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KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

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VaibhaV Sharma

KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

Hello,
Just a few minutes ago, my KX3 started showing the ATU as “not inst” in the "ATU.x MD” menu.

Was tuning around on 20m using Ham Radio Deluxe rig control and the KX3 serial communication became very sluggish. I reset the serial port and restarted Ham Radio Deluxe but it was still sluggish (frequency changes from the software were taking several seconds).

I then did an EE INIT and restored KX3 configuration from backup but the ATU text does not appear on the main screen and ATU still shows “not inst”.

Opened up the KX3 and I don’t smell anything other than the nice new PCB smell. :)

Any ideas?

Thanks,

—
W7VAI

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VaibhaV Sharma

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

On Apr 7, 2014, at 11:40 PM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]> wrote:

> Hello,
> Just a few minutes ago, my KX3 started showing the ATU as “not inst” in the "ATU.x MD” menu.
>
> Was tuning around on 20m using Ham Radio Deluxe rig control and the KX3 serial communication became very sluggish. I reset the serial port and restarted Ham Radio Deluxe but it was still sluggish (frequency changes from the software were taking several seconds).
>
> I then did an EE INIT and restored KX3 configuration from backup but the ATU text does not appear on the main screen and ATU still shows “not inst”.
>
> Opened up the KX3 and I don’t smell anything other than the nice new PCB smell. :)
>
> Any ideas?

More info -

I went through the EE INIT process again and did not restore configuration this time.

Followed the manual to enable optional ATU and KXFL3 modules and now the radio lets me enable ATU in the menu but does not let me transmit. When I try to initiate an ATU tuning cycle or mic transmit, I see an error -

d = 000
ERR TxC

When I press the “DISP” button to clear, I get the next error -

ERR TXS

Any ideas?

Thanks,

—
VaibhaV Sharma
W7VAI

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Larry Lopez

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by VaibhaV Sharma

I have no KX3, nor do I walk on water.
I just googled d = 000, ERR TxC, ERR TXS:
Out popped a reference to the KX3 Users Manual:

I searched the KX3 Users Manual manual says:

ERR TXC,
ERR TXS:

Transmit attempt without first calibrating TX BIAS in CW
(TXC) or SSB (TXS) mode

Perform Transmit Bias calibration (pg. 33). This is a
fully-automated procedure that requires no test equipment

I would go to pg. 33 of the KX3 users Manual and Perform
and read the transmit Bias calibration.

I then search this list for "transmit Bias calibration".
That was interesting. Quite a few posts.

I have no clue what is wrong.

Larry Lopez

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

I wonder if this might be the problem !!!

There is a very interesting post with the title:

"KX3 production firmware update, rev 0.97 -- very important bug fix, better CW QSK, etc."

KX3 production firmware rev 0.97 (with DSP rev 0.84) is now available.
It corrects a problem in the power-on/off sequence that could
inadvertenly modify EEPROM locations (that is, operating parameters).
It has other significant improvements as well. See recent release
notes below.

...

* EEPROM DATA INTEGRITY IMPROVED: Previously, in rare cases one or
more EEPROM locations could be modified during power-on/off cycling.
Symptoms included “ERR TXC” or “ERR TXS” messages, AGC turned off, etc.

Bob N3MNT

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

The firmware update released after the KXPA100 was released, had an error that in some cases turned PA MODE on even if there was no amp connected. This automatically sets the KX3 ATU to not installed. Go into the the KX3 menu to PA MODE if it is set to on, just change it to off and you will be back to normal.

Don Wilhelm-4

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by VaibhaV Sharma

Since your saved configuration did not work, that configuration may have
an error.
Doing an EEINIT without going through the entire calibration procedure
is bound to produce multiple errors of unknown types.
If your KX3 is a factory built unit, Elecraft may be able to retrieve
the factory configuration file for you. Contact [hidden email]
to see if they can send you the file.

