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Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

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tbranton

Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

Good morning everyone,

I am looking for my forever ham rig and have a concern. Most of the questions and issues discussed here involve fairly technical electronics issues that are somewhat beyond my level of understanding. I am a pretty good CPA but not an electronics person at all.

My question, can a casual SSB operator mostly interested in talking with ham friends find happiness with the K3? Will I be in over my head with the technology side of the radio?

I know an answer will not involve electrons but I bet there are some pretty wise hams onboard that can provide some insite to my question.

Thanks so much and 73's

Tom

P.S. I am returning to ham radio after a 25 year absence, (ex WD5DFE) thus the long lapse in my electronics knowledge. I used to be pretty good with tube technology!

T.

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Dick Roth

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

Tom, I was in a similar situation. I had been away from ham radio for
quite some time and wanted to dive back in. I, also, was looking for
"my last rig".

Well, Tom, I found it! My K3 #859 is a wonderful radio! A casual
operator can operate this radio right out of the box, but it is super
flexible and over time you might discover features and menu options that
let you feel even more at home with your K3. By the way, my K3 is my
first solid state HF radio (I have a hollow state brain).

So if you want a truly great radio with incredibly impressive customer
service look no further than Elecraft.

73 de Dick, ka1oz
Elecraft K3/100K #859
G5RV Doublet

On 04/04/2013 11:54 AM, Tom Branton wrote:

> Good morning everyone,
>
> I am looking for my forever ham rig and have a concern. Most of the questions and issues discussed here involve fairly technical electronics issues that are somewhat beyond my level of understanding. I am a pretty good CPA but not an electronics person at all.
>
> My question, can a casual SSB operator mostly interested in talking with ham friends find happiness with the K3? Will I be in over my head with the technology side of the radio?
>
> I know an answer will not involve electrons but I bet there are some pretty wise hams onboard that can provide some insite to my question.
>
> Thanks so much and 73's
>
> Tom
>
> P.S. I am returning to ham radio after a 25 year absence, (ex WD5DFE) thus the long lapse in my electronics knowledge. I used to be pretty good with tube technology!
>
> T.
>
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________________
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
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>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
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>
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> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>

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K9QJS

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Tom,

I am a mostly casual SSB operator and I am loving my K3. It took a little bit of fiddling with to set up it up - I made adjustments to AGC threshold and slope. I enjoyed learning about these settings and was surprised by how much they allowed me to adjust the audio for my listening pleasure. If you search the archives here, you will see messages about the K3 being a "noisy receiver." And I thought mine was, too, but those afore-mentioned controls do amazing things.

I am not a EE by background, but I do enjoy learning. I used Fred Cady's (KE7X) book to great advantage in making adjustments … not hard, and something to learn. I followed his step-by-step instructions, and experienced how the radio would respond.

Also, I definitely enjoy reports from listeners that I have "great audio" using either my Elecraft MH2 mic or my Yamaha CM500 headset with boom microphone. These are unsolicited reports, and I certainly enjoy getting them.

I bought the K3 last October, and I built it myself - great fun doing that, too. No EE experience required. And I have made additions to it over time … new filters, and the P3.

I'm operating my K3 with the P3 pan adapter, and wow, is that a fun addition. The P3 has totally changed how I tune in stations, and made it LOTS more fun. Words can barely describe how much fun it is.

I spend a fair amount of time working at my computer, with the K3 on in the background, and I am listening to stations. I may glance over at the P3 and see, on the waterfall display, a new station pop up. I'll spin the dial, and tune them in, and have sometimes been the first to work the DX before a pile up developed. That's fun. I want to operate my K3 at field day this June … and the P3 will be right there next to it.

The P3 helped me see where a DX station was working split, 5 to 10 up, and I was able to see which frequency he appeared to be listening on. I went to that frequency and worked the DX. The way I did this was to see where he was transmitting, and when he was not calling QRZ but speaking to an individual whom I could also hear, the water fall display clearly showed the second frequency.

I'm still a casual operator, and my experience has been fantastic with the K3 and with the P3. Wouldn't have it any other way. Now, all I need is more antennas.

73,
Hoop
K9QJS

On Apr 4, 2013, at 8:54 AM, Tom Branton <[hidden email]> wrote:

Good morning everyone,

I am looking for my forever ham rig and have a concern. Most of the questions and issues discussed here involve fairly technical electronics issues that are somewhat beyond my level of understanding. I am a pretty good CPA but not an electronics person at all.

My question, can a casual SSB operator mostly interested in talking with ham friends find happiness with the K3? Will I be in over my head with the technology side of the radio?

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Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Tom,

Welcome back to ham radio.

Are you capable of connecting a microphone to the transceiver and also
an antenna?
I know that may seem to be a bit of a "smart answer", but it is
reality. The default settings will suffice to get started. Yes, you
may have to change the menu items for microphone selection and whether
or not your microphone needs bias, but those basic settings are about
all that is required. Other 'for instance" is that you may want to
choose a different LCD brightness than the factory default, but that is
about as complicated as it has to be.

