Another KPA500 question
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I too am considering purchase, but before I do an interface question or two.
I will NOT be giving up the big amp...assuming I hook it up to Antenna 2 on the K3 and use the PTT line can I 1. put the kpa500 on ant 1 and use the accy interface, and keep the big amp on ant 2 with the ptt line? I assume yes.... 2. If the kpa500 is in standby mode will the accy connection to the k3 be transparant ie can I set power out on ant 2 independently and key the big amp via the ptt line as usual? The point being I don't want to have to physically reconfigure the cabling etc. when I want to use the big amp.....and no way will I daisy chain the amps. Thanks in advance. 73 bob de w9ge ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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On 12/28/2011 6:07 PM, bob finger wrote:
> The point being I don't want to have to physically reconfigure the > cabling etc. when I want to use the big amp. What you can safely do with the PTT line will depend on the other amp that you're keying. I'm doing what you want to do -- Ant1 feeds my Ten Tec Titan, Ant2 feeds my KPA500, PTT drives both in parallel. The Titan can put 28VDC through 10K ohms onto its PTT input in key up. When I had a beta unit for a while I added a diode in series with the PTT input to the K3, but as I understand it , the production unit has that diode built in, and I no longer use it outboard. So -- all I have to do to switch between the two amps is to choose Ant1 or Ant 2, switch the antennas between the two amps, and reset the drive level (the KPA wants about 30 watts, the Titan wants 45-50 watts). Because my station and antenna farm are in a continual state of being upgraded, I haven't gotten to the point of automating much of it. 73, Jim K9YC ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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In reply to this post by bob finger
K9YC said in part: "
"So -- all I have to do to switch between the two amps is to choose Ant1 or Ant 2, switch the antennas between the two amps, and reset the drive level" Thanks Jim, that is exactly the response I was hoping for. My big amp is now a TT Titan III. I retired a pair of 425's a few years ago. My plan is to have dpdt relay on the output side of the amps, and switch the ptt lead open or thru on the Titan when it is off or in line. Switching between the two will be a single external switch throw, a push of ant 1/2 button on the k3 and hitting the standby/operate switches on the amplifiers. No excuse now not to order a KPA500. I'm looking forward to it. HNY 73 bob de w9ge ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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On 12/29/2011 9:52 AM, bob finger wrote:
> No excuse now not to order a KPA500. I'm looking forward to it. You will LOVE it, Bob. Many times I've QSYed quickly from one band to another to work a DX spot, and I'm ready to go as soon as I've switching to a reasonably well matched antenna and pointed it in the right direction! No waiting for the filaments to warm up (or paying PG&E to keep them warm), no tuning the amp. The new tuner will make that even nicer and more flexible. When some of the bigger DXpeditions have been working several bands at a time, I've been able to work them on 3-4 bands in a few minutes! The amp falls back a bit if the mismatch is too great to drive, and faults gracefully (that is, fast reset) if you screw up with overdrive or the wrong antenna. 73, Jim K9YC ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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In reply to this post by bob finger
What switch(es) have adequate isolation to switch an antenna between two
amplifiers? 73, Jim N7US -----Original Message----- K9YC said in part: " "So -- all I have to do to switch between the two amps is to choose Ant1 or Ant 2, switch the antennas between the two amps, and reset the drive level" Thanks Jim, that is exactly the response I was hoping for. My big amp is now a TT Titan III. I retired a pair of 425's a few years ago. My plan is to have dpdt relay on the output side of the amps, and switch the ptt lead open or thru on the Titan when it is off or in line. Switching between the two will be a single external switch throw, a push of ant 1/2 button on the k3 and hitting the standby/operate switches on the amplifiers. No excuse now not to order a KPA500. I'm looking forward to it. HNY 73 bob de w9ge ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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On 12/29/2011 10:48 AM, Jim McDonald wrote:
> What switch(es) have adequate isolation to switch an antenna between two > amplifiers? There's a rather beefy SPDT Daiwa that I've bought used that works well. The Alpha-Delta SPDT and SP4T switches are pretty good RF-wise, but their QC is poor. I have several of the SP4Ts, and have used more at Field Day and CQP county expeditions.I have one that could NEVER have passed final test if there was such a thing -- the #4 position was missing -- and one position in another switch broke for no obvious reason. I've also run into a bad switch on these portable setups. 73, Jim K9YC ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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In reply to this post by bob finger
You might want to check out the switch from KR5L (check his QRZ page). He will have it at the Orlando Ham Fest and is doing a kit with a Ten Tec box and professional fittings.
Jerry said on his page "These are three pictures of my homebrew 6 position coaxial and linear amp. relay switch. This allows me to switch any of my rigs to the input of my AL-811H along with its associated amp relay cable. It really helped clean up the "rat's nest" of cables and coax swtiches that I used before. This is the updated version as of 1-14-2011." Jerry is a K3'er also. Dan AB3EN |
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Looks nice, but I would be worried about radio-to-radio isolation and
possible RX damage on one radio when transmitting on another. Any pix of the inside other than on QRZ? 73, Pete N4ZR The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com, spots at telnet.reversebeacon.net, port 7000 AND now at arcluster.reversebeacon.net port 7000 On 1/2/2012 7:28 AM, AB3EN wrote: > You might want to check out the switch from KR5L (check his QRZ page). He > will have it at the Orlando Ham Fest and is doing a kit with a Ten Tec box > and professional fittings. > > Jerry said on his page "These are three pictures of my homebrew 6 position > coaxial and linear amp. relay switch. This allows me to switch any of my > rigs to the input of my AL-811H along with its associated amp relay cable. > It really helped clean up the "rat's nest" of cables and coax swtiches that > I used before. This is the updated version as of 1-14-2011." > > Jerry is a K3'er also. > > ----- > > Dan AB3EN > -- > View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/Another-KPA500-question-tp7134629p7143670.html > Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com. > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:[hidden email] > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html |
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Send Jerry a note - QRZ email is good. I think it will take the power and keep the isolation. Jerry is a retired engineer and a good designer.
73 Dan Dan AB3EN |
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In reply to this post by Pete Smith N4ZR
I will be a the Orlando Hamcation in Commercial Bldg. 3 Booth 304 with my new switch box .... 6 rigs and relays to two amplifiers. The switch is designed for 100 watts exciter RF power and as such there is not much chance of RF coupling between rigs. I used a 100mw QRP watt meter connected to AMP 1 while driving AMP2 with 140 watts RF on 40 meters.... I couldn't see any deflection of the QRP watt meter during this test. I will do more extensive tests while I receive the production boxes. I have been using my prototype switch (the one on my QRZ page with my K3, TS-520S, K2 and TS-870 for over a year now without any RF issues. The new box is much more rugged than the prototype.
You can see the prototype switch installed at W3JCB and AC4Q on their respective QRZ pages. Both ops have had no problems with RF coupling. Let me know if you have any further questions or comments. 73's Jerry Henshaw KR5L |
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