Elecraft [P3] Idea

[kd1na]

Bob,

I think your idea for fine tuning using the P3 is great. I hope you convayed your idea directly to Elecraft.

73
Dave KD1NA


P3 s/n 74 arrived today, went together nicely and works great. I'm
still getting used to it, but as a long-time LP-Pan/PowerSDR-IF user,
I was struck by one thing right away.

With PowerSDR-IF point and click tuning with the mouse is enhanced by
the fact that after pointing and clicking to change the K3 frequency,
one may immediately "fine tune" the signal with the mouse scroll
wheel. Especially for CW signals, this becomes second nature, a quick,
fluid series of actions - point, click, fine tune up or down to
zero-beat the signal (I do it by ear), using only one hand. This is
good because I can't always point with perfect accuracy, so am often
some tens or hundreds of Hz away from the desired signal. I set the
scroll wheel fine tuning rate to either 10 or 50 Hz per step.

With the P3, when I move the marker and tap the SELECT knob to QSY to
the frequency of some CW signal, rarely end up at zero-beat, often at
least 100-200 Hz away, sometimes more. So, in order to zero-beat I
must move a hand to the K3 and tune it in or press SPOT. I'd rather
finish the job using the hand already on the P3 SELECT knob, it's much
easier that way when it's done repeatedly (search and pounce etc). I
like panadaptor spans of 30 to 40 kHz, but even with narrower spans I
just can't consistently get close enough to zero-beat with a CW signal
on the P3 using the marker.

What I'd like to propose is a P3 "fine tune" QSY mode (optional,
controlled by menu setting), where the act of QSYing by tapping the
SELECT knob not only changes the K3 frequency, but also:

1. Clears the marker.
2. Puts the P3 into a mode where turning the select knob one way or
the other "fine tunes" the K3 at some rate like 200 Hz per revolution
or so (a "fine" rate, maybe adjustable).
3. Then, after any required fine tuning is complete, one more tap of
the select knob disables fine tuning, and it's business as usual.

The marker is cleared in step 1 because otherwise turning the SELECT
knob should continue to move the marker.

So the flow goes like this, with the proposed "Fine Tune" QSY mode
enabled in menu:

1. Tap MKR A to enable marker.
2. Turn SELECT knob to move marker onto desired signal.
3. Tap SELECT knob to QSY. The marker is cleared. Fine tuning of K3 is enabled.
4. Turn SELECT knob to fine tune (to zero-beat in the CW case, by ear
or using CWT indicator) the desired signal.
5. Tap SELECT knob once more to disable fine tuning, returning to normal state.

MKR B would get the same treatment. This would be perfectly general,
working for all modes, and less tiring when QSYing repeatedly using
the marker.


Bob NW8L


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