Yes, you should read the manual to have an idea about how the knobs and
buttons work, and as you progress through your "life with the K3" you
may be moved to try a few extra things, like customizing the TX EQ and
RX EQ settings (for instance) That will begin to customize the K3 to
your likings rather than just accepting the factory defaults. The K3
has a highly configurable CONFIG menu for those more complex 'set and
forget' items, but need not be a first concern (unless you want it to be).

When you have the notion to work in a contest, or try working some
exotic DX, you will have a capable contest grade transceiver that is up
to that task as well.

There is a lot of questions and discussions here on how to set up the K3
with a variety of external gear, such as used for soundcard based data
modes, an SO2R station, remote operation, and other such special
applications - those discussions can get quite technical and detailed,
but they are not for casual ragchewing operation. If you develop an
interest in some of these later, the K3 is capable of serving as the
main transceiver in even those most complex stations.

So yes, you can simply connect a microphone and an antenna to the K3 and
operate successfully. If and when you want to advance beyond that
point, the rest of the K3 capability is there just waiting to be
customized for your operating wants and needs.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 4/4/2013 11:54 AM, Tom Branton wrote:

Lewis Phelps

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Welcome back to the world of ham radio, Tom! Your path has been similar to mine, except that my early venture into ham radio was more than 50 years ago, not 25.

As to your question, the answer is an unequivocal "yes" from this ham operator, who was an English Writing major in college and has spent his entire career in journalism and related fields (definitely not electronics).

The K3 is not at all difficult to set up and operate at the 'basic' level for the kind of SSB operations that you envision. It has the versatility to allow almost infinite tweaking of operating parameters, but you will do very well simply using the basic recommended settings, which are discussed in the owner's manual. For even a casual operator, the superb design of the K3, especially the "best available" receiver, is a benefit to any owner, whether contester or rag-chewer. The K3 is my third HF rig (previously Yaseu) and I find it far more pleasant to use, in part because I can make more QSOs more easily, due to the more sensitive receiver. Plus, you can take the money you save with a K3 and invest in a better antenna, which is always a good idea.

You might well want to consider buying a finished K3 rather than building from kit, if assembly isn't something that you find enjoyable. You can either order directly from Elecraft or (if lucky) find a used on F/S on this reflector.

73,

Lew

Lew Phelps N6LEW
Pasadena, CA DM04wd
Elecraft K3-10
Yaesu FT-7800
[hidden email]
www.ntlew.us

On Apr 4, 2013, at 8:54 AM, Tom Branton <[hidden email]> wrote:

Harlan Sherriff

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Welcome back Tom.

I agree with all the other answers so far. The one thing I would add to these is... the K3 is an ever evolving radio. As new ideas come along, or improvements... the great folks at Elecraft update the "firmware". You can download the new version and wala... your radio is as up to date as any radio available. All for free. Sweet.
73, Harlan, NC3C.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

Tom Branton <[hidden email]> wrote:

>Good morning everyone,
>
>I am looking for my forever ham rig and have a concern. Most of the questions and issues discussed here involve fairly technical electronics issues that are somewhat beyond my level of understanding. I am a pretty good CPA but not an electronics person at all.
>
>My question, can a casual SSB operator mostly interested in talking with ham friends find happiness with the K3? Will I be in over my head with the technology side of the radio?
>
>I know an answer will not involve electrons but I bet there are some pretty wise hams onboard that can provide some insite to my question.
>
>Thanks so much and 73's
>
>Tom
>
>P.S. I am returning to ham radio after a 25 year absence, (ex WD5DFE) thus the long lapse in my electronics knowledge. I used to be pretty good with tube technology!
>
>T.
>
>
>
>
>
>________________________________________
>______________________________________________________________
>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

David Gilbert

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Lots of people seem to get hung up on the technology of the K3,
sometimes pointing to the intricacy of the rather extensive menu
system. In my opinion, that's totally unwarranted. I'm a fairly
serious contester and occasional DX'er, but I rarely touch more than a
couple of buttons on my K3 and I can't remember the last time I changed
a menu setting. There are dozens of people on this reflector who will
happily guide you through the initial menu settings for whatever style
of operating you prefer, and once that's in place the K3 can be simpler
to use than your satellite or cable TV box. I'm not exaggerating.

But ... with the availability of semi-regular software updates the K3 is
unlikely to let you ever outlive its usefulness either. Reflector
members will be happy to help you with that as well, although it is
really no more difficult than updating a driver on your computer.

Just my opinion.

73,
Dave AB7E

On 4/4/2013 8:54 AM, Tom Branton wrote:

David F. Reed-2

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by Harlan Sherriff

Tom,

for what its worth, the K3 is a lot more radio than a casual SSB
operator NEEDS.

Having said that, I would recommend one anyway for several reasons...

* Its relative lack of interference from nearby strong signals (if
they are clean) makes it a pleasure to use.
* Its excellent audio can be tailored to a very nice sounding to your
taste in audio transmitted, with almost any microphone you could choose.
* You can set a lot of the menu items and forget them once adjusted to
suit your conditions (NB and NR for example).
* It will be a long time before it is obsolete.
* Should your interests change more towards DXing or contesting, it is
one of the best (the best in my opinion) radios available, and can
be further tailored to that end easily, with options available from
the factory (different filters, dual RX, panadapter, and so on).

