[Elecraft] K3 Power-hunting on FT8

[Fred Jensen]

Pete:

The first 4 bars on the K3 ALC are just an audio level indication [i.e. 
VU meter].  ALC action starts at the 5th bar, which you want to be just 
flickering.  Unless you have 4 solid bars, the K3 will keep trying to 
adjust the TX gain to achieve the selected output power and it may not 
be able to get there with such low audio input, hence the "hunting."

73,

Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
Sparks NV DM09dn
Washoe County

Pete Smith N4ZR wrote on 7/20/2023 2:16 PM:
> I've recently started operating FT8, and on advice from other K3 
> users, have been adjusting the power slider in WSJT-X to a level just 
> short of or just into the first flickers of ALC.  I did this because I 
> was advised that setting the slider for 4 or 5 bars of ALC generated 
> junk in the FT8 passband.  I am running the K3 in Data A mode
>
> Since I did this, I've noticed strange (to me, anyway) behavior from 
> my K3.  When WSJT-X starts an FT8 transmit cycle, after I have just 
> switched to the current band or changed the power slider in WSJT-X or 
> the PWR control on my K-3, the K3's power output starts essentially at 
> zero and slowly ramps up through 1- 1 1/2 FT8 transmit cycles.  Once 
> it reaches the expected level, subsequent transmissions stay at that 
> level.
>
> I've been told (not by Elecraft) that this behavior is a result of the 
> K3's firmware "hunting" for the right power level, but such a slow and 
> repetitious behavior doesn't fit with the rest of what I've come to 
> expect from my K3.  It doesn't happen on CW or SSB either. So what's 
> going on?
>



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