One reason to buy an Elecraft K3

In the past I've bought radios and discovered that they were slightly deaf or off frequency. I found it frustrating that I didn't have the test equipment or the knowledge to align the radio and obtain the specified performance of when the radio was new. I'm not talking about a misused radio, just what happens to all radios through age due to high temperatures slowly changing the tolerances of components.

With the Elecraft K3 I can align the frequency readout at any time with an accurate source like RWM (9.996 or 14.996 MHz). This means that the radio will always be exactly on frequency independant of age. I can do this with no test equipment and in no time at all.

One of the causes of a radio going deaf is the IF wandering outwith the centre of the IF filter passband. With the Elecraft I can use it's internal test resources to measure the response of any roofing filter and I can work out if signals are still central to the filter passband and adjust the IF accordingly.

This means I should be able to maintain my radios performance to a higher degree for as long as I choose to hold on to the radio, without the need for specialist knowledge or elaborate/expensive test equipment.

Priceless!

K3 Panadapter SoftRock V6.2 Lite

Managed to complete the above project for my K3. I really must recommend this panadapter, now after switching on the K3 the first thing I do is start Rocky and have a 'look' around on 10 and 6m for openings. On several occasions whilst tuning the K3 and hearing a flat band, I've had to reverse tune on seeing a spike jump up on the screen, and as a result completed a contact on what at first seemed like a flat band.

It all started when I came across the following website:
http://www.cliftonlaboratories.com/using_softrock_as_a_panadapter_for_the_k2.htm
This page gives the details on how to purchase a K3 SoftRock V6.2 lite. In my e-mail to Tony Park's I mentioned that it was for use with the K3 IF and also the offset crystal frequency of 8.191MHz. He will also give you postage costs to your home location but the price of the Softrock is currently around $12. I paid using PayPal which was very convenient.

I also bought the Z10000U (general purpose) buffer amp board from Clifton Laboratories to help with reverse isolation between the SoftRock and the K3. I didn't try the softrock without the Z10000U in-line, but with it there is no evidence on the K3 rx of the panadapter being there. I used the 150 Ohm resistor for R907 to set the gain of the buffer amp to 6.7dB. I haven't experimented with different values as this seemed to work sufficiently for my needs. To this date I haven't bothered with the optional bandpass filter.

http://www.cliftonlaboratories.com/z10000_buffer_amp.htm
http://www.cliftonlaboratories.com/z10010_bandpass_filter.htm

The build presented no problems except you have to be capable of working with surface mount components. All in all it took me 5-6 hours to get it all up and working with the K3. I then boxed both boards up in an Altoids tin.


















With the tin open you can follow the signal path from the LHS BNC connector (connected to KXV3 IF out) through the Z10000U buffer amp (LHS card) then linked with coax to the SoftRock (RHS card) then finally out on a screened jack3.5mm stereo socket (top right) to the sound card.









Here we can see me writing this article with Rocky software running at the bottom of the screen. I'm listening on the K3 to the small spike shown at the centre of the display. I find it really useful to see what's happening round about where I'm listening to. I've seen huge spikes right next to me and not been able to tell they were there on the K3 :-).

My K3 has the following roofing filter options: 2.7/2.1/1/0.4 KHz.
When using the panadapter it is interesting to listen to the K3 audio output in cw mode and look at the IF output when switching between filters. My 2.7KHz filter has a specified shift of -0.93KHz which is corrected in firmware to correctly line up with the IF. On the panadapter it is clear that the IF actually shifts to correct this error, as all visible signals bounce to the right by approx 1.5KHz in comparison with the 400Hz roofing filter. My Inrad 2.1KHz (0KHz offset) roofing filter also causes signals to bounce to the right but this time by only 500Hz. There is no shift between the 1KHz and 400Hz roofing filters. Whilst switching between these roofing filters, there is no difference in pitch from the audio output. It would seem from these very rough observations that the IF is shifted up by approx 500Hz (plus any offset) when using the 2.7/2.1 filters in comparison to the 1/0.4 IF. I imagine this extra shift for wide filters brings the 700Hz pitch cw signal more to the centre of the filter passband i.e. 1.2KHz. Any thoughts?

The same shift happens on transmit and means that you cannot align your tx and rx on screen. I had thought about buying the INRAD 2.8KHz filter to lose the 0.93KHz offset, but I would still get the 500Hz shift so probably not worth it on cw.

The panadapter is very useful for the identification of noise sources. Without one it's very easy to connect up a new SMPS or Router in the shack and and after a quick tune around believe it to be noise free. With the panadapter it is instantly obvious that noise has appeared, so far I've had to assign a laptop power supply to the bin and can also see the squirmy warble associated with my 2 SMPSs (Alinco DM-330MW and MFJ 4125). Anyone who believes these to be noise free could benefit from a panadapter :-).

Elecraft K3 sn1293 is born!

The K3 arrived whilst I was preparing for IOTA. I managed to build it to the 10w stage in 12 hours. The 100w stage took an additional 2 hours. The build was straight forward and well documented.














As can be seen from the above picture, there are lots of bits to assemble and close attention has to paid to the types of screws and washers used for each part of the assembly. Other than that, if you have put a computer together in the past then this will present no problems.
















Before long you start to see the radio taking shape and the exitement starts building. I had planned to do 6 hours and then have a break, but like a good book, I just couldn't put it down.

