Re: K3: QRQ high-speed QSK

Posted by lstavenhagen on May 15, 2010; 2:46pm
URL: http://elecraft.85.s1.nabble.com/K3-QRQ-high-speed-QSK-tp5057956p5059248.html

While it's gracious of you to give the K3 the benefit of the doubt in the hands of "QRQ QSK gurus", I'm also not convinced this is a true failing of the K3, if it's true (my K3's dits sound ok to me at 50wpm full QSK, tho slightly shortened).

In fact, compromise is a hallmark of good design. The hardware limits that Guy talked about earlier are real so you have to be accommodating in those regards if you're going to do the entire radio right. Putting it another way, one would have to wonder what other things have gotten short shrift in those radios that do somehow manage to do full QSK at 100wpm cleanly. If it's the 7700, the rest of the RX performance in more useful areas is easily exceeded significantly by the K3. If it's the 7800, the K3 still exceeds many of its capabilities and at about 1/5 the cost.

I will say I'd be slightly more concerned if QRQ performance wasn't good in semi-breakin mode. That would be a more legitimate gripe - has anyone assessed the K3 at those speeds in non-QSK mode? Like I said, I only have the ability to make 50wpm with the built in keyer (cocoaModem can go faster but it's operating mode is J2A) so I don't know how it does above that.

I'd personally kind of put this around the level of the QRP threads and maybe a little above the knob threads. Not overly impressed.....

73,
LS
W5QD