >> smart and it was my fault... Anyway, I let the smoke/metal out of the IRFI630G >> that is used on the PPT out. It's beefy and can take a lot of abuse, but I >> still managed to destroy it. Anyway, it's an easy replacement and saved me >> from shipping my K3 back to Elecraft. Total operator error in my >> situation... maybe attached 12v to the PTT out? Again, I can't remember. >> >> Here is a picture of what my damaged MOSFET looked like at the time... see >> the crack and leakage ;) >> >> >> http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=imageview&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2FIRFI630GFried.JPG >> >> And here is the Mouser part I ordered to replace it: >> >> >> https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Siliconix/IRFI630GPBF?qs=%2Fha2pyFaduhSYcFgYMU8ma88%2Fb96%2Fl4SGKWFSYSWEuEDdoRAAyNpCg== >> >> Here is the schematic link: >> https://ftp.elecraft.com/K3/Manuals%20Downloads/K3_Schematics_Jun_2010.pdf >> >> Search for IRFI630 in the PDF, you will find it straight away... and I >> don't remember it being tough to expose the damaged mosfet and replace >> it... >> >> Max NG7M >> >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 AM N4ZR wrote: >> >>> Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, >>> and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. >>> >>> -- >>> >>> 73, Pete N4ZR >>> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network >>> at , now >>> spotting RTTY activity worldwide. >>> For spots, please use your favorite >>> "retail" DX cluster. >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com >> >> >> >> -- >> M. George >> > > > -- > M. George > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 21 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:56:35 -0800 > From: Fred Jensen > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <74831679-64d5-7e24-593e-23b875127c6d at foothill.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I'm fairly certain it's an individual thing. In head copy, it starts to > sound like reading somewhere around 25 for me.? If I'm making record > copy on a mill or keyboard at around 25-30, I'm not really aware of > anything I am copying.? It seems to be a direct connection between ears > and fingers, and I cannot tell you afterwards what I copied.? In my very > brief 10 months as the "station kid" at a coastal marine station in the > mid-50's, the Company tried to enforce an 18-20 WPM speed limit while in > traffic, they believed that was the sweet spot in terms of overall > throughput [circuit chatter usually ran faster]. > > Ted McElroy [SK] held [and may still hold] the record set in the 30's I > think, at 76 WPM with text taken from a newspaper.? That he set the > record is certain although some have said he may have had the chance to > see the paper ahead of time.? He also won typing contests which were > popular at the time.? What may be apocryphal is a rendition that the > code began, he poured a cup of coffee and lit a cigarette, finally > sitting down and starting to copy maybe 5 mins later, and continued > typing for several minutes after the code stopped. > > Code groups are said to be much harder than plain text ... the 2nd > Telegraph in the 50's was 20 plain text and 16 groups.? For some reason, > I find groups easier and less work, no idea why.? And, after close to 70 > years with Morse, I agree with Tom ... there are lots of ways to learn > the code with varying efficiency for different people but they all work. > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > K2 #4398 > K3 #642 > ex KX1 #697 > > On 12/28/2019 8:25 PM, Tom McCulloch wrote: >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher >> speed guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing >> complete words rather than the individual letters and as a result you >> could pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write >> anything over 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 22 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:05:32 -0800 > From: Phil Kane > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 > > On 12/29/2019 8:39 AM, Mike Morrow wrote: > >> But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I >> personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding >> outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Check out for the schedule of operations of KPH / > KFS / KSM Morse press and traffic transmissions every Saturday. > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > >> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest > Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 23 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:17:41 -0700 > From: Jim White NC0JW > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Our normal net control Eric WB9JNZ is on a two week holiday vacation and is scheduled to resume net control duties next week. 14 checks ins today with Brian's (K1NW) help as a relay station. Thanks for the help Brian! We were even able to dig Peter ZL1PWD out of the noise and get him checked in. Thanks for your patience Peter. > > Sunday December 29, 2019: > > K1NW Brian RI K3 4974 Relay station > KS6F Guy CA K3S 10650 > K7BRR Bill AZ K3S 10939 > K8NU Carl OH K3S 10996 > N7BDL Terry AZ K3S 10373 > W4DML Doug TN K3 6433 > KD8CIV John MI KX3 4654 > W9LSE Bob WI K3 945 > W2RWA Dick NY K3 2603 > N6PGQ Bob CA K3 5891 > W6US Jim NV K3S 11215 > K4KSW Jack FL K3S 10179 > ZL1PWD Peter NZ K3 139 > NC0JW Jim CO KX3 1356 Net control > > The Elecraft SSB Net meets on Sunday at 1800 UTC on or about 14.3035 MHz. With propagation at a low point we employ several relay stations located around the continental USA to assist with check ins. As conditions permit we take questions and comments after check ins. > > Make it a point to join us next week for the first net of the new year and the new decade. > > Jim White - NC0JW > ars.nc0jw at gmail.com > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Post to: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > You must be a subscriber to post. > Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com > > End of Elecraft Digest, Vol 188, Issue 34 > ***************************************** From k0vp at chartermi.net Sun Dec 29 20:43:10 2019 From: k0vp at chartermi.net (Kenneth Schoenlein) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 20:43:10 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <43FD9F84-BF25-4820-949D-9356914BF619@chartermi.net> When learning CW in the military graduating speed was copying five letter coded groups at 25 wpm. You also had to learn typing on a mill at comparable speeds. You usually had code class then typing class on a mill. Chattanooga Shoe Shine Boy and similar tunes were played to teach you cadence in typing. With that background it is difficult to lay back and copy in your head. But I am doing it and learning to just worry about the call sign, location, frequency and time. To new comers, I say, copy in your head and as mentioned in other posts here learn cw as a language. But please, do not send faster than you can receive. > On Dec 29, 2019, at 5:17 PM, elecraft-request at mailman.qth.net wrote: > > Send Elecraft mailing list submissions to > elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > elecraft-request at mailman.qth.net > > You can reach the person managing the list at > elecraft-owner at mailman.qth.net > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Elecraft digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Robert G Strickland) > 2. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Eric J) > 3. Re: Learning Morse Code (Tom McCulloch) > 4. Re: Learning Morse Code (David Bunte) > 5. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (K2bew) > 6. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Dave Cole) > 7. Re: Learning Morse Code (Jim Brown) > 8. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (David Woolley) > 9. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (Barry) > 10. Re: Learning Morse Code (Barry) > 11. Re: K3 - Power cable voltage drop (Don Wilhelm) > 12. 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (Richard Thorne) > 13. My K3/100 has been sold (paule408 at yahoo.com) > 14. CW skimmer (Morgan Bailey) > 15. kx3 FOR SALE (Terry Basom) > 16. Re: CW skimmer (Don Wilhelm) > 17. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Mike Morrow) > 18. Re: 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit (k7sss at aol.com) > 19. KPA 1500 and receiver noise (K0RKH) > 20. Re: K3 - KEY OUT problem (M. George) > 21. Re: Learning Morse Code (Fred Jensen) > 22. Re: Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) (Phil Kane) > 23. Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 (Jim White NC0JW) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 03:43:46 +0000 > From: Robert G Strickland > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b at verizon.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the > QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > > On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net >> > > -- > Robert G Strickland, PhD ABPH - KE2WY > rcrgs at verizon.net.usa > Syracuse, New York, USA > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 04:07:28 +0000 > From: Eric J > To: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > For one, trhee is a lot of rdannudcey in lngugaae. Yuor biarn tkeas advgaante of taht. You cn'at wenn you can olny wrtie dwon leettr by leettr. > > When you head copy words, even short phrases, your brain does a lot of the work it already knows how to do. That first sentence would take a lot of work trying to figure it out letter by letter, but most people can scan it for sense almost as fast as they can read correct text. > > Eric KE6UWS > > On 12/28/2019 7:43 PM, Robert G Strickland via Elecraft wrote: > Jim... > > I am curious about which "... things do occur..." that help along the QRQ way. > > Thanks for your interesting thoughts. > > ...robert > > On 12/29/2019 03:16, Jim Danehy wrote: > The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast speed. > > The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about 670,616,629 mph. > > My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is giving you a choice of words to choose from. > > The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. > > So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. > > When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. > > It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. > > It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. > > 73 > Jim > W9VNE / VA3VNE > > > > > Sent from my iPhone > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rcrgs at verizon.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:25:25 -0500 > From: Tom McCulloch > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the > A,W,J method at 5 WPM. > > I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my > personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed > guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing complete > words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could > pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over > 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) > > Thanks > > Tom WB2QDG > > K2 # 1103 (I think) > > On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility counts. You establish that with facts. >> >> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >> >> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone who does not know CW. >> >> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn CW. You may disagree. >> >> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do not write down my conversations in spoken language. >> >> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >> >> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >> >> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They also have a companion text file. Check their website. >> >> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a year. >> >> Just do it >> >> 73 >> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:45:59 -0500 > From: David Bunte > To: Tom McCulloch > Cc: "elecraft at mailman.qth.net" > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Tom - > > I can't handle the higher speeds at which Jim is comfortable, but his > suggestions are excellent. I think I stopped writing down stuff by the time > I approached 15 wpm... except, of course Callsigns, names and QTH because I > wanted those in my log... sometimes I will make other notes in the log to > recall in future QSOs. By the time I got to 20 WPM I had to look for a > paper and pencil if I wanted to write something down... as I put all the > other stuff right into my logging program. > > Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than > anything else. Finding someone with whom to chew the rag... not only helps > code speed, I think it makes the hobby even more enjoyable. > > Best of luck es 73 de Dave - K9FN > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 11:26 PM Tom McCulloch wrote: > >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us. Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher speed >> guys out there. At what speed would you say you start hearing complete >> words rather than the individual letters and as a result you could >> pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write anything over >> 20 WPM). To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> >> On 12/28/2019 12:08 PM, Jim Danehy wrote: >>> Everyone has an opinion on how to learn Morse Code. My skill with CW >> probably comes from longevity. Closing in on 70 years of using Morse Code. >> Certainly mostly hit and miss. I once wrote here that I could copy quite >> fast. Then the posts of bragging. That was not my intention. Credibility >> counts. You establish that with facts. >>> >>> We all start with a blank sheet. We learned to talk as babies. That >> takes a good year plus. There really is no difference between learning to >> decode speech and CW. They both are sounds. They both are methods of >> communication. Reflect on that for just a moment or two. >>> >>> Converting sound ! When I hear 2 people conversing in a language that I >> do not know it is just sound. That also occurs when CW is heard by someone >> who does not know CW. >>> >>> A baby does not learn to read for about 5 years after they learn to >> converse in a language. That is why I do not recommend using sight to learn >> CW. You may disagree. >>> >>> I can not recall how long ago it was but I do not write down CW. I do >> not write down my conversations in spoken language. >>> >>> Most people learn CW at slow speeds. They need to write so that they can >> retain what the sender is attempting to communicate. At 5 wpm you would >> lose the flow of the attempted conversation unless you made notes. >>> >>> So writing is OK at slower speeds. The goal is to increase your speed to >> a point where you do not lose what the conversation is about. That occurs >> differently for all of us. I would opine that above 20 wpm you should wean >> yourself off of writing down what you are hearing. >>> >>> The ARRL has archived their Code Practice files that have been sent >> over the air. They start at 5 wpm. The increase in 5 words per minute I >> recall. They go up to 40 wpm too. They are archived in MP3 format. They >> also have a companion text file. Check their website. >>> >>> It took me a long time to reach where I find myself today. In the 1st >> paragraph I wrote 70 years. Yes I am going to be 82. All I use is CW. I >> have software that allows me to convert text to CW. I have a library of MP >> 3 files that start at 40 and go up to 60. I practice several times a month. >> At QRQ Speeds you learn to copy entire words. >>> Most can not copy QRQ but that is just a fact. It takes practice. I >> believe using the ARRL archives a normal Ham should be able to reach >> copying 20 wpm in a few months. Get rid of the pencil and paper at some >> point. You don?t converse with others writing down what you hear from >> someone. If a baby can learn to talk in a year you can do CW at 20 in a >> year. >>> >>> Just do it >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim W9VNE/VA3VNE >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to thom2 at att.net >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dpbunte at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 01:16:53 -0500 > From: K2bew > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. > Thanks so much! > 73, > Tom Bewick, k2bew > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: > >> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >> speed. >> >> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >> 670,616,629 mph. >> >> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >> >> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >> >> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >> >> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >> >> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >> >> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >> >> 73 >> Jim >> W9VNE / VA3VNE >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPhone >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 22:20:51 -0800 > From: Dave Cole > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <95a39645-89be-5994-c692-caeb60a21ac7 at nk7z.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Nerve impulses travel at around 200 MPH, tops, but I believe the > explanation will still hold. > > 73, and thanks, > Dave (NK7Z) > https://www.nk7z.net > ARRL Volunteer Examiner > ARRL Technical Specialist > ARRL Asst. Director, NW Division, Technical Resources > > On 12/28/19 10:16 PM, K2bew wrote: >> Jim I really appreciate your long explanations of learning to improve CW. >> Thanks so much! >> 73, >> Tom Bewick, k2bew >> >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 22:17 Jim Danehy wrote: >> >>> The electrical pulses from your ear to your brain travel at extremely fast >>> speed. >>> >>> The speed of light in a vacuum is 186,282 miles a second ; about >>> 670,616,629 mph. >>> >>> My point ? At QRQ CW speeds something occurs that you normally do not >>> encounter at slower speeds. Look at a dictionary. Many words start with a >>> common pattern. After 5 or 6 letters there are alternatives. At QRQ speed >>> Your brain is actually ahead of what your ear is feeding your brain. It is >>> giving you a choice of words to choose from. >>> >>> The task is to choose the correct one. You are aided in that choice by the >>> context of the message. I don?t know why this occurs. But it does. >>> >>> So when you learn to copy Entire words rather than letters ; this is the >>> phenomenon that occurs at high speeds. It helps but it can also throw you a >>> curve ball. That is where message context enters the equation. >>> >>> When you copy entire words rather than all the letters you have >>> assistance. Your ability to copy faster speeds will improve with time. I >>> only mention this as things get better the longer you stay with it. >>> >>> It is called getting over the hump. Or through the walk. >>> >>> It usually appears more difficult to increase your speed. However things >>> do occur that help you achieve the ability to copy entire words. Then QRQ >>> CW becomes conversational. Kind of like auto fill with computer typing. >>> >>> 73 >>> Jim >>> W9VNE / VA3VNE >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Sent from my iPhone >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to tombewick at gmail.com >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to dave at nk7z.net >> > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 7 > Date: Sat, 28 Dec 2019 23:02:53 -0800 > From: Jim Brown > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: > <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f at audiosystemsgroup.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > On 12/28/2019 8:45 PM, David Bunte wrote: >> Just getting on the air and making QSOs has helped my speed more than >> anything else. > > CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. > > 73, Jim K9YC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 8 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 12:29:28 +0000 > From: David Woolley > To: Kevin McQuiggin , Jim Danehy > Cc: Elecraft Mailing List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <93eb1cfb-72ac-a94e-c767-2381bb0736bf at david-woolley.me.uk> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Neve conduction is actually a mixture of chemical and electrical > mechanisms, in vertebrates. The signal travels electrically in short > hops, and is then regenerated by a chemical process. Invertebrates have > propagation velocities of more like 1 metre / second. > > > -- > David Woolley > > On 29/12/2019 03:27, Kevin McQuiggin wrote: >> It does not negate the argument, but nerve impulses are based on chemical reactions in neurons, and only travel at about 120 metres per second. > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 9 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 05:55:21 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds > Message-ID: <1577624121726-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > While I agree with the OP about copying conversational QRQ, the > redundancy/anticipation doesn't hold true when copying callsigns, such as in > the case of running RUFZ. > > I don't know if the number has gone up in the last ~10 years, as that was > the last time I participated in the IARU HST, but at that time, 2 guys > (DJ1YFK and YT7AW) broke 200 WPM. When in my prime, I hit about 120 WPM > running RUFZ. 200 sounds like a buzz saw to me. Maybe these guys have > narrower gaps in their synapses? > > Barry W2UP (HST 2011 Bronze medal in RUFZ) > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 10 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 06:05:58 -0700 (MST) > From: Barry > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <1577624758507-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Jim Brown-10 wrote >> CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. >> >> 73, Jim K9YC > > Yup. Like the old joke, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Practice! > > I also suspect age has a lot to do with it. I was licensed at 12. Upgraded > at 13, but couldn't afford a SSB radio for 2-3 years, so did CW only. Found > the QRQ guys (in the early 70s) at the low end of 40 CW and programs were > available, I found I hit a wall at ~100 WPM, despite practice. Other than > contesting, I really haven't been active for the last 5-10 years and my > speed has significantly dropped. > > Barry W2UP > > > > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 11 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:48:37 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - Power cable voltage drop > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > As Bob has pointed out, power drop is not the factor in the voltage to > an Elecraft transceiver. > > No matter what the supply voltage may be, the K2/K3/K3S/KX2/KX3 will > attempt to produce the output power requested by the power knob setting. > Those transceivers actually measure the output power rather than the > drive level as is done by many other transceivers. > > The problem is that the transmit IMD increases as the voltage drops, so > running with a higher voltage results in a cleaner signal on the air. > > Of course, if you are an "all knobs right" operator, you may notice a > bit of a drop in the maximum power available on some bands. Instead of > 114 watts, you may get only 95 or 100 watts, but that is extreme. > I recommend that you do not set the power knob above 100 watts in any > case. Use the maximum setting only for testing into a dummy load. > > The difference between 114 watts and 100 watts is only 0.57 dB and will > not be noticed on the far end of the transmission. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/28/2019 5:32 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >> It is not quite that simple.?? Power drop is not really a factor. >> >> The operating range of the radio, from specifications,? is 11 volts >> minimum to 15 volts maximum. ? Thus with a 4 volt operating range, a 1 >> volt drop represents a 25% change.? Within this range of 11 to 15 volts >> the radio will attempt to deliver 100 watts by demanding the required >> amount of current from the power supply. Thus the three resistances in >> series example, as I stated earlier, with the middle one {radio} being a >> variable value. > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 12 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 08:09:05 -0600 > From: Richard Thorne > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <9cb38740-8131-d3d9-f8eb-39cb00cf086a at rthorne.