[Elecraft] External sound card advice needed to attach to K3

[Rick Bates, NK7I]

HNY Phil,

While I'm not an attorney, I've read the rules (subject to 
interpretation of course).  Transmission of music is specifically 
unlawful.  (What is defined as music these days, also subject to 
interpretation, hi hi.)

Defined in the simplest of terms, any sound transmitted other than for 
the purposes of communication (voice, tones for digital) is illegal.

This includes background music in the same room as the microphone 
(though generally ignored as part of the environment, in the US; same as 
telephone 'hold' music in an autopatch; traffic noise etc.) and 
certainly includes the 'musical' sounds from most OS (they offer no 
communication).

Which, to me, means the sounds from an OS are unlawful to transmit.  If 
the incidental OS sound is spoken ("You have mail"), that isn't legal in 
the digital, non-phone) portions of the bands.  At the very least, they 
use more spectrum than necessary (i.e. 3 KHz bandwidth in an area for 
FT8, which uses ~60 Hz bandwidth per user) and offer nothing for 
communication.

Considering the general apathy of the FCC lately (US of course), I'm not 
surprised that this has never been tested by citation.  I'd much rather 
err on the side of caution.  Turning off the OS sounds is not a complete 
solution.

Using a sound card, specific and limited to the radio use, is a vast 
improvement over using the OS sounds device to maintain legality.

73,
Rick NK7I

On 1/1/2021 10:04 AM, Phil Kane wrote:
> On 1/1/2021 8:56 AM, Rick Bates, NK7I wrote:
>
>> A generically 'bad' idea and is the reason that voice, operating 
>> system sounds (all illegal) and poor audio are often in the digital 
>> portions of the bands.
>
> Please explain your comment "all illegal" concerning "operating system 
> sounds". As both a telecommunications engineer and a communications 
> attorney I have never had to deal with the legality or illegality of 
> "operating system sounds".
>
> 73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane
> Elecraft K2/100   s/n 5402
>
> From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
> Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon
>
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