You can do *all* the calibration manually. Follow the calibration
procedures in the manual.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 4/8/2014 2:56 AM, VaibhaV Sharma wrote:

> On Apr 7, 2014, at 11:40 PM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
>> Hello,
>> Just a few minutes ago, my KX3 started showing the ATU as “not inst” in the "ATU.x MD” menu.
>>
>> Was tuning around on 20m using Ham Radio Deluxe rig control and the KX3 serial communication became very sluggish. I reset the serial port and restarted Ham Radio Deluxe but it was still sluggish (frequency changes from the software were taking several seconds).
>>
>> I then did an EE INIT and restored KX3 configuration from backup but the ATU text does not appear on the main screen and ATU still shows “not inst”.
>>
>> Opened up the KX3 and I don’t smell anything other than the nice new PCB smell. :)
>>
>> Any ideas?
>
> More info -
>
> I went through the EE INIT process again and did not restore configuration this time.
>
> Followed the manual to enable optional ATU and KXFL3 modules and now the radio lets me enable ATU in the menu but does not let me transmit. When I try to initiate an ATU tuning cycle or mic transmit, I see an error -
>
> d = 000
> ERR TxC
>
> When I press the “DISP” button to clear, I get the next error -
>
> ERR TXS
>
>

______________________________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
Post: mailto:[hidden email]

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VaibhaV Sharma

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by Bob N3MNT

No luck. PA mode is already set to off.

On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 6:38 AM, Bob N3MNT <[hidden email]> wrote:

> The firmware update released after the KXPA100 was released, had an error
> that in some cases turned PA MODE on even if there was no amp connected.
> This automatically sets the KX3 ATU to not installed. Go into the the KX3
> menu to PA MODE if it is set to on, just change it to off and you will be
> back to normal.
>
>
>
>
> --
> View this message in context:
> http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KX3-ATU-Disabled-Problem-tp7586823p7586833.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
> Message delivered to [hidden email]
>

VaibhaV Sharma

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by Don Wilhelm-4

I tried disabling the ATU completely and still get the TX error.

I suspect there is something worse on the list here. But I don't understand
how the radio can go in this state with stable power and without any
transmission in progress.

Needs more investigation I guess. If I can't figure out by this afternoon,
will call support.

Thanks,

--
VaibhaV Sharma
W7VAI

On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 6:47 AM, Don Wilhelm <[hidden email]> wrote:

> Since your saved configuration did not work, that configuration may have
> an error.
> Doing an EEINIT without going through the entire calibration procedure is
> bound to produce multiple errors of unknown types.
> If your KX3 is a factory built unit, Elecraft may be able to retrieve the
> factory configuration file for you. Contact [hidden email] to
> see if they can send you the file.
>
> You can do *all* the calibration manually. Follow the calibration
> procedures in the manual.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 4/8/2014 2:56 AM, VaibhaV Sharma wrote:
>
>> On Apr 7, 2014, at 11:40 PM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Hello,
>>> Just a few minutes ago, my KX3 started showing the ATU as "not inst" in
>>> the "ATU.x MD" menu.
>>>
>>> Was tuning around on 20m using Ham Radio Deluxe rig control and the KX3
>>> serial communication became very sluggish. I reset the serial port and
>>> restarted Ham Radio Deluxe but it was still sluggish (frequency changes
>>> from the software were taking several seconds).
>>>
>>> I then did an EE INIT and restored KX3 configuration from backup but the
>>> ATU text does not appear on the main screen and ATU still shows "not inst".
>>>
>>> Opened up the KX3 and I don't smell anything other than the nice new PCB
>>> smell. :)
>>>
>>> Any ideas?
>>>
>>
>> More info -
>>
>> I went through the EE INIT process again and did not restore
>> configuration this time.
>>
>> Followed the manual to enable optional ATU and KXFL3 modules and now the
>> radio lets me enable ATU in the menu but does not let me transmit. When I
>> try to initiate an ATU tuning cycle or mic transmit, I see an error -
>>
>> d = 000
>> ERR TxC
>>
>> When I press the "DISP" button to clear, I get the next error -
>>
>> ERR TXS
>>
>>
>>
>

VaibhaV Sharma

Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by Larry Lopez

I am running the latest firmware versions on the KX3. Not sure if firmware
is the issue.