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount > a try. > > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > > Rich - N5ZC > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 13 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:25:09 +0000 (UTC) > From: "paule408 at yahoo.com" > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] My K3/100 has been sold > Message-ID: <165278352.4599928.1577629509339 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > My K3 has been sold. Thank you for your inquiries.? > > Paul N6PSEpauln6pse at gmail.com > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 14 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 09:33:48 -0600 > From: Morgan Bailey > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for > this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer > dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 15 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:03:34 -0500 > From: Terry Basom > To: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] kx3 FOR SALE > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > My KX3 has sold. > 73's to all > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 16 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:18:40 -0500 > From: Don Wilhelm > To: Morgan Bailey , Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer > Message-ID: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf at embarqmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will > need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating > system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. > I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load > and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its > fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR > > On 12/29/2019 10:33 AM, Morgan Bailey wrote: >> Is one able to run CW skimmer on a K4. If so what model is best suited for >> this the K4 or K4d? Or should i use an RSP2 with out board computer >> dedicated to doing skimmer with the skimmer software? > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 17 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 10:39:11 -0600 (GMT-06:00) > From: Mike Morrow > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > <1409933060.1371.1577637551582 at wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required.? Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy.? An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. > > In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups.? The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates.? The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: > > PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. > CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. > > Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part.? (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups".? There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections.? Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. > > The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US.? In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. > > It was a great era with great operators.? A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s.? He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better.? He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. > > It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice.? Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill.? (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.)? Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. > > But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking.? I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Mike / KK5F > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 18 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:06:33 +0000 (UTC) > From: k7sss at aol.com > To: rthorne at rthorne.net, elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] 50 ohm SMD Dummy Load Kit > Message-ID: <330811204.2966129.1577639193867 at mail.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > Hi,I found this site with a kit QRP smd parts. https://kc9on.com/product/smd-dummy-load-bnc/ > 73Jim H k7sss > In a message dated 12/29/2019 6:11:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, rthorne at rthorne.net writes: > > I picked up a SMD soldering station and would like to give surface mount a try. > Any suggestions on a SMD 50 ohm dummy load kit? > Rich - N5ZC______________________________________________________________Elecraft mailing listHome: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraftHelp: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htmPost: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.netPlease help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.htmlMessage delivered to k7sss at aol.com > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 19 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:24:33 -0700 (MST) > From: K0RKH > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise > Message-ID: <1577643873678-0.post at n2.nabble.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > I am looking for possible causes of increased receive noise I > am experiencing whenever I turn on my KPA 1500 . I have always had this > issue but at first disregarded it as maybe common mode noise but have since > experimented a bit by connecting a dummy load to the receiver and producing > the same results. > The receiver is a K3s model and I have taken several > opportunities to bond all equipment and tried ferrite #33 beads in several > places with no change in results. > Has anyone else on this site had the same problem. The noise > is the greatest on 6 and 10 meters where it would show up as more of a > problem as well with a +20-db noise on 6 meters and +10-db on 10 meters. > Bob K0RKH > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 20 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:46:23 -0700 > From: "M. George" > To: N4ZR , N7WY-BobR > Cc: Elecraft List > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 - KEY OUT problem > Message-ID: > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Bob N7WY motivated me to provide a few more details on the KEY OUT > mosfet/Q3/IRFI630 replacement. I took the bottom off my K3 to show the > location of the IRFI630 on the bottom of the PCB. It was a little more > tricky than I remembered, so you will need to access the main PCB from the > top of the K3 by removing the KIO3 board and the IO board that has the IF > output. I did the replacement without removing the back panel which would > have been very painful. Again, I do remember being able to do this without > a major disassembly. I de-soldered from the bottom of the PCB and pulled > and replaced the IRFI630 from the top. It was tight, but it sure beat > sending the K3 back to Elecraft and you can do a clean job if you are > careful. > > Here are some new pictures that I just took > > and annotated with more details of the location of Q3 along with a snippet > from the Elecraft Schematic where Q3 is located. Your mileage may vary > based on your re-work skills but I wouldn't consider this a difficult > replacement... medium effort at worst. When in doubt, send your radio in, > but it's not rocket science: > > Updated Pictures: > http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=album&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2F > > Good Luck! > > Max NG7M > > On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 10:20 AM M. George > wrote: > >> Pete, just saw your question on the PTT OUT not working for you. I had an >> issue with this back in 2016... I can't remember what I did, but it wasn't >> smart and it was my fault... Anyway, I let the smoke/metal out of the IRFI630G >> that is used on the PPT out. It's beefy and can take a lot of abuse, but I >> still managed to destroy it. Anyway, it's an easy replacement and saved me >> from shipping my K3 back to Elecraft. Total operator error in my >> situation... maybe attached 12v to the PTT out? Again, I can't remember. >> >> Here is a picture of what my damaged MOSFET looked like at the time... see >> the crack and leakage ;) >> >> >> http://www.nc7j.com/pa/main.php?cmd=imageview&var1=NG7M%2FRadios%2FK3%2FSmokedKeyOutIRFI630G%2FIRFI630GFried.JPG >> >> And here is the Mouser part I ordered to replace it: >> >> >> https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Siliconix/IRFI630GPBF?qs=%2Fha2pyFaduhSYcFgYMU8ma88%2Fb96%2Fl4SGKWFSYSWEuEDdoRAAyNpCg== >> >> Here is the schematic link: >> https://ftp.elecraft.com/K3/Manuals%20Downloads/K3_Schematics_Jun_2010.pdf >> >> Search for IRFI630 in the PDF, you will find it straight away... and I >> don't remember it being tough to expose the damaged mosfet and replace >> it... >> >> Max NG7M >> >> On Sat, Dec 28, 2019 at 8:57 AM N4ZR wrote: >> >>> Thanks to everyone who responded. I've now written to Elecraft Support, >>> and anticipate that it will have to go back to the mother ship. >>> >>> -- >>> >>> 73, Pete N4ZR >>> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network >>> at , now >>> spotting RTTY activity worldwide. >>> For spots, please use your favorite >>> "retail" DX cluster. >>> >>> ______________________________________________________________ >>> Elecraft mailing list >>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >>> >>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>> Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com >> >> >> >> -- >> M. George >> > > > -- > M. George > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 21 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:56:35 -0800 > From: Fred Jensen > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code > Message-ID: <74831679-64d5-7e24-593e-23b875127c6d at foothill.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I'm fairly certain it's an individual thing. In head copy, it starts to > sound like reading somewhere around 25 for me.? If I'm making record > copy on a mill or keyboard at around 25-30, I'm not really aware of > anything I am copying.? It seems to be a direct connection between ears > and fingers, and I cannot tell you afterwards what I copied.? In my very > brief 10 months as the "station kid" at a coastal marine station in the > mid-50's, the Company tried to enforce an 18-20 WPM speed limit while in > traffic, they believed that was the sweet spot in terms of overall > throughput [circuit chatter usually ran faster]. > > Ted McElroy [SK] held [and may still hold] the record set in the 30's I > think, at 76 WPM with text taken from a newspaper.? That he set the > record is certain although some have said he may have had the chance to > see the paper ahead of time.? He also won typing contests which were > popular at the time.? What may be apocryphal is a rendition that the > code began, he poured a cup of coffee and lit a cigarette, finally > sitting down and starting to copy maybe 5 mins later, and continued > typing for several minutes after the code stopped. > > Code groups are said to be much harder than plain text ... the 2nd > Telegraph in the 50's was 20 plain text and 16 groups.? For some reason, > I find groups easier and less work, no idea why.? And, after close to 70 > years with Morse, I agree with Tom ... there are lots of ways to learn > the code with varying efficiency for different people but they all work. > > 73, > Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW > Sparks NV DM09dn > Washoe County > K2 #4398 > K3 #642 > ex KX1 #697 > > On 12/28/2019 8:25 PM, Tom McCulloch wrote: >> I agree, we all learn by the method our Elmer taught us.? Mine was the >> A,W,J method at 5 WPM. >> >> I've been a CW guys almost exclusively and found 15 wpm to be my >> personal comfort zone...However I have a question for those higher >> speed guys out there.? At what speed would you say you start hearing >> complete words rather than the individual letters and as a result you >> could pretty much copy in your head (Jim said he doesn't write >> anything over 20 WPM).? To me that's aweome (also unachievable..hi) >> >> Thanks >> >> Tom WB2QDG >> >> K2 # 1103 (I think) >> > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 22 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 14:05:32 -0800 > From: Phil Kane > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 > > On 12/29/2019 8:39 AM, Mike Morrow wrote: > >> But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I >> personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding >> outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. > > Check out for the schedule of operations of KPH / > KFS / KSM Morse press and traffic transmissions every Saturday. > > 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane > Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402 > >> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest > Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 23 > Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 15:17:41 -0700 > From: Jim White NC0JW > To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net > Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft SSB net for Sunday December29, 2019 > Message-ID: > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > Our normal net control Eric WB9JNZ is on a two week holiday vacation and is scheduled to resume net control duties next week. 14 checks ins today with Brian's (K1NW) help as a relay station. Thanks for the help Brian! We were even able to dig Peter ZL1PWD out of the noise and get him checked in. Thanks for your patience Peter. > > Sunday December 29, 2019: > > K1NW Brian RI K3 4974 Relay station > KS6F Guy CA K3S 10650 > K7BRR Bill AZ K3S 10939 > K8NU Carl OH K3S 10996 > N7BDL Terry AZ K3S 10373 > W4DML Doug TN K3 6433 > KD8CIV John MI KX3 4654 > W9LSE Bob WI K3 945 > W2RWA Dick NY K3 2603 > N6PGQ Bob CA K3 5891 > W6US Jim NV K3S 11215 > K4KSW Jack FL K3S 10179 > ZL1PWD Peter NZ K3 139 > NC0JW Jim CO KX3 1356 Net control > > The Elecraft SSB Net meets on Sunday at 1800 UTC on or about 14.3035 MHz. With propagation at a low point we employ several relay stations located around the continental USA to assist with check ins. As conditions permit we take questions and comments after check ins. > > Make it a point to join us next week for the first net of the new year and the new decade. > > Jim White - NC0JW > ars.nc0jw at gmail.com > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Post to: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > You must be a subscriber to post. > Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com > > End of Elecraft Digest, Vol 188, Issue 34 > ***************************************** From kl7uw at acsalaska.net Sun Dec 29 21:15:30 2019 From: kl7uw at acsalaska.net (Edward R Cole) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 17:15:30 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds Message-ID: <201912300215.xBU2FWaF029431@mail40c28.carrierzone.com> I'm not a high speed CW operator. Most of my operation was on 40m in my Novice year and a little on CW eme. I found my self hearing complete words or character groups at about 10wpm. Examples: CQ, QRZ, SK, Name, RST, 73, QTH, and certain well known callsigns. Others that I can't recall at the moment. I usually operated eme at 15 wpm. Back in my early years I could send 20 wpm with a straight key. Never mastered a paddle. When I get back on eme I probably will send with a keyboard since my hand dexterity has fallen off since loosing a finger on my right hand. Typing is also a challenge since missing a finger requires the backup finger to handle twice as many keys. On eme I have several common scrips saved to send at a press of a key. But receiving is still done by ear/mind. 73, Ed - KL7UW http://www.kl7uw.com Dubus-NA Business mail: dubususa at gmail.com From elecraftcovers at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 22:26:28 2019 From: elecraftcovers at gmail.com (Rose) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 20:26:28 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Rose Date: Sun, Dec 29, 2019, 17:42 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds To: K8TE , Rose Your post reminded me of the day in October, 1951 when the FCC Engineer from Denver named Neeb had me send for him and he said; "Son, that's mighty fine CW". I had been driven to OKC by my "Elmer" Reedy Booker, W5ADC (now a SK). I had been studying for the then once a year visit to OKC by the FCC. Was so happy to pass, and out of that was issued one of the first Novice Class calls (WN5TKI). See my QRZ page. Years later went back "home" to visit Reedy. Found him in a nursing home, tied in a wheelchair. He didn't know me or even that I was there. His hands were cold as I held them. GAWD how I cried then and again as I write this email. Such a blunder I'd made! Don't make the same mistake. Take time to thank your "Elmer". 73 Ken Kopp - K0PP On Sun, Dec 29, 2019, 16:54 K8TE wrote: > CW scared me to death after my traumatic experience with the FCC in > Syracuse > NY in 1960. I had only several weeks to practice since I had been in HK4 > as > an exchange student for a long Summer where I operated SSB on a friend's > DX-100 and HQ-170. I passed the General, but probably with one or no > characters to spare. At 14 years old, that made a lasting impression! > > With the advent of vanity calls, I chose to dump WA8WWM for K8TE in the > mid-1970s. I also passed the 1st Class Radiotelephone in Detroit and the > 2nd Class Radiotelegraph exam in Lubbock a couple years later. I though > the > plain text for the latter was 22 wpm and cypher groups at 18. It was a > long > time ago. > > CW for me went by the wayside until FD 2012 when I had to fill-in an empty > two-hour CW slot, I the SSB Team captain. With trepidation, I started > running. With about 150 calls in the log, I decided it was possible to > operate CW and not achieve a higher heart beat than QSO rate. > > Since then, I have used LCWO.net for callsign practice. I can copy at 75% > accuracy above 40 wpm now. I have a friend who listens to CW at the gym or > on the road and has improved his speed significantly. I have yet to feel a > desire to rag chew. But I can easily copy my callsign in DX pileups well > above the infrequent 35 wpm speed. I am proof that practice matters a lot! > > My purpose is to encourage the synapses to transfer callsigns and exchanges > from sound to the keyboard. I don't have time to rag chew in CW and rarely > find time for extended SSB QSO's. Still, I really enjoy chasing DX, POTA, > SOTA, Counties, contesting, etc., especially on CW where contacts (usually) > are brief and to the point, to say nothing of the difference in FD (no > "Please Copy", Bill, AE6JV). > > Happy New Year and 73, Bill, K8TE > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to elecraftcovers at gmail.com > From gwwa5uih at hotmail.com Sun Dec 29 22:47:50 2019 From: gwwa5uih at hotmail.com (George Winship, NC5G) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 20:47:50 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] Johnson SpeedX printed Morse In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1577677670666-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Boy, that statement brings back a memory. 50+ years ago, when I was junior in high school, one of my buddies and I earned our novice licenses about the same time. We carpooled to school and back with another buddy who was not the least bit interested in ham radio. My buddy and I would mouth in morse code street signs, billboards, etc. while going to and from school. This irritated our other buddy to the point that he finally dropped out of the carpool. Don't know if it really helped us get to 13 wpm for the General test, but it was fun. And, all three of us are still great friends to this day. 73, George NC5G -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From kevinr at coho.net Mon Dec 30 00:03:36 2019 From: kevinr at coho.net (kevinr) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 21:03:36 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft CW Net Report Message-ID: <47cdeae9-b582-397b-9eff-e583406326eb@coho.net> Good Evening, ?? Twenty meters was loud.? Filled both with noise and signals. However, some of the noise was S6 while the signals were at S7. Ken reported blizzard conditions with 15" of wet snow.? Hopefully his roof will last until the winds die down.? Forty meters was less noisy but the band was weaker.? Once the rains abate I'll work on another antenna.? One which tunes on 160 meters. Currently I can hear some great signals but cannot transmit due to high SWR.? I've got to change that. ? On 14050.5 kHz at 2200z: W0CZ - Ken - ND K6XK - Roy - IA WS1L - Charles - MS W1GAB - Thomas - MA KC1ACL - Steven - NM ? On 7074.08 kHz at 0000z: W6JHB - Jim - CA K0DTJ - Brian - CA W0CZ - Ken - ND Until next week stay well 73, ??? Kevin.? KD5ONS - You?ll be mesmerized by the simple beauty of a grand-piano-shaped shadow ?? that somehow keeps getting bigger all around you. From pincon at erols.com Sun Dec 29 11:28:09 2019 From: pincon at erols.com (Charlie T) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 11:28:09 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code In-Reply-To: <1577624758507-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <61e8a629-ae04-1d2d-5ecc-ee2792b0099f@audiosystemsgroup.com> <1577624758507-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <002801d5be64$f93980c0$ebac8240$@erols.com> For some interesting reading on age related hearing/comprehension, search for: "Phonemic Regression Syndrome" (NOT a joke !) A quote from one of the pages:" In a "nutshell, these impairments are certainly characteristic of a central auditory processing disorder. We've all heard the term "phonemic regression" defined as a disproportionate inability to understand what others are saying when compared to the individual's degree of hearing loss." Typically, an audiologist at your favorite hearing center can test you for this. It's quite depressing to consider this coming on. It basically affects audible speech, but MAY affect Morse copy as well. 73, Charlie k3ICH -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Barry Sent: Sunday, December 29, 2019 8:06 AM To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Learning Morse Code Jim Brown-10 wrote > CW contesting is also great for building CW copying skills. > > 73, Jim K9YC Yup. Like the old joke, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Practice! I also suspect age has a lot to do with it. I was licensed at 12. Upgraded at 13, but couldn't afford a SSB radio for 2-3 years, so did CW only. Found the QRQ guys (in the early 70s) at the low end of 40 CW and programs were available, I found I hit a wall at ~100 WPM, despite practice. Other than contesting, I really haven't been active for the last 5-10 years and my speed has significantly dropped. Barry W2UP -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to pincon at erols.com From kengkopp at gmail.com Sun Dec 29 12:09:46 2019 From: kengkopp at gmail.com (Ken G Kopp) Date: Sun, 29 Dec 2019 10:09:46 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> References: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: See my QRZ page regarding my USC&GS ... later NOAA ... shipboard operation. Also "hung out" at WPD, RCA's shore station on the Tampa waterfront. Op there was Al Andres (not a Ham). 73 K0PP ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Mike Morrow Date: Sun, Dec 29, 2019, 09:39 Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) To: Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required. Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy. An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups. The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates. The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part. (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups". There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections. Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US. In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. It was a great era with great operators. A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s. He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better. He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice. Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill. (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.) Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking. I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. Mike / KK5F ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kengkopp at gmail.com From n3wm at yahoo.com Mon Dec 30 10:33:25 2019 From: n3wm at yahoo.com (Bill Mellema) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 15:33:25 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) In-Reply-To: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> References: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Message-ID: <1885685946.4874925.1577720005655@mail.yahoo.com> Guys, I think all the comments are very good but would like to add this PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE... I know lots of hams that would like to learn the code but not enough to put the time in. If a person just puts in 15 or 20 minutes each day to practice, it will keep them from slipping backwards on their copying speed IMO. In today's world with phone APS it's easier and more convenient than ever. I encourage hams to at least give CW a try because it can be very rewarding. Happy New Year To All! Best 73's Bill N3WM? EX Navy RM2 Vietnam Era On Sunday, December 29, 2019, 11:41:41 AM EST, Mike Morrow wrote: Discussions of Morse copying skills are nowadays addressed to casual amateur efforts where complete and accurate hard-copy output is seldom required.? Professional Morse skill was measured at the speed that the operator produced complete and accurate hard-copy.? An operator who head copies at 50 wpm but hard copies at 15 wpm was a 15 wpm operator. In the history of Morse for military and commercial service, the ONLY valuable skill was producing accurate hard-copy of both plain language text and code groups.? The professional licenses for radiotelegraphy were the Third Class, Second Class, and First Class Radiotelegraph certificates.? The Third and Second Class licenses required the following: PLAIN LANGUAGE (including common punctuation) - 20 wpm - Receive and send 100 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 500 character (5 minute) text. CODE GROUPS (5-character groups of letters and numbers) - 16 wpm - Receive and send 80 consecutive characters (1 minute) without error in a 400 character (5 minute) text. Most candidates found that slow-speed code group receiving test to be the most difficult part.? (It took me three 200-mile trips to the Kansas City FCC office to finally pass.) All those mental skills that allow an operator to decipher entire words in plain language are of no help with code groups...there's no process of "hearing code groups".? There is also no possibility of reviewing copied text and context for needed obvious corrections.? Although it's not required for 16 wpm, operators skilled at high speed code groups develop an automatic "unthinking" response to actuate keys on the mill/keyboard as characters are heard. The era of the professional commercial Morse operator essentially ended in July 1999 when maritime Morse operation ceased in the US.? In the same era the US military banned use of Morse, even going so far as eliminating it from MARS repeater IDs. It was a great era with great operators.? A dear friend of mine (Al, W5KGM) was a professional Morse operator for airlines and in WWII Atlantic merchant ship convoys from 1937 to the 1970s.? He could do do everything commercial-quality at 60-wpm or better.? He became a silent key at age 102 last year...there aren't many such "real" Morse professionals left. It's unfortunate that the ham bands have been since 1999 the only place that Morse radiotelegraphy may be heard for practice.? Before that, the marine Morse bands (especially 400 to 520 kHz) provided far more interesting copy for development of Morse reception skill.? (I usually kept a receiver on 500 kHz/600 meters at night.)? Morse skill was also reinforced (at least for a while) in the Cold War for radiomen in my squadron of ballistic missile submarines on the logical consideration that if world events ever provoked missile launch, it was unlikely that normal sophisticated submarine communications networks would exist afterwards. But today...Morse is only a hobbyist's or historian's undertaking.? I personally found practice at Morse reception to be far more rewarding outside the ham bands...but that option no longer exists. Mike / KK5F ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to n3wm at yahoo.com From robertkhand at hotmail.com Mon Dec 30 11:12:05 2019 From: robertkhand at hotmail.com (K0RKH) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 09:12:05 -0700 (MST) Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise In-Reply-To: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <1577722325698-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Thank You to the replies I have recieved on this subject. When I get back home in a few days I will look for the electrical hash again with the fan on. I am guessing that this would point to the suggestion of some slight loading of the power supply to smooth out emitted noise. Bob K0RKH -- Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ From eric at elecraft.com Mon Dec 30 11:36:36 2019 From: eric at elecraft.com (Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 08:36:36 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) In-Reply-To: <1885685946.4874925.1577720005655@mail.yahoo.com> References: <1409933060.1371.1577637551582@wamui-megara.atl.sa.earthlink.net> <1885685946.4874925.1577720005655@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: Hi Folks, Great thread, but we're past the single OT posting limit.? Lets wind this and its related threads down now in the interest in respecting our other readers and relieving them of email overload :-) 73, Eric Moderator from time to time.. /elecraft.com/ On 12/30/2019 7:33 AM, Bill Mellema via Elecraft wrote: > Guys, > I think all the comments are very good but would like to add this PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE... > I know lots of hams that would like to learn the code but not enough to put the time in. If a person just puts in 15 or 20 minutes each day to practice, it will keep them from slipping backwards on their copying speed IMO. In today's world with phone APS it's easier and more convenient than ever. I encourage hams to at least give CW a try because it can be very rewarding. > Happy New Year To All! > Best 73's > Bill N3WM? EX Navy RM2 Vietnam Era > > From n6kr at elecraft.com Mon Dec 30 11:39:28 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 08:39:28 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> Message-ID: <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> The K4 has sufficient internal horsepower to run advanced software applications; that's one major reason we included a general-purpose processor. However, all third party applications will require modification to run in the K4 environment, and they'll be vetting by our staff before being made available as an in-box app. While there's no reason we couldn't run Skimmer, I can't say at this time whether we'd choose to port this application to the K4. But I can say the K4 will be continuously updated to meet user needs. 73, Wayne N6KR > On Dec 29, 2019, at 8:18 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR From eric at elecraft.com Mon Dec 30 11:39:43 2019 From: eric at elecraft.com (Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 08:39:43 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise In-Reply-To: <1577722325698-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <1577722325698-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <181d0765-9c5e-f911-a2cc-98c0da7c21df@elecraft.com> Hi Bob. Contact support(at)elecraft.com and request the free KPA1500 power supply load resistor kit.? They can also tell you if your amp S/N was manufactured before we started adding the load resistor to new units some time ago. 73, Eric /elecraft.com/ On 12/30/2019 8:12 AM, K0RKH wrote: > Thank You to the replies I have recieved on this subject. When > I get back home in a few days I will look for the electrical hash again with > the fan on. I am guessing that this would point to the suggestion of some > slight loading of the power supply to smooth out emitted noise. > > Bob K0RKH From turnbull at net1.ie Mon Dec 30 11:47:39 2019 From: turnbull at net1.ie (Doug Turnbull) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 16:47:39 -0000 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> Message-ID: Wayne, this would be a nice option and one which I would willingly pay a reasonable price. I hope Elecraft give it serious consideration. Thanks, Elecraft delivered in time the KPod for which I am grateful and would not wish to be without. 73 Doug EI2CN -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: 30 December 2019 16:39 To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer The K4 has sufficient internal horsepower to run advanced software applications; that's one major reason we included a general-purpose processor. However, all third party applications will require modification to run in the K4 environment, and they'll be vetting by our staff before being made available as an in-box app. While there's no reason we couldn't run Skimmer, I can't say at this time whether we'd choose to port this application to the K4. But I can say the K4 will be continuously updated to meet user needs. 73, Wayne N6KR > On Dec 29, 2019, at 8:18 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote: > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to turnbull at net1.ie From k9zedex at comcast.net Mon Dec 30 12:40:45 2019 From: k9zedex at comcast.net (Eric Eilers) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 17:40:45 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] K2 For Sale Message-ID: K9XO (SK) Estate Sale Elecraft K2 s/n 00344 KSB2 SSB Adapter KNB2 Noise Blanker KAT2 Tuner. Originally purchased in 1999 as a kit and assembled by the SK. Non-smoking home. All original books and manuals. Performed a basic powerup and RX check and found no problems, except that the internal speaker seemed a tiny bit distorted. Headset audio was clean, however. Please contact me for pics or questions. $575.00 obo. Buyer pays shipping. Thanks, Eric k9zx k9zx (at) arrl.net PS: Other non-Elecraft estate items available - email me for a list. From robertkhand at hotmail.com Mon Dec 30 12:48:40 2019 From: robertkhand at hotmail.com (Robert Hand) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 17:48:40 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise In-Reply-To: <181d0765-9c5e-f911-a2cc-98c0da7c21df@elecraft.com> References: <1577643873678-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <1577722325698-0.post@n2.nabble.com>, <181d0765-9c5e-f911-a2cc-98c0da7c21df@elecraft.com> Message-ID: Thank You very much for your personal reply . I love the gear you guys produce and keep it in the forefront of my operating position. CW first and SSB when convienient. Thanks and Happy New Year Bob K0RKH ________________________________ From: Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft Sent: Monday, December 30, 2019 10:39 AM To: K0RKH ; elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KPA 1500 and receiver noise Hi Bob. Contact support(at)elecraft.com and request the free KPA1500 power supply load resistor kit. They can also tell you if your amp S/N was manufactured before we started adding the load resistor to new units some time ago. 73, Eric elecraft.com On 12/30/2019 8:12 AM, K0RKH wrote: Thank You to the replies I have recieved on this subject. When I get back home in a few days I will look for the electrical hash again with the fan on. I am guessing that this would point to the suggestion of some slight loading of the power supply to smooth out emitted noise. Bob K0RKH From jim at audiosystemsgroup.com Mon Dec 30 12:55:48 2019 From: jim at audiosystemsgroup.com (Jim Brown) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 09:55:48 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> Message-ID: <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> On 12/29/2019 3:53 PM, K8TE wrote: > where I operated SSB on a friend's > DX-100 and HQ-170. Bill, I remember the DX100 as an AM/CW rig. As a teenager, I was loaned one (and an SX-101) by a local ham who couldn't pass his 13 wpm code speed test. 73, Jim K9YC From wes_n7ws at triconet.org Mon Dec 30 13:07:22 2019 From: wes_n7ws at triconet.org (Wes) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 11:07:22 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: You remember correctly.? I owned one. I also used the modulated HV to run an 829B on two-meter AM. Wes? N7WS On 12/30/2019 10:55 AM, Jim Brown wrote: > On 12/29/2019 3:53 PM, K8TE wrote: >> where I operated SSB on a friend's >> DX-100 and HQ-170. > > Bill, > > I remember the DX100 as an AM/CW rig. As a teenager, I was loaned one (and an > SX-101) by a local ham who couldn't pass his 13 wpm code speed test. > > 73, Jim K9YC From ehr at qrv.com Mon Dec 30 19:07:48 2019 From: ehr at qrv.com (E.H. Russell) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 19:07:48 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> Message-ID: <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I'm hoping to be able to develop such an app. Thanks, 73 Ed w2rf -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net On Behalf Of Wayne Burdick Sent: Monday, December 30, 2019 11:39 AM To: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer The K4 has sufficient internal horsepower to run advanced software applications; that's one major reason we included a general-purpose processor. However, all third party applications will require modification to run in the K4 environment, and they'll be vetting by our staff before being made available as an in-box app. While there's no reason we couldn't run Skimmer, I can't say at this time whether we'd choose to port this application to the K4. But I can say the K4 will be continuously updated to meet user needs. 