[Elecraft] K3 / WSJT-X Delayed Transmit

[James Bennett]

Hi Folks,

Wondering if someone on the list might be able to solve this one. I’m using a K3 and while CW is my main passion, I do dabble in FT8 occasionally. I’ve noticed that the radio does not start transmitting right at the start of the 15 second FT8 cycle. It will start anywhere from 2 - 5 seconds into the cycle. I can’t help but think that is not a good thing and could be the cause of an occasional missed QSO. I DO make QSOs but this kinda bothers me. The audio signals are delayed this amount of time, as is the red TX light coming on - I am using VOX . Same thing happens when I press the TUNE button - it takes anywhere from 2-5 seconds for the rig to go into transmit mode.

I really doubt it is due to computer overload, as the only applications running are WSJT-X, MacLoggerDX (my logging program), and JT-Bridge  - all other applications have been ended. Since this happens when I press TUNE, that pretty much eliminates JT-Bridge and MacLoggerDX as the cause. Some hardware and software specifics:

Mac mini, 32 GB RAM, 3GHz processor, 6 cores, Intel Core i5.
Mac OS Big Sur 11.5
WSJT-X 2.4.0
Audio Interface: Tascam US-125M external USB device
Values in the DT column are consistently about 0.1 - 0.4

Wasn’t sure if I should post this here or on the WSJT-X list, but I thought I’d start here. Any ideas?


Jim / K7TXA
Eagle, ID