Basically, you could buy a stripped down K3 now, enjoy it, and as your
interests change (if they do), you can add to it to improve its use in
that capacity. I think you will be very pleased. The menus can be
intimidating at first, but you quickly learn the stuff you use
frequently, so it is really not a problem.

Good luck in your decision & 73 de Dave, W5SV

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N0AZZ

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by David Gilbert

I have owned some top end radios and I'm a SSB/Digital op my K3 replaced a
very good radio and I'm pleased to say may be my last.......unless a K4
comes along. You will be quite pleased with one bone stock out of the box
and with time find you can customize it however you please.

That's the beauty of the K3 you order what options "YOU" want when you want
them and set the radio up to please you.

Fred/N0AZZ

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Bill Clarke

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

I have been using my K3 for SSB rag chew on 40/75/160 since I built it
over a year ago. I don't DX or contest.

It took a long time to get the receive to where I wanted it for armchair
copy - but, it was well worth the effort. To me, the K3 is the Rolls
Royce of rigs, yet is not the most expensive out there. The K3 can be
the perfect rig for any ham - as there are so many variables in its
operation. You just have to learn how it all works and not be afraid to
make setting changes.

It took me a long time to get to where I really like my rig. The
learning curve is steep. That said, I recently added the P3 and have to
say that in over 50 years of hamming - the K3/P3 is the best I have used
and I have owned or used most of what has ever been out there.

There are several websites that have additional information regarding
settings used for various types of operation - just search them out - or
ask here, and you will be provided good direction.

Bill W2BLC

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Keith Heimbold

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

I am a new ham (only 27+ months licensed) and I couldn't be more happy with the K3. It provides the best receiver for the price bar none and like Fred mentioned it is customizable which is super cool.

I use it with dual receivers and the LP Panadapter and I enjoy it very much. If you are interested in 6m SSB (which means you probably won't be talking very much at least out west here) you will need the preamp. For HF it is a great rig and I especially love it on the lower bands where it really shines. The Noise blanker and roofing filters are excellent.

If I was going to do it all over again, I probably would have been just as happy with a new base model with the 2.8 kHz and a narrower CW filter, the transverter interface unit, and 6m preamp.

Good luck and welcome back (from the ultra-nube).

Keith
AK6ZZ

Sent from my iPhone please excuse typos

On Apr 4, 2013, at 8:56 AM, "Tom Branton" <[hidden email]> wrote:

Brian - K1NW

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Tom,

Don't even think twice or look over your shoulder. The K3 will be my last radio, unless they create a K4. I am not an electrical guy, but a biologist. I research my purchases and value quality as well as value.

If you value the same you will not regret purchasing a K3.

Brian, K1NW

Brian, op K1NW

Mel

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

Amen. Simply stated, a design like this only comes along once in a great while. No disrespect to the KX3.

Mel. K6KBE

________________________________
From: Brian - K1NW <[hidden email]>
To: [hidden email]
Sent: Thursday, April 4, 2013 4:04 PM
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

Tom,

Don't even think twice or look over your shoulder. The K3 will be my last
radio, unless they create a K4. I am not an electrical guy, but a biologist.
I research my purchases and value quality as well as value.

If you value the same you will not regret purchasing a K3.

Brian, K1NW

-----
Brian, op K1NW
--
View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/Will-a-casual-SSB-operator-enjoy-the-K3-tp7572189p7572220.html
Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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ve3dvy

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

Casual SSB with a K3: yes no worries there. It does casual SSB very
well.

forever rig with a K3: definitely unless some radical and amazing
new technology comes out that will turn ssb into a thing of the past the
K3 will be a great radio.

Do you need to be a propeller head like me to use a K3? no way! I
have used the K3 at Field Day for the Gota station. We had some new
hams and a few returning hams that felt quite comfortable with it in
short time. including one that had left the hobby when SSB was Duck
Talk and AM still dominated the phone bands. It is a great stand
alone rig. no computer needed just a power supply mic and antenna.
although a computer is handy sometimes for the other tasks like logging
etc.

Ok so is it too much radio? well probably not. It can be simple to
operate rig if thats all you need but one thing that I like about the K3
is what it can do if you want it to. If you plan on just using for
rag chew and nets. you will be happy. However If at some time you get
interested in some other part of the hobby like digital modes, SSTV,
contesting etc. the K3 will fit in to that as well. What I am
saying is it will have many options that you may never use, but it will
be there as your interests change.

David Moes

[hidden email]
VE3DVY

On 4/4/2013 11:54 AM, Tom Branton wrote:

Chris W7CTH

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton

I am only a casual SSB operator, The K3 is a great radio for anyone. Tech support is the best. One of the great things about the K3, is that you don't need to worry about next week the K4 will be out and 6 months
the K5 and so on. They keep making the K3 best with updates for everyone.

Chris W7CTH
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Tighe Kuykendall

Re: Will a casual SSB operator enjoy the K3?

In reply to this post by tbranton