73, Wayne N6KR > On Dec 29, 2019, at 8:18 AM, Don Wilhelm < donwilh at embarqmail.com> wrote: > > Morgan, > > The K4 (any version) will not run software apps like Skimmer, you will need to run that on your shack computer. > > While the K4 does contain a processor and a version of an operating system, it is used for dedicated K4 functions. > I would compare it to my fileserver box which runs on a Linux version. I can access it via a browser for setup operations, but I cannot load and run any other applications on it, it is dedicated to performing its fileserver tasks. > > 73, > Don W3FPR ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to ehr at qrv.com From ag6cx1 at gmail.com Mon Dec 30 20:54:55 2019 From: ag6cx1 at gmail.com (Edward McCann) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 17:54:55 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft BL-2 Switchable Balun Message-ID: <8C613AFA-298B-4C5E-B397-8F87ED122DC1@gmail.com> Looking for BL-2 balun that might be surplus to your needs. Please contact directly off the reflector ag6cx1 at gmail.com. Thank you, Ed McCann AG6CX Sent from my iPhone From n6kr at elecraft.com Mon Dec 30 23:50:17 2019 From: n6kr at elecraft.com (Wayne Burdick) Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 20:50:17 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> Message-ID: This is very much in the plan. Wayne > On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: > > As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to be able to develop such an app. > > Thanks, > 73 Ed w2rf > > > From n1ho at yahoo.com Tue Dec 31 08:02:58 2019 From: n1ho at yahoo.com (Bayard Coolidge, N1HO) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 13:02:58 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> Message-ID: <1616908848.3383920.1577797378982@mail.yahoo.com> I would hope that any such app would be ported to Linux and macOS as well, and notnecessarily require Windows 10. 73, Brandy, N1HO On Monday, December 30, 2019, 11:52:01 PM EST, Wayne Burdick wrote: This is very much in the plan. Wayne > On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: > > As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to be able to develop such an app. >? > Thanks, > 73 Ed w2rf >? >? >? ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to n1ho at yahoo.com From n4zr at comcast.net Tue Dec 31 08:41:26 2019 From: n4zr at comcast.net (N4ZR) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 08:41:26 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <1616908848.3383920.1577797378982@mail.yahoo.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <1616908848.3383920.1577797378982@mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: Hey, first things first.? Windows 10's market share among non-computer-scientists answers this question for me. 73, Pete N4ZR Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at , now spotting RTTY activity worldwide. For spots, please use your favorite "retail" DX cluster. On 12/31/2019 8:02 AM, Bayard Coolidge, N1HO via Elecraft wrote: > I would hope that any such app would be ported to Linux and macOS as well, and notnecessarily require Windows 10. > 73, > Brandy, N1HO > > > On Monday, December 30, 2019, 11:52:01 PM EST, Wayne Burdick wrote: > > This is very much in the plan. > > Wayne > > >> On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: >> >> As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to be able to develop such an app. >> >> Thanks, >> 73 Ed w2rf >> >> >> > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n1ho at yahoo.com > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n4zr at comcast.net From rwnewbould at comcast.net Tue Dec 31 09:28:20 2019 From: rwnewbould at comcast.net (Rich) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 09:28:20 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> Message-ID: <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> The RTTY skimmer would be nice, also! HNY Rich K3RWN On 12/30/2019 23:50 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: > This is very much in the plan. > > Wayne > > >> On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: >> >> As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to be able to develop such an app. >> >> Thanks, >> 73 Ed w2rf >> >> >> > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to rwnewbould at comcast.net From sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 10:12:12 2019 From: sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com (stephen shearer) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 10:12:12 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> Message-ID: <96245884-0d82-b2da-67fa-8710ff25ae30@gmail.com> OK, I am most likely late to the discussion... Yes, it would be nice to have all the software under the hood. But, I know I am going to need a computer for Fldigi, wsjt-x, and js8call. So I might as well add skimmer there (if I want it) too. I don't use skimmer now.? I like contests but I want a slower pace.? Beside at my QTH, just entering a contest almost guarantees first place (not quite, but almost).? I also like keeping my software up to date and by putting it "in the box" I will loose that control.? I "see" a USB connection to the computer a simple interface.? The LAN connection should provide even more capability (1G ??). Since my shack computer will not be W10, I hope function software for the K4 will be Linux compatible (as it has been for K3's).? I moved from W10 to "windows" Mint in 2019 and haven't looked back. I have also been using a Raspberry Pi with my KX3 for wsjt-x as a remote station (remote to living room) and it works very well... I wish all a Happy New Year (as tomorrow is "January"...) 73, steve WB3LGC back to my research on a computer for the shack as my KX3 portable ops have been using a laptop and I want the K4 to be a fixed station. I may continue with the Raspberry Pi, to begin, as it works... On 12/31/19 9:28 AM, Rich wrote: > The RTTY skimmer would be nice, also! > > HNY > > Rich > > K3RWN > > On 12/30/2019 23:50 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: >> This is very much in the plan. >> >> Wayne >> >> >>> On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: >>> >>> As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW >>> Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the >>> K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app >>> negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency >>> to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to >>> be able to develop such an app. >>> ? Thanks, >>> 73 Ed w2rf >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to rwnewbould at comcast.net > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to sm.shearer.01 at gmail.com From barrylazar2 at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 11:24:03 2019 From: barrylazar2 at gmail.com (Barry) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:24:03 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> Message-ID: If Elecraft makes the K4 I&Q data avail in MME format, there will be no need to implement these on the radio itself. They can all reside on the computer that is used for control and whatever else. It will be basically like running with a KX3. 73, Barry K3NDM ------ Original Message ------ From: "Rich" To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Sent: 12/31/2019 9:28:20 AM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer >The RTTY skimmer would be nice, also! > >HNY > >Rich > >K3RWN > >On 12/30/2019 23:50 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote: >>This is very much in the plan. >> >>Wayne >> >> >>>On Dec 30, 2019, at 4:07 PM, E.H. Russell wrote: >>> >>>As a developer very familiar with connecting SDR radios with CW Skimmer, the best hope for a connection with the K4 is to stream the K4 IQ data to a PC running Windows, and have a 3rd party app negotiate that data along with other information such as frequency to CW Skimmer. This depends on access to the K4 API. I?m hoping to be able to develop such an app. >>> Thanks, >>>73 Ed w2rf >>> >> >> >>______________________________________________________________ >>Elecraft mailing list >>Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >>This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>Message delivered to rwnewbould at comcast.net >______________________________________________________________ >Elecraft mailing list >Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >Message delivered to barrylazar2 at gmail.com From rastuts at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 13:09:56 2019 From: rastuts at gmail.com (Richard Stutsman) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 10:09:56 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds (OT to Elecraft) Message-ID: I've spent many an hour observing my subjective thought processes as I copy CW. And I have to admit that after 60 years of operating CW (with a head copy cruising speed of 25-30 wpm and a hard copy speed transcribing radiograms of about 22 wpm using pencil), I do not actually hear entire words, except maybe for a few 2-, 3- and 4-letter words sent very frequently. I do what your smart phones do, which is to guess each word from the first few characters as they're being sent, based also on context and experience, and usually get the right word before the next one is sent. I'm able to keep the actual sounds of several characters worth of code in mind for a few seconds and to "replay" that "recording", in case I guess wrong or miss one or two characters, and I can remember the past few words sent so that I can make sense of each sentence, without having to write anything down. It's like my brain has a sound buffer, a character buffer, and a word buffer. In fact, writing stuff down often interferes with my ability to focus my attention on what is being sent, so I tend to take really quick notes. (I'm poor at multi-tasking.) When I'm copying radiograms which often contain addresses and phone number or net reports with lots of numbers, call signs and abbreviations, I copy about one or two characters behind so that I don't have to erase when the sender makes an error. While I do not count dits and dahs within each character, I immediately discriminate any character from any other, based on its rhythm, no matter the speed. Perhaps those not exposed to music education at an early age might not enjoy that advantage. Again let me reiterate that I learned code from a dot-dash chart in the Boy Scout Handbook, which I used as shorthand for mouthing the code using the dididahdit method which tends to force proper timing of each character. I don't remember ever having so-called "plateaus", other than having to switch from printing block upper case letters to using lowercase script, once I got beyond 20 wpm, and finally realizing that I didn't really have to write everything down to follow what somebody was sending. I could have gone beyond 22 wpm for radiograms had I switched to using a "mill" (typewriter) or computer terminal, but that has never been necessary for casual rag-chewing or handling radiogram traffic on the section and regional nets. I was able to smoothly increase my copying speed to about 25 wpm over about two years of engaging in CW QSOs and checking into CW traffic nets. I also did sometimes listen to and either head copy or write down W1AW code bulletins and code practice sessions. And I also would sometimes just "read the mail" between two CW operators having a rag chew. I will say that if you don't challenge yourself to copy at ever higher speeds, you will remain pretty much stuck at whatever speed you normally operate. Traffic nets and actual QSOs with faster operators or during contests are good ways to push yourself to higher speeds. I'm content to remain at or below 30 wpm for my enjoyment. Rick N6IET From cx7tt at 4email.net Tue Dec 31 13:10:58 2019 From: cx7tt at 4email.net (cx7tt at 4email.net) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 13:10:58 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/WSJT-x and N1MM issue Message-ID: Hola, Have setup WSJT-x in accordance with (IAW) hamdocs WSJT-x Decode list instructions. Also for N1MM. Here are my settings for ARRL RU, FT4. WSJT 2.1.2: Settings>Radio>DX Lab Ste Cmdr and Split>Rig Reporting>UDP server IAW hamdocs info plus 3 boxes to right are checked Advanced tab>Special and RTTY RU selected N1MM Log entry window:Show Digital>PSK>K3 and correct frequency Config menu:Mode Control> Digi PSK WSJT Setup tab>Enable >127.0.0.1 and 2237 Path for Radio 1: C:\users\cx7tt\desktop\wsjtx-2.1.2-win64.exe Auto Load enable>Radio 1 WSJT-x program (standalone)closed Close N1MM and reopen. K3S via USB to computer shows correct frequency, i.e., 14080 N1MM>Window>WSJT-x Decode List, one window opens (Logging) N1MM-WSJT Radio Connection RED with Runtime error and page of details info for clipboard. Suggestions? 