Re: KPA500 and KAT500 Ports

Posted by Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ on Jul 13, 2011; 6:13pm
URL: http://elecraft.85.s1.nabble.com/KPA500-and-KAT500-Ports-tp6574422p6580099.html

I'd like to redirect this discussion to what is be desired for an
external antenna / rig switching add-on box for the K3/KPA500 and/or
KAT500.  This question may have been missed in my original posting (below).

 From that posting:

A much better solution for those needing more than two auto-selected
antennas is to use an external relay switch box, controlled by the
radio. This has the advantage of getting the cables, clutter, and
switching network off the desktop and either under the table or outside.

There are certainly a number of external antenna switches out there that
can do this, but if we offered something that was tightly integrated
with the K3 (and KPA500/KAT500) as a product, what features would be
desirable? (Number of antennas, rigs inputs, switching options etc.)

73, Eric WA6HHQ

---

www.elecraft.com


On 7/12/2011 3:34 PM, Eric Swartz - WA6HHQ, Elecraft wrote:

> Hi Gary,
>
> Having 4-5 RG8 antenna cables, plus the input cable, hanging out the
> back of the desktop ATU is both likely to pull the ATU off the desk, and
> will easily not fit in the box size we are planning. It also adds a lot
> of complexity and cost to the basic ATU in order to accommodate more
> connections with the needed isolation etc. We certainly do not want to
> price the ATU out of the range of most hams, or make it too large.
>
> Many of us use manual or automatic switches external to the amp / tuner
> to provide these functions.
>
> A much better solution for those needing more than two auto-selected
> antennas is to use an external relay switch box, controlled by the
> radio. This has the advantage of getting the cables, clutter, and
> switching network off the desktop and either under the table or outside.
> There are certainly a number of external antenna switches out there that
> can do this, but if we offered something that was tightly integrated
> with the K3 (and KPA500/KAT500) as a product, what features would be
> desirable? (Number of antennas, rigs inputs, switching options etc.)
>

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