The K3 is an excellent transceiver and to date I've yet to find something that doesn't work :-).

IOTA 08

Well it's all over now for MM3T on EU8 Islay. I had great fun and managed to make 460Qs over 12hrs on CW with 100w and a doublet.















Here I am sitting near Carraig Fhada Lighthouse (Port Ellen) with the 'singing sands' in the background. I'm out in the open and it's about 22:30BST. I'm using WinTest for logging and the light from the screen was enough to see the keyboard by (just). The midges were biting as there was so little wind, but other than that the conditions were perfect.















Here you can see the Elecraft K2/100 sitting on the trolley I used to get the battery up to this vantage point. The case I use for the carrying the K2 helped bring it up to a convenient level. Out of sight is my WinKey USB and taped to the trolley handle is my LDG Z11 pro and Elecraft BL2 switchable balun. You can just see the 300 Ohm feeder (bottom left) going to a doublet mounted on a 10m fishing pole behind me.

It wasn't all plain sailing though as Murphy visited the station just before the start of the contest. I had been in the K2 menus configuring the PA fan to run on HI continuously and accidentally changed an adjacent menu entry. The result was that there was no sidetone and no rig control! Luckily I had brought a small laminated manual (Nifty K2 manual) and after 20 mins of reading was able to return the K2 to full operation...phew!

There seemed to be a distinct lack of UK stations on air, as when I did find one they were LOUD. I can only imagine that the brilliant weather proved too much for most UK hams to stay indoors for the contest.

IARU World championships, RSGB HQ entry

Well, I decided that I would work them despite the unfair operator selection practices. They have widened out the net (slightly) for operators by including one of GM's top 160m dxers (who had unbelievably been missed out until now). This suggests that they are at least trying to include ops from outside the HFCC & friends pool that has been used so often in the past.

I still feel a lot more attention and support would be evident from the rest of the UK, if there was a public call for operators and then, as a result, a publicised decision making process about the final team selection. I don't know about you, but I'd be very interested in the thought process behind the team selection that was made to represent the RSGB.

RSGB VHF Field Day 2008

I took part with interested members from our local club (Mid-Lanark ARS). A location had previously been found near sea level on the Solway Firth (West coast Scotland) which eliminated some of the hills between our home location and a S - SE direction and afforded us a bit of a sea path for the West side of England. The SE direction was partially blocked by a spit of land approx 1 mile away and then the peak district (only 30 miles away over sea) and was still a major thorn in our sides from having a clear path to the SE. Our path was also majorly blocked to the North by several mountain ranges. Using stacked yagis on 2m probably wasn't a good idea for this reason. We changed over to a single 9 element yagi mid contest (pointing SE) and signals dramatically improved, although some of the team thought that it may have been down to bad coax (time will tell).
As usual the weather oscillated between glorious and awful and we were soaked and dried many times throughout the weekend. I tried out my Carp umbrella for the first time and was happily making tea and admiring the view in the dry even through the biggest downpours, but it did bounce around rather too vigorously on it's guys during some spells of high wind.
I also used my new fishing trolley to cart my leisure cell around trying to find a good spot for the WIFI network we used to link WinTest together between the various stations (6/4m, 2m and 70cm). I'm pleased to say that WinTest and the network were solid and trouble free for the whole weekend.
Getting a group of people to use the more advanced features of WinTest is always very difficult when no practice sessions have been arranged beforehand. We did however manage some passing of stations between the 2m and 70cm operators which hopefully will spur the others into using this facility in the future.
I did feel saddened that the same effort was not afforded to the HF field days, but the majority of the Mid-Lanark ARS seem to be more interested in VHF and above.

Friedrichshafen 2008

Just back from Friedrichshafen Hamfest 2008 and have to say that the prices for 2nd hand gear were ridiculous eg. FT290 in poor condition, 250 Euro (£200 ????). Previously I had thought that we Brits were hard done by in terms of the cost of amateur gear, but now I know we aren't the worst.

Out of the 3 days at the show I only bought a bit of wire (10 Euro) and a mains filter (10 Euro). I held off buying, thinking that the prices must drop by the Sunday, but unfortunately it was not to be. Everything you could want was for sale, I just couldn't find anything to buy that was a reasonable price let alone a bargain.

As the show went on, another amateur and I started trying to out do one another with examples of ludicrous prices such as 25 Euro for a broken tape recorder and 200 Euro for a Cobra 148GTLDX (it looked like it had been recovered from a skip).

On the plus side I saw a K3 in the flesh for the first time, but unfortunately it was in a glass case and not connected to an antenna. It was turned on though and the display was very stricking and well laid out. TenTec were represented and I got the chance to play with the TenTec Orion II and the OMNI VII. I can normally walk straight up to any make of transceiver and start sussing out how drive it within a minute or so. Not so with these puppies! I found it very difficult to know what was happening and even after 10 mins of twiddling I was still none the wiser. I did however find several things I didn't like during that time such as wobbly, cheap feeling controls, awful display and lag between front panel control adjustments and the associated control display icon.

The friedrichshafen hamfest is really about meeting other hams and browsing through the present product offerings from all the main manufacturers. Most are on show and can be connected up to give you a fair idea if the product is for you or not.


Friedrichshafen and the surrounding area is a beautiful location for a holiday with the possibility of visiting 2 other very different countries only a short train/ferry trip away. We may go back for another holiday but not to coincide with the hamfest.