73 Tom HP1XT From rmcgraw at blomand.net Tue Dec 31 14:22:29 2019 From: rmcgraw at blomand.net (Bob McGraw K4TAX) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 13:22:29 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> Message-ID: <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> Thoughts on this.??? I would expect the K4 to be a high performance product in both the on air performance and the communications interface performance.?? I would not expect it to have any embedded applications as there are just to dang many;? CW ones, Digital, ones, Logging ones, and etc.?? Everybody has there favorites of each of these. Trying to embed just a few applications raises the question of "what few?".?? We all use an outboard computer to do station house keeping.? I say keep it that way and every one can then use their favorite application.?? I'd speculate if there were a number of applications embedded, then Elecraft would have to ship a "crying towel" with every? radio.? There are just those folks that seemed not to be pleased, regardless of what ever it is in front of them.?? As 'tis said; "one can please part of the people part of the time and all of the people none of the time".??? Lets just keep the radio doing what a radio should do and the computer keeping the operator happy with what ever application they so choose. Happy New Year to all 73 Bob, K4TAX On 12/31/2019 10:24 AM, Barry wrote: > If Elecraft makes the K4 I&Q data avail in MME format, there will be > no need to implement these on the radio itself. They can all reside on > the computer that is used for control and whatever else. It will be > basically like running with a KX3. > > 73, > Barry > K3NDM > From m.matthew.george at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 14:47:32 2019 From: m.matthew.george at gmail.com (M. George) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 12:47:32 -0700 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> Message-ID: Amen Bob, I totally agree. With an API to the K4 and the I/Q output over the LAN, applications that are much better at what they do, can interface and get access to everything they need in the K4. I can't imagine community support or Elecraft support starting with the question: What hodgepodge of apps are you running on the embedded linux OS of your K4? "Well, I'm running a Chromium Browser, a Chess Game, Tetris, a graphical Rubik's Cube and Spotify for Linux so I can listen to Taylor Swift while working DX and running stations in a contest." Why do you ask? ;) To quote a famous software/hardware engineering quote we all love and know: "Eventually Elecraft will shoot the software engineers and ship the product". It sounds like it's getting close but I'm happy to wait for the finishing touches for the first release. Let's worry about running Spotify on our K4 and listening to Johnny Cash, Megadeath or Metallica while operating the radio until release #2 of a K4 Linux OS image. However, maybe Elecraft should support my favorite Financial Market active trader program so I can get streaming real-time market data quotes on my K4 display and also NASDAQ Level 2 quotes and time and sales data as I try to play market maker while operating a contest day trading. I think we really need that as an embedded app running on the K4, don't you? Makes perfect sense. Max NG7M On Tue, Dec 31, 2019 at 12:22 PM Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > Thoughts on this. I would expect the K4 to be a high performance > product in both the on air performance and the communications interface > performance. I would not expect it to have any embedded applications > as there are just to dang many; CW ones, Digital, ones, Logging ones, > and etc. Everybody has there favorites of each of these. > > Trying to embed just a few applications raises the question of "what > few?". We all use an outboard computer to do station house keeping. I > say keep it that way and every one can then use their favorite > application. I'd speculate if there were a number of applications > embedded, then Elecraft would have to ship a "crying towel" with every > radio. There are just those folks that seemed not to be pleased, > regardless of what ever it is in front of them. As 'tis said; "one can > please part of the people part of the time and all of the people none of > the time". Lets just keep the radio doing what a radio should do and > the computer keeping the operator happy with what ever application they > so choose. > > Happy New Year to all > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > > > On 12/31/2019 10:24 AM, Barry wrote: > > If Elecraft makes the K4 I&Q data avail in MME format, there will be > > no need to implement these on the radio itself. They can all reside on > > the computer that is used for control and whatever else. It will be > > basically like running with a KX3. > > > > 73, > > Barry > > K3NDM > > > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to m.matthew.george at gmail.com -- M. George From ted.roycraft at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 14:58:52 2019 From: ted.roycraft at gmail.com (Ted Roycraft) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 14:58:52 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> Message-ID: <2f07be14-a2f5-e8a8-44d0-b06d7d5ed27e@gmail.com> Why not ask the author of CWSkimmer, Alex Shovkoplyas, VE3NEA what his plans are?? I would think he would be a central character in making CWSkimmer compatible with the K4.? Wayne, N6KR, has already said that K4 baseband I/Q signals would be provided over the ethernet which is all, I believe, that VE3NEA needs if he can pick them off the ethernet or if someone else can? write software that makes it look like the I/Q ethernet signals came from an audio card which is where CWSkimmer normally picks them up.? I would hazard a guess that someone from Elecraft has already contacted Alex.? As long as he has not signed an NDA with Elecraft, I bet Alex could tell us something concrete and maybe end the uninformative speculation that's been circulating. I go along with K4TAX who says keep CWSkimmer on the shack computer.? Putting it on this and that radio is a support nightmare. 73, Ted, W2ZK On 12/31/2019 2:22 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: > Thoughts on this.??? I would expect the K4 to be a high performance > product in both the on air performance and the communications > interface performance.?? I would not expect it to have any embedded > applications as there are just to dang many;? CW ones, Digital, ones, > Logging ones, and etc.?? Everybody has there favorites of each of these. > > Trying to embed just a few applications raises the question of "what > few?".?? We all use an outboard computer to do station house keeping.? > I say keep it that way and every one can then use their favorite > application.?? I'd speculate if there were a number of applications > embedded, then Elecraft would have to ship a "crying towel" with > every? radio.? There are just those folks that seemed not to be > pleased, regardless of what ever it is in front of them.?? As 'tis > said; "one can please part of the people part of the time and all of > the people none of the time".??? Lets just keep the radio doing what a > radio should do and the computer keeping the operator happy with what > ever application they so choose. > > Happy New Year to all > > 73 > > Bob, K4TAX > > > On 12/31/2019 10:24 AM, Barry wrote: >> If Elecraft makes the K4 I&Q data avail in MME format, there will be >> no need to implement these on the radio itself. They can all reside >> on the computer that is used for control and whatever else. It will >> be basically like running with a KX3. >> >> 73, >> Barry >> K3NDM >> > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to ted.roycraft at gmail.com From FlatHat at comcast.net Tue Dec 31 15:07:07 2019 From: FlatHat at comcast.net (Richard) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 15:07:07 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] WAY Off Topic, But Short Message-ID: <72FBEF62-10CD-4518-B66D-3EFAEFC7997D@comcast.net> Yes, this is WAY off topic. Are there any World War II or Korea fighter pilots out there? I?m looking for technical input on a story I?ve written. Please reply only to FlatHat at comcast.net Richard Kunc ~ W4KBX From kl7cw at mtaonline.net Tue Dec 31 15:17:05 2019 From: kl7cw at mtaonline.net (Frederick Dwight) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 11:17:05 -0900 Subject: [Elecraft] CW Message-ID: <20191231201757188@smtp754.redcondor.net> N6IET has some good insights. For sure some methods of learning code are more efficient than others. For example, sending letters at a high speed, but leaving more space, or not memorizing the letters from a chart. HOWEVER many of us did everything wrong and still progressed to high speeds in spite of these transgressions. For example, about 69 years ago a neighbor kid and I strung wires between our houses. We made up our own code, some common letters had many dots and dashes and other seldom used letters had only a dot or two. We also memorized the chart. However we became moderately successful in this strange code. Perhaps 5 years later we entered the Boy Scouts and once again memorized the Morse code and passed the tests. For a short time we could converse in either code, but he never moved on to ham radio. I was the school sponsor of a HS radio club, and one field day we did not have enough operating positions, so no problem, some of us just climbed up into a few nearby hills and had QSOs with each other and our hacked flashlights at perhaps 12 WPM. Most of the kids had no problem adapting to the light signals and most had zero experience with light. Several times in my 65 year ham career I started learning to read American Morse (the landline code) on a sounder, which was easy, but never followed through with this, but even without practice I can still read the sounder at least at 18 WPM with ?our? Continental Morse code. The brain is an amazing organ and capable of much more than we often realize. However there are no real shortcuts, so hundreds of hours of operation is required for moderate speeds, and many hundreds or perhaps thousands of hours are required to become proficient at ?HIGH speeds?, which I will call over 45 WPM. Some folks will not be successful at speeds more than about 35WPM, but these speeds were seldom required, even when I operated as a shipboard CW op, and also as a land based coastal CW op where most traffic was at 20 WPM or less, and seldom over 25WPM. Rick KL7CW Sent from Mail for Windows 10 From ve3iay at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 15:19:06 2019 From: ve3iay at gmail.com (Richard Ferch) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 15:19:06 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] K3S/WSJT-x and N1MM issue Message-ID: Tom, You need to use N1MM+'s Winodw > Load WSJT/JTDX menu item to start WSJT-X. See the checklist at < https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/manual-windows/wsjt-x-decode-list-window/#setup-checklist >. 