On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 3:51 AM, Larry Lopez <[hidden email]> wrote:

> I wonder if this might be the problem !!!
>
> There is a very interesting post with the title:
>
> "KX3 production firmware update, rev 0.97 -- very important bug fix, better
> CW QSK, etc."
>
> KX3 production firmware rev 0.97 (with DSP rev 0.84) is now available.
> It corrects a problem in the power-on/off sequence that could
> inadvertenly modify EEPROM locations (that is, operating parameters).
> It has other significant improvements as well. See recent release
> notes below.
>
> ...
>
> * EEPROM DATA INTEGRITY IMPROVED: Previously, in rare cases one or
> more EEPROM locations could be modified during power-on/off cycling.
> Symptoms included "ERR TXC" or "ERR TXS" messages, AGC turned off, etc.
>
>
>
>
> --
> View this message in context:
> http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KX3-ATU-Disabled-Problem-tp7586823p7586828.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
> Message delivered to [hidden email]

VaibhaV Sharma

Fixed and Reproduced - Ham Radio Deluxe + KX3 Issues - Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by VaibhaV Sharma

More info on this -

Howard @ Elecraft Support promptly sent me the factory default config file for the radio that fixed the issue. But later, I was able to reproduce the issue and also fix without the factory configuration.

I have the KX3 hooked up to Ham Radio Deluxe (latest version) with serial interface for CAT control. HRD works with the radio for the most part except I noticed this in the Radio CAT commands configuration -

| Advanced: KX3 | RF power (High) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix = |
| Advanced: KX3 | RF power (Low) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix = |

Notice the “Max = 120” part? Those values show up on HRD UI as -

RF Power Low = 12
RF Power High = 120

There are two RF power adjustment bard in HRD UI. The “RF Power Low” slider works OK (has other issues) with the KX3 12 watt limit. But even touching the “RF Power High” slider causes the KX3 to switch RF power value to 110+ Watts (Yes, without a KXPA100, I wish).

Once that happens, the ATU disengages and the radio refuses to transmit.

The easy way to fix this is to touch the “RF Power Low” slider and the radio switches back to under 12W and everything goes back to normal. Shouldn’t the KX3 itself handle this gracefully without tripping over the ATU with bunch of errors?

I am a brand new HRD user and still getting used to the UI. I reported a major security issue to them a few days ago and will report this issue to HRD team as well.

Comments / other ideas welcome.

Thanks,

—
VaibhaV Sharma
W7VAI

On Apr 8, 2014, at 9:32 AM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]> wrote:

> I tried disabling the ATU completely and still get the TX error.
>
> I suspect there is something worse on the list here. But I don't understand how the radio can go in this state with stable power and without any transmission in progress.
>
> Needs more investigation I guess. If I can't figure out by this afternoon, will call support.
>
> Thanks,
>
> --
> VaibhaV Sharma
> W7VAI
>
>
>
> On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 6:47 AM, Don Wilhelm <[hidden email]> wrote:
> Since your saved configuration did not work, that configuration may have an error.
> Doing an EEINIT without going through the entire calibration procedure is bound to produce multiple errors of unknown types.
> If your KX3 is a factory built unit, Elecraft may be able to retrieve the factory configuration file for you. Contact [hidden email] to see if they can send you the file.
>
> You can do *all* the calibration manually. Follow the calibration procedures in the manual.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 4/8/2014 2:56 AM, VaibhaV Sharma wrote:
> On Apr 7, 2014, at 11:40 PM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> Hello,
> Just a few minutes ago, my KX3 started showing the ATU as “not inst” in the "ATU.x MD” menu.
>
> Was tuning around on 20m using Ham Radio Deluxe rig control and the KX3 serial communication became very sluggish. I reset the serial port and restarted Ham Radio Deluxe but it was still sluggish (frequency changes from the software were taking several seconds).
>
> I then did an EE INIT and restored KX3 configuration from backup but the ATU text does not appear on the main screen and ATU still shows “not inst”.
>
> Opened up the KX3 and I don’t smell anything other than the nice new PCB smell. :)
>
> Any ideas?
>
> More info -
>
> I went through the EE INIT process again and did not restore configuration this time.
>
> Followed the manual to enable optional ATU and KXFL3 modules and now the radio lets me enable ATU in the menu but does not let me transmit. When I try to initiate an ATU tuning cycle or mic transmit, I see an error -
>
> d = 000
> ERR TxC
>
> When I press the “DISP” button to clear, I get the next error -
>
> ERR TXS
>
>
>
>

VaibhaV Sharma

Re: Fixed and Reproduced - Ham Radio Deluxe + KX3 Issues - Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

On Apr 8, 2014, at 6:36 PM, VaibhaV Sharma <[hidden email]> wrote:

