Radio equipment lends itself ideally to multimedia presentation. Manufacturers seem not to have noticed this.
Back when contemplating the purchase of a K3, I posted a brief note to the Elecraft reflector inquiring whether anyone in my local area would be willing to let me have a look-see of their K3. The two hands-on demos that resulted allowed me to see & hear how the K3 performs and was an eye opener and resulted in the K3 now sitting front and center on my desk.
Two options now have my interest: the P3 panadapter and the sub-receiver.
I know a lot of folks contemplating the purchase of a radio-related item look first to eHam product reviews (because they’re conveniently available), then to opinions of owners via various YahooGroups. Then it’s on to write-ups and reviews from QST and other magazines.
But with radio being a hobby that is better heard (and now “seen” with various panadapter displays) than read about, YouTube offers a far better method for evaluating certain aspects of equipment available within our hobby – a huge step closer to being there than any other method short of a touchy-feely session. Continue reading 'YouTube as a method of product evaluation'»
I recently posted a question to the Elecraft reflector asking (among those who have them) what might be the most efficient upgrade to a bare-bones K3 in a contesting or DXing situation. Thoughtful replies were made both to the list and to me via email.
Here is a synopsis of those replies: Continue reading 'The most beneficial K3 upgrade: Sub-Receiver or Panadapter?'»
Old news to anyone who has a K3 but I’m gonna write it anyway…and I’m kicking myself for not recording the whole thing. I will next time since I’m not aware of any YouTube videos specifically demonstrating the K3′s amazing selectivity and how that characteristic manifests itself in a pile-up.
Wayne Burdick N6KR recently made a posting to the Elecraft reflector on how he goes about DXing on CW with his K3 and P3 panadapter. I’m pretty bare bones here – just the 100W final and a 400 Hz filter. Not sure what I may eventually add to mine as it seems perfectly suited to the task I use it for as is, but who knows… Continue reading 'Tonight’s 9X0TL pile-up and the K3'»
This was the first contest I’ve been able to participate in since getting the K3 in April and I’ve been waiting for just such conditions – crowded bands, numerous stations calling simultaneously, QRN, etc – to really see how the K3 performs.
I spent spent time both contesting and just tweaking with the K3.
First, the contest itself:
As my interest in contesting grows, this particular one is emerging as my favorite. I like the CQWW, ARRL DX contests, and others, but lack the ability or interest to hang in front of the radio for 48 hours of continuous dots & dashes. I mainly like them for the new band-countries they offer and the practice in pile-ups when the rare ones appear. But the 10-hour limit in the NAQP’s is a snap as long as “local conditions” don’t interfere… Continue reading '2010 North American QSO Party (CW) and the K3'»
Until three hours into it, I wasn’t even aware there was a contest this weekend. I normally ignore non-HF CW contests so it’s not surprising that this one didn’t show up on my radar.
But I did see the announcement and remembered that I had a new 6m antenna that, up till now, had garnered me a Grand Total of 5 QSOs. That’s not the antenna’s fault – band conditions and a complete lack of knowledge of anything relating to the 6m band had me pretty much ignoring it altogether. Continue reading 'Fun on 6 meters'»
Seems one has been spotted…
Same size as the K3, built-in power supply. No photo yet – maybe I’ll Photoshop one…
Details (and real pics) soon, hopefully. Continue reading '500-Watt amp from Elecraft?'»
So there I was, trying to work S79GM on 80 meters when I went to turn up the volume and…nada. The knob spun on its shaft like a liberal at George Bush Airport.
Who makes these things for Elecraft….. MFJ? Fischer-Price?
There was a thread on this very topic three months ago that Elecraft had apparently resolved. Not! Continue reading 'K3: The Cracked Knob Chronicles – updated w/photo'»
I had an enlightening day today with the K3. As I go through the Post Pile-up Brief that always takes place in my head after logging a rare station, a few things are becoming obvious & I’d like to jot down a few lines here.
Maybe it’s an understatement to say that I was a reluctant buyer of the K3. The reasons were many but the most compelling is the collection of QSL cards obtained via 10 years with my FT840. A “starter rig” perhaps but a 5B-DXCC workhorse that continuously proved its mettle. Something kept telling me “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Continue reading 'Impressions of the K3, 10 days in'»
Top ‘o the mornin’ to ya…
The bands and/or activity are in strange condition today and they were last night on the lower bands as well. What I mean is that there are a number of semi-rare stations on the air and almost no “normal” activity. Ten, twelve and fifteen meters are open but I’m not hearing any Europeans or other US stations. What I am hearing is South America and Africa. The far side of Africa at that. Surprisingly, the pile-ups are either small or non-existant. Continue reading 'Working split with the K3'»
DT8A
Finally finished up my K3 an hour ago & did the final alignment. Stick a fork in her, she’s done. The hold-up had been just a matter of waiting on a DSP board to fix a small problem, then the procuring of a 100W dummy load for the alignment. Continue reading 'K3 now at 100 watts'»
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K3, multimedia, reviews, TenTec 
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