73, Rich VE3KI From macymonkeys at charter.net Tue Dec 31 16:08:51 2019 From: macymonkeys at charter.net (Macy monkeys) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 13:08:51 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] CW In-Reply-To: <20191231201757188@smtp754.redcondor.net> References: <20191231201757188@smtp754.redcondor.net> Message-ID: <3A9CC144-C34D-4C22-9F4E-E8FD5E0445BD@charter.net> FWIW, I'd rather hear two signals willing to ragchew at 20 wpm than one contester at 40 wpm ;) Happy New Year to all! John K7FD > On Dec 31, 2019, at 12:17 PM, Frederick Dwight wrote: > > N6IET has some good insights. For sure some methods of learning code are more efficient than others. > For example, sending letters at a high speed, but leaving more space, or not memorizing the letters > from a chart. HOWEVER many of us did everything wrong and still progressed to high speeds in spite > of these transgressions. For example, about 69 years ago a neighbor kid and I strung wires between > our houses. We made up our own code, some common letters had many dots and dashes and other > seldom used letters had only a dot or two. We also memorized the chart. However we became > moderately successful in this strange code. Perhaps 5 years later we entered the Boy Scouts and once > again memorized the Morse code and passed the tests. For a short time we could converse in either > code, but he never moved on to ham radio. I was the school sponsor of a HS radio club, and one field > day we did not have enough operating positions, so no problem, some of us just climbed up into a few > nearby hills and had QSOs with each other and our hacked flashlights at perhaps 12 WPM. Most of > the kids had no problem adapting to the light signals and most had zero experience with light. Several > times in my 65 year ham career I started learning to read American Morse (the landline code) on a > sounder, which was easy, but never followed through with this, but even without practice I can still read the sounder > at least at 18 WPM with ?our? Continental Morse code. The brain is an amazing organ and capable of much > more than we often realize. However there are no real shortcuts, so hundreds of hours of operation > is required for moderate speeds, and many hundreds or perhaps thousands of hours are required > to become proficient at ?HIGH speeds?, which I will call over 45 WPM. Some folks will not be successful > at speeds more than about 35WPM, but these speeds were seldom required, even when I operated > as a shipboard CW op, and also as a land based coastal CW op where most traffic was at 20 WPM or > less, and seldom over 25WPM. Rick KL7CW > > Sent from Mail for Windows 10 > > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to macymonkeys at charter.net From ve3iql at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 16:49:57 2019 From: ve3iql at gmail.com (Terry Basom) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:49:57 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX2 Message-ID: Looking for a KX2. Let me know if you have a loaded one for sale.. 73 and happy new year From dhaines at bates.edu Tue Dec 31 16:59:25 2019 From: dhaines at bates.edu (David Haines) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:59:25 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 Utility Terminal window for CW In-Reply-To: <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> Message-ID: <7e2bbfd3-dabf-7565-b849-846c631ddd24@bates.edu> I'm enjoying and getting a lot out of our CW discussion.? I've tried to use the KX3 uUtility for practice sending CW. p. 60 of Fred Cady's big, excellent Elecraft KX-Line book says I should be able to use the Terminal window of the Utility to display the text of the CW I'm sending, but I've never been able to get it to work. Any ideas? david KC!DNY From burro5944 at bellsouth.net Tue Dec 31 17:58:36 2019 From: burro5944 at bellsouth.net (Barry) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:58:36 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Terry basom call me re: KX2 References: <6778D28D-F86B-4F0B-96EE-E39439ABB3B6.ref@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <6778D28D-F86B-4F0B-96EE-E39439ABB3B6@bellsouth.net> 850 814 8339 Sent from my iPhone. From burro5944 at bellsouth.net Tue Dec 31 17:59:52 2019 From: burro5944 at bellsouth.net (Barry) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:59:52 -0600 Subject: [Elecraft] Terry Basom call me Re: KX2 References: <75BDB88E-0AC9-4120-B28B-A0C797ABBA44.ref@bellsouth.net> Message-ID: <75BDB88E-0AC9-4120-B28B-A0C797ABBA44@bellsouth.net> 850/722/0231 Sent from my iPhone. From Gary at ka1j.com Tue Dec 31 18:21:07 2019 From: Gary at ka1j.com (Gary Smith) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 18:21:07 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: References: , <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com>, Message-ID: <5E0BD7E3.18355.1F98158F@Gary.ka1j.com> This over 100 WPM is better than I have ever been able to do. To that end, I have a cert for 45 WPM from some time back and though I don't own that speed today, I can copy at that speed, it's just my brain lags and it didn't use to. The last Stew Perry contest, I realized my bottleneck was typing in the grid square, I'd have to memorize each report and then hen-peck the data into the keyboard which I have to use 4 fingers to do (long story). I came to understand what I needed to do was not remember the call and type before replying, I need to listen to the call, it's 100% in my head then, but then hit the N1MM reply for report, and while it's sending the data, then input the data in my head into N1MM. I cannot hear and type at the same time, but I can copy most everything sent in clean CW, regardless of reasonable speed. I admire those that can sight read music at tempo, it's the same as hearing CW and transcribing it at the same time. Mandatory Elecraft content, I have paid for a K4D and will be happy when I get it, time waiting till then is irrelevant. Happy New Year to all! 73, Gary KA1J From mike.ab3ap at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 18:27:19 2019 From: mike.ab3ap at gmail.com (Mike Markowski) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 18:27:19 -0500 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer vs. i/q In-Reply-To: References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> Message-ID: <2936d781-03d0-2d71-7a1f-5d13a36b95d1@gmail.com> A great analogy is from Keysight. In the lab I work in, scopes and RTSAs stream i/q. Keysight software named Vector Signal Analysis takes the i/q and can sometimes provide more capability in signal analysis than the stand alone gear itself. Tektronix does similar. Raw, binary i/q is all you need, and I think the Beatles said more or less the same thing didn't they?? :-) (Assuming love == i/q.) Happy 2020, Mike ab3ap On 12/31/19 2:47 PM, M. George wrote: > ...With an API to the K4 and the I/Q output over > the LAN, applications that are much better at what they do... From k6dgw at foothill.net Tue Dec 31 19:22:00 2019 From: k6dgw at foothill.net (Fred Jensen) Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 16:22:00 -0800 Subject: [Elecraft] Copying CW at high speeds In-Reply-To: <5E0BD7E3.18355.1F98158F@Gary.ka1j.com> References: <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> <5E0BD7E3.18355.1F98158F@Gary.ka1j.com> Message-ID: But I doubt the K4D will have much effect on your code speed. [:=) 73, Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW Sparks NV DM09dn Washoe County On 12/31/2019 3:21 PM, Gary Smith wrote: > Mandatory Elecraft content, I have paid > for a K4D and will be happy when I get it, > time waiting till then is irrelevant. > > Happy New Year to all! > > 73, > > Gary > KA1J > ______________________________________________________________ > From mails at qrp4fun.de Tue Dec 31 19:48:16 2019 From: mails at qrp4fun.de (Ingo Meyer, DK3RED) Date: Wed, 1 Jan 2020 01:48:16 +0100 Subject: [Elecraft] KX3 Utility Terminal window for CW In-Reply-To: <7e2bbfd3-dabf-7565-b849-846c631ddd24@bates.edu> References: <918182fa-dd37-67f6-240e-d1f5bd1c932b@verizon.net> <1577663632159-0.post@n2.nabble.com> <7e6ed318-a9e6-4a48-6ba1-69bb402536b1@audiosystemsgroup.com> <7e2bbfd3-dabf-7565-b849-846c631ddd24@bates.edu> Message-ID: Hello David, > I'm enjoying and getting a lot out of our CW discussion.?? I've tried to use the KX3 > uUtility for practice sending CW. > > p. 60 of Fred Cady's big, excellent Elecraft KX-Line book says I shouldbe able to use the > Terminal window of the Utility to display the text of the CW I'm sending, but I've never > been able to get it to work. > > Any ideas? I use the "Terminal Window" of "Elecraft KX3 Utility" for typing CW via keyboard.And the characters sent are displayed. But I can't decode characters given with the key. Only via keyboard - butthat was not your intention. Did Fred Cady write if they were the characters entered with a key or with a keyboard? 73/72 de Ingo, DK3RED - Don't forget: the fun is the power! www.qrp4fun.de - dk3red at qrp4fun.de From barrylazar2 at gmail.com Tue Dec 31 20:11:03 2019 From: barrylazar2 at gmail.com (Barry) Date: Wed, 01 Jan 2020 01:11:03 +0000 Subject: [Elecraft] CW skimmer In-Reply-To: <2f07be14-a2f5-e8a8-44d0-b06d7d5ed27e@gmail.com> References: <5be19a9f-2158-c61d-f255-1405bf6394bf@embarqmail.com> <97849B91-5D1A-4AD7-8D17-E9F20E9F156A@elecraft.com> <026901d5bf6e$5667ab00$03370100$@qrv.com> <8a52c9f0-24e4-25d1-cbd5-fca7c82d5dc7@comcast.net> <194c6766-1091-a3dc-24bb-6b8cac614660@blomand.net> <2f07be14-a2f5-e8a8-44d0-b06d7d5ed27e@gmail.com> Message-ID: If the data is MME format, it should be already compatible as that is what CW Skimmer uses from a sound card. I see no point in using the compute power of the K4 for anything other than basic processing. It should be more efficient and flexible using your computer. For instance one of the things I do is use Skimmer to spot what it decodes to the Clublog spotting window on Win4K3. This tells me what my antenna is picking up. Uing general spotting just tells me what others are hearing which I may not hear. 73, Barry K3NDM ------ Original Message ------ From: "Ted Roycraft" To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Sent: 12/31/2019 2:58:52 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] CW skimmer >Why not ask the author of CWSkimmer, Alex Shovkoplyas, VE3NEA what his plans are? I would think he would be a central character in making CWSkimmer compatible with the K4. Wayne, N6KR, has already said that K4 baseband I/Q signals would be provided over the ethernet which is all, I believe, that VE3NEA needs if he can pick them off the ethernet or if someone else can write software that makes it look like the I/Q ethernet signals came from an audio card which is where CWSkimmer normally picks them up. I would hazard a guess that someone from Elecraft has already contacted Alex. As long as he has not signed an NDA with Elecraft, I bet Alex could tell us something concrete and maybe end the uninformative speculation that's been circulating. > >I go along with K4TAX who says keep CWSkimmer on the shack computer. Putting it on this and that radio is a support nightmare. > >73, Ted, W2ZK > >On 12/31/2019 2:22 PM, Bob McGraw K4TAX wrote: >>Thoughts on this. I would expect the K4 to be a high performance product in both the on air performance and the communications interface performance. I would not expect it to have any embedded applications as there are just to dang many; CW ones, Digital, ones, Logging ones, and etc. Everybody has there favorites of each of these. >> >>Trying to embed just a few applications raises the question of "what few?". We all use an outboard computer to do station house keeping. I say keep it that way and every one can then use their favorite application. I'd speculate if there were a number of applications embedded, then Elecraft would have to ship a "crying towel" with every radio. There are just those folks that seemed not to be pleased, regardless of what ever it is in front of them. As 'tis said; "one can please part of the people part of the time and all of the people none of the time". Lets just keep the radio doing what a radio should do and the computer keeping the operator happy with what ever application they so choose. >> >>Happy New Year to all >> >>73 >> >>Bob, K4TAX >> >> >>On 12/31/2019 10:24 AM, Barry wrote: >>>If Elecraft makes the K4 I&Q data avail in MME format, there will be no need to implement these on the radio itself. They can all reside on the computer that is used for control and whatever else. It will be basically like running with a KX3. >>> >>>73, >>>Barry >>>K3NDM >>> >> >>______________________________________________________________ >>Elecraft mailing list >>Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net >> >>This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >>Message delivered to ted.roycraft at gmail.com > >______________________________________________________________ >Elecraft mailing list >Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net > >This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >Message delivered to barrylazar2 at gmail.com