> More info on this -
>
> Howard @ Elecraft Support promptly sent me the factory default config file for the radio that fixed the issue. But later, I was able to reproduce the issue and also fix without the factory configuration.
>
> I have the KX3 hooked up to Ham Radio Deluxe (latest version) with serial interface for CAT control. HRD works with the radio for the most part except I noticed this in the Radio CAT commands configuration -
>
> | Advanced: KX3 | RF power (High) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix = |
> | Advanced: KX3 | RF power (Low) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix = |
>
> Notice the “Max = 120” part? Those values show up on HRD UI as -
>
> RF Power Low = 12
> RF Power High = 120
>
> There are two RF power adjustment bard in HRD UI. The “RF Power Low” slider works OK (has other issues) with the KX3 12 watt limit. But even touching the “RF Power High” slider causes the KX3 to switch RF power value to 110+ Watts (Yes, without a KXPA100, I wish).
>
> Once that happens, the ATU disengages and the radio refuses to transmit.
>
> The easy way to fix this is to touch the “RF Power Low” slider and the radio switches back to under 12W and everything goes back to normal. Shouldn’t the KX3 itself handle this gracefully without tripping over the ATU with bunch of errors?
>
> I am a brand new HRD user and still getting used to the UI. I reported a major security issue to them a few days ago and will report this issue to HRD team as well.
>
> Comments / other ideas welcome.

Ticket number 707843 has been created on Ham Radio Deluxe bug reporting system.

—
VaibhaV
W7VAI

______________________________________________________________
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
Message delivered to [hidden email]

Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Fixed and Reproduced - Ham Radio Deluxe + KX3 Issues - Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

In reply to this post by VaibhaV Sharma

I believe you have identified an HRD problem. When the KXPA100 is
enabled, the KX3 ATU is disabled. The solution is to set the PA to OFF,
but apparently HRD is doing that whether the KXPA100 is pesent or not.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 4/8/2014 9:36 PM, VaibhaV Sharma wrote:

VaibhaV Sharma

Re: Fixed and Reproduced - Ham Radio Deluxe + KX3 Issues - Re: KX3 - ATU Disabled Problem

Reported the issue to HRD and they responded saying this has been fixed in
HRD 6.2. No more details of how this was fixed.

--
VaibhaV

On Tue, Apr 8, 2014 at 9:38 PM, Don Wilhelm <[hidden email]> wrote:

> I believe you have identified an HRD problem. When the KXPA100 is
> enabled, the KX3 ATU is disabled. The solution is to set the PA to OFF,
> but apparently HRD is doing that whether the KXPA100 is pesent or not.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 4/8/2014 9:36 PM, VaibhaV Sharma wrote:
>
>> More info on this -
>>
>> Howard @ Elecraft Support promptly sent me the factory default config
>> file for the radio that fixed the issue. But later, I was able to reproduce
>> the issue and also fix without the factory configuration.
>>
>> I have the KX3 hooked up to Ham Radio Deluxe (latest version) with serial
>> interface for CAT control. HRD works with the radio for the most part
>> except I noticed this in the Radio CAT commands configuration -
>>
>> | Advanced: KX3 | RF power (High) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max
>> = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix =
>> |
>> | Advanced: KX3 | RF power (Low) | Cmd = PC-04, Min = 0.00, Max
>> = 120.00, Prefix =, Suffix =
>> |
>>
>> Notice the "Max = 120" part? Those values show up on HRD UI as -
>>
>> RF Power Low = 12
>> RF Power High = 120
>>
>> There are two RF power adjustment bard in HRD UI. The "RF Power Low"
>> slider works OK (has other issues) with the KX3 12 watt limit. But even
>> touching the "RF Power High" slider causes the KX3 to switch RF power value
>> to 110+ Watts (Yes, without a KXPA100, I wish).
>>
>> Once that happens, the ATU disengages and the radio refuses to transmit.
>>
>> The easy way to fix this is to touch the "RF Power Low" slider and the
>> radio switches back to under 12W and everything goes back to normal.
>> Shouldn't the KX3 itself handle this gracefully without tripping over the
>> ATU with bunch of errors?
>>
>> I am a brand new HRD user and still getting used to the UI. I reported a
>> major security issue to them a few days ago and will report this issue to
>> HRD team as well.
>>
>> Comments / other ideas welcome.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> --
>> VaibhaV Sharma
>> W7VAI
>